4th of July

I don’t have any big plans for the holiday, and that suits me just fine. (The weather isn’t being very accommodating, anyway.) The only thing on my agenda for today is to go shopping for a birthday present for my grandmother. She is going to be 97 on Sunday. That’s NINETY-SEVEN.

My first week off from work was very nice. I didn’t have as many doctor appointments as I thought I did. I went to the chiropractor on Wednesday, and to the dentist yesterday to have some silver (mercury) fillings replaced with white composite fillings.

I was supposed to go for trigger point injections on Monday, but had to reschedule because I’m in the process of switching insurance companies. The person who handles insurance for the school district called a couple of days ago to let me know that, even though our contract states that we only have to pay a certain percentage of our insurance, MVP subscribers will now have to pay an additional $1500 for the family plan.

I was under pressure to make a quick decision about whether or not I wanted to switch to another insurance company. The fifteen hundred dollars made it relatively easy for me to opt to switch. I went to the district office yesterday and signed all the necessary documents. All medical appointments have to be postponed until I receive new insurance cards. What a PIA.

I’m scheduled to see Dr. Spine Specialist on Wednesday. Fortunately, that appointment doesn’t have to be canceled because it’s covered by Worker’s Comp. Other than that, and another trip to Albany with My Friend on Monday, next week is looking pretty leisurely, too.

One thing I want to do is try my hand at “a new layering system for bountiful gardens. No Digging, No Tilling, No Weeding, No Kidding!” A while back, “Typewriter” left a comment suggesting “before you rototill, check out a book called Lasagna Gardening. Much easier!”

I didn’t have to buy the book because there’s lots of information about this style of gardening all over the Internet. Yesterday, I went to our local composting facility, which provides free compost to city residents. I loaded up on the stuff (and was a grimy, sweaty mess by time I had shoveled compost into four large garbage bags and a big plastic bin.) Next I headed to a garden center for peat moss, topsoil and plants. Step one will be to spread layers of wet newspaper over the areas marked with a black line in the photo below. (The white line indicates the spot where I tried to dig and was unable to break the ground, which is why I’m giving lasagna gardening a try.)

There is an area on the side of the house where I am able to do more traditional gardening. Last fall, I planted Asian lily bulbs. They should pop open any time now.  I’m so excited!

Happy holiday weekend!

Song of the Day: Independence Day by Bruce Springstreen

Garden Party

I got my camera back, so, as promised, here are the photos of the carrot cake (decorated with fresh flowers), and my new bed ensemble (It looks better in person, and you can’t see the bedskirt, which is striped):

I have some more pictures I want to post. These were taken at the Botanical Gardens yesterday. A little birdie joined us during our picnic lunch, and had the cheek to hop over and steal something from my plate..

Highlights of our visit included the rose garden:

the sculptures by Henry Moore,

and “Darwin’s Garden.” (The first shot is a recreation of Darwin’s window looking out on the garden.)

It would have been a wonderful day if not for the oppressive heat. It’s much too early for it to be so hot. According to the forecast, it’s supposed to be 97 tomorrow and 98 on Tuesday. I hate this weather.

Song of the Day: Octopus’s Garden by The Beatles

A Room of One’s Own

I haven’t had time to post entries lately, so I thought I’d squeeze one in this morning. Last week’s activities included two birthday celebrations – Daniel on Wednesday, and my aunt on Saturday. The celebration for Daniel’s birthday was intimate. We went to dinner with Rebecca and her boyfriend.

There was a big party for my aunt, who turned 75. It was nice to hang out with cousins (and an uncle from Miami) I don’t get to see very often. The highlight of the party (for me, at any rate) was the carrot cake my cousin’s wife made. She’s a pastry chef, and this cake is to die for. It was beautiful, as well as delicious. I took a picture, but left my camera behind when we left the party. I’ll get the camera back on Friday, so I’ll post the photo at a later date.

Yesterday, I had an appointment with the orthopedic guy to go over the results of my last MRI. It seems that I have quite a bit of arthritis in my cervical spine, along with nerve entrapment. This could be causing the pain in my shoulder blade. Dr. Bones referred me to pain management, and an appointment was scheduled for Monday.

There’s not much else to write about, but I did want to mention today’s Simple Abundance essay. The essay is titled, “Your Bedroom: Cradle of Civilization.” It starts with this quote from Mrs. Winston Guest: All one really needs is a divinely attractive bed.

Interestingly enough, I just changed the bed ensemble yesterday – bedskirt, sheets, pillow shams and quilt/comforter. The ensemble I removed was bringing me down. It was too big and heavy. I tripped over the edges of the comforter whenever I walked around the bed to make it. Consequently, I stopped making it, even though I hate an unmade bed.

Making the bed is among the quickest and easiest of chores, and it makes such a difference. Getting into an unmade bed is not only unappealing, but it also causes me physical pain when I have to wrench the sheets, blanket and comforter back into a position where they will cover me.

Sarah Ban Breathnach writes, “ Your bedding should be as inviting to look at as it is comfortable to lie on. I am convinced that a woman should love her bedcovers with a passion. This isn’t just aesthetics; it encourages you to keep your bedroom tidy because the bed looks so pretty when it’s all made up… You can see this leads to Sublime Order, at least in one room of your home.”

Sublime Order is sadly lacking in other rooms of my house (especially the kitchen) because I succumb to pain and fatigue by the time I get home from work, and it’s all I can do to make dinner. But a bedroom should be a sanctuary – a place where you can go to get away from the chaos of life. The new bedding has restored my bedroom to the oasis it should be. I’ll post a picture (along with the carrot cake) when I get my camera back.

Song of the Day: Midnight at the Oasis by Maria Muldaur

A Jolly Holiday

First things first. I’m thrilled to report that I got the ink stain out of my jeans! The rubbing alcohol got rid of most of it, and hairspray took out the rest. Thanks for the great suggestions!

In other news, I’ve been having a really good Memorial Day weekend. It started on Friday with a trip to a thrift store with my cousin, Kathy. I got two pairs of paints, an L.L. Bean denim-colored linen jacket, an Eddie Bauer top, a hardcover book and the game, Pictionary (in like-new condition) all for the grand total of $11.50. Kathy and I topped the day off with a meal at a Middle Eastern restaurant.

The next evening, Daniel and I were invited to a lasagna dinner at my aunt’s house. (My mother cooked the lasagna, but her place is too small to host a gathering.) Somehow, the conversation turned to the Little Rascals, and then to Eddie Murphy’s SNL impersonation of Buckwheat. Too funny.

Yesterday, Kathy and I went to Rhinebeck to see the movie, Alexandra. We had lunch at our favorite Indian restaurant. Everything on the buffet is a gastronomical delight.

Today, we’re having a barbecue. Only a few people have been invited, and the food offerings will be simple – hamburgers, hot dogs, and my renowned potato salad. Tomorrow (I’ll be off work again, thanks to a give-back snow day), I’m hoping to relax. I’m also looking forward to a break from the itching, but it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen any time soon, even though the prednisone prescription runs out tomorrow.

Oh, I wanted to show you my new glasses. (They’re pretty similar to my old ones except that the new frames are black instead of brown.) This pic was taken on Friday, and I got my hair chopped off on Saturday (same style, but shorter in the back and on the sides), but I haven’t had a chance to take another photo, so this one will have to do for now.

I’d better get a move on. There’s a pile of mulch in my driveway that needs to be spread.

Song of the Day: Jolly Holiday from Mary Poppins

See You in the Funny Papers

Things just keep going from bad to worse around here. For starters, we had an appliance repairman come in yesterday to fix a few things. The arm on the refrigerator’s ice maker broke off about a year ago, which means that it was constantly making ice. We had to empty the tray twice a day.

The repairman replaced the arm, but, when I checked this morning, I saw that it’s still not working properly. The guy had warned that this might happen, and, if it did, the whole icemaker would need to be replaced. Wonderful.

Next on the list was the dryer, which has been making a loud noise for quite a while. Unfortunately, Mr. Repairman didn’t have the necessary part, and will have to come back this afternoon. Finally, he took a look at the sink in the upstairs bathroom to see if he could stop the drip. He couldn’t, and will bring a washer when he comes back today. If that doesn’t work, the faucet will have to be replaced, along with the refrigerator’s ice maker. Cha ching.

To top things off, I stepped on a rake and got smacked in the face hard enough to break my glasses (and bruise my brow bone). I thought those things only happened in cartoons, but this Youtube clip (along with my own mishap) proves otherwise.

One good thing happened yesterday. I received a call from a nurse at the surgical center as a follow-up to the procedure I had on Friday. I told her I’m afraid to go back for the next procedure because it was such a horrible experience. I remarked that they should put people out for these things. She said that they used to, but insurance companies won’t pay for it anymore. Bastards. I should have known.

She went on to say that some patients opt to pay for the anesthesia themselves, and advised me to ask about it when I called the doctor’s office to schedule the next series of injections. I did that as soon as I got off the phone with the nurse, and was told that the anesthesia costs $137. I would gladly pay that.

However, I might not have to. The woman I was talking to said that the Worker’s Comp carrier should cover it it, and a call for authorization will be placed. Why didn’t somebody tell me about this before? Oh well, at least I won’t have to suffer through that mind-numbing pain again, provided the Comp carrier agrees to pay for the anesthesia, that is.

Song of the Day: Hit Me With Your Best Shot by Pat Benatar

Slip Into Something More Comfortable

For the past week or so, the daily essays in Simple Abundance have been about style vs. fashion. I was particularly struck by the message on March 28th. Sarah Ban Breathnach wrote about “comfort clothes.” She began with this quote from Gilda Radner: “I base my fashion taste on what doesn’t itch.”

Breathnach goes on to say, “Unfortunately, comfort clothes exist for most of us only as a footnote to our lives, not center stage as they would if a sensible woman were in charge of the earthly scheme of things. Perhaps we feel good for eight hours out of every twenty-four, but that is not nearly good enough. The rest of the time we’re squeezed into uncomfortable things that pull, pinch, tug, choke, itch, hike up or down, and make the days of our lives miserable. We wear these creations of torture, we tell ourselves, in order to be agreeable to the rest of the world. But why shouldn’t we find a way to make the world agreeable to us instead?”

Because I am always in so much pain, physical comfort is very important to me. That’s why I change into pajamas (baggy flannel bottoms and a loose T-shirt) right after I take the dogs out as soon as I get home from work. An unexpected visitor might wonder why I am so attired at three o’clock in the afternoon. I do what I have to do in order to feel as relaxed as possible.

Now if only I could find a way to feel more comfortable in my own skin…

Song of the Day: A Little More Comfortable by Michelle Wright

Dumped and Stumped

My relationship with my daughters has been good for so long now, I’d forgotten how much it hurts when something goes wrong. Last night was a painful reminder. Rebecca came over mid-afternoon to do some laundry. Daniel and I were cleaning the house. By 5:00, I had been on my feet for five hours, and was in a great deal of pain. But, because Rebecca said she was hungry, I offered to take her out for nachos. She said she wanted to finish her laundry and take a shower before we went out.

She wasn’t ready until 8:00 p.m. I was exhausted and hurting, but I hadn’t eaten anything all day (except for a few jellybeans), so I was pretty hungry. Plus, I didn’t want to let her down, so off we went. In the car, Rebecca asked if we could go somewhere else because she is trying to eat more healthfully, and wanted to get a salad instead of nachos.

I wasn’t thrilled with this change in plans because the nachos place is close to home, and I really wanted to wrap the day up as quickly as possible. Also, I was afraid there would be a wait at the restaurant she wanted to go to, since it was a Saturday night. Still, I agreed to go where she wanted.

As I had feared, there was a wait, but it only ended up being about 15 minutes. After we were seated, the waitress took our drink orders, and we were looking over the menu. It was then that Rebecca got a call from her boyfriend with the news that he had gotten out of work earlier than expected. (He’s a restaurant manager, and thought he’d be working until 10:00.)

When Rebecca got off the phone, she said, “Let’s go get him.” I looked at her in disbelief, and pointed out that we had just been seated, and it was now going on 8:30. It would take at least 40 minutes to pick him up and return to the restaurant. Rebecca’ eyes filled with tears and she said, “You don’t understand. I hardly ever get to see him” (because of the hours he works).

Of course, she sees me even less, but I do understand how she feels. She’s young and in love, and wants to be with her boyfriend as much as possible. That’s fine. What isn’t fine is the way she behaved when I told her that we could leave so she could go get him, but I wanted to go home. I was exhausted and in a great deal of pain, and hadn’t even wanted to go out in the first place. I did it for her. So, yes, my feelings were hurt, too.

I said I would tell the waitress something had come up, and we had to leave. Rebecca sulkily said that we should just go ahead and order. She said she didn’t feel right about ditching me. That’s all well and good, but I had lost my appetite, and there was no way I could bear to sit across from her knowing she didn’t want to be there, and was harboring resentment because I didn’t want to extend the evening long enough to go get her boyfriend. By now, I was near tears, myself.

I put money on the table to cover my soda (Rebecca was drinking water) and the tip, and got up to leave. I had to get out of there. Rebecca stayed to tell the waitress that we had to go because of an emergency.

We drove home in complete silence. She was very upset with me. After I waited three hours for her to be ready and then had to force myself to go even though I really didn’t want to. Then I relented when she wanted to switch restaurants. Finally, I had had enough, and wouldn’t agree to an additional change in plans – a change that would cause an increase in my pain and fatigue. How is it right that the blame for this fiasco was being placed at my feet? As Steve Martin used to say, “Well excuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuse me.”

Right now, I have to get ready to go to a rummage sale at the Jewish Center with my mother.This evening, Daniel and I will be going out to dinner to celebrate our anniversary. I hope we have a more pleasant experience than the one I had with Rebecca.

Song of the Day: Song For the Dumped by Ben Folds Five

And it Poured Sweet and Clear

I saw this end of the year meme over at Jeanette’s place, and decided to swipe it.

1. What did you do in 2007 that you’d never done before? Hung out with soap stars.

2. Did you keep your New Year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I don’t make New Year’s resolutions because I don’t have any desire to beat myself up over failing to stick to them.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth? In August, my niece gave birth to a beautiful baby boy named Brody Mark.

4. Did anyone close to you die? No, but I continue to mourn the loss of my brother, Mark, who died in October 2006.

5. What countries did you visit? The only countries I visited in 2007 were in books and magazines.

6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007? Money.

7. What dates from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? December 1st because that’s when I hung out with the aforementioned soap stars.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? Making friends with soap stars.

9. What was your biggest failure? Not winning the lottery.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury? I continue to struggle with pain related to a herniated disc in the lumbar spine and related sciatica. The injury occurred on December 13, 2006.

11. What was the best thing you bought? Monavie! Since I started drinking the juice, I’ve noticed a renewed vitality, and my mental clarity has improved, as well. I no longer wake up at night because of acute arthritic pain in my left knee, or the excruciating leg and foot cramps that plagued me for so long.  It is also very exciting for me to have found something that relieves my Fibromyalgia symptoms after suffering for so many years. Yippee!

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? My daughters. Leigh has really stepped up, and her performance in college this year has been admirable. She is currently looking into transferring to another school for veterinary science. Rebecca has also excelled scholastically, and will be studying abroad in Australia next semester.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? George W. Bush.

14. Where did most of your money go? Mortgage payments and college tuition.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Hanging out with soap stars! (Are you seeing a pattern here?)

16. What song will always remind you of 2007? Landslide by Stevie Nicks:

Can the child within my heart rise above
Can I sail through the changing ocean tides
Can I handle the seasons of my life
Mmm mmm I don’t know

17. Compared to this time last year, are you: a) happier or sadder? Happier
b) thinner or fatter? About the same, give or take a few pounds.
c) richer or poorer? Poorer. I lost a fair amount of income due to being out on a work-related injury.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of? Reading. I blame my obsession with knitting for that.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of? Cleaning up Penny’s messes. She refuses to be house trained.

20. How did you spend Christmas? Like this.

21. Did you fall in love in 2007? Does my crush on Hugh Laurie count?

22. What was your favorite TV program? It’s a tie between General Hospital and House, the only shows I watch regularly.

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? No, but I’m still mad at Brad Pitt.

24. What was the best book you read? See #18. I have  read some  books, but can’t think of any worth mentioning… Oh, wait! I know! Joan Didion’s The Year of Magical Thinking.

25. What was your greatest musical discovery? Raising Sand by Robert Plant and Allison Krauss

26. What did you want and get? A gift certificate for 3 one-hour massages!

27. What did you want and not get? Money.

28. What was your favorite film of this year? I haven’t seen many movies – in fact, the only one I can remember seeing at the theater is Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I didn’t do anything except turn 53 years old.

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? MONEY! (Another pattern?)

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007?

Viking helmets are in.

32. What kept you sane? Getting to be insane at work.


33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? See # 21.

34. What political issue stirred you the most? The assassination of Benazir Bhutto.

35. Who did you miss? My brother, Mark.

36. Who was the best new person you met? I’ll bet you thought I was going to say soap star Bradford Anderson, didn’t you? While I am  delighted to have met him, the best new person I met in 2007 was LA. I’m also very glad to have been able to meet Mary and Joe, and my Bradford buddy, Allison. It was a very  good year for making friends.

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007. I learned that it is very important to make sure there is more life in my life.

38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.

But now the days grow short,
I’m in the autumn of the year
And now I think of my life
as vintage wine from fine old kegs
From the brim to the dregs,
and it poured sweet and clear
It was a very good year.

I wish all of you many blessings that pour sweet and clear in the New Year, and always.

Happy 2008!

Song of the Day: It Was a Very Good Year  by Frank Sinatra

Things That Go Bump in the Night

Becca and I did end up going to see the Bronx Zoo’s Holiday Lights Friday evening, and I’m so glad we did. It was a fun thing to do, even though we got lost in the Bronx for a while. Note to self – Stick with Yahoo directions, and never use Mapquest again.

We passed these cranes on our way into the park.

Here’s an elephant.

This is a close-up of a camel.

White-faced monkeys

These sheep in the petting zoo area cracked me up because they came running and jumped onto the fence when they saw us heading in their direction. I guess they were expecting a handout.

This is an ice carving in progress. Your guess is as good as mine as to what it’s supposed to be.

The pictures didn’t come out very well because I couldn’t figure out how to set my camera for night photos. Oh well, I still had a good time. And I scored a candy apple, which is always a special treat for me.

Moving right along to “things that go bump in the night.” I had a weird experience a few evenings ago. My sister and daughter were witnesses, otherwise I might doubt my own eyes and ears.

Michele and I were sitting in the family room, and Rebecca was coming down the stairs from the upper floor of our house. Suddenly, we heard the sound of shattering glass. Rebecca and I checked all the rooms on the upstairs level. Then we checked the main level. When we didn’t find anything, we went down to the basement.

There, at the foot of the stairs, we found the remains of a vintage mason jar. The jar didn’t belong to me, but I did notice it when we first moved into the house. It was on a shelf on the far side of the basement – nowhere near the stairs.

After puzzling over the situation for a while, my sister and I shrugged it off as just one of those things. We went back upstairs, leaving Rebecca behind to get her clothes from the dryer.

A few minutes later, while I was typing something on the computer for my mother, I heard the sound of four, distinct footsteps coming up the basement stairs. In a shaky voice, Michele asked, “What was that??”  I replied, “It must be Rebecca.” Michele said, “Rebecca is right here!” I turned around and saw Rebecca standing there, with wide eyes and a face drained of blood.

Even though we were all pretty freaked out at that point, we went to the door that leads to the basement stairs, and opened it. There was nothing there.

Shortly after that, Rebecca left for work, and Michele had to leave soon afterwards. Being here alone for the half hour or so before Daniel got home was pretty spooky.

I’m still not sure what to think about the eerie episode. This house is ninety-nine years old. Could it be that we have a poltergeist in residence? Who ya gonna call?

Song of the Day: Ghostbusters  by Ray Parker Jr.

I Need to Have My Head Examined

For some reason, our schools are closed again today. All the other districts in the area are on a 2 hour delay, which is odd. We never close when other schools are open. I suppose it’s because we’re a “walking district.” Some of our students have to walk two miles to get to school.

Last week, we had a 2 hour delay due to sleet. I only have to walk a couple of blocks to get to work, but it took me a long time to reach the school because the icy sidewalks were treacherous. I saw kids falling all over the place, and I nearly took a spill, myself. I’m guessing that some students got hurt, and the superintendent doesn’t want to take any more chances.

I’m not happy about the fact that we’ve now used two of our five snow days so early in the season (I don’t want to give up any days attached to our spring break). However, I am glad I don’t have to go to work today because I’m really hurting. The pain is a direct result of me being an idiot.

Yesterday, I was experiencing an unusual burst of energy (thanks a lot, MonaVie), so I cleaned the house from early in the morning until early evening. This “cleaning” did not include dusting, vacuuming, scrubbing, or mopping. It was just picking up and putting things away. I had stuff all over the place, much of it related to Christmas.

I also had to dig through my stockpile of gifts to come up with five presents for the co-worker whose name I picked from the “Secret Santa” box. The way it works is, the recipient gets four inexpensive gifts from an anonymous source Monday through Thursday of next week. On Friday, the last gift will be given, and the source revealed.

Although I don’t really know the woman I’ll be bestowing gifts upon, I’m glad I picked her name because she always gives me a smile and says hello when I pass her in the halls. That’s more than I can say for a lot of my other co-workers. Many of them go out of their way to avoid making eye contact. That building is toxic.

Anyway, I knocked myself out trying to get this place straightened up. The sad thing is that I’m STILL not done. There’s a mess of papers in the kitchen that have yet to be dealt with.

To add insult to injury, I went out around 8:00 pm and shoveled for almost two hours. I should mention that the driveway and sidewalks had already been shoveled three times. Rebecca did it once in the morning. Daniel did it when he got home from work. (He got out early.) Then he did it again a couple of hours later. Finally, I did it. Or, should I say, I tried to do it.

I shoveled the sidewalk and half the driveway, but had to call it quits because I could barely move. The sciatica pain was red hot, and my back felt extremely unstable. What the hell was I thinking?

Just yesterday I was saying that MonaVie won’t cure a herniated disc or sciatica. You’d think I would pay more attention to my own words instead of thinking I can don the Super Woman cape just because I’m suddenly full of vim and vigor. The Energizer Bunny I am not. I have to remember that there is a stiff price to pay for overexertion.

Oh well, at least the tree has been trimmed.

Song of the Day: Out of My Mind  by James Blunt