ainslies.org

I haven’t drank alcohol in 19 years and I don’t socialize much, so I often forget how prevalent drinking is for many people. When I hear stories about shootings at parties, out of control revelers trashing neighborhoods, fights happening outside of bars in the wee hours of the morning, fatal car crashes on weekends or…

I use ad-blocker software on all of my devices. I don’t want to see ads for things I’ll never buy. I don’t want my personal data to be tracked, analyzed and resold. I don’t want my screens filled with promotions for drugs, political donation solicitations, and crappy clothing made by a no-name Chinese manufacturer. I…

I have been browsing Petfinder every evening looking at dogs for adoption in my area. I’ve narrowed my preferences down to small, short-haired, dog-friendly, playful, house trained (or on the way to it), no health issues, no special needs, and under 4 years old. Based on what I’ve seen in the past week, I should…

When did answering the door become something to be fear? I see posts on Nextdoor with a doorbell camera picture of a person and poster asking, “Does anybody recognize this man? He rang my doorbell but I did not answer.” I have neighbors who never answer their door if someone rings. I don’t enjoy talking…

I thought a few people* who were once close to me might reach out after Snickers died. They did not. I can’t say that I’m surprised. It’s kind of the opposite – a confirmation of their lack of caring about me (and Snickers). Although I’m not close to any of these people, we were close…

My recent experience with Snickers and Lap of Love had me thinking about finding a new veterinarian for Wiggles. My current vet has done nothing wrong. It’s a busy practice with two locations, 6 vets and an ever-changing staff of vet techs. It’s only a few minutes away from me and was convenient to take…

I plan to put Snickers ashes under the Ellen tree. Snickers loved her and spent many happy afternoons basking in the sun beside her as Ellen puttered around in the garden. They were together everyday for nearly 10 years until Ellen died. I think it is fitting that their ashes sit together in my yard….

I visit the library a few times a month. When I’m there, I drop off books, browse for new ones and pickup books on hold. Most times, I’m moseying around for about 30 minutes. You know what I never see at the library? You’d think, based on national news coverage that this was happening all…

When I met my wife, I didn’t have much class. I had preferences and my own style that leaned towards grungy, inexpensive and functional. I had been poor my entire life, so having refined tastes or an appreciation for the finer things in life simply was not an option. My wife, on the other hand,…

I used to never cry. Instead I’d suppress my tears and stuff my feelings down deep inside my chest so I didn’t show weakness to anyone. At the time, it was the only way I knew how to cope. Things have changed a lot since the time. I still don’t cry a lot. And I…