Rainbow Dragon's Lair

[Syrius]

Congrats on Daily Hug!

And I love the idea of Do Watcha Wanna day. I had one of those today.

 

[CODawn]

Congratulations!

 

[Maegaranthelas]

for the hugs, the doc, and Shelby's registration

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Thank you @Syrius @CODawn @Maegaranthelas



@Lady Celerity @Syrius : DWW days are great! I like to have a structured workout plan, because I do want to maintain (and continue to build) well-rounded fitness and full body strength. (I would totally neglect the upper body work if I just did what I wanted every day.) But at the same time: I'm not training for the Olympics. So I think the occasional play day is fine. And they keep the work from feeling like too much of a grind.

 

[Maegaranthelas]

I finally had the mental bandwidth to listen to that Boreal song you posted, and it's gorgeous!
Thank you so much for sharing

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

January 18:

Cardinal Points:
First Thing Water:
10 Minutes of Mindfulness: - shavasana
Dance / Yoga: - Quiet Room
Gratitude:

Group of Seven:
hands & wrists: - clench/unclench, wrist circles
calf raises: - one-legged calf raises
plank: - Plank Hero
feathered peacock: - one-legged dolphin
hip flexors: - Standing Abs
hip abductors: - side-lying leg lifts
glutes: - Plank Hero

Programs & Challenges:
Daily Hug:
Push & Pull: - push-ups
Total Body Strength: Day 17
Standing Abs: Day 17
Plank Hero: Day 17

Mileage:
running:
tempo runs / alt cardio: 3/3
interval training: 1/2

hiking: 7.2 km

Writing:
PARSEC monthly meeting: a very interesting talk re: all sorts of practices for sustainable living.
Also some reading of a book on making a living as an artist.

writing days this week: 3/4
writing time: 3:25/8 hours
artwork: 10 min. sketching
artwork days this week: 3/4

Targets will normally be 5 days/week for both artwork and writing content creation, and 10 hours/week for writing content creation. They're reduced this week due to officially taking Monday as a holiday.

French:
Fluenz

Scheduling Habits:
GOBOT:
SOOT:
GBOT:
GR:

Cumulative Habit Scores:
SOOT: 11
GBOT: 12
Gaming Rules: 14

Streaks:
Consecutive days of working out: 132
Consecutive days of French study: 1524

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

to all American Bees today. You are in my thoughts.

 

[FlowersandPetals]

to all American Bees today. You are in my thoughts.

Thanks but I’m confused

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Thanks but I’m confused

Today's change of leadership is extremely dark, dangerous, and terrifying for many.

 

[FlowersandPetals]

Today's change of leadership is extremely dark, dangerous, and terrifying for many.

I disagree. And I don’t think all of us Americans in this community think today’s change of leadership believes the same as you. I appreciate your caring. I think we’re gonna be fine- or even better. While I don’t agree with everything about the new leaders, I’m pretty optimistic about it.

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

I disagree. And I don’t think all of us Americans in this community think today’s change of leadership believes the same as you.

I did not say all. I said many. Political contests always result in winners and losers. They always result in some people being unhappy with the result. But certainly never before in my lifetime has a US presidential contest resulted in the election of an individual who has repeatedly threatened to wield his political power to criminally prosecute people who have committed no crimes and for whom there is no evidence they have committed any crimes, simply because those people were doing their jobs and/or opposed him politically. Certainly never before in my lifetime, and I believe never before in the history of your country, has an outgoing president felt the need to issue a long list of preemptive pardons to people who not only have never been convicted of any crimes but in fact have not even been charged with any crimes, to protect them from the wrath of the incoming president. Trump's threats against these individuals are not a matter of belief or opinion. They are documented fact. A great many people are deeply concerned by this. (Amongst other things.)

 

[FlowersandPetals]

I did not say all. I said many. Political contests always result in winners and losers. They always result in some people being unhappy with the result. But certainly never before in my lifetime has a US presidential contest resulted in the election of an individual who has repeatedly threatened to wield his political power to criminally prosecute people who have committed no crimes and for whom there is no evidence they have committed any crimes, simply because those people were doing their jobs and/or opposed him politically. Certainly never before in my lifetime, and I believe never before in the history of your country, has an outgoing president felt the need to issue a long list of preemptive pardons to people who not only have never been convicted of any crimes but in fact have not even been charged with any crimes, to protect them from the wrath of the incoming president. Trump's threats against these individuals are not a matter of belief or opinion. They are documented fact. A great many people are deeply concerned by this. (Amongst other things.

What you’re calling facts actually aren’t. There’s so much you don’t know or understand. Americans have suffered too much the past 4 years. I will not go any further. I am considering stepping away from this community because of this. I know I’m in the minority being a born again Christian and a conservative but I really enjoyed this community up to this point, and doing my best to stay away from politics. I was a huge fan of this site for many years before joining. I’ve tried to be kind and respectful of our differences.

Take care.

 

[Nyther]

to all American Bees today. You are in my thoughts.

As an American with moderate political views, thank you.

 

[Maegaranthelas]

@FlowersandPetals are you really considering leaving the community over this?
We're not attacking you for being a born-again christian or conservative, even if we are neither of these things.
You've always been civil and even kind in our interactions, and that is all I have judged you by.

 

[Sólveig]

What you’re calling facts actually aren’t. There’s so much you don’t know or understand. Americans have suffered too much the past 4 years. I will not go any further. I am considering stepping away from this community because of this. I know I’m in the minority being a born again Christian and a conservative but I really enjoyed this community up to this point, and doing my best to stay away from politics. I was a huge fan of this site for many years before joining. I’ve tried to be kind and respectful of our differences.

Take care.

This will be more medicine than sugar, so I'll be that girl: you are entitled to leave if you do not feel comfortable around here anymore, but before you do, here's something to think about: we all have different opinions on the matter, but we shouldn't think about this as a matter of who is in the majority or the minority, because we'll never agree on anything. Trust me, there are things I disagree with you, and I mentioned them in my log... just last Friday, but running away is not going to make anything better for you on the long run because that's how people get polarized in the first place: when they see something that questions their beliefs, they run. Again, you don't need to engage with the opposing view, but just think about what you see and ask yourself "how is this person's point of view going to affect my life," or "how could I use this to be a better Christian," or, even simpler, ask yourself the meme: "what would Jesus do." You're right: the Hive has no place for political discussions, but that doesn't mean we won't get political in our logs because, at one point or another, it will happen. Again, you don't have to interact with everything, and you are entitled to leave if that's what you desire, but before you do, at least have this to think about.

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

January 19:

Cardinal Points:
First Thing Water:
10 Minutes of Mindfulness: - shavasana
Dance / Yoga: - Quiet Room
Gratitude:

Group of Seven:
hands & wrists: - Talk to the Hand
calf raises: - Ankle Recovery
plank: - Plank Hero
feathered peacock: - dolphin
hip flexors: - power jump HIIT*
hip abductors: - kicking HIIT*
glutes: - Total Body Strength

Programs & Challenges:
Daily Hug:
Push & Pull: - back work in TBS
Total Body Strength: Day 18
Standing Abs: Day 18
Plank Hero: Day 18

Mileage:
running: HIIT workout*
tempo runs / alt cardio: 3/3
interval training: 2/2

hiking: 9 km

* I needed to do a HIIT workout this day to hit my weekly goal for interval training. And I saw that @Damer had just released a new video with training tips for how to achieve one's power jump. Since this is an exercise I want to work on achieving, it was a perfect fit for this day's training! I did one Tabata of the camel thrusts exercise and one of the kneeling-to-squatting stepping exercise from Damer's video. Then I did a third Tabata of kicks (2 sets each of front, side, turning, and hook kicks). Doing those power jump training exercises in the Tabata format was no joke! I think I will keep them as a regular (maybe once a week) part of my training for a bit. See how that goes.

Writing:
Just a wee bit of brainstorming story ideas.

writing days this week: 4/4
writing time: 3:30/8 hours
artwork: 15 min. sketching
artwork days this week: 4/4

Days/week targets were hit for this week, but not my butt-in-chair hours for content creation. I did do a fair bit of other writing-related work. And sure: I had other non-writing related tasks I needed to attend to this week. But I really need to be hitting my content creation hours. And the reason I missed this week was not due to the other things I needed to get done. It was due to all the time I spent gaming.

I need to work on this! Gaming has become my stress-relieving activity. (Especially during these winter months when it's not so easy to just take Shelby for a walk to a nice forested area.) But the level of stress in my life these days is not enough to warrant the amount of gaming I have been doing. So I need to make a change.

French:
Fluenz

Scheduling Habits:
GOBOT:
SOOT:
GBOT:
GR:

Cumulative Habit Scores:
SOOT: 14
GBOT: 14
Gaming Rules: 0

I decided that if I don't hit my content creation hours target for the week due to solo gaming, my gaming rules score for the week needs to be zero. Hence why that score got zeroed here.

Streaks:
Consecutive days of working out: 133
Consecutive days of French study: 1525

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

The polar vortex is here. We have our first "Extreme Cold Warning" of the season for my area tonight.
This one's predicted to hit a large swath of North America. If you're in it's path, please bundle up. Stay warm and stay safe!

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

In other news: Miss Shelby got herself a new vet today!

We haven't actually met the vet yet. Shelby's health is good, and she isn't due for a check-up or vaccines or any other routine stuff until June. But she is an older dog. And I'm limited as to which vets I can take her to due to no longer having access to a car. So I wanted to get her signed up as a patient somewhere now, so I'll have someone I can call in the event anything does go awry with Shelby's health.

On Saturday I was talking to another dog-walker in our neighbourhood, and mentioned needing to find Shelby a local vet. She recommended a place that is only 800 metres from our home. So I decided we'd check them out today. The office staff at this clinic were very friendly and helpful, and they got answers for me for my most important questions:

1. Will this clinic prescribe and stock for Shelby the parasite control meds she's been taking for the past decade? She's an old dog. I don't want to switch her to new drugs at this point in her life when I know she responds so well to the old ones.

And:

2. Will the staff do routine medical procedures--like physical exams, drawing blood, administering vaccines, etc. in the exam room with me by Shelby's side? Shelby is a very brave girl! She makes no fuss over being poked and prodded and stuck with needles. Her old vets always commented to me on what a great patient she is! But the one thing that does upset her is being separated from me. Our vets in the BM understood this and kept her in the exam room with me. But I know some clinics prefer to separate animals from their humans for certain medical procedures.

The answers were positive in both cases. This clinic regularly prescribes one of the meds Shelby takes. The other they do not normally stock but can and will prescribe and order it for Shelby if that's what I want. On the matter of Shelby remaining with me for her treatments I was told this was no problem. The clinic does sometimes take dogs "into the back" to draw blood. But they have no problem doing it in the exam room if that is my preference. (The office person said she would make a note on Shelby's file to this effect and that if a vet tech ever did try to take Shelby away I could simply tell them I preferred for Shelby to remain with me, and they would accommodate my wishes no problem.)

So yeah! Another moving thing taken care of, and I think a good place found for my #1 girl.

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Saw an ad today for a 220 square foot studio apartment in my neighbourhood, asking $1400 + electricity a month. Which the landlord, sadly, will likely actually be able to get.

The ad suggests the apartment is 350 square feet. But it includes a floor plan. And if you do the math on the floor plan, it adds up to 220 square feet, not 350.

The ad says the unit includes a "full" bathroom. But it only has a 3-piece. (More and more often these days I am seeing ads for apartments with no bathtub that nevertheless make this claim about having a "full" bathroom.) In this case the ad actually reads: "Full Bathroom: Gorgeous and modern, perfect for relaxing after a long day." (Emphasis mine.) Perfect for relaxing? Really? You know a lot of humans who like to relax standing up, do you?

Of the kitchen the ad says: "Stylish Kitchen: Sleek, updated kitchen with everything you need."
The kitchen has no dishwasher. It has only a single sink. It has less counter space than even my tiny kitchen. And no space in which one could possibly add any furniture of one's own.

The add claims the unit is: "Bright & Airy: Big windows let in plenty of natural light."
The apartment in truth has two windows, neither of which I would classify as "big", and one of which is in the bathroom!

"This cozy and super functional studio apartment is located on the second floor and offers everything you need for comfortable living," says the ad. (Again: emphasis mine.)
Everything? Really?

The door to the apartment opens directly into the only room in which one could possibly put a bed. This room is smaller than either of the bedrooms in my apartment. And it would need to serve as bedroom and living room and dining room.
You're coming inside from a Canadian winter, dressed in a heavy coat and a hat and mittens, and boots that are covered in snow. And you've got no coat closet and are going to need to put your boot tray in your bedroom.

And it's a second-floor apartment with no balcony.

 

[JCU]

That's outrageous!

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

That's outrageous!

Yup.

I can almost guarantee this was originally a three bedroom apartment that got cleaved into a one-bedroom and a studio because the vacancy rate is so low here the landlord felt confident they'd be able to rent out two shitty units for more money than one decent one.