i love the winter sky

This is the time of year that I step outside late at night (when I should be sleeping *ahem*) to take a peek at what will soon become the winter sky.  It's my favorite time of year for stargazing and spotting familiar constellations.

I think this year I should try to identify a few new ones.

a little more knitting

I finally finished knitting up some socks that had fallen by the wayside.

They're for TheMostImportantGuy. I picked a very classic-ish pattern and yarn, as he is in need of dress socks to go with his new fancy business clothes.

Of course, being the very rare Sunday with zero commitments (?!), the only modeled shot I could get was one of him wearing them....

...in his pj's  ;-)
It'll do!

Knitterly details here.

snapless saturday

Ok, I know that this totally lands in the TMI category, but deal with it.

That bad landing on my bum on Thursday?? It is now a good 8 or 9 inch square bruise on my arse that is black. I think TheMostImportantGuy is worried a chunk of my rear end might die and fall off.

While he worries, I however, I have taken to constantly remarking about how my butt-ocks hurt, and since I can't write inflection here very well, know that I am saying butt-ocks ala Forest Gump.





And don't tell me "you'd kinda like to see that," either...because I'd probably show you.

busy! knitting!

Needles a clickin'.  Working on finishing up some long languishing projects.
And watching Shakespeare on PBS.
And leaning on my right bummcheek, cuz the left one looks and feels like it might fall off!

lopsided.

Well, I done diddit.  For the first time ever, I fell getting out of the shower tonight, while trying to do a quick rinse before dashing to dance class.  I put the bathmat in a different place than usual (because I thought I was so damn smart), and as soon as I set my wet foot down on the floor, it came right out from underneath me.  My arse came crashing down, and my left bumm-cheek crashed down on the shower threshold.  You  know, the thing with the metal door jamb?

Lovely.

After flopping around like a wet seal trying to get up off the floor for a few, I got myself dressed and out the door to dance class, and that's when it finally hit me:  I could barely sit.  I'm sure being mildly in shock explains why I didnt think to grab an ice pack or some muscle rub. I did a bummcheck in the mirror in the studio, and it's already a multi-colored extravaganza.

I am soooo glad I didn't slip further before landing and hit my sacrum or low back.  No bones involved....I landed squarely on my more than adequately padded backside.   It's a bit of bummer it didnt happen on the other buttcheek though. I dont use my right leg, it aint even there!! But my left leg (ie my only leg) is attached to that buttcheek and OhMyGosh it's already hurting every time I stand. 

I'm back home and on ice.  Nothing like an icy bumm at bedtime...woot!

my morning entertainment

My favorite funny moment from today:

MyFavoriteKid asked me for a ride to school this morning, and as I was dropping him off, walking in front of our car was a gal wearing black and white striped skinny jeans (sort of wide even stripes, like a court jester)....and a blouse with a floral print that sort of resembled your grandma's tablecloth or something....and some really weird looking sort of moccasin boots....

and I said, "Oh. My. Gawd. Will you look at what she is wearing?! Someone needs to do an intervention, the poor dear...."

and MyFK says. "Oh. Ha! It's Spirit Week for Homecoming this week, and today is 'Fashion Disaster Day' ".



He doesn't know this, but after MyFK got out of the car and walked away, I pulled over into the lot and watched more kids come. Heh ;-)

the little train (ok, knitting) that could

I feel pretty ridiculous posting that I have finished knitting something when it's only a silly little seed-stich cotton washcloth, but hey....

it's a bit of a big deal.
Why?  Well:

a) it is an accessory that was knit to commemorate the completion of our new bathroom, and it looks perfect in my new little bath caddy
and...
b) I was only able to knit this because the numbness in the fingers of my right hand has decreased!

It's not gone, but it's decreased.  I believe that all kudos go to my new ScarDoc/Myofascial Release Wizard who has been digging into my scars, and even more importantly I believe, digging into some restrictions in my neck. This week my fingers felt like they were "waking up" after having been asleep like Rumplestilskin.  There has been some tingling and itching, but it's all feeling like a really good sign to me.

I'm still in the process of getting the MRI decoded (I do have a copy of the comments from the department that performed it, and I only have that copy in my hot little hands because I forced the issue).  My primary Kaiser doc is putz...she still hasn't called me to discuss the MRI with me, but instead, with no discussion whatsoever, I have been scheduled for another appointment with yet a another specialist. This time it's a neurologist...but again, my doctor, who ordered the referral hasn't told me why.

I just made arrangements this morning to switch to a new primary care physician at Kaiser. I've had it with this one.

But back to the happy!!! Back to the happy!!! Kaiser aside....YAY for alternative treatments!  I have another appointment with the ScarDoc today (outside of regular insurance...kachink$!$! *sigh*), and if she builds on what was done last week, I have high hopes for improvement.

Washcloth completed, I am now finishing a lingering sock project, and I am planning on casting on for something new this evening! :-)

 

retired

Sorry for the delay in getting this post up and running! I wrote it and thought I hit publish, but I guess I actually hit save and sent it to the drafts file. Duh! 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Today was not so great.  It was one of those "everything that can go wrong, will" sort of days, and by early evening I had just resigned myself to that fact and laughed every time one more thing went wrong (mercury retrograde, anyone?!)

The morning started with MyFavoriteKid slamming drawers and getting frustrated because his "dresser: has basically burst open and exploded everywhere.  His clothing storage system is basically a tower of wire basket drawers that are built into his closet.  It normally works fabulously.  But lately he's run into that dilemma where he has more clothes than space.

We took a few minutes this evening and sorted through everything, got rid of the old and tattered, and it was a shock to both of us how much stuff there was that was ancient.  He's a junior in high school and we found a few t-shirts with the middle school logo on them!!

We know how this happened. MyFK and I used to have this plan: we used to purge his clothing twice a  year. Once in June, right after his birthday...and once again near Christmas.  He almost always received new clothes on those holidays, and he was always on a break for school, so there was always time to do it.  Until High School started. Then all the school breaks filled up with band rehearsal stuff, and we stopped the ritual!!

Two big bags are now in my car for Goodwill, and MyFK can actually see what he's got (and no more exploding baskets of clothes).   Sorting was easy. He's not the type to hold onto sentimental clothing.  Except he got stuck with these:

He didn't know what to do about the socks I knit for him years back, which you can see are clearly way too small (he wears a men's 12-1/2 now!!).  He hemmed and hawed about whether to keep them tucked away in the back of the drawer or to donate them or pass them along to one of the families we know with young kids....and he finally asked me to get down his "box of sentimental things" that I've been adding to over the years and put them in there ;-) 

tardy

Ok, I'm going to have to owe you one.

I hosted a really fabulous party at TheNewDiggs today...a "Crafternoon" Potluck.  What a great time.  Lots of really good food savory food and an outrageous amount of desserts and beverages. I actually got some knitting done, the house totally put back in place, and then I watched the Emmy's.  The next thing I know, I'm passed out on the couch.

I dont remember the last time I've been exhausted from having a GOOD TIME.




I could get used to this.

snaps on saturday

sssnore

I'm not quite sure how I made it to 11pm, and running pretty hard I might add, when I only had 3-1/2 hours of sleep last night!

Last night sucked.  It was one of those where I got the jumpy stabbing pains in my shorty leg.  I finally took something, and then I wasn't hurting, but my head was spinning a bit from the meds every time I closed my eyes, so I couldn't nod off.   And then there it was, the sun coming up. The kid to get off to school, and a whole day ahead of me.

Knock on wood that this was a one-night thing, like it usually is.  I don't think I can manage two of those days together!

a beautiful moon

Ahhh, it's been a really good full moon.

Because I drop MyFavoriteKid off at school so early (for band practice before first period), I got to see the moon setting this morning as the sun was coming up. It was stunning.

And then I saw the moon again tonight on the way to dance class and on the way home, too....and tonight we circle danced together to honor the fall equinox. It was great. We often extend the invitation to former members of the troupe, so we full house, and dancing felt juicy good :-)

I'm really looking forward to fall...after all of the running around of summer, it feels like it's due time to "tuck in" to a slower season.

things like this tickle me pink

I have a friend who is coming for a visit this weekend. She just recently had leg surgery and is using a wheelchair and/or other mobility devices. In an email to me today she wrote:

Would it be possible to me to come in the back via the ramp?  Thought of asking you if your house was wheelchair accessible, then gave myself a dope slap.  Shows I don't think of you as disabled, just another good friend.



:-D

fun with machines

I got the MRI today, trying to sort out why I have two numb fingers on my dominant hand. Results in 2-3 days.

I don't know why some people are so freaked out by having an MRI. Quite frankly, I find it relaxing.  In fact, I'd describe it like being in a vibrating/massaging tanning bed while listening to techno music. 

I know. I'm weird.
Even the technician said he'd never heard that.  ;-)

travel fatigue

I guess that what you call it. Travel fatigue. Or something. It can't be "jet lag" because I never changed time zones. 

Whatever it is, I'm weary from two days of flying, driving in rental cars, crying, and shoring myself up around family issues.  Whacked, I tell ya'.  I fell asleep on the couch around 7:30, got up to feed the pups, and now I'm off to bed, for realz.

G'night y'all. More soon. *mwah*

here's to long journeys, all the way around

This post appeared earlier today on facebook, and I am sorry for being such a slacker of a blogger by posting the same thing here as well...
but the last two days have been long and hard and there hasn't been much sleep for me, either. 
I'm just out of energy. 

My boobyprize at the airport (gifted to me BY me) for surviving a fairly sucktastic weekend, INCLUDING missing my flight due to a 4hr full freeway closure.

I was in WA with my beloved Grammy when she crossed over yesterday. She was super special to me and loved by an unusually large number of people (huge extended family!)

This has been hard. I love all of you, my family of choice, for posting and emailing and calling and sending vibes and supporting me. I have felt you with me. XXO

snaps on Saturday

My Grammy Faye (left), circa 1980-something, I'm guessing...with her sister. Depending on who you ask, my Grammy crossed over either 2 minutes before I arrived, or 2 minutes after. I'm in the 2 minutes after camp. I felt her chest moving underneath my hand and when I played her audio messages recorded just for her that were from my Mom, Dad, MyFavoriteKid, and TheMostImportantGuy, I asked her if she could hear them and she made a swallowing noise...and when I asked her again, she swallowed again. Maybe she was 6 inches outside her body, who knows. I am here withh family through tomorrow late morning. In a bit of a state. More to process.

over the river and through the woods...

...to grandmother's house we go.


I'm on my way to see my grammy up in Bellingham first thing in the morning. She's 98 and fully prepared for her final crossing.  I might not make it before she goes.  But I also know she knows I am coming, and I have a hunch she is waiting for me to get there.

Only time will tell.

I have to go to sleep now because I have a very early flight. I'll be blogging from the road with the ipad, so forgive me if words are short as I only have a touch screen keypad on that device and two numb fingertips! 

uhhh....

...it's 11:35pm and I just got home from dance class followed by a quick trip to the market and the ATM machine.

I think I need to be writing blogposts earlier in the day, because this late at night isn't working for me!  Especially when I have to be up at the buttcrack o' dawn to get the kiddo off to marching band practice. Oy! 

I owe ya' one.

bzzzzt!

I've been dealing with a few physical issues lately, one being the fact that two fingers on my right (dominant) hand....the middle and the ring finger....have gone numb.  The tips of them just beyond the knuckle just feel like they're asleep.  It's been freaking me out.  Knitting feels not-so-good, and neither does most things I might do in the kitchen, like slicing and dicing.

This right arm is the same arm that was trashed during the car accident and is full of interesting metal components. I've ruled out a bunch of stuff the regular MD and a host of lab work, plus some work with a physical therapist. Today was the day for a "nerve conduction study".

NOT a fun time.

Basically 45 minutes of being electrocuted (ok, I exaggerate. 45 minutes of being "zapped").  It's quite uncomfortable (putting it mildly) and it included having needles inserted in the nerves and having the current run into them. Like I said, fun times.  At least the doc has been brushing up on his stand-up comedy routine, so he kept things light, but it still sucked.

I had to do this a few months after the car accident.  I didn't like it then, either.


No big answers.  A little puzzling information on the radial nerve between the elbow and the wrist, but he actually thinks the probably might be coming from the neck.  So now off I go for an MRI on the neck. 

At least in there I can lay down and enjoy the whirring  LOL.

my little find

Yesterday I was on the fly in the East Bay and grabbed myself a sandwich to go at Whole Foods while picking up a few hard to find groceries for the week.   The sandwich was kind of "meh".  It was a bunch of caprese ingredients on a baguette, so fresh mozzarella, tomato, and basil. There wasn't a bit of seasoning nor any balsamic vinegar, and because the sandwich was in the pre-pack "to go" area, the bread was very dense and chewy.

I was driving to my next thing, chewing away at this mass of should-be-better but aint-so-good, when I found my mind wandering to Paris.  I will never forget all the little sandwich displays on the sidewalks out front of restaurants, and how you could grab any one of them and you were guaranteed a winner. Oh, the bread. OhMyGawd, the bread in Paris.  *sigh!*

Well!  Today I had a physical therapy appointment, and when I headed for my car I went a different direction than I normally travel, I found myself right on the little patio of La Fable.  All I wanted was a little fo' real french jamon (ham) sandwich, and holy crap.  For 12 bucks I got that annnnnd...

....lobster bisque and a tuna sandwich, too!!

Oh man, it was SO. GOOD.  I ate the soup and the jamon parisienne, and I just dusted off the tuna for dinner.   I am soooo going back there. Like, ASAP.
  
Why on earth would anyone eat fast crap food?!!!

harping

I don't mean to keep harping about how great my kid is (quite frankly, it's not a quality I fully appreciate in other parents)...but what am I to do?

Oddly enough, the only thing that is really going smoothly in my life right now is my relationship with MyFavoriteKid.  Being that he's a teenager, I find that rather shocking, but I am every so appreciative.

Many other relationships in my life right now are strained or distant, mostly my own doing, I am sure. But this is one relationship that is going well, and I am so glad to not have the added stress of being at odds with a person I live with and am (on some levels) responsible for helping through life.


I just need it to be noted that I am grateful.

a waste of a day

Dang, it just drives me nuts when I lose a day to a migraine.  I woke up with a headache, and by the early afternoon I was full blown migraine status.  I'd swear on my grave that it was caused by some roadside fruitstand snacks we picked up yesterday on the way to Sacramento.  As I sat here today with my head splitting open and feeling super-duper thirsty, I realized that those little asian peanuts and wasabi-everythings were probably loaded with msg (even though the label didn't indicate msg or even any "natural flavorings").

After a ton of water and bit of rest, I was able to get myself out of migraine mode and down to just a plain ol' headache.  I went out and got some fresh air by around 5pm by way of taking the dogs to the dog park.

Even with the migraine, I did manage to clean up the dishes stacked up in the kitchen (which is good because I was dangerously close to having the health department show up LOL), and I was able to do a couple of loads of laundry and vacuum the house.   All in all, not so bad.

I'm hoping that is my medical issue for the week, right there.  I need to have a smooth sailing week this week! I have a crap-ton of stuff going on every day this week, including a few extra appointments and quite a bit of driving.  There will be no time for feelin' bad!!

nighty-night....

snaps on saturday

Scene from niece's 18th birthday party :-)

tomorrow...the beginning of the end

I'm just exhausted.  This 5:30am wake-up thing to get MyFavoriteKid off to Zero-Period band practice (before school) is really a challenge for me, especially on Fridays because I have dance class so late on Thursday nights.  I'm just wiped!   

Last night was extra special.  It's been so hot here at YeOldeHaus I've needed to sleep with the windows open, and since I'm basically butted up against a field here, that means the nighttime critters are audible.  Last night there was a skunk in the yard, which I first heard, and then smelled...in the middle of the night...and then the dog went nuts barking out the window at him/her for a bit.  My six hours of sleep was reduced substantially.

I'm hoping to get a bit more rest tonight.  I get to "sleep in" (?!) until a luxurious 7am tomorrow, but at 8am I have to meet the painter over at TheNewDiggs to settle up on THE FINAL PHASE OF REMODELING there.  Next week the hallway and all its many doors and closets gets painted out, as well as the stairwell and railings, and the newly sanded and stained stairs will get a few final coats of sealer. 

And then, my friends...we are DONE.  

There may be a few more tasks we do ourselves, and we may have our handyman friend friend in for a little bit of this and that as things turn up, but once the paint dries next week, we are officially done with contractors for a mighty long while.

Now I just need to decide how to celebrate.  After 2 years of remodeling, this really truly does need to be commemorated!!


(pardon typos and errors if there are any. it's 11pm and I'm going straight to bed without even proofing I'm so beat. hope it made some sense! LOL)

da band

Because I am exhausted, I'm skipping the writing and posting another pic of MyFavoriteKid.

that's him dead center

Okay, okay.

I'm not just posting this pic because I'm tired.

I'm also posting it because I am proud :-)

 

busy day, busy night!

Bright and early, another friggin' doctor's appointment (there have been a lot lately).  Today's was just a check in my regular MD, but that was followed by a visit to the lab and then the injection clinic to boost my tetanus. 

Finished that and did a bunch of running around to a couple of big box hardware stores, then straight from there over the high school because it was the first open meeting of the campus knitting club!

They did a presentation about upcoming projects where they knit for charity, they were all prepared with hand outs and yarn, and earlier in the day the sold headbands as a fundraiser. Cool, right?? (that grey one mighta came home with me LOL)

Then back home for just a quick pitstop, then on to a City Council meeting....where I spoke at the little podium! 

I dont think I've ever done that before!!  It was a meeting about a new business going in on the corner near TheNewDiggs. The best I can tell from the corporate website, it going to be sort of a glorified Dollar Store or mini-Walmart-ish type of thing, with mosty processed and packaged and frozen foods and very little of anything fresh.  Oh, and the big deal is that they want a license to sell beer and wine, even though our neighborhood has already been deemed over-saturated with liquor licenses. 

It all passed, it's going in...but it was really nice to hear the planning commission peeps recognize our concerns about garbage and traffic, etc. And it was nice to make our faces known to the guy who is in charge of rolling out new stores ('cuz now he knows I'll be bringing any garbage I find in my yard to his manager).

It's sad we aren't getting a real little mom and pop grocery store in there (that's what used to be there in the 50's and 60's), but such is life.  At least I'll be able to buy a roll of emergency toilet paper without getting in the car, I suppose.  And at least the corner will have a little landscaping and wont be a target for graffiti anymore!


I'm super whooped. Off to bed! 5:30am wake up times in BandMomMode are sorta ruling my nightlife! 

while you were out....

While we wait for proper bathroom pics, I probably have enough blog fodder saved up from "the long dry summer" to keep us all busy here for awhile.

One big deal that happened while I was gone was that MyFavoriteKid finally got his learner's permit. Somewhere there is a pic of me in the backseat of the Driver's Training Vehicle crapping my pants (the instructor insists parents ride along for the first one so you can see how he teaches, and then hopefully become a better teacher yourself).

I cant find that pic, but in its place, here's a pic of MyFK on registration day and then on the first day of school.

I can hardly believe he's 16 and a high school junior this year.
YIKES!!! 
Where. Does. The time go?!!

He's a really good kid. A couple of weeks ago when the bathroom remodel was spinning out of control, he came in the house and said, "Do you need anything? Just a hug, maybe? "  I said, "I don't even know what I need anymore."  He said, "Well, I think you need a hug and you don't even know it. Here. I'll give you one. I'm worried about you."

Dang! Compassionate, smart, funny...and ten times less impulsive then his mother, often opting to sleep on something and reassess things in the morning.  I don't know where he gets that from, but it sure 'aint from me...and his dad says it 'aint from him either.   I think it might come from being in drumline?? (a very disciplined practice)

Anyhow, I love him bunches.
And 16 feels a lot closer to 18 than 15 was.

a little detour

I totally forgot to take more bathroom shots today. Why? Because I spent the day with my new best friend:

ohhh, how I love thee (let me count the ways!)

I bought this baby a couple of weekends ago.  I've been looking at something like this for years.  It's a gas grill on one side, charcoal on the other, and there is a smoker attached that can also be used like a mini sized grill, like a hibachi or something.  Normally barbeques like this that I have seen are just gargantuan....and quite a chunk of change to boot. Being that I had just built the kitchen of my dreams, it seemed silly to be spending so much money on something that would take me out of my beloved kitchen after all that effort.

But a month or so ago, I ran into this little number. It's smaller than the other ones like it I'd had my eye on.  It didn't have the gas side burner off to the side (just a little flip up tray table instead), making it less expensive, and that was just fine by me, because most people have told me they rarely use their side burners anyhow.  Still, I resisted and walked away from it. Then a couple of weeks ago, it went on sale.  They'd knocked fifty bucks off.  And then they also allowed me to use a 20% off coupon towards the sale price...woohoo!  It went from $300 to $200 just like that, and I could no longer resist.
 I love grilling. Love LOVE  LOVE grilling.  I love using charcoal whenever I have the time, but I also loves me the speed of a gas grill when I don't the time (easy clean up! yay!).

So this morning I woke up, got on the ipad and picked out a few recipes I'd seen on a cooking show recently.  I dashed out of bed. I didn't even make a cup of coffee. I went straight to the store (coffee shop next door), bright and early before the crowds could get in there. Then I texted and called people to see who was available last minute to come over and join us.  And then I started cooking (forgetting all about the bathroom).

I made:
Apricot Mint Gin Sours (huge hit...made it just as is, but then we added fizzy water to it)
Honey Glazed Grilled Fig Salad (subbed arugula for the mizuna), and...
Grilled Pizza with Shaved Asparagus

 me 'n mom in the kitchen...photo compliments of Kimberly

The pizza recipe, I tweaked a bit. First, I didn't bother making my own dough. I love to cook, but I'm still a slacker. I bought the pizza dough.  I used truffle salt on the pizza dough instead of kosher salt.  I blanched the asparagus tips and used them as a topping in addition to the asparagus shavings. I couldn't find the cheeses called for so I tried the "featured cheese of the month" at Trader Joes called an "Elderflower Tomme", and I used parmeseano reggiano instead of romano.  I shredded the cheeses rather than using slices.  I tossed the parsely and the lemon zest together so the zest would spread would distribute more evenly, and I sprinkled that mixture on after grilling along with the asparagus shavings. Let me tell ya'...the lemon was an amazing addition (my new favorite thing on a veggie pizza) not nearly as odd as it sounds.

these two pics are also compliments of Kimberly

the first is the crust being grilled getting ready for toppings...

the second is the crust topped with the asparagus tips and cheeses on a sheet pan in the barbeque getting all nice and metly!  It was then pulled off the heat and topped with the asparagus shavings, parsely, and lemon zest

Oh, and then I grilled a NY strip for MyFavoriteKid to have alongside a caeser salad, as there is no way in hell he's an adventurous of an eater to eat figs, arugula, or pizza without red sauce ;-)

Kimberly and Sandy came over, as well as my parents.  We stuffed ourselves, then we sat with our cocktails and let our legs dangling in the pool. Pretty great day :-)


Except that in all the hubbub I forgot bathroom photos!!  Gah.  I'm not sure what day this week I'm back over there again, but they will indeed be coming soon!

if it looks like a bathroom....

and it smells like a bathroom (ewww! LOL).....

well....
then it's probably a new bathroom!!!

FINALLY. 
Today, after 14 weeks of mess and stress, we have finally achieved a completed bathroom!!!  The crowing elements when on today...the mirror, the towel rings, etc. It's stunning. I wish you all could come see it.

More pictures tomorrow in the light of day, but as for tonight, I am relishing in my first ever soak in my vintage cast-iron tub (it's original to the house, and in the most amazing condition).  Special thanks to TheMostImportantGuy who washed the last contractor's bootprints out the tub for me so I can enjoy this tonight!

Calgon.....take me away!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!