08.21.06
Kitty dental note
Some kitties have problems with tartar buildup. Cleaning kitty teeth is not a simple matter, for owner or vet. The Son pointed out something that’s worked extremely well for Nelly: Hill’s Science Diet t/d. This turns out to be extra-large kibble ($11.50 for 4 lbs, plus shipping—and note that you must check a box that your vet prescribed it), which forces the kitty to chew it with her or his back teeth, thus cleaning them.
The Son gives Nelly 1/3 T/D and 2/3 normal kibble in the morning, and half a can of soft food and more T/D in the evening, and if Nelly wants a bedtime snack, she gets T/D. The last vet visit brought no mention that her teeth really could use cleaning, a standard comment previously.
Notes on Trollope—or not
My Trollope project moved along quickly with the long plane flights. I finished the first of the Palliser novels, Can You Forgive Her?, and whipped through the second, Phineas Finn after a slow few chapters. I’ve been reading the Oxford Illustrated Edition, which includes notes. Generally these notes harmlessly explain antique usage, or English geography, or the probable sources for certain characters. But imagine my shock and horror on reading the last note in Phineas Finn: the editor casually and heartlessly tells us what happens to certain characters in the following novels: complete spoilers. No warning, just “I don’t want you to enjoy this too much.” One thing I had been particularly enjoying about Trollope is that I had no idea of the plots of any of his novels, so that each book fascinated me as I awaited the outcome. Thanks to the Oxford editors, part of this enjoyment has been brutally murdered.
I am so angry. The notes were not all that damn helpful—I would have been much better off skipping them entirely—which I am now doing, you may be sure. In addition, the type in the Oxford edition is terribly beaten up, with parts of letters malformed or missing, etc. I didn’t bring with me the third volume, The Eustace Diamonds, so today The Son and The Elder Grandson and I went a-looking, and I found a Peguin edition in trade paperback format. I averted my eyes from the jacket copy, which seemed as though it wanted to tell me too much, and of course skipped the introduction and have ignored the notes. But the type is a revelation: fresh, crisp, new type in a highly readable font.
Had I it to do again, I would certainly have plumped for the Penguin paperback edition. And now I’ve started The Eustace Diamonds, and I love Trollope. Fortunately, he wrote a lot.
Not directly related to Trollope, but I feel compelled to mention that the three of us played two games of Baltimore duckpins (3 balls per frame). We enjoyed the games immensely. I won both…
