Giving Chance a Chance

Kitty has a name. We decided that Chance fit nicely….should be Cujo. His sweetness lasted less than three days. Two and half days of nuzzling, cuddling, playing, sleeping in the sun or curled up at our feet…I don’t know what happened, but battling CujoKitty isn’t what we need in our lives right now. He will be neutered tomorrow, and we will see if he calms down….otherwise I just don’t know. Starr is walking around the house terrified, and I am just sick about it.

So, while I consider this development…..

 

Here are a couple songs off of The Morning Benders, The Bedroom Covers:

You can find and download all 12 songs at Gigantic 

And here’s what the band has to say: (copied from MySpace)

hey gang,

here are a few tracks, that we are calling the bedroom covers. as you may have guessed, all these songs are covers… and yes, we did them at home in my room! the songs that you hear here are just songs we really really like. we didn’t deliberate over which songs to pick. we didn’t try to stick to a certain time period or genre. we just recorded songs we were going to be playing around the house anyway…

these songs sound the way they do, because we recorded them with a laptop and one mic. we used mainly acoustic guitars and shakers because that’s what we had lying around, and we couldn’t make much noise in our apartment anyway. we didn’t spend time arranging any of these either. we learned the chords and the lyrics (which was pretty easy because we’ve heard all these songs hundreds of times), and we played ‘em. what you hear at the basis of the recording is generally a first take. sometimes we added some background vocals or another guitar part here or there, because the songs we were covering had a lot more going on than us, and we were feeling a bit inadequate…

but hey, you’re always fighting a losing battle when you’re recording covers, because 99.99% of the time the cover isn’t going to be as good the original. well, for the record, let it be known that none of our covers are as good as the originals. that’s part of why we wanted to give all these tracks away for free. if you haven’t heard one of these songs before, you should go out and buy it from the original artist, RIGHT NOW. disclaimer aside: if you want to hear some kids having a lot of fun playing some of their favorite songs ever, check these out.

love,

the morning benders

In the New Year

Sunday Mix

Some Things Come at Just the Right Time

Right in the middle of my little (big ass) funk yesterday, I received a phone call. I answered the phone in tears. My neighbor Janice was calling from work with a problem. One of her co-workers had found a cat, and now this animal needed a home. This little guy appeared to have been abandoned. He was friendly and seemed young. Would I be willing to adopt him and give him a home?<br /><br />Well. Darn it. We have been wanting a pet for a long time, but just couldn’t. My pastor, in our therapy sessions, suggested that getting a cat might be good for me. Between the fallout of the accident, and Starr leaving for college, having a cat around to talk to, to take care of, to love….having a warm body in the house…could be what saves me. He might have been right, but I just didn’t feel like I could commit any money towards a pet right now. Knowing what we are going through, my neighbor has been keeping her eye out for a cat for us, because she also felt that a pet might be positive therapy.<br /><br />I told her that I would think about it, and went back to my funk. I mentioned the cat to Starr who of course wanted the cat. I made up all of my excuses…reasons why not…and decided against taking him in.<br /><br />The phone rang again. Why don’t I come down and meet the cat before they take him to the shelter? I am a big pushover, so I went, excuses in hand. I wasn’t even sure why I agreed to go, but there I was driving to Janice’s office to say no in person. Stupid.<br /><br />Damn it if the little bugger didn’t just melt in my arms, all purry and sweet. How could I say no to that? It was a trap, I knew it, but I was caught…or it was just what I needed, at exactly the right time.<br /><br />Either way, we now have a third member of our little family. We haven’t settled on a name yet, but here is Monkey, or Bruiser, or Buster, could be Maverick, or Physical Phil:<br /><br /><div style=”text-align: center; clear: both;”><a href=”http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_0F9wXlHzfuo/SIi8AWespyI/AAAAAAAAAhc/SJD_zORgLd4/s1600-h/102_1169+copy.jpg” imageanchor=”1″ linkindex=”175″ style=”border: 0pt none ; background-color: transparent; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;”><img src=”http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_0F9wXlHzfuo/SIi8AWespyI/AAAAAAAAAhc/Zv9pg6UAMOs/s320-R/102_1169+copy.jpg” style=”border: 0pt none ;” /></a></div><br /><div style=”text-align: center; clear: both;”><a href=”http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_0F9wXlHzfuo/SIi77xYOO2I/AAAAAAAAAhU/stktCBnHgQU/s1600-h/102_1168+copy.jpg” imageanchor=”1″ linkindex=”176″ style=”border: 0pt none ; background-color: transparent; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;”><img src=”http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_0F9wXlHzfuo/SIi77xYOO2I/AAAAAAAAAhU/QVKNtjPDflM/s320-R/102_1168+copy.jpg” style=”border: 0pt none ;” /></a></div><br />My neighbors (not just Janice) just brought over a pile of cat supplies for us, and are insisting on paying for his initial vet visit, neutering and shots. Thank you all for being so generous and thoughtful.<br /><br /><div style=”text-align: center;”>mp3: <a href=”http://barsukmusic.blaireau.net/TheLongWinters_Pushover.mp3″ linkindex=”177″>”Pushover” – The Long Winters</a></div>

Tuesday Mix

A Death Cab for Cutie mix:

I am opting for music again today.

Take a Walk

Starr and I went for an early walk this morning. It was a bit muggy, and it was overcast, but otherwise an hour (ok…50 minutes actual walking time) well spent. We walked a trail along a creek here in town, and in addition to the expected geese, and other birds, we encountered a fox and observed a deer resting nearby. Actually, it was a great way to greet the day. A chance to have some stress-free moments and breathe.

We will have to make it a point to do that more often. In fact I plan to go again, a different trail and by myself, in the morning. As one of the many hurdle days that we are facing, starting it with a walk sounds like a valid plan. Then I am planning on shopping for groceries and baking and/or cooking something for Starr’s grandparents, who we plan to visit this weekend.

Starr said that she heard that a 30 minute daily walk dramatically reduces bone loss. I knew that there are many benefits to walking, but couldn’t list them, so I looked them up. Here is the information I pulled from the AARP website: (maybe I can convince myself to walk more often)

If a daily fitness walk could be put in a pill, it would be one of the most popular prescriptions in the world. It has so many health benefits. Walking can reduce the risk of many diseases — from heart attack and stroke to hip fracture and glaucoma. These may sound like claims on a bottle of snake oil, but they’re backed by major research. Walking requires no prescription, the risk of side effects is very low, and the benefits are numerous:

Managing your weight. Combined with healthy eating, physical activity is key to any plan for long-lasting weight control. Keeping your weight within healthy limits can lower your risks of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, cancer, sleep apnea, and osteoarthritis.

Controlling your blood pressure. Physical activity strengthens the heart so it can pump more blood with less effort and with less pressure on the arteries. Staying fit is just as effective as some medications in keeping down blood pressure levels.

Decreasing your risk of heart attack. Exercise such as brisk walking for three hours a week — or just half an hour a day — is associated with a 30% to 40% lower risk of heart disease in women. (Based on the 20-year Nurses’ Health Study of 72,000 female nurses.

Boosting “good” cholesterol – the level of high-density lipoproteins (HDL). Physical activity helps reduce low-density lipoproteins (LDL or “bad” cholesterol) in the blood, which can cause plaque buildup along the artery walls — a major cause of heart attacks.

Lowering your risk of stroke. Regular, moderate exercise equivalent to brisk walking for an hour a day, five days a week, can cut the risk of stroke in half, according to a Harvard study of more than 11,000 men.

Reducing your risk of breast cancer and type 2 diabetes. The Nurses’ Health Study also links regular activity to risk reductions for both these diseases. In another study, people at high risk of diabetes cut their risk in half by combining consistent exercise like walking with lower fat intake and a 5% to 7% weight loss.

Avoiding your need for gallstone surgery. Regular walking or other physical activity lowers the risk of needing gallstone surgery by 20% to 31%, found a Harvard study of more than 60,000 women ages 40 to 65.

Protecting against hip fracture. Consistent activity diminishes the risk of hip fracture, concludes a study of more than 30,000 men and women ages 20 to 93.

The list goes on and on. Many other studies indicate a daily brisk walk also can help:

• Prevent depression, colon cancer, constipation, osteoporosis, and impotence
• Lengthen lifespan
• Lower stress levels
• Relieve arthritis and back pain
• Strengthen muscles, bones, and joints
• Improve sleep
• Elevate overall mood and sense of well-being.

Although, I see no mention of better orgasms…..hmm.

Late Wednesday

mp3: “The Underdog” – Spoon

mp3: “Chinese Translation” – M. Ward

mp3: “Singing to the Earth (To Thank Her For You)” – Apollo Sunshine

mp3: “Horizons” – Son Ambulance

mp3: “Grey or Blue” – Jaymay

It’s Rocket Time

Starr’s nine year old brother, Rocket, is taking a mini vacation from his other sister, Sissy, and is spending the weekend with us! Yea! We have been looking forward to his visit. Sissy gets her turn in a couple weeks…and we are looking forward to her visit also!!

While I worry over what I didn’t plan, buy, clean or prepare for this weekend, here are a couple of “not necessarily new” songs to listen to:

QP Has Left the House

I am alternately happy and sad about this.

Starr and I spent the last eight days taking care of a little dog named QP. We loved the company, Starr loved being greeted with enthusiasm when walking in the door…okay, I will admit it, I liked it too.

I didn’t care for wet dog food. I hated, I mean really hated, picking up doggie poo…but I did it…every time. I also had to wash Starr’s comforter, and do some carpet scrubbing…I guess accidents happen (QP is getting old), but I could really do without that. Yet, I already miss the jangle of her collar, and the way she always followed me around the house…much to Starr’s dismay!

Caring for QP just solidified Starr’s wish for a pet. Although she was disappointed that the dog loved me more. Could it be that I was the one providing the food, and the one who took her on almost every walk? Hmm? It could also be that I was closer in age to her owner and I was more “comfortable” than an energetic, sometimes loud, 19 year old.

Maybe I am just awesome and irresistible?! *cough* Yeah, well…

Tuesday Mix