Anyone want to come clean my kitchen?

My birthday is Sunday and I have zero plans. I don't want to make plans and have to deal with the mess that is my relationship with my daughter. But I want to get out of the house. I'm so tired of my bedroom. The living room is onmy comfy in short bursts. Sorry, having a rough evening.

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I wouldn't mind cleaning your kitchen or taking you out for fun times on Sunday. Stupid distance.

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I think I might've just saw your friend's bit, Suzi. Floating onion domes? I love Russia, but nsm the politics. I helped restore a monastery there. Genuine babushkas doted on us and brought us fresh veggies. I learned the evil that is stinging nettles.

Taxes are filed.

Local social media has been abuzz with...stuff. Stuff I was lamenting recently. The best piece I've read so far was in response to one with a good title, but cringeworthy privilege island nimby-or-I'll-move Anyway: [link]

The “other Baltimore,” which I assume she’s referring to when she says “they go do that shit somewhere else” (and where I assume she believes “they” are coming from) has been scared to death for decades. That other Baltimore is mostly black. There’s a lot of poverty there; but there are also a lot of working people surviving day to day, trying to get their kids a good education and keep them off the streets. There’s a lot of crime there, but there are also a lot of people who have to deal with that crime every day and have been working for decades to pull their community out of an intractable spiral.

And you know what? Despite all that, if you actually talk to them, many of them love Baltimore, too.

And this is what I love about Baltimore. Cause I see that too. This city, by books and stats, should have sunk by now. It hasn't. Parts are a goddamn hellhole, but it isn't Hopkins or Guilford or the inner harbor conglomerates that have those in marginal and worse blocks hanging on by fingernails. It's not them reaching out to slumlord watch to paint murals on abandoned properties. It's the people who live there. It's shitty odds, but it is odds.

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So, people living in the future (by which I mean time zones to the east of me) - do I want to watch the Olympic Opening Ceremonies or stick with my recorded TV from earlier in the week?

I'm enjoying the opening ceremonies. There were a couple of minor tech issues at the beginning, but on the whole the visuals have been pretty great.

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I like cleaning kitchens!

For this weekend: market, shopping,sanding,cleaning, hair dye. And Sunday the pool closes at 1 for painting so I have to decide whether to get there by 11 or drive up to Towson's new saltwater pool. Haven't been there yet.

I should go get an oil change (they're nagging me, it's over 6 mo, but I barely passed 2K on my car) but don't want to carve out the time tomorrow. Maybe next weekend. I really need to take a personal day when I have a dentist appt to get the cats in as well, but...well, I'm too fucking busy at work, not sure how that'll work out.

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The opening ceremonies have been surprisingly lovely, although they glossed over some significant parts of history.

I'm assuming Bond won't be there, though.

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Holy shit--I cannot IMAGINE calling out two people who used a lot of healthcare dollars at your company and blaming them for increasing costs or the company's choice to change a 401K plan. I feel like surely this is some kind of HIPAA violation or something.

[link]

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I go in and watch the opening ceremonies until the damned announcers drive me out. "OK, the next two countries are X and Y. A great time to bring Apollo Ohno in to talk about speed skating."

gah

and I hate that "USA!" chant. So damned rude and stereotypical. "Hi! Thanks for inviting us! It's all about us!"

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I've started going by the time rather than the mileage for my oil changes, because otherwise I go too damn long between changes and it seems to cause problems. Saltwater pool sounds fancy!

Genuine babushkas

Aw, I had one of those. It took me an awfully long time to understand that not every family could differentiate between grandparents by what language their family title was in

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re: AOL--my company's health benefit went up a miniscule amount, which was commented on in the annual "Here are the new changes" meeting. Turns out the new CEO of the health company said something about "Aren't we supposed to be non-profit? Why are we pushing so hard for profit, then?" Of course, there have been some nasty lawsuits against non-profits, but I prefer to think the CEO has at least some of a heart.

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