Got the Flight Booked

Today was eventful, fruitful, and good. The flight is booked for Oct 24 for Ajah and I with a leave date of Oct 24. I mentioned previously wanting to take the train, but they don't allow pets. There were some awesome people who offered to drive her there, and for that I am grateful, but the little amount of time we will spend flying, will be low stress and cost compared to several days in a strange situation. Iulia went to the neighbors who have been pining after her over her for several months, so Ajah and I are are both adjusting to a one cat situation. I haven't ever had only one cat, so this is an entirely new experience for her and I, in some ways good, and in some, not so much. I miss the girl, but she was a foster to begin with, and traveling with 2 cats is more than I can do at this point. Not to mention the odd fighting that was becoming characteristic due to energy level differences. Ajahs coat was looking rough and the spats over cardboard boxes were overwhelming, so it is better in that regard. On the other hand, Ajah is more vocal, seems bored to some extent, and would prefer a buddy. To compensate, I have been taking her for more walks, having more interactive playtime, and being more generous with the treats. She has tons of toys for her amusement, so its a win and lose situation. She has gained more weight in the past few days, been more relaxed and more willing to try new toys and events. She has even been friendly with the dogs, which is a hot and cold subject historically.

  I ordered a new soft carrier for the flight as well (picture taken from ebay petspecialtystore, I will taken some of the actual carrier when it gets here). Its a soft carrier with thinsulate insulation and mesh windows on either end. It folds flat, and compresses in size for the flight, but is still rigid enough for my big girl. The insulation will be good with an ice pack on one end for the heat of AZ. Her portable litter box (a sturdi box), and my Stanley mug will work for food and water. It comes with a flat bed, but I will put the fold up picnic blanket in there as well. The color is green and tan, not my favorite, but doesn't scream cat carrier, the pockets will hold her stuff, and when we are through, it can be put away.

As for the portable litter box, let me tell you about the sturdibox. It is made by Sturdi products, and is waterproof and can be washed in the washing machine. This beauty is great for grocery hauling, washing dishes while camping, or yes, as its intended purpose, a litter box. I have been using it as a second box for my cat(s) for a good long time, and as someone who has both done quite a bit of showing and fostering, lets just say the box has been tested. http://www.sturdiproducts.com

My beloved Nokia E71 is at its end. I have used and abused it for over a year, and now the screen is flashing between the home screen and the camera, so I backed it up with Nokia PC suite and have all media and apps on the mini SD card, so I ordered a net10 refurbished phone with 750 minutes for 25 dollars. Shipping is free for 3 day, and it will have an AZ number. I will be keeping my Nokia for now, in hopes I can get it repaired in AZ as a backup. It is on the ATT network, which is great in AZ, but horrible in my area of OH/MI. The new phone is also on the ATT and T mobile networks. Its a Samsung T401G. Its APP capable, but not quite as "smart" as the e71. The Nokia E71 has WIFI, bluetooth, runs on symbian OS, and is great for pics, push email, texting and talk. But, it doesn't work and I don't have time to send it in for repair at the moment, so 25 bucks seemed reasonable. Right: picture taken from www.straighttalk.com, and below: Samsung phone picture taken from www.net10.com.

Also, keeping in mind, I practically lived off the E71 for a long time. I used it as a camera, MP3 player, map program, text, talk, as a WIFI hotspot, calendar, basic email, voice recorder, and even read pdf on it. Great little phone, but to get it repaired requires a shop to set it back to default and reset the OS. The new phone has a SD card slot, so my old one can slide in, has an MP3 player, can get the Opera web browser, sync with my computer, so no reloading my address book by hand, and has a slide out qwerty as well as a numeric keypad for dialing out. Reviews are good, and given that I now have a netbook, tablet and USB chargeable MP3 player, I don't need as many features on my phone. This phone is a bit heavier, but as a former user of the numeric slider, I look forward to having both, and can deal with the weight for the slide out qwerty which looks comfortable and great for texting. It doesn't look cheap, and it feels durable. On the other hand, I would have Panasonic toughbook and a field blackberry if I could afford it, because I am rough on my electronics. I am seriously considering a child ereader for better durability. Touchscreens are great, and I love my tablet, but it is in a portfolio case daily and then packed in a netbook case for more screen protection. The laptop has a bubble shock proof case, MP3 has a silicone case, and my cells just get the crap beat out of them on a daily basis. So cheap is better.


Tomorrow marks the beginning of selling off my stuff left here. Rehoming the cat, researching cell phones, staying up to date on homework, packing, booking the flight, and day to day affairs have been a bit much. All I can say is that I am glad I came back to deal with everything, and hopefully I won't need to be back soon again. My flight was 172.04 and Ajah will be 125 dollars for our way trip. We are using American Airlines with only one 3.5 hour layover in Dallas Fort Worth.

 So, for everyone's enjoyment, below is Ride to California, featuring the old style camper van many of us love. Even has a port hole window, very retro; great band, love the hair curls, and the song is an awesome get up and go, live out your dreams vibe.