Happy Ostara/Alban Eilir!

(The first day of spring,  for pagans). Or,  for those of you Down Under,  I suppose it's Mabon (autumn).  Oh,  and yes,  the Welsh name for spring and rebirth (and,  incidentally,  butterfly),  is related to my middle name,  Eilir,  which I use on this blog and primarily on the Internet. Anyway,  wherever you are,  hope your day was special!

Chilly

I brought my geraniums inside last night, which is very fortunate, because it's 35 degrees outside this morning. I don't have the heat on, and it's a little chilly in the house, compared to what it has been, but it's 70.7 degrees according to my thermometer, so there's no reason to put the heat on. It's just a little colder by the windows, and I slept in shorts and a tank top, and haven't changed yet.

I just had some blackberries and raspberries in yoghurt, and I'm plotting out my morning. I'm going to do some errands with A, but I have a few things to do around here, too, so my plan is to go over there about 11 am, and so I'll call him in a few minutes and make plans. But I'm still kind of waking up at the moment, so I'll check the news first and drink some caffeine. Hope you have a great day.

Wow--I slept till 11

But I feel much better. I also found something I was looking for, a paper prescription for a new medicine I've been taking as part of an introductory package and am now out of. So Monday I should be able to get it. It was in a basket of papers that are sort of an way to keep things off the table. But I also went through purses, wallets, and phone cases, and found five $1 bills in the search. Yay.

It is beautifully sunny outside after the rain of yesterday. My phone says it is 57 degrees, with a forecast for 60 today, so yes, we're definitely into autumn. But I'm ready for it, to be honest. Even yesterday, when I was wearing sandals, and the day before, when I was wearing capris, I was wondering just how long summer weather was going to last. I mean, it was 80-something the other day.

I am sitting here debating as to whether to colour my hair today. The stuff I got was something I bought months ago after reading a book about job hunting after age 40. But I haven't used it yet. I was looking at my grey, and there is ample evidence of it, but it is actually a pretty silver--it's the brown that has dulled over the years and doesn't have the highlights it once had. The stuff I have is the type where it washes out in 28 days, but if I put it on, I think it'll look flatter than what I have currently. Of course, I have so little hair, it may not matter, and it's got conditioners that would boost that. My hair is down to my shoulders, though not past, at the moment, but has been baby fine my entire life and pretty thin, too, and it's thinning more as I get older. It is a toasted almond, so a light brown close to my natural colour, a little more golden than the red I used to have.

I'm a month or so away from my trip to Chicago. Maybe I should wait until after then, just in case it comes out horribly. What would be nice is to get a haircut, but I can't do that till next week, money-wise, even though I normally just go to Supercuts.

Okay, time to get ready to do some things. and make the bed. Have a great Saturday.

Isn't this a restful desktop wallpaper?

It's from the Autumn Color in Japan desktop theme from the Microsoft Windows website, which is free to download and includes other very lovely, restful scenes.

Autumn's starting to go into full swing

It's 53 degrees outside after a high of 70-something on a rainy day, and tomorrow, while it's supposed to be sunny, won't be much higher than that, around 57 degrees Fahrenheit. It's windy and blustery. We haven't had rain in awhile, so the roads are slick with oil still.

I went over to a friend's to bring him creamer and fix him dinner. We watched an episode of 'Haven', one with a trouble where people were just incinerated. A particularly nasty one, that. YKWIA and I talked for some time and visited. Then I came on home.

Tomorrow the plan is to get up early, take some things back to the library, go pay my rent, and then come home and work on the house for awhile. A is going to help me get the things out of the car (some of which is theirs, old audio tapes I'm going to check). And we'll do the grocery run after that, once the car is clear. No really big plans other than visiting them and working on the stuff I need to.

But for now, I think I'm going to head on to bed. It's nearly midnight and I want to get up very early tomorrow morning, so I can work on the house, do the errands, and work on game notes and the book review that I still need to finish. Good night.

I feel so much better than I did an hour and a half ago

I was overheated and red in the face from driving around town during rush over for an hour and a half, going to the pharmacy (twice, actually) for three people. When I delivered the medicine YKWIA had me drink some ice water. I'd had a splitting sinus headache for hours that was only getting worse (rain is coming in tonight). My blood sugar was over 200, so I decided to wait to eat until it had gone down. I had started my period (good thing I went to the gynaecologist yesterday, I guess) and all I had was a little pad they had at work to give out in emergencies. I'm a big girl, and I bleed fairly heavily when I start, so that wasn't cutting it. I put down a reusable Kroger bag just to make sure I wouldn't bleed on my car's beige upholstery. I felt tired and well, just bad, in pain from the headache and the cramping. My shoulders still ache due being tense while driving, although they've relaxed a good deal since then.

So I came home, changed to my regular pads, changed into some shorts, took the bra off, got comfy in front of fan, and went to sleep for an hour. I tried listening to soothing music, but it made my headache worse. The headache's still there, but much less than it was. I actually managed to relax a bit and let the tension melt away. And I'm so much cooler, thank goodness. My blood sugar before I ate was 142, much better. I've eaten a little and now I feel ready for the evening.

I was online earlier today looking for advice on the prep for a colonoscopy, and found Dave Barry's column on the subject, which I found hilarious, so I'm going to link to it here:

Dave Barry: A journey into my colon -- and yours

I need to make a list for the store and go get a few things. It's amazing how dark it is already outside. It's not even 8 pm. I guess it really is autumn now. We're supposed to have daytime temperatures in the low 70s this weekend to remind us of that, although today was the mid-80s. But that rain should make a real difference, if my headache is any judge of pressure changes.

Okay, off to the store. At least I don't have to do game notes tonight--I got those finished last week, something I only remembered today. :)

Happy harvest moon

It's hard to believe autumn will be here tomorrow. It was cool a few days ago, much like fall, but it's been pretty warm and humid today. I'm so glad I put the air conditioning back on last night--I've been warm all day, and I've driven around in the car a lot, plus my friends had their windows open but I just couldn't seem to catch a breeze.

***Warning to guys who are sensitive on this matter: Commencing to write about gynaecological stuff***

Today after work I went to a new (for me) gynaecology practice--my least favourite kind of doctor's appointment so far. They took a fairly detailed history and the physician assistant gave me a thorough exam. Good news is, I should get the results of most of my tests in a few days. The bad news is, I was strongly urged to get a colonoscopy as the result of one of the in-house tests. I had hoped to put that off a few more years (I'm only 46). That may lead to yet a less-favourite kind of doctor's visit. :) But I did get my Pap, and an order for my mammogramme, and some encouragement about doing better and more frequent breast self-examinations. They also did some blood work to determine if I'm going into menopause yet, because I'm so hot so often and I'm starting to have a few issues with my cycle. One good thing is although my family is supercharged with diabetes genes, I'm not aware of any gynaecological cancers in our family on either side, and so I wasn't a candidate for any genetic testing, which was fine with me. If I'd met the criteria, of course, I'd have wanted to be tested in a heartbeat.

Before and during the appointment, I got news that one of my family members had a major health scare today that fortunately turned out not to be as serious as it could have been. I do hope everything is alright and that he gets a clean bill of health. It's downright scary when people younger than me have that kind of scare.

After the appointment, I hurried across town to the pharmacy to get some pen needles and medicines, then I got some gas at Kroger, and then picked up some fish dinners for friends and myself. I went over there and watched an episode of 'Alphas' and visited for awhile, and then came on home about 9 or 9:30.

I did not get to the YMCA, of course. I'm going to try to go tomorrow instead. I will make it eventually. Today was just so busy, and frankly, I didn't so much feel like working out after being poked and prodded in my lady parts (although the PA was really careful not to cause too much discomfort, unlike some places to which I've gone. One visit to a place over on Harrodsburg Road years ago nearly sent me off the table, out of the stirrups, and I wound up going home and curling up in a ball for hours, it was so bad.)

Anyway, at least that's over for another year, hopefully. I do go back in two weeks to discuss my blood work and other test results. But there shouldn't be any further examination for awhile.

My neck is bothering me. I think I'm going to get into my pyjamas, turn on some music for awhile, maybe read and relax for a bit before bed. Good night.

Thinking of this as I watch the leaves on the wind outside

It's around by Libana:

Autumn time, red leaves fall
While the weeping sky looks over all.
Demeter sadly walks the land,
the dying grasses in Her hand.

Well, that didn't take too long

I went on my foray out into this beautiful autumn day, where the sky is a cloudless blue, the wind is a bit brisk, and the trees are losing brightly coloured leaves. I went over to the library and took two books and an Ella Fitzgerald CD back, picking up a hold (a book on terrariums, of all things, to nurture my craftsy nature, such as it is) and a diabetes book from the American Diabetes Association. I got out of there in time to take the bus to Kroger, but decided I didn't want to go over there just to get bread and then wait for the better part of an hour for a return trip, nor did I want to navigate two major roads without a sidewalk through most of it by walking home, especially in my glasses rather than my contacts (the bifocal works a bit differently, and I don't wear my glasses often, so I'm not as used to them).

Instead I walked a half-block down to the Circle K, stopping along the way to admire the vegetables at the Bluegrass Farmer's Market and a couple of used cars. I particularly liked the 2011 Hyundai Elantra GLS I saw. Plus there was a Honday Accord hybrid. Of course the latter was red, and my last three cars were red. I want a change. On the other hand, I'm pressed to get bread these days--I have exactly 1 cent in savings, so it was basically window shopping.

Anyway, it was a nice walk. I'm home now and thinking of doing some reading before working on the notes. The latter should be interesting as it involves a TARDIS, Neanderthals, a PT boat full of dead men, and a prison beyond the mirror lands. :)

I can tell it's full moon (and not just by looking outside)

I decided to stop by Gabriel Brothers on the way home tonight, assuring that I'd be getting home after dark had fallen. As the big harvest full moon (coinciding with the autumnal equinox, happy Mabon!) as well as Jupiter rose above Wal-Mart (which I did not go to, as they are the Evil Empire, in my opinion), I walked up to the bus stop to wait. This was no mean feat, as I was uncustomarily in two-inch heels today, which worked okay for walking around the hospital, sitting at my desk, etc., but after standing for a half-hour waiting for the bus, then walking around the store (scoring one blouse, one shirt, a sweatshirt, a package of underwear, and Dove bodywash all for under $25), my feet were definitely ready to go home, and more to the point, to sit at the bus stop. Unfortunately there was a scary guy talking to himself about stalking adolescents sitting there, and he smelled, so I stood discreetly away, over by the shelter, which did have a seat, but I once watched someone about my size sit on it and break it at that very spot, and I wasn't taking chances.

Then a little older lady walked up and I was like, great, I'm not alone with the pervert, and she asked about the connector bus, which I know almost nothing about, and then said she'd know if it were the last one coming in a bit. I asked her didn't it pick up on the other side of the road. She said yes, but she was just going to stand there. Then the bus came and went (on the other side of the road), and she waited a bit and then quietly shuffled off with her bags up the street in the direction it was headed. Right after this, the guy got up and muttered to himself (he'd been quiet while she'd been there) and then shuffled off in the other direction. I sat down on the other side of the bench and waited for the bus, wondering which one was loopier (the man seemed potentially more dangerous, so he won hands down). I know most people who are mentally ill are perfectly harmless, but it just takes one violent looney to ruin your whole day, so I was very happy to see the bus come.

After I got off, I walked a bit in my stockinged feet, but put my shoes back on and they felt better. I'd dressed up today in a purple top, a long satin-and-velvet-banded skirt (which was fine this morning but hot tonight, although I got many compliments on it, which is funny because I got it for $5 at Gabriel Brothers a few months ago), knee high stockings, my shoes (which look like Mary Janes from the front but are heeled and backless), even jewelry (nothing expensive, but sparkly). I even wore makeup. Tomorrow it'll be a black skirt in a light material, one of the new tops, and my normal sandals. No more heels for me for awhile. Saturday the plan is to do laundry so I have more stuff to wear. You knew I was putting it off, didn't you?

I'm afraid I have no long, boring video post tonight. I was soaked to the skin and I immediately put on some shorts and the skimpiest top I own. I won't scare you with that. I was so happy to get the shoes and stockings off and cool off in the air conditioning. I'm going to finish eating and look at the news, and then I think I'm going to read some more of Jim Butcher's White Knight, which I've almost finished. Have a good night. Watch out for loonies howling at the moon, and happy Autumn!

It's hard to believe

that Autumn is almost over. The holiday season has started; December is just around the corner, and after that, a new year. Time seems to go by so much faster as you get older. I remember summer vacations seeming to last so long. Now summer passes in the blink of an eye. I suspect it only gets worse as you age.

The picture here is of a gingko leaf. There are lots of gingkos in Lexington because Henry Clay, the famous 19th century politician, had them brought over from China, or so I've heard. I think the trees are beautiful, but the female gingko's fruit smells horrible, and it's especially treacherous to walk on a sidewalk littered by them.

I also took a picture of the last roses of the year, which believe it or not are still blooming, although they've already grown large hips, too. I have no earthly idea why they came out different sizes; they were both taken with my phone.  Anyway, I thought I'd post them here.

An Autumn round

from Libana's A Circle is Cast album from 1986, which I have as a tape but is now available as a CD. I think I may order it soon; the whole album was haunting and wonderful for pagan ritual and meditation.



Autumn time, red leaves fall
While the weeping sky looks over all.
Demeter sadly walks the land,
the dying grasses in Her hand.

Happy Fall!

The autumnal equinox is today, a day of equal parts of light and dark. The leaves are already starting to fall here but it's still been pleasant temperature-wise. Hope this season is a good one.

PS I shouldn't leave out you folks south of the equator. Happy Spring to you!

My brain has been taken by Yahtzee

I have a little computer program, you see, and I just keep rolling the dice. But now I'm going to stop and blog, and then go to bed. (When we did play games as a family when I was young, it was usually Yahtzee or Kismet, both dice games...I'm pretty good--the computer loses more than I do).

Anyway, autumn weather has definitely come to us. According to my Firefox add-on it's 50 degrees but the wind is at 16 mph, so it's pretty brisk outside. It's also wet and leaves are coming down everywhere; my car is decorated with them.

I went to Dr Rooney, the podiatrist, today. I have to stay in the boot for another four weeks, but the good news is it is healing. The fractures are in the 4th and 5th metatarsals; I've heard bad things about the 5th not healing but she said that's usually the case when the bone is actually broken to the point of not being united. Mine is more of a crack near the joint, so it should heal fine. Yay. I do not want surgery. It does feel somewhat better. So, it's more of the Franken-boot for now.

The time of no money is ending as I get paid tomorrow at the hospital (actually it should go through sometime tonight) and I should get paid at the gas station for the first time in awhile, too.

The new cubicles were more tolerable once everything was together. I spent the whole day putting stuff on and in my desk. My computer may be losing its power supply soon--it keeps going to an amber light and it's sleeping although on, but not waking up when I touch the mouse or keyboard. I've got a desk that goes 6 feet in two directions, which I think will be adequate, 3 file folder drawers, two others, and two overhead bins. I got all but the files taken care of today. Tomorrow I have to do that and move some other stuff out so that the nursing students won't be crowded. I also have to move a copier and two computer carrels about 6 inches so I won't be crowded. From there it's working on moving one or possibly two journal shelving units that are about 3' x 12' each. Not looking forward to that.

I haven't listened to the radioplays lately because of all the commotion. When they were building the cubicles, there didn't seem to be a point, since there was banging and power screwdriving involved. Today I don't think I sat in my chair long enough. Also, I'm getting a new (used) chair that's bigger and more comfortable, one of the old ones from one of the other departments that was replaced by those that came with the cubicles.

Well, I guess that's enough of an update for now. Good night. Oh, and in honour of impending Halloween, here's a Very Twisted Great Pumpkin...I'm assuming it's from Robot Chicken, I think I've seen it on there, but it wasn't identified as such.