Well, I finally have an arrival time

 5:30 AM

Aghh! I didn't get a call because they were so slammed today after the holiday (I'm assuming everyone was breaking bones over the holiday; that is usually the case with us.) I called as per directions after 1 pm but couldn't get the scheduler, then was on hold for 25 minutes on the main line before asking to be called. I tried the scheduler, Cheryl, again and got her, and she apologised and gave me the time and apologised for the delay. A few minutes later I got a cal from the general phone bank following up on my other call.

I have to take a shower tonight and use the wipes, then do the wipes in the morning. And I'm going to get up early, make coffee so we can put it in a thermos for my roommate so he can function somewhat there. He plans to sleep in the waiting room. He is not happy, but I am one of a handful of people he would get up in the middle of what he would consider the night to this for.

I suspect I was added onto the beginning of the day's schedule, on a day that the surgeon was not going to be there, as I know that I'm the only case of his that day's, so I'm thinking given that it was a holiday weekend he may be coming back from  vacation a little early to do that or something like that, which I appreciate.

Our ride is coming at 5 am [Thank you, Brenda!] I have to drink 20 oz. of Gatorade at 4:30 am, but the surgery scheduler said it was so early that it was fine if I did it before bed. I figure between the wipes and the coffee I'll be getting up by 3:30 am anyway so it's no issue. 

The only things I have to do now other than that are finish my laundry, both clothes and bed clothes, pack my backpack,  make sure things are charged, and I think that's it. Everything else is ready. I know what I'm wearing. I have all the paperwork anyone might need ready. I think I'm good to go. I also think that while the first load  of clothes are drying that I am going to take a nap. :)

Okay

The ROMTech rep came mostly without a hitch [although she did accidentally bring another bike], with the excption of the escape artist dog, who managed to get through a mostly closed door (which goes in, so in theory, barricaded them in), plus a dog gate, just as she was coming through the door to greet her, but fortunately she was nonplussed by him, as he is very friendly and I kept him from jumping up more than the one attempt. She reset the program, and we talked a bit, and then she left. The nice thing is that now I don't have to get on the bike again until Friday.

I'd already made coffee and fed the animals, made my bed,  made my to-do list, gotten dressed, etc. I was hurting a bit, so I took my morning meds, including the Tylenol. I've already attempted to wake my roommate once, but it looks like I'll have to do it again. We need to do some bills before I go tomorrow. I need to do some laundry today: my clothes, my bedclothes, and anything he might have. I have PT as well. I'll need to water the plants. I didn't manage to do that last time, and they languished another week and a half while I recovered to the point I could. I need to get the walker out to a more accessible place. I called about a debt, and I need to update that file and print it for my friend so he has all the necessary contact numbers and information in case anything happens to me. Again, just being practical. Then that'll be done.

I'm feeling pretty rested. I'm not experiencing many tics. I don't feel very anxious, as confirmed by my watch. I think I've got this.

I had to remind myself that it's Saturday

I've been off since Tuesday after the accident.  I am glad I'm going back to work this Monday, though.  I was so happy when Dr Fine told me that I didn't need surgery that I cheered in the exam room.  See, the last time I broke an ankle (my right one), I got hit by a car on October 12, 2012, and didn't go back to work till January 2, 2013.  And I didn't even get to take a proper shower till December 13, 2012, because a stitch had popped up so it didn't completely heal as it should have immediately.  My doctor did tell me I could take a shower with this as there's no incision, but to use a shower chair, which I have with me. I've actually been putting a pillow on it and using it to prop up my ankle for icing.  I got a walker, a boot, and the chair out of my storage unit the other day because I was afraid I might need surgery or even might be put non-weight-bearing when I went to my appointment on Thursday.  I am so glad I went in a few months ago and brought them from the back of the storage unit to the front. But I didn't need the walker, at least, although the boot was useful, as I didn't need to get another, and my goal today is to use the shower chair and get one, as I'm tired of sink baths.

I'm also just taking it easy.  Saturdays I have a few chores I normally do, but I'm not going to today, although I do need to see if I can do just a little laundry. It isn't much, so it won't be heavy.  I think I can do it without pain.

Better

This is my last day off before returning to my normal schedule on Monday. I'm feeling much better, despite about four hours' sleep. I took my medicine right after I woke up, got some cereal, started the caffeination process, etc. So far I've done two loads of laundry, put two hampers of laundry away, made my bed sans sheets (I've got some on the way but the first lot got lost, so at the moment I only have one set of sheets and pillowcases and I plan to launder those, so in the meantime, the duvet and other pillows are on the bed hiding the mattress cover from curious kitties. I've also washed my hair, which always makes me feel better. I've made sure the table linens are ready for tonight, and the bread is ready, of course. I've been listening to music (Lewis Capaldi) while I've been working; I think now I'm going to read and maybe study for a bit.

Up

I won't say early, because compared to the weekdays I've actually slept in, getting up right at 9 am. But in the 30 minutes that I've been up, I've started a load of laundry, started a loaf of bread making in the bread machine, gone out to the car to get some Diet Sunkist from my car, nicely chilled, and am now caffeinating. It's why I drink the stuff--I don't care for colas that much, preferring fruit flavour, but it's the only orange soda I've found with caffeine. That said, I know soda, in general, is not so good for me, particularly with artificial sweeteners (Diet Sunkist uses aspartame). So I have been exploring other options. I don't care for coffee or black tea. I've tried Mio Energy and Crystal Light Energy but they are artificially sweetened as well. So I'm still looking. And yes, I like water, but I need a little caffeine to get through the day or I'm like a zombie.

Also since getting up, I've also taken my insulin and Byetta (but not the oral meds yet--I'm at the end of my pill container and need to fill it up. I need caffeine before I do that, or I tend to put them in the wrong slot or even drop them, which is not good when you have cats, particularly a kitten, who is fascinated by all sorts of things dropping to the floor.

I did splurge just a bit yesterday, buying a Kindle book of a regular book that I have out from the library. It is called Orchid Modern: Living & Designing with the World's Most Elegant Houseplants By Marc Hachadourian, the curator of the Orchid Collection at the New York Botanical Garden. It's a lovely book, dealing with the history of orchid collecting, the different species, plant care, creating decorative projects like terrariums, creating a good environment for the orchids, etc., all in one substantial book and generously and beautifully illustrated. I really liked looking through it, but when it came to reading--and he has a good writing style--I found I was impeded by the relatively small typescript, no doubt small to leave room for the lovely pictures of orchids. So I got the Kindle book because while on my e-reader it would have been wasted, I normally read my books on my tablet now (which is not a Fire, but I use the Kindle application on an Android tablet. I say splurge because it was $10.99 and I don't have much money, and I am trying to get tyres soon. But it is such a lovely book. What can I say, orchids have a long history of causing mania, why should books about them be any different? Anyway, this way I can increase the text size to see what I'm reading. My glasses do correct to 20/20 both in general and with the bifocal, but the small print is still harder to focus upon. This, I think, is the most useful quality of e-books, that they can be manipulated in terms of settings so that anyone can read them who would normally have issues due to age or disability, and most books, particularly non-fiction ones, are not given Large Print editions. Also, you can blow-up images when needed on the tablet, something that the Kindle e-reader does not do hardly at all. Incidentally, I used to keep my Chrome settings at 95% and I knocked up the text and the rest up to a little above 100%. It helps immensely. No sense in getting eyestrain. I think the presbyopia is part of my hiatus from enjoying reading, so anything I can do to read more books is worth it. And I can also read on my laptop, which is a low-end 2-in-1 that folds back to be a very large tablet-like screen when you change to tablet mode and I have the Kindle application on it, as well.

Alright, I'm going to go get some breakfast. I'll probably write some more before I start my Sunday chores proper (although laundry is something I do on Sunday, that's for me, not the household, generally).

It's very quiet in the house

Just the sounds of my fans going above my head and nearby. We finally have some relief to the heat (it's been in the 90s with little to no rain for weeks), with rain in the forecast tomorrow, but I'm hot-natured, so even though it's in the 70s now both inside and out, I keep the fans on in my room whenever I'm there. But the quiet is nice. Sometimes it's good to only hear your own thoughts.

Today  I did many things but I did not go to the YMCA and do exercises in the pool like I meant to.  I haven't given up, I just had a lot to do today.  But I did have some time to myself and some relaxation time, as well as game notes and laundry and errands.

I went to the pharmacy today to get my roommate some medicine and see if they had my Lantus, as I started on my last pen of the pack.  Turns out they'd sent a request to my doctor's office for a refill and it had been denied.  The reason? They said they had never prescribed it.

Now, I have been on Lantus for a couple of years, Basaglar before that for a short time when it was on my insurance's formulary, and years of Lantus prior to that, including quite some time of it from this office, continuously up till this past month.  So obviously there has been a mistake. I'll have to call them on Monday.  I'm hoping I have enough to last me through Monday so we can get it taken care of, a pen only lasts a few days--I get 10 per refill, and they last about 3 days each.

On Habitica, the task/productivity 'game' I play, there was a reading challenge I took up to read a book called The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury.  Now I like Ray Bradbury, and it's actually a children's book, so I thought it would be good to read some fast-moving fiction. It's been such a struggle to read fiction (even non-fiction has its challenges), for several reasons.  For one thing, I think being on the Internet has made my attention span that of a gnat.  I've also apparently been a little off in how I use my bifocals, and it's hard for me to find a nice comfy place to read--I can't read in bed easily, and the comfy chairs are in the study (where my friend is often watching streaming stuff) or in his room.  Reading in bed requires lots of pillows, a folding lap desk, and a study pillow with a neck bolster.  I can read at the kitchen and study tables, when it is quiet, but the chairs are wooden and really need cushions after a while.  Still, I managed to read the whole book in a very short time, maybe an hour or an hour and a half (it's 145 pages long).  I enjoyed it--I knew all the various cultural ties to the practices of Halloween, but that was fine. And I'd figured out what happened to one of the characters.  I guess the only real thing I had a bit of an issue with it--not a lot, just a bit, were that there were no girls at all in the characters, and little to no character description or development, really.  But it is a product of 1972, and while Bradbury's writing deviates poetically from standard writing styles, he shares a common thread you find particularly in male writers of the time, and especially in science fiction writers, somewhat tilted towards action and away from characterization.  (Women, by contrast, tend to over-describe and have a lot of emoting going without driving the action forward at all)--a good writer balances both.  Still, his description of the settings and experiences are very good, and this story actually needs somewhat blank characters, as they represent certain timeframes of history in their costumes and with the exception of the one character from whose perspective the story is told,  there's no real personality among the children, and I guess there really doesn't need to be.  Anyway, I did enjoy the story, and it was a little chilling there at the end, so suitably Halloweenesque.

Later, we ate dinner from Subway with a friend, who had a couple of Pierce Brosnan 007 movies on, and then we returned home and I took up finishing the laundry.  I've done my clothes and I'm working on my friend's bedding right now. I'm going to do mine tomorrow.

Tomorrow I think I'll try to get up early.  I was supposed to do a couple of shelves, pulling off the books and dusting them.  I didn't, but I can today.  I did do the game notes, which were more timely.  If I could get that and my normal Sunday pre-game chores are done really early, I might still be able to go to the Y and do some exercises in the pool and work out in general for maybe an hour, total.  Then Monday I can go back for the low-impact pool class that I took this past week.  I did really well with everything (and have been in much less pain and been able to move and bend better as a result) except this thing where you put the foam dumbbells under your knees and then balance above them.  I need something to hold on and even so couldn't do it.  The instructor suggested getting a lighter pair of dumbbells (I had the heavy ones) next time.  People were really nice and non-judgmental, though, and I enjoyed it.  The instructor was very good.  We ended with a mindfulness exercise.  So it starts out easy, gets the heart pumping, puts you through all sorts of movement, but it isn't extremely intense--just right for my level of conditioning.

I  also need to run by the library while they're open and pick up a book on hold on the zero-waste home--I've been on the list for a while.  It must have been there when I picked up The Halloween Tree earlier, but I didn't realise it was in, so I didn't look.  I also checked out CDs by Sam Smith and Rush.

Okay, I'm going to get ready for bed.  The laundry's still in the dryer, but at least I'll have my teeth brushed, etc.  Hope you're having a good weekend.

Happy new year!

Sorry, I wrote that and then was drawn away to mince onions, which means I have now retreated to the safety of the computer away from sulphurous compounds that irritate eyes and nose.  The last thing on my list of things to do while off is to back up the computers, so I'm backing up the desktop and blogging on the laptop.

I have been off since Friday and I've mostly either run some errands or relaxed, visited friends, etc.  Last night was a very quiet New Year's Eve.  We visited a friend who got us all Subway sandwiches, and then I hung out with the cats and watched the ball drop and YKWIA spoke on the phone with a friend in the Chicago area.

The following new year's resolutions are on track:

1. Reducing soda intake.  I drink way too much diet soda.  I'm going to limit it and try to transition to some coffee.  I did drink one today, but considering on the weekends I've been drinking two 2-litres and some days at work I have five out of the machine, I definitely need to work on this, both from a health standpoint and money one.  So I'm going to try to limit it to one a day, then taper off to coffee, and then taper that further over time.
2. Blogging!  No more waiting two weeks or a month between posts.  Granted I was sick a good portion of last month, but my blogging was pathetic.  I'd like this blog to flourish, and it really hasn't been of late.
3. Watching my blood sugar better--testing, taking medicine, and not eating so much out of the snack machines.  I did take all my medicine correctly earlier, but this will really get tested at work.

Today I have:

1. Done my friend's laundry.
2. Done all the dishes.
3. Made bread (in progress).
4. Backed up the computers (in progress).
5. Gone to Kroger (three times), once for sweetener, once for bread yeast, and now I'm going for a zucchini.
6. Bought a MegaMillions ticket.
7. Ordered a game for a friend who gave me his Amazon gift cards to do so (he doesn't have a computer, but he does have an Xbox One S, and I checked to make sure this Xbox 360 game, which is older, should work).

Well, I think I'm going to get wrangled further into cooking, as I've been interrupted about four times just writing this post.  But hopefully 2019 will be a better year all around and I'll have more to say about it than 2018.  I'm going to go now; I'll try to write later.

I finished the normal

Sunday chores, but it took about 45 minutes of lying under the ceiling fans to recover. Now I'm going to work on the shelves (which is technically a Saturday chore). The only other things on my list are to take some library books back, buy some glucose tablets, and get a birthday card for a co-worker. Oh, and of course laundry goes on for awhile, so I'll finish that tonight. My first load is still in the dryer. There's a second. I also have to wash the mopheads, the blanket the cat threw up on the other day, and YKWIA's laundry. I've been listening to Pandora all morning, mainly the 3 Doors Down station.  YKWIA has mainly had quiet time.  No game today because Brenda is celebrating Father's Day with her husband (I know, Father's Day is next weekend; either she is celebrating early or they made a mistake, but regardless we had a break from the game this week, so I didn't have to do notes, although we should be good to go for next week).

It is a pleasant morning

I am almost ready to begin my chores, which I'm dreading a bit because the air conditioning is not working.  So we have the windows open and it's 77 degrees right now inside and perfectly fine under the ceiling fan at the moment, but that's going to change, as it'll be pushing 90 this afternoon.

I awoke to birds chirping and plenty of sunshine coming through my windows.  I've had a shower and am in the minimum acceptable clothes (denim shorts and a light blouse I usually wear a tank top under but I'm choosing to forego that today, as there are solid panels in all the important places).

As my agenda states, I have a full day planned.  I want to get my hair cut; it's atrocious and it's been more than six months.  I'm thinking of a short layered bob.  Also, a friend who is homebound right now with cancer asked me to pick out a hanging basket of petunias for his mom yesterday for Mother's Day, so I did so and will deliver it when they're up and ready, around noon.

There's the normal Sunday chores to do, laundry (mine and YKIWA's, and that includes his bedding), and helping him apply for a part-time job at the public library and applying for two jobs at the University of Kentucky for me.  One of them was the one, reposted, that I terribly flubbed the phone interview on last year.  I'm hoping they'll give me another chance.  I'd tried to do it on my lunch break surrounded by distractions, and it didn't go well.  But it is in my field of health science librarianship, I would do a good job, and I'm very qualified.  I'm just terrified of interviews, at least ones that are by committee.  I do fine one-on-one, and can teach one-on-one, in small groups, and larger ones.  But being grilled by 3-5 people, whether on the phone or in person, flummoxes me.  This is ultimately why I didn't finish my graduate studies in ancient, mediaeval, and early modern history.  Thank goodness the library science master's degree didn't require an oral defence.  But I am going to apply again anyway.  The other one I may get dinged on because I haven't been in an academic library setting in some time, and while I was trained by the best for the job, I don't have a lot of professional-level experience in aspects of it.  Again, I can do the job, and I think I would be good at it, but it would mean changing things back to what I trained for rather than what I've been doing for 20 years.  But I'm up for it.

Okay, the cat boxes aren't going to clean themselves.  One more review of the timeline/agenda, and I'm ready to go.  Have a great day, including a great Mother's Day (I'm a little sad this year, as I have neither mother nor grandmother to give flowers to and spend time with).  So I'll try to use this opportunity to get some things accomplished.

Thunderstorm!

Brenda left just a little while ago and I fed the dogs, let them out, and then let them back in within a much smaller timeframe than usual as it was very dark and gloomy, much different from the mild, sunshine-full day we'd had so far.  Now the thunder, lightning, and rain have really started, so I'm glad they've come inside.

We didn't wind up playing the game.  We did go to the Indian restaurant Masala, over in Beaumont, to celebrate a belated birthday for me and something else that is a bit private, but let's say was a long time coming (really, and that's why the celebration was belated) but represents a very, very good turning point in one of our lives.

We stopped by our friend's house to say hello (Brenda had not seen him in quite a while), and then came back to play the game, but we wound up watching Batman: Gotham by Gaslight instead, which we have out from Netflix.  It was fun.

I'm working on laundry.  I've almost finished YKWIA's, and I have started on mine.  I don't think I'll get to the bedclothes today after all.  But I did the cat boxes, took out all the trash and recyclables, and cleaned the bathroom.  We knew it was going to rain later, so I didn't touch the tile, as it was just going to get muddy tonight.

It is so humid! YKWIA opened a couple of windows in the living room/study, but while there's a breeze it's not really making it in here, although the cat, satiated from his meal, is happily watching out the window.  I'm sweating and considering going into my room/the library to put the ceiling fans on. I've had quite a bit of caffeine today, so I'm not really sleepy or anything, just hot.

Okay, I should go check the dryer.  Have a good night.  I may write more, but for now I'm signing off.

I'm pooped, and it isn't even game time

Today I've:

1. Laundered my bedding and clothes
2. Changed out the spring and winter clothes, put spring clothes away, packed up the winter ones, and prepared to take them to storage
3. Swept and mopped the floors
4. Cleaned the bathroom
5. Taken out the trash and recyclables
6. Cleaned the cat boxes
7. Started a loaf of bread

Yesterday I cleaned a very dirty shelf with magazines and did YKWIA's laundry, and that was enough to make my back hurt quite a bit, so I laid down for awhile while he helped a friend out at his house who is battling cancer.  They called me to go get Subway and we all ate and visited, then we got home about 8:30 pm.  I think we were both done in by midnight (he's been over several days in a row and took the bus out Friday, getting lost on the walk over there, and probably walked four miles back and forth until he found it), and we .were up by 7:30 am.  I have no real reason to be as tired as I've felt lately.  I've done some housework and of course, I worked at the medical centre, but still, I'm just tired all the time.  I've been up doing my stuff and listening to shows he's watching (he finished the 'Almost Human' DVDs and we watched a couple of episodes of 'Up the Women'.  I unplugged my tablet, which has been on the charger for two days and really needed to be unplugged and just turned off.  He's got a lot of documents to transfer to it and we're going to see if there's enough room once I cleaned my stuff off of the microSD card.  There's not much on it, now, just some basic applications and one from Adobe for reading PDFs and one for reading Word files.  That should suffice for him.  I haven't used my old tablet for some time.  I'm not sure it'll have the processing speed he'll need, but it's worth a try since neither of us can afford a newer tablet or laptop right now.

Today I'm looking forward to the game.  I'm kind of grungy and should go ahead and take a shower, but I'm just not up to it.  I'd like to lie down for awhile, but the bed hasn't been made yet.   I just feel a mess today. 

My strawberry plant that Brenda gave me is back outside after being brought in for a frost advisory last night, and it has two ripe strawberries and one that is turning on it.  I have lost three smallish African violets recently, including the two pink ones in the bathroom and a purple one in the bedroom.  I'm not sure what happened; they got puny and I tried to save them, but it was a no go.  On the other hand, one of the orchids has grown a new leaf and I have two that are getting ready to re-bloom.  Maybe orchids are more my thing, although I've had no problem with violets before.  The window seat in YKWIA's room is lush with shamrocks, an umbrella tree I just repotted, dumb cane, and philodendrons.  They love that window:

So overall, the plants are doing well.  Also, the orchid at work is putting out new shoots and buds.  I separated the stems out to give them more room:

It's the same colour as part of my mousepad, my pen holder, and my water cup, so it's coordinated to the checkout bay. :)  What can I say, I like it when things match.

Okay, I'm going to go check on the last of the laundry.  I realised I started the bread while still running the dryer (the bread machine is on the washer, as that's a good place for it usually when I'm not washing, as it has a tendency to 'walk' as it mixes, which is apparently supposed to happen, according to the manual.  But the vibration isn't good for rising bread.  I don't want to mess up this loaf.  I'm experimenting with all-purpose rather than bread flour, as I'm low on the other.  But the other day I forgot to put the yeast in until 30 minutes into the cycle.  While it was edible and looked fine, it was chewier than usual.  I can't believe I did that.  I was washing dishes and remembered suddenly, doing what I could to fix things.  It wasn't bad, but not ideal.  Hopefully, this one will come out fine; I definitely put all the ingredients in. :)

I'm rarely home without YKWIA

But he decided he wanted to do some things for our friend alone and just needed me to take him there, so I came home.  I've got several chores to do today, so it made sense.  I made a quick stop for cereal at the store (I needed some and I was one point away from 40 cents off a gallon of gas, and I need to get some when I pick him up).  He's going to call the house phone when he's ready, so no headphones while I work.  So I brought my little boom box out from my room and I'm playing Pandora through my phone on the auxiliary setting.  The dogs were angrily barking when I got back; they hate being left alone completely.  So I've let them out and back again, I am eating some of the cereal, and I'm listening to the music (the 3 Doors Down channel, which I've listened to for a couple of days and liked almost every song played).  I took a shower earlier, which was great, as I hadn't had one yesterday or the day before (I usually skip a day at the most and usually shower every day or my hair looks horrible, even though daily cleansing can be drying to the skin).  The bread cooled before we left, so I put it in its container to keep fresh.

So what do I need to do today?

• Laundry
• Pack up the winter clothes and put away the spring and summer ones, then take the winter ones to storage
• Cat boxes
• Clean bathroom
• Sweep and mop tile
• Put away dishes and load dishwasher
• Do the plastic dishes/hand washable ones
• Finish backing up the computer (I've mostly gotten it backed up but had to leave in the middle)
• Make my bed (the cat was on it earlier, on the blankets--he claimed the bed when it was first delivered about a month before I came to live here

I took out the trash and recyclables yesterday, although there are a few more to go out, and I forgot the wine bottle where we had a whole bottle go into soup the other day.  I think there's just my laundry to do, maybe a little of his, but no bedding this time, hopefully.

Okay, I should start working.  Hope you're having a good Sunday. I wish there were three days to each weekend--I need a day between Saturday and Sunday just to relax.  But it's been a nice weekend so far, really.

Sigh

After writing today, and visiting our friend--which it was very good to see him and speak with him after all this time-- I went to the grocery to get more contact lens cleaner, took out the trash, and started the laundry (I'm having a devil of a time trying to get the bedclothes dry), and then I've spent the last couple or more hours going over some financial things. I've come to the conclusion that the only way I can make it at all, especially with the taxes to pay, etc., is to get a second job, something part-time.  I went ahead and applied to the Chinoe Kroger, and I'll keep looking for other opportunities.  I think I could work on Tuesday, Thursday, or Friday evenings and most of the day on Saturday, without being terribly tired, maybe 16-20 hours a week.

YKWIA is watching 'Hunderby', a British comedy set in the 1830s.  It's got a lot of mystery to it.  I moved into my room (although I can still hear it fine), mainly because the computer has been off its charger all day and I needed to plug it back up.

I called Brenda and we're set to play tomorrow.  So it's just the laundry to get finished, and like I said, it's being very slow to dry.  I'm thinking I may use the spare bedding and concentrate on the comforter and blankets.  The pillowcases didn't really need to be done (the sheets, despite a cover, get the blonde dog's little tiny hairs all over them).  The black dog is blowing her coat; I'll have to sweep the house tomorrow in addition to the usual things I do to prepare for the game.  But they are very sweet doggies.

Okay, I think I'll listen to some music while waiting for the laundry to finish.  Good night.

It's been slow going today

I woke up about eight and went to the bathroom, intending to sleep till nine, and I couldn't get comfortable until about 9:15, when the cat came and cuddled, and I slept till ten.  Apparently, he'd thrown up after eating (it happens sometimes, although he holds down the non-chicken, non-grain food better than anything else we've tried) and had come to me for comfort.  I did eventually get up, but I've been hurting all day, and I got something to eat while YKWIA watched the 'Teen Wolf' DVD we have out from Netflix, but I didn't really get dressed or going until noon.  I called and made an appointment with my optometrist for an upcoming Saturday and changed my address with them.  The lady on the phone was obviously training, and I was very patient.  We schedulers have to stick together. :)

Then I went to the grocery and got some things for us and a few toiletries, etc. that I've been putting off.  I got some ibuprofen in a non-childproof, easy-open bottle.  There are no kids in the home and quite frankly, with my arthritis in my hands, it's becoming harder to open the regular kind.  I came back and had some herb bread that was left over from yesterday's potluck (best batch ever; I included some red pepper flakes for a bit of a kick) and some cheese and a banana for lunch and caffeinated for the day.  Now I've started my bedding in the washer, as I haven't washed it since I was sick, and that would be good, and I think the cat has been on it enough that I'm starting to react (I am allergic to cats and dogs (and horses, and cattle), but cats really make me react.  But I love them.)

I have a few things I want to do today:

1. The game notes from last week's Call of Cthulhu game, which is the most timely task.
2. We've decided on a project involving thoroughly dusting/cleaning a shelf or two each Saturday and then rotate it, as it can be overwhelming to do all those books and shelves at one time.  There are 117 shelves of books in this house.  Yes, really.  So we broke it down to a manageable amount.  I'm going to start with the bookcase in the living room, which is antique and so it holds a lot of dust.  Today I'll just do the top shelf.  It's lower, not to the ceiling, so no getting up on a stepstool, and while dustier, it has a table right next to it that I can put the books on and dust them.  So in some ways, it'll be easier.  YKWIA is in there reading, though, at the moment, and we're both allergic to dust but he's worse, and I don't want him in there while I'm working.
3. Clean the cat box instead of waiting for tomorrow.
4. Take out the trash and recyclables.  We keep the recyclables atop the refrigerator and it's pretty full.  All the trash in the house need it, I think, as the kitchen one, bath, and my two little ones are all full, and that leaves the one in the living room/study and bedroom that might be okay, but I doubt it.  I've been taking the kitchen trash out regularly, but the others were fine last weekend, so I left them for this week.
5. Do my bedding and some more laundry so I can concentrate on other laundry items tomorrow.  I didn't do it last week because we had worn jeans most of the week before as our boss was off and she'd said we could do to the low clinic numbers.  So I had most of my other pants clean and enough shirts, underwear, and socks.  I'm getting low now, though.
6. Sweep and mop the tile in the kitchen and bath.  I think the hardwood is fine.
7. Go through my nightstands and rearrange things.
8. Put away a few things in my room.

I haven't made the bed today because the cat was on it earlier (he loves the microfleece blankets) and I was going to wash the bedding anyway.  I'm in my room right now with the door closed and he's at it wanting in, but I think I'll just let him be for now.  I've spoilt him by lying down with him after dinner when he wants his post-prandial cuddle. :)

Okay, time to check the laundry and go do those game notes.  Have a great weekend!

The wheat loaf came out well

Although, unlike normal, I had to extract the paddle from the bread, probably because it's denser.  But it rose well--just not as large as a normal 'XL' loaf, more like a large one.  At YKWIA's suggestion, I'm making a large loaf of herb bread as well, and everything's cooled down, so I've got that measured out and in the pan mixing and now probably rising as we speak.

In the meantime, I have put a heating pad on my back, which felt nice--whoever invented the things should be applauded--and I've put my laundry away from yesterday, which is good, as I'm bad about procrastinating that.  At the apartment, I often lived out of hampers because quite frankly, the closets were full of books.

Sadly, the cat did not come cuddle while I was lying down.  He stayed with his master, which I suppose is the order of things.    For the last two nights, the little dog has stayed in there with him, too, although apparently, she started out with me, per YKWIA.  I'm wondering if the fans on are too cool for her.  I have them on low (there are two in the library/my bedroom).  They're very comfortable for me, although way too cold for YKWIA to stay long in this room when I have them on, especially tonight, as I may have given my crud to him.  I just made him tea and rubbed his feet.  I've given the dogs their nightly peanut butter treat, chained the door, etc.  I'll turn the light over the stove out when I'm finished with the bread and head on to bed myself, but that won't be for another hour.

Must admit, however, that I am getting sleepy. :)

Can you have a day that is kind of quiet and relaxing but busy as well?

So most of the early part of my day was relaxing. I played on the computer, looked at some librarian jobs that looked promising that I will apply for, and never even made my bed because the cat was on it, very comfy, for most of the morning and into the afternoon. About 1 pm I got ready and went to the library because a hold had arrived, 'A is for Alibi' by Sue Grafton. I'd told myself a long time ago I'd give the mysteries a try once the series was complete. (I don't know why; it was just a thing. Maybe it's sense of perfection.) Of course, she never finished the alphabet, dying after the 'Y' book was published. So I guess that's all there will be. So I put it on hold right after her death and just got it. I also picked up a picture book of words in various languages that don't really translate to English (I am such a language geek) and a book on gardening. I also went to the grocery and got some laundry soap and a couple of soda 2-litres for the weekend. Brenda is doing better and we're planning to play the game, and we're at a crucial part of the story, so being caffeinated is a must. The notes were finished weeks ago, at least.

When I got home, I caffeinated and then began laundry with the dog blankets, and then my bedding, and then YKWIA's lights.  I still have his darks to do, and his bedding (but since he's taking a nap, that may not happen tonight), as well as a load for myself.  I have also watered the plants, cleaned the bathroom completely, swept the house (except the kitchen, more on that later), cleaned the cat box, and taken out the kitchen trash and the recyclables.  It is raining pretty decently today, and there's not supposed to be rain tomorrow, so the plan is to sweep and mop the tile tomorrow.  I can do his bedclothes too.  Otherwise, the house is set for tomorrow.

I've also eaten kugel for two meals and some salad YKWIA had me help with yesterday.  I would have the soup, but he does some magic with bread and an egg-broth mixture before he puts the soup into the bowl, and of course, he's asleep at the moment.  But the rest was really good, too.  The soup is a Brussels sprout/leek mixture, and it's wonderful.  And of course, kugel is always great.

One of the dogs sleeps on a blanket on the floor, and there's something in each room of the house for her to lie on.  She was most distressed that I took them up for the laundry.  I gathered them together and had them on the kitchen floor and she came and draped herself on them.  I had to take them, one by one until she moved. Poor thing.

Okay, I should go work on the laundry. Both buzzers have sounded.

No game today

Brenda's still got the crud, so we're taking another week off.  It's been a pretty relaxing weekend. I've spent some time on Facebook and Twitter (I'm also never actually on Twitter, to be honest, and I tweet and retweet rarely, but I did today).  YKWIA's done a lot of reading, and I've done a little. I got a free e-book for subscribing an electronic newsletter, and it turned out to be Ellis Peters' A Morbid Taste for Bones, the first Brother Cadfael mystery.  It includes maps and a guide to Welsh pronunciation.

I've also requested some seed catalogues, one from Burpee's (a staple), but most from heirloom, sustainable, non-Monsanto sources (and that's harder to do these days).  Most of them are available in PDF form, so I just downloaded those rather than have them send me a paper one in the mail.

Now I'm doing one super-mega-large load of laundry, and was rewarded for doing so by $12 falling out of my trouser pockets as I was going through them.  I've been out twice this weekend on the roads after the snow, once to go to the grocery for soda, and then today to take YKWIA to meet with someone over lunch, and then to stop by the gaming store The Rusty Scabbard and to get a few things at the store that weren't there yesterday post-rush.  The produce section yesterday looked like Armageddon was on its way, all for about 1-2 inches of snow, but they were resupplied today.

Tomorrow I work, as we do not get off for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.  The University of Kentucky does, however, and so the parking shuttles aren't running, so we've been told that we can park in the adjoining parking garage, although they wouldn't guarantee we wouldn't be charged.  So that $12 might come in handy.  Seriously, though, I suspect the gates will be up tomorrow.

Now I'm listening to some music. I was listening to Blue October's Home album, but it's made it past that on Windows Media Player and so it's Bonnie Tyler's 'I Need a Hero' right now.  Have you ever seen the music video for that?  I will not post it here.  It is...terribly creepy and inappropriate, running right across the boundary of sick and wrong, to be honest.  It's set in a young men's school (as in teenagers) and she plays a teacher. Enough said.  How did we not see that back in the 80s?  I still love the song, though.

Okay, I'm going to sign off here for awhile. YKWIA is taking a nap, all is quiet, save for the music.  It's still about an hour-and-a-half till the animals need to be fed (although one is right by me, hoping to be).  The laundry is drying. I am considering lying down for a bit while that tumbles.

Ooh, we've made it to The Box Tops' 'The Letter'. :)

My phone was giving me some trouble

Suddenly, when plugged up with my normal, factory-provided charger, it was saying that there was moisture detected. I'd turned off the phone and restarted it, but it still kept popping up. I've only had that happen when trying to use a standard USB charger that isn't adaptive fast charging for the Samsung Galaxy S7.

So, I looked at some troubleshooting and decided to take a cotton swab and gently swabbed the port with dry cotton, and it's working now.  So it must actually have somehow detected some humidity.  It's snowing outside, so I'm assuming the air isn't the normal winter 'dry'.  I've had the phone for a year or more now, though, and it's never done that, at least with the charger that came with it.

I pulled out my box (with the quick start guides and the SIM-card drawer key) and the only other thing that came with the phone, a caddy with earbuds (which I don't use; I use my old S5 ones because I don't like the S7 shape of the buds, so I use them as a backup, only.  Inside is one other thing, a  USB to micro USB connector that, for the life of me, I have no idea as to why it was included with the phone when it came with a transfer USB to micro USB cable as part of the charger, and those sorts of cables are ubiquitous.  I just never got it.  I typed 'what is the purpose of the USB micro USB connector that comes with the galaxy s7' into Google and it's for Smart Switch, the Samsung method of transferring files from one phone to another device.  Still, I found it kind of weird. They did mine in-store using their Wi-Fi, except for the applications, as I had about 500 of those (I had 750 the other day, and I thought perhaps I should delete some I don't use.  But that's the number that comes up on the scans, and probably included pre-loaded ones). So since I was trying out the charger and cables anyway, I'm backing up my photos and music (that are already on a microSD card) further, by putting them on to my laptop.  It's about a third of the way through the music.  The pictures didn't take that much time; the estimated time for the music is one hour and 15 minutes.  I don't think it's going to take that long, though.

YKWIA and I have had our custard and nog.  The animals, who were fed late, are fed and the dogs are out for a bit in the snow. It's not really accumulating, really, just tiny amounts.  The laundry, which I've done in a leisurely manner, is almost finished.  I did the dog blankets and YKWIA's bedding, too.  [He accidentally fell asleep with a cup of tea in his hand last night, and spilt the whole thing, practically].  Tomorrow I plan on doing my bedding and clothes.

I had planned to listen to some music, stretching out on the bed, when the charging thing happened.  I went from 60% to less than 40% in very short order trying to figure it all out.  But it's charging now, albeit not as quickly as when plugged into the wall, given that it's plugged into the laptop.  We're  over halfway to the music backup being finished, so yeah, it's going pretty quickly.

Okay, that's all for now.  May your Christmas Eve be pleasant and warm.

So, it's Christmas Eve...

We're in the library at the house.  YKWIA has been watching 'Will & Grace' but has moved on to the original season of 'Blackadder'.  Both have been quite amusing.  I did some bills earlier and got gasoline, since Kroger will be closing early this evening.  It's been a quiet Sunday.  We're not gaming due to the holiday, either this week or New Year's Eve.  I've started some laundry. It occurs to me that it would be good to go back to Kroger, as I'm low on laundry supplies. It's dreary and rainy outside, although we might have some snow for Christmas.  Last night we worked four hours on fixing food to last days, and I baked bread, so we're set for a bit.  We didn't actually eat any, which surprised me--he just put it all up.  He doesn't eat much and sometimes forgets, hey, I eat three meals a day, unlike him, but then I had some cereal and was fine, and we talked, so he realised later that maybe it was a little weird to not have dinner last night, especially after all that cooking.

I find that I'm missing my mom this holiday season.  Last year she was in and out of the hospital, but I was able to visit her some.  Not so this year.  I know the last couple of years were awkward, and our relationship was not what it once was, but I did love her, and I feel the loss.  I think I'll contact my stepfather tonight; it's probably hard on him this year without her.

The only thing we have planned for tomorrow is eating at Jin Jin and running some paperwork by to someone.  That's it.  And I'll probably do more laundry.  My holiday was Thursday, Yule (Solstice), but I worked and didn't really do anything for it.  I suck at the holidays this year. Well, I did pretty well for Chanukah, anyway.

I'm off on Christmas Day and Boxing Day (well, work doesn't recognise it as such--it just so happened they made a mistake and gave us off the day after Christmas rather than Christmas Eve (which due to the weekend would have made it Friday this year).  But considering we had a half-day of work Friday followed by a Christmas get together where we could stay or go as early as we'd like after 1 pm, we sort of had two and a half days off, so I'm not complaining.\

During this post, I've gone to the store and I'm back with laundry supplies, some flour and oats, and some boiled custard for him. I prefer eggnog, and I got some earlier, so we now have both in the house. We're set for Christmas, I think.

Anyway, if you're celebrating tonight, I wish you well,  and may you have a very Merry Christmas.  For those of you who've already had your holidays, or they fall afterwards, hope they were or will be wonderful.  And for the rest of you, may the New Year be full of love, laughter and light--2017 has been a very difficult one for me personally, for those I love, and for pretty much most of the world, I think.  Here's to 2018.

It's a rainy Sunday with no game...

Brenda called earlier to say she had some sort of crud that may just be sinus issues but since both the gamemaster and I can't really afford to be sick, she's going to stay away in case it's something worse. We try not to play when any of us has a plague.

I haven't done anything today beyond running a load of dishes through the dishwasher and playing around, while actually learning some real, verifiable facts (yes, I verified them, hey, I'm a librarian) on Facebook. I may do some reading. I laundered my clothes on Thursday night, but the bed linens, both mine and my friend's, need to be done, so I've started a load of those. Yesterday there were errands to run, an umbrella plant to pot up in a bigger pot, and some chores to do, plus the game notes, of course, all of which have been done. Today I should go get some creamer (read: Land o Lakes half-and-half) for my friend, as it is an essential commodity, along with coffee, for his good disposition. Other than that, there's not much to do. I have a fun audiobook out from the library, a historical mystery called Maisie Dobbs, which introduces a series. And I've got plenty of books to read and a charged Kindle. But I decided to write first, and pay some bills that are due, because I haven't been on the computer much at all lately, except to finish a book review and the gaming notes.

No word yet on the background check and the drug test. The whole process can take something like two weeks. So I don't have an official hire date yet. Our PRN person, who did hers the same day, already has a start date of Wednesday, which will help immensely at work. I just wish I had one already.

Friday was a weird day at work. We had fewer patients, but a lot of odd stuff happened. For example, I had a doctor's appointment at 8 am and got in just after 9 am, and my boss and one of the women from downstairs who is usually doing pre-authorizations for surgeries were instead checking in people, due to two people unexpectedly being out, and there were a few glitches to be taken care of since they weren't used to doing it every day. Meanwhile, there was confusion on the part of the clinic regarding my absence, and so some things had to be ironed out, even though I'd gotten in before anyone normally would have checked out. (Isn't that always the case--I think five people were in and out before I got there that morning). After that all got straightened out, check-out was fine, I scheduled the appointments for those who'd already left, fielded phone calls as I could, returned voicemails, and scheduled surgery patients since the OR scheduler was out. My boss sat in for me for lunch so I could get a break. I was going to actually sit in at check-in yesterday and get some training on that, but of course, with the shortage of staff, that wasn't possible. Maybe next week. I'm more comfortable doing things than I used to be. I'm handling things pretty well nowadays. When I first started I had anxiety dreams where I was scheduling in my sleep. That doesn't happen anymore. I'm interested in learning to go beyond my current skillset. I'd still like to work in a library, but having a full-time job with benefits is my primary goal at the moment, and while I'm still watching the Kentucky job list, there's nothing out there I'd like to apply for right now.