Two more sneaky members of the FLO have been identified and they are living
right here.  One is Sadie and the other is Caffie, the new kid, (short for
Caffine I'm told).  I have a new computer stand & it is near the bed & the
desk.  Sadie & Caffie can manage to get up on it by crawling or jumping
from one to another.  I have come back in here to find my mouse on the
floor & strange things on the computer.  I keep on thinking, how could that
mouse get down there.  I try to hide it, but since it is attached to the
computer, I can only do so much to hide it.  Sadie has been coming up by
me when I am messing around & sniff the mouse like a little roto rooter
thingamabob, then try to take it away from me.  I have a scroller on it &
she will latch onto that & try to get away with it.  She has pushed the
buttons on the monitor & left pictures awry.  Caffi has re-arranged
Microsoft Outlook for me.  I was writting a e-mail one day & she managed to
do something & the screen flashed off & came back on.  When it did my
message was gone.  It didn't go to the person for whom it was intended, it
didn't go into delete, it didn't go into file, I still haven't found it.
The toolbar that goes across the top, you know with <ouch> file, edit, view
& etc?  It isn't there.  I panicked when I saw that & thought Oh Lord how
am I going to open messages or send them?  I sent a urgent ICQ to<ouch> my
son In MD, as he built the computer for me & installed the program PC
Anywhere in it so if I had a problem he could access my pc & see whatever
is on my monitor & hopefully fix it.  He knows me.<ouch> While waiting for
him to get back to me I found my toolbar, it is now on the right side,
sideways.  Real cute Caffi.  Thank goodness when you click on it, it opens
the right way.  My son told me he doesn't know what she did, but since it
is still working ok, don't mess<ouch> with it, leave it alone.
 
At first I had a board leaning across the doubledoor doorway for my
bathroom, but Rosie figured out that if she moved the toy box close enough
to it & jumped on it, she could get up on it & over.  So I <ouch> had it
cut to size, (piece of plywood) & hinges on it & a sliding bolt.  But as
the bolt is sometime shard to open I think I am going to put a hook &
eyelet on instead, (like screen door hook).  It will be on<ouch> the
outside of the door, no sense tempting the little monsters to standing on
top of one another acrobat style until one reaches the latch & opens it.  I
did the same thing for the bedroom door.  <ouch>This way I can have them
locked in the bathroom & if they get past me into the bedroom, they can't
get out into the rest of the house.  If they are free in both rooms, I
have a tall kitchen plastic trash container next to the door & if they all
scurry to the door as I am going in or out, I can pick them up, deposit
them in the container until I get through, then pluck them up & put them
back over the gate.  Since it <ouch>is a tall container they are
effectively kept there until I take them out.  It's on the outside so they
can't get into it by themselves.  So far this has been working fairly well.
I can see where they are before coming into the <ouch>room.  Bathroom gate
is 36" high & the bedroom one is 48" high.  Have no idea why that one is so
much higher, try to tell a guy something.....
 
Today was a beautiful day in Florida.  A cold front has come down from the
north, <thanks> & it was breezy but sunny.  So thought it would be nice to
take at least one kid outside for a treat.  I chose <ouch>Blossom because I
know I could catch her if I had to.  <ouch> I took her to the side of the
aviary away from the house, where there is a little wooded area & grassy
area.  I put her down & sat down, telling her <ouch> I would probably get
all bit up from the ants.  In a short time I felt something biting me,
hard.  Got up & tried to get whatever it was off of me.  <ouch> But
couldn't seem to.  Then it felt like it was also on my shorts & then my
hand.  More I rubbed more I got bit.  Jumping around, doing a jig &
swatting my backside.  <ouch ouch>Finally gave up & scooped up Blossom &
came in.  Short outing.  Took my shorts off & there they were.  I had sat
on a prickly pear cactus that was hidden under leaves & had those little
tiny needles, hairs or spines where the sun ain't goin' to shine.  Yeah
they're still there.  No I am not asking anyone to get them out, at least
not <ouch> yet.  But maybe soon.  <sigh> The things we go through for our
furry kids!
 
Lynn & the Seven Sneaky Snakes - Rosie, Blossom, George, Cocoa, Sadie, QT
& Caffi.
 
Blossom, "Hey mommy why are you war dancin all over the place?"
Rest of the gang, "Gosh Blossom I didn't know she could do that!"
[Posted in FML issue 2624]