Things I learned today:

1. I knew my dog didn’t like to have her nails trimmed. So I use a sandpaper attachment on a rotary tool to grind them down. People at puppy class told me it was less traumatic for some dogs, and it works pretty well. BUT, if you let the nails get overly long,
a. It takes forever to get them an appropriate length (like 30+ minutes)
b. The nail dust smells horrific
c. The dog gets irritated with you and tries to run away until you put a purse strap through her collar, then around your leg so she can’t escape again

2. If you’re going to put pretty shelves together that you got for Christmas (mine are white), perhaps you should make sure you know how they’re supposed to look before you insert the screws. Each shelf had 2 sides and a back, and they were to be constructed first. My mistakes included
a. The bottom of the shelf was upside down, so the sides came out of the bottom. This not only defeats the purpose of putting sides on your shelf, but also looks dumb.
b. I got the sides on the top of the shelf, but the curved parts faced the back rather than the front.
c. I split the wood trying to anchor the back to the bottom of the shelf – the freaking screws should go in straight!
d. Rather than lining the boards up so the holes in the sides matched the holes in the back, I just guessed. That’s not effective.

3. If you make copious amounts of mistakes on the first shelf, the rest of those suckers will go together quite smoothly.

4. Don’t start with the top shelf – your mistakes will be obvious where they would have been largely irrelevant had you started on the bottom.

5. Cordless tools rock. I’m especially fond of my electric screwdriver today as it worked with me to force my shelves together. When you don’t have talent, rely on power tools.

6. You can never have too many clocks. I received the melted clock for Christmas. Kirch makes it, and Mom got it at Bed Bath & Beyond after no less than 3 trips when I went to gaze at it. It is the 4th clock to be placed in my bedroom, and I actually have a spot picked out for one more. I do like to know what time it is.

7. I can see 3 clocks from where I’m sitting on my couch in the living room. I might have a problem.

8. I adore Cash Cab. I actually already knew that, but every time I watch, it reinforces the concept. Since I don’t have tremendous amounts of TV that I look forward to, it’s very enjoyable to look at one of my many clocks, note the approach of 5PM (central time), and happily say “Cash Cab!” while scurrying to the remote and finding the Discovery Channel.

9. I just realized, through my Wikipedia link for #8, that the show originated in the UK. If anyone's reading from England, thanks for the good TV!

10. Rearranging even a tiny corner of the living room to make room for some shelves (that are actually quite lovely, despite the fact that I see a screw protruding from the bottom of the top shelf) makes me happy.

11. It also makes me think there should now be a clock in that corner.

12. If you think that you can take Tylenol PM, then stay awake and coherent enough to get a few more things done sans headache, you might be incorrect.

13. It's probably not the greatest idea to try to write while losing the battle for consciousness against my superior competitor - Tylenol PM.

What have you learned? I don't like doggie nails. I do like shelves, though I'm not great at putting them together. I love Cash Cab, almost as much as I love clocks. Tylenol PM is also quite nice.