Bye-bye, Pinterest

I went to college in the early ‘90s, when Napster was everywhere. Most of the people I went to school with thought nothing of sharing music with each other, regardless of copyright. I was always uncomfortable with all that file sharing love, because while I had and have no great affection for large corporations, I thought it was wrong that the artist who created the music was getting nothing.

As you might imagine, my point of view wasn’t exactly popular. “Moralistic prig” is how one person described my position and while I got his point, he clearly didn’t get mine. I think the person who created the art should get compensated unless he or she has clearly said it’s a freebie. In my opinion, to do otherwise is stealing.

I got into Pinterest originally as a way to track sewing ideas, including fabrics, tutorials and examples of techniques I wanted to learn. I did initially wonder about copyright violations, but assumed/hoped that surely Pinterest had their legal ducks in a row.

Kent sent me this article yesterday, and after reading it I just don’t feel comfortable continuing to pin things. And it’s not like Pinterest is the only way to track those articles that interest me. All browsers have the ability to bookmark pages, and those bookmarks can be organized into folders. So that’s what I’ve done. I’ve also deleted my Pinterest account.

Obviously I run the risk of being labeled a moralistic prig again. Oh well. And don't think I'm trying to tell you what to do. I'm not. I'm just telling you why I won't be on Pinterest any more.

A disclaimer

My former mother-in-law once gave me a necklace that appeared to be made from all the left-over thread I’d ever used to make oboe reeds. It was colorful, fluffy and not at all to my taste. While I appreciated her generosity, I wasn’t sure what to do with it because I knew I’d never wear it. I ended up tying it around the arm of a dining room chair and let the cats play with it.

Similarly, I have friends whose mothers-in-law either make or buy them gifts they find completely unsuitable. They are grateful for the thoughtfulness but don’t know what to do with the actual gifts.

So here’s my disclaimer: if I ever make or buy you something you would never in a million years get for yourself or even consider wanting for yourself, feel free to ditch whatever it is. Unless it’s my hot fudge sauce in which case (a) what’s wrong with you? And (b), give it back.

I'm posting this because in the last year or so I've made a lot of gifts. And I don't ever want the recipient to feel as though he/she is now saddled with a completely inappropriate gift for the rest of his or her life. That's just silly. Gifts from me are freely given and once given, do what you will with them. 

Bragging just a little

My niece, Beth, has a little baby girl named Valentine. I made Valentine a pink dress after she was born but I didn't make a newborn size. Babies grow so fast and first babies get so many clothes, I didn't want to add to the clutter. So she's just now the right size for the dress, which is about where I thought she'd be. Check out how cute this little girl is in the dress I made:

OK really, she's just flat out cute.

It's not the dress :-)

My Saturday

Today I’ve

• Read up more on reducing triggers for asthma, which is why I
• Washed all bed linens in hot water (the hot water cuts down on dust mites; I always wash everything in cold water)
• Heard from more than few people who believe my cats are the cause of my asthma

While I’m sure they contribute to the particulate matter load in the house, I’m also equally sure that this acute flare up I’m experiencing can be traced right back to the effects of the deconstruction debris and mold from January’s leaky pipe. It's a little early to be blaming animals I've had around me with no ill effects my entire life. Regardless, once I see my primary physician on March 8, and get referred to all the specialists I need to see, then I’ll have more information about what exactly is causing me problems and how I can mitigate the issues.

Tonight we’ll eat pizza and then groom the cats while we watch TV—they love to be groomed and swarm us every time we get the brushes out. Honestly, though, it’s pretty boring to groom them so watching some previous episodes of Criminal Minds will distract us as we brush and brush. Tomorrow, we’ll do the unforgivable and bathe them. I’m sure they won’t thank us for that!

Thanks for the well wishes I've received; this is new territory for me and I appreciate both the concern and the advice. 

Normalizer or awfulizer?

With thanks to my friend, Joy, for the term awfulizer . . .

I know a few awfulizers. Headaches are signs of brain cancer, lumps are other kinds of cancers, any forgotten detail means we have Alzheimer's, we’re all going to get laid off, the world is ending—I’m sure you know some awfulizers, too. Maybe you are one.

Not me, all my life I’ve been a normalizer—whatever is going on with me is normal, nothing is wrong, I’m fine and everything will work out. Usually I’m right, but sometimes I’m drastically wrong. When talking through this with Kent last night, he immediately reminded me of the scallops incident. He’s right, that’s a perfect example:

A few years back, my mother (an RN) was in town and took me, my brother and sister-in-law out to dinner at a nice restaurant. I ordered the scallops. When we were about halfway through dinner, I commented on how much I loved scallops even though I couldn’t really taste them once I’d eaten a couple, and wasn’t it weird how they make your mouth numb? My mother immediately told me to put my fork down right then and never eat scallops again. It had never occurred to me that my reaction wasn’t normal. I’m just lucky my airway didn’t close then.

I was diagnosed with asthma in my 20s while in the Army. I’ve basically ignored it ever since, and I’d decided surely I didn’t have any problems because I don’t wheeze. I didn’t know enough about asthma to understand that wheezing is just one symptom. Besides, I was a wind instrumentalist for decades and I've run most of my life too. How could I have asthma and do those things?

I got a wakeup call on Tuesday. As I wrote earlier this month, I’ve really struggled with breathing and with coughing ever since that pipe burst in January. So I went to the doctor on Tuesday; he ran a breathing test and I didn't do so well. In fact, my lung capacity was 50% of what it should be (his exact statement to me was that I had the lung capacity of an 84 year old). Boy, that got my attention.

I got some immediate treatment on the spot which improved things dramatically in the short term. I’m on some drugs to get me to the point where I can be on a long term care plan, and have a follow up appointment in a couple of weeks. I'm reading everything I can find about asthma from reputable sources, and I'm paying attention to my lungs now. I think I dodged a bullet.

I've also realized that normalizing everything is not any more effective or helpful than awfulizing things. So now I need to find that balance between the two. Don't expect me to turn into Chicken Little. But I probably need to back off the Orphan Annie routine just a bit.

How to keep your cats from being bored

After reading Animals Make Us Human (great book, well worth reading), I realized Wally is destructive because he’s bored. I’d far rather find ways for him to entertain himself that don’t involve broken glass or shredded paper towels or him eating plastic.

We got an automatic laser pointer at Christmas; it’s got four different patterns it uses to twirl the light around and it runs in five-minute increments, up to 20 minutes. Best of all, it’s very portable so we move it around the apartment all the time. That way, the pattern bounces off difference places and isn’t predictable. The cats love it, and will come beg us to turn it on. Yes, cats beg. They just do it differently than dogs.

We also keep boxes we get from ordering things for a few days and toss them on the floor for the cats. They love to climb in and out of the boxes, especially if we have a couple stacked up. Best of all, sometimes the boxes have long wide strips of brown paper. When we have it, we put the crumpled up paper on the floor when we run the laser pointer. The cats will "hide" in the various folds of the paper and then attack the laser pointer. Hey, anything to entertain them.

The latest round of brown paper is on our couch at the moment awaiting one of us bundling it up and taking it to the trash. But Wally liked getting on a pillow on the couch under the paper. And where Wally goes, Eddie must follow.

Dear Alison,

The jacket for your doll is all done. See?

It's got a hood and is lined so your doll stays warm.

Tomorrow I will cut out the top for your mom, but I probably won't finish sewing it until Friday. Then I will send everything to you in Virginia.

Love,

Nana