Author Archives: Sans Souci

11-24-12: The Effects of Television on Kittens

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They listened to NPR…they watched a little television for the first time…then football. Here they are practicing their moves. This is what kittens do when they aren’t in a fur pile napping and looking innocent; they wreck their cage. I cleaned it 6 times so far today. They just collapsed into 4 piles. I am ready to take a nap. 11-24-12: Post Ruckus This is what kittens look like after they go bonkers for an hour. Have no fear: the cycle will repeat!

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Poetry Wednesday: 11/28/2012 Sign in and take the tour

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  Cats Took Over My House by Susan Margulies Kalish Cats took over my house! Cats took over my house! I never sleep; They tickle my feet. The couch I mourn; The leather is torn. The run and they zoom by the light of the moon. There’s never a day They don’t want to play. There’s nary a mouse, just my fur covered spouse. Cats took over my house! There’s 9-Lives always, and Friskies Buffets. The rub my leg; for turkey they beg. I cry and I blink when their box starts to stink. They knock over clocks while tossing … Continue reading →

They’re back from trapper Dave

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I just finished feeding my cats and the outside guys. Came up to give the babies their meds. Well, that was a trip. What a system of juggling and glove wearing. Finally got them fed, it’s 2 hours since I am up. Their cage is a mess again, the water keeps getting spilled. But I did what I needed to do. And then I got one of those scintillating scotoma visual migraines…going on 10 minutes… and I have just logged it. Can barely see.

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11-15-12: On kittens, cuteness and ringworm: what wins?

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The kittens have returned: they are bigger and heavier and the cage is getting cramped. They now prefer to sleep two to a bed. That doesn’t give any room for water, food and the litter pan.I feel like I am designing a New York studio apartment. We need a loft. They are in their cage lulled to sleep by Mahler. I am assuming they still have some ringworm (which can last for months) and I am being hypervigilant with sprays and gloves and chlorox spray and a huge bottle of Purell. The transition back to a new place and the … Continue reading →

My orange tree is in bloom…in my living room. Fabulous fragrance.

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This flower is spectacular…and very tiny. I never thought it would make it. I bought it years ago to replace my beloved orange tree of thirty-five years that was in my home. The original tree was a mail order purchase: the plant came in a little box and was about as big as my thumb. It was a member of the family and its blooms were delightful and the room smelled heavenly.  After the original tree  I was left heartbroken. I saved some of the last little oranges and planted the seeds. I got another tree! BUT it is full … Continue reading →

314. Opera: Dr. Atomic: John Adams: The Metropolitan Opera, NYC

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Dr. Atomic premiered in San Francisco in 2005. From the Met Playbill: “This monumental contemporary opera is a riveting examination of one of the most significant episodes in world history: the events leading up to the testing of the first atomic bomb in New Mexico in 1945. Like composer John Adams’s previous operas Nixon in China and The Death of Klinghoffer, doctor Atomic not a reenactment of a historical moment but rather an exploration of the people, personalities, and issues involved in an epic incident. The focus of the piece is the title character, J. Robert Oppenheimer, the cultivated American … Continue reading →

Thoughts before a storm

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NEITHER SNOW by Billy Collins When all of a sudden the city air filled with snow, the distinguishable flakes blowing sideways, looked like krill fleeing the maw of an advancing whale. At least they looked that way to me from the taxi window, and since I happened to be sitting that fading Sunday afternoon in the very center of the universe, who was in a better position to say what looked like what, which thing resembled some other? Yes, it was a run of white plankton borne down the Avenue of the Americas in the stream of the wind, phosphorescent … Continue reading →

The Fifth Kitten

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Baffled and sad… I just went through the first kitty album that I made on October 10. There was a 5th kitten, black and white. I never saw all five together so I assumed there were four. I didn’t see the little guy since the mother moved the babies to my neighbor’s shed. He wasn’t in any subsequent photos. I wonder if he is still alive. The kittens are at trapper Dave’s. One has ringworm and all need to be treated and watched, so that’s where they will be for a while. I had them for such a short time … Continue reading →

Part 19: “I have no insurance but, I have faith” -Leslie Helene Elder

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Here I sit on a beautiful afternoon. Shadows of trees cross my neighbor’s window. For some strange reason, birds sing like it’s spring in defiance of the calendar. But I am not happy. Let’s look back a couple of years. A high school classmate found me on classmates.com and then on facebook. Though we didn’t know each other well, the past and its mutual memories were the cement of friendship. Leslie had read about my book and wanted to buy it. Through my book that looks back we began to look forward. Together. You see, Leslie and I learned we … Continue reading →

The Great Kitten Rescue

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These feisty little things have been cavorting in my yard, my neighbor’s yard, living in her shed with their mom and visiting my feeding station at whim. They just go right through the fence! David managed to trap the first three babies at one time in a large trap. My neighbor and I watched in disbelief. This is stressful!He used a flea comb and found a few visitors so off to the bathroom they went for a flea bath in the sink. We bundled them up and dried them and deposited them in the large cage David so nicely lent … Continue reading →

566. The Save The Post Office Quest: Evan in Linn’s Stamp News

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The latest in my son’s quest to memorialize the U.S. Post Offices that are threatened or that have been closed. Click to enlarge; the article is in the blue box.   3 CommentsChronological   Reverse   Threaded   reply jadedruid wrote on Dec 7, ’11 I think it is very cool that he is getting so much press about this. It is an awesome idea. editdeletereply lauritasita wrote on Dec 7, ’11 I saw this on your Facebook page. I’m saving everything! reply sanssouciblogs wrote on Dec 8, ’11 Very cool! xoxo    

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566. My Son Evan In TIME Magazine

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Never would I imagine that my son would be featured in The Washington Post (internet and hard copy), National Public Radio, NPR, the BBC, Australian Radio and TIME Magazine (on-line and now hard copy, below), but here we go. Click on the pages to enlarge.   11 CommentsChronological   Reverse   Threaded reply exukbritbrat wrote on Dec 9, ’11, edited on Dec 9, ’11 I’m going to Superpharm tomorrow in the hope that this edition has arrived.  Then instead of standing in the aisle reading it i shall buy it!  Never underestimate your child!  Look who he has a parent!  Like mother … Continue reading →

566. My son in the media, the media, the media!

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Here’s what’s going on:   1.    The revised on-line version of the Washington Post article was  republished and available in HARD COPY. A25     Chronicling the lives and deaths of U.S. post offices     2.   Article came out on-line today in TIME  magazine; will be published in the magazine:   How the U.S. Postal Service Fell Apart   The TIME magazine article was published in the December 19, 2011 edition and can be viewed here. http://sanssouciblogs.com/evan-kalish-in-time-magazine/     3.  NPR (National Public radio):  Evan will be interviewed by Robert  Siegel, senior host on Monday  November 21, 2011 for … Continue reading →