When Max, a little guy of 18 months, was snuggling on my lap, I remarked to Josh why do people needs pets when they can snuggle with their kids.  Within a minute of saying this, Max wiggled off my lap and walked away to go play elsewhere.  It was then that Josh commented, "Yes, but a cat or dog would sit on your lap for hours and not wiggle away."  Mind you, this was not an assertion he wanted a pet, simply pointing out a difference.

That statement is false with Miriam... she is our little kitty.

Mind you, I honestly don't know anything about what behaviors pets have when they live in someone's house longer than the 3 hr windows I have witnessed... I can only imagine Miriam is better, much, much better. 

Miriam is one snuggly, little girl and will sit on your lap for hours.  If you are sitting anywhere... eating breakfast, typing on the computer, teaching school, etc.  She is right there with you, snuggles herself in as close as she can and fits perfectly.  You don't need to move her and you can keep right on working with her - right there.  Miriam also has mastered the art of non-verbal/subtle communication that some pets exhibit... she will stand nearby you, nudge you with her head softly, draw to where she's looking, gently pull your hand around her, get your attention into helping her... all of it in silence and with a delicate smile that makes it hopeless to say no.

Plus, she has all the benefits of not being a pet... she is toilet trained, she changes her own clothes, can do laundry and dishes, she doesn't shed, she can vacuum up messes after herself, doesn't have random items coming out of various orifices (not recently anything note worthy - thank goodness, but still), her shots are up to date, she eats only people food, etc.

Miriam is the puuurfect little kitty for me.

Need further proof?  Well, not nearly as skilled as the real things, I thought these were only fitting...

I can has cheezburger!

Allow me to blow a story out of proportion for you...

We are in a feats of strength with the local trash collection service. 

Where we came from, trash collection was, lets refer to it as, capitalistic: many companies providing service, fighting for your business, offering varying prices and service, some come to your house, the workers are generally cheerful, they actually take random items like couches even when not turn over, etc.

Where we live now, trash collection is run by the one company, the local government.  Everything has limits, sizes and weights exact, quantity under regulation, everything must be wrapped or tagged or sorted as per their exact regulations, anything out of the ordinary is not approved and fines flow like water.

Then, there comes the trash cans... since our trash cans are not the sanctioned ones, they have suffered under much wrath and persecution, primarily in the area of missing lids and more recently in the form of breaking holes into our cans.  Missing lids and holes mean vermin issues, vermin issues means knocked over cans, knocked over cans now means that trash stays inside the garage until trash day, trash inside means stinky basement/garage.

Then, there is the time of pickup.  Stated by their rules, you can't put out the trash sooner that 3PM the day before (or risk fines) and they will not pickup any earlier than 7AM the trash day.  For the last 6 years they generally hit across the street at 6:30AM (or earlier) and to our side between 8:30 and 10AM. 

This last month, our side became the 6:30AM (or earlier) pickup. 

Combine my overprotectiveness of our new lids, the vermin issue not wanting to leave cans on the curb without lids any sooner than needed, the stinky garage from missed trash days before new lids were purchased, them accidentally missing our bags before a snow storm and then said snow melting making our bags count as a day of pickup, a holey-bottom can that once again makes it so that some of the trash has to stay inside, the extremely early pick-up time, a recent bum foot not being able to drive to the dump... it all means on more than one occassion, we have not gotten our trash out on time and we have a back log of trash, again.

Even with all that, like I said, I am blowing this WAY out of proportion because quite honestly, it could be worse...

Aside: Yes of course, we make a point to reduce, reuse, recycle as much as we can (sans paper towels, though I am honestly halfway there thanks to Josh, Sarah and Maren!).  This post was not not meant to be a post regarding quantities of trash... it was meant to be a joke... this is why I don't tell jokes... except I did just read several great lawyer jokes...

Not dead, just really slow!

Someone asked me last night what I've blogged about lately and I had to answer with, "Nothin'."

With all this time sitting on my bottom, watching the cuties do all the work around me, you'd think I would have written more.  I can rattle off excuses... doing current and back taxes, actually have several unfinalized posts/thoughts, lots and lots of work getting done at my "other" job, working out getting a great new employee, wrestling with insurance companies, figuring out state withholding tax for 3 states, etc... all valid.  However, the truth is, life honestly slows way down when you are "forced" to slow down.  I have finally caught up on emails, almost caught up on work, and am longing to finalize the thoughts in my head...

When that happens, I promise nothing earth-shattering, but will be theraputic to myself never-the-less.