Cat Allergies

One of the most common reasons people give for getting rid of their cat is cat allergies. For some its a convenient excuse because they are tired of the responsibility but for others its a very real issue. Several animal experts, including Bestfriends, have compiled lists of what can be done to help pet owners who have a family member with allergies but want to keep their four-legged friend.

If this is an issue for you, here are some things to try.

Brush your cat every day

Don't allow kitty in the bedroom

One school of thought: Serve high quality, natural cat food to prevent the escape of toxins through the cat's skin

Once a week, give your cat a bath

Run a HEPA air purifier

Talk to your physician about possible medications for allergies

Use furnace filters designed to catch pet dander

Vaccum frequently

Wash your hands after handling kitty or kitty's toys and bedding

'Sppt, patience is for the old and humility is for those not born to royalty.'~Prince Sittchuk Seth, ODIN CATS

Please tell your teens and tweens: Downtown YA, is coming January 3rd at downtownya.blogspot.com.

Janet Davies/Amarinda Jones will be blogging on tatting.

There will also be a book drawing give away January 10.

The Clean Up Brigade

Well the holidays are winding down and major pick up and clean up is in order at the Cox household. When Christmas Day rolls around, I give up any pretense of trying to stay on top of the housework. But now that the holiday is over its time for the Cleanup Brigade. While the Brigade is on call during the holidays, the workload rises steadily after the guests leave. Unfortunately, there's no overtime pay. No doubt due to the poor economy.

The topic of housework doesn't exactly lead the list in titillating topics, but out of curiosity how many of your loved ones and guests make their bed?

I've got two in the family that are stellar. From there its downhill.

How many cook?

Here I'm very fortunate. I've got three in the family that love to cook and make mouthwatering meals. And if we happen to be grilling out, the number goes up to five.

What about cleaning up the kitchen after the cooking?

Okay my numbers drop significantly here.

Miscellaneous help?

Everyone gains points on this one. All the family is usually willing to help out with the odd jobs.

Laundry?

Points to the family on this one too.

The bathrooms?

We won't even go there.

If you are a member of the CB, I hope the cleanup fairies come to visit your house. They've left mine and I don't look for them back for a very long time.

Odin Cats

Christmas Eve

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.

"You are brave, kind and intelligent, but you lack patience and humility."~ Furrlin, the wizard cat. ODIN CATS

Christmas and Quotes

"The earth has grown old with its burden of care But at Christmas it always is young, The heart of the jewel burns lustrous and fair And its soul full of music breaks the air, When the song of angels is sung."~Phillips Brooks

Wednesday's Quote:
"I have been learning since I was a kit. What else is there to know? I can hunt. I can speak both human and Catonese. I have studied the strategies of all the great leaders: the lions, tigers, pumas, even detestable man. I know everything I need to know."~ Prince Sittchuk Seth, ODIN CATS

Christmas and Dickens

"Time was with most of us, when Christmas day, encircling all our limited world like a magic ring, left nothing out for us to miss or seek; bound together all our home enjoyments, affections, and hopes; grouped everything and everyone around the Christmas fire, and make the little picture shining in our bright young eyes, complete."~Charles Dickens

Silliest picture:
The bro and I in Metropolis, IL.

What's your silliest picture?

Tuesday's Quote:

"While I laud your courage, your insolence bores me. Show your mother the respect that is her due. She has earned it. You haven't."~Thut, The Abyssinian King, Odin Cats.

Santa and Odin Cats

Lets be naughty and save Santa the trip.~Gary Allan

Pacing back and forth across the smooth stone floor, Sittchuk-Seth stopped at the window. He rose on his hind legs to stick his head out the stone window embrasure and smell the clean salt air from the sea. He inhaled, drawing air deep into his belly. The massive castle reminded him of a velvet-lined prison. He yearned to fight his first battle against man and dogs, to flirt with pretty Odin Cats and ferals. Instead, he was confined to this dark gray castle that jutted on a scree of boulders, with the ocean singing its siren song far below.

Christmas at the Griswold, err, Cox Household

Clark: I dedicate this house to the Griswold family Christmas.

The Griswold's have nothing on the Cox's.

The house is currently filled with eight cats, two dogs, and the occasional relative.

We had a snowstorm last night. Our daughter-in-law got caught in it and had to stop for the night.

We were shoveling snow at seven a.m. to get the boy to the airport and get to my brother's graduation. Since we live in the south, there's not the immediate response by the road crews you find in the north. It took us about forty-five minutes to get out of our subdivision and if our chauffer (the hh) hadn't grown up in the midwest where snowstorms are prevelent I'm sure we'd still be sitting in the drive. But like riding a bike the winter driving techniques kicked in.

And so.....

The daughter-in-law made it to the airport.

The boy to the airport and

We made it to my bro's graduation.

All's well that ends well.

Happy Holidays.

Odin Cats and Christmas

I will honor Christmas in my heart and try to keep it all the year.

Charles Dickens

Odin Cats: Fighting cats, known for their cunning and wisdom. Felines that have evolved intellectually into man’s equal. The royal Odins speak both English and Catonese and their average weight is a hundred pounds. The females can only produce one kit.

“I want to go!” Sittchuk-Seth’s plumy silver tail lashed back and forth, his jaw tight, his expression obstinate.
His father Thut sat upon his throne. His beautiful russet paws rested on the burnished gold arms of the regal chair, his expression both indulgent and annoyed. “What say you, Furrlin, shall we take this whelp of mine?” he asked the soothsayer.
Furrlin padded over to the blue crystal ball that stood in the corner near the throne. Standing on his hind legs, he rested his front paws on the crystal. The interior of the globe began to stir, to roll and flash in a prism of color. Furrlin stared unblinking into the ball as the blinding colors flashed. After a long moment, the storm of colors receded and once more lay dormant.
“Well,” demanded Thut.
Furrlin turned and shrugged. “His destiny is already written. Do what you will.” He dropped to his four paws and padded back to the king.

Released Today at Whiskey Creek Press

Man with his constant desire to enslave and assert his will has destroyed the earth. From this destruction the world has been rebuilt. Similiar yet different. Guns in a primitive form exist, but there are no cars or planes. There is no resources to fuel them.

Now two factions vie for power: man, who did not learn from his mistakes, and Odin Cats.

There is a legend among the Odins. An Odin will come with the pure blood of royalty flowing through his veins. This cat will lift the ferals out of their oppression and unite the kingdoms of Odin and man.

Christmas Time and Holly

When the baby Jesus was born in Bethlehem Christmas night a barren Holly bush, located near the stable, burst into bloom.

I have always thought of Christmas time, when it come around, as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they were fellow passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys .

Charles Dickens

Winter Festival at PPBs begins today.







Damask roses are considered 'old roses' known for their wonderful fragrance. Old roses are roses that existed before 1867.

Peace

If there is to be peace in the world,

There must be peace in the nations.

If there is to be peace in the nations,

There must be peace in the cities.

If there is to be peace in the cities,

There must be peace between neighbors.

If there is to be peace between neighbors,

There must be peace in the home.

If there is to be peace in the home,

There must be peace in the heart.

Lao Tzu (570 - 490 B.C.E.)

Winter Festival

My day is December 10th. A free snowman magnet, will be included with the purchase of Flower Power that day.

Also if you have purchased Flower Power drop me a line at [email protected] and I'll send you a handmade, vintage style bookmark by artist Meghan Cox.

'I like living. I have sometimes been wildly, despairingly, acutely miserable, racked with sorrow, but through it all I still know quite certainly, just to be alive is a grand thing.'
Agatha Christie

The Blind Side and Cottage Gardens

Belle Cox


'Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.' Abraham Lincoln



We saw Blind Side yesterday. Show of hands, who's seen it? I thought it was an amazing movie. And the theatre was every bit as crowded as it was for New Moon. Part of that may have been due to the Thanksgiving Weekend Crowd. But I wonder if a lot of folks did like I did, caught New Moon when it first came out and Blindside the next weekend. I was told one reviewer slammed it because of the rich white and poor black issue. But so what. It wouldn't have mattered if it had been a rich pink family and a poor purple young man. What it all boiled down to was lending a helping hand and being enriched because of it.


If you haven't seen it, and want a feel good movie, I recommend it. I don't think you'll be disappointed.



Cottage gardens are a wonderful conglomeration of textures, colors and scents. You can find perennials, annuals, herbs, vegetables and wild flowers all growing side by side in this cosy garden.

Happy Thanksgiving

***

"Thanksgiving dinners take eighteen hours to prepare. They are consumed in twelve minutes. Half-times take twelve minutes. This is not coincidence."

Erma Bombeck

I found a rose still blooming on Thanksgiving.

The tree is up. You probably can't tell from the picture but the tree topper is a cat that a friend gave me. Surprise huh.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving to those that celebrate it and to those that d

on't, have a wonderful day.

Mom and Scented Geraniums

"My mother had a slender small body but a large heart--a heart so large that everybody's joys found welcome in it, and hospitable accomodation"--Mark Twain

* * *

Chocolate-scented Geraniums have large, fuzzy, deep green leaves that produce a chocolate aroma. The scented geraniums are grown more for their fragrance then their floral appeal.

Orange-scented Geraniums have leaves that smell like Mandarin Oranges.

Coconut-scented Geraniums are vine-like and smell like pina colada.

Have you grown any scented Geraniums?

Reading, Butterflies and Living Wills

Give me a man or woman who has read a thousand books and you give me an interesting companion. Give me a man or woman who has read perhaps three and you give me a dangerous enemy indeed. Anne Rice, The Witching Hour

* * *

Perennials that attract butterflies: Aster, Bee Balm, Coneflower, Dame's Rocket, Hollyhock, Phlox, Sedum and Verbena. Are there any more perennials that you're aware of, we can add to the list?

* * *

Living Will

Last night my kids and I were sitting in the living room and I said to them, "I never want to live in a vegetative state dependent on some machine and fluids from a bottle. If that ever happens just pull the plug."

They got up, unplugged the computer and threw out my wine.

Moves and Gardens

We are heading out to watch Edward and Jacob's moves.

Enjoy your weekend.

Annual Gardens: Annuals are flowers that die back at the end of the season. However, several annuals reseed themselves. Gardeners plant them because of their continuous summer blooms.

Friday

Hang on till Friday......Wait a minute. It is Friday!

Flowers, Cats, and Giveaways

Your Garden

Nothing is more soothing and guaranteed to relieve the day's stress than walking through your fragrant garden watching the butterflies flit from flower to flower and listen to the whir of the hummingbirds. In gardens we meditate, restore our spirit, create and envision our future. There are many gardens to choose from. One is the birder's garden.

Birder’s Garden

If you would like to plant flowers that attract birds, try the following:
Black-eyed Susan
Bachelor Button
Cockscomb
Coneflower
Daisy
Goldenrod
Shrub Rose
Snapdragon
Sunflower
Zinnia
Flowers that attract hummingbirds:
Bee Balm
Butterfly Weed
Columbine
Coral Bells
Evening Primrose
Nicotiana
Hollyhock
Foxglove
Petunia
Pineapple Sage
Salvia
Zinnia
Most of your flowers will thrive in a sunny location but you will want a tree or two or possibly some tall shrubs on the perimeter of your garden for the birds. This will also give shade to your columbine and foxglove. If you let your plants die back instead of deadheading (removing the dead blooms), the birds will enjoy getting the seeds. They will be especially appreciative if you have a nice clean bird bath in your garden filled with fresh water.

Just for fun: This week I’ll be having a daily drawing to give away a vintage-style, handmade bookmark by artist Meghan Cox. To enter: all you have to do is send an email to [email protected] and put bookmark in the subject line.

Flower Power Trailer

Flower Power is released today and Happy BDays

When you only have two pennies left in the world, buy a loaf of bread with one and a lily with the other-Chinese proverb

I am pleased to announce that Flower Power is released in e today and will be in print by Thanksgiving.
I'm very excited about this book on many levels.
Foremost:) My daughter drew a picture specifically for Flower Power that the editor has included in the book.
Secondly:) It was fun. Made so in part by my friends that made contributions to FP. Thank you! And thank you to my aussie mate who cared enough to point out my first trailer really needed some revisions:)
And last but not least, my publisher/editor has really put alot of effort and support into this book. She has included black and whites in the print version and a colored electronic supplement for both e and print purchases.
Both the e version, currently available, and the print order can be, preordered, at: http://www.jupitergardenspress.com/

Happy Birthday, Mike.

Belated Happy Birthday, Aussie Woman.

Pet Owners

I experience a period of frightening clarity in those moments when nature is so beautiful. I am no longer sure of myself and the paintings appear as in a dream.

Vincent Van Gogh

Pet owners is an oxymoron. Everyone knows the pets own us.

I'm sure those that don't have four-legged family members do a lot of eye-rolling at those of us who do, especially if they listen to us talk to them.

Pets do understand certain words. Chuck, my white cat knew his name and the word milk. He also knew 'no' but most times chose to ignore it. And I feel confident he knew the family members names, as well.

Now we all know they don't understand full sentences, but just the same we talk to them as if they do. The new foster gives a little growl as soon as he sees anyone. Its seems to be a combination of 'hello' and 'I'm a tough guy don't mess with me', which translates into 'I'm quivering in my boots but don't want anyone to know it.'

The other day he was on the table and I shooed him off. He gave his little growl and I said, honest to God, without even thinking about it, "Don't you take that tone with me, young man."

I started laughing as soon as the words were out of my mouth.

What's the craziest thing you've said to your pet? What words does your pet understand?

* * *

Along with its electronic color supplement, Flower Power will be released in e in the next day or two. It will be available in print by Thanksgiving. Jupiter Gardens Press has done an amazing amount of work on this. I'm quite excited about its release.

Thursday's cat pic and quote

'First one to make a break for it dies like a dog.'--SKY MURDER

This is Caesar, the new foster.

WIDOW'S WALK by Ken Weene is available at Amazon.com, If you'd like more information here is his link and also his video, which is very good.
http://www.widows-walk.webs.com/
http://vidego.multicastmedia.com/player.php?p=wbgzb2yk

To a Cat 'No' means not while you're looking.

Unknown