Pizza and Tornados

Pizza night was a success. We have a bunch of leftovers, but everyone ate, so I'd give it a thumbs up. We all decided not to use the vacuum-packed "fresh mozzarella" that had been aging in the refrigerator for some unknown amount of time -- I took one for the team and tasted it first, so if I die of some cheese-related disease, that's just the way it goes. (And really, isn't that a good life goal? To die of cheese-related disease?)

One of these days I really am going to make it out for a run. It was pouring last night, and there was even a tornado warning on my phone that I noticed twelve hours after it was sent. I'm not completely sure what we would do in case of an actual tornado. The water table is pretty high here, so nobody has a basement. And apparently I wouldn't know about it until half a day after the fact, so I guess the basement thing isn't even relevant. But I probably won't be out running in it anyhow unless I get moving one of these days.

I managed to make it a whole four hours before telling K-Poo Weak Hands that if she looks like this when she's five months pregnant she's going to be gigantic before she has the baby. That went over well. Luckily I'm more agile than she is these days. She can probably still run faster though.

Internet By Carrier Pigeon

In my nice warm bed this morning, I really did think about getting up for a run at 6am. That lasted about four seconds. Then I rolled over and went back to sleep. I guess there's always tomorrow.

Every time I go on a trip, I plan to get up at seven or so, do the last few things that need to get done in the morning, and then get on the road by nine. It never really works that way. Today I was working on the "last few things" (taking out the trash, wiping down the counters, printing out the instructions for the pet sitter) until almost 11, at which point I thought I was ready to go until I realized I hadn't packed yet. Luckily that's a five minute task when none of the cats are helping.

The drive down was... fine? Somehow I didn't get stuck in traffic going through L.A., which is unusual, but I had also switched to a new audiobook by then ("Ninth House" by Leigh Bardugo, in case anyone needs a recommendation) and it was holding my interest, so that made the miles go by faster.

Anyhow, I made it. I am in "the O.C.", as the kids used to call it. (Not when I was growing up here. And maybe nobody other than the producers of that show ever called it that. I'm not sure. I may not have been cool enough to hear it even if it was being used.) The streets are very wide and full of cars and the lawns are evenly mowed, but the internet speeds here are terrible.

Can I sleep without these guys around? I guess I'll find out.

The Cleanest Day of the Year

Bird cages and floors have been cleaned (for some value of cleaned). The dogs have been sent off to camp, where they will get to bark as much as they want to and everyone will constantly give them treats. All the baby gates have been taken down, and I am free to move about the house without constantly stopping to open them. With no late night dog walks, I got in my pajamas at 5pm. Do I know how to party or what?

My running app has a 5k tomorrow morning. I felt weird about running at 6am without the big dog to keep me safe from all the stray cats and squirrels, but it looks like it's going to rain anyhow, so if I get up that early, the run will be on the treadmill. Then I'll pack and get in the car and spend 50 (subjective) hours driving down to the southern half of the state. I'd love to find a good audiobook before I go, but I'm having a hard time picking one out. Obviously this is a minor problem, but ugh, Audible does not have a great suggestions or browsing section.

The internet savvy amongst us are wailing and rending their garments because I am publicizing that I will be gone from my house, but jokes on you because:

• Does anyone really read this?
• The only things of any value that Effing Scooter didn't pee on before he departed this earth were my laptops, and both of those will be going with me.
• Yes, the treadmill is new, but it's something like 150 pounds and you show me a thief who is willing to put that kind of effort into stealing things. If they do, well, they deserve to get something for that sort of work ethic.

Now I'm off to enjoy my clean sheets and a bed that isn't being hogged by the big dog. (I'll probably also spend the night freezing because my main source of heat is not there.) I hope your holidays (whatever you celebrate) are happy and healthful.

Ripley is working on his selfies.

Bags of Holiday Cheer

You know I'm in the holiday spirit, because I went into the veterinary hospital at 5:30 PM, slung a bag of warm cat diarrhea across the counter, and said "Merry Christmas!" I figure if someone jumps back and yells "Jesus!"* when you greet them in late December, you're definitely keeping the Christ in Christmas.

Hey, at least I double-bagged it.

Anyhow, now that chore is out of the way, it's time to start my yearly cleaning-for-the-pet-sitter. It's a little easier this year because her expectations will be pretty low -- she was already here at the beginning of November when I didn't have a chance to get ready, so it's not like she doesn't know what my house is like normally. Still, it's good to clean things up once a year. Tonight is the refrigerator and all the empty boxes that have been piling up in the living room. The bird cages and floors will be the goal for tomorrow.

Everything else can wait until next year.

Guido-You-Bastard is tired of your shenanigans.

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* Christy did no such thing, because she's a professional.

Don't Tread on Ripley

Apparently seven days is long enough for me to forget that a 60 minute walk-to-run (multiple minutes of running interspersed with 30 seconds of walking) just feels like it lasts forever, because every Sunday I show up for the 8am walk-to-run, and today was no different.

What was different, though, was that it was raining outside. But I had a new treadmill (which did not need two people to put it together, thank you very much), so my Sunday morning proceeded as planned.

Other than the previously-mentioned fact that 60 minutes seems to last forever, the run went fine. I find it a little harder to run on the treadmill, so my times were a bit slow, but the walk-to-run is all about getting miles in, not speed.

While I was running, Mr. Ripley, the six million dollar kitty (announcer voice: We can make him... more expensive!), decided that he was going to walk across the front of the moving treadmill. That swept him right under me at 5 mph and dumped him off the back where he nonchalantly got up and wandered off. Meanwhile, I was trying to recover from my panicked scramble to keep from landing all my weight on him.

I got a great cardio workout today.

I'd like to believe that Ripley learned his lesson, and that he'll never do that particular move again, but I've known him for 16 years and I don't believe it.

Worth every penny, or maybe just an example of sunk cost fallacy.

Solstice

I got a new sketchbook/notebook with blank pages. It's been a few decades since I've had one. Opening it up and putting something on the first page is the hardest part, because up to then it is blank perfection. But in going through my old notebooks, sometimes the best things are the ones that I was most frustrated with at the time.

Ripley is not impressed.

I was supposed to do a bunch of things today, but I've had a sore throat for a couple of days and I decided a nap was in order. I did finally drag myself to the art store and then to get pet supplies and groceries. On this, the longest of nights, I'm ready for the days to get longer.

The First Step of Meal Prep

I got a text from my mom last night saying that she was going grocery shopping and asking if I wanted anything special when I visited next week. I don't mind running to the grocery store when I'm in Orange County -- it gives me a reason to step away from all the junk food and do something else. And then I offered to cook a meal or two (or however many anyone can stand of my cooking).

You know what that means -- now I have to figure out what to make.

So my guidelines are:

• No cilantro
• No avocado
• Little or no rice

I don't eat meat, but I have no problem splitting up a dish and cooking one part with meat and another without, as long as the part without feels like a real meal and not "hey, here's a hamburger bun and some condiments".

I'm thinking something along the lines of these (along with salads):

• pizza (let everyone pick their own toppings)
• autumn pot pie
• pita/falafel/hummus
• lasagna

(I'll probably also be making my traditional stuffed peppers at some point as the vegetarian alternative to the roast at Christmas dinner.)

It turns out a lot of the meals I cook depend on cilantro, so I'm having a hard time coming up with tried and true recipes.

Anyone have any other suggestions? 

In other news, I got the little dog to stand on the treadmill today, but she didn't quite get the concept of walking forward, so she kept falling off the end when I turned it on. The big dog is still highly suspicious of the whole thing.

Random garden picture from earlier in the year. This plant was labeled as a Hubbard squash, but turned out to be a pumpkin.