my brainhamsters.

The Arlington farmer's market is every Wednesday from June through October. It's only a block from my house, so it's ridiculous that I haven't gone more often. I've caught the Watertown and Belmont markets, and still have yet to catch the Davis Square market...



( more )

Ganked from mom_o_cass.

How well do you know your significant other?

( 20 questions. I think I have him nailed.... )

I'm sure he'll comment to clarify if I've gotten anything wrong. But really, he's pretty predictable in his monkey-ness. :)

*dies*

N.Y. / REGION
Tough Guys and Puppies
Librado Romero/The New York Times
Published: 20080822
A small army of bikers, calling itself Rescue Ink, works to help lost and abused animals.

And while we're at it: Ridiculous Bento.

This weekend Nhan and I spent a few days at Cape Cod with my friend Jean and her extended family; we haven't seen her in five years, and can never seem to organize a trip to England to visit them. Now that Nhan has more vacation days it is more likely that we can go in 2009; I just need to get some more well-paying projects so we can save up for a nice trip!

The weather was pleasant the whole weekend. The huge extended family were all fantastic. I took tons of photos, but I don't like posting photos of children without parents' permission, so that limits things a bit.

We arrived Thursday evening and had a walk along the beach.


( lots more photos of the weekend. )
We are heading to Martha's Vineyard over Labor Day weekend with Jenny and Jeremy. Meanwhile, I'm staying fairly quiet online, as I've been working on finding (paying) projects and taking care of personal things.

A big thank-you to Jenny, who overcame a tentative fear of pilling a cat to take care of Armand while we were away.

David is, of course, flipping out over his newfound geezer status. :)

Now I totally understand why my friend Jo Ann is crazy about them. OMG the cute.

We got home tonight and started walking to the door; Nhan almost stepped on something on the walkway. The baby squirrel was still breathing, so I wrapped him in a towel and brought him inside to check him over. I went to a Squirrel Rescue site for a "to do" list. Jo Ann will get my voicemail and get in touch with me tomorrow (she's a wildlife rehabber); I should put him outside in a box tomorrow morning, but there are too many groundhogs around in our yard, and the street is too close. Poor skwerl.

Meanwhile, I couldn't let the cute pass us by without photos!


He's hellbent on sleeping, like a good baby squirrel should be. :)

( a couple more. )

RIDICULOUSLY cute.

:)

jhenaphere has Nhan and me laughing our asses off in the name of science... or rather, one seriously crazy woman's interpretation of science.

zandperl, this one's for you:

The moon - a mirror?



( try to get through these without serious loss of brain cells. )

ganked from laxphimia and lebonheurbum...

Edited after seeing arianasilver's instructions, which are more thorough!

The Omnivore's Hundred is a list of foods the gastronome Andrew Wheeler thinks everyone should try at least once in their lives.

The rules of the meme:
Bold those you have tried.
Strikethrough those you wouldn't eat on a bet.
Italicize any item you'll never eat again.
Asterisk any items you'd be interested in trying but have not yet.

( my list! I'm pretty adventurous, it seems )

We have updated our online photo albums.
New albums: our day in Boston a couple weekends ago,
and Jenny's birthday/Southwick's Zoo last Sunday.

Your good deed for the day!

Angel's Gate is non-profit home for special needs animals. Animals, many of whom are terminally and/or critically ill or physically challenged, come to live out their days at Angel's Gate in peace, dignity and love.

There is a letter-writing campaign underway to get Angel's Gate featured on the TV show "Extreme Home Makeover." Please read the letter under the cut, and mail out a short letter ASAP to ABC. Feel free to pass on to your friends as well - the letters need to be sent out as quickly as possible - the initial wave of letters has been postmarked on Tuesday, 12 August.

( the project, and the address to send your short letter. )


Send your letters to this address:

Lock & Key Productions
C/O Family Casting
P.O.Box 38670
Los Angeles, CA 90038

We're looking for a new clumping cat litter, and I'm trying to avoid sodium bentonite.

We used Tidy Scoop for over 10 years with our cats; it masked odours well, and was hard-clumping. The cats seemed to like it until recently, when Tidy Scoop appeared to change their formula. We then started using Arm & Hammer, and really like the hard clumping. All three of our cats use one litter box, so hard clumping and low-tracking is needed.

Arm & Hammer is OK, but we are realizing that we go through it very quickly, and we'd like to browse other options. For the past three weeks, I've been loft-sitting with two Siamese cats, and the litter their people use is Precious Cat cat litter. It seems like a great product, and I didn't go through much of it during the three weeks.

I would like to read some opinions. We tried pine-based litter and organic litter by Arm & Hammer, and those didn't please us (nor the kitties) at all. I would love to know what you guys use, why you like it, and any sort of organic/cat- and Earth-friendly properties it has. Thanks!

Today we went to Southwick Zoo (lots of photos forthcoming) with Jenny and Jeremy. Of course, no birthday is complete without total strangers flanking you for a silly photo. :)

( more Jenny! )

This weekend was sort of up in the air at first, but Saturday Nhan got to play lots of tennis at Solair, and Sunday we got lucky with the weather and went to a zoo that none of us had visited. It turned out to be a fun weekend. :) I shall be doing a huge zoo post as soon as Nhan can get the photos uploaded to our photo album.

From Sterling Publishing:
MEOW—meet a gorgeous group of felines, all dressed to impress! Nothing is prettier than a confident kitty, and animal photographer Tammy Raabe Rao has captured 39 sassy images of cats modeling their finest attire. From tabbies in tuxedos to Persians in precious gems, these furry marvels are well groomed and ready for romance. Feathers, boas, pearls, and tulle abound, making for quite a fashion show. Insightful and delightful quotes about beauty from such rich and famous celebrities as Marlene Dietrich, Robert Redford, Audrey Hepburn (as Holly Golightly), Madonna, and Keira Knightley help bring each fabulous feline’s unique personality to life.
Cat lovers will become more and more smitten with every hilarious image—and style fanatics will too!

It should be out; publication date is 5 August.
If you want to purchase on Amazon, please use the link above or on rubicat.com.

Thanks!

When left alone, I tend to eat a lot of cereal, and not just for breakfast. I also tend to eat like a "normal" person, for I usually cook stuff that seems, to some, foofy. I can hear Jenny's voice in my head: It's so faaancy!

Tonight I ate a frozen stuffed chicken entree and green beans. I shot a couple photos, for I have just been hired for an intermittent food-photography gig. The company liked the photos I sent them, which have been the same photos I've posted here from time to time.

( chicken. )

I've been going through all my clipped recipes, organizing them into meaningful categories. I have so many things that I want to make for friends. Thing is, I don't cook in the summer, because it's way too hot and uncomfortable in my kitchen. Blech.

My lemon basil is huge. I think I'm going to use it to infuse oil and/or vinegar. mmm.

First, we're a little late with our wish, but:

Hope you had a great day!

We thought of you today as we wandered quasi-aimlessly in downtown Boston. We were headed to the IMAX theatre, stopped at Faneuil Hall for lunch, and then ventured through much of downtown. For those far-flung friends: another taste of Boston.

( our day in photos. )

My hair is wet, but we're still cute.

A client of mine wishes to embed a photo gallery into his site, via a photo image host (he's thinking Photobucket, but he's malleable). I have been reading that Picasa has a solution, but it seems to have bad feedback. I can't find anything on Flickr.

Does anyone here know of a photo-sharing site that can be embedded into an external site without too much trouble? He wants to be able to update the albums himself, which means I'd be placing code and letting him do all the rest.

Twice a day I have to find Claudia, to give her medication. She's getting better at not running from me, and yesterday, even Naomi hung out next to us without bolting. Progress! Or Whisker Lickins. Either way, I'll take my victory. :)





Hopefully one of these days I'll be able to shoot them out in the open.
They're such pretty girls. Except Naomi is a pudge.

My original macro;
please credit rubicat.com
if you post it elsewhere.

( from Sunday. )

Friday night we had dinner with Jenny and Jeremy, and their friend Jim.
( photos )

Saturday Gia, Justin and Lisa drove up from New Haven to spend the day with us. The Vermont Garrison also joined us; we all went to the Aquarium, Faneuil Hall, and Harvard Square.


Glenn, Megan, Lisa, Chris, Jim, Ellen(top)/Gia(bottom), Nhan, Justin.

( lots o' photos. )

Nhan has updated our photo albums, so there are a lot more photos from Saturday online!

Jenny wanted to see a couple more photos from her wedding, so:
( five more photos )

A beautiful day....
( happy happy )

Congratulations Jenny and Jeremy!
Thank you for making Nhan and me a part of it. :)

Kitty sitting through 9 August in Porter Square; my friend/client's cat is asthmatic with some sort of respiratory infection on top of that, so she needs as much supervision as I can give her.

Naomi, left, and Claudia:


This is taken in the corner of the master bedroom walk-in closet. They love to hide in there, which makes it somewhat easy for me to hunt down Claudia twice a day for her medications.

( more... )

(feel free to pass on; Craigslist posting is here.)

I am photographing dogs for a dog fashion website (http://www.mydoggietalk.com),
and I need models. You will receive a CD of images taken in exchange for your time,
which would be no more than 1 hour. Photo shoot is in Arlington Center.

Please do not email me unless you have a pup who meets the criteria below:

Models needed Thursday, 17 July from 6 PM to 10PM.

Dogs MUST be well-behaved and able to sit and stay
while wearing t-shirts (as shown on the website)

Photo shoot is at my apartment in Arlington Center.
I have cats; they will be sequestered upstairs.

Dogs must be well-groomed; scruffy is OK, but not unkempt.

BREEDS/SIZES NEEDED:
Teacup Yorkie (3 to 4 lbs)
Boxer
Pug, up to 20 lbs
Retriever or Lab up to 75 lbs
Any other breed who weighs 10 to 14 lbs

If you have a dog that fits these criteria, please comment or email me:
tammy@rubicat.com

I took the Attachment test (ganked from f-list) and...

( I am, evidently, a cuddleslut. )

What I find REALLY awesome are my two identifiable fictional characters.
Especially considering that both are cute as hell. :)

a slight continuation of my last post

Sometimes you think things might be improving, and then Karma whacks you in the face again. Like, say... someone stealing your bike off your porch in the middle of the night. ARRRRGH.

Sometimes, but thankfully not often enough to make you completely paranoid,
life just feels as though Fate is trying to steal your chew toy.


(my karma model is Agatha, whom I shot in May)

( however, I have envisioned five steps out of my doldrums. )

In Myrtle Beach helping my mother with various things from house to green card. Anyway, photos.

Magnolia Plantation, Charleston.


( more. )

Nhan has updated our online photo album to include weekends in May and June.

I've been in South Carolina since Monday. It's hot. I generally have no internet, which has not been good for client work. A week is a long gap o' time for projects that are in launch mode.

The idea of mindfulness is lost here. Working with what you have succumbs to wasteful angst over what you don't.

...I also note that the title in the above graph has a single-word second line.
I would have wrapped it differently. Just sayin'.

I worked in downtown Boston from September 1996 through October 2002. I miss walking along the waterfront on my way to work every day, and Friday Nhan and I took the afternoon to walk along the new park area that replaced the Central Artery. It's really gorgeous. I also wanted to stop by the Aquarium to see the penguins and show Nhan the jelly exhibit. Finally, we wandered over to the Garden. It was such a beautiful day, and I thought I'd share a few bits of Boston with far-flung people. :)



( our walk around Boston... )

( weekend in Brattleboro. )

Last night deftlyd took Nhan and me out for a birthday dinner, which was awesome (thank you so much). We went out for Ethiopian and ate entirely too much food. Nhan even said at one point, "I'm full but I can't stop!"

I photographed a bunch of t-shirts yesterday. I'm thankful that it cooled off a bit, because studio lights in the early-week heat would have SUCKED. This weekend I'm meeting lemistress for another fashion shoot, and we'll be hanging out with dj_rabid_angel and other Vermont/MA peeps this weekend.

I got another box of goodies from my friend in Hawaii; she sent me more Hawaiian infused tea, which I use for iced tea. I also have a bag of Macadamia nut Hershey's Kisses! YUM. I had sent her a huge box of hay from Sweet Meadow and her piggies went nuts.

Things are OK, but I'm just not feeling it. It's like everything is spinning, but slightly off-axis or something.

The cats have been Velcro kitties since I've been working in the bedroom. Claudia and Gabrielle are more cuddly than usual. ( a couple photos... )

from a new Web client:

"Tammy, I just can't believe what you've done. It's
amazing. And I've had a few people see the sites now
and everyone is coming back with great feedback. It's
impressive."

I seriously need to update my portfolio.

both Armand and Gabrielle are smart, staying with me in the bedroom, where the a/c is set to 76. Claudia, inexplicably, is downstairs attempting to get as much belly surface area in contact with the floor to stay cool. Odd kitty.

Even with cool air, Armand and Gabrielle are loafy.

BBC investigation estimates that around $23bn (£11.75bn) may have been lost, stolen or just not properly accounted for in Iraq.

"...Democrat opponents are keeping up the pressure over war profiteering in Iraq....'The money that's gone into waste, fraud and abuse under these contracts is just so outrageous, its egregious. It may well turn out to be the largest war profiteering in history.' "

(ganked from f-list)

It suddenly became very, very hot here in Boston. Friday was very cool, to the point where I donned flannel pajama pants to be comfortable. Saturday, however, was a different story - 90 degrees and THICK. Nhan and I had our birthday cookout Saturday, and had a house full of very sweaty, toasty guests. There were 12 of us crammed around the table because it was too hot to eat outside! Nhan and I received some very thoughtful gifts, including a Happy Pill and a huge bottle of Kahlua (the latter I fear comes with ulterior motives. LOL. Thank you everyone!

It was great, too, to see Peter and Rachel! I met them a few years ago when I needed hamster models for a book. They then hooked me up with the House Rabbit Network, to which I've donated a couple portrait sessions, and the Viola da Gamba Society of America, for whom I designed a program booklet. Peter and Rachel are adorable. I also met Kim and James for the second time; they live practically NEXT to us, so I figure we'll be seeing more of them. :)

I didn't go to Shelter because I felt too blech. I needed the sleep, I suppose. Sunday morning Nhan put the bedroom A/C in, and then Rain and Leila came up for a visit. We took them to Minado for lunch, and then we all hung out in the bedroom for a while watching Nhan and Rain wreak havoc in Grand Theft Auto. :) They brought us a couple gifties, too; Nhan got his Wingblade Transformer, and I got a book on portrait lighting. Thanks! We then subjected them to the WiiFit, and I believe they will be purchasing one very, very soon. :)

Last Wednesday we met Tracy for dinner at Aneka Rasa in Allston. Tracy gave Nhan Bananagrams, which has been a very addictive game. We love Scrabble, and we love silly, so this suits us on both counts. :)

I am loath to leave the bedroom; as soon as you walk through the curtains on the door, the heat just hits you. I am quite comfy working from the cool comfort of the bedroom. Tonight I ate a huge bowl of Froot Loops for dinner while we watched a movie in bed. That felt .... luxurious. :)

Sunday was the annual Pignic; they are held each year in June and September. This is the sixth year Sally and I have been organizing the Pignic, and we always seem to get lucky with the weather.

This little piggy is named Peaches.


( more photos )


If any of you would like to get notified of upcoming Boston pignics, you can join my free Pignic newsletter. Go to CavyMadness.com and subscribe to "CavyMadness Updates." You'll have to choose the Boston Pignic edition or the Monthly newsletter.

Last weekend Nhan and I went to Providence to visit Rain and Leila, celebrate Rain's graduation from RISD, and (for me) photograph a Walk for Children benefit. The weather, thankfully, held out, which made us very happy.

Friday night we all went to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner. YUM. Then we walked over to Waterfire, or at least the end part of it; I had been expecting gigantic bonfires, but the smallish fires were still nice. We chatted for a bit, and then laughed maniacally over "You're My Little Potato," which was stuffed among otherwise fairly nice music. Click on the link for the lyrics.

Saturday I headed out to the benefit early in the morning. I can't show photos of the children (obviously); there was a silent auction and various other activities going on.

( walk for children )

Nhan and I waited at the apartment for Rain and Leila to get back from the graduation. Of course, that's a perfect opportunity for me to attack the pets with the camera. :)
( pet photos. )


Big huge congrats to Rain for graduating!
Of course, Rain is too silly for a NORMAL photo. :P