There's an hour-and-a-half of my life I will never get back

So I took a fairly short nap (for me) and got up about 8:30 pm, deciding that I was in the mood to watch television, something that almost never happens when I'm by myself. I like watching things with friends, but not so much alone. Well, I don't have cable for that reason, just a little digital antenna, but I do have a Smart TV that can connect via Wi-Fi to Netflix and other services. I mostly use it for Pandora.

So I go into Samsung's Smart Hub, which updates, then into Netflix, and it won't sign in, because I'd changed my password since the last time I was on, and it wasn't giving me the option to re-sign in. I got out of the application, out of Smart Hub, went back in, and it did let me sign in. Then I thought to myself, I'm a Prime member again with Amazon (on a monthly basis), why don't I set up Amazon Video, too, since that was something I never really got into. So my hell began.

See, the password for that had also changed, so I went to put in the e-mail address and new password, to no avail, as it kept giving an unexpected error. That's what it said--an unexpected error has occurred when you tried to sign on. Sigh. So I poked around the Amazon website, as I was given an error when I tried to go back, an error that didn't show up in their code list. I finally deregistered the TV, tried to register it again, but when I chose that option, no code was given, just a spinning circle followed by nothing changing. So after trying this a few times, I called Amazon. Treyshawn was very, very helpful. [I mean that literally, not sarcastically. I say that because tone is not possible on a blog, He was very professional and kept me calm when I was getting a bit frustrated]. He had me turn off and unplug the TV, then had me put it back on again, and he walked me through the steps I'd done, and that didn't work for him either, so he did some checking and apparently it is a known issue on their end. So he set up a followup where they will e-mail me when the situation is resolved. So there is no Amazon Video possible on my TV at the present, but at least I wasn't doing anything wrong, and he reassured me that I can actually operate technology competently. I asked if it were just a Samsung problem, and it is, so the Roku in the bedroom should work fine. I proceeded to set up both Netflix and Amazon Video on that box, so I can at least watch either in the bedroom now. I've gotten pretty decent at putting things in via a remote control tonight.

Sadly, I spent so much time trying to set things up, that frankly, I'm not in the mood to watch now, and I think I'll read instead. Books never fail me. Even my Kindle, which can lose power and I'm sure have other issues, seems pretty reliable. So, it's back to either Aristotle (which might be nice in the quiet of the evening) or The Other Wind, which I began earlier today. Have a great weekend. I think I'll sign off for now.

PS The pesto bread was good, but it occurred to me that perhaps I'd made a mistake in trying it, given that you can't really eat peanut butter or jam or honey on it, and I have only enough yeast to last for one more loaf. So I've had bread, and only bread, tonight. :( There's not much else in the house. I even had to borrow $10 from YKWIA tonight because I was on my gas light and wanted to make it home. Oh, well, this too shall pass. Good night.

No game today

We canceled a couple of hours before we were due to start,  and there won't be one next week,  as Brenda will be visiting relatives out of state.  But that's okay.  I've spent much of the weekend at my friend's house helping him and then running people around town.  I did get home by six last night,  but I had to do the game notes,  since the plan was to play Call of Cthulhu at that point. Today I cleaned his house,  but we also watched Netflix ('Star Trek: Deep Space Nine',  'Haven' ,  and 'Very British Problems')  and Hulu ('Ugly Betty').  He also fed me dinner.  So there was relaxation,  too.  My neck is doing a little better,  yay.  I got home a little before 9 pm and listened to music/rested before getting A from work at midnight.  Richmond Road is being paved at night and is down to one lane of traffic.  The flag worker had a sign that said 'slow' that also had lights on it.  So,  it took a little while to get there.  Fortunately I come home on Alumni.  Anyway,  that was my day.   I've got to get up in about five hours.  Good night.

I don't know why I was so tired

I slept a couple of hours, waking up around close to 8 pm. I really needed that, apparently. Now I'm up and I've connected my television to the wireless router so I can watch Netflix and also listen to Pandora. I have an Ella Fitzgerald channel playing now ('As Time Goes By' from Casablanca is playing right now, even though that's Dooley Wilson), so it's very mellow in here. I may talk with a friend on the phone later; I'd called and he was just getting out of the shower, so I told him that I didn't have anything pressing but if he'd like to call me that's fine, too. I've still got the windows up, so the blinds are open. I'm looking around the room. So much to do. So not wanting to just now. I think I will water the plants again (I did just a few days ago, but they're already dry). Also, I need to do dishes and then gather laundry and have it ready for tomorrow. I don't know if I'll get the fish tanks taken care of today, but I need to soon. And I think I will straighten up the living room so it doesn't look so cluttered, which is a bit of a challenge. The books are all on shelves, for example, but there are more books than there are really meant to be, for example. And I need to take the air mattress out of the living room (I thought I might have a guest) and back to the bathroom, where it normally stays. So basically, I need to work on some little things that will improve life around here. I think one of the Habitica challenges puts it as 'Personal Management', the daily stuff that you have to do to have a good environment.

It's a challenge to deal with my stuff--not only am I basically a hoarder, although I've de-hoarded a lot periodically throughout the years, but also my apartment is only 750 square feet. But I was recently looking at apartments for someone else and that's bigger (and cheaper) than a lot of places in Lexington. I'm paying $550 a month, and that's on the low-end of a one-bedroom fee, for a larger apartment with a lot of storage, and all utilities except electric. We have a pool, tennis court, fitness centre, basketball area, laundry, and they just opened a fenced-in dog park the other day. They're making a lot of improvements here lately, too. I'm starting my thirteenth year here, soon. And while we don't have balconies or patios, we do have a large porch off our building (ours is a little different than the rest, which makes it great for getting pizza). Plus there's the windowsills for plants. :) I'm on a long lease, which gives me a break on the rent. I think the standard fees are $555 for a one-bedroom and $655 for a two-bedroom. And pets just require a pet deposit and $20/month (not for each pet, but for any dog or cat), and I see some pretty big dogs here, so I don't think there's a poundage limit. It's a quiet neighbourhood in east Lexington and very convenient to a lot of stuff--shopping, hospitals, etc., plus I have a ten-minute drive to work every day. So I'm happy here.

Okay, enough about the apartment. Time to work on it, with Billie Holliday and Natalie Cole in the background--and of course, Ella. :) Good night, if I don't blog anymore tonight.

So one of my several majors in school

was Classical Civilisation, and I am a Classics geek. [My BA degree is in history and sociology, with an honours programme, but I went back after graduating with my master's in library science and completed the classical civilisation major and a minor in Judaic studies. I was, sadly, only one class away from completing a linguistics major--phonological analysis was never taught at a time that fit into my schedule in all the years I was in school.] One good thing about my education is that I can read both Classical and Mediaeval Latin, between the Classics courses and the graduate work I did in history. I didn't get as far in Greek, though, dropping out about the time we got to the aorist tense, which Wikipedia defines as 'a term for a set of verb forms that usually express perfective aspect and refer to past events, similar to a preterite.' But, it continues, 'The word comes from Ancient Greek aóristos "indefinite", as the aorist was the unmarked (default) form of the verb, and thus did not have the implications of the imperfective aspect, which referred to an ongoing or repeated situation, or the perfect, which referred to a situation with a continuing relevance; instead it described an action "pure and simple".' If that makes your brain hurt, well, it did mine as a well. I would like to go back and study my Ancient Greek textbooks (I have both of the first two semesters' worth).

But even though my Greek isn't that great, I still love things to do with Classical Greece, and one mystery series I'm working my way through is Gary Corby's, which is set in the childhood of Socrates. In fact, the main protagonist is Socrates' brother. The first book of the series is The Pericles Commission. Then there's The Ionia Sanction, The Marathon Conspiracy, Sacred Games (I have all of those, though I'm still reading), and finally Death Ex Machina.

I also read Gary Corby's blog, A Dead Man Fell from the Sky..., the title of which is taken from the first line of his first book. I started reading it before he actually had any of his books published officially, and found it to be quite enjoyable. The latest entry is on Classical Greek music and I really enjoyed it. If you are interested in Greek, Classics, or music, You should check it out. And you might check your library for his books as well.

After sleeping till 11 am, I got up and ate, and then got cold (which almost never happens), so I crawled back in the bed and didn't come out till 2 pm. So I got a LOT of rest. A and I went on a two-hour journey through two grocery stores in order to get everything on the list, including the one nearest me, which is a huge Kroger that has clothes and housewares as well. But they didn't have the right creamer, so we stopped by Chinoe's Kroger for that. After that, YKWIA splurged slightly and we got dinner from Jin Jin, so I went and picked that up (I had my usual, Kung Pao Tofu). We ate, A watching a classic movie about the Roosevelts, and YKWIA and I watching an episode of 'Lost Girl' on Netflix. Then I left, because they wanted to watch the premiere of 'American Horror Story: Hotel' (I'm just not into that show--I watched 'Coven', but I haven't seen the others, and YKWIA thinks I'm just a wuss because it's too scary for me.) So I came home, and I watched the final episode of the second season of 'Sherlock'. I'd though I hadn't seen much of it, but I had. But I haven't watched the episodes from the third season yet, and so it set those up. Now I'm listening to the OneRepublic Pandora station, with candles and incense burning, and the windows open. It's a pleasant night, and there were no game notes to do because we haven't played in two weeks (due to a wedding and an illness), and I got the notes finished quite some time ago.

I think before I go to bed I'm going to do a little reading. I didn't the other day when I thought I would; I was just too tired. I'm more than halfway finished with my book (Hollow City, by Ransom Riggs, and I'd like to go ahead and finish it. There is a third book in the series out called Library of Souls. That's not one I own; I'll have to get it through the library. I really do like the series, and I am concerned about what Tim Burton is going to do with the film adaptation. There is an excellent book trailer for Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children on YouTube:



Hmmm...the other day I found two unused AA batteries; now my mouse is dying, so I changed them out. Serendipity, indeed. And yes, I turn my mouse off, usually, after each use. Which is why the batteries have lasted at least two years.

Okay, I think I'll go do that. I'm listening to 'I Lived' by OneRepublic right now. I love that song. But I'll do some reading and then turn in, as Sunday morning will come soon enough and I need to go over and help get the house ready for company and get it ready for the game. A wants to take a walk and plant tulips and a hyacinth, too, so we'll see if we can get it all worked into the normal busy Sunday schedule. :)

So, I have a free evening

on the night before the Call of Cthulhu game, when I don't have to do game notes because I finished them last week. Do I:

• Take a nap?
• Read Hollow City by Ransom Riggs, which is due back to the library soon?
• Watch The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part One on DVD, which I haven't seen yet?
• Re-watch Galaxy Quest on DVD, which is a really fun movie?
• Watch the first episode of last year's 'Doctor Who' on Netflix, since YKWIA won't watch Peter Capaldi, whose accent makes it difficult for him to understand?
• Listen to music (which I did last night, so maybe not)?

A got me to go walking with him again to Gainesway Pond, and this time he took a dog but I did not, so I could focus on not falling. Despite a sock that kept trying to inexplicably fall down my foot (it didn't yesterday when I wore it, so I guess that's just proof you should change socks every day), it was a good walk, although now I'm a bit sore and tired. The pond fountain was on, and that was nice. I saw a duck, several geese, and what looked like a peregrine falcon with a vole in its talons while we were out.

Now I'm home after also going grocery shopping with him and watching two episodes of 'Lost Girl' with YKWIA. I'm a bit pooped. So I think a small nap may be in order, followed by watching something and maybe a little reading before bed. Good night, in case I don't post more tonight.

'The Awesomes' are back!

A funny parody of superheroes, 'The Awesomes' is beginning its third season on Hulu, and we watched the first episode of the season today (I think there are three out already). It's so nice to have them back!

Today I:
1. Got the bedroom mostly picked up (I just have a few things to put away that are on the bed, and then I should vacuum the house).
2. Took a friend on an errand.
3. Took another friend on a grocery run.
4. Watched lots of various videos, including 'The Awesomes'.

So today involved a lot of visiting with friends, some fun shows, and some errands, plus getting my house in order. It was a pretty nice day, actually, and even the rain held off till this evening, and while we really do need it, I'm glad it's more likely to rain now that I'm home and inside. I am eating some dinner now, and then I'm going to turn my attention to the things on the bed, and get ready for bed, for while I could vacuum tonight, it'll probably be a little late to do it without disturbing my neighbours.

'Doctor Who' starts another season tonight, but I still need to catch up on last year's as YKWIA, who has cable TV (I don't), would not watch it with Peter Capaldi, because his low Scottish voice was difficult for him to understand. He's decided not to watch any of the episodes with this Doctor, and so I'll have to watch on my own. As I haven's seen much of the Eccleston and even Tennant ones, I should probably go back to the beginning of the new Doctor series, and watch on Netflix from there.

Okay, that bed isn't going to clear itself, and I'm finished eating veggie breakfast sandwiches and a bit of cheese. Good night!

About freaking time!

YKWIA will not watch Peter Capaldi as the Doctor, because he can't understand a word he says, between the Scottish accent and the low speaking tone. So I never got to see much of the last season, and I don't have cable, so I normally watch over there. So finally I can catch up. While I'm at it, there's a lot of 'Doctor Who' for me to catch up on--I've only seen about two of the seasons of the nine, despite loving the show, both the classic and new Whos. Yay!

Finally! Doctor Who Series 8 Coming to Netflix in August!

For more on what is coming to Netflix in August, as well as those leaving the service, check out: Netflix: Movies and TV Shows Coming in August 2015.

Now if only we could get 'Haven' season 5. But I'm not sure if that ever concluded, and I promised not to look up anything about the show. Isn't it on Sy Fy? YKWIA will also not watch that network because spelling matters to him, but will watch it with me on Netflix. :)

I had a very early appointment

with my therapist in which I got to report on my success in driving to Louisville and back despite a mild anxiety attack before I left. :) Also, the class is going well and that's a boost to my self-esteem as well. I told her about my mom's health and how I'm afraid, given my own issues, that I'll be in similar straits by the time I'm her age (if I make it that far). So we discussed things I could do in terms of setting healthy goals and keeping them.

I didn't feel well today at work, primarily due to issues around my period, but finally stopped cramping and was able to be productive. I went over to the library and checked out the book UnDiet by Meghan Telpner. Then I went home, had a quick bite to eat (some hummus and a garden burger), and then went over to a friend's house to help with a monthly project. Then we watched some more of 'Grace and Frankie' and also 'Danger Mouse' (which I loved when I was younger, and it's good to see it on Netflix). I did a couple of errands on the way home, and now I'm here, and it's almost 11 pm, and I think I should probably get ready for bed, as I have one of my early days tomorrow and have to be at work at 7:30 am. But I wanted to touch base. Good night.

A productive yet beautiful day

I don't think we quite made it into the 60s this afternoon, but it came very close, anyway. This morning I went to the pharmacy and got some medicine. Then I took a friend by his tax preparer, a woman who works out not too far from my apartment. While he was in there, I sat in the car, parked there on the street, and listened further into my audiobook. I stopped by Tire Discounters and they topped off the nitrogen in my tyres, and then we stopped over by my apartment so I could pick up something. We went back to his house, where I installed their housewarming gift (ten years late, but hey...), and then we made a grocery list, and headed over to the Euclid Kroger, where we parked on the roof and shopped, going down the escalator on the way down and the large elevator for the carts on the way back up. We put the groceries away, and then YKWIA watched some videos on YouTube and the movie we had out from the Netflix DVD queue--Inception, which I very much enjoyed. I didn't find it difficult to follow at all, and it seemed fairly consistent within itself. YKWIA and I agreed that the ending, which was deliberately shot to leave a question in the mind of the viewer, nevertheless is not ambiguous at all, given very clear clues to indicate whether the ending takes place in dream and reality. Anyway, I really liked it. The next one up is technically Lucy, but that is not actually released until Tuesday, which is the day Inception should arrive back at Netflix, so it may bump to the next one, Maleficent.

After the movie, we watched a few more YouTube videos, and then I headed home. Now I'm listening to the radio and just hanging out at home, trying to fix a sticking keyboard. (The Y and U are depressing at the same time, and sometimes the H or 7. I have an ergonomic keyboard, and unlike regular ones, apparently you can't just pop off a key to fix it. Usually the more I type, the better it gets. But I'm doing a lot of backspacing as a result.) I'm burning a lavender and cedar wood candle because my apartment smells like the cigarette that's seeping in through the bathroom somehow from upstairs. It's so strong I sprayed some lavender room and body mist in there. I hope it helps. I hate cigarette smoke. At least it's not cigar smoke. That makes me physically ill and when I'm near someone smoking a cigar I want to just puke on them. Of course, I feel the same way about people who wear strong musk perfume. :)

I also heard from my mother tonight right after the movie ended, and we chatted for awhile, mostly about our shared klutziness (she hurt a finger badly recently). I told her about my upcoming trip and a little bit about work.

Tomorrow we're not playing the Call of Cthulhu game because Brenda has a Society for Creative Anachronism Shire function instead. But I'm going over later than normal to my friends' house and doing the normal housework and then I think YKWIA has some things in mind to do, but I haven't been let in on the plan yet.

I don't have anything particularly exciting lined up this week at work or after. There's class on Wednesday, of course. The week after I'm off work for Presidents' Day, class, and a doctor's appointment.

Okay, I think I'll work on something for awhile, then maybe do some reading or book-listening before bed. I have several 14-day books due on Monday, non-fiction ones, and I'd like to go through them before I return them. Good night, if I don't write again tonight.

I've been crazy busy so far this week

so no real blogging the last couple of days, for which I'm sorry. But things should settle down a bit starting tomorrow, as I won't be in scheduling and can concentrate on catching up at work. Monday night I came home and crashed again, still feeling the effects of my cold. Yesterday I felt better, and last night I did manage to go over and visit YKWIA and A for a little while. YKWIA and I watched an episode of the New Zealand show 'The Almighty Johnsons', which I found rather fun (although followers of Norse religion may not agree). It was on Netflix, and follows four brothers whose family are all descended from the Norse Gods, each one learning which he is on his 21st birthday. There are a group of Norse Goddesses who try to interfere with a prophecy concerning the youngest member of the family.

Today I weighed myself and I'm at my lowest weight in years. In fact, if I lose one more pound, it'll be 25 that I've lost this year. So I'm feeling pretty decent about that. However, it has been a challenge, particularly with the new schedule, to take all of my medicine properly and really watch my diabetes. I must improve on that.

Okay, I'm going to go listen to some music and maybe read for awhile, and generally have a quiet evening at home. Oh, and I should straighten up and work on unloading the dishwasher, etc. Things aren't bad in the apartment, but I didn't do a thing while I was sick, and there is a mountain of tissues on my bed, for example. I need to wash the bedding this weekend with the rest of the laundry; while I never officially ran a fever, I swear I got very hot and on Saturday night it felt like a fever breaking.

Oh, one more thing. I'm very excited that they managed to land a craft on a comet: Philae spacecraft makes historic landing on comet. The Rosetta mission is a great opportunity. Even Google has gotten into the celebration with a doodle. :) I didn't hear until some time after it happened, while I was at lunch, because things were so busy in clinic. But yay and congratulations!

I'm over at my friends' house

and while it is raining cats and dogs down at the stadium, but it doesn't seem to be raining here. We're all in the living room watching the dogs play. There's a few minutes left in the game with UK leading. We're going to the store soon and then there's 'Doctor Who'. Having a nice visit so far. Okay, A wants me to check something on the queue for Netflix. I'll write later, probably.

So I came home tonight to discover

the police here, blocking part of our drive up to my apartment with a car, although only one car/officer seems to be here. The police officer seemed to be filling out a report. So I parked a few buildings over and rolled my laundry cart over to my apartment (there wasn't anything indicating danger), and there was a young girl sniffling on the steps to my building with a phone in her hand. I asked her if she knew why the police were here, and she said, 'I think they're here for me,' which was wonderfully vague, so I don't know if she's the victim or the criminal, but she was obviously upset, so I said, 'I hope it's nothing very serious' in a comforting tone and continued on into my apartment, figuring she probably didn't feel like answering a lot of questions. Now a young man who looks somewhat like her (maybe her brother?) is out there with her on the steps. I don't know if maybe there was a domestic situation and he's come to comfort her, or if there was a break-in, or what. So I'm pretty much staying out of it. I'm in the house, have put my food away, including some lovely asparagus deviled eggs (I went ahead and had a couple, and if I remember, I'll take the others to work tomorrow if I can. Actually, I keep forgetting, I have an appointment early in the morning with my endocrinologist, so maybe keeping them in the car, even that early, may not be such a good thing. Now I'm in the bedroom listening to some Loreena McKennitt music and trying to decide if I want to turn in early or stay up a bit longer. I have to get up by about 6:30, so I think I'll head on too bed. I've done housework, watched some more of 'The Black Adder' and an episode of 'World's Strictest Parents', and it's been a good day all around. I noticed that Jim Parsons has certain similarities to Rowan Atkinson. I don't know if he was influenced by him or not, but some of the mannerisms were similar between Sheldon and Edmund. Also, the king on 'The Black Adder', played by Brian Blessed, is barking mad, bonkers, delightfully insane. We did try to watch a movie from Netflix, but it had an irregularity in the disc and wouldn't play correctly, so we've reported it and I'll send it back tomorrow and they'll send another copy. I left and A was watching The Maltese Falcon and YKWIA was having a bit of supper that I'd fixed him. I'd done a couple of loads of laundry over there, too. A carried my cart out for me and put it in the trunk of the car. Fortunately it was fairly light, since I'm parked further away than normal.

Hope you had a good weekend. I think I'll turn in. Good night.

Wow

I got home from watching 'The 100' with a friend about 10:45 pm, after the major storm had passed which drenched the city but while some others were coming through. I was hot and sticky (yes, serves me right for wearing polyester), so I came in with all intents and purposes of blogging but instead I took out my contacts, took off my clothes, turned on the fan in the bedroom, and propped my feet up on the bed. I'd been aching everywhere, and my knee is still bothering me a lot, so it felt good to have the breeze on me. I told myself I'd lie there for a minute or two, then go get my glasses, something to eat, and some ibuprofen. Than was three and a half hours ago. :) So now I'm doing all that, plus I cleared out some algae that was invading the fish tank's filtration system.

I got an e-mail saying the second of two positions I'd applied for had been filled. :( There is another one that just opened, though, so I'll go ahead and apply. I'm thinking that indicates an internal candidate got at least one of the jobs.

I submitted two book reviews today, was very productive at work, and then came home and had dinner and about 45 minutes of resting (no, I didn't nap). Then it was over to YKWIA's where we watched the first episode of the British comedy 'Clone' and then 'The 100', which is getting better and better as it goes along. I wonder how close it is to the book upon which it is based, by Kass Morgan? That might be worth looking at after the season's over, which will be three more episodes. Soon there will just be 'Salem' to watch, as 'Grimm' is over for the year. But hey, that's what Amazon Prime and Netflix are for. :)

Okay, I've had a little cereal and I'm going to take that ibuprofen. Time to go back to bed. Good night!

YKWIA and I discovered

that Strictly Ballroom was actually available on the streaming side of Netflix, so we cancelled that DVD and tomorrow we should be getting the 1970s series that terrified a generation of British children, 'Children of the Stones'. Strictly Ballroom was quite enjoyable and distracted me from a somewhat frustrating afternoon where little things were not going my way. I forgot that it was Thursday and the lobby of the bank closes at 5 pm, so I was too late to get a cashier's cheque for my rent today. I'll have to get it tomorrow, meaning it will cost an extra $5 for my rent. Then I went to see if I could find some de-icer at the auto parts store, because a neighbour gave me hers and I wanted to repay her, but they were out. The gas station next to it said that it had unleaded gas at $3.19, which was the cheapest sign nearby and some stations had gone up to $3.55, but the station only had some pumps working when it came to that price, and were people were lined up like crazy. I went over to the Kroger gas station instead, and it was $3.24, but with my Kroger card I saved 20 cents off, so it was only $3.04. So that went a little better. The day had started out not particularly promising--I couldn't get the upper partials in without gagging, so I just went to work with both out. But there were good things about the day, like getting my raise. I went to YKWIA's and spent some time with him, not only watching the movie, but several videos, looking at some stuff on the Internet, and listening to the Soweto Gospel Choir, which is excellent. I had a good time, but now I'm pretty tired, as it's after midnight and I think I'm going to turn into the proverbial pumpkin.

Tomorrow I'm going to try to move some boxes upstairs at work. I have to get my rent and then there's 'Grimm' at 9. I'm expecting those books tomorrow. Today I'd gotten Loreena McKennitt's new greatest hits album, The Journey So Far, which I've been listening to in the car. I think I'll go put that on in the bedroom and relax, and stretch out. I keep having small cramps in my calves that are making my legs uncomfortable--maybe stretching will help. Good night.

Sigh.

I know I'll get used to the things eventually, but is it sad that I long for that moment when I get home and immediately take off/out my shoes, socks, contacts, partials, in that order, and only then can I really relax for the night? I feel old. And I still sound odd to the point that when I had to call doctors' offices for two hours today, I took the partials out and had them hidden in a cup under a shelf at my desk so the people on the other end could understand me. At least my co-workers haven't made fun of me. That's what my friends are for. :)

After work I grabbed a baked cod meal from Long John Silver's, some sandwiches for my friends, had dinner while watching 'Dan vs.', bathed another dog, and then watched City of Ember with YKWIA. I enjoyed it. I will say I've now seen several things with Saoirse Ronan, and I think she shows quite a lot of promise. I first saw her in The Lovely Bones. Next up in the Netflix queue--Strictly Ballroom.

Today

I had a very busy workday. Then I went to the pharmacy and barely made it there on time (they close at 6 pm). I got my meds, including my rapid-acting insulin, which is good, as I was on my last pen. They forgot to give me one of the meds, though, so I'll have to go back soon. But I also picked up some medication for a friend and there was some of his that they didn't have in stock, so I was planning on going back anyway. I think I have enough of the missing medication to last a couple of days.

After that, I went looking for three items for another friend: fennel bulbs, bananas, and tweezers that were metal and wide-pointed. The last two were fairly easy to get from Kroger. The fennel turned out to be a problem. They didn't have them at the Chinoe Kroger on Sunday, but I thought they might be at Alexandria Drive's Kroger near the pharmacy. Nope. Then I tried Good Foods Co-Op, which was remodelling its entire produce cold case and so again, no fennel bulbs. Finally I decided to try Trader Joe's. I hadn't been there yet, and I found that it was nigh on impossible to correct my route when I accidentally turned too soon off Nicholasville Road. It took a good fifteen minutes and two trips back onto Nicholasville to get into the right parking lot. Fortunately, they did have the fennel. I also got some coconut cranberry granola cereal and milk for myself. In all, it took two hours to do all those errands between work and arriving at my friends' house.

I made some food for YKWIA after I stopped to drop things off, and then stayed till almost 11 pm watching videos of one sort or another and visiting. Now I'm home, I'm tired, and I'm glad it's almost time to go to bed.

I got a package from Amazon today with three CDs (Big Country, The Crossing, Big Country, Steeltown, and Mike + the Mechanics, Hits [the first two I've been listening to due to AutoRip, even though I didn't physically have the disc yet. The second I listened to in the car earlier. RIght now, I'm listening to The Crossing). Having discovered reading glasses were totally useless in helping me do data entry (unless I perched them way down on my nose, which was uncomfortable, so I could see the computer, too), I had also ordered a document holder that was metal mesh with magnets to hold the paper and a nice-sized lip so quite a few papers would fit. This brought the tiny numbers I need to look up things with up to a better level. I also got a paperweight magnifier for use when things are really tiny, and it'll help with the computer screen as well. So that solved my problem. I also sent back the remake of THe Nightmare on Elm Street today to Netflix and should get another disc by Thursday. It's a surprise for a friend. After that, there's The Silver Linings Playbook, which he's very keen to watch, and I'd like to as well.

I did try to cancel my cable television today. The first call I was on hold but got interrupted by an issue with a copier. Then the local number went kablooey and I had to call the toll-free number after several attempts locally, only to have a friend call while I was on hold. You'd think someone were trying to tell me something. I'll try again tomorrow.

Okay, I'm getting downright sleepy. I suppose I should say good night and be on my way to dreamland. Tomorrow will be a somewhat sad day, as it is the last day my boss of fourteen years or so will be there. She's moving on to better things, but I'll miss her. She's been great. Anyway, have a good night.

I feel so much like John Watson sometimes

I just watched the 'Sherlock' episode "The Hounds of Baskeville", which I've had on DVR for quite some time and had not seen before. It was excellent. I considered re-watching 'The Reichenbach Fall', but it's been a pleasant evening, and I find that episode (while absolutely riveting) somewhat disturbing. But as I watched tonight, I was reminded of just how much YKWIA strikes me as a sort of a cross between Sherlock and Sheldon from 'The Big Bang Theory', although he is more functional than either in terms of social skills, etc. He's much better than either to be around, but many people find him, well, difficult. They see me as the reasonable one, despite the fact that he lives his life based on reason and I am much more emotional.

I've set up my Roku box to play Amazon Prime videos, so I can watch things like episodes of 'Grimm', which aren't on Netflix yet. But right now I'm using the Roku to listen to a Rob Thomas channel on Pandora.

Tomorrow I think I'm going to call and cancel my cable TV. The only thing I watch when it is first-run is 'Doctor Who', which, now that I have the car, I can just go to YKWIA's and watch with him. I have Netflix and Amazon Prime for most anything else I would watch. If it weren't for the fact that I have a wired desktop, I'd cancel the cable completely and get a mobile hotspot from my phone company. But I do need it for that and for the home phone (which is through Vonage). So I'll keep the cable Internet connexion, but it will half my bill, approximately. And if they offer some bundle that would really save me, I'll keep it, but generally there's no sense in me having it; except for the occasional foray into news or weather and 'Doctor Who', I simply do not watch.

It is apparently the afternoon of napping

I was doing my laundry over at my friends' house and everyone in the house except me--humans, dogs, and cats, fell asleep, One had been up since four something in the morning and was falling asleep at the computer before he laid down. Another fell asleep to 'The Flying Nun', which was the only thing he could find on television he could handle. The dogs and cats were ranged around him. I took a picture of everyone but the one in bed, which I'll show them later. But my laundry finished, so I folded it and got my stuff and crept out of there. A barely stirred. :)

I feel like a nap, too. I watered the outside plants as soon as I got home because they were looking peaked in the heat, but the sun is beating down through the windows and it's a pleasant afternoon. The plan is to get up later, do game notes and hand-wash laundry, as well as dishes and a bit of straightening, before calling it a night.

I did send the disc of 'Grimm' I have out from Netflix back today so I could get another. I checked and the first season is on Amazon Prime, which I have, without paying anything additional. So I'm going to go that route. I couldn't get Silver Linings Playbook at the library, so I added it to my disc queue to watch in a little while. I have a couple of other discs first, but they should be quick to watch, I think. A said it was fine to wait a bit. Okay, now for my nap. :)

Tired, but it was a really fun day

We've had downtime for awhile in the Call of Cthulhu game, so it's nice to have an adventure to run through. This one is set in Rome during the time of Claudius. I'm playing a character I haven't been playing lately, so that's nice. She tends to be one of my meekest, so I'm trying to be a little more vivacious and decisive. It was a little better than usual. I like the adventure, although there seems to be a problem with the book in terms of handouts, etc. (It's The Cthulhu Invictus Companion.) I don't know if anyone else has had issues, but apparently there was a group of letters that were important clues that were missing in our copy, or at least the game master couldn't find them, and there wasn't much of a description of the information contained in them. They also refer to them as numbered handouts, but say in the text that they shouldn't be given in any particular order, which is a bit odd. All in all it was surprising, as this is by Chaosium and they are normally okay in that area.

I started my day lending my laptop to a friend so she could type up a paper for school, as the library was closed today for Easter and she wouldn't have had time to do so before class (she's in an accelerated nursing programme, and it's a crazy schedule). Then I went over for the game and did the normal prep work along with A, who helped. Then I went and got snacks and gas (I was really running on fumes). I got back and we watched some clips from the musicals Addams Family and Wicked, and then Brenda arrived and we started the game. We finished up about 9:45, I hung around just a bit, and I got home about 10:30. While I was getting things together my chain around my neck broke; I'll have to have Brenda look at it next week, as the links are tiny and she has the tools with her to fix them during most games, as she makes headdresses and necklaces for ball-jointed dolls as a way to keep her hands busy as we play.

Tomorrow and Tuesday I'm off, and the weather forecast has improved somewhat. Now they're saying 49 degrees and mixed sunshine and clouds for Monday, 48 with plenty of sunshine on my birthday, Tuesday--which is much better than the 35 and snow they were forecasting earlier. Tomorrow Brandon, the kids, and I are going to have lunch at O'Charley's to celebrate our birthdays--his was today. I need to pick up a package from Amazon being shipped to my work address, which includes the complete run of 'Waiting for God'. YKWIA and I have been enjoying them, but Netflix only has the fourth and fifth season, not the earlier ones, so I ordered the set. After that I'm going to take a friend to an appointment. Tuesday there may be another appointment, but we may also go see The Host, which looks pretty interesting. We'll see.

I enjoyed the return of 'Doctor Who' last night; the episode's premiss was very interesting, and paralleled something that could happen in our game. Afterwards a new show came one, 'Orphan Black', which I found pretty intriguing. After I got home last night I blogged a bit, and then I went to bed by 11, got up at 3:30 to work on the notes, finished by 5:30, and then went back to bed till nearly 8. So although I did actually get sleep last night, it was a bit fragmented, and it was my fault for shopping Saturday morning instead of doing the notes, or even better, doing the notes earlier in the week. It just never seems to work out well, and Friday nights I'm usually pretty wiped from the workweek. I'm going to try to get a jump on next week's notes, though, as there's a lot of investigation, and that takes longer to transcribe than action. There was a good bit of that, too, though, so maybe they'll balance out.

Anyway, the upshot of that is I'm tired and I'm going to head on to bed. Hope you had a good weekend. I can't believe it's almost April already. It seems like just yesterday I was bored at home waiting for my ankle to heal, or just going back to work. Wow. Take care, and I'll try to do a little more blogging than normal since I'll be off from work. Good night.

Took some time and watched

'Downton Abbey' on Netflix. I'm late to the table (this was Series 1, Episode 2), but I am enjoying it quite well. And I loved seeing the Dowager being thwarted a bit. I've loved Maggie Smith since I saw her in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie years ago. Oh, and the costumes are so lovely. I really rather like the heir presumptive, Matthew, at least so far. Now that I know the regular length is 43 minutes (the pilot was 66) I'm more likely to watch each night, so maybe I can get caught up. Now to clean the bathroom, and then for a bit of reading.