Books Unpacked

Readers who've been with me for a while may remember that I had my own apartment briefly a couple years ago, and that I had to put some things into storage when I moved back in with my parents. Some were things like kitchen stuff that I don't need here, but I also had to sacrifice my books so that I could make way for a computer. I wasn't happy about it though, and I was only willing to part with them because I expected it to be a short term situation.

I finally retrieved my books from storage a few months ago, though they remained in boxes (nine total) in the living room. While still inconvenient, I at least had them close at hand, and that was an improvement.

Then, I finally did a bit of rearranging and got a proper bookcase in my bedroom last week. It's a bit cramped, but still comfy, and most importantly I've got my books.  And actually, I'd say my room is even more comfortable now that my books are here.

I hadn't realized how much I've missed having my books where I can see them.

The religious/spiritual type stuff section

Things are still somewhat disorganized (ok, messy) in my bedroom, and my bookshelf reflects that. My most organized section is pictured above, and even there it's somewhat lacking in proper organization.

And yes, I'm in the habit of putting things on my shelves. Above is my Cerridwen doll, from Dancing Goddess Dolls. (If you're unfamiliar with them, I definitely recommend checking them out.) Below are some Halloween decorations that I found  while cleaning yesterday. Yes I know it's late for Halloween, but I figured I may as well put them out briefly this year even if it's November already. Lastly, there's a dragon who guards my books.

Pumpkins, tombstones, and dragon

It's good to have them back.

Josie

I've said before that mom needs a dog, and I wasn't the only one who thought that. So I was delighted when mom started talking last month about getting one, and even happier when she brought home Josie this evening. Josie's a small white dog, mixed breed, but we know she's part Cairn Terrier.

Meeting Josie

This was my first photo of Josie. I tried to get a photo of mom holding her, but by the time I was ready to take a photo Josie was already on the floor and trying to meet me. She's a very friendly dog. She's also adorable when she stands on her hind legs.

Standing up

Josie has really taken to mom, and already gets separation anxiety when mom steps outside momentarily or is otherwise out of her sight. I actually heard her bark before mom did (she's mostly a quiet dog) because Josie objected to mom stepping outside to get dog supplies from the car. I guess she's decided that mom should be her person. I also wonder if the separation anxiety could be in part because this is Josie's fourth (fifth?) home, and she isn't even two years old yet.

She's already settling in nicely though, seems happy and she likes everyone. Josie has also decided that there's one spot of the floor that's hers, as you can see in the photo below. And yes, she's also got a sweater. She'd had one before, so mom bought her a purple one with hearts. I'm pretty sure that mom will be knitting another sweater for Josie soon.

So cute, with eyes closed and a sweater

Now, as for the cats...

The cats aren't sure what to make of Josie. We're keeping them fairly separate for now, but already started introductions with Kokopelle. And we only did that because if we didn't, he'd slip past us to meet her when he have little control over the situation. We'd rather things go as well as possible.

Kokopelle isn't sure what to think of Josie. Keeping her on the leash, we let Kokopelle into the kitchen/dining room where she's staying for now. Once they got a good look at each other she tried to get to him with lots of enthusiasm. I thought it was really cute, but Kokopelle disagreed. We let him in a second time when she was tired and sitting on mom's lap, and they actually went nose to nose before Kokopelle decided to leave. Both times he had control over how close he got to her, which I think was the important thing for introductions.

I don't know if Kokopelle will ever be a fan of dogs, but I think he'll at least learn to live with one without much fuss.

Saphira still hasn't met Josie yet. But for some reason she did let me pick her up so I could show her where we moved the cat food to. (It had been in the dining room, which is now occupied by puppy.) Saphira really sticks only to dad, and for her to let me pet her is unusual. For her to let me pick her up is somewhat shocking. She's also been hiding under my bed, and I have to wonder if Saphira blames Josie's presence on my dad somehow and is making a statement by hanging out near me. She does things like that when she's ticked off at him.

Saphira under my bed

And, before anyone asks, no we aren't introducing her to the rats. Not sure why anyone would ask, but people ask about how I handle having rats and cats, so I guess some might wonder about this as well.