It was 33 freaking degrees this morning. This is not normal, or even appreciated, at the end of a Florida February.

But then there was also this, and my day suddenly seemed a little bit warmer.

Never underestimate the ability of pretty pictures, graphs, charts, and multiple options to make weather fun.

See?

Hello, Vancouver. How’s the weather going to be for the opening ceremonies?

The kids and I have been watching Leverage on Netflix the past few weeks. We’re almost caught up to the “now showing” – oh no!

(This post made to test the new Android WordPress app. I like.)

Random pic to test image adding -

I’m at the Samhain blog today talking about finding the bright side. Stop by and share your thoughts!

We don’t get a lot of real coldness in NE Florida. “Real coldness” in my world is defined as “probably should stock up on wood for the fireplace since the temperatures may drop all the way below 50.”

So 17 degrees below freezing? (I’m working in the Fahrenheit world here, you Swedish lurkers – Hej!) That just doesn’t happen in my world.

Which is probably why I found this short video of “17 Below and 1 Cup of Boiling Water” entirely too entertaining.

Entertaining enough to still be cool after three or four views, at least.

Stay warm!

Hello, new friend.

Almost two years ago, we adopted a kitten.  Tiger was a ten week old baby when we got him, who’d lived all of his short life under a beach cottage porch with the feral colony he’d been born a part of.

He adjusted to the life of an indoor kitty well.  Mostly he’s content with his pampered housecat life, where he spends his days napping on the couch and his nights snoozing at the foot of my daughter’s bed.  Occasionally he makes a break for the outdoors, once getting all the way to the back bushes – about 30 feet from the door – before huddling into a pitiful ball of confusion and waiting to be rescued.  He endures the occasional cuddle, and plays with the dog or anyone who will roll a golf ball for him.

But he’s still only a step out of the streets, and that left its mark.  A cuddly lapcat he is not.

A few months ago, my sis started talking cats to me.  Let me be more clear.  She started linking cats to me.  Her heart will always have a tender spot where her memories of Sultan are, but she has a very big heart.  Big enough for Layla.  Which is it’s own special story, one you should read.

Of course the linking of one cat let to the linking of more cats.  And soon I realized I was checking the cats looking for homes with way more interest than someone that didn’t plan on getting more cats ever should.

Then just before Christmas, I mentioned this new interest of mine to my husband.  As expected, he wasn’t nearly as enthusiastic.  But once the seed was planted in the dark of his mind, it sprouted life of its own.

And soon after Christmas, he went from “No” to “Why didn’t you bring home a cat yet?”

Bringing a new cat into a house that already has other pets, and 2 children, has its own challenges.  Nothing like what my sister has had with her Bengal rescue, but there were things to think about.  We really wanted a cat, not a kitten.  Kittens generally find homes fairly quickly; adult cats are as likely to end up at the shelter as they are to find a new home.  And we wanted a lapcat.  A snuggly cat that would appreciate my daughter’s attempts to cuddle, not just tolerate them.

Thanks to the warmhearted, caring people at Adopt a Rescue Kitty ( AARK ) we found all that, and more.

Meet Aragon.  Or Eragon.  Or Earagon.  Or Argone.  All different ways his name was spelled on the various bits of paperwork that came with him. Poor guy, no wonder he’s so confused looking.  Ten months old, and no one has figured out how to spell his name yet.  (The first one is a community in Spain, and was a kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula.  The second is a dragon in a pretty well-known book.  I don’t even know where the other spellings came from.)

He’s a sweetie. A cuddle kitty.  A heart stealer.  And quite a camera hog.  Every time I pull the Kodak (or the Pentax or the camera phone) out, he walks right up and sticks his face in it.

But how can you get upset, when he purrs and rubs his chin against you right after?

I blogged over at Beyond the Veil yesterday about my lack of inspiration. If you didn’t stop by then and give me a kick in the pants, it’s not to late to get your shot in.

Music was a repeated suggestion, so I worked on playlists last night. Since the Great Hard Drive Failure of the Fall, my music has been a big stinking mess, spread across no less than 8 hard drives – only 6 of which are in actual machines – and a box of CD’s. I made a big step to getting that organized last night, and got some nice playlists on my Phone.

And speaking of the new phone – what am I supposed to call this thing when people see it and ask what it is? With the iPhone, I rarely had to say, but if I did I could say iPhone and pretty much everyone knew what it was. Google Phone sounds weird. Superphone sounds like I’m trying too hard. Nexus One sounds like I’ve been watching too much Star Trek. Or reading too much Zelazny, but anyone geeky enough to know who Zelazny is probably is geeky enough to know what kind of phone I have no matter what I call it. This thing needs a nickname.

N1? GP? Slick?

Thanks for sending my husband that offer, AT&T. One more reason to appreciate my Nexus One.

Short post, but – Are you still using IE?
The Wall Street Journal says :
“Security-software maker McAfee Inc. said Thursday that a flaw in Microsoft Corp.’s Internet browser was exploited in recent cyber-attacks on Google Inc. and others that have caused the search giant to consider pulling out of China. ”

There’s a bit more detail in the CNET story, where it says “The vulnerability affects Internet Explorer 6, IE 7, and IE 8 on Windows 7, Vista, Windows XP, Server 2003, Server 2008 R2, as well as IE 6 Service Pack 1 on Windows 2000 Service Pack 4, Microsoft said in an advisory on Thursday afternoon.” But it comes down to – if you’re still using IE, it’s a good time to give another browser a try.

Mozilla Firefox. Chrome. Opera. Safari. If you aren’t surfing safe, you shouldn’t be surfing.

BRUSH STROKES by Jax Cassidy
Release date: January 10, 2010
Publisher: Amber Heat
ISBN-13: 978-1-60272-627-7 (Electronic)
*Heat warning: erotic, explicit sex scenes, language

For Sage, attending the Parisian sex club, Plaisirs Sombres, was the ultimate fantasy. So when the conservative gallery assistant is cloaked behind the velvet mask, she never expected to be the object of the club owner’s desire. Spurred on by D.S. Gregoire’s erotic and sensual brush strokes of the exclusive club, she gives into a brief liaison that leaves her breathless and wanting.

For Damien, known to the art world as D.S. Gregoire, his art has always been an adrenaline rush. But when an exotic and mysteriously uninhibited ’sex club virgin’ enters his establishment, he is willing to break his club rules for another taste of the dark pleasures she brings him.

Author Bio:
Jax Cassidy followed her dreams to Paris, then Hollywood to pursue a film career but managed to fall in love with penning sexy romances and happy endings—finding Mr. Right was just an added bonus. She writes contemporary, paranormal, and multi-ethnic romances and is Co-Founder of Romance Divas, and award winning writer’s website and discussion forum. Jax is also known as one-half of the retired writing team of Cassidy Kent.

For more information on Jax, please visit her online at www.jaxcassidy.com or www.jaxadora.blogspot.com