Lost Soul

For the past couple of days, we have had a visitor on our doorstep. Not a relative, or a friend, but a small, not-quite-grown cat. She's an unattrative mixture of colors and she will not reach full size I suspect. We have two cats, Cooper and Eli, whose growth stopped short of their reaching full-size. At any rate, the new cat was standing on the sidewalk when I left for work yesterday. She was nervous, but she wanted some attention, so she let us pet her and, being the bleeding heart cat lovers we are, we gave her food and shelter in the form of a cat bed that our fat cats can no longer fit into.

She hasn't used the bed as far as I can tell, but she does enjoy the food. Today, she was sitting on the porch when I came home from work. She again was scared but later let us pet her and we again fed her. Anyone who is familiar with animals knows that feeding them is as good as claiming them. She will likely come around from now on, until something happens to her or someone takes her into their home. I fear the former is more likely. Is that pessimistic or realistic? I say realistic.

My first instinct was to bring her into the fray. What's one more cat when you already have five? My girlfriend was not going for it. I have the good sense to know it's not feasible to take on another cat, but seeing that poor little thing out in the twenty degree weather breaks my heart. Her fate is to have litter after litter of kittens and/or get run over by a car. I can barely stand the thought.

So, what does someone do in this situation? Do we just continue to feed her and care for her the best we can until one day she disappears or gets killed on the street? My girlfriend keeps saying she may have a family since she allows us to pet her. I'm more skeptical. I think she's abandoned or lost or simply neglected and unwanted. Reminds me of Sammy, one of our other cats. I found him on the streets of downtown with no sign of an owner.

We actually didn't learn her sex until tonight. I suspected she was a female, but all cats seem like females to me for some reason. She is so cute and small and her future is dire. That all said, I think I'll name her Sally.

How Do You Spell Relief?

S-A-B-B-A-T-I-C-A-L. Yes, I'm officially on leave from my second job. I don't necessarily want to quite yet, but I need some time off to regroup and reevaluate what I'm doing here. You know what they say about too much of a good thing. I'm adjusted my budget without the extra income and I'm still happy with the damage I can do on my school debt. Instead of taking 14 months, it will take something like 22 or so, but I think I can live with it. It feels so nice to come home after work and be here in my home where it's warm and where there are cats to love. My boss couldn't have been more understanding as she started her career doing the same thing I was doing. Calling people one right after the other on the telephone and most of the time receiving a rude reception doesn't ware well on the psyche. So, here's to free time but less money. Cheers.

Aftermath

Today is the day after. No, not after a nuclear war which is probably a good analogy of the events of Thanksgiving, but after the holiday itself. It went as badly or slightly worse than I imagined. I won't go into the details here, just trust me when I say it was bad.

I have spent the entire day indoors curled up infront of my space heater watching TV. It felt nice though my girlfriend was gone shopping all day and it was a bit lonely. However, I was able to come up with some Christmas ideas during the quiet time. I'm anxious to get all that shopping over with.

Turkey Schmurkey

Whoever said this was the most wonderful time of the year ought to be dragged from their bed, pulled into the street, shot like a mangy dog, then ran over 10 times. This has to be the most stressful, dreadful part of the year for me. Not only do you have to be around people you don't particularly care for, but you have to get ridiculed by them. You get to have all your shortcomings pointed out and made fun of. Who wouldn't enjoy that! Makes me want to scream obscenities and drive off like a maniac. Everyone seems to have their crazy knob on 10 during this time also. I love to eat, but damn!

It's A Sad Day...

Today I travelled to Paducah for some work training and I was disgusted and disturbed by all the dead deer carcuses in various states of decay with various missing body parts left along the interstate. I have heard, but don't necessarily believe, that having a hunting season is a necessity to control the population of deer. I'm told that they'll starve if hunters don't kill some of them off. Well, I say starving is more humane than what I've seen and some of the stories I've heard. And, leaving them on the side of the road the way they are each and every year for people particularly children to see is absolutely abhorent. It shows such a lack of respect for life and the animals of this Earth that it turns my stomach. It was like a 80 mile nightmare of carnage.

I eat meat, so I probably don't have alot of room to talk about this subject, but when I got home I was shaken a bit and deeply saddened by what I saw. Do we have to kill deer? They are really such beautiful creatures and if you've ever watched one in it's natural habitat, well, it's really something I'll just say. At the very least, why can't hunters show respect for their prey and dispose of their bodies properly. I'm not sure the meat had been removed from some of those I saw today. Why aren't more people outraged?

Job Shoving

I've racked up a total of an hour and a half at my second job this week. I took tonight off for a night out with my girlfriend. I have to admit it felt nice, if not a little scary. I'm fighting the strangling sensation of feeling deep in debt. My co-workers at my second job urge me to make it through at least until our Christmas get together which consists of a $20 meal at Texas Roadhouse and a bunch of redneck gifts such as Red Man belt buckles and knives. I'm not sure I can make it. Last week I only worked 4 hours. My second job is supposed to be a 14 hour a week position mind you. I wonder if I'll get fired first.

The above picture was taken over a recent weekend while visiting family. It is a symbol for Pisces.

Gun Shy

Today I was sent home early from my first job, had my second job canceled because the building we test in closed for the pending bad weather, and my third job canceled for the same reason. Schools closed, daycares shut the doors, and state agencies sent their employees home early. After all that, we didn't end up with much more than a little wind and rain. I understand that with the recent deadly tornado across the river, everyone gets nervous, but we can't live our lives afraid of every little thing that may or may not happen. Although I appreciate the time off, I feel like our area overreacted.

Ramble

Found 7 new caches in the last couple of days. Saw a play and survived a tornado threat, which sadly some did not. Had a good fortune I wanted to blog with today, but I lost it somewhere between the restaurant and home. Maybe it'll turn up. Completed a couple more home improvement projects. Preparing for a a few days off in the company of family this weekend. The end.

Hey, Ya'll

Your Linguistic Profile:

55% General American English

30% Dixie

5% Midwestern

5% Upper Midwestern

5% Yankee

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

I love these things!

Surgeon General Warning

Knitting Causes Seizures. No, you won't see this warning on the yarn wrapper, but I believe it's nonetheless true. As I came home from the grocery the day before yesterday, I found my girlfriend on the floor in the kitchen. She said she was feeling as if she would pass out. I told her to lie down as I got her a cold washcloth. A few moments later, she had a seizure.

She was out for a just a few seconds, but they were tense and frightening seconds. She eventually came out of it and a few seconds after that, had another, longer one. At this point, I called 9-1-1.

Something similar to this happened about 7 or 8 years ago, but nothing before or since. She was humiliated and embarrassed that I had called the paramedics, but I was scared and I didn't know what else to do. Her parents came over after the fact and insisted that she simply passed out, but it wasn't fainting. Although I'm no MD, I saw it. Her eyes were open and her body muscles stiffened. This was a seizure, damn it!

By the time the paramedics arrived, she was feeling better, but a bit woozy. She didn't feel she needed to take an ambulance trip to the ER, so she turned away the paramedics. The following day, after being nudged by a co-worker, she went to the doctor and succumbed to a battery of tests the results of which we don't know yet.

Since the seizures, I'm been asking myself what could have caused this. Could it be an abnormal brain wave, low blood sugar, God forbid a tumor? She smashed her finger in the dryer door prior to having the seizures, but I have concluded that knitting is the culprit. Thanks to Needlefingers, my girlfriend has been knitting during every spare moment. She has also began purchasing large quantities of yarn and now has as least three storage containers filled to the brim with knitting paraphernalia. She's like a crackhead looking for a fix. Therefore, I have come to the conclusion that knitting has to be the reason behind it. My hypothesis is further evidenced by Needlefingers missing a day of work the same day of my girlfriend's "episode". Coincidence? I think not! My scientific evaluation may be flawed by some standards, but it stands up to logic. Knitting is bad for your health!

I feel sure my girlfriend is fine and we may never really know what happened to her, but in my mind, the repetitive scrapping and clicking of needles and beautifully twisted yarn will be at fault.

The Proverbial Straw

OK. I've hit a milestone with my debt reduction plan. Since February of 2004, I have been adhering to, albeit not strictly, to Dave Ramsey's babysteps to debt freedom. That is 1 year and 9 months. Yesterday I paid of my car, my next to the last debt. I feel good about it, but otherwise I'm feeling pretty bad. Physically I mean. The stress and strain of working 3 jobs and constantly worrying about money has brought me to the breaking point. I'm at a physical and mental crossroads. Today, I resolved to reduce the amount of time I spend at my second job and ultimately I plan to give it up by the end of the year.

Strangely I don't feel a great deal of relief after making this decision as the prospect of not being able to be debt free in my planned timeline brings me that much more anxiety. I will overcome this I feel once it all starts to happen and I settle into a new budget and begin enjoying my new free time.

For now, I will delight in being on my last debt and look forward to enjoying some of the things I used to before this madness started.