Vet thinks he may have some Norwegian Forest Cat in him. Stray, so who knows.

Thank you! As much as we took him in, he took us in just as hard. He just needed a house to build his small colony.

I had hoped to net a groundhog with the rule, but Critter will suffice 🙂

Thanks! You're not kidding. Not to sound sappy, but in my late 40s now, I've been hitting that midlife existential crisis button hard for several years. Thinking about success, legacy, mortality. Devil's plaything thoughts from lack of living. Since Critter showed up, I can't recall having those thoughts.

He gives the best cuddles already, so I can't wait for weighted blanket level snugs from a monster kitty!

Thanks for the excellent tip! My wife has had cats before, one notable long haired, and was familiar with the necessity, but not clear on frequency or suggestion of professional assistance. We've been using pet wipes in the few times we found a necessity. He keeps himself really clean, which I find admirable as a mildly OCD clean freak myself.

Thanks for all the RL advice! We're a child-free couple (I have an estranged one from a previous nightmare), so we're probably already oversensitive to all of his needs. Being my first pet, and a kitten at that, learning how activeness can escalate from 0-10 immediately has been a experience. Yesterday, he was just chillin' and I was convinced there was something wrong. He reminded me that I was being oversensitive by pouncing on my arm and playfully gnawing the heck out of it.

Wildlife love our backyard. We've had a family of groundhogs, skunks, raccoons, oppossums, gorgeous arrays of birds, specifically geese... lots of geese.

I adore these animals for no good reason, so much so I donned the house in cameras to catch their goings-on. It's essentially a 24/7 parade of cute.

So my dumb rule. If any of them ever want to willingly enter our home AND allow us to bathe them, they can stay.

Not only did Critter essentially invite himself in, he also allowed us to give him a Dawn dishsoap bath in our bathtub (figuring if Dawn is safe for ducks, this lil fella would be fine). Not only did he allow this, he didn't make a sound, fight back, or anything. Just a peaceful little wet mess of fur (with gigantic paws). Wrapped him up in a towel (tossed in the dryer for maximum warmth) and sat on the deck under the afternoon sun when he dried/rested. Even with the rule, we decided on a 2 week trial. That lasted less than a day.

Nothing exciting, but the probability of it all atop the impact his limited time with us has had. Just a lovely critter.

I get paid to encourage people to use it at work. I'm a problem, creating more problems to solve my own problems.

COVID played a major part in my mother's death, so I feel comfortable saying I welcome the hentavirus to our country. If all goes poorly, maybe it will take care of some of our more troublesome septuagenarians. 🤔

Ha! Where I work, you can almost place an exact date on the promotion based on what they're driving. I bought my first new car in over 20 years back in 2024. People at work and in general immediately asking about my "raise."

When I tell them it was a necessary purchase after my 2008 Mazda with 257k miles decided to no longer be a car, they grin. When I continue telling them the investment was much more stomachable because I was able to use 3/4 of the $60k inheritance my parent's left me upon my mother's recent death (all they had to their name was our childhood house, which my brother and I sold, paid debts from, and split the remaining balance), the air leaves the Earth.

I can't think of anything more irresponsible and selfish than procreation in the 21st century. Why would anyone want to end their own life and subject themselves to the stress of ensuring their craft human survives and becomes a relatively average coal miner.

83% of commonly used household items could defeat this man. Versus a motion activated trash can? Fucker ain't got a chance.

Shoe horns. My 86 year old father in law still uses one and swears by it. Doesn't put shoes without the assistance of the horn. I've seen it in action, and it seems to work? Even on some tied shoes!

I fear Dems will see just how easily we've bent over for the current administration, and realize they can get away with it too. I've said it ad nauseam -- when did we decide to start trusting the government? Any government? I'm right in the middle of my expected lifespan, and I never once trusted my government. Why would I? They've done nothing positive for my generation, and every slight success is quickly dismissed or disqualified by the next dipshit with deep enough pockets to rule the land. This isn't democracy, and it never has been. The "people's vote" has never mattered. It's just another smoke surrounded mirror providing the illusion that democracy exists. Hell, the only reason the word democracy probably exists in our history is to make us believe that such an impossibility is reality. Mark my words and those of others, the only difference between the two parties? One is full of fascist, pedophile, sex offenders and the other is full of fascist, pedophile, sex offenders. The female leaders in both parties are just enablers, otherwise they wouldn't put up with the shit and take to the streets. Same for our more diverse leaders. If they rock the boat too hard, they're out a paycheck and some sweet, sweet insider trading. The whole system is dead, and I fear revolution is the only answer to the madness. But we've become too complacent and docile to fight. We're too busy trying to make ends meet to have the necessary reserve energy to fight for rights which probably never truly mattered in the first place. Just stuff written down that **we're **advised to follow or face penalties. None of the people in power ever follow their own rules or the rules commanded by the people. When I say we are doomed to the point of extinction, I mean we are DOOMED. There's just no way for even the lamest human to find any reliability, accountability, or faith in governments that have outwardly shouted that they're not to be trusted and could give a shit about your life.

Touché

I'm a little behind, have we collectively prayed for the 168 dead children yet?

My parents smoked Reds indoors their entire life. I essentially smelled like an ashtray throughout childhood until I moved out for college. Even experienced respiratory issues throughout high school sports. Used to have to borrow my grandma's portable O2 tank to use for practice breaks. I feel this, and I hate it.

Unfortunately, we're a private university, so yes.

To a degree, kinda. Primarily responsible for technology onboarding and training as well as consulting. Subject to whatever the suits want pushed on employees. Been doing it for so long, I can't think of any other work fitting to my current lifestyle (work to live) to know any better. Pays the midlife hell bills, leaving enough for leisure.