TIL...

[auntiehill]

Today I learned that the free cat liter I got from my mom does absolutely NOTHING to diminish the smell of cat pee.

 

[cooleddie74]

All the best cat litter that squelches the smell of cat pee and poo costs ten bucks or more a container. I don't buy it. I get the five or six dollar scoopable stuff...it's not the best on the market and you can't avoid some odors, but it's far preferable to old-style gravel litter.

When a cat kicks gravel litter out of his or her box it looks like somebody detonated a plaster statue with high explosives.

 

[auntiehill]

Yeah, it was the old gravely kind. As soon as I change this box out, I'll go get some scoopable. I think the Tidy Cat--the one with the red stripe (24hr odor control, I think?)--was the best that I'd tried.

 

[RoJoHen]

I always get Tidy Cat with the light blue stripe. I think it's the one for "multiple cats." Even though I only have one cat, she may as well be pooping for 4.

 

[Tora Ziyal]

Yeah, it was the old gravely kind. As soon as I change this box out, I'll go get some scoopable. I think the Tidy Cat--the one with the red stripe (24hr odor control, I think?)--was the best that I'd tried.

TIL that I'm not the only one who thinks this is the best kitty litter. I try to stock up when it's on sale at Target, so it isn't too expensive.

 

[trekkiedane]

Before my cat discovered the big open-air litter-box she had one in my bathroom -with litter made from compacted sawdust!

It smells better (especially when wet!) and is lighter, important when you have to carry all your shopping in hands or on a bike

 

[Tora Ziyal]

TIL (here) that one of Queen Elizabeth's dogs, a corgi/dachshund mix, is named... Vulcan! Fascinating.

 

[cooleddie74]

TIL that having your pet beagle sleep next to your head is a bad thing when she has dreams and jerks her limbs.

 

[kolibri]

TIL that rotten potatoes smell like dead hermit crabs.

 

[thestrangequark]

TIL that rotten potatoes smell like dead hermit crabs.

And I learned that dead hermit crabs smell like rotten potatoes.

 

[auntiehill]

Today (yesterday, actually), I learned that my Christmas is going to suck, which makes me sad. I seem to be the only one who has any holiday spirit and everyone makes me feel stupid for it.

*sigh*

 

[thestrangequark]

^Come spend Christmas with me, then, Auntie! You deserve to be surrounded by secular Christmas Spirit-filled lunatic nerds! Seriously, if you need an escape and can make it to Seattle, you are welcome

 

[auntiehill]

Hell, if I could, I'd MOVE to Seattle.

 

[lurok]

This...

Squids - Sailors
Zoomies - Air Force
Jarheads - Marines
Puddle Pirates - Coast Guard
GIs - Soldiers

Nah, Soldiers are Grunts or Ground Pounders.

I think "ground pounders" is a specifically USAF term towards its parent's service. Like "leg" is used by parachute school qualified soldiers to describe all others or the armored force calls dismounted soldiers "crunchies".

I think "dog face" as a term has a history three times as long as "grunts". Legend goes that as the frontier towns built up around Army forts became more secure signs went up around town stating "soldiers and dogs keep off of the grass" to keep the Black and Irish soldiers away. In the Audie Murphy Story you can hear the US 3rd Infantry Division's song about dog face soldiers. And the communities around the post entrances full of "rent to own" stores, pawn shops, strip clubs and trailer parks are still called "dog towns"

thanks to this interesting thread. I was curious about that expression 'dogtown'.

 

[cooleddie74]

TIL that I'm probably starting to come down with the flu bug that's been going around and is currently plaguing the country. Great.

 

[Shanndee]

Ouch. I'm sorry to hear that cooleddie. I hope you recover quickly!

 

[cooleddie74]

Thanks. If I am indeed coming down with the bug that's going around it might not last very long. I have a tendency to catch the flu, sweat and moan for a few days while it barrages my system and then I'm back to being as good as new.

 

[auntiehill]

Today, I learned that hubby is a terrible shopper. I asked him to pick me up some Saltines, and he brought home Ritz. BAH.

 

[Sector 7]

Today I Learned... that I "make better pizza than Pizza Hut" according to Mom's home health aide. I made pizza for us for lunch Sunday.

TIL also... a better way to make bread pudding. Mine was always too dry, but Mom's aide [who is also a family friend] was a professional pastry chef at Hershey's Chocolate. She has been teaching me baking skills while I teach her shortcuts to cooking other dishes. Her kids love those shortcuts, because they get to spend more time with her after work. I am a rather good cook, but my baking skills need improvement.

 

[B.J.]

TIL... I'm a softie for animals (well, knew that already), and there are some truly despicable people out there.

Two months ago, we had two cats and a dog. As of today, it's *four* cats and a dog, and I have a cat allergy! Okay, there's a threshold before it really starts affecting me, so hopefully we haven't hit it. Anyway, we had already adopted cat #3 a couple of months ago (wife went to grocery store, came home with cat and no groceries). But this morning on the way home from church, I spotted a very small kitten in the median of a major divided highway. I turned around and we picked it up, and it was obvious that someone had ditched that kitten there, likely from a moving vehicle! It's left hind quarters was skinned up badly, torn down to muscle, and its tail is probably broken since it just drags behind limp. We took it home and cleaned it up, and it took the poor thing a long time to stop shivering. It was likely stuck there for a couple of days after someone dumped it, judging from how hungry it was and how much the injury had healed. Don't know if it's a male or female yet since we don't want to hurt its rear any more, but I'll be taking it to the vet in the morning to get it fixed up. Yes, this is probably way too many cats for our house, but there is no way we're giving it up.

I'm glad I never saw whoever did this, because I'd likely toss *them* from a moving vehicle! After, of course, my wife got her chance to practice some of her martial arts training!