Bubba the cat is the worse traveler of any cat I've had, like OMG THE HORROR OF THE CARRIER I MUST ATTEMPT TO CLAW MY WAY OUT AND SCREECH WHILE I DO IT OMG bad.

I have TWO of them. Devi just mostly huddles and lets out periodic pathetic little cries. And Pumpkin and Loki just don't.shut.up. It's operatic cat WOE. Well, Loki will let Dev do the talking if she's inclined. But yeah. Pumpkin has rolled herself off a low bench in the carrier. Several times. I now know to let her roll herself around in the carrier on the floor. It becomes a structurally challenged hamster ball with her in it.

Purchased a luggage, though I still want a carryon duffle. This is your basic Samsonite 'barely allowed in the cabin' structured roll-ons. In red, so it's easier to spot. Also got in Target, a (good) swim, haircut (in that order, which might mean another shower shortly,) and TJs. Oh lord, the Columbia TJs at 5 on a Saturday. Shudder. Oh, and the little gallery I have to go into every time I'm in Ellicott City totally made me impulse buy. Little painting that just caught my eye. I could give it to my dad, but I kinda think I might keep it. Or share it. It just looks right in my house. Crappy picture (still no functional camera but the itouch): [link]

I ought to eat some dinner. All I've had is a the biscuit from market and a granola bar.

And either my replacement or the original missing credit card showed up. I just got one of them on Friday. Need to find out if I do need to activate it or if I just destroy it. Confusing.

I saw that post, smonster--what I'm looking for is a download of the song itself, not a player. Thanks, though.

Oh, duh. Sorry.

I'm so sorry, Burrell. You and the other Burrell have had a good long ride together.

I had a cat who so hated any kind of carrier that she would shove her head out of quarter-sized openings, and then be stuck. I'd be trying to drive and the cat would be making awful choking noises. I finally gave up and put her on a short leash in the car.

omg hours on ancestry tonight. got further back on my family name than I have before though. Even found a namesake that the info I found says was born 1746 in VA.

When we take Shadow to the vet, one of us tries to hold him, but we will let him loose because he likes to get down in the back seat and moan his distress. We do put a leash on him so we have some sort of handle, but on the whole he prefers the strong, silent suffering form of protest.

I still want a carryon duffle.

sarameg, it's not a duffle, but this is the backpack I got for my trip to Europe two summers ago: [link]

It holds a lot, but even fully stuffed, it fits in the overhead bin. It has a decent hip belt that tucks away, and the back padding makes for decent laptop protection.

It was my primary bag for two weeks in Europe, one week in Colorado, and three weeks in Miami.

For my "at-hand" bag in the cabin ("personal item"), I used something like this: [link]

Thanks everyone. Burrell has had a pretty good day so far, although she's tired. I think the vet wore her out.

Kids convinced us to go to Target to use of some of their Xmas GCs. Oy! But now they are home enjoying their loot. Isaac got MarioKart, Franny got a bunch of Zoobles. What is it with little girls and little colorful toys?

I've done that for UCLA and Santa Monica College, and no dice, unfortunately. I'd love to find something like that art center you link to that's *not* on the other side of town.

What about Otis Art School over in Westchester? Oh and Cody suggests trying the art studio on Westwood near SM Blvd.

ita !, I'm still looking for a good source for that version of the song, too. So far, nothing.

All your carrots are belong to me

House news: Spring has hit my backyard [link] [link] [link]

Cat news: One more thing learned today: Bubba the cat can in fact open doors if they have lever handles instead of knobs, as all of mine do, and after doing so will jump on the bed and stretch out with a pointed "yeah, I'm here. What are you going to do about it" look to both Dita and me.

Also, Dita is not ready to be friends yet, and I am beginning to suspect I am going to have to let Bubba learn that the hard way.