h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

We've got a volcano directly to our south, so our air quality is REALLY bad... in fact, when I went to LA a few years ago, it was the easiest breathing I'd had in years! (Of course my asthma is triggered by exactly that: the volcano, so no wonder I can't breathe.)

Well, I'm not suffocating under clouds of volcanic ash or anything, but I do know that the Great Smokey Mountain National Park is officialy ranked as having the worst air pollution problem of all US national parks. You can see it when you're up there; Any mountain peak more than a couple hundred feet away is completely blurred by this bluish haze. But like I said, no volcanoes. And thank God for that, because the people up here blow ENOUGH stuff up by themselves (Our firework stores are open 24 hours a day all year. I'm not kidding).

I feel very fortunate. The air quality here on Cape Cod is rather good. Unless you are in my studio . That's where I'm sitting right now....I've just spilled turpentine on the floor. Cough.

Merging on to animals, living and dead. I had an old dog of about 15 years. She had been a part of our family since I was about 5. She lived in the house and we would hear her walking around on the wooden floors of a night time, and she would get on the end of someone's bed every night usually she would try every bed.
After she died, even though we had now put carpet on the floor we would hear her walking around at night, and we would feel her on the foot of the bed, you know that feeling of lump on the end of the bed where you don't move your feet so as not to disturb them.
Even after we got another dog our old dog still visited us and walked at night.
Until one day, when the young dog was about 12 months old, she had a different look about her, and she sat the way the old dog had sat, and had several of the same mannerisms. We never heard the old dog again. We believe the spirit of the old dog had gone into the young one, and she was back in the family.

*shudder*

After one of our cats, Sam, died, every once in awhile one of our matresses 'bounce' a bit, as if a cat had jumped up onto it, and nothing would be there. Sure enough, though, there was a warm spot and a depression in the comforter. That, and the warm spot's air tended to be 'thicker', and it was harder to move your foot into that vicinity of the bed.

My cat now hasn't been affected, unless you count that she's a crotchety old lady cat, much like how Sam was a starting-to-get crotchety old gentleman cat.

My dog just recently died after a long illness which the vets couldn't identify. Cleo was the best dog we ever had in our family.

Well, my sister works as a pre-school teacher. One of the boys in her class is a Medium.....or just very receptive. He as frequently freaked my sister out with the things he tells her. He is often speaking to people who are not there aqnd passing messages on to the other children.

Two weeks after we had Cleo put to sleep he went up to my sister and asked her if her dog had just died. She said yes. He then asked her if our dog was a Bassett Hound. Yes again. He then says: " CLEO wants me to tell you that she misses you very much." And he walked away. He didn't know the dogs name...rather, he shouldn't have known.

Did he ever comment that Bruce Willis was following him around?

Can't say I've had any experiences like those with any of OUR pets. I DID have a weird dream like that, though. It's kind of fuzzy, now, but I think my whole extended family was at a large dinner or gathering, and one of our dead cats was present. We all knew he was dead in the dream too. I remember looking at him from different angles, and observed that he was semi-transparent. Oh, and I think he talked.

Can't say I've had any experiences like those with any of OUR pets. I DID have a weird dream like that, though. It's kind of fuzzy, now, but I think my whole extended family was at a large dinner or gathering, and one of our dead cats was present. We all knew he was dead in the dream too. I remember looking at him from different angles, and observed that he was semi-transparent. Oh, and I think he talked.

The forum elves strike again!!!

Anyway, did it seem like inherent knowledge (the whole cat being dead thing) or did it come up while conversing with the cat?

Warning, stupid coincidence to follow:

Speaking of chatty cats, Sam, the cat that I mentioned earlier... well, he talked. I'm serious! In a yowling voice he'd say his name and things like milk, help, and a variety of other things that escape me right now, rather like a parrot would 'converse'. Interestingly enough, he only started talking after my sister momentarily nuked him... he never was quite the same after that...

Nuked? As in "microwaved" kitty?

Seemed like inherent knowledge, and still seemed that way AFTER I woke up. You know how things seem familiar in dreams but are totally unrecognizeable in life(I think I mentioned this last time)? Well the dream-cat WAS a cat we'd actually owned in life, a big, meatloaf-shaped black-and-white named Eddie. And though he did talk some, I don't believe he was really involved in the conversation. I think he just made some acknowledgements when we noticed he was our dead cat. He basically sat around for the most part(a cat sitting and doing nothing? I'm shocked!</sarcasm&gt.

By the way, I've got the same question as Kumabear: What DO you mean the cat was "nuked"?

The Tale of the Nuked Kitty:

My little sister learned how to wield the power of microwave ovens from very early on (she was about four or so), and we had a fairly stupid cat, Sam. (Who by the way was named after Cheers' Sam Malone... try saying 'leave Sam alone' really fast... get it?).

One day, my sister threw a cat toy into the microwave, and Sam jumped in after it. (That was the popular theory, anyway. No one saw her do it, but I think she put him in there.) She closed the door, and Sam yowled a bit. My dad glanced over to see what the cat was crying about, but since he saw nothing except my sister looking pleased with herself, went back to what he was doing. Then she turned it on. My dad glanced over again, but this time saw Sam clawing at the microwave door, and yowling. He did a mad leap from the kitchen table and slammed the release. Sam came barreling out, did a spread eagle, and landed *crash* on the floor. He had been nuked for a total of maybe three to five seconds.

We all thought he was dead at first, but as we moved in, he sprang up, made a mess on the floor, and ran out of the house like a bat out of hell. We didn't see him for three days, and assumed that he was dead. When he came back he was the same old Sam, but he acted rather ike the boxer that took one too many punches. After a while, he began his career as 'The Feline Parrot'. He died in a tangle with a mongoose two years later, on Christmas eve. (Normally cats win over mongooses, but he wasn't such a good fighter after his encounter.)

So, the plural of "mongoose" is "mongooses"? Yes, yes, I know the subject I should be focusing on is the dead talking cat, but I've alway wondered whether it was "mongooses," or "mongeese," or what. Come to think of it, it would be cooler to call them "mongi" (MON-guy).

I think it would/should be mongi.

And another thing.....The plural of "blind" is "blinded" correct? Wouldn't "blound" be the better choice? Just something that's been on my mind for the past ten or so years.

Ummh, I'm not sure I understand what you mean by the "plural" of blind. I thought that it was an adjective. Unless you're talking about windows, in which case it's "blinds." Try using "blinded" and "blound" in a sentence, and maybe I'll get a better idea of what you mean.

Sorry. Diddn't mean plural. Been working at my easel for allmost 36 hours straight without sleep. I'm suprised I can still type.

must more coffee make.

Example= a bright light flashes "ARRGH! I've been blound!"

Ahhhhh. Past-tense. Yes, "blound" makes sense.

It's Mongooses, guys, Mongooses. As in "The three blounded mongooses would will have visited their great-great-great-great grandmother twice this week."

...and it's "blound," not "blounded." Besides, when you're using it as an adjective, just say "blind." "Blound" is only the past-tense of the verb meaning "to blind."

Also, I know now that the CONVENTIONAL plural is "mongooses," but if you wanna be hip (like Kuma and me ), then you should start calling them "mongi."