Brotherly Love

Every day, when we pull into the carport, Bentley runs up to the front of the car, delirious of the fact the one day, our feet may slip from the brakes, and his burgeoning body may end up in a flattened mess.

Thank goodness, my precious mutt had learned to back up a little before charging to the headlights, repeating the motion until the car comes to a stop.

Is it animal instinct or is it his brother, Bubba, the wiser creature, who meows at him from atop the steps, warning him to stay away from the steel machine?

The sight of the little tabby meowing gently at his brother never ceases to bring a smile to us at the end of a long day. What is he saying to him?

"Back off, you idiot?"Nah, he loves him too much to use that language.

Research has indicated that different breeds of animal communicate by body language and phermones. So what exactly is Bubba trying to tell Bentley when he meows at him? www.messybeast.com/cat_talk2.htm

Some of you had never met Bubba. He's the first cat that ever stole my heart. While he's independent (selfish, some may say but I disagree), he's extremely affectionate and always returns home after a long day outside, and speaks with you. He meows, we meow back at a similar pitch and style. He purrs, we reply by rolling our "r's". This exchange carries on until we the human get well, tired. Then he'll just be content to plop down by us, usually me. He's almost like the ideal dog. While Bentley is a lovable dog, he's hardly what I deem ideal.

He doesn't care for toys nor play catch. Bubba doesn't mind chasing things.

Bentley will lie still, contently, when we rub him. Bubba loves to his belly rubbed and will playfully try to scratch or gnaw gently at our teasing hands.

Another endearing trait of Bubba is his brotherly love toward his jealous brother. When he gets a chance to walk by Bentley, he will swish his tail gently at his snout, and stop for a moment, pressing his little body to Bentley's chest. Sadly, Bentley doesn't reciprocate -- he'll just be really still wherever he is, thinking that if he doesn't return the favor, Bubba will move on. My smart kitty got the message. But unlike us humans who may hold grudges, he just presses on daily. It frustrates and tickles us at the same time to see this act of love and oblivion.

Bentley does engage in some contact with Bubba, most notably the one where he would walk up to the cat, sniff and snort, and go on his way. We have no idea what that meant. Is it a macho way of his, saying "Here, don't say I ignore you!"

It's hard to think that many years ago, I swear I'd never want a cat or that I would have time for a dog. Now we have 2 boys, and I couldn't be more happy we have them to come home to.

Any Mousketeers Out There?

My sister-in-law is a topnotch bargain hunter. Our cruise to the Bahamas in 2004 was organized by her, and we paid an obscenely low rate (I forgot) for the weeklong excursion and we got to have a suite with a balcony.

This time, her intrepid skills has once again nabbed us a deal to DisneyWorld. $500 for 5 days, all meals, transportation, lodging, park passes included. And it's off-peak! She's done this for at least 5 years now. I'm going to start leaving the travel plans to her. The only downside is I gotta put up with her manic-depressive husband. Aargh. I know he'll tag along with M and me and leave the two kids to my sil to watch.

I digress.

I'm sure some of you had been to DisneyWorld, Epcot etc. Any suggestions on what I GOTTA do and see? BTW, I'm staying at Port Orleans. And don't stop at the parks. As you well know, M is an avid photographer. Any cities we should spend time visiting? Keep the details rolling.

Augusta in the limelight

Wow, it's been a while since I last posted. Good thing, too. Seems like I usually blog about shit happening in my life.

Well, life's been good. Enjoying the hard-earned house. Learned a new dessert - Lemon Ginger Cake with Blackberry Curd Filling. Doesn't that sound so Junior League or whatever those frou-frou ladies' club is called in Georgia?

Ah yes, the headline. The Wall Street Journal in the 8/21 or 22 issue profiled Augusta, Ga., as the dreamy retirement city. And it took up half the Berlin-sized page. Nothing against Augusta. I love you folks, I still have my house there. But, for those unsuspecting foreigners, the article made Augusta out to be the Bahamas of the South. When they wax poetic about the medical complexes, the "short" distance to mountains, and big cities, and oh, the Riverwalk. The Riverwalk's not bad, but it ain't the one at San Antonio, for crissake.

Ask Damon Cline for the past issue. No more than 3 days from today.

That's all, folks. Take care.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Christina: "Short" distance to mountains???? What do they term short? It's at least two to three hours to the Georgia ones, and more than that to South Carolina/North Carolina...
That cake sounds like heaven...

Jeremy: Augusta is more like the Pittsburgh of the South, except hotter than a blast furnace from April through October, and sometimes November.

Patrick: You know, I've heard that of all the rust-belt cities (Cleveland, Detroit, Allentown, Springfield, Mass, Hartford) Pittsburgh has rebounded the best, and is actually a decent place to live. I never thought I'd say this, but for once, I agree with the Wall Street Journal. I mean, I haven't read the story, so I don't know if they went overboard (I'll wager sure they did), but I can see how Augusta would be a decent place to while away the last years of your life.

Or to put it another way, it's a lot better than some of the typical retirement destinations in Florida, that ultimate geriatric playground. The day I stopped looking down at Augusta was the day I visited Ocala, Florida, which is the kind of place where you only go there to die. There was no history, no culture, no center of gravity, no waterfront--just miles upon miles of strip malls, swamps, chain restaurants and gated-off retirement colonies where grandchildren can visit but never, EVER live.

Then again, Augusta ain't no Bahamas either. I'm just happy my parents are retiring in Northern Vermont. :)