More random thoughts

I wonder whether the little acrobat ants that keep finding their way into my kitchen have started developing legends about it:

"Yes, children, there are endless vistas of sweets in the Kitchen of Plenty, but you must beware! Hidden dangers await you, not least ... I shudder to mention it..."

"What is it, Ant-ie? What is it? Cans of Raid?"

"No, children, it is: THE GIANT BLUE SPONGE OF DEATH. It will descend from the skies in a mass of wet and if you don't drown in the water, it will squish you to death. Beware!"

I've also been wondering how acute my cats' sense of smell is. I know they can tell when I've been visiting other cats at the shelter, because they sniff my hands in curiosity when I get back. But can they also smell how cute those cats are? Because lately I've been ending my shifts by cuddling kittens in the nursery. This means I'm often handling the 6-week-old, too-small-to-be-adopted-yet, super-cute kittens. And when I get home, Clio not only sniffs my hands, she insists on climbing into my lap, rubbing herself all over me, and generally demonstrating she is just as cute as any young whippersnapper of a kitten.

Last thing I've been wondering: we will have decent fishing this year at our new campsite? Because I've sorely missed the nightly fish fry of tasty panfish, perch, and bluegill that we used to have up at Canada's Rice Lake. I don't even need it nightly this year, just one will do. The big fish we managed to catch on Lake Superior last year just didn't taste the same ... and it was not worth the horrible nausea I endured, fishing in 5-foot-waves, to catch those big ones. No, give me the little tasty morsels, especially if someone else has caught and cleaned them. I'll be happy to cook. And thus I shall conclude with a haiku in their honor:

Bluegill, panfish, perch

Tasty, flaky, salty, sweet

Catch them in my mouth

Still more random thoughts....

... I'm really glad I've been practicing my kimo (straddle) stance in TKD, otherwise my thighs would be screaming after picking berries for over two hours yesterday.

... speaking of berry picking, the rain held off long enough for me to finish picking, but not long enough to haul over 20 quarts of berries to the car. So much for "scattered showers": we got over 3/4 of an inch of rain yesterday, as it poured constantly for several hours.

... other television failures: why do morning TV hosts think this is a good interviewing style:

Host: So you were fishing in shallow waters when a tiger shark came up and latched onto you. You fought back, but it wouldn't let go.

Man: ... That's right. I tried punching it, poking it in the eye, but it wouldn't let go.

Host: So were you thinking, "Hey, I might not survive this"?

Man: Sure.

Host: But eventually you got free.

Man: Yes. I pried his mouth open and worked my arm free.

Host (to wife): Now you look over and see your husband struggling with a shark, and you steer the boat over to his side. He's bleeding profusely, but you manage to wrestle him back into the boat all by yourself.

Woman: ... Yes.

Host: How were you able to do that? Was it just pure adrenaline?

Woman: I think so. I knew I had to get him back to shore, so I just pulled him into the boat.

This style is used all the time, and explains why everyday people sound so tongue-tied on television: it's because the interviewers want to tell all the interesting bits, and rarely ask questions unless they're of the yes-or-no variety. I just thought I'd point that out, in case you're ever tempted to do a live TV interview.

More Random Thoughts... did you know?

Busy busy busy today: went to dentist (let Boy drive!), have load and loads of laundry, need to get some writing done. But in the meantime, some random thoughts, culled from various research assignments:

Did you know...

... hummingbirds are only native to the Western Hemisphere? That's right, they're only found in the Americas.

... a grass whistle isn't really a whistle. It's a reed instrument. I suppose if you're a band geek you probably knew that. But you probably didn't know that reed instruments date back to Egyptian times, 4000 years ago.

... the average human female is born with over 1 million oocytes, or egg cells? Of those, only around 400 develop into eggs that are available to be fertilized.

...that oocyte is not pronounced OO-uh-site, but OH-uh-site? I didn't. I still can't read it in my head correctly.

... dandelions (the leaves) are actually edible, with plenty of vitamins, minerals, and fiber. I won't be collecting them for a salad any time soon, though.

Now you know why I seem flighty sometimes: I've got weird random facts running through my head.

Random Thoughts ... Is the road singing?

No time for long, thought-out posts today, so just some random thoughts.

How I know spring is coming ('cause I can't tell by the weather): I saw two Great Blue Herons yesterday, attempting to land in a nearby creek despite horrible wind conditions. Plus, raccoon road-kill season has started.

If I have to work Saturday for the fourth time in a row, I'm really going to have to start scheduling my time better.

I don't think my toes are ever going to be warm again.

If I never see a yellow lawn sign again, I'll be happy.

Watch out, everyone, in ten days Boy can get his driver's permit.

If TSU hadn't banned further cats I'd be seriously tempted, because there's one at the shelter who's so sweet and yet so shy that I worry she won't find a home.

I'm sure that the repaved stretch of Ford Road is singing to me. Every time I drive down it I hear harmonics that I know aren't coming from the radio. Yet any time I turn off the radio and listen to the road, it stops singing. I would be seriously disturbed by this, but because this is the ONLY smooth road within 50 miles of me, I can't complain.

I'm not sure where to stop this list. So here it stops.