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heavy weather
July 13, 2015
Horrible, severe thunderstorms today. Depressing, tiring, ache-inducing, dark and dismal.
I hurt all over--my bad hip is screaming. And I feel like crap in general. Last week was a rough one, mood-wise, and I took Tuesday off sick due to not being able to cope. I forced myself to bounce back somewhat on Wednesday and Thursday; threw myself into my job, came home and did yardwork, tried to make sure I ate better and stayed hydrated and got in some walks. I guess it helped. It's pretty tiring to keep pushing through, though.
Friday morning, Spouse got a text from the bank asking if he'd made a six dollar debit card purchase in Mexico that morning. Yeah, he had his debit card hacked, so his card number was shut down by Chase. (Meaning that everywhere we went all weekend, I had to do the swiping.)
On Friday after work, I took the Buick to shop for coolant service--ended up staying till Saturday afternoon, and costing $450.00, because GM used some plastic joints in the cooling system, and apparently they were worn out (and they were junk to start with). Had them replaced with metal parts, plus a flush, pressure test, fill, and thermostat replacement. She doesn't drip on the driveway or gurgle when driving anymore, so apparently that got everything fixed up.
Friday afternoon, I played with my pens for a while. Inked up the BIG ORANGE 159 with R&K Verdura, and goofed around taking pen pictures for tumblr. After that--I slept. I am back to napping at every opportunity, which worries me. But it's weird. As if my brain, once it knows a nap is possible, just shuts down. I try to stay awake, and can't. I feel tired at the times when I can't take a nap, but I don't have trouble staying awake. Once I hit an open spot on my schedule, though--wham! Out like a light. Heavy, hours-long unconsciousness.
When Spouse got home, he made a nice dinner of BBQ pork chops and baked potatoes on the grill, with mixed vegetables. I cleaned up the mess. He went to bed and I read and fiddled around on my laptop and stayed up too late.
I slept in a little on Saturday, and woke to Spouse baking a tube of cinnamon rolls. I had my coffee and rolls in the backyard, and came in & got laundry started before getting cleaned up and dressed to run errands. We didn't have too much running around to do; we went to Meijer to grocery-shop, then checked in to see if the Buick was done before stopping at the bank and then going home to put the groceries away. The car wasn't ready for pickup till one, so I puttered in the kitchen, making Jello and baking off some potatoes, until it was time to go over and get it. Once we got home, it was nap-time again. As I said, I can't seem to stay awake when I have free time to nap. And Spouse has a bad toothache, so he's not been sleeping well and needed to catch up.
When we got up, it was time to make some dinner--we had planned on burgers on the gas grill, with coleslaw and potato salad. Since it was raining at the time, Spouse changed it up and did the burgers on the little charcoal grill, under the awning. Even better! I had a dressed cheddarburger (lettuce, tomato, burger sauce), some excellent summer slaw with tomato, scallion, and cucumber in it, and some potato salad. Not a bad little summer supper, and 5-minute cleanup.
Spouse went to read in his room after dinner, and I organized my pen stuff. I stuck looseleaf reinforcement rings on the top of my ink sample vials, then swabbed the ink colors onto them. That way I can see at a glance what color I'm looking for. And I tidied up my supplies and organized my box.
After that, I watched most of a movie I came across while flipping channels--"This is Where I Leave You", with Jason Bateman, Tina Fey, and Jane Fonda. One of those "dysfunctional family gathers for a funeral" movies; not great, but it had some nice moments. Timothy Olyphant, Dax Shephard, and Debra Monk were among the supporting cast, and I really like them. I hardly ever have the TV on anymore, but it was nice to sit and watch a movie that didn't make me feel bored, irritated, or nauseated. I missed the beginning, but watched thru the end.
On Sunday, I got up earlier than Spouse, and relaxed with my tablet and a cup of coffee for a while. Placed an order from Amazon--I tried out a pen-storage prototype with some odds and ends I had on hand, and it turned out well enough for me to actually spring for the real supplies. It's a pretty simple solution, but I need stiffened felt, 6 in. x 8 in. boxes, and a craft knife. And since I refuse to spend my money at Hobby Lobby, the nearest craft store I will use (and is open on Sunday) is in the next county. So I just did my shopping on Amazon.
I also ordered racking to hold my ink sample vials, and--(coughcough)only because I needed ten dollars more for the free shipping, mind you--I ordered the burgundy Skilcraft Executive set--Fountain pen with matching ballpoint.
Yes, it's a sickness. But considering how long I went with nothing in my life that interested me, it's a good sickness.
Spouse got up about 7:30, and made sausage, eggs, homefries and toast for breakfast. Fabulous, and frugal--we used up eggs, bread, and potatoes (the ones I'd baked off on Saturday) that needed to be used up, so it worked out well.
We ran some more errands after breakfast and dishes. Filled my car with gas, picked up some more shock for the pool, and stopped at Meijer for a couple of things I'd forgotten on Saturday. Turned out to be a good trip for me; I picked up two cute new tops for 30% off, a new pack of undies, and some limited edition "Sweet Lemon Blueberry" ice cream.
When we got home, I spent some time helping Spouse look for a dentist on line, finished up the laundry, and had a peanut butter sandwich before--you guessed it--having another nap.
Spouse made chop suey in the pressure cooker for dinner--he was kind of winging it, so it was a bit bland, but still very good. I had mine with some steamed Asian vegetable blend, and my ice cream for dessert--which was fantabulous. After that, I watered some plants--even though we were expecting rain, I have a few that never get enough rainfall. And did my usual prep for morning.
I felt a little guilty about not going to the family reunion in Iowa, but I don't think the turnout was great in general. I saw several relatives on FB that were doing other things yesterday. Honestly, my heart just wasn't in it. I couldn't face it there without Mom and my cousin D. Just too painful and exhausting. I punked out.
Spouse's toothache was so bad this morning that he took some time off, leaving after the morning meeting. When we were looking up dentists, he was hyped about going to one of the big chain places like Aspen or Forward. I had my doubts, but he was adament that that was the way to go. That lasted just as long as it took to reach one on the phone. He was quite upset that the first thing they said on the phone wasn't about his issue, it was about insurance. Yeah, well--I hate to say I told you so.
So he looked up some local practices and decided to stop in and see if he could set something up at one who seemed promising. Well, it was absolutely the opposite experience. The doctor in the receptionist's office, immediately asked him what was up, made him open his mouth, and told the office staff to get his paperwork set up, get him x-rayed, and set up an appointment for 9:00 a.m. tomorrow. Bam. He's pretty happy about it. So am I. He takes some special handling when it comes to dentists, because dentistry terrifies him for some reason But this guy seems to be his type. Straightforward, plain-spoken, sedation-qualified, and very good reviews for price, quality, and efficiency.
And since Spouse generally requires sedation for dental work, I will be taking a personal day so I can drive him home from whatever they end up doing to him.
Reading:
Still Cape Codding. "Thankful's Inheritance" (1915), by Joseph C. Lincoln
Listening:
Eurythmics, The Birds, The Black Crows, Tim Curry
Inked Up: Jin Hao X750 in "shimmering sands", a lovely pen with a black finish that's full of multicolored sparkles. It doesn't write quite as well as I would like, but I think it Loaded with Rohrer & Klingner Blu Mare--an exquisitely rich turquoise.
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