Rude Awakening

by Marinka on January 9, 2010

Apparently, Husbandrinka and I are on a budget. And before you get too excited, as I did, it’s not one of those economy-boosting budgets where we infuse lots of capital into retail.  It’s one where we don’t spend money that we don’t have budgets which I think means that the terrorists win.

So now every purchase has to be scrutinized which is totally exhausting and counter-indicative for retail therapy.

But whatever.  We are all making cutbacks.

As recently as last week, for example, Young Ladrinka was deprived of additional Wii games, Husbandrinka is trying to make due with his geriatric laptop and apparently 2010 is not the year that I get to be all gem-encrusted.  (Don’t worry about my daughter, though. She’s and her MacBook are fine.)

And Nicki is pitching in as well.  For example, we got a “it’s time for your check up” postcard from her vet and Husbandrinka said “she needs a check up like she needs a hole in the head” which is geezer for “not very much”.  So, we’re saving money already.  Before you go all PETA on me, let me remind you that a few months ago, Nicki had an exten$ive blood work up and her  blood was declared to be pristine.

But I have an even greater money saving idea.

Because right now, Nicki uses Feline Pine litter. Which is great, but pricey.

So I decided to toilet train her.  That’s right.

I will train Nicki to use the toilet.  The savings will be enormous.

Right now,  Nicki uses a $10 bag of Feline Pine a week, that’s $520 a year!  Multiplied by 15 years, and adjusted for inflation= $a lot.

I can’t wait to start saving!

One year ago ...

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{ 33 comments… read them below or add one }

K-Line January 9, 2010 at 9:38 am

You have seen that cat toilet training system, yes? It’s outrageous. I saw a commercial (linked to from Jezebel) last week.

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Marinka January 9, 2010 at 10:10 am

I haven’t seen the training system, but I have the book–21 Days to a Litterbox free home. I think day one is: Get Rid of Cat.

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Coco
Twitter:
January 9, 2010 at 10:20 am

Sounds like I could write that kind of book. Obviously people buy them.

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Marinka January 9, 2010 at 7:01 pm

I would definitely buy the sequel.

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Maureen@IslandRoar January 9, 2010 at 10:27 am

Let me know if you have any luck. Altho I have 5 cats and they’d probably be fighting to use the bathroom.

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Marinka January 9, 2010 at 7:01 pm

You may need to get rid of a few cats, for best results.

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Kate Coveny Hood
Twitter:
January 9, 2010 at 10:57 am

I don’t know about toilet training cats… They already think they’re people – and getting them too familiarized with the bathroom may make for a future of the Marinka family lining up outside the door while Nikki catches up on her mirror time.

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Marinka January 9, 2010 at 7:04 pm

There are definitely drawbacks to this plan. I may need to litter train some family members.

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Masala Chica
Twitter:
January 9, 2010 at 11:04 am

Hey Robert DeNiro was able to do it in “Meet the Parents.” Just don’t expect the cat to flush the toilet. Because apparently, that’s not possible.

Cutting back means less clutter. And less stuff to trip over. That is what I have been telling myself anyway.
Kiran

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Marinka January 9, 2010 at 7:05 pm

I don’t even expect my kids to flush!

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Maddnessofme January 9, 2010 at 11:16 am

Use Everclean litter and (have someone) scoop it once in a while. Put the poop in a left over plastic shopping bag and toss it.

Everclean keeps the odor away amazingly, and is economical because you only have to replace it every few months.

Oliver prefers extra strength unscented.

The box looks like this –
http://www.petco.com/product/1664/Ever-Clean-Unscented-Extra-Strength-Premium-Clumping-Cat-Litter.aspx?CoreCat=certona-_-ProductList_Cat_1-_-Ever%20Clean%20Unscented%20Extra%20Strength%20Premium%20Clumping%20Cat%20Litter-1664

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Marinka January 9, 2010 at 7:07 pm

although I see that this fantastic product did get FIVE PAWS (from some mutant cat, I presume), I am committed to get rid of the litterbox. All you naysayers will be sorry when Nicki is invited to poop at the White House.

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Jeanne January 9, 2010 at 12:39 pm

It’s a shame you weren’t blogging yet when Ladrinka and you daughter were being potty-trained — then we could compare progress notes.

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Marinka January 9, 2010 at 7:11 pm

I am so bitted that I didn’t discover blogging earlier. Although if I did, my kids would probably still not be potty trained. But I’d definitely be thinking about starting.

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rachel January 9, 2010 at 1:23 pm

Ha! Good luck with that. My neighbors tried that, and their cats started pooping in the vents (in the floor).

But maybe Nicki is smarter than that. Obviously it must work for someone, right?

FYI…we use some purple cat litter, buy it at Costco and change it every few months. Waaaaaaay cheaper than Feline Pine.

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Marinka January 9, 2010 at 7:11 pm

But we love Feline Pine! It’s so garden fresh!

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Gretchen January 9, 2010 at 1:33 pm

I’m afraid that in order to keep from angering the environmentalists by wasting so much water on cat flushing, you and Nicki may have to start sharing flushes. Which seems just wrong.

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Marinka January 9, 2010 at 7:12 pm

Oh, please don’t get me started on the environmentalists. Mostly because I don’t know what I’m talking about.

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Heather (qtberryhead) January 9, 2010 at 3:35 pm

We only have one bathroom…and I’ll be damned if I have to compete with the cat for it.

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deb williams January 9, 2010 at 5:16 pm

same thing here, although my youngrinkas (did i do that right?) aren’t playing along very cooperatively.

but, anyway, i am cutting back on veterinary care for the lowest individuals on the williams foodchain. our new little kitty got some sort of weird eye infection and i simply used some leftover eye drops from my teen’s recent bout with pink eye.

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MommyNamedApril
Twitter:
January 9, 2010 at 5:51 pm

I’m impressed that you would even think about *trying* to train the cat. I haven’t even started training my 2 year old. Ok, OK! … he’s three. :-/

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Sophie, Inzaburbs January 9, 2010 at 5:54 pm

OMG has Nicki become a … um … larger proportioned cat?
Or are prices in NYC that outrageous?
My cat goes through a $4 bag of Feline Pine every 10 days. And I made The Daddy give up Starbucks to finance the habit. So it’s all good 🙂

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kiki
Twitter:
January 9, 2010 at 7:36 pm

i’m not sure how many poops a cat takes in a day, but won’t your water bill increase with all the extra flushing? good luck.

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kiki
Twitter:
January 9, 2010 at 7:37 pm

oh, yeah. i forgot about cat’s peeing. they pee, too. maybe Nicki will have to go when you go to save on water usage.

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MommyTime
Twitter:
January 9, 2010 at 8:04 pm

Because nothing is easier to shoehorn into a busy working mother’s schedule than toilet training a cat. Obviously.

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the mama bird diaries
Twitter:
January 9, 2010 at 10:08 pm

Maybe nicki will fall in the toilet. Imagine the cost savings!

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Catherine
Twitter:
January 10, 2010 at 9:16 am

I’ll be following this process closely. If it works, maybe I’ll try to toilet train our dog. Going out in zero-degree weather to stand around while she inspects every little pile of snow for *just the right place* to deposit her waste products makes my head explode.

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Elisa
Twitter:
January 10, 2010 at 10:16 am

Great idea! I think you should watch Meet the Parents for tips. Afterall, that cat not only can use the toilet, he can also flush.

And with the money you save you can get a pair of Manolos. Or get a body part gem-encrusted or something.

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Audrey January 10, 2010 at 2:33 pm

My boyfriend and I tried to train our cats to use the toilet. We only have one bathroom, and on day two, we said to hell with it. We ended up getting a designer catbox and we keep it in our living room. http://www.designercatbox.com/about_us.html
It’s not perfect, but it does contain the smell and no one knows there’s a catbox next to the couch.

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abdpbt January 10, 2010 at 8:06 pm

Part of me wants to try to train our kitten to use the toilet. And then part of me thinks perhaps THAT, that is letting the terrorists win.

BTW there is apparently a cheaper version of feline pine availabe at OSH or Lowes or something like that. Not that this matters so much.

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Susan Weinstein January 11, 2010 at 2:56 pm

This is so funny. We also economize, but that seems to mean junior gets his treats and I go without my glass of wine. So perhaps later blog will address sacrificing for our children, and then wanting to sacrifice them…anyway. It was fun to dip into your blog today. 2010 is the year of the Tiger, so let’s sharpen our claws, it’s supposed to be a rollercoastery kind of year.

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magpie January 11, 2010 at 5:20 pm

I can’t wait to see the photos.

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jessica January 12, 2010 at 6:27 pm

if you really do potty train that cat then you can make money charging people to watch. What? I’d pay.

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