Lots has been going on, and I want to talk about it all, even though none of it has to do with anything else. So, here's an entry of short anecdotes that sums it all up. Enjoy!

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I saw Bobbi and Loki yesterday, though not under the happiest of circumstances. I came over to babysit Loki while Bobbi took care of several pet-sitting clients, because Loki just had surgery. Poor Loki! Remember the torn ACL I mentioned? Well, it turns out that he had the same thing in the other knee. We thought he had one bad knee and one good knee, when in fact, he has one bad knee, and one really, really bad knee. The bad knee (the one we previously thought was just fine) is the one he had surgery on after he blew it out during play-time at the park on Friday. Bobbi's message sounded so sad as she told me, "He's in pretty rough shape." She wanted to make sure he had help getting in his doggy bed if he needed it, and most especially that he didn't catch his foot or leg on anything while she was gone. And that's where I came in.

I watched dorky movies on HBO while petting Loki, offering him treats, sips of water, and his food. Bobbi had given him his meds (read: Morphine) before she left, so really, Loki just slept the whole time she was gone. And I got to pet one of my favorite dogs in all the world and give him more kisses than he could possibly want.

He's recovering quickly, and should be on his feet without pain fairly soon. No running in the dog park again for quite some time, though. Oh, and in a few more months, he'll need to have surgery on the other knee. The really, really bad one. Maybe after he recovers from that surgery, he can finally lead a pain-free life. This guy's sure been through a whirlwind of stuff recently! I can't wait until he's all better.

Even though it was under those circumstances, I'm still really happy I got to see Loki and Bobbi. When Bobbi returned from pet-sitting, she and I had lunch together and just chatted about life for a while. It was really great! Also, I got to pet all of her fabulous kitties, which is always lots of fun. They meowed at me a lot. I think they were saying, "Do you see that beast the crazy lady brought home? Why? For the love of god, WHY?!"

They love Loki. Or at least, in time, they will. He wins everyone over eventually!

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Yesterday was also errand day. Joe and I dropped off a bunch of stuff to the Goodwill, where we met the angriest man who ever lived.

The man walked up to us and said something indecipherable.

"What?" we asked.

"Clothes? Are these clothes??!" he shouted.

"That one is," I said, bewildered, pointing to the bag in Joe's hands.

He took it, turned away and said, "Aaah!" in the most frustrated of tones.

He came back and I extended the bags I was holding towards him.

"CLOTHES?!" he shouted at me.

"No, books..." I said softly. He jerked the bags away from me and stormed off.

When we got back in the car, Joe said, "That was awesome!" at which point we both busted up laughing. We laughed as we re-enacted the scene together, and laughed some more. I love it when Joe is with me when the crazies are out. Otherwise, I just get pissed off at their rudeness. But Joe has a better perspective on things than I do and knows when it's worth it to get pissed at people and when it's not. He helps me see the world in a more light-hearted way. One of the millions of reasons I love him so!

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A year and three months ago, I decided being a Mary Kay lady was not for me. Yesterday, I packed up all the cosmetics and skin care supplies I still had, addressed them to my sister-in-law, who is a consultant, and this morning, I got all four boxes into my car. The process of actually getting them into my car took more time and effort than I expected, and I did not have time to get them to the post office. That adventure is for tomorrow. I'm just glad to finally be clearing out things I don't and won't use anymore. It's good feng shui. It's good for my peace of mind. And it's good, because when Joe and I move, we won't want to lug around anything we don't really need or want anymore.

I feel like shipping these boxes out is symbolic of truly moving on, and not hanging onto things "just in case" or as an option for later. It feels decisive. It feels good.

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Today, Victor was fussing, so I picked him up. He seemed slightly cheered up simply being in my arms. Then I heard a weird meow. In the kitchen, one of the cats was standing with a slipper in her mouth, meowing. No wonder it sounded weird -- her mouth was full! I burst out laughing and Victor laughed, too. The slipper was over half the size of the cat! She kept meowing, not understanding what was so funny.

I couldn't tell whether Victor was laughing at the cat or at my laughter, or both, but he was giggling like nobody's business. Even after the cat dropped the slipper, Vic was laughing and laughing, and squealing and laughing some more. Almost instantly, I was laughing at his cute little laugh instead of the silly cat, and the two of us stood there just laughing for quite some time. It left me feeling all warm and fuzzy, like we were sharing some kind of joke together, just for a little while.

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I started a new book last night called Creating Sacred Space With Feng Shui. It's fascinating! The author writes that every single item in our homes was in some way purchased by us (or accepted by us, as a gift, or accepting a partner's/roommate's choice of purchase, etc), and it was placed a certain way by us for a reason. Everything in our homes is a reflection of ourselves, and conversely, everything in our homes can affect us, even on a subconscious level.

That idea really makes sense to me. I can't wait to find out more! Bizarrely enough, this author writes a lot about Bali, where she spends 6 months of every year. It's bizarre, because I've always felt drawn to Bali and want to visit it someday. I always find it strange when mentionings of Bali come up in the most unexpected of places! A sign to go visit it? Or, at least, an excuse to pretend it's a sign and go visit it?

Anyway, I can't wait to read more of this book!

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Beth showed me how to crochet the other night! It was kind of funny, because she was trying to figure out how to teach me so that I could crochet left-handed, and I was trying to attempt it the right-handed way so as to understand it better. It was weird figuring it out, since she's right-handed and I'm left! But after making stitches the right-handed way (with much help from Beth! She is so great!), I was able to switch to left, and I think I'm actually getting it. And soon enough, I'll even learn how to make something! Yay!

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The other night, I came home, and Joe had a present for me. A brand new cell phone!! I am thrilled! My old one has been spontaneously turning off. Not okay when people are trying to get a hold of me, or when I'm using it as my alarm clock in the morning!

So, my new phone is a Verizon phone, and it's really nifty. I can already do a lot with it, and am trying to explore all of its functions. Today I was playing with speed dialing, and even though I understand how to do it, it wasn't letting me call home. I have no idea why! I'll have to ask Joe. He is more technology-savvy than I. The only bad part about the phone is that the alarm is just a little "doodla-dee!" sound, and that's it. I'm afraid that is not going to be enough to wake me! Annoying "EEE EEE EEE" alarms that go on and on until I have to roll over and reach pretty far to turn it off are the only ones that work for me. So... maybe I just need a new alarm clock?

My new phone gets great connection (don't have to worry about missing calls or losing people just because I'm inside a supermarket or whatever), is clear as a bell when I talk on it, and has some cool ringers such as The Radetzky March (which is mostly cool because it brings back nice Band memories from high school!). I love my new phone! And I love my cool husband for getting it for me!

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Well, I guess those are all my stories for now. I'm sure I'll have more to say soon enough!

Have a great day!