I am Zen, but not often zen.

meara, flexeril never did anything for me, either. Pot might work, but you're right - if you've never had it before, the night before a presentation really isn't the time to experiment! I hope you feel better soon, it sounds like you have a pinched nerve.

Would a single cat be happy in a less-than-700 square foot apartment if it never went outside?

With a window view of birds and things to watch, they should be fine. Depending on individual temperament. Cats need a place to hide and a place to get up high and a place to scratch, which can all easily be the same cat tree.

Allyson, you have such pretty hair, and I hope you are curled up under the covers with tea and biscuits, or the appropriate equivalent.

Quick update on my neighbor (the one who was taken away by ambulance the other day). He is doing much better, and it appears that while he had a massive seizure, there was no sign of stroke or aneurysm. In fact, while he appears to be in good health, they can't figure out what caused the seizure. So the news is good if not exactly reassuring.

Also, he's not allowed to drive for six months, which is going to be problematic, as his job often requires him to commute from Missouri to Arkansas.

Anyhow, thank you all for the ~ma.

Made up for failing to eat lunch by taking myself out to dinner. Pretty sure I got the fanciest meal on offer for Restaurant Week - roasted parsnip soup, a chicken and noodle entree (called something like Noodles and Chicken) and chocolate-filled beignets for dessert. All this and mulled wine. Delicious, but not in a price range I can afford very often. I will have to check out their happy hour offerings, that might suit my wallet better.

ETA: Glad your neighbor is doing better, Anne.

Connie, growing up we had a cat in 240 square feet. At one point, my father decided that she needed a harness to be out in the yard. She was miserable out there.

I bet Instacart would deliver cupcakes.

I had never heard of Instacart until today when a woman I'm trying to hire said that she drove for them. It may not be a good thing that I know this. When Kozmo was around, I may have done some serious damage to my credit card having Farscape dvds delivered.

Anne, it's good the hear that there is cautiously good news for your neighbor.

Anne, glad your neighbor is doing better. That's scary.

Instacart is not available in my area. Probably just as well.

I ate dinner tonight! Woot! I'm pretty sure I had food poisoning because I stopped puking yesterday morning and then was just exhausted for the rest of the day. I probably napped for 10 hours off and on all day but was still able to fall asleep and sleep all night. Even though I let the kittens stay upstairs (since Bob is away and CB was overnight at her dogsitter's and I was afraid I'd be lonely).

Would a single cat be happy in a less-than-700 square foot apartment if it never went outside?

Sounds like a good opportunity to adopt an older cat who is used to being on their own.

Roughest part was the Nightly Homework Buckin' Bronc Ride.

The greatest thing that ever happened in my parenthood of Emmett? Him going to an aftercare program with an hour of dedicated homework-doing with people there to help him do it so I DID NOT HAVE TO DEAL WITH THAT SHIT.

Which (awesomely) taught Emmett to do his homework right away and get it done with, a trait he kept all through high school.

I get "NO, IT ISN'T!! I DID IT RIGHT! HOW COULD IT BE WRONG, I DID IT RIGHT?! AAARRRRRGGGGHHHHH!!!" and she stomps off to her room.

uh...that reminds me I need to go apologize to my dad. a lot.

My poor mother. She tried to help me with my math homework, but she couldn't fathom the New Math or whatever the heck it was in the early 70s, and - because she was really good at math - ended up feeling bad not only because she couldn't explain to me what was wanted, but couldn't understand it herself.

I wasn't a fit-thrower. I was a Dramatic Crier. Wails and whimpers would be added as necessary. I felt that if someone couldn't comprehend the depth of my pain from my tears, they didn't really care that I was in pain at all. WOE

Connie, my take on your cat question is, it is more important that your cat be comfortable as an only cat who will have a fair bit of alone time rather than the amount of space. There are some cats who really want to be more social than a single adult human with a full-time job can satisfy, and some who would be very happy with that. The key to keeping an indoor cat happy and healthy is environmental enrichment. Jackson Galaxy calls this "Catification" - co-wrote a book by that title, you might be able to get it from the library. There are a ton of ways to keep a cat entertained in modest-sized spaces. A good bird-watching window helps. There are more toys than you could shake a stick at - though come to think of it, sticks to shake can be part of the toy scheme... Cat towers, cat shelves, etc etc.