Musings on a Small Life

I was restless this morning, wanted to rearrange furniture, toss everything away and run out and rack up credit card debt on new stuff. A sure sign I just needed to get out of the house with my camera for some "therapy." So off I went to Portsmouth Olympic Harbour, for a very chilly scenic walk. I wisely wore a few layers of clothing, but could have used my fleece-lined snow pants. I took winter pics along the same walk two years ago, about the same time of year. So I'm good till 2012. LOL. Part of the harbour, with the maximum security penitentiary in the background. A room with a view. I don't know what this sculpture is supposed to be. Sails? I thought this sign for ice was quite amusing. Don't the supports remind you of elephant legs? No one has to pay for ice right now, there's plenty to be had for free! There were plenty of filled bird feeders around; there are lots of apartments and condos in the area and the waterfront walk is well-used. Not sure what ...

Saturday always is errand day, because Sunday bus service is pretty lousy here. And bonus, yesterday was pay day. (Once a month.) So I caught the 7:15AM bus up to the Evil Empire (a.k.a. Wal-Mart). They have the best prices around for kitty treats, including the relatively new "Hartz Crunch 'n Clean with Denta Shield." Our local "mom and pop" Global Pet Foods sells them for about $4 per package. Wal-Mart sells them for $1.97. Ask me where I get them. (No, don't really, you can figure it out.) I'm trying to think what else I purchased there....I mean, I spent $87 including taxes. Hmm. Oh, cheap sunglasses. I broke the arm on my existing pair. Found a pair that are polarized--I like the polarized lenses. Bought more thick wool socks, blue this time. It's cold, -22C this morning without any wind, and those wool socks keep my feet toasty. Some vitamins. Very exciting stuff. Then it was over to PetSmart, but they didn't have the canned food I wanted. ...

I've been home today, got all dressed and ready for work, then at 6AM just knew I couldn't make it. Went back to bed for a while, then had to go out for a few things (drugstore, grocery store). That's the down side to living alone when you aren't feeling well, there's no one to run the errands for you. But that was okay, it didn't take too long, and I went back to bed for a good chunk of the day afterward. (It's just a head cold, no big deal.) Now I'm up and drinking some home-made cocoa--very comforting on a day with a windchill of -26C (about -15F). So there's nothing new and/or exciting to relate. Except that my cousin Laurie sent an email update yesterday. She had a mastectomy nine days ago. Her incision has become infected, so the surgeon removed a couple of staples and put in a drain, has her on antibiotics. The good news: There was no sign of cancer in the lymph nodes or surrounding tissue. But the tumour itself was 4 cms in length and a type ...

Do not take 1 non -drowsy cold/flu pill at 5PM because you will lie awake and toss and turn the entire night. Who knew? I thought it would alleviate my cold symptoms and allow me to sleep peacefully, with no zombie-like after-effects. Huh. I thought I had a lousy night after the second time trying melatonin. That was nothing compared to this. I already emailed my boss and told him I might be in later, if I can unwind enough to get some sleep. I feel totally out of it, exhausted and barely able to remain upright, yet strangely wired. Just popped a Gravol (anti-nausea pill that induces sleepiness) with the hope that it will help me relax. If I wasn't so tired, I'd laugh, because really, the whole thing is absurd. Typical Kim-like thing to do!

I walked the 5 kms (3 miles) to work this morning for the first time in what felt like ages. I don't do as much walking in the winter because the sidewalks usually are a mess of snow and/or ice. But with all the rain we had on Monday, and now the wintry chill again, the sidewalks are dry and bare for the most part. Only some ice in low-lying areas. So I was in the mood to move my body and enjoy the peace of the still-dark morning. (I leave the house at 6AM.) While I was walking, my mind flashed back to getting dressed, trying to decide what to wear, what I can fit into, how huge I look in these pants or those. How much weight I've gained, how lumpy this middle-aged body is, how ugly. (I've had body image issues since my teen years and even when I weighed a mere--for me--115 pounds I still thought I was fat.) And I remembered the interview with Jann Arden (Canadian singer) on Steven and Chris (talk show) last week, to promote her new CD. She's not obese, but neither is...

I dreamed of Prince William and of lentils last night. Not in the same dream, mind you. I think William was somewhere along the south shore of Nova Scotia, in a touristy spot. Working in a café, it seemed. Or at least there just as a "regular" person. I do occasionally dream of the royal family, and have done for years, though I have no idea why, since I don't follow them. Is there some significance to that? I need a dream interpretation book. As for the lentils, I was trying to prepare a recipe and terribly late for work. I don't even like lentils. I think one of the recent cat blog posts I read mentioned lentils; I suppose it stuck in my mind. Well, at least my dream life is interesting, far more engaging that my waking life, sad to say. LOL. And because it's--surprise!--another grey day, I'll add a splash of vibrant colour from last May.

I'm off today, took Annie in for routine blood work this AM and I have the annual furnace cleaning this afternoon. I also booked Annie's dental (finally!) for February 10th. I'm opting not to do the DNA panel on her upper respiratory system, because I simply can't afford the additional $150. Besides, the DNA panel will only tell me if she has a virus and what kind, not if there is some sort of physical blockage/damage of her nasal passages. Apparently scoping cats is seldom done (and they don't do it at all at my clinic) because you need such a tiny scope. Oh, to explain, for those who aren't psychic, Annie's always had wheezing breathing, depending on the position in which she rests, but it's gotten worse over the years. Like she has a stuffy nose or something similar. I wanted to see if there was some sort of obstruction, not find out she has an upper respiratory infection. She gets Lysine for that. Sheesh. Anyway, I am hoping the dental will be straig...

Okay, I thought I'd try the melatonin again last night. My hair stylist's fiance has been using it every night for the past few years, with great success and no side effects. Well, I was up for bio breaks twice within the first three hours of going to bed--and I hadn't had any more to drink than usual during the evening, perhaps even a bit less. Is this stuff a diuretic? I've not read that it is, but.... And then, after the second time I was up, I couldn't fall back asleep! I was awake for an hour--I know this because I kept looking at the clock. I finally drifted off again, only to wake at 3AM. I haven't been back to sleep since. All right, I can see that waking through the night once while trying the melatonin could be a coincidence, but not twice. And this time was far worse. Obviously it's not having the desired effect. I'll just pass on taking it again, be thankful it's Sunday and I can go back to bed in a while, and give the melatonin to Dad ...

Okay, ever since I started following a multitude of blogs, I have noticed that while I can post comments to all of them from work, I've not been able to post comments to some of them from home. This has been on-going for months and has been very frustrating. I just figured that somehow, bizarrely, my ability to leave comments (even on my own blogs!) was tied to the computer's IP address--though that made no sense, frankly. In other words, if I opted to follow a blog from my work computer, well, I needed to be at my desk to post comments. Logically, I thought my ability to comment should have been tied to my Google account ID, but well, whatever. I have had life-things to do on the weekends, didn't really think about it over-much. I swear, I really am computer literate! I know it doesn't seem like it right now. . . . Anyway, very early this morning, because I had wanted to reply to "Old Kitty's" comment on Friday's post and couldn't, I went to Goog...

Anyone have a word beginning with "f" that means the same as "ramblings" in this context? I could have reached new alliterative heights. Well. For one thing, we have sunshine. Gasp! I know, I know, I can hardly believe it myself. Unfortunately I didn't bring my camera with me today, so can't prove it. It's cold, though. As in a windchill of -17C earlier this morning. Spring? Spring! Feel free to arrive any time now. Don't feel you have to wait until oh, April. I just got an update on my cousin, who had a mastectomy on Wednesday. She is doing well, still in hospital. She'll be released when she can manage on over-the-counter pain medication, so possibly later today or tomorrow. (She's in British Columbia, Pacific time). It will be about 2 weeks before the test results on the mass come back, after which a course of treatment will be decided upon. Three weeks is the estimate for surgery recovery, and as well as her husband (who has to return to...

I had to get away from the computer for a while over lunch, give my eyes a much-needed rest. So off I went to the waterfront park (again), camera in hand. Oh, man, it's cold out! No wind, but the kind of damp, raw cold that goes through you, even when you are wearing long johns. I can't wait till Spring!

She came through the surgery just fine and things "went well," whatever that means. No confirmation yet as to whether or not all the cancer was removed, if it was contained in the breast (and had not spread to the lymph nodes). She was in and out of consciousness last night and might be released later today, or possibly Friday, depending on how things go. Fingers crossed!

One of my first cousins is having a mastectomy today. She lives in British Columbia with her hubby and a slew of Siberian Huskies that she breeds and trains (though because of the cancer, she now has to re-home/sell as many as possible). She had to be at the hospital for 11AM Pacific time today, though wasn't quite sure when the surgery was taking place. If all goes well and if the cancer hasn't spread to her lymph nodes, they will release her tomorrow. (Gee, there's nothing like having major surgery and being booted out almost as soon as you are conscious.) Laurie's Yahoo group is Nakitsilik, and part of a recent group post regarding the dogs is: "The hardest at this point is that I am going to have to sell/place as many of my dogs as I can.. but they have to be to homes that understand the breed and don't chain their dogs up - none of my dogs has been chained - except for feeding times or when we moved and had to re-build kennels. Once the kennels were done ...