Cat Acne

Today is feel sorry for Small Cat day. First of all, he was forced to go to the vet, which he didn't expect at all and was very disgruntled about. Then it turns out he's actually GAINED weight since the last visit, a solid 16lbs at the moment. Even though he's eating out of the yogurt containers, and some of what he's eating is diet food. Oops.

And most tragic of all, the cat has been diagnosed with chin acne. Very embarrassing, I would imagine. The big pustule kind too. Maybe we should change his name to "Pizza Face." Also, he has allergies. Our house is not as bright as the vet's office, and it wasn't until we were there that I realized he's pretty much pink. His ears, nose, eyes all have a bright pink color to them, but additionally the back of one leg and his tummy are noticeably pink. So he's allergic to something. The dust kicked up on the outside of the building from all this work? The diet food? Fleas we could have gotten from other people's dogs? Who knows? He's got a dose of Frontline on him now, and he does not yet know this but we now own something called a "Pill Gun" which we will hopefully be using to successfully feed him Benedryl. Also, I have to go to the drugstore and buy him some acne cream to wash his face. Seriously.

I also have a dose of Frontline to put on the Monster, but I'm not sure that's a job I'm willing to tackle by myself.

jury duty

Today I went to criminal court, to serve jury duty. I had never been before, and I wasn't sure what to expect. I kept trying to convince myself it would just be some traffic violation, or breaking and entering of some sort. But the case I got called to was a murder case, the defendant was charged with two counts of 1st degree murder and one case of 1st degree attempted murder, I think. I don't know exactly, as soon as she started talking about a medical examiner being a potential witness I knew I was in trouble, and had a hard time listening closely after that.

I was one of 28 people pulled to sit in the jury box and answer questions about whether or not we knew people in law enforcement, or had been victims of crimes. I realized I've been really lucky, there's a lot of terrible things people can go through. And they also asked if anyone had been charged with a crime, which a surprising number of people said yes to. Then they all had to say what it was and how long ago, which has to feel strange to do in front of so many people. There was quite a variety listed: a DUI, possession of controlled substances, someone was charged with assault when they were 11, hitting a police officer 35 years ago, passing a bad check, handgun possession. Nothing major, but still a number of secrets aired out among strangers.

Obviously I wouldn't be able to talk about this if I had been chosen. They sent us on break, and when we came back they read a list of names of people who were dismissed, and thankfully I was one of them. I do think being on a jury could be interesting in the future, but I will still keep hoping for a basic traffic violation. If the defendant really didn't do it, then I hope that's what the jury finds. I'm glad I don't have to spend the rest of the week listening to people trying to convince me that he did.

inspirations

Look, it's Ian, on the front page of Edge Magazine!!

And then there's Alec, a fellow at the Center for Cartoon Studies, self-publishing, teaching, working on his graphic novel.

Kristen and Joe with beautiful baby Maddie, who laughs and smiles and is a joy.

Lindsey's at grad school studying bats. Living in New Jersey for pete's sake!

My parents are busier than ever in their retirements. They are doing things for themselves and volunteering to help others.

All these things help me stay focused and moving forward. Look at the great things all these great people are doing. I have to keep motivated so I can be on this list too!

5 years

Tonight we're going to Tsunami, the sushi restaurant where we had our first official date. We go every year to celebrate the day we actually met in person. Unlike our new anniversary (the first wedding date), I think that we hold onto this one for nostalgia rather than celebration. When we first went there, ehs didn't eat sushi. He knew I liked it, so he wanted to take me to a really good sushi restaurant, where he proceeded to order the chicken teriyaki. Now that he has learned to love sushi, we get to order things to share. And a sake flight. ^_^

I don't know that we have to keep this anniversary tradition, but I think that we would both miss it. Our new anniversary is a celebration of the commitment we've made to each other and how that relationship is growing. But our first anniversary reminds us that there was a time when we each felt our hearts racing just to see the other one. When everything was a surprise, when he would drive to the airport to pick me up, and when doing his laundry for him seemed like a gift instead of a given. Those moments still have their place in our relationship, but it's nice to have a specific event to remember and honor them. Plus there's sushi!

lazy sunday

Yesterday was the perfect lazy rainy Sunday. We lounged around in our pajamas until about 2, managed to watch three different movies, had a great dinner. And yet still accomplished some of the tasks on our to do lists.

Now if only I didn't have a sneezy cat, I could say that it's going to be a great cool fall Monday as well...