Went to bed earlier, got up earlier, and went running by 8:30. So I'm already feeling fairly productive.

I'm going to run a couple loads of needful laundry and then continue the dusting of the bedroom. It's sort of like the Scouring of the Shire.

Oh, and I really need to clean the Guinea Pig cage which is really an unpleasant solo task.

eta: Sheesh, Laura! That's no ordinary trip home. I have a friend visiting from Rochester on Friday and I'm hoping they can avoid snow delays.

Good for you trading in, Laura!

Have you decided what you’ll get instead, Laura?

Aurelia I feel ya.

I checked with my cousin's wife, and they did receive all the presents, so that's one thing I can stop worrying about.

They just... didn't think the step-daughter's was worth sending a thank-you for as she's not related to you by blood? If anything I'd say making sure to include her is *more* deserving of thanks!

Went to bed earlier, got up earlier, and went running by 8:30. So I'm already feeling fairly productive.

It makes such a difference when you exercise first thing in the morning. All day you feel like you are accomplished.

Have you decided what you’ll get instead, Laura?

I've looked at the BMW and Mercedes. The BMW had a stupid looking huge front end which seemed silly to me for a car without an engine. I liked the interior, but just didn't care for the overall look. The Mercedes was super nice but I have one HUGE hurdle. I love the summons feature of my Tesla. When I am parked in a tight spot I just pull out my phone and pull out the car so I can open the doors. In theory I might be able to do this with the Mercedes but I need more research as the internet claims only Tesla does this. I don't use summons every day, but when I want/need it there is no substitute. I park in a condo garage and the fit it tight at times.

My son calls my car a 'swasticar' and I can't help but feel the same. I just have to do some more research on workarounds to my features. Mercedes doesn't have a dog mode for the climate! You have to jump through hoops to keep the climate on.

eta: USED Mercedes, because they drop 60% when they leave the lot. The one I looked at today was a 2023 in Miami with only 4024 miles on it.

Oh dog mode is the one reason I would want a Tesla! But Rivian has it too so maybe I would get that (maybe by the next time I’m buying a car it’ll be more!)

But Rivian has it too

I am a simple gal, here to say: I love Rivian's headlights.

My brother in law, a gear head whose first job was with GM, really likes the Rivian. He can’t justify the price for what he needs in a car, but if money was no object he’d probably have one. Happy car hunting, Laura!

Anxiety~ma for, um, entirely too many of us. My department hasn’t had any direct layoffs yet, but today we got word that no more travel would be authorized (we usually do a lot of conferences) and our job openings would not be filled until further notice. So there are official concerns.

I read that Trusk (or do I mean Mump? Whatever we’re calling the co-presidents) have set their sights on the Pentagon, with 8% budget cuts per year over the next four years. Not that I don’t think there are some military contractors that could use a review, but the security implications of Musk and his Traitor Tots tearing through the Pentagon servers are not comforting.

Yeah, I fully support cutting a lot of military spending but have zero faith that whatever they cut will actually be what SHOULD be cut

My friends have a Rivian, and it's very cool, but I think it's a bit more car than I need.