Ouch!

So I fell off a short ladder hanging the hooks to bring the hanging plants down a bit. But I think I'll be okay. Thank goodness I didn't hit anything hard. But it does look better than this morning. They'll get plenty of light and I'll be able to reach them to water. Funny thing, I looked down before I stepped and thought I was on the bottom step already. Afraid that wasn't the case. But having fallen down an entire staircase before, I'm beginning to get used to that awful feeling when you realize there is no step and you, like Wile E Coyote, are about to fall.

I started my morning drilling holes in my ceiling to hang plants. I have now demonstrated that you can knock over a blooming orchid multiple times and even have it fall down behind some boards and blocks, and the blooms and plant survive. Here's to having a little more room for the plants to spread out.  Somewhere in this apartment there are at least three iron 'barrel of monkeys' s-hooks that I've had for 25 years, but good luck finding those, so I got some nice iron hanger hooks with an open globe spiral in the middle.  Unfortunately, I took a tumble while hanging them.

I have not put a hook into the ceiling in the bedroom yet, but I do have one, and I purchased an extra iron hook for that.  But I think I'll wait a little before getting up there--I'm a little sore.

Here are this morning's results:

Before hanger hooks

And this is with the iron hangers:

With hanger hooks

I put the middle one lower for a better composition but also I can switch the bottom hook around, as those are shamrocks (Oxalis) and grow towards the sun, so they need to be turned daily to keep from being on just one side.

I don't have ice, but I do have ice packs--I think I'm going to put it on my left shoulder/neck/back, which took the brunt of the fall.  Then I'll get up and start working on eliminating the entertainment centre.  It's been a good day--I took some friends out to Texas Roadhouse for salmon meals and then we went to Howard Curry Shoes, Rite Aid, and K-Mart getting new shoes, corn pads, and flip-flops (respectively) for a friend who's on his feet an awful lot, has to wear dress shoes most of the weekend while doing a standing job, and whose feet has been giving him fits.

I've got about an hour and a half until I go back to get him and take him to a meeting.  So there's the entertainment centre full of books to deal with in the meantime, but first the icing and the lying down.

Last night's fortune cookie

Hmmm....

So

I got my first interview. The job hasn't actually closed yet, but we've got the interview set up for almost two weeks away, so I think that's a good sign. It's a public library about an hour's drive away, but it's the county my dad's family is from, so I have great memories and a fondness for the area. Here's hoping! I have a good feeling about it. Wish me luck!

Terribly sad...

Witnesses: Man Cut the Throats of Two MAX Passengers Who Tried to Stop Anti-Muslim Bullying of Women on Northeast Portland Train

Political, community leaders condemn MAX killings, praise 'courageous bystanders'

Reactions poured from elected leaders and community members to Friday's slaying, praising the Good Samaritans who confronted Jeremy Joseph Christian as he spewed hate speech aboard a MAX commuter train, directed at two women, one wearing a hijab.

MAX stabbing victim graduated from Reed College

One of the victims in the attack was identified by his mother on her Facebook page as Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche, 23. He and others interceded when the suspect was verbally attacking two young women on the train. Two people were killed, one injured in the stabbing. Here is a statement released by Namkai Meche's family:

Taliesin Myrddin lived a joyous and full life. His enthusiasm was infectious. We lost him in a senseless act that brought close to home the insidious rift of prejudice and intolerance that is too familiar, too common. He was resolute in his conduct (and) respect of all people. In his final act of bravery, he held true to what he believed is the way forward. He will live in our hearts forever as the just, brave, loving, hilarious and beautiful soul he was. We ask that in honor of his memory, we use this tragedy as an opportunity for reflection and change. We choose love. Safe journey Taliesin. We love you.

The other person killed was identified as Ricky Best, 53, a Portland city employee, 23-year army veteran, and father of four:

These Are The Victims Of The Portland Train Stabbing Attack

Micah David-Cole Fletcher, 21, was also stabbed, but is expected to survive.

These men are heroes.

I know there will always be those consumed by hatred for someone they define as 'other'. I firmly believe that love and brotherhood can win over such baser qualities, but it disturbs me that these sorts of things are on the rise. May these heroes rest in peace, and their families take some solace in their character, and my thoughts are with their families, the injured person, and those who experienced this horrible event.

Hate is the domain of no race, no gender, no nation. It kills the spirit, shrivels the heart, leaves us out of touch with our fellow humans and our interconnectedness, leading to monstrous spirits and deeds. Hatred killed so many in the terrorist attack on the Ariana Grande concert the other day in Manchester, on 9/11, in other terrorist attacks. But it also killed people worshipping in the church that Dylann Roof gunned down, and those victims of hundred of crimes where the body count might be smaller but is no less devastating to those left behind. It killed in Portland, consuming the perpetrator of these crimes and using him to spread fear and terror, claiming precious lives. But hatred does not live on its own in a vacuum. It must invade the human heart, and to do so, the person must let it in and nurture it. We can counter hatred with education, kindness, interaction, and love, but sometimes it must be countered directly, such as in Portland. I am just so sorry it meant death and that these good people had to lose their lives standing up to hate.

Must check this out

When Breath Becomes Air: A Young Neurosurgeon Examines the Meaning of Life as He Faces His Death

I won't actually say I'm exhausted

But I am looking forward to this weekend, especially tomorrow and Monday, as I don't have to take A to and from work at ungodly hours.

After six weeks of an open schedule, where I was very busy, but not working, I feel like I've plunged back into the world of work pretty deeply, and at times I was treading water, because it's very fast-paced work involving lots of mental gymnastics, flexibility, and multi-tasking. Most nights I've come home and dropped to sleep by 8 or 9 pm. I haven't been up to blogging at all. Tonight I feel that way, like if I could just close my eyes for five minutes, I would feel better.

I can't make this long. I'll try to write later.

I am temporarily

working at Shriners again, as a contract worker, covering for someone who is out on maternity leave in registration. This was the photo I took this morning of the new building. I loved seeing so many familiar faces today. It was also very nice to be working again, even if it is temporary. Now if I can just figure out my way around the floor plan.

Bounty

From the farmers' market. Chatted with a few folks, and the guy who sold me the tomatoes gave me the little one for free with the others. They've been at the new location for three years now, and this was the first time I'd ever gone, mainly because I didn't want to deal work Hamburg traffic, but it's off Pink Pigeon on the east side, so it's not like the main drag of Sir Barton Way, which is far busier and congested, at all. All the products are made or grown in Kentucky, which is a plus. In retrospect, I wish I'd gotten a bunch of the pink peonies that were $5. They were lovely, both in appearance and in scent.

So apparently now my friend

Brenda has the crud that's been working its way through our gaming group, so there's no game tomorrow. I hadn't finished the notes yet, and that gives me more time to work on them, which I will at least try to start this weekend, if not finish them.

Later today I'm going to go over to YKWIA's and we're going to try to finish up 'Trial & Error' episodes before they expire on Hulu. It's a cute little show. I think we have five more to watch, and they've a normal running time of 30 minutes, so without commercials they're fairly short.

Okay, I've had breakfast (cheese and blackberries), checked my blood sugar, taken my insulin and some of my oral meds [I need to refill my pill reminder box], and I'm listening to the countdown on the radio. But for some reason I'm putting off getting a shower and getting ready to go out, so I need to do that. Have a great day!

Your trivia for the day

So in the wee hours of the morning, because I wasn't sleeping anyway [since I fell asleep by 8:30, then woke up about four hours later], I decided to use a $15 credit I had with Amazon [for sending that computer back] to replace my old jeans, and ordered a pair. Turns out that jeans were patented by Jacob W. Davis and Levi Strauss on this day, May 20, in 1873. Thank you to my alarm application on my phone for alerting me to this historical fact early this morning, in its nice British accent.

So now I'm up and awake despite being up in the middle of the night, and I have already taken a friend to work. Think I'll get ready and go over to the Bluegrass Farmers' Market this morning (at Liquor Barn's parking lot in Hamburg) to see what they might have.