Pickles & Dimes

Things that have amused me recently:

• The fact that my email server cuts senders’ names off, so I receive a daily status report from Jesus.
• That after playing a thousand snippets of possible wedding ceremony songs to Jason, he said this after I presented my favorite: “Yeah, that one’s great – if I’m being knighted.”
• That the IT tech support person I had a live chat with was named “Stoney,” which conjured up all kinds of amusing visuals, complete with a smoke-filled room and Jerry Garcia glasses.
• The white pigeon that has adopted us and hangs out all alone in our driveway, not moving for anything, not even my vehicle as I try to drive past it.
• The fact that I “taught” Sunny to sit before I give her a treat (Full disclosure: OK, she already sat down before getting her treat, but now I tell her to sit before she does it on her own, so it totally looks like she is obeying my command. As for Abby, she would rather cut you than listen to anything you say.)

Speaking of the cats, I had the following exchange with them last night. After getting a Pudding Pop (YES! They are back!) from the freezer, I sat on the couch and immediately had to deal with this: (artist re-enactment)

After Abby got so close I could actually feel her tuna-scented breath on my face, I told her, “Later, I promise.” She then sat four inches away, her wide, pupil-dilated eagle eyes watching my every move.

Then this happened:

I tried pushing Sunny away, but when 12 1/2 pounds of lactose-insatiable feline wants frozen pudding, well, good luck. Pretty soon I was wearing a furry, tiger-striped necklace with claws.

“Wait!” I said, as I frantically shoved the rest of the Pudding Pop into my mouth.

I then offered the mostly clean popsicle stick to Abby:

And then Sunny:

And then Jason rolled his eyes, because he just witnessed me feeding our cats a Pudding Pop.

Mmm…Pudding Pops.