Happy Independence Day! Happy 250th Anniversary, America!

I'm not doing much. It's been really hot (heat index of 108°F) here, although it's a little better since some thunderstorms came through last night, but I don't think I'll go downtown and celebrate. I will babysit the dogs, two of which are terrified of fireworks.

I do love the Fourth. It used to be my favourite holiday. Over the years, that's sort of faded, I guess. I used to go downtown for the festival, but it stopped having many craft vendors, and the art vendors were too pricey. Maybe it's changed now. Hopefully. When I worked at the old Shriners, we could park at work, which was right across from the Idle Hour Country Club and Golf Course, which allowed us an excellent view from the front lawn to watch a wonderful fireworks show. To view downtown, I'd have to deal with parking and a lot of traffic and crowds. I just don't feel like doing that for 20 or 30 minutes of wow.

So my main way to celebrate is wearing my new Kentucky Blood Centre shirt, which celebrates the 250th anniversary of the founding of our country. I didn't actually earn it. I tried, though. I went yesterday, and they had to turn me away because my iron was too low. They went ahead and gave me the T-shirt and a coupon for a pint of Blue Bell ice cream anyway, which was very nice. I can try again in three days, and I'll probably come back Saturday to see if it'll be up by then. Considering I'm post-menopausal and take iron pills, I was a little surprised.

Anyway, here is me a year ago at work, in a silly headband I wore at the reception desk (thanks to recreation therapy). I enjoyed doing things like that because the families seemed to like little touches like that. Besides, it was fun to get a little silly sometimes. Then there's a picture I took this morning in my blood centre shirt.

Please think first about securing pets--and skipping fireworks

The Lexington Humane Society shared this sad but important story from the Bowling Green/Warren County Humane Society on Facebook. Please put your pets up during the upcoming holiday. And rather than fireworks, celebrate the Fourth of July by donating to a shelter. Fireworks are over in minutes, but go on all night (and other ones too) with pets assailed by large, scary sounds. And like Moose, many get out and run at the sound, sometimes to be found, often not. This family found Moose, but it was too late.

"Hi friends. As some of you know, my name is Moose. It was around this time last year that my mom and dad went to hang out with their friends one Sunday night. They knew how much I loved playing outside, so they let me and my brothers stay outside in the fenced-in yard while they were gone because we were cool big boys like that. We were having the best time running and playing with each other. My mom would probably croak if she knew how many holes we dug. I was definitely going to blame that on my brothers though. As we were outside, we started to hear these loud booms, and loud noises usually didn’t bother me because I’m a cool pup like that. I thought they would stop, but they didn’t. I kept hearing the booms and saw big flashing lights in the sky. That started to really scare me. That was different than the other loud noises I had heard before. I couldn’t seem to get away from them so I jumped over our fence and took off running. I kept running but when I looked up after the booms had stopped, I didn’t know where I was. I tried for 7 days to find my way back home as my mom and dad and so many kind people looked for me. After so many days of trying to find my way back home, I got so tired and I just couldn’t go any longer. I laid down and went to sleep. When I woke up, I had crossed the rainbow bridge. It was the prettiest place I had ever seen. There were so many other dogs there for me to play with. I can still see my mom and dad and all the people that loved me, just from a different angle now. I really wish those booms didn’t scare me. If they hadn’t, I would still be there playing with my new human brother. He would have loved me, because who didn’t? I just wanted to remind you guys that fireworks (I think that’s what Mom called them) are really cool to you guys, but very scary for us. Please keep that in mind and keep your furry, 4-legged babies inside as much as you can for the next few weeks. When the booms are gone, they can go outside and play as much as they want. If you promise to watch over your furry friends down there, I promise to watch over them from up here. Love and miss you guys.

-Moose

“Most of y’all remember my baby Moose. We had him since he was 5 days old. We bottle-fed him and he immediately became a crucial part of my family. He was the best snuggler and best brother to our other pups. He was so loyal and committed to protecting and loving his family hard, including his newborn human brother. We miss Moose terribly and it still seems so unfair. I still blame myself for thinking it was okay to leave him outside because loud noises didn’t bother him. Never in a million years would I have ever have thought we would lose him so soon. We came home one night and he was gone. We found him a week later in a field, and the only way we could identify him was by his collar which had his name tag and his microchip tag on it. I would give anything to go back and redo that night. I will never leave my dogs outside during this time of year ever again. Please trust me, and keep your sweet babies inside during these weeks and use a leash while taking them out to potty, even if they have never needed one before. I don’t want anyone to go through what we went through. We will never be able to thank you all enough for helping us look for our sweet Moose. We love you guys.”

-Maddie, Moose’s Mom

Thank you for reading this small part of Moose and Maddie's story. They're very special to us and when we asked Maddie to share this story, she said that it was hard to write and share, but if it prevented even one other pet and pet parent from going through this, it will be so worth it. Please share this post, keep your animals inside as much as you can these next few weeks, and take them out on a leash. We'll share some additional tips this afternoon to help you keep your pets safe during this time. ❤

I'm home

I mostly just relaxed with YKWIA, we watched three episodes of 'American Housewife', went through some experimental game mechanics, and I went to the store for him. But I had a good time. I did get in a little later than I planned, so I'm going to call it a night soon, and put some things off until tomorrow. I'm going to try to get up early tomorrow and take the trash out, as I think it finally cleared up and my stepfather is coming by tomorrow. I'll try to get the book review in before the end of the day tomorrow. I did check the job list, and apparently, the job that I thought closed tomorrow is already closed. It was with the state, although it would have been a lot of wear and tear on the car, as it required a fair bit of travelling. So maybe it's not so bad that I missed out on it. I definitely have to watch things more closely, though, even if I do seem to have a job lined up now, as I would eventually like to be in a library.

So anyway, it was a good day. I'm basically online to check out an adapter that I got that allows me to link up to an Ethernet cable (my laptop just has USB ports, so this allows me to connect directly, plus has a 3-USB-port hub built in as well. When I move, I'll have to either use my phone hotspot or connect via the Ethernet cable to his modem. He nixed the powerline adapter idea. I think he's afraid it will somehow harm his home's wiring, although I did explain that it wouldn't. Oh, well. This will work. Anyway, the adapter seems to be working pretty well. I also have to go online and look up a manual that I managed to lose within a day of getting. It was in my backpack pocket and I guess it fell out. It was one of those tiny manuals which fold out, so it was really easy to lose. But it may be online. I thin I'll go look for that now. Have a good night, and I hope your Fourth was great if you celebrate.

It's been a very wet Fourth so far

so I don't know if there will be fireworks tonight. I got up by 8:15 (but it was lovely to sleep in that much), and while I've been moving slowly, I have paid my bills through the first third of this month, except for two that come out automatically, and I've added that in my cheque register. I'm still coughing and snotty, but I feel better. I'm going to go over to YKWIA's in a couple of hours and we'll do something together. I haven't taken the trash out because the rain has been pouring, although I think it has eased up a little. So I think my next thing to do is work on the book review that's due tomorrow. It's a text on managing electronic resources, so hopefully, it will be a good read. I also need to check the Kentucky library job list--I think there's a job closing tomorrow with the state. I'm going to try to work on the books after spending some time with my friend.

Hope you're having a great and happy Fourth of July.

So yesterday was a busy day

although I did put off a doctor's appointment, which would have made it busier, to assure that I would be at my library committee meeting on time and be prepared. Then at 1 pm I went out to donate blood, but the bloodmobile was not there. Apparently, they had a radiator leak and were delayed. I went back and worked on my data entry, finishing those for the day, and the OR reconciliation, and the referrals. At 2:45 or so, they announced that the bloodmobile had arrived, so I went out there, along with several other people. But unfortunately the stickers that they put on all the paperwork and the blood didn't make it onto the new bloodmobile, so someone was having to run it out from headquarters. So we waited, and waited. A few people went back inside, figuring they could go to the blood centre and make their donation instead. Those of us who waited were rewarded with T-shirts for our patience. Eventually someone arrived with the stickers, and they were up and running. Although I'd had the first appointment (I'd been the first to sign up), I let several people go ahead of me because they were getting off work earlier than I. But eventually I made it in there, filled out the paperwork. (They ask women if they've ever been pregnant now. I'm not sure why.) And yes, they've included questions referring to Zika. Fortunately my iron was up high enough and everything else looked good, and I was able to donate. About 3 out of the 11 who came out had low iron and couldn't. My iron was low at the doctor's office six months ago, so they put me on iron supplements, yay. It was my 43rd pint, and five more will make 6 gallons, which seems like a lot, but I've been donating since I was 17, and usually donate twice a year, and I could do it more often, and probably should. While I don't donate for the incentives, in addition to the T-shirt, they gave everyone who donated a $10 gift card to Wal-Mart. Yes, I know, it is the Evil Empire, but I also have $0.33 in my bank account, and the one in Hamburg has a gas station, so I earmarked it for that. We also got a voucher for a free meal in the cafeteria. The woman running it from our end had a list of our names with numbers in front of them, and asked an employee to choose a number, and mine was chosen, so I won an additional $25 gift card to Wal-Mart. It's not the first time I've won; we don't usually have a huge turnout, so the odds are high. But it was very timely, and even though I do not normally shop at Wal-Mart, that $25 meant some food and more gas.

Today after work (yay, I'm off for four days!) I went and got my allergy shots and then dropped something off at YKWIA's and wound up keeping him company while he cooked, helped him clean up, fed the animals (one of whom bounced on my foot as I arrived, cutting my toe with her nail), cut his hair, and then helped get the kinks out of his back. We also watched an episode each of 'Grace Under Fire' and 'Hot in Cleveland'. He rewarded me with food. Then I stopped by Wal-Mart and got $17.10 worth of food. Considering how much they go on about low prices, I think Kroger has much better ones. I mean, really, 25 cents per banana?

This weekend's agenda:

1. Saturday: Take a friend to the pharmacy, to an appointment, pick him and another friend up, take them to the store. Do some cooking and housecleaning at my house.
2. Sunday: No plans as of right now, beyond normal housecleaning at my friend's house.
3. Monday: Clean house, see if a friend will help me with the mattress and box springs so I can re-attach that strut, and then watch the fireworks that night.
4. Tuesday: Not exactly the weekend, but I'm off for two doctors' appointments, and I'll go get my allergy shots, too.

Okay, I got some Breyer's Girl Scouts Samoas ice cream, and ate far too much of it. I've made myself a little ill. I'm going to go work some of it off. Good night! Oh, and PS, Happy Canada day to those of you north of the our border! YKWIA and I listened to a lovely version of 'O, Canada' in French earlier. It was quite lovely:



and en Anglais:

I just got back from the fireworks

They were a lot of fun. I'd been working on the game notes for two-and-a-half hours when I took a break, grabbed some Taco Bell (I went in, although I was getting take out, and got behind a very large family). Then I headed over to the hospital with my blanket, my dinner, and my badge (to get to park in our parking lot rather than along the road). I was seated by a family with a young girl who was terrified of bugs, including lightning bugs, despite my reassurances that they would not harm her, and that lightning bugs are friendly bugs like ladybugs. She was spastically looking for them all around. She asked me what the Fourth of July was about, and I told her. She thought Abraham Lincoln was our first president, and I gently dissuaded her of this. (I'd say she was maybe in first grade, or about to be.) Her grandmother got a call before the fireworks began, and I gather they had to go pick someone up, but she waited until about halfway through the show to make them all pick up their stuff and leave, and they'd really been into it. If they'd waited about 10 minutes, it would have been over, but instead she just kind of yanked them out of there. I felt sorry for them. There was also a toddler who kept running up to me. :) For all that I'm not really much for kids, there is a certain tendency among toddlers to about three years old to just run up to me and hug me. On the other side of me were a bunch of teenage boys, at least one whom let go of some fireworks (they're not allowed, but I did see a lot of sparklers, but this was full on firecrackers or something similar). Fortunately, they settled down during the show, although someone nearby was smoking a cigar, which was a problem for me. But I didn't let it bother me. There at the end I was having trouble with those brown scarab-like beetles you see so much of at night around here, crawling on me and my hair. I'd thought I'd gotten it off me. But after the show (and it was a nice display), I went out the back, carefully, as people were not using good sense in how they were walking, and then went to the Chinoe Kroger for a few things, including game snacks. I went through the store, to the bathroom, back out to the car, got home unloaded everything, and wouldn't you know the scarab flew off my hair as soon as I turned on the bedroom light and played around it for awhile. I'm not sure where it is, now.

Okay, I still have a lot to do on the game notes. I started them early enough, but we actually went right into the game last week without chatter and pretty much I've had to go ahead and put almost all of what's recorded in. It should ease up a bit now that I've reached the point where we defeated the warlocks in the department store, but I've got at least 3 1/2 hours of recording left, so maybe two hours left of transcribing. :( So I'd better go back to that. Happy Fourth of July, though! I hope those of you out there who celebrate had a really good time, and a safe one!

Happy Fourth of July!

We are thrilled, proud, and pretty much forced to present a special Independence Day message from Sam Eagle:

Posted by The Muppets on Friday, July 3, 2015

I feel like I wasted most of my day off

I spent much of it in bed. When I wasn't in bed, I was blogging or on Facebook, or some other Internet site. I didn't take a shower, didn't take any of my medication, which is unlike me. I did finally take a nice, relaxing bath just now, and got into clean comfy clothes. I did finally hear back from my friend regarding our project; we're going to do it Wednesday between my appointments.

I would like to say that I didn't feel like getting involved in anything I might have to interrupt while I was waiting for that call, but that's not it. Part of it is the 'when I'm alone I sleep' thing. But mostly, I just didn't feel like doing much of anything today. I find it relaxing to play on social media and blog. All the while I beat myself up for not accomplishing anything, but I think my body just said, wait, it's your day off, get some rest.

I have tomorrow free from my normal responsibilities as well. I may go to the festival for a bit, time it around an hour before the parade, so that I'm not spending all day there. That leaves the morning for doing some of the things I felt I should have done today--cleaning house, going over my bills, doing game notes, enjoying watching something [I would like to watch Galaxy Quest, as it's fun, and it's streaming on Netflix]. Then, after the parade ends (around 4 pm), I can either come home and do some more stuff, maybe get in the pool if we're rain/thunderstorm free (it never worked out today with the weather the way it was). Then I'll head over to the fireworks that evening. I'll check up on my friends, at some point, and call my mom and see how she is doing. So it should be a pretty full day, unlike today. Maybe I just needed a day to do nothing. I didn't even putz, really, just slept, ate a little, and played on the computer. I don't relax as well as I used to. I used to read, or listen to music, or watch something. Somewhere along the way I got used to relaxing with other people involved, and lost the ability to keep myself occupied. So tomorrow I'm going to work on that.

This had me in stitches

But seriously, make sure your pets are secure. They get scared and go under fences, get out, whatever, and we always see a spike of lost pets on the local Facebook pages for reuniting lost pets with their owners, and I think it's the number one day for pet loss.

Dogs Raise Firework Threat Level To ‘Gray' (the accompanying graphic is great!)

There's also this, from The Onion: Nation’s Dogs Vow To Keep Their Shit Together During 4th Of July Fireworks

I spent awhile last night with a small black and white dog pressed against my under my legs for comfort while the fireworks went off.

I need caffeine

So, I slept till 10:45 am today after getting to sleep about 12:30 am. But still, a good amount of sleep. I got up, ate the last two breakfast sandwiches I had, and called my friends to see if I needed to come over at some point today for a project that we need to do together. I investigated it a little, and we could either order something online and it will take it up to a month to get here, or I could take him to another city in the state and get it within a couple of hours, and I'm off a day next week and could do it in between my two doctors' appointments, I think. It was all gloomy outside, and I hadn't heard back from them, so I went back to bed until A called me at about 1:45. I told him the options, and he'll get them to my other friend, who also asleep, as he'd had insomnia last night. So I decided I wasn't getting much of anything done, so I'd go in search of caffeine and also check the pool out.

The Coke machine in the laundry room was out of Diet anything, and since I had locked the apartment already and was unshowered and in just an old shirt and shorts, but otherwise presentable, I drove up to the Circle K nearby and got a couple of Diet Sunkist drinks and some ice. It should jump start me somewhat.

The pool was deserted. It's cloudy, and not as warm and muggy as I thought it was. The sun keeps trying to peek out, but fails for more than a few minutes, so I haven't decided on the pool. It's only 76 degrees and there are scattered showers popping up all over the radar map around us. In fact, all of the weather applications on my phone report rain for Lexington at the moment, so it may be raining nearby. Maybe later this afternoon.

With the Fourth on a Saturday, it's a little interesting. I'm off work. City offices, trash pickup, etc., are off. I've seen the mail run (I guess they'll be off tomorrow) and FedEx come by. [Yay, this moment, the sun totally broke through the clouds, although I don't know how long that will last!] I'm assuming the banks are on holiday today and tomorrow, as at least two people I know got paid early. [And now I hear thunder. :(]

A said he looked at the weather and while tomorrow may be cloudy, the chance of rain is highest after midnight, so the festivals, cookouts, and fireworks may just go off as planned. I usually go to the Festival downtown, and watch the parade (we're the only ones they allow, with our badges as proof). I'm not sure if I'll do that this year, as it depends on the weather, what my other activities are, and the like. But I definitely want to go watch the Idle Hour fireworks, and I can park at the hospital I work at and then just spread a blanket on the front lawn to watch.

Okay, I've had a couple of glasses of soda. I think it's beginning to kick in. The sun is still shining, and I can hear cicadas. A butterfly just went by the window. It might turn out to be a nice day after all.

I had a very nice Fourth of July

I:
• Slept in.
• Visited with three friends.
• Watched 12 Years a Slave with one of them, which was a very good movie, although somewhat difficult to watch, but underscored the fragility of freedom for the day.
• Did a small grocery run.
• Listened to music.
• Had a brief nap.
• Watched the fireworks at Idle Hour, which were awesome, especially with the running commentary by my co-worker's grandchildren. At one point someone briefly lost a child in the crowd and the police and firefighters came, and her grandson was sure we'd all be arrested.

What I didn't do was go to the parade/downtown festival, which is a shame, but with my knee the way it is, it makes no sense to walk on it all over creation. Let's face it, pain isn't fun. I was really looking forward to it, too, and the weather was lovely today--cooler without a hint of rain.

I checked in on TvTag (formerly GetGlue) after the movie and someone said 'it was very true to the novel'. It wasn't based on a work of fiction, but rather on a 19th-century memoir/slave narrative of a free man who went through the harrowing experience of being kidnapped and sold into slavery. My friend didn't know it was a true story either, and I think my telling him made it somewhat harder for him to watch. I must say the acting was very good. I particularly think Chiwetel Ejiofor did an excellent job as Solomon Northrup. Personally, I am surprised he did not win the Oscar for his performance, but then I haven't seen Dallas Buyers Club, so I haven't seen Matthew McConaughey's performance. Michael Fassbender was very good as Epps, and Lupita Nyong'o was very good as Patsey. But I thought Ejiofor really was the best. I am glad the film won the Academy Award for Best Picture, at least. I would like to read the book, Twelve Years a Slave, which I have on my Kindle but haven't gotten to yet.

Well, the fireworks are still going off outside in my neighbourhood. There's a dog upstairs that has quieted down. I hope my friends' dogs are doing okay. Two don't really mind the sounds, but one just gets terrified and will stay under one's desk at his feet. But they used to have neighbours who set them off next door and they moved some time ago, so maybe it won't be so bad.

By the way, remember the show 'Vicious' I was writing about? I did get to see the first episode (that's all that's aired on PBS as of yet). It is very funny. It comes on the same time as 'Salem', which has two more episodes, but fortunately you can watch on the PBS website as well.

Okay, I think I'm going to start winding down for the night. It's almost midnight. I might play a little on the Atari before bed. :)

Got the results of the MRI today

And it wasn't good. My medial meniscus is, to use the surgeon's term, 'shredded'. It will not get better with time or physical therapy according to him. Plus, I do have some arthritis. He said that if I were older he'd recommend a knee replacement, and that may be down the road anyway. But he definitely wants to do an arthroscopic partial meniscectomy. So we've gone ahead and scheduled that, with the proviso that I can find someone to drive me there and home. The surgeon's going out of the country for a bit, so it'll be near the end of the month. The idea, barring complications, is that I should be able to have the surgery on Friday, recover over the weekend, and drive by Monday or Tuesday, so long as I'm not on any narcotics, and most people take those for only about 72 hours, according to the nurse educator there. I'm usually very sparing with those anyway, and normally don't go through the full prescription, so here's hoping I'll be fine and driving and not miss work. I shouldn't have to have a walker or such, and hopefully the three steps that were so much trouble after my ankle surgery won't be an issue, as I can be weight-bearing as soon as I can tolerate it. Here is a video that demonstrates what they basically do:



I'm going to double check with our agent, but I think I basically shot myself in the foot (figuratively) with AFLAC, because when I went down on the floor to do the cleaning in May, I did twist some and immediately had pain, so that was what did it, but I thought maybe I'd just sprained my knee a little, and was able to walk, so I didn't seek medical attention via the emergency room or even my regular physician when the week began until it was obvious it wasn't getting any better. I think there's a time limit, something like 72 hours, to do so. I injured myself on May 17th and didn't go to the doctor until June 10th and the specialist till June 24th. So even though I have an injury that would normally be covered, has resulted in an MRI and will need surgery, I don't think I meet the requirements due to the time limit. Drat. But I'll double check to be sure. And my hospital coverage doesn't kick in because this will be done in an ambulatory surgical centre. Oh, well. It would have been nice. This is exactly why I pay premiums each pay period.

Okay, even though I just got home a little while ago and finally ate dinner, I'm going to go on to bed. A friend has an appointment tomorrow and I have to get him there by 7 am. He is not a morning person, so I'm going to go over around 6 am (meaning I should get up by 5 am) and hopefully help him get going. The nice thing is then I'll go into work, put in a full day, and I'm off both Friday, the Fourth of July, and Monday, so it'll be a four-day weekend. That's all the vacation I can manage, especially with the surgery coming up, but it's something. Unfortunately, the knee issue is going to keep me from going downtown to the Fourth of July festival during the day Friday, but I'll head over to the hospital where I work to watch the fireworks from the country club across the street that evening. We can park in our parking lot with our badges, rather than out on the street, and the front lawn is a great place to catch the fireworks. The weather is supposed to be great, with no chance of rain and cooler than the heat we've been having.

So the quiet night at home didn't quite work out, but I had a good time

I laid down for a nap, was half asleep, when a friend called asking me to bring some food over (they don't have a car, and don't drive). It was only after I called in the order and really woke up that I realised that they could have just had the Chinese restaurant they wanted it from delivered. A never thought about it, and YKWIA did, but was amused that I didn't think to just tell A that. At least I can blame it on being sleepy and tell myself they wanted the pleasure of my company. But I did get a small kung pao tofu that was really good (I'd already had some corn before they called), and YKWIA and I watched several episodes of 'Better Off Ted' and had a great time together. We also checked on a friend who'd had some surgery last week and is thankfully feeling better. It looks like we'll be playing the game Sunday. Now I'm (back) home, texting with Brandon and winding down for the night. Rain or shine, tomorrow I'm going to try to sleep in and not set an alarm. Some people over here in my neighbourhood are setting off early fireworks (I guess they're not sure they'll be able to tomorrow), but it's not too noisy.

I saw some revised hours for the High Street YMCA on Facebook a few minutes ago. Now they're open 7 am-6 pm, and are letting the runners from the Bluegrass 10K (which takes place near them, downtown) use their showers after the race. That's nice.

I hope you have a very safe and happy Independence Day (at least for those of you in the States). Good night.

Ah, home--and a holiday tomorrow

So, I made it home, despite witnessing a near-accident that could have been very bad. A huge, rusting old motor home failed to yield as it turned onto New Circle Road from Richmond Road, and the cars coming from the other side had the green light. A yellow car nearly got forced into the hill that anchors the overpass, and they were side-by-side for several seconds, before the yellow car managed to get ahead of the mobile home. There were at least seven cars behind them, too, so it could have led to a very bad pileup. Fortunately I was on Richmond Road, stopped in traffic, and was in no danger, but it was still a little scary.

There's no telling yet whether Fourth of July will be great or fizzle. The weather forecast isn't looking good. I'll call security at work tomorrow afternoon to see if a decision has been made about the fireworks. If they're rained out, they'll be postponed to Sunday night, when I may or may not be able to go. But even if the festival and fireworks fizzle due to rain, there are plenty of things I can do inside as well. Besides the festival and fireworks, here are a few things I'd like to do over the next few days:

1. Go to the YMCA. Once would be at least a good start. More than once would be ideal.
2. See Despicable Me 2. I do love the Minions, and now they have a girl Minion and anti-Minions.
3. Watch 'Downton Abbey' episodes, at least through season one.
4. Watch 'Grimm' on Amazon Prime through the Roku box. I have season two recorded on the DVR, but haven't seen many from season one, either.
5. Maybe get into the complex pool, if the weather cooperates.

Plus, there are things to do around the house, including hand-washable laundry, dishes, the dining table needs to be excavated, and a few little things to upkeep the place and make sure I'm not getting messy.

My plan, at this moment, is to have a quiet night at home. In honour of the anniversary of his birth, I got a Kindle version of a Franz Kafka collection, which includes all of his stories, including 'The Metamorphosis', but not including the novels, such as The Trial. I might read some of that tonight. There are many I haven't read before.

Okay, let me put up my plate and flatware. I had some corn on the cob from the farmer's market, and it was very nummy.

Face Palm

Brandon and I were having a discussion via text about the weather forecast for the Fourth, and he pointed out that I could, even if it rained, finally go to the YMCA. It is open, I checked, so I really have no excuse. Well, maybe I'll get to spend some of the holiday at the pool, even if it's not in the sun. :-)

It looks like Independence Day may fizzle

as the forecast is for 100% rain and heavy storms. I hope things change in the interim, as I love the festival and the fireworks show. But if things don't go well, I have plenty to do around the house to keep me busy on my day off. But I would like to celebrate, even if it means standing on the porch with some sparklers I have in a drawer. It seems lately it's either too hot and dry for fireworks, or it rains on the Fourth. Still, chin up.

I ate too many carbs today (baked potato, banana pudding, bread, yoghurt) and my blood sugar went through the roof this afternoon, so I took both insulins spaced apart somewhat, and together they got it down a bit. I need to watch overdoing it. I should have eaten just the yoghurt instead of the potato, and skipped the bread and pudding, or at least had one or the other, not all of it. Plus, the fish at lunch was tilapia with tortilla breading, the breading being more carbs, of course.

I went over to my friends' help to finish something I started Sunday, and YKWIA fell asleep on the couch to 'Reba' and A was in the bedroom when I left lying down and listening to 'Bewitched' (it had been 'Big Bang Theory' before that). So I went on home. I must admit, I'm a little tired. Last night I got to bed at 1 am, which is not terrible, but much less sleep than that to which I've grown accustomed. So it's maybe s little reading or listening to music, and then I think I'll turn in for the night.

Tomorrow will hopefully be pleasant, and then there's the holiday and weekend. Yay! No word if the game is on or not yet; that'll depend on Brenda, but I already have the notes ready, so no need to worry about that. :)

By the way, I got a call out of the blue from a friend who I used to work with. Her sister saved three kittens whose mother had been killed. They're tiny, and they haven't opened their eyes yet, so they're just a few days old. The vet gave her some formula to feed them, but she really can't do that long-term, having a pretty busy household to keep up with, and several pets already. I can't do it--they'd have to be fed about every four hours initially, from what I've read, and between work and all the running I do, I can't do that. Anyone out there in the Bluegrass able to do this? They are in Woodford County, and while I'm pretty sure their shelter is no kill, I'm not sure if they're set up for such tiny kittens, and they have a lot of cats already up for adoption. Let me know via the e-mail link to the left or comment on this post if you know someone (either a person or rescue group) out there that might be able to foster them, or have some sort of constructive suggestion. Poor things!

So glad the weekend's here

I'm up briefly. I fell asleep by about 9 pm, mainly because the week has been long and tiring, although I have gotten plenty of rest, really. The afternoon was odd, as I went by the pharmacy, got one friend's medicine, delivered it, came home, another friend called asking if I could bring over food, so I did (Texas Roadhouse salmon!), but the other friend wasn't home yet, so of course when I got over there with the food he called and said he was getting off in a half an hour, pretty late at work, and of course, it would take a long time to get home on the bus, so I went ahead and ate with my other friend, got the other afterwards, and then he ate while we spent some time in their library at the computer talking. Meanwhile another friend texted me as he didn't hear from me last night (I fell asleep so early). So much running about was to be had, but friendships are doing better. Yay!

I'm getting a farmer's tan on my arms, especially where I'm driving this summer. I really must learn to put on sunscreen even when I'm not 'out' in the sun. I'm quite pink, even on the back of my neck (since I no longer have hair to cover it), and that's all from just driving about.

Tomorrow, the plan is to get up, get my rent from the bank and some money for the farmer's market, go to said farmer's market (really, this time; it will at least be less muggy and cooler), and maybe go to our pool at the complex for a little while (assuming I can get sunscreen on my back). Tomorrow afternoon there's a big grocery run with a friend and game notes to do. Sunday is the game.

I'm looking forward to the short week next week. I plan to go to our downtown Fourth of July festival as usual on Thursday, and then go to the fireworks at the Idle Hour Golf Course. I'm lucky that because I work right across the street, I can go see it from the front lawn and park with my badge in the hospital parking lot. Yay! I hopefully will be able to take Friday off as well, as it will be dreadfully slow at work that day otherwise. A four-day weekend sounds lovely. Too bad my friend A couldn't swing it; we could have gone somewhere, maybe. I also want to see the movie 'Despicable Me 2'. I loved the first one, and I'm looking forward to seeing the sequel. That's coming out next weekend. I think I still have a free admission ticket for Cinemark that was given to us as an employee gift last year (well, we had two, but I used one last year for Hunger Games. Speaking of that, in one weekend in November, Catching Fire, the 50th Anniversary 'Doctor Who' programme, and the return of 'Sherlock' all happen, although I'm not sure if that's just on the other side of the pond or here as well. :) That'll be a busy weekend if the dates are the same for here!

Okay, I think I'll go on back to sleep so I can get up early and get some things done. Have a good night!

Sorry I haven't posted

Tuesday night I fell asleep rather early. Today I went to the downtown Fourth of July festival and met up with Brandon and his family for the parade. Then they took me over to the house of some other friends and I watched a couple of things, including 'The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency', which was very good, and an episode of Kim Possible, which was fun. I wish all our archenemeses in the game could be like Dr Drakken. Although thank goodness we don't have Señor Senior Senior's spinning tops of doom.

Then I helped with a couple of things on the computer and Brandon and family picked me up and we went to the fireworks over where I work. It was a nice 30-minute display at the Idle Hour Country Club, which is across from the hospital where I work. The hospital has this huge front lawn where people congregate and watch the fireworks.

I did tell someone that fireworks were not allowed on the hospital property, or for that matter anywhere in Lexington, with the ban on personal fireworks still in force. She was like, 'Oh, I didn't realise those were fireworks.' Let's see, one-foot long sparkler thingies putting out lots of sparks onto dry grass, and this seemed like a good idea?

The crowd was pretty good overall. A dog got away from his owners at one point and they were chasing them down. Someone brought their pot-bellied pig, and was carrying it as it snorted away. A lot of people came down to watch, more I think than last time I was there. There were even cars parked on the median of Richmond Road. We could park in our hospital parking lot thanks to my badge. :)

Thanks to Brandon and Angenette for all the ferrying they did today, and to their family for letting them borrow a car for the holiday. I wasn't looking forward to trying to catch a bus in all that mayhem, and the bus route didn't even run by their house since they were on a Sunday schedule. And I think the kids really liked the parade and the fireworks.

After I got home I took a shower and cleaned off all the sweat (it was a record high of 99 degrees today), sunblock, and maybe a couple of bugs (I flicked one of those big brown beetles off my shoulder when I got into the apartment building, before going into my apartment). Fortunately I don't seem burned. I bought a floppy mesh hat at Gabriel Brothers yesterday that I wore and put lots of sunscreen on myself, including spraying the back of my neck. After my shower I sat down to compose this, but wound up talking to a friend for about an hour and a half or more on the phone. So I'm just now posting.

Funny, despite the ban, quite a few people were lighting fireworks this evening, but it quieted down by the time the ordinance states. So they'll at least abide by the times even if shooting the fireworks during the ban means a $100 fine for a first offence plus more measures if it causes a fire with property or personal injury. Go figure.

I hope all my American readers had a good and safe Fourth of July. And, please remember, fireworks are not toys:

Fireworks Deck Explosion Injures 9 In N.H., 2 Toddlers Severely Injured

Well, it should be a little quieter this year

and my friends won't have to tranquilise their dog. :)

Officials ban use of common, consumer fireworks in Lexington

The public displays that have permits from the city will go on. Even with the little rain we got last night, it is simply too dry. I'm fine with it, I understand. I have some sparklers but had decided I wouldn't be using them because of how utterly brittle things are out there. I do plan (since LexTran has kindly expanded the holiday hours till the 11:20 pullout) to go over to the hospital I work at and watch the fireworks at Idle Hour Country Club that they put on every year. People come and sit on the hospital's front lawn (we have something like 23 acres around the building) and it's always a nice show. Then I can go home and actually get to sleep without hearing lots of late fireworks, since Thursday is a workday. :)

Had a good game

with the climax of an adventure set in ancient Carthage that involved strange satyr-like things that were thankfully straightforward to decapitate. We retrieved the shard of the Shining Trapezohedron, saved the innocents who were going to be sacrificed, and destroyed a cult of Shub-Niggurath. Not bad at all, and rather fun. Ah, to be a time-travelling ninja!

A storm blew in that did not knock out the lights where I was (although Brandon and his family lost power for a couple of hours), bringing much-needed rain. Let's hope it keeps raining throughout the night and over the next couple of days, at least part of the time, and then clears for Fourth of July.

Okay, we played until 11 pm, it's nearly midnight now, and I've been up since about 6:45 this morning. Good night, and hope you had a good weekend.