David Konig

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You are here: Home / Archives for Cats

No. I Did Not Eat My Cat For Christmas Eve Dinner. Here’s The Proof.

December 29, 2015 By Dave Konig Leave a Comment

Believe it or not, there is such a thing as a mere coincidence. This is the story of one such coincidence.

The other day I posted this photo to Instagram:

Iz feelz like #mondayz

A photo posted by Dave Konig (@davekonig74) on Dec 15, 2015 at 6:33am PST

I often send my Instagram photos to my Flickr, because I’m old school and despite Yahoo!‘s death spiral I still really love Flickr. I even have a Flickr widget on my sites and at some point and time I hope to get back into doing some things with my Rebel DLSR. I also posted this photo to just Flickr:

Tweety

On Christmas Eve, in the finest tradition of the season, I got Chinese take-out. I posted this photo to both Instagram and Flickr:

SUPERB Chinese Food for #ChristmasEve… but no duck 😕… #GeneralTsoChicken it will be…

A photo posted by Dave Konig (@davekonig74) on Dec 24, 2015 at 1:59pm PST

Needless to say, someone reading the site glanced over to the Flickr widget and happened to notice something that is PURE (albeit, somewhat comedic) coincidence:

No_I_Did_Not_Eat_My_Cat_For_ChristmasNo.

My cat Twitter is NOT “Superb Chinese Food“.

Nor did I eat my cat for Christmas Eve dinner in lieu of getting Chinese turkey (aka duck).

Really.

For that matter, I had General Tso Chicken. Interesting aside about General Tso Chicken… General Tso himself never actually ate it. There’s this great documentary called The Search For General Tso which explores the deep history of both the man and the dish. The documentary actually goes further than the title insinuates and delves into how Chinese food as an ethnic cuisine transformed itself to fit the tastes of westerners in order to make it more appealing. I found it absolutely fascinating and hope for a sequel, perhaps along the lines of Looking For The Egg In The Egg Roll?, because that’s a mystery that (at times) keeps me up at night. It’s available on Netflix and Amazon, and I highly recommend watching it.

So… as proof that Tweety is alive and well, I offer this as proof of life…

Tweety and I on December 26, 2015
Tweety and I on December 26, 2015

She is (I am happy to say) alive, well, and being her usual obnoxiously adorable self.

I’ll be uploading new photos to Flickr shortly to dispel the rumors of her demise.

Filed Under: Imagery, Life Tagged With: Cats, kittay

Allie Is Waiting At The Rainbow Bridge

December 6, 2015 By Dave Konig 3 Comments

Allie On The ShoulderOne of the things I used to have to do in my job was perform respirator fit tests. The process involved a mask, a big space hood, and vaporized saccharine. The mask went on, the hood went over, and I’d spray the saccharine while making people do things. If they tasted the sweetness, they failed. If they did everything and didn’t taste the sweetness, they passed.

Usually the last thing I had people do was read a passage of text called The Rainbow Bridge. It was a very basic passage, nothing too intense. I had them read that as opposed to counting backwards or reciting the Pledge of Allegiance or something for one simple reason.

I liked it.

the rainbow bridge

Today Allie was sent on her journey to go wait at the Rainbow Bridge.

At 18 years old, she has had a few medical issues over the last year. The toppers were hyperthyroidism that caused her to weigh in under the 7 lbs. mark and a mass on her jaw that was cancerous. Despite antibiotics, hyperthyroid medicine, specialized food, and lots of love there really wasn’t any sustainable improvement.

Allie eats the whipped cream
Allie eats whipped cream 12/05/15

with allieIt’s not an easy decision to make to send a beloved family member on this journey. The benefit from making the decision is that it allows you some time to plan and make sure you can get things in that you want to. I’m happy to say that after some pain medication and steroids to increase her appetite she ate like a champ. She got to go outside without being in a carrier on daily walks and even made a trip to the roof. She ate ribs, turkey, and whipped cream for dinner. She got hugged up on, carried around, and petted copiously. From my perspective, her quality of life the last few days was really great. The problem is that it wasn’t sustainable.

As hard as it may have been, it was the right thing to do. I am sort of jealous that we don’t give the same consideration to fellow human beings. The same opportunity to enjoy the best quality of life possible with the time we have left and to go on our journey once we have our affairs in order.

unknown-author-boarder-moment-scary-last-time-talk-1p2oThe thing is, whether it be our furry family members or the hoomans around us, we don’t always have the forewarning that the end is nigh. We often take for granted the existence of people and pets in our daily lives. I originally was going to say that “we don’t necessarily have the opportunity to make sure they know how much we appreciate them”… but the truth is that we do have the opportunity.

We just need to recognize it. We just need to act on it. We just need to not allow it to slip away.

Thank you to everyone for the outpouring of love and support during this very difficult time, we truly appreciate it.

Filed Under: Death Tagged With: Cats, kittay

Happy Birthday @Twtrbean

December 3, 2015 By Dave Konig 1 Comment

Tweety_collage

Today is Twitter‘s (my cat, not the Social Network) birthday!!! She turns 6ish today… which is kind of hard to believe. Time has flown… and of course this little kittay has spent most of it sleeping.

I know what you’re thinking to yourself. You named a cat after a social network?

Uh, yeah. It’s actually Avitable‘s fault. Back in the day before #Hashtags and @Replies, when the Fail Whale ruled the Twitter Stream, Adam observed that the social network Twitter may as well be a cat. He even had a Tell It To The Cat account.

Needless to say… I decided to name the cat Twitter so I could talk to her and not burden the internet with my drivel. Ha! Yeah, that worked out.

Not.

In what I can only describe as the irony of fate, she does most of the talking… or in her case the chirping…

And of course… what kind of cat named Twitter would she be if she didn’t have her own Twitter account…

Playin' with my big sisters' toys. FEATHERSTICKWHEEEEEEEEEEE!

— Tweet Pea (@twtrbean) February 17, 2010

Unfortunately @Twitter was already taken. The nerve!

Despite naming my cat after a social network, I still feel that I’m better than the parents naming their hooman children after Instagram Filters.

Which… by the way… the next thing I get that I’m allowed to name is going to be called Gram… which of course will be short for Insta-Gram.

For that, we’ll blame Mashable. In the meantime…

Happy Birthday Tweety!!!

Tweet_recovery

Filed Under: Life Tagged With: Cats, kittay

My 5 Day Trip To Pittsburgh In Just One Post

October 15, 2015 By Dave Konig Leave a Comment

So last week I had the opportunity to go and visit friends, specifically Becky ( aka @HelloHaHaNarf who I happen to call @HolaHoHoSnarf in Spanish-Thundercatese because… well… I can) in Steel City itself… Pittsburgh. Ironically I last visited there in March 2014, which also happened to be the last time I took recreational time off. I was thinking about doing a dozen or so posts about the trip, but instead I decided to do just this one post and cram all of it in at one time. So, here’s a recap…

Primanti Bros. – Robinson

Although I travelled from New York to Pittsburgh on Wednesday with Poppy, I don’t actually consider my trip beginning until I was able to finish what was left of the business in New York. Therefore my trip really began with lunch on Thursday afternoon at none other than at the Primanti Bros. Robinson location.

Ever since seeing Primanti Bros. profiled back in 2002 on a Food Network television show, I’ve had them on my bucket list to visit. Thankfully I had the opportunity in March of 2014 to visit the original location in the “Strip” District. This time around I got to visit the Robinson location which definitely has more of a sports bar type vibe and a seemingly extended menu, but the same great selection and flavors of the original are intact.

Primanti Bros - Robinson

I had the Black Angus Steak Sandwhich with a side order of the Almost Famous Chicken Wings smothered in Hot-Ranch sauce. The sandwich was really good with the classic fries and cole slaw right there in between the bread (a trademark of a Primanti Bros. sandwich), but the wings were just absolutely out of this world… and I mean REALLY out of this world with the hot/ranch fused sauce. It seems like such a simple idea, I’m surprised not more wingeries have done it.

Jozsa’s Corner

My next visit of note was to a small little eating place called Jozsa’s Corner. When first entering the location it is important to note that you are actually walking into the kitchen. Once there, you literally walk through a hole in the wall to get to the dining area where your Hungarian themed 7-course family style feast will be served…

Josza Corner

From top left to right: Jozsa’s Corner sign, the hole in the wall, Plascintza Wafer
From middle left to right: Hungarian Peasant Soup, Halushki, Transylvanian Goulash
From bottom left to right: Cucumber salad and Chicken Papagash, Nastrovia, iron-worked sign in the side window

Now honestly, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from a Hungarian feasting experience. Being of German descent I am acutely aware of germanic foods and figured that the Hungarian experience would possibly be similar. It was actually vastly different and in an absolutely good way. Dill seemed to be the herb/spice of choice, and I have zero qualms about that whatsoever. Every dish (7 in total) was tastier than the one before it and while sharing that common Dill thread, each had its own tantalizing flavor signature. My two personal favorites were the Transylvanian Goulash and Chicken Papagash.

Because Alex is in his mid-seventies, this isn’t a place where you can just show up. Your best bet is to get a party of 20-25 people together (we had 17 due to a few cancelations) and call ahead to make the reservation. Even though it’s literally a hole in the wall, it’s probably going to be some of the best homemade food you’ll ever have.

The #NOTCat Interlude

So did I mention that we were staying for this trip at Becky’s house? Her house is WAY better than a hotel. The WiFi is cheaper, the bed was more comfortable, the sheets were cooler (flannel moose sheets), AND it came with the internet famous #NOTCat…

Look, everyone! It's #NOTcat!!!!

A photo posted by Stef Ploof (@poppycede) on Oct 7, 2015 at 9:21pm PDT

No… seriously… it’s NOT her (neither Becky’s or Poppy’s) cat… although you wouldn’t know it from the way he saunters around the house, or how much time he actually spends there… which is ALOT.

NOTCat and I

So yeah… there’s no hotel that I know of that comes with it’s own visiting feline… so Becky’s gets a 5-Star rating for #NOTCat alone.

St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Cathedral Food Festival

The next day, to continue eating my way through the Burgh, we went to the Greek Food Festival being held at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Cathedral. This was actually a seemingly offshoot festival (the “real” one is usually in May) being held because it was the University of Pittsburgh Homecoming Weekend, but the menu and food was still spectacular.

St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church Food Festival

Needless to say I had a classic gyro that was very good, a Galaktoboureko (a pastry with custard filling) which was delightful, and of course the requisite Loukoumades puffed pastry balls glazed with butter and cinnamon. Ironically I was introduced to Loukoumades only recently from someone who was NOT Greek (even though I know a few resident Greeks) which just goes to show they try to keep the best secrets to themselves… and honestly I don’t blame them.

The Martian

Next up was seeing Matt Damon in The Martian in 3D at the AMC Waterfront 22.

The Martian PosterNow I have to be honest, this was pretty exciting to me since I haven’t been to a movie since July. I really did enjoy the film and the story. I don’t think it’s at all far-fetched of this type of thing happening, although I would like to think that NASA would have a more concrete plan for such an incident occurring when we do send manned missions to Mars. Yes, I said when, because it’s really only a matter of time. If you’re into real science being used well in fiction, then I’d definitely recommend it.

The theater going experience itself was relatively pleasant as well. I’ve become sort of a cinema snob ever since I discovered the AMC Fresh Meadows has reserved seating with the leather recliners, and I pretty much refuse to go anywhere else. Although we sat in regular stadium-style seating, it was still an enjoyable time… BUT… they also have a reserved seating section AND there’s a restaurant built into the theater. How awesome is that? Yeah… I think I’ll have to go back to experience that aspect of the theater myself….

Oh, and duct tape? Once again proves it’s worth in the world.

Save-Mor Beer & Pop Warehouse

We made a stop to get some beverages for the University of Pittsburgh football game the next day and happened to run into…

Its A Beer Distributor

… JARED!!!

NO not THAT Jared!!! THIS JARED!!!

Two totally different Jareds… of this, I can assure you.

Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh – After Hours @ The Library: Neverland

Next stop was at the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh for and after hours event themed around Neverland. This was a fundraiser kind of thing, was really pretty fancy, had a really good time sampling the roaming platters of food and trying out all the drinks including this Italian raspberry soda that I totally want to get now… but for whatever reason I took no photos. Probably because I was too busy doing other stuff.

Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh and Fireworks

I did, however, catch some cool photos of the fireworks that went off just outside for the University of Pittsburgh Homecoming Celebration.

Or they were just happy to see me.

Yeah… I like that explanation better.

Heinz Field – University of Pittsburgh Homecoming Football Game

Did I happen to mention that it was the University of Pittsburgh Homecoming? Well, it was… and we had tickets!!! Not only did we get to go to the game… but we tailgated!!!

Heinz Field University of Pittsburgh Homecoming

Now if you know me, you know how big a deal this is. I am SO not into organized sporting events such as this. For that matter, I’m usually the one picking up people in the parking lot at either half-time or the 6th inning who never made it inside because they tailgated way too much. On this day, I was a fan (through a borrowed hat) and a participant… and… I liked it.

I got to eat hot roast beef sandwiches that were better than Roy Rogers, I shared small talk with people who I had never met before, I was offered chicken from complete strangers, and I accumulated and interesting collection of bottle caps… and that was just in the parking lot! Once in the stadium I got to actually sit and watch something happen without listening to a radio or worrying about how long a wheelchair escort was taking. I got to casually walk around the stadium at my own pace instead of a hurried frantic one looking for someone reportedly in distress. I actually got to go to Burgatory in the Ford Fan Area who, ironically, were all sold out of burgers but I spent $8.75 for a chocolate shake with brownie chunks in it. It was… well… relaxing.

Now don’t get it all twisted… I’d probably still rather watch the DOTA 2 Championships on Twitch or old episodes of Red vs. Blue… but now I honestly get why people do it. It isn’t even so much for the sport, but more for the social comradery. Less for the organization, but rather to have commonality with others. It was like a blogger meetup… only minus all the HTML and PHP talk.

It was a damn good time.

Oh… and #PITT won. #AllHailPitt

Tartine

So I’ve had Pittsburghese, Hungarian, Greek, and Footballian dishes… what cuisine could possibly be next to sample?

French.

For dinner we headed over to Tartine, a nice little tucked away French restaurant. It is known for it’s elegant and tasty cuisine as well as the very picky and peculiar proprietor…

Tartine French Restaurant

… Bert. Bert happens to be furry and on four legs, but that doesn’t stop him from going from table to table to ensure customer satisfaction. The meal started off with their version of a shrimp cocktail, followed by a delectable potato leeks soup, then on to an arugula salad, my entree’ was the rack of lamb, and finally a creme brulee without all the burnt sugar on top.

I’ll be honest, the rack of lamb was delicious, but next time I’m getting the pork chop… it’s a double bone chop. Yum!!!

The Nina and The Pinta

So in Station Square (PGH, not to be confused with FoHi) they have two life-size replicas of the Nina and the Pinta docked for tours. This was something on our agenda from pretty much day one.

We went.

We saw them.

Really.

Oh look… a Hard Rock!!!!

Hard Rock and Duck Boat

AND a Duck Boat!!!

AWESOME!!!

Moving on…

Piper’s Pub

One of the places we visited last time and thoroughly enjoyed was Piper’s Pub. So of course we went there again for a spectacular Sunday brunch…

Pipers Pub Brunch

… where I had my first Scotch egg, which is a hard-boiled egg wrapped in sausage meat and cooked. I know it may not look appetizing, but going down it definitely WAS appetizing. Then for the entree I had the “MacChicken Boxty”… which is basically a potato pancake that was stuffed with fried chicken and bacon mac N cheese. To top the flavor off there was a Sriracha drizzle and the blend was superb. So you can check off Scottish/Irish cuisine off the checklist for those of you keeping track.

Mario’s Pizza

Finally, for the finale, dinner was Pittsburgh Pizza a la Mario. Unfortunately (or, fortunately, depending on how you’re feeling at this point) there’s no pictures. I will say that the pizza was actually really really really good. The crust was kind of a hybrid between a New York slice and a Chicago deep dish. Most interestingly though was the fact that they sent ranch dressing for… wait for it… crust dipping.

Now that’s my kind of pizza place!!!

The Road Home

The road home was just that… the road home.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a true trip without having something go horribly awry. That started Saturday with a toothache, continued Sunday with some throbbing, rolled into Monday where the pain was inexplicably bad and I started popping Ibuprofen like it was candy which led to being here on Tuesday…

Getting in the #ChairOfPain (@ Maspeth Dental Assoc in Maspeth, NY) https://t.co/KcMp7a9nVw

— David Konig (@davidkonig) October 13, 2015

Yeah… so the good news is I still have the tooth. The bad news is that I only have it because of a really bad infection that caused my left cheek to swell up and abscess. The really good news is the anti-biotics have been doing a kick-ass job, and I actually feel almost normal on the left side of my face.

At some point next week I’ll go back and find out whether or not the tooth fractured due to the grinding and gnashing of my chompers in my sleep… something that happened in February and was attributed to stress and duress of the time. Not sure what the cause is this time… but whatever.

The bottom line is, toothache and all, I had an absolutely fabulous time in Pittsburgh!!! I highly recommend it as a place to visit if you ever have the chance. Thanks again to Becky for the hospitality and dragging us all around!

With that said, thanks for reading all the way through!!!

Filed Under: Fud, Highlights, Life, Touristy Tagged With: #AllHailPitt, Bloggers, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, Cats, Jozsa's Corner, Piper's Pub, Pittsburgh, Primanti Bros., Save-Mor Beer & Pop Warehouse, Tartine PGH, The Chair Of Pain, The Martian, University of Pittsburgh

Of Flying Furs, Pill Guns, And Feline Stomatitis

September 15, 2014 By Dave Konig 1 Comment

Last November we had to take our youngest kittay, Twitter, to the vet to get a number of teeth extracted because she suffers from feline stomatitis. The tip-off was a combination of her not gaining weight and really really really really really bad breath.

Tweet_recoveryWhen Twitter was done, she came out with around 10 less teeth and really frigging adorable photo of her in the recovery room.

So not surprisingly… Ripples seemed to have some dental issues similar to Tweety‘s. Poppy brought her in for a vet visit two Saturdays ago and had the same procedure scheduled for the Princess this past Friday.

Ripples_DentistryPart of the routine leading up to the dental surgery and then after the surgery is the administration of anti-biotics via a “pill gun”… which really is just a wide bore syringe used to shoot the pills down the kitty’s gullet. Pilling Tweety was a real chore. First, we had to catch her. Then, we would wrap her up in a towel. Then, she would fight against the pill gun, refuse to swallow the pills, and then finally after swallowing would push off of me with her rear claws extended into a galloping dash away from us with fur flying.

Pilling Ripley is a bit different. First, we have to snatch her from a comfortable posiiton. Then, I have to give her a BIG hug. Then, I have to hold her tightly as Poppy shoots the pills down her gullet. After that, it’s hugs and smooches before she leaps off of me and usually onto the bed. Usually I’d say that no one ever loses in a hug fight… but in this case, Ripley is a total medicated loser. Pretty sad when my best claim to victory is over giving my cat her pills, huh?

The thing is, I don’t think she really minds all that much…

Ripley_Bedroom_eyes

We didn’t get an adorable recovery room photo of Ripley, so that one will have to do. She also only lost one tooth… the rest just needed cleaning. Go figure.

Oh… and hey Georgie… you’re next!!!

Filed Under: Life Tagged With: Cats, kittay

Lil Bub and I

September 6, 2013 By Dave Konig Leave a Comment

atStrandBooksTonight (or actually last night considering when this post is set to publish) I made a journey to the Greenwhich Village area to visit the Strand Bookstore (which boasts on their awning about having 18 miles of books) along with 299 other people for a once in a lifetime experience.

Now I know many of you are probably wondering, “Wait, doesn’t he read only ebooks now?” You’re right, I do read ebooks 99% of the time. That remaining 1% is reserved for those very special books. Books who are authored by skilled artisans of the craft containing powerful soul clenching content. It has to be a book with meaning, with purpose, and an uncanny knack for speaking to the cofe of my being.

This is one of those books.

Lil BUB’s Lil Book: The Extraordinary Life of the Most Amazing Cat on the Planet

And here I am with the author herself…

bubandI

Yes. I met Lil Bub!!!

I have to be honest, except for the Strand Books redheaded line worker/announcer who kept referring to Lil Bub as “the cat” (which is like referring to Stephen King as “the human”), it was a very pleasant and exciting experience. It’s not everyday you get to meet the cutest, amazing, adorable, internet cat sensation in the world! So thanks to Lil Bub and her cool dude Mike for coming back to New York and doing a night event!!!

Of course, the second moment of the night was when a typical New Yorker came to us on the line at the corner of 12th and Lafayette asking what everyone was doing there. I explained to him it was for Lil Bub, the cutest most famous cat on the internet, and asked if he had ever heard of her. He told me no. I then asked him if he had internet, to which he replied yes. I think he was a bit shocked to be asked if he had internet, and I covered his shock by telling him to go to LilBub.com. Silly humans.

lilbubbooksigned

So now I have a signed copy of the book, I’ve met Lil Bub, and I have the photo to prove it!

How ya like me now internet?

Filed Under: Highlights, Life Tagged With: Cats, Lil Bub

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