Displaying posts from January, 2012

Help!

Posted on Mon, 16 Jan 2012 by KiM

I figured Monday was the perfect day to blog this, as I have a dilemma involving a cat and I really need help. 

Over the summer, our next door neighbour Steve developed cancer. It wasn’t long before it got really bad. We haven’t seen Steve in a while, and last we heard he didn’t have much time left – so we’re assuming he has since passed away. Steve had 5 cats and his family trapped all but one and took them to the Humane Society, where I am guessing they were all put down (the shelter here in Ottawa does not have a no-kill policy and his cats were not friendly to anyone but their owner). The one left was “accidentally” let out of his apartment a few months ago and we’ve been feeding her ever since. But with winter here being awful (over the weekend it was -30 C) we couldn’t bear to see her freezing outside anymore so 9 days ago we trapped her and put her in the only room we have available – a 5’x5′ windowless bathroom. 

She has really come around in the past week but she is really not happy stuck in that bathroom (she hasn’t been to the vet yet so we can’t let her near our cats). It did not take her long to get used to us and now I pet her every time I go in the bathroom to visit (although she is still a bit “feisty”) – which is fairly often because she meows frequently. As soon as I go in there with a book to hang out she shuts up and curls up typically in the sink and goes to sleep. It’s heartbreaking.

We were in contact with a cat rescue organization (who lent us the trap to catch her) but they are not offering to take her in – seems they are full to capacity and due to the freezing cold weather many of the cats have respiratory infections and passing it to each other. We don’t know what else to do. We already have 7 cats and there is NO WAY I can handle another one. (We have 3 cats on meds, and had a vet come to the house the last week to check them all out and give them shots…to find out 4 of them need dental work done. Total for all this being somewhere between $3000 and $5000). We can try and take her to the SPCA in Quebec that is a no-kill shelter but I can’t bring myself to do that just yet. 

So if anyone in the Ottawa area knows an organization that has room for one more cat, or knows anyone that might be willing to take her in, please email me at desiretoinspirekim@hotmail.com. We’ll pay all her vet bills and whatever it takes to get her ready to go to a new home. 

Faded Empire

Posted on Mon, 16 Jan 2012 by midcenturyjo

I’m up to something with my good friend Kerrie. A little online venture. Something to tempt our readers. We are building an empire. A Faded Empire. Today I started photographing product. Oh my god I have nothing but praise and respect for photographers and stylists around the world. Hard work! And of course I went about it all the wrong way. Just a teaser for now. We are still a few weeks away from a soft launch. I’ll come back soon with some more photos and a link.

David Prince +2

Posted on Mon, 16 Jan 2012 by midcenturyjo

True love….. again. We’ve featured photographer David Prince‘s work before. We’ve simpered and praised, declared his work the best, sworn our undying love… then forgotten him and moved on to other photographer crushes. What was I thinking! New work since our last foray into Prince’s portfolio. Love the boho, easy elegance that is creeping into the shots. The earthiness, the softer light, the exploration of the imperfect. The man’s a genius. Mea culpa. I should not have strayed.

Blog favourites of late

Posted on Sun, 15 Jan 2012 by KiM

Design Crew

Posted on Sat, 14 Jan 2012 by midcenturyjo

Got a problem? Need some help? Just standing there shaking your head? Don’t know what to do? You’re not alone. Send us a link to photos of your design quandary and let the Desire to Inspire design crew help you …. that’s you lot… the readers! First problem this year comes from Katie.

I was hoping to get your help with this odd feature of my new studio apartment – a raised, enclosed platform with sliding french doors that houses (literally) just a full-size bed and a small night table. I’m attaching pictures of the studio’s layout and what this “box” (as we call it) looks like. How can I make this thing less of a giant eyesore? I was thinking about refinishing the hardware on the doors, hanging curtains somehow – either around the doors or as a canopy (thoughts?) – and installing some sort of better lighting. It’s bigger than a sleeping nook, but smaller than a bedroom. Help! [previous owner’s photos – the box is now a lighter dove gray/purple; doors are still white]