Amy's furkids & more: 2011

[undergunfire]

Hello! I haven't been on here very often (just occasionally looking around), but I used to be very active! You can see my old blog here....http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=54231&forum_id=6&page=18

Things have changed drastically for myself and the furkids in the past 7 months (divorce, death, moving, etc). We have a whole "new life", so don't be surprised at how different this blog will be . I won't start off this blog with all of the bad things that happened for the past 5 months of last year, but rather just start right off with talking about our "new life"!

In this blog I will talk about (and post pictures!!!) my pets, life, job, and whatever else comes to mind .



To start off....

I'm Amy, 22 years old, and I live in northern Arizona (Prescott). I am a professional dog groomer and have been grooming for the past 8 months (since graduating school) - I love to groom! Someday I hope to turn to mobile grooming and have my own van, since I love the idea of working for myself and mobile just seems to be the best way for me. I'd eventually like to go to school for something else (in case my health or something makes me not able to groom), but I am not sure yet what other path to take.

I love tattoos - I have a big memorial piece portrait of my kitten (RIP) on my upper middle back, a chest piece with bunnies (including a portrait of Morgan), and on my arm I have a pin up girl grooming a standard poodle.

I have a boy friend (his name is Finley), he is 25 years old, and is a bicycle mechanic. Finley is a wonderful guy, so I am glad we were able to be friends and get to know each other very well before getting into a relationship. Finley loves the furkids and is very active with them...taking a special liking to Tibi (the cat) and the fishies.

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Molly and Morgan are two adopted (spayed & neutered) bonded house bunnies who are insanely in love with each other! Morgan's birthday is 6/24/06, which would make him 5 years old this June. Molly is approximately 2 years old...I don't know her actual birthday. M&M have free run of my little 1 bedroom apartment, but only when I am home. Any other time they spend in their 2x4 NIC cage.

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Sam is my little dog - he is a 3 year old Doxi/Min Pin mix, adopted from a rescue. He is pretty much the best dog ever....feisty and playful when you want him to be, but all other times....he just sleeps . Samweenie gets to go to work with me every day and hates it when he has to get left home alone (which is very rare). He is the little love of my life!

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Juju (or Juji, Toodles, Toots, Doot-Doot, etc...hehe) is my precious kitty-kitty, he is about 4.5 year old and I adopted him from a local cat rescue when he was 1.5 years old. Ju is a polydactile, so he has 6 toes on each foot...making him appear to have adorable little mittens! He gives the best kisses and loves to snuggle. Juju is the best cat I could have ever asked for.

Tibi is my tubby kitty, whom is a little over 2 years old. He is what you may call a "typical fat cat"....only likes attention on his own time, loves to eat, enjoys cat naps, and rarely likes to play (except the laser pointer does get him moving). I love my Tubby Tibi...he is a special big boy!

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The fish are definitely a fun pet to have and they are relaxing to look at after a long/stressful day at work. I really love my fish - they have become one of my favorite pets.

10 gallon tank...3 black skirted tetras, 2 black neon tetras, 2 Oto catfish, 1 male veil tail betta, and a little snail (who appears from the sand every few days). I am looking into adding a few more little tetras, though.

5 gallon tank...1 male ghost shrimp, 3 female ghost shrimp, 2 snails (gold & ivory), and a female guppy. This is a fairly new tank...the guppy is the only survivor out of 3 other guppies, so we are deciding what to do with this tank.

36 gallon bow front tank...no occupants yet - we don't even have it started up (so no pictures)! I was at Petsmart and saw this tank on sale (originally $160, on sale for $120, and a $20 mail in rebate), so I decided to buy it! We are still searching for a stand for it and trying to decide what type of fish we are going to add to it.

Ohhhh...and Finley is on his way to pick up another 30+ gallon tank from his friend's grand mother....for FREE! I guess it has been sitting in her garage and has everything included with it (including new stuff in the boxes). So, we are going to hang onto this tank and probably not set it up for a while...maybe possibly upgrade the 10 gal. to this tank?

 

[TinysMom]

So nice to see you blogging again!!

 

[undergunfire]

Thanks, Peg! I just have so many adorable pictures and things to share .

 

[TinysMom]

Well, Morgan is a DOLLBABY....and if he disappears suddenly...he didn't come to Texas...nope...not at all.

 

[missyscove]

Great to see you back.

I love the pictures, especially the kitty pictures.

 

[undergunfire]

Morgie will be coming to Texas....because I am planning to move to Austin by November of this year :biggrin:! I have been wanting to get out of AZ for a long time...and am now very seriously saving money and making serious plans. Austin just seems like such a great place! Del Rio is only about 4 hours away from Austin, according to Google Maps .

Their new NIC cage....

I will post more pictures tomorrow - I have a TON .

 

[Nela]

Amy, it's great to hear from you again. You seem to be doing very well and it's great to see you so happy. Awww it was so nice to see pictures of all the furbabies and fish. :biggrin2: I think you should have one of those miniature aquatic frogs too. Hehehe. Wishing you all the best in your present and future!

 

[TinysMom]

I can hardly wait till you move to Texas.

I hate hate HATE driving in Austin (did I mention I hate it??)....but for you....I'd brave the traffic.

Of course I'd have to bring Zeus along so you could meet him....

 

[irishbunny]

Love the pictures, love your tattoos as well they are beautiful!

 

[JadeIcing]

Yay now just for you to keep it updated.

 

[undergunfire]

Nela - thank you! And nope...no froggies in this house - I am terrified of frogs :expressionless.
Peg - I would love to meet Zeus, and of course...Angel. It would be really nice to see you again (and the family, if they came along!). 4 hours isn't far, but we could always come there or meet half way somewhere for a "fun day" !
Grace - thanks! I will have to post the pictures of my tattoos . I still need to figure out how to get a good picture of the one on my arm - the piece is pretty large and it is hard to photograph.
Alicia - I will surely try to keep this thing updated. I just have so many pictures and stuff to share .


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Work related talk....


Well, today was a slow day at the grooming salon - I only had 3 dogs to groom and stood around for an hour today just waiting around. Thankfully, I got to leave for an hour to come home for lunch, or else I would have been standing around the shop for another hour. I get paid commission, so I really don't like to clean things or do odds & end type stuff because I don't get paid for it.....so I just stand around or play with dogs .

My boss is trying to move me over to salary. The other two groomers at the salon told her that they didn't want to go on salary...so she is trying to push it on me. I don't think her take on it is very fair because she is offering me a yearly amount that is either the same or a tad less then what I have the potential to make this year....but yet she wants me to work twice as hard. The monthly amount BEFORE taxes get taken out would be okay...but the amount that my checks will be each week AFTER taxes would be pretty crappy.

See...some weeks I may only make $180 a week (after taxes), where as other weeks I can make $580 (after taxes). I see how she says that salary will bring me in a steady income, especially during the slow times, but I don't think she is being fair at all with her salary offer to me.

We have another meeting on Saturday to discuss it...and I am going to be strong and put my feelings out there about it. It didn't seem like she was giving me a choice whether or not to go on salary, so we will see what happens. The worse she can do is fire me. Yes, it would suck, big time, but I don't want to work for someone who would "abuse me" anyway.

I just need to save as much money as possible by November, because that is when I plan to make the big move to Austin, TX. I know if I got put on salary, then it would be really hard to save the money I want to save to move because after bills & stuff....the amount per month I'd be making on salary wouldn't leave me with a whole lot to save. See....some months (thankfully I am back up on my feet over the last few months) I can save $500-$600, where as other months I may only be able to save $50-$100. So, that makes a big difference in my eyes. The quicker I save, the sooner I will be in Austin!!

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Fish tank talk.....

So, the tank that Finley's co worker's grandmother gave him is probably a 20 gallon tall. It is really, really dirty...so we need to clean it up. The hood is in good shape, and the tank looks to be in good shape...we just need to see if it will hold water once it is cleaned up. I think the filter should be replaced because it seems really old and it is missing the top piece, and it will need a heater for most fish....but overall, its pretty good for being free! We decided that we will probably clean it up and sell it, that way we can have a little extra money to put into our 36 gallon bow front.

Ohh, and we decided to just build a tank stand for the 36 gallon. It can weigh around 400lbs after water, sand, and deco go into it...so we thought it would be safer to build a stand rather then try to find some sturdy piece of furniture at the thrift stores. Hopefully the weather is nice this weekend so we can build, but I think it is supposed to rain & snow again on Saturday and Sunday.


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Well...I am feeling a bit under the weather (sinus/sore throat issue starting), so I am going to relax and watch some television. I'm sure I will post up pictures later, since I have a lot to share from over the last few months!

 

[JadeIcing]

YAY! She posted again.

 

[TinysMom]

Is there someone else in town you could work for that does grooming?

If not - would you be willing to work at another place (like you've worked before) just to save money until November?

I guess I'm asking if you have a back-up plan (I'm sure you do).

I can see where you're coming from....but I can also see her point of view.

What about a base salary with extra commission for those weeks when you work more?

Just a thought...

Keep us updated.

 

[Happi Bun]

Yay for you being back with a new blog! :weee: Love the new bun cage, gorgeous!

 

[undergunfire]

Well, my boss talked to me today...but she was in a huge hurry to get out of the door so she could help her husband move into his house (they are splitting up). The talk was only a few minutes long and we didn't come to any sort of conclusion to the salary thing. I will talk to her again on Tuesday and see what happens. She kind of got all panicky when I whipped out the last year's tax return. She tried to tell me what that number wouldn't be doubled and that her offer was higher then what I would make this year. I know that isn't true...so I am frustrated. I've talked to the two groomers at the shop and also the kennel manager (we are the only employees, besides a new bather)...and they all think my boss' offering to me isn't fair at all. We are all shocked by this salary thing and how unfair Vicki is being with it. If she isn't careful, then she will likely loose all of us.


I'm going to be working every Monday at my old job (the one I had before grooming), so that will bring in an extra $200 or so a month for savings to move to Austin. And, if worst comes to worst (if Vicki fires me for refusing her unfair salary offer), then I will work 40 hours a week at my old job while I look for another grooming job. I should be able to live off of that income for a little bit, especially since I have some savings.



So, Thursday night I started feeling super sicky (sore throat/body aches/sinus congestion). I was really sick yesterday, with what I am pretty sure was the flu. Today I feel much better, but I still have the super bad sinus congestion.

Apparently we are supposed to get like 10-12 inches of snow tonight, snow all day tomorrow, then tomorrow night we are supposed to get 6-10 inches. I know it doesn't seem like a lot to most of you....but even just 5 inches in this part of Arizona pretty much closes everything and you are snowed in. They really suck at plowing the roads and only plow the main roads. I went and stocked up on food & drinks today, so I am all prepared to be stuck inside of my house until Monday (most likely).


I will update more later with pictures....gotta go frost some cupcakes .

 

[undergunfire]

Well, we got about 6-10 inches of snow at my house last night. It is very sunny outside today, but only about 33 degrees F. Apparently no snow will be falling tonight, but some clouds in the sky are a bit grey & heavy looking.

Since we are snowed in (main roads are pretty clear, but we have to dig out the car), we are just having our usual "lazy Sunday" day today. Lazy Sundays usually include making yummy food (eating all day, haha), taking new pictures of the pets, letting the lovebuns have free run all day, and watching movies or television series (we are on season 2 of Lost right now).

Soooooo, pictures :biggrin2:!!!!



Here is the snow from outside of my bedroom window....

Fat Tibi....

Toodles....

Samweenie.....

I will post the lovebuns pictures in a little bit, since it's breakfast time (blueberry pancakes!) and they are still uploading .

 

[Nela]

LOL oh man... I had been in the middle of typing about the frogs then thought "Wait, isn't she the one that hates frogs? Hmm... Nah must be someone else..." Oops Sowwy. Lol.

Wishing you all the best with work and saving money for the move. I hope things work out with your salary. Great pics. I miss the snow!

 

[undergunfire]

Work related talk....

Well, my boss offered me $2,000 more in yearly salary and told me that I have the choice to take her offer...or walk :grumpy:. So, I decided I would stay at the shop...but I am going to look for another grooming job. I am thinking I will try at Petco and see what happens. I don't like the idea of working for corporate, but at least this will give me a foot in the door and I can probably put in a transfer for when I move to Austin.

I'm just a bit bummed because I like my co workers and my boss, my clients, and the fact that I can bring my dog to work with me daily...but I need to do what is best for me career wise. I'm hoping this salary thing won't be as bad as I think it is. My main goal right now is to just save as much money as I possibly can before September or October...because I plan to move to Austin by November.

On another note...I worked my first day back at my old job on Monday. I really enjoyed sitting in a chair all day and stickering key chains (we put stickers on the back of solar key chains) and chatting with everyone again. It was a nice change because I am so used to running around and busting butt at dog grooming.



Fish tank talk....

We lost one of our black neon tetras ...probably due to high ammonia amounts in the 10 gal, so we are trying to level that out so that we can slowly add in a few more black neon's, so our lone one isn't lonely!

We still have our 36 gal. bow front tank sitting in the box in the living room. We debated whether or not to keep it & set it up, or take it back to PetSmart. We are having a VERY hard time finding a tank stand for it....PetSmart & Petco's stands are super expensive and they don't feel like they are of the best quality. We tried searching all of the thrift stores in town multiple times. I looked on CL a few times, but I really don't want to drive all over town to people's houses. We thought about building a tank stand, so that is still being discussed.

We thought about taking it back because we are wondering how hard it will be to move a bunch of fish to Austin with us. We will grow attached to the fish and won't want to rehome them, but we also don't want to invest a bunch of money into fish and risk them dying during the trip. So, it is a tough call.

I still need to clean up the 20+ gallon tank that we got for free and sell it. That way, it will have basically paid for the set up of the 36 gal. tank (if we decide to do it), along with the sale of the little couch that I have in my living room (no one sits on it).



Random talk....

Only 1 week before my trip to Cali! Finley's 25th birthday is next Thursday, so we are going to LA for the weekend. We are going to see a show in Phoenix on Thursday night, then leave for LA after the show. On Friday we are going to go to museums & such, Saturday its off to Six Flags Magic Mountain, then on Sunday we will go to the fashion district to do some shopping. I am super excited! Our 2 friends are also coming with us and we are staying at one of our friend's aunts house for free .

I still don't know what I am going to get Finley for his birthday. Dudes are super hard to shop for. I have been really listening to him over the last two weeks or so, to try to get clues, but I am clueless! I thought about just getting him a good bottle of Scotch, since he likes it and maybe some new shirts?

I really need to go shopping this weekend for myself too - need some new shirts for vacation because I hate all of mine! You can only wear the same clothes for so long before you feel unattractive in them :expressionless.



Sharing some grooming pictures from 2 weeks ago! I need to get around to posting all of the pictures that I have of Molly and Morgan, since this is a bunny forum .

Lilly before.... - female Standard Poodle in a cut with "leg warmers", eventually those will grow out into "bell bottoms"....

Lilly after....

Sommer before... - female "Multi-Poo" puppy (Maltese/Poodle mix)....

Sommer after....

 

[JadeIcing]

Love seeing the before and after.

 

[missyscove]

Thanks for sharing the grooming pics. That's cool.
I'm jealous that you're going to Magic Mountain; that's my favorite theme park!