This afternoon Kid #2 got her braces installed.  Whew.  Glad that's over with.  She's not uncomfortable or crying. Could have been worse. Her mother paid for half of her medical expenses over the past month, which was helpful. And her mother produced a child support check for this month, which was a relief. Some extra money arrived in the mail, sold some silver coins I'd bought in December. Made about $50. So I have enough money to pay the $1400 first payment on the braces, pay the mortgage payment, maybe buy some food this month...

Heard from the Chartreux breeder in New Hampshire. She has a kitten that she can send out west in a few more weeks, THAT is almost too good to be true.

I got an e-mail telling me that my refinance loan had been approved, that will certainly help make ends meet in the future, it's at a much lower interest rate than my existing home loan. I think they mentioned that I'd skip a house payment in August. That would be VERY helpful. I really need to find the cash for health insurance and life insurance. I have a living will and trust in place. I'd also like to cover "final expenses" ie having my carcass hauled off and cremated when my time runs out. Pay for that ahead of time.

Some good news. Most welcome. 

The idea of a new kitten almost makes me cry.  My surviving cat has been very vocal latey. Vocal given that these cats are almost silent, she emits a series of peep-like sounds, but strung together in complex cat sentences. Kind of "ma-ah eep eh eep." She loves going outside and this afternoon pounced on a sleepy lizard. She was thrilled. The lizard, not so much.