The Age-Old Question

No, it's not "Why me?" though that's a good one. It's not "Why are we here?". It's not even "Why is there air?" - one of the best Billy Cosby routines and albums ever. In my mind, the age-old question is "Which is better - cats or dogs?"

Don't get me wrong. I may own cats, but I love dogs too. In fact, I started in animal rescue as a chance to be around dogs again. A chance to "play with dogs" as I called it. In the past few years, I've mostly been involved on the cat-side of the house, but that's just because our rescue skews toward the dog lovers. Someone has to love the cats. :)

Anyway, back the age-old question. For me, it's not a matter of which is better. It's a matter of which you prefer. They both have strengths and weaknesses.

PROS:

Dogs: A dog will greet you at the door, bounding with love. This makes you feel appreciated, and who doesn't need that! Dogs can learn and do tricks - from learning to sit on command to catching a frisbee and other toys. Fun! Dogs can sleep with you and keep you warm - where do you think the name "Three Dog Night" comes from, anyway?

Cats: Purring is one of the best sounds in the world. Cat's fur is not quite as soft as rabbit's fur, but generally softer than dog's fur. Cats clean themselves and almost never stink up the place, except maybe their breath. Cats can be left for a couple of days with just food, water, and a clean litter box.

CONS:

Dogs: You can't leave a dog for days without some serious problems arising, unless you happen to have a dog that uses a litter box (some of the smaller breeds). Dogs bark. Even if you love it, others might. A cat might meow, and loudly sometimes, but generally not so loud the neighbors can hear.

Cats: Cats are almost never affectionate all the time. They're too independent for that. Cats' litter boxes are NOT a pleasant odor. So you may be able to leave them for a day or two, but you might come home to a stinky house.

But in general, the age-old question is answered best with "Both!" The love of a pet - and learning how to care for one - is a great thing.

When Turning On The Lights Is Scary

Last night, at close to midnight, long after I had gone to sleep, a light came on. Randomly. Strangely.

I have said many times that I'm a really light sleeper. My usual way of describing how light a sleeper I am is to say that my cats wake me up when they walk in the room. Sad, but true.

But you know what? My new description is going to be that a light turned on down the hall woke me up.

Woke me up and scared me to death. How could a light just turn itself on? Was there someone in my house? But if someone was in my house, why would they turn on a light? Not logical. But in the night, when woken up from sleep, the rationality of that escaped me. Instead, I was convinced there was someone in the house. If not, why did the light come on?

Are there some kind of timers? Motion sensors? I still have no idea why the light came on. Scary.

Independence

Yesterday, the United States celebrated our Independence Day. July 4 is officially the day that the U.S. declared itself independent from the British. And went to war to make it real.

Since then, Americans have been practicing our independence every day. I don't know how it's done, but the reality of being American is being independent. It's just part of our culture. Part of the American dream. Pull yourself up by your bootstraps and all that. Depend on no one put yourself anymore than you have to.

The funny thing is that, even people like me who don't need to pull themselves up by the bootstraps, still get that independent spirit inculcated into ourselves. That desire to strive for more. Even if it's not financially based.

How does that sense of independence get passed from generation to generation? I'm not sure. Perhaps it's that our heroes fit that type. Perhaps it's the history we all learn in school. Perhaps it's just a theme in our pop culture that gets perpetuated as the American style.

Regardless of how it happens, it's a national trait. Independence. To be celebrated. And more than just one day a year.

Things The Home Inspector Doesn't Find

My new home is lovely and really there's nothing majorly wrong with it. But there are some things that the home inspector just didn't find.

The first challenge I faced was ants. Northern Virginia is one big ant hill. I knew that from my last house where the ants once invaded so badly that there was quite literally a stream of them from my front hall closet to my kitchen, carrying bits of cat food away. Disgusting. This house clearly has the same problem, which I found out the morning before I left for Florida. I was desperately afraid that, after two days with food laid out, I would come back to the same situation as in the other house. But in the end, the ants weren't that bad. The exterminator has been here, and the situation is under control. And it's just an example of what the home inspector doesn't find.

As I've posted before, this house has very nice appointments. Some of the nicest are three amazing full baths, with tile and glass enclosures. They are truly lovely. But...the shower head in the guest bathroom on the top floor squeals about one minutes into using it. The shower head in the master bath is so high that the water gets too dispersed before it hits me. Which is why I've been using the squealing guest bath. I'm going to try the other guest bath tomorrow. We'll see how it does. There's nothing really wrong with either shower head. They work. Just not how I would ideally want them to.

Tonight, I tried to change the water filter in the refrigerator. When you open the door, the light indicator for the filter is red. Which basically means that the filter is not doing its job anymore. So I bought a new one. And I can't get the old one out. The instructions say to twist it a quarter turn counter clocckwise and pull it out. But the filter doesn't turn either way. At all. Again, not something on the home inspector's list, but something that it would be awfully nice to have work.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not complaining really. You just wish that the home inspector could tell you everything that you might need to know.

Back To The Routine

House - settled.
Cats - settling in.
Job - started.

This past weekend was the first weekend in over a month that really felt like a weekend.

The previous weekend, the family was in Florida celebrating my parents' 60th wedding anniversary. So, hardly a normal weekend.

The previous several weekends didn't really differ much from the weeks. Being out of work will do that. I was packing and moving, and unpacking and sleeping in hotels. Hardly my normal existence either.

But this weekend, after a full week of work (including some OT of course!), life got back to its usual routine. Cat volunteering on Saturday. Grocery shopping and other errands on Sunday. Workouts both days. Much more the kind of weekend I have had for many years.

And you know what? It felt good. It felt right. Even though it was only two days, after over a month of not working.

Weird, huh?

The Epic Epic

First round. Three-day match. No fifth set tie breaker. 70-68. SEVENTY games to SIXTY-EIGHT games! In the fifth set. After more than 11 hours of play and 183 games total. Stopped twice because it got too dark. Over 100 aces from both players. More than 250 winners from each player, too. Epic doesn't seem to quite cover it. As Isner put it, it's too bad that someone had to lose.

The sad news. Isner lost his very next match. After 11 hours of play over three days, it took only a little over an hour for his next opponent to bounce him.

Still, there will probably never be another match like this one. And both players will end up in the record books regardless of what they might do in the future.

Making A House A Home

The cats and I have been in our new house for 10 days now.

I've been unpacking boxes and deciding whether the furniture is where I want it. Most of the boxes have been unpacked. The furniture seems to be in the right place, at least for the time being.

Before I moved into this home, I knew that I was going to need more stuff. After all, this house in almost twice the size of my previous one. I need to fill spaces. I have a deck, so I need patio furniture. I have three living spaces - a living room, a family room, and an open downstairs where I have put the TV. I had two couches, so I need a third or some other form of seating. And I need to figure out where to put the art that I have and what new art I might want.

Buying furniture turns out to be more complicated than I had imagined. What kind of patio furniture do I want? Wood, metal, or wicker. I hate wicker, so that much was an easy decision. Wood is harder to maintain. Metal can rust. Ultimately, it came down to taste. Clean lines. Simple lines. I ended up with metal.

Even more complicated have been the decisions about seating. I have discovered that microfiber or faux suede are the best choices for fabric because the cats don't pick at them. Or if they do, it doesn't show. Either way, I will get more life out of the furniture with those fabrics. So that's the first decision. From there, it's a question of what style of seating. Again, I want clean and simple. Almost Asian, but not. Modern. Sleek, but not cold. Functional.

I looked for several weeks before I had even moved. And had found next to nothing that I actually liked. Even given that I had a bigger space to fill, and so could get one of the gi-normous couches that are around these days, nothing seemed quite right. Current styles seem to lean toward ornate furniture. So not me. Clean and simple seemed to be relegated to Ikea, and I was trying to go a little more upscale.

Then I found a sectional and coffee table that I just really liked. But that didn't really fit the space I needed to fill. The room that I really needed seating for was the living room. A sectional, even a really nice one, somehow just doesn't fit with my plans for that space. I need a more traditional couch to go with the two arm chairs I already have. But I really liked this sectional. It was clean and simple, and came in microfiber. Perfect. So I decided to get it and replace the couch that is currently downstairs in front of the TV. Or rather, move that couch to the family room upstairs and get rid of the sofabed that is both ancient (at least 10 years old) and beat up (not microfiber, very much cat-scratched). That still left a couch for the living room. I think I have found a solution there, too, though I haven't seen it in person yet and I need that. Hopefully soon.

Beyond furniture, though, to me, the touches that make a house a home are the accessories, the knickknacks, the tchotchkes. Placing the artwork is proving a more daunting tasks than the furniture. I have found a few homes for my existing pieces, but not many. And while I have quite a bit of artwork and knickknacks, I need more. And I need different types. I need more art, less box-store stuff. I need things with flair, not just the things I bought was I was 20 and that's all I could afford.

But those are not quick finds. It was much easier to walk into a box store and buy decorations at 20. At almost 50, it's much harder to be selective. To take the time to really fall in love with each piece.

So the house will be finished soon. The last of the boxes will be unpacked. The furniture will be bought and put in place. The spaces will be filled.

But the home is going to take a while longer.