working out for Disney

[StarWarsGirl]

Do cats roam freely there or are there ordinances about that? Over here, people just let their cats out and they go wherever they want. We've had numerous neighborhood cats come into our house when I have the door open to get some fresh air. Last year, one came in, ran right up the stairs and into my daughter's room, and then when E tried to pet it, it ran back downstairs and out the door. Currently, E is a bit miffed at the cats, because she's been growing some flowers and she just moved them outside. The one she kept in a pot because she didn't think it was strong enough for the ground yet, she left it outside for the afternoon, came back and a cat had ripped it up. She's not sure if it will survive. And then she put out some empty plastic pots on the patio table and today half of them had been batted to the ground. I find it weird that there are no laws about it...nothing saying you have to keep your cats contained. Why get a cat if you aren't going to keep it home? But I thought maybe if it's the same way there, this cat just comes to visit because hey, free food.

It's frowned upon to let your cats roam because of wildlife and traffic. I would never let my cats roam; we have a coyote. Jasmine doesn't go outside because she doesn't like it. Ella goes out on a harness and is always supervised.

There are cats that live outside and are community cats (which sounds like this is one in @Sans Souci 's case). Those cats usually can't be adopted out, so they're trapped, neutered, and returned to their colony where they can live out their lives. Eventually, the colony dies off. The eartip indicates the cat has been fixed.

A cat that is strictly indoors lives about 12-15 years, sometimes longer. An indoor outdoor cat lives maybe 5 years. Keeping your cats indoors increases their lifespan.

Not to mention cats are technically an invasive species. We don't want them killing off birds. For the cat colonies, TNR is the best solution, but keeping your cats indoors also makes sure they're not a danger to local wildlife. Well, with the exception of any rodents that may choose to come into your house. Then your cats are actually killing them more humanely than traps do.

 

[Sans Souci]

Do cats roam freely there or are there ordinances about that? Over here, people just let their cats out and they go wherever they want. We've had numerous neighborhood cats come into our house when I have the door open to get some fresh air. Last year, one came in, ran right up the stairs and into my daughter's room, and then when E tried to pet it, it ran back downstairs and out the door. Currently, E is a bit miffed at the cats, because she's been growing some flowers and she just moved them outside. The one she kept in a pot because she didn't think it was strong enough for the ground yet, she left it outside for the afternoon, came back and a cat had ripped it up. She's not sure if it will survive. And then she put out some empty plastic pots on the patio table and today half of them had been batted to the ground. I find it weird that there are no laws about it...nothing saying you have to keep your cats contained. Why get a cat if you aren't going to keep it home? But I thought maybe if it's the same way there, this cat just comes to visit because hey, free food.

I have very rarely seen a cat roaming around either here or back in IL. I know some places have laws against feeding feral colonies. This is just my opinion, but I think it's dangerous to let a cat roam around. I'd be stressed out wondering if my cat was ok. I've seen cat bodies that have been run over by cars. There are foxes in my neighborhood--why risk it? Plus, there are very sick people out there who poison cats for fun.

I wonder if you can buy something to repel cats to spray on E's flowers? I feel her frustration, I have deer that eat flowers in my yard as soon as they bloom. I have this spray repellent that is supposed to smell like wolf urine, but it smells like rotten eggs. It's gross, but it works.

 

[Sans Souci]

We joined Planet fitness. Nothing on bagels, coffee or pizza Not that I should be eating any of that right now Although, my older teen is free all summer.

We opted for PF because we never used the pool, hot tub or sauna at our previous gyms and have never been into classes. We got black memberships, so we also get things like hydromassage and massage chairs, although I don't know how much we'll use that. We definitely won't be using the tanning. It was more because of the guest privileges and using other locations. We've had some ugly gym contract issues with past gyms, and supposedly PF is pretty easy to quit if we decide we don't like it...which is not the case with the other three in our area we were considering.

There is one by my house that I occasionally think of joining. I'd be joining for free weights, cable machines, etc. Do they still have rules about tanks tops, etc? Do they still do the "lunk alarm" thing?

 

[Sans Souci]

It's frowned upon to let your cats roam because of wildlife and traffic. I would never let my cats roam; we have a coyote. Jasmine doesn't go outside because she doesn't like it. Ella goes out on a harness and is always supervised.

There are cats that live outside and are community cats (which sounds like this is one in @Sans Souci 's case). Those cats usually can't be adopted out, so they're trapped, neutered, and returned to their colony where they can live out their lives. Eventually, the colony dies off. The eartip indicates the cat has been fixed.

A cat that is strictly indoors lives about 12-15 years, sometimes longer. An indoor outdoor cat lives maybe 5 years. Keeping your cats indoors increases their lifespan.

Not to mention cats are technically an invasive species. We don't want them killing off birds. For the cat colonies, TNR is the best solution, but keeping your cats indoors also makes sure they're not a danger to local wildlife. Well, with the exception of any rodents that may choose to come into your house. Then your cats are actually killing them more humanely than traps do.

I'm trying to gauge how feral this cat is. Maybe she can be a house cat? I don't know-time will tell. She comes right up to the screen door and lies down until someone sees her. I've gone outside while she is out there and she doesn't move. My husband was using a circular saw in the yard and she came up to the door anyway. We put the bowls of food and water in front of the patio door, which is the kitchen. We talk, move around as we would if she wasn't there. She takes her time eating and then washes herself right there when she is done. So she is not too scared of humans. Nobody has tried to pet her or anything like that. TBH, I don't want to pet a feral cat. Heaven only knows what parasites live on her and in her.

 

[Lilofan]

There is one by my house that I occasionally think of joining. I'd be joining for free weights, cable machines, etc. Do they still have rules about tanks tops, etc? Do they still do the "lunk alarm" thing?

Yes tank tops are frowned upon , at times enforced , lunk alarm goes off when a member drops a weight on the floor accident or not by accident. There is a personal trainer having sessions every hour Mon - Fri during the day working on abs, legs, butt, chest , etc all included in $10 per month membership.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

Do cats roam freely there or are there ordinances about that?

I think this also depends on where you live and how strict they are. Where we live, it is technically illegal to allow your cat to roam. It falls under local leash laws. That being said, there are a lot of animal laws where we live that are not strictly enforced, including this one. It's my understanding that more of it is in case of a lawsuit. If the animal becomes destructive or dangerous, they can tack the leash law onto it to make things stick when prosecuting and awarding damages.

We used to live next to a guy who had a whole feral colony in his backyard. OK technically, he didn't live in that house. He owned that one and lived in the one next door. He had bought the house directly next to us in hopes his parents would move in. When they refused, he just let it rot. There were cats EVERYWHERE and some were in really bad shape. They were also just horrible...some larger more aggressive ones trying to claim our front porch as territory, constantly in heat and LOUD, and even clawing at our window screens. They were also going after people's pets and were a big issue with the bird population. We called the city multiple times, and this is when we learned how lax things are with domestic animal laws. We had a very aggressive dog at the time as well. None of those cats stood a chance if they got into our yard. I got tired of it, so I started trapping them and bringing them to the shelter. Some were actually healthy enough and friendly enough to be put up for adoption. I have a friend who goes another route...she traps them and gets them into her vet for spay/neuter as well as health checks for things like FIV to ensure they're not spreading major illnesses in the cat community.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

There is one by my house that I occasionally think of joining. I'd be joining for free weights, cable machines, etc. Do they still have rules about tanks tops, etc? Do they still do the "lunk alarm" thing?

I wonder if the tank top thing is regional or an individual club thing. It's definitely allowed here and there's nothing I've found in the universal rules barring them. I wear a tank top for every workout and am not the only one. I cannot workout in a t-shirt...I overheat. So, I'd have to look elsewhere if they decided to restrict them. I think it's more that nobody is wearing those ultra trendy borderline inappropriate ones that you see in some trendy gyms. Ours has a lunk alarm, but I have yet to see it go off.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

Thanks! I had problems finding menus! A lot of places didn't seem to have menus available online, or they only serve breakfast and lunch. And the rest is mostly burgers. My husband is the only one who loves burgers, and he has never really ordered one in a restaurant. He likes them at home, but he doesn't like to pay for something he can make at home. If they have French Dip, E and I are happy campers, but A is so picky, even about the KIND of fries. I worry he won't be able to find anything to eat. I've decided we are going to pack a ton of food to take with us so if nothing else, he has some chips or something....donuts, cereal, even a hotdog might work.

We have one night in West Yellowstone and one in Gardiner. We stay in Dubois and travel north into Yellowstone, then work our way up to the West gate, stay in West Yellowstone, then go north the next day and catch the stuff in the northwestern part of the park and stay in Gardiner. Then the next day we'll head down to the Falls area and take the East gate out and go to Cody. The problem for me is that I don't know when we'll be arriving anywhere, so I can't really make plans for meals. For some reason, I was thinking Old faithful was more East, but it turns out that's one of the first things we'll come across from the South entrance. But I don't know how long it will take from Dubois to get there, and what the traffic will be like. Will we be close to a restaurant at lunchtime? And if we are, what kind of food will they serve? I can't research it because I don't know where we'll be at lunchtime. I know Yellowstone has restaurants, but some of them don't serve all the meals....like some don't serve lunch. Some don't serve breakfast. And they all say that because of corona, menus and opening hours are subject to change. So it makes it nearly impossible to plan. So I'm just going to bring poptarts and chips and cereal, etc, in case we can't find a place to eat.

Did you do a lot of hiking? I have a feeling the boys are going to throw hissy fits if there's too much walking. They aren't into nature or walking. A enjoys playing tennis once a week, and he loves PE, but that's the extent of it. I just don't see him being willing to go hiking to see more obscure pools or geysers, and my husband tends to get REALLY grouchy on vacation when things aren't what he expected, or if A is complaining. Nothing puts him into a foul mood like things not going the way he envisioned it. Throw in that he might be "hangry" and he'll be far worse than A. So I hope we find decent places to eat or it's going to be a LONG trip.

Sometimes menus are hiding in strange places. I sometimes have to look for them on the restaurant's facebook page, or sometimes they're tied to review apps like Yelp.

I don't know if you've been monitoring the in-park dining, but it looks like they will be updating this page a bit more as the month goes on.

Dining at Yellowstone National Park Lodges

From dining in a log cabin near Old Faithful to cowboy cuisine at Roosevelt Lodge, there's many delicious dining options throughout Yellowstone National Park.

www.yellowstonenationalparklodges.com

The Mammoth Hotel Dining room, which is only serving dinner this summer...is one of our favorites. It also looks like they are maintaining their policy of not requiring/taking reservations, so this would work well with your scheduling concerns. This is a very easy drive when you're staying in Gardiner. We are big fans of the Lake Yellowstone Hotel dining room, but looks like they are breakfast and dinner only. While we're not fans of the Old Faithful dining room, their cafeteria has been good for us and previously had a number of decent options. My parents recently got back from a trip where they spent a few nights at the Old Faithful Snow Lodge. They said the Obsidian Dining Room was just meh and shared our sentiments on the food in the Old Faithful Dining room (not exactly great). YNP has a number of general stores with grocery store type options, but you can probably stock up on some things at stores outside of the park and save some $. I just get really cautious with this since I don't like having much in the way of tasty snacks open in the vehicle while in bear country.

There's a lot that can be seen without having to hike way off into the wilderness. While we hiked a bit to get to the Grand Prismatic overlook last year (my issue was more the elevation gain vs the distance), most of the thermal features (including Grand Prismatic) can be accessed by boardwalks and walkways leading directly from parking lots. Of course, some of these involve long walks on these manmade paths (like from Old Faithful to Morning Glory), while others incorporate a lot of stair climbing (around Mud Volcano and the Mammoth Terraces). Some short hikes (Tower Falls coming to mind) are well worn dirt paths with some overlook structures, but are extremely steep grades...so just check out for things like that too. The same can be said for spots like Mammoth Hot Springs, all of the popular geyser basin spots, hot spots around Canyon, etc. The biggest issue is finding parking and how far you may be walking from where you park. Old Faithful/Upper Geyser Basin has TONS of parking, but it can be quite a walk depending on where you find parking. Other areas may be hit or miss if you don't hit them first thing in the morning...and even then, it could be tough. You may find yourself looping several times or if it's allowed in that area, parking along the side of the road/Grand Loop. Grand Prismatic and Norris Geyser Basin are two of the areas I recall where you'll see parking spilling out onto the road...sometimes for quite a distance. Rangers will actually put up signage and cones to signify where along the road overflow parking is allowed for Norris. Our favorite place in Yellowstone is Lamar Valley. While the drive can get pretty congested in the afternoon and there can be a lot of bison jams, we've found there to be lots of open pullouts along the way. You just have to be very aware of animal locations when you do this. In fact, the only area along this stretch that can get congested is near the cliffs around the northeastern entrance...people camped out trying to spot mountain goats in the cliffs.

 

[Sans Souci]

I wonder if the tank top thing is regional or an individual club thing. It's definitely allowed here and there's nothing I've found in the universal rules barring them. I wear a tank top for every workout and am not the only one. I cannot workout in a t-shirt...I overheat. So, I'd have to look elsewhere if they decided to restrict them. I think it's more that nobody is wearing those ultra trendy borderline inappropriate ones that you see in some trendy gyms. Ours has a lunk alarm, but I have yet to see it go off.

I remember seeing in the news women wearing tank tops were asked to leave or change. The women were fully covered (e.g.no midriff showing). Are tank tops intimidating? I need to workout in a tank top, too, all year round. I feel like my movement is less restricted when I am doing upper body work.

 

[Sans Souci]

Yes tank tops are frowned upon , at times enforced , lunk alarm goes off when a member drops a weight on the floor accident or not by accident. There is a personal trainer having sessions every hour Mon - Fri during the day working on abs, legs, butt, chest , etc all included in $10 per month membership.

I've never dropped weights, but if I know I am going to cause an alarm to go off if I drop them accidentally, I am going to be anxious the entire time I am using them!

 

[Lilofan]

I've never dropped weights, but if I know I am going to cause an alarm to go off if I drop them accidentally, I am going to be anxious the entire time I am using them!

It’s a loud alarm and at times a PF staff member talks to the gym member . And also a weird rule no gigantic water jugs , only water bottle size on gym floor

 

[Sans Souci]

Hello-

I forgot to check in with my workout! Today I did a YouTube workout. It was a strength training workout

Here is the video if anyone is looking for a workout that just requires dumbbells.



I also went for a walk alone. My husband had been going with me everyday, but I felt like I just wanted to walk and listen to some music.

 

[Sans Souci]

It’s a loud alarm and at times a PF staff member talks to the gym member . And also a weird rule no gigantic water jugs , only water bottle size on gym floor

Do they even have equipment like smith machines? I have a lot of home gym equipment. But my dumbbells max out at 30 lbs and my barbell maxes out at 100 lbs. I want to go heavier for squats and DLs.

 

[StarWarsGirl]

I'm trying to gauge how feral this cat is. Maybe she can be a house cat? I don't know-time will tell. She comes right up to the screen door and lies down until someone sees her. I've gone outside while she is out there and she doesn't move. My husband was using a circular saw in the yard and she came up to the door anyway. We put the bowls of food and water in front of the patio door, which is the kitchen. We talk, move around as we would if she wasn't there. She takes her time eating and then washes herself right there when she is done. So she is not too scared of humans. Nobody has tried to pet her or anything like that. TBH, I don't want to pet a feral cat. Heaven only knows what parasites live on her and in her.

If the cat is eartipped, I wouldn't try bringing her inside. She knows how to survive outside and trying to make her a housecat would not be good.

Kitten Lady does a very good explanation...

 

[Lilofan]

Do they even have equipment like smith machines? I have a lot of home gym equipment. But my dumbbells max out at 30 lbs and my barbell maxes out at 100 lbs. I want to go heavier for squats and DLs.

Yes they do usually several of them.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

I remember seeing in the news women wearing tank tops were asked to leave or change. The women were fully covered (e.g.no midriff showing). Are tank tops intimidating? I need to workout in a tank top, too, all year round. I feel like my movement is less restricted when I am doing upper body work.

I've seen men and women in tanks here. That is very true about upper body restriction with sleeves. Honestly, if they told me no tanks, I'd be finding another gym. While we get our cold snaps, it is way too warm here throughout the year to be forcing us into sleeves. We're supposed to have several triple digit days later this week and the last thing I want is to be wearing more clothes. That didn't sound right, but you get the idea.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

It’s a loud alarm and at times a PF staff member talks to the gym member . And also a weird rule no gigantic water jugs , only water bottle size on gym floor

Ours doesn't enforce any kind of jug restrictions either. My 15 year old brings a massive one gallon jug. I've seen others doing the same.

 

[Sans Souci]

If the cat is eartipped, I wouldn't try bringing her inside. She knows how to survive outside and trying to make her a housecat would not be good.

Kitten Lady does a very good explanation...

Yeah, it is wishful thinking on my part. Because she is so chill and cute. One of the first things I noticed when she showed up was her tipped ear, so I figured she'd been around long enough for someone to trap her. I'm kind of relieved about that, because I don't have to worry about her having her kittens here and trying to get them to a shelter. I do worry about her having feline HIV and/or feline leukemia--which is another reason for people who have cats to keep them indoors or at least supervised when outdoors. At the same time, I know that's the way it is with a feral cat.

 

[Sans Souci]

Good morning

I did a 30 minute bodyweight hiit w/o this AM. I don't know what was up with me, but I struggled through it. I'm going to try to drink more water now that's always warm outside. I probably need a bit more than my regular amount.

I might be going to NYC tomorrow to help my husband look for an apartment. He has to work in person a few days a week soon. He is also looking at apartments on this side of the river, too, close to ferry terminals. I think that makes more sense, since he won't have to worry about how many days a year he is in NY for tax reasons. Plus, the apartments are a bit nicer at the price point he is working with. There is also parking available in these buildings, so he can drive up. (Even paying for parking is still cheaper the apartments he's seen in Manhattan.) The closest Amtrak station in in Philly and the closest NJ Transit station that goes to NYC is a 45 min. drive. So far, only 2 places have returned emails to make an appointment, so he might cancel if he doesn't get more responses. I think he wants to lock this down so he doesn't have to keep driving up to look every week.

I am hoping to get out for a walk once it dries from all of the storms last night.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

I might be going to NYC tomorrow to help my husband look for an apartment. He has to work in person a few days a week soon. He is also looking at apartments on this side of the river, too, close to ferry terminals. I think that makes more sense, since he won't have to worry about how many days a year he is in NY for tax reasons. Plus, the apartments are a bit nicer at the price point he is working with. There is also parking available in these buildings, so he can drive up. (Even paying for parking is still cheaper the apartments he's seen in Manhattan.) The closest Amtrak station in in Philly and the closest NJ Transit station that goes to NYC is a 45 min. drive. So far, only 2 places have returned emails to make an appointment, so he might cancel if he doesn't get more responses. I think he wants to lock this down so he doesn't have to keep driving up to look every week.

I think that's always been part of the lure of those parts of NY metro NJ. You're still super close to mass transit, but you get more for the $.

For the NJ transit option, does a closer line feed into a station where he could transfer and take a different train into the city? While I grew up in a different part of the state, I know our closest station didn't go directly into Manhattan, but I could transfer in Newark if I wanted to get into the city. My mom always hated making that transfer and would drive the extra 10-15 minutes to get us to Metropark in Iselin for a direct train in via the Northeast Corridor route, but my husband and I took the Raritan Valley line (from Westfield) several times and just changed trains in Newark. I think I also did this once with the North Jersey Coast line...starting in Hazlet. Of course, it may be several train changes if he's coming up from south Jersey. I had to pull up the map to refresh my memory. As far as southern stations go, it looks like I've only been to the Lindenwold station (Patco into Philly), but depending on your distance to Pennsauken, that line appears to feed into the Northeast Corridor.

I don't know...it may all still be a lot of driving and train transferring, but just digging into the map in case there are any transfer solutions that could help.