Blissful coolness

So, I'm broke, but I managed to pay for the air conditioning to be fixed, so things are much more pleasant in the house.  It was funny, I don't see any reason to tell YKWIA this, as he would be terribly offended, but when I called to see if I could get the fan motor that was maybe one tick up from the cheapest part the tech quoted, the lady said that he'd actually given us an estimate on an original Coleman part that is factory-authorised, but knowing money was an issue, had given us the quote based on a senior discount.  So Tuesday came and I left my debit card with YKWIA and apparently the fan blade itself was so rusted in place that it wouldn't move, so the tech had to get that order brought over, which took awhile, but he got it fixed.  I guess that's what burned out the motor in the first place--it rusted over the winter because when we first turned it on in May, it pretty much worked for just a few hours if that. When I got home, I asked how much more the fan blade was.  'I don't know. I just handed him your debit card.' That struck fear in me, as while I had extra money in my account, it was earmarked for my car insurance.  So I went to my e-mail and it turns out that the tech did the complete repair for the original quote, without charging for the blade at all.  Yay! I really liked them--we went with Synergy, and the tech's name was Zach Taylor and he did an excellent job.  I have to thank my former boss for pointing me to them--she'd heard an ad and directed me to them.  That night, I didn't know what to do--I had to sleep under a cover and I wasn't drenched in sweat that morning, nor did I have the 'break-out-in-perspiration-as-soon-as-you-get-out-of-the-shower' issue.  But because I'd kind of gotten too used to that, I didn't sleep super well that night.  I did last night, though.  Yes!

Yesterday was mostly about medical testing.  I did work from noon to 4:30 pm, but I had an EEG at 7:30 am and an MRI of the brain at 10 am.  I had gone to my neurologist concerned over periodic dizziness (I think now that it's vestibular, but we needed to rule out other concerns).  I also expressed concern that my memory issues have gotten worse, and while it's probably normal ageing, I've done a lot of replacing words that I have had a hard time finding with the opposite, stuff like that.  Now I have ADHD, the inattentive types, so maybe it's just partly that, and as we get older there's more information to juggle.  But I've had several untreated concussions, and my family doctor and I wanted to rule out any chance of dementia or early Alzheimer's, a personal fear of mine given my great-grandmother's battle against the latter.

Anyway, the EEG--which was quite interesting, by the way--was negative for any of that.  My brain's not slowing down, even though it sometimes seems that way.  And the MRI was fine, too.  I came home yesterday and looked at the MRI scans they'd given me at Lexington Diagnostic Center.  Not that I know how to read an MRI at all, but you can kind of look for light or dark areas that don't fit the rest of it, and I didn't see anything.  This morning my neurologist's office called and said it was fine.  I did get put on a beta blocker that is good for essential tremor, a benign tremor that can make your hands shake when you hold a spoon or write, or hold a letter, or even a phone, say if you've got it above you in bed. :) Not that you should be lying in bed looking at your phone when you should be asleep, right?  Anyway, it's a small dose and it's good for anxiety, too, according to my psychiatrist.  It does seem to be helping.  Otherwise, I got a clean bill of neurological health.  I just am going to have to accept that my memory is not what it once was (and in truth, it was good when I was young, I didn't have to take notes in high school, but I dealt with a lot less information).  Given my experiences with anxiety and depression, it's no wonder I've had some impact on daily life.  And I tend to compare myself to YKWIA, who has an eidetic memory, rather than say, your average 51-year-old. :)

Today I won the parking behind the building (which is funny, as I'd reserved it yesterday since I was coming from my appointments, so I'm a little spoiled--I have parked there two days in a row), so I took Samantha, my co-worker to her car both days, but today after that I went over to the pharmacy for my pen needles (which are a pain to get anywhere else if you don't have the prescription on you, like you can shoot up heroin out of an insulin pen, thank you, Kroger).  Then I went and got YKWIA from our friend's, the one he's helping who is battling cancer.  Since my schedule has shifted a half-hour earlier and I hadn't had to go to my car on the shuttle, even with the trip to the pharmacy we were home about 5:30 pm.  He was really beat, so he went to bed, and he's still there.  I'm going to wake him in a bit to take his medicine.  I ate, and then realised I was pretty tired, too.  I worked very hard and very steadily today.  I like my new job, but I can't ever say I'm bored.  So I settled down for awhile with the cat about 7 pm after I'd fed the animals and brought the dog in--who actually wandered around the yard and acted nearly normal.  I woke up at 9:45, started some bread making (now that the temperature and humidity are back to where they should be), filled the dishwasher, put away plastic dishes, washed the ones in the sink, took out the trash and recyclables, and took the Herbie and Rosie (the trash and recycling containers, respectively--we name ours here in Lexington) out to the kerb, and generally straightened up a bit.  Now I'm listening to Pandora and spending some time on the computer.  We're about an hour from bread.  The cat's on my bed again.  I think I'm going to put the flowered quilt back on the bed, as I don't have to worry about sweat stains now.  But that might be a task for tomorrow morning--the cat is quite happy and quiet at the moment, and we like to keep it that way.  So I have a task to do online and then I may lie back down till the bread machine beeps and listen to music.  My phone turned off, as I let its charge run down, so I'm playing the music on the computer.  I may do some brain exercises that go with an application on my phone that are pretty challenging, too.  Just to help out on the memory issue--which I do fine with the memory tasks on that.  So maybe it literally is just in my head.  I don't know.

Alright, I am definitely getting some water and finishing up here.  I also should work on a book review by the end of the week.  And I just got another published.  Yay!

Good night.

Someone needs more caffeine

My knee was hurting and I was overwhelmingly sleepy (I got a little over 5 hours of sleep last night), so I laid down at 11:40 am and just now woke up at 1:15 pm. I feel groggy though, so I got up, washed my face, got some soda, and turned on some peppy music. Now I'm going to balance the bank account. I'd been doing that pretty much every day, and I looked at it just now and it's been since April 18, but since most of that time I didn't have any money coming in and out, it shouldn't be so bad.

On a totally unrelated note, I think my fish is lonely. He keeps playing with his reflection at the edges of the aquarium, like he thinks it's another fish. They do school, after all. So while I'm out later I may just stop by Incredipet and pick up some feeder goldfish (they're something like 19 cents a piece) and put them in the aquarium, to keep him company. :)

Okay, back to going through my list. I have to balance this and then pay bills. Hope you're having a good day.

Earlier today

I shuttled my friends to their appointment, to the store, and got A to work, helped YKWIA a bit at home, and then came home, tired (I couldn't sleep last night after cooking till late at YKWIA's--I think I was finally able to get to sleep at about 3:30 am, so my insomnia is continuing somewhat).  It was a bright, sunny afternoon and had warmed up quite a bit, so I opened the bedroom window, got into some comfy clothes, and took a nap.  I'm thinking that was about 4 or so.  Now I'm awake and it's 7:40.  That might cause an issue later tonight, but at least I slept well for a bit.

My aunts and uncles are going to be able to come in for the visitation and funeral, which is Monday. The ones in Georgia are driving up tomorrow, and the ones in Texas, bless their hearts, were working overtime to find a flight in, and the closest they could get was Nashville, and then drive three hours. So they're travelling tomorrow, too.  I'm not sure about my cousins--one is on the West Coast for work and can't come, another is in meetings in Georgia, but I'm glad my mom's sister and brother and their spouses will be able to.

I need to pick my friend up from work tonight and tomorrow night, so I'll drive down on Monday morning.  It's about 35 miles away, so not too bad, and I'll be going against morning traffic.  I have a dress picked out (thanks to YKWIA, who informed me that the dress I wore to my grandmother's funeral would need more than Spanx to fit correctly).  It's a dress I bought for a vow renewal a few years ago, a deep purple covered in black lace--not exactly ideal, but it's nice, respectful (well, if I wear a camisole under that neckline, and I think my mom would approve.)  I do need to find some hose to go with it, which can be a challenge at my size (there's a reason I wear summer skirts and otherwise pants).  I may actually have to break down and go to the Evil Empire (aka Walmart), where I do not usually shop.  We'll see.

Tomorrow we are not playing the game. I could probably have used the distraction, but on the other hand, will have a little extra time to do some things.  I also desperately need to do laundry tomorrow.  I actually went out to Gabriel Brothers the other night looking for underwear (they usually have my size, unlike most other places in town that aren't a 'plus-sized women's' store, and much cheaper, because with YKWIA sick, I haven't done my laundry.  But I had no luck.  Fortunately I dug around and found some to get me through tomorrow.  So I'll go over there and do that and help him out if needed, or maybe we'll watch something on streaming video.

I also realised today that I missed renewing some books that were due the day she died, which I rectified, so I have some fines. I've paused my tracking, to-do items on Habitica so that by not doing them I will not affect the members of my party.  Funny how little things slip and then come to mind later in times like this.  I've e-mailed my family back and forth, and texted with my step-father, who sounds exhausted.  I've texted that I won't be to work to my bosses (well, I know I got through to one; the other may be an old number, so I'll leave a message at work as well).  I'll get some gas tomorrow for the trip.  I had thought about staying down in a hotel Monday night.  I'll keep it as an option, but for now, the plan is to just go down, go to the visitation and service, go the the graveside and know where she is to be buried, and maybe out to eat and spend some time with my family, then come back that evening.  I may take Tuesday off , though, as I have three days' bereavement leave, and I'm not sure it's really hit yet, and may not until the actual funeral.

I debated contacting my estranged father to let him know she had died.  We haven't spoken since 1993. but I know where he is on Facebook and could get a hold of him if I wanted to.  But I quickly discarded that idea.  He basically abandoned us in the 80s to pursue other women and a freer life without us, and I suspect he always felt rather trapped by my mother, who got pregnant before they broke up, then found out, and within a month his mom had pressured him to marry her.  My mom's parents, I will say, were very good, and even though it was the 60s, offered to let her live at home and not go the marriage route.  It's amazing the marriage lasted as long as it did, really.

My dad and I went our separate ways after my grandmother's funeral, when he lied to me and told me the insurance money was part of the estate and instead of asking me to help with expenses, demanded the money ($5,000, at a time when I was a student eating every other day, and he was an engineer who moved to Minnesota for an extra $30,000 a year and who had a policy in his name, as well, for twice that).  When I told him I wouldn't give it to him on the advice of my grandfather and YKWIA, he hung up on me, and that was that.

This is a man who moved us to another state, after they sold the house at a loss and my mom lost seniority at work, just so he could then tell her while we were in the motel that he was seeing someone else and wanted a divorce.  It was devastating, and it took her years to get over the financial and other repercussions.  He doesn't deserve to know.

Besides, while she had four husbands total (one of whom she was widowed by), her current husband and she were together longer than any of them (my dad was about 16 years; John has that surpassed).  John has been incredibly good to my mom, and has been a great companion, who took care of her in her illness day in and day out, and I can't thank him enough for being there.  I couldn't have done it, even without working.

When I was growing up, my mom and I were inseparable, even enmeshed to a great degree by the time I reached adulthood.  As an only child, there'd just been the two of us, especially while my father was overseas and then when he left.  As I got older, though, we drifted apart, and we were not as close as many moms and daughters that I know.  We each had our own lives, and checked in with each other every few weeks, and then I'd go visit about every three months or so, and at the holidays.  Momma tended to reach out to me more when she wasn't married, as she didn't have as much going on.  As years went on and I did a lot of examination, I realised a lot of my issues came from our relationship rather than just my issues with my dad.  And we talked about them a little, and we worked some of that out, but generally, we just lived our own lives and then came together every now and then. But we never cut ties like my dad and I did.

Despite that, I have found myself constantly thinking things over the last few days that bring my mom to mind.  'Oh, I should tell Momma that.  Wait, I can't.' or 'Momma would love this blouse I found.  But she'll never see it.' That sort of thing.  I guess that's to be expected, but it hurts.  The finality is starting to sink in.

Finally, let me just say that having watched the effects of end-stage liver disease, and even though she was never able to get a liver or even be placed on the list for one, she held out hope for that, and it would have changed her life around for the better.  Please consider being an organ donor.  There are thousands of people living, barely, who would benefit from that call that says, come in, we have a (insert organ here), that will have their lives transformed for the better.  You won't need them any more.  Why not donate life in your passing?

Okay, I'm going to sign off for now. I've been typing for an hour.  Funny, I usually listen to music to relax, even more than anything else, and I've had trouble doing that since she died, because certain lyrics cause me to cry, etc.  The only song I've sought out has been Rob Thomas' 'Now Comes the Night', a song I'd like played at my own funeral. I find it comforting.  Here it is:

Now I remember why

I'm not a big fan of compression stockings. They are hard to get on, harder to get off, get progressively less comfortable throughout the day as swelling gets worse, are hot (and I, like many people, only really swell up with heat), and it feels like the cuffs cut off my circulation at the end of the day. But I did manage to keep them on all day, which is great. The left foot looks mostly normal; the swelling occurred up in the calf where the compression isn't as much as at the ankle. The right foot and ankle is very swollen, but only about 2/3 of what it looked like last night. While my feet and legs are somewhat uncomfortable, I am not in the pain I was last night, and my knee is better. This may mean the New Balances and compression hose are just going to have to be a part of my future, even though it is very hot. But I did get around that somewhat because one of my co-workers has a medium-sized fan that they got her when she was pregnant with her daughter, and she's let me borrow it for now (until she's further along in her current pregnancy). It's under the desk, so when I turn it on, it blows on my feet and legs, where I get hot the most, and by keeping it cooler, I think that helped with the swelling as well.

So now I'm lying on my side on the bed, staring at the computer screen with my head cocked (not great if you have bifocals), with my right foot up on a Euro sham pillow, above my heart.

Since the weekend of training, I have been over at my friends' house or in class until very late, getting home around midnight each night. As a result, I still feel very tired over the training, and so tonight I'm going to try to relax a little bit. I should get into the pool, but frankly it's over 90 degrees out there, and I'd rather be inside with the air conditioning, the fan, etc. I do now have proper sunscreen for the pool, including the sprayable clear type that's good for backs or the part of the hair.

To that end, I'm going to take a short nap, hopefully, without it turning into a longer sleep. But first:

Let me just say that I was very sad to learn of the death of Sir Christopher Lee, who was in over 250 films, and ahd a long and illustrious career. His sonorous voice and thin build usually made him be cast as the bad guy, whether as Count Dooku in Star Wars, Saruman in Lord of the Rings, or any number of monsters in the Hammer horror films, to name a few. But my absolute favourite character of his was Lord Summerisle of The Wicker Man. I love that movie, and his performance was excellent. To be so prolific, for so long, is amazing. He was acting into his nineties, which is remarkable. RIP Christopher Lee.

Sir Christopher Lee: Screen legend dies aged 93

Oh, by the way

I did track down the number to the Transportation Security Administrations's lost and found at O'Hare Airport. On further reflection, I'm not sure I had my jacket in the restroom, at McDonald's, or at Hudson News.  The last time I absolutely remember having it was right after it went through the checkpoint x-ray machine, and I'm not sure I picked it up when I got my bags together.  So I called 773-377-1210, which is the number for items lost at the checkpoint (despite what else you may find on the Internet--the first number I found was disconnected--and left a voice mail with my name, phone number, description of the jacket, and date I lost it.  Here's hoping they found it and will return my call. They're not open on weekends, but hopefully they'll look Monday. :)

What I am glad is that I had neither phone or keys in my jacket...the one was in my wallet in my laptop bag, and the other was nestled down in the CPAP bag, as I didn't want them in the bag that got valet checked, since it would be out of sight, and the jacket was not that secure since I was carrying it, and unless I zipped up the pockets, they might have fallen out.  So I really lucked out.  But apparently the parking lot ticket was in there somewhere, for it didn't show up when I unpacked.

Okay, I'm going to take that nap, and then work on the game notes for tomorrow.  I had thought to load the recording on the laptop and work on them over my trip, but decided I was on vacation and wouldn't 'work' beyond going to the seminar/meeting.  So anyway, I still have to do them.  But first, that nap.

I'm not feeling particularly well

on this dreary, cool day. Now maybe it's because I didn't have my Claritin today, and so my allergies might be an issue, but as the afternoon has progressed, I've started having a scratchy throat and aching all over, with a headache. No fever as of yet, but I may be coming down with a cold, especially as I was around someone with one recently, and I've been training in an area with shared workstations and contact with children. :(

In fact, my training period is over and I'll actually be subbing as of Monday, as the person I was going to fill in for starts her leave tomorrow. So for four hours a day, twelve hours a week, I'll be doing scheduling and covering checkout as needed, plus keeping the library running and doing my other duties related to the revenue cycle the rest of the time.

Tonight I need to work on the game notes, but for right now I'm eating a coconut fruit bar and drinking some iced water to help with my throat. I'm thinking of taking some ibuprofen and lying down--my sinuses especially are hurting above my eyes. So for now, I think it's naptime. :)

I went for my interview

and while I was maybe a little weak on one or two questions out of twelve, I think I did very well, and I was nervous but not paralysingly so. I think I connected personally with them very well. I wore the floral skirt, a white camisole, a white vertical-pleated blouse, a white lacy long jacket, and my grandmother's pearls for luck. :) Apparently sandals are not allowed by the dress code, so if I wanted to wear any dresses or skirts I'd definitely have to get some comfortable dress shoes. But for pants I have black shoes that would fit fine. I am really excited about the prospect of working there. Please think good thoughts and keep your fingers crossed. They were interviewing today and then it goes to human resources. Oh, I hope I get it.

This is my last day off before returning to work on Monday. It's been a long, sad, and, at times difficult, few days. But I'm going to take some time today for recuperation from the stress of the funeral and such. I miss my grandmother, of course, and want some time to reflect. But also I feel drained from the visitation, funeral, and yes, even the interview. So for right now, I'm going to drink some more water, take a nap, and then putter around the house and maybe do something fun like read or watch a show later.

Feeling a little tired and blah

I've been fairly bouncy all day, and very chatty, but my oomph has faded away and I think it's time to try to recharge a little tonight. So I'm going to lie down for just a bit (really, I'll set a couple of alarms) and then get up and work on the house, since I didn't get it straightened up before my trip. I'll be sure to write later, too. :)

It's super cold

We didn't get much snow today, and at first we thought there was just the first round of a dusting, although a second round came in just for the evening commute, and I'm not sure how much has fallen since then. But a cold front went through, too, and so now it's 15 degrees Fahrenheit and it's likely to dip down to 10 or less. It's very windy, as well--the wind has been howling outside my window, so the wind chill is near zero. Funny, I used to not notice the wind much from inside, but since they had to replace my windows a couple of years ago (they had cracked for some reason), I've lost some of the weatherproofing or something. It's a little chilly near it, and of course, my computer is just a couple of feet away. I actually closed the curtains tonight (they usually stay open, with just sheers in front of the glass) to help protect the plants in front of the window.

I've done a few things around the house tonight, but I did curl up in a blanket at one point and got toasty, and I'm afraid I fell asleep for a couple of hours. I didn't realise how tired I was. Now I'm going to try to read for awhile. At some point tonight I need to give my monthly libation, despite the cold. :) Okay, I'm heading back to the Kindle and the warm bed, maybe with some cocoa. Good night.

Trying to finish up the living room

I just got home about half an hour ago. The loveseat is clear. I need to finish clearing the dining table, take out the recyclables and trash, and vacuum, but my back is hurting and I'm kind of sleepy (I got about five hours' sleep last night). I think I will take a short (less than an hour) nap and then come back to the work to be done.

Having a pleasant evening

1. Took a short nap after work? Check.
2. Broke down the window boxes and repotted the remaining plants and brought them in? Check.
3. Swept the porch and window ledges? Check.
4. Discovered maintenance had indeed put up a ceiling in my walk-in closet and that my air conditioning thermostat now works properly again? Check.
5. Watched a hilarious episode of 'The Big Bang Theory' where Amy ruins Raiders of the Lost Ark for Sheldon by pointing out that Indiana Jones was totally irrelevant to the outcome, and he tries to ruin something of hers, finally trying to undercut her through 'Little House on the Prairie' critiques? Check. YKWIA successfully did that for me years ago.
6. Read some earlier? Check.

I really should do the notes in case we play the game on Sunday. I'm not sure we are. But it would be nice to get it out of the way. Saturday will be pretty busy, and I'm not sure what I'm doing tomorrow yet. It shouldn't take long, really. I'd also like to do some reading. Also, I have to figure out where to put the plants that were outside. Ideally, it would be on the table in front of the bedroom window. Right now I have some stuffed animals that were displaced when I moved the old TV back there. So they need to go to other places around the house.

I am so glad tomorrow is Friday. It has been a busy week. I feel like I'm not really getting anywhere at work, like I'm spinning my wheels, even though I should be progressing.

In light of the fact that we will probably have some changes to our insurance this coming year, and I probably won't have any insurance the year after that due to the move and my library position not going, I think it's time for a new CPAP machine. Mine is quite old, so old I'm not sure how long I've had it. It may be nearly 15 years old. It is still working now, but doesn't have a built-in humidifier or the newer features that help with comfort and managing the sleep apnea. It could go out at any time. To give you some idea, when I called the sleep centre, they said it had been seven years since I was last there. At that time my machine was easily 5-8 years old. It looks like one of those 70s hair dryers like my mom had, with a hose and it's big and clunky. It just needs the bonnet and a warming unit and I swear it would work just like her dryer. I was told they normally last 3-5 years and that mine was already pretty old then. Since I literally can't sleep without it (I am the rare individual who uses her CPAP religiously, even for naps), and could die from not having it, and with it being so long since I've been seen they may require another sleep study before writing a script for it, which takes time to schedule, etc., I can't take the chance on it dying suddenly. If it dies and I have no insurance, then I won't be able to afford one. Sleeping without it could damage my heart or worse. So I made an appointment and we'll see. I've been very lucky. Here's a link to a suggested CPAP/supply replacement schedule. Granted, it's from a supply company, but I think I've been very lucky to get the life out of mine that I had. I just don't want to be caught without one.

I felt guilty this morning for two things

1) I was running behind and didn't make the bed, and felt I was leaving the house somewhat 'imperfect' as a result. That's not bad, though, if I'm less likely to let things slide. I'll make the bed tomorrow. :) Also 2) I was running behind and didn't get a chance to water the plants outside, and I felt bad for it. They're doing well, and I'd thought about watering them last night, but it's really better to in the morning as there's less chance of fungous growing as it does on wet leaves overnight. Fortunately a cloudbusting rain storm came up just as I was leaving work, and I barely managed to get my foot into the car before the heavens opened. I went on to physical therapy, and the rain lessened, and so by the time I got home the windowboxes and pepper plant had had a good soaking, with some time to dry off before night falls. Yay!

Now I'm drinking some water and relaxing after a bite to eat. I'm in my comfy sleep shirt and thinking about taking a short nap and then watching some 'Doctor Who'. I also need to go through some bills tonight. So, a quiet night at home. I'm thinking Thursday may be my last physical therapy visit, as I'm doing quite a bit better. I also see my ankle surgeon Thursday for a follow-up. It seems strange that it's been over six months since I was hurt. I still have some ankle swelling, and some pain, but I'm much better, and I don't take my mobility for granted anymore. :)

Much improvement

I was at about half the amount of pain I'd had yesterday when I woke up and decided to try to go to work. Thankfully Brandon texted me at 8 am, as I totally slept through my alarm. Why the happy sparkly 'walk in the forest' alarm didn't wake me up but a chirpy whistle did, I don't know. But I got up, shambled into the shower, made it to work, downed a couple of ibuprofen and my meds, and went about my day. It took a little while before I could truly focus, but eventually my pain subsided a good deal and I started to get some things done (although it just occurred to me I forgot something that was non-work-but-is-professionally-related, so I need to send an e-mail to a colleague in my professional organisation. Fortunately she is also an editrix for one of the journals I've written for, so I have her e-mail address here at home). Whoops. The pain started again after I'd walked around the hospital getting my data entry sheets, but not as bad as it was this morning. After work, I took a friend's advice (YKWIA's, to be exact) and went down to the YMCA and joined. I took the tour, got the key tag and parking sticker, and the plan is to bring my things with me tomorrow and start then. The only bad thing is that the water aerobics does seem to be only during weekdays when I'm at work, but I'll still benefit from the pool and exercise machines. Maybe if there's enough interest they'll add evening classes, or perhaps I could rearrange my schedule twice a week (they teach them from 9 am-10 am); I have to be at work by 8:30. I used to have a 10:30 am-7 pm schedule. Maybe I could do something like that twice a week. Of course, that would put me back into a shift differential, so it might not fly.) We'll see. They do teach yoga and other classes in the evening.

Right now I have the windows open and I'm considering putting my feet up for a bit and taking a short (30-45 minute) nap, then work on some things here. I need to take some things out to the recyclables containers but I'm not sure I should try that the way my back has been. It's not heavy, but awkward. Then I need to pay some bills and finish those game notes. Also, YKWIA told me about a couple of things I might want to watch on Netflix, plus there's the 'Grimm' DVD, the 'Downton Abbey' ones, and the 'Doctor Who' and 'Orphan Black' I recorded the other night. Whew. It might take me awhile to work my way through all this. And I think I can take my band-aid off from my annual TB test I was given today. So, off to napping I go. :)

Ever since I started taking the mega dose of Vitamin D

(50,000 IUs), I've felt a lot more energetic. I supposed to take it for a week, then one capsule per week for eight weeks, and then revert to my 1,000 IUs a day norm. That said, I do think I will take a small nap tonight, as it's been a long week. I then need to get up, take out the recyclables I cleaned out from under the kitchen sink the other day, and do the game notes.

Tomorrow I'm sawing down a small tree. In general I hate harming trees, but this is a maple growing at 45 degree angle and will neither flourish nor grow in any way that would be helpful, and it's out in the middle of my friends' yard. It's about three or four inches at the base, so best to get it now.

The good news is that I was going to be delayed by running an errand at a store that didn't open till later, but I called ahead and they didn't have what I needed. So I can just skip that. I am to bring a few items from the grocery, but I can stop by Kroger on Euclid and cut some time out of my trip (Richmond Road's bus runs every 70 minutes on Saturdays, whereas the Tates Creek one, which runs past that Kroger, runs every 35.) Since I'm going to Kroger, I won't go to the farmer's market this time, as I wouldn't be able to explain that the watermelon I plan to buy is from there and not the store. Things are much easier when you have a car, I think.

Speaking of the car, I'm dreaming of that RAV4 they're giving away in that drawing I'm entered in. I know it probably has no bearing on things, but I keep finding lucky pennies when I'm out and about. Maybe some of that luck will rub off and I'll win the car. Granted, I'll have to come up with the money for insurance, taxes, and delivery, but there are a couple routes I might be able to go on that if I were to win. In the meantime, it doesn't hurt to dream. I have four friends now who are without a car. It would be really nice to be able to help them out. So if I won, a total of five people would win. :)

Okay, it's time for that nap....

I'm loving this new schedule

It's just now about the time I would normally have gotten home a couple of weeks ago. But instead, I was able to:

1. Go to the bank and put in a cheque I forgot to deposit yesterday (yay for a later closing time on Fridays).
   
2. Eat at Taco Bell (okay, what can I say, I do about twice a year, so it's kind of a treat. I rarely eat fast food; I do eat a lot of cafeteria food, though.
   
3. Go to Kroger and get a couple of things I needed.
   
4. Come home and re-pot a plant into a larger pot so it could spread out.
   

Not bad. I must say, though, that I am glad it's Friday. This is my first full week of doing the additional tasks I've been given, and it's been a learning experience. I'm starting to learn time-saving methods, like where I can look for what I need rather than going through a lengthy process of obtaining it from other providers, or checking with the companies to see if we even need anything. I still have a ways to go to try to fit in what I'm beginning to think is at least a five-eight hour job in two hours, so I can also get everything done in terms of my data entry and, of course, the library. So I am a bit tired. I haven't been crashing like I was, but I'm really considering taking a bit of a nap, then getting up to do the game notes rather than waiting till the last minute, which I've been doing of late. No one's mentioned needing me tomorrow for anything yet, so if I can, I'm going to do the rest of the laundry, some stuff around the house, and a small grocery run. I'm also interested in doing some review of my ancient Greek. I never got past the aorist, dropping out in my first semester, but I have both semesters' books. I was thinking the other day how much I missed studying languages, so I think I'm going to try to spend a little each day (except for Sundays; there's too much to do on that day) to work on that, at least for awhile. I get these moods every now and again, and I usually drop things fairly quickly (the curse of an Aries, I suppose, they start things but sometimes have a hard time finishing them), so we'll see. Eventually, I'd like to really do well in all the languages I've studied, of which I am fluent in none but English, and some days that's questionable. I've studied Sanskrit, Biblical Hebrew, ancient Greek, Latin--classical, mediaeval, and Renaissance (probably the one language other than English I'm best with, and I'm getting rusty), Spanish, German, and also French (but only for reading), a little Welsh and Irish, a tiny bit of Cherokee, some basic hieroglyphics, and that's about it. So I'm very much a dabbler, and I want to be more fluent. (I did manage in all that to come one class away from a linguistics major--phoenetics never seemed to be taught when I could take it, and it was required. My favourite aspect was historical linguistics. They would give us languages we didn't know, so parameters, and we would be able to figure out how things changed over time. It was a great kind of puzzle. Government and binding theory nearly caused me to have a breakdown, on the other hand, and this from a person who absolutely loved diagramming sentences as a kid. I really regret that I didn't manage to finish the major.)

After the video game

I sneaked into the bedroom and took a nap. Now it's dark. I think this day is a dud for cleaning, but had I had already decided it would be best to clean the bedroom during the laundry, which was set for tomorrow anyway. That way the clothes that are piled in a couple of areas can be gathered up and out of the way, then go into the empty drawers I have ready for them once they're clean.

Apparently I didn't get hyped up on enough caffeine to clean house like last weekend. I'm also achy, especially in my back. I don't know if it's the weather (which was cold, but is improving) or the fact that I totally stopped my period for 24 hours and it came back (welcome to perimenopause, perhaps?)

So tonight I think it's going to be TV, and then tomorrow I can really get going, hopefully. Of course, that means I'll probably not sleep much right before work on Monday.

Well, that wasn't too bad

I set my alarm for 4 pm and awoke in a nice sunbeam all comfy and gently, but then looked at the big clock on my dresser (an analog alarm clock that is probably 12 inches in diametre) and thought it was five, so then I was a bit grumpy. But I also didn't have my glasses on, and realised when I did stretch and checked my phone that it was right before four, and all was well. So now I am really going to start those notes. It should take longer than it has for the last few weeks because we had a mission, and that means investigation, so I have to include more detail than when we have downtime or combat. Afterwards I really need to some work on the house, but if I don't, I'll blog some more (news, not my every move, like I seem to be doing today.)

So far today

I've catalogued nearly thirty books on LibraryThing, taken the bus to Taco Bell, gotten a couple of 7-layer burritos for lunch, walked over to Kroger, picked up my Lantus (insulin) and some groceries, and ridden the bus back/walked home. Now the string and cream cheese along with the Lantus are all in the fridge, I've got a cold drink, and I'm contemplating game notes. Oh, and taking some ibuprofen, since I forgot to this morning. But first, maybe a short nap. :) Really, a short one.

PS Last night was the first in three weeks where I could put my pillow on my left arm (the one that's okay, and the one I normally sleep on), and put my right arm (the one that's been hurting) on top of the pillow next to my head. Since I sleep better on my side, this is great, although I'm still treating things a bit gingerly.

Not feeling so great

I feel a little better now that I've eaten, but I'm having one of those crampy, bloaty times of the month [I know, too much information. I can't wait till menopause.] I have a headache to boot. I decided not to go to the concert tonight for a number of reasons and plan to spend time instead trying to work on a couple of projects and clean house a bit. But first I may take a short nap. What am I saying? If I do that, I'll never get anything done. But my head might feel better if I do...

A lovely night off

Because Brandon worked for me:

1. I was able to come home and take a two-hour nap on a nice sunny afternoon.
   
2. I talked at length with a friend.
   
3. I connected with a high school friend on Facebook and exchanged phone numbers.
   
4. I went to the library, returned some books, and got a couple, including the one on Dewey the Library Cat and a mystery called Sherlock in Love.
   
5. Went to Animal House, the pet store, and got some dechlorinator solution and the anti-ammonia chips that go in the filter.
   
6. Went to Kroger, granny cart in hand, and got some food for the house, much of it fruit, juice, organic and other types of dairy, free-range brown eggs, meatless entrees from Morningstar Farms, vegetarian beans in sauce, canned veggies, hummus, Indian entrees, and vegetarian chili. The only non-'healthy' food were a couple of packages of soft pretzels (hey, everyone has a weakness) and some Miracle Whip. I didn't even get ice cream. Oh, and I found some rosemary/mint bodywash (my shampoo is the same scent). I also splurged for the upcoming holiday and got a package of sparklers. :) Let me tell you, I cannot sing the virtues of a granny cart any higher--it's so much easier to lug home four canvas grocery bags of food in a cart than that one time I did so by hand. Oh, and I found a product, a Greek-style honey-flavoured yoghurt that looked intriguing, made by a company called 'The Greek Gods'. The honey one is called Hermes. :)
   

Can you tell I'm trying to eat healthier? Not to mention, have food in the house so I don't bring home lots of snacks from the store I work at. Mind you, not a lot of it is portable--I need to start bringing my lunch; the cafeteria is so expensive, although today I had my pick of anything on the hot bar to eat--we had tortilla-encrusted tilapia (excellent), teriyaki salmon, baked potato, squash--even the soup was broccoli cheddar. I don't think that's ever happened before. There were hot dogs on the roller grill for those who really wanted lots of meat. I passed on the soup and salmon this time, but I was sorely tempted by both. But as a result I had a large lunch, so since I've been home I've had just a little package of salmon earlier and now a little spinach-artichoke hummus on whole wheat pita, and I'm satisfied. :)

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR WORKING FOR ME, BRANDON!!! I really needed a little 'me' time. :)

Now I'm home, everything's put away, and I'm considering doing some notes. And I have to clean out the fish tank and add some more water. I may concentrate on getting the notes started tonight and deal with anything else later...I did add some fresh water to the tank, it just needs a good vacuuming and then topping it off, and the ammonia chips changed.