Musings from Singapore: meow's it going?

My apartment building has a family of cats living in the courtyard/lobby. the cats are multi-colored (black, white, tan, calico) but all seem to be part of the same family. They play well together and share the dwelling space with no quabbles. They're lovely.

Someone in the building feeds them: they gather around the building manager's office around dinner time and wait to be fed. I'm not sure who feeds them, but there is a bowl that appears from time to time, with food in it and the cats eat. Then they nap. The scatter around the courtyard, on the ground, on the furniture, on the sculptures, etc. 

There are a couple of cats I like more than the others. (Yes, I have a favorite stray cat). There's one with an eye injury. I'm not sure if it's from a fight or just some weird infection or a scratch or...but his right eye is hurt. But despite the injured eye, he's the most adventurous of the cats. Sometimes I see him roaming around the pool or hanging out in the stairwell. And after dinner, when the other cats are licking themselves in the parking lot, this cat likes to curl up on the narrow table just opposite the elevator.

Sometimes (when he's not in a post-dinner snooze), he's roaming around and will say hi. One night, as I was coming home from work, he greeted me in the courtyard and walked me to the elevator. The doors opened, I entered the elevator....and so did the cat. He walked in, then turned around and faced the doors and sat there, facing the doors for the duration of the ride. He didnt look at me or talk to me...just the doors. Just like humans do in an elevator. We reached my floor, the doors opened and he walked out of the elevator and off to the left. With a purpose. Like he had somewhere to be. I got out of the elevator, turned right to go to my apartment and bid him goodnight.


I'm not sure how he got back down (I live on the 7th floor) but the next morning, when I walked out to go to work, he was lounging in the courtyard.

The rest of the cats kinda bug me. And there are more now than there used to be. Some of them look gross. And mean. But this one, I like.*


Maybe being alone in a foreign country makes me more interested in the company of stray cats. Or maybe I just feel bad for a stray cat with a hurt eye. Or maybe the heat has finally gotten to me. But I have made friends with the stray cats that live in the courtyard of my apartment building.

I keep telling The Tad and Rosie that if they want a cat, I'll bring one back for them. So far, no takers on the offer. But I'm here til March. Let me know.

*I dont like him enough to invite him in to my apartment or even touch him or anything. But I do speak when I pass him in the courtyard. I say hello. He nods at me or meows back. It's casual, but pleasant.

Piles of Laundry

I just realized I havent purchased laundry detergent in almost 3 years. I bought 2 large things of Gain liquid detergent 3 years ago at the QFC on Rainier Ave S. (it was BOGO with the Q card) and that was the last time I purchased laundry detergent.

I understand how odd that sounds. A) that it's been that long since I bought detergent and b) that I remember the details of my last laundry detergent purchasing experience. But, really, it makes sense when you explain it.

The Tad and my BoyFriend At The Time (BFATT) were roommates who had just moved from Renton to the CD, near Rainier Ave S. and I was helping them unpack and get settled in. (I didnt actually help them MOVE because I was in France on moving day, but I wanted to contribute in some way). I was running errands, picking up stuff for their new place (paper towels, towel racks, cleaning products, etc.) and thought I'd pick up a few things for myself while I was at it. Such as laundry detergent.

So I take the 2 jugs of detergent home. I use them as needed over the next few months. Then I move to a new apartment and take the 2 jugs of detergent with me. I've not purchased laundry detergent the entire time I've been living in my current apartment.

I hate doing laundry. I really do. It's bad enough on its own, but the fact that I have to use a shared laundry room (in my apt building) really makes it worse. So I avoid doing laundry.

Generally underwear is a limiting factor in the length of time one can go without doing laundry. I have overcome this challenge. I have 72 pairs of underwear. Socks are another common limiting factor; I dont really wear socks. My limiting factor is probably sports bras. But if I just don't work out often, I dont have to wash those as often.

Since I frequently head to a friend/neighbor/acquaintance's home to take care of their pets, I use such opportunities to use their laundry facilities. I figure, if I have to schlep my laundry down the hall to the shared laundry room, I might as well schlep it to my car and drive it to a friend's house where I can drink vodka tonics and watch everything in their DVR while my clothes get clean and the cat eats its food. Or whatever. But I don't always schlep my laundry detergent. I wouldnt want to contaminate their machine with my detergent, should my friend have a skin sensitivity. Also, laundry detergent is heavy and a pain to schlep.

Let's recap: I rarely do laundry and when I do, I often do it somewhere else, using someone else's laundry detergent.

But wait! There's more!

I recently discovered that SO many Web sites offer coupons and free samples of their products. Sometimes I troll these sites just to sign up for the free samples. Dove shampoo and conditioner is a good one....so is Tampax....and Tide detergent. I get and use free samples of detergent.

Also, I really do have friends with skin sensitivities, many of whom learn this the hard way after purchasing the wrong kind of detergent (Rosie and KJ). Because I have no such issues, I have inherited a few bottles of detergent from friends.

And then there are the friends who move and don't want to move liquids (like detergent....or tequila for that matter), from whom I've inherited additional bottles of detergent. (Thanks, Conan!)

So......I havent purchased laundry detergent in a few years. And dont see myself purchasing any anytime soon either.

Douchebag of the Week

This week's honor goes to an unnamed group. I'm not withholding names to protect the innocent. These douches a) are not innocent and b) deserve to be called out. Sadly, I do not know their names.

This week's DBOTW: car thieves. Specifically, the jerkfaces who stole my car.

Anybody who will take my 1990s Honda from my parking lot late on a Friday night and abandon it 1.5 blocks away is a douchebag. They ripped out the ignition box to start it (and drive it 1.5 blocks) and then just left it in the parking lot of Pie and Fritha's former apartment building. They didn't even take the Bacon Salt that was in the car.

They didn't take the clothes, the football or the beer (I have a couple of cans of Natty Light in the trunk, leftover from "Poor Life Choices" theme night at mini-golf. I had forgotten they were there until the thieves' rummaging uncovered them.)

They didn't even go joy riding in the car. I happened to remember the mileage on my trip odomoter when I left a friend's house the night before it was taken (577.5). She lives 15 (or so) miles away from me, so when I found the car with an unmoved gas gauge needle and a trip odometer of 592.3, I knew they SERIOUSLY drove it a block and a half.

The snotrags' little 1.5 block jaunt cost me $500 for a new ignition...box...thing. And now I have to use 2 different keys on my car: one to open the door, one to drive. It's annoying. And not fair.

Now if this were the first time my car had been stolen, I might just be grateful to get it back.

But no.

The first time, the jerks who stole it abandoned it in Kent (a hole of a town 30 minutes away) with the windows down (in Seattle, in the winter) and stole some clothes I had in the car. Some nice clothes that I needed to drop off to be dry-cleaned.

The second time, the d-nozzles drove it a few miles away, left the lights on, which drained the battery, and the door open. They left the computer in the trunk and left the clothes I needed to drop at Goodwill in the back seat. But the box of hand-me-down dishes I inherited from Rosie...they took.

So this time, when my car was stolen, I was kinda hoping it wouldn't come back. It's my first theft since moving to the LQA and I thought maybe I was free. Bah.

And that's why Car Thieves get named Douchebag of the Week. And why my car's nickname is "Boomer" - as in "Ang" not "Esiason".

Rilla #12

So, I'm cat-sitting for Rosie and Sigma this week.

Their cat Doyle just hasn't been the same since his "domestic life partner", Skunky, passed away in December. Rosie and Sigma are nervous for him and really hate to leave him alone overnight. So they asked me to stay at their house so that Doyle wasn't alone.

I moved in a couple of days ago and have been having a lovely time at Rosie & Sigma's. I've eaten their food, used their washing machine and consumed their liquor. All with their blessing.

It's been really hot this week and Monday night I went over to Pie's house to watch The Bachelorette with Pie and Fritha and Pickle (per our usual) and when I got home, the house was warm. I opened windows to get some breeze going on in the house, but it took a while to have an effect.

In order to cope, I wound up lying on the living room floor, wearing shorts and only a bra, waiting for it to cool off. It was too hot for a t-shirt....too hot for sitting on the couch...too hot for anything but lying on the floor, shirtless. At one point, I thought an icy cold beverage would help, but decided that getting up to get said beverage would be a lot of effort. So there on the floor I laid and there on the floor I stayed.

Even though I was at Rosie & Sigma's and not at my house, the point remains the same: those of us who live alone can lie shirtless on the floor without worrying about someone tripping over us, stepping on us or whining that we're in the way. Nor do we have to feel bad about lying on the floor shirtless when clearly there is laundry or housecleaning that could be done.

I love living alone! At my house or yours....

Valuable Real Estate

"I'd been sittin' there a while and I forgot. D'you ever forget? Happened to me." - Ron White

I forget stuff. Like giving Rosie a check for football tix four times in a row. And that my license expired and required renewal before I could board the flight I just booked. Or that I need to email TCM. And whether Grandmother's birthday is April 4 or April 6.

But with all the stuff I forget, I manage to remember a shocking amount of crap. Like what I wore to work on May 12, 2008 (a black and white leaf print dress with red peep-toe flats). And all the words to Legally Blonde (seriously...all of them. ask Pickle).

I'm kinda fascinated by which pieces of info permanently lodge themselves in my brain. Why is it that I remember Maid Marian's parents' address but not the last time I watered the plant in my living room?

Most recently, I realized that I remember the coffee order of a former client.

Over the course of last summer, my team put together several events for our clients and through these events, I bought my clients a bit of coffee. Here's what I learned:
The Rouse likes a short americano, with two raw sugar packets
Derby Girl will usually have what I'm having, or a grande nonfat mocha
Montana and Conan also like the grande nonfat mocha

Trivia, for sure and that's all well and good. I also know Baconmeister's beverage (grande iced latte in a venti cup with extra ice and a splash of half and half) and that PattyCake recently switched to a tall skinny vanilla latte (from grande...fewer $$, fewer calories).

But the one that kinda bugs me is this: Ferris was a spokesperson I worked with very briefly last year. He is no longer employed by or affiliated with my client and therefore no longer affiliated with my team or me. And yet...if I ran into him in Starbucks, I'd be not at all surprised to hear him order a venti americano with sugar free vanilla syrup.

Can I please reclaim that space in my brain?

Questionnaire Thingy

Ok, this is a silly little thing I poached from another blog. But it's pretty fun.

***************FOODOLOGY***************
1. What is your salad dressing of choice? Ranch. On salad, on French fries, on chicken fingers, sometimes on pizza…you get the picture.
2. What is your favorite sit-down restaurant? Oh so many. Peso’s, Serafina, The Met
3. What food could you eat for 2 weeks straight and not get sick of it? Turkey sandwich…in fact, I think I’ve done this
4. What are your pizza toppings of choice? Mushrooms take the #1 spot, but basically, I like my pizza like I like my men: LOADED!
5. What do you like to put on your toast? Bacon
***************TECHNOLOGY***************
1. How many televisions are in your house? 2. I’m not the original owner of either of them.
2. What colour cell phone do you have? shiny lime-ish green
*****************BIOLOGY******************
1. Are you right-handed or left-handed? Right handed. I tried to train myself to be more left-handed once…it was kinda fun!
2. Have you ever had anything removed from your body? Wisdom teeth, splinters, stray eyebrows
3. What is the last heavy item you lifted? Printers. Lots and lots of printers.
4. Have you ever been knocked unconscious or fainted? Fainted once. Been close to it several times. I have this condition….
************BULLCRAPOLOGY**************
1. If it were possible, would you want to know the day you were going to die? Yes and no
2. If you could change your name, what would you change it to? Princess Consuela Banana-Hammock
3. Would you drink an entire bottle of hot sauce for $1000? Heck yeah! I once attempted to eat a spoonful of ground cinnamon for $50. (in case you’re wondering, I couldn’t do it and ended up sneezing up cinnamon for the next 3 days)
************DUMBOLOGY******************
1. How many pairs of flip flops do you own? Not enough!!
2. Last time you had a run-in with the cops? Define run-in? Actually, I don’t remember the last time I even saw a cop, much less had an encounter or a “run-in”
3. Last person you hugged? Fritha?
**************FAVORITOLOGY****************
1. Season? Football
2. Holiday? Christmas
3. Day of the week? Friday
4. Month? September
***********CURRENTOLOGY*****************
1. Missing someone? Yes
2. Mood? Happy
3. What are you listening to? the TV
4. Watching? Ugly Betty
5. Worrying about? my credit card bill
***************RANDOMOLOGY*****************
1. First place you went this morning? the bathroom
2. What’s the last movie you saw? He’s Just Not That Into You...with Pickle and Pie and friends
3. Do you smile often? Actually, yeah
********************QUESTIONS******************
1. Do you always answer your phone? Nope
2. You love…? poofy skirts, warm chocolate chip cookies, the beach and pink champagne
3. If you could change your eye color what would it be? Terminator Blue. Don't freak out, Wafer!
4. What flavour do you add to your drink at Sonic? Cherry…mmmm
5. Do you own a digital camera? Yes. Two actually. I think both of them have dead batteries right now.
6. Favorite Christmas song? O Holy Night
7. What’s on your wish list for your birthday? Fritha and Conan made my wish list come true: they gave me a pink flask and a Big Fat Llama
8. Can you do push ups? Yes. I’m better at the “girl” kind
9. Does the future make you more nervous or excited? Both
10. Ever been in a car wreck? Yep. I am now the proud owner of some guard rail on I-95 as a result.
11. Do you have an accent? Yes ma’am.
12. What is the last song to make you cry? Dunno, but it was probably country music.
13. Plans tonight? Update my blog
14. Have you ever felt like you hit rock bottom? Not yet
15. Name 3 things you bought yesterday: phad thai, chicken cashew nut and chopsticks? (all I bought yesterday was lunch)
16. Name 3 things from the bailout: is this like a quiz?
17. Have you ever been given roses? Yes. Some of them were even Killarney roses
18. Current hate right now? Scarlet Johannsen. She’s #1 on my list of celebrities I want to fight.
19. Met someone who changed your life? Yes
20. How did you bring in the New Year? At a wedding! With Rocky & Bullwinkle and Rosie & Sigma and a DJ who had ZERO Michael Jackson music
21. Name three people who might complete this? Meh.
22. What were you doing 12 AM last night? Eating a cupcake! Thanks Frannie!
23. What was the first thing you thought of when you woke up? Crap! I have an 8am conference call!

Old, Older, Oldest

Last week was my birthday. I turned another year older.

I loved my birthday this year. It was on Friday the 13th (which is awesome) and I got to go to work! (I love going to work on my birthday...everyone has to be nice to me!)

PattyCake wrangled a fun crew (Pickle and G-Funk and Shanks) for a birthday lunch, because she said "no one should have to eat Lean Cuisine on her birthday." We headed to Collins Pub, where my steak sandwich was fantastic, both glasses of wine were delicious and the waitress brought us a birthday dessert.

Back at the office, my Big Purple Cup was returned to me, I was toasted at our "staff meeting" and after a couple glasses of wine, PattyCake and I headed out. We got on a bus to go to my birthday party, missed our stop but managed to find our way home from wherever we got off the bus.

After changing into a Sparkly Sweater Dress, I headed to the Nabob, where Rosie, Frannie, Bullwinkle, Fritha, Conan and Pie were all waiting with gifts. I got a tape measure, a flask, a Big Fat Llama and cupcakes. Yay!

Over the course of the evening, we had a great time just mingling with each other and the other fantastic friends who joined us: Jazz Hands, Sigma, Traskinator, FrankieWayne, Pickle and Skater among others.

And since we're not spring chickens anymore, we headed home around 11:30pm and got a good night's sleep.

2009 birthday cupcake count: 9 (major improvement over 2008)

All in all, an EXCELLENT birthday.