I'm Still Here

I have heard from a large percentage of my fan base (well, one of the sibs) and have been chastised for not blogging since February. So what follows is a quick and perspicacious summary of the sub-plots from March and April.

• Dad was in the hospital for a week, but after much stress on everyone’s part, he’s doing much better. Turns out all the Big D was a result of the antibiotics they were pumping into him killing off the “good” bacteria in his tum, which allowed the “bad” bacteria to run amok.


• Mom was running herself ragged taking care of dad, and consequently forgetting to take care of mom, but the sibs came down and that allowed her to rest some while he was in the hospital, and I’ve been told the plan is for them to come down more often to help her out some.


• Sophie and Gizmo turned the Big Three yesterday, and we spent a good portion of the day cuddling and napping together. Winifred is one hyperactive adolescent, and either Merle or Blackie pee’d in my car. Oh, and Tom helped me get rid of the fish tank, so Charlie’s Angels and their subsequent progeny are no more.

Now, as for the main character, in no particular order of importance:
Late February, I got a new tattoo – I was on the cheezburger website (one of my favs!) and found this pic, and I knew immediately that that was what my next tat would have to be. ‘Specially since it would go so well with the paws. I talked to Shawna at work and she told me about this place in Oakland City, run by a Christian couple, where she and her hubs get their tattoos. So one weekend I was all ready to go there. I had plenty of OT in that week’s paycheck and I was going to do it! Only, when I called to find out their hours, I discover the phone number is disconnected – they’re out of business. So much for Shawna’s connections. Sigh… I was bummed. So, the next weekend, I’m having dinner with Royale, we hadn’t gotten together in quite a while and had tons of stuff to catch up on. She’d never even seen the paws! So, I flashed them at her and she asked for all the details. Then I inquired of her where she would go for a tattoo in Evansville. She said one of two places. I said, do you wanna go with me now? :) She did, we went, I got the tattoo and was very happy! A couple of girls at work are jealous, though, so we might have to go and get them copy cats! Hahaha (Get it? Copy? cats?? Hahaha)

I continue to use my CPAP sleep machine and my mental alertness is much better, although Steve (Boss #1) might argue that point occasionally. I don't feel like my physical pep is improving though, but let's face it, at my weight what could I expect?

So, between how I actually feel and watching them taking care of dad in the hospital this past month, I decided I needed to yield to the inevitable and rejoin Weight Watchers. My fiend Becky (BK for short) goes, and I know from experience that it works, so I decided now was the time. Of course, I can't afford both Weight Watchers and Curves, so since I haven't actually been GOING to Curves much, it was an obvious decision. I cancelled that membership and started the WW membership. Tuesday night is my first weigh in.

What else? Well, late March I took a long weekend (well-deserved, considering all the over time I've been working since October!) and went up to Indy, stopping by Bloomington to pick up Niece #1, Hollian (or Ho2.0, as I like to call her) first, and then the sibs and Nieces #1 and #3 (Brynn) drove up to Lafayette to visit Niece #2 (Natalie) at Purdue. Well, that was one reason to go, the other was to eat at the Triple XXX - a goal ever since seeing it on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives on Food Network. (The goals I set for myself, eh?) Anyway, we got to tour the campus, eat lunch, and meet the skanky roommate.

Ok, so has that been it? Yup, I guess those are the major items for the past month.

I Am a New Woman

Last night was my first night using my new CPAP (Continued Positive Airway Pressure) machine and I awoke this morning feeling like a new woman! Well for one thing, when I woke up this morning, a couple of minutes before the first alarm, I was AWAKE. I know, you’re saying “DUH,” but it was such a strange sensation that I literally sat there in bed trying to name it for several minutes.

I picked the machine up Monday afternoon and upon getting home with my new toy, I got ready for bed, plugged it in, put distilled water in the humidifier thingee and popped the mask on my face. I was ready for sleep. Of course I first had to suffer through the investigation of my two roommates. Both Sophie and Gizmo had to sniff and analyze the strange alien-like thing that appeared to be digesting my nose. After I passed inspection, I tried to go to sleep, but I think I was so excited that it took me a while to calm down. After getting myself into a position that was both conducive to sleep and did not smudge my mask out of place, I went to sleep.

My normal mornings were like this: 6:30 - alarm goes off; 6:40 - the sound finally penetrates the depths of my sleep and I turn off the alarm and start the long-winding journey toward consciousness; 7:00 - the second alarm goes off and I turn off the alarm, but turn on the TV and I again journey toward consciousness, but since I’d only had 15-20 minutes of sleep this time, the journey isn’t so long, but is equally arduous; 7:00 to7:15 - I snuggle and cuddle with my babies and watch either V-H1 (because mornings are the ONLY time they actually air music videos anymore) or the first few minutes of the Today Show (until I get sick of either the news or the interplay between the hosts); 7:15 to7:20 - I start telling the cats that I HAVE to get up; 7:20 to7:45 - I get up and hobble into the bathroom to shower, brush the teeth, put on the contacts, etc.; 7:45 - get dressed, sit down to put on socks and shoes; 7:55 - wake up when one of the cats pounces on the bed; 8:00 - wobble outside to the car and drive to work (I start work at 8:15).

But today, again, I was awake BEFORE the alarm. I sat there and cuddled with the cats and watched the local news morning show until I was sick of the news and/or the interplay between the hosts and I turned over the V-H1. When the second alarm went off at 7, I told the kids that I had to get up. I got up, did the whole bathroom thing, got dressed, skirmished a couple of times on World Domination in Facebook, then got to work early. I was SO perky at work, I think people thought that I’d been kidnapped and replaced by a pod person. I was all “Good Morning!” and “Howdy!” and I was smiling! (Those who know me know that although I’m ambulatory, I don’t really wake up until 10 and even then I’m not perky.) AND, if that weren’t crazy enough, I actually took the stairs between our office floors … not once, but SEVEN times!!! Oh, and normally I’m yawning all day because I’m just tired. But the first yawn didn’t come until about 5:30! It was incredible.

All this perky awakeness is tiring though, so I’m ready to go to bed.

TGIF Wrap Up

Well, I'm happy to say that by Wednesday, I'd recovered from my sleep study and was no longer a walking Zombie. Which is good because Lost was on Wednesday night and that show actually takes concentration. I was sitting on the couch with Gizmo in my lap and Sophie laying at my feet on a pillow and occasionally licking my shin (don't ask). But we thoroughly enjoyed having our cast of castaways back, and I, for one, was very happy that no one wanted to give Sawyer a shirt to wear for the first hour!

Dad's 2nd chemo appointment was Monday and he seems to be doing ok. With each treatment, he also gets an IV cocktail to help with the side effects and that seems to last a couple of days. Last week it didn't wear off until Thursday, but this week it wore off on Wednesday. But when I talked to him on Thursday, he seemed his normal perky self. But he is having leg weakness - he talked to the oncologist about that, and if it's still going on by next Monday, they may tweak his blend of chemo.

I got a call from the sleep center and the doctor in charge and I have an appointment for next week for us to go over my results. I'm both eager for and dreading the results. But I prayed for some answers, so hopefully, good or bad, that's what we'll get. But Bob already told me that if I need to use a CPAP, then it'll involve another night, just like last Sunday night, electrodes and goop and all, only this time, we'd add the CPAP, so as to get it calibrated for my particular weirdness.

Today, Friday, Winifred - the kitten that joined mom & dad's household around Halloween - is getting fixed. If she plays her cards right, it looks like she's going to get to stay inside and be a housecat. I hope so. I really think the 'Rents would enjoy having a cat or two inside. Dad would really like to have Merle inside. Merle being a very friendly and loving thing, but they're leery because he's been an outside cat (although he is fixed) all his life. But I think he could easily adapt to being an indoor/outdoor cat. The main concern being if he can adapt to using a litter box and his claws. But I've bought some Soft Claws to put on Wini when she gets home and I'd think that if they work for her, they'd work for Merle too. Small steps. :)

The Oscar nominees were announced yesterday and as has been practice for the past couple of years, I was looking forward to seeing which movies were nominated for Best Picture because I'd end up going to see some of them and reviewing them for this blog and my firm's inhouse newsletter. I was might disappointed to find out that the Dark Knight was not nominated. Because I'm pretty sure that in each of my Oscar reviews todate, I've pointed out that I'm more of a Batman girl than the type that gets the movies that are generally nominated for Best Picture and I was really looking forward to having to watch Dark Knight again and reviewing it. But that's ok. I've scoped out the listings and plan on hitting the Button movie (despite my NOT being a Brad Pitt fan, but the movie is only $5 at Kerasotes and I'm cheap!), Frost/Nixon, and Slumdog Millionaire all this weekend in order to get my review in the Feb 1 issue of our newsletter. I think I'd really like The Reader - it having to do with Nazi's and all, but neither of the theaters in Evansville have it on this week and I have a deadline.

Oh, and one other thing, thanks to a "friend" at work, I'm now addicted to World Domination on Facebook. It's a good thing we can't get on Facebook at work because I'd be on every 20 minutes or so to see what other countries I could conquer! I'm weak. Ok, so that's it for my week and you now know my plans for the upcoming week. Rose, out!