Posted: 7/12/2013 6:07:30 AM EDT
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As I was doing the morning commuter thing today, one of those little micro cars passed me and I imagined myself getting into a talk with such a person, of why not drive something like that.........instead of my big hunky Subaru.
What the imagined debate came down to is that I'm very easily into needed the Forester any day. Even though it is just me, it's also three pets, for now, who, if not for vet trips, then regularly hauling those huge bags of pet food, kitty litter and then from time to time, kitten castles and the like. A full family outing, as it might be, will have me in the driver's seat, dog and cats in cages at midships, then whatever cargo in the rear cargo and shot gun seat. FURTHER, it is the nature of my family to rescue lost pets, if we can. Hence, having the rear cargo area, at any time, is a very nice to have. BUT.....this really isn't a post about defending my Forester but rather, when we say how big our family is, if we are single or childless or both, do we include our pets? Should we? Would that make life easier when around others who are trying to decide how we should conduct our life based on numbers and what resources should go with that number? ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ("Okay, Glen, it's either me or wild kingdom."--DA Ira Parks coming to bed only to find his wife there with all her dogs, (w,stte), "Seems Like Old Times") |
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Quoted:
I KNEW it! You ARE the crazy cat lady. 
Now, I only have two cats though I do find others, who aren't owned and operated by cats, don't understand them. My brother last week, for instance, was talking about how they don't appreciate me..............and that's just not true! Of course, he was the one who called me years ago on Christmas break that I had to come home to Mom's house to get my cats into their room..........he was trying to herd cats. Life is interesting. This week, since I've been on days, I've been doing new calculations to how early I have to get up to get to work on time and got the final figures this morning. Two and a half hours before work. TWO AND A HALF HOURS? What happened to the 90 minutes calculation I had a year or two ago. Add a dog, add an hour prep time. They need to be walked, fed, rewalked. Cats, you just open the can and put it down. Dogs, dish out the kibble, dish out the canned, mix it up, put it on the floor for them. So maybe the phrase is more...............................I'm the crazy pet lady. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ("Every time it happens... you tell yourself it's love. But it isn't. It's blood. And death. You can't escape your nightmare without me, and I can't escape my nightmare without you. I've waited a long time for you."--Paul, (w,stte), "Cat People") |
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I also drive a Forester. I have three cats. My cats would never ride in a sub-compact car, or so they say. I once had a Corsica and my cat at the time would ride in her pet taxi in the foot well of the back seat. It all fit nicely but she would get car sick each time. In my estimation, it was because she was on the floor, perpendicular to the direction of travel, and couldn't see the outside world. So different car, different pets, I put them so they are facing front and can see the world go by....and no more car sickness. Quoted:
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It is perfectly normal  to consider your pets when determining the appropriateness of your vehicle. That's part of your lifestyle, so have a vehicle that conforms to that.
Yep. I am surprised that SL only has 2 cats though. I figured 4 minimum. 
It is an interesting situation at my place. Okay, my primary apartment lease limits me to two pets, hence two cats. But then, I inherited Mom's dog. Well, one of them. The other dog went to one of Mom's caretakers. The only way to have the dog with me was to rent a second apartment, a second lease, and hence, have room for two more pets. Now as it is, Mom's dog came with a trust fund, so while renting a second apartment seems drastic, momentary wise, it's covered.......though it is nice to have the additional room. The dog and the cats, though, all live with me in the primary apartment. I'll take a dog and/or cat with me into the other apartment when I'm working in there, I may put a cat in there for a time out, or even use it as a pet guest room when a friend needs someplace for a pet (or there is lost pet), but the main family of me and three pets live in the primary. AS MIGHT BE EXPECTED, the primary is well lived in with interesting pet antics going on always. So for the time being, I am not thinking of getting any more pets. It is tempting when one sees all the pleas out there, but until the ranch gets established, it is just out of the question, space wise, anyhow. Whether even with the ranch of what it will mean time wise, well, that's still being calculated.....and learned. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ("I don't have to beg anymore.......I have a trust fund."--one dog to another, (w,stte), a cartoon) |
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If I was having a conversation with a person who owned a micro car, and it came to justifying my choice of vehicle, it would be a short conversation.
"Yeah...you drive whatever you want to. I'll drive my pickup, because I can run over a deer, instead of running into a deer, and have it slide through my windshield. I can also run over your micro car, and survive the accident. You, you rear-end a sedan, and you will be sharing your driver's spot with what used to be the front of your car." May not be true in every case, but I think the conversation woud be short. If they want to argue, I'd just drop it and change the subject. |
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If I was having a conversation with a person who owned a micro car, and it came to justifying my choice of vehicle, it would be a short conversation. "Yeah...you drive whatever you want to. I'll drive my pickup, because I can run over a deer, instead of running into a deer, and have it slide through my windshield. I can also run over your micro car, and survive the accident. You, you rear-end a sedan, and you will be sharing your driver's spot with what used to be the front of your car." May not be true in every case, but I think the conversation woud be short. If they want to argue, I'd just drop it and change the subject. In the imaginary talk, it was like, "Look, I already have a car and truck for different tasks.......are you saying that I should have three cars, now? One to commute in, one for medium tasks, and one for heavy tasking?" Of course, they would probably counter with either replacing the Forester with the subcompact or saying that for those times when I need to haul cargo, I should borrow/rent a friend's.....and that lead to the realization that Forester missions are constant, whether I'm diving, going shooting, hauling pets, doing field work, whatever. I use the Forester wherever I can because it is cheaper to run than the F-250. But if the job is too big for the Forester, then there is the F-250. As far as renting or borrowing a friend's, there are four things against that. First of all, as stated, the missions are too constant to depend on that avenue. Secondly, I'm finding it is hard enough to find friends to help move stuff, let alone finding a friend with a truck to move stuff. Third, who would want to loan their truck out for stuff that is likely to beat it up? Finally, if we all operated on the belief that we could always borrow what we need from a friend........which friend is going to have it? I know, this is all an imaginary conversation....but having done enough of these talks with carless people, I come "to the talk" forewarned. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ("Hearts? How many do you have?"--Tyssan "Two, one for every day, one for best."--Romana II, (w,stte), Dr. Who, "Destiny of the Daleks") |
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The only way to have the dog with me was to rent a second apartment, a second lease, and hence, have room for two more pets. Now as it is, Mom's dog came with a trust fund, so while renting a second apartment seems drastic, momentary wise, it's covered.......though it is nice to have the additional room. The dog and the cats, though, all live with me in the primary apartment. I'll take a dog and/or cat with me into the other apartment when I'm working in there, I may put a cat in there for a time out, or even use it as a pet guest room when a friend needs someplace for a pet (or there is lost pet), but the main family of me and three pets live in the primary. Have you looked at using the money you're spending on 2 apartments to get your ranch livable now, or renting a house instead? I lived in a dorm in college, and now that I have a house I'd never ever go back to an apartment if there was ANY way around it. |
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How many horses do you have? It just seems like you would have horses... None, right now. 10 acres is a little small for that. I'm always looking, though, to see if the next store neighbors are ever selling.....just in case. Quoted:
Have you looked at using the money you're spending on 2 apartments to get your ranch livable now, or renting a house instead? I lived in a dorm in college, and now that I have a house I'd never ever go back to an apartment if there was ANY way around it. It's far more complicated than that. The biggest thing is the time I would lose renting a house, MOVING into it, then moving again. I just have too much stuff to think about renting an interim house. More on that in a moment. (see fourth) Secondly, I do pretty well where I am living, have a rate far lower than a new place. After all, I've been in the same place for over 20 years. Third, right now, I'm in a decent distance to the ranch; that could change drastically if I start hopping. Fourth, I don't need for the ranch to be fully developed for me to live on it. Conceptually, once the "utilities" are in place, I can set up a cabin for me and the pets to live in.......and storage sheds for all the stuff I've acquired over the years and just pull on that as needed. Of course, it is more complex than that, but maybe not that much more complicated. Actually, it was thinking about a house, back when it was clear that the dog was coming to me, that generated the ranch. I looked at the cost of a house on a TINY, 1/4 acre lot, and decided for the ranch. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ("I'm afraid it's even harder than you think, Doctor."--Captain Terrell, (w,stte), "ST II: TWOK") |