{{{Vortex}}} I'm glad your mom came around (as much as she was going to), but I'm still very sorry for all the stress and sadness. I'm thinking about you.

Love that pic, Jilli. You, literally, RAWK! You also look like you've lost a ton of weight. Your cheeks have hollows in them! Hot, but you are still eating, right? Take care of you.

The newest fire is way too close for comfort, though I know we're too far away to be in any real danger. I heard on the way home that it's already consumed 1500 acres and is 0% contained. I'm very glad that our friend B. is housesitting tonight as we're going down to San Diego to see Drew's mom. I'd be too worried to leave, otherwise.

Happy Australian Birthday, meara! I'll wish you an American happy birthday tomorrow.

Also, Drew and I switch sides depending on who has to get up first since our bed is against a wall.

Then again I share my bed with a teddy bear, laptop, random clothes, cell phone, five pillows, 'Trick the iPod and two cats. I sleep where I can.

Hee. Having seen this, it makes me smile. You're so cute curled up amongst all your things!

Your cheeks have hollows in them! Hot, but you are still eating, right? Take care of you.

Yes, I'm still eating. I did lose weight on book tour, but the appearance of cheekbones in the photos is due to good angles, not starvation.

I'm glad you've got someone housesitting for you so you won't worry.

That picture is everything adorable and kinda squinchy about the 90s.

I am glad you and Drew have trustworthy and soothing housesitters, K.

Hee. Having seen this, it makes me smile. You're so cute curled up amongst all your things!

Hey, I sleep where the Kittenish lets me cuddle. It's a thing.

I sleep on the left side of the bed, but that's where the window with the tree, is. When I was with Sweet Crazy Ex I slept on the right because he liked the wall (different apartment).

This is a sample of how we spent Wed. afternoon:

Unspeakably adorable.

Emmett's eating Star Trek waffles for dinner.

Aims, pick some of these up for Joe, will you? I'd be sad if he never ate Star Trek waffles.

Meh. My landlord won't reduce the rent. And apparently he is raising it by a paltry 0.7% as rent control allows; he's just late about it. He gave a litany of excuses related to his expenses and not making any money off the property to begin with, and also I have the lowest rent in the complex anyway. If he lowers the rent for me, he has to lower it for everyone else. And he can't include water in my rent since I was on a separate meter. He was very nice about it all, though, and he told me to send him the addresses of those cheaper places and he would check them out.

I asked for a new stove, and he was fine with that. And he said that he'll give me a month's rent free if I help him figure out the cause of the strange sounds that were coming out of my pipes before but have now stopped inexplicably, so I don't know how we'll ever find the cause if they don't come back.

Just a big bucket of meh. I still don't want to move because I like my place, but maybe I should just start keeping my eyes open. Except goddammit, I am fucking buying bookshelves because I was planning to not move, since I have not bought them in three years since I always thought I could move at any time. Whatever, money, rent, meh.

I just wish I didn't feel so defeated.

isn't it Meara's birthday??

Well, it is in Australia...

t looks around

Huh. Look at that. Happy birthday, meara!

Whatever, money, rent, meh.

Owning? You might make some equity but you are not saving money. The new stove you want? The strange sounds you want to chase down? Those cost not insignificant monies. There are places that renting saves you just by never changing by much. I know that you make equity and everything else by owning but you are also responsible for every little twitch the building makes. So, in renting, you are also containing costs. Your rent paid isn't pure profit. It's the mortgage and repairs and everything that randomly, or regularly comes up.

Owning? You might make some equity but you are not saving money. The new stove you want? The strange sounds you want to chase down? Those cost not insignificant monies.

Yes. Oh my god, yes. There are times when I really wish that Pete and I had understood that a bit better before we had decided to buy a house.

Yeah, I was just having the same thought. Why would I want to buy a condo and have to fix every little thing myself?