Friday, February 23, 2007

the wee hours

Where The Spoons At?

Are you wondering why I’m hurting your eyes with Queen Latifah’s slightly-modified Pizza Hut slogan?  It’s because I am once again exhausted.  This happened to me a week ago too, after we went out to lunch with my parents.  Today, I woke up, did a couple of things (fed the dogs, ate, read the newspaper), and literally passed out on the bed when I came back upstairs.  I was so exhausted that I couldn’t function.  I read something that someone posted a link to on Leigh-Ann’s blog, trying to explain Lupus, but it works for any chronic illness.  Normally, I loathe just about anything people write about their chronic illnesses, from stories to poems to songs.  Usually, they’re grotesquely hokey and the people are often quite untalented.  Remember, just because you’re sick, it doesn’t mean you have talent.  It doesn’t mean that you don’t have talent either, but usually those people aren’t writing poems or giving each other “fibro-hugs”.  Gah.  Anyway, this woman was trying to explain to her friend what it feels like to have Lupus...or frankly, how it feels to be sore and tired.  Except for using the word less, instead of fewer (hey, blame my mom, she’s the one who made me picky about the difference ), the Spoon Theory is something I wholeheartedly approve of having everyone read.

The Spoon Theory will explain how I (and Leigh-Ann) can seem perfectly normal when you see us, but why it’s so difficult for us to go anywhere these days.  We’ve both gotten worse; or rather, Leigh-Ann’s gotten worse, and I’ve developed fibromyalgia.  On Wednesday, we went to the Western Veterinary Conference at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center for about five hours.  We walked and walked, talked and talked, walked some more.  We learned about neat new products, met lots of really nice people (Leigh-Ann swooned when she met Dr. Harrison of Harrison’s bird foods/exotic bird books fame), and got a whole bunch of free stuff.  I’m especially fond of my stuffed heartworm from one of the major pharmaceutical companies.  And damn, you should’ve seen some of the booths - there were a couple of two story ones, and one that had circular stairs going up to their second floor.

So, we had a really good time at the conference; however, we used up all of our “spoons” for that day, and for me, perhaps most of my spoons for the next day.  It’s even why I don’t shower every single day anymore, even though I’m generally obsessive about smelling good and having good hair days.  When I shower, it uses up spoons that could be used for something like, oh, work.  Or going grocery shopping.  Or walking up and down the stairs a few times.  I really would like to stop moaning & groaning about feeling like crap, but it seems so ever-present these days.  I know it’s boring for you guys though.  Hell, it’s boring for me.

Tuesday, February 20, 2007

the wee hours

Ooooh, I feel old!

My oldest nephew turns 30 today.  THIRTY!  I haven’t seen him since he was around two years old.  He’s the oldest child of my half-sister, who I’ve only seen once in my adult life - when I was five, I thought she was really cool, but she didn’t have much time for a five year old.  After making some attempts at keeping in touch a few times as I grew up, I finally gave up.  She seems to be an okay person, from the time I’ve spent with her, but she’s super crappy at keeping in touch with her siblings.  My brothers and I are the only siblings she has.  Anyway, all I remember about my nephew is a really cute little blonde toddler who called me “Ancy”, which I think was a combination of Aunt and Nancy.  Also, every time he woke up from a nap, he seemed to have forgotten everything he knew during those couple of hours.  He’d wake up, point, and say, “Whatzis?” constantly, and sometimes, “But, Uncle David...whatszis?” .  So, Jonathan Guth (or Jon Guth, if you’ve ever gone by the shortened version of your name...I wouldn’t know), if you ever do a search for yourself, happy 30th birthday.  I was 14 when we met and you made a cute lasting impression…

Monday, February 19, 2007

terribly early in the morning

A Whole Bunch O’ Questions

It’s a meme, cleverly disguised as email, from our fabulous hair stylist, Laurie. (her website was a Hanukkah gift from us, only it’s not finished yet)

1. What time did you get up this morning?  1:30p (and it’s likely to be a similar time tomorrow because of our late bedtimes)

2. Diamonds or pearls?  Diamonds, but I prefer simpler stuff, like jewelry from Teno.com.  If it’s accented with diamonds, then okay.

3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema?  I can’t remember.  Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill, maybe.

4. What is your favorite TV show?  Veronica Mars or Heroes or…

5. What did you have for breakfast this morning?  A bagel w/ peanut butter

6.What is your middle name?  Jo

7.What is your favorite meal?  Sushi

8. What foods do you dislike?  Lima beans, ginger, curry

9. Favorite chips?  I’m not picky.  I like just about any kind, although I prefer the super crunchy ones.

10. What is your favorite CD at the moment?  Shivaree - “Who’s Got Trouble?”

11. What kind of car do you drive?  2005 Chevy Equinox

12 What is your favorite sandwich?  I’m not picky, I like lots of different kinds of sammies.

13. What characteristics do you despise?  Mean people, liars, and people who think they know me, but really don’t.

14. What are your favorite clothes?  Jeans, t-shirts & sweatshirts.

15. If you could go anywhere in the world for a Vacation where would you go?  Any exotic island.

16. Favorite brand of clothing?  No real favorites, as long as they’re comfy.

17. Where would you want to retire?  San Francisco

18. Favorite time of day?  The middle of the night these days.

19. Where were you born?  Canoga Park (now West Hills), CA

20. What is your favorite sport to watch?  Hockey (Maple Leafs), Baseball (Dodgers), or Football (any team that has my fantasy players on it)

21. Who do you think will not send this back?  Everyone who reads it

22. Person you expect to send it back first?  No one

23. Pepsi or Coke?  PEPSI!  I don’t like Coke at all.

24. Beavers or ducks?  Rubber duckies

25. Are you a morning person or a night owl?  Night owl.  I’ve always hated getting up early.

26. Pedicure or manicure?  Manicure, but I’ve only had a few in my life.  Also, I can’t stand having anyone touch my feet because they’re ticklish.

27. Any new and exciting news you’d like to share?  I had a cystoscopy without any numbing gel!  Whoo!

28. What did you want to be when you were little?  Professional baseball player.

29. What is your best childhood memory?  Probably being on a softball team that won a national championship in 1978; but otherwise, almost all my childhood memories are good.  I had a happy childhood.

30. Piercing?  One in each ear.

31. Ever been to Africa?  Nope, you? 

32. Ever been toilet papering?  Yes, with a couple of my softball teams.

33. Been in a car accident?  Yes.  Although it was minor, I think I have permanent back problems from it.

34. Favorite day of the week?  They’re all the same generally.  I like Saturdays because of Hockey Night in Canada though.

35. Favorite restaurant?  Makino

36. Favorite Flower?  Gerbera Daisies.

37. Favorite ice cream?  Godiva Chocolate Raspberry Truffle

38. Favorite fast food restaurant?  Zaba’s Mexican Grill - They have amazing tomato & red chile salsa

39. How many times did you fail your driver’s test?  Never, although I came close.  I choked on the three-point turn and the “blind” intersections.  I don’t like anyone looking over my shoulder when I drive...or type.

40. From whom did you get your last e-mail?  Myself.  It was a copy of a work email.

41. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card?  Amazon.com - they have almost everything.

42. Bedtime?  Lately, between 3am - 7am, although as late as 10am.  It’s horrid.

43. Who are you most curious about their responses to this?  Everyone

44. Last person you went to dinner with?  Leigh-Ann, although we both had lunch at the Red Rock buffet with my parents on Friday.

45. What are you listening to right now?  Shivaree

46. What is your favorite color?  Grey or black w/ any bright color

47. How many tattoos do you have?  None, although I’ve thought about getting a small one.

48. When was the last time you cried and why?  Maybe a few weeks ago, when I was really stressed out.  It was one of my good long cries and lasted maybe fifteen seconds.

49. What are your biggest dreams?  To have Leigh-Ann and I be financially secure and healthy.

Sunday, February 18, 2007

the wee hours

From Vox.com’s Question of the Day

Who was your best (or worst) elementary school teacher?

I’ve been a bad bad blogger lately.  If helps to know this, I’ve been a very very good employee.  And being a very good employee means getting caught up on bills, and eating stuff other than those icky $1 Hungry Man dinners.  It’s hard to eat well when you’re not able to afford fresh foods.  If you ever want to know why poor people are fat, just look at the prices of food the next time you buy groceries.  Stuff that’s loaded with fat, calories & salt = cheap.  Fresh fruits, vegetables, seafood, and good frozen meals = expensive.

Okay, now to answer the question of the day.  My best elementary school teacher, by far, was my first grade teacher, Mrs. Miller.  It seemed like she was 100 years old when I had her, but I suppose that couldn’t have been possible. My brother, David, also had her for first grade.  She loved books and reading.  She made us read aloud constantly, which made us much better readers.  I used to really hate being called on, but when Mrs. Miller told me that I read so well that she wanted me to read to her at home, I think I probably wanted to be called on every day in her class.  That was 36 years ago and I still remember that she said that.  I have three older brothers, but only David likes to read for pleasure like I do, and I think it was because of Mrs. Miller.  My mom always got us books and took us to the library, so we had a good influence at home, but it seems like Mrs. Miller was the tipping point to make us love reading.  Or, maybe David & I would’ve loved books no matter what, because my mom loves books.  Since David & I are more like my mom than Glenn & Craig are, maybe it’s just natural that we love to read.  We also hate misspelling words.  Glenn & Craig can read just fine, but they never go out of their way to read anything except the newspaper for purely pleasurable purposes.  At least not the last time I checked.

I had other elementary school teachers that I liked, but I don’t think they contributed to my future like Mrs. Miller did.  My second grade teacher, Mrs. Kappes, was the nicest teacher I ever had, I think.  She always seemed to be smiling.  Mrs. Ragsdale, my sixth grade teacher, was a fabulous artist and always wore really stylish clothes.  Mr. Markus was my fourth (or was it fifth) grade teacher, and I thought he was cool because we were both kindasorta distant cousins of Ron Mix, the San Diego Chargers Hall of Fame football player.  So, it was neat to have a teacher call me “Cuz”.

The only teacher who stands out as mean, from elementary school, was Mrs. Brill.  She wore her hair in a really tight bun that looked uncomfortable.  Maybe that’s what made her so grumpy.  She was mostly okay to me, but she was mean to some of the other kids.  She wasn’t a bad teacher though.

Thursday, February 15, 2007

terribly early in the morning

Arrgggh, There’s Nothing Wrong With My Bladder

I’ve been so busy working (going to bed between 7-10am), sleeping, and feeling lousy, that I haven’t had time to blog or read most of my blogroll.  Our pay period, which involves incentive tiers, ends today, so I’ll have a few days of breathing easier starting tomorrow.  Anyway, to briefly update you on my joyous cystoscopy experience - like the subject title says, there’s nothing structurally wrong with my bladder.  I have a small ovarian cyst that needs to be checked in 2-3 months, but that’s the only thing that showed up on the ultrasound, and I passed the cystoscopy (ick) with flying colors.  While that generally would be a good thing for most people, it isn’t for me.  That means that I’m no closer to figuring out what’s wrong with my bladder.  And hey, remember that I asked three different doctors to prescribe Enablex for me to try?  All three said no.  Guess what I was given samples of on Monday?  Yup, Enablex.  I apparently don’t need any doctors because I diagnosed my own fibromyalgia...and I was unable to figure out what’s wrong with my bladder.  My symptoms are so odd (worse after I shower and when I sit?  Crazy) and I’ve never been able to find anyone online who is affected like I am.  Apparently I’m as good at figuring it out as my urologist.  Or equally not good.  But, at least I’ve thought I should try Enablex for months now.  I’ve been on it for two days and I’m not cured yet.  They say it’ll probably take two weeks to get in my system and work.  Oh, please please please let it work.

I have more to write about my cystoscopy experience (for those who are searching for it and wanting personal experiences), but it’ll have to wait until I have more time.  I’m also way behind on emailing people, so if I haven’t written back to you, don’t take it personally.  I’ve had very little free time, although I confess to watching “American Idol”, “Veronica Mars”, “Gilmore Girls”, “Studio 60”, and “How I Met Your Mother”.  It’s our downtime, when we eat and discuss work.  Leigh-Ann actually does work during the shows, but because of my bladder, I’m too uncomfortable sitting with the laptop and working.  The position makes me have to get up too often.