Change is constant - deal with it!

I'm glad to know I wasn't the only slug! Sometimes, that's the kind of day we get, and we just make the best of it and move on! Tomorrow is a brand new day! And for me, it was. I got lots done, and all was good!

My girls are over 10 years old, and I'm in denial about that. They are still puppies! They are so different; after all those years, I still can't wrap my head around it. Murphy is filled with enthusiasm, while Lexi is still enthusiastic, but she's a princess. Murphy is the bull in the china shop!

Lately, Murphy has been like a total lunatic on the walk, and my right hand is painful to prove it. Yesterday, she spotted a squirrel attempting to cross a busy four-lane street and almost didn't make it. She went ballistic! Scooters? Bicycles? If she were free, she would be after them. I wonder what she would do when she caught up. 

We stop in the forest for her to calm down and chat occasionally. This is her reaction. 

MOM -- I heard a leaf fall

MOM - I swear I saw something move 

MOM - wait - I heard a bird

MOM - I'm busy

MOM - I REALLY did hear something

Then she became so focused that she stopped panting, so she could hear! 

Mom - Oh, were you talking to me? I was busy! 

It's hilarious -- she definitely failed the Attention class. 

Later, when I walked Lexi, we turned a corner and saw a big German Shepherd approaching. It's best to just walk to the other side of the street. Neither is angry at the other, but both get excited. I was so busy watching that we almost ran into a skunk! When I noticed it, it was about 10 feet away. Lexi never even flinched! I guess neither dog pays much attention. 

And then she loves to do this when we walk in the forest. 

MOM - take a picture of me - I'm pretty!

MOM - it looks like I'm trapped

Mom - I'm pretty right? 

NO -- she is not tangled, she just likes to feel the leaves or grass on her body, although there is so much hair, I doubt she can feel a thing! Murphy would NEVER do that! 

We love them a lot, and that's all I can say. And this comes from DH, who never had a dog in his life, and now he's ready to babysit or rescue any dog! Our neighbors are getting a dog next weekend, and we're not sure they are dog people. DH has already volunteered (not to them) to take the dog if they no longer want it. Yikes - that dog is a brand new puppy - only eight weeks old. I'm not sure I could handle a puppy.

We've had so much rain that this little pond in the forest filled up, and the pair of ducks were back, happily swimming in the muck. 

Ducks are swimming in the muck

Can you tell me why Lexi won't sleep on that bed? Nope—she's getting closer but won't touch it. Maybe because Murphy is so aggressive with it; it doesn't help that the blankets are all in a big ball, waiting for Murphy to come and unwrap them! 

Mom - I'm close enough!

Enough about the girls, although they are technically the most important people in our house! But I managed to get this giant quilt loaded on the long arm, and my goal is to quilt it today. The Pony Express takes off on Thursday, and there's a lot to complete before it leaves! 

Quilt loaded on the long arm

We zipped out quickly to the restaurant last night since we didn't go on Friday. I love going somewhere and you're recognized; they know your drink and automatically bring it to the table. That used to happen when I worked at the Bank of Montreal YEARS ago. The Head Office in Montreal had a cafeteria for the employees and was open for breakfast. I'd go to the gym in the morning and then head to the cafeteria for breakfast. The second I walked in, I could hear one of the staff members order my breakfast. 

I don't remember what it was - probably scrambled eggs and bacon! I'm a creature of habit - no denying that. And I'm perfectly OK with that. 

While we were chatting, what's the point of going out if you sit at a table and don't talk to each other? We don't get a lot of opportunities at home, which is silly, but true. Anyway, I did something, and I think I accidentally hit my wrist on the table and CRACK - something fell. NO - I did not break my arm! 

My FitBit flew off my arm. Wow, how did the strap come undone? OH, it didn't come undone—it broke! 

Broken strap on the FitBit

Could it be trying to tell me something? I'm not ready to give it up yet, and I have BRAND NEW straps at home. When I opened the package, I found half of a strap in the bag; it was the part I needed. It wasn't new, and I remember something about replacing half the strap before. That was quickly fixed, and I was back in business. 

Fixed

We had our Virtual Retreat last night and more this afternoon. My 60-second challenge for the day was tidying up the ends of these knitted dishcloths. I found them in some of the stuff I brought home from Diane's, and well, one can always use more dishcloths. That job is done, and they are put away in the drawer. 

Knitted dishcloths

Then I puttered and tidied up a bit and found many more 60-minute or fewer projects I can work on. It will be a long time before I run out of those small projects. 

We had two great Zoom classes in the morning, and there was loads of content. I have a list of the samples to make for the final class in three weeks. I'm leaving that out as I need to continue working on them, so it's not a big deal at the last minute. There are so many cool things you can do with binding! 

The other day, I was at the grocery store and discovered these laundry detergent sheets. I had seen them online, but for some reason, I am hesitant to buy online unless I know the store. But when I spotted them in the grocery store, I decided to try them. I've used laundry sheets before as they are a HUGE thing when traveling and easily found at a travel or outdoor store. But these are meant to be used instead of pods in your washer! 

Sheets of laundry detergent

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On the call last night, I discovered one person who has been using them for a long time and LOVES them. Someone else has recently acquired a package and has been experimenting, and they also love it. I guess I'll be using up my Tide pods and switching. No plastic, reasonably priced - $16.99 for 32 sheets, which translates into 64 washes. You can buy them online through a subscription for $13.99, but I think I'm good with this. I can't wait to try them. Will I break it open for this week's laundry or wait until the pods are done? 

I've been getting notifications from my phone for the last three days that I need to install the latest software. I finally did it last night. WHOA!!! The interface is slightly different, the look of some apps is different, and the fonts are different. But other than that, everything is pretty much the same, so it's not a big deal. However, I was mystified all day about the number in the top right-hand corner. Why do I have 45 notifications? Why do I now have only 30? Oh, that is the battery percentage - right where it always is, but with a new look. Silly me!!!

But it appears there are MANY AI assistants, and I initially got a whole list of them, which I promptly ignored. I don't care about AI on my phone. I just need to do a few things, none of which takes long, and I don't need AI—thanks, but no thanks. 

If we rely too much on AI to summarize, translate, and take notes, our brains will lose the ability to do so. And you all know what has happened to our bodies as modern conveniences came into being, and most of us are now doing less physically. The same is going to happen to our brains. What is the point of anyone writing anything anymore - just sit down and ask AI to do it? Not me! I'll write and use AI to assist in editing, but the ideas are MINE, the writing is MINE, and no one will take that away from me! I'm in full resistance mode for that!

Now, if I were a busy employee and received thousands of messages a day, maybe I would use it. But AI now allows employers to expect more from their employees. And the funny thing is—it's probably computers talking to computers, and what are the humans doing? I don't want any part of it!

Speaking of those little rascals, Miss Lexi slept outside last night. At 3:30 AM, she banged on the door to be let in. I don't know how to curb that habit except to NOT let her out after dinner! Thankfully, I got right back to sleep. 

WAIT—As I was looking at that photo with all the ASISTS on it, I decided to check out my camera. They made some cool changes to the Zoom features, which I LOVE. I'll definitely be using those. I'll experiment with the new camera settings. Perhaps I could even aim to master all of them. As if!!! I just tried it and I LOVE the new Zoom features -- way more practical. OK - perhaps I'd better have a closer look at some things on the new interface! 

Here's the Zoom link for the Virtual Retreat today. We start at NOON. Be sure to stop by and say hi - it's too cold to be outside! 

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81073536036?pwd=uxRqMnK1aSKrmrcSO78w8QQs5g44eA.1

Meeting ID: 810 7353 6036
Passcode: 596838

And on that happy note, I'm out of here to see what adventures await on our morning walk!

Have a super day!

Ciao!!!