Sorry To Neglect You Konabarbie Blog!

Today when I got on this blog I realized I haven't done a blog post since Tuesday. Apparently my half ironman training isn't the only thing getting neglected around here!

What can I say except it's been a really busy summer. I don't know exactly why it's been so busy, but it has been and it's flown by so fast. Tomorrow will be September already! Maybe I'll even do a new September yoga kitty pose blog post because it seems that I missed Ms. August's pose entirely.

I think.

Friday was yesterday so there's no fashion Friday this week. I totally missed it again! This is as much fashion as I can handle these days. As I was washing clothes the other day it seemed like everything was either work out wear or lounge wear, not really pj's, but close. Nothing I would wear in a public setting.

Thursday we went out to meet some friends who drove over from Daphne for dinner. I wore this Free People maxi dress that I love. I don't know how long it will last before either I wear it to threads or my cat, Cadence does a number to it with his paws. He is very talented at pulling threads with those sharp talons of his.

Dress:  Free People;  Purse: Coach; Necklace: purchased at an art show several years ago; Bracelet: old

It was a very pleasant evening. I tried a new drink similar to an Orange Julius. It was a delicious frozen concoction that tasted just like those orange and white dreamsicles. So delicious that I didn't even have time to get a picture before it disappeared. It was so rich and delectable that I decided I better not get sa second one so I chose the Chipotle Pineapple Mojoto.

Pineapple with a little bite and almost gone before I remembered to get a photo.

I also got a Strawberry Mango Mojito, but no photos because our friends had arrived and I don't know if they would understand the weirdness of taking food and drink photos that we bloggers tend to do. It was bad enough they had to suffer through cat stories. Luckily, they are cat people too and have four of their own so they understand. They even had their own cat stories. We shared photos of our four legged babies. Well at least I did. She had left her phone in the car so no photos.

I also didn't get a photo of the food, but I got the shrimp and grits and they got grouper sandwiches. The Murph chose very ice cold beer and lots of it! He got take out later at his favorite sports bar down the road.

Our view from the restaurant...

Phantom is doing good with all the chemo and holistic things he's on. He even has his own blog now. He just begged me for one so how could I resist? Click Here for his latest post about the Boy's visit.

We had to come to Birmingham this weekend and of course Phantom has to come too. He LOVES it because he is the "only"cat while we are here for the weekend and he gets ALL the attention. He's at my feet right this very minute as I'm typing this post listening to the jazz CD that the Murph has playing. Somebody named Paul Desmond who played with Dave Brubeck in "Take Five". Something I'm suppose to remember because I've heard it before, but I don't. The Murph rolls his eyes and says my cat has better taste in music than I do. I'm sure I would remember it if I heard it again. I hear jazz every single night so it's no wonder I'm confused about which CD is "Take Five".

The one we are listening to now is a very nice CD. Phantom loves the saxophone. Now if we could just get him to eat! He only eats when the other cats are around so they can't get any.

The Best Way To Recover - Beach Time!

I've spent a lot of time here with my toes in the sand the past two days recovering from the triathlons I did Thursday and Saturday. Sure they were short, but I raced them as hard as I could as that was the plan to see where I am in my training, what I need to work on, etc (which is swimming and biking.) and I was a little sore.

Also, my asthma was acting up and I had some trouble breathing. The race Thursday I was really having a hard time breathing even though I had done my inhaler before the race. Saturday it wasn't as bad, but my throat and lungs were sore from the breathing struggle on Thursday. I was very surprised because I haven't had a problem in a long time. I'm thinking it may be the humidity causing it.

After the race on Saturday, I went to the gym and did some time on the spin bike and did upper body weights and on Sunday I did lower body weights, but no long run. Monday I actually swam in the ocean for a few minutes until my imagination started working over time and I imagined big, menacing fish with large teeth sneaking up behind me.

Totally creeps me out!

I don't know how to work through that fear. I never think about it during a race since there are so many people in the water with me. Okay, maybe I do think about it a little, but it doesn't stop me or creep me out or anything and during Ironman Florida and Gulf Coast half we swam straight out about 1/2 mile into the ocean and back. Once during Gulf Coast I tried new goggles during race day and they kept filling up with water and I couldn't see a thing. I totally got off course and didn't know where I was or which way to go and had to keep stopping to pour the water out of my goggles and try to spot a buoy and get back on course.

Now THAT was creepy!!

Anyway, Monday I swam. For about 5 minutes. In the ocean. Hey, you have to start somewhere!

I also did upper body weights, the elliptical and a mile 1/2 run. My legs felt tight, but I'm hoping by Wednesday they will be back to normal for my next run. Tuesdays for me are biking days.

The cats have settled in nicely and are getting along somewhat despite all the Murph's worries. I reasurred him that I had a plan and it is working. Phantom the bad cat has his "territory" in the guest bedroom. This is where his litter box is and where he gets fed and sleeps. We close him in there at night and when we leave the condo.

Ed and Cadence have their own litter box in the half bathroom and get fed in the kitchen. They can go anywhere in the condo except Phantom's room. Cadence can go in there sometimes if Phantom allows it, but it's not a good idea for Ed to go in there. That would be kitty suicide!

Their nightly routine is chilling out to some nice jazz. Last night I got this video of their typical evening.

We'll probably have to take Phantom with us when we go back to Birmingham for a few days. He has to have heart meds everyday and the Boy has started his summer "job". He was one of the few computer students who was selected to help some professors with a research project this summer. It is such an honor for him and he is so excited. He gets so focused on these things that I'm afraid Phantom might get neglected and his meds forgotten.

The Boy did a really great job taking care of him a couple of weeks ago when we went to Birmingham to get the other two cats and more stuff, but he was finished with classes and not working yet. Now I think the cat would be too much so he'll have to go with us. He's a pretty good traveler when he's in the cat carrier and not lowering windows with his paw.

Besides he'll get his jazz fix all the way back.

Music And A Happy Place

A couple of days ago we moved the last two of our three cats down to our beach home. I'm still recovering from it! Our first mistake was not doing our normal routine that morning and the cats instantly picked up on it. They know by now what it means when suitcases are loaded in the car. Cadence immediately runs and hides. Ed usually does too, but this time for some reason he didn't.

We loaded everything in the car and then it was time to get the cats last, but where was Cadence? I looked in my closet because that was where he was last week when I was looking all over the place for Phantom, who had run and hid because he probably thought he was about to go to the vet again. He doesn't really like that.

This time, no Cadence. That would be too easy. After looking in all his normal hiding places I finally found him up under the guest bed, tucked away tight up inside the box springs.

I couldn't reach him through the hole in the cover. I reached down and pushed on the bulge that was him at the bottom of the bed. He moved further away. I couldn't get him to scoot to the hole and grab him at the same time. It was a two man job. I called the Murph for back up.

Ed came to check it out. He was really creeped out by me on the floor half under the bed with the camera in my hand.

After all, that was his hole that he chewed in the box spring covers many years ago. His hiding spot too! The box spring cover that was on the Boy's bed was cut away many years ago for exactly this reason. Once Cadence is up in there it is almost impossible to get him out.

The Murph came and pushed on the Cadence lump and guided him to the hole where I was ready to make a grab for him.

Finally he got close enough and I grabbed him.

I had him for about a minute before he managed to get away. I had him by the back leg but had to let go because I realized he would just as soon lose the leg than let me keep him. I was screaming, he was meowing, it was chaos.

I finally cornered him downstairs and managed to cram him in the cat carrier.

 Ed was easy to get in his carrier, (sorry, no pictures, we were tired and an hour later leaving than planned), but not a very good traveler considering he hadn't been in a car in 10 years. He started meowing and continued for about 2 hours. It started out a low meow, but by the time we got on the interstate it was a loud, angry, fangy face meow.

I couldn't get a picture because I was driving. Take my word for it, it wasn't good!

I didn't hear a word out of Cadence. He zoned out the minute the carrier door was closed.

Jazz music playing on the radio didn't work for Ed like it works for Phantom. I finally figured out halfway through the trip that Ed likes rap music or music with a little more beat. He loved Flo Rida and was pretty fond of ABBA too.

It's always good to know the music choices of the cats because it makes traveling so much easier!

Phantom loves jazz favorites by John Coltrane, Lester Young, Ben Webster and others. He likes mellow, moody jazz. He also loves the sax and the trumpet! Phantom is a romantic at heart.  Here's one of his many favorites.

Ed loves rap and music with some beat. He loves the drums! He likes rhythm! He freaking LOVED this song. The fangy faced meowing ceased immediately!



And Cadence is so traumatize that he hears nothing while in the car. He goes straight to his happy place!

They are both doing great in their new home, especially Ed. He's 13 years old so we decided this is his official retirement home. The Murph says it's his Boca and all he needs are some black socks and some Bermuda shorts and he's all set.

The trip over to pick Phantom up from the Boy's apartment the next day was another "adventure". I'm pretty sure that Phantom was ready to get the heck out of there! He planted himself by the front door and looked at me meowing. No problems getting him in the car this time!

The only problem was I didn't have a carrier to put him in and suddenly while we were getting on the interstate, I heard the back window going down. I looked back and there he was propped up looking out the window with his paw on the window lowering button.

I managed to get the window back up before he made a leap for it onto the interstate.

And then I had lots of wine when I got home. LOTS of wine!!

The scenery helped too!