So Much To Do, So Little Time

I don't know who said that, but they were so right!  There's so much I need to do that I am overwhelmed.  So what do I end up doing?  Nothing.  Nada.  Brilliant, right?

I am reminded of the old joke "How do you eat an elephant?  One bite at a time."  But I can't seem to focus on any one thing long enough to accomplish it.  Just one of my excuses for not writing a blog entry lately.

So in honor of my scattered life, this blog entry will also be scattered.

My last day of "work" was May 3rd.  All of the things I planned to do when NOT working haven't even made it to a list yet.  That, of course, infers that once they did make it to "the list" they would get done and crossed off.  Yet to be seen, my friends.  Yet to be seen.

Went to Manhattan last week for a few days.  Met up with a few friends, ate some good food, did a lot of walking in the WRONG shoes and window shopped.  I did buy one scarf.  No, not even Hermes!  It was a Metropolitan Museum of Art scarf by Adolf Behn called Spring in Central Park.  (Well, it had purples and greens - how could I possibly resist that?  And at a price point of about 1/5th of the price of an Hermes scarf, it was a no-brainer.)

Spring in Central Park - Adolf Behn / Photo Courtesy of The MetMoA

Is there anything more exciting than seeing Manhattan peek around the wing of the plane?

Stayed at the Waldorf Astoria - not a great view from my room, but it didn't suck. I was only on the 17th floor.

Caught the Alexander McQueen Exhibition at the Met and the Van Cleef and Arpels Exhibit at Cooper Hewitt.  Awesomeness.  No photos were allowed in either one, so of course I had to sneak a photo in each. Rules?  I don't need no stinkin' RULES!  Of course they're sideways, so I can get them to post properly.  Can you say luddite? But here's the front of the Met.

Of course I had to go walking through Central Park.  The contrast of the tranquility of the park and urban Manhattan peeking out over the trees is always so striking to me.

After I got home, we had a fantastic, but too short, surprise visit from Koda, Pink and Studz.  Koda's my friend and Studz and Pink are her two four-legged love muffins who had a great time playing in the back yard with Murphy and Twinkie.  Murphy was surely smitten with Pink, the Dalmation.  I guess he doesn't remember getting snipped. Ha!

Koda, Pink and Studz getting ready to head home in the BeachMobile

Studz - Too Cool for School!

Pink - I call shotgun!

Then there was the drama the other night.  A scorpion in my kitchen.  I screamed like a lil girl!  Mice?  No problem.  Snakes, Meh.  But scorpions???  Not only that, but I'm not exactly sure where he'd been - he drug out dog hair and nasty stuff all stuck to him as evidenced in this photo.  I think there's even a dead fly stuck to him! (No, I do not have that nastiness on my kitchen floor.  I'm not Martha Stewart, but neither am I a slob.)

Evil looking lil bugger.

I've managed to pack a few more boxes, I've retrieved a few things from the storage unit, which I realize is counter-productive, and I've reworked my resume, you know...just in case.

Beyond that, I have tentatively planned to clean out the screened-in porch, empty the storage shed in the back yard and start on the garage this week.  IF I can muster the courage for a *gasp* yard sale, I've made a deal with the neighbor for that.  She does the whole thing using my crap and we split the proceeds 50/50.  Sounds like a plan!  Of course, knowing me, I will take one step outside into hell and decide it's just too hot to live.

Cowardly Mean Girls

...are the lowest of the low.

I am sure you all know the kind.  They would be Mean Girls if they had the cajones. But they don't, so they sit back, behind closed doors and computer monitors and say mean things about people they've decided not to like for whatever their reason de jour is.  Then they are just sweetness and light in public.

It's cowardly in two ways. 1) they still get to pretend to be nice girls to everyone else and 2) the target has no means of defending against anything they say.

Do they really think people don't figure them out eventually?

How unhappy does one have to be to allow themselves to become this kind of pathetic creature?

Dogs Deserve Better!

Okay, time for a rant.

Dogs are the most wonderful creatures on earth.  They give nothing but unconditional love and all they ask in return is that you love them and take care of them.

But make no mistake, dogs can be expensive.  And they are a huge responsibility.

They need to eat, for one thing.  That's not cheap just by its own self.  Especially if you have a Murphy like mine. They require monthly heart worm treatment, again, not cheap.  And flea and tick meds.  And shots.  And yearly check-ups. And that's all BEFORE they get sick or hurt, God forbid.  What about dog walking or dog sitting services or doggie day care if you're working 12 hours a day away from home?

Then you have toys and beds and leashes and collars and nail trimmings and if you picked a dog that needs to be professionally groomed, you might as well keep that checkbook handy.

And I haven't even mentioned the time and energy yet.  There's house breaking, training, and daily exercise.

Oh, and just because you have a huge, fenced yard, don't think they don't still need walks.  They DO!

Something else people don't always consider.  Dogs are smart.  If you take the time and energy required when you bring the dog home to TRAIN the dog, you end up with a dog that is a joy to have and not just one more thing that needs constant care and supervision.  If I can't trust my dog in my house by itself, I have not properly trained that dog.  So either put in the few months in the beginning or be prepared to have 10-15 years of trouble.

With all of that said, they are SO worth it.  Every penny.  Every drop of energy. It's nothing compared to what they give back.  Seriously, is there anything better than a sleeping dog on your lap?  Or that smile they give you when they're happy?  Which, by the way, is most of the time.  They really don't ask much in the grand scheme of things and in return you get unconditional love, loyalty, laughter, stress relief.  And they are very social creatures.  If you're just going to toss it out in the back yard and throw food at it once a day, forgedaboudit!  That's CRUEL.  As is tying one out, in my opinion.  What's the point?

And this isn't even factoring in the wonderful service dogs.  Think how much THEY do!

But nothing makes me angrier than someone who gets a dog just because "it's so cute!"  Without a clue one what the breed temperament is, what kind of health problems they're prone to, whether they are high energy or couch potatoes, are they suited for an apartment? Do they need professional grooming?  Are they a very social breed?  Do some RESEARCH!

Most importantly, can you AFFORD to take that cute little ball of fur home?  Are you fully prepared to make sure it gets ALL of the above?

If you can't afford to put in the time and money required to care for a dog properly, PLEASE DO NOT GET A DOG!  They deserve better.

WAY better.

Keeping it "Pointless."

I keep starting and then deleting blog entries about more "important" things.  I seemed to be torn as to whether I even wanted to get into anything of any substance in here.

And since this is not a post on "health care reform" I guess that means I've made my decision.  There are enough other places on-line I can get into a debate on such things.  And I do.  Sometimes I don't get into bed before 2 am because someone on the the internet is WRONG.

xkcd /Randall Munroe

But I decided that I created this blog to keep me sane in lieu of painting, since I've packed up all of my art supplies and put them in storage for an anticipated move.  A move that is taking FOREVER!

So that's what it will stay.  And I may keep it around to post some of my paintings once I get moved and unpacked.  Heck, I may even learn how to sell my paintings instead of giving them away!  I assume that would require a different kind of website though.

So much to learn about so many things and so little time!

Meanwhile, does anyone wanna buy a boat?