Keeping the cat away from the Christmas tree

After getting cats we were still determined to keep getting live Christmas trees.  I can't really remember much about the first year, because they were still pretty small kittens, so they didn't seem to care much about the tree itself other than the ornaments.  Last year we only had the one cat for the first time, and being a little more bored (but happy) having no playmate, Jaypeg seemed to show a greater interest in the tree in the form of eating the needles.

We have gotten white pine the past couple years because I loooove the appearance of the longer needles, and because I heard internet horror stories about how evergreen needles can be deadly to cats if ingested (puncture intestines and the like).  I figured the softer pine needles would be a little easier on her internal organs than fir needles, if she happened to eat any.

And eat them she did, which led to vomiting on a fairly regular basis as pine needles are mildly toxic to cats. By the time Christmas was over I was so ready to be rid of the tree so we wouldn't have to deal with all the vomiting.

This year I kind of forgot about that and we picked up another gorgeous white pine (for $30 at Sobeys, who else thinks it's insane that a live tree that took years to grow doesn't cost $5000???) and she promptly started eating the needles before we'd even put the tree in the stand.  And of course started vomiting.

Last year I googled high and low to try and figure out how to keep her away from the tree but nothing seemed to work, including putting a compressed air motion sensor under the tree (she could just work around it). But this year I had a stroke of genius/luck the day after we set up the tree.

I was standing at the kitchen counter next to an empty wire cooling rack that I'd just taken a loaf of bread off of, one of these:

Jaypeg is not supposed to be on the counter which naturally means she is always on the counter, but I noticed her try to step on the cooling rack and then decide against it.  Eureka! I put the three wire racks we have around the tree, and sure enough, combined with the compressed air sprayer she pretty much completely avoids the bottom of the tree now. The only eating of needles and vomiting now is when our Roomba pushes the racks away a couple times a week but I can deal with that frequency (or maybe place the Roomba barriers better).

There you have it, internet - a surefire method for keeping your cat away from the Christmas tree: wire cooling racks!

Front Page Updates

So I finally remembered that I had this blog and came over here to check if I had an unmoderated pending comments etc.  I looked at the front page and realized that a) it's been well over two years since I regularly posted and b) I actually could update on a couple of those Front Page posts. So let's count them down.

Update - My Dad - it has now been over a year, and what an emotionally difficult year it was.  I just want people to know, if anyone is reading this, that when someone loses someone very close, like a parent, they don't just "get over it" after a month or two.  They may seem "fine" and happy and laughing but they are still very, very sad.  They still very likely want to talk about that person they have lost, and will want to for the rest of their life.  I am not saying this to be passive-aggressive to any friends who might be reading this, but rather perhaps for anyone who might happen to stumble across this blog and has never dealt with loss before.  I still miss and think about my dad multiple times per hour.  It is not something that goes away.

Update - Sourdough - I never did quite master the art of making true sourdough without yeast, but I did finally come up with a recipe that makes near-perfect whole wheat sourdough.  I modified this recipe to a point where it is not recognizable at all (but it was a good jumping off point), and mix/knead in a breadmaker but then do all of the rising and baking manually in the oven, because breadmaker bread is gross and weird shaped.  The resulting bread is sour but not too sour, slightly less than 50% white flour, light and fluffy and has a great crust. We haven't bought bread in probably two years.

Update - Natural Swaps - I can't believe this one was written so long ago.  I don't use all of these anymore but I have definitely made a habit of pretty natural skin and hair care.  I still do not use shampoo but wash my hair with a base of rhassoul clay and apple cider vinegar with some essential oils and glycerin mixed in and it works great.  Depending on the outside humidity I can go 1-3 weeks without washing (though still rinse every day).  I also still use the homemade deodorant and will never go back to anti-perspirant. The homemade lip balm is still a staple, and last winter I learned to make soap.  I wash my face with water only and use a homemade oil-based moisturizer on it and my skin is in much better condition than it ever has been - I can go an entire winter without getting "shiny forehead"!  To summarize I do not use any kinds of detergents (sodium lauryl sulfate or its other iterations) on my body anymore, and am totally sold on oils as moisturizers (contrary to what you might think, putting oil on your skin makes it LESS greasy).  It doesn't take much time to whip up a small batch of moisturizer, lip balm, or even bar soap.  This is one "hobby" that has definitely become a lifestyle.

And finally, update - Kittens - Even without losing my dad, last November was a tough month.  Early in the month our two sweet cats started violently fighting after one of them was accidentally stepped on.  We had no idea what to do and were advised by various veterinarians that they would get over it but we would just need to ease them back to like each other again.  We began some very complicated and stressful routines of separating the cats other than during supervised play together, and after about a week they seemed to be friends again.  But then of course a cat got under foot again and started the whole cycle, which then evolved into not being traumatized by getting stepped on but other random triggers that we could not pinpoint.  It was so sad and stressful and to be honest, the day my dad died I had actually already spent the entire day crying because I knew that the cat situation probably couldn't be salvaged.  When my dad passed away we took our adorable brown cat Biter to my friend Carolyn's for some cat sitting until we decided what to do, and she ended up keeping him which was so great.  I still really miss him but I am so happy that he was able to go to a great home where he is loved and can be the king of his castle.

After we separated the cats, their personalities both changed.  They both became more talkative and loving, shed less and purred more.  It sort of broke my heart to realize that they were likely living in a stressful power struggle the entire time they'd been together which finally snapped, but I'm so glad they are both happy now and mostly stress-free (cats are weird and get stressed out by strange things).  We still have Jaypeg who is definitely a mischief maker but one of the most friendly and funny cats you will ever meet. Here she is today, trying to knock over the Christmas tree.

And chewing on my hand on her favourite new place in the house, our bed.


My life has changed a lot since I regularly blogged on here, but it's kind of neat for me to see too that a couple of the things I was excited enough about a couple years ago to sit down and blog about when blogging wasn't a priority are now regular parts of my routine. No promises but I hope I can revive this space again in the next while and get back into the habit of writing.

My Dad

On November 22, 2014, ten days after my 30th birthday, my heart shattered into a million pieces when my dear, sweet, loving father passed away suddenly and unexpectedly.

My dad was the best person. He was kind and gracious and positive and enthusiastic.  He was accepting of people who were different from him and he was truly interested in hearing everyone's stories.  He loved so many things and he gave his all to various hobbies and organizations and people but somehow made it all work.  He was not a world traveler or a big risk-taker but he is one of the few people I've ever known who I can say absolutely lived his life to the fullest.  He loved, and was loved by, a staggering number of people.

I miss him every second of every day and I would give anything to have him back.  I am so lucky that I had the world's greatest dad in my life for 30 years, but it was much too short.

I want to be like him, and honour him with everything I do for the rest of my life.