It's not spring yet, but it's getting close. It's been warmer some days, unseasonably almost, but when it gets warmer midway through or at the end of winter, it makes me think of spring. There's a smell to it, of vegetation appearing from underneath a blanket of snow and seeing a clear sunny day for the first time in months. There's something about walking around outside in a light jacket, or perhaps just a sweater. And then just the light itself, even if it's a little cloudy out, to remind you that the days are in fact getting longer again.
I like the winter time, the holiday season, snow (hopefully, a tasteful amount), Christmas lights, visiting family, etc. There's a coziness to winter that I enjoy. I hate to say that the change to spring brings hope, because I don't necessarily think of the darker months as miserable. But it certainly feels like things are starting up again.
I started a new job recently, back in the late fall really, so while it doesn't align perfectly it is sort of timely. Something about this year feels like it will be a refresh I need. Maybe, maybe not. Or maybe next winter/spring.
George, my cat, is upside-down on his perch right now. It has a cylindrical cubby hole, and he likes to claw his way in while swatting at a feather on a fishing pole or wand. He also gets in and curls up and sleeps. The perch is kind of a cheap one, and it should probably be replaced soon, but he's gotten a lot of mileage out of it.
I'm lucky to have him. He was a stray from my neighborhood I adopted about four years ago, and he's been a lot of company. He likes to hang around me when I'm home (and he's not napping), and he's happy to sleep while I'm at work. Sometimes he wants me to throw one of his ping-pong balls, or run him around, other times he's happy to sleep on a nearby pillow while I work. (Sleeping is a recurring theme with cats as you may be aware.)
My parents lost two of their cats last year, within a couple months. They were both getting up in age, but it was still a shock. They were two I'd known growing up, and while I haven't lived with them for a while it was still hard on me.
We're lucky to have them. I get that pets aren't for everyone, and some people prefer dogs or the company of some other creature. Those with a furry companion, enjoy every minute you have with them. Give them a hug.
Like a lot of people, I sit in a chair much of the day for work. Not always the same chair, sometimes I sit at a bench instead of a desk. In that case, I'm not always staring at a screen, but there's usually one nearby.
I try to get up and walk around. Sometimes to the bathroom or the vending machine, other times to somewhere else in the building, just to walk. I think it's important. Home or at work, moving around is good.
I'm not as active as I'd like, but I try to move. Humans are adaptable creatures, but we weren't meant to stay still all day, every day.
I have a nice table in my kitchen near the window, with a pillow for my cat to curl up on. I often sit there to work from home, or work on some other project on my laptop. I can easily go make tea or coffee if I want, start the laundry, etc.
Now, I'm out at a coffee shop. It's in the evening, and I just wanted to get out of the house. No big reason, it's just a change of scenery. I don't do this often, just once in a while on the weekends.
Sometimes it's nice to have a new place, and a little bit of background noise.
I enjoy coffee. I like the taste, but brewing it at home is also one of my rituals. I've usually done it to file a thermos before going to work, but I do it on the weekends as well.
Yesterday I switched to tea for work, and it was pretty good. In fact, I'm going to try to do it more often, although I'm not going to give up coffee completely. I drank it today and it tasted good.
I'm not sure if I have a caffeine addiction – I do drink a lot of coffee, but I don't feel bad if I go without. I'd say it's more of a habit, a ritual. I've known people who consider themselves addicts, and I don't think I consume as much coffee as they do.
The tea I had was mint, caffeine-free. It still wakes me up, as does water. One of the things I'm going to try to do in the new year is drink more tea, and a variety of it too.
Back in my own home now. It's cool, since I've had the heat turned down, but everything is more or less where I left it. I had a good Christmas/New Years, and now I'm ready to get back to normal life.
I'll probably leave my lights up for a while, though. At least, the Xmas ones. At some point I'll switch to warm white LEDs.
There's probably others I'm not thinking of now. These are sort of ongoing resolutions, carry-overs from other years, but it's worth taking the time to think about them again.
Some other thoughts. I'd like to take another look at my web presence. I have a minimal landing type page for unixcat.net, but I'm not sure if I should try to add more to that subdomain as kind of a static site, or focus more on adding stuff to my Wordpress blog or my wiki. Or, perhaps, just use this site for blogging. I guess the blog format makes the most sense, at least to have that available, and I should play with the wiki a little more before I pass judgement.
I also wonder about how much of myself I want to expose on the internet. I mean, I stop short of using my real name, but even posting about projects or opinions on things puts you on display. Sometimes it's what you want. I'm not sure if that's where I'm at.
It won't be long before the days start getting longer. When I was younger this time of year would get me down, due to the lack of light. Especially being in school, going in in the morning in darkness, and then leaving in darkness (after swim practice). Of course the holidays helped, with the lights and festivities.
Interestingly, I look at it differently now. I like the snow (when it's not a disastrous amount that causes all sorts of havoc), and I like the change of seasons. Moving to the workforce, where your life isn't defined by the school year does that.
Still, I'll appreciate it when the days start getting longer. But sometimes darkness is nice too.
I've lived with cats for most of my life, although right now I only have one of my own. I like dogs too, but cats are mysterious in their own way. Our's have always been affectionate and dedicated to us, though they have their own ways of showing it. The bond isn't quite the same as with a dog, but it's just as strong.
Cats still retain many wild tendencies, even though they're perfectly content to curl up nearby while you work or read or sleep. They're happy to have food and shelter provided to them, but can still hunt and pounce when needed. And despite not needed constant attention, they're there for you when you're sick, having a bad day, or just need to hug something.
Obviously, this isn't true for all cats. There are cat breeds, but the house cat in general is quite varied. Such a wide range of personalities, but they're all cats.
I have put up a lot of lights so far, and there's a little more I want to do. I have a back porch I'll put some red and green LED lights along the perimeter of, replacing the (failing) multicolor strings now. I also ordered some of the little solar LED strings for places in my yard. These actually work pretty well.
I have the front of my house well lit. The LED strings don't have the same light quality as the incandescents, but they have a nice look and don't use too much energy. I still have some incandescent strings I use where they won't be on as much.
It's neat, I think, to light stuff up this time of year as it gets darker here in the northern hemisphere. Regardless of if you're celebrating a holiday or not.