Sick Part 2

DS2 now feels better. Decided yesterday morning he felt better and maybe he wasn't going to die after all. Of course, DH came home last night saying he didn't feel well. Fever of 102 by 2 this afternoon. I'm sleeping in the guest room tonight and for probably the rest of the week.

Big plans next weekend. 4 day knitting retreat. Paid for. Going. I'm now taking ecinacia, C, reg vitamin and fish oil. I'm taking so much good stuff for you my system isn't going to know what to do about it.

We're expecting "weather" tomorrow afternoon and evening. I plan to stay home and knit, maybe go get my hair cut and fill up the tank for travel to work Monday am.

Sick

DS2 is sick. Sick enough to want to go to the doctor tonight. That is because he heard about a kid who died of flu earlier this week. So off we went to the minute clinic, which actually is a pretty cool concept. Walk in for easy stuff. The girl said she couldn't see him if his fever was 103. it was 102.8. She did flu test - negative. She did strep test - negative, which I could have told her because when you have strep you KNOW you have strep. But she sent it to the lab anyway and said she'd call tomorrow. Maybe pneumonia? I'll call our regular doctor tomorrow and see what he wants to do. Problem? NO HEALTH INSURANCE. That totally sucks and I can't believe we've got this problem. The Tylenol keeps the fever down, he's not miserable anywhere else.

DD has a sinus infection. Got drugs for that this morning.

DH has now decided he's sick (temp of 99.9)

I'm going to a hotel with the cats.

Tea

I went to wholefoods to find a tea a friend recommended. some kind of cammomile with citris. I'm usually not one to like fruity teas. Don't like the smoked ones either. plain no sugar is the way to go. But this was particularly good :) While I was there I also got a box of Rooibos becuase I heard it was very good for you and I don't like green tea either - leaves me very dry mouthed. THIS is my new favorite tea! not only is is smooth and mild, but it doesn't get bitter and it didn't cost $15 a box!

Happy/Sad

My DS#1 is coming home the end of march for 10 days. This makes me very happy because except for a long weekend he got off, we haven't seen him since August (and that was only for 9 days).

It makes me sad because when he leaves, he goes back to base, trains for 5 weeks and then is leaving for the sandbox.

But, not going to dwell yet. DD has a wicked cold. DS#2 said he's not feeling so hot. I just gave a nasty cough and now my throat hurts. My Office mate is sick - I alcoholed the phones at the end of the day and was sure to use only one all day. Think I'll finish my hot cocoa, take some drugs and go to bed. Don't have time to be sick!

Traffic Rant

Not only did the idiots in the state of virginia decide to go with a contract to widen the beltway in an area that really is only bad in the morning for a few mile stretch - and don't get me started on how many trees they've cut down since last fall. Trees that have been there for over 30 years. But then as I'm reading more and more about this project, which only benefits the company building the wider road, because hmm, it is called a HOT lane, and to use it you have to pay a fee. By the mile. AND, if the income generated enough doesn't meet a certain amount, guess what? the state has to kick in the difference. To add insult to this, in the article one of the dopes who actually signed on for this said "oh, I didn't know that was in the contract". Arggggg, don't you people R E A D????

Now I find out that sometime this week, after the cut down more trees, they are going to start tearing down a bridge. The bridge has worked just fine for the past 20 years. and it has been there over 40, just got widened. I take the ramp onto the highway every morning and every evening. I know that from my house to the beltway is 10 minutes if there is no traffic and if there was an accident anywhere in the area and my road is the bailout route, that it may take 15 or 20 minutes. Still, not a big deal. NOW I learn with my morning coffee that they are closing one half of the bridge. Three lanes. the other bridge is to handle all the traffic both east and west for at least a year, then the open the new side and close the current side. Are they widening it? of course not. they are just making it different to allow for a toll booth to get into the new HOT (i.e. pay for us) lanes. I may start drinking this morning.

Not only would I never use HOT lanes because it is against my general principal to pay for any road my tax dollars have already paid for, but now for at least the next 2 years I've got to either leave earlier to go to work, and don't know how I'm going to get home. I can suffer from terrible road rage and i hate mean people and trust me people around here are not only mean, but selfish and poor drivers. They already feel they are entitled to not have to sit in a line of traffic, and I see accidents getting way far worse.

but then when it is all said and done, there will be less trees (and really, I'm not a tree huger, but I do love them) my taxes are going to go up to pay for this stupid idea, and the company building the road is going to reap a HUGE profit for the foreseeable future.

I haven't figured out how to see the initial contract but I hope to god that somewhere in it is a limit to how long we're stuck subsidizing the company earning the profit.

Ravelry

I'm on ravelry. A lot sometimes. I like ravelry. I like seeing what other people are talking about imagining them living next door to me and then being surprised when they are on the other side of the world! How cool is that.

I tend to join groups. I just looked today and saw that I am in about 50 of them. Now really, am I going to read 50 different group thingys? of course not, so I got out of a couple that I'm not that into anymore, or haven't had a lot of activity. Sometimes I'm reading something cool and just mindlessly click the join this group button. Then I don't have to remember so hard where I saw something two weeks later. But maybe that makes me look like a pig. Joining all these groups I can't reasonably participate in. Or that I have no life. Well, I'm not inclined to give up sleep, although I don't sleep much anyway right now.

And now Jack has remembered how fun it was to sit on my desk when I type and try to get the cursor thingy, his tail laying across the key board, and Jack, your head ain't made out of glass ya, know?

Anyway back to my rant. But cool things do happen, I've got a few new email type friends and I've picked up a few hints and ideas that will be helpful, and there is one group I know I'll leave in a month or so, it is for a knitting retreat I'm going on and quite frankly, anyone I still want to communicate with in July will be a buddy by then and I can email and not visit through a community forum. At my knitting guild meeting last night I heard about another guild in the area who does really cool things. Do I have time for another one? I'd like to join a spinning guild. But I think they meet the same night as the knitting guild . . . maybe I'm getting ready to click too many groups?

I went to my knitting guild meeting tonight, but should have stayed home. They did a workshop on making beaded jewlery which I knew I didn't want to do. I did want to see some one to ask for some help. Of course she didn't show. I ended up leaving early and thinking for the first time, I really wasted my time tonight :( Well, that's not true I always get some good information and overheard a couple of conversations that I will follow through on. More about that another time.

But my pink jacket is almost done, I just have to find someone to show me how to crocet the neck binding and then block it. It is very pretty, but I'm not sure I love it. I may rip out the bottom band and make it wider. I didn't follow the directions all the way through, and made the band shorter because I had made the body of the jacket longer, not realizing that there was a seed stitch band around the bottom. Because, why after all shouold I read the directions all the way through before starting?

I'm slowly getting ready for my knitting retreat which is really only in two weeks now. They haven't sent the supply list, but I'm thinking I'll pretty much have everything I need since I'm making a sweater, taking a cables class and a couple of little technique classes, and spinning. I've mapquested my directions. Told my sister what time to expect me that morning, becuase we're leaving before sun up it is about 6 1/2 hour from her house (allowing for gas and food stops) and we need to be there between 11 and 12 so we can settle in our hotel room before a 1pm class. Will be eating on the road that day I fear. I've got to get DS to change my oil, fill up the washer fluid thingy, air the tires, etc. Starting to get excited.

Happy Valentines Day!

Had such a lovely day! Met an old friend for lunch at a tea house. Very nice, not too fancy, but will definately go back. Had to do a little bit of work, but not too much, about an hours worth. Got a foot massage since I've been feeling crappy all week and haven't done one since before Christmas. I have found that a little reflexology once a month seems to keep me happier and balanced. Don't know if that is true or just in my head but I'll pay anyone 30 bucks to rub my feet for half an hour and be glad of it.

Just finished a nice steak dinner, DS2 helped me cook it and it was perfect :) Now I'll relax with a cup of tea and call it a good day.

A Day

I dared to walk the treadmill last night. My knees still hurt a bit from step class, but not enough to worry, my abs now hurt and I've been telling myself all day that is a good thing, and if I'd of used them and exercised more in the past oh many years, I wouldn't be complaining about them now :)

It's the weekend, I'm gonna catch up on some knitting, got a few things I'd like to try and get finished and a big project I've been working on that I'm determined to get done by the end of the year!

Oh and I'm having tea with a friend tomorrow who I haven't seen for a couple of months. :)

Exercise

Tonight DD and I decided to go back to our step class. We quit going on January 1st because the instructor was all excited that the classes always fill up in January as everyone makes their diet and exercise resolutions. I'm already not good at step and the rooms aren't that big, so we opted out until all the excited people came to their senses and quit going.

It was a good size class, about 6 of us. BUT Amy wasn't there! There was a different instructor just for tonight. That's cool, different can be really good sometimes. Didn't matter that I didn't remember much from December. Fortunately I'm old enough not to be embarrassed when I make a fool of myself. However, this instructor was F U L L of energy. sweat dripped of me for 45 minutes. My legs were spaghetti towards the end. I may not move tomorrow.

Fires in Australia

Somehow this seems more horrible to me than the annual fires we hear about in California and all the tornadoes we seem to have in the mid-west. I cannot imagine. please donate to the australian redcross

redcross.org.au

There is a raffel going on if you donate to win donated prizes. Donate for free please

Happy Birthday to Me

Well, it was a week ago, but life happens huh? Had a very nice moning to myself, which allowed me to catch up on what I hadn't done while I was in Atlanta, and recover from the trip, and rescue the house from my absence, which really wasn't too bad. laundry though . . . Then I spent the afternoon doing what I wanted :) Here's a picture of the mug I got in Atlanta (mom got a matching one) and the sweater I got. I also got a heard rate monitor for my exercising but didn't take a picture of that, and cards.

Taken From Others

Use the first letter of your name to find a word for each of the following:





Your Name: Stacy

Four letter word: Soup

Boy Name: Stuart

Girl Name: Sally

Occupation: Stripper

Color: Sienna

Something Found in a Bathroom: Slime

A Place: Salt Mine

Reason for Being Late: Stuck Knitting

Food: Soup

Something You Shout: Score!

Atlanta

I spent Thursday and Friday in Atlanta with my mom visiting museums and seeing cirque du Sollie. Thursday we saw the Chinese Terra cotta army from one of the first Chinese emperors and then had plenty of time to visit the rest of the museum. No pictures allowed. But we did have lunch at the restaurant on top of the Westin hotel and saw the roof of a cool building. we were 72 storeys up, WAY high and I didn't look straight down, but had a good time, the restaurant spins so you get a view of the entire city. Of course I admired the city, all the great architect, the Olympic area, and didn't take any pictures except the one building.

On Friday we saw the King Tut exhibit, had lunch at Chateau Elan in Georgia, very nice resort with a small winery. Bought three kinds of red wine to try next time I go to my mom's. I flew down and didn't check luggage so it couldn't come home with me. Got back to mom's by 5:30 and had a late (for her) dinner and went to bed EARLY.

Saturday, we went into Charlotte, a 2 hour drive, to Baskets of Yarn and had a luxury yarn tasting. More about that on another blog. Then I sat at the airport for hours, so mom could get home at a decent hour and my flight wasn't until early evening. But I got a lot of knitting done while i waited and just listened to my ipod. So, relaxing all the same. Two flights, because of course I had to fly south and change planes in order to fly north, and there were NO screaming kids. that was a true blessing. After a short drive home, I was home by 10 pm and in bed and asleep by 11:30.

Apparently I was missed on this trip.