Brief Update

I'm still alive, but just haven't had time or the inclination to post in this blog.

We weathered hurricane Ivan fairly well here, although there were some power and phone outages due to the extensive rain/wind. Fortunately we didn't lose power on the day the worst of the storm passed, but then yesterday the phone and power were off and on all day. I suppose the repair crews were working, since the outages were nearby. All in all, can't complain about the rain or wind; we lost a few treelimbs, the yard got littered with debris, but we needed the rain and it sure has helped out newly planted grass thrive.

This week has been fantastic, in the low 80s, and 50s at night. Almost a chill in the early mornings, with a preview of Fall soon to arrive. I LOVE autumn. I find it difficult to stay indoors this time of year too. Long bike rides are perfect, and piddling in the yard makes for lots of time-wasting!

DH and I got most of the backporch addition finished; all the siding is up, and we have started on the interior. The mudroom should be done after this coming weekend. It will be SO handy to have that room for washing up before entering the house. The outdoor cats love the sunporch, since they can lie in the sun but come and go as they please through the petdoor. Hope to have photos soon.

Yesterday I had to take one of my indoor cats, Slinky, to the vet. She was having a minor problem, and it turned out to be nothing serious. I also took Kitten and got her a distemper shot, which she had not had yet. The lady vet couldn't get over how BIG Kitten is getting to be -- at only 4 months old! I think she's going to be a whopper-sized cat when grown.

Otherwise, life goes on. When I returned from town yesterday, it was late afternoon and our house/yard looked SO pretty in the setting sunlight. We ARE indeed making progress, and one day will have it all finished, I hope.

By the way, ONE thing I don't like here -- dove season started last week, and darn if it didn't sound like a shooting gallery during the day. I think it is very reckless to allow hunting so close to other houses, for it's only about a half-mile to the city limits and subdivisions, not to mention how close we are in this community. I don't like ANY kind of hunting, and we wouldn't allow it on our property, but apparently others here do. All that close-range gunfire made me VERY nervous and uneasy all weekend.

Last weekend we drove by the house in town, and saw the renter lady is planting a pretty shrub/flower garden in the frontyard. It will sure improve the looks of the yard! She and her husband are great renters!

I'll end with two items, the first a thought-provoking article about China's overpopulation control. It makes me wonder how long it will take for this kind of action to be necessary in the USA, regarding overpopulation?

Couple Fined $94,000 for One-Child Rule Lapse

Sep 20, 9:02 AM (ET)

BEIJING (Reuters) - A court in China's southern boomtown of Shenzhen has fined a couple 780,000 yuan ($94,250) and sealed off their house for having more than one child, the Beijing Morning Post said Monday.
The pair were among nine couples who were fined "social fostering fees" for their extra children, the newspaper said. They had their first boy in 1997 and last year had twin boys, the newspaper said.

With approximately 1.3 billion people, China is the world's most populous nation. It has stringent rules on family planning that allow couples usually to have just one child, at least in cities, and limit numbers elsewhere.

The couple's house had been sealed up "according to the law," the paper said, or until they pay the fine which was unusually large. A house is sealed with a white paper bearing the stamp of a local court pasted across the front door.

Punishment for having more than one child can include having the power to the offending couple's house or to the houses of relatives being cut off.

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And lastly, on a lighter, funny note, this piece:


You know you're living in 2004 when...

1. You accidentally enter your password on the microwave.

2. You haven't played solitaire with real cards in years.

3. You have a list of 15 phone numbers to reach your family of 3.

4. You e-mail the person who works at the desk next to you.

5. Your reason for not staying in touch with friends and family is that they don't have e-mail addresses.

6. You go home after a long day at work you still answer the phone in a business manner.

7. You make phone calls from home, you accidentally dial "9" to get an outside line.

8. You've sat at the same desk for four years and worked for three different companies.

10. You learn about your redundancy on the 11 o'clock news.

11. Your boss doesn't have the ability to do your job.

12. You pull up in your own driveway and use your cell phone to see if anyone is home.

13. Every commercial on television has a website at the bottom of the screen.

14. Leaving the house without your cell phone, which you didn't have the first 20 or 30 (or 60) years of your life, is now a cause for panic and you turn around to go and get it.

15. You get up in the morning and go online before getting your coffee.

16. You start tilting your head sideways to smile. :)

17. You're reading this and nodding and laughing.

18. Even worse, you know exactly to whom you are going to forward this message.

19. You are too busy to notice there was no #9 on this list.

20. You actually scrolled back up to check that there wasn't a #9 on this list.

AND NOW U R LAUGHING at yourself.