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vampyrichamsterThere's a great scene in the first season of Peacemaker's TV series where the title character is feeling glum, and his pet bald eagle tries to cheer him up by catching him a squirrel. When the squirrel falls from the sky and lands with a thump at his feet, Peacemaker thanks his pet for the gift, tells him that it's okay but he doesn't need it, and that Eagly (the eagle) should eat it on its own. The whole experience is affirmative and positive. It's how I want to be as a pet parent when my pet brings me a gift. Not mildly panicked and trying to yank away said gift to safety. Not trying to calm the cat and the spouse in the middle of this traumatising experience. Thank the pet, retrieve the gift and stay calm.
FYI, the cat has not returned with a gift since a fluke dove he caught about a week after we gave him a bell collar. That was back in June. The poor bird was probably nesting, since Moggie brought home the same bird twice separately over two days. The first day, I was able to set the dove free. The second day, I spent an hour vacuuming feathers in the living room. I briefly wondered, since they appeared in medieval dinner settings, if doves were tasty. (I can sense you giving me the same look my spouse did when I ran the idea past him.) Seth pointed out it could have been diseased, which I admit I didn't think about. I figured parasites were a matter of not eating any innards, but I can't do anything about a bug anywhere else.
I am insufficiently trained in post-apocalyptic survival to prepare my cat's protein contributions. Think about it for a second. My cat worked hard to get food for his family, and rather than help prepare it to ensure it's totally safe for him to eat, or even let him eat it, I go bury it in the backyard. Sure, we festoon him with treats and reassure him he has done nothing wrong. But he has every right to feel betrayed. Note here, he probably eats all kinds of weird stuff on his own I don't know about. He has caught flies, moths and spiders and munched them. I'm pretty sure he lived as an opportunistic forager when he was feral. Based on the things he tries to taste off our plates, I have a notion he's even less picky about non-meat, dairy and sweets than the average cat. Cats aren't even supposed to be able to taste sweetness. Perhaps, the ghost of Dorian still whispers in his ears that my lunch is made of tasty things. I still miss Food Inspector Cat, but his little brother keeps him alive by stalking my lunch and supervising my cooking.
My mood right now is somewhere between Tool's "Ænima" and Bright Eyes' cover of "Devil Town". Seth caught a cold at the dentist. The weekend before my birthday, he lurched about the place like a tall, grumpy shade. Naturally, I caught the same thing by birthday Monday. We spent a quiet, mostly calm week trying to work through brain fog and not sounding worse than we feel. There's a lot of disappointing things happening all at once right now. Some are just delays before good things. Others are much more parochial. I'm waiting on Black Friday to get a cordless drill set I want. I'd also like to see if we can install a heat pump water heater to replace our gas tank. I've actually been hoping I could install a heat pump in our home since learning about the technology. It could replace the gas-fired heating grate from the 1920s in the hallway--which we haven't use in years--and actually contribute coolness in the summer. Compared to the heat pump water heater though, that's a very long-term fantasy.
San Francisco is banning gas-powered water heaters in 2027, necessitating our switch. The problem is, I'm not sure our basement can handle an alternative, so I'll need to consult a professional. Our basement is cold all year round, practically a wine cellar. Great for a server room, but not ideal for a heat pump. It sounds like the ambient room temperature needs to be warmer to efficiently heat water. I'm already aware it probably is never going to heat water as quickly or as hot as a gas heater. It does not help we live in a multi-unit building, where major infrastructure changes are done by committee. The space where our current water tanks are lined up may be too narrow with insufficient clearance on each side. We don't have an air vent duct, a consideration that nearly derailed replacing our clothes dryer in the same space just a month ago. My layman eyeballing says we could probably run a line for water drainage, but I have no idea how we'd do electical power hook-up. I suspect that would personally cost us a fair penny. This would all just be for our personal unit, and again, I'm worried it'll require stuff we must handle as a whole building. In Malaysia, it was pretty common to get electric showers (I believe Americans call them point of use showers). It might ultimately be our only option with the space/wiring/plumbing headache, though that would mean giving up hot water in the rest of the house. We're lucky that SF is still practically one of the mildest places I've ever met in terms of weather. It's why we don't use a heater in winter, just blankets and socks. The joke around the house is that by the time we seriously consider dragging out our plug-in air conditioner, our (two weeks or so) of summer heat wave has ended.
FYI, the cat has not returned with a gift since a fluke dove he caught about a week after we gave him a bell collar. That was back in June. The poor bird was probably nesting, since Moggie brought home the same bird twice separately over two days. The first day, I was able to set the dove free. The second day, I spent an hour vacuuming feathers in the living room. I briefly wondered, since they appeared in medieval dinner settings, if doves were tasty. (I can sense you giving me the same look my spouse did when I ran the idea past him.) Seth pointed out it could have been diseased, which I admit I didn't think about. I figured parasites were a matter of not eating any innards, but I can't do anything about a bug anywhere else.
I am insufficiently trained in post-apocalyptic survival to prepare my cat's protein contributions. Think about it for a second. My cat worked hard to get food for his family, and rather than help prepare it to ensure it's totally safe for him to eat, or even let him eat it, I go bury it in the backyard. Sure, we festoon him with treats and reassure him he has done nothing wrong. But he has every right to feel betrayed. Note here, he probably eats all kinds of weird stuff on his own I don't know about. He has caught flies, moths and spiders and munched them. I'm pretty sure he lived as an opportunistic forager when he was feral. Based on the things he tries to taste off our plates, I have a notion he's even less picky about non-meat, dairy and sweets than the average cat. Cats aren't even supposed to be able to taste sweetness. Perhaps, the ghost of Dorian still whispers in his ears that my lunch is made of tasty things. I still miss Food Inspector Cat, but his little brother keeps him alive by stalking my lunch and supervising my cooking.
My mood right now is somewhere between Tool's "Ænima" and Bright Eyes' cover of "Devil Town". Seth caught a cold at the dentist. The weekend before my birthday, he lurched about the place like a tall, grumpy shade. Naturally, I caught the same thing by birthday Monday. We spent a quiet, mostly calm week trying to work through brain fog and not sounding worse than we feel. There's a lot of disappointing things happening all at once right now. Some are just delays before good things. Others are much more parochial. I'm waiting on Black Friday to get a cordless drill set I want. I'd also like to see if we can install a heat pump water heater to replace our gas tank. I've actually been hoping I could install a heat pump in our home since learning about the technology. It could replace the gas-fired heating grate from the 1920s in the hallway--which we haven't use in years--and actually contribute coolness in the summer. Compared to the heat pump water heater though, that's a very long-term fantasy.
San Francisco is banning gas-powered water heaters in 2027, necessitating our switch. The problem is, I'm not sure our basement can handle an alternative, so I'll need to consult a professional. Our basement is cold all year round, practically a wine cellar. Great for a server room, but not ideal for a heat pump. It sounds like the ambient room temperature needs to be warmer to efficiently heat water. I'm already aware it probably is never going to heat water as quickly or as hot as a gas heater. It does not help we live in a multi-unit building, where major infrastructure changes are done by committee. The space where our current water tanks are lined up may be too narrow with insufficient clearance on each side. We don't have an air vent duct, a consideration that nearly derailed replacing our clothes dryer in the same space just a month ago. My layman eyeballing says we could probably run a line for water drainage, but I have no idea how we'd do electical power hook-up. I suspect that would personally cost us a fair penny. This would all just be for our personal unit, and again, I'm worried it'll require stuff we must handle as a whole building. In Malaysia, it was pretty common to get electric showers (I believe Americans call them point of use showers). It might ultimately be our only option with the space/wiring/plumbing headache, though that would mean giving up hot water in the rest of the house. We're lucky that SF is still practically one of the mildest places I've ever met in terms of weather. It's why we don't use a heater in winter, just blankets and socks. The joke around the house is that by the time we seriously consider dragging out our plug-in air conditioner, our (two weeks or so) of summer heat wave has ended.
no subject
Date: 2025-10-17 10:44 pm (UTC)It does make a humming noise from the fan and compressor, so you wouldn't want it next to a bedroom. But it's quieter than our old dehumidifier.
It shouldn't be in a fully-enclosed space, according to the user's manual. If there's a door to the room, you would want louvres or something to let air flow through.
no subject
Date: 2025-10-25 03:17 am (UTC)The basement is an enclosed space, but there is a breeze block window for ventilation and louvres in the back door where the heaters/washers are. So I guess that might be enough.
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Date: 2025-10-25 03:06 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-10-27 10:31 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-10-27 11:00 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-10-29 10:39 pm (UTC)