Ah, Violetta!

Earworm du jour: the Overture to 'La Traviata'. Hey, if you're gonna die, make a production of it!

So what did I do with my holiday? Not much. Slept more than anything. Ran a couple of errands. Slept some more. I just can't seem to hit the 'reset' button on my body- I am getting really tired, really fast... I'm breathing easier though, down to one dose of albuterol usually in the morning. Still feeling a bit like I have a cat sitting on my chest (and breathing cat-breath in my face, probably), and I'm still having to clear my throat a lot (what's up with that, huh?). Dr Behle told me to stay on the Azmacort for awhile, especially with allergy season. Sigh.

Went to Costco today, came home with enough ibuprofen for the An Tirian army at A&W. Well, not quite, but 1000 tabs, which isn't anything to sneeze at. Also picked up some guaifenesin and half a flat of strawberries. And about half of the strawberries have been eaten already. :-)

My desk chair keeps pooping out large bolts and I can't figure out where they're coming from. I'm sure it's just going to fall apart someday, and I'm not looking forward to it...

I would love to have something really amusing to say, but I don't. *Sigh*

I'm here at home...

...instead of on my tourney bed, huddled next to James to suck the heat off of him. ~sigh~. On the other hand, I'm not totally trashed and aching all over. And my friend Caia, who is a respiratory therapist, called me before they left for the event, to see how I was and give advice if I needed it. Made a depressing afternoon a bit brighter. And I think I am getting better, slowly- I'm not coughing nearly so much, and I'm getting more sleep, which is a good thing. Caia said I'll really be making progress when I don't need the rescue inhaler.

Wanda had the local NPR affiliate play as we drove downto Oregon City to pick up Zippy the Wonder Volvo from the mechanic. By the time we got there I was ready to slit my wrists- they were doing a retrospective on all of the Oregon soldiers who's died in this damn war. My son turns 21 on the 2nd, and I cannot imagine losing him there. (Of course, I can hardly believe that he's 21! Wasn't he just that little boy with the blond curls and little pink toes?)

Tomorrow I'm taking Wanda out for breakfast (she's had a really bad week) and maybe to troll our favorite Goodwills. I think a fun new hat would make me feel better. :-)

Too Pooped to Party

Well, it is seriously looking like I won't be going to Egils after all. The asthma is not calming down enough, I seem to have hurt my ribs on one side from coughing, and I'm exhausted from not being able to sleep. I'm really unhappy about this, because I was really looking forward to seeing friends, spending time with my son, and being with James.

Poop.

Wanda is having serious difficulties at work, so that makes for a rather unhappy household. And Zippy is at the shop, which gives me some concern for costs, and also limits my ability to get out of the house. I think I can handle a walk down to New Seasons though. I might head down there later today (it is Thursday already). Maybe stop by Winston's and drool over that gorgeous library table they have. *sigh*

I did finish the repairs on the pavilion, which is good. Maybe I should work on the tourney gear this weekend. Or sew. If I'm up to it. I have that mulberry wool taht I've been thinkng about making something for me out of...

I got a postcard from Ivar today- he and Juana are in the UK, doing what SCAdians do in the UK. The card had a photo of that one multi-colored embroidered early Jacobean jacket- with a portrait of the owner, Margaret Laton, actually wearing it. Major cool.

Maybe I'll toddle off and see if I can sleep now...

Too much excitement!

Oy oy oy!

The excitement really was all in Brooklyn- I was just here in Portland chewing my nails and waiting for the phone to ring. Annie's throat was tonsillitis all right, but it had abscessed, and she was in pretty bad condition when she went to ER (which turned out to be walking distance and as it was a teaching hospital, she got some really pretty good care). Scary. Anyway, her account of the epic day in the hospital is here: http://theminnick.wordpress.com/2007/05/22/doctor-doctor-give-me-the-news/

She is just amazing. I don't think I could have handled it that well. Hey, I'm still weak in the knees from worrying about her!

My steroid inhaler came today, which is good. Still coughing and gagging, but this evening (after a couple of doses) it seems to be slowing a bit. I hope. My ribs are soooo sore from coughing...

I got jack done today (partly because I was waiting to hear...) but I have an appt with Anna in the morning, which means I have to be up and aware. And then Wanda and I have to drop off Zippy with Adam in Oregon City. Hopefully being up and about will get the blood moving and make me get more done. Yep- that's the plan. Hmm. So I suppose I should go to bed now...

No, no, and no, and for the last time-

I've never been a smoker!

Geez... sometimes medical people... they're standing there, looking at the chart in their hands- the chart that clearly says 'smoking: never'. So clear that I can read it upside down. The chart that was in the hands of the gal at intake, when she asked me if I was a smoker; the chart that was in front of the nurse when she took my vitals and asked if I was a smoker, the chart that was in the hands of the doctor, who then looked up at their fancy new computer system, looked at the SAME INFO there on the screen and then turned to me and said "You've never been a smoker?"

So I dragged myself in to the doctor on Friday. Had to shoehorn myself in- Dr Becher is fully booked until mid-June, so I saw a Dr Behle (pronounced Bailey). She verified that I have the viral crap that is all over the country (and all over Germany now, thanks to Katea and Wanda) . And she said that the crap in my chest is not pneumonia, which is good, but that the virus had jumpstarted my asthma, which is NOT good. They did the nifty peak-flow meter test thingie, which I flunked. And the little finger-clip oxygen thing wasn't happy either. (Which I guess was why they kept asking about smoking.) So they sent me home with an Rx for albuterol and one for a steroid inhaler. Got the albuterol, the steroid had to be ordered- hopefully it will be in Monday morning. The albuterol makes me feel like Hammy the squirrel on several cups of espresso and a Red Bull chaser- you could strap a brush to me and buff the floors. So now I can't sleep because of the cough *and* because of the drugs. Woo-hoo!

Annie is sick, which has me really worried. She hasn't been seriously ill (beside the random cold or tummy bug) since she was a kid. Sore throat, really swollen with the white patchy stuff on her tonsils. Classic tonsillitis. It hasn't been going away with aggressive amounts of home-care and when I called Sunday evening she was in tears most of the call. She can't swallow solids, can just barely get down liquids, barely talk, etc. She's missing days of work now, so she's worried about money. I told her Go.To.The.Doctor, and we'd figure out the money stuff after she'd feeling better. Fortunately there's a teaching hospital close by- she's headed there tomorrow for Urgent Care or ER or whatever- whatever it takes.

It just kills me. I'm thousands of miles away. I can't just say "Mommy fix" and hop in the car. Oooohhh... guilt guilt guilt...

Well, beyond all that, I have to get my rear in gear tomorrow and seriously start in on pre-tourney stuff. Bleh. Hope I feel better in the morning.

News came in from Crown. Tiernan del Cais won. Not really a surprise- he's been in the top gang several times. He seems to be a decent fellow, but I am... a bit woodjy about his wife. The only interaction I had with her was not the best, and a number of people I trust have had problems with her. So I guess we'll see. My participation may be low this tourney season, thanks to gas prices, so it may be a personal non-issue, but I don't have a good feeling about Stromgard, and about possible repercussions to Amalric and Caia. They're adults and can take care of themselves, but still, they're my friends...

I am looking forward to Egils- I like camping, at least our style ;-) and I love puttering in the kitchen all day I just hop the weather is better than it has been the past couple of years!

Geez- what am I going to wear! Ack!

A note from your local basso profundo...

...which would be me, at the moment. And I'm not even dressed as Father Abelard, either!

I'm still sick with that stuff Wanda brought home to share. We had to go out tonight to get more cough syrup and Ricolas. She went to work yesterday and today, even though she still feels really crummy. I slept as much as I could today. My chest is clogging up, and my throat- I have to keep clearing my throat to keep air going in and out, and between that and the cough, I sound like Samuel L. Jackson.

Not much else interesting happening. Jill came by and picked up her dress, which fit perfectly this time. (Yay!) Yesterday a couple of clean-cut Mormon boys on bikes came by to 'share the words of Christ' with us. I told them that Wanda and I were very ill and any sharing would be germs and they would not like it. They wanted to help us if we needed something or to come by some other time but I told them no thanks. Came back in and asked Wanda if it was just me or do they make the missionaries younger every year? Made me feel really old- especially realizing that they are the same age as my youngest...

I've got to be feeling better soon so I can get to work getting stuff ready for Egils. Finish putting the corner straps on the pavilion, mend the door, check through the poles, get the kitchen boxes gone through and sorted, finish some of the other sewing (Bera, the boys, etc), and get ahold of Adam to look at Zippy's underpinnings. Being sick has put me about a week farther back than the already-behinededness. Hopefully tomorrow will be a bit better and I can catch up a bit. Ha. Ha ha.

Well, so much for that...

I'd _planned_ to get up and get after a number of chores (tourney gear and sewing stuff) this morning, but I woke up about 3am with a ferocious sore throat, and things have gone downhill from there. So it's lots of liquids and fruit and sleep. And someday, I will get Wanda back for bringing this germ home in the first place! (And yes, she's still sick...)

I did finally drag myself out to the grocery- had to, as I was out of milk and bread and cereal- you know, the important stuff. And I did something I haven't done for, oh, nearly 25 years. I bought a bridal magazine.

Almost all of it is pictures of wedding gowns (nearly all of them showing *far* more skin than I'd be comfortable with- geez, leave something to the imagination!), which I expected. But the other... it seems that one is expected to put together gourmet food, all manner of alcohol, fancy table settings and flowers that the guest can take home with them, a DJ and floor show to rival Vegas... I mean, why don't you just send everyone to Disneyland and call it a day?

Did tend to settle me back a bit. I do want this wedding to be nicer than my first. For one thing, I have friends who I want to really celebrate with! I want to actually have real flowers (did the silk, don't need to do it again), I don't want to make my own cake (once was more than enough!), and while a buffet would be nice (not the potluck again), it doesn't have to be prime rib and lobster! And music... not my mom's friend's husband on the piano...

I want it to be nice, to be memorable, to share with our friends... but I don't want to do the equivalent of autocratting 12th Night! Thank goodness I have a man who actually wants to be involved in the planning! We took a look at the chapel at Trinity the other day- it's nice, but only seats 120. I think we need to think about guest list first. And that could be fun...

But right now, I'm back to bed. If I'm going to feel this lousy, at least I can do it lying down.

The problem with popcorn is...

that the stupid hulls get stuck in your teeth. So here I sit with brush and floss, trying to get them out. *Sigh*

Had a moderately busy weekend. James came up- he had tickets for a concert, so I got dressed up and we went downtown to the Schnitz. And when we got there we found out that the venue had been moved to the Rose Garden. So we hurried down to the MAX station and picked up the train. Got there in plenty of time to find our seats, etc. Was 'Celtic Women'- pretty interesting. Not my favorite music, but the drummers were fun to watch. The violinist, too. And there was one dress that I could have cheerfully stolen- gorgeous gold/bronze/burnt orange sort of shot taffeta. It was really something.

Anyway, then we sort of got on the wrong train when we came out, and got a railway tour of Portland all the way up to the Expo Center. Found our way to the right train, got back downtown. Got Zippy out of the parking garage _just_ before they closed for the night. It was a close one. The main problem for the evening was my shoes- they look nice, and they're fine for standing in, but not fine to walk in. By the time we came out from the concert, I was so miserable I took them off and walked in my stocking feet. And when we got home I washed them carefully and discovered the blisters- a little bigger than quarters, on the balls of both feet. It made ambulation a bit difficult for the rest of the weekend...

Saturday we got breakfast at Cup and Saucer, and checked out the vintage shop a couple of doors down. Found a couple of pretty tops for Annie. And I saw The Library Table! It is gorgeous! Exactly the right size and shape. I'm thinking that I might walk down there this week and measure it. I certainly can't afford it, and have nowhere to put it right now anyway, but it sure is nice to dream...

Speaking of dreaming, Sunday we went to church, and after we poked our heads in and looked at the chapel- possible wedding site. I think we need to do a preliminary guest list though- the chapel only seats 120. We also went into the parish hall, where they were having an exhibit of members' work. Some really nice stuff. James got an illuminated page for me, with a quote from Erasmus: "When I have a little money, I buy books. If there is any left, I buy food and clothes." Just right for a bibliophile. :-)

I got a Mother's day e-card from Annie, a picture of Iso, saying "Orange is best color!", and Lydia called me. The tall blond bum didn't write or call, but I heard from him earlier in the week, so he's kinda off the hook. He may be coming to Egils with me, which will be cool. Mostly I think he's coming for the 'mom food'. :-)

And now I'm off to finish reading the funnies, and go to bed!

You put de lime in de coconut...

...and shake 'em all up!

Yum. I'm dreaming of something strong with an umbrella in it. Just that sort of day, you know?

Spent the afternoon at the dentist, doing the annual checkup and cleaning thing. No cavities, one spot in the gum that is unhappy (between a couple of particularly crowded teeth) but is still ok. They did note that the dry mouth is becoming more of a Problem. I believe that falls under the heading of 'no shit, Sherlock'. Problem is, I'm already doing everything they've suggested, so I just have to put up with it. Bleah.

Why does that polishing stuff have to taste so bad? And they had a new thing for the flouride- instead of the gastly gummy, waxy goop that they paint on, they have this new thing: looks like a set of dentures, made of soft white plastic. They fill the grooves with what looks like hair mousse but is actually flouride, and pop it in your mouth for a couple of minutes. Tastes kind of icky, but then they take it out and you're done. I can live with that.

Wanda arrived home from Germany yesterday (after some major confusion about what flight she was on) and she came home sick as a dog with some germ she picked up on vacation. I'm crossing my fingers and hoping I can avoid it- it's really nasty and she's *really* sick. Begone, germs! In the Name of Robitussin, begone! (Think that'll work?)

My children are all bums. Bums, you hear? Lydia doesn't have email access right now, but I know that the other two do! But do they write their mother? Well, Annie does, once in awhile. But Stephen doesn't. He's a bum! Well, maybe this weekend I'll get a call or a note (snif!).

James is coming up tomorrow evening, and we're going to a concert downtown. And spending Saturday working on pavillion stuff, weather allowing. Today it was gorgeous out. Only drawback is the pollen count- I had to scrape green fluff off of the windscreen again today. Might explain the sinus headache.

Almost halfway through May! How did that happen?

More than one way to skin a cat...

...and I may start trying all of them pretty soon now!

Shadow is driving me nuts. He wants to be in my lap ALL THE TIME, preferably either with his nose right on mine, or the other way 'round with his tail up my nose. I can turn him around and make him sit down, but that lasts about ten seconds and then he's in my face again. And if I leave my door open at night, he's walking back and forth over my face and/or my hair, of knocking things off of furniture of pouncing on my feet (my bedspead is getting snagged up something fierce). If I close my door at night, he whines and scratches at it all night long.

I can hardly wait for Wanda to come home to he has someone else to annoy.

Not much happening this week. Had an appointment with Carla, stopped at the store. Today I wrestled the pavilion around upstairs for a bit and got one of the sections repaired, and another pinned down. It's not _technically_ difficult, but functionally difficult. Sewing the patch on is no problem- it's keeping other bits out of the way while I'm sewing, etc, that is the rough part.

28%. Bush is at 28%. Heh. And the Newsweek polling says that Clinton, Edwards, or Obama can beat any of the current republican candidates. Lets hope the trend holds.

...that ol' rockin' chair'll get me...

Or maybe the sofa...

Well, late Friday night I finished Jill's cotehardie, and then when she called Staurday morning, instead of saying "We're on our way!", she said "We're not stopping by because I decided not to wear that gown this weekend."

I was very close to killing our shiny new Baroness. Think Sven and Signy might have been unhappy about it though...

I had intended to go to the 'Not kreigstriber' demo on Saturday, but after Jill called, I went back to bed. And slept until 2. At that point, it was pointless- it would have taken awhile to get dressed and such, and about an hour to get there. So I stayed home.

I went to breakfast Sunday with Karl and Linda, and we went to a little place called Bumblekiss, just off of Fremont. Tasty, tasty food! And the restaurant is brilliant orange! They have good taste. :-)

Feeling really lousy though, sleeping a lot. Yesterday I slept nearly all day, except for occasional food/water breaks. Dunno if I'm coming down with something, or what. But I figure if I can't stay awake my body must be trying to tell me something. So I'm listening...