Wedding last night. I was restricted to only a couple of drinks over the evening for various reasons but somehow I am still hungover today. flying LAX-JFK in a few hours. *yawn*

Ugh, hangovers when you didn't drink much are annoying!!

At work until 3, then off to a dinner at Greene Turtle (a new restaurant for my family, so this is going to end badly) for my brother's birthday (which was 2 weeks ago, but he's been too busy and will likely cancel for tonight, creating even more of a clusterfuck), and then hopefully home at a reasonable hour because I am a homebody.

Grar, hangover-from-not-drinking is annnoying. I have something like that going on: persistent headachy ouch. (Though in my case, it's wisdom-tooth trouble, so at least I know it will be OVER next week when I have the thing yanked!)

Last night, some friends invited us over spur-of-the-moment for a sandwich-ranking. Yup. We tasted plates of similar sandwiches and ranked them in order of tastiness. And then we moved on to the next category. I know, taxing, right? So good!

We're homebodies today, too, sperose! The Fella is on vacation for three more days, and he is flatly exhausted. He declared today a Snow Day: he's going out to pick up the new season of "Mad Men" and then we're going to bunk down on the sofa and watch it all day.

Working, walked the dog, helped husband loosen a washer in the bathroom sink (why do I have to be the one with small hands and no desire to perform such tasks?). Later on, dropping husband off at his basketball game, then visiting with a friend while he plays. Later on, probably will watch "Animal Kingdom" or something else. Another walk with the dog is also probably on the schedule.

I'm trying to rest up in preparation for a very busy two weeks at work, but also kind of anxious to be outside. Not sure how this will work out. Maybe I'll just do some Internet shopping.

Taking azuresunday to the Airport so he can go back to Japan. I probably won't see him again until July, so kinda bummed right now.

Was planning to mow the lawn but got sidetracked by talking for an hour over the fence with my neighbor. Then discovered that the magic lawnmower thingie thing that fits under the other thingie and sends the grass downwards has gone missing. I remember finding it somewhere unlikely last fall and thinking ah, so that's where that is, I must remember that and, of course, I do not. Lawnmower will not work without it, so the grass will have to wait. Now I'm going to lounge around and play minecraft because I'm going to work in an hour or so.

Not much really. Just got done exercising (back, shoulders, biceps, and then 35 minutes on the treadmill, although I didn't feel like running so instead I walked with the incline really ramped up). Shower, lunch (a burrito). Probably watch a baseball game this afternoon. Read. Knit. Tonight I need to cook lots of food so I'll have leftovers for lunch this week.

Tapping foot impatiently for my friends to get here. 10 more minutes or so.

mgl, I found the thingy for my lawnmower that allows you to have it expel out the side. Somehow it got into the compost bin.

Just filling in gaps between running up to the clinic. I've got to go up there around 4 to run boarders and whatnot and then head back up at 8 to give an insulin shot. Meanwhile I'll probably take the dog for a walk (it's gorgeous and sunny, but very windy here today), watch some baseball, maybe do some non-pressing homework and knock out the laundry.

Or I'll just sit around playing stupid flash games and listening to music, which is almost always more likely.

I'm watching a movie on TV - Extract, by the same guy who made Office Space. I'm enjoying it so far.

I got my car cleaned today at this place run by Polish immigrants. They descended on it like mechanics at at pitstop in the F1 Grand Prix and 15 minutes later it was gleaming, inside and out, all for £10.

And now the dinner has been moved from 4pm to 6pm, fucking up my entire evening. Ugh, I hate this crap.

In a complete anomaly, my partner is staying over at my place rather than vice versa because his soon-to-be-ex-housemate is actively making his life miserable. Hubby is suuuuuuper-allergic to cats, so he's power-dosed on Claritin just to survive in my house for more than five minutes. Unfortunately, I bought him the meth-lab version, which means he was up until about 7:30 AM before he finally KO'd. He's still passed out, so the cat and I are hanging out on the couch.

The good news about his arrival (aside from having his company more often) is that I had to clean the living daylights out of my place, so it's more fur-free than it's been probably since I moved in.

Today I've got to work for at least 6-7 hours, but I'm hoping to have the evening free to smoke up and challenge a friend to a few rounds at the "secret" pinball arcade in Echo Park. That didn't work out so well last Sunday, as I ended up working until almost midnight on a play adaptation. :-/

It is unexpectedly gorgeous here -- yesterday was foggy and cold and I thought we were getting more of the same today, but it's sunny and beautiful and in the 60s instead -- so I've been hanging out in the backyard watching the cat think about chasing birds (which she does not ever get up the actual gumption to do). I refilled the bird feeder, so that was productive. And I showered, which was also productive.

I managed to throw out my lower back on Friday evening, so it's been a rather slow weekend. Just being able to walk a bit without falling over in a spasm of pain is a good thing. The pain lessens the more I move, as long as I don't overdo it, so I'm hoping to go to the gym today and take it easy on the elliptical for a bit and then chill out in the hot tub.

We're attempting to decimate some of the overgrown bushes and trees that we don't like anyway. My health has been so bad that they've been neglected for a few years, so this is an imposing task. We have giant loppers and a small chainsaw and we are tearing vegetation DOWN.

Well, we're working as long as my back will let me, then resting as long as my back makes me, so right now we're inside instead.

Just got home from kayaking and a picnic with my kids, parents, sister and her boyfriend. It was a beautiful day for kayaking. We row out to this beautiful sandbar and run around. It's a dream.

I'm going to see Source Code. In fact I'm sitting in the (nearly empty) theatre now, killing the ten minutes before it starts.

Legitimately hung over. Reading, laying around, eating delicious leftover pizza. But. My brother-in-law arrives tomorrow and I want the flat to be all shiny and nice, so I'm going to have to get up soon and CLEAN ALL THE THINGS.

Also, there will be a big grocery shopping trip and cooking. And laundry. And bill paying.

Maybe I'll just lie back down for a while.

Man, I am TIRED. Had Sunday School this morning which was a mixed bag--I had a new teenager assisting today and he said if he had to work with my second session class every week he'd never come back. Which is why I'm not teaching next year.

Then I went to the mall to get a new watch battery and to spend my birthday money! Then I went to the supermarket because I forgot to yesterday.

Now I am on the couch playing with my new ipod touch (game/app recommendations welcome) and may never move again.

Stew, hope the fence-building went well!

We took a trip to the used CD store and thrift store (fruitless, except for a hilarious photo) and then bought some produce at the Korean supermarket. It's kind of out of our way, but their produce is cheaper, better, and more varied than at any of our regular grocery stores.

Had lunch at the mini food court in back...sushi and some sort of delicious sponge cake that I can't remember the name of.

Now I'm feeling so, so lazy. I should really get on the treadmill.

That dreamcatcher is AWESOME, JoanArkham.

Somone has dumped an old sofa down by our garages. It will cost us residents money to get it taken away. Fuckers.

I went for a walk with Mom. Then I made chicken salad. I may have a nap.

Hardcore.

And now the dinner has been canceled. Oh Alex, you will always remain a disappointment to our mother.

The mister and I were at the hospital again, wheeeee!

The mister went into afib again today. For those keeping score at home - this is the fourth time in five weeks. The hospital put him on fast track so he was there only a couple hours. So today I barely got home, chowed down some lunch and got the call to pick him up. So fast, yay!

Ardiril: you'll be happy to know that this time and the previous time I did not hang around. I was there long enough for him to get settled and for the the doctor to show up (this usually takes about an hour or so).

Also, the cardiologist finally called last Wednesday with the news that he, the cardiologist, is referring the mister to a different doctor who specializes in afib patients. One or the other is supposed to call back with appointment information, but they haven't done that yet. The mister will call the cardiologist again on Monday.

And we had some clarification on what they can do to, possibly, have the mister's heart back in normal rhythm for a while. They may, and probably will, adjust his dosage, use a different drug (although what he's on was what were told is the "last and best choice") and/or do an ablation on his heart (which I have already called "barbecuing his heart", perhaps "nuking his heart" is a better description because they'll actually be vaporizing tissue). A pacemaker is not an option.

Anyhoo. The mister is now napping and I go to join him. Yay naps!

Regretting drinking too fast and too much at a party last night that I didn't even really want to be at, trapping myself there with a total lack of sobriety. It was a misery and totally awkward. I'm finding I have less and less in common with these people all the time.

There was recently the death of four local high school senior boys in a freak car accident on the way back from spring break. It has devastated this small town and even though I am very disconnected from the community, I am affected by the wide reach of this interwoven net of people. My vet's son was one of the victims and they were all popular and in sports. Last night I got to hear the backlash about how people feel it's unfair that these deaths are getting so much attention when other people's children are dying all the time and it has to do with how affluent their families are. Public grieving is a strange business and apparently some people are getting out of hand with trying to grab some of the morbid spotlight. Small towns are odd places, filled with petty intrigues and curiosities. But it makes itself an interesting backdrop for a story, I've been thinking.

Currently trying to revise a paper that I can't seem to fix. It needs a total rewrite, it's just such a lot of information cobbled together, but I am experiencing an overwhelming amount of slack. I've kind of adjusted to the idea that it will have to do unless the muse suddenly strikes me tomorrow.

Two of my friends are in love with people they can't be with. I find it an odd state of affairs, to have that kind of emotion but be unable to do anything about it. So, you try to move on in life but some part of you is waiting for this other person whether you want to or not. Is it luckier to not be in love or is just being in love still worth it?

Wow, deborah, I hope you're holding up as well as you seem to be. It's a lot.

Today's been a day of just work work work. Took a three hour break in the afternoon to go to the grocery store and have lunch and coffee with a friend but otherwise I've been writing the discussion section of my paper the whole day.

Thanks, ethylene. I try not to think about it while it's not actively happening and make stupid jokes while it is happening. His odds of having a stroke while all this is going on is extremely high; it worries us both. That is why, in part, it fucking pisses me off that his doctor didn't call back until after the third episode. I know BC doctors are overwhelmed with patients, especially specialty doctors, that there just aren't enough docs in the province, but geez louise, way to add to the stress level, doc.

I ended up doing what I had planned, plus doing a wine tasting with ikkyu2, then drinking some of the wine we bought, then making tacos and eating them together while watching ST:TNG. A very nice day, all in all.

I am sorry for all the bunnies having problems today. I'm sending you good vibes.

Walked to REI and rode my new bike back home. Good thing that I opted for fenders since it was raining pretty good. Love the disk brakes. Funny that even though I'm in decent shape for running, I'm totally out of shape for biking. Different muscles I guess.

octo, totally. I can bike for miles and miles but I am a pathetic runner. (Well, maybe an 8-minute mile isn't pathetic, but I can only do five of them before I wanna die.) Running is far more punishing on my cardiovascular system.

Not a tiptop few days. Wednesday was my birthday, but my dog bunged up his back, so he and I spent much of the evening at the vet's making sure it wasn't anything serious. The celebratory drinks I'd planned with friends on the weekend were cancelled entirely as a result of crossed messages. Also I'm behind on an assignment, and debating going to sleep now versus staying up and trying to do at least a little of it before my eyes close.

On the bright side, many glorious flowers are blooming and some songbird that says "Squibitz! Squibitz!" has recently returned from the tropics.

I felt mildly shitty all day in a purely emo knife-in-the-heart way but plodded through it. Doing taxes was too difficult and so head in the sand another day.

Started watching season 4 of Mad Men now that it's on Netflix. Is very good, better than season 3 by a lot.

Watched "Source Code" (hi kodama!) with the girlfriend. We reflected that a high score by Rotten Tomatos can mean a movie is good, or it can mean that it is sort of blandly pleasing aka worthless. Dumb movie, waste of a premise. Is about as scifi as "Touched by an Angel."

(Well, maybe an 8-minute mile isn't pathetic, but I can only do five of them before I wanna die.)

Heh, well that makes you a way better runner than I am. I can just barely do a 9-minute mile in a 5K and 10-minutes in a 10K or 1/2 marathon. I can only do an 8-minute mile pace for a 1/4 mile or so. Being 46 years old and weighing almost 250# doesn't really help my speed.

That sounds scary Deborah. Beterschap!

Oh, deborah, that sounds so scary and stressful! It must be comforting to the mister to have you there, being all apparently-calm and supportive (and knowing when to leave, which is a tough skill and a reeeeeeeally helpful one in a crisis). Sending good thoughts in your direction!

Deborah, I hope whatever changes are made, make a huge difference :)