V Squillions

You can adopt your own here: Adoption center

These are our Angels....mom finally got a new page up on the blog where you can read more about Butterscotch and Tigger.

Wordless Wednesday.....

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The cat tree developed an overpopulation issue.....

(and yes, Tim did stay there for a while)

Never a dull moment.....

Mom is SO fired.....

She missed Mo's Gotcha Day yesterday. Sheesh.....she would leave her head some place if it weren't screwed on. Mozart has been a part of the family for 6 years - he started as a foster and mom went to the shelter and adopted him after he had been back for a week. He is the official greeter and snuggler of the family.

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We all know this guy......

mr "please don't even think about touching me"

Well, we all know he gives mom the wide walk around. Don't get too close - don't make eye contact. Mom has hope that SOME day she is gonna get Junior to warm up to her. We aren't gonna hold our breaths.

Anyhow, over the weekend, he started running around and shaking his head like something was bothering him. The more we watch him, the more mom got a little concerned.

Mom finally got everyone in the back room under the pretense of serving dinner. She had a towel and chased Junior around the room to catch him. We don't suggest you try this at home - in this case, the audience participation was unappreciated (mom: Junior was running around and howling, Ivy was lit up and running around and Tim was howling.....sigh).

Anyhow, mom finally caught him and wrapped him in a towel. Now, the light isn't great in that room, but his ear looked kind of nasty. She tried to clean it a little and Junior managed to escape. More chasing and she got him again. She cleaned a little bit with the edge of the towel. Not sure what was up, but there was a little blood on the towel. He isn't running around and shaking his head any more so mom isn't worried enough to call Dr. T and get her over here now. However, the first shift of the year is up in March, so Junior will get his ears cleaned. He is on the only-freak-out-the-feral-cat-every-other-year vet plan anyhow, so he would have been up for an exam. We will just add the ears to the list.

But would it be too much to ask to have things be calm for a while??? Oh well....

Weekend update

Thanks for all the comments on Friday about the fire. It is scary....and a reminder to all of us to be sure our houses are safe. Sparkle made the comment about dryer vents and it is a good one - we can't begin to imagine how much cat hair is in ours. :)

It was a wild weekend.....

Remember this girl? Hera went to the Petco store and then back to the adoption center when she came down with an upper respiratory thing.

Well, mom had been feeling bad for K and thinking that maybe there was a better match out there for her. So she sent K an email telling her about Hera. So K went to the adoption center on Saturday. And.... Hera has a new home!!! We are very excited for all of them. We think it was meant to be - and they still saved a life and helped us save another by adopting. Mom has already gotten an update and it seems Hera slept with K last night. :)

Of course, that means that ....
the brat is still looking for a home.....

someday....

when the ringworm clears up.... 

and she gets spayed....
Sigh......

And in other adoption news - there is a Petsmart store that is southeast of the city where we live. There aren't any other rescues down there, so the cats in their adoption windows move pretty fast. Cleo moved there and was adopted in 48 hours. There was an adult going home on Saturday, so mom agreed to meet another volunteer for the national adoption weekend and leave Mist there. Since the boys had been neutered, she took them with for the exposure.

Mom did get annoyed with one lady. It was VERY busy and of course everyone wanted to hold the kitts. Mom had the pen set up with Mist and the boys in there and was trying to keep an eye on things. Mom knew Mist could get over the pen if she wanted too. And then this lady comes up with a little dog that starts barking at Mist. Mist freaks out, the boys freak out and mom asks the lady to back up. The lady tightens the leash on the dog and says "I have control of him". OK - that is great - but who are you gonna blame when Mist comes over the top and tries to eat your little dog. Ugh.....

Anyhow, mom came home: ALONE!!! Yes, the boys were adopted. Poblano and Jalapeno were adopted together and Serrano went home with a mom and two kids who also have an 8 month old female cat at home already. Mist stayed but mom hopes she finds her home soon. She doesn't look like anyone else down there, so we think she should catch someone's attention.

Random Fridays....

Not sure who was more startled....mom took trash down stairs last weekend and was going to bring stuff back up from the car. As mom opened the door into the garage, Allie was sitting on top of the trash can. Allie turned and looked at mom with these wide eyes and mom froze. And then Allie took off like a shot. Mom laughed, got her stuff and headed back upstairs. She did look out the window and saw Allie stroll back into the garage.....
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Fire update:
In some seriously scary news, there was a second fire earlier this week in a different foster home for the same rescue we volunteer for. There isn't any news if they are related, but we know it scares the heck out of mom and the rescue and fosters everywhere. There were 8 cats that didn't survive the first fire and 2 from this one. There was an adoption event this past weekend and 8 cats from the first fire were adopted. But PLEASE make plans for your homes and be thinking about these families and Colony.
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In defense of the clinic in Emma's post from yesterday. They are one of the few low cost spay/neuter clinics in our area. And we do love them for it. We think in this case they are so used to dealing with the public (and a certain portion of the public) that they try to get people to do things they way the clinic prefers to be sure they get it done right (and sometimes at all). Mom was just more frustrated at the situation.....

Mom saw this and laughed after all the comments about Emma's baths and being a gremlin. We sure hope this don't happen the next time she gets a baff:


Oh - and she says "thanks" for the poor mom comments (mom's spot is on her ankle - you know, Emma height - and mostly cleared up now too) and pffft to the "poor" Emma comments - that girl kitt is fine!  MOL
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There was a request for a Bourbon update. We haven't gotten anything recently, though mom does follow his new mom on facebook and sees new pictures. :)  It certainly sounds like he and Goose have their new mom and dad RIGHT where they want them......  Mom had emailed their new mom about Bourb's knees and what their vet said. We believe the official medical term used was "weird". Who knew?  MOL 
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The boys and mom are doing great after surgery. It never fails to amuse how quickly young male kittens bounce (sometimes literally) back from being neutered. Mom needs to determine now who is going where and when for adoptions. Oh - and the clinic aged Mist between 3-4 years old. Just sayin'

 Emma and the boys are having a good time running around. And Mist is right in on the games too. It is fun to watch as the kittens get bigger and the moms start to play. :)

Emma update......

So, here is the latest.....

Emma has been getting 2 baths per week for almost 3 weeks now. Her spots are growing back fur and she doesn't have any new spots. The rescue lady said you can almost watch it spread in kittens - it is a grooming thing. As she grooms, the spores spread. Which explains why it showed up first on her one ear (why one and not the other, who knows), then the top of one paw and then small spots on the backs of each front leg.

However, with furs growing back she was "out" of the main part and on the mend. So, when mom called Monday to get spay/neuter spots for Mist and the boys, she asked about Emma. The lady on the phone went to ask what "symptom free" meant and when she reported that the furs should be growing back, mom made the appointment to get Emma spayed.

yes - THAT tongue got us in trouble

Then came Tuesday morning. The tech took Emma back and then brought her back out to mom. Apparently "symptom free" really meant "the furs growing back on the one spot we saw but no new spots and you should have been treating through us and using the things we would have recommended and now all her fur has to be completely grown back everywhere". ugh.....

So, they said another 2-3 weeks of treatment and then they will look at her again. Come on!!!

Mom knew she had to contact K and let her know. Mom was worried cause she hadn't heard from her since she had come over to see Emma that one evening. Mom emailed her yesterday and told her the newest update. She also assured K that it is ok to change her mind and that we completely understand. Mom blames herself for putting up the picture of Emma before she was "completely" ready to be adopted. K emailed back and isn't sure what to do. Mom doesn't blame them....it is hard to get that excited and then be told over and over and over that you have to wait - with no real end date in sight. Mom said to let her know but if they decide not to take Emma she will keep them posted about female kittens and hang on to their application.

We have been lucky - no one else here has caught it (except mom - hahahahaha). Mom has been doing lots of laundry and wiping things down. Next step is to clean the carpets - and we are sure that is going to be worse than the Dyson monster. RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!!!

Wordless Wednesday

Mugging the mommy cat on Sunday.....  MOL

Update: the crew went to be spayed/neutered yesterday. Mom tried to take Emma again....no luck (more on that later - mom is a little annoyed). Everyone is doing well so far.

I got it, I got it

Silly boy.... this is Jalapeno....

The boys LOVE to play with toys. At any given moment, one of them can be heard growling at his brothers to BACK OFF!  :)

Monday already.....

Mom says that our posting and commenting may be sporadic for a little bit. She is going to try to get posts done on the weekend, but her work had gotten a little weird. The other paralegal was not doing things right and mom is going to have to take all of her files and figure things out - in addition to doing her own work.

However, on to the things you really want to hear about. The pepper boys and Mist were out most of the weekend. Those boys are full of the wild-and-crazies!!!

And then they fall over and pass out.  MOL

Emma seems to be having fun, but we can tell she isn't really sure what to do with them. She is outnumbered but they haven't figured out the cat tree so she can get up and away. And on the Emma front, "symptom free" for her means the fur starts growing back on her nekkid spots - and mom checked her paw the other night and the furs are growing back. So mom is going to call to get Mist spayed this week and see about getting Emma in as well.

Oh - and quick note on Emma's baths: she gets 2 per week for 4-6 weeks. This is the end of week 2. But - she is looking better, so that is a good thing.

Sunday plans....

Mom says Emma "the gremlin" is getting another bath today..... don't tell her

And a certain group of boy kittens are getting manicures - mom is on the laptop and they are running up and all over her and all we keep hearing is "ouch ouch ouch ouch".

And we plan to work on the mystery of how 3 little kittens can sound like a herd of elephants when they run around.....

easy Caturday

We are hopin' to spend the weekend chillaxin'. Mom said something about laundry, but we don't have to help with that. Thank Cod....

But, there is a certain momma cat who is now escaping from baby jail. We would like to think she just figured it out, but we suspect she knew all along and is just getting comfortable leaving the boys in there without her. Plus - the pepper boys are beginning to make it sound like they are practicing mortal combat in there anymore....they need more room to run around. Mom asked the rescue lady about letting them out since we still have Emma and her cooties, but she said since Emma has been in the house (and truthfully has been exposed to the boys though not for long periods of time), to just let them run. Mom thinks they may be close to 2 pounds too. Time flies. :)

And, it happened last night for the first time. Mist is good about the boys being out and playing. And in fact was chasing them at one point. But Tommy is not liking Mist much, so mom is keeping an eye on everyone. Luckily Mist is laid back about it so nothing has happened.

 

Random Fridays

Did you see the post yesterday by Miss Chrystal????  Woohooo - more adoptions!!!  Frosting and Hershey have to get to CALIFORNIA!!!!  We have done it before and mom promised we will help make this one happen as well. If you live ANYWHERE between Illinois and Ohio and are planning a trip to LA (or close) and willing to help transport these kitties to their forever home, PLEASE let us or Miss Chrystal know.

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The cats rescued from the house fire have been placed in other foster homes. We haven't heard anything else about the foster and her family....other than they are safe.

This from our friend Miss Beckie:
As the foster parent of two of the house fire cats I would like to thank everyone for the kind words and offers of support. My furry ones are now available for a home of their own. Berry is a black and white girl about a year old. She is very sweet and cuddly. Kooper is an orange guy about the same age. Both are living at the Petco at Kingsdale in Upper Arlington. Stop by and say hello to them.

Also:
First, THANK YOU to everyone who has offered to foster and who is fostering to help with this tragic event. And a big thank you to the Norton Road Veterinary Hospital and Rascal Animal Hospital for helping with the veterinary needs of these kitties!

These kitties are in very temporary foster homes and need to find their FOREVER homes! So we are having an adoption event with the foster home fire kitties THIS WEEKEND, from 12-5pm at the Petsmart on Rome-Hilliard. Adoption fees will be $35 for one cat, and $50 for two. There are also 2 of the kitties at the Petco at Kingsdale - Berry and Kooper (and big thank you to Petco for promoting and caring for them until homes are found!).
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We gotted an award from Basil
Fanks.....we love you too!!!
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Notes from Emma's Wednesday post:

@Fuzzy Tales: Emma is full of...... something - haha
@Priscilla: thanks - we like the new look. Mom wanted to try something and got bored at work the other day.
@Belle: nope, K is in for the long haul. Heck, we think she might have been charmed by the bratty behavior.
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About Styx, Atlas and Hera: they were never at our house. Mom moved them from the adoption center straight to the store. But since mom will be doing their adoptions, we feel like they are extended family kitts. :)  No word on what is up with Atlas but Miss Mona says he is eating ok, so that is good news.

how sweet.....

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!!!

With Cleo moving from the store and being adopted, it was time to bring in some new cats to the Petco store.....

Miss Beckie and Miss Mona (the head rescue lady) recommended that mom pick up an older kitten named Smudge from the adoption center as she wasn't adjusting to being around so many cats.

The ended with the score being Smudge 2, Mom 0.  MOL......  Mom tried twice to get Smudge. The second time mom grabbed her and Smudge turned and sunk her claws into mom. So much for that. This while mom is in the kitten room standing on a bench trying to get Smudge off a ledge over her head. Mom let Smudge go and looked out the glass door to see Miss Mona cracking up. Oh well, at least SHE was having a good time!!

So, a change of plan. Mom ended up taking 3 kittens that are about 6 months old. They hadn't been there long enough to be named yet, so mom got to do it. They are:

 Altas (gray male)

Hera (gray female)

Styx (black female)

first seen Monday after meeting the pepper boys on Sunday

Mom did have to laugh at them a little. They are SUPER sweet and lovey..... but apparently they didn't get the memo about having to sing the warrior song while in the PTU in the car. Mom got to store, turned off the car, and they were PURRING so loud she could hear them from the back seat.  WHAT?????

Update (we gotta teach mom not to post in advance - MOL)
Atlas had to go back to the adoption center. He wasn't feeling so hot and needed to be seen by a v-e-t. We will keep you posted as we learn more about what is up with him.
And......Styx went home last night with her new family. YEAH!!

Brat kitten....

(sorry - we know it makes your parents go "squeee" but it had to be done)

We got a treat on Monday night. Emma's new mom came over to visit Emma. We love that she is being SO understanding about still wanting to adopt Emma even though she is having to wait to take her home.

Anyhow, K was all excited. Her first comment was how big Emma has gotten. Guess it has been a while since she has seen the kitt. We see her all the time and she is tiny to us - though bigger than the pepper boys.

Anyhow - Emma.....was a BRAT!!! Mom finally had to open a can of food to get Emma's attention. Emma danced and sang down the hall cause she knows where dinner is served. But mom fooled her and wanted her to eat in the living room so she could get used to K.  But even then, mom went to grab Emma in the kitchen - and Emma HISSED at mom!!!! OMC!

K finally sat on the floor and mom gave her one of Miss Andrea's stringies to play with. Emma did come around and play a bit and let K pet her a little bit. Of course, Maestro and Mozart turned on the charm and were giving K some kitty love. And she was shocked that Maestro is 18 years old.

After K headed home, mom fed Emma the rest of the can of food. And Emma spent the evening snoozing on mom. BRAT!!!!



That time of year again.....

We love the mom....really we do. But once a year she turns into a total woofie person. See, this thing comes on the TV and we lose her attention for 2 WHOLE NIGHTS.

What are we talking about?

The Westminster Kennel Club Show on TV. Yep - mom is devoted. Give her something to drink and snacks and she is staked out. Tim is hoping she will at least throw a blanket over her lap so he can snooze there.....

Now - before we get down to that, we want to say this: if you want a "breed" of dog, PLEASE consider a shelter or a rescue. There are LOTS of breed specific dogs in shelters that need homes. Check your local area or check Petfinder. Being in a shelter doesn't make any animal bad or broken.....they need love just like any other animals.

Heck, this handsome greyhound boy named Dasher is at the shelter where mom volunteers:


That being said, we understand RESPONSIBLE breeding to protect the breed. And the other thing we love about the show on TV - that David Frey.....he makes great comments about all the dogs, tells it like it is ("this is not a beginner dog" or "you need to be smarter than this dog") and tells people to check rescues and shelters too.

Only, mom checked the basketball calendar and realized.....the second night of the show is the same night that our Michigan State Spartans play the evil Michigan Wolverines.

dog show/basketball/dog show/basketball

Let it be said, we are prone to vote for the dog show, cause at least then mom won't be yelling at the TV. But we suspect that the woofies will be DVR'd and we will get to listen to mom yell

GO GREEN

Boys day out.....

As we mentioned yesterday, mom took the pepper boys to the monthly adoption event. Mist got let off the hook and mom left her out with us for a few hours. We aren't telling exactly how it went, but everyone was ok when mom got home, so she presumes it was OK.
     Mom: Mist is one of the more laid back mom-cats we have had here. She seems primarily unfazed but much that goes on around here.....thank goodness!!!

Mom says the new playpen is GREAT!!  The boys were a little freaked out by the new environment and the noise of the store, but settled in pretty quickly and played and seemed to have a good time.

We did have a nice couple fall for Jalapeno and take an application. Mom said that the boys won't be ready to go for another few weeks, but they said they would like to have the application in place and mom can call them when he is ready to go home.

Mom took over some older kittens to the store last week. The older kittens are laid back and SO sweet. So mom decided the boys could use some excitement, so she put the black female kitten named Styx in the pen with the boys.

Poblano was NOT impressed with the new girl in the pen!!!  MOL

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Again, thanks for the comments and support for the foster family with Colony Cats that had the fire on Friday. We will try to keep you updated as we learn more. And THANKS to Sparkle for the special post.

Sunday quickie....

Mom is off to Petco this morning with the pepper boys.....first time with the new playpen. Pictures tomorrow.

Tim jumped into the bathroom this morning over the baby jail gate. He and Mist got a LITTLE too close and smack each other around. No claws, no hissing or growling.....just some smacky paws.

Oh, and Jalapeno made an attempt to get over baby jail this morning......oh crap!!

Thanks for the supportive comments yesterday.

The family is safe. We don't know if they have had any more luck catching some of the missing kitties. We have learned that they had converted their garage into a large foster room, mainly for FIV+ cats. We know that some think there was a too large number of cats in the house. However, for us it is about the care they receive. Hoarders keep cats, generally refuse vet care and do not look for homes for their animals. This family was a recognized foster for a recognized non-profit rescue group - the house was well cared for, the cats healthy and vetted and ALL were available for adoption.

This group, and we volunteer for them, is no kill and is willing to take in those cats that others will reject.....most groups never would have given Bourbon a chance due to disability. There are two kittens now that were born with deformed front legs that are looking for a home. FeLV (yes they have their own space), FIV+, CH.....it is about getting them care and knowing they deserve homes just as much as the "perfect" cats out there. And being a HUGE proponent of spay/neuter and TNR.

OK - we are getting mom off her soap box. She had been reading some comments from the rescues facebook page. Most were positive and helpful but some were snarky. No one needs the snarky in this situation (or any other time).  If you would like to help, the rescue has a donate button up on their website.

In need of purrs....

The rescue that we help out has had a tragedy.....one of the foster family's house caught fire. At least a dozen foster cats died in the fire. Others have been trapped and still others are missing. 9 are currently at the vet being treated for smoke inhalation. We don't know about the family.....

Please be thinking about the rescue and this family.......You can read more about it on their facebook page.

A lot of our foster are from there: Mist and her kittens, Cleo and her kittens were taken in after they came here from Chrystal's house, Bourbon and his siblings......  it is a long list.


Bourbon and Grey Goose (formerly Moonshine) sleeping on their new mom.....
wish they could all have this kind of happy ending

(the furries said the facebook link wasn't working right - it did for me, but I added a link to their website as well)

Random Fridays.....

To all our friends in the northeast US - PLEASE stay safe and warm in the coming storm!!
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Faraday, Maxwell and Allie mentioned on the post about the new playpen for the kittens that it might be useful for other animals in case of emergency. Mom hadn't even thought about that. Not that she thinks shoving all of us in one of those would work, but it is a good idea. This is the one she bought for the kittens.

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 Mom has read on several blogs (she would give you credit if she could remember them all (love and hisses is one) - darned mom is getting old) about using auto windshield shades as self warming cat beds. She liked the idea for Allie and her boyfriend. It has been SO cold here recently - it has been in the 20s F all week during the day and colder at night. Mom found a cheap one the other day and dismantled it and cut it into pieces to put in the carriers in the garage. It was big enough to cut up another piece to have upstairs....mom was hoping Maestro would use it as he is old. Nope.....

Mo "the hot man cat" was caught sleeping on it. Mom snuck up and him and bent back the blanket from Miss Connie so you could see the reflective thingie. Although considering he weighs less than everyone else here except Maestro, guess we can't blame him too much. :)
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We have seen several comments asking us about baby jail. We do love it, but it isn't fool proof. And it sure isn't adult cat proof. Mom bought ours here. But keep in mind that the walls are only about 29 inches tall (according to the website - mom has never measured). The bars are about half of that - once kittens get to a certain height, they can get over by climbing.....see the paws on the middle rail:

(the Gs from November 2011)

So it works for little kittens, but even Maestro (the old man cat) can jump it. OK....Ivy can't but she and gravity have a love-hate relationship.  MOL
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Tim saw Dr. Tom for a checkup on Tuesday. Tim is on one week more of antibiotics. All of his stitches haven't fallen out yet, but it looks good in there. Plus he is back to eating dry food. AND..... no fights for a couple of weeks. Mom has found some serious scabs on both Tim and Tom, so those fights were a little worse than mom thought (though Tommy's ripped out toenail appears to be slowly growing back). Glad that is over with - it gets everyone here worked up.....

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Comment from yesterday about Emma and the baths:
"I have been there, too! Ask your vet about a "dip" that you apply at home and leave on. It's miconozole. Vet labels as to how much medicine to mix with water and you wet kitten with dip and leave on to dry. No smell like the lyme stuff and far more effective. I used a cloth wet with the dip to wipe over head/face area so as not to get in eyes or ears. The same miconozole comes in towelettes (handy-wipes)."
The shampoo is miconozole - and weirdly she smells like mint toothpaste.  But we didn't know it came in towelettes.....gonna have to look into that.  THANKS
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Thankful Thursday (NOT)

Most of you  know by now that Miss Emma has.....ringworm. argh......

Mom has been doing some research and talking to the rescue lady. There are several ways to treat it. We started with the topical cream.....not working so well. We have heard about a lyme-sulphur dip, but the rescue lady isn't a fan of that (and having smelled it more than once, neither is mom - MOL). There is a pill but it can be toxic to the liver - especially the smaller the animal. And there is a shampoo. The rescue lady says she has had very good luck with that and gave mom a bottle.

The deal is baths 2 times per week for 3-4 weeks. Emma got her first bath Tuesday night:

HALP!!! I R STUCK IN HERE!!!

Once lathered up, she had to keep lathered up for 10 minutes. Listening to her scream in the tub with the shower door closed might well have been the longest 10 minutes ever (at least until Friday when we have to it again). Mom did laugh at Mist....as Emma was screaming in the tub, Mist stood outside the shower door and chirped at Emma and gave mom the hairy eyeball.....

Your Gremlin is wet and angry....

and sulking....

She did forgive mom after about 30 minutes or so. And slept like the dead all night long (who knew all it took to make kittens sleep all night was to give them a bath).

Mom got a call from the guy who adopted Emma's brothers.....they gots it too, so mom dropped off a bottle of shampoo for them as well. As the rescue lady says "damn fungus"

wordless Wednesday

Adding a little Mist and some pepper to your Wednesday.....