| Past Thoughts and Outbursts ~ April 2006 - May 2006 |
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Once again we must say goodbye to another friend and roommate. This one is especially hard because Frederick Witherspoon Hamster wasn't yet a year old. As I am prone to do, please indulge me for a bit of bragging. This little guy came home last June as a very special addition to this household. With him, came a couple of new aspects to the pet situation here. Not only was he the first short-hair hamster we've gotten, he changed the rule of "one hamster at a time". Actually it was Barnaby who brought about a second hamster. Since he refused to play nice with the kids, Fred came home with us one day and proved to have some of the best character traits of any hamster to date! Hamsters owners all have some things in common. One of those is the fear of waking up one morning to see the hamster cage empty and never seeing their wonderful pet again as they disappear into the walls. I've had many a morning where the cage has been vacated, but I have been very lucky in that I've never lost a hamster that way. In fact, over the years when my boys get out in the middle of the night, they've always come back to me either in night or next morning. What makes Fred unique is that he LOVES to wander around. He must be the bravest hamster this side of the Mississippi (I have no idea what that means - but you get the idea). He has the amazing ability to find my bedroom, climb up on the bed and wake me up by climbing around my face like you would see a cat do. A couple weeks ago, he once again managed to open a "door" in his cage. I don't know what he did during the night, but with an exit available, in the morning I found him sleeping in his bed like everything was normal. A day or two later I discovered that during one of his nightly travels, he found something (I don't know what it was) and managed to not only get it back into this room, but he stored it on an upper shelf. Even though I didn't know what it was, I didn't think it was anything dangerous and in my laziness, didn't immediately remove it from his home. Long story short (or at least not as long), days went by and this pile of "stuff" he brought home one night just sat there. Early last week I noticed the pile was much smaller. Crap, he was eating the stuff! It wasn't that he was starving. He gets fed every day. Now I was getting worried as we still hadn't figured out where this stuff came from. But I kept reminding myself how intuitive animals are at what is safe to eat and what is not. As you probably have guessed, whatever it was, it killed him within the week. It has taken we this long to write about it due to the guilt I feel for shortening his life by half. But upon reflection, he was so extraordinary, it wouldn't be fair to not sing his talents to the world. Those who knew him, and those who only know of him from this website, he was loved very much and gave me and others great joy during his time with us. Finally, (and Olivia isn't pleased with this part) we are back to ONE (and only one, Olivia!) hamster for a time. Barnaby is okay with me, but I still don't trust him not to bite the kids. But he is special too and will have the place to himself for the indefinite future. May 13, 2006 |
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"Turn on the
Wayback machine, Sherman." When I wasn't engaged in such recreation as "SMASH" and "CRASH" (see
below), most of my early childhood took place in front of the television
(regular readers can now say "well, duh"). And today I would like to
conclude what I'm calling "The Little Rascals Trilogy".
Among aficionados (yep, there are some) of the tiny tikes, I am a considered a "best of years" fan. You know, when Spanky was still carrying the cute baby fat and not just fat. That would be 1932 - 1938. I enjoyed the earliest Rascals but Spanky brought a new level of talent and playfulness to the show. And once he had gotten 10 years old, his "shtick" just didn't seem cute anymore and none of the "newbies" were able to fill the role. S The links give you a short edit on the 3 episodes mentioned. Hope you enjoy and get that warm feeling inside that says "my childhood wasn't ALL bad". And for more amusement, check out alfalfa.com and learn the truth behind the famous "cowlick controversy"! May 5, 2006 |
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Children's
Games Growing up in the 60s was quite different than what I see our kids looking for in the way of entertainment. Oh, sure, we share the same baby-sitter in the television (although we started with black-and-white rather than color); but there was no PC or PlayStation to keep our attention spans going spastic. Aside from the TV, out choices were to go outside and play with other kids or stay in and read a book! I hated reading as a child and so with the pairing up of a couple siblings engaged in games that today seem bizarre. Not to mention that we considered the following examples "games" at all. First up is an indoor game I recall playing with my younger sister Chris. I think we titled it "SMASH" but can't say for sure that was the title. This is definitely the "rules" of how to play, though.
You will need one mattress. Size and firmness are dependant solely on your size and strength (and what size bed you sleep in!). Other items needed to play: at least 2 people - no more than 4 at a time.
Next up on "Best Games Kids Could Play"
is the infamous game of This classic was thought up by my brother Steven and me and was even more destructive than Smash was! This one would produce blood regularly and even created other inventive ways to tear skin and destroy property. Today's equivalent would be.... well, I can't come up with one. You see, today anyone involved in what is known as "extreme sports" wears protective gear from head to toe. There was none of that in this game of crash. Bare knuckles, knees and head were exposed to all sorts of torture during this game. HOW TO PLAY Equipment needed - 2 tricycles (preferably your sisters')
Now go out and have fun or stay in and have more fun. Who needs Nintendo? April 24, 2006 |
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Hamster Alert
Now, over the last what? 10+ years, I've had my share of critters on the loose, but I can't recall not see them coming to me not too long after I've discovered them missing. It has become commonplace to be awakened by Fred getting out, heading to my bedroom, climbing on the bed and sniffing at my face! Maybe that's why I didn't call out for everyone around to rip apart my home to find the little fugitive. This would also be the first time I've had a hamster go missing only to find him days or weeks later dead in the corner. Or as stories I've heard, you never see them again! Where do they go? So in the evening (when hamsters awake for breakfast), I put part of his home on the floor with an open door. Sure enough, once 9 o'clock rolled around and the food was put out, I saw Barnaby appear from wherever he spent the last 24 hours. Scooping him up I was very pleased that he wasn't freaked-out and ready to bite me as if it were my fault he had to sleep "outdoors". He is once again all happy (I suppose) in his posh 2-story abode. I am still amazed at how he managed to get out. He chewed the support of his wheel until it came crashing down. Then he climbed up the wheel and somehow got the dome lid to his home off with seemingly no leverage to do the deed! Just another day in the exciting life of your humble servant and his roommates. April 22, 2006 |
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Reflex Sympathetic
Dystrophy
Damn!
I hate this part...
o I've recently added to my collection a pair of DVDs containing
personal favorites "
HOW
TO PLAY
So
I woke up yesterday morning to discover that one of the hamster homes
(Barnaby's) looked like a crime scene. His running wheel had be broken
from its stand and the dome lid was on the floor. I looked as if someone
had hamster-napped my little friend!