Spock and Sherlock: Same Cut, Different Cloth

This article originally appeared in the USS Navras newsletter.  All mine, no stealing.  

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country is rife with literary references, predominantly Shakespeare (though not in the original Klingon).  Captain Spock joins the literary spree with the words, “An ancestor of mine maintained that if you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains – however improbable – must be the truth.”  While Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote the words, the man who “spoke” them was Doyle’s creation, the great detective, Sherlock Holmes.  Even before this, Mirror!Spock in the Original Series episode “Mirror, Mirror” used this quote as well while attempting to solve the mystery of the changed crew members. 

These quotes simply cement what many fans think: Sherlock Holmes and Spock are cut from the same cloth.  Both value logic and solve the problems presented to them by those of lesser intellect.  Neither are social butterflies by nature; left to their own devices, both men turn inward.  They are tall, angular, and far from conventionally handsome.  Their mind is their greatest asset. 

In the hands of fans and in the course of fan fiction, these character aspects manifest in exaggerated fashion.  The observer can lay the canon sources for both Sherlock and Spock alongside their depictions in fan fiction or pastiche and gain insight on how different these characters are…and yet how different.  However, a head-on approach here can be used due to the recent proliferation of Sherlockian media in the form of the 2009 Guy Ritchie film, the BBC serial starring Benedict Cumberbatch, and the Fox television series, House.  Given that this is appearing in a Star Trek newsletter, one would assume some reader familiarity with Spock, even if it is only with the 2009 reboot. 

One of the predominant features of Sherlock Holmes, along with his staggering intellect, is his eccentricity.  Sherlock is an emotional, passionate man.  He is passionate about the chase and solving the case, even if his client cannot pay him; as the detective says, he works on a flat fee, except when he waives it entirely.  While placing great value on logic when comes to detection, Sherlock is a Bohemian.  He is unconventional and uncaring as to external perceptions.  While neat in his hygiene, he casts everything else to the wind.  His biographer, Dr. Watson, also describes the darker side to Sherlock in graphic detail in “The Sign of Four.”  While he has his high intellectual highs, Sherlock also has cocaine lows, injecting a seven-percent solution of cocaine (or morphine, according to Watson).  He will brood, shut in for days on end.  Left to his own devices, he is destructive and undisciplined; throughout the Doyle canon, the reader hears of the mess and the lack of consideration for poor Mrs. Hudson.  This goes as far as to shooting holes into the wall in the shape of Queen Victoria’s epigram, VR.  It has been confessed by the creators and writers of the television series, House, that the grumpy, drug-addicted doctor is heavily based off of Sherlock’s dark side.

However, the “lighter” side of House is also briefly seen, mostly taking the form of his love of music.  Pianos, guitars, and an extensive CD collection represent the unburdened Gregory House, just as the Stradivarius violin embodies the active Sherlock.  For those unfamiliar with the music world, a Stradivarius violin is considered the ultimate violin to own, constructed by Antonio Stradivari in the 1600s.  While it is controversial as to whether its sound is truly superior, the name Stradivarius is still a symbol of musical luxury and desirability, as Tiffany is to jewelry.  Sherlock also enjoys outings to the theatre and orchestra.  Combined with the drug usage, Sherlock, in short, is a hedonist.

Sherlock is also not insensitive to the needs and fears of others.  In the case of “The Veiled Lodger,” the client is a woman who was mauled by a lion at the behest of her ex-lover.  He does not hesitate to reach out to her with a comforting hand – something shocking to fans that would have Sherlock scoff at her tearful story.   Sherlock expresses concern and worry at times over his clients, most notably in “The Adventure of the Copper Beeches,” when he indicates that he would not want his sister to be in his poor client’s place (whether Sherlock has a sister or not is immaterial).  He also jokes with Watson periodically and is willing to laugh at misfortunes, such as when his tracking dog takes the wrong split in a trail.

Laugher is simply not an option with our Vulcan.  Spock is philosophically light years away from Sherlock.  His quarters are depicted as Spartan, with the exception of the lyre, his one luxury. While Sherlock and Spock share a love of music and talent, the similarities do not stretch much further.  Spock’s life is ordered and structured compared to the periodic chaos of Sherlock’s.  While this is fostered by Starfleet, this also seems to be an innate part of Spock’s nature due to Vulcan philosophy.  The emotional discipline and orderliness of Spock’s knowledge is a dramatic contrast to extreme emotions of Sherlock and his haphazard collection of facts. 

Spock lacks vanity as part of his philosophy, but he is excessively meticulous about external appearances, particularly because he is half-human.  He makes every effort to conceal his human side by, as some would put it, out-Vulcaning the Vulcans.  In “Journey to Babel,” Sarek permits himself a slight smile, but it is only under duress (“Amok Time,” most famously) or when making music (“Charlie X”) that Spock allows himself an emotional outlet.  While Sherlock wouldn’t care about what others thought of him, this preoccupies Spock.  He has a need to find his place in the universe; this is part of the likability of his character, while the allure of Sherlock (and House) is the opposite.  Sherlock cares not for the rest of the world’s opinion.

Spock is a clean-cut member of Starfleet.  Spock taking drugs or having mood swings would be associated with alien influences or biological difficulties –or a bad writer!  A fan doesn’t watch Spock to see him crash and burn.  While he experiences emotional conflict within, Spock is not a character in turmoil.  That said, Spock, much like Sherlock, is not a creature lacking in compassion either.  While he can hardly be called “cuddly” and may lack bedside manner, Spock expresses compassion and concern for those around him.  Even as he suffers from the affects of the Psi 2000 virus in “The Naked Time,” he attempts to let Christine Chapel down gently after she bares her soul to him.   “Requiem for Methuselah” shows Spock mindmelding with Kirk to help him to forget the tragic-lost-love-of-the-week.  This is a nicety, not a necessity.  The ultimate example of Spock’s compassion, overriding even his logic, is his devotion to the crippled Christopher Pike in “The Menagerie.” 

The connection between Spock and Sherlock is possibly genetic.  However, their defining characteristic is their use of logical processes to solve problems.  However, how each applies logic is different.  Spock’s logic is part of his entire life philosophy.  It is all-encompassing and holistic.  Meanwhile, Sherlock’s is compartmentalized and isolated to his job; he uses his logic to help others, not necessarily himself.  Sherlock surrenders freely to his emotions and moods, while Spock reins his emotions in.  As indicated earlier, both fit the archetype of the lonely thinker.  However, they are made of different stuff.  Once one looks further into these men, they are startlingly different because of how they act out their roles and how they use their gifts.

Postscript:  The final part of this rambling report is a bit of a sidebar.  Both Sherlock and Spock in the realm of fan fiction have a notable following that believe that they are either gay or at least bisexual due to their close association with another male character, Dr. Watson and Captain Kirk.  Sherlock was not given this treatment until the late 1980s and early 1990s, but Spock had been under scrutiny since the initial run of the Original Series, coming to great prominence in the 1970s’ fanzines.  There are two reasons that occur to this writer as a student of history and film interpretation. 

The first reason for this can be found in the homosocial environments that Sherlock and Spock exist in.  Sherlock and Watson live in the Victorian and Edwardian era.  Even at the turn of the twentieth century, men and women were segregated in their activities.  Homosociality is the norm; men exclusively socialized with men, and women socialized only with women.  Also common during this time are romantic friendships – great, consuming passions for friends of the same sex without ever have sexual desire for them. It is only a modern innovation that men and women “hang out” together; this only becomes the norm after the sexual revolution in the 1960s.

Even though Spock was “born” in the 1960s, he still exists in a military organization, which, even today, is predominantly homosocial.  Uhura was on the bridge, but her role was limited to “hailing frequencies open” in many episodes.  Spock still works mostly with men.  For anyone who has been in the military, there is an innate bond with those the person has served with.  While the writer has not experienced military service, it has been indicated that there are intangible elements to this bond that can push a person to go further for a brother in arms. 

The best modern, civilian comparison to a nineteenth romantic friendship or the bond between brothers in arms is perhaps the recently coined term “work spouse.”  While at work, a pair functions as a great couple, expressing care and concern for their other half.  More often than not, these people are romantically involved or married to someone else, and the spouse doesn’t feel jealousy; the very nature and basis of the relationship is non-competitive and supportive.  Outsiders may perceive these relationships as “something more” regardless of the context. 

The second reason is that neither Sherlock nor Spock expresses their sexuality overtly.  Unlike the womanizing Kirk and Watson (definitely comparatively, in Watson’s case), they are monks in comparison. Judging strictly from Doyle’s canon, it could be argued that Sherlock is the earliest incarnation of an asexual person.  One must always keep in mind that sexual labels are a new innovation, so attempting to apply them to pre-twentieth century characters can get tricky.  Spock, while less ambiguous due to his entanglements in the Original Series, still is not a predominantly sexual being (though fangirls may hope otherwise!).  This probably is another essay within itself, so this brief addendum comes to an abrupt halt.

Fall! And Awesome Asian Fusions!

Starting to cool down finally in Texas.  I think that's part of what I miss about the Northeast: consistent, fairly even seasons.  3 months each, and generally with not massive amounts of cross-over.  Texas?  70 degree Christmases and then a yearly February blizzard it seems.

Next weekend will be busy, between symphony, another Trek event, and my first go at a farmer's market since I left London.  Greenwich had a lovely market on Saturdays, and I did spend quite a bit of pocket money (got my wallet there!).  I used to walk about the entire neighborhood and get great deals AND delicious crepes.  Mmmm.

I also want to do a lot more fall cooking once it consistently is cooler -- gobbling down apple cider and pumpkin treats seems inappropriate in 80 degree weather.

I mentioned awhile back on Facebook that I had created a Thai Peanut Stir Fry.  It's actually an amalgam of three different recipes that I pulled together, and it is delicious.  I scaled it down so that it's 'Dinner for 2' but you can expand it as needed  -- it scales well.

What you'll need:

2 large skinless boneless chicken breasts

Marinade:

• 3/4 teaspoon brown sugar
• 1-1/2 teaspoons JIF® Creamy (or extra crunchy) Peanut Butter
• 1 tablespoon CRISCO® All-Vegetable Oil
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon fresh lime juice (I used lemon)
• 1/2 large clove garlic, minced (I love garlic so I doubled this)
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

Stir Fry:

• 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
• 1 tablespoon peanut oil
• 1 tablespoon chopped ginger  (or 1/8-1/4 teaspoon powdered ginger; depends on how much you like ginger)
• 1/4 cup sliced water chestnuts (the chestnuts store well in tupperware, so if you buy a can of them, you can use half and store the others later)
• 1 cup thinly sliced mushrooms
• freshly ground black pepper
• Vegetables for the stir fry can simply be one cup broccoli, but I personally added 3/4 cup broccoli, 3/4 cup of carrots.  Bean pods are also good additions.

Sauce: 

• 1 (10 ounce) can coconut milk
• 1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter
• 1/2 small onion, grated
• 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce  (optional)
• 2 teaspoons brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes  (optional)

1.  To start, clean and then cut up the chicken into medium cubes or stripes.

2.  Mix up the marinade in the plastic bag using the ingredients above.  This tends to be the messy part of the operation, so putting the bag in the sink may be prudent.  Make it to your taste;  I love garlic, so my mentality was 'more the merrier!'   Soy sauce is salty and can be overpowering, so if you're not a big fan, use a minimal amount.  Same goes for the cayenne -- you will taste it later!.

3.  Once all the ingredients are in, seal the bag (important) and shake it until everything is well mixed.  You may have to find trouble spots and smoosh them through the bag, such as clumped peanut butter or brown sugar.

4.  Once mixed, add the chicken pieces.  Seal the bag, give it a good shake, and then stick it in the fridge overnight (or at least for two hours, if you're already hungry from handling all those ingredients).

5.  About ten minutes before I anticipate starting the stir fry, I set up the sauce in a small pot.  Peanut sauce has two different schools of thought: sweet or spicy.  Because the marinade already has soy sauce in it, you may want to eliminate it from the sauce.  The red or cayenne pepper adds a kick, but if you don't like spicy, you may want to drop it.  It's not a huge kick, but it certainly warms you up.  Those two ingredients alone really change the flavor of the sauce, so it is cook's discretion.  I prefer the sweet peanut sauce for this dish, eliminating the soy and pepper.

6.  Just add all the sauce ingredients to the small pot, stir til smooth, and then heat to a boil, stirring frequently. 

7.  After it hits boil, keep stirring and drop the heat to low, just to keep it warm while you attempt not to burn the house down with the stir fry.

8.  For the stir fry, grab a 12-inch frying pan or a wok, at the least -- 10 inches isn't big enough (that's what she said).  Heat to a medium-high heat -- it'll be ready if you flick a bit of water off your hand on there and it sizzles.  Add the garlic, peanut oil, and ginger, stirring quickly.

9.  Jack the heat up to high, and empty your chicken marinade into the fry pan.  Yep, whole thing, especially the liquid.  This is where it veers away from a traditional fry.  You have to make sure the pan is super hot to make sure a) all bacteria is killed; b) the liquid is gone (or nearly so) by the end of the 'stir fry' phase.  Stir quickly and make sure the chicken is rotated around for an even cook.

10.  Once the chicken start looking 'done', add the broccoli, then carrots, water chestnuts, and mushrooms in that order, stirring after each addition.  You can elect to add 1/4 cup soy sauce for the final 2 minutes of the fry, but I found that it made it too salty and really overpowered every other ingredient.  Plus, due to the marinade, it leaves a lot of excess fluid.

11. Your stir fry is considered 'done' about 2-3 minutes after the addition of the mushrooms (all veggies are tender).  Your marinade should also be cooked away.  I like well-done mushrooms, so I left mine on a bit longer.

12. I have a two-quart size bowl that I dumped the pan into, but a mixing bowl will probably suffice as well.  Serve with the sauce (which has been sitting quietly on the back of the stove top).  I also normally do rice with it, but you should probably be able to figure that bit out, if you're attempting this.


I've made this twice, cooking on Saturday, and it's never made it to Tuesday -- I normally eat the entire thing by myself in rapid succession.

Summertime and Making Rank

While I'm waiting for latest moving assessor to come through and toss a number out to transport my worldly possessions, I'll bang out an entry.  With any luck, he'll arrive in the middle of this. 

Moving the second-to-last week of June.  I've already started packing; trying to get one box done a day means less of a rush later and less stress on the cats.  They'll go to the vet the day of the move, and I'll go back to FW and bring them to the new place once the basics are set up for them (and me!).  At the moment, my current culinary goal is to eat everything in the fridge and not buy anything else.  So that's a budget saver.....

Yeah, the last two weeks of school murdered my paycheck. The gas hike has not helped.  I just have to make it to August financially and then it's all good. 

EDIT: and then the guy showed up, haha.  Got a good deal, and I am set to go for June 23, huzzah.  Now to pack!

As some of you (most of you) know, I went to the Dallas Comic Con and met Leonard Nimoy.  Not a great hotbed of interaction, but hell, I met a legend and he was very polite.  I was sort of bothered by the fact people would just drape themselves all over him.  Yes, I know it's his job, and yes, I know I just paid $65 for this.....but

He's an icon and a man, not a a prop.  So I said good morning, thank you, and any kind words I could muster.  Beyond Mr. Nimoy and the sheer joy of watching him live (and having a geekgasm hearing him do Henry V), I also had a following of those who liked the costume and makeup.  I had the time of my life -- one of my top days, even with the 5:30 wake up call for makeup! 

Yes, I did wake up that early for the Vulcan ears and the Vulcan eyebrows.  I'll probably do a more detailed post later on the how-to- aspect.  However, that did get me in touch with a couple of gentlemen from the USS Navras, a chapter of Starfleet International....

You know what's coming....

So yes, I got recruited as the Chief Science Officer, with a rank of Lieutenant Commander.  And I am a Vulcan.  Token alien crewmate?  Possibly, but I loved the ears and the makeup. I think I'll render an alias for the crew, as Anna is not a very Vulcan name.  I have a few ideas, but we'll see.    I need to get a new uniform/costume, but that's fine; it's one of the awesome grey/black ones from First Contact.  And I get to write articles about being nerdy about science, like NASA, weather, books, Star Trek news, etc.  Research! 

So other than upping and renewing my devotion to Trek, I'm also doing the same for Sherlock Holmes.  Going to read the entire series (hopefully) before I pack it away.  I have a book by Alan Forrest I want to get through as well as another about Eleanor of Aquitaine, but I've found myself finishing a Study in Scarlet and the Sign of Four in rapid succession.  Well, not much to do these days other than read for fun and plow through TV series on Netflix.  This is really my moment without school and work in over a year.  I can barely remember what it's like!  I mean, what did I DO? 

The truth is stranger (and better) than fiction.

 I'm currently reading Geoffrey Treasure's Mazarin: The Crisis of Absolutism.  Giulio Mazarini started in his native Italy and through connections, worked his way up to lay cardinal.  He ends up as the famed Cardinal Richelieu's successor, first minister of France, protector and godfather of Louis XIV, and close confidant of Anne of Austria, Louis' mother and queen regent. 

Of course, there is extensive discussion of the rumor of Mazarin's exact relationship with Anne -- just confidants, united for Louis' protection?  Or something more?  Louis XIV himself indicated something more, given how much he adored Mazarin and extended him courtesies (such as riding out to meet him personally) that normally were reserved for other royals.  Some go as far to suggest that Mazarin and Anne even got married in secret.  There's no real evidence and no recorded "walk of shame" for either, but Treasure, despite citing this evidence, tells the tale of Anne and Mazarin as if it was a marriage in perilous times.  No overt lovey dovey crap, but he certainly illustrates the desperation while parted as well as the kind opinions each held of the other, not to mention the great schemes the pair cooked up together. 

My previous readings of Eye of the Lynx (a book on the Lincean Academy of Italy), The Assassination of Henry IV (establishment of absolutism in France), and Music in the Service of the King (French court music history, delightful read, horribly rare book) all tie neatly back to this and to the interesting connections between France and Italy during the 1600s.  Given that I have done research on Louis XV and even later, Napoleon (a Corsican who neatly hedged between Italian and French), it's pretty epic when the names and places are read as a great, overarching tale, such as the Lord of the Rings trilogy or Terry Pratchett's Discworld. 

And I think this is why I tend to cope with history better than some -- I read it as if it's a novel.  You get to book's end, and then you say, "and this all really happened."  Minus the lack of room for fan fiction in most cases, most of it is outrageously brilliant -- the defenestration of Prague, Abelard and Heloise, Eleanor of Aquitaine,  Houdini -- more than just their popular images suggest.  What we generally know and see on TV (save for the Hitl-- History Channel and its kin) are the "fan fiction" or parody interpretations. 

Random spouting as I cruise through the book.  Back to the grind!

Cat Parent Woes and Wobbles

For those that aren't cat people, this post probably won't interest you at all.  In fact, it will probably annoy you, so you may want to skip it.  But! Those who have fuzzies probably may want to take a read or two.

As most of you know, I am a "meowmy" to Memphis, a 1.5 year old black domestic short hair, and Tenny, a 1.5 year old tabby domestic medium hair with one eye.  Very easy to tell apart.  Despite popular belief, they are both girls; I always wanted a black cat named Memphis, regardless of gender, and Tenny (short for Tennessee) goes well with it. 

Cat food is one of those things that people normally say, "It's just a cat.  It's fine" when it comes to brands, types, and quality.  I guess it's a philosophical question: "What is Hecuba to he and he to Hecuba?" as Hamlet says it.  Me personally, I consider the cats my furry children: I'm responsible for their health and well-being, they make me happy, and both sides of the equation enjoy the others' company. Since I've put them under my care, they are my responsibility.  They could have gone to a different home -- but they didn't. 

That all said, I accidentally got "into" cat nutrition.  Memphis decided to scream her furry little head off outside a friend's apartment, and since he couldn't take her, I did.   Upon arriving home, I attempted to feed her the Meow Mix my friend gave me.  Baby couldn't do it; her little teeth couldn't crunch the kibble.  Plan B it was then! I had gotten the little furball a bunch of tiny 3-oz cans of wet food for her to try, ranging from Walmart's Special Kitty to Iams to Newman's Own (I was looking more for baby serving size than ingredients).

Well, ate she did.  Some more than others.  Hmm.  Why?  And was there something I should be feeding her, since she was so little?  And so down the rabbit hole of catfood I went.


It's best to start early on a soft, high grade food.  Kittens are very easy to switch foods; older cats, not so much.  For pet owners trying to get the cat over to a healthier food, I think steps are key. Your cat likes the cheap cat food because it's tasty -- supertasty because it's been sprayed with chemicals that make it taste ridiculously good.  But that hides the fact it's not real meat.  Cats are obligate carnivores -- their diet is almost exclusively meat, unlike a dog, who can eat meat and non-meat food.  As a result, cats don't process grains, fruits, and vegetables very well. Then there are things that make foodies nuts when they see it in human food: high fructose corn syrup, artificial colors and flavors, animal byproducts. All that filler is junk food.  What happens when you feed a kid exclusively junk food instead of a good diet?  Fat kid.  Fat cat.  More on this later. 

Online searches immediately made me feel bad that I fed Memphis Special Kitty and Iams that first week.  I felt far less guilty about Newman's Own.  When I got Tenny, I switched her from her dry food to the food I had settled on for Memphis: Felidae Cat and Kitten canned with the equivalent dry food as a bribe. It was an affordable cat food that I could buy a case of -- and Felidae has a frequent buyer program wherein if you buy 12 cases, you get one free.  Sounds like alot, but when you have two fuzzies, it goes surprisingly quick. 

This was fine until May 2010.  Then Memphis started getting red ears and itchy, so much to the point that  I thought she had ringworm.  We'd had an outbreak with Tenny's arrival (poor dear), and I thought it had been conquered.  Fortunately, the vet assessed it as an allergy or irritation to something in the environment.  Nothing had been changed, so he suggested looking at her food to see if she'd developed an allergy to something. 

Just like humans, cats will develop allergies as they get older.  Most adult humans have some level of lactose intolerance and can't drink straight, whole milk anymore without some consequence.  Apparently this was the case with Memphis.  The problem was what. She was already on an all-natural food.  So I grabbed a few cans of the grain free Felidae.  With adequate experimentation, Memphis' problem causer was brown rice.  She hasn't had  fire-engine red ears since I switched her over to completely grain free food.

The transition was easy -- it was within the same brand, and it really was just an elimination of an ingredient more than a complete switch.  If your cat food make has a healthier or grain-free variation of its food (I know Fancy Feast does have grain free varieties, for example ), go ahead and start on that, adding a bit of it to the mix everyday.  It got to the point where if I didn't mix the food, Memphis would eat the grain free and leave the side of the plate with the grain cat food alone.  

Of course, the problem now is that there is one store in the whole city where one can purchase Felidae Grain Free.  Another problem point is that most dry food, even if they have "grain free" as a plug, do have brown rice somewhere in the list.  Now that I had a healthy baseline food, the next mission was to branch out. 

We first started with Innova's Evo last summer.  That was a great filler to stretch out those Felidae cans, but it wasn't very well received.  I mixed 3 spoonfuls of Felidae with one spoonful of Evo to start, and then gradually pared down the Felidae contribution and raised the Evo.  I continued to feed the Felidae dry, as finding a dry food without rice is MUCH harder than finding a wet food without it.  Evo wasn't sorely missed when I stopped feeding it out last summer, but I think I'll try it again just to see how goes it.

Much like introductions, introducing a new food takes about a few weeks before all things are well.  Also like introductions, you start with very small, brief exposures, and work your way up.  Evo was not fed exclusively as a meal until week 6.  If you cat has a few days of diarrhea whenever you add more of the new food, but then it regulates, let the cat be regular before changing the food content again.  It could take months before the cat is completely switched.  Slow and steady wins the conversion race.    Also, make sure the fuzzy eats every day, even if you have to bribe it with old food.  This process is easier if you're just trying to add new things to the diet rather than a complete conversion. 

That said, I'm using a different tactic at the moment to explore flavors for the cats.  I haven't committed to one "official" secondary food yet.  Rather, what I'm doing is trying to sort out what flavors the cats like.  Felidae Cat and Kitten is a mix of chicken, turkey, lamb, and fish.  So on the weekends -- when I'm home and can observe them all the time and take care of emergencies -- I feed them small 3 oz can or pouch of different food rather than the Felidae.  I split it between the cats.  It's just one meal, once a week, that's out of the ordinary.  Should they reject it out of hand, the Felidae is procured and immediately gobbled.   I normally put Felidae out before I go to bed these nights so that they aren't hungry, since their dinner was smaller than usual.  At times, if they really enjoyed dinner last night, they may make a stink about eating "the usual" again the next morning.   Remember, you know they like their regular food, and the other food is simply being used as a treat right now. 

Once you start using that new food as more than a treat, you may see a change in litter box output, as I indicated previously -- that's fairly normal.  If it doesn't normalize within a week or if the cat behaves differently, then you need to be concerned and stop the new food, and let the cat get back to normal on their regular diet.  Watch carefully.  I haven't reached this point yet,  as I'm just doing "Saturday night treats" in order to feel out what my cats like.  I've only had one bad reaction to a Saturday night nom, and that was Memphis and the Wellness Beef and Chicken.  Apparently, the princess no can has cheeseburger, because even though she loooooves it, it doesn't love her back and makes her vomit.  Tenny ate it fine.

Whenever you go hunting for a new food, check to make sure there aren't any recalls out for any reason -- you don't want a sick cat, and you also don't want a "false negative" on your kitty dietary exploration.  Cats are smart -- if it's a bad can or a bad case, and they can tell, they will turn their noses up at it.  We had one bad can this week -- a regular grain free Felidae one.  Rest of the case was fine, but Memphis staunchly refused to go near her food bowl, and Tenny (who is a living garbage disposal) picked at it and then threw it up immediately, then again during her nap.  Not good.   It was the last can in that case, and so far they've been very happy with the new case of Felidae.   

Both cats have turned their noses up at straight chicken, be it Blue Wilderness or Wellness.  Tenny loooves turkey though, but prefers the Wellness over the BW, judging from how much she ate.  Duck is an eh response for both cats in the Wellness variety.  Memphis has become a fish snob, particularly over salmon Wellness.  Both cats eat Wellness tuna with gusto, but I've found that most cat experts would caution against using fish-based cat food as a main dietary staple, since there is risk of mercury and other issues with fish. So fish a few times  a week is fine, but not every day. 

On the downside, both don't like shellfish at all, and Memphis can't tolerate beef.  So far, those are my findings.  I've taken out the Wellness beef and salmon can I was going to give them next week, and I'm keeping it on the side to donate to a shelter or something.  Even when experimenting, I make sure the fuzzies don't go hungry -- they aren't punished for not liking something. 

Costs.  That's the last thing I'll discuss here, and for a lot of people, it's the bottom line as to whether they'd go through all this for the cat.  I think that's unfortunate, but true.  Feeding a cat cheap food can result in obesity, urinary crystals, dehydration, and a lot of other health problems.  These may accumulate into an early death or massive vet bills to avoid that. The extra money per can or per bag you spend is more of a sting coming out of the pocketbook, but it beats the vet bills later.  Additionally, cats eat until they get what they need -- your can will likely eat less of a better brand than they would a low-grade brand.  So instead of a full can of cat food, they may only  need to eat half.  Without the additives and fillers, they get more of what they directly need and skip the poundage.  There are many stories I've seen where the food switch resulted in a cat losing a lot of weight, but regaining it in the form of muscle.  Cats are more active, playful, happy, and look gorgeous on better food.  Those things are not measurable in $$ but the lack of vet bills and the additional number of years you get with your cat are.  Good food paired with regular vet visits and playtime result in the happiest cats. 

Other than the research I've found using my fuzzies as guinea pigs, I do have to give credit where credit is due to the various blogs and support groups I've read. 

www.thewayofcats.org -- the first cat blog I ever stumbled upon, and it's been a massive help in terms of food and behavior modification.  And Toys!  And cat stress reduction!  And human stress reduction! And really everything else -- I think everyone should be reading this.

www.ibdkitties.net -- one Catster member's website; Alex the cat has a sad story, but the mission she inspired is impressive.  Alex's owner has great advice on switching and is an advocate of the raw diet.  I haven't discussed it here, as it is something to be learned and mastered. She also has a massive list of grain-free, healthy foods for people to try who can't do raw. 

www.catster.com -- the forums on food and nutrition are excellent sources.  There are a wide variety of cats with a wide variety of dietary requirements, issues, and cautions.  And it's a great group to go for support -- they've seen it all, and they all are cat crazy like you are (if you managed to read the entire post, haha).  They were brilliant when I was stressed over having Tenny's eye removed.

Phoenix Rises.

Well, time to post a long-overdue update.  In short, my soul was consumed by school. And then I quit my job and joined the circus.

I did well though for fall 2010:  2 A's and a B, and the B was in the difficult, satisfying course.  I think I may be running an A this term, though I am not sure.  But at least I'm more secure with my progress this term as compared to last.  Decidedly lighter course load -- two study courses and a historic bibliography course (only an hour). 

But I've also undergone some major life changes over the past six months, mostly related to school... and they only came to a head about two weeks ago!  Firstly, my 2002 Escort died a painful death: transmission went kaputski.  Cost to fix?  $2500. Cost of downpayment for a new car:  $3000 to get it under my budget. You can guess which one I chose.

This turned out to be a fortunate occurrence, because the same week I was scrambling through car drama, it became evident that a parting of the ways at my job was imminent and that there was a possible job waiting in the wings. 

I have started working at UNT as a curriculum coordinator/events person for the Jewish studies program. Yep, no more front office stuff or medical field jobs.  I've officially crossed over into the academic realm.  I walk from my job to my classes. 

Some of you will never understand the magic of that.  I don't expect everyone to, but believe me, I'm happy.  I've considered moving up closer to UNT, but at the moment, I'm content where I am; not a lot of places have as much room as I do now, and if they do, they have a no pets or a one-pet only policy. 

Speaking of the fuzzies, for any curious parties, they are doing well.  Bit out of sorts with the new schedule, but they're coping.  Well, Tenny is; Memphis is being a little princess about it. 

I figured I would scrawl something tonight, as I think my brain is too tired for German, course work would knock me out, but Sherlock Holmes would keep me up to all ungodly hours.  One more short day of work this week (or maybe not!) and then a hair cut probably on Saturday.  I was really stressed the last few weeks during the fireworks, so the hair needs a lop to get rid of all the dead ends. 

I did read an interesting Governor Christie article from the NY Times yesterday, so I may post on that tomorrow after work.  I think it would be prudent for me to blog since I'm all brain work now, rather than juggling two very different lives.

Until then -- adieu.