I am SO lame
It’s been a couple of weeks since I posted, and my life is so boring and lame that I really don’t have anything to post about now. Let’s see…
- I have two new foster rabbits: Willa and Spencer, and I recently inherited our oldest living foster rabbit, Honey.
- I spent 45 minutes on Friday evening cutting mats out of the hair on my cat’s back – he’s so fat that he just can’t groom himself well, and all of the saliva just ends up gluing the hair together. It’s gross, and now he looks ridiculous. I hope he’s more comfortable.
- I’m moving forward with dog adoption – I’m working with a local rescue group, and went to an adoption event last Saturday to meet some of the dogs. I think I met “the one”, but am still waiting for the home visit to find out if I’m approved. I have a good feeling, but you never can tell…
- I’m psyching myself up this week for the big MEMORIAL SERVICE this Saturday. This thing has taken on a life of its own, and it’s more than my mom would have wanted. As far as I’m concerned, the only people that should be there are people that knew Mom, that loved her (or at least liked her), and have been supportive of our family. Those people will all be there, along with several others who haven’t had a presence in the lives of our family for years. The planning was sort of taken out of my hands – not unwillingly – so I’m just going to sit back and watch it unfold. It’s interesting to hear Dad’s perspective, because I think he’s looking for a different experience than I am. I’m pretty well over it, at this point, and am trying to figure out how I’m going to hold it together in front of all these people. I know I don’t have to hold it together, but I’m not really into sharing my grief at this point. Except in writing.
- I painted the spare bedroom this weekend – it’s a lovely shade of blue now, and while it needs another coat before it’s officially done, I’m ready to start filling it up with furniture. I’d like to get this daybed and thisbookcase from IKEA; I’d also like to get this lampshade to hang from a pendant cord. I think I’d like a glider, like this one to put in the corner for reading, but I’ll be checking Craigslist for one of those. I would also like to get a drafting table to use as a hobby station, but I’m not sure if that’s practical, since I also need to squeeze the sewing machine cabinet in there somewhere. Oh, and my grandmother’s cedar chest will be moving into that room, though I may refinish it and paint it red. I’m planning to hang the Sunbonnet Sue quilt that my Gammy made me when I was a little girl – it’s bordered with red and white gingham, and I think it’ll look great against the blue walls. Once that room is done, it’s on to the living room – I’m beginning to be in dire need of a new couch.
I think that’s about it. I’m ready to go to bed – I have an early day tomorrow, and then another night with the girls. It seems Pawpaw is playing “roadie” this week doing security for some kind of tour, so I’m pulling double babysitting duty. It’s a good thing the girls are so cute.
Filed under dogs, family, i want that!, me, rabbits | Comment (1)Tuppence a bag
When I was younger and still lived at home, I gave my mom all kinds of grief for her obsession with feeding the local bird life. We had three or four bird feeders: one for finches, one for cardinals, and a couple for whatever other birds might decide to visit. Mom was so concerned about feeding these birds, that she’d buy food almost every time we went out. We bought her a set of nice binoculars one year for Christmas for her “bird watching”, and she desperately wanted an electronic bird finder that would identify birds by song. I made fun of her every chance I got, telling her she was just like the bird lady from Mary Poppins… she might as well have sat on a park bench singing “Feed the birds, tuppence a bag.”
Nowadays I find that feeding the birds is really enjoyable. I love seeing a new type of bird at my feeders – last year, for example, I had indigo buntings (of course, I haven’t seen any since). I have a cardinal family that lives in the raspberry thicket behind my house, and there is a pair of blue jays making their presence known this year. I’m also feeding goldfinches this year, and the thistle seed is attracting larger birds, too, like mourning doves. Now there are purple finches, and a pair of red-headed woodpeckers… the woodpeckers seem to enjoy the suet cakes the most, though I’m not buying any more of them now that the weather is getting warmer. Oh, and the hummingbirds… they’ve just shown up again, and they’re so fascinating to watch!
I guess I really am my mother’s daughter.
Health
So, there’s financial health. I mentioned before that I was signing up for SmartyPig, and I have since registered, opened an account, and set up my first savings goal. I decided to save for a down payment on a new car – it’s getting to be time to replace the ol’ Spectra. She’s been a good car for a cheap, Korean piece o’ crap, but I’d like something a little nicer.
I have also finally, finally linked all my accounts to Mint, which is this nifty online financial management thing. You can set a budget, it sends you alerts, and it downloads all your account information so it’s visible in one place. There are some drawbacks to using it rather than, say, MS Money… you can’t enter transactions you’ve made and scheduled transactions don’t show up – it’s more of an “actual” than a “forecast”. I don’t like keeping all of this information in more than one place, but I imagine it’s only a matter of time before they upgrade the tool and charge a fee for that kind of functionality. Oh, did I mention it’s free?
I’ve also increased my automatic savings plan at ING Direct to help bulk up my emergency fund. I haven’t had ANY emergency fund until this month, but I had my tax refund direct deposited there, and it gave me a bit of a boost. Now I just have to keep my hands off of it. I’m terrible about leaving money alone…
… and here’s an example. I paid off a high-interest credit card with part of my annual bonus. I’m not going to close it, because that can actually hurt your credit rating by lowering your overall available credit. Anyway, wouldn’t you know that card is just burning a hole in the desk drawer where I stashed it? I mean, there’s tons of things I could buy… I need (want) new shoes, I need (want) a new purse/bag, I need (want) some new clothes. But this is the year I become more financially responsible, right?
And then there’s physical health. You know, the Feather family is just not having a great year, so far. Mom has been diagnosed with uterine cancer – her appointment with the oncologist is this Thursday, so we’ll find out more about what type of cancer it is and where we go from here, but it’s kind of rough. She is, after all, over 800 miles away from me and RC, so it’s just her and Dad down there, goin’ it alone. As for me, I’ve been battling this ridiculous stye now for the past week, and it just doesn’t want to go away. I hate styes. There’s no reason for them, no reason at all. And there’s no cure for them… just put a hot compress on it, they say. BAH!!
On the physical fitness front, though, I’ve been going to the gym regularly since they opened in February – at least three times a week for cardio work. I am SO out of shape… I made the mistake of glancing at the treadmill next to me the other day to see what the little chippy was doing, and she was walking at a brisk 4.0 miles an hour. Hmm. I’m really hoofing it at 2.8 miles an hour, on an incline, even, to get my heart rate up. But it’s more active than I’ve been in a long time and it feels fantastic. I actually *like* going to the gym. And as soon as I hit 3.0 miles an hour, I’m going to start adding some weight-training into my routine.
Now if I can just keep my mental health on an even keel… I think I’ll be alright.
Filed under budget, indignities, me | Comments (3)
