you can't drive around with a tiger in your car

Cute, right? It's funny how deceiving pictures can be; the four of us look civilized and intelligent, yet is it true? For example, would you be able to guess that about 30 minutes earlier, I was first reasoning, then yelling at scared cat, loose in my car? It was a ridiculous request, but I thought she'd listen at least a little.

We only have one cat carrier, but I don't really think it would've changed the outcome. Nate was in class, so I planned to get myself ready, stuff the cats in their cage, and pick him up so we could get our pictures taken. Once I was ready, I started to shove Kathryn in the carrier. No way, her truck of a body said. I couldn't get her in, so I went for Mal, who is easily fooled and loves toy mice.

At this point, I was going to be late, so somehow I thought that Kathryn would be fine loose in a moving car. Stupid. Three minutes later, she crawled past my steering wheel and onto my window. Once I moved her to the passenger seat, she discovered her desired spot: anywhere near my feet. "Kathryn, I just need you to be still so mommy doesn't crash our car...Kathryn, KATHRYN" and in one, semi-graceful move, she was under my legs (the ones used for break/acceleration) and facing backward, because she was scared and wanted her face covered. "Fine" I said, "but if you move anything, I will step on it".

Kathryn stayed put until I got to the parking lot of the school. Nate, excited to be done with class, walked briskly towards the car. "We have a situation", I say. Once Nate was in the car, all was well. Kathryn glared at me from her cushy spot on Nate's lap and we made it to our picture appointment on time. Wisely, Nate also took Kathryn for the photo shoot, so my shirt (and face) was safe from her wrath.

PS-Mal was only good because she was restrained.

Lucky Number Seven

In honor of my dad's (successful) seven bypass surgery, I thought I would list seven reasons my dad is my favorite.

1-Bread: I need bread in some form for most, if not all my meals. Why? My theory is that it's genetic/hereditary, etc. My dad has the same need and if I didn't have the same "problem", I'd think it's funny.

2-Puns: My dad loooves a good (or bad) pun. This list may turn into why I'm similar, but I think it's a sign of intelligence for one to appreciate use/misuse of words...and if that is our standard, my dad is quite a brain. :)

3-Halfsies: Maybe things have changed in the year I've been away, but I have many memories including my dad taking a half a slice of something, only to return to the half, to half it again. Nate's dad is also guilty, so I think that means bad things for both of us.

4-J-ello: Not a favorite food, but a fun time. Whenever Ruth and I would need to provide an official answer to a guy that had asked us to a dance, dad was there to provide inspiration. The pinnacle: my dad pulls out a box of j-ello from the pantry cupboard and says "j, ello"....wha? It didn't really mean much, aside from a laugh and a reference to "hello". Seeing as "hello" wouldn't answer the dance question, his j-ello submission was disqualified.

5-Halloween, or whenever: I'm not sure if it has survived, but we used to have a clown mask that covered the top half of one's face, complete glasses and crazy hair sticking out the top. It seemed whenever the halloween box was stirred up, this mask found it's way onto my dad's dresser, then later his face. Glasses with fake paper eyes have also been spotted.

6-Glass, anyone?: When I was in seventh grade, my dad survived a crazy incident involving our suburban, a faulty cruise control, and the fence. He was in a suit coat when it happened cause he had just come home from work. Much later on, showing off his sense of humor, he bet someone at his office that he could still pull glass out of his pocket. Guess who won?

7-Funny Bone: From making fun of "The Colonel" at the gym (easy target), to his laughing at his own penchant for Matlock and Perry Mason, my dad can find the funny in anything.

Get Well Soon!

Duped by the Del

Today was a big day, and while I'm embarrassed on my timing, I'm still proud of the accomplishment-my car is an Ohioan! Yes, yes, yes, I just posted announcing our year mark, and registration comes around more often than that, but whatever. Nate discovered that both downtown Toledo and the title and registration office are often vacant, so I was able to get everything done during my lunch break.
To celebrate, we went to Del Taco for some eats. The arrival of the Toledo location has been an exciting event for us, but I have mixed feelings about them today. I was tricked. I was offered a medium or macho sized meal. Medium being the smallest choice she offered, I went for it. Nate and I were rewarded with a vat sized cup to fill with soda, and I have an extra taco that won't refrigerate well. The trick here is that a small option exists; I'm wondering if someone was trying to win a contest at work? Thanks, Susan. (it should be mentioned that she was really efficient and has obviously mastered the upsell)


Oh, Tom.

All this reminded me of a favorite Halloween...I had planned to go to lunch with Tom and Ruth; we decided on Del Taco (their Murray location has a long drive thru line at any hour of the day). Ruth drove, so she got to order. With Tom (dressed as one half of Siegfried and Roy complete with a blond wig and a white stuffed tiger) in the passenger seat, I hid in the back while Ruth yelled "NO, NO MACHO ANYTHING. JUST REGULAR" (there was either a broken speaker or a language barrier, I don't remember). While embarrassed at the time, today I saw the wisdom in her clear communication. Reheating a taco means heating up lettuce. Hiss, Susan.

Happy Birthday Ohio!

Although Ohio gained statehood in March, not August, it became a state for us one year ago yesterday. I still hesitate (read: cringe) to call it "my" state, yet as we apply/fight for residency however, I am more inclined to say whatever it is that will give us a tuition break. So in case the University of Toledo Residency Committee is reading...I love Ohio and will never leave. Never. Moving on, we've been here a year!

To commemorate such an event, I feel the need to review my introduction to Toledo...toll roads were an unknown to Nate and I, so we quickly ran out of money on I-80. The last toll booth I stopped at was my favorite (I'm sure the booth worker's too): at that point, I had no money, save a few foreign coins, and I had lost the ticket I was supposed to give them. I was near tears, but I also figured she had to let me through at some point. She did and gave us a new route into town that avoided the rest of the tolls. We rolled in, saw a Costco on the verge of a grand opening, and somehow managed to find our way to our apartment. Looking back, Toledo may not be a booming metropolis, but it's still big enough to consider our apartment discovery miraculous.

Once we arrived, we crept in (it was 1am), our apartment and a summer's worth of heat welcomed us. The apartment was completely bare, hot and I was so tired I wasn't rational. Nate started moving around the blinds and windows in an effort to cool the place down. It was a good idea, but...most of the windows/blinds Nate opened or pulled up came crashing down, dramatically showing us that we would be renting an "old soul". Sometime around there, I started crying because I hadn't yet (it seemed like the time). It was so hot that we decided a visit to the local Comfort Inn would be the best choice for the evening, so instead of worrying about never waking up (from the heat), I worried about my car getting broken into.

Since then, I have worked 3 jobs, Nate has finished 1 year of law school, we've purchased 3 cats, joined the local YMCA, bought a Costco membership, and most important, learned how to enjoy life with lots of (foreign) change.

Here are a few pictures of our journey east.


Liz trying to look as much like Abe as possible

Nate studying a map in Wyoming

Generic Motel: The first fly is free!
(this place is in Nebraska for all who want to avoid or experience)