I am so freaking tired

I have been up for fifteen hours, since 1:30 this morning. I tossed and turned until 3:30, got up, got ready, went to IHOP by 4:30, Kroger by 5:15, and work by 6 am. I got off early as a result and went to TWC/Spectrum and got my Internet connexion back on for less than I thought it would be (yay!) and got my allergy shots. I am going to forage for food here and then get some rest. There's not much here, of course, being right before payday, and I need gas, too, but I can barely drive at this point. I did get my federal refund (not a lot, but enough to get the Internet back on and pay a very overdue bill, at least partly). I've been hot all day, I feel gunky despite the shower this morning. I don't feel like going out, and I can't go hog wild and do something like order pizza (although I do have a coupon from T-Mobile for 25% off or a free one-topping pizza. Hmmm...no, bad for the blood sugar. I'll figure something out. I think I still have some bread and cheese. I don't think I could wait for pizza. My head is pounding from lack of sleep. So for now, I'll head to bed. But at least I can stream Pandora, Netflix, or Amazon on the TVs and print without using my phone now (and more importantly, look and apply for jobs for both A and myself). And I got a deal so it's cheaper than it was. Okay, taking off the shoes, letting down the hair, taking off the jewelry, getting into something comfy, and eating a cheese sandwich soon. :)

I tried a food truck for the first time today

And while it was tasty, had a big window where you could watch the action, was giving a percentage of the profits to our non-profit organisation, and took debit cards (as opposed to our cafeteria, which is cash only and frankly, of late, has had little in the ways of vegetarian options), it was expensive ($13 for a small eight-inch pizza, before tip) and took awhile to get if you didn't go for the special small pepperoni pizza. (My veggie pizza order took 25 minutes, when my lunch break is technically only 30. But one of my co-workers' order got mislaid; she waited much longer for her cheese pizza with cheese sticks.) They did so well, they ran out of pizza. :) The vendor was Rolling Oven Pizza. It was good, but a little greasy for my taste (I'm more of a Papa John's kind of girl--Pizza Hut is too greasy for me, Domino's I still have some social issues with, and Sir Pizza, the one time I had it, was like cardboard--although that could be related to the fact we were in the midst of an ice storm at the time and they were the only place I could get to deliver to my all-electric-with-electricity-out apartment. There's supposed to be a food truck coming every other week for awhile. We'll see where we go from here.

A long day

It's good that I started for work 45 minutes before I was supposed to be there, because there was a wreck on Richmond Road that shut down each outside lane coming to and going from downtown. I wound up, after spending 10-15 minutes in stopped traffic, cutting over to Mt Tabor from Patchen Dr, then going by Yellowstone Pkwy to Alumni, and then to Chinoe, Culpepper, and Fontaine. It took me over 30 minutes to get to work, but I was on time, even though I'd actually planned on going in a little early to make up some time from an appointment. But I stayed a little late, so I just have a half hour to make up, and hopefully I can do that tomorrow.

Today I unpacked thirteen boxes of children's books for the clinic's Reach Out and Read programme, and one box of medical texts for the library. I was terribly hot and sweat was just pouring off of me when I was done. After I'd put everything where it could be transported on a cart to the clinic and the others on my desk, and had consolidated the boxes to go to materials management for people looking for boxes for moving and the like, I splashed myself with cold water and then sat in front of the fan I have borrowed while I did some other work on the computer.

After lunch I did my charge entry and worked on referrals, and scanned the procedure sheets to a co-worker. I realised 10 minutes before I was supposed to leave that I forgot to do the surgery charge reconciliation; I'll do that in the morning along with the one I received right before leaving. I also have three interlibrary loans to work on tomorrow morning, and the clinic cart to fill with books, and I should start cataloguing the new books, too.

I am feeling a little queasy and had some gastrointestinal issues today. I don't know if it's because I ate something that wasn't peanut butter and bread or if I have a touch of something a friend was dealing with for the last couple of days. I'll see if it settles down, and if I have no further problems, I'll chalk it up to eating other food.

After work I had a much easier commute, although I almost got in the way of a fire truck. I heard the siren, and was looking in front of me and in the back, and it was coming from the side, from the fire house itself, I just didn't realise I was in front of the station in that moment. So I got out of the way and over, and then had to wait to get back into traffic, because of course, no one else pulled over. Then I went to the library and picked up an interlibrary loan I'd put in for YKWIA.

Since I've been home, I put my things down, then cleaned the bathroom and poured some Pine-Sol into the kitchen sinks and ran the garbage disposal, as it had soured a bit. I also put the air conditioning back on, as it was very stuffy in here when I got in. My plans for tonight include working on the bedroom, which is the only room in the house that is still messy, and working on the game notes, for real this time. The bedroom is somewhat of a priority because the night before last I had the windows up and while I was on the phone, I closed them. The living room ones went down fine, and I locked them. The bedroom one got a bit stuck, I closed it, and then when I went to lock it, the metal piece that slides in to lock it broke off, so if there was a fire or something, my window will not open. I didn't break the glass or anything, just the lock. So tonight or if need be this weekend, I need to work on the bedroom so they can come in. Right now, for example, I have a folding chair with things on it in front of the window, and some things strewn on the floor. That is not conducive to repairing the window. I also have laundry to put away, as I emptied the cart this morning of the load or so that I did on Sunday, and put it neatly on the bed, ready to be put away. I also need to switch purses. Tomorrow is jeans day, and while I could wear a purple shirt to go with my current purse, I'd really just rather wear a T-shirt and take my zippered tote bag, or even a backpack. I love the purse I'm carrying, but it is very large and cumbersome.

Have any of you had any experience with Android Pay yet? My bank is participating, and I find the concept interesting. In some ways, it sounds more secure than using a physical credit card, as no sensitive information is stored. On the other hand, it sounds to me like it would be easy to accidentally pay for something. The idea is you unlock your phone, and without having to go into the application for Android Pay, you touch the NFC payment sensor with your phone, and it automatically charges your credit or debit card without actually providing the details to the merchant, so if the merchant is hacked, your information is not in their system. I did change the settings of my phone to immediately lock when the screen goes dark, and for the screen to go dark within 15 seconds, which will also save a bit on battery. Android Pay does require that you lock your phone in a manner other than the basic slide, which I already did, but considering there is news of a hack where a very long password can disrupt a PIN or other locking method, that's a little troubling. But they have to physically have your phone. No one else uses mine, and if it were stolen, I could turn off my card for use with Android Pay through my bank, while still using the physical card, so that's better. But while I have everything set up, I haven't physically tried to use it, so I'll let you know if I have the opportunity to.

The symbol that's used to show compatible sensors [payWave, to the left] is on Chicago's mass transit system (their Ventra card is tapped to the sensor, for example, and can be used with a credit card attached to the account, or you can use a credit card that already has that symbol on it). I used to have one, but my latest one doesn't have that symbol. But I wonder if Android Pay would work with that? It could be handy. Ah, but I already have a Ventra card, so I'll just use that when I go to Chicago in November.

Okay, I also need to check my finances and see if I can do a run to the grocery, as all I have in the house are crackers, peanut butter, a little bread, and some canned mixed vegetables. I ate dinner after work in the cafeteria, as they had little square pieces of veggie pizza, and I've been craving pizza, but didn't really have the money to order one, and I shouldn't eat that much due to my blood sugar. So this was a happy coincidence. Anyway, I'm going to go now and work on some things, after my stomach settles a bit.

I had a reminder today that what I am going through

Is nothing compared to others' experiences, and with some luck and healing should be a temporary setback only. I ordered dinner from Papa John's and was obviously embarrassed by my mobility issues when I answered the door. The delivery driver was very nice and he said he understood, he had come home from combat in a wheelchair, and that the most important thing was to do everything the doctors and therapists told me to do, because he said that made all the difference in the guys he saw getting better or not. I promised I would, tipped him well, and ate a little and put the rest away for later, thinking of what he must have gone through. Again, I am getting a lot of perspective these days. Without my injury, I might never have thought twice about the delivery driver, and he would not have said anything beyond enjoy your meal. I mean, I try to tip well, and treat everyone nicely, but this is someone who was wounded in a war I didn't support but I still appreciate the service he and others have given, and the sacrifices made. And I am sure he has had a far more difficult road than I have. Yet he was upbeat and encouraging, and made me feel that there would be a point soon where I would feel better. And that was worth more to me than any tip could cover.

Up at the crack of dawn

Literally, although I know lots of my co-workers are already at work by 7 am. I'm doing two loads of laundry, and I also wrote a complaint in regarding a delivery order I made last weekend, where they didn't have a drink so instead of modifying the order, they took the whole order off, then had me pay for it over the phone when it was delivered. The problem is that original amount has been sitting in pending for six days (four of them business days), unavailable. The bank says it sometimes takes that long to fall off. I don't think that the restaurant can do anything to help, at this point, but I respectfully suggested they find a way for stores to modify web orders without capturing people's money for days on end (and no, I didn't put it that way). I forgot to mention that I think they overcharged me the second time, by putting the tip on twice, as it actually wound up another $4 higher.

I suppose this is the universe's way of punishing me for ordering pizza. I will say I ate on that pizza till yesterday, so I did eat over several days. Still...maybe it will discourage the diabetic from ordering things she shouldn't eat.

Weird news of the day: old fashioned way to cut out the competition

Police: Florida pizza workers burned down rival store: One allegedly said that with Papa John's gone, there'd be more customers for Domino's

It happened in Lake City, Florida, and police are still looking for an ignition device the arsonists say they built but did not use scattered along I-75.

Okay, good night for real. And for goodness' sake, if you're in Florida, don't touch anything weird you might find along the interstate.

I'm so groggy. Pizza is not our friend.

I had a some pizza last night (four slices, not the whole thing or anything, but I did have some bread sticks), and woke up this morning feeling really wonky. I just checked my blood sugar and it's 395. That's without missing any medicine or anything.

Must stop doing that. A fasting blood sugar of nearly 400 is insane. I want to make it to 2012 and watch the world end. :) But seriously....

I feel like I have walked all over creation today

although that's an exaggeration, of course. I did walk over to the doctor's office today to see about my ankle. I have peroneal tendonitis and a possible stress fracture in my foot. I have an appointment for an MRI on Friday. They asked me if I were claustrophobic and I said yes. Apparently if you are they sedate you and you have to have someone drive you. I am the main driver, so I really don't have anyone to drive me, unless Margaret was free. So I said I'd just work through it. Only my waist down has to go in the machine. When I had the stress fractures in my other foot a couple of years ago I had trouble with the MRI but managed to get through it okay. Now when they did my head I had an open MRI and felt much better.

The doctor had a hard time trying to fit a boot on me because although my feet are very small, my calves are large, and the uppermost strap wouldn't close. She sent me across the street to a brace office, but they weren't in my insurance network. Since it would have been next Monday before I could really go to another orthotics office, I said I would go ahead and pay out of pocket, which in this case meant $250 out of my flexible spending account. But when I saw the orthotist, I mentioned that I had a boot that had been on my other foot. They're universal, and although he couldn't say for certain that it would help in this case, he suggested trying it and seeing. It's shorter than the one the doctor tried and therefore the calf issue is moot. They didn't charge me for the consult. I got to the bus stop before realising I'd left my umbrella, had to go back, and then managed to catch the bus to work.

I used some points I'd built up at Papa John's to get a free pizza today. That's pretty much held me all day. I talked to a friend who was really down and upset. I hoped I helped her. Then I went over to another friend's to do some work for him. I got in from there about an hour ago.

I'm looking forward to getting the car fixed on Thursday. I hope it won't be too expensive. It's also the day that LexTran rides are free. I haven't decided whether to take the day off or go to work during the repair and going back out to pick up the car. Thursday is our catered employee appreciation cookout, and we get a gift from the hospital. Although I don't eat the hamburgers, hot dogs, or baked beans (which have meat in them), they usually have garden burgers that have been cooked separately. So it would be nice to be there. I'm leaning towards that, especially given that I was out two days last week for the museum and the seminar, and I'll have to leave early Friday for the MRI.

Tomorrow and Wednesday I'm working from 10 am to 10 pm, with only a bus ride down Richmond Road between jobs. In theory I should be off from the store on Thursday and work 6-10 on Friday (another reason I couldn't do the valium sedation for the MRI).

I did my good deed for the day during my wait for the bus home. A pit bull puppy had wandered out of a house and the little boy who was holding the door open and calling it was being ineffectual. Of course, it came over to me, being the only other person around and it being a curious pup. I picked it up and brought it back over to the townhouse entrance. Fortunately the bus didn't come for another few minutes.

I meant to mention the other day that there is an advantage to riding the bus and walking down the road--you notice so much more along the side of the road. For example, as we passed the reservoir on Richmond Road the other day there was a turtle or tortoise sunning itself, its head bobbing up and down. There are also lots of geese with their goslings there. There were the daisies the other day, of course, but at the inbound bus stop across from the hospital there is a patch of tall yet small-flowered thistles that butterflies really love. I'm sure when they go to seed the birds will be all over them. When I used to live over by the hospital and walked, there was a creek where I'd stop and watch the fish for awhile.

Speaking of which, my platy mom has been having more babies. I'm not sure how many I have now, but the first ones are over a quarter of an inch now and a darker orange. The black swordtail is pregnant too. Thursday I hope to take some water over to Animal House to have it tested to see if it's okay. If so, I want to get an Amazon lily and a couple of golden snails at the very least and maybe a catfish or algae eater of some sort.

Days of eating crackers + pizza = major gastric distress at 4 in the morning

I'm up, in pain and restless, thinking about going back to bed and seeing if I can sleep. Because I got paid today I splurged and got pizza after a week of deprivation, eating maybe once a day, and very little at that (did I mention I'd lost over ten pounds?) It was very satisfying, but I'm paying the price now for having pizza for lunch and dinner (and there's enough for breakfast and lunch, too, but I think I'll wait and give my body a chance to recover.)

Ohhhhhh. :(

A good start to the day

First of all, I got up early enough to not have to rush and was able to do a few things. I would have done yoga but I started my period last night and the video recommends against that. I learnt a long time ago that exercise on the first day was very bad for me. I also have to be careful of chiropractors' massage tables. I once wound up on the floor of the comic store writhing in pain so bad that I though birth was imminent. At that point, ibuprofen barely touches it. Same with any heavy exercise, like working out at the gym. So I avoid it. In a couple of days, however, it's usually okay. This morning I had a little time so I used a heated (gentle) massage cushion to ease the pain and relaxed quite a bit. I also got the trash ready to go out, made the bed, and got ready for work. I didn't manage to do the dishes; that will have to wait until tonight.

Another nice thing is that today is the first of two paydays for the week, and beyond that there was a debit that was supposed to come out of my account two days ago that is still in the pending column, so it didn't bounce after all, which means more money and I can actually afford some groceries plus toothpaste and body wash, which I was getting terribly low on. Yay!

Yesterday was the day of pizza. I had some for lunch, then we had more at the store meeting. I didn't get a chance to eat (and was stuffed from lunch anyway) because I ran the register whilst the others met (let's face it, I have been there three years, I know the spiel, having attended many of these). So, since my boss always gets a cheese pizza so the vegetarian can have some and they saved that for me, I got to take a whole pizza home with me.

I also found out yesterday that I'm getting a 20 cent raise at the store. I probably would have had 25 cents, but I got downgraded on my lack of suggestive selling. (I hate being suggestive sold to, and unless someone is already getting something similar or one item when it's a better deal for two, I don't do it very well.) We do make bonus on it, though. Fortunately there are several people who do it much better, so we do usually make goal, but there you have it. That brings me to $8.55 an hour, which yes, is still low, but I'm making almost as much as a shift leader without the responsibility, and let's face it, it's a low retail position. Fortunately I make a much higher per-hour amount at the hospital. If only it were full-time, I'd actually be pretty comfortable and could save more....

Well, I'd like to get to work a little early, and I need to stop by the bank briefly and get some cash. I'll blog later tonight, most likely. Hope you have a stress-free and safe holiday season, by the way.

What I've been up to

Over the last three days I:

• Worked five hours on the notes Saturday night to get them finished in time for the game.
  
• Found out Sunday that there would be no game, because B's sheep got out and she had to mend fences, and M had some sort of family thing going on.
  
• Did do my normal Sunday chores and then read a couple of chapters of Lumley's Vamphiri! before heading back home before the buses stopped running.
  
• Got up early today to go to the pharmacy and get as many of my meds as possible before the flexible spending card goes on it's three-week blackout. Only really important one I couldn't get was Lamictal (too soon to refill), which is at least generic now, although I think it's in Tier 2, meaning a $25 co-pay. But I saved nearly $100 by getting what I could today. And at least I can get reimbursed for that $25 when it comes time to get it).
  
• Was very happy that National City would cash a FSA reimbursement cheque for $10 even though I had 24 cents in the bank. Yay, I can eat the breakfast-for-lunch menu at the cafeteria tomorrow.
  
• Ate very little early in the day (pre-$10) but had pizza for a meeting at the store, which I then continued with later for dinner, since it got left. Pizza Hut cheese pan pizza is pretty greasy, but it was good, and I'd been craving pizza.
  
• Accepted an invitation to be friends on Facebook from Bill, then superpoked him with congrats for the birth of his daughter. Read a funny exchage between him and his ex-wife regarding speed bumps, babies, and cat bells.
  
• Figured out how to tweet from Facebook. Now up to three friends. Always open to connecting to more. I thought MLA's group would be on my profile, but it's not. Maybe I never made it all the way into it. Hmmm...
  
• Got a unidentified phone call that is most likely from Insight. Fortunately I can pay my bill Wednesday. Let's hope they don't restrict the service before then.
  

Tomorrow I'll go into work (hospital) early so I can leave early to make it back over by St Joe's East and walk over to Bluegrass Orthopaedics for my doctor's appointment. It's about couple of blocks' worth of walking--not too bad. Then it's over to YKWIA's to read more Lumley.

I keep putting off my laundry. I could have done some during notes tonight but just didn't feel up to it. I'm all achy from work. Tomorrow night I really do need to do some, though.