Bitey Bugger!

It's sad really. All dragons hit a "teenage" phase, a period of three days to three months where they act out and try to be boss, usually between the age of six and nine months. A dragon turns out like this little guy when they have either an inexperienced, scared owner, or one that just doesn't give a damn.

Once a lizard thinks it is the boss, it is quite difficult to get them back out of it again - they have no reason to trust the inferior creatures that should bring them food and then piss off.

For those that could do with learning, this is the first step to putting an aggressive and undernourished dragon back in their place. I don't tolerate being bitten at - but I do take the opportunity to stuff a tasty food in there.

With the aid of His Lordship's Goretex gloves, the little guy's already accidentally eaten five dragon fly larvae and most of two grapes whilst trying to attack my fingers - that'll do wonders for his severe dehydration.

Tomorrow, vitamin coated tasty things. And to order some new light fittings.

It seems the little guy didn't understand fun previously either. He has spent the last half hour running up and down this big bit of cork bark I've given him, apparently in a great sense of ... well, considering how scared and angry he is, comparative joy.

With persistence, I finally managed to securely catch him and he calmed down (well, stopped freaking out) long enough to get some oxbow vitamin and protein herbivore mix with added calcium in him.

You just have to be patient and firm with angry dragons - and watch out for those back teeth. The front teeth are pointy and sharp, yes, but the BACK teeth are saw blades built directly into the powerfully muscled jawbone and are like razors.

Use armoured gloves if you have a dragon that is dedicated and determined to deal a nasty blow. You'll thank me later.

Lizards Landing...

Phew!

Everything survived the journey - the removals guys did an amazing job - they can lift some impressive weight! Terry's tank went into the alcove with less than millimetres to spare; I'm just glad I'd had enough brains to calculate the new flooring into the plan and his tank actually scraped off the top layer of paint from the wall as the removals men slid it in under the alcove.

Admittedly, I hadn't calculated THIS little guy into my plan though.

We haven't got a name for him yet, but he's the last rescue I can take on - I literally don't have room for any more. Six dragons is more than enough for me, and this little dude is enough trouble for three dragons by himself. There's no WAY he's been handled regularly - he's seriously vicious.

But we'll break him. After all, we managed to crack the dangerous Miss Mocha, so we can certainly sort this little chap out.

My main concern is his health, rather than his attitude - he's dangerously underweight and in terrible condition - the heating is too low (I have a handy long range laser thermometer; very useful for taking measurements without actually having to get close to violent and scared reptiles.) and he's got a crappy "curly bulb", which isn't providing anywhere NEAR enough light or UV levels. Bearing in mind he's supposed to be nearly two years old, he's dangerously under weight - his spine sticks out, his tail is a bony whip. Hyphen's the same age and is literally twice the weight.

Mind you, his attitude is pretty appalling too.

He's fast and nasty with it - the moment he sees you, you can see he gets uncomfortable, sootying round the face and flaring his ribs. Get closer, and he flaps out this square little beard and starts darting forward.

Bring on His Lordship and the Goretex gloves.

It's probably going to be the only way we're going to be able to handle him - and we need to handle him to get medicines into him, not to mention supplements. We need to get weight on him, and fast.

Having said that though, he eats well. A little too well. I don't think he's seen actual food for a long time, and he definitely hasn't seen water before.

Poor little sod.

Luggin' the Lizards

Here it is - moving day at last...

The glorious new floor is a laid, the living room walls are now a delicious confection of cool creamy custard yellow with meringue coving and the kitchen is ... um, raw plaster.

But never mind! Even Tsammy's got into the swing of helping pack and move things - it's always fun to find a self-propelling box. Saves me the hassle of moving it, I guess.

When he's not helping move boxes, he's making me proud - curled up quietly in his basket and acting as a perfect role model to the others. They're all a little nervous as they know something is going on, though quite what, they're not sure.

At least their tanks will be quick and easy to stack back together, and normalcy will shortly be restored.

Terryterry isn't keen on being shut in a plastic box, but he'll get over it once he realised there's a handful of waxworms in there. He coped last time, and he was in his tub for over 24 hours - he's only in there 14 hours this time.

I have to tape it shut because he's a very bright little lizard - smart enough to lift up the lid, tip the box over, wriggle out and escape back into the undergrowth of his vivarium.


Speaking of which - I'm a little worried about Terry's tank. It is HUGE and incredibly heavy, but I've measured that alcove over and over and over and over...

Oh. Apparently the millipedes are also bright enough to copy Terry and bust out. Well, that's a bit inconvenient.

Two weeks to go...

Nice one - I don't even have my collection tins yet, and in less than a week we've already raised £150 for Macmillan! I'm really impressed with you guys, thank you so much!


We've still got another couple of weeks to go, so #Hairsyourchance to make a difference - put your money where your mouth is and vote whether I keep my hair or not. On August 31st, I will be tallying up the funds raised on each side - and the side with the most votes/pounds will win - and decide what happens to my hair. It's scary, but it's going to be a whole heap of fun finding out what happens. After all, people with cancer don't get a choice whether they lose their hair or not, so I felt it was only appropriate that I should be held by the same dilemma. I'm not brave - the nurses are MUCH braver than me.  They're here for you - so I'm just trying to return the favour. 

Will you vote to help me keep my hair?
http://www.justgiving.com/yeshair

Or are you voting so I will shave my head?
http://www.justgiving.com/cuthair/

You can also text to 70070 to make a £1 donation:
Text HAIR53 to save my hair
Text HAIR94 to shave my head

We also have corporate sponsorship, with NatWest offering to give us a separate donation of £250 if we raise £250 ourselves, Toni&Guy are on board too, offering to cut or colour whatever the result, and ForbesBurton are using their business contacts to help fundraise as well as sponsor themselves. They're even suggesting a cheering party for the day! If you have a business - or even if you don't - you're VERY welcome to join in the fun, 

From destruction to creation...

So, it's all go-go-go at the moment - we're moving house on Thursday and there is SO much to do between working and sleeping. When I'm not packing, or moving stuff, we have been working hard at the new house trying to get it ready for moving in. I've just taken a quick break to update my blog.

His Lordship has been taking apart old units and designed me a lovely wash-bin insert into a new built-in cupboard unit, and has remodelled and repaired the massive wardrobes in his new study. He's also done a wonderful job of cleaning up the brick barbecue and freeing it from the immense swathes of stubborn, ancient ivy.

Having merrily totalled the old kitchen a couple of weeks back, I've been continuing with my no-nonsense brand of mess-reduction: I promptly kicked apart the old potting rack taking up so much room down the side of the house, ripped up a big, tough patch of dune-grass and startled my grandmother by single-handedly taking down a laburnum tree, then heaving out the root-stock.

I now have a nice clear kitchen garden, with some lovely low-creeping thyme and a lush, silvery leafed sage. For some reason, I can't seem to find rosemary anywhere in this town. Six different species of lavender, but no rosemary. Eh. At least we'll have some lovely rhubarb next year. It'll be very happy where that laburnum used to be.

The lizards are bemused at all the fuss, but are otherwise happy enough. I don't think they've remembered that lots of boxes mean they have to move. Heheheh, poor suckers...

Hair's Your Chance - Sponsor update!

My partner (+Rich Peall) lost both his parents last year to cancer, so this year I'm raising money for #macmillan, to help pay for #macmillannurses to continue their good work and to thank the #macmillanprofessionals for all their help. 

#Hairsyourchance to make a difference - put your money where your mouth is andvote whether I keep my hair or not!

Will you vote to help me keep my hair?
http://www.justgiving.com/yeshair

Or are you voting so I will shave my head?
http://www.justgiving.com/cuthair/

You can also text to 70070 to make a £1 donation:
Text HAIR53 to save my hair
Text HAIR94 to shave my head

On August 31st, I will be tallying up the funds raised on each side - and the side with the most votes/pounds will win - and decide what happens to my hair. It's scary, but it's going to be a whole heap of fun finding out what happens. After all, people with cancer don't get a choice whether they lose their hair or not - so I felt it was only appropriate!

Toni&Guy in Grimsby were thrilled with the #Hairsyourchance project, and have kindly offered to shave it all off for those of you voting to cut it. They've also offered to add a green flash into my existing hair if those of you voting to keep it win! 

ForbesBurton (the business recovery specialists) are offering sponsorship and NatWest have also pledged that, if I can raise over £250, they will give us an additional £250 donation towards the cause. If that's not a good reason to chuck a few pennies in, I don't know what is! 

Cancer affects us all at some point, directly or indirectly, so #Hairsyourchance to get involved and place your votes!

There's also these nifty QR codes you can print off - people with smartphones can scan these weird square barcode things with their mobile phones to go straight to the right page.

We've got a discussion about it on GooglePlus, where loads of people are doing a wonderful job of spreading the word and I'm hoping to get a Hashtag campaign going for Hair'sYourChance. 

I'd link the Facebook version, but I can't work out how to do that. The new Timeline is making things a little complicated - sorry! 

I know my lovely Rich is going to forward it on Twitter and a few of his other, professional social networks - though I'd certainly appreciate extra shares if you're willing to spread the word! 

I'm also thinking of setting up eBay auctions for Yes and No later on, one for each "pot" - so watch this space.

If anyone has any fundraising suggestions or a more inventive way to spread the love, let me know - I'd be delighted for the help. 

There's even a little notice board on the donating site, so you can leave messages either here or there for me - I promise I'll do my best to reply to every message.

Even if you can't spare a couple of pennies, can you pass the word on for me? Macmillan have confirmed my Hairsyourchance project is unique, and I'd love people to hear about it.

Thanks, 

Amber :)

A Owl?

Either English isn't this dude's first language, or he has an awesome sense of humour, or I should worry about the state of people today... I saw an ebay listing for "A OLD OIL CAN". So, thinking it was just a typo (then copied and pasted into the description) I sent in a question for the giggles: "Izzit like a owl?"

I received [SIC]: "i am sorry i donot no want you mead a bout it looks like a owl. i just took pic. thanks" Mind you, further investigation reveals that he likes "colactables" and "a antique" or two - and I discovered what is now my all-time favourite listing: "a collactable door stop of a dog". Something about that phrase really tickles me. 

My brain reads that and translates it as: "Ugh. Rover's a complete door stop of a dog."

Housework - dusty.

Phew! I'll be glad once everything's finished...

My lovely not-yet-hubby spent his day off helping out at the new house, hauling building supplies and starting work on the garden.

He stopped to snap this picture of the plasterers making good and smooth the damage caused by the builders, now that the rotted wooden joist has been successfully removed (having discovered it was held up by half a brick, which was held up with a short stub of soft wood. Yeah....) and the steel beam has been safely - properly - fitted.

The plasterer's assistant was delighted when he discovered that we weren't going to be using the appliances currently in the building and has offered not only a fair price, but to take them away too.

I'll be able to fit my floor once the last bit of plastering is done and dry. My lounge still looks like a total building site, but not nearly as bad as it did, or as bad as the kitchen!

The kitchen is still a gutted room. The pipes have been removed and capped, the electrician, plumber and plasterer are primed to move in and get on.

There's still a seven week waiting list for the kitchen though. Eh, you can't win everything.

Things should move much quicker now though - we haven't changed the original layout since the first design, but all the colours are now changed so that they "synch" better - I was having a hard job finding things that suited the worktop I wanted. So I got rid of the worktop. (Heartbreaking as it is to lose the sparkles.)

We since found a worktop that is a delightful visual combination of very, very dark woodgrain and slate. That sounds spectacularly naff, but trust me, it's actually kinda interesting and has a lovely texture. (Top of pic pile, middle of stack.)

We're teaming it up with some matte, slightly champagne doors with brushed chrome bar handles, which will complement the lighter shade wall tiles in the three tone medley, with the mid-tone being matched by the floor tiles. (Top pile again, bottom.)

The floor tiles... are where I've sneaked in my sparkle. There's a little spattering of metallic flecks in the shale-like texture.

I also got fed up of having to fish out the giant millipedes from behind the coir backing in Terry's tank. I've now silicone-sealed the backing more tightly onto the glass and tucked the rope netting back into the top edge - that should discourage the little sods from getting down there in future.

Smells like vinegar. Mmmm.

Caesium the day

Well, having cracked the African countries, I finally got round to the project I've been eyeing up for some time - I'm now working on memorising the Table of Elements. 

I found a wonderful memory boosting tool through John Pratt's Memory Pegs which combines a variety of techniques to allow for easy absorption of name, symbol AND chemical number. Although I did find a slight problem: they're several years out of date. Oops. 

But that's ok, I can fill in the gaps later and most of the ones that have had a name change are still recoverable. Hahnium is now called Dubnium - which still fits in with the hand used in the Pegs, as you need them for spinning disks when you're working on the right sound for your dubstep track. 

Astatine! Astatine astatine astatine. ASSSTA-TIIIIINE. It won't stick in my head. Pic: Not astatine. Pretty though.

"Elemental astatine has never been viewed, because a mass large enough to be seen (by the naked human eye) would be immediately vaporized by the heat generated by its own radioactivity" - Nev.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astatine

My house!

For those not in the building knowhow: this picture is a good example of how to do it wrong.

Yes, we've just discovered the upstairs of the house we just bought is being held up by a three inch wide, rotting wood joist. The bricks are four inch wide.

Fortunately, my builder is a good bloke. He's happy to rush in a rolled steel joist (I-beam) in there to support the weight. He was already in to look at the damp problem, so it was no trouble to him to ask his boys to sort that out.

We knew about three patches of damp already, but when I oiked out a cabinet, I found a huge patch of bulging plaster on the short section towards the kitchen door. A quick poke brought the whole sheet tumbling off and revealed it to be crammed full, cotton candy style, with brick salt.

To see how bad it was going to be on the other side, I pulled out one of the kitchen cabinets (on the other side of the wall)... and discovered it goes ALLLLLL the way along the kitchen. Apparently the entire kitchen was built without any damp-proofing. Which my lovely builders have taken in their stride and given us a good price for fixing - they're cracking on with the job.

Luckily we were already intending to rip out the kitchen, so the level of destruction required isn't too much of a problem - and our landlord has given us an extra month to get sorted.

I pulled in a few other tradesmen and have since found that the electrics are on too high an amperage, there aren't enough circuits and some of the plugs that SHOULD be aren't on the protected circuits. Oh, and they're series, not ring circuited. And the pipe from the gas mains is too thin, and some of the water pipes are lead (luckily, internal ones. Those can be replaced pretty easily.) and the waste pipe is 3" not 4" and so will need replacing too. Which will require a whole new sewage trap dug in.

My grandparents have been wonderful in helping out and I can't thank them enough. Here's my grandad dropping chunks of tile in a bucket; trying to clear up after me as I go on a destructive rampage with a bolster chisel and three pound lump hammer. There are NO tiles left in the kitchen at all now. Not a bad afternoon's work.

And this is my living-room currently. Note the top left - that's part of the hole sampled in the first picture. And the bottom right is where half the wall has been removed to fit damp proof membrane.

The boxes under the window are all full of my new stranded bamboo flooring which should actually go nicely with the woodwork already in the room!

Oh, and if you look closely, you can see my new RSJ (rolled steel joist) just left of centre at the bottom of the picture. Woot - that's structural integrity right there... It does give me the frighteners though - this was the nicest house by far of the many we'd looked at. If it's in this state, just imagine what a mess some of those others must have been in!

I'm just hoping the boiler service comes back ok. Ooh, and I mustn't forget to get the chimney stack capped... 

Heh heh heh.

Stupid, stupid PPI company. Just look what they sent me - yes, a first class, postage paid return envelope! I am currently filling it with junk mail until I have to tape it shut....

On the actual form I wrote: "Hey! You! I DON'T WANT YOUR JUNK MAIL! It's bad enough that you're on my telly, my internet, my email, my mobile, my radio, my newspaper, my home phone - you can get out of my house!"

I've written a nice message on every bit of junk I've found, continuing on a Virgin advert and across others with: "So you can have some of MY junk mail. It's very kind of you to provide a solution for all the unrequested mail I get. I hope you appreciate the irony. It was certainly satisfying for me."

I finished up (after a swathe of takeaway menus and three different sects of Christian literatures) with a Red Cross flyer - "Do something good and donate some of the money."

It came in at a mighty 127.7 grams.

Bible Bashing - MY turn.

I'm afraid I lost my temper today. I had one guy trying to teach me about my own religion (yes, I KNOW. I'm a minister. I'm well aware how my religion started and that's why I like it, thanks) and another guy trying to tell me that his religion accepts science so much better than mine. "As for religion verses science I think Christianity wins in integrating the two very well indeed. In fact we see no contradiction at all!"

Hmmm? The Bible doesn't contradict science and every word is true? Well, if these dudes huff hot air into my sails, I'll set off at a clip of knots!

One of my favourites - Luke 23:44-45 "And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst." - So, it went dark all over the world for three hours, and yet no-one else noticed or thought to write this down? Hmmmmm. And Mark 15:33 mentions it - yet no other writing in the world outside of "The Gospels".

(Mark 13:24 also says " the moon shall not give her light," The moon does not emit its own light.)

Revelations 1:7 - "Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him." That could only happen on a flat planet. You know, because the curvature of the earth means that items more than a few miles away are obscured. That's why you see the mast of the ship before the boat itself. Even the Vikings knew that. Ditto Ezekiel 7:2 and Isiah 40:22... Also, Matthew 4:8, same kinda problem. Even Everest isn't high enough. Oh, and Daniel 2:35 and Psalms 33:14-15.

They also mention on several occasions that the earth doesn't move, for example Micah: "ye strong foundations of the earth" Isiah says something similar and Judges does and Job 38:4-6 does and Chronicles 16:30 does. Actually, in Psalms 19:4-6 "The sun ... His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it." they say the sun goes... round the earth? Heck, they knew THAT wasn't right over 500 years BC. Job 9:7 says pretty much the same thing too.

James 5:14-15: "If you are sick, rely on the power of prayer. It works every time". Hmmm. Linkie time: HERE and Psalms 103:3 - "The Lord ... who healeth all thy diseases." Yeah. See previous linkie.

Luke 4-2: "Being forty days ... And in those days he did eat nothing." Let us hit up some science HERE.

John 12:22 "Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit." - again, much humming to be had. That's not quite how seeds work.

They have some interesting animal logic fails too:

Paul 28:3-6 "And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand. And when the barbarians saw the venomous beast hang on his hand, they said among themselves, No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he hath escaped the sea, yet vengeance suffereth not to live. And he shook off the beast into the fire, and felt no harm. Howbeit they looked when he should have swollen, or fallen down dead suddenly: but after they had looked a great while, and saw no harm come to him." - Well, hang on a minute there. There are no poisonous snakes in Malta. I know, I've been there and have family there.

"the daughter of my people is become cruel, like the ostriches in the wilderness" - Lamentations 4:3. Ostriches are very attentive parents and good adoptive parents (even if they can't tell the difference!) HERE - and Psalms 39:13-16. What IS it about Christians and ostriches?!

Psalm 58:8 "As a snail which melteth, let every one of them pass away" - I've only seen snails melt and die when you chuck salt on them. I don't, I like snails.

Leviticus 11:20: Four-legged fowls are abominations. When was the last time you saw a bird with more than two legs? I'd say it was an abomination - it would be a mutant. I did see a kitten with eight legs once: HERE. Mind you, they're not always certain what a bird is. Apparently a bat might be a bird: "And the stork, the heron after her kind, and the lapwing, and the bat." (Leviticus 11:19)

Genesis 3:14 "And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life" - I've kept snakes. Snakes don't eat dust. Otherwise, I'd have a very clean house. Unless they were confusing it with the nozzle of a +Henry Hoover-Robinson ? (Soz Martyn, had to.)

I won't pick on Genesis too much. +Rich Peall has already mentioned how ... unstable most of that book is in comparison to science. I just couldn't resist that one though.

"Will the unicorn be willing to serve thee?" Wut, Psalms 39:9-10 - unicorns?! Oh, silly me, apparently they ARE real because God has "the strength of a unicorn." (Numbers 23:22 and 24:8)

Timothy 6:20 even says: "Science falsely so called"

"Then I beheld all the work of God, that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because though a man labour to seek it out, yet he shall not find it; yea farther; though a wise man think to know it, yet shall he not be able to find it." - Ecclesiastes 8:7 and something similar in 3:11 and not to mention 7:24 "That which is far off, and exceeding deep, who can find it out?" - Yeah. We're doing a pretty good job of discovering lots of scientific stuff without "God's" help thanks ;) Impossible, I think not.

Also, Mum - if you're trying to think of something to get me for Christmas - I'd like a copy of this in a nice frame. ;)

What a week...

So, most of you already know about the Penalty Crime Notice I received. Apparently, this is me, in London, performing an illegal turn. 

I can say yes, that's my bike, but no, that's not me. I was at my doctor's (several hundred miles away from London) and I haven't seen my bike since the 6th of December when it was stolen, recovered and removed by the police. And then the insurers paid out on the 9th of May.

Interestingly, the breakers screwed up. They have repaired and sold on my bike without notifying my insurers or the DVLA - but we're getting that sorted. This involves digging up lots of reasons why it's not me, and it's a bit tiresome for a starters.

Next up was a letter from the Benefits Agency going "Hey, you stopped getting Jobseekers on the 22nd February." Well... yes. I went back to work and notified you all. It turns out whomever originally processed our joint application  alsoscrewed up. Despite the fact that we can't rent out, live in, sell or do anything with the property down South until the probate is sorted, it still counts as an asset.

So the money they'd been giving us to help with the council tax and the fact that we were both unemployed with no income for three months now needs repaying. All I can say is Thank His Noodly Lordship that I have a savings account - having to give back over a grand and a half would wipe most people out in this town. I'm going to do it in instalments though - I may as well keep some of the interest on my savings accounts even as they take it off me.

And just to top it off, my mortgage providers really, REALLY screwed up. I was going to buy one house (as you can see previously on my blog) and then changed my mind to buy the one I liked better in the first place. The mortgage people were like, yeah, yeah, that's absolutely fine, done and we've sent out valuators and it's all fine.

So, happy, I went off to sign my contract. All polished up, all questions answered when my solicitor goes "You know, I'm sure I've seen your mortgage paperwork, but I just can't think where I've put it. Could you give them a call later and just ask them to fax me a spare?"

Sure, says I. I went back to work, rang the mortgage company and they went "What mortgage?"

I hit the roof. I have 24 hours to sort a mortgage out or lose both the house and six grand deposit. Luckily I know some very good people - my boss and one of my colleagues teamed up to help me out, find over-ride codes and access information. I can't thank them enough for rescuing me, but ain't that just the cheese on the biscuit.

Nessie's REAL!

Oh dear. The creationists are at it again.


Some schools in Louisiana are "disproving" evolutionism by using the Loch Ness Monster as their example. Seriously, here (FIXED!) is an article. They're also bringing it here to the UK and making it into educationary qualifications equivalent to A levels - read about it here. 


These schools are teaching children that Nessie is real, for the purpose of disproving the evil Darwinists. Personally, I don't feel that science classes are the place for religion. This worries me greatly as I strongly believe that there is too much evidence for evolution where ever you look, whether it be historical or modern. After all, most religions don't cope very well when people try to apply science to them.

This is how Pastafarianism started - because if you're going to teach Christian creation in science classes at school, you should give equal room to other religion's creation stories. They're just as valid.

And anyway, evolution is just the explanation for the diversity of species - NOT the beginning of life - however they're even figuring that out, step-by-step. http://exploringorigins.org has some fascinating insights as to how protocells started and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute has even "designed" something akin to these early protocells.

It's a fascinating study, you can read some more here. I'm also still working on my "fascinating" studies of the Book of Mormon here.

Cherry Terry

That was THE cutest experience I've ever had.

His Lordship found the box of cherries I had brought home, and sliced one into small wedges to give to Terry, our crested gecko.I've often given him Repashy mix and waxworms, there's always woodlice living in his tank and I regularly leave fruits in there - but I have never seen him eat it.

His Lordship waved some slices under Terry's nose, to which Terry responded by doing his "I'm a stick!" impression. In fairness to him, the little dude really commits. He freezes completely still - even if you prod him. 

I picked a slice out of Rich's palm and slapped him over the nose with it. And waited. And as expected, clean-freak gecko couldn't resist whipping out his little rose-petal tongue to clean off the juice.

His pupils dilated. I held the slice in front of him.

Lick. Licklick.
Licklicklicklicklick.
LicklicknibbleBITE. OM! Omnomnomnom! More please! MOAR!

He wolfed down three big slices, "killing" each one with a terrier's shake like he does with the waxworms. Admittedly, these are AMAZING cherries, tart and juicy and sweet...