Yesterday morning I was doing a little grooming (i.e., plucking out my gray hairs. Why do the gray hairs proliferate right on my part where they can stick straight up in their glory like little gray flags?) I plucked out one white hair and stared at it, stunned. While the end of the hair that I had seen in the mirror was as white as white could be, the other end, the ROOT end, was black.
Am I reverse aging now? I'm okay with that. Next, I hope to see my crow's feet start melting away.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Friday, May 22, 2009
A Tiny Story
* Look away if you do not like the posts where people talk about their pets as if they're children because said people have no children to talk about and the pets occupy way too much of their time. Seriously, I don't know what Jason and I would talk about half the time if not for Tiny. Probably about how much we miss Tiny. *
Tiny's manic litter box behavior continues, although it ebbs and flows. I've noticed that if I scold him and tell him "No" about anything, he heads right for the litter box. Great, it's his security litter box. It wouldn't be so bad if he stepped normally out of the box when he finished, but instead he likes to leap out ("like a young gazelle," as Jason would say), spraying litter everywhere.
This story is about his recent guard duty in front of the stove. Basically every night for the past week, Tiny has spent the entire evening, and usually part of the morning while I'm getting ready for work, stationed in front of the stove, either staring at the oven door, or peering underneath the stove.
I'm convinced that this means there's something living behind the stove. Jason poo poo's, but I have been right about this kind of thing before. For awhile a few months ago, Tiny used to sit in the bathtub day and night and stare at the wall. I told Jason I thought something was back there and was vindicated (grossly) when I found mouse droppings in the built-in cabinet behind the bathroom wall.
Also, they're doing construction in the apartment upstairs and I'm sure that's stirred up all sorts of... critters.* For instance, I found a house centipede in the kitchen sink a few days ago. Gah! I'm convinced it's only a matter of time before they make their move to take over the entire apartment.
I'm hoping that whatever Tiny hears moving around behind the stove sees Tiny hovering right in front and decides to stay back there.
* If you know Jason in real life, ask him to tell you the story of how Mike the contractor accidentally unearthed a squirrel nest in the apartment's wall, complete with thick Rhode Island accent. Hysterical.
Tiny's manic litter box behavior continues, although it ebbs and flows. I've noticed that if I scold him and tell him "No" about anything, he heads right for the litter box. Great, it's his security litter box. It wouldn't be so bad if he stepped normally out of the box when he finished, but instead he likes to leap out ("like a young gazelle," as Jason would say), spraying litter everywhere.
This story is about his recent guard duty in front of the stove. Basically every night for the past week, Tiny has spent the entire evening, and usually part of the morning while I'm getting ready for work, stationed in front of the stove, either staring at the oven door, or peering underneath the stove.
I'm convinced that this means there's something living behind the stove. Jason poo poo's, but I have been right about this kind of thing before. For awhile a few months ago, Tiny used to sit in the bathtub day and night and stare at the wall. I told Jason I thought something was back there and was vindicated (grossly) when I found mouse droppings in the built-in cabinet behind the bathroom wall.
Also, they're doing construction in the apartment upstairs and I'm sure that's stirred up all sorts of... critters.* For instance, I found a house centipede in the kitchen sink a few days ago. Gah! I'm convinced it's only a matter of time before they make their move to take over the entire apartment.
I'm hoping that whatever Tiny hears moving around behind the stove sees Tiny hovering right in front and decides to stay back there.
* If you know Jason in real life, ask him to tell you the story of how Mike the contractor accidentally unearthed a squirrel nest in the apartment's wall, complete with thick Rhode Island accent. Hysterical.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
The Church Burned
Today the Longfellow Park building burned down. I am still in shock, and it is all very surreal.
Today Jason and I happened to be in Cambridge. The music director at Christ Church celebrated 10 years of service there today. He has directed Jason in the choir for many years and he played the organ and organized the lovely music at our wedding. Unfortunately, we missed his party after the service.
Jason tells the story as a comment to this post:
"I only find myself in Cambridge on Sunday mornings about once a month these days. This morning, I was up singing a service at Christ Church around the corner on Garden St. It is not unusual to hear sirens occasionally during services, but this morning they kept getting progressively louder and more numerous. It became clear that something unusual was happening, and near the end of the service the priest said a prayer for whoever was affected by the fire. I had no idea it would be me. When the service ended and the doors opened, smoke wafted in. As I walked outside, someone said the Mormon church on Brattle St. had burned down."
Jason rushed over to me in the pew and told me someone said the Longfellow Park building was burning. My heart sank and I thought, it can't be... We hurried around the corner and saw the smoke and the fire engines lining the streets. My eyes filled with tears as I realized that this was really happening; our building was burning.
Today Jason and I happened to be in Cambridge. The music director at Christ Church celebrated 10 years of service there today. He has directed Jason in the choir for many years and he played the organ and organized the lovely music at our wedding. Unfortunately, we missed his party after the service.
Jason tells the story as a comment to this post:
"I only find myself in Cambridge on Sunday mornings about once a month these days. This morning, I was up singing a service at Christ Church around the corner on Garden St. It is not unusual to hear sirens occasionally during services, but this morning they kept getting progressively louder and more numerous. It became clear that something unusual was happening, and near the end of the service the priest said a prayer for whoever was affected by the fire. I had no idea it would be me. When the service ended and the doors opened, smoke wafted in. As I walked outside, someone said the Mormon church on Brattle St. had burned down."
Jason rushed over to me in the pew and told me someone said the Longfellow Park building was burning. My heart sank and I thought, it can't be... We hurried around the corner and saw the smoke and the fire engines lining the streets. My eyes filled with tears as I realized that this was really happening; our building was burning.
Jason's words again:
"We rushed over to the smoldering ruins of the church and watched for several hours as the firefighters worked to put out the blaze. It was strange to see water pouring into the charred remains of the chapel, to see the collapsed roof beams littering the gym, flames flickering along the rose window, and to see the upstairs hallway illuminated with bright sunlight, no longer shielded by a now missing roof. Several neighbors and ministers of neighborhood churches stopped by to talk. One remarked how horrible it was to see a place of gentleness consumed in such a violent manner. We moved around to the front of the building and watched the firefighters start to wind things down. Ward members had lined up and were busy pulling as many books as possible out of the library (which is now downstairs where the mission office used to be). There was a touching moment as two firefighters carried a large portrait of Jesus ministering to the rich man out of the front door of the church.
I am glad that fate found me up in Cambridge this morning, and that I had a chance to say goodbye to the building that has meant so much to me over the years."
Already, other churches in Harvard Square have offered their facilities for the 3 wards that met in the building. It is remarkable and lovely to feel the support of the community. Even though Jason and I don't attend church there anymore, Jason came there 16 years ago as a college freshman. Half of his life is wrapped up in that building in one way or another.
Someone created this collage of photos. The most striking picture for me is the one in the center, where through the windows on the left, you can see our chapel burning.
I hope that Jason and I are still here in 2 or 3 years when they dedicate the new building. I hope that they can salvage the brick structure that remains, or, if not, that the new building is similar to the old one. So much of the history of the Mormon Church in Boston was centered in that building. A couple of years ago, they celebrated its 50th anniversary and former members of the Cambridge wards came from all over the country to talk about their experiences.
In 2002 I came to Boston for law school. That was only 7 years ago, but a world away from the person I am now. Many of the changes that came into my life for the better happened because of my experiences in the Longfellow Park 2nd Ward. I met some of my dearest friends there. The callings I had while I attended allowed me to grow personally and stretch myself in ways I never thought possible. I am a different person than the girl who first walked through those doors 7 years ago, and a large part of that is due to my experiences in the Longfellow Park Ward. I spent many hours in that building, laughing, crying, singing, praying. It was a building, and it contained a community. Like all communities, it had its foibles and issues, but I felt love there. I know many people gained so much from their times there
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Herbs
The herbs in our Aerogrow are growing like crazy and I need some suggestions. We are now growing 4 types of basil and I use basil in a lot of dishes on a regular basis. Last year we were eating a lot of salmon, but I haven't bought any in awhile and now the dill is out of control. The parsley is also threatening to take over the kitchen table.
So does anyone have any good recipes using dill and/or parsley?
The staples in my kitchen that might be conducive to herbs are chicken, a wide variety of beans, broccoli and cauliflower, and possibly a pot roast in the back of the freezer.
So does anyone have any good recipes using dill and/or parsley?
The staples in my kitchen that might be conducive to herbs are chicken, a wide variety of beans, broccoli and cauliflower, and possibly a pot roast in the back of the freezer.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Success!
That big thing the client wanted done by Thursday? Yeah, we just finished it. And they were happy with the product.
Now I have to go deal with all the other clients I've been putting off for the last few days.
Now I have to go deal with all the other clients I've been putting off for the last few days.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Items
1) Our apartment is a full-blown disaster.
2) Part of that is Tiny's fault, he of the litter strewing.
3) Part of that is Jason's fault, since he likes to leave piles of multiple weeks' worth of junk mail on the floor.
4) Part of that is my fault, since I tend to use the dining room as my personal stuff repository when I come home from work/church/wherever.
5) Also, on a related note, I'm TIRED of cleaning. Sometimes I feel like it's all I do when I'm not at work. I come home, I clean and cook, we watch some TV, I go to bed so I can wake up at 6 to get to the gym, then it's back to work and so on. Then Saturday is the BIG cleaning day and I can spend HOURS doing laundry, sanitizing things, organizing things. Jason will help when I ask him, but we seem to have a disconnect between my timeline and his timeline. For example, we don't have a lot of space in the kitchen, so in order to make dinner in the evening, I need the dishes from the night before to be cleaned and off the counters and out of the sink. I think it's fair that since I cook he can do the dishes at least half the time. Only when I request he do the dishes, he says he will and then 3 days later he might get around to it - if I remind him again. In the meantime, I've been not cleaning them on principle and getting increasingly annoyed that there's no space when I'm cooking. OR I go ahead and clean them myself when I get home from work because I need the space and I just can't wait any longer.
Similarly, unless I explicitly tell him to, it would never occur to him to whip out the vacuum cleaner and suck up all of that litter on the throw rugs. Or sweep anywhere but in the kitchen immediately around the litter box. Or clean the bathroom in general.
Occasionally he'll do a load of laundry or clean the dishes on his own and I praise him extensively. Only then the next time I ask him to do it again, he's all, "I just did that!" and then I have to point out that he actually did that a week ago and in the meantime I've cleaned the kitchen 7 times and/or done 10 loads of laundry.
This is an ongoing problem. This is what I mean when I tell people the biggest struggle of our marriage has been "roommate issues".
6) I'm crazy busy at work. I just ate lunch (at 2 PM) and have allowed myself a half hour to peruse blogs and post since I know I'll be here until at least 7.
7) I'm kind of annoyed at clients who hem and haw for days and weeks and then need something huge THIS THURSDAY.
8) If this project makes me miss The Biggest Loser finale, I am going to be SO ticked. I have poured my heart and soul into this season and can't miss the big ending. Team Tara!
2) Part of that is Tiny's fault, he of the litter strewing.
3) Part of that is Jason's fault, since he likes to leave piles of multiple weeks' worth of junk mail on the floor.
4) Part of that is my fault, since I tend to use the dining room as my personal stuff repository when I come home from work/church/wherever.
5) Also, on a related note, I'm TIRED of cleaning. Sometimes I feel like it's all I do when I'm not at work. I come home, I clean and cook, we watch some TV, I go to bed so I can wake up at 6 to get to the gym, then it's back to work and so on. Then Saturday is the BIG cleaning day and I can spend HOURS doing laundry, sanitizing things, organizing things. Jason will help when I ask him, but we seem to have a disconnect between my timeline and his timeline. For example, we don't have a lot of space in the kitchen, so in order to make dinner in the evening, I need the dishes from the night before to be cleaned and off the counters and out of the sink. I think it's fair that since I cook he can do the dishes at least half the time. Only when I request he do the dishes, he says he will and then 3 days later he might get around to it - if I remind him again. In the meantime, I've been not cleaning them on principle and getting increasingly annoyed that there's no space when I'm cooking. OR I go ahead and clean them myself when I get home from work because I need the space and I just can't wait any longer.
Similarly, unless I explicitly tell him to, it would never occur to him to whip out the vacuum cleaner and suck up all of that litter on the throw rugs. Or sweep anywhere but in the kitchen immediately around the litter box. Or clean the bathroom in general.
Occasionally he'll do a load of laundry or clean the dishes on his own and I praise him extensively. Only then the next time I ask him to do it again, he's all, "I just did that!" and then I have to point out that he actually did that a week ago and in the meantime I've cleaned the kitchen 7 times and/or done 10 loads of laundry.
This is an ongoing problem. This is what I mean when I tell people the biggest struggle of our marriage has been "roommate issues".
6) I'm crazy busy at work. I just ate lunch (at 2 PM) and have allowed myself a half hour to peruse blogs and post since I know I'll be here until at least 7.
7) I'm kind of annoyed at clients who hem and haw for days and weeks and then need something huge THIS THURSDAY.
8) If this project makes me miss The Biggest Loser finale, I am going to be SO ticked. I have poured my heart and soul into this season and can't miss the big ending. Team Tara!
Monday, May 04, 2009
Neurotic Kitty
I wish that we had some single friend in Providence who wouldn't mind house- and cat-sitting whenever we go out of town. And it would really be less of a house-sit than a cat-sit. I used to dog- and cat-sit for my aunt and uncle when I was in high school and college and it was fun, although I'm really good at scaring myself and being 17 and alone in a big empty house off in the desert is kind of intimidating. Thankfully, I had a mutt named Josie to protect me* and a cat named Sophie to sleep on my head and keep me company.
So the last time we went out of town for a few days Tiny started going into the litter box a lot and we were concerned and took him to the vet. They said he has crystals in his urine and now he eats a special food that's more acidic and is supposed to dissolve the crystals. After this bag is empty, we're going to get him checked again to make sure it's working.
Well, since then he's had a couple more episodes ranging from 3-5 days of darting in and out of the litter box every 45 seconds or so. Here's why I'm starting to think it's not about the crystals. For one, if we distract him, he forgets about it. Like if he falls asleep on one of us, he'll stay there for hours and not even think about going to the bathroom.
Two, there seem to be certain things that trigger these events. Cleaning the litter box, for instance. If he sees us changing the litter he bounces around until we get the box put back together and then immediately uses it. And then uses it again. And again. So Saturday when I cleaned it, I put him in the guest room, did my work, and let him out. He could have cared less and I thought we were off the hook.
Only then we were gone from 9:45 AM until 10:00 PM yesterday and when we got home, he ate his dinner and then started doing the in and out of the litter box again. He didn't do it until we got home because when he goes in and out like that, a pile of litter starts to accumulate on the floor surrounding the litter box, so we can tell if he's had a bad day. Then he started roaming around the house caterwauling, but wouldn't come to us when we called him. It wasn't until I got down on the floor with him and petted and talked to him, and Jason picked him up and cuddled him for awhile** that he stopped moaning.
So I've come to a conclusion. Tiny isn't sick, he's just neurotic.
Yeah, sure, he MIGHT have crystals in his urine, but I think his OCD litter box behavior is more related to him not liking things to change. We can be gone all day during the week, but on the weekend, we're supposed to be home, with him! Especially on lazy Sunday afternoons! I understand he's not capable of that much thought, but I think it's more that he knows something is off intuitively.
I really want to figure out a way to keep him content because the whole litter box thing is, well, annoying, but also disgusting, because he proceeds to get litter EVERYwhere. I can sweep it all up one day, but by the next there's more litter all over the place. It just makes me nervous for the next time we go out of town. We have a friend who will come feed him, but I think the companionship is more important to Tiny.
* Which she did. She decided she did NOT like one of my friends and whenever he would come over to hang out, she would plant herself in front of me and growl if he tried to come near. No idea why, he was a very nice guy.
** Can you say SPOILED KITTEN?
So the last time we went out of town for a few days Tiny started going into the litter box a lot and we were concerned and took him to the vet. They said he has crystals in his urine and now he eats a special food that's more acidic and is supposed to dissolve the crystals. After this bag is empty, we're going to get him checked again to make sure it's working.
Well, since then he's had a couple more episodes ranging from 3-5 days of darting in and out of the litter box every 45 seconds or so. Here's why I'm starting to think it's not about the crystals. For one, if we distract him, he forgets about it. Like if he falls asleep on one of us, he'll stay there for hours and not even think about going to the bathroom.
Two, there seem to be certain things that trigger these events. Cleaning the litter box, for instance. If he sees us changing the litter he bounces around until we get the box put back together and then immediately uses it. And then uses it again. And again. So Saturday when I cleaned it, I put him in the guest room, did my work, and let him out. He could have cared less and I thought we were off the hook.
Only then we were gone from 9:45 AM until 10:00 PM yesterday and when we got home, he ate his dinner and then started doing the in and out of the litter box again. He didn't do it until we got home because when he goes in and out like that, a pile of litter starts to accumulate on the floor surrounding the litter box, so we can tell if he's had a bad day. Then he started roaming around the house caterwauling, but wouldn't come to us when we called him. It wasn't until I got down on the floor with him and petted and talked to him, and Jason picked him up and cuddled him for awhile** that he stopped moaning.
So I've come to a conclusion. Tiny isn't sick, he's just neurotic.
Yeah, sure, he MIGHT have crystals in his urine, but I think his OCD litter box behavior is more related to him not liking things to change. We can be gone all day during the week, but on the weekend, we're supposed to be home, with him! Especially on lazy Sunday afternoons! I understand he's not capable of that much thought, but I think it's more that he knows something is off intuitively.
I really want to figure out a way to keep him content because the whole litter box thing is, well, annoying, but also disgusting, because he proceeds to get litter EVERYwhere. I can sweep it all up one day, but by the next there's more litter all over the place. It just makes me nervous for the next time we go out of town. We have a friend who will come feed him, but I think the companionship is more important to Tiny.
* Which she did. She decided she did NOT like one of my friends and whenever he would come over to hang out, she would plant herself in front of me and growl if he tried to come near. No idea why, he was a very nice guy.
** Can you say SPOILED KITTEN?
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