plans, training and anniversaries

get it? a play on planes, trains, and automobiles? I'm so clever.

Training
My first day of instructor led, online training for Salesforce.com beginning administration. I didn't realize that the fee for taking the certification test is included in the cost of the class. That's nice. You don't have to take the test, of course, but it is included in the price.

My initial thoughts about this path are positive:

• despite minimal exposure to this software in the past, I feel very comfortable in it and with thinking through configuration implications that I might encounter. 
• I genuinely do like working with data. I used to joke, about 2-3 years into my career, that my job was to move data. I moved it from one column to another. Then sometimes they'd only want me to move some of this data and append a zero to it. Or take this data and parse out these segments. But essentially it all boiled down from moving data around. Sometimes I'd do it manually, sometimes I'd write a script, sometimes I'd write code to move transactions around. But it was all, when you got right down to it, taking some data from point A and moving it to point B. This many years later and it's still about moving the data, cleaning the data, showing the data, configuring the data, data, data. 
• I am glad I decided to go ahead with the training class versus just doing self training. I know I could get certified either way, however, I also know I'd always feel like a fraud if I did it the self-learning path (even though that path is often the most effective way to learn). It makes the question & answer black and white: "have you been trained?" "yes."
• All training classes should be done online. While you have to deal with the problems of connectivity, etc, you also don't have to shower or bullshit socialize with people.

Kitcat

I got a kitten! Technically I guess I got Avery a kitten. But I totally got it for me is the real truth. I'm going to have to share Kitcat a lot more when Avery gets back from England (she's there for 10 days with D), so I'm getting in as much loving time as I can before then. 

The original plan (after I discarded the original original plan of getting Avery a kitten for her BD or for xmas) was that I'd go to the humane society right after I dropped D and A at the airport on Friday. However, on Wednesday I fell in love with a particular kitten on the OHS website. I went to see if I wanted that kitten after seeing it (duh), then to see if I could pay then, but take the kitten home two days later. They only allow 24 hours holds, so I threw all plans out the window and got a kitten that day. Best decision I've made in a long time. No regrets at all about getting her. And I'm glad I got her now. I was thinking I should do it when I go back to work. For some reason thinking that would be more "responsible" or something. Then I realized no! When I'm home is when I want the kitten! More kitten time! God I love kittens. 

She's a great kitten. She loves to be held and hasn't yet tried to get away when I pick her up. She is more than happy to just sit on my lap or chest (or head) and just purr away. The only time her claws come out is when Abbie approaches too quickly. We're making progress there, though. She will let Abbie approach slowly with minimal hissing. Abbie just wants to lick and play with her soooooo very bad. But Abbie is learning that a fast approach guarantees no kitten time, so she's being patient and waiting for Kitcat to come to her ... at least until she can't help it and then she just has to kiss Kitcat. She is not at all skittish of people, just of dogs. That's good for Avery because Avery - in her brief time with Kitcat before leaving for England - loves to pick Kitcat up, put her down, pick her up, put her down, move her here, move here there, etc. 

She's litter box trained already. The one accident we had was when she was locked in Avery's room. Avery said afterward, "Maybe that's what she meant when she was meowing and trying to get away from me ... that she had to go potty." Yep, that's what it meant. :) 

Avery named Kitcat so because "she's a kitten now, but will be a cat." She also says we're going to call her "Catkit" when she's older. I'm not sure about the latter, but I love the name Kitcat, so we're sticking with that. 

She's been sleeping in my room. She snuggles right next to me, or sleeps on me (shoulder, face, wherever). I love hearing a purring kitten next to my ear. 

Visit

Dad is coming to visit next week. I didn't tell Avery because she's got so many things going on that I didn't want to confuse her with more. She'll be quite excited to see Pop Pop, I'm sure.

I am getting the basement ready for it's first guest. This includes finally putting up the curtain panels I bought from IKEA. I don't particularly like how it has turned out, but I can't return them since they have been cut to fit the space, so I'll just remind myself it's just the basement and is just to cover up storage that looks worse than the curtain panels. 

England

I'm doing well with Avery being away with D in England thus far. The first few days, I know, don't count for me since I've been away from Avery that long before. The real test is later this week. Right now I'm still just happy inside thinking about Avery and Olly playing together. She adores him. She hasn't stopped talking about him since our trip to England in October, so I'm really glad she is getting to see him within the year. I think she enjoys having an older kid who likes to play with her. 

Anniversary

Our anniversary (it would have been - I guess still is - 11 years) is on Saturday. I told D that, if he was going to take Avery to England, I would prefer he do it over our anniversary just so he's physically away from me on that day. Right now I don't feel anxiety or sadness thinking about it, but given it could become a difficult day (who knows - sometimes things are exactly the opposite as I think they will be when it comes to hard and easy in this process), I have made plans for brunch, shopping, napping, dinner, and dessert.

Abbie

She's handling the kitten well enough. Of course,  she wants to eat the kitty litter contents, a problem that I knew would occur. I switched strategies for how I plan to deal with it, so it's taking a bit longer to get the solution in place. 

She has definitely gotten into a pattern here where she's is so good all day, then 4:00 hits and she starts whining for a walk. I keep explaining that if we leave at 4, there will be no other doggies to play with at the park, but she just doesn't seem to understand that.

The diet switch to ground beef mixed with food it working well. We had a minor set back last week, but I figured out it was due to a partially unchewed bully stick that was stuck. No more bully sticks for Abbie. They just wreak havoc on her system. Now I'll have to try to sell the excess ones I bought on eBay. Lovely. Anyone need some bull penises? I've got a lot of them. Sigh.