Thursday 13: A Lot of Randomness

This week’s Thursday 13 definitely doesn’t have a theme! 

1.    Theodore is growing like crazy; he has been neutered, microchipped, and has gotten all of his kitten shots.  I think he looks more like a big cat than a kitten in this picture. 

2.    We are still dealing with applying for FEMA aid for the HVAC system.

3.    A FEMA inspector came to the house last week to look at the damage, which we thought might mean progress. 

4.    It did not.  This week, we received a letter that the FEMA inspector wasn’t able to fully assess the damage (which isn’t really surprising since FEMA inspectors apparently do not go into crawl spaces or onto roofs).  They said we’d need to have it inspected by an HVAC company and send that information for FEMA to review.

5.    We sent that information to FEMA in November!  It was a write-up from the HVAC company about the damage, how high the water was in the ductwork, and what was needed to repair it.  We’ll be resubmitting that and hoping that someone actually reads it this time.

6.    I truly think they make the process as annoying and difficult as possible in hopes that a lot of people will decide it’s more trouble than it’s worth and give up. 

7.    There are still near-constant reminders that, even with the damage we had, we were still some of the lucky ones.  A couple of weeks ago, we helped some friends whose house was destroyed during Helene move from their short-term rental into their long-term rental.  They’ve been told it will be a year and a half to two years before their house is rebuilt.

8.    I’ve been trying to crochet a little more, and I finished an ear warmer. 

    

9.    Here’s the link to the tutorial if you’re interested.  (And here’s the right-handed version.)  It was very simple to make.  I used a thinner yarn than the pattern called for, so I had to do more rows, but it was still easy to follow along with the video.

10. Being cold is a powerful motivator to crochet an ear warmer!  The heat was out at work during one of the cold snaps.  Everyone worked from home as much as possible, but some of us had to go in on one of the days when we had temperatures in the teens.  I made the ear warmer the night before that and wore more layers than I ever had before.  

11. Fortunately, the heat at work is fixed now! 

12. I think cat pictures are a great way to end this Thursday 13, so enjoy this one of Mortimer in the living room chair he has staked out as his very own.

13. And this one of Charlie.

Five Good Things About the Cold Weather

I really don’t like the cold weather. I can’t stand to be cold, and the cold, gray days seem to suck the life right out of me. Winter is hard for me. It has been for as long as I can remember, and it just seems to get worse as I get older. If I’m not really, really careful I can totally get sucked into a bad case of the winter blues.

We had a little bit of snow and a fair amount of ice last week. There was a brief warm up yesterday, but the temperatures have plummeted again, and we’re looking at a pretty likely chance of more snow and/or ice this week. Not the weather forecast I was hoping for.

I seem to be teetering on the edge of getting sucked into a bad case of the winter blues, so I decided to try really hard to come up with something (anything really) that can be good about the cold.

I came up with five:

1. The cats are really cuddly during the cold weather. They’re indoor cats, but they spend a lot more time sleeping, and they’re much more likely to cuddle up with each other and with us. A cuddly cat (or four) is wonderful.





2. I get to dress the dogs up in their coats, sweaters, and pajamas. I love dressing up the dogs, and the cold weather gives me a good reason to. Emma loves to be dressed up. I think she feels pretty when she wears her pink. Duke associates dressing up with food, which is his favorite thing ever, so he loves getting dressed.

3. Winter weather can provide something to blog about. Sometimes it’s a struggle to come up with something to write a blog post about. Winter weather presents some fairly obvious things.

4. Cold weather is soup weather. Cold weather is a good reason to make soup, whether it’s an old favorite, a new recipe, or a brand new experiment. Hot soup is delicious and comforting on a cold night.

5. It makes us appreciate the warm weather. They say absence makes the heart grow fonder, and the absence of warm weather definitely makes my heart incredibly fond of it. I cannot wait to feel the hot sun on my skin, to plant the first flowers and vegetable of the season, and for daylight to last well into the evening.

So what about you? Do you enjoy the cold weather? If not, can you come up with at least one good thing about it?

Shivering & Sleepy

Doesn't she look thrilled to go out?

I assume that most of you are being hit pretty hard with winter weather.  I know we are!  We mostly dodged the snow.  There were snow showers off and on for most of yesterday afternoon, but nothing really stuck.  The wind sounded much like the big bad wolf trying to blow the house down.  And it’s cold.  It’s crazy cold.  We dropped down to the single digits last night, and with the wind chill it feels like negative temperatures today. 

Nick came home from work sick yesterday with a nasty stomach bug, and spent the evening on the couch, with Duke as his self-appointed guardian.  It was really sweet the way Duke stayed right with him.  Duke likes me just fine, but Nick is definitely his person.  It works out well, because I am Emma’s person. 

I really hate the cold weather.  I dread going outside for anything, and it just feels like it sucks all of my energy.  I understand why some animals hibernate during the winter.  I’m fond of the idea myself. 

All of the fur kids were in sleepy, cuddly mode last night.  They seemed fine with the idea that we went to bed early, and cocooned ourselves in fleece sheets and blankets.  If you have to wake up because the wind is howling so loud, it’s nice to wake up surrounded by purring cats and a snoring dog.  They just look so cute all burrowed down in the warmth!

Always happy to go out! 

Emma was not at all impressed at having to get up and out of the warm bed this morning.  I kept hitting snooze on the alarm because I really didn’t want to get up and face the cold. Emma looked very approving every time I did.  She seemed to be suggesting that I just keep right on hitting snooze until the warmer weather is here to stay.  Unfortunately that wasn’t an option.

Duke doesn’t seem to mind the cold, and is always excited to go out for a walk.  He’s happy to take his time sniffing around even when the wind is icy and cuts right through you.  Emma tried to assure me that she was fine, and wouldn’t need to go out again until summer.  She could wait.  Really.  I didn’t buy it, so I bundled her up into a few sweaters and out we went. 

I’m pretty sure Emma set a record for how quickly a dog can take care of necessary business and be ready to go back inside.  Duke took his sweet time.  I think Emma is going to have words with him today. 

We’re not supposed to get any snow for the rest of the week, but it isn’t really going to warm up much either.  I’m very ready for warmer weather.  I’m tired of shivering and feeling sleepy. 

I hope you’re all staying warm!