Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Blurble. And being punished. Sort of.

I thought I'd better write up a blog before I doze off.  I am excusing myself from a couple items that I have been asked to do today, I wasn't feeling really up to them, and decided...

You know what?  I don't have to!

I am not trying to be snippy, but I am beginning to think that I need to say no a bit more often, as I enjoy doing a lot of the things, but am also finding myself tired out.

And that makes it less enjoyable.

And there's that whole 'taken for granted' thing.

But mostly, I just feel blah.  Not ill, exactly, but it's teetering on the very narrow edge of
something-isn't-quite-there in the energy department.  Therefore, I am giving myself permission to just say skip it...

Hence the blurble.  I am waiting for the dryer to buzz, typing my blog, and that's just about the most energetic I've been today.  I think I am probably needing to catch up on sleep from the cat/Husband battle.

Oh, didn't I mention that?

Ding has taken to "playing bongos" with the bathroom door.  This is loud, and occurs roughly 2 to 3 in the morning, which makes it hard for me to return to sleep.  It also drives Husband bats.  So, Husband decided to put the squirt bottle by the bed, to let her know he doesn't like bongos in the wee hours.

BUT...

He couldn't see her, and managed to miss each time, which Ding took as a fun challenge, she would wait, then sneak back when he put the bottle down. THUMP, THUMP, squizzz, gallop, repeat.

So, Husband now has a nightlight by the bed, (which surprisingly does not bother me, light wise) so he can aim at Ding with accuracy.  He has also released his inner Dirty Harry, whereby, it now goes something like, THUMP, THUM-sqiuzsquizsquizz TAKE THAT SUCKER!!! gallop. Repeat in 10 minutes.

This makes for a very... Um... unique wake up call!  I think the squirt bottle is finally getting through to her, she didn't attack the door last night.  Knocked some books over, and carried a washcloth from the bathroom out to the hall, but no bongos.

I will take what I can get, at least she was quiet. (The books were paperbacks, so weren't noisy.)

Ok, as for the being punished.  (Mom, yes, you have heard this from both Dad and I...)  I have a popcorn maker.  One of the parts is cracked.  It still allows me to make popcorn, but I thought perhaps it is time to get a replacement, in case the part breaks, especially since it's plastic.  I have taken care of it, and it's lasted, oh... um... At least 2, maybe 3 decades.

And they don't make parts for it anymore.  I finally looked online, Husband suggested eBay, and they had the whole machine, but the part I want is only available as part of the whole.  I can't find it as a stand alone.  Add to that, it is now something that is popular as a "hack" device for roasting coffee.  I guess I will just keep being careful, and hope it doesn't break.

I just had this same problem with my bread maker, the pan had become messed up, the machine was fine.  We did manage to find a new pan.

But it just irks me, I seem to be punished for caring for my things.  When something does happen, I can't easily find a replacement.  I really don't want to have to buy 2 of each thing, and store one, but I am beginning to wonder what I should do!

Oh, well, I still can make bread and popcorn, and carb loading is important...

At least on blurble days...

(Oh, and I still haven't put Windows 10 on the computer, updates as events congeal...)














7 comments:

messymimi said...

The problem with the nighttime cat games is that once is a habit with pets and brothers-in-law. It's very hard to break both of them of habits, too. You might have to start locking the cat out of the bedroom.

You have permission to say no, there's a really good explanation of why "no" is a good thing at Mizfit's site, carlabirnberg.com

If the tired continues, please promise you will go see a doctor.

Sharon said...

Door bongos? Newly acquired talent for Ding? Is probably as irritating as midnight pacing.
I would say try the Goodwill, but even there you luck of finding a good pan for your model bread maker is probably nil. Do they even still make hot air poppers any more? Well, I wish you luck, but so many home appliances have a break down built in that you'll probably have to buy new. I would think the bread machine maker would have a parts department. Have you written them?

Cperz said...

Hi Cat, I am totally with you about "blah" days. There are just days that require you to ignore things that need to be ignored.

What is it with cats and the middle of the night? I admire your husband's tenacity to take care of the problem. At our house we mutter some foul words, roll over, and cover our heads with our pillows. Our cat goes in spurts of sitting next to our bed and "talking". It sounds something between a howl and a whine.

Hope the thumping ends and the next phase is a quiet activity.

Replacement parts are a thing of the past. As Americans got more and more likely to replace EVERYTHING instead of repair anything, companies just quit offering parts. There used to be a guy locally that ran a little business of just offering parts to older appliances but he finally closed shop a couple of years ago.

Cat said...

The bongo thing happens randomly. I suspect I might not have fed her enough. If she is hungry at night, she likes to wander through the house and play. I don't know if it's to wake us, to get/find food, or just some 'cat' thing, which probably is most likely... Locking her out of the bedroom would probably lead to bongos on the bedroom door! So, if it becomes a real problem, she will be relegated to a kennel for a few nights.

I just looked at the Mizfit's site, I agree, heard it in slightly different terms (NO is a complete sentence. I try to say it more, without hesitating...) And decided it's a blog to sign up with!

And yes, so far I think the tired is just my overdoing it, but I am going to keep a record of how long it stays around for that exact reason. The doctor I have now is pretty good, so I would be willing to go and ask him about it...

Cat

Cat said...

No, bongos are something she seems to have had a talent for since we first took her in. She really doesn't pace, unless I am in the kitchen with milk... Then she will circle endlessly until the milk is put away. Oddly, if she GETS milk, she looks at it, sniffs, and walks off, uninterested.

I hadn't considered Goodwill, that might be a possibility. Yes, indeed, they do make hot air poppers, but I figure there was no big need to get a new one, when the old one works fine... Meh...

And yes, the parts department told me they don't make the bread machine I have anymore, and we ended up finding it on eBay. Guess that's the go to place for us, a lot of the time... Siiiigh.

Cat

Cat said...

And ignore I did! :)

Ding so far doesn't make any noise vocally at night, she just likes to go on night shift mode, where playing is priority. And if I covered my head with a pillow, she'd probably figure that was where she wanted to sit!

I have noticed the bit about replacement parts, sadly it's happened several times, I call the company for replacement parts, oh, no, just send it in, we will replace it. Mom and Dad taught me to always care for what I have, and it would still be there. And that's so, except, as age and klutz happens, things can get damaged.

Well, I am finding out, my caring for things just astounds people, you don't just get a NEW one? Um, no, why? Even to an MP3 player I had about 8 years, then wanted a new battery, it was starting to get cranky. The sales clerk actually found the battery, but it was almost twice the price of the unit when I bought it, plus, she told me they were phasing that one out. Why would I keep it, I could just get a new one, and it would be so much better... (Sheesh. What if I *LIKE* the one I have?) Meh, life goes on...

Cat

Cat

Cat said...

Um, yes, I did that twice. twice. I know not why. why. Hmm. Hmm.
Cat