Out for Dinner With Mal

Mal and I went to dinner at Pappadeaux last night. VERY yummy seafood place.

I didn't want to go out. I wasn't feeling very social, or hungry, or much like watching adorable happy holiday couples feeding each other shrimp. But Mal really wanted to go. And he said it would make me feel better.

He was right.

I do feel better.

And I have yummy leftover shrimp to eat while I watch this NEW blizzard blow in.

It's always good to see Mal. He had some other visiting to do, so I think this is going to be my only adventure with him this time around. Well... assuming he can actually get out of the airport for his flight on Saturday.

If not, you can always come back and stay here as long as you want, Mal! I'd even share my leftover shrimp!

What I Got for Christmas

For Christmas, I got dumped.

Well, everyone is saying it was really a mutual thing. And I guess it was.

If mutual is her saying "I need space" and my saying "Um, okay."

After Rabbit left, Kumo assurred me that she would ALWAYS be here.

Oh, good.

So I've been trying to figure out how to post about this, and Syri, my muse, has really been encouraging me to write about it. But I figure nobody wants to hear the whining of a newly single bunny, so I've been dragging my paws and not posting. But now you know.

Good things about the holiday - Wendy got me a bunch of cool books, I got Wendy a couple of books I know she really wanted. I did finally get a bed (Rabbit got it for me, so I need to decide what I want to do about that. Any of you who have ever been dumped, but who got a big present right before, from the dumper, will understand my dilemma). Mal and his girlfriend, Serenity, are in town. It's been great hanging out with Mal again.

Wendy and I have been talking a lot, and I hadn't realized how much I'd lost touch with her while I was involved with Rabbit.

I lost touch with a lot of things.

So in the end, maybe it's all for the best. I start 2007 as a bachelor bunny, and I kind of like that. Wendy says that if there's not a blizzard, we'll go catch some live music on New Years Eve, and I think that would be great. Having a girlfriend who didn't leave the house, well... yeah. I haven't gotten out much either.

So 2007, here we come. A sadder, but wiser bunny, back out in the world.

Yeah, it's all good.

More Tree Trimming with Wendy's Mom

Rabbit and I took Lenore and wandered over to Wendy's mom's house to help with tree trimming. It was a lot of fun!

Rabbit brought a lot of festive decorations.

Which it turns out were NOT for the tree.

Lenore was a lot of help. What a sweet kid. She carried a lot of stuff, and helped us unpack the ornaments.

Rabbit said she didn't need a stepladder...

When we were done decorating, we all sat down and watched "Silent Hill". Because nothing says "Merry Christmas" like watching a town full of the damned... um... well, actually Rabbit really wanted to see it, and so did Wendy's mom. We only covered Lenore's eyes twice, and she said it really wasn't that scary. Actually, she had a different take on the movie than I would've thought. When we were talking about it at the end, she asked if we really thought someone would go through all that trouble for a child that wasn't theirs. Like people we know. Rabbit and I said that we sure thought so, and she just kind of nodded and got very thoughtful. (shrug)

Kids.

Anyway, the movie was great, and the tree turned out beautiful!

Many thanks to Wendy's Mom, Karen, for letting us come help her decorate her tree! Thanks, Karen!

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree..

Thanksgiving was quiet and uneventful, in spite of the frisky turkey in the previous entry.

It's been a nice weekend. We haven't done a whole lot. Finding interesting sites while web surfing - ( like Where the Hell Is Matt?) We got caught up on laundry. Exciting things like that.

Tonight, Kumo, Rabbit and I decorated our tree.

And afterwards, Rabbit and I just hung out, snuggling by the light of the tree.

I had almost dozed off... when I suddenly heard that unmistakable "camera-warming-up" sound.

And I guess I don't mind. I don't have a lot of pictures of Rabbit and I together. But I wish I hadn't opened my eyes and looked right at Wendy... and her flash.

The tree looks great, and I think everyone had a good time (including the dogs, who I now see were savaging a Santa ornament while I was being blinded. So no presents for them. Pretty sure chewing up a Santa lands you right smack on the "naughty" list.)

I do love the holidays. :)

Next on the list: Shopping for stuff to put UNDER the tree!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Turkey Kumo: Yeah, just TRY it, Pilgrim.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

From Gage, Kumo, Rabbit, and Voltaire!

(May you have better luck with YOUR turkey!)

Not What I Had In Mind

So yesterday, upon hearing that pixies had stolen my bed, Rabbit laughed and said she'd "fix it".

I guess it's my fault for just assuming what "fix it" meant, but somehow, in my mind, I had the image of my girl kicking some serious pixie butt. I thought "fix it" would mean my bed would be back after I got home from a long day of school.

But no.

Though, I shouldn't complain. At least I have a place to sleep. And it is kind of comfortable.

I just hadn't realized Rabbit's version of "fix it" meant I would end up camping in my room, with Voltaire.

(sigh)

Kumo told me that, in her letter to Santa, she pointed out that I really need a new bed.

What does it say about my life that rather than immediately thinking "You still write a letter to Santa?" my first thought was "Golly, I hope he gets it!" (shaking head)

So anyway, back to the tent. Back to roughing it.

Well... actually, back to eating the s'mores Rabbit made for Voltaire and I. She said it just wouldn't be camping without s'mores. Can't argue with that. :)

Furniture Eating Pixies - AGAIN!

Pixies ate my bed this time. Apparently it went to that little girl's room, just like my couch did.

Kumo sleeps on the couch in the library.

Rabbit just laughed and laughed when I told her that someone had stolen my bed. She said she would fix it tomorrow. And I believe her. But in the meantime I guess I'm sleeping on the floor... the floor where my bed ONCE was.

Grrr. Freakin pixies.

I Have Loved the Stars too Fondly...

And while I am not fearful of the night, I did just freeze my little cotton tail off in it. BRRRR!

Why are all the coolest astronomical things up in the sky in winter?

I can't sleep. And instead of staring, bleary eyed at the TV, watching infomercials, I decided to go outside and take in some of my favorite astronomical sights, including the Trapezium in Orion. First, I did some research and figured out what I wanted to look at, all while in the warmth of my library.

Then it was outside on my balcony to watch the stars for a while with my little telescope. It isn't super fancy, but it works for me.

Of course, it's dark, and it's freakin cold. So I didn't take pictures. Sorry.

Instead, here are some pictures of a warmer time. Back to the warm days of July. Back to Becky's Big Day!

Here I am, talking to two of my favorite people in the world - William and Philamena. Okay, no, I don't think she knows he's a beaver. But I don't think he knows she's a squirrel, either. Don't tell them. Don't tell them we affectionately refer to them as the "myopic couple" either.

Cynthia Kat and her father, Roger. Roger is some kind of financial lawyer. Cynthia helps him out as an office assistant. I went to school with her brother, Casey, who I think is still making his living as a rock musician. I should go check out his band again. They're pretty good.

Moodini entertaining the kids. I'm taking magic lessons with him now. I need to do a blog entry about that too. He's a great magician, and he told Rabbit the future at the Halloween Party, though she wouldn't tell me what he told her.

Shot of the crowd at the reception.

So there are just a few wedding pictures. I will still be putting them all up on the web in a tidy little album, someday... It was a nice wedding. And it's wonderful to think back on a summer wedding now that I am half frozen from looking at stars at 3 a.m. in November.

I've been working with a professional Muse (Syri, who I met at the Halloween party) and she's gotten me to realize there's a lot of stuff I could/should be writing about. She's told me just to write. To quit self editing and just write. I figure if you guys don't like what I'm doing, you'll e-mail me and tell me (goodness knows you have in the past). She's been a great influence, and I'm really glad I met her at the party.

More pictures from that party in the next couple of days. Promise. :)

For now, having had a lovely visit with Orion, I think I'm going to try to go back to sleep. Wish me luck. Night, night.

The Color of a Rabbit in Winter

I admit it, I am not the most observant of bunnies.

I had been working with Rabbit, in the office for most of the evening, without noticing anything had changed.

Until, at one point, when I turned around (which I had done several times already) I noticed.

But I couldn't quite believe my eyes. I took my glasses off, thinking that maybe it was glare off my lenses.

Rabbit, being the much more observant of the two of us, immediately noticed that I was staring at her and turned around. She gave me a great big smile and said, in the sweetest voice, "Don't you like it?"

I may be an unobservant bunny, but I like to think I am not a DUMB bunny, and this is a potentially deadly question. Questions relating to feminie hair attractiveness fall just beneath questions concerning weight and clothing, in terms of male fatalities related to them each year.

The blonde hair is really cute on her, I just wasn't expecting it. And I told her so. This seemed to be the right answer, because she just smiled some more, and patted me on the head.

"Don't you know that Rabbits change color for the winter?"

Perhaps I was wrong in previously asserting that I am not a dumb bunny, because before I could stop it, I had blurted out. "No they don't. I'm a rabbit, and I don't change for the winter."

Lucky for me, my girl is as good natured as I am apparently dumb. She gave me a sweet smile and said "Well, the RABBIT doesn't change color, but the HARE(hair) does."

I'm a lucky bunny with a sweet girlfriend.

A sweet BLONDE girlfriend. :)

Stolen Couch

Today was beautiful. Sunny and warm and all around gorgeous. So I spent most of it running errands. I took a walk in a park. Just generally enjoyed the day.

Things were great until I got home. Upon entering the library, I knew something was wrong. See if you can spot what's wrong here.

My library before -


My library now -


No, the weird thing isn't Kumo and my girlfriend, Rabbit discussing philosophy (thought that is a little weird). It's the COUCH! There's a monster couch in my library!

So, I made the mistake of asking Kumo about the couch.

Gage: Where did this come from?

Kumo: Shellie's Sofas. Isn't it GREAT!

Gage: Um... did we NEED two couches?

Kumo: Nope, that's why I donated the old one.

Gage: You donated my couch?!? WHY?

Kumo: You just said we didn't need two couches, silly. I donated it to that nice little girl that Miranda was telling Rabbit and I about yesterday. Poor little thing. She's got hardly anything at all.

Gage: I LIKED that couch.

Kumo: Gage! I'm surprised at you. You are so blessed and have so much. (shaking head)

Gage: (sigh) Okay, so does this mean my big, cushy chair is upstairs in the office now?

Kumo: Nope, no room. So it was part of our trade in for the new couch. Isn't it GREAT?

Gage: (blinking) But... I ... fine. (sigh)
***********************************
Rabbit later explained it to me, and claimed it was her fault (though I've dealt with Kumo enough to know better). She had mentioned to Kumo that she'd like a place to set up her computer. And about that time, Miranda (the pixie in my basement) was telling them about some little girl associated with one of the other fairy/pixie/freaky-things that now hang around here. I guess she doesn't have much, so they decided to give her the old couch, since Kumo wanted a bigger one to sleep on.

And now Rabbit and I share an office.


I love it. I love having her just in the same room, typing away on her computer while I do my thing. It's the silliest thing, but I think it's the most romantic thing in the world.

And I've never been so happy to have my couch stolen in my life.

The Bunny's Back

So, here is it, November 1st. I can just hear you asking, "Golly, Gage, what have you been up to?"

Well, I been writing a lot, though I doubt I'll be participating in NaNoWrMo, since it's mostly not really very good. I haven't kept up my photoblog like I wanted to, either. But I'll get back to it. You'll see. :)

Kumo kept one of the puppies, one of the boys, who she's named Tsume (soomay). We got both Tsume and Voltaire fixed, so NO MORE PUPPIES. This is a good thing.

Turns out, my girlfriend, Rabbit really has a way with dogs. We've been affectionately calling her "The Dog Whisperer". So she and I have been doing a lot of dog training work with the three dogs (Rabbit also has a dog, named Rex) instead of hiring Shirley. She was great, but it's a lot cheaper to do it ourselves. The dogs are doing great, though I think Kumo is a little dissapointed in the lacking ninja potential of Tsume.

Rabbit, Wendy and I were in a serious car wreck. Wendy's beloved van, that she called Hami, is completely trashed, but we're all okay. Rabbit was really upset by the whole thing, and I find myself wondering if she'll be leaving the house again... ever. This is us snuggling at the tow truck place. We were on our way to a Halloween party - we don't always dress like pirates. :)


Even though we missed THAT party, Rabbit and I went to a Halloween party last night, which ROCKED. It was easier to get to, and didn't even involve a car ride, since it ended up being held at MY house. Mandi bear and her husband Jake were throwing it, but then something came up with their house, and Kumo volunteered OUR house... again.

At the party I met the most interesting lady. Her name is Syri and she works as a professional muse. Seriously. She said she thought she could help me with this webpage, and getting back into writing on the blog, which would be GREAT! She gave me her card, and I'll give her a call tomorrow after I'm out of school. I'm pretty excited. She made a great Bat Girl. I'm sure she's a great muse too!

I helped my detective friend, Ash, locate a missing stuffie. And it was GREAT! Though I don't think I'm cut out for detective work.

All in all, things are good. I'll post more Halloween party photos in the next few days. It's good to be back. I missed blogging. So here's to being back! Happy November, everyone!

No Seriously - Rest of the Month Off

Sorry, everyone. Things here really have gotten hectic, and I barely have time to have a life, much less one worth blogging.

See you November 1st!!

Apologies Some More

Okay, I didn't update on Saturday.

I'm barely updating now.

I'm going to have to change my update days, because Tuesday I am in school all day - from 9 to 6!! So that makes it unlikely I'll post that day.

I have so many exciting things to tell you about, but just no time. Ash is on a case! Already! He's only been in Colorado for just over a week! He's said I can go along with him while he's checking things out, and I am so excited.

Just so long as it's on days I'm not in school. :)

Anyway, I really will post. I promise. It just won't be tomorrow.

Off to read my homework!

Lame Excuses from a Busy Bunny

For filler, here's a picture of me taking in the rock formation "Kissing Camels" at Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs.

I gotta get back down there, now that I've figured out the camera and take better pictures. It's a really pretty park, and Manitou Springs is one of my favorite places to hang out.

******************************
So I've inadvertantly given myself a WEEK off. But it hasn't been rest and relaxation, oh no.

The first week of school has turned out to be far busier than I ever anticipated.

The puppies have almost all gone to their new homes. I just need to make arrangements to ship Mal's to him and that'll be that.

The freakin pixies appear to be taking over the house. Not just my house, Wendy's house too! Every time I turn around, it seems like there's another one! And now, there's someone ELSE wandering the house too. I don't think he's a pixie, but I don't know yet. Plays a mean guitar, though. (shrug)

My trees have dropped leaves everywhere, and I only have one rake (not like Kumo would help anyway, but Rabbit might).

It's just been busy. I love October. I love Halloween (and I am SO ready. Come on, someone have a party. Someone who isn't me.) I love the scent of Autumn on the morning breeze, and I love all the colors. So pretty!!!

So anyway, I hope you're enjoying your first week of October. And I'll get back to blogging tomorrow morning at the writers' group.

Well, that didn't last

After much contemplation (and several e-mails from a nice girl in Texas named Catherine) I have decided that taking a month of is not what I need to do.

There will still be occasional guest entries, because everyone I asked for help is so excited about writing one, I think I would be in big trouble if I didn't let them. But I'll be writing too, just my regular blog entries.

If you were looking forward to not hearing me ramble for a whole month - Blame Catherine.

If you're glad that I've changed my mind and am returning to rambling - Thank Catherine.

Thank you Catherine for saying the things I most needed to hear. It is always really remarkable to discover that your words mean something to someone else, and that you're not talking just to hear your own voice.

Tuesday, back to your regularly scheduled Gage blog.

Giving Myself a Month Off

It's the end of September. October 1st is tomorrow, and I have decided to give myself the entire month of October off from blogging.

My detective friend Ash just got into town, and wow is it great to see him! Rabbit is staying with Kumo and I. Kumo... well, I doubt Kumo is ever going anywhere. Miranda has taken over my basement. School starts Tuesday. Things here are crowded, and busy, and wonderful. But I think for a month I'm going to just live my life and not blog about it.

If there's a Halloween party for stuffed animals, it won't be at my house. I'm just not up for holding a party (though I'd attend one, if someone else wanted to host one). Sorry.

While I'm gone, I'll be letting friends and family do guest blog entries, so this blog won't just sit blank for a whole month. Ash has offered to do a couple entries about lost stuffies he's found, and things he's done. Kumo has offered to do a couple entries. Even Rabbit might do a blog entry. So we'll see. It just won't be ME doing a blog entry until November 1st.

Have a great October! See you in November!

Day At The Park With Ivy

Kumo told me that Ivy had a "Teacher In-Service" day, so she was out of school all day Friday. Her Mom, instead of getting the day off, asked Kumo if she could baby sit all day, and of course she said "Yeah!"

Ivy came over about 8:30 a.m. and we started discussing all the things we could do with her day out of school. Ideas thrown out were the zoo, the museum, butterfly pavilion, all kinds of things. And the two of them discussed, and discussed and discussed.

It got to be lunchtime, so I wandered out and got some fast food for everyone. When I came back, they were still discussing.

At about 2:30 they were still discussing all the things we could do, and I pointed out that Ivy's mom would be there to pick her up in about three hours, thus limiting what we could do by a lot. Kumo was out of ideas. Ivy was bored. I suggested the park. I keep driving by and I think it's really pretty, though I've never visited, so that was where we ended up going.

The scenery was BEAUTIFUL!

Day of the Dog Trainer

So I've been thinking that once the puppies are gone, I should really invest some and get Voltaire professionally trained. My friend Mandi told me that she knew a GREAT dog trainer named Shirley and I should give her a call. I did, and she came by today to talk about training.

She brought two of her star pupils with her - Max and Suzy. Both beautiful black labs.

She said that Max and Suzy would illustrate what dog training can do and started putting them through their paces right away.

Max illustrated sit and stay -

Roll over -

Play dead -

And then she made him back up, and kneel beside her. It was really impressive.

Suzy did all those things too, but she also pointed -

And "waved hi" as Shirley called it -

And then backed up and knelt beside Max.

VERY impressive stuff. It only took one word commands from Shirley and the dogs completely hopped to it!

Voltaire, however, seemed unimpressed.

So we'll have to see.

I've decided to let Kumo keep her puppy, so we're going to have to do SOMETHING because two, wild, untrained dogs running around the house, while it is better than six (which is what I have right now) but still too many.

Rabbit in the Crowded House

She's HERE!!!

Rabbit got here about mid-morning. It's been so great to see her. We hung out up in the office for a while, just chatting and catching up (in what would later become "Heaven"). When she felt a bit more brave, we wandered down into the library so she could meet Kumo and be completely mobbed by puppies.

The school bus should pull up with little Ivy any minute now, which will make the house a bit more packed, though I know she's going to love Rabbit.

So it's all very cozy here.

Kumo is being on her very best behavior. She even cleaned out most of her stuff from the bedroom, changed the sheets and comforters on the bed for Rabbit, and all without being asked. Why you might ask?

Kumo wants to keep one of the puppies.

We've discussed that Musashi cannot stay living here (he's just too big) but she's asked me if she could keep one of the more Voltaire sized ones. One of the little boys that she's become rather attached to (apparently he sleeps right snuggled up under one of her ears, and it's breaking her heart to think that she might never have a dog sleep under her ear again.... um... okay).

We'll see. She's being really, really good. She and Rabbit seem to be getting along very well (Kumo even offered her a ride on her motorcycle, since it's such a beautiful day). And it was really nice of Kumo to fix up the bedroom for Rabbit... well, we'll see. Two dogs... hmmm.

Weirdness at the Writers' Group

Apparently weirdness is just a theme to my life at the moment.

I finally managed to get to the writer's group, which was great. I missed everyone. Cat (who is now a homeless wanderer. At least SHE doesn't want to live with me.) was there, and Antigone came. I finally got to meet Ultraviolent Bloodhorn, which was very cool. And (no longer surprising), Miranda was there too.

It was really strange, because I was reading on Wendy's laptop, and suddenly turned and there she was.

With an armchair.

I didn't even ask.

What does it say about my recent life that THAT wasn't even the weird part.

Antigone wandered over near Miranda's chair, at which point Miranda jumped off of her chair, raised her hand, and stared Antigone hard in the face. In a strange voice she said to her something along the lines of "Shadow and shade, lies and darkness, he doesn't know you... but I see you." Miranda then turned her back and walked away from her.

Just plain weird.

Who's Playing With Who?

I wonder if maybe this wasn't quite what Kumo had in mind when she was training the puppies to be "white hot balls of canine ninja fury".


(snicker)

Puppy Monsters and a Visiting Wild Rabbit

Finals are over. School is done for a whole week and a half, and I couldn't be happier. I could use a break. I aced everything, and now I'm halfway to being a massage therapist, which is pretty nifty.

In one more week and the puppies are out of here. This is GREAT news, because I'm not 100% sure they can get any bigger and still fit in my house.

They're pretty cute, but I'll be glad to see them go. I think Kumo will too, since they've taken to sleeping with her at night, mostly on her head.

Out of the blue, I got a letter from a dear friend of mine, that I haven't seen in over a year. Her name is Rabbit, and she's one of my favorite people in the universe. Rabbit's had a tough time of it, but her story isn't for me to tell. I'm just glad she's okay.

Anyway, she's coming to visit, and I am so excited! Hardly anyone got to meet her, she was kind of shy, and hopefully she'll get to meet people this time around.

Here's me and Rabbit nearly 2 years ago. Isn't she pretty?

I'm really excited that she's coming, though I have no idea where she'll sleep. But we'll figure it out when she gets here.

My house has suddenly gotten very crowded, but I don't mind so much. It'll be really great to see Rabbit. I've missed her a lot.