Five Distractions, Late Edition

Here are five reasons I didn't post Five Things Friday on Friday.

1. I was busy looking through the East Austin Studio Tour Guide to thoughtfully select our stops on the tour. My favorite artists/studios included: Eli Halpin, Kelsey Kilcrease, Jodi Rae, Patrick Moran, Satch Grimley, Leona Gallery, Liliana Wilson and Fernando Muñoz.

2. I needed to hang out with our foster cat, Dottie. For her own safety and well being, she is sequestered in the dressing room (formerly the guest room, sometimes the foster pet room). Chad and I visit her several times a day to play, pet her, feed her or watch some Netflix together. She purrs when the Friends theme song plays. We thought Dottie had a spot in the Austin Humane Society's adoption program, but she was rejected. We're turning to back-up plans now to find this sweet cat a home.

3. The 1952 House resident pets get jealous of the time I spend with Dottie. They are extra needy of attention when I emerge from Dottie's room. I made them a sky-lit cardboard box fort with crinkly paper in it. This kept them busy for about an hour. Every time I think I can disassemble the fort and recycle the materials, they suddenly find it interesting again.

4. I was super distracted by all the construction ruckus that rattles our old house. I'm so ready for this pipe replacement project to be completed. We're going on the eighth week of 12-hour-a-day noise, dust and road closures. I want my street back. I want uninterrupted access to my driveway. I'm spoiled like that.

5. I was looking forward to Chad's Aunt Kay's 80th birthday party on Saturday evening. Aunt Kay is the bee's knees. She's warm, funny and smart. Her kids (who are all just the best people) planned an awesome shindig in her honor. Chef DeAndra made chili to accommodate everyone's dietary preferences. Chad and I were honored to be invited. We had a great time!

Bonus thing: I was trying to figure out what Chad and I are doing for Thanksgiving after we participate in the Turkey Trot to benefit Caritas of Austin. We like to watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on fast forward and make fun of it. We're awful like that. We should probably eat some food. I loathe typical Thanksgiving food. I think we're having oven fries, steamed broccoli and Riblets. I'm not a foodie. I'm a super finicky, strictly vegetarian/mostly vegan, dining buzzkill with a peanut allergy. I'm thankful for lots of things, especially that I don't have to sit around a table full of food I hate with a giant bird corpse featured prominently while I listen to awkward conversation and try to keep a pleasant look on my face. That mess is one of my migraine triggers.

As always, click on any photo to see it larger.
Scroll over text to see links that you can click.