days_unfolding

I overslept this morning and didn’t work on the kitchen, although I finished the dishes. I’ll get rid of the boxes and call it good. My cleaner said that Friday would be okay for her, so that gives me time to finish the kitchen.

The mover said that the change to the move date was okay. I need to contact the estate sale people (done), the place where I'll board the cats (done), and the handyman who is going to paint Mom's house. Also, the cats are due for a vet appointment in early February, so I need to bring them in up here.

Oh good. I received my snow boots. And a lovely cashmere coat. And my Short Story box. I need to squeeze in some time to try on clothes. But my programming TA is having Office Hours tomorrow, so I want to make progress on my programs.

Meeting day at work. Well, that seems to be true for most of the days.

I'm wondering if I should talk to a cat behaviorist when I move about Mimi's behavior. I was wondering if getting another cat would help because Mimi was better (less aggressive) when Harlee was around. But I'd like to get an expert opinion. Mimi did get along well with a dog according to one of her previous owners.

I got the hold on my debit card cleared again. They really don't like my buying things on Facebook. That's kind of a pain.

I want to get all my automatic payments set up on one account. Maybe I'll use my main bank account for that, and transfer spending money to another account. I could leave a small cash cushion in the automatic payment account as a buffer. I would like to get my finances organized and automated.

I cuddled with Mimi, and started reading, and it got late, and I suck. I need to get some programming done. At least the fix that I came up with the other night when I was falling asleep worked.

I finished one program, started another, got stuck, and looked what I did last year. I need to sleep on it. I printed out my last two programs from last year to mull over. But I'm going to bed.

Oops. I needed to order the kitchen paint for the painter. Now I'm going to bed.

Yay, it's getting cooler (below 90 F). Still, I made sure that I watered the outside plants this morning.

My glasses are missing. I don't know what the hell I did with them. I've torn apart my home office, and they don't seem to be here. They're also not in the bathroom. I'd checked the kitchen, where they probably are, but so far, no luck. I have a vague memory that they were falling down, and I stuck them vertically in something, but not what or where the something was. I found a Bluetooth tracker for glasses. Now I just need to find the glasses.

The credit card is not where I thought that it might be (behind the freezer).

I think that I'm going to stay home and look for the glasses (and the credit card). I'm getting decluttering done while I look.

Mimi has definitely decided that Harlee's old ratty cat tree is hers now. She likes to lie in the little house while I'm doing stuff in the kitchen. I'm going to get some carpet cleaner to see if I can clean it up a little. Of course, then it won't smell right.

I bought a portable bidet. Given my IBS, it should pay for itself fairly quickly. Of course, they wanted me to buy multiple of them, but I can grab it if I need to use the other bathroom. (Though with my history of losing things....)

I went and got the mail using my old glasses. I got my Crazy Shirts t-shirts! Here's the hula cat:

I love it. And here's a link to the yoga cat. Now all I need are the new-to-me jeans. They're on their way.

Started laundry.

I have a 20%-off-and-free-shipping coupon for Purchasing Power, so I think that I'll get the treadmill (after I measure in the TV room to see if it will fit). I think that after I move and have my platform bed built, I'll store it under the bed and put the exercise bike in the home office. Done.

I found a couple of hotels in Hawaii on Purchasing Power: Lahaina, Maui and Princeville, Kauai.

Haven't found the glasses thus far. I'm running out of steam, so I think that I'll go to bed and get up early to look more.

I looked for a place to hang out in Reno when I take my California Zephyr trip because the train gets in at 8:30 AM, and my dad won't be able to get there that early. I found a restaurant with great breakfasts that's an Uber drive away. It sounds like a plan. And someone online said that the best time to take the Zephyr is in mid to late September. I'd need to make a decision to take the trip early because the Zephyr fills up (although kids will be in school then, which helps). Huh. It just occurred to me that I could rent a car and drive to Gardnerville. But I still want that breakfast.

I have a ratty old cat tree that Harlee loved, but Harlee has been gone for a few years now. It's on my list of things to get rid of. Now Mimi has decided that she likes it after ignoring it for years. Cats!

I stayed up late. Ridiculously late. And now I have dark circles under my eyes.

I ordered body wash in a reusable bottle, and shampoo and conditioner bars. We'll see how I like them.

Napped for 4.5 hours. I must have needed it. Cats: "Good Mommy, you got up on time to feed us!" Mimi was telling me a tale of woe about how she's starving to death :)

I've started the Butter Chicken in the slow cooker. Set up the Blueland hand soap; you put hot water into the glass bottle and drop in a tablet.

Mom is still not doing well. She's dizzy and barely walking. She thinks that it's a side effect of the meds that she's on but her doctor blew it off. Her platelets are also low. It's kind of a bummer to talk to her but I don't want to feel that way. She wants me to order an Uber for her on Monday because her car is being fixed. No, she won't get a smart phone.

I'm feeling tired again, but I need to wait for the Butter Chicken. I printed off Italian to study. I want to get away from the computer radiating heat.

I found Zara's meds. They had fallen into the utensil cup in the dish drainer. I'll still pick up her new meds, but I might wait until Monday to do so.

Ugh. I was up all night with my brain whirring. Fell asleep around 7 AM and woke up at 10:30 AM. Spent some time lounging around. I'm going to go back to sleep after breakfast.

I just had a brainstorm. I'm joining an alumni community from the university. (I went there for college as well as work there.) The U has a nationally ranked psychology department (also from which I'm an alum, but I was in quantitative psychology), so maybe I could connect with a psychologist to interview there.

Today is creative thinking day. I was wondering how I was going to water the thyme and rosemary indoors. I don't have a tray for them, plus it wouldn't fit where I've put them, anyway. I have an old dishpan that I don't use. It works. The thyme is currently draining. I'll just wipe off the bottom of it when it's done.

I found a book that I really want to read: The Sweet Spot: The Pleasures of Suffering and the Search for Meaning. I think that I'll get it for the Kindle to save $$$ and space and to have it before I leave for Mom's house. I also read a great article in Medium about increasing your frustration tolerance.

Had a nap finally. I think that I'll wait until tomorrow to go to the grocery store. I'll just do stuff around here and talk to Mom later. I'm having IBS symptoms, so that's another reason to stay home.

Had a bite to eat. I'm being watched intently by the girls, who want to eat (done).

Hmm. I should make carrot soup tonight or tomorrow. I need to peel and chop the carrots, so maybe I'll do that tonight. I can mince the onion and garlic tomorrow in the food processor. I need to dig out my blender too.

I need somewhere to pile up books for my trip. Done--the shelf on which I usually put my library books.

I emptied a box. Go me. (For those who don't know, I'm decluttering my place and the storage place before I move next year.) And oh! I found Harlee's beloved purple mousie. I knew that I would have packed it, but I didn't know what box it was in. Harlee's been gone for 3.5 years now though. I put it next to her ashes. And I feel like crying. But I emptied the box. I also finally unpacked the dutch oven from the Amazon box, and I really like it. I think that I'll make the carrot soup in it. I have boxes piled up next to the door; I'll take them out tomorrow when I'm dressed. (I spent the day in my pajamas.)

Talked to Mom. She's in more pain than she has been, but she thinks it means that she's healing. Her blood pressure spiked high during physical therapy though. She said that I should plan to come out on the 29th and I'll stay though the following Sunday. She said that I should stay at a hotel the first night that I get in, but I don't know how I feel about that.

I want to write an essay about motivation, but not tonight. I think that I'll have some soup and get to bed early.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/1212365.html

I kind of want a map of Greece too, to go with my map of Italy. I learned the geography of Italy by staring at my map. I installed an app to learn the Greek alphabet.

Italian went well. My teacher asked me if I had studied Italian before starting the class, which is a good sign. We're going to study past tense next week, which is new and not review.

It's a dark and rainy afternoon. A good afternoon for a nap.

I opened up my closet door for Zara because I'd rather have her in there than in the litter box. So far, she hasn't noticed that it's open. Mimi is in there.

Overslept my nap. I kind of want to make veggie bake as well as soup, but I probably need more tomatoes. I bought them a couple of weeks ago, before I screwed up my leg. I'll make a grocery list. Oh, I need a zucchini too. And I also need to return library books. (I didn't have time last night.)

Zara is on my lap, grooming herself. Yay. I'm trying to explain to her that I need to get up to feed them, but she's not grasping that. Finally, she jumped off. I studied some Greek letters while they ate.

Saved an article about retiring in Panama, although I'll probably retire in the States. Spanish is supposed to be easy for Italian speakers to learn. I also read an article about people who retired in Portugal, which interests me more.

Remembered that today is garbage day, so I emptied the bathroom garbage cans. My leg hurts.

Ack! The New York Times is recommending an $80 pair of slippers. Their "budget pick" is $50. Right. Hmm. I found slippers on eBay for $22.50. Mine are getting ratty so maybe. (eBay is my shopping place of choice for shoes.) I found a cheap pair of cozy slippers at Walmart. Even better. I'm ready for winter!

Dropped off my library books. The person who knows how to check out books at my old workplace wasn't there (or she was driving a different car) so I didn't go in. I got my veggies. It's a little late to make the veggie bake, but I'll do some chopping so that I can just throw it together tomorrow. Oh, maybe not. I need to go to bed.

Mimi is hanging out on my lap while I recover from shopping. She's nice and warm :) I got Harlee's old water dish for Zara. It's like a water cooler, so she'll have fresh water all day long.

There are some people offering "affordable" group online Greek lessons, so I'm going to roll with it and contacted them. We'll see what happens.

Time to crash.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/1200353.html

Woke up eightish. Had a kitty squabble because both Mimi and Zara were peering at me from the doorway, and they were too close.

Mimi thinks that it's a work day because I woke up at the usual time, fed them, and I was sitting in the office posting to LJ. She's settled on my lap. I need to go eat breakfast, so I see some disappointment happening.

I'm looking for a place to stay overnight when I'm in Chicago. I found a place with a "pod room" (basically a bed) and a shared bathroom. I think that's the best that I'm going to do without spending tons of money. It's on Michigan Avenue, and I think that there's a bus from there to the train station.

Tried to nap, but couldn't sleep. I'm trying to figure out what to do. I need to go to the store, but want to wait until later when it's less crowded. I could clean or do some weeding, but I'm not sure how hot it is out. (78 F. Not too bad.) Hmm. I was thinking that I need to go to the store earlier because I have nothing for dinner, but I could bake a potato in the microwave and have it with sour cream. That should hold me together. Maybe I'll leave a little earlier and get some boxes to go through, which reminds me that I should go through the ones that I have.

I had a bad case of the shakes, so I ate lunch. I know people who can go for hours without eating, but not me. Zara was highly interested, which I'm glad to see. She's been sleeping a lot, so I worry about her, but maybe it was because of the heat over the last few days. She seems more lively today.

cerezamarrero's post reminds me that I wanted to check out Madison as a possible retirement place (with snowbirding). Maybe that's the trip that I should take this fall. I checked their COVID stats, and they aren't too bad. Ugh, the housing prices are high though. I'd have to live in a condo, and I'd prefer a small house with a garden. They do have community gardens though. (That' s what I plan to do in Champaign.)

Went through a plastic drawer and found a good USB microphone on which you can plug headphones. I want to use it for singing and for presentations at work. Excellent. Now I' m going to do some Italian as a break. I've decided to do one paragraph of reading a day, looking up all the words that I don't know. Or maybe several paragraphs on the weekend?

I sent an article about a link between smoky air and COVID, and my dad sent me an email that could be summed up as "correlation isn't causation". Okay, I guess that I deserved that. But I wish that he'd get vaccinated.

Box#2. I found a picture of Harlee and Nima, and I put it near their urns. Also excellent. (And this is why I have to go through all the boxes.)

Hmm. I put on some shorts and a tee for cleaning and got my Bluetooth headphones to listen to an audiobook, and sat down for just one moment. Zara decided that she wanted lap time. I guess that I should thank her for the procrastination time. Studied Italian while Zara was climbing on me.

The baked potato was good. I found a recipe for making it in the microwave and topping it with butter, cheese, and sour cream. It was tasty. Zara was a little out of control because she wanted the toppings. I ate the whole thing, including the skins.

Somehow it got late, so I'm going to the storage place tomorrow.

Ran to the grocery store. And crud, I just realized that I forgot to get a pizza. I bought a pair of shorts that were on sale.

Got home right before my mom's call. I was stuffing my face with a croissant when my mom called. Apparently there was a big nasty storm there on Wednesday, and her cable is down so her landline is down. And mom is going crazy without TV. She thinks that I should definitely take the trip to Madison. I just need to figure out when. She's a little nervous about me walking around the Loop at night when I go up to Chicago for the concert. I've been having issues with static during the calls, and I think that the problem is that I didn't have WiFi calling turned on. We'll see how it goes next week. Oh, and she was thrilled to learn that you can "bake" potatoes in the microwave. She said that my schooling was worth every penny :)

Okay. I found a hotel in Madison that I like. I need to double check the drive, but I think that it's four hours? 3.5 hours.

Hmm, thinking of snowbirding, maybe I should get a condo in Orlando, and Airbnb it while I'm not there. I'd have to hire someone to manage it. But I could defray the cost of the place. Hmm. Just found the perfect place, right near Universal. Well, hmm. A lot of condos don't allow Airbnbs. I did see a house almost across the street from Universal, but it's kind of pricey.

Need to crash. I want to get up early to shave my legs in the shower before Italian.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/1187498.html

I found a Keto meal service that actually is low carb: https://www.freshmealplan.com Need to consider it. I ordered some meals from it.

It's snowing, but there isn't a lot of accumulation thus far. It's supposed to snow, then rain, then snow again. A good day to stay inside.

Bought another Keto cookbook. I keep worrying about getting bored with food.

Had my Italian class. Only three people were there this time. I like that he makes us talk, and it is conversationally oriented, although talking in class is nervewracking. One student knows a lot of Italian (I don't know why she's in the beginners class), and she rattles it off, which makes me feel dumb. I guess that I could reframe it as "this is what you'll be able to do in a while".

Had a bite of lunch, and now, a nap. Zara is really enamored of the bed because she didn't come into the kitchen to see what I was eating for lunch. I've got a bed monster! Bed hog!

Got the mail from yesterday and in it was a tax form that I was waiting for. Put out the garbage for pickup.

Got hit with a pang of missing Harlee, maybe because her picture is in here. Love my girl.

Got my desktop computer working again. Apparently the monitor cable was loose. Good deal. Now I don't have to use my work computer when I'm scanning stuff.

Finished my homework for my Java class. Math awaits me....

Realized that I forgot to fed the ravening hordes because Zara didn't remind me by hanging out near her dish. Yeah, like it's her fault :)

Lay down for a nap and slept through until morning except for a short time up at 1 AM.

Not much to say about Monday. Picked up my groceries, so now I have low carb stuff in my refrigerator. Did homework. Got my Keto Slow Cooker book. A lot of recipes are "throw everything into the crockpot," which is my kind of cooking. I can't stop yawning, so I'm going to go to bed with the cookbook and flag recipes.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/1136680.html

I managed to get the microwave to cook my breakfast, but its days are clearly numbered. Sigh. It deigned to cook my lunch too. I hope that it will heat up my tortellini for me when I get home. (It did.)

It's a dark and rainy day. I want to go back to sleep, but I can't.

I don't think that Mom is coming down today given that she hasn't called. That'll give me more time to get my act together.

I looked into public transportation to and from various 55+ communities in Tucson, and it looks like that there isn't any on the outskirts of town. I'd have to take Uber to get around if I don't drive. There are a few communities on public transportation, but they have fewer amenities than the big places. I'm going to have to sort out the tradeoff.

I'm wondering if I should bite the bullet and learn to sew. I don't see making my own clothes, but I have several jackets that need replacement zippers, and that could add up into real money. Plus I have some pockets coming off and hems unraveling. They would be easier to fix on a sewing machine than by hand. I also want cloth napkins, and that's a fairly easy project. I did see a refurbished machine on eBay that interested me. (Actually, I found a used machine with good reviews on Amazon on Facebook Marketplace. I love Facebook Marketplace.) And I found a class in Springfield on how to learn to sew, but I'd have to get the machine for the class. They also have a class on sewing with faux fur (at an Intermediate level). I've always wanted a puffy faux fur jacket. They also have a jacket mending class including replacing zippers, but it's advanced.

Hmm. If I got rid of the really ratty cat tree that Harlee loved but the other two don't use, I'd have room to set up a sewing machine.

Added: I ran across Subversive Cross Stitch, and I think that I'm in love. Must get one of those kits.

And now I'm off for five days due to "Fall Break". Yay.

I'm going to sleep early to get up early to call the bank about my PIN and to do some cleaning. We'll see if I have to go to Springfield to get the PIN changed.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/1009768.html

Woke up at 11:30 AM. Mimi jumped on my lap and whapped me in the face with her tail. Good morning to you.

Got us all fed. Zara ate some of her food. Then she did an elaborate routine to clean her face off. Now she's eating again. Okay....

Looked into You Need a Budget software, but it's not cheap.

Ugh. It's hot today. It's supposed to be a little hotter tomorrow. And it's supposed to be even hotter next weekend. I need to clean out the car. Maybe I can get my act together to clean it out during the evening.

Worked on my to-do list.

Had a nice nap. Ate something. I'm trying to figure out what to do next. I want to work on organizing the bedroom, dye my hair, and clean out the car when it cools off. I want to run get cat food later, but I'll wait until after I talk to Mom.

Decided that I wanted to go to the store before I talked to Mom, so I dyed my hair. Cleaned the bathroom while the dye was working. I just need to clean the floor later.

Got to the store and back. It's really hot out.

Talked to Mom. She's looking forward to visiting at the beginning of August, but is glad that the visit isn't until another three weeks. (Me too.) I told her that Orlando is in play as a possible retirement spot, and she said, "But it's in FLORIDA!" (If the alligators don't get you, the sinkholes will. Or something like that.)

Had some grilled cheese and tomato soup. It was good, but it's knocking me out, so I'm going to go to bed soon.

It's been slightly over a year since I lost Harlee. At the time, I wondered what I would do with myself because my life revolved around caring for Harlee. But I've found other ways to keep going. Zara, to some extent, has taken Harlee's spot as my "baby". (I love Mimi too, but not in the same way.) I miss Harlee sometimes, but not as much as I would have thought.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/986444.html

Woke up a little after 11 AM.

Have a slight problem in that I'm almost out of the cats' dry food, but I can feed them extra wet food to tide them over.

Tried to take a nap, but couldn't fall asleep. Read instead.

I want to work on organizing the bedroom, but Zara is dozing in there. Mimi is dozing in the kitchen. I guess that I can do some unpacking in the TV room. Mimi just followed me into the TV room though. And now she's on my lap.

In looking at organizing blogs, I found a mention of command hooks, which stick to the wall and are supposed to be easy to take off. That would be perfect for me because I don't want to make holes in the vinyl walls. They even have picture hooks!

In the TV room, I have the old book of wedding pictures from Erik's and my wedding. Damn, I looked pretty! And young. A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away....

Zara got up anyway. I tried....

I put together the "shrine" to Nima and Harlee. I put their ashes in their urns, although I had a tough time screwing the bottom on Nima's urn. It looks like it wasn't commercial, but was something that a woodworker produced. Not a bad way to make money. There's a problem with the picture because Nima was cut off, so I need to have it redone. Apparently they took a paw print of Harlee, which made me almost cry, but I put that away in a drawer where it won't get broken.

Made and ate pancakes. Lay down for a little while. Zara came over and lay down on my hip. Then her rear end slithered off of me, so she was lying with her front on me and her rear on the bed. Eventually she completely slithered off of me and was lying against my back. Goof :)

Talked to Mom. She'd rather come out at the beginning of August. Now I'm thinking of taking both the last week of June and the first week of August and make a dent in my vacation time. Mom would like to do an overnight trip somewhere in Illinois, so I'm going to do some research.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/972922.html

The money that I transferred was posted to my account. Awesome sauce. I'll rent the Rug Doctor tomorrow.

Mimi has been harassing Zara when Zara's in the litter box. I'm really annoyed about this. I corral Mimi when I'm there, but I wonder what happens when I'm not here.

I've been feeding Zara and Mimi Harlee's left-over food. The tuna is a big hit with them, but I think that Zara doesn't like salmon. Maybe I'll try and see if Mimi will eat it. I have enough cat food caps to have two open cans of food.

Today is my collapse day. I have some chores to take care of, but want an easy day today.

Took a nice nap. Made pancakes for lunch.

Changed the light bulb in the kitchen (which burnt out annoyingly fast; the package says "one year bulb"). Folded the stuff piled on top of the dryer. Did laundry. I want to wash the cover for the futon, but Zara's camped out there, so I'll wait until after I drop them off at the vet on Monday. Finished hand scrubbing the carpet and vacuumed. (Poor Zara hid.) The light bulb in the kitchen went out again, so the ceiling fan is shaking the bulbs loose. I put the fan on low.

Now I need to sit still for a while, so I'm going to write my packing list. Drafted lists. Folded laundry.

Ate dinner. My plan of record is to fill little bottles with shampoo, etc., and tackle the pile of paper on the kitchen table. Oh, and write up the instructions for boarding the cats.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/893944.html

I was trying to look at stuff on my netbook, and Mimi kept on getting between me and the netbook. I finally gave up and gave Mimi my full attention, which is what she wanted. Diva :)

Harlee showed up in one of my dreams. Good to "see" my girl.

Work was busy, but I got a lot done. I still have to write up some notes from my meeting on Monday. I'll do that over the weekend.

And now I'm on vacation. I should be thrilled, but actually, I'm feeling kind of depressed. I don't know why. I'll probably get more excited when I get on the train to my mom's house.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/893476.html

I'm going to have to use some of the money that I was saving for renting the carpet cleaner. However, I'm transferring some money from my Acorns account, and I'm hoping that it'll post to my account on Friday. If it does, I'll be able to rent the carpet cleaner.

Speaking of money, my purse is really falling apart. I think that I'll need to go purse shopping when I'm visiting my mom.

Less than a week before I visit my mom! Counting the days!

Mimi likes to roll around on top of the chest freezer. Well, I guess that it feels cool. She also is eating less, which is good because she has a belly like the Pillsbury doughboy :)

I'm not with it today. I sang the "marbles" song to Zara: "Your mommy is losing her marbles/They're rolling all over the floor/Your mommy is losing her marbles/And she needs to get herself out the door."

What a freaking zoo today. Near the end of the time that the library is open (I work part of the time while it's closed), I stopped being able to access the computer system that we need to do our work. So I went into a round of testing on different computers, contacting our consortium (who runs the server side of our software), testing, contacting IT, testing, etc. The good news is that the problem is fixed. The bad news is that I lost an hour that I can ill-afford.

I remembered to do the schedule for the part-time workers for August.

I brought some stuff home to work on, but I feel a little like I'm cracking up. Maybe I should try to get up early.

My aunt sent a sympathy card about Harlee. That was nice.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/893268.html

Read part of my RV book. It is excellent, so I might buy a copy of it. I do a "try and buy" with books that I wind up buying. Cuts down on the number of books that I buy too.

Got a long night's sleep as well. Maybe I'm sleeping better now that Harlee's ashes are back because I was afraid that they'd lose them or something.

I've been trying to uninstall Uber on my phone, and it won't allow you to uninstall it. That's creepy.

There's another dog that I have my eye on. She's a yellow lab mix, who doesn't particularly like other dogs, but tolerates cats. She's very well-behaved according to her foster.

Tried to take a nap, but couldn't fall asleep. The cats are flaked out.

Ate lunch. Folded some laundry, and washed some rags and towels. Took a nap after lunch, and this time I was able to sleep.

Cleaned the kitchen slowly. I'm lethargic today. Swept the floor. Just need to wash the floor tomorrow.

Saw Mama Cat and her two mini-mes today. All sleek black cats. Wait, no, there's a third one that's a tabby. The kittens are clearly not newborns. Maybe she's teaching them to hunt? I don't know if I should leave food out because they'll get dependent on it. Mama didn't like the strange human staring at her and her kittens, so she walked away with her kittens following her.

Talked to Mom. She vented about politics. She had a good visit with her friend Kate. She wanted to know what food I want to have in the house--all with no nutritional value! I told her that she's a bad mom :) There will be muffins. She's eagerly awaiting my visit.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/892224.html

The super cute dog got adopted. I'm not surprised. I guess that if I want a dog, I should work towards being in a good situation to adopt a dog, and the right dog will come along.

I stayed up really late reading (and looking at dogs), but sometimes it's nice to be able to do that. Oh, and I spent a bunch of time reading old journal entries, looking for sunshine_two's comments about what I'd need to do to have a dog. The entries aren't tagged, though, so I had to read them sequentially.

The vet called and Harlee's ashes are back. I'm going to run out later and pick them up. Strange that I heard her meow when I first woke up.

People in Lincoln are animal lovers. A guy practicing riding his motorcycle stopped me and told me that a cat had a litter of kittens up the alley, and could I feed them? I saw them when I first went outside, but they had vanished by the time that I came back.

Took a short nap. Threw myself together.

Picked up Harlee's ashes. I thought that I'd feel better having her back, but I feel like crying. Anyway, she's back home.

Decided to take another nap. So tired. Slept for five hours. I think that I'm going to eat and go back to sleep.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/891940.html

I got 12 hours of sleep, which I sorely needed. The girls were good about being fed late, even Mimi, who gets stressy when she's hungry. (I guess "hangry" is the word du jour to describe it.)

Damn, it's humid in here, even with the a/c on. Yesterday's storm doesn't seem to have helped.

Forgot to mention yesterday that Mom suggested going thrifting while I'm there. I'm always up for thrifting, but I'm wondering how I'd get the clothes back home. (One disadvantage of the train.) I suppose that I could mail them. Or I could take a large suitcase instead of my carry-on.

Tried to take a nap, but couldn't fall asleep. That's good; I must be caught up on my sleep. Though the humidity is probably part of the reason.

Strange that I'm not having "ghost cat" experiences with Harlee. When Chaos died, I both dreamt about him and sensed a cat that wasn't there. I thought that I heard Harlee meow once, but that's it.

I think that I'm going to start packing books for the trip. It's too early to pack the clothes.

Ate lunch. Soaked a litter box and put my bedding in the laundry. Mimi woke up and sat on my lap.

Changed the kitchen light bulb. Put stuff away.

Jotted down some notes for my performance appraisal input. Nothing like doing something else (cleaning) to have ideas spill out.

Got on a good Pandora run and cleaned the bathroom, including scrubbing the floor.

Cleaned part of the kitchen. Took a nap. Finished the kitchen except for the floor.

Making my beefaroni in the Instant Pot. The Instant Pot's instructions aren't the greatest, so I'll need to experiment. Hmm, the Instant Pot that I have isn't actually a pressure cooker. It's a multicooker though. I'll see how the beefaroni comes out because it was a pressure cooker recipe. The beefaroni is good. It might need some extra garlic though. I have plenty of leftovers.

I'm going to work on my performance appraisal input and then go to bed.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/890717.html

Woke up earlier than I had intended. Apparently it rained this morning.

The girls are in a quiet mood. I guess that they seem quiet because Harlee isn't here and meowing. Mimi is rolling around on the freezer. Goof :)

We had some Kitty Drama. Zara came into the kitchen and stood on the back of my chair, which she hasn't done in a while. Then she crawled into my lap. Mimi jumped off the freezer and came over to harass Zara. I told Mimi to back off, which she did marginally. Zara growled and dug her claws in my leg. Then she jumped off of my lap and ran away. Sigh.

The first tomato on my tomato plant is starting to ripen.

Fed myself and the girls. Made a grocery list. Tried to make a hair appointment, but no one was answering the phone.

Took a nice nap. Scrambled to make a bite of lunch (pancakes, which didn't come out well because I didn't use a non-stick pan).

Trying to decide what to do. Some big-ass storms are heading our way, and I probably won't be done with my errands by the time that they hit. But if I wait until tomorrow, it could storm then too.

Braved the storms and got my errands done. Came home to change the kitchen light bulb, only to find that I had the wrong size. Bother. Ran to Dollar Tree, but they didn't have the right size.

Talked to Mom. Her friend Kate is coming tomorrow, and Mom is "almost" ready. Mom sounds good, and her various medical tests are good. She wanted to know what I wanted to do while I'm there, and I said basically hang out.

After the call, I ran to Wal-Mart in search of the light bulb, and I got something that I think will work.

I'm really tired, so I think that it's bedtime.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/890381.html

I tried napping but couldn't sleep, not surprisingly. I was thinking, "What do I do now?" So much of my life revolved around Harlee for the last 17 years that I'm at a loss. I owe her my life; She was the one thing that kept me going when I got sick.

Ate lunch, and got a visit from Zara while I was eating my blackberry sorbet and vanilla ice cream mix. (It's delicious.) I think that I'm going to clean the kitchen for a while. Then I'll throw myself together and run into work to write my e-mails and scan my receipts.

Scrubbed a litter box. Got the kitchen cleaned except for the floor. Trying to decide whether to do the floor now or get myself together to run into work. Need a break anyway.

Mimi, for some reason, won't jump on my lap. Apparently my calling her is very suspicious.

Finally got into work and got done what I wanted to get done.

Came home, and picked some basil leaves for my quiche. Shredded them in the food processor, and decided that I needed more basil. I think that making two more quiches will polish off the basil. I wonder if I could buy another one now. Anyway, I made my quiches, and right now they're baking.

Mimi's been sitting on my lap, which I sorely needed. Part of the reason that I decided to adopt Mimi was to have a cat who liked to cuddle after Harlee passed away. I told Mimi that she has a job now. It's going to be hard to go to sleep without Harlee, so I'm hoping to convince Mimi to sleep with me again.

The quiche was good. I have leftovers from one, and I froze the other one. Making two at a time isn't much more work than making one, so I think that I'll do that in the future.

I need to go to sleep soon, or at least get into bed, because I need to bring Harlee over to the vet before work to have her cremated.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/888623.html

Harlee passed away peacefully this morning. It looked like she passed right before I woke up.

I'm okay for now. When this really sinks in, I'm probably going to have a rough time.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/888335.html

Harlee kept on waking up and calling me. I came over to pet her. Eventually she fell into a deep sleep, and I threw myself together and went grocery shopping. This trip was heavy on the comfort foods.

When I got back, I was unloading the car and putting groceries away before checking on Harlee because if she had passed, I wanted to have everything done so I could fall apart. Never count Harlee out though. I was putting stuff away, and heard a meow, and there's Harlee in the kitchen. She stayed there for a little while, and then went back in the bedroom.

Talked to Mom and told her what's going on. As for her, a friend of hers from Vancouver is coming to stay with her earlier than originally planned, so she's scrambling to get the place together. And of course, I'm coming at the end of the month.

Harlee keeps dozing and waking up periodically. I fed the girls. I'm going to go get ready for bed and snuggle with my girl and read a little.

Crossposts: https://days-unfolding.livejournal.com/888176.html

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Entries tagged with harlee

Cat Behaviorist?

Where, Oh Where Have My Glasses Gone?

Breakfast Hangout

As the Brain Churns

Alpha Beta Gamma Delta

Madison?

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And Now I Have a Five-Day Weekend!

Somewhat Productive

Help! I'm Being Followed by Cats!

Collapse Day

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Mama and Her Mini-Mes

Harlee Is Back

Food, Glorious Food

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The Quietest Day Ever

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