You are currently browsing the monthly archive for February, 2008.
After having weird, rather bad stomach cramps yesterday (by the time the nurse called back, they had subsided, and she said to call back if they got bad or go to ER if they got worse), three bouts of crying spells at home, and just feeling blah - I woke up this morning feeling ok. Tired, but ok. I was getting ready for work and heard a contest on the radio station. I called in, answered the question correctly and won two gift certificates! Yay - the day is off to a good start.
I get to work and everything is still going ok. I just found out yesterday (in a side note in an email) who my replacement will be, and today get an email asking if we (the new person and I) had started transitioning yet. Um, no. So, I schedule a meeting, and get some more files packed up, call the shipping guy about getting these 11 boxes shipped out to the new person. I have to create a document with a summary of all the things I do in my job. I have way too many emails in my inbox which I don’t like at all. And now my stomach is feeling urky.
I’m leaving tomorrow for a weekend with the girls and now I’m wondering if I’m getting sick. Great.
Oh, and after the basement water issue, the clogged pipe/water issue and the broken garbage disposal…now the hot water heater is leaking. Seriously?! Actually, when E told me about it last night, that set off one of the crying spells. It’s just a little overwhelming.
Let’s see…what else can I whine about…Oh nothing. Nothing is THAT bad, and I can deal with it. It could all be so much worse. I want pizza.
E and I do not have a dog. We don’t have the time to devote to a dog as we are both gone all day at work, or dealing with basement water issues when we are home. Oh, and a broken garbage disposal - that’s new! E wants a dog more than I. I like dogs, but as with kids, I can have fun with other people’s just fine while not wishing I had my own.
This past weekend we dog-sat E’s dad/stepmom’s dog. She’s a collie about 9 years old, in good health, well behaved, but has to follow us everywhere and whines when we are somewhere she can’t see us. Also, she sheds, and slobbers water all over the floor after drinking. Gah! Obviously, my biggest issue with dogs is the mess.
However the point of my story has to do with appreciation. This is maybe the fourth time we’ve dog-sat for them. Once for more than a month, but usually for a long weekend. This saves them boarding costs. They usually pick her up on a Monday or Tuesday while we’re at work.
I came home last night and found the dog and her things gone, her mess still all over, and no thank you note. This is the norm. I’m glad the dog is back to her home, the mess I can deal with, but no thank you? How. Rude. Not once have we received a nice thank you. Unless you count the “thanks for watching “dog’s name” for us” which we usually get the next time we see them in person.
Maybe my expectations are set high as I was raised in a family where thank you notes were important. And when I dog-sat for my mom, she would not only thank me, but usually bring me a little gift from wherever she had been. Too much to ask? Maybe. My mom said maybe they don’t feel the need for formal thank yous because they assume we know how much they appreciate us watching the dog. Yeah, yeah. Is a bottle of wine too much to ask? Perhaps a little gift certificate to eat out somewhere? Really, at this point I’d even take a note scribbled on an envelope and left on the counter.
At least E didn’t have to hear me bitch about it this time. He knows my thoughts about it. He agrees with me, but how do you tell your parents that your fiancée is a freak about thank yous?
Dear Legs,
I’m sorry for criticizing your big thighs and calves. I know it’s partly my love of pizza and ice cream that adds to your size. It’s also my twice-weekly strength-training, including bazillions of squats and lunges, that bulks you up. It’s just how you are. You’ll never be stick thin, and that’s ok. It has to be. I’m sorry for all the scars, but they show how tough you are. I’m sorry for all of the bloody battles while shaving…I know they hurt.
For thirty-three+ years, minus that phase where I was too young to walk, you have taken me everywhere. We walked all over Toronto, Cabo, and Key West…not to mention all the trips to Gramma and Grampa’s and back. We learned to ride a bike. We made it through swim class in seventh grade. And don’t forget all those years of kicking our brothers (not THERE) during fights and wrestling matches. We run, walk, spin, and golf. We do yoga and pilates and jump rope. We’ve been through six March of Dimes WalkAmericas (now the March for Babies).
Legs, you are very good to me, and I hope to keep you working well for a long time. I’ll need you to walk down the aisle and walk around Italy…and that’s just short term. I’ll need you for more charity walks, walks with my husband, and keeping up with my nephews and niece. So I’ll try not to give you too much grief, and be grateful I have such awesome legs. I appreciate you.
Love, M.
Yesterday, E and I were painting the waterproofing sealant on the basement wall. I had put laundry in the washer and suddenly heard water flowing as though it were not contained in the washer. As in loudly, cascadingly, and flooding-the-basement-ly. As I pulled the door open, I was saying, That sounds too loud for the washer… Sure enough, water was cascading out of a pipe on the wall and all over the floor. Thankfully, stopping the washer stopped the waterfall. All the towels, freshly washed and dried from last weekend’s incident, went down on the floor to stop the flow of, and sop up, water.
Fast forward: An hour or so later, the plumber cleared a clogged pipe and we were good to go. Thank God there was no sewage back-up, and that we were home when this incident happened, too.
I think I will go stare at the TV and wonder how many brain cells I killed inhaling fumes while painting that sealant (two coats) on the (un-ventilated) basement wall. I feel a little out-of-it.
Dear Belly,
I’m sorry for always telling you you’re too fat. I’m sorry I lost weight after your skin was able to shrink back to an 18-year-old-like-firmness. You’re not saggy enough to warrant surgery, but just enough to make me use skin-firming lotions in hopes that you’ll one day return to a firmer state.
You’re pretty brave - willing to try most things once, and some things you will probably never try. That’s ok. I bet not eating fish eyes won’t kill you.
Thanks for the strong abs that hold me upright and allow me to not look like a fool in Pilates class. Thanks for digesting food properly, and your dislike of throwing up. I appreciate you.
Love, M.
I’m in a rut. Tired of my rut-like routine and rut-like clothes. I’m tired of not being naturally thin and always having to fight the weight-gain when all I want to do is lie on the sofa and stare at the TV. Wah wah wah. Like my life is so bad.
When I walked out of the gym this morning at 7:15am, I saw daylight. Oh sweet daylight early in the morning, how I love you. If winter just had extra daylight hours it would be so much more bearable. And that little bit of daylight gives me hope of breaking out of my rut. Spring clothes - and colors! - are on their way. A wedding and a honeymoon are on their way.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I would really rather just BE married instead of having to GET married. I am looking forward to the honeymoon. Italy. Italy! Maybe I’ll see the Pope. How cool would that be? I’m looking forward to being overwhelmed by the history, the culture, the scenery, the shopping!! And having a husband. Yikes.
We discovered a flooding basement today. The battle against incoming water continues.
Update: The water has stopped pouring in and it’s a much more manageable problem now. We’ll be calling the insurance company this week to see about getting it fixed. The water is just seeping in through the wall, and the wall needs to be sealed to prevent this again. And, from what we can tell, it’s happened before (only not so badly) since the wood paneling is rotting on the inside. Yippee. Anyway, it could have been worse and I’m really thankful it wasn’t.
So, no need for the rubber duckies, but we could probably use a raft since our street is flooded.
It’s ok…
To be concerned sometimes that you might become an identity theft victim.
To wish you made more money.
To sometimes wish you had just gotten married in Vegas when you were there.
To not want kids.
To be totally pissed at a certain medical insurance/Rx drug provider because they screwed (you) up your Rx, and sent - and charged you for - the brand name drug when you requested the generic version.
To be happy for the sunshine even though the temperature is only 19 degrees.
To have red shoes for your wedding.
To wish you could spend money on clothes instead of wedding/honeymoon.
To not apologize for every little thing.
To tell him exactly what you want. It’s not unromantic, it’s key to your happiness.
My honey sent me flowers today!
I love fresh cut flowers, but I dislike that they don’t last. My practical side cringes at the thought of paying for something that’s going to die. However, I am never one to turn down a delivered bouquet (I’ve even bought some for myself a time or two), especially when the card reads:
Happy Valentine’s Day, my love. I hope these roses brighten your day as much as you brighten mine. Love, E.
Today is Satisfied Staying Single Day. Funny that they have to dedicate a day to making people feel ok being single. Because, really, why aren’t people ok with it more often?
I’m engaged now, so I hope I don’t sound like a hypocrite, but it’s ok to be single. I loved my singlehood. Whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted, ALL the time.* Doritos for dinner? Air Supply full blast? Longest, hottest showers ever? Check, check and check.
I would go to movies by myself. Ok, I never went to a Friday night movie by myself, but lots of Tuesday “deal” nights, and Saturday and Sunday matinees. I went out to eat, and shopped by myself. I also did these things with friends, but I was comfortable enough with myself that I didn’t NEED anyone with me. Plus I could shop as fast as I wanted, and eat as slow as I wanted. I traveled with my friends - my 30th birthday was a cruise to the Caribbean with eight very good friends of mine - some of the best women in the world. I also traveled by myself.
I also said I would never get married until I found someone who made me happier being with them than I was by myself. And I met that someone. I do miss my single days sometimes, but I get my weekend away every now and then.
I guess what I’m saying is that we have so much to love about ourselves as individuals - why rely on someone else to be as awesome as we can be? When the time, and the person, comes maybe we’ll be as awesome as we can be as part of a couple, but I think that’s hard unless we’ve perfected our individual selves. And we need to spend some time alone for that.
Happy Satisfied Staying Single Day!
*Modified quote taken from the sitcom Rules of Engagement.
I am SO tired of bad customer service.
And not just bad customer service, but the representatives not caring that their customer service is bad. It is so infuriating to be treated disrespectfully and then told, basically, “Sucks to be you.”
Yes, sometimes it does.
Holy cow did we get a lot snow through yesterday into last night. The whole area had anywhere from 8-18 inches. I think we were on the upper end of that, plus some nice snow drifts from the wind.
This is what it looks like outside.
Last night, during the second driveway shoveling, our neighbor came up the street and pulled into his snow-filled driveway only to get stuck. E and I shoveled him out and gave him a push. It felt good (always feels good) to help someone out.
So I tried to make it to work today. I shoveled the drive this morning (third time of this snow storm) so it was all clear. Even though the roads hadn’t been plowed, there were tracks to follow. So I set out thinking I would be fine if I just made it to the nearest main road which would surely be plowed. After a treacherous drive on a two track, snow-covered road I made it to the main road. It wasn’t plowed. I got stuck trying to get onto said main road. Thankfully, (and, I’m hoping, w/o damage to my car) I got unstuck, drove around the block to get back home and pulled into my safe garage. I’m able to work from home, so I’ve been online all morning.
I used to love winter. LOVE. It’s different than the other seasons - a challenge, if you will. I still like it. I’ve noticed I’m not as immune to the cold as I used to be, so that takes some of the fun away. I have to make sure I’m warmly dressed before setting out. I’ve had a lot of experience driving in winter and I don’t mind it so much. After this heavy snowfall, I’ve found I don’t like this much snow all at once. It’s kind of a claustrophobic feeling - maybe just not being able to go anywhere (safely), even though it’s perfectly fine at home. A little bit of freedom is taken away.
No acid reflux today! I fully intended to call the doctor today. I kept waiting all day to “feel the burn”, and it never came. I am hopeful that it was all stress-related and went away on it’s own. If it comes back, I will make a visit to the doctor. I HATE not feeling well.
Here is a picture of what my drive home looked like.
Note to my fellow winter-storm drivers: Please turn on your lights! Yes, I know you can see. Everything is freaking bright white - how could you not see? But I can’t see you. Also, please make sure your lights aren’t covered with snow and ice therefore making it seem like you don’t have your lights on anyway. Thank you!
Ash Wednesday today. I’ve done well with the fasting. Thankfully, Catholics make it easy and fasting isn’t really not eating anything - it’s more like not eating as much. So my blood sugar (and moods) stayed relatively calm today. I am definitely hungry now and will have something small for dinner.
I found Spiderman valentine’s day cards for my three nephews. They will love them. I hope I can track down those Spiderman temporary tattoos that I found at Christmas. Need I mention they all love, and want to be, Spiderman? Two of them have been wounded attempting to be Spiderman, and have healed nicely. My niece gets a pretty, girly card. She’s not old enough to say she does or doesn’t like Spiderman, so I’ll refrain until she can tell me what she likes.
I have nothing to post about, except maybe that I have had acid reflux nearly nonstop for the past 4 days or so. I don’t like it. Maybe tomorrow, a day of fasting, will help.
I’m glad January is now in the past. It was a month full of funk, and not in a fun-but-cheesy-’70s-disco kind of way. It was blah and gloomy and absolutely draining. Doesn’t it seem like today would be easier to start those resolutions?
I also found out I have a disease - Raynaud’s Disease (or Phenomenon). Thankfully it is not life-threatening, and it’s nice to know there’s an actual name for my “finger problem”. And, since it’s triggered by the cold, it gives me a good excuse to move somewhere warm.
But February is off to a decent start. I’m feeling better. I’m at home! I got my hair trimmed last night and I’m happy with it. I think hair and I have reached some sort of peace agreement. And, after I post this, I’m going to take a nap. Hi, Bed!
Here’s to a good weekend and a new start to 2008.
Today is National Write to Congress Day.
I write letters to my senators and representatives. I just like to let them know where I stand on an issue - whether I happen to agree with them or not. I usually receive a response.
I sent a note to my senators the other day letting them know my thoughts on the “economic stimulus plan”. I received a response from the one senator who basically said, Thanks for letting me know, but that’s not what I think, so…too bad.
Eh, can’t win ‘em all.
