The Importance of Spaying Your Pet

CAUTION: This is going to be a very long entry, as I’ve had a long, stressful week and I’m not good at breaking my thoughts down into fewer words. 😉

I got my cat Gracie 7 years ago as of this August. A girl from school had a cat who had a litter of kittens, and she and her family were looking to find them homes free of charge. Me, being a cat lover, was all over that, naturally. Despite having 2 cats at home already, my 22 year old, carefree self thought another cat would be a wonderful addition. I was still in school and unemployed, but since I was already feeding and taking care of the other 2 cats financially I figured adding one more to the group wouldn’t be an issue. In that aspect, I was right. When Gracie got to be around 6 months old my mother was asking me when I was going to get her spayed. I looked into it, and it wasn’t exactly cheap. There were clinics around that did offer lower prices for the surgery, but I was just starting a new job (that didn’t exactly pay the best) and because she was a strictly indoor cat I decided to push it off. For the next couple of heat cycles the same topic came into question, and it was always the same logic- she’s not outdoors or around male cats that aren’t neutered, so it’s not a pressing issue. I was warned about the possibility of her being at a greater risks for certain types of female cancers (reproductive, mammary, etc.) when she became older, and even though I never, ever thought that was no big deal, I wasn’t particularly worried about it. After all, it was a risk, not a guarantee, and older cats tend to have some sort of ailment to cause them to pass away. I did look into it seriously about a year or two ago, when I finally seemed to have a stable income, but as I searched the internet for information I found a lot of risks about spaying an older cat, which worried me and turned me off to the idea.

Fast forward to last Saturday. I got up early to get ready for work, and from what I can recall Gracie seemed her usual self. Of our 2 cats, she’s the one that follows me around most, stays with me every night and therefore wakes up with me every morning. It was super early so I was rushing around trying to get ready (as is normally the case) and though I know she was there and I remember interacting with her before I left, I didn’t really notice her acting any differently. After work I came home, we ran to the grocery store, cooked dinner, and I went out to take advantage of Memorial Day sales and bought a new bed. It was a pretty busy day, so I didn’t have time to notice in the midst of everything that Gracie had been hiding. That night my boyfriend and I rented a movie, and as I always do, I went to look for Gracie so she could come in and cuddle with us. I checked every possible hiding spot she’s been known to be in, and when I didn’t see her there we got out the treats and shook them. Still no Gracie, which was the first time I realized something wasn’t right. She is always ALL OVER treats. I can’t even go into the cupboard we keep them in for something else without her showing up and waiting for a snack. We finally found her and carried her into the room, gave her a few treats, and she still showed no interest. She also seemed very quiet and just all around lethargic. She’s normally very energetic, affectionate, and VERY vocal. At this point it was very late on Saturday night. I googled a few local 24/7 vet hospitals and after getting an idea of their pricing ultimately decided to wait until morning to see if she seems better. I didn’t want to pay hundreds of dollars for something that could’ve been nothing. I hardly slept due to my worry and anxiety, and woke up early Sunday morning to check on her. She was still acting the same, so the process of finding a vet open on a Sunday (not to mention a holiday weekend) began. Google pointed me to the Banfield Pet Hospital which is located within Pet Smart stores. I remembered a coworker of mine using them for her dog and giving great reviews, so I figured that was my best bet. There’s a Pet Smart literally 2 minutes away from my house, so instead of calling I decided to just pop in when they opened so I could ask questions and see if they had any openings. I also wanted to pick up some canned cat food since she usually prefers that over the usual dry food, and because she wasn’t drinking either I figured if I could get her to eat this it at least would give her some moisture.

I get there and explained my situation to the girl at the desk as best as I could. I hate to say it, as I didn’t have all that much interaction with her, but she wasn’t the friendliest. I didn’t see her do it, but I just felt like she was rolling her eyes at me the entire conversation. Anyway, she said they didn’t have an opening until the next day at 2pm, and from what I was explaining to her it didn’t sound like an emergency situation at the time as long as I could get her to eat and drink something that day. I took the appointment, bought my cans of food, and returned home. Gracie still showed no interest in the canned food, so at this point I was at a loss. Her appointment was in over 24 hours, and not knowing what was wrong with her I was worried she wouldn’t even make it to that point. Luckily my coworker suggested I try calling the Pet Smart she goes to. Despite it being 30-40 minutes away, I felt I had no choice. By some grace of God they had an opening that day, and shortly after I made that they called me and offered me an even sooner time after someone else cancelled. Needless to say we packed up Gracie and headed out there immediately. As I was putting her into the carrier, I noticed some discharge coming from her rear, which made me even happier to be getting her in ASAP.

When we got there we were pretty much taken in immediately. They did a standard exam- temperature, weight, blood work, etc.- as I explained her symptoms and my concerns. Because she wasn’t spayed, their first suspicion was an infected uterus. Her temperature was a bit raised as was her white blood cell count, which are both key indicators of an infection. They explained to me that the only cure was surgery, essentially an emergency spaying procedure, where they remove the reproductive organs. Spaying, while invasive, is a generally simple procedure. However, with her being sick, somewhat dehydrated, and the uterus being swollen due to the infection (aka pyometra), it made the surgery extremely risky (and therefore much, much more expensive than your average desexing opertation). I was able to sign her up for a monthly insurance plan they have, which cut a lot of the prices down, but I was still responsible for $60 that day, and $550 for her surgery. That was hard to swallow both emotionally and financially, but without the surgery she would’ve died within days. Because they were fairly certain at that point that it was a pyometra they did allow me to bypass having XRays done, which saved me $180. I was skeptical, but ultimately nixed them just in case something else went wrong and I needed the extra money. I’m convinced the Dr. we saw is a living saint. Not only did she come in early first thing the next morning to do the surgery (they just didn’t have the time that day), but it was also on a holiday. Since they don’t do overnight stays there, they sent her home with me with a prescription for antibiotics to start her on. This made me a nervous wreck. We knew what was wrong and had her set up the next morning for what needed to be done, but there was still no guarantee that she’d make it through the night. Giving her the medicine was no easy feat, either. They were out of liquid, so twice a day I have to basically shove a pill down the back of her throat and rinse it down with a syringe full of water.

The next morning we took her in at 7am and dropped her off. I pretty much slept in a couple 20-30 minute intervals the previous night, so by the time we got back after taking her I was exhausted. Even still, I couldn’t really fall asleep until they called, which was about 3 hours later. The Dr. explained that it was indeed a pyometra and that everything so far was going good. She was waking up from surgery, and they’d be keeping her until about 4:30 for monitoring and to keep her on an IV of fluids. I was elated. Even though there was still time for complications to arise, the hard part was over. I was really concerned about the anesthesia because she’s a really, really small cat. It turns out the discharge coming from her bottom was a good thing, as gross as it sounds. It meant the infection was draining a bit rather than filling up the uterus, which would’ve made it larger, harder to remove and far more prone to rupture and ultimately spreading the infection throughout her torso. We got so lucky in so many ways. At first I was thinking how the timing was so bad financially (we were on vacation less than 2 weeks prior, and I had just purchased a new bed) but the timing actually worked. I actually had the money in my savings to cover the cost of surgery, I was off work for Memorial Day and therefore able to take her in without worrying about calling off, and it didn’t happen while we were on vacation. She would’ve likely been dead before or soon after we got back if that were the case.

As soon as I got her home, she seemed almost like her old self. She was excited, meowing, and ate some canned food almost immediately. While this was very comforting, it was also worrisome considering I was told she’d probably be extremely lethargic and sleepy and may not regain her appetite until the next day. And here she was already trying to jump around on things, which isn’t good for her incision. We took her back in the next morning because the Dr. wanted to check her red blood cell count, which was a bit low before surgery, and it seemed to be rising back to normal. It’s been 4 days since her operation now, and pretty much everything has been going very well (knock on wood!). My main concern this week was that she didn’t poop despite the fact that she’s been eating regularly. Drinking has been a little more of a struggle, but she’s a little diva and tends to dislike drinking water out of bowls, haha. I was able to trick her by giving her ice water in a regular drinking cup, because I swear she only likes water if it’s coming out of the faucet or in a cup that I plan to drink. 😛 When they called me to check up on her 2 days post-op I mentioned that she hasn’t pooped yet. They said her antibiotics, pain meds, and the fact she didn’t eat much prior to surgery would back her up, but if it doesn’t change in a couple of days to call them. When I still didn’t see anything in the litter box (besides pee) last night I set my alarm so I could wake up and call them as soon as they opened at 8 this morning. Sure enough, 2 hours prior to my alarm going off I was woken up to the sound of her digging around in the litter pan, and she pooped. I never thought I’d get so excited over my cat pooping (and simultaneously leaving a pile of litter on my floor) but I was elated and had to wake up my son and boyfriend to tell them the good news, lol!

Needless to say, she is doing excellent, and I couldn’t be happier. She’s not a fan of the e-collar she has to wear but she’s becoming more and more used to it. I know there are still freak complications that could arise, and we still have to make sure her incision heals properly without any issues, but for the first time I have nothing but hope and positive thoughts. Money is going to be tight for a while, and who knows how long it will take me to build my savings back up, but it is more than worth it to have my cuddly, sweet little Gracie with me and hopefully with me for at least the next 10 years. ❤

For more information on Gracie's condition and for other risk factors of not spaying your pet, just google Pyometra. It's extremely dangerous, and fatal if it's not caught and dealt with immediately. Even if surgery is performed, there's still a chance they will not make it through the surgery and/or recovery. We were extremely lucky in that Gracie's liver, kidneys, and other organs were not yet damaged by her infection and lack of eating and drinking prior to the surgery. Moral of the story? Spay/Neuter your pets! Yes, it does prevent unwanted pregnancies, but there are several health benefits that string from having it done as well. You may think that $200-$300 seems like a lot at the time, but it’s far more affordable than a $700 emergency, high risk, surgery, and definitely more affordable than losing your pet.

Just a Quickie…

I just wanted to take a minute and post a bit of what’s been going on in my life… in a nut shell, at least. I’ve been super busy. Not so busy that I haven’t been able to relax and breathe, but busy enough that in the free time/alone time/time I could be spending blogging I’ve been watching endless TV shows on On Demand and Netflix, playing Candy Crush, and watching make-up tutorials on YouTube. 😉 I went to Hershey, PA for a weekend with Jon and some friends to see Justin Timberlake and Jay Z in concert, as well as hit up the amusement park. My brother got married about 3 weeks ago, so up until then it was a lot of bridal shower planning, bachelorette party, dress alteration appointments (the only downside to losing 38 lbs. has been paying nearly $200 to have an $85 bridesmaid dress taken in), rehearsal dinner, and then the actual wedding, which I must say was a great time and I’m so happy for my brother and new sister-in-law! The somewhat stressful moments leading up to it were all worth it when everything came together, and it was a blast. If I get around to it I may write up an entry just about the wedding… we’ll see. Oh, and of course I’ve been working! Not crazy long hours or overtime or anything like that… but I typically work a 12pm-8pm shift during the week. That’s pretty much all day considering I wake up around 8am and get Tyler off to school, relax for about 20 minutes before I get in the shower, do my hair and make-up (big production, let me tell you), get dressed, eat a quick breakfast, and get out the door to drop Jon off at work and head to work myself. By the time I get home, around 8:30ish on a good night, I check up on Tyler and his homework, grab some late dinner, then I’m in bed relaxing with my ipad and all of the entertainment that comes along with it. Granted I could easily blog from my ipad, but I’d drive myself insane trying to type up an entry on the touchscreen keyboard!

I really wanted to post a quick update to thank everyone for all of the feedback I’ve been getting (still!) about my 3 Day Military Diet Review post. It really was a great way to kick off my general diet so I just wanted to share my results, and to have seemingly helped and/or inspired even just a handful of people feels amazing. I’ve been trying to answer as many of your questions as best as I can, but all of my information just comes from the various websites I’ve researched it through myself. So if anyone has any further questions or concerns that I can’t answer properly or don’t get to fast enough, just turn to Google. Amazing thing, that Google. 😉 Feel free to keep the comments coming, though! I love reading about everyone’s progress and experiences! And thanks again for the feedback! 🙂

I do have a couple of reviews that I plan to post once I get around to typing them up, other than that we’ll see where the wind takes me and if anything exciting happens that I need to share!

*NSync 30 Day Challenge- In One Long Post

A while back I came across this *N Sync 30 Day Challenge. I haven’t had the time to do it properly, but since I’m throwing back a couple of beers tonight (long, stressful week + 4 day weekend ahead = I deserve these beers!) and I’m still high off of their 120 second reunion performance with Justin at last weekend’s MTV Video Music Awards, I figured it’d be fun to do right now. 😉 *N Sync is seriously my all-time favorite group, and even though I’m 28 years old now, I still blast their music in my car, know all the words (and choreography- don’t hate), and hope for a comeback tour that’ll likely never come. (For the record, if they do ever tour again I’m totally taking a leave of absence from work and following them on tour. I’ll pull Tyler out of school, too, because dammit he deserves to grow up knowing the glory that is *N Sync, lol.)

1. When and how did you become a fan?

Hmm, it all goes back to when I was 13. My best friends and I had somewhat of an obsession with calling our local radio station for a summer and trying to win a CD through their nightly Top 8 at 8 contest. (Basically they played the top 8 songs of the day, you call and try to be caller #8 as the number 1 song is playing and if you can name what song was at what number on the countdown you win a CD.) One night my friend won, and she got *N Sync’s first album. We listened and listened and listened to it and loved it, so I ended up buying my own copy. When I saw their concert special on the Disney channel a few months later I was hooked. I literally got baby blue bands put in my braces (because that was Justin’s favorite color, of course) a week later… it doesn’t get more hardcore than that, lol!

2. Favorite group picture?

I honestly can’t remember a certain picture of them that I liked so much more than any others… so I just browsed through google a bit and found this one. I think they all look so handsome here, aside from Chris’s glasses (pretty much make him look like he has 2 black eyes…wtf?) which I can look past for now. I almost wanted to post a recent one of them from last week’s VMA’s, but I figured for the sake of nostalgia I’ll keep everything old school. 🙂

3. Favorite member?

Justin, hands down. He was my favorite from the very beginning. Shortly after my obsession began I realized EVERYONE loved Justin, and being the little rebel that I was I decided Joey was my favorite for a while (his red hair was freakin’ awesome!) and I went through a JC phase for a while, too. But seriously, Justin has always been my favorite. He’s the closest to my age, his dancing is ridiculous, his voice makes my heart melt (hello falsetto!), and obviously he is just gorgeous. I’ve long dreamt about touching his curly, blonde fro back in the day… he needs to bring that back. For reals.

4. Favorite era?

No Strings Attached. Absolutely. It was their best album (and best selling album EVER to date), their live show was amazing, and it was just so much fun to be already invested in a group and have them blow up that much more success-wise. And as tacky as the whole marionette thing might’ve been, at the time it was the shit, lol.

5. Favorite voice?

I think JC has the best technical singing voice, but Justin’s is so unique and his range is huge. I’ve always appreciated his voice, especially his high notes.

6. Favorite music video?

I Drive Myself Crazy! It’s a cute song, yes, but the video is great. I think it kind of showed how they didn’t take themselves too seriously, by making a humorous video to an otherwise sweet, sentimental ballad. So funny.

7. First merchandise/product you owned?

Hmm, assuming their first album doesn’t count, I honestly don’t know what the first would be. I had a shit load… shit. load. While I can’t remember my first piece of *N Sync memorabilia, I do remember my dad coming home from work with their Christmas album and their official book the day they were both released, and being over the moon about it!

8. Favorite song on *NSync?

I Want You Back. Easily. Not because it was their first single, or a widely popular song, but because it’s awesome even to this day, lol.

9. Favorite song on Home For Christmas?

It’s a toss up between O Holy Night, Under My Tree, and of course, Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays.

10. Favorite song on No Strings Attached?

Either It Makes Me Ill or I Thought She Knew… it’s too hard to even pick 2 from that album, though. They were all so good!

11. Favorite song on Celebrity?

Probably would have to be Gone. Love singing that song in my car, by myself, lol.

12. *N Sync merchandise you still own?

Well, I have a lot of it stored away in my attic right now. I do plan on using a lot of it when I buy a house someday. Seriously, I’ve already told Jon that I’m sorry, but the basement will be turned into a pop culture room, rather than a sports/game room. I have a couple t-shirts floating around my current circulation, and all 5 of the marionette dolls are staring at me from the top shelf in my closet as we speak. Oh, and there’s a magnet on my refrigerator, haha!

13. Have you been to a concert or performance?

Hell yes, I’ve been to 11 *N Sync shows! I’ve also seen Justin once per solo tour, including this summer’s Legends of the Summer tour, and I’m seeing him again this December for his 20/20 Experience World Tour. They were the best shows EVER!

14. Favorite tour or concert?

I think show-wise the No Strings Attached tour was by far the best (and my favorite concert DVD to rewatch, lol) but my favorite would have to be their first tour(s) for their first album. They were just becoming big so at first, the venues were a bit smaller (and did I mention a virtually unknown Britney Spears as their opening act?!) and it was all so new and exciting for me and my friends! I saw their earliest tours 5 times alone thanks to my dad willing to take my friends and I to several, as well as them having several legs of the tour.

15. Favorite choreography?

I think Bye Bye Bye’s is the most commonly known and therefore fun to do in public with others (lol, don’t ask), but I love the moves in It’s Gonna Be Me. Probably because they were somewhat fast-pasted and intricate, and I was still able to learn them and impress people, lol. The dance for Tearin’ Up My Heart is a classic, too.

16. Favorite costumes/outfits?

I’m going with these Tommy Hilfiger jerseys they wore during one of their earlier tours, and let me explain why. They came to Pittsburgh on March 8th for a show. For my birthday, on March 21, my mom bought me the same exact baby blue basketball jersey Justin wore in the show. Earlier that year for Christmas my dad bought me 6th row tickets for their show in Colombus, OH on March 26th. At the Colombus show, I wore the jersey, and because I was so close, I was able to get Justin to see me and notice I had the same shirt on as him, so he pointed at me, pointed at his shirt, and smiled. Ugh… it was amazing, lol.

17. Favorite song performed live?

Hmmm…. always the opening songs. Like No Strings Attached, or even Crazy For You. The opening songs are always so full of excitement and therefore the best!

18. Favorite lyrics?

I’m going to go real soft on you all here and quote a lyric from one of their Christmas songs, Loves In Our Hearts On Christmas Day. It really is a an adorable lyrics, whether they wrote it themselves or not. 🙂

“A snowflake melts in your eye and turns to a tear. But your cheek it stays dry, with your warm smile so near. I have no fear, we’re gonna make it.”

19. An *N Sync reunion has been announced! Make your ideal set list.

Oh dear God…pardon me while I pee myself at the mere thought. This is really hard, because I would really love nothing more than to sit there for hours and watch them perform every song they’ve ever recorded. But I’m going to try this… as best as I can. I’ll assume they’d do a typical 20-22 song set. OK, 22 it is. Not including their Christmas album, because that would be just too, too hard. And these aren’t really in any particular order, because it’s easier for me to go through each album and pick some songs. 🙂
1. Pop
2. Gone
3. Girlfriend
4. See Right Through You
5. The Game Is Over
6. Tell Me, Tell Me Baby
7. I Want You Back
8. Crazy For You
9. God Must Have Spent A Little More Time On You
10. Here We Go
11. You Got It
12. I Drive Myself Crazy
13. Tearin’ Up My Heart
14. Space Cowboy
15. Just Got Paid
16. It Makes Me Ill
17. No Strings Attached
18. Digital Getdown
19. This I Promise You
20. I Thought She Knew
21. It’s Gonna Be Me
22. Bye Bye Bye

20. Favorite friendship in *NSync?

I would have to say Justin and Chris. The oldest and the youngest, and easily the two biggest goofs. 😉

21. Favorite relationship an *NSyncer has or had?

Um, helloooo… Justin and Britney 4 EVA! Haha, but seriously, I miss them together. And their matching denim outfits.

22. Favorite solo/side project?

Obviously Justin’s. Duh.

23. Favorite quote(s)?

Honestly can’t think of one at the moment, so I’ll just go with their overuse of the word “crunk” back in the day, haha.

24. Is it *NSYNC or ‘N Sync? How do you write it?

I personally write it *NSync or *N Sync… as long as the asterisk is there, we good. Haha.

25. Have you met any of them?

I met Joey Fatone in 2010! I was driving in my car one day and heard on the radio he was going to be in town for a few weeks performing in The Producers. Naturally, I called up my dad (who I have a bond with over *NSync… he’s the one who took me to most of the shows and whatnot, and I think he really got a kick out of my obsession with them) and we went down to see the show. We walk in and I see their souvenir stand, and they were selling head shots of Joey for $10 with a sign next to it that said we can get them signed after the show. Seriously?! $10?!?!?!?! So of course we stayed afterwards, and he came out and was so humble I think he may have gotten a little annoyed by how giddy I was. My dad was having some trouble figuring out the camera on my phone (lol, aw) so Joey had to help him out (Joey Fatone touched my phone, people… touched it) and even though the picture came out super blurry, it’s clear as day in my mind and I have his autograph, lol! 🙂 Plus, it was really special I got to meet him with my Dad!

26. Favorite interview?

As much as I said I’d like to keep most of this “old school,” I have to go with Chris’ recent interview on a radio station, post-VMA performance. He’s still so funny… talking about how he wasn’t expecting there to be dancing involved in their performance, etc… so cute, lol.

27. Funniest *NSync moment?

I’m going to go with JC’s dancing… in general. Don’t get me wrong, he’s a great dancer. But sometimes when he performs (in their live shows, specifically) he tends to get really, really into it, and therefore over-emphasizes a lot of the moves, leading it to be somewhat humorous. 😉 Gotta love it!

28. Besides a reunion, what do you think each *NSyncer should be doing?

There is no “besides a reunion”… make it happen, dammit!

29. Share any favorite animated gif, picture, or anything random related to *NSync.

Well that is entirely way too broad… so here is one from this year’s VMA’s, and the guys proving they still got it. 😉

30. What you love and miss most about them.

I miss everything. Their fun songs, their originality (as a boy band, at least, I think they were always a bit different and ahead of the game), their concerts, their harmonies, and probably a bit of my youth, lol. There will never be anyone like them, for me at least. 🙂

*NSYNC, BITCHES!

So I’ve been a fan of *N Sync (and when I say ‘fan’ I mean crazy, obsessed, get out my fuckin’ way when it comes to *N Sync type of fan) since I was 13 years old. And in all honesty, my love for them is still pretty intense despite them breaking up about 10 years ago. But earlier this week it was announced they’d be reuniting at the MTV Video Music Awards, and I’ve been on the brink of pissing my pants all week. Now the show starts in 1 hour, and I’m excited beyond words. My boys… even though it’s more than likely going to be at least 10 more years before they’re seen together again (if ever again), I CAN. NOT. WAIT! Eeeeeeek! 🙂 In order for this to be perfect, Justin needs to curl and frost his hair, Chris needs his braces and dreads back, they need to wear reflective, patterned, denim, and leather outfits, and they better be hanging from marionette strings. I mean, go hard or go home, right?

Dear Death, Go Fuck Yourself

2013 is only 1 month old, and it seems like there has already been so much death around me. Luckily only one those deaths truly effected my day to day life, but there is still 11 months left. I’m hoping the year from here on out is smooth sailing, but I can’t help but wonder if the number 13 is trying to prove itself as a real bad luck charm. And it doesn’t help that my dad is having surgery one week from today. He’s just having a small, totally benign, mass removed from his chest but I don’t like the idea of him or anyone I love having any kind of surgery!

So, here is why this year has me freaked out already. My father’s aunt passed away in early January. We had visited with her literally one week before that, while we were visiting my dad’s side of the family for the holidays. She has been sick for a while, and sure didn’t look good when we saw her, but it was still weird for her to have went so soon after. On the 9th, I came home from work to my eldest kitty-baby not doing well at all. She was almost 18, and has been steadily losing weight for months, but this time it was much worse. Her meow sounded awful, she didn’t want to eat (which was VERY rare for her!), and could hardly walk the little bit she actually got up. I’ve had pets die before (hamsters, fish, and 2 cats were hit by cars when I was younger) but I’ve never been faced with the decision to actually have one put to sleep. I know most people say it’s what’s best, and that you’re doing them a favor if they’re in pain, but I really struggled with it actually being my decision to end her life. It was hard… so hard. I got her when I was 10, so she clearly has been a part of my life for a long time. I can only hope I did the right thing and that she’s in peace now, and I definitely hug my remaining two kitties a little longer each and every night. RIP Miss Harley, my sweet angel baby. ❤

Anyway, aside from those two, one of my co-workers lost her mother two weeks ago. I've overheard a few clients telling the stylists about deaths in their family, my best friend's aunt nearly died due to a surgery complication, and this past Sunday a kid my brother was friends with up through middle school died in a car accident. He was only 26, and wrecked on a road I drive on nearly every single day, to and from work. So scary, and such a shame. Ugh, bring on February (as long as it means improvements)!

To add a bit of positivity to this post, I did file my taxes this morning. It was such an accomplishment for me considering I’m usually the asshole on April 15th rushing to get them done at the last minute. It was super easy, and literally took me like 20 minutes. I used the same website that I used last year, TaxAct.com and assuming that this year goes through without any problems, I will definitely continue to use them in the future. It cost only $17.95 to e-file both the state and federal taxes, plus I’m getting back WAY more than I had anticipated, and all directly deposited into my checking account within 21 days. I only worked for 6 months last year, and they didn’t seem to be taking very much out of each paycheck, so I was pleasantly surprised!