Zebbycat Thwarted

My rescue cat loves his possessions. They are his, and his alone. He doesn't have to share them or Mickle with anyone else. Here Zeb is sitting on the remains of catnip inpregnated scratch pads one and two. To his right is scratch pad three.

Scratchpad #1 was a Christmas present from my dear Parents for Zeb.

It took 6 months of determined love and happy destruction for Zebby to demolish the scratchpad. He ripped down the sides, so they lay flat and then did the same to the ends. Then determinedly scratch ed on the scratchy bit while also trying to detach this from its base.

Eventually there was only a small strip attached to the base that eventually gave way and was completely shredded over the floor. 6months of effort and Zebbycat fun. The base was left as it is HIS.

Scratchpad #2 : Gettting the hang of it, Zeb soon ripped the scratch pad bit from its base so it was easier for him to move around. The base was still around and left there too - it is all His.

Only three months this time to achieve his glorious demolition and get Mickle to vacuum up all the little bit of corrigated cardboard.

So by now there are the bases and lids from #1 and #2.............. and #3 is given to Zebby in about October 2007.

Sides flattened down again, top worn by scratching and chewing and bites but it still exists. Doesn't look to much worse from last year's photo above....

As a treat after his shaved belly, at the tests and the needles while I was away I bought a new Scratch Pad. A different brand this time.

Zebby loves it, there is even a separate bag of dry catnip for me to sprinkle over from time to time.

Only on this one the outer box is solidly glued all the was around to the inner scratchpad. Much harder to demolish for Zebbycat. He's already applied claws and teeth only to find strong resistance.

And there will be much less vacuuming for Mickle.

Glorious and Gluten Free

For the celebrations a couple of weekends ago Liz and I made a delicious cake that was gluten free. We combined Nigella Lawson's Clementine Cake recipe with the syrup from Nigel Slater's Citrus Polenta Cake recipe.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/nigella-lawson/clementine-cake-recipe/index.html. I used a mix of oranges and lemons, increasing the sugar quantity as Nigella suggests.

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Then Liz made the syrup:

large juicy lemon

large orange

100gr golden caster sugar

2 tblsp liquer (limoncello, cointreau etc..)

Finely grate the zest from the lemon and orange over a measuring jug. Cut fruits in half and squeeze juice into the jug. Top up to 250ml (1 cup) with cold water. Pour into saucepan and add sugar. Bring to the boil and keep at a rapid bubble until the sugar has dissolved and the liquid has reduced to about 175ml (3/4 of its original volume). Remove from heat and add liquer.

Spike holes in the cake while it is still warm and pour the syrup over.

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Enjoy

As you can see, it didn't last long with us!

Natural Wealth

I just left a comment that I then realised I must amend/enhance, and then share with all.

The Richness of Friendship from the Blog World

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has me

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Feeling Very Wealthy

NZ Forestry

• The "European Settlers" found many a thing grew well over here. One that has been to EnZeds advantage is the tree Pinus Radiata. It reaches maturity in about 30 years in the centre of our North Island.
  
  
  
• It is due to the "Volcanic Soil". Layer after layer deposited by the Volcanoes around this part. No molten lava. Our Volcanoes chuck out volcanic ash and rocks, stones and ash, and very liquid mud.

• So............the photo is from within a forestry plantation. Some land clear after harvesting, native brush and ferns growing there, and trees in the background. And a sample of the land around the Western Bay of Plenty in New Zealand.

• Volcanic lands in NZ mean you're forever going up and down, and up and down, and up and down (Tauranga and Auckland).

Where as in Wellington you are only ever going up Up UP, or DOWN Down down

I Choose Wellington!!!

...

Living on top of a major, often active earthquake fault line and all -

Guess is all about what you grow up with!

No snakes, poisonous spiders*, scorpions, before Humans = no indigenous mammals of any sort besides some harmless wee bats, that went "eeep" at a high frequency.

( well, just the Katipo which habitates sand dunes -and I don't)

A Bit Chilly

We're in the middle of another long blast straight from the Antarctic. Has been going on since last weekend and not due to stop yet.

So I give you the words from my all-time favourite Garfield cartoon. It starts with pic of him from the knees up:

I LOVE SCRAMBLED EGGS

... ESPECIALLY ON CHILLY MORNINGS ...

WHEN MY FEET GET COLD.

!!!

Likenesses Continued.....

Dear Mum with her Brothers, Roy on the left and Frank on the right.

Now these dear Uncles are Twin Brothers.

Try growing up with identical twin Uncles - it was years before I could tell them apart.

Uncle Frank would have looked more relaxed if the dear man wasn't also keeping an eye out for his dear wife, my lovely Aunty Rae. Our Rae has had a very rotten time with dastardly Sciatica for a long while now.

Uncle Roy was very recently returned from yachting related travels to South Korea. A Country he described as being "interesting"!!!

The family likenesses here start at the nose. When dear Mum visited the Relies in Northern Ireland in recent times I thought I would see something similar about their eyes - nope, the noses won!!

Family and Family Likenesses

On the right, dear Dad (alarmed at being caught in a photo), on the left his dear brother, Phil.

And in the middle, their dear cousin, Sue.

Dad and Phil outside with Mum over on the left

Going round from the top left:

Mickle, Mum, Phil, Dad*, Phil's daughter's Beth and Amanda, and sister Liz in front of me

And don't attempt to look for hair colour likenesses between the sisters/cousins - its all augmented!!!

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The two brothers - aren't their ways of standing and expressing themselves so alike.

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*Sadly Dad and Phil's middle brother, David, died when in his mid fifties. He was not only my uncle but also my God Father. Sue's brother, David, died in his twenties. I never knew him but, my goodness, he had the family resemblance too.

Party Prep

Pete carves the roasted chook .....

while Mum works the sandwich assembly line ....

and Dad has to remove his electrical gear before he turns on the Beer Fridge!

To keep you going while I sneeze and cough ......

"Nude man hit by bus

By STACEY WOOD - The Dominion Post
10/06/2009

A naked man has been hit by a bus in the Mt Victoria bus tunnel in Wellington.

Inspector Paul Jermy said the man was walking or running through the tunnel about 4:45pm when he was struck.

The man was being taken to Wellington Hospital with serious injuries, an ambulance spokesman said. The exact nature of his injuries was unknown but they were not believed to be life-threatening, police said.

"He seems to have been able to express his dissatisfaction at being hit," Mr Jermy said......." "

Purrball settled at last

All is getting back to normal - Zebedee is purrrrrrumbling away to himself on our bed.

Back Home Again

Yes, both Mickle and Zebbycat came home this afternoon and evening.

I woke up in Tauranga with what I really hoped was just an allergy sniffle. My immune system decided other wise and it soon became a head cold.

Rang the vet centre to let them know I was back in Wellington, and they told me I could come and get Zeb around 6 tonight. Following his various tests, and teeth cleaning and ultrasound under anaesthetic Zeb has shaved patches on his neck, both front legs and a huge area over his tum. I can see his tummy button!

With the lad's undertow his tum rests on the ground when he's sitting, and it is getting a bit cold. After 4 hours at home ( for the first 3 he was completely hyper) he has finally settled on our bed, but wont let his head go down in a snoozle.

My boy has been diagnosed with a (currently) low level Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Cor, the same disease type as me! And his kidney function needs keeping an eye on. too

Typical Zebby - the super smoochy lad won over all the vet centre staff . My daft darling even purred at them today when they were putting in IV needles. He is so popular there I'm lucky I got him back!

Yes, more photos and tales from the weekend soon, just let me get through this slowly descending lurgi (voice starting to croak).

I don't know what Sister said........

..... for Mum to be threatening her with a knife ,

meanwhile Dad looks bemused (?) !!!

Survived it all....

Was a great "do". I made it out of the kitchen after a wee while. Got more huggles than I can remember in a long while.

We made it!

My Takeover Continues...

Preparations for my Folks' big 50th Wedding Anniversary celebrations continue.....

My Dear Folks have openly said to others that "Mickle has been organising us" and they're happy about it!

We are edging closer to D Day (yes they share their wedding anniversary with the anniversary of this other event).

Visit this morning to the deli of chef Peter. Dad went to some cooking classes here a couple of years back. Mum joined in for the meat cookery class. The darling parents were having a great general chat with Peter. I wanted to talk food specifics but struggled to get a word in*. The folks are getting Peter to put together some foodplatters for Saturday. I did get to choose the general make up of them, and request a specific cheese**.

Much of the food needed for cooking and feeding now here. The fridge got a clean anyway. Tomorrow is a lazy day for me - I'm supposedly on holiday, LOL.

Dear Sister Liz, and her partner, Pete arrived in NZ today from England. They are lying low in Auckland tomorrow, then pick up their hire car and drive down to Tauranga ( about 2 1/2 hours) Thursday afternoon.

Then organised the (by me) chaos will happen. Friday I will be cooking and directing the traffic. I am really looking forward to a day of cooking - the folks have a dishwasher, I don't. And much talking - the folks are foolishly going out to be test patients for a graduate nursing course exam in the morning ( no, nowt medically procedural). Leaving Liz, Pete and me loose in their home. There is a good supermarket only a kilometre (less than a mile) away

Now expecting about 40 people on Saturday plus the five of us. Dad and Pete both have digital cameras, so let the fun begin!!!



* Sister is 3 1/3 years older. Apparantly I didn't really talk until she started school aged 5. Then I didn't bother with baby talk rubbish, I spoke in full sentences. Hey, with Liz around I could never get a word in. Family friends even named a budgie "me too" after Mickle. Liz would tell them "we went to ......." as she eventually took a breath I got the brief chance to slip in "me too"! In this aspect Liz takes after our dear Mum!!

** Whitestone Cheese's Windsor Blue, made down in NZ's South Island, is creamy, luscious and bluely devine. Will serve alongside Mickle homemade quince jelly. yummo.

Post 100

Coo - how did I find this much to rant and rave about?

Still stunned that folks want to visit here!