Sven the Blue Rat

Sven the Blue Rat passed promptly and peacefully on Thursday, February 11, 2010 at his home in "East Mortington," IL.

Presumably born between October 1 and November 1, 2008 in Peoria and obtained from the PetSmart at Glen Hollow on Saturday, November 29, 2008. The lone blue rat in the store, Sven caught the eye of his "mother," Sparky, who has an affinity for all things the color blue. "He was the best $13 I ever spent..." Sparky was quoted as saying just after the burial ceremony, which took place this past Thursday afternoon.

Sven was an avid lover of cheese, potato oles, grapes, climbing, dancing, and sleeping. His favorite hobbies included redecorating his house, watching television with family members, and chewing on sticks. Sven also loved music; his favorite artists were Kings of Leon, My Morning Jacket, Shinedown, and Eric Clapton. A gentle creature, he never intentionally bit or scratched a family member or friend. While rather cautious in nature (he was only loose in the house once and voluntarily returned to his home soon after getting away), Sven did venture outdoors from time to time for convertible rides around the Peoria-area.

But Sven will be remembered most for his ability to listen and his animated demeanor. "You just expected him to jump up and start talking!" Mama Sparky, Sven's "grandmother," said when asked about the experience of living with Sven. "He was a good little guy," Papa Sparky added. "Living with him broadened our horizons."

"Judge me for not what I am but who I am," was Sven's motto. A pioneer in the Rat-Acceptance movement, Sven won over many a visitor, including those from regions historically afflicted with illness spread by rats. Sven loved all visitors he met and was especially fond of his Aunts Ames and Cher, as well as his aunt Ally, whom he never had the pleasure of meeting in person. Sven many times mentioned the great time he had during the week this past summer he stayed with his Aunt Kat and Uncle Todd in Dunlap. While never a visitor, through pictures and stories he was infamous among the 3rd shift operators and management team at Big Yellow in East Peoria.

Sven will be greatly missed, but he will be remembered fondly and shall always be forever grateful for his companionship, support, love, and mad rat belly dancing skills.

Sven was buried in a non-denominational ceremony under a new tree at the home he shared with his family. He is survived by his family and a legion of friends and admirers. Per his request, his home and furnishing were donated to the science class at a local school. Donations to animal-based causes can be made in Sven's honor.

Snow What?

I used to laugh at that scene in Fargo where William H. Macy is having a hissy fit while scraping his windshield. Well, that's kind of me now, sans actual fit but complete with vigorous scraping motion and weird cold-induced noises.

See, the trick is to bundle up really well and then just take a dash at your car. I'm slowed a bit by the turnstile gate at work, but if I can get some speed up, it keeps me from cussing (loudly) and warms me up a bit before I get to scraping. For the record, I miss Canyonero 2.0 because it had a remote starter and keyless entry, so I could start my car from a distance and not worry about my keys getting locked inside. I do love my Toyota, but all of the braking system/accelerator issues in the media are overshadowing the possessed power locks these cars tend to have. And I just don't even want to bother with risking getting locked out of my running car in a parking lot - especially at work.

Here are some tips for you who aren't fortunate enough to live in a tundra and thus aren't seasoned snow removers:

1. If you can, have your car running while you scrap. It's not 100% necessary but it really does help and it's efficient.
2. Get one of those long handled scrapers. They're great for us short girls and it gives you some mechanical advantage.
3. Wear gloves. Mittens work too. Just makes sure you have something covering the digits so you don't feel like you're going to snap one off.
4. If it's snowing/going to snow and you're going to be parked in place for a while, put the wiper blades up on your car. It eliminates the need to 'peel and pray' prior to scraping
5. Caught completely unprepared? Use a plastic (credit-type) card. Don't use an important one as there's decent chance of bending it up during use. Or, better yet, get a cute boy to scrape for you. Actually, any helpful boy will work just fine. If he won't help, that's what snowballs with pennies jammed in them are for
6. Frozen locks? I like key+lighter. Do not attempt if you just sprayed alcohol de-icer all over everything though - probably not the type of fun you want to have
7. If you do happen to run your wipers over the ice and find that they then won't contact the windshield well, pick 'em up and drop 'em back against the windshield a few times and they should start working better

While this seems pretty basic, I had to learn a few on that list the hard way. Unfortunately, "move to a warm climate" isn't a good avoidance plan because the whole country, it seems, has been locked in an icy death grip this winter. Being optimistic: at least it's good weather to chill a case in the trunk while at work all day.