Grump’s Easter Surprise

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Most people think “Oh, how SWEET” when they imagine a bunny rabbit. Especially at Easter. You know the drill–”Easter Bunny” evokes the image of a fluffy long eared cuddly bunny with a darling expression, just chalk full of buttercups and sunshine.

They haven’t met Grumps.

Grumps the bunny rabbit Easter portrait

She sits like this, staring in the window at me, just to make sure that I know that the servants (aka Michael and I) have once again failed to provide her with a suitable assortment of fresh apples to go with the generous dollops of black oil sunflower seed she’s just hoovered up from underneath the bird feeders.

“Sweet”? Hah! Not.

She’s got so much personality, though, that I love her to bits. A few days ago a chipmunk came barreling up and whacked into her flank underneath the feeder. That’s the usual tactic chippies use to drive off the rabbits. HAH! She just lifted one big ol’ fuzzy hind foot, planted it very deliberately in chippie’s tummy and slowly PUSHED him away. You’ve never seen such a dumbfounded chipmunk!

For Easter today, the “servants” made sure Grumps got her very own fresh apple, which was tossed to her from our back porch.

Wish I’d thought to have my camera ready to record the moment. She hopped over to where it had landed, took a big ol’ chomp and then …

She smiled. Cross my heart!

May your Easter be filled with equally pleasant surprises!

(disclaimer: No, Dan, we aren’t encouraging an even bigger explosion in the local bunny population by feeding them apples daily … we only put out apples on Christmas and Easter. Honest!).

Oh, Pu-leeeze!

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The Obama Administration sent out a memo today to ticket holders who are planning to take their children to the 135th annual White House Easter Egg Roll that says:

“by using these tickets, guests are acknowledging that this event is subject to cancellation due to funding uncertainty surrounding the Executive Office of the President and other federal agencies.”

Air Force military honors (flyovers) for veterans funerals and personnel killed in action: cancelled.

Show Tours–which are positive image builders for the US Military–for the Blue Angels, already cancelled or (for any shows not yet cancelled) on indefinite hold; for the Thunderbirds–cancelled.

Tours of the White House: cancelled.

And the list goes on.

All of these are due to “funding uncertainty.”

So where’s the memo saying President Obama has put a moratorium on his playing golf? Oh — wait — he should golf, according to NY Mayor Michael Bloomberg, because it helps build social relationships.

Huh. Isn’t that the same argument behind what established and maintained the Easter Egg Roll, military honors, show tours, and White House Tours?

Oh! I get it! Those don’t those count because they’re to promote the common good! Golfing is a sacrosanct presidential entitlement, don’t I get the difference?

No, I don’t.

I’m all for cutting back, but I guess I’m one of those stupid idiots who thinks that maybe our nation’s leader should lead the way by making a personal example — instead of making an example out of everyone else.

The sequester that’s the “reason” for all these cuts? It’s all about a tiny rollback of the amount of increase in the federal budget. Put another way, it’s all about a reduction in the increase–an increase that is way beyond the increase that any of us commoners are getting in, oh, say, cost-of-living increases (if anyone is getting those still).

Get. Real.

Yeah, I’m annoyed. But guess what? I’m not the only one.

And for a little historical perspective: Calvin Coolidge was the only president who actually cut the federal budget–made a true decrease–during his tenure in office.

Guess what activity President Coolidge didn’t cut?

Grace Coolidge holding her pet raccoon, Rebecca, at the 1925 White House Easter Egg Roll

Yeah. The Easter Egg Roll.

(Pictured: First Lady Grace Coolidge holding her pet raccoon, Rebecca, at the 1925 White House Easter Egg Roll)

The Bunny Polka

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Cottontail bunny tracks--lots of 'em

This time of year, lots of snow is the norm here in our part of Wisconsin. One of the neat things about snow is that we can use all the tracks left in it to get an idea about which varieties of critters visit us regularly.

Except…

The snow in our yard is trampled down by so many bunny tracks that it looks like we’re the nightly hot spot for the Bunny Hop.

Having watched them last night, I figured out what they’re really dancing.

Our bunnies polka.

Cottontail bunny Grumbles, doin' the Bunny Polka

Shoulda guessed. They are Wisconsin bunnies, and in Wisconsin pretty much everybody loves a good polka, after all! Sorry about the image quality, but this was shot through a double-pane window, at very late dusk–when Grumbles thought he was safe from having his bunny butt immortalized on Butter Side Down.

He’s one of Grump’s kids, and likes to snooze in the sun under the same dogwood bush that she likes–this one.

Grumbles, son of Grumps, Cottontail bunny

Yeah, yeah, I recognize that bunny stare. I’ll go put the camera away, so Grumbles can quit eying me and go back to dancin’.

Hallelujah!

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Hallelujah -- they finally got it!

Success!! My complaint got kicked up the food chain and The Company has changed their corporate practice because of my complaint! (see the original story here and round two here).

Emailing passwords- There are multiple ways a company can confirm an account has been created at an online web store. My apologies if receiving both your account and password information in one email has upset you. [Company] has taken this opportunity to remove password information from registering emails as of 9 am this morning.

(Name of Individual), Director of Marketing and Customer Service, (phone number)

Woot! Woot!

Now that’s the right answer!