mail

i am receiving my mail at my parents address. i pick it up rather than having it change again. please send me your photos/newsletters! and not a combined thing with the parents... i'll never see it

home

i found a place in san carlos! really relaxed owners. i heard about it from a coworker of mine. i told them i would like to move on nov 1.

waldo

i picked waldo up from santa barbara and drove up with him last thursday. he had disappeared when shelly tried to get him a couple of weeks ago. the whole drive up he sat at my feet. i tried to get him to move, but it was pointless. apparently he didn't mind the pedals. i put advantage on him as soon as we got back. it royal pissed him off and i was not allowed to touch him umtil the next morning.

i decided not to move across the bay on the 29th. i applied for a different place today. a really small place, but it will do.

2 more days...

until waldo arrives! i am so excited. will he remember me? i haven't seen him since march! will he remember miss kitty?

i went to the fair. all we did is ate and walked around. saw the pigs race and saw the hytomist again.

fair

the fair is in town! i am hoping to go tonight, but it depends on what time my nurse comes. he didnt come last week and my dressing needs to be change. i hope i get to the fair tonight. i don't go on any of the rides, but i like look at the displays. and the food.

next weekend my uncle and cousin will be visiting. shelly and patrick when to come also. hopefully they will bring waldo with them.

yay! my nurse just called and said he'll be here in 30min (1 hour for him).

update

i'm back. i still have difficulty typing, but it has improved. it all began about mid-march. well last summer actually. i had migraines constantly. i saw a doctor for them and was put on medication. they cleared up about the time i took off for colorado. i had the about once a month. then about every two weeks. i passed out a couple of times and had a migrain for a couple days. my heart hurt constantly. i head to the hospital. don't know how i made it - i took all day getting there. i could only stand for a few seconds at a time. i dump a bag of cat food and managed to drive down, across the parking lot, and sit down in the er. after resting, i managed to check myself in. i asked were i was going and was told icu. that was all i remember. apparently i called shelly a couple days later. she called the parents who in turn called me. i asked them to come out. they did, although don't remember. krystal stayed with me, dropping out of school. apparently i put my puppy face and beg her to stay. beg her to stay in my bed too - even offered to go to her bed, but i was told no. 6 weeks in icu and i only remember the last 2. those were long weeks.

the next 3 weeks were spent at ummm... i forgot the name. i did physical therepy and stuff. one night i fell while using the comode. krys tried to pull me up, but couldn't. two "nurses did and i looked at where i fallen and saw blood. my exact words "oh crap!" now I spent the night at emergency getting a scan rather than getting my sleep. i fell one other time, but i was in therepy so that was fun.

finally i was released to go back home. i since graduated from physical therepy. i have another two months on the ivs and then i hopefully quit. i am doing it myself now. i am working part time at work - filing and stuff. my speech is not good so i can't do customer service yet. i went to texas with the family over the 4th. i was good. i had seen laurie and bekah since laurie wedding several years ago.

i got an apartment today. it's across the bay - sucky. it's about an hour away. but the rent cheap. i move on the 29th.

home

i'm home. for you don't - admitted to the hospital 9-10 weeks. can't type too - stroke. workin on it

sick of life

I am going through a bad spell at the moment. It's amazing to me how one week I can feel on top of the world and by the next I'll have crashed down. I was feeling so energetic and then about mid-last week I just suddenly got tired. Thursday & Friday I attempted the Curves workout, but didn't finish. I started getting hints of my next migraine and as a result, once again turned to my addiction of Tylonal and Vocodin. I haven't been able to eat in a few days due to insurance being a butt about my stomach medication. I just have no appetite and the whole digestive system hurts. Sunday morning I passed out... again. One second I was putting together my morning meds, the next I was hugging the counter for dear life. Then I was on my back staring at the ceiling and feeling oh so relaxed. Miss Kitty & Waldo were circling me in confusion. I now sport several bruises/welts on my chest although I'm not sure how they got there. This evening I managed to get a partial prescription on the stomach meds, so hopefully I will start eating now. I didn't even attempt Curves today although I really want to tomorrow. It has become something that I really look forward to each day.

To my sister on her BIRTHDAY!

Today is Krystal's Birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Krys turns 19 today. She's growing up fast - although my mom won't admit it. Two nights ago my mom called both me and Shelly in a panic because Krys had gone somewhere without her purse. So let us all hope that my mom realizes SOON that Krys is an ADULT.

Krys I want to say that you mean a lot to me. You've helped me throughout the years - unselfishly feeding me and cleaning up after me when needed. Quite the little nurse you can be :) You're in college now, and in a couple of years you'll even transfer out of state. You're finding your way in this world, but always know that I'm here for you. Enjoy your birthday today and do some KARAOKE!

Hurrah!

I have health insurance! I got my card in the mail today so tomorrow I am hitting the pharmacies.

Another moment of Stupidity

Today started out normal. I was really tired, but I still managed to get over to Curves for my workout. Well, I got back from Curves and went to check my mail. I felt inside the pocket of my purse where I keep the key and discovered there was only 1 key in there. Automatically I pictured the mail key sitting on my counter. Crap - I forgot to grab it. I drive around to my parking lot, grab my stuff, and head up to my apartment. Here is where I reach into my purse and pull out the mail key. Oh! So I have it after all - this means that it must be my apartment key sitting on the counter. Crap. I didn't want to call and bug the realitor, so I go back down to my car and call 411. "I need a locksmith!" She lists 3 in the area and asks which one I'd like. I said 'whatever one can get me into my apartment.' She connects me with one and I wait 20-30 minutes while the guy tries to find my place. Meanwhile, it's getting cold and the longer I wait, the more I need a bathroom! He finally makes it and begins work on my door after checking my ID. He tries forever to pick my lock. I walk circles as I wait in my uncomfortable condition and I watch as two separate neighbors leave their apartments giving curious looks. The locksmith guy tries various techniques and finally admits that he would need to drill it. Time to call the realitor. He says he has a spare key and can be here in 40 minutes. I pay the locksmith his service fee and head to a McDonalds. I rarely eat fast food anymore, but I figure I can get a cheeseburger for their bathroom services. I come back with the cheeseburger in my purse and wait another 25 minutes for the realitor. He finally makes it laughing up the stairs. He was very nice and said he won't charge me this time. Then he asks if I've found a job yet - and I knew he would ask. How do I tell him that I'm actually considering disability? I look normal to anyone who doesn't know me. I think he was just looking for conversation anyway. I could've offered him a drink, but the place is a mess and it would have been embarrassing for him to see. So he takes off and I come inside. I look on my counter 'where the heck is that key?' Can't find it. I check my purse again even though I had checked all pockets earlier and wouldn't you know it? There's the key! In the purse the whole time!

Time to go eat the cheeseburger...

Wacko March Weather

My darn knee has been acting up the past 2 weeks. I can't seem to shake the arthritis and I'm back to taking tylonal/vicodin every night. Also, I'm really tired of having to take the steps one at a time. I've run out of most of my medications, but I have a few days left on the main ones. I'll have to call insurance tomorrow and see what's going on.

Weather here is crazy. Saturday it was 80 degrees, sunny & warm. I layed in the hammock thinking of the impossible tan. Sunday morning I woke up to a blizzard. Several inches of snow that day - I stayed inside. On Monday - it was warm and most of the snow melted away. I was amazed because there was a lot of snow! Today is extremely windy. So loud! Tomorrow it's supposed to snow again.

I'm tired today. Kind of surprises me because I've been so energetic the past week. Guess I'm allowed a day off.

Feeling good!

The last 3 days have been excellent for me. I've had more energy than normal. I don't know if it's the Curves work out or this new supplement that I'm trying (Mannatech) or the fact that I'm out of certain medications, but I've actually been able to get myself out of bed in the MORNING instead of dragging myself out in the late afternoons. As a result, I'm enjoying this spell of nice weather and I'm looking for activities. I went to the zoo yesterday. I tired quickly - like right at the beginning of my tour, but that's okay. I just shuffled through the animals for the next 2 hours.

I just got off the phone with my very excited grandma. Took me about 2 weeks to return her call. Before this conversation ended I found myself saying that I will call again next week. I hate the phone. People usually have a hard time understanding my voice, so I hide out on the internet. When my cell phone contract is up (in August) - I'm looking for a cheaper plan. Maybe a pay-as-you-go one because I hardly use any minutes as it is.

I made a discovery today that made me totally excited! Back in California, I use to get hot dogs from Safeway that were lower sodium than the norm. Usually a hot dog is easily in the 600s, but these hot dogs are like 250mg or around there. Well, when I moved to Colorado - I couldn't find lower sodium dogs anywhere! I looked at Safeway, Albertsons, Walmart, Target, etc. The best I found was my last trip to Walmart and it's a bag of mini dogs. 4 of them equalling one regular high sodium hot dog. So I got that and I just put two mini in half a hot dog bun and call it a meal. Well, today I was at King Scoopers and I FOUND MY LOW SODIUM HOT DOGS! So I'm excited. I should buy a grill now that the weather is finally getting nicer.

Outdoor plans

I found a great park & recreational center today. There's a lake there and I packed a lunch and ate it by the water. It was nice although I quickly realized that I'm going to need a hat. Tomorrow I plan to check out the Denver Zoo, so I'll probably pick one up there. Admittedly I'm sure it'll be expensive. I'm trying to find outdoor activities to keep me out and busy because otherwise I don't sleep at night (especially now that I can't refill the ambien) and I stay up all night thinking depressing thoughts.

Biopsy Results

I got a call this morning about the biopsy results. The abcess is a micro__________ infection. Good job me! I got part of it this time. Anyway, to quote the nurse "It is very rare but is becoming more common in young women who get pedicures." I laughed hard. Must've startled her. I did get a pedicure - which is still partially on my toes - and I got it last May. Then I thought about it. When did the first lesion rash appear on my wrist? Last May. And yes, it is also now on my toes. So I will be seeing dermatology... once I get insurance.

Question: I was driving through the neighborhoods this afternoon and I noticed that everyone has dead grass from the snow. So how does that get fixed? Does everyone replant their lawn every Spring?

Walking through the Easter candy aisle at Walmart - it reminded me that I have Easter candy from last year hidden at my parents still. I have this habit of hiding my 'naughty' foods in drawers. Out of sight, out of mind. Then every once in a while when I open that drawer - Surprise! I get a treat. Helps me not to eat it all at once. So upstairs in a drawer, I have Easter candy! One bag still unopened I believe. Wonder how long it lasts?

Church

I went to church this evening. The one that the Curves manager told me about. It's a really big church (6 services - 2 via satelite). Anyway, worship was okay, but I didn't care for the guest speaker. They're finishing missionary month apparently and they have a guest speak. He had a really bad accent and tended to say a statement 4-5 times before moving on, so it got boring really fast and I had a hard time concentrating. That and the two girls in front of me were very distracting. Now I can understand a little kid needing to squirm and draw during a sermon, but the older of these two sisters looked to be in junior high. These girls wrote notes the whole time and squirmed like they had big ants in their clothing. They also had drinks with them. Strawberry shakes to be exact. I know because the older one put hers under her chair and then kicked it. It spilled all over the carpet (in the middle of the AWANA circle!). I wrote on a piece of paper 'drink spilled under chair' and handed it to the smaller girl. She, in turn, leaned over and whispered to the bigger girl. One of them bent over, but apparently not finding the spilled drink - they went on with their giggles. At the end of service the bigger girl found her spilled drink and picked it up. The little girl asked her about it and big girl began to bob and giggle (this is during the closing song) as if she was the coolest thing in the world because her drink had spilled. You can bet they didn't clean it up. I left during the closing song. I think I'd like a smaller church.

A Salty Night

I have completed week 2 on Curves. When do I see results? Well, tonight won't help. I went to Walmart afterward hoping to get my prescriptions cheaper there than at Walgreens (since I currently don't have insurance). It was more expensive, so once again I didn't get them. Anyway, going through the aisles proved that it's a bad idea after working out at curves and I picked up several salty items. So tonight will be my end of the week celebration night where I can pig out on whatever I want. On the menu: mini hot dogs (still a little better than a regular sodium wise), pickles, fritos corn chips, and fruit! Gotta have something kinda healthy.

Tomorrow I plan to check out the evening service of a church around here. I am soooo sluggish in the mornings that I thought maybe the evening service might be a better shot for me.

Check out this video!

I repaired(replaced) it myself!

Today was a warm day. So nice. Tomorrow is suppose to be cold again. I made two trips outside today. The first - I had to go get a new showerhead from Walgreens.

Yesterday's shower came to an adrupt end when the water suddenly turned cold and began to spray up at the ceiling. This of course was a shock to me as I had been daydreaming with conditioner in my hair. I turned off the water, which signaled to the cats that I was supposedly ready to be joined for my escort out of the bathroom. Instead of grabbing my robe and stepping out though, I now stood in the bathtub with a confused look on my face as I stared first at the showerhead and then the tiny bathroom sink. Miss Kitty also glanced back and forth between me and the bathroom sink in confusion before turning around and heading back out. I tried the water in the tub again only to find more oddly sprayed cold water and had no choice but to bend over and try my best to rinse my hair in the sink.

I later decided to get a closer look at the showerhead and discovered that it fell into my hand at touch. The plastic had completely snapped. So first thing this morning I headed to Walgreens and bought the only showerhead available. I screwed it in when I returned home and walah! A nice hot shower was produced. The spray on this head is wonderful, so much stronger!

Shelly left me a message earlier saying that she got some info for me on disability. I've been so distracted with the insurance mess that I completely forgot about disability. That could be a life saver for me as I literally am unable to get a job at the moment. However, I don't know how this all works so it still needs investigation.

delays

Insurance rejected the last two medications. One was a refill - so I still have some left, but when it runs out I'm definitely in trouble. It's my potassium - the one that makes me pass out if I don't take it. The other is a new one for cholestorol. I'm supposed to get blood drawn on Wednesday for this, but obviously it will all have to be pushed back. I did also cancel my renal appointment - the one that took over 3 months to schedule. Hopefully the new clinic won't be as difficult once I'm ready again.

Car insurance runs out soon also, so I'm in the process of researching that as well.

It's cold. Snowflakes are beginning to fall. Tomorrow is a holiday which slows everything down. Kinda bad timing.

Jehovah's Witness knocked on my door yesterday. Fortunately for me I looked through the peek hole to see the two men in their suits. This enabled me to mutter an irritated 'Heck No!' before crawling back into bed. They left a pamplet.

The Results

I made it to the doctor and to Curves today, but not to insurance. So tomorrow I must get myself over there.

The doctor took a biopsy of the abcess on my leg. She doesn't think it's a normal abcess due to the various patches of rash, the different lumps, and the extremely high white blood count. She mentioned some name of some kind of thingy, but there's no way I'm going to remember or pronounce it. So I didn't bother try. Apparently though, it's treatable, but if left alone turns into luekymia or whatever. Hence she wanted to see me for a biopsy. My philosophy - do what they say, see the new doctors, don't add it to the worry list unless it becomes serious because if I freak out over every little thing that goes wrong with me - I'll be my mom and you may as well shoot me now.

I have 2 out of 4 prescriptions. Still waiting on insurance for the other two. Insurance ends tomorrow so I hope it goes through. I talked to the conversion insurance person today about doing a month at a time for this plan that'll cost me more than my monthly rent. There will be a gap in coverages, but I'm hoping it's not a big gap because I have 3 referrals out to doctors that I need to see and prescriptions that I'll need.

For other news. I stopped by Petsmart today and made a reservation for my 3 babes to stay with them when I'm in California. Anyone care to know the total damage? $280 + $280 + $210 = $770 as the bill. I got two cages - one for Waldo/Miss Kitty and the other for Winslow (since he can be a bit much for the other two).

It's extremely warm weather today. I have the back door open for the cats, but Miss Kitty was really the only one interested in exploring the balcony. The boys just sit in the doorway. Probably because there's a dog walking around on the balcony below us. It's supposed to snow Thursday night - big storm - so they had better take advantage of this weather.

I totally enjoyed Curves today. I couldn't do one machine because of the biopsy, but I got a good workout on the rest.

Time to put the sticky paws on the couch and see if I can prevent some damage. Darn cats.

Preparing

I'm in a bit of trouble. I saw the doctor today - my primary. She's referring me to a new renal clinic since I haven't been able to get in to see the current one. Anyway, it was a major migraine day so I was in a lot of pain. It didn't help that I was fasting for some bloodwork. The combination meant that I couldn't stand for more than a few seconds. They gave me a shot in the butt or the migraine. Worked like a charm for the head pain although I later hobbled very sorely through Walgreens.

It's about 10pm now. A Dr. Walsh from the clinic called me a few minutes ago. She said the lab had just paged her about my results. Crap, I've been through this before. Something about my white blood count being over 18,000 & other stuff. None of my labs are normal. She said she didn't think I needed to head to emergency (where exactly is that?) since nothing's really changed in the past 24 hours but she'd like to see me tomorrow. My guess is that any other lucky patient would be heading down there about now, but I have a history of abnormality. She wants to take a biopsy of the abcess since it hasn't healed and it's been two months. Plus I have the beginnings of other abcesses. I'm thinking the bad blood results have more to do with the fact that I get faint every time I have a coughing fit.

Here's where it gets sticky. My Blue Shield of California insurance ends on Thursday (Happy Valentines!). Cover Colorado won't take me until I've lived here for 6 months. I have plans to go to the office tomorrow and do paperwork, but now that - and Curves- kinda depends on what happens with the doctor. I need to call Blue Anthem of Colorado tomorrow about a 'conversion plan' to cover me until Cover Colorado begins. This conversion plan will cost me more than my rent each month.

At least the cats are set up. They can easily be left alone for a week. It may not be ideal, but should something happen - I don't think I'll be able to get them to Petsmart. They have two automatic litter boxes and a regular upstairs, a huge bag of food sitting open in the kitchen, and a toilet for their drinking use. Waldo has been sneezing a lot the past two days, so I'm hoping this doesn't turn into a cold - especially if I'm not here.

Missing

I just got a reverse 911 call from the Thornton police department asking everyone to check their yards, garages, homes, etc. for an 8 year old boy that went missing this afternoon. I don't know when I became such an emotional sap, but things like that make me tear up like crazy now. I was passed by 6 speeding police cars on my way home from Curves today (which would be about the time that the kid went missing). I was thinking it was some kind of chase that they were on their way to join since some went straight while others turned down my street. I've been planning to watch the news to see if I could get some answers - maybe it was the kid. Maybe they'll flash his picture for me.

Session 1

I went to Curves today for my first workout. I had fun! I go back on Wednesday. I was chatting with the lady during stretches at the end and she asked me about church. I told her that I haven't found one yet and she told me of one called Crossroads that sounds good. So I'm excited. Productive day.

Tent Kitty

Waldo loves the tent. He spent all afternoon sleeping in yet. Last night he got too playful and started pouncing on it. So I zipped the door shut to keep him out. Then I could hear the constant scratching/pawing at the door. I went upstairs again and took the polls out. I think he spent the night sleeping on the flat tent.

Today I went to Curves and signed up. I need something to get me out of the house and this will build me up so that I can apply for a good job without collapsing in exhaustion. They were playing Christian music. I should've asked the lady about churches because it's hard to tell about a church by the website. I want to find a church that isn't huge so that I feel overwhelmed, but that's not so small that I'm the obvious visitor.

Another Birthday!

Happy Birthday to James! My list says that today James should be out celebrating with family & friends :)

I bought a tent. I know that sounds crazy (especially since it's snowy outside), but I'm putting it upstairs in the loft. It's going to be my new hideout assuming that the cats don't destroy it. In the summer I can stick it out on the balcony, get a grill, set up the hammock, heck I'll be set.

I was watching Miss Kitty drink from the toilet yesterday. She's so small that it's quite a procedure. She doesn't stick her front paws inside like the two boys do, so I don't have to worry about water on the rim when she leaves. It's quite a balancing act that she pulls off though.

I went to get my port flushed the other day. It took 3 nurses. The first nurse stuck the needle in 3 times before calling for nurse #2. The second nurse tried once, wiggled it around, and called for nurse #3. The last nurse stuck the needle in, wiggled it around a ton, half pulled it out and pushed it back in several times, and finally managed to connect. The port is apparently smaller than they're use to and it moved around a lot (not a surprise, my veins roll - that's why I have the port in the first place) so they were all missing it in their stabs. Also, they're not use to it being in the arm as apparently it's usually in the chest. So to conclude, my arm is now very sensitive. They're going to dread seeing me next month.

clearing snow

The guy that plows our walkways does it at 1:30am. It only takes about 20-30 minutes, but I can't figure out why he does it at such odd hours. The machine he uses is like a riding lawn mower except that it has a plow on the front. Maybe he's like my dad and he's so excited he can't wait. Last night he was really noisy. Usually I just hear the scrape, but I never see him. Last night I actually saw him. He was speeding that thing back and forth. There were a lot of crashing sounds at one point. He was out of sight, but it sounded as though he was hitting a lot of items. The funny part is that it was still snowing as he cleared the walkway...

The creeps of living alone

I didn't fall asleep until after 5:30am. My sleep schedule has been so screwed up lately. I sleep until afternoon and then stay up into the early hours of the morning. I had just crawled in bed last night when I heard this crinkling noise coming from the other room. All 3 cats were with me, so that made me a little nervous. Winslow was my surprise investigator. Didn't expect that since he's usually the biggest wuss ever. Brilliantly I grabbed a shoe from the closet on my way out to investigate figuring I could throw it at any intruder. Here is where I should probably mention that I have very bad aim. Only after I reached the kitchen did I think that perhaps I should've grabbed the phone also. The best I could figure out was that the noise was a cereal bag in the pantry. How cool would it be if there was a mouse huh? Of course with 3 cats, that scene is highly unlikely. The cereal wouldn't stop moving and I never did figure out what was causing that, but I ended up dumping the bag into the trash trying to solve the mystery. I went back to bed and left the shoe on the counter.

After returning to bed, it wasn't long before I swear I heard knocking on the door. A look through the peep hole showed nothing but shadows and the fact that my porch light still needs to be changed. This is the 3rd time that I've thought I've heard someone knocking at an odd hour of the morning. It spooks the cats every time, but I'm not about to open any doors to see if there is someone actually hiding around the corner.

Lastly, I have given in to peer pressure and joined Facebook. Now I am extremely addicted and I spend hours exploring the different option. Like I really needed an excuse to be on the computer more.

Odd?

Last night someone called my place twice around 12:45am, but it was dead air both times. This kind of freaked me out because I started thinking thoughts like 'what if they're just checking to see if I'm home or not.' I looked through the peep hole of my front door hoping to find comfort in a brightly lit porch only to discover that last night, of all nights, my light was out. Out of the 4 of us doors, I only saw one light on. It did not help that I spent all day in bed with a fever yesterday although it seems to have snapped today.

Winslow did something weird to my laptop. It's happened once before, something with the Fn key. I managed to look up a 'fix-it' solution online last time. Somewhere around the F11/12 keys. So I started pressing the keys again this time and fixed the problem, again, but in the process it changed my internet explorer format. The top bar is different (but at least I have it again because originally it disappeared). My taskbar also refuses to stay on top of internet explorer. I have to minimize the window first. It has no problem acting normal with other programs though. I tried finding a solution online, but so far - no good. Also, programs like Bearshare & Stamps.com won't connect. Tough life. Any computer geeks out there know what I'm talking about?

Waldo & Winslow spent the other night practicing their synchronized sleeping. Both were on a blanket in the closet and every time I walked by, they were in different identical positions. Miss Kitty - my dainty girl - I just discovered now also drinks from the toilet. Until now it's just been a male thing, but I caught her just a few minutes ago with her butt hanging over the rim. She seemed embarrassed at getting caught.

Belated

A Belated Happy Birthday to Viv! I'm sorry I'm late. Her birthday was last Friday (or so my records show). So hopefully she was able to do some celebrating.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

The treadmill experience

Well, it turns out that I must've picked up a cold - which is why my cough has been 5x worse than normal. I spent yesterday in bed, which is probably a good thing as I am constantly coughing and when I do - things tend to get a little fuzzy. Okay, a lot fuzzy and a lot of times I'm literally sitting there making my brain tell my hand what the steps are to picking up a kleenex to blow my nose. Or I'll feel my body begin to shake as it tries to stay concious. Good thing I'm not standing or I'd probably end up on the floor again.

Today is better though and tonight I set myself up for a treadmill session. There's a show on tv showing funny superbowl commercials, so while that is recording - I watch it on mute as I listen to my peppy music and walk on my treadmill. I did two 10 minute sessions with a long break in between. All 3 cats came up to join me during the break, but by the time I was ready to start session #2, only Winslow remained. He sat at the top of the stairs and stared at me with horrified eyes as I began my walk. When I started to sing along with the music, he suddenly disappeared. Maybe I should rethink the whole 'open doors during the spring' philosophy...


the view from my back door.


one of the storage units on the balcony.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JEFF!

It's another birthday shout out! HAPPY BIRTHDAY JEFF!! Hopefully he's out celebrating with his wife & daughter. Although don't go to the TGIF by Hillsdale - I hear the night manager was found murdered.

My treadmill is up and running and I love it! I have been through sooo many workout dvds & other crap and I always get bored, extremely bored. The one thing I truly enjoyed was that one summer when I walked everywhere 'church, store, work, bank, etc.' I would put on my headphones with my music and walk and think. Well, I've got the complete set up upstairs. My old laptop is up there full of music, I have the guest cot right next to the treadmill for a quick escape/relaxing reward, the tv is downstairs within view. I did 15 minutes tonight and it was fun!

The two guys that came to set it up were extremely nice. Miss Kitty was her usual flirty self. I've noticed that she really goes for the male species. The two boys hid in my bed the whole time. Bummer because Winslow (with his adorable face and weird paws) is definitely a fun cat to show off. The guys were cat people though and they chatted with Miss Kitty and even let her rub against their faces as they crawled around on their hands & knees. Anyway, I am extremely happy with how things went. Adam & Aaron (their parents went with an A theme- I thought that was fun as my parents went with an M them. Shelly & I were the M&M sisters - Marika Mary, Michelle Marie) kept up lively conversation, were well dressed, tested everything out for me and even stuck around to explain some maintainance issues (I swear I think I give off the clueless 'help me' vibe), and they also took out the trash when they left. Oh, and to address Krystal's main important concern - yes, I think they were good looking.

I am now set to start a regular walking routine which I desparately hope will help my cough (it's gotten really bad the past few days). As the days grow warmer I can even open up my back doors and let some fresh air in and while it may get hot up there in the loft I have a) air conditioning or b) a ceiling fan right smack there for when the downstairs doors are open.

Bought some chamomille tea today. Hoping that will help relax me to sleep at night. Last night I was so jittery I got up around 2am and drank some hot milk because I remembered my mom giving that to me as a kid. Hot milk with a capful of vanilla extract on nights that I couldn't sleep. I didn't have vanilla (which I also bought today), but the hot milk worked like a charm. I could literally feel my body relaxing as it went down and I fell asleep as soon as I crawled back in bed.

sleepless in thornton

last night was horrible. It started with all 3 cats trying to sleep on top of me. This suffocated me and eventually I had to get up. Now having these cats is like having a baby. You get so excited to have them all asleep that you dread getting up for that bathroom run that you know is going to wake one of them up. Yep. First it was Winslow. He's typically the lightest sleeper and as soon as I began to move out of bed, he was up and wanting to play. He did finally settle down, but as he did - Waldo & Miss Kitty got up for a romp. Then Miss Kitty and Winslow switched places and Miss Kitty joined me on the bed while Winslow joined Waldo in a game of tag. By 5am they had had way too many warning and I was drugged beyond belief. I went upstairs into the storage areas where their carriers are stored. Winslow was smart and took off running. Waldo and Miss Kitty I stuffed in their carriers before grumpily marching down the stairs yelling threats at Winslow. I got online and logged into my kitty blog to write a post as I waited for the latest dose in sleep medication to take effect. Apparently it did take effect because while I remember starting the post, I don't remember ending it. By this time I had taken 2 ambien tablets, 3 swigs of nyquil, 4 sleep aid tablets, 2 tylonal pms & a vocodin. I won't even bother write what the normal doses are supposed to be for those. I logged in and read my post this morning. I had ended it with something about Heath Ledger having the right idea and then demanding that someone go make me some eggs so that I could stab them and push them around my plate. What the heck? If someone's going to make me eggs, I'm going to eat them! Anyway, I slept in till 2pm today and I'm desparately hoping to avoid a repeat tonight.

In other news, it's been getting down to like 0 degrees lately. The cans of diet soda in my car exploded. I have two people coming tomorrow to haul my new treadmill upstairs and assemble it for me. I posted a 'gig' offer on craigslist for the job and got so many responses! I chose two nice sounding brothers who are teachers (it sounds like) to come tomorrow afternoon. I did e-mail Krys their contact info just to be on the safe side.

Well, the cats have been sleeping for while. Hopefully this doesn't mean they're saving up for tonight. Miss Kitty did keep me company as I cleaned the kitchen - popping in and out of cupboards as I went.

Oh, I got a very cheesey Dominos Pizza yesterday. It was yummy.

random

My knee was extremely painful two nights in a row and then yesterday - boom, just out of the blue- it's better. Exactly the same thing that happened with my wrist. It was hurting a little this morning when I woke up, guess I slept on it wrong. Other than being stiff though, I don't expect that it'll act up again any time soon.

Of course I still didn't sleep last night as Winslow was on extremely bad behavior. He wouldn't leave Miss Kitty alone and I finally got up and locked him in the bathroom. Miss Kitty took pity though and ten minutes later she let him out. He seemed to have calmed down by then though, so he was allowed to stay out although it was 3:30am and I wasn't in the best of moods. By morning everything was normal. The two boys were squishing me on the bed and as soon as I stirred Winslow began the usual routine of bathing Waldo.

I bought some Root Beer Float ice cream out of curiousity back when Krys was visiting. So I pulled it out tonight. Yummy. Even better with some diet root beer. This is my reward as I've been really good with my low sodium diet for the past week.

It's been cold here. No new snow, but it only reached 20 today.


Here is a picture of the stairs leading to my loft. Note the picture frame... without pictures still because once again, while both my sisters go picture crazy, that's just not my thing. At least the frame is up.


Here is a picture of the loft if you're standing by the couch in the living room looking up.

Today is a Special Day

HAPPY BIRTHDAY WHITNEY!!! Today is Whitney's birthday and I feel horrible that her card/gift will be late :(

I downloaded some 'Sounds of Nature' songs on Bearshare to help me sleep at night. I'm trying my best not to take Ambien unless it's absolutely necessary. Anyway, I absolutely love it. I have an air purifier/deoderizer that I turn on every night and I put in a lavendar scent. The I turn on my sounds of nature and put on some eye shades and viola! even in late morning my mind gets confused and thinks it's still night. Of course the vicoden I've taken the last two nights for my knee probably helps. Hopefully that won't last long.

Every winter I deal with achey joints. It travels through my body so it's never the same. This year it's been between my right wrist and my left knee. Some times it's both at the same time, but otherwise it switches. A few weeks ago it was my wrist that was driving me crazy. I finally went out and bought a brace only to have it switch to my knee. The pain/stiffness starts off small and gradually gets bigger until I can't stand it. Then it switches over to the next joint.

I ordered a treadmill as a part of that new year resolution to 'get in shape.' I ordered it first through Walmart as it was a cheaper model. Then I got a call to schedule the delivery and found out that they only do curbside - so they wouldn't bring it up to my third floor apartment (can't blame them). I had to refuse it and it's now being sent back. I ordered another one from amazon - they'll bring it up.. They brought mybig tv up. I would love to put it upstairs in the loft when it comes, but I guess that all depends on me. I'm hoping that if I bring the parts up before attempting to assemble it, it'll be light enough for me to do on my own. Otherwise maybe I'll put it in the bedroom. Assembling it will require brilliance on my part. I couldn't even manage a simple nightstand, so expect a lengthy humorous write-up to be posted when I do finally attempt to put this thing together. I'm running out of family members to come out and help me.

Here are a couple of more pictures of my place.



This is a picture of my entry way.



Here is the living room. The blue couch is the one that arrived in boxes via UPS and Shelly & Patrick assembled it for me.

Future Plans

I've been searching Craigslist the past couple of days- looking for jobs. In doing so, I realized something. I can't handle a new job at the moment. I can't apply to work with kids due to the chronic coughing fits that I have. No parent wants that. Physically I'm not stable enough to handle jobs that require standing on my feet or a lot of activity. There is a job that I would love to apply for - it has benefits and everything, but medically I can't pass in my current condition. So here is my plan. I will continue to keep an eye on craigslist for odds & ends type jobs. I will focus on my health right now though. Physically getting in shape as well as getting this whole doctor & medication treatment mess under control. At the end of April/May some time - I've been offered by my old job to let me work for about 10 days or so. I don't know what my job situation will be like then, but hey - I'm thinking perfect because I could go home for a visit and it would cover some of the trip expenses. I'm using that as a timeline/deadline to be in top condition so that when I get back - I can apply for job with benefits without worrying about being held back. This way I can get settled in a good, solid, worth-while job. I just hate that it'll make me look like a bum until I can get myself together. In the meantime, I'm going to start researching online writing classes.

Krys flew home today. It started snowing as I left the parking garage at the airport after dropping her off. Go figure. She had really been hoping for snow while she was here.

I don't think I've posted the pics that Shelly took of my place on here. So I'll do that a couple at a time each time I blog.



Taken from the front door. If you look straight back through the kitchen you see the bathroom.


Turning slightly to the left, you can see my messy counter/eating area (counter stools on other side) and a bit of the living room. You can also see the bedroom door and the stairs leading up to the loft. Note: on the wall I have the old "The Cats' Inn" sign hanging on the wall. This was given to me during the change in ownership at my job (they got new signs) and it's been hanging in my kitchen ever since.

taking it slow

Krys and I have been taking it slow. Our plan to go see P.S. I LOVE YOU has been pushed back time and time again. We had planned to see it yesterday (Sunday), but instead I found myself passed out face down on the bathroom floor early in the morning. I spent the day recovering with Krys keeping watch as there were several close calls of passing out again. It was low potassium and I spent the day popping potassium pills. I'm glad they stayed down because if I had vomitted them, it would've required a trip to emergency for an infusion. Yuck.

This morning I noticed that I'm covered in bruises- big and small ones. I must beat myself in my sleep or something.

Yesterday evening I switched beds. We drove to a motel 6 to a) get some space from the cats b) have cable tv and c) indoor swimming pool. We spent our time watching tv and took a relaxing swim this morning. Now we're back at my place with plans to roast hot dogs in the fireplace tonight and make pizookies. Oh, and it's about time we get some work done and put those night tables together!

I will post some kitty pictures on the kitty blog for those interested. Krys took a ton of them. Also, here's a pic of my dad with his finger glued to the remote:

Activities with Krys

Krystal is here. She flew in yesterday and spent about an hour trying to find the baggage claim. We then headed to the Spaghetti Factory - the only one in Colorado - only to discover that they no longer open for lunch, but they open for dinner at 5pm. 2 freezing long hours away. So we walked and slushed our way over to Starbucks and sat there until it was time. Once back at the Old Spaghetti Factory, we proceeded to order our confusing 'extra large, extra cheese' dishes. The waiter was nice and we later rolled our now bloated bellies out the door. We were amazingly tired and so we called it a night.

Today I had to head over to the hospital to get my port flushed. After that we hit Walmart for a few items (and tons of junk food). Tomorrow we plan to take a tour of the Titanic museum and then stop by BJs Brewhouse.

Did I ever tell you all about my dad's Christmas? I got him a remote control car - something I had ordered last summer as a fundraiser thing. Well, I wrapped it and left it at the house for him when I moved. He got excited to unwrap it, but discovered that the remote was broken :( So he tried his nifty new glue on it and ended up with his finger glued to it for 3 hours. I'll have to see if I can get a hold of a picture. I laughed so hard when I heard. The good news is that he did finally fix the remote once his sore finger was removed.

New Day, New Year

Happy New Year! I actually stayed up and saw the ball drop last night. I could hear fireworks and even see them in the distance from my balcony. That's good to know for the 4th of July.

Krys comes tomorrow. I plan to take her on a huge trip to Walmart before we even come back to my place. I put off my shopping so that we can just do it all at once. Today I guess I'll clean the place... boring.

It's my mom's birthday today.