FELINE-LESS

I didn't realize how much of an impact a cat can have on your normal day-to-day activities.

You don't have to clean the litter box when you don't have a cat.

I can leave the bedroom door open at night (not that closing it had any real effect; Pandora would just throw himself against it repeatedly until he got it open).

When the dogs go outside, it is not necessary to immediately shut the front door (although with freezing winds blasting down from the mountainside, it is generally a good idea with the high price of propane and a heating bill to be paid).

And the lower part of the door to the laundry room does not need to remain a decorative little curtain to allow Pandora access to and from, and can go back to being that ugly metal air ventish section... or not.

When I am blogging, facebooking or wasting hours trying to beat Harmony and Heather at Bejeweled, there now is not a warm body strewn across my lap and 24+ lbs. of fur to help ward off all the drafts in my bedroom.

Yeah - I miss him just a little bit.

FAIR AND BALANCED AND MODERATE AND IMPARTIAL AND UNBIASED

Everyone thinks that they are a good driver. Everyone thinks they are impartial. No one wants to think of themselves as prejudiced. And we all believe we have the correct political/ religious/ social viewpoint.

Is it possible to admit that we are all JERKS sometimes?

The greatest thing about the United States of America is we all HAVE THE RIGHT to be jerks. We can yell and scream and argue with each other until we get hoarse, sweaty and highly agitated.

But we do not have the right to shut up the other person.

I just wish sometimes I could - FoxNews really irritates me.

ACCEPT REALITY AS IT IS

I have spent years, literally years, beating myself up about something I haven't done, did do, shouldn't have, should have , could have, couldn't have or forgot.

And I am discovering after fifty-some odd years ('and believe you me, they have been very odd years!" in a Groucho Marx voice), what a total and complete waste of time.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not a complete fatalist. I think you should try, you should plan, you should do you best.

But if it's in the future, and you have no power over it, DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT.

If it's the past, LET IT GO.

I have regained 2.8 years just in the last two weeks, and have spent that recouped time trying in vain to beat Harmony's score at Bejeweled Blitz.

And failing miserably.