30 Things Before 30

Dudes.  I'm getting fucking OLD.

I was at a dinner the other night with a 19 year-old and three 22 year-olds.  I wanted to cry.

I've been having back issues.  Like pains and tightness.  IN MY BACK.  That is something old people have!

Tomorrow I turn 29.  As mentioned previously, I've been fortunate to have traveled quite a bit and have had many incredible experiences (jumped off a cliff and swam with sharks in Palau, surfed and sailed in Australia, saw the Mayan ruins in Mexico, hiked the Great Wall in China, floated in the Dead Sea in Israel, etc.).  But for some reason THIRTY seems like a deadline by which I need to make a lot of check-marks on the grand ol' bucket list.  So I've decided to make a list of 30 things I need to do before I turn 30 in order to feel ready for my next decade.  Some of these are general goals I've had for a long time, some are things I feel I need to leave behind in 20's, and some are things I feel will prepare me for my 30's:

1. Eat at Providence
2. Book a trip to Africa
3. Leave current job / start a new job
4. Drink the champagne in the fridge that I've been saving for a "special" celebratory occasion
5. Run - actually RUN - in a race (even just a 5K)
6. Use the cooking class gift certificate my boss bought me for my LAST birthday
7. Get some sort of waterproof casing for either my iPhone or my Rebel so that I can document it when I...
8. Swim with whale sharks
9. Re-read The Great Gatsby, and read 3 other classics for the first time
10. Attend a beer fest
11. Try snowboarding or skiing for real
12. Test-drive the Tesla
13. Develop a proper regimen for taking good care of my skin (e.g. using face cream - ick)
14. Go a whole month without eating any meat whatsoever
15. Buy a pair of Louboutins or a designer bag
16. Watch at least 10 more of AFI's top 100 (I've seen 32 from the 2007 list)
17. Help an animal give birth OR be present during a surgery
18. Create something (e.g. a full script, short story, painting, etc.)
19. Learn how to make the perfect dirty martini (yum)
20. Go through all the junk in my room at my parents' house (and get rid of most of it)
21. Shoot a gun (at a target range)
22. Buy a new, carefully-chosen bicycle
23. Have a meeting with a financial analyst
24. Keep a plant alive for more than 2 weeks - preferably lavender
25. Go back to Best Friends
26. Try absinthe (the real kind)
27. Assemble an earthquake kit
28. Plan a reunion / vacation with my besties from college (this may already be in the works).
29. Answer the phone "Buddy the Elf, what's your favorite color?"
30. Forgive.

Anything I missed?

IMBT Internet Roundup Part 1: Environment & Animal Protection

During my lengthy absence from posting, I came across a number of compelling articles and links concerning our natural world and our animal cohabitants.  The theme is constant:  We must take responsibility for the changes we've incurred on our planet and we must do better going forward.  I agree.

I've shared a few that have really resonated with me below.

For starters, NASA released a photo gallery of images depicting climate change and other human impact on the Earth.  The photos compare the same site over a period of many years and show the effects of ice melt, flooding, deforestation, urban growth, fires, etc.  It's pretty fascinating... and a little bit terrifying.  Here is one example (Muir Glacier in 1941 vs. 2004):



(Both of these images were taken in August, BTW, so this is not a seasonal melt)
Check out the rest of the incredible photos here.

Secondly, I've noticed that certain organizations have been calling in the big guns lately.  And by big guns I mean A-list actors who will narrate videos for them.

This video, which is narrated by Jeff Goldblum, is a fundraising video for Oceana.  Their message is clear:  the gross (and illegal) overfishing needs to end, and they intend to stop it.  They just need support.  The underwater photography is so beautiful, that I recommend taking a look just for that:

If you now feel compelled to contribute, you may do so here.  You can also keep up with Oceana is up to by following them on Facebook here.  I personally believe that the work they're doing is of utmost importance to the survival of our planet's ecosystem.  On a related note, (and I think I may have linked to this before) for more information on which fish to eat, click here.

Alec Baldwin has lent his handsome face and that breathy (?) voice for this video for PETA:

Here's the thing, I'm not a huge PETA fan.  I don't agree with a lot of their tactics - I feel that they often target the wrong person/group and rely too much on sensationalism.  But the fact that this is still going on is revolting, and I'm glad PETA is bringing attention to it.  When I was a kid, visiting the zoos, the circus, and Sea World were all great delights to me.  As I've gotten older, I've come to find such places somewhat depressing, and, sometimes, disturbing.  It saddens me to see animals that are used to roaming continents and oceans being confined to enclosures and tanks.  But even worse is when animals in captivity aren't treated properly.

If you now feel compelled to support PETA you may do so here.  You can also take action on their campaigns here.

And finally, I just wanted to quickly mention that the LA Super Adoption I volunteered at a few weeks ago was a huge success!  The grand total of adopted/rescued animals was 361 - hooray!  And while this might seem counter-intuitive, I DIDN'T come home with another animal (I was really close to adopting a 3 month old red pittie-basenji mix puppy) so that's good news for my cat and my roommates and my stress level.

Special Needs Pet Owner: My New Best Title

If you come to this blog regularly you may have noticed that it's been a while since I last posted.  You may recall that my cat Aslan, who I wrote about and posted photos of here, had been having some health issues recently.  Figuring out what's been going on with him has taken all of my energy over the last few weeks, and I've honestly been too drained and distracted to write.

For those who are interested, it turns out that his kidneys are failing, or, in vet-speak, has Chronic Renal Failure (CRF).  The journey of how we got here is too exhausting for me to retell at the moment.  Suffice it to say I've spent A LOT of money, cried A LOT of tears, and am just starting to come to terms with the fact that Aslan is now, officially, a special needs cat.

Up until recently, a bowl of yummy food, a clean box, and a few toys were all it took to keep him happy.  This came out to about $450 a year.

Now he's on special kidney food, pills for high blood pressure, fish oil supplements and craziest of all - fluids which I have to give him by needle under his skin every night.  All this plus the extra vet visits and tests, and the extra litter (we're going through it twice as fast), is going to put me out about $2800 annually.

It's completely worth it of course - he is essentially my child, and I will do anything I can to ensure his quality of life is as good as it can be.  I'll just have to make some adjustments to my spending habits.  I'm actually not a huge spender in general, but I will just need to be extra frugal whenever possible.  Friends have come and gone in my life, but Aslan has been my constant companion for the last six and a half years.  The least I can do in return is take the best possible care of him.

I hope to get some new posts up soon.  I have lots of fun, interesting, silly, and heartwarming stuff to share with you.  But first I need to get settled into my new routine with Azzie-Pants.  He was a total champ when I gave him his fluids last night - it was my first time doing it without a vet tech assisting and I was so nervous.  But he barely flinched and I can already tell that it's making a difference.  Thank goodness.

In the meantime, if you care to send good thoughts our way, we'll gladly take them!  And for anyone curious about what happens when you give a cat fluids, see below:

image source: octopodadventures.com

:-)

Serious-Time Thursday

Lesbihonest, this blog is mainly fluff - mentions of movies & television programs I find enjoyable, adorable animal photos, travel day-dreaming, funny viral videos, etc.  I try really hard not to let it become a venue for too much ranting or complaining (believe me, it could) and to keep things light and positive.  But I feel compelled to share some fairly serious items today, simply because I feel that the more people exposed, the better.

Let me begin with this article from Esquire.  There are a lot of facts here that I was unaware of prior to reading.  For example, the first paragraph under the heading "How to Disenfranchise a Generation" explains how "voting reform" is making it increasingly difficult for young people to vote, which I didn't realize was an issue at all.  

Here's the thing:  I don't live at home.  My life is not entirely consumed by debt.  I've been completely self-sufficient since graduation.  So I suppose I'm not the exact "younger American" referred to throughout the article.  However, it is still definitely hard for me to feel optimistic about the future when I consider the statistics presented:

- The federal gov't spends $480 billion on Medicare and $68 billion on education; $62 billion on prescription drugs, $8 billion on Heat Start.

- An estimated 85% of college graduates moved back home in 2010 with $25,250 in debt.

- Social Security will dry up by 2036.

- Only 58% of Boomers have more than $25K put aside for retirement.  The rest will need to be provided for by the government or their families.

One particularly poignant quote:

Nobody wants this. The Boomers did not set out to screw over their kids. The wind just seemed to blow them that way. But no matter what their motivations, a painful truth grows truer with every passing year: Through its refusal to act, the generation in power is willing to do what other generations before them would not — sell their children's birthright for a mess of their own pottage.



I feel like this applies to all aspects of life, not just financial status.  Look at the state of our environment, look at our dependency on oil.  *SIGH*  I don't mean to be a total Debbie Downer, I just think it's important that we know where we stand.

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On a totally unrelated note, I think everyone should watch this video from The Black Fish:

If you, like me, enjoy a good sushi dinner every now and again, click here for a pocket guide detailing which items are best and worst choices when selecting from the menu.

Also, this one from Sea Shepherd (warning: graphic images):

Per Sea Shepherd, shark populations are facing extinction in every part of the world; an appetite for shark fin soup being the #1 demand causing the the over-fishing of this apex predator.  Here is one of many petitions related to this issue that Sea Shepherd is asking people to take action on - please sign.

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Thanks for indulging me.  I promise I'll be back tomorrow with a more fun and lighthearted post.

No One's Best Thing: Natural Disasters

Earlier this week, as an earthquake rattled the East Coast, Twitter exploded, we West Coast-ers giggled, which made the East Coast mad, but then they giggled too.  The end result:

Here are a few more pictures of the epic devastation.

But now people are boarding up their windows and fleeing their homes in preparation for the arrival of Hurricane Irene.  New York, Maryland, Virginia and South Carolina have all declared states of emergency.  The Weather Channel is calling it an "extreme" and "extraordinary" threat.

I mean, this is really scary right?

To my family, friends, and readers who might be in Irene's path: PLEASE please do what you need to do to protect your home and get yourself and your pets (read this if you have one) out of harm's way.  Seriously, stop reading this right now and GO.

In the meantime I will be praying you all stay safe.  <3

PS.  Are there really people out there still doubting global warming/global weirding?  Really?  If so, they need to WAKE THE F*CK UP.

Warren Buffett is My Best Thing

A friend posted this fantastic article written by the Sage of Omaha himself on FB today.  I must say, it's really refreshing to hear from someone actually IN that top-most of tiers, as opposed to pundits/reporters/commentators/people-who-don't-know-what-they're-talking-about who claim to know what is best for everyone.  I truly hope that this piece is put in front of all members of the "Super Congress," and is read by anyone protesting tax increases for the super rich.

Readers, have any of you ever met W. Buffett?  I bet he's awesomesauce.  I mean, he frequents Dairy Queen - which is like, my best thing (circa 1993)!

Photo credit: jetsetterfresh.com