Woofy Wednesday Bonanza!

A mid-week pick-me-up.

Sometimes I don’t mind longer hair…..

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Won’t You Tell Me How To Get…

How to get to Sesame Street?

I love it when childhood innocence is perverted into something dark and funny. It brings me joy.

Yesterday I stumbled across these:

So. Dank.

Tennis Anyone?

I have a new tennis crush. His name is Benoit Paire. A French tennis player on the circuit.

He’s ever so dreamy!

Gosh I want to put my beard on his beard!

Is that his “O” face?

August…

Recently, I heard August referred to as “the Sunday of Summer”. And that’s a fairly accurate statement when you think about it.

The weather is still good and there’s still outdoor play time left, but there’s this undercurrent of urgency. The desire to wring out the last of the good times while we still can.

The days are getting noticeably shorter. Back to school is right around the corner. Drum Corps championships are happening and kids are starting marching band rehearsals. Football season is ramping up.

And the last good holiday (Labor Day) is nigh.

After that, hallowe’en and thanksgiving hit and then it’s winter again and we’re all hating life.

Yup, the Sunday of Summer. And we’re a week into it.

Furrr-iday!

Cheers to the freakin’ weekend!

Cuff me, pig!

LunaKitty

Just a quick update on my roommate: she’s cute.

I think she’s getting more comfortable living with me and more of her personality is coming out. She’s playful- but feisty!

She lover her catnip toys– flipping them in the air with her claws then pouncing on them. And she has taken to kneading my bedspread (or the sheep pelt on my footstool).

She has been on my lap, here’s proof:

But she doesn’t do it often.

She also let me pet her and rest my hand on her during a nap on Saturday:

For a lot of the nap, my hand was resting on her side.

Also, she really seems to love her new cat cave/bed. She even pushed it out into the living room so she could lounge in it and still see where I was:

Some of her favorite pastimes include watching the laundry in the washing machine and bopping my nose when she thinks it’s time for me to get up and feed her.

Scoot!

Minneapolis has been invaded. Invaded by electric scooters, that is. They’re everywhere downtown, and I gotta say…

I am not a fan.

There are two different companies vying for market share right now: Bird and Lime-S.

I know the Birds are rentable– not sure what the deal with the lime scooters are. All I know is that I see young, 20-somethings buzzing like mosquitos all over the bike lanes on each kind.

It’s annoying as fuck and I’m pretty sure it’s just a marketing visibility ploy.

My granola, eco side is struggling with my dislike, however, because they are electric and they offer a reduced pollution method for people to commute on a daily basis. Which might also ease traffic congestion, etc.

But right now there are several big negatives:

– they are relatively fast at 15mph

– the small wheels and high center of mass are not great for handling obstacles (potholes, rocks, sudden turns and stops)

– the riders don’t always appear in good control (balance)

– any novice with a credit card can hop on one

– nobody wears a helmet

– they can be (and are!) discarded anywhere and everywhere

– they are very quiet and sneak up on folks rather quickly

– they add congestion to bike lanes (and occasionally sidewalks)

– they’ve already been a source of accidents

I much prefer the NiceRide rent-a-bikes. At least with bicycles, the center of mass is closer to the wheel axis and the riders tend to be more stable and in control. Also, for those renting, this isn’t their first time on a bike. Plus biking means they are responsible for generating their own speed, so they are more connected to the movement process. And best of all, no batteries/recharging required!

(Bonus: your fat ass gets exercise.)

We’ll see how long these eScooters stick around. It’s the latest fad/business idea and they’re trying to make it catch on. Right now I’m hoping they kind of go away.

Thirsty Thursday

Le sigh….

So… wet.

Takin Care of Business

So, I formulated a plan and have almost eliminated my mom’s credit card debt. By next month she won’t have any more credit card bills.

And I won’t have a car payment.

So, here’s the deal:

To take care of two of her cards, I had to completely deplete my rainy day savings. That was completed over a month ago now.

For the other cards, I had to tap into my 401k savings. Not really ideal, I know, but I saw no other option. Long story short, a loan from my 401 wasn’t an option (my current employer’s 401k is severely limited- you can’t touch the money at all).

Thank goodness I still had money in my old 401k that I hadn’t rolled over yet!

When I started exploring this option, it also struck me that I should pay off my own auto loan, too, as it will save me a good chunk of change in interest. And then I can use that monthly payment to build my savings up again.

So I made a withdrawal.

And now my car is paid off, and by early August, mom’s debt will be erased.

And then I can start to repair my savings safety net. This savings is important to have so when I finally snap at work, I’ll have time to find a new job. (And no car payment draining my monthly funds).

Baby steps, but it feels like I’m relieving a burden.

One week

It’s been almost exactly one week since Luna moved in (yes, I think I’m morphing her name to Luna). So far things are off to a good start!

It took her a good day to settle down– then she basically crashed and slept a lot. And now she’s figuring out sounds and routines and such. The cuckoo clock no longer startled her.

I’m pretty sure she’s a smart little girl.

She’s finding her perches– window by my plants, Chair at the dining table, back of couch– and she’s using her scratch post a LOT!

She’s definitely playful– laser pointer, twirly toy, hands, sacks, shoe strings, etc. she just loves to play.

Luna also goes crazy for catnip toys! She runs around, bats it, flips it around, chases or, etc.

Things that are cool about her include:

– she has a long cycle purr that’s definitely audible

– she loves chin scratches and belly rubs

– she lets me sleep in the morning

– she is very present, following me around and checking out what I’m doing. Always watching me.

– she lets me pet her whenever and I’ve been able to pick her up

– she is not afraid of anything! Loud noises don’t seem to bother her and she even just sort of watched me vacuum.

The only thing I’m waiting in is for her to lay near me and cuddle. She gets “close” but not quite there. She has jumped up onto my bed and napped with me some, but we aren’t at cuddle time.

Yet.