I agree with this, though part of it is that I am still grandfathered into the $7.99/mo original Google Music launch promo price. It is worth it to me not to see ads to continue paying for it. The current monthly premium at $14/mo for new users is insanity.

I live in suburban Kansas City and these are the distances to the things you mentioned -

• Convenience store - 1.2 miles (1.9km)
• Chain supermarket - 2.8 miles (4.5km)
• Bus stop - 1.2 miles (1.9km)
• Park - .4 miles (650m)
• Big supermarket - 5.5 miles (8.8km)
• Library - 1.9 miles (3km)
• Train station - 7.4 miles (11km) (trains are not really a viable transport option here)
• Airport - 29.1 miles (46.8km)

The closest publicly accessible business to me is a fast food restaurant about a mile away.

Basically if I need anything, it’s a 30 minute walk one way to get there. It just isn’t really viable as a regular thing to spend an hour walking to get to/from a convenience store, or 2 hours for a grocery store. Instead, I spend 10-20 minutes in my car for those errands, and save the extra time for walking my dog (since he couldn’t go into any of the places mentioned above either, so his walks would have to be in addition anyway.)

My husband and I tried so hard to just let our lawn be what it wanted to be. All the clover, dandelions, wild strawberry, wild onion and ginger absolutely took over. In the back, it’s completely fine. We get a lot of brown spots and mud during winter when it dies back, but come spring it’s back to thriving. In our front yard though, enough of it died back that a heavy rain washed a lot of our yard into our driveway. We tried to manage it for a year before giving in.

So now, our front yard is an ugly but pristine monoculture grass hellscape. The back though is much larger, and still full of the awesome native plant goodness. I know nature is thriving back there because I pretty much cannot use my yard during summer due to the insane amount of bugs. There is a thriving ecosystem with all sorts of wildlife, from bunnies, squirrels and chipmunks to cardinals, robins and owls. Occasionally even a stray fox or mallard can be seen around the creek. And I live in the suburbs of a major metro area, and can hear I-35 from my house. It really is quite remarkable how natural ecosystems can thrive with just a tiny bit of encouragement.

I don’t usually water them weekly, I just won’t water them if I think it’s been less than a week. I’d say they probably get watered on average every 2 weeks or so, give or take a week. Sometimes I remember to water them because I’ll notice one starting to get pruny and shriveling a bit. To be honest I have no idea how they’re all alive, much less thriving. I feel like a terrible plant owner, but apparently succulents are just my speed. Every one of them is all bright and vibrant, despite my forgetfulness and neglect.

I freakin love succulents! One of the few plants my forgetful self can keep alive and thriving! I don’t even have a watering schedule for them, I just water when I remember and know it’s probably been at least a week? I have a friend that has a house full of plants and loves caring for them who came over last week and marveled at how good my succulents look. Told him the secret is neglect lol.

Unfortunately the repercussions of antibiotic-resistant bacteria are already here. While not a human casualty, my dog died last year as a result of an antibiotic resistant staphylococcus UTI. We tried all possible medications that the cultures said might work, and nothing got rid of it completely, only reduced symptoms. In the end, our options were to put her down before she got sepsis, or after. (We obviously chose before, because we’re not monsters, but saying goodbye to a beloved pet who still wants to run around and play and is happy because you know you can’t save them is heartbreaking.)

Antibiotic resistance is a serious problem in both human and animal medicine. I hope we can reverse course on it, or make new discoveries to combat these bacteria. And if not, I hope we legalize human euthanasia before then so I don’t have to suffer the fate of a sepsis death.

Dogs can offer fantastic companionship and help keep the elderly active longer. At 80, your mother could still potentially outlive the dog depending on the age/breed and both of their health! I do hope that I live to be 80 and still have a dog. Dogs, like humans, are pretty resilient. They can bounce back from grief and change. Sounds like the dog’s welfare is planned for, so I personally think it’s great! That dog might help give her more years herself!

In my opinion I think it’s important to always have a plan for your pet in case you die, as you never know. I personally have a beneficiary for a portion of my 401k that will get $20k of it and my dog(s) upon my death if my husband isn’t alive at the time. It’s a person I trust and has agreed to take on the responsibility, and care for them the way I would. I know not everyone is able to leave funds for the care of their pet, but having the conversation with friends and loved ones ahead of time to see who could and would take them is important.

As an avid cloak lover, I can attest that the reasons others state about practicality are pretty much spot on. That said, my 3/4 round wool cloak with a cotton liner is the warmest and coziest winter garment I have ever owned. I have three of them, and a lighter blue velvet one for dressy occasions in spring/fall.

Getting into a car with a big cloak though is tougher than with a normal coat. Once you get the hang of it, it’s not a problem, but it does take some practice! I do love my cloaks and I would love to see them make a comeback though!