Finally, FINALLY, after two long weeks, the splint I’ve been wearing since my carpal tunnel surgery is OFF! This is the torture device that has made typing and mouse-ing so very difficult:
(We will politely pretend not to notice how badly the tub needs cleaning.) The part of the splint that went across my palm would VERY OFTEN hit some mysterious key while I was typing, causing me to lose sentences and paragraphs and even once an entire post. I am not going to miss that stupid thing.
This is what my hand looks like now (picture taken at the doctor’s office yesterday morning.)
(It looks kinda painful, but it’s not. I made that picture on the small side for the weak-stomached among you, but you can click on the picture to see a larger version at Flickr.)
And in case you ever need to cover a short cast or a splint while you’re recovering from surgery and don’t want to mess around with Ziploc/garbage/shopping bags to cover said splint or cast, please let me advise that you invest in this thing:
It looks like an oversized rubber oven mitt, because that’s pretty much what it is. It has a bulb on one side that you use to squeeze all the excess air out of the mitt to create a vacuum seal. It’s $32, but very very very much worth it. Highly recommended! Two thumbs up! Get it here (Amazon affiliate link, FYI.)
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Love Solenoid’s black feet. Are the back ones black too?
They are! I tried to get a picture of them, but she was resistant because: kitten.
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Fender seems kinda teeny smooshed under Pulley! Is he the runt of the litter?
Actually no – Pulley’s the tiniest one in the litter, and he outweighs her by about 5 ounces! As of yesterday, the smallest kitten is Pulley (1 pound, 5.8 ounces) and the largest is Gauge at exactly 2 pounds. I’ll embed their weight chart below, since I haven’t gotten their page put together yet.
| Solenoid | Pulley | Dynamo | Cam | Cruise | Clutch | Axle | Gauge | Fender | Ryder | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9-20-18 | 1 lb 2.5 oz | 13.7 oz | 1 lb 0.1 oz | 1 lb 1.9 oz | 14.8 oz | 1 lb 2.7 oz | 1 lb 0.2 oz | 1 lb 5.3 oz | 15.7 oz | --- |
| 9-25-18 | 1 lb 5.8 oz | 1 lb 1.8 oz | 1 lb 3.3 oz | 1 lb 6.4 oz | 1 lb 2.8 oz | 1 lb 6.7 oz | 1 lb 3.9 oz | 1 lb 10 oz | 1 lb 4.2 oz | --- |
| 9-27-18 | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | 8 lb 5 oz |
| 10-4-18 | 1 lb 11.9 oz | 1 lb 5.8 oz | 1 lb 7.6 oz | 1 lb 11.8 oz | 1 lb 7.7 oz | 1 lb 12.6 oz | 1 lb 10.3 oz | 2 lb | 1 lb 10.5 oz | --- |
| 10-9-18 | 2 lb | 1 lb 8 oz | 1 lb 11 oz | 2 lb | 1 lb 11 oz | 2 lb 2 oz | 1 lb 15 oz | 2 lb 4 oz | 1 lb 15 oz | 8 lb 7 oz |
| 10-23-18 | 2 lb 11 oz | 2 lb 4 oz | 2 lb 6 oz | 2 lb 12 oz | 2 lb 7 oz | 2 lb 14 oz | 2 lb 11 oz | 3 lb 1 oz | 2 lb 11 oz | --- |
| 11-9-18 | 3 lb 5 oz | 2 lb 13 oz | 2 lb 13 | 3 lb 4 oz | 3 lb 1 oz | 3 lb 11 oz | 3 lb 10 oz | 3 lb 13 oz | 3 lb 8 oz | --- |
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Doesn’t one of the orange boys (Clutch?) have a dap of white between his eyes that the others are lacking, or am I just seeing things?
Are you seeing what I think of as the “diamond” between his eyes, at the bottom of the “M”? That’s generally how I tell him apart from Gauge when I can’t see Gauge’s ear. Those two look very much alike – I have an easier time telling Axle from the other two because he’s got a narrower face and his fur is more orangey-yellow to me (at least in person).
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Question: do you know about how old a kitten is when their brains start to transition from marshmallow fluff to gray matter? My 4 month old insists on stepping in his freshly laid poop and then flinging his paw sending presents against the wall. He is driving me crazy.
Generally kittens figure that stuff out by the time they’re 4 months old (though let me direct you to the post by Rhyme from 2010; he was about 4 months old in that post, so clearly he was a little slow in figuring it out).
Here are my questions for you: what is the litter box situation like for him? Is it a shallow or tall litter box? Is there only one way out? Is it covered? How deep is the litter? I don’t have an issue with my permanent residents stepping in their leavings (even though the litter box is tall and they only have one way out), but with kittens I find that if I go with a too-deep litter box with only one way out, kittens will tromp through that stuff and make the biggest mess. On the other hand, if they can poop and walk away from it by hopping over one of the sides, then they will. It’s worth considering changing things around to see if anything else helps (although I am fully aware that it’s entirely possible that you’ve considered; done all of this, in which case I say: anyone have any other suggestions?!)
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Ok, so am I the only one who sees butterfly antennae in Axle’s forehead markings between his eyes? I wonder, does he flutter by? A pair of wings, and he is all set for Halloween.
I hadn’t noticed that, but I certainly do now!
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The eyes, they are a-changin’.
Axle’s eyes are still mostly blue – that gorgeous sparkly deep blue. SO pretty.
You can see a teeny bit of change around his pupils.
Still some light blue in Fender’s eyes, but a lot of green around his pupils.
Lots of green and gold in Gauge’s eyes, but a bit of blue there, too.
This isn’t the greatest picture of Clutch’s eyes, but they’re mostly green with just a bit of blue.
Cam’s eyes are still mostly blue.
But Cruise’s are bluer.
I love this shot that shows the differing shades of blue.
And this one with Axle added in, as well.
Solenoid’s eyes look bluer here than they actually are.
And Dynamo’s are about half blue, half green.
Pulley’s eyes look completely blue…
But if you click over to Flickr (click on the picture), you’ll see that they’re actually half blue, half green.
Wouldn’t it have been nice if I’d gotten close up shots of all the eyes? Ah well, maybe next week!
And a shot of Ryder’s pretty green eyes.
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And speaking of pretty green eyes. Oh, that Alice Mo!
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Previously
2017: Playing a rousing game of Slappy Paws with Starburst.
2016: “::SIGH:: I guess if you gots to rub the belleh, you gots to rub the belleh. Make it quick.”
2015: “Why you keep us in this tub, you awful woman?”
2014: No entry.
2013: The Sopranos are one month old!
2012: “You get away from that string, that is MY string, and you are not invited to share it!”
2011: ::leap::
2010: There needs to be a feather boa involved.
2009: And how can you put down a sleeping kitten? (You can’t.)
2008: No entry.
2007: I don’t think it’s possible to take a bad picture of Elle.
2006: Warning: cat cannot hold her licker.
2005: “Who, me? No, I wasn’t going to climb into the fireplace. Nope, not me!”
I can attest to the rubber sleeve thingy working miracles. The hospital gave me one after I had my knee replacement in 2012. I didn’t pay for it (I’m in Canada) but I’m sure it would easily have been a $50 item.
On the topic of itty bitty kittens and poop… Malcolm used to thoroughly enjoy digging out pooplets from the litter box, and play with them like toys. Weirdo. And usually about, oh, 5 mins after I’d leave for work. Yeah. Coming home to poop skid marks all over the hardware was EPIC! He’s 9 now and yeah, he grew out of that marshmallow headed habit by 6 months or so.
I got some higher sided boxes for my old guy who doesn’t squat anymore. It seemed to contain the poop flings a bit better. I do have to scoop twice daily or Mr. Fincky Paws will leave presents next to the box. It doesn’t bother me though since it helps with the stink too
The eyes are indeed beautiful – if they all stayed blue I think the internet would break.
So I have to ask – do you have “NO” written on your other hand?
And I dont have poop-tromping-flinging advice, but I think I’ll shut up now about my boy kitty’s propensity to dump ‘n jump.
I’ve got one that digs to China and likes to throw it out of the litterbox if I don’t scoop frequently enough. The funnier one, though, is the one who particularly likes to use the litterbox while I’m in the middle of cleaning it. She’ll hop right in with the scoop and do her business while I’m watching and waiting (bemused) and will pee ON the scoop if I don’t move it quickly enough.
At least I can promptly evict the leavings?
The kitten does the same thing. Also, if I’m using the human toilet, he has to use the box (the boxes are in the bathrooms). It doesn’t matter if he just went either. Goofy boy.
Yes
I got some higher sided boxes for my old guy who doesn’t squat anymore. It seemed to contain the poop flings a bit better. I do have to scoop twice daily or Mr. Fincky Paws will leave presents next to the box. It doesn’t bother me though since it helps with the stink too
When was the last time you replaced your litterbox? Some of the plastic litterboxes are a bit porous and the stink will settle into it. If that happens, the only thing to do is replace the box itself and give it all new litter.
That hand cast cover is brilliant! Wish I’d had one after my carpal tunnel surgery. I used my MD’s suggestion and wrapped my arm in Press ‘n Seal, which worked but was not ideal. When I get around to having the other hand done I just might need to invest in one of those.
Thanks for always sharing the cool things you find on the internet 🙂