The past few days, my blog hits have surged. I know, "surged" is actually a strong term, but when you go from 30-40 hits a day to over a hundred, that's a surge. Ever curious as to who's getting here and how (if y'all would leave more comments, I'd have an easier time figuring that one out), I took a look at my detailed stats. Most of my traffic sources look pretty benign--Google, yahoo, a few other blogs where I've left comments or I'm following.
But then there were two whose very names sound anything but benign. Vampirestat and Zombiestat.
Don't they sound absolutely malevolent? Yeah, I thought so, too, so instead of CLICKING on them, I did a websearch ABOUT them. I found a very helpful piece at Spam Spoiler detailing who these malicious-sounding visitors are and what, if anything, they mean.
Practical upshot? They don't mean anything, but don't click back.
Took Charlie to the clinic for his annual shots and a totally unnecessary heartworm test. Test negative, shots given, and, once again, Charlie reminds us that he needs some professional training. He's great with people, he loves everyone, he's happy and tail waggy yet obedient and good. It's other dogs. Charlie's not so good with them. Usually, he's good with them if he can get in close EARLY ON and say "hi." All curvy body and happy wags. But if he can't get close? The barking starts. And sometimes? The growling and snarling. I tie this back a lousy experience at a dog park where Charlie got his behind kicked by a much larger dog that wouldn't back off him. He got hurt, and then he got cornered, and finally he exploded into a blur of teeth and screams. To his credit, he did everything he could to get away from the dog, and we did everything we could to get the larger dog away from him. It was a mess, and after that, Charlie's been very wary and iffy about larger dogs. It didn't help that, a few minutes earlier, Charlie had been very friendly with a nasty chihuahua mix who had gotten incredibly aggressive and scary with him. There are places around here (not Petsmart!) that offer training geared to dogs who have issues with other dogs. We're just going to have to bite the bullet and make that investment.
Came across an article tonight about McDonald's and their flagging sales. In an attempt to improve things, McD's is ditching their Chicken Selects and considering doing away with their Angus Burgers. Now, we used to eat a lot of McDonalds back in the day. In fact, when our boy was very small, we had to refer to it as "The Scottish Restaurant" in conversation, else he'd start screaming that he wanted to go. Before you peg us gawdawful parents, understand he hated their food. He wouldn't touch those McNuggets or any other meat product there. He would eat a small order of fries and drink a small juice. He was in it for the Playland.
Our boy would spend as many hours as we would allow him in Playland. The ball pit, the tunnels, the slides. Even the rope-climbing hill in back that brought you to the higher levels (understand, he was terrified of any height where he could see the ground through mesh or grid). That rope hill played an integral part of me almost getting the daylights beaten out of me by some guy whose wayyyy-too-big-to-be-in-Playland daughter had kicked my then-three year-old down from the top, and maybe someday I'll tell that tale. For now, suffice to say that our boy was hooked, and any attempt to get him to leave was met with screaming, kicking, and all-around freaking out. Hence "The Scottish Restaurant."
Anyway, the article! I found it funny that those are the two menu items they're looking to nuke because those are the only two menu items we ever buy. Understand, we haven't been to a McDonald's since we grabbed a cup of coffee and two sodas at Air and Space back in October of 2011 or so. Makes me wonder--did our lack of patronage actually affect them? Or is it a sign that now there's REALLY no reason to go to McDonald's?
Having Wegmans bologna and provolone sandwiches tonight on my low carb/low cal bread. With spinach, mixed veggies, and salad. I'm down 13 pounds last month. If I can pull this off, it'll be the first time I've ever caught a "regain" in mid-swing and turned it around. The grief of knowing that, had I stayed on track, I'd be 130 lbs lighter? I need to not go there. Wayyy too painful. So I need to focus on the fact that, even with the screw-up, I'm 112 lbs lighter than I was three years ago.
That's something. I can still grocery shop without a motorized cart. THAT'S something. I can still sleep on my side. THAT'S something. And my blood sugar and apnea are still good. And THAT is a lot. I'm going to work from there.
I managed to make my doctors' appointments for the same day next month. Scared those petty dullwits in Congress will put my husband out of work by shutting down the government. Then won't I feel stupid dropping those bucks on copays when we can't buy groceries?
Dang.
There was more, but I've forgotten. Isn't that par for the course.
Do not reprint without permission. © KAQ
But then there were two whose very names sound anything but benign. Vampirestat and Zombiestat.
Don't they sound absolutely malevolent? Yeah, I thought so, too, so instead of CLICKING on them, I did a websearch ABOUT them. I found a very helpful piece at Spam Spoiler detailing who these malicious-sounding visitors are and what, if anything, they mean.
Practical upshot? They don't mean anything, but don't click back.
Took Charlie to the clinic for his annual shots and a totally unnecessary heartworm test. Test negative, shots given, and, once again, Charlie reminds us that he needs some professional training. He's great with people, he loves everyone, he's happy and tail waggy yet obedient and good. It's other dogs. Charlie's not so good with them. Usually, he's good with them if he can get in close EARLY ON and say "hi." All curvy body and happy wags. But if he can't get close? The barking starts. And sometimes? The growling and snarling. I tie this back a lousy experience at a dog park where Charlie got his behind kicked by a much larger dog that wouldn't back off him. He got hurt, and then he got cornered, and finally he exploded into a blur of teeth and screams. To his credit, he did everything he could to get away from the dog, and we did everything we could to get the larger dog away from him. It was a mess, and after that, Charlie's been very wary and iffy about larger dogs. It didn't help that, a few minutes earlier, Charlie had been very friendly with a nasty chihuahua mix who had gotten incredibly aggressive and scary with him. There are places around here (not Petsmart!) that offer training geared to dogs who have issues with other dogs. We're just going to have to bite the bullet and make that investment.
 |
| Charlie with a dog park friend named Charley |
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| Not exactly "our" Playland, but very close |
Anyway, the article! I found it funny that those are the two menu items they're looking to nuke because those are the only two menu items we ever buy. Understand, we haven't been to a McDonald's since we grabbed a cup of coffee and two sodas at Air and Space back in October of 2011 or so. Makes me wonder--did our lack of patronage actually affect them? Or is it a sign that now there's REALLY no reason to go to McDonald's?
Having Wegmans bologna and provolone sandwiches tonight on my low carb/low cal bread. With spinach, mixed veggies, and salad. I'm down 13 pounds last month. If I can pull this off, it'll be the first time I've ever caught a "regain" in mid-swing and turned it around. The grief of knowing that, had I stayed on track, I'd be 130 lbs lighter? I need to not go there. Wayyy too painful. So I need to focus on the fact that, even with the screw-up, I'm 112 lbs lighter than I was three years ago.
That's something. I can still grocery shop without a motorized cart. THAT'S something. I can still sleep on my side. THAT'S something. And my blood sugar and apnea are still good. And THAT is a lot. I'm going to work from there.
I managed to make my doctors' appointments for the same day next month. Scared those petty dullwits in Congress will put my husband out of work by shutting down the government. Then won't I feel stupid dropping those bucks on copays when we can't buy groceries?
Dang.
There was more, but I've forgotten. Isn't that par for the course.
Do not reprint without permission. © KAQ
Copays are not a waste of money. And think how much weight you'll lose if you can't afford to eat! The unpaid-vacation diet. It will be a new fad.
ReplyDeleteI got hired for a new government job for the third year in a row, and each time I've watched my cool new job disappear before my eyes due to "hiring freezes." All I've been able to find are temp jobs, and my new job at IRS this year? Has become an intermittent, temp job. I feel like crying. Feck Congress for not coming up with a real budget that they can get passed, kicking and screaming just like your toddler at The Scottish Restaurant, just to keep from raising taxes on their rich friends who can afford it, and frankly OWE the country more money. Bastards.