Omg, cute cat is cute.

Ocho is really just the sweetest cat today.  I'm guessing previous troubles were due to (a) having another cat in the house (some cats can't deal - mine couldn't*) and (b) baby.  Cats and change don't always mix.  But really, after she got past "Skeerd cat is ninja!", she's been a total doll.  As in, not only are we not skittish around each other, I can pick her up and put her places.  Now, she really dislikes it, but she's not scary any more, which is nice.  And omg torties are gorgeous.

* Actually, the only time my Magic ever "got along" with with B's cats was when she started getting lesions, and I was the one who thought getting along meant huge wrongness.  I am still weirdly smug about knowing her that well.

Currently, she has taken over the upstairs bed.  This is where not making the bed totally works - I lumped the blankets together to make an impromptu bed for her, and she's been camped out there all day.  At night, she either sleeps with me or she sleeps in the stairwell.  I left my sweater there, so she can sleep on it.  Her cleanings have gotten rid of the extraneous teensy-mats, and so now what's left is waiting until she's really otherwise complacent, then attacking her back with the nail scissors.  It's either that or wait until Saturday... eh.  We'll see.

I took off the screen door from the back, and B kind of propped it up in the stairwell.  Uhm... well, later, I'll get a picture.  Just know that the screen door is too wide for the stairwell, so we propped it up in between, and put a box under where the wedge overlaps with a stair going down.  I'm currently sussing out plans to build a medium-height screen door, to attach to the entryway.  (Only sussing out because I know I'm obsessive-cat about this, so might as well get the measurements, and I'll obsess over the building later.)  Our landlady is slow with getting things done, and so getting the door from her would be more hassle and less fun than just making my own.  I'm thinking leave a 1" gap so that we can hook it from either side, 2" at the bottom to allow for the carpet, and about 60" tall total, just cuz.  With maybe an option to put a smallish curtain on the bottom half, in case the kitties want to staaare at each other and that's not a good idea.

Tired cat is tired, and so that may only partially make sense.

Anyways.  She is a doll.  She's a lovebug, but she settles down after about 5-10 minutes.  (Lovebuggishness is good when I'm doing naught else, bad when I'm killing demons in Doom.  Knowing that there's an end time is awesome.)  She also apparently broke her tail like ages and ages ago - the very tippy-tip of her tail is crooked.  It's not noticeable until you go to pat her tail to the end - no more than an inch, if that, is bent.

I'm still wondering at these personality issues I've heard about.  So far as I can tell, mostly she just really dislikes being startled.  I make up for this by being obvious when approaching her.

And awwwwwwww, she was kneading today, I die.

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Linkydinks, flist-only edition.

* Via mzrowan, BookMooch: "Type in books you want to give away. Receive requests from others for your books. Mail your books and receive points. Ask for books from others with your points."

* Via kyra_ojosverdes, The Nerd Handbook.  I am more half-nerd than high nerd.

* Via booklectic, pool meets dominos (YouTube).  Wow.

* Via Feministe, and if you're in NYC, USA, rally for affordable birth control today.

* Via thewronghands, apparently the Yamato Drummers of Japan are good - observe, a YouTube clip.

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karenthecroccy, a good friend of mactavish's, is selling books and Lush things to make her rent.

I would if I could, but I really really can't, so I pass it on, instead.

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Apparently, things for kitty fostering, according to Cat Adoption Team:

- I must have a spare room for foster cats.  Not a problem, they'd have a whole floor.

- They must be indoors at all times.  Not a problem.  Partly the floor is upstairs, partly the cats don't really go out.  (We've let them on the porch on occasion, always with a chaperone, but I'm not entirely sure that counts.  Regardless, fosters would absolutely not go out.)

- Current kitties must be altered and current on vaccines.  Spooky and Peaches are both speutered (I love that word), and they'll be current with vaccines on Caturday.

- They request that we pay for food and litter, but that's not a requirement.  I can totally see why - it can get pricy for them, so they're trying to cut down on costs as much as possible.

Things to do:

- Natter about this with B.  What are his thoughts, concerns, things?
- Clean out the upstairs some more.  (Put finished yarn in bins, then in the attic, &c.)
- Build/install the screen door, or find an equivalent.

Questions to check during their Dec. orientation:
- What kinds of cats need to be fostered?  Non-FIV/-FeLV-positive is a requirement.  I'd prefer not-kittens, but that's because they need more attention than I can give.  Fostering sick kitties would probably require that I know what kind of sick, what's involved, and where I can take them.  Only because I'd probably have to natter with B about things, as he's the one with the car and non-standard schedule.
- Are vet visits covered by them?  If so, how is it done?  I assume pay-and-reimburse, but it's nice to know for sure.
- What of gas reimbursement, if it should be required?  Going to the local vet isn't a problem, but if I care for a sick kitty that needs to go way elsewhere...
- What is the average length of time for fostering a kitty?  Is there a minimum length of time, a guarantee, an average?
- Talk to me about adoption.  When the kitty is placed, do I take it back to the center, or directly to the adopter's?  Do they come visit me to get to know the kitty?  And is this fostering thing kind of like rotating kitties from kennel to non-kennel, or do I foster until an adopter is found?

In conclusion, their main office is a 30-minute drive away, so I hope that I can do this from their more-local office, but either way.

No really, having a ferret brain is a tiring goddamn chore.

Now, I absolutely want to get a server up and running for home.  I can keep our music on it, run an in-house wiki (B wants one for his writing notes, I want one just the fuck because), and... and...

What else do people do with servers?

Moar research for me, it seems.

"All of our conversations end up in LJ."

Rose has decided that supporting me in my decision to never have sex again involves wearing Victorian garb and having a two-years-sans-sex anniversary.

Sansiversary!

Cats are like kids in that jesus god don't I talk about anything else?

If anything, I'd say she was separated from her mother a bit too early.  She's exceedingly affectionate, licky, and kneady.  Hm.  However, I am not well-versed in kitten lore, so I could be wrong there.

She is way more relaxed every day.  Today, it's kneading lotses, flopping against me while I kick the internets to get that shiny new candy bar, and sitting on my lap, aw aw aw.  I slapped my leg whilst she was on my lap (technically I hit a moth), and she just looked around (quickly), but didn't snap, didn't even stop purring.  Cool.

I tried to introduce Spooky and Peaches to her.  Peaches thought I was insane and was having none of it.  Spooky and Ocho stood staaaring at each other for about two minutes, then Ocho started moving forward (tentative, not stalking), and Spooky seemed to realise that hey, she must have left the gas on, and she boogied.  I would tentatively state that she could be tolerant of other kitties, but I'd want to do more research first.

Oh, and I clipped off some of that clump, since it doesn't look like it feels nice to her.  Couldn't get all of it, though, and I didn't want to stab her.  I feel like a particularly inept hairdresser, or something.