Romeo & Mom

*gestures broadly* is a bit too much sometimes, so here is my beautiful, sweet Romeo and the yard I had to leave behind when I moved.

Impact of yesterday’s pre-winter prep: swept off the sun umbrella, making it ready for it’s winter cover & discovered a bat deeply asleep within the folds. Thought it was dead at first, but nope! After it dropped to the u-stand, it slowly woke up & eventually flew away. It didn’t like me much 😘

Did a clean-up run against the bazillion oak leaves falling in my mostly-rock back yard. Looks good, but Romeo is acting betrayed/confused. All those leaves he diligently scented are just gone! How is he supposed to pick a spot for pee/poop now? 😅. Poor guy. 🍂🍂🍂

My lovely neighbor gifted me a bag of pomegranates, grown in her yard. I set them aside for a few days; love the fruit, detest the harvesting process. Finally peeled them all (12, small/medium), washed & jarred the pips. Ended up w/6 pint-jars-full, all in the ‘fridge. What a delightful treat!

I’ve received my vaccinations from the local Safeway pharmacy for years. Always a good/successful experience. This past week, I’ve received five reminder text messages that are ‘addressed’ to someone not me. Completely unknown-to-me names. Their usual texts don’t have an addressed name at all. Weird

Hi folks: Today's the deadline for public comments on the proposed removal of federal protection for nat'l forests Hundreds of endangered species will be affected Here's info from the American Bird Conservancy, & the link for comments: abcbirds.org/news/roadles... www.fs.usda.gov/managing-lan...

Late to the party, I know… Recently purchased an air fryer and wowsy wow wow! What a difference! So fast, so easy, so simple to clean with the right accessories/cooking-dishes. Truly has made a huge impact on my daily life. Love it! Even love re-learning favorite recipes to optimize its functions!

Gasoline in rural NorCal was $6.569 per gallon this past weekend. $50.06 for 7.62 gallons (I topped off the tank to hedge against coming increases…) this is unsustainable! This was the lowest price available on that day.

F*ck the USPS… it took them 15 days to deliver an important check that had to travel one-county away. Cost me $120 in late fees. I’ve used US mail to handle my financial business all my life. Now I can’t trust them to handle anything in a timely manner. Such a great loss for us all!

OMG! Received an online ad for “New Coal” company. It promised to be totally “clean” & to replace all sources of diesel, jet fuel & fertilizers. WTAF!? Seems pretty sus, given the FOTUS’s personal investments in coal & the never-ending war with reality in the Strait of Hormuz. Was *this* his goal?

I recently re-discovered a YouTuber who makes me light up when I hear his music vids. 1st saw him during lock-down. He’s still going. The Kiffness! He writes tunes that overlay other’s voices, including cats & dogs. Love it! This is my fave, but they’re all bangers. 5Stars. youtu.be/Fy29jBqckCo?...

Even *if* data centers were responsible for their own power/water costs & supply-lines, it’s not enough to mitigate the sheer heat, constant noise, and (for many) the CO2 pollution they generate. Add-in their unjustified existence to begin with and it’s a no-win scenario.

On the “They know too much about me/us” front” - went to online shopping site, looking for temp-reducing car window covers. 1st page in search included a “confirm your car” link that had the EXACT specifics of the car I own. WTF? This is a retailer! How the hell are they entitled to that info?!

They killed the big weaponization fund, then quietly used old laws to pay political 'victims' and Jan. 6 defendants anyway.

A few weeks ago, I gave Romeo his dinner early because I had an appointment. Every day since then, he has lobbied for an ever-increasingly early dinner, mostly to no avail. Today, he started his dinner dance at 2:45 PM! He’s not hungry, he gets snacks all day long. He’s just a bit of a princess. 🤣

One of the feral cats in the ‘hood died last night. Don’t know how/why, but his carcass was visible in the lot next door this AM. Let me tell you, a vulture made quick work of that meal. Fascinating! There’s barely a bit of pelt left. Thanks to Mother Nature, nothing goes to waste.

Happy childhood memory… Grandma always had tons of Tupperware popsicles in her chest freezer for us g-kids. Recently located my T-ware pop-forms & made some OJ+Cream ‘sicles. What a delight!! These forms are literally from 1967… can’t believe I still have them! (Who says it’s bad to keep stuff!)

Something has gone horribly wrong at the local water treatment plant. Tap water tastes/smells like full-on algae. I know they have to up their chlorine applications during warm months, but this is gross. I can filter & air-cure the Cl out, but ALGAE? Did DJT take over? Or is it “antifa”? NotFunny!

A proposed rule fueled by Trump’s conspiracy theories would require the USPS to keep a list of voters it believes should be allowed to vote by mail—and give them the power to hold those ballots hostage. Urge them to say NO and help protect voting by mail: act.standupamerica.com/letters/cte-...

Please read and call. Flood the zone.

An effort to downplay the seriousness of the OMB rule to hand Russell Vought control over every federal grant is underway. Every person in the U.S. stands to be harmed by this, but many have no idea. Please write to your reps. It will take 5 minutes. You can hit this link and get ‘er done.

ABC Launches On-Air Campaign Warning Viewers Of FCC Actions And Urging Public Comment deadline.com/2026/06/abc-...

Bsky weirdness… a bunch of unknown-to-me ‘users’ have followed me & liked exactly 3, disconnected posts, or just liked 3 disconnected posts - totally random. Most use a foreign-to-me language in their posts (if any exist). The pattern is just weird & I don’t like it. What list have I landed on?

Major Target baby wipes recall. FYI www.emergencyemail.org/newsemergenc...

Wowsy wow wow! I just made lemon curd for the first time. So delicious, and I found an “easy” recipe that worked beautifully from Sally’s Baking Addiction. Link here: sallysbakingaddiction.com/how-to-make-... Highly recommend!

Don't call it "expanding" SCOTUS. And, for God's sake, don't call it "court-packing." Call it **right-sizing** the Court. (There are 13 circuits now -- not the 9 circuits there were when it was set at 9 justices 157 effing yrs ago!) Or call it *modernizing* the Court. Thank you.

This juvenile osprey hangs out on this power pole pretty regularly, calling for its parents, presumably wanting food. If you look closely, you can see one of the adults make a high-fly-by near the end. (Forgive the barking!)

Watching The West Wing is breaking my heart. We have lost SO much; infinite levels of professionalism, a perception of a political landscape that included those who wanted to do the right thing for our nation, and the world at large. I’m old-ish. I doubt the damage will be repaired in my lifetime.

Recently learned the Credit Union where I have a small savings account had my address wrong. Updated that, only to learn they have been deducting $10 per quarter for “inactivity fee”. WTF? Having it sit there with a small balance has never been an issue b4, so they’re just stealing now. Closing it!

A succinct lesson on removal options for a “president you don’t like”. youtube.com/shorts/Ki8X1...

I’ve gotten to that place in life where any unexpected contact from the ‘outside’ causes anxiety. Today, FedEx driver arrived, knocked on my door & left. Wasn’t expecting any packages🫣. Opening door, saw an envelope, “this can’t be good…” Opened it & found my new debit card! Hooray-it was good!

100%!

If you’re going to call for a remedy to our insane ‘president’, please know the facts. Only the Cabinet can invoke the 25th amendment, and THAT is highly unlikely at this point. They’re all to far gone/complicit.

Whew! Due to SNAFU at Covered CA website, I ended up with 2 identical vision insurance policies from the same insurer. (Don’t want 2pols, can’t use 2pols.) Have been trying for three years to cancel the duplicate. Was finally successful today. Hooray! #SmallWins

Hey folks, I got an urgent request for you. ICE is using our DMV data to track protestors. This isn't getting enough attention given... well... everything else going on. And we need state governors to put a stop to it. They need to hear from you. Very easy action item -- takes 30 seconds. 1/2

It's not just about voting. The "Save America " Act is to force states to turn over their voters' private information to the feds. The gov't plays no role in running elections. Elections are run by the states. This is surely an attempt to purge voters before the 2026 mid-terms and 2028.

The town I live in had a power outage yesterday ~9PM. Judging by the in/out flickers before going dead, probably an auto accident or fallen tree. Power stayed out until around midnight. I gotta say the quiet all around was kinda lovely. Was able to read w/craft-lamp & slept soundly. Not horrible!

c.org/r9KjxTNrZT I’m not sure this has any chance of working, but one has to try! Please sign & share this petition to stop DJT’s signature on our currency.

If you or your loved ones consume fast foods (especially mick*yD), please take some time (22+mins) to watch this analysis of “ingredients”. It’s eye-opening. (FYI: I rarely eat fast food, so glad that’s true, but this eval applies to most processed foods. youtu.be/LZobJar3zQ8?...

Elizabeth Banks