Category Archives: Miscellaneous

Sleeping In

Since I’m working from home today, I was able to sleep in a bit. When Isabella started trying to wake me, I fed her and then went back to bed. I managed to get an extra hour and a half of sleep. Of course, when I finally did get up, she was more than ready for me to join her. I’m never quite sure whether she doesn’t want me to oversleep or if she just wants me in the living room where she is.

She has always preferred being in the same room as me. That doesn’t necessarily mean I can always see her or even know exactly where she is, but she knows I’m nearby, and for her, that seems to be all that matters.

People often say that cats are aloof, that they do their own thing and care about little else. I’ve never found Isabella to be that way. Unless I get home much earlier than usual, she is almost always at the door when I come in. If I’ve been away, she seems like she can’t get enough of me afterward. She is a very faithful companion, and I feel lucky to have her in my life—though I do sometimes question that at 3 a.m. when she decides she needs to be fed.

In this week’s Isabella pic of the week, the image may not be perfectly focused, but it captures something better—a quiet affection in her eyes as she looks at me.


Running on Empty (But Still Running)

Yesterday was a busy, exhausting day. By the time I got home, all I wanted to do was crash.

I talked with Susan for a bit, watched the news and Jeopardy!, and tried to read for a while. But I kept catching myself reading the same paragraph over and over again, my eyes drifting closed between sentences. Eventually, I gave up and fell asleep almost immediately.

Apparently, Isabella decided I needed the extra rest. She waited until after 4:00 a.m. before making a halfhearted attempt to wake me. After a few minutes, even she seemed to give up, and I managed to sleep until 4:45 before she determined I was finally awake enough—and, more importantly, that she needed to be fed.

So, I got up.

Even after coffee and breakfast, though, I still feel like I could go right back to sleep.

Unfortunately, that’s not an option today. I have to go into work for a meeting and a public program that I’m hosting. I’m hoping today won’t be quite as exhausting as yesterday, but if it is, at least I have something to look forward to—working from home tomorrow.

Normally, I work from home on Fridays anyway, but this week got shuffled around because of coworkers’ medical appointments. Still, the thought of a quieter morning tomorrow (assuming Isabella allows it) is enough to get me through today.

Let’s just hope she sleeps in.


Monday Again

It’s Monday again, and it was very hard getting up this morning. Isabella finally convinced me to wake up, and I sat on the side of the bed for a few minutes before promptly laying back down and going back to sleep. Isabella was not amused. She made her displeasure quite clear, but I simply put a pillow over my head and continued to ignore her.

Eventually, I sat up again, and this time I managed to get out of bed for good—mostly because Isabella was not going to let me forget that she had not been fed yet. Once her breakfast was served, peace was restored in my apartment.

I’m still not entirely happy about being awake, but I have a busy few days ahead. Work is going to keep me moving today, tomorrow, and Wednesday, so it’s shaping up to be a bit of an exhausting week. Hopefully everything will go smoothly.

In the meantime, the coffee is hot, Isabella is fed, and the day has begun whether I like it or not.

Have a great week, everyone!


Pic of the Day


Coffee, Snow, and a Good Book

It’s Friday. Some Fridays are better than others, and today is one of the better ones because I’m working from home. Next Friday, I’ll be at the museum, and next week is going to be very busy, so I’ll spend today getting ready for all of that. At least I can do it from home, which makes it a little easier.

I don’t have any real plans for the weekend, and I’m perfectly fine with that. I’m not really up to much. I have a book I’m reading right now—and you’ll probably hear all about it next week—but for the most part, I plan to relax and read. Once I finish this one, I’m not quite sure what I’ll pick up next.

It’s supposed to be a cold and snowy weekend, so there really isn’t much better than bundling up under a blanket, curling up next to Isabella, and reading in quiet peace. When I lived in the South, I loved settling into a chair with a good book while a thunderstorm rolled outside. There’s something about that kind of weather that makes reading feel even more cozy and comforting.

I hope everyone has a wonderful, peaceful, and relaxing weekend!


Pic of the Day


When Time Stands Still?

This morning began with a bit of confusion—or at least it felt like confusion in the middle of the night.

At some point I woke up and glanced over at my Amazon Echo. The clock read 11:18 p.m. Isabella was already trying to wake me up, which seemed odd. She usually doesn’t start her morning routine quite that early. I remember thinking, Why on earth is she trying to get me up at 11:18? I just went to bed.

For a moment, I wondered if something was wrong. Years ago, Isabella had a habit of waking me in the middle of the night if my blood sugar dropped too low. It was uncanny how she seemed to know when something wasn’t right. But that hasn’t happened in years, so I mostly dismissed the thought and drifted back to sleep.

A while later, Isabella was back at it—more insistent this time. When I looked at the Echo again, it still said 11:18 p.m. That’s when things started to feel a little strange. Surely that much time hadn’t passed and it was still 11:18.

So I picked up my phone.

4:21 a.m.

Ah.

Apparently time had not, in fact, frozen in my bedroom.

I tapped the screen of the Echo, which took a moment or two to wake up and think about its life choices before finally updating the display to the correct time and date. As best as I can tell, the device had simply frozen overnight and needed a little nudge to catch back up with reality.

Still, it made for a rather confusing moment. There I was thinking Isabella had decided that 11:18 p.m. was now an appropriate time to start the day.

To be fair, she probably knew exactly what time it was all along. Cats run on a very precise internal schedule that revolves around breakfast, attention, and making sure their humans don’t oversleep.

The Echo may have gotten stuck in the past, but Isabella clearly did not.

And judging from how determined she was to wake me, she would like it noted that 4:21 a.m. is already past breakfast time.

An Isabella Pic of the Week:


Pic of the Day


Adjusting to the Clock

Isabella and I are not adjusting to the time change very well. She only started trying to wake me up this morning after the living room light—set on a timer—turned on at 5:00 a.m. Apparently, that’s when she realized she’d overslept.

I’m used to getting up at 4:30 a.m. at the latest, which gives me plenty of time to write my blog post without rushing through coffee and breakfast. I still have enough time this morning, but it feels rushed because today is my first day back at work after my vacation.

Maybe next year I’ll remember this and take the week after the time change off instead. That might be the smarter strategy.

I know I have a mountain of emails waiting for me, but hopefully it won’t be too bad of a day.

Have a great week, everyone.


Friday… But Not the Kind I Like

It’s Friday again. Normally, I say thank goodness it’s Friday, but I’m not really feeling that today because it’s the last day of my vacation week. I still have the weekend before I go back on Monday, but that’s not quite the same. I always have the weekend off. It’s the return to the routine on Monday that makes the end of vacation feel a little bittersweet.

It’s always hard to go back after a long vacation. I do love my job, but I’m not always thrilled with some of my coworkers (okay, “not always thrilled” might be an understatement, but I’m trying to be nice). I wish I looked forward to seeing and working with all of my colleagues, but that’s not always the case. I enjoy working with people outside the museum much more—though I will admit that our marketing team and catering department can both be a pain in my ass from time to time. To be fair, not everyone on the marketing team is unpleasant.

Anyway, I’m just “in a mood” this morning, as my mother would say. Fortunately, there’s still coffee, the weekend, and Isabella to keep me company. Maybe by Monday morning I’ll be feeling a little more charitable toward my coworkers… maybe.

I hope everyone has a wonderful and relaxing weekend!