I was just thinking this. There's a world of difference between "was very poor and couldn't pay medical bills/got some overdrafts/some bills fell behind at times" and "I don't give a fuck about my credit score and have a major spending problem". Mine was the former, and my husband married me anyway. I'm actually the…

I've definitely found that to be true of high-quality pet foods - I go through a lot less. I don't use Royal Canin (I use Taste of the Wild), but same idea. I've heard Royal Canin is quite good though. Maybe I'll switch. I have a Maine Coon and have always wondered about the breed-specific Royal Canin formulas.

Good points! I will try a little less per day. My mom always told me wet food wasn't as good for their teeth (?????) so I've avoided it. What brand of wet food do you use? I use Taste of the Wild for dry but I don't think they make a wet food.

I definitely saw an increase in water consumption with my kitties after getting a pet fountain. My Drinkwell finally gave out about a week ago after two fine years of service and I replaced it with another pet water fountain. I spent about twenty-five bucks on it so I think I got my money's worth.

Since you are billing yourself as a totally sane cat lady and you seem to know about this stuff and I moved recently and thus no longer have a go-to vet at the moment...

Guatemala used to be notorious for absolutely terrible international adoption practices. There were relatively few barriers to adoption vs. other countries. Unfortunately that's because a lot of it was complete fraud - kidnapping became very lucrative.

She sounds like a real peach.

This is all wonderfully informative - thank you! Diamonds have a wonderful sparkle, that's for sure. I can see why they're special in that way. What say you about "canary diamonds"? I think they're rather pretty but I've heard they're just crappy diamonds. Is that true? And the chocolate ones don't really float my…

Moonstones are great too, though not quite as ostentatiously rainbow-y. And yeah, that's the pain about opals. They are definitely delicate. I think they're best as earrings just for the safety factor.

I'm totally with you there. I don't see the big deal either. I do have some teeeeny tiny diamond stud earrings which I like a lot, but they're for when I have a really colorful outfit and wanna keep the accessories neutral. I'd like something I wear every day to have a little more character (and some day I'll actually…

I think if you like diamonds, then yay, get a diamond! It's just annoying that everyone is supposed to get a diamond.

That sounds beautiful! Do you have a picture? I love topaz.

She's totally squandering her opal-wearing abilities. Not even fair. What kind of person doesn't like opals!?

I've never heard of that. Interesting.

Ahh, I never considered that. Thanks for the info!

Yeah, I think it's very possible that people are just sick to death of diamonds. I know I am. Along with the ethical concerns I'm just BORED of them. They're CLEAR for fuck's sake. I mean they are nice and sparkly but so are rubies, emeralds, sapphires, etc. I think opal is a lovely choice, actually. It's kind of a…

Haha.

Homely? Pfeh.

It's not self-hating. It would be self-hating if you didn't like doing it and did it anyway because of others' expectations. I like certain things shaved simply because I like the way it feels - my partner doesn't give two fucks whether or not I'm hairy.

PSA: Shut up.