Category — Friday Blog Roundup

The Fords love a good spreadsheet; the more tabs, the better. Colour-code it, and the Fords bliss out. So it should come as no shock as we come closer to adding a new guinea pig to our family that I added a new tab to the guinea pig spreadsheet with potential names.

For the record, while everyone has mocked and rejected some of my name offerings, no one has added their own.

The spreadsheet has columns for the name, notes about the name (think of it as the elevator pitch), and possible nicknames. We like to gather four possible names and then see which one best fits the pig.

It is really hard to wait until we’re a pig-full house again.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

And now the blogs…

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But first, second, helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week. To read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• None… sniff.

Okay, now my choices this week.

Apron Strings for Emily has a series of posts about her beautiful dog, Kirby, who died a few months ago. The letters posted earlier in the month, but they only entered my feed reader this week. A few of the letters talk about infertility, and I think many will relate to the way an animal companion (still testing out terms) can bring comfort and tie someone to community. She writes: “Many women or couples felt uncomfortable when they found out we had no kids; we were less relatable … But WOW, that changed when you became part of our family.” Click over to read how Kirby the Beagle helped her form connections.

Lastly, The Road Less Travelled covers the Canadian elections, which are run so differently from American elections. She outlines how they vote — for a single person (the local Parliament member) via paper ballots. It’s cool to read about another county’s system.

The roundup to the Roundup: Coming up with potential guinea pig names. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between April 25 – May 2) and not the blog’s main URL. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week. Read the original open thread post here.

This weekend, I’ll hit my 1,500th day of closing all three rings in a row. What this means is that I stood up 12 or so times per day, exercised 30 minutes per day, and burned 220 calories per day. The first and third goals are pretty easy to hit without trying, but that middle goal — exercising for 30 minutes — means that I went for a walk or did yoga 1,500 days in a row. Even when I got my COVID vaccine and thought I was going to pass out. Even when I was sad or tired or short of time.

Fine, there’s usually one day per month where I bullshit my way to that goal, but even with 12 bullshit days per year, that’s still something to celebrate.

I’m going to celebrate by sitting! And eating ice cream!

I am both happy I started this and regret that I started this because I sometimes feel ruled by my watch. Like when we go to the beach, and I just want to plop down in the sand and read, but I first have to go marching down the shoreline and back for at least a half hour so my watch doesn’t send me messages like: “You can still do it, Mel.” But I’m also moving more, and that was the whole point of the reminder on my wrist.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

And now the blogs…

*******

But first, second, helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week. To read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• None… sniff.

Okay, now my choices this week.

The Barreness recounts a scary health situation. She was admitted to the hospital for observation after landing in the ER with tenderness connected to her autoimmune disorder. This was the line that gutted me while reading: “I sat in my room alone for a while, quietly crying, sitting in the strangeness of the morning that had unfolded. A whirlwind of people, drugs, questions…. What had just happened? What was happening?” My heart went out to her, thinking about sitting with those unknowns and strangeness. Don’t worry — the post lands in a good place.

Lastly, Middle Girl writes about a birthday celebration for her 70-year-old cousin. I love this: “A joy-filled event. Love in action!” Love in action is the best way to describe a birthday event.

The roundup to the Roundup: 1,500 days of exercise in a row. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between April 18 – April 25) and not the blog’s main URL. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week. Read the original open thread post here.

I’ve always been a solve-the-pain-of-losing-a-pet-by-adding-another-pet person. If you read back, you can see that we got Truman soon after Cozy, Linus soon after Truman, and Beorn soon after Linus. My heart hurts so much that my instinct is always to run and place that love in a new receptacle rather than sit with the pain.

But this time, I need to sit with the pain until the kids come home so they can be part of the decision-making process. That is probably a healthier way to process emotions. I still spend a lot of time thinking about guinea pigs and watching Beorn videos, but we will have a few weeks before we add to our family again.

We use Chewy because it’s convenient — pigs go through a lot of bedding — but we’ve become brand loyalists after our experience with Beorn. I commented that I had just opened a package of his medical feed a few hours before he died, and the Wolvog told me that if I let Chewy know, they would refund perishables. So Josh let Chewy know, and they refunded the order and sent flowers and a note. Who does that? A business that lives by its values and puts animals first.

I’m grateful to everyone who commented here or on Facebook. I have been very lonely this week. It helps to know other people are thinking about him, too.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

And now the blogs…

*******

But first, second, helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week. To read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• “18 Years in 18 Words” (Bereaved and Blessed)

Okay, now my choices this week.

Swistle opens her comment section for “restorative complaining.” She explains, “This, combined with the significant knee-recovery setback, combined with the absolutely execrable U.S. government and its daily doses of excrement, has led me into a bit of a Misery Era.” Misery Era pretty accurate describes this time, and sometimes you need to vent it out.

All and Sundry gives an update that includes the loss of her cat. I think when you lose a pet, your eye is drawn to anyone else mentioning they lost a pet. But this is also a lovely post about hospice and the importance of being there at an end. This part stayed with me all week: “I miss her so much and I miss how we would love her together as a family, you know what I mean if you have family pets. The love you shower onto the pets is also shared love, maybe a way to show love among each other that’s easier when you’re a teenager or even grumpy-feeling spouses. I love you Callie is also I love us.” Go over and read the whole post.

I also marked Bereaved and Blessed’s 18 years in 18 words. Congratulations on reaching this enormous milestone.

Lastly, No Kidding in NZ is slowing down (not stopping) blogging because she has a lot on her plate at the moment. She explains, “Because there’s a lot going on in my head at the moment, and I don’t want to write it all down for public consumption. And it’s hard thinking of topics to write about when my every thought is about another issue.” Sending her a lot of love.

The roundup to the Roundup: I miss my sweet pig. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between April 11 – April 18) and not the blog’s main URL. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week. Read the original open thread post here.

Another week and another vet visit for Beorn. This time he was having trouble walking on Monday morning. He stumbled around as if he were drunk when he moved at all. The vet took an x-ray but found nothing wrong. He was out of statis, and his stomach and intestines were filled with food. He was a little dehydrated but perked up when given water. He said his teeth looked good despite not coming together yet.

He came home and ate solid food for the first time in weeks — a blueberry — and he followed it up with a chunk of banana the next day. We spent the week working on water consumption because he wasn’t getting it from vegetables.

Poor little Beorn is pretty much the same, though drooling a bit less. Hoping he perks up this weekend because he normally loves Pesach cooking and getting all of the leftover parsley.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

And now the blogs…

*******

But first, second, helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week. To read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• Nothing… sniff.

Okay, now my choices this week.

A lovely post from The Next 15,000 Days with pictures from a hike, complete with haiku. She explains: “It was a moment that felt just perfect—I was exactly where I wanted to be … It’s not the life I once planned, but over the years I’ve learned to love it just as it is.” It’s a beautiful poem and post.

Lastly, The Road Less Travelled writes about an emotional weekend. She attended multiple memorial services as well as watched an event that was steeped in recent loss. While difficult to attend, these memorials were also moments of connection. As she wrote about the ride home: “In the car heading home, dh said, ‘I’m so glad we went.’ Me too. Life is short — way too short for some. 🙁 Treasure the people you love. Make the effort. You won’t regret it.” Sending another hug.

The roundup to the Roundup: Over a month of syringe feeding Beorn. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between April 4 – April 11) and not the blog’s main URL. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week. Read the original open thread post here.

I didn’t know what to put in this space because it would honestly be more about Beorn. Any brain space that is not dedicated to work is given over to Beorn because it takes 1.5 to 2 hours to get food and medication into him each day. A case in point: Beorn is next to me as I write this, having his critical care. Afterward, we’ll clean his scratches with ointment and get things ready for his next set of medications in half an hour. I feel like I’m either in a state of getting ready to do something for him, doing something for him, or cleaning up from doing something for him.

So that’s it. My non-update about why I can’t think about anything else except my sick pig, who is currently eating baby food and critical care but hasn’t eaten solid food yet. I put my finger in his mouth last night, and he tried to bite it, but I could barely feel it. His teeth are so tiny now. At least he is finally pooping and peeing after multiple days of nothing.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

And now the blogs…

*******

But first, second, helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week. To read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• “What I’m Doing Along With Freaking Out” (Stirrup Queens) – thank you, Phoenix and Jess!

Okay, now my choices this week.

Finding a Different Path gave us a positive brain dump. Positive moments are personal, but I smiled at the ending: “Making this list actually has made me feel appreciably happier and lighter.” We could all use that (and blooming orchids).

Lastly, Infertile Phoenix marks her 10th survivor anniversary. She writes, “It’s officially been ten years since I stopped fertility treatments, stopped tracking my cycle and every sign and symptom, and stopped trying to conceive.” Her plans to mark the day didn’t unfold as expected, but maybe that’s the perfect way to mark the day.

The roundup to the Roundup: Once again, still waiting for Beorn to bounce back. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between March 28 – April 4) and not the blog’s main URL. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week. Read the original open thread post here.