Monday Stuff

I received two e-mails over the weekend which affected me. One was from the friend for whom I had made my first non-scarf knitted project, i.e., the hat. He really liked the hat and the scarf, so that made me very happy. There's nothing quite like being told "You rock!"

The second one was from Clarity and she said that she had written two entries for that day which was her one year anniversary with Diaryland and she hadn't decided which entry to post – the one where she said good-bye or the one where she doesn't say good-bye. I'm very glad to report that she decided to stick with Diaryland. I didn't have time to write her back and let her know that I hoped she stuck with it. She's the first person I read every day after reading my know-in-person friends, and I would have missed her daily writings terribly. She inspires me to try and write more fulfilling entries. I have been worrying about writing too much from my heart and soul and who was reading what I wrote, instead of just writing what I would write if it were my paper diary. Although I have to say that I don't think I'm going there. I find that I only write in my notebook journal when I'm severely depressed or upset about something or other.

I used to exchange e-mails every day with my friend Paula, but she's been just beyond swamped at work for the past 6-8 months and it seems like it's the way of the future for her. I really miss writing to her and boring her (instead of you guys) with the blow-by-blow details of my life, and of course, getting her replies and hearing how her family is doing. It seems like all of my non-Michigan friends are very very busy and it makes me sad that I don't hear from them like I used to. I guess I'll have to get a life of my own, but how do I do that? I got one phone call this weekend (starting Friday evening) that I did not initiate (i.e., I called first) and I actually made more phone calls than the one, but nobody else returned my call. And the one phone call I got was from my sister telling me that my Mom has shingles, so that was a joyous message.

I called Mom Saturday morning to see how she was doing (I may have a cell phone but I don't like to answer it while driving the Southfield at 75 mph or when I'm out to dinner with friends, so I didn't get the message until 11:30 p.m.) and she is in a whole lot of pain. She made wincing noises throughout our conversation while I verified that she didn't need anything. The doctor gave her Vicodin but it wasn’t really helping so I told her that when I had my neck issues that my prescription said I could take 1-2 tablets as needed, so she should call her sister the pharmacist and see if that was okay for her. I think the reason 2 Vicodins help is that it just puts you to sleep so you don't realise you're in pain. I know when I would take 2, I would sit at my desk and just fight sleep. When I talked to Mom yesterday to see if she wanted her Girl Scout cookies (which I picked up for her at church), she said No, it's Lent, so they're just going in the freezer and she said that she talked to her sister and she could take 2 at a time (not exceeding 8 in a 24 hours period), and that she did, but all she did was sleep. I'm not sure that's a bad thing. I told her it was her body's way of telling her she needed some rest (the woman NEVER rests). And miracle of miracles, she did not go to work this morning. She was in too much pain, so she called the doctor who was going to call in a different painkiller prescription for her and my cousin (her nephew and Godson) was going to pick it up. Of course, when my brother talked to her she wasn't in as much pain, so she was thinking she should go in. Even when God smites her down with shingles, the woman thinks that she must work. I wonder if I can shackle her to her bed. Or is that parental abuse?

And now, time for a survey I stole from Urs.

It's called the ABC Survey (as in The Alphabet, not the TV station):

A - Accent: Technically, Michigan, but have been told I don't sound like a true Michigander.
B - Breast size: I'm not sure anybody really needs this information.
C - Chore you hate: Dusting and vacuuming
D - Dad's name: Jackass (but only because it's Lent and I've given up the F-word)
E - Essential make-up item: Mascara
F - Favorite perfume: Vanilla from The Body Shop or Tuscany
G - Gold or silver: Silver, White Gold
H - Hometown: Redford
I - Insomnia: Only on Sunday nights, seems I stress about going back to work.
J - Job title: Engineering Coordinator
K - Kids: Two cats, Boris and Igor
L - Living arrangements: Live with Boris and Igor in my lovely 1100 sq ft apartment built by Henry Ford for his employees way back in the 19-teens.
M - Mum's birthplace: Detroit, MI
N - Number of apples you've eaten: Today? None. Over my lifetime? Like I counted.
O - Overnight hospital stays: One, although it wasn't supposed to be. My surgery was scheduled for 1:00 p.m., but didn't happen until 11:00 p.m. (if I remember correctly), so they just kept me until morning.
P - Phobia: Ladders
R - Religious affiliation: Roman Catholic
S - Siblings: We're Catholic, I have lots of siblings: two brothers, two sisters
T - Time you wake up: I snoozed a little long today and got up at 5:00 a.m.
U - Unnatural hair colors you've worn: None
V - Vegetable you refuse to eat: Lima beans
W - Worst habit: Procrastinating at work
X - X-rays you've had: Right foot baby toe, both feet, both knees, ribs, neck, MRI
Y - Yummy foods you make: I make a killer grilled cheese, but if they're talking real food: Onion Soup, vegetarian stuffing every Thanksgiving.
Z - Zodiac sign: Leo.