Flying kittens...

Southwest will be allowing pets in the cabin for flights beginning June 17, 2009. Even though I don't like the thoughts of pets on planes because I immediately think of Homeward Bound (where the pets escape from the airport and get lost in the wilderness), it is nice that Southwest is thinking of people with pets. I have just a few comments on their new policy...

Southwest Airlines will only accept small cats and dogs in carriers that can be stowed under the Customer's seat.

A small cat. What is a small cat? I thought I've seen alot of cats throughout my life, and most of the cats I've seen have been approximately the same size. Yes, there are varying sizes of cats at different times of their lives, for example, a 2-week old kitten is substantially smaller than a 2 year old kitten. That would be very weird if a 2-week old kitten was the same size as a 2-year old kitten.

I'm no cat expert, so I thought I'd check the internets to see if I was missing anything huge.

• Cats typically weigh between 5.5 and 16 lbs. That doesn't seem like a big difference for an airline.
• Cats average 9-10 inches in height, about 18 inches long, and a tail length of 11.8 inches. Seems like a pretty small size, something that would easily fit in a cat carrier.

So, really what is Southwest talking about with "small cats". A Maine Coon, which is a larger breed of cat, can exceed 25 lbs. Last year, a 44 lb cat (Prince Chunk) was found in Philly. The largest cat on record is 46 lb 15.25 oz. So I can see why Southwest might be against flying these larger cats across the friendly skys, but I still can't figure out what a "small cat" is. Is a small cat simply a not 44 lb cat?

Wikipedia tells me, the smallest cat ever on record was 3 lbs. Now that is a small cat. I just read entirely too much about dwarf, midget and miniature cats, but they seem rare enough that I doubt Southwest will only fly your cat if its a dwarf cat.

So really, what is a small cat?

Sky Mall

Sky Mall has some amazing finds. See plzkthxbai. I've found some thought provoking products while perusing this pleasant magazine.

Is this Sleeping Beauty? Why is this woman sleeping with a rose? Is that safe?

Why is the Mom out the window and down the ladder before her kids if her house is on fire?

Spanish Bandits Through Time

Spanish Bandits have caused many troubles in my life...

I thought I'd search through time and see what other kinds of trouble they caused. Turns out, they're pretty nasty.

Dilated Peoples even mention them in their song "Heavy Rotation"...

Drinkin Jose Cuervo like some spanish bandits

I bet classy Spanish Bandits drink Patron. Apparently they like to hang out at winerys though...

I just hope you never have to experience the wrath of Spanish Bandits...

I love fonts.

I found a totally nerdy game that I wish I was better at. It shows you a few letters in different fonts, and you have to "shoot" the correct one. I'm pretty decent at the fonts that come default with Word, but... Clarendon Light, Bliss Light?

(play here)

Another cool, yet nerdy font thing that I enjoy... Kinetic Typography. There are a bunch of videos on YouTube if you search for that... This is one of my favorites.

the over the door cat climber.

An ad from Hammacher Schlemmer:

The Over The Door Cat Climber: This is the

out-of-the-way, door-hung apparatus that allows cats to exercise their feline propensity for climbing, stretching, pouncing, and lounging in an elevated position. Four fully carpeted 17" L x 8 1/2" W x 1" thick platforms that stimulate cats' natural curiosities attach to a wooden support pole covered with a sheath of sisal fiber that encourages scratching for healthy claw and muscle development.The platforms provide secure sleeping places for cats without taking up extra space. The pole has a bracket that attaches easily and securely to the top of doors (a spring-loaded bracket fits to the bottom of doors for easy installation), yet it is light enough to allow you to move it from door to door as you please, providing more interest for cats; doors can be closed while the climber is attached.

All I can picture is a cat sleeping on this thing, someone opening the door and the cat flying off.

my thoughts on rabbits.

Its getting close to Easter so here are some random bunny things that I found entertaining...

Killer Bunnies and the Journey to Jupiter.

I'm still not quite clear on what this is, but they have multiple "boosters" in many different colors also available for purchase. I'm not going to read the description and just make up my own. Inside the box is a rabbit. You pick what color the rabbit is going to be when it grows up (different colors give the rabbits different strengths). The rabbit has this quest that it must accomplish. In this instance, it has to make it to Jupiter. Your job, or your part in the "game" is to attempt to help the rabbit on its quest to get to Jupiter and you win the game when the rabbit gets to this far away planet. You better watch out though, this is a killer rabbit and it could kill you in your sleep. Therefore, speed is of the essence. You want to get rid of this killer bunny ASAP.

Book of Bunny

Suicides.

If you think about it, this could be very graphic and disturbing. But its not. I even gave it as Valentines Day present once...

Really, what is it with bunnies and dying? Another example... Killer Rabbit of Caerbannog. This rabbit has "nasty, big pointy teeth" and eats several knights in Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Watch out, this rabbit has "a viscious streak a mile wide!" You can even buy slippers made to look like "the most foul, cruel, and bad-tempered creature you ever set eyes on."

I'm not sure what it is with rabbits and death, but it seems to be working. Lets just hope other popular rabbits don't try and go this route (Trix Rabbit, Nesquik Rabbit, Energizer Bunny, Thumper, Peter Cottontail...)

And if you want to see something really weird & rabbity... try this.

I'm not fourteen, but...

I own all of the Twilight books, and even though I didn't go to a midnight release party of the DVD this past Saturday, I did go see the movie twice. I recently learned that Stephenie Meyer (the author) wrote the first book from Edwards point of view and never published it. It was leaked online, so she ended up posting it on her website. I've read the first 40 pages and I'm pretty hooked.

http://www.stepheniemeyer.com/midnightsun.html