Fruddled Gruntbugglies

Blog

  • Summer’s End

    Summer’s End

    I’ve never been a fan of summer heat, but all the same, I always feel a little sad when the season ends. Summer’s end evokes thoughts of childhood, underscores the relentless passage of time, and marks the transition from long, lazy, humid days in the pool to the mundane routines of fall and winter. Lots of good stuff happens during the cooler months, for sure, but come late September, I always seem to find myself trying to hold onto summer for just a little bit longer.

    This year, an early-season nor’easter brought an abrupt end to summer weather and pool season. My final swim of the season was Monday, September 21, after which we put the solar blanket and leaf net on, and then we had days on end of northerly winds that dumped bushels of leaves in the pool. We finally got around to uncovering it and cleaning it up this afternoon, but the water temperature is down to 70, so we’ll be looking to put the winter cover on soon. Our record latest swim date, October 9 (set way back in 2007), will live to die another year. Global warming notwithstanding, I’m beginning to suspect it may never be broken. Although we don’t yet have an exit strategy for this house, we’re not going to be here forever. With that said, I did come tantalizingly close last year, when my last swim was October 7.

    I took my first 13.1-mile run of 2026 today, around the BWI Airport loop. I parked at the Linthicum Library and ran the loop counterclockwise, plus an extra mile out and back. My Apple Watch says it was my fastest half marathon, which doesn’t surprise me, as it’s rather flat compared to my usual route near home. I did a better job keeping my mileage up over the summer than in most previous years, thanks in no small part to the electrolyte/carb gels I’ve been carrying on warmer days. As a result, 13.1 wasn’t too much of a stretch, as I’ve been going 10 to 12 on most weekends. I’ll probably still feel it a little bit in the morning.

    After my usual July/August hiatus, I’m looking to get back on the water more regularly in October and at least the first half of November. We’ll see how often it happens, especially given that I’ll be out of town for the first and last weeks of October. But on my “to-do” list are:

    • A longer paddle on Marley Creek and/or Stony Creek
    • Upstream paddle on the tidal Patapsco
    • Patapsco Middle Branch out to Masonville Cove
    • Possibly head out to Black Hill Regional Park in MoCo

    More later… it’s past my bedtime now. 😀

  • New Switch Brew Method

    New Switch Brew Method

    I’ve been using a Hario Switch for a while now for immersion brewing at home. Compared to the French press, it’s much better suited for single-cup brews, and also works with finer grinds, since everything passes through a paper filter. This, with occasional variations, has been the method I’ve used for most of the time I’ve had the Switch:

    • Rinse filter and pre-heat Switch
    • Close drain
    • Add coffee grounds, shake gently to level the bed, and make an indentation in the middle
    • Pour 2-3x weight of grounds to bloom
    • Agitate and bloom until 0:45
    • Pour the rest of the water
    • Stir several times in both directions
    • Steep until 2:45
    • Gently swirl to level the bed
    • Open drain

    In general, this produces good cups, but I’ve always felt like they could be better. Often, the AeroPress produces superior cups with the same beans and similar brew/steep times. I suspect I could improve my results by increasing the steep time, but I usually don’t feel like waiting 4-6 minutes for the coffee to steep, particularly in the mornings.

    At present, I’m working through a bag of Zeke’s Market Blend Decaf, as well as a single-origin Colombia Huila medium roast from Gracefully. I had tried one pour-over with the Zeke’s, and wasn’t happy with it. With the Colombia, my first pourover was good, but the next couple were a little subpar. A subsequent brew using the above Switch method was an improvement, but again, could have been better.

    Today, I decided to try something new:

    • Rinse filter and pre-heat Switch
    • Close drain
    • Pour all of the water
    • Add the coffee grounds to the water
    • Start timer and stir continuously for 40 seconds, vigorously until all of the grounds are saturated, then gently (I stirred with a chopstick)
    • Open drain
    • Stir vigorously for 5 seconds

    I found this method on a Reddit thread, where it is called the “Stall to Fall” technique. It’s the first time I’ve ever done an immersion brew where I added the water before the grounds. I brewed a cup with each of the above roasts, and the results were encouraging. The Colombia cup was probably the best I’ve brewed of that bag so far — it was well-extracted, with just the right mix of body and acidity. I only took a few sips of the Zeke’s cup, but from what I could tell, it was better than my earlier pour-over attempt as well.

    This method is also very fast — both brews were finished by about 1:30 after I started the timer, which is a full minute and a half faster than a typical pour-over. I guess the stirring must speed up the extraction. It’s worth noting that the recipe calls for pouring right off the boil (I used 99C water), which will likely need to be adjusted for darker roasts.

    In conclusion, this seems like a fast, easy method (great for mornings) that produces nice cups of coffee. I’ll stick with it for a while and see how it goes.

  • Throwback Summer

    Throwback Summer

    The second half of this summer has been kind of a throwback. Most weeks, I’ve been going in to my office 3 days a week, which I haven’t done since the pre-COVID days. Back then, I used to be a 5-day-a-week commuter, and on 4 of those days (on average) I commuted via road bike. Nowadays, 1 day a week of road bike commuting is more than enough, and I’ve been doing my remaining commutes via mountain bike, on foot (running), or car. This week, though, I took the road bike twice. School has now started in both Baltimore and Howard Counties, which means I have to time when I leave the house to avoid getting caught up in school traffic, unless I take the MTB and ride on trails. I would have done that today, but it was crazy humid, and I didn’t feel like sweating off half my body weight this morning, as I’ll likely end up doing that tomorrow while running.

    Anyhow, to make a long story short, I got out of the house later than ideal today. My usual road commute takes me through Relay and Arbutus, and I knew that based on my timing, the school traffic would be bad. If I go through Patapsco Valley State Park and exit via Gun Rd., I can bypass Relay, and by extension, 90% of the school traffic. But, it also shortens my ride, and if I can, I like to try to get 15 miles of road riding in the mornings. Today, I decided to try extending my ride through PVSP as much as possible, and I managed to hit my 15 miles, and still stay out of traffic for most of the ride. Not a bad combination if I do say so myself. Here’s what I did:

    • Ride into PVSP on the Howard County side via Levering Ave/River Rd
    • Ride one circuit around the main Avalon parking lot
    • Ride River Rd out to Orange Grove, follow the River Rd trail until the paved portion ends, and double back
    • Ride one circuit around the Orange Grove parking lot
    • Cross the Swinging Bridge, turn left, ride out to Ilchester Rd, and double back
    • Ride the Grist Mill Trail for its full length and turn left under the railroad tracks towards upper Glen Artney
    • Follow Glen Artney Rd until it dead-ends and double back
    • Cross back under the tracks, turn left, and ride one circuit around the eastern Glen Artney parking lot
    • Ride out to Gun Rd, turn left, cross the tracks, and continue up Gun Rd to Rolling Rd
    • Turn right on Rolling Rd and then left on Sulphur Spring Rd
    • Follow to Shelbourne Rd, turn left, and follow to UMBC Event Center entrance Rd
    • Turn left and ride onto campus. Turn right onto Hilltop Circle
    • Follow Hilltop Circle counterclockwise to the top and turn left at the Hilltop Rd light
    • Ride down past Performing Arts building to pedestrian walkway, turn right, and ride a single loop to hit 15 miles

    I’m kind of surprised that I never tried anything like this during my bike commuting heyday in the 2010s, especially given that I tended to vary my routes much more frequently back in those days. Of course, I was also much more willing than I am now to deal with the day-in, day-out annoyances of road bike commuting, such as school-day traffic, and therefore less likely to go to great lengths to avoid it (with exceptions).

  • Trail Running Redux

    Trail Running Redux

    I was just searching here to see if I had ever written anything about trail running, but I couldn’t find anything. That surprised me, because I have tried it a couple of times in the past few years, and when I try something new, I often make an entry here as a way of keeping notes. Oh, well. I’m going to guess that the last time I tried trail running was about 3 years ago. What I remember most about it was that I tripped — a lot. I didn’t fall, but I stumbled so often that I stopped counting how many times something caught my foot. The experience was enough to convince me that I was too clumsy for trail running, so I stopped doing it — until this morning.

    About once a year, I run to work. I would do it more often, but it’s not as practical as I’d like. For one thing, when I’m running, I prefer not to carry a heavy pack with laptop, lunch, and change of clothes. Also, it’s 6 to 8 miles one-way (depending on route), and most days, I’m not going to be interested in running that distance twice (although I have done it before). So, running to work requires advance preparation: the evening before, I have to stop at the office and drop off lunch, laptop, and clothes. Then, I have to arrange to get a ride home. I guess another option would be to leave a bike at the office, which introduces even more logistics. But, I digress.

    This morning, the weather was really nice for a run. The only issue was, it was the first day of school for both Howard County and UMBC (Baltimore County schools get one more week of summer this year). I usually try to stay off the roads for the first week or so of classes, but I really wanted to run today. It seemed like a conundrum, but then it occurred to me that I could run the Howard County portion of my commute on trails through Patapsco Valley State Park. And thus, I decided to give trail running another shot.

    I do most of my road runs with Vibram V-Runs. I never tried them on trails, because I always just assumed that they would be awful off-road. Instead, I used minimalist hiking shoes like my Xero Mesa Trail WPs. The Xeros are great for hiking in wet and muddy conditions, but as I mentioned earlier, I tripped constantly when I tried to use them for trail running. I suspect that might be because the toe box is on the large side, so there’s more surface area to catch on roots and the like. Today, I decided to give the V-Runs a shot on trails. I was a little trepidatious initially, because the V-Runs have a kind of glove-like fit, and don’t offer much protection if I were to, say, ram my toe into a rock. I also worried that dirt and rocks would get stuck between the toes, and/or work their way inside the shoes, given their low profile.

    Well, at least today, all of my fears seemed to be unfounded. I went 8 miles, about 3 of which were on trails. I didn’t trip once, and nothing got stuck in the shoes. Granted, I paid very close attention to the terrain I was running over — there’s no zoning out in trail running, that’s for sure. The trails were damp and muddy in spots, and I wonder if drier conditions might lead to more pebbles working their way inside the shoes. Either way, it was an enjoyable run, which means I’ll likely try it again. Time will tell if trail running eventually works its way into my regular running routine, but I do have a number of routes through PVSP that I could easily do from home.

    Notes for next time:

    • The evening before, I stopped at the office and dropped off lunch, laptop, clothes, and prescription drugs.
    • For the run, I wore a hydration vest and carried a office keys, wallet, 2 energy bars, and a liter of water in the vest. Phone was in my shorts pocket.
    • Need to remember to bring Correct Toes to wear during the day with regular shoes.
    • If getting picked up, leave a small backpack in the office to avoid having to carry a lot of loose items to the car.
  • Summer post

    Summer post

    I’ve been a bit of a slacker with regards to posting here lately. I seem to alternate through phases where I am highly motivated to write, and phases where I am totally uninteresting in writing. Actually, I’d call it “writer’s block” more so than lack of interest.

    I’ve decided to stop recording day-to-day notes about coffee here, and instead, I’m keeping a spreadsheet that I update with every cup I brew. It’s handy having detailed notes about every cup as I’m trying to dial in the best brew settings for a particular batch. I’ve only been doing this for about a month, but I think it’s helping me brew better cups. I’ll still post here occasionally about general coffee-related topics, and I may keep posting brew recipes/methods here as well.

    This has been the “summer of cold brew”. We have a full house currently, with both kids at home (long story), and I am the only one in the house who drinks hot coffee this time of year. The kids drink caffeinated cold brew, and my wife drinks decaf cold brew. I’ve been making it in the French press like so:

    1. Grind 3 ounces of beans at setting 10 on the Ode, or measure out 3 to 4 ounces of pre-ground coffee.
    2. Add grounds to the French press
    3. Add 28-30 ounces of water and stir until all of the grounds are wet. Then, pull the spoon out and top up to 32oz, using the remaning water to rinse grounds off the spoon (a lot will stick to the spoon, particularly when using pre-ground).
    4. Cover French press with plastic wrap, and secure with a rubber band.
    5. Put French press in the refrigerator and steep for 18-24 hours.
    6. Plunge slowly.
    7. Pour coffee through a paper filter into a glass container. For fresh ground beans, I use a size 3 V60, filter, and mason jar; for pre-ground, I use a mesh strainer, standard pleated coffee filter, and 32oz Pyrex measuring cup.

    I like to use a medium to dark roast for cold brew. Lately, Zeke’s Market Blend has been my go-to cold brew coffee. I suspect Charm City Blend, Tell Tale Dark, or any number of Zeke’s other dark roasts would also work well. They all come in 1-pound bags, and are very reasonably priced as far as coffee goes these days. I’ve also used pre-ground coffee to make several batches, but do not recommend it. It’s hard to plunge due to the finer grind, and filtering it tends to get messy. I’m just trying to use up a 2-pound bag of it we’ve had sitting in the freezer forever.

    I seem to have turned a corner with my summer running this year. I’ve been able to keep my mileage up much more consistently than previous years. I’m not running as much as I do in the cooler seasons, but I’m able to go 10K to 7.5 miles every time out, and I’m still doing a 9-12 miler roughly once a week. In past summers, there were many times where I would hit the wall and have to stop early after 4 to 5 miles. I think the “secret sauce” this year has been the homemade energy gels I’ve been making and consuming during my runs. The extra carbs and electrolytes really seem to make a big difference.

    More later…

  • LCRC 3BB Blend

    LCRC 3BB Blend

    • Beans: 3BB Blend (Locals Blend) (12oz)
      • Roaster: Local Coffee Roasting Company (Roxana, DE)
      • Origins: Colombia, Guatemala, Ethiopia
      • Roast level: Medium
      • Roast date: 6/8/2026
      • Process: n/a (blend)
      • Purchase date: 6/22/2026 at 3 Blonde Bakers (the namesake 3BB) in Bethany Beach, DE
      • First cup: week of 6/26/2026; last cup: 7/10/2026
      • Tasting notes: milk chocolate, stone fruit
    • AeroPress with JX grinder:
      • AeroPress with Prismo, scoop, metal filter, and paper filter
      • 17g beans
      • Around 250g of “pretty hot” but not boiling water (ratio 1:15)
      • JX grind setting: 16
      • Pour enough water to cover grounds; agitate; bloom until 0:45 or so; fill cylinder up to around 1/4″-3/8″ from top; stir 7x front-to-back with AeroPress paddle; steep until 02:45; stir 7x again; press slowly
    • Pour-over with Ode grinder:
      • 20g coffee / 300g water (1:15)
      • Ode: 4 → 3
      • Water at 90°C
      • Size 2 V60
      • Recipe: Single Cup V60 Pourover, 60g bloom water and 60g pulses. Finishes around 03:00

    I am fairly certain that this is the same coffee that is also sold as “Locals Blend”. I previously had this blend a year ago. The big change this year is that LCRC has switched from using 8oz bags to 12oz bags, which I think is a net positive — I always seemed to go through the half pound bags really quickly. The other change this year was that I brought a scale to the beach, so I was able to more precisely measure quantities. For whatever reason, though, my AeroPress brews fell a little flat compared to last year’s. It’s not that they were bad, but they lacked “personality”. I wasn’t all that inclined to tweak things at the beach, so I brought most of the beans home with me, and my first pour-over at 95C had a little bit of a burnt/scorched taste. It was much better, and more reminiscent of last year’s cups, at 90C. It has kind of a smooth, round, earthy mouthfeel that I assume comes from the Ethiopia beans in the blend, and acidity is muted. As I noted last year, I would probably also enjoy this at 1:16.

    7/10: After a few thinner-tasting cups, I ended up adjusting the grind from 4 to 3 to finish up the bag.

  • Gel

    Gel

    My occasional issues with “pooping out” or “hitting the wall” during my runs, particularly during hot, humid weather, is well-documented here. This summer, I’m finally getting around to trying carb/electrolyte gels, which is something I had been considering for a long time. Single-use, premade gels are easy enough to find, but they have always struck me as bad for the environment (the last thing we need is more throwaway, non-recyclable single use packaging). Instead, I picked up a couple of reusable 3.5oz plastic bottles (there are several brands available that are purpose-made for energy gels), and went online to find some homemade gel recipes. I found this site, which has a wide variety of them, and I have tried a couple of them so far. What I’ve learned is that you basically need a source of carbs (sugar) and electrolytes (salt). Maple syrup, honey, and fruit juices work for the former, and sea salt and pink Himalayan salt are good electrolyte choices.

    I figured that the shore, with its insanely high humidity, would be a good place to try gel out during a run, and initial results have been promising. A couple of days ago, I ran 7 miles with a 74°F dewpoint and no gel, went through a liter of water, and dragged the entire way, finishing with an average pace of 11:30, which is pretty slow on flat terrain. Today, I mixed up a 3.5oz concoction of honey, syrup, water, and salt, and ran 8 miles, going through all of the gel as well as 1.5 liters of water. It wasn’t an entirely fair test, as the conditions were more pleasant, with the dewpoint in the low 60s. However, I still worked up enough of a sweat to soak my shirt. I had noticeably more energy, particularly during the second half of the run, when my pace picked up rather than slowing. I finished a full minute per mile faster on average, and felt like I could have kept going if I had more of the gel.

    Based on my early testing, it looks like for hot/humid conditions, I need about a liter of water per 5 miles, and 3.5oz of gel per 10K or so. Speaking of 10Ks, I have one coming up on the 4th of July, and it sounds like we might be in the midst of a heat wave then, so that will provide another good data point. But, I have to say that I’m kind of wishing I had tried this sooner.

  • Brewing Good Burundi

    Brewing Good Burundi

    • Beans: Burundi (Busasa Washing Station)
      • Roaster: Brewing Good Coffee Company (Savage, MD)
      • Origin: Burundi (Gashoho, Muyinga)
      • Roast level: Light
      • Roast date: 5/12/2026
      • Process: Washed; Varietals: Bourbon; Altitude: 1600-1800m
      • Purchase date: 6/5/2026 from BGCC in Savage Mill
      • First cup: week of 6/8/2026; last cup: 6/21/2026
      • Tasting notes: Medium bodied, moderate sweetness and acidity, notes of cantaloupe, pomegranate, chocolate, and caramel
    • Pour-over with Ode grinder:
      • 20g coffee / 300g water (1:15)
      • Ode: 2+1
      • Water at 100°C
      • Size 2 or 3 V60
      • Recipe: Single Cup V60 Pourover, 60g bloom water and 60g pulses. Finishes around 03:15
      • Doubled recipe with size 3 V60: Add 40g grounds to dripper; bloom with 110-120g water until 0:45; pour to 350g; wait until 01:30; pour remaining 250g; swirl

    From the bag:

    During their 1916-1962 colonization, Belgium forced coffee production on the people of Burundi as a means of taxation. The farmers’ focus, understandably, was not on quality. Following independence, government-run washing stations were paying farmers so little that coffee was smuggled across borders and sold for higher prices as Rwandan or Tanzanian coffee. As prices have risen and stabilized, Burundi further developed their coffee industry. Busana Coffee Washing Station, est. 2014, pays producers a 20% premium above the local market rate and staff receive wages nearly 60% higher than Burundi’s Average.

    This is the first time I have brewed coffee sourced from Burundi. I tried a pour-over when I was at BGCC back in February, but don’t remember much about how it tasted. Similar to other east African coffee, this works well with a fine grind. Compared to coffees I’ve brewed from Tanzania and Ethiopia, the acidity seems to come through a little bit more with this, and the earthy smoothness is more muted. It was a nice complement to the very fruit-forward Colombia batch that I brewed at the same time.

  • Brewing Good Colombia Buesaco Sareni

    Brewing Good Colombia Buesaco Sareni

    • Beans: Colombia (Buesaco Sareni)
      • Roaster: Brewing Good Coffee Company (Savage, MD)
      • Origin: Colombia (Nariño Region)
      • Roast level: Light
      • Roast date: 5/5/2026
      • Process: Washed; Varietals: Castillo, Caturra, Colombia; Altitude: 2100m
      • Purchase date: 6/5/2026 from BGCC in Savage Mill
      • First cup: 6/5/2026; last cup: 6/17/2026
      • Tasting notes: Medium bodied, bright & sweet, notes of cherry, grape, & lemonade
    • Pour-over with Ode grinder:
      • 20g coffee / 300g water (1:15)
      • Ode: 3+1 to 3+2
      • Water at 100°C
      • Size 1 or 2 V60
      • Recipe: Single Cup V60 Pourover, 60g bloom water and 60g pulses. Finishes around 03:00 (2:50 with size 1 V60)
      • Doubled recipe with size 3 V60: Add 40g grounds to dripper; bloom with 110-120g water until 0:45; pour to 350g; wait until 01:30; pour remaining 250g; stir a couple times in each direction

    From the bag:

    This coffee was sourced from small farms among the elevated terrains of Buesaco, Nariño in southern Colombia. Here, the volcanic soil with its high nutrient levels, good water retention, and easy drainage, plus the average temperature of 65°F, provide an optimal environment for producing coffee with distinct mild taste, high acidity, and sweet notes.

    After brewing medium to dark roasts for the past few weeks, I was looking for something light and fruity, and this definitely delivers. It is extremely acidic and fruit-forward, with just the right amount of body to smooth things out. It’s even fruitier than the Colombia Nariño from Gracefully that I had last winter, although that was medium roasted, so it’s not really a valid comparison. In spite of the high acidity, it doesn’t taste sour or bitter. The doubled recipe (above) was maybe slightly mellower than most of my single cups, but the difference was subtle. Similar to my immersion recipes with the Switch, the action of stirring left me with a slightly dome-shaped bed. I might just want to swirl it instead, or maybe I could briefly stir after the first pour, and then swirl after I finish pouring, and see if I end up with a more level bed. Whatever the case, I’m really enjoying this bag.

    6/16: I am about to finish the bag, and the only adjustment I made for the past 2 or 3 cups was to nudge the grind from 3+1 to 3+2. I will likely brew my final cup at 4, which I think may overall be the ideal setting for these beans.

  • Spaz (2008-2026)

    Note- This is really rough, much like I felt when I published it. I will be revising it over time.

    Spaz and her sister came to us in March 2009. Cathy picked them up the weekend of March 28. At the time, I was away in Greensboro, NC, for our annual NCAA Tournament Trip, so I first met Spaz the day I got home, which was Sunday, March 29. I was mistaken — the earliest photos we have of the two cats are dated March 9. Although I definitely was not there at the time Cathy brought them home, it’s more likely I was just at work. The first time I ever saw Spaz, she was hiding under our bed, a place to which she would retreat throughout her life whenever she perceived danger in the house (mostly in the form of rambunctious kids or dogs).

    Spaz got her name from Cathy’s late cousin, her original owner. It was a perfect fit for her personality when she was younger: rambunctious and mischievous, and prone to sudden “zoomies”.

    • Getting between the sofa cover and the sofa (mostly as a younger cat)
    • Catnip on top of the cat tree
    • Standing on top of the tall cat tree and swatting at fake mice below
    • Going into the tub and chasing her tail

    Spaz was was Cathy’s cat through and through. I called her Cathy’s Shadow, because she followed Cathy everywhere. She never outgrew the instinct to suckle/nurse, and Cathy (specifically, Cathy’s arm) was her chosen place for that. She tolerated me and played with me, and on very rare occasions, she would crawl up and sit on top of me when I was lying in the bed. She never stayed for very long, though.

    • Food and drink
      • Begging for milk while I ate cereal
      • In more recent years, our household has stopped drinking milk, much to Spaz’s chagrin. So, she turned to licking from my ice cream bowls, but she turned her nose up at any flavor that wasn’t vanilla. Either way, though, the sight, smell or sound of ice cream being served was sure to draw Spaz to your side, whatever she happened to be doing at the time.
      • (Mostly later years) Drinking out of the tub, and later out of the sink, with faucet trickling
      • Drinking out of the vaporizer and humidifier basins
      • Suddenly more bold about going outside
        • Looking for her sister?
      • Pawing at water bowl and tracking litter around the house
    • General
      • Chasing me into the bedroom
        • In her prime years, she was pretty fast, and would often get there ahead of me
        • Oftentimes I would let her in and then close the door to take a shower, get dressed, etc. When she got bored of being in the bedroom (usually pretty quickly), she would paw at the door to try to open it and escape. Our bedroom door does not latch properly, so some times she could get it open, but other times, it was too tight for her. In those cases, she would sit and whine until I had mercy on her and let her out.
        • Spaz was never quite as obsessed with closets as her sister was, but she still liked to occasionally dart into them.
      • Getting into dresser drawers while we put clothes away, etc.
      • Following us into the bathroom by pushing the door open
      • Sleeping with Cathy and snuggling up between her legs
      • Stirring up trouble with her sister
        • Nighttime “zoomies” with hissing
      • Chasing mice, crickets, and generally anything that moved
        • You could always tell when there was a mouse around, because Spaz would stand guard near where she thought it was lurking
        • Looking disappointed after the mouse she was batting around died
        • Andrew- “is that a real live dead mouse”? — Cathy initially thought it was a toy dinosaur. On top of the car-shaped scatter rug in front of Andrew’s bedroom door (Spaz often used to attack this rug, and as a result, it was almost always bunched up or out of position)
      • Batting/pawing at the computer screen during videos of mice and other critters
      • Knocking objects off tables, mantles, etc. to try to get attention, particularly early in the morning when hungry
        • Lots of broken things early on
      • Jumping up on the back of the rocking chair (corner of living room) and freaking out
      • Playing hide-and-seek behind the bar
      • Randomly pouncing on things while under the covers on the bed, or attacking the sheets as we tried to make the bed
        • In spite of ostensibly having fun pouncing, she didn’t really like being under the covers
      • Obsessed with going into the Sun Porch- waiting at the door, darting in at the first opportunity, and then a few minutes later, pawing at the window wanting to be let back in
      • Strange obsession with my old Lems Boulder Boots
      • Vocalizing while playing with fake cat tail
      • Putting her under an inverted clothes basket and trying to get her to swat at my fingers
      • Crinkling up Aldi chocolate bar wrappers and tossing them near her to try to get her to chase them (once she got north of around age 15, she had zero interest, but that never deterred me)
      • Putting things on her head and seeing how long they would stay there
      • Lying on her back with her front paws in “attack” position, or on her side with her tail flicking back and forth
        • She liked to do this on the bathroom floor, in the tub, inside shallow boxes and clothes baskets, behind the bar, at the bottom of the basement steps, etc., etc., etc.
        • Some times, when she was feeling frisky, she would lie at the bottom of the steps and stare up at me as I stood at the top (usually just after I had gone up). The stairwell light always used to catch her eyes and give them an iridescent glow.
      • Unlike her sister, who had a very loud motor, Spaz was not a loud “purr”er. You could hear it if you put your ear right up against her, but for the most part, she was a quiet cat.