Passover 2016

Our Passover Seder this year was quite an event. We had 13 guests. 16 of us when you include Judy Rachel, and I.

As you can see, Judy set a splendid table and made our home very welcoming for our guests.

Everyone had a good  time. The cats behaved themselves. And Zuzie even tried to help look for Elijah.

Buster Brown

Buster came to us about 3 years ago. When we went to meet him, he jumped up on the table where I was sitting, put his paws over my arm and started to purr. He was very much a people cat. He loved laps and purring and eating. He was not a scaredy cat. When we had people over, he had no problems trying out the laps. If you didn't pay him the attention he wanted, he'd find a lap that came with a hand that better knew how to scritch him.

He was a feral cat before his previous owner. He only had about 6 teeth left, a clipped ear and it looked like his tail had gotten caught in a door at some point. These just added to his personality and did nothing to dim his spirit.

He had other cat friends in the neighborhood. Milo, in particular like to hang out with him.

Buster lost an eye to cancer earlier this year. Unfortunately, the illness came back. He started getting lethargic about 3 weeks ago and we had to end his suffering last Friday. 

He is missed. The energy in the house is completely different without him.

His is the first time in about 30 years that I haven't had a cat. I'll have to do something about that.

I built a new computer last week and am having a good time configuring it. Dad was curious as to why I wanted to build instead of just buying a new computer. It's really fun for me. I get the computer I want and I know how I can upgrade it later if needed. 

It has an AMD 6300 6core CPU that runs at 3.5GHz. It also has a Gigabye GV-R72505-2GI-Radeon video card. This card has an AMD Radeon Graphics Processor and an additional 2GB of Video memory This machine is quite speedy. 

Oh ok, it's FAST. Here's a video of me putting it together.

4 New Pieces

I performed 4 new pieces at the annual Kol Ami Koffee House on June 22nd. The video and the text is below.

 Maturing

Well, I’ve had another birthday.
and now it seems I’m old.
Even so, I still don’t
like doing what I’m told.

As I get a little older
I look at all my peers.
And wonder if they too
Have hair growing from their ears.

When you get to a particular age
People think you’re wise.
It’s as if gray hair and wisdom
are our consolation prize.

---

Dektol/Nostalgia

Ah, the smell of Dektol in the morning,
Acetic Acid stops development.
Ah, the smell of Dektol in the morning,
And fixer makes the image permanent.

The paper is selected,
The image is projected.
I dodge and burn,
And paint with light.
It comes to me in black and white.

A little bit of art.
A little bit of science.
Working together in a grand alliance.
Oh I love the smell of dektol in the morning.
 

---

Ancient

I saw the ancient documents
which held the ancient word.
It’s said they came from G_d,
at least that’s what I heard.

Moses was on the mountain top
so many years ago.
Is that the way it happened?
I’m not sure I know.

But these words give us grounding
A place for us to start.
A way for us to live our lives
A way to do our part.

---

Haunted

I’ve always been quite logical,
and mostly scientific.
But I think I am haunted,
by someone quite specific.

There is a voice that speaks up,
when something’s on my mind.
It always has a lot to say,
and isn’t often kind.

I really get annoyed.
This is something to avoid.
Perhaps I am just
being paranoid.

It likes to mention things
From the distance past.
Just to be sure
That the baggage lasts and lasts.

It’s like talk radio.
But only I can hear the station.
I need to keep on moving.
This is just stagnation.

I really get annoyed.
This is something to avoid.
When all is quiet
I’m really overjoyed.

Sometimes when I’m angry
My heart can turn to stone.
The voice is back when I calm down
Oh GREAT, I’m not alone.

I wonder, if we
can ever get along.
After all, together,
we just wrote this song.

---

Text and video Copyright Peter Intrator 2014

Passover 2014

Tonight is the first night of Passover. We are having some friends join us for the holiday. Judy and Rachel made a brisket for the occasion, Not a big deal for most families, but since I'm mostly a vegetarian, the house doesn't usually have that particular aroma. The animals were very curious.

Anniversary 2013

Last October we went to Park City for our 23rd Anniversary. Here are a couple of videos from our dinner on the first night.

We had a quite the romantic little holiday.

I really need to be more diligent about posting here.

Big Cat Rescue

We went to the Big Cat Rescue sanctuary, http://bigcatrescue.org/, while we were here in Florida.They have created a home for "Big Cats", you know, Lions, Tigers, Leopards and more. These cats have been pet when you can't really keep a big cat in the city or used as watch cats or kept by breeders. Many were kept in squalid and/or abusive conditions.

These are really beautiful and majestic animals. At Big Cat Rescue they are now kept in conditions that will help them to live long and more comfortable lives. With the veterinary care they get, they even live longer than they would in the wild.

Click on the pictures for a bigger view...

Cool Cat

Playing in the water

I'm sooo regal

Hey, you talkin' to me?