It's a wonder I get anything done....

My princess is such a study in contrasts. Most days, she earns her nickname of Freaky Banana by tearing thru the house, beating up her sister, sitting in the windows yodeling to the world outside, or just generally being a ruckus and preventing me from getting my work done. Her sister, on the other hand, is steady as a rock. Mona is straight girl to Daki's comedy act.

The simple act of packing for a brief trip becomes side splitting, since Daki can't resist climbing into enclosed spaces, and when those spaces are soft and knead-worthy, well....

MOOO-oom, she's doing it again.

Princess, what are you doing in there? Dork.

Just leave me alone. I got logs to saw.

These two are really cute together. I must confess to having the cutest cats on the planet. I mean, how can you argue with this?

That's not to say, of course, that they can't get ornery.

If you're waking me up, you had better be bleeding or on fire.

What's that, you say? John McCain is trying to convince people that he's not a complete rageaholic lunatic with panties in a perpetual wad ? OMG!!

Wait, stop, STOP!! John McCain actually said he wants to take Colorado River water away from upstream states and give it away to downstream states, like, say Arizona? In an election year? And he thinks he wants to be President????? You're KILLING ME!!

Okay that last one was SO not funny. Piss off, mom.

She really does sleep like this, though. I swear this photo was not staged. She will burrow under neath the covers, and sometimes under the sheets, depending on how cold she is.

Are you envying all my cuteness yet?

Sweet dreams, y'all.

Comment on California Department of Fish & Game's Hatchery and Stocking Program

The California Department of Fish & Game is soliciting comments now is for their hatchery and fish stocking programs. This is one big convoluted mess, so bear with me.

Historically, Fish & Game was all about sportsmen. Hunters, fishermen, etc. etc. Only since the late 60s/early 70s has its focus started to change somewhat, from managing the state's resources for hunter/fisher folk to shoot at or pick off, to protecting and conserving the resources for their own sake. However, old habits die hard. Fishermen used to be able to catch lots of fish, BIG fish, in lots of different places. Human overpopulation, pollution, water diversions and land conversion have drastically affected fish populations and so there just aren't that many places for big fish left any more. Fishermen don't want to hear such excuses, they just want their fish. So, a few years back the fishing lobby got someone in the state assembly to write a bill forcing Fish & Game to increase their stocking each year by a certain percentage. After that was passed, Fish & Game got sued by the Center for Biological Diversity on the ground that their stocking practices violated the law and were ecologically unsound. Funny? Allow me to explain.

We've already established that Fish & Game was originally formed to serve the state's sportsmen. Also already established is that sportsmen like their target species plentiful and large. Fish & Game has stocked rainbow trout all over the state since the late 1800s, and with the advent of aerial stocking in the 1940s, it was even easier to sprinkle trout in all sorts of places, such as the high Sierra where they had not been present since before the last glaciation 10,000 years ago. Without fish present, other species had a chance to thrive there, such as the mountain yellow legged frog. Another form of trout, the cutthroat trout, also had a chance to evolve into many different variations (Wikipedia lists 14), many of which are unique to Sierra streams, and none of which can compete with the hardier, far more aggressive rainbows. The lawsuit is forcing a full environmental impact report (EIR) be done by Fish & Game before they are allowed to resume stocking.

Please take a moment to share your thoughts. Visit Fish & Game's website and click on the red link on the right side for "Public Notices". It will take you to a different window which will list the public hearings scheduled on this issue and also a way for you to submit your comments. Consider bookmarking it so you can keep up on all the latest and greatest at Fish & Game.

What have I gotten myself into...

I got mixed up in this crazy web board where the posters are all athletes, aspiring athletes, health conscious, or just plain like working out for the many health benefits. I am ...of an age... *ahem* meaning I ain't old yet but I sure as hell am not ready to be as old as I am. When I had a few less years under my belt, I picked up running just to see if I could do it. Surprise surprise, those endorphins are addictive. For a while there I was running 5-6 miles/day and doing 10Ks on the weekends, even though these were my "wild single girl" days and I was also quite dedicated to drinking, clubbing and the occasional cigarette. In my then-typical careless fashion I paid little attention to stretching, conditioning or otherwise taking care of my body so I should not have been surprised when an injury to my left knee sidelined me and lingered so long and so painfully that I gave up running entirely... until very recently.

I trained for, and ran in, the Wharf to Wharf race just this past July, a fun little 10K that goes from the Santa Cruz Boardwalk to the Capitola Wharf. I didn't break any records or beat my personal best time of nearly 20 years ago, but I was able to run the whole thing and finish more or less pain free. Encouraged by this, I decided to do more. A few friends who were doing the Santa Cruz Mtn. Trail Run talked me into signing up for the 21K. Gulp. I've never EVER tried to do longer than a 10K. Sure, I've HIKED 13 miles in a single day, and that kicked my butt.... but now I have to try to RUN it. Click on the link to the course map. You will see why I very nearly wept when I realized what I'd agreed to do...

How to prepare...?

First, I can easily run five miles after eating a decent breakfast. When I attempt longer distances I almost always run out of fuel and bonk. How to keep gas in the tank without giving myself cramps or blood sugar spikes?

Second, I am what is called "hyperextendible." In other words, I have overcooked spaghetti for connective tissue. In order to feel any kind of a stretch in my calves, I have to practically touch my shin with my big toe.... well, maybe it's not that bad, but the last personal trainer I worked with told me "I am a yoga teacher and even I can't stretch like that." Oh well. So I need tips on how to get a good stretch in my muscles so I can build up mileage, get stronger and remain injury-free and pain-free.

Third, I am what they call LAZY. Training takes dedication, planning, patience, discipline and commitment. I possess none of these traits in abundance. Therefore, this little "exercise" (if I may be permitted a small bon mot) is meant to teach me how one sets goals, works towards them and hopefully achieves them.

I am also one of those people that doesn't know when to ask for help. Thankfully, the Universe is throwing things at me, like these folks:

Fleet Feet Sports

When I lived and worked in the South Bay, Fleet Feet Cupertino was recommended to me by one of the attorneys I worked for. I was fitted for, and bought, my first pair of real running shoes there and a lasting impression was made upon me. So when I saw on their website on August 12 that they were offering coaching sessions twice a week to train for.... guess what... HALF MARATHONS... and they started on August 20, I took that as a sign that I needed to heft my lazy, chickenshit, weakly protesting hiney over there and sign up. The boy and I were on a leisurely little bike ride today and we just happened to ride over to Solano Avenue, so I really had no excuse not to drop in and speak to Brian, who will be leading the program on Wednesday night.

I cannot tell you how pumped I am to be doing this. Setting a goal, and then actually setting myself up to succeed, instead of showing up on race day not having run a yard in the previous five weeks and having to be helicoptered out after rupturing an Achilles. Plus, new research has shown that running is even more beneficial to your health than previously thought. So get out there and start shuffling.

Welcome to my weird little world.

I'm a fish biologist employed by the government. Since some of the things I say here may be considered controversial by some people, I've decided to cloak myself in a little secrecy. It's just easier that way. Those "on the job" who know me personally may recognize me from the things I say or the pictures I post, but I will leave that up to the fish gods.

I cohabit with my boyfriend (who shall also remain nameless and faceless) and three cats (two mine, one his). My two are both rescues and both are chock full of personality. His is a cranky old food whore who will only give you the time of day if you have a loaded dish in your hand.



This is Daki. Also known as the Princess, Snot Face, the Retard, Silly Girl, Freaky Banana, Potato Bug.







This is Mona. Also known as Mona-girl, Potato Bug, Licky Mc Lickerston, One-Eyed Leapin Lizard. She lost her right eye to a foxtail when she was about a month old. She doesn't seem to mind, and it certainly does not slow her down at all.

And this is Oliver. Also known as Fatboy, Cranky pants, Raccoon Butt and The Bottomless Pit. As you can see, he rarely misses a meal if he can help it, and never passes up a chance to bogart everyone else's meals. When he's not growling, hissing and swatting at the girls, that is..... sigh. I see kitty Prozac in his immediate future.


I called my blog what I called it mainly because I am a biologist and a science geek and I love Latin Linnaean classifications. The Felidae part, is pretty easy.... I love cats and they are my family. But Rodentia? Oncorhynchus (Latin for "cancer nose")?

Let me explain.

When I first got Daki, she was a tiny tiny kitten no more than five weeks old and so sick from eye infections, parasites and upper respiratory stuff that it was touch and go for a while as to whether or not she would make it. Well, obviously she did, because I have a picture of her here, all grown up and alive. But once I had pumped her full of enough drugs that she no longer was at death's door and actually able to move around, she looked like a little black rat running around my apartment. I started referring to her as "the rodent" and the nickname stuck, even though she's long since grown into the proverbial beautiful swan and no more resembles a rodent than George Bush resembles a sentient being. Since she has complete run of the house and my heart, "Order Rodentia" seemed to apply, since she issues the orders and I follow them.

The "Genus Oncorhynchus" part.... well, my job focuses on anadromous fish in the genus Oncorhynchus (namely, coho salmon and steelhead trout), both of which are listed under the federal Endangered Species Act, a neat little law that was, ironically enough, signed into existence by a Republican president. Coho salmon are also listed under the state Endangered Species Act, but steelhead aren't. That kind of bugs me sometimes.... some people think steelhead are doing fine (and you can fish for them even in places where they are listed) and maybe they are, but the underlying causes for their population declines aren't going away so I doubt things will improve unless more attention is paid to these factors.

So there you have it. The only species I haven't accounted for is Homo sapiens, but I like it better that way. Humans are overexposed, too arrogant, and we tend to eclipse all other species we encounter. This blog is meant to give the others some much deserved airtime. Occasionally, when one of H. sapiens does something exemplary, I might grant them some of my blogspace. But don't hold your breath.

In case you haven't noticed, I have lots of opinions about lots of stuff, and I like to take pictures. Hope you'll stay tuned.