On a day away from the office, the first oil change, and Clementine's makeshift sweater

I attended a class yesterday at Case Western, and the topic at hand was 'mindfulness.' The heart of mindfulness is doing things intentionally....as opposed to mindlessness, where we function on autopilot. So most of the day centered around strategies for breaking our routines and being aware of the present moment. I fear I'll sound like a sap (or an HR person), but honestly, thinking about this idea is inspiring to me. Not so much in the workplace (although I can certainly see benefits there), but in life. Just the thought of doing things on purpose, and not just because we have to or because it's the way we always do them, is inspirational. It's motivating. And that's why I like classes. My company buys a certain number of seats in this professional series Case does, and I try to attend a couple every year. Part of me feels badly for taking up a seat, for I've certainly attended my fair share of business classes, but I can't help myself. Plus, the food is always exceptional, and it's an excuse to get away from the office. *Added bonus yesterday: the instructor, a Mr. PhD who's known all over, was surprisingly young, surprisingly single, and surprisingly attractive.

The little maintenance wrench lit up in my Honda a few days ago, at just over 7000 miles. The wrench shows up when my oil life gets down to 15%, meaning I could have driven until, what, 8200 miles? Simply amazing. I went ahead and took it in, feeling kind of like I was sending my child off to the first day of school as I handed it over to the dealership. The best part was when I looked at the summary/receipt. Usually there's a paragraph at the bottom listing all the additional recommended maintenance (leaks, cracks, things falling apart at that very moment). This time, not a thing. Ah, the happy life of the new car owner. (Not that I don't make up for it in the form of my car payment...but that's not the point.)

Clementine has had a rough week. She went to the vet to have her blood taken last week (pre-surgery check up), spent the past 2 nights at said vet's office (getting de-clawed), and is now sporting a thin cloth bandage on the front half of her body. Her pain meds are being distributed via a narcotic patch, and the sweater bandage is meant to keep her from getting to the patch. Do I think de-clawing is mean? Yes. Do I feel super guilty? Yes. But can you really get around it with an indoor cat? No. Or maybe the question is, can you really get around it when it's your landlord's single stipulation for you having an indoor cat? No. The good news is she's up and about and seems no worse for wear post-surgery. The bad news is the procedure cost me over 5 times what it would have cost me if I lived in Oregon and could have my dad be my vet. Robbery. Robbery, I tell you.