It’s turning a little colder every day now. A liberal coat of frost covers the ground in contrast to the foggy masses of steam rising up off the rivers and lakes in the morning. Really a beautiful thing to see on the way to work. I finally made my toboggan hat, just in time for hat weather… or so I thought. The day after I finished it, the temperature shot back up to the 60′s.

In an odd twist, the apartment has been unnaturally hot lately, too. Even for me, which is quite an accomplishment! With winter coming on, management has cranked up the heat in the hallways and it seeps in through the walls and under the door. I’m sure I’ll be grateful for it when the snow hits but, for now, we’re opening windows when we get home from work every day because the air conditioner doesn’t seem to be doing much more than stirring the air. I wonder if they’ve turned it off….

Quincy had a dental appointment yesterday. I decided to take the kitten in as well, since he just can’t seem to get over his cold (and he keeps giving it to Quincy). Quincy came back grouchier than usual, but with surprisingly healthy teeth. The kitten, on the other hand, got poked and prodded and eventually sent home with two prescriptions to relieve the symptoms. The vet claimed they were easy to administer. Well sure… the first time.

Both medications are liquid. One comes in a bottle with a dropper. The other is so noxious that it comes in pre-loaded syringes on the theory that you can administer it that much faster. Rare is the cat who sits still for being force fed anything. There are tricks you can use to help minimize the damage (to you), like wrapping his body in a towel and holding his head and jaw at the pressure points. I tried it all, but the kitten turned out to be a little Houdini. Eventually, I had to hold him down while Mym struggled to get as much of it down his throat as possible.

We have to do this twice a day until it runs out.

You stride into the store with visible purpose, telling yourself “I’m just here for two yards of fabric and a foot or so of sequined elastic for my costume.” There’s still one major piece to it that you haven’t figured out how to solve, so you slow down a little and look around with a more careful eye. Before you know it, you’re cruising the sale tables and blow-out bins looking for inspiration. Things start appearing in your arms as if your hands were covered in velcro and you begin to wonder if you shouldn’t just go get a basket already. And then you start to feel guilty, so you put back the sequined elastic, because it’s more expensive than you thought and it might mess up your wig anyway. And you only have the lady cut one yard of fabric because you don’t really need two layers for just a costume.

But the thirteen oddly colored skeins of discontinued yarn you keep because, at 99 cents each, you’re BOUND to find a use for them eventually. What.