It's Working Out Just Fine

Quite the week or two it's been. The ladies are getting along well considering there seems to be a number of instigators in that cage. Between Siggy and Albie being their usual annoying selves, Boggle is a pain in the butt. All in all, they are getting along well and sleeping together. Simone was right that the two new ladies are eaters. Not a problem though. We like to feed our ladies and they will fit right in. Will have to take Clementine to the vet's. She has what might be a cut/sore on her front foot and on the corner of her mouth. I want to make sure it is nothing more than that and the sore on the foot is not bumblefoot. Maybe the vet has some suggestions for salve.

It's snowing, I have a cold, the rat needs to go to the vet, we have four hockey games in eight days but all is well. Can't complain. Have to get those pics of Hilda and Clementine happening!

I did see an ad on the Small Animal Rescue website for two kittens - one is blind and the other has one eye. If our Miss Kittycat wasn't such a grumpy old lady we'd have considered it. It wouldn't be fair to her to bring in two kittens after having been on her own for so many years.

Some Skill, Some Luck and a Valiant Attempt

It's always something to watch the twins in action. Naslund was the recipient of a masterful pass from Daniel and Green scored on a delayed penalty for the game winner. The valiant attempt is for Khabibulin who kept the game respectable. Without Khabibulin it would have been more like five or six to one instead of the respectable two to one.


Next game: November 28, 2006 versus the Columbus Blue Jackets at the Garage

A Pretty Good Game, But Then It's St. Louis

Poor Husband has to remind me about the game as I have been so bad and haven't updated this blog in a while.

IIRC (and with a bit of help), it was a good game with Kesler looking like a scorer. There has to be something good to be said about players who attempt the lost art of a backhand to score. It is getting old to have to watch players spin around to take a shot. Methinks that if an enterprising player could work a decent backhand they'd do pretty good as goaltenders are used to having that extra bit of time to be able to get set when the shooter has to go to the forehand.

Anyways, Kesler should get into fights at every game - it seems to do something for his level of play. And anytime you see Kachunk get hit in the head is a good time, indeed.

Nice to see the Canucks be able to take advantage of the struggling teams - something that hasn't been evident in past seasons.

Next Game: November 19, 2006 versus Chicago at the Garage

There Be Rats!

No pics yet - it has been a crazy week and we just picked them up last night.

We have two new ladies in our household! We are excited to have Clementine and Hilda with us. They are from the Small Animal Rescue.

http://www.smallanimalrescue.org/

one more time

http://www.smallanimalrescue.org/

Go take a look and maybe find yourself a new friend.

We are back up to six, which seems to be our manageable number. They are friendly and really cute. We are not sure how old they are, but they are quite energetic and curious.

Welcome, Hilda and Clementine. Pix to come!

Meet the New Boss, Same as the Old Boss

Decent game. Suppose it would have been too much to expect the Canucks to win. BUT. Having the coach handicap the team is nonsense.

I have officially fallen off the fencepost with regards to Coach V. I realize that having one good line and then pretty much budget talent after that limits opportunities, but sometimes you have to use what you have intelligently. Having Pyatt, Kesler, Green and Burrows on the ice with the goaltender out in the last minute of the game is not using what you have intelligently.

And no, we don't buy that the "eggs in one basket" line was tired. That's why God made time outs. You have one ace line and need a goal you use that line. Sorry. Anything else I call bullsh*t.

One nice thing - they will be well rested for Friday's game as they weren't pushed too hard at the end of this one.

Dunno if I want to see Coach V go. There are a few things I do like about him - his willingness to pull the goaltender early, the way he gets the team working.

Having said that, there are a number of things that I don't like - his way of handling Linden, the management of the players in general, his love of grinders and (although we didn't see much of it this game) his line juggling.

Linden. What to say? Others on other forums have crunched the numbers and I am too lazy but Linden has been doing better points per time played than other players on the team and has been solid defensively. Why is he in the doghouse then? Why has his time on ice so low?

It's like we have Crawford Lite - loves the grinders, plays favorites, manic line juggling without the voice. Mommy, I'm scared.

Next game: Friday, November 17 versus the St. Louis Blues at the Garage

Birthday Gift Early and Then Down the Slippery Slope We Go

Friday a nice lady named Jennifer who actually works at the same place I work at - large place never met her - found my doctor's name on a prescription in my wallet and called my doctor.

I belong again. I exist. Thank you, Jennifer. I hope the karma police are paying attention one day when you need it. I must do something to earn back some good karma.

No bank card or credit cards. Husband has been smiling solidly for three days now.

We didn't go to the hockey game. I wasn't feeling well and Husband is such a nice man. He stayed home and laid in bed with me and watched the game. As it was.

Pfffffft.

Next home game: Tuesday, November 14 at the Garage versus Dallas. EDIT: Oooops. That was Detroit on Tuesday

That Really Sucked

And that's all that really can be said.

Well, no, more can be said: AHL defense which really wasn't THAT bad, disinterested forwards, bad goaltending and weird coaching. You know it's bad when the fourth line is the only one with any jump. It was deja vu to see the team give up in the third. I half expected Bertuzzi to come over the boards.

Hope they got that out of their system. One bright spot is that Sabourin doesn't look that bad. Can't really blame him for the two on one goal (no I don't care who scored it) as Krajicek couldn't be bothered to play the pass. The way he waved his stick at it you'd think he was trying to get a hooking call.

At least it wasn't raining on the way home.

But even a bigger kick in the teeth was losing my wallet. It was in the grocery store and a big thanks to the #$%#@ who couldn't be bothered to return it to the cashier. No cash but ID and other irritating and time consuming things to replace. Disappointing as I know I would have went out of my way to ensure that the wallet was returned or at least gave it to a store worker. Have fun trying to use the cancelled credit cards. Guess we should check the credit bureau in a month or so to make sure I don't have any new "problems".

All in all not the most wonderful week.

Next game: Saturday November 11 versus Calgary at the Garage

Gone But Not Forgotten - Houdini

It was a little hard to find a good pic of Houdini. Usually when the camera came out or we came close to the cage, they all crowd the doors thinking that treats were coming. Not Houdini. She'd be waiting to make sure there were treats before coming out.

It was also a little difficult to get close to Houdini. We initially got her from a pet store and she was a bit skittish even at that time. We brought her home and within an hour she was out of the cage. We didn't realize the bars of the cage were too wide and so we had to put her into a smaller cage by herself. Being worried that being alone in a small cage for a period of time wouldn't be healthy for her, we ended up going and getting her sister, Nibble, for company. Then, to make matters worse, I took her out of the cage and was trying to "get to know her" when she just freaked out and took off out of my hands. We ended up finding her under the TV and had to get her out any way possible as we do have the cat and didn't want to take any chances. That ended up making her skittishness worse.

She was still a relatively friendly rat, just quite reserved and had to be dealt with at her own speed. As noted previously, she bonded strongly with Scully and that helped her to become more confident where she started to come to the cage to see what was happening when we came to it. She also never had any problems with taking food out of hands.

As with Sly and Scully, she started to lose weight and her coat wasn't as nice as before. We took her into the vet's numerous times and were given first an antibiotic, then a combination of different antibiotics to try together and, finally, a bronchodilator. None of these did the trick. She did start to get tired of the chocolate and without any good coming out of the antibiotics we decided to get an x-ray to at least find out what was happening. We found that in just under a month she had lost two-thirds of her weight. She was quite a round little thing and became this very thin girl in a short period of time. She still did like her food, her chocolate syrup, cereal and popcorn.

The x-ray determined that she had masses in her lungs and the vet said that she was in quite a bit of pain - so much so that she had bit him when he touched her around her chest area. I guess I never realized this because she let me hold her, pick her up and stroke her. After some discussion with the vet we decided to have her put to sleep at that time because of the pain factor. She was laboring with the breathing and with the pain that the vet said she had we felt there was no choice. We would have prefered her coming home with us to die with her cagemates but not at the cost of suffering.

I feel so sad that it took Houdini getting sick for us to become closer. I took her out of the cage often - ideally on a daily basis, usually with Nibble or Boggle to sit on the couch with me, as I did with all the other rats. She would usually just run up my arm and hide. I guess that happens sometimes. It could have been the trauma of having to pull her out from under the TV when she was a baby. I wish it could have been different but having the cat around (couldn't lock her in the bathroom ALL day hoping the rat would come out) gave us no choice.

I hope she had a good life. She had cagemates who loved her, people who loved her and comfort.

Houdini, you will be missed greatly. Even though you weren't demonstrative in your affections, the trust you placed in me to take care of you at the end made me very happy. I hope we were deserving of that trust.

Give our love to Sly, Scully, Teeth and Snort at the Bridge when you see them.

It's Different When Someone Else Gets Jobbed to the Canuck's Benefit

What to say? It's always nice when the Canucks win, but it is getting tedious when useless calls are making the difference.

The horse left the barn on that topic last entry. No boring rehashes here. Only boring NEW content!

It was nice seeing Luongo play like he can. That save near the end of the third was the game saver. Pyatt showed the patience of a skilled player. Edler looked like the real deal for the second game he has been here for. The team needs some finish around the net, though.

That was a nasty case of deja vu, wasn't it? It will take a lot more than that to make up for Lidstrom's goal than that. At least it was a nod from the Hockey Gods.

It is so nice to see a team that will work throughout the whole game and not when the mood serves. Also nice to see a coach that will shorten the bench as necessary. YMMV as to who to place on the ice but a little goes a long way after the last five years.

As someone who is not a fight fan but a hearty BOOOOOO to the refs for breaking up a possible Barnaby/Bieksa fight.

Next Game: November 9 versus The Anaheim Ducks at the Garage

Well, maybe not

The team played well, but these bogus calls are starting to get irritating. So many silly phantom calls for both sides. If the refs are going to start being the game, then let's see come calls for diving. It is really tiresome to see thoroughbreds falling over at a nudge.

Ah well. Sucky reffing isn't a new issue, so it shouldn't be a shock to the Canucks. Time to suck it up and still play hard. Bulls*it reffing should be a motivator, not a deflator.

That being said, it was a fun night for the boo birds. After feeling the breeze of a Canucks player skating by Vokoun managed to go down like he had been shot by an elephant gun. Hence thereafter he was roundly booed each time he went near the puck.

Yes, it's OUR money. We'll entertain ourselves as we wish.

The league really has to take a hard look at the product they are putting on the ice. Too many phantom calls and missed calls. Not only for the Canucks but the Oilers tonight were the most recent beneficiary of this oddness. Yes, please call hooking, tripping and obstruction but also do it fairly and make sure that it actually hinders the players. Waving a stick in the general direction of another player is not a penalty. Let's also do something about these players who when they feel a hard breeze decide to fall over like they've been shot.

And what's this about feeling the need to even up calls? If a team is not disciplined then give them all the penalties. It's called a rule book. Utilize it.

Enough of that.

We won't even contemplate the Minnesota game.

Next game: Monday, November 6 versus Dallas at the Garage.