I spent an hour in the middle of the night lying in bed awake

So I'm not quite awake this morning. On the other hand, I have:

1. Given YKWIA a wake-up call, as a workman is coming today.
2. Taken all of my medicine and checked my blood sugar, including updating my diabetes log program, which draws it off my meter through Bluetooth (I haven't been doing that, and I'm much more compliant when I do).
3. Eaten breakfast.
4. Fed the fish and turned on the aquarium light.
5. Added the last of the potting soil to the window boxes, now that the soil has settled a bit.
6. Watered the plant, inside and out.
7. Checked the job boards, the librarian job list, the unemployment office's website, and UK for jobs.
8. Checked my e-mail.
9. Gone through my Facebook feed.
10. Listened to the radio.
11. Tracked a package.

The package is out for delivery with UPS right now. I need to work on that entertainment centre, so that may be the big project of the day. I'd like to wash the dishes (there are only about five). Later, I'm going to take a friend to the doctor (which is probably when the package delivery will be attempted).

I have to admit, though, between my allergies and sleepiness, I just want to take a nap, but then they'll certainly come with the package. If they knock, I won't hear them, most likely. If they ring the doorbell (yes, I live in an apartment, but have an actual doorbell), I probably won't get to the door in time. It's absolutely maddening.

Okay, I've been on the computer way too much today already. Time to do something useful.

I think

I slept a grand total of one and a half hours last night, even though I went to bed at 10:30 pm. I couldn't breathe well at all, and I started coughing up stuff every time I laid down. I tried sleeping propped up. That didn't help. I changed CPAP masques and that did, a bit. But generally it was a miserable night, and I seriously considered going to the emergency room, but I figured I wasn't dizzy or starting to turn blue, so I was getting enough air. I considered the fact that I could have a cold, but it didn't feel like one at all. I don't feel sick, or have that feeling one gets with a virus. Everything is in my chest, which is tight, I'm wheezing and coughing, and I just feel like I can't get my breath, like something's standing on my chest, and I'm coughing up whitish gunk (which, at least, isn't green or ye;low). My nose has had a little congestion, but really nothing beyond my normal allergies. Today it cleared up for awhile starting about 9 am, but then worsened later in the afternoon and into the evening, especially when I was driving around doing errands with YKWIA after work. He urged me to call our doctor tomorrow and make an appointment. He has experience with asthma and has had some medical training and even worked in a hospital for years caring for patients, so I should listen to him when he says this is not normal. I'll call tomorrow.

Also today, T-Mobile released the Android Marshmallow 6.01 update for the Samsung Galaxy S5, and so I updated my operating system. For some reason my Day and Night Live wallpaper isn't showing up in Daydream mode anymore [their notes on their Google Play storefront state that Marshmallow is not yet supported for this, so hopefully it will be soon]. It was the one application I had that had special Daydream features. Some applications no longer have their normal icons, all of them ones that are partly on the SD card, instead showing just a little Android. I see applications are listed in internal and external storage,but not how to switch them like I could on Lollipop. [update: I figured that out later, and if you move the application back to internal storage, the icon pops back up]. On the other hand, things are much faster, even though I now have used 13 GB of 16 GB of my internal storage. Actually, even while updating, it specifically said it was optimising 320 applications. :) I don't have that many downloaded, though, so some are preloaded. And is it silly that while the update happened, I was amused by the little Android figure with its antennae twitching back and forth?

I'm listening to a Duran Duran station on Pandora.  I am breathing a little better with the CPAP on and the air conditioning running. I hope this clears up soon!

[2 am update: sorry for the previous errors, which are now hopefully taken care of. There are certain hazards to blogging on your phone quickly (I never learned to type quickly on a virtual keyboard, but rather learned to swipe along the more sophisticated Android keyboards, and so I can go pretty quickly, but sometimes autocorrect is not my friend). Proofreading while you're not really feeling your best is not conducive to good writing, either. Okay, I've had some water and done something that required being up in the middle of the night for someone. Now it's time to go back to bed. At least I was able to sleep for about two hours before I woke up in a coughing fit.]

I had to use my inhaler today

and actually, while I normally use it once or twice every six months or so, I've probably used it five times in the last two weeks, once during the whole Lemon Pledge Incident, the rest at various times. I assumed at first this was because we have a very high grass pollen and moderate tree pollen count at the moment, and have for awhile. And that is probably part of it.

But this time the inhaler didn't work that well. I kept coughing. It was hard to talk. I sounded like I had bronchitis but I haven't had a cold or sinus infection, I've run no fever, I'm not feeling sick. I just can't breathe well. I even put my CPAP on for about an hour and a half to see if the filtered air helped. I've closed the windows and put the air conditioner on, finally. I talked to YKWIA on the phone a little while ago and he suggested to soaking my feet in very warm water, which acts as a vasodilator. His neighbour had mowed grass today, but the windows of the house were closed and the dogs weren't out during that, really. I'm also itching, which isn't usual with my grass allergy. (I'm allergic to just about everything outside and quite a few inside things, as well). So, I've thought about what I had or did today and the only thing unusual was that I drank some hazelnut coffee. Then it occurred to me that other day that I had walnuts, and my lips itched after I ate them. I had to take a hit on the inhaler that day, too, I think. I eat tree nuts pretty often; now I'm wondering might be developing an allergy towards them. Years ago I tested mildly to them, not enough to be considered an allergy, but not a neutral reaction. So I definitely need to talk to the allergist. If hazelnut coffee puts me into wheezy breathing and making it hard to talk for 3-4 hours, it could get worse. In the meantime, no tree nuts for me, I think. Also, I was going to make baklava and take it to work next week, but I'm thinking that might not be a good thing now. And while I have made it with peanuts (legumes, not tree nuts, not the same) for someone with a tree nut allergy, it just isn't the same; it comes out more like peanut butter between phyllo dough.

Just got home

and I'm kind of tired and not really feeling like searching out neat stuff to write about. I think I'll go to bed. But today was better than yesterday, when I had a full-blown asthma and allergy attack at work thanks to, of all things, Great Value (Walmart) Lemon Furniture Cleaner [Update: I later learned that while most of the housekeepers use the Walmart brand, this particular person specifically uses Lemon Pledge, so it is the name-brand cleaner that gives me issues]. I had to take my data entry sheets and go to the employee break room and stand there to finish my work at the computer there, and I left an hour early, because I couldn't be in the library for more than a minute or two. This morning it had dissipated and was fine. But yesterday I was very ill, and even though it improved after I got out of my workspace, I was dead tired by the time I got home (about 8?) [after watching 'Grace and Frankie' episodes, which were great] and went on to bed even though it was light outside, listened to music for awhile, and then slept fitfully most of the night. Today was better, although it looked like it was going to be a very sad day indeed, something that's merely put off a few days, but will have to happen. One of the dogs I'm auntie to is doing poorly, and if the vet had been there today and been free, we would have taken her to put her down. Tomorrow there's another appointment. Maybe Thursday. She's not acutely sick, but she is having some major problems. But considering she's usually 50 lbs and a least 16 years old, she'd done well. She's a good dog, and has been a great watchdog and used to shepherd us around. Poor thing, she's senile now. I don't think she even knew me when I walked in this afternoon. But it'll have to be soon, and that's sad.

Maybe that's one reason I find I'm feeling somewhat surly; I wish she were younger and doing better. I hate losing pets, but it's an inevitable thing, unfortunately, and it's our job to make their passing as painless as possible. I just hope we can get her into the car and up there; she's snapping if moved too quickly, because with her arthritis, I'm sure it hurts, and she doesn't know where she is, really.

I'm also just tired and cranky, so I'm going to turn on in. The plan is to get up early tomorrow. We'll see.

Good night.

It feels so good to lie down

With my feet up  (although they haven't been swelling as much as they were earlier in the season).  I must admit,  I am tired and I have a headache,  so I'll be changing from merely resting to full-blown sleeping soon.

After work I had an appointment with my allergist and got my shots.  I've gone up a colour on the phial,  and I should soon be at a level where most people see improvement. Just changing medications helped me.  I am on levocetirizine,  which has been helping a great deal.

I came home for awhile,  then went to my friends' house.  I went to Jin-Jin and picked up some lovely vegetarian fare,  including Vegetable Egg Foo Yong and Kung  Pao Tofu, plus spring rolls. I also got fish food for my goldfish from Kroger,  also in the Chinoe shopping centre.  Then I headed back,  watched a couple of episodes of 'Wizards vs. Aliens'  and then came home.  Now I'm in a darkened room,  my headache is easing,  and I'm ready for bed.  The fish were very happy to get their food. Tomorrow is one of my early days, so I must get up earlier. So,  good night.

What I hope to accomplish today:

1. Dishes
2. Pick up living room
3. Pick up kitchen
4. Clean out refrigerator
5. Pick up dining room
6. Clean bathroom
7. Gather laundry
8. Pick up bedroom
9. Take out trash
10. Take out recyclables
11. Sweep/mop bath and kitchen
12. Vacuum carpet
13. Dust
14. Water plants
15. Water fish
16. Solve the fruit fly issue

I think I'd better take my medicine first, as my allergies are pretty bad right now, and I have the windows open, which probably won't help that much with that, but is good for getting some fresh air in this morning. It looks like it's going to be sunny and a little warmer than it's been. So I've got the Top 40 Countdown on and I'm up, and I've eaten. So here we go....

A little excited

Next Monday, May 11th, Charlaine Harris is doing a ticketed book signing at Joseph-Beth Booksellers in Lexington at 7 pm. I must admit, it would be nice to go. I've read the Aurora Teagarden, Sookie Stackhouse, and Harper Connelly series, as well as part of Midnight Crossroad, which is on my Kindle and is the pre-cursor to the one she's signing, Day Shift. Strange for a librarian, I suppose, but I've never actually been to a book signing. Of course, if I get the physical book of Day Shift signed, then I'll have to eventually get the first book in hardback, too. :) I have the Sookie Stackhouse books in book club hardbacks, most of the Aurora Teagarden books, which are about a librarian-turned-sleuth, in paperback (still working on that, through PaperbackSwap.com). The others I've read through the library or on my Kindle. We'll see. I'm not a great fan of crowds. If I go, I'll report back here.

Sorry I haven't blogged in a couple of days. Sunday I came home a little early because Brenda had a meeting so we cut the game a couple of hours short. I went straight to bed for a couple of hours and then called YKWIA at 9:30 (I set an alarm) so he'd be able to watch 'Salem'. But he recorded it so A and I could watch it later. Monday was a friend's '5th birthday' in a 12-step programme and we went to his celebration. It lasted till 9 or 9:30. I got home around 11 pm, and had to be up at 6 am, so I didn't get much sleep as it was and couldn't really bring myself to blog. But I'm glad I went, and I got to meet his co-worker/distant cousin, who came as well.

Today was one of my early days at work, so I was able to leave by 4 for an appointment with the allergist and my allergy shot. One more shot and I'll be ready to go up a step in the shots. I'm feeling much better than I was because I'm on a medicine called levocetirizine that is related to Zyrtec. It's been really helping with my allergies.

Tonight is 'iZombie', which I heard was picked up for next season, so yay! That's at 9. I think I'll take a little nap before heading over there to watch. Hope you are enjoying your week, so far!

I've been pretty busy the last few days, hence the barest of blogging

Sorry about that. Here's a synopsis of my week:

1. Monday--I went to my new therapist's office and was told that the psychiatrist's office (up a floor, but the same practice) had apparently not finalised my appointment, and the therapist wasn't in until later that day. Made an appointment for 4 pm, came back then, and then they realised the office upstairs had not sent any paperwork down, so she had to interview me without benefit of the doctor's notes. She went ahead and tested me for ADHD (I have been diagnosed with that before, and was on medicine for awhile, but those medical records were shredded the last time I came to this practice...it's not looking good in terms of efficiency, is it? But the doctor and psychologist seem to know their stuff and both asked very good questions. I've set up two appointments for May and am on standby on the cancellation list for late April--they have a couple of other women going on maternity leave and so she is taking on a bigger caseload and it is difficult to get in until May.
2. Tuesday--I had my allergies re-tested for the first time in about fifteen years. I still have the marks on my arm and back from where I reacted, and the marker even stayed on for about two days. I came out pretty much the same as before, except I didn't react to horses this time. They didn't test for food allergies. I'd been told I was allergic to wheat, eggs, and milk back in the day, but she said that if I didn't have any trouble eating them then I wasn't really allergic. She prescribed a different antihistamine for me, since the Claritin wasn't covering all of my symptoms, and she gave me a sample of an eye drop I can put in five minutes before my contacts that will help with the eye issues from my allergies. And, I am now the proud owner of an Epi-Pen, not because I have severe enough allergies for the things I reacted to, but rather because I'm going to start allergy shots again in about two weeks and they want me to keep one with me on shot days, as well as hanging out for about half an hour at their office after each shot. Last time I took them, I had no Epi-Pen, and after the first shot, I was able to have our employee health nurse give them to me, so they just sent me my vials as needed. My allergist did say I could do that again if it was alright with the hospital, since they have a crash cart, etc., should I have a reaction, but I checked and that's been discontinued, for obvious liability issues, I'm sure. So I will need to go into the office. Fortunately I live nearby. So I may have to adjust my schedule slightly and leave early a couple of days a week and come in a little earlier or stay late to make up for it, but that's okay with me.
3. Wednesday--I went to my last class, and we had a potluck and took a group picture. I'm on Instagram, in one half of a photo posted by the organisation. The second-to-the-last class we filled out evaluation forms and volunteer forms, and I'd said I would be willing to be trained to teach the course. I spoke with one of our co-leaders, who is with the organisation, and she said she would forward the application to me and serve as a reference. If I'm accepted, they'll pay for a hotel room in Louisville for an intensive weekend course on teaching the class. The next class starts June 3rd; the training is June 6th and 7th, but she said that if I was willing, I could start out in this one since the training was so close. So I may be teaching a class in the summer.
4. Thursday--I applied for a job at the Jessamine County Public Library. I so hope I get a call from them. I've been there before; it's a very nice facility and I felt comfortable with the people there the last time I interviewed. Nicholasville is nearby, just south of Fayette County by a few miles, so it would be easy to get to, although I'd be going against traffic. For me, it would be best to go down Man O' War and then onto US 27, thereby bypassing Nicholasville Road in Lexington for the most part. I did manage a small blog post, but never made it back like I'd hoped.
5. Today--I applied to teach the class. They had a very interesting application full of detailed instructions like not putting dashes or periods in the phone number, or checking a box above the text, etc. I think they were checking to see if you could fill it out with attention to detail. There were a few in-depth questions and an introduction to be written and attached. I sent in in and got an acknowledgement that they would be contacting me closer to time. Wish me luck. The only concern I have is that I have to go to Louisville, which means driving on the Interstate, something I haven't done in years and am somewhat anxious about, but I told the co-leader that I would do it, so I will. Afterwards I went over to YKWIA's and we watched this week's 'Grimm'. We still haven't seen last week's, but maybe we can do that tomorrow.

Tomorrow I take A to an appointment and to the grocery, probably twice for the latter, as they are out of bread and milk, and need that before we go to the appointment. So I need to get over there by about 8:30. I'm going to head on to bed now; I just wanted to catch up with my blogging. I'm listening to Loreena McKennitt and have the fan blowing on me. All is quiet otherwise. It's time to turn the fish tank lights off, brush my teeth, and crawl into bed. Good night.

We didn't play the game today

but I did finish the notes early this morning, worked on my Sunday housework list at my friends' house, then came home and rested for awhile before heading back for 'Salem' tonight, which was excellent. It was a very good season opener, with Lucy Lawless and Stuart Townsend joining the cast.

Tomorrow I go to work and then mid-morning I have an appointment with a therapist. Tuesday I have my allergies tested for the first time in about 15 years. I won't say that being off my allergy medicine in the meantime has been miserable, but it has been unpleasant and annoying. I hadn't realised how bad my allergies still were without the Claritin. I'd thought that it wasn't doing much any more. It's not taking care of them completely, of course, but it has been knocking them down somewhat. I've been sneezing, itching, and my eyes and nose leak constantly. I'll be glad when the testing is over and I can try an anti-histamine again.

Well, it's midnight. I should probably go on to bed so I can get up for work in the morning. Good night.

I shouldn't be eating naan this late at night

but it is very nummy, and I haven't had much bread of late, other than the stuff that's 88 cents at the grocery, for peanut butter sandwiches. But I did have some frozen naan, and so I thawed it and I'm having some of it. I've been over at my friends' helping with a project, and I was getting a bit peckish.

Today I made an appointment with an allergist who was recommended by the otolaryngologist, and I have to go off my Claritin (which doesn't seem to be doing enough anymore) for five days and then next week we'll test my allergies. I had it done about fifteen years ago, but they said it had been enough time that I should do so again. I already know they'll find I'm allergic to practically everything, although maybe there's been some improvement since I did take allergy shots for about three years. Among other things, I am allergic to horses and most grasses, including bluegrass. Why do I live in Kentucky again? It is allergy central, after all. If I were a doctor in this area, allergy and immunology would be the way to go, I tell you. :)

Okay, I'm going to keep things short tonight, as I'm going to attempt to get up early so I can make a deposit at the bank ATM (I thought it best not to do so late at night) and then head into work early. I left early today because it's the local school spring break, so we had a low census day today. Thursday, my birthday, is as well, so I'm going to take off then. I haven't decided what to do yet, but the plan is to have some fun, even if it just means opening the windows and watching DVDs all day. It's supposed to be warm, about 72 degrees, that day. Or I may take some free passes I have and go see a movie, maybe Home. We'll see. Good night.

In science news...

Stunning 3D animation reveals how the Sahara fertilises the rainforests of the AMAZON with 182 million tones of dust

Buddha statue reveals remains of mummified monk inside

Rats May Be Exonerated in European Plague, Say Scientists With a Gerbil Theory

More Siberian Craters Prompt Call for Urgent Investigation

'Early peanut intake could prevent allergy'

Blind man sees wife for the first time in a decade - here's how

Ugh

I was actually working on my house tonight when I was overcome by a sneezing and coughing fit and basically got all choked up and could barely breathe, which is odd because I didn't do any dusting or anything that would stir up anything. But everyone I know who has allergies seems to be having trouble this year. I did break down and turn on the air conditioner because the pollen blowing in from outside was just too much, and with temperatures in the mid-80s, it was too stuffy otherwise. So the dishes are washing, but I'm taking a break and I'm in the bedroom listening to music (Natalie Merchant), with the CPAP on to try to clear out my nasal passages. I may read a little. I have some new material on the Salem witch trials to read. The plan is NOT to go to sleep yet. We'll see.

Somehow

while flipping through channels during a check on current weather conditions, I caught part of Idina Menzel's performance of 'Let It Go' (which apparently won), and then caught the tail-end of the Oscars from Best Director onward. I am very glad that Twelve Years a Slave won for Best Picture, and that the director brought the audience's attention not only to those who suffered slavery in the past, but also those who are enduring it right now.

The wind is howling and it is sleeting. The cars are covered in ice, but it's not as thick as it could have been. Ice pellets cover the ground and streets, and we're heading into snow, which is expected to last until about noon tomorrow. So we could have some fairly significant snow. I'm going to try to get up early to deal with whatever mess the roads may be in then. Also, today I had trouble trying to get my partials seated correctly and so I want to have plenty of time to do so tomorrow morning. YKWIA couldn't understand a word I said on the phone this morning when he called, for example, and I was in a hurry to get over there and just forewent the partials altogether. But although that's fine occasionally, you can't do that regularly since it's bad for the gums and general oral health.

I think I'm going to head on to bed. I have a bad headache, and I'm achy all over, so I'm going to take some ibuprofen. My eyes and nose are going pretty badly, too, and my throat hurts. Generally, I just don't feel great at all. I'm not sure if I have A's cold, or if it's just allergies, but it's annoying. Maybe it's time to go back on Claritin. Hope you had a good weekend, and that you all have power and are staying warm. Be careful if you're in this storm's path. Good night.

So, apparently

I am allergic to sunchokes, which is interesting because someone I lived with grew them years and years ago, and I was always intrigued by them, but I didn't actually try them, as far as I remember. Sunchokes are the roots of a plant in the sunflower family; they always made a tall, cheerful plant in the garden we raised together, with their smaller flowers. But both times I had the salad we made for Thanksgiving, both last night and tonight's dinner of leftovers, I started having trouble breathing only after eating them. I know I can eat fennel and apples fine. They're is nothing in the dressing that has ever given me trouble. The only other thing in the meal I had not had before was the Quorn roast, and I ate that early and had no trouble then. So, it seems sunchokes will have to be avoided by me in the future, which is somewhat sad, as they were good both in taste and texture, and I once read their starch is good for diabetics. Oh, well. Good to know, I suppose.

I actually wound up

Cuddling up in bed and reading the rest of Witch Way to Murder by Shirley Damsgaard, the first book I've completed this year. It was a gift from a friend, and I enjoyed it so much I ordered the other six books of the series in paperback from Amazon. They should be here Friday. It's been awhile since I've read a nice paperback book; I forgot how comfortable they feel in the hand, and how handy they are in a purse. [I love the purse I'm currently using; not only is it purple, but it can carry a paperback, my Kindle, my tablet, and all the diabetes, glasses, and other supplies I need to have with me. Oh, and my camera and wallet. :)] Most of the library books I get are hardback, and of course most books I get these days are on the Kindle. These are available in other formats, including Kindle, but I got the others to match the format I had the first book in.

I also broke down and bought the complete series of a show I loved as a child, and still really enjoy--M*A*S*H. The price has come down so that you save more off the list price than it now costs, and I thought it might become unavailable if I waited too much longer. It worked out to be about $2.61 per disc (there are 36 discs, including the original movie, all eleven seasons, and bonus features).

My foot was throbbing terribly towards the end of my reading and so I got up and walked around a little and that seems to have helped. I'll take some Tylenol before bed to make sure it doesn't keep me awake.

Tomorrow I work, I need to pick up my meds from the pharmacy (I would have today, but they had to order one, and it should be there tomorrow, so I thought it best to just drive across town the once), go to physical therapy, and then over to my friends' house.

I'm sneezing up a storm, despite my Claritin. There's something, trees, I think, that blooms in late January, early February that sends my allergies into overdrive. It's always when I first notice buds on maples, although I must confess I haven't looked at those of late to see if they are open, I've just noticed it before, but I don't know if I'm allergic to those specifically. It could be something else. But I actually had an asthma attack on my way in to work today, which is rare for me. I have a rescue inhaler, but even when I got to work I had a hard time getting air and talking. I guess the allergies coupled with the cold air triggered it. It's no fun. Thank goodness my asthma is mild and I rarely use my inhaler.

It's only 10:30 but I think I'm going to head on to bed. I need to leave work a bit early to get to the pharmacy and then to physical therapy, so I'm going to try to go in early. Hope you have a good night.

May I just say

loratadine (generic Claritin) is a wonderful thing. I can actually breathe today!!! Woo-hoo! The windows are going up!

Whew! Just got home

I had a webcast from the Medical Library Association at the University of Kentucky Medical Center Library today and got to see some of my fellow medical librarians and speak to the former chair of the committee I'm chairing now about upcoming events at the annual meeting in Seattle in May. I'm not able to go, but she is, and she volunteered to take care of the booth and man it during on of our activities, for which I am very grateful, as it's during the same time as our section meeting and I wasn't sure I could find someone to do it.

I have a pedometer that I wore today. I knew I'd be doing a lot of walking around UK and wondered if I could reach the magic '10,000 steps' they talk about. Well, I made it past 12,000! Woo-hoo! This meter measures passive walking (that is, steps I take walking across the room or through the hallways as well as exercise-style walking. Not all of them do. So all the steps counted. It also kept total time walking, calories burned, and distance walked.) I walked about four miles today. Now obviously, today wasn't a normal day. But I'm going to try to wear it and figure out what is normal. I do walk to and from the bus stop, and then around the hospital several times a day, plus occasional attempts at going for a walk.

After the webcast, I took the bus into the transit centre and changed back to my normal bus, then stopped at Liquor Barn for a teensy, tiny bottle of Buffalo Trace bourbon and then walked over to Kroger (again with the walking) and shopped for the ingredients I needed for the pie. It was relatively straightforward. I needed flour, sugar (I got a small bag/box of each), vanilla, nutmeg (I think I have some somewhere in my cabinet, but didn't want to chance it, and it's probably years old anyway), eggs, unsalted butter, and some whipped cream (I'm making everything else from scratch, except this...but it is from real cream and not that oil stuff). I also got a package of pie pans WITH LIDS, something I need for taking a pie to work with me on the bus, which should be an adventure in and of itself.

Anyway, we'll see if this turns out to be an absolute disaster or not. I'm going to eat some more Indian food with the rice I cooked yesterday (I think I'll try the chickpea curry this time) and then cut up my butter and get it really cold to start the process. There's a lot of freezing and refrigerating in this recipe to produce a really flaky crust. Both recipes, however--the crust and the custard--are pretty straightforward. The only real question is the bourbon. In the original recipe I found, 1 Tbsp of bourbon was used, but then I realised it was a recipe for a bourbon custard and not a pie at all. The custard is cooked and then the bourbon is added when it cools. But I'm going to be baking my custard in the pie shell, so I thought I might need to increase the bourbon because it's being cooked and presumably the alcohol will cook out, leaving just the flavour. I did find one recipe that involved a custard pie with bourbon in it that used 3 Tbsp. (although it also had bacon in it, which sounds disgusting, but I guess for meat eaters it would be okay). So I think I'll go with that and see how it turns out; if it's a bit strong, well, at least we're not going to get drunk off it. I'll take the whipped cream with me and put it on right before the contest, sprinkling a little nutmeg on it.

This sounded interesting, and I asked several people if they thought it or a transparent pie would be good for the contest, and everyone voted for bourbon (except A and YKWIA, the latter of whom I think didn't give an opinion one way or another and was just amused that I was trying this). But I really did spend three years, albeit long ago, baking in Future Homemakers of America, even though I never really learned to cook. But the ironic thing is between my dislike of bourbon (at least in bourbon balls, I'm just not a fan) and my diabetes, I don't actually plan on eating the pie, except maybe a little taste just to see how I did. So there you go.

While I was at Kroger I also got some generic Claritin. 10 pills of Claritin are almost $11. 10 pills of Kroger brand are $1.99. I got a bottle of 60 for $7.96. 45 Claritin tablets were something like $30. Go generics. I don't care so long as they work, and my allergies have been so bad, this week especially. A co-worker gave me some Advil Cold & Sinus earlier today and it helped. But before that my breathing was very wheezy and I actually had to use my inhaler, which is usually a once or twice a year thing and I've been using it maybe once every two weeks, and probably should more than that. With the early spring, the grass and tree pollen is happening at the same time. I think that's my main problem. I'm allergic to all sorts of grasses and trees as well. I think I'm okay around evergreens, but I'm not sure they checked for that. But oak? Bleh. I start having trouble the moment those buds on the maples start, which this year was back in January.

Okay, time to go get something to eat and then start the pie process. Wish me luck.

My

I came home this evening, took out my contacts, and immediately went to bed. That was six hours ago. Last night I didn't even get home until midnight, and went to bed around 2 am, and so I'd been working on a bit of a deficit. Today was very busy, and I started to work on my new duties a bit and at the same time tried to get caught up on my data entry from being off Friday afternoon for a doctor's appointment. I'm not on the new schedule quite yet (I need to talk with my boss who supervises me in the library job), but if all goes well, I can start that on Thursday.

It was in the 60s today. I didn't get a chance to go outside and enjoy any of it, but my allergies are definitely feeling the evidence of early spring. Right now I'm sneezing and my eyes are watering. I'm not sure what the cause is (I'm allergic to just about everything in the Bluegrass region, including bluegrass). I'd say trees are part of it; I start going every year when the maples bloom, although I'm not sure whether they're one of my allergens. But most deciduous trees came back on the report, if I recall. I've actually had to use an inhaler twice in the last few weeks--once after the spat with the dogs, and another time when I'd been cataloguing apparently somewhat dusty books that I'd removed from the shelf.

I got up and took my night meds, but I'm considering going on back to bed and getting up early in the morning and doing a little laundry. It may be the last chance I can do that without being in the wee hours of the night. Also, I need to stop by the bank. Again, once I'm working the new schedule, there's no way to do that during the week. It's a good thing they're open on Saturday mornings. :)

Happy real birthday to any of you who were born on February 29th, by the way. For everyone, how will you spend your extra day this year?

Okay, I'm going to head back to bed. I forwarded myself some library-related links today from some lists I'm on, and I'll try to blog about them tomorrow. Good night.

This night's blogging

is hereby interrupted by allergies. I'm sneezing, coughing, watering, and snotting all over the place, rather suddenly. I'm going to go put on my CPAP for a little while and see if they calm down. I don't know what it is (I'm allergic to most things, and it is worse in spring and fall). But my eyes are swelling up and it's definitely time to try to put the brakes on it. I don't have allergy meds since I haven't had much trouble the last few years, but this is a bumper allergy season this year and central Kentucky is horrible for allergens anyway.

I'm up at Gods know when again

Listening to: 'Fire on the Mountain' by Rob Thomas

I'm very physically uncomfortable in a way I won't go into (it relates to an allergy), so even though I'm still sleepy, I can't sleep.

Last night when I came in I spent over two hours working with the gamemaster over the phone put in a genealogy using a free program called Family Tree Builder, which worked rather nicely, although it claimed to find matches to real people even though these were fictional. Considering I'd spent all day on the computer, I was so tired when we were finished that I went on to bed. This was a little before midnight. Now it's a little after five in the morning.

So far it's been a good week, although I received word yesterday that once again an error in my time was made (the extra hours that I'd docked myself by clocking out in the middle of my shift were put in as overtime, so I got paid time and a half), so once again I'll have money taken out next time. I told the lady, who apologised profusely, that I just wanted a normal paycheque by Halloween so I could budget. I mean, I've been working the new job two months and haven't yet.

At work we've had employee appreciation activities. For one thing, we get to wear jeans every day this week. Tuesday there were Krispy Kreme doughnuts before I got there, then a cookout put on by the local Shrine club. Wednesday were more doughnuts in the morning, plus it was 80s day. There was a lot of hair gel to be had. Yesterday was a catered lunch with a dunking booth, where various people including the administrator volunteered to be dunked. There are door prizes each day and a contest for trying to figure out whose baby picture goes with whom, and my picutre's in it. Once the contest is over, I'll post it here. :)

I'm working my full allotment of hours, now, which is rather fulfilling. I've got three different gigs there at the hospital, so there's a lot of variety.

Uh. I'm so hypersensitive at this point that my nose and eyes are just running and I'm itching where my wrists hit the support in front of the keyboard. Maybe it has latex in it. I hate having an allergy to latex. It's hidden away in so much.

Well, I think I'll try to go back to sleep for a couple of hours.