Random. Fathom

Sleep not coming easily these days. The mind is muddled and is in need of some clearing. Perhaps the randoms will help, certainly a near perfect day like today does:

♥ It was 50 (plus) degrees today. Sunny. Clear. My daughter snapped this picture as she was leaving school today. Lovely, lovely sky.In fact, it was a lovely day. I read tomorrow is to be even better. I know some folks are missing the traditional winter, but I'm way okay with the turns we've had. Hey, it's the Midwest, we could be singing snow blues in April.

♥ Diamond's feeling better. However, her eyesight is failing. We're making things as easy as possible and keeping her in as much comfort as possible.
My younger brother got married a couple weeks ago. I met the new Mrs. briefly last week. I don't know if they were pen pals / romancers or he met her sometime after his release. In either case. I wish the new couple well. 

♥ I haven't given any thought to getting married (again). And given that I'm a lady loving lady A LOT of thought would be required (as it should be anyway), but, even more so since don't have the rights or luxury as does my brother and his new bride, for instance.

♥ What I have given a lot of thought to is death. Not my own, per se, but in general. Mostly due to Thought Question number 686 . It is a topic that doesn't come easy to most, we don't want to think about it, let alone discuss it. It' morbid. It is . . . eventual. My mother talks about death, not in any constructive way, just by way of offering up Obits and escalating every illness to fatalistic ends.
So, this text enhanced shit, anyone know how to turn it off? How to avoid having one's text enhanced with some broken down ad for some broken down service?

♥ I'll probably watch most of the Superbowl game out of pure habit. I don't have any vested interest in either team. But, I do like football. I was the only one of my group yesterday who knew when the game was and the teams competing. But, I'm thinking too it would be the perfect day to take in a movie, get in an extra six thousand (or so) steps or clean out that closet one thing or another has kept me from.

♥ Speaking of thee Though Questions Number 697 has had my mind spinning as well. I did respond to his religious literature, told him I wasn't a Christian. He pities me. The conversation didn't end there but didn't go too far downhill. He will continue trying to convert me inasmuch as his health (and his communication disciplines) allow, I suppose.

♥ My good friend has (had) a birthday today. She probably won't see this (her computer has been on the fritz)  but it doesn't matter for I've extended my well wishes to her already and soon her gift will be in the mail. Never-the-less, Happy Birthday  Good Friend!! Many happy returns of this day and more. You know you are on my mind and in my heart, always. ♥

♥ My son (& my younger brother and several cousins) have milestone birth days within the coming days. More about the actor will be spoken on his special day.

♥ My Aunt Betty (mom's oldest sibling) will celebrate birthday number 92 in a few days.
On that note, I'll bid you goodnight. Five AM will be here before I know it.

Peace. 

Snow, Cold

Friday's fall wasn't as much as last February's (photo evidence) but it was enough. Enough to snarl traffic and to change plans, not only for the evening but the entire weekend.

Well, mine anyway.

Passing up an invite to hear some jazz because of a prior engagement only to pass on the prior engagement because of not only event of snow but also the timing of same (the bulk of it coming just prior to the evening rush) but even more than snow was the cold. No, not the air temps (though, that is a incredible motivator for staying indoors) but the onset of the virus called commonly, cold.

Stuffy nose, scratchy throat, sneezing, and a slight case of the chills. The symptoms beginning Thursday and continuing, building during Friday played the larger role into my altering the evening  and weekend plans.

The snow just capped it. IT being the decision to head directly home after work Friday.  And as I reported to a couple of friends via FB who very sweetly checked in with me:

Home, safe and sound. Soon there will be hot food, hotter toddies, and warm jammies and a wonderful knitted shawl-like cover-ette. ♥.

And that was pretty much the weekend. 

Not going to hear jazz. Not going to see a screening of "If These Walls Could Talk 2". Not meeting a new acquaintance for coffee (or something). Not going to the Garfield Park Conservatory's concert series. Not going to see "Red Tails". 

Full disclosure, all of these things weren't going to happen this weekend but they were considered and were within the realms of possibilities, along with laundry, closet purging, and other sundry weekend chores--had it not been for the need to tend to the sniffling (sometimes stuffy) nose, scratchy throat, sneezing and such. 

Now on the eve of the beginning of a new work week, feeling pretty much over the cold, I'm sorry I didn't (at least) attempt a trip to the laundry mat. 

Off to rummage through the (not yet purged) closet to find some things clean (and warm) to wear tomorrow. 

Numbers

 Sunday: 9,852  measurable steps taken. Atypical for me in that 1: I don't usually wear the gadget on the weekends. 2. a low daily total (judging by the weekday totals) for me. 3. Left to my own devices, I chose to take myself to the movies. Pariah I'll just say this for now: see this film!  

Monday: 10,633 measurable steps. Most weekday evenings I'm home between 6--6:15. Since I'm home before daughter I take up the pet care duties minus (the new normal: insulin injections). Dinner is often a crap shoot, as I routinely leave food prep to her. I must however, adjust that routine for 2012 as the "crap shoot" aspect is not working so well for my goals, I finally learned from 20111 experiences. The pedometer may or may not stay on my person until I retire (which simply means, I'm sitting, relaxing before bed) for the evening, which depends mostly on the day's attire. Monday's measurements would have occurred between about 7:30 am until about 8:30 pm .  

Tuesday: 8,382 measurable steps. Not a good day on many, many levels. A weariness had gathered about my shoulders and moved south throughout the day. Focus was off and cravings ON and high . It can't be . . . but, alas, I fear it must be. Oh crap. Once home and and all the pet care needs attended I took (for all intents and purposes) to bed. However, early to bed meant much, MUCH too early to rise. Oh crap!  

Wednesday: 11,238 measurable steps. Big improvement over Tuesday but understand it was forced and aided by too many cups of coffee, zinger teas, and one sugar free R*ckstar energy drink. There was one side trip after work and with a mind toward the weekly goal of 12,000 steps I pushed as much as I could. Fell short though. Crashed and burned in fact, by lights out. Well, point of fact, I don't sleep in total darkness unless I'm in someone else's space. But, for all intents and purposes, lights were out by 11 p.m. The meter was about my person right until shower time. 

Thursday: 13,385 very unhappy steps taken. Snow. Houston, we have snow. (Note the pic was from last February's storm. We didn't get quite that much this time, but it is early yet.)   And the only reason I cracked twelve thousand was because of the snow shoveling in addition to the usual routines after work. Ironic since I'd mentioned to a friend earlier that I didn't think I'd crack ten thousand due to the snow.  

Friday: 11,261 flat, stick a fork in me, I'm done, steps taken. Along with the snow, which let's face it, is a given; this is the Midwest and this IS January for peeps sake, there is also frigid temps (anything below 30) and, AND . . .  well, let's just say I found myself gorging on mint dark chocolate M & M's which are freakin' fantastic, by the way, and downing one,two, three brown ales. I'll see the Tuesday's Oh Crap and Raise you a Holy F*ck!  Hi-ever, thank Goodness was Friday and as a friend counseled, I acted like it, dammit!!  

Saturday:  No measurable steps for today. Not that I haven't taken any. I've taken several hundred, at least. But, I didn't don the meter for 1. I don't (usually) do so on the weekends and 2. this day was a take it easy, easy like Sunday morning, a sleep in (after 9) kind of day. A thinking about how to achieve the goals for next week (and beyond) and how to work other routines into my routine, for the walking (alone) isn't going to get me where I want to get with regard to fitness. (Nor for that matter, are the mint chocolate M & M's as fantastic as they are or the multiple brown ales at a single sitting, no matter how therapeutic they may appear) kind of day. And a musing of what cruel jokers Mother Nature and her evil twin Aunt Flo have become, kind of day. 

And then it will be Sunday, again. Happy New Day, New Year, New Opportunity to achieve numbers and more.    



 

d is for . . .

In the many days since the previous post several topics, reasons to write presented themselves as possibly post-worthy. And then they were not, in fact, posted for they couldn't in all honesty post themselves. I would have to play blog post conduit and for one reason or another, I couldn't.

d is for December

And then there we were at year-end and if there is ever a topic ready-made for posting it is the looking back, looking ahead noise that permeates the end of one year and the beginning of another.  Memories take over, take control as does sense of resolve about the coming days, all 365 of 'em in one fell swoop. Oh wait, 2012 is a leap year, make that 366 days.
d is for dog
That post didn't write nor post itself either. Because as in previous days and prior posts not posted, I couldn't play blog post conduit, what with the trip to Houston, making room for the tree, preparations for the holiday meal, a short trip to Hoosier-ville, not to mention outside the home obligations, writing and posting (beyond that about making room for the tree) didn't work in the mix of things to say and do.
d is for Diva
And then here we are at the second day of the new year and finally a post is winding its way out of the ends of my fingers, off the tendrils of my mind. And this post is not at all about year ending, new year beginning or any resolve to be resolute*. This post is about the diva, our dog, Diamond.
Our sweet little fuzz face has been lethargic, losing weight, drinking beyond what you'd believe her body could hold and then of course, the body not holding it. A visit to the vet and a battery of tests reveal the underlying cause:

d is for diabetes
The news hit the other D rather hard. Her concern for the pup as well as her concern for caring for the pup (financially and otherwise) all causing, as one might expect, an overflow of emotions. The news hit this D rather hard too for the same reasons added to my concern for my daughter.
That was all several days ago and since then Diamond has been treated as an out-patient with fluids and d-daughter has administered several insulin injections, the vet tech training as well as sustaining relationships with a former co-worker (a vet M) playing vital roles is emotions calming and focusing on doing what we can to care for Diamond and care for one another.
D-dog has a bit more pep in her ten year old doggy steps and a bit more light in her eyes. She won't be well in that she won't be rid of diabetes but her condition can be treated and will be to the best of our ability. She won't be well but she is better today than she was in those days leading up to this day.
d is for Diamond our Diva, our ♥.  

*as coined by ef