Home alone, but...

[altivo]

Valentine Day gift Gary gave me this adorable tiny Clydesdale. Plush equines are hard to find, but Clydesdales are almost impossible.

Supposed to snow, but not happening yet. I'm being bad and reading a book instead of doing anything useful. Well, I'll be writing a review of the book, but still.

Comments

[quickcasey.livejournal.com]

Very nice.
I haven't done anything useful either. Just taking quizzes earlier this evening.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Still not quizzed out, eh?

[cozycabbage.livejournal.com]

Is that a Webkinz? You so have to join the cult online world of fun!

Not that I have one. I wouldn't spend the money.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Yes, it's a Webkinz. As for the online cult, well out of curiosity I did take the little tag off and try to log in. The website is all Flash-based, so it's useless as far as I'm concerned. So slow it never even finishes loading. Not even at work, on a T1 line. The latest Flash plugin crashes everything on Linux, too.

I dunno why people keep pushing Flash at us. It's an unmitigated disaster.

[cozycabbage.livejournal.com]

Hmph, most developers seem to imagine that everyone in the world is running Windows Vista with Internet Explorer 7, a big screen, a gig of ram, a high-speed internet connection, and unlimited drive space.

Of course, the target demographic is young children, most of whom would have close to the abovementioned stats. It's usually the older people who have 400MHz systems or worse.

Anyway, Webkinz are notorious for having their tags stolen, because that's what people want. If you just want the plush, and you don't care to immerse yourself in a children's world of flash-based games, I'm sure there'd be lots of people willing to buy the code.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Really? In my experience, the kids in the family usually get the hand-me-down computer.

It does seem like brain-dead marketing when developers just "assume" that everyone has high speed internet. US Census figures show that simply isn't true, even in the US itself.

The deficiencies of the Webkinz site though have more to do with the server than anything else. At work I tried it on a machine with a 3GHz processor, a gig of RAM, and a T1 ethernet connection. Windows XP, latest flash player, and (yuck!) Internet Explorer. Should be what they assume "everyone" has, but it still won't load and run.

Why I refuse to be bothered with Second Life or WoW, too.

[avon-deer.livejournal.com]

Lovely. What a sweet thing to find. :)

[altivo.livejournal.com]

I'll get a photo of him with his "mom", maybe this weekend. Yes, he's really cute.

[farhoug.livejournal.com]

Awws... cute! ^^

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Soft and fuzzy. ;D

[dongstyle-ltd.livejournal.com]

Oh my god. Aww <3

Come to think of it, I've seen a couple of plush Clydesdales (yes, no joke), around- especially while travelling, and immediately I thought of you (and immediately following, notifying you as I appreciate the rarity, especially good quality merchandise.) Alas, I had very little internet, and I should have bought them but I'm generally tight with money...

...screw it. I'm totally starting an equine plush collection.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Actually I need to post a photo of the big black plush pony I got back around New Year. It was in a drug store in Woodstock, not the sort of place I expect to find nice plushies, but this one is soft, cuddly, and large enough to use as a body pillow. He did come home with me, and for only $20 at that.

[dongstyle-ltd.livejournal.com]

Thing about plushies is because I live in an urban area, they tend to collect dust really quickly, so I keep them to a minimum. However, every time my siblings see an equine plushie in any shape or form they poke me with it suggestively. I should take them up on that.

But I'm not really sure what I want in a horsey plushie. I've never used a plushie for cuddling etc. except my hugely oversized Peter Rabbit, whom I generally use for shock value.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

I like the ones with "kohair" plush. They seem to stay soft longer and are less prone to matting even after cleaning. Likewise, foam filling stays more resilient provided you never wash it and put it into a dryer.

I have plushies in my bed always. My mate doesn't complain, and he'd better not, since he encourages the dogs to sleep with us and they try to push me out. ;p

Dusting plushies

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Actually, I find they clean up very well if you use a vacuum cleaner with one of those little round brush attachments. Rubbing or washing is more likely to grind the dust in and make it stick.

[hrrunka]

cute! :)

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Time for a photo update of plushies I think. Yes, this one is sweet.

[schnee.livejournal.com]

Awww, that's adorable. :)

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Yes. Too bad they don't have a much larger version.

[schnee.livejournal.com]

Yeah... that's usually a problem.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

That's why we have fursuits. Not only are they the right size for hugging, but they hug back. :D

[schnee.livejournal.com]

True. ^.^ MMmmm, I really need a fursuit myself.

Dawww.

[goldenstallion.livejournal.com]

Whinnyhi, Rider.

Is he the really tiny size like I have several of? Smaller than Imperator you gave me? I like those although they are too little for my bed.

Yes, I always sleep with my plushies, Thunder in particular since he is big enough and soft enough to bodypillow. Of course he needs regular cleaning (the big, commercial tumblewashers at laundrymats then extractor never the dryer - his mane might melt as I have seen another Thunder's do.

I will keep an eye peeled (strange expression) for a Clyde plushie.

Imperator

Re: Dawww.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Hiya handsome! Yea, he's a bit smaller than your Imperator, about six inches tall and maybe 8 from muzzle to rump. If he's a foal, then his tail isn't docked. (Yay!)

There was apparently a pegasus in the series, but it's been "retired". They are called "Webkinz" and you can see them on EBay. The Clyde is still actively available and apparently sells for $8 to $10. The pegasus is selling for $50 or more, and, unfortunately, is pink with stubby little wings. ;p

There are several other horsies in the series, including a Friesian and a paint that look interesting in photos. They come with a little tag that has a code number on that lets you register on a website and get an "adoption certificate." There's apparently an online game of some sort too. Geared for children, I imagine, but I can't get it to work here anyway. Since it's all for kids supposedly, the website registration doesn't ask for an e-mail address or anything. That surprised me. They aren't collecting marketing contacts!

[saythename.livejournal.com]

Awr! Gary done goodly!

[altivo.livejournal.com]

He always does. ;D

[dragon-moon.livejournal.com]

Awww, he's adorable! What a sweet gift.

Sometimes not doing anything useful is a very good thing. Mental recuperation and all that. ;D

Not doing anything

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Today looks like a "not doing anything" day. Of course the animals must be cared for as usual, but we just got a bunch of rain overnight on top of the 8 - 10 inches of snow that was on the ground. It's going to be ice everywhere. Then this afternoon and evening the temp is expected to drop back off and it will start snowing, with another three or more inches of accumulation possible. I can't say I've ever seen anything like this winter in my entire life in the midwest.

Re: Not doing anything

[dragon-moon.livejournal.com]

That sounds like really scary weather! Glad that you're home and the animals are doing well.

It has been a very strange winter weather-wise!

[cabcat.livejournal.com]

Aww how cute is that, and he has paffers XD

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Indeed he does. Fluffy ones, with plastic pellets in them so he stands upright easily.