The (not so) free pool table finally sees some use.

March 26, 2021 Rivergirl 30 Comments

So the free pool table… the one that has cost us approximately $14,000 ( and counting ) in storage barn to man cave renovations… actually saw some action last weekend.

Two of the husband’s coworkers came by for the afternoon (no worries, all 3 men are fully vaccinated) for Cajun gumbo, beer and pool. I don’t play, so I know my other half was happy. And me? I was happy because I received another bar christening gift.

I’d never even heard of this whiskey but it turned out to have a pleasing toasted undertone.

After two games of pool, it was determined the table needed to go from horizontal placement to vertical to allow more shooting space.

Which then required multiple leveling maneuvers. Turns out the barn floor is not at all level. Shocking, I know.

Play continued into the night, as did the whiskey drinking and strange reflections from the overhead lighting.

A good time was had by all… and let me tell you, it was nice to host even two people after a year of no socializing with friends.

😊

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I will win. Or die trying….

March 26, 2021 Rivergirl 45 Comments

Lord Dudley Mountcatten and I are in the midst of a wee skirmish. And while his highness is completely spoiled rotten and indulged in most things here in Catlandia, there’s one place this human draws the line…. and that’s the litter box.

When Dudley moved in I dragged our old one up from the basement. It was a massively large box because our last cat was, well… massive.

I dutifully filled it with Tidy Cat and our (not so tidy) new cat promptly scratched and spun like a whirling dervish and scattered it everywhere. Deciding the box was too big for him, I bought a smaller one. When he tried it, he couldn’t spin around like a demonic top, but still scattered litter all over the floor. So I bought a litter trapping mat. Then a larger mat. Then an even larger mat. But no. The little devil was leaving trails of litter down both hallways. So I switched to this…

And quickly determined their promise was a lie.

It did help with the tracking, but not the scattering. So I bought one of those litter boxes with the clip on edges. You know the ones, the sides are higher so litter can’t be flung outside it.

Yeah.

Three sides of it are high, so of course our little darling flings the litter out the lower entrance side. Dudley is nothing if not consistent.

Tomorrow I will be receiving the highest sided cat litter box I could find from my good friend ( Alright, he’s not really a good friend but with the amount of money I’ve sent the guy in the past year you’d think he could at least drop me a postcard from that new tropical Island I bought him. Geesh. ) Jeff Bezos. I’m hoping Amazon’s box will put an end to the litter war, but if not… I fear there’s only one solution left.

Of course with my luck, Dudley will probably just poop on the top and call it good.

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That’s trippy dude.

March 25, 2021 Rivergirl 34 Comments

The husband’s birthday was this month, and for the past decade I’ve been giving him experience gifts rather than material things…. because we all know the man has more than enough stuff. Over the years I’ve gifted him a trip to a spooky old hotel in the Poconos that felt like the Overlook in Stephen King’s The Shining…

The place was huge!

So huge I could never manage to get a shot of the entire thing in frame. And we were literally the only guests.

Room after room.

Floor after floor.

All to ourselves.

I expected to see the twins every time we walked to our room. Uber creepy.

I’ve given him beer making classes….

Look at all those serious student faces.

And seeing him stir an actual pot? Was well worth the student fee.

I even gave him falconry training.

That was awesome. If you ever have the chance, take it.

They really are spectacular creatures.

And hey, where else do you get to walk around with a bag of decapitated quails?

But last year brought Covid and the romantic getaway to the coastal resort I chose was cancelled. This year? We didn’t go anywhere either so along with a few Marine Corps themed items and a handful of vintage Red Sox collectibles… I got him something for the man cave.

Doesn’t look impressive you say?

Trust me, it is.

I’m imaging many alcohol induced oohs and ahs when we plop this baby on the bar.

👍

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Oh those crazy Mainers.

March 25, 2021 Rivergirl 24 Comments

Yes, we Mainers are an interesting and sometimes inventive breed.

My mother used to say, “Where there’s a will, there’s a way”. Or in this case, a leaf blower powered hoverboard.

Ayup.

Maine winters are long, you might as well have a hobby.

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Of slime and flies.

March 24, 2021 Rivergirl 32 Comments

Fashion is ephemeral. One day something is trending hot and everyone has to wear it/do it… the next day it’s passé. Here’s hoping this never catches on, because honestly? Eew.

Sorry, but that just looks like five globs of mucus…. and if I don’t eat the slimy shellfish? I certainly don’t want them on the end of my fingers.

I added the perfect glass to the man cave bar shelf yesterday. Because I do, to both.

It’s official, I will be calling our vacuum the rollsuck supreme from now on.

Yeah, because I need Dudley to stare at me more than he does already . Not!

And speaking of Dudley, for your viewing pleasure here’s a quick clip of him enjoying his latest hobby. Fly catching.

And while it’s a bit disgusting he insists on eating them? On a positive note, our house will be fly free for the foreseeable future.

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Dudley does not need a spaceship.

March 24, 2021 Rivergirl 30 Comments

Yes, this really is a thing.

And they’re not exactly giving them away either.

Dudley also doesn’t need a scratcher that looks like a sardine can.

I mean, Christ…. look what happened to this poor cat when he used it.

No thank you annoying Facebook algorithm, Dudley will live quite happily without this as well.

I’m sure the cat in the advertisement would much rather have had a bowl of tuna.

And will be pooping in his parents slippers as soon as they go to sleep tonight.

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Get thee to a hair salon!

March 23, 2021 Rivergirl 18 Comments

Covid has changed our lives in a myriad of ways, and while I’d like to say I’ve come to appreciate the smaller things and learned I don’t need things like dinner out, travel, shopping trips and concerts ( though I do, I really do! ) what I’ve discovered is somewhat different.

Basically I need two things.

#1….. I need to step away from the bacon, cupcakes and potato chips. Who knew sitting on the couch blogging while stuffing your face with snacks for a year could lead to none of your clothes fitting properly ? Not me, that’s for sure.

And #2….. I need to find a hair salon ASAP. Because along with socializing and vacations, the other thing I haven’t done in a year is get my hair cut.

Last spring it was healthy and perfectly layered, this spring it’s dry, full of split ends and suffering from my crazed butchering with the kitchen scissors.

No layers, no shape, no bounce. I’ve never gone this long without a stylist working their magic and it’s beginning to show.

And no, I haven’t touched the color, it’s just different lighting in the photos.

To be honest I thought a solid year of unchecked growth would result in more inches but it only seems to have lengthened on the top. Leave it to me to have weirdo hair.

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Sign me up.

March 23, 2021 Rivergirl 20 Comments

If we’re ever able to travel freely again? This might have to make my bucket list of go to now or die.

What! I can sip the nectar of the Gods with one of their most glaring screw ups?

I totally need to go.

My most ardent hope is that they have a wombat. You know those guys let loose after a beer or two.

I’m not sure standing in a pool with otters in a crate technically qualifies as swimming with an otter… but there may be wombats so I’ll over look the misleading description.