and more things...

1. I had the oil changed on my car.
2. I watched the first season of Mad Men, which was pretty good.
3. I have a terrific thick, white cotton rag rug in my bedroom beside my bed. I love it because besides being great looking and soft, when it gets dirty I can wash it. The rug was originally 5' x 8', but after all the times I've washed it, it's now probably 4' x 6'. However, it's still too big and heavy to wash at home, so today I took it to a Lavanderia a couple of miles from my house, where I always go to wash and dry it. It's always an interesting experience, going there, and I always leave with a new sense of being grateful that I have my own washer and dryer to do regular laundry. When I got home, I hung it over the fence so it could finish drying in the sunshine. I love the scent of clothes dried in sunshine.
4. I went up into the attic and changed both furnace filters. I don't know why, but this is a task that I loathe. Ike decided to join me today, and scampered effortlessly up the aluminum ladder into the blastfurnace of the attic. There isn't an attic fan and there are no vents, so it was probably 120 degrees up there. Unfortunately, once he'd climbed up there, Ike decided he had a fear of heights, or something, and refused to come back down the ladder. I finally went back up and picked him up, whereupon he apparently decided that I was going to murder him, and yowled and extended claws accordingly. He was so frightened I was completely unable to calm him down. Nevertheless, eventually I was able to get both of us down the ladder without falling, and without being scarred for life by his claws. The poor cat was so frightened, though, he was panting like a dog. No more attics for Ike!
5. I made pasta salad with spinach pesto in anticipation of Mike and Brooke flying in from Mexico City tomorrow night. They'll stay with me for a week, and I can't wait to see them!
6. I went online and paid bills.