10/1/13 - Tuesday Thoughts

I usually have every other Friday afternoon off from work - but it was a really busy time so I switched things around and took Tuesday instead....and decided to take the entire day - not just the afternoon.

What a difference - I felt as if I lived in a different city, maybe even on a different planet today.....once I got through the morning commuter traffic (something I'm not used to because of my own very short commute)....it became a world of plenty - plenty of room to wander store aisles, plenty of cash registers to ring up my purchases, and the entire mani/pedi spa to myself.  It might have been a bit lonely, except that one of my old neighbors and good friends is a government employee who was furloughed this morning....so we met for lunch at Silver Diner.

And if you happen to have one of these in your neighborhood....check them out.  They've completely revamped their menu with a focus on using local sources and cooking fresh.  I had lamb sliders - an unexpected combination which was quite wonderful - it was served with a greek salad that I found a bit unorthodox but tasty.  (having eaten greek salad in Greece, I know the difference).

Which brings me to the government shutdown.  No matter the reasoning behind the impasse, there's one thing that troubles me greatly.  It's not easy to enact a law - you have to have agreement between both houses of the legislative branch as well as the President....and in some cases, if the validity of the law is contested, you even need the approval of the Supreme Court - the judicial branch.

After all that - shouldn't a law be a law unless/until it is repealed?  If a minority of our elected government can invalidate a law at will.....then whats the value of having a law in the first place?

If I'm a business owner, should I stop following OSHA safety regulations or should  I  not pay taxes hoping that part of the government will decide to defund the law that allows the IRS to collect money from me or the law that makes me provide a safe workplace?

For that matter - how can I make any decisions about my life when the laws I am working with can be "defunded" at any time?  What if the teaparty conservatives decide that women aren't really equal to men - they can defund the law that guarantees me the right to mammograms covered by my insurance - or the law that keeps me from being fired because I happen to get pregnant?  Imagine being in the middle of negotiating the purchase of a house and then someone decides to defund the mortgage insurance program that lets me become a homeowner?

If you know me, you know how I feel about the Affordable Health Care Act - but even if this was about a law that I disliked  (and there are many), I'd still believe it was wrong for a minority to be able to defund it.

So as ridiculous as this whole thing is - I  support the President and Senate's insistence to only accept a funding resolution that is clean, without other crap attached.

That's all the politics that you'll get on this blog ;)

In other news, I'd been wanting to find a rug for my kitchen to put under the table (its an eat in kitchen).  There's a lot of floor space and it just felt like it needed something to break up all the oak vinyl planks.  As it turns out, I came across a rug that I really liked for my living room, and so the one I already had (which happened to be indoor/outdoor anyhow) got moved and it has all worked out awesomely.  The rug was on clearance for 80.00 - and I got 10 dollars in Kohls cash which I'll use to buy a new runner next week......  I started to think twice about spending the money because I'm really trying to be frugal these days....but then I realized that its only two mani/pedis...and we're getting close to the end of sandal season anyhow.

Although you wouldn't know it from today weather which made it into the 80s this afternoon and I hear its going to continue this way through the rest of the week.  I've been faithfully watering half of my lawn (I put grass seed down a week and a half ago) and am seeing some small sprouts...so perhaps by the weekend I can move the sprinkler to the other half...

And so far that damned mole hasn't shown up......but if he does - I have the trap and I'm ready for him :)








 

9/13 Thursday Thirteen

In the constantly changing internet world, its a relief to find something that remains the same.  There is still a Thursday Thirteen website and meme.

And so, I will use that fact to sanction today's list of random bits and pieces from the week just past.....and perhaps at some later point I'll expand on one or more of the items ;)

1.  I called my XX back - got an automated attendant that gave a different number and hung up - not realizing until a bit later that he probably has calls transferred to his cell and so I could have left a message  But no matter - he'll see my # on the caller ID.

2.  Which brings me to how easy but at the same time difficult it is to stalk someone these days.  Sure, if they haven't blocked FB you can see all sorts of things, but I "think" there are widgets that let the page owner see who has viewed them - just as caller ID lets them see who has called.  There are surveillance cameras everywhere, so you can't get away with following them.

3.  None of the above is meant to suggest that I've ever stalked someone.  I did have a stalker once (well actually for a number of years and some pretty scary encounters)  - but that's its own blog someday.

4.  Work is actually pretty easy at the moment but I'm frustrated with all the drama - if people would just spend their time doing work instead of complaining about it - they would discover its not such a burden after all.

5.  Last night there was an actual herd of deer in my backyard - five of them - tonight only two - and they didn't come up close enough to get a good picture.

6.  That's actually a positive as the spray nozzle on my deer repellent seems to have broken so I can't properly protect my hosta - and because I'm a neat freak - I don't have any empty sprayers laying around - I'll have to pick one up tomorrow.

7.  I'm fighting a mole who has taken up residence in my yard - ironically right next to the Solar Mole Spike I installed a couple of months ago.

8.  Why is spellcheck questioning my use of the word "hosta" in #6?

9.  My summer bowling partner apparently had a seizure last week - his son says he stopped taking his medication.  If that's the case- its the fourth time that I can remember this same sequence of events - stop taking anti-seizure medicine - have seizure.   What is it with people who keep doing the same thing over and over thinking this time the result will be different.

10.  Which is perhaps a good segue into my XX.  We had great physical chemistry and made some great memories - but it was always me pushing him to go out and do things....he'd just as soon sit at home and get drunk.  I've told him a number of times that I just couldn't be in a relationship with an alcoholic but in hindsight, that really wasn't and isn't the problem/

11.  The problem is that in the 11 years since we broke up, I've gained the confidence to be able to do what I want on my own, instead of waiting for someone to join me.  Granted, I'm still not much for going to sporting events or concerts alone (witness me skipping Richmond last weekend) - but each time I overcome my fear and just do something - its a good experience that helps moves me forward.  I don't want to be held back by a partner that only shares my physical, not my mental passions.

12.  Back to shallower thoughts.  I had an appraisal this week - hopefully it will come in high enough that I can refinance - the lower rate means I could spend the same each month but pay the house off much sooner. The appraiser mentioned that if I added heat to my enclosed sideporch, it would count as living space and increase the value of my house a good 5K if not more.  All that would involve is cutting a hole in the wall and flipping existing ductwork outward....something I might even be able to do myself.

13. Which reminds me - wonder if XX is still handy with gas engines?  My lawnmower hasn't worked since early spring and I'm not comfortable taking it apart to try to figure out the problem.

Hope all of you are having a good week......I'm off to Kerfuffle with my friend Steph on Saturday, and then Myrtle Beach with my BB and another close friend on Sunday.......life is sweet these days.....