Virtute.org

I took a drive today while I listened to Conference, and took a few photos while I was about. Here are the shots:

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

So I guess sleep is where our cats are Vikings.  Jill is surviving Charlotte so far, and even seems to like her well enough.  Jack and Eustace remain a little more cautious still, but they like the kids well enough.  All three have learned to co-exist well enough, and though they still tussle, it’s more in fun than anything else.  Jack is still the alpha cat, but Eustace has dropped to about theta.  Jill kind of beats up on him.

It was a gorgeous day out today, so the kids and I went with Aunt Heidi up into the mountains to see the colors on the trees and feel the nice cool air.  I snapped this picture of Isaac and Charlotte on the path at Cascade Springs.  We walked around, looking at all the little waterfalls and the fish in the pools.  It was a good afternoon in one of the best times of year.  The trees are changing, at the point where some are in full color and some are still green, but before any have lost all there leaves or turned brown. 

I’m talking about extended family, with many exceptions, of course. We’re just coming off a visit from many members of Kathleen’s family, and it’s been one of those things where everyone is in everyone else’s space and conflicts are more likely.  Being the kind of person I am, it’s tough sharing my space, but the new house makes it easier.  Our tiny place in Springville would have been a disaster (and was, when we had visitors in the past). 

It seemed like an especially tough trip for Sarah, who hasn’t really traveled with Josh much.  It’s a lot of work going anywhere with a nine-month-old, but even more so when you don’t really have a place to stay or any transportation.  I remember how much work Isaac seemed at first, but it’s something you pretty much grow into, eventually.  I don’t really mind the “borrowed” diapers and clothes Sarah used, but I do worry that without someone to fall back on, things could have been a lot worse.  Anyway, everyone pitched in, and it’s behind us now.

So on top of Sarah’s troubles, Kathleen was just kicking off her job, getting classrooms ready, going to training and meetings, and in general being very busy.  With family on top of that, it’s been a rough couple of weeks.  I hope we’re getting to the point where things get into more of a rhythm soon.  We’ve got football starting in a couple of weeks, and Kathleen’s schedule should be more established, hopefully letting her leave more work at the school so she can be with us when she’s at home.

So I guess family reunions aren’t really my thing.  I think once it gets beyond aunts and uncles, it’s too far; my parents don’t see their cousins often, and it doesn’t seem like there’s really a point to me being there.  It’s nice to have second cousins, I suppose, but my life isn’t really enriched by having lunch with them.  We had a big reunion for some of Kathleen’s very extended family, and with all the scheduling issues and general business, it just seemed like an added stress rather than a good time.  The kids were pretty miserable with nothing to do, and I was pretty grumpy too (just on principle, really).  I really feel like we should put that kind of attention and time into people more attached to us; for example, I would rather have gone camping with Isaac than have him get yelled at by some distant cousin of Kathleen’s for playing with the curtains when he’s bored to tears.

Anyway, family is great, but the dose has been a little big these past few weeks, and I think we could all use some time to settle down.  And clean out the fridge.

I spoke too soon.  I was just about to clean out Hernando’s habitat when he gave some kicks.  He may still be in this.  The trick will be getting those pedipalps out of the old skin; not an easy task for a post-ultimate male.  I misted the enclosure to give him a little humidity.  That’s supposed to help the process. 

In the meantime, here’s a picture of Jack being ridiculous.  This shoe box is one of those tiny ones for a pair of flip-flops, but he felt he should cram himself into it anyway.   

Well, we lost Hernando.  He was a pretty old spider by tarantula standards, so this wasn’t a shock.  Most male tarantulas don’t live long after their ultimate molt, and his came about a year ago.  In some cases, a a male tarantula will attempt a post-ultimate molt, which nearly always ends in death.  That’s what happened in this case.  Males generally live 3-6 years (G. rosea species, anyway) with females often going as long as 20 years.  I suspect in the pet industry breeders are less discriminate about gender, and all the pet shop employees I’ve ever asked have been completely clueless. 

Kathleen jokes that Isaac will learn subtraction from our pet attrition; Hillary the rat died a few days ago as well.  Anyway, Hernando was my first spider pet, and I learned a lot watching him.  Maybe it’s time for a more active/aggressive species?  I wonder if Kathleen will go for that. . .

Can you believe Kathleen was opposed to me rescuing this little creature?  She was crowded in with a bunch of other rats, and she showed the most spirit by trying to get away the hardest.  So I figured she could join Nancy and Hillary in the rat house.  She’s named Cindy, in honor of a certain war protesting harpy’s retirement.   I also snapped a nice picture of Jack Jr. while I was clearing out some cricket corpses in his jar.  I’m not sure on gender yet, since this one hasn’t molted, so I defaulted to male for now.  So that makes two cats, three rats, three tarantulas, and a small colony of B. dubia roaches in a big Rubbermaid tub in the basement.  I have a small aquarium I’m meaning to get set up again too, once I’ve made a dent in the bedroom re-organization project. 

Anyway, I’m excited to see how Cindy fits in.  She’s just a baby, so it’ll be fun to watch her grow.  Rats are bright, curious, active little creatures, so there’s a lot to enjoy there.