Tired but happy.

The "We're Related" app says that my friend Linda and I are possibly 7th cousins twice removed. Common ancestor back in 1668. Only problem is that back about 200 years' worth or so of generations,, there's some sloppy genealogy, and neither of us can find one of the links. Also, I find it hard to believe that one of the ancestresses, who was born in Maryland, wed in Maryland, and gave birth to several children in Maryland, made a quick hop overseas to have a daughter in England, then had several more children in Maryland. I look on that (as Dad would have said) with love and suspicion.

On the other hand, I spent half an hour or so linking records to a second-great-aunt, discovering her husband's name and the names of four children. Next time I jump back on Ancestry, I'll link records to him and see what pops up for their kids.

And I hope that Linda and I do find out that we're related. She's good people, and we've been friends almost 20 years. I'd be honored to claim her as kin.

I am thoroughly worn out by this snippet of obedience.Time to grab a snack and my knitting and a book.

Feeling human again.

Not-hurting is a wonderful way to feel. My workday was one of almost uninterrupted productivity. No, I'm not entirely caught up, and yes, I'm looking forward to a long weekend.

Knit did not happen. At least, it hasn't happened yet, and I'm almost ready to go to bed. Instead, I read and read and read, here a little on the laptop after catching up my spreadsheets, but mostly on my phone. I made a healthy dinner: salmon burger, sensible portion of mashed potatoes, and an Envy apple.

Last night I emailed the health club that I used to attend.

Me: Do you offer a senior discount?

Slick salesman: Good evening, I just received your email. When are you looking to get started? The reason I ask is because we have a promotion where it’s 50% off the joining fee. It started Monday and ends *tonight*. If interested, I can send you an online join link. Yes the membership gets you access to all the wonderful amenities you enjoyed before.

Me: Not ready to join yet. More like the middle of next month. Is there a senior discount? I'm 66.

Slick salesman: What’s your price point?

Me: Just give it to me in black and white. Regular dues. Senior dues. Thank you.

Slick salesman, after I'd crashed for the night: The lowest I’m able to go is $62 a month.

Me, after waking up this morning: Thank you for your time and courtesy. I will look elsewhere.

Not at all interested in paying slightly less than I paid before, when I couldn't get a straight answer to a simple question on the first try, and when I know there are several gyms around here that offer Silver Sneakers at less than half of his best price. I will also see if there's a discount through my corporate perks.

Time to listen to my Book of Mormon and maybe get in a round of knitting or two. I slept like a rock last night. Hoping for a repeat tonight.

Speed bump.

I did, indeed, go to bed early last night, setting the alarm for an hour after I normally take my evening meds. Woke up, medicated, and staggered off to the loo. Where I discovered a weird and tender bulge in my privates. Went back to bed, slept fitfully, and awoke to a seriously crabby perineum. Hurt to walk. Hurt to sit. Hurt like blazes to pee. And the bulge was significantly larger.

I discussed this with Middlest over breakfast. (There are very few topics off-limit chez Ravelled.) We agreed that I should call my doctor's answering service and see what could be done. I finished breakfast, showered and shampooed gingerly, dressed even more gingerly, put out the trash, and got into the Tardis. Called the answering service and left a message the good doctor. He called me back within a few minutes. I told him that I thought my pelvic floor had dropped. He told me that the surgery which had been scheduled for this morning had cancelled, and to please be in his office at 9:30.

I called in, said that I was going to see my doctor and that I'd be in afterward. I got to the clinic about 45 minutes early and spent that time reading articles on my phone. When he examined me, he discovered that the problem was a sponge that got left behind after my surgery. He carefully fished it out. Instant relief. Poor man was mortified. And furious with himself. I couldn't be angry with him. He noted my chart and made a note to himself to take it up with the doctor who assisted. "This should not have happened to you. And we need to make sure that it doesn't happen to any other woman under my care."

And then we discussed the pathology report. No cancer in the samples. However, what I have is endometrial hyperplasia without atypia, complex. What this means in layman's terms is that my obesity stores excess estrogen, which thickens the uterine wall. If I do not make significant changes in diet and exercise, I am at high risk of developing uterine cancer. In fact, he said, I had been as close to that line as it is possible to be without actually crossing it.

There are two ways to treat this. The conservative way is to begin taking progesterone and to lose a significant amount of weight in the next three to five years. The risks associated with taking progesterone are an increased chance of developing breast cancer. (And, given my experience with The Pill in the early 70's, plus all five of my children's reactions to progesterone, a high chance of developing some level of psychosis. I was hell on wheels when I was married to FirstHubby.)

The second way to treat this is to remove the uterus. I'm pretty sure that that is what I will ultimately choose, but I don't want another surgery this year, and I want to use my remaining PTO for fun things like vacations.

So tonight I will add progesterone to the other five pills that I take, and Middlest and I will monitor me for changes in my mental health, and part of next month's Social Security check will be dedicated to a gym membership.

My doctor said that some of the positive side effects of progresterone can be lessened anxiety, better sleep, and a more relaxed body. Make it so. And if I could have the fuller head of hair that I enjoyed during my pregnancies, I would be elated.

I need to do more research, but that's it for now. I am nowhere near as exhausted as I was last night, but I am tired, and I need to put my feet up, and I want to read, and I want to go to bed at a reasonable time. Later, gators.

First day back at work.

It was a good day, all things considered. No real pain, just endless slogging from one task to the next. I did get a surprising amount done, and any glory attached to that goes to Heaven and the guardian angels who were propping me up. (I asked for strength beyond my own, and I was too tired to feel the presence of Beloved or anyone else assigned to keep me out of the pool halls.)

I wore my new Gudrun shoes today. They're very comfortable, and I think I'll love them once I adjust to the difference in my stride.

Hit Costco on the way home, tanked the Tardis, and purchased five items that couldn't wait until Friday. Now I'm trying to decide (A) what to eat and (B) how soon I can go to bed.

Four more days and then a long weekend. I can do this.

Day four - cue the Ventures!

As in, wipe(d) out!

I made it through all three hours of church today in good shape. That was the goal. While there, I finished the heel and got a few rounds done on the instep. Then I came home, threw a sandwich together, grabbed a bottle of water, and headed north for the senior recital of SemperFi's younger daughter.

It was lovely. We met in the sanctuary of their church, and there was a good turnout to support her. That girl has pipes! She hopes to perform on Broadway, and I would not be at all surprised if she succeeds.

One of the songs that she sang was from the musical "Waitress." It was about life and loss and compromise. I might have cried.



And then I came home and slept for five hours. I'm spotting more heavily this evening. But at least it doesn't hurt to swallow, and I can get into and out of bed with relative ease.

Tomorrow I get to go back to work. I have a feeling that this is going to be one of those weeks where I do a lot of praying for strength. Guardian angels: gird yourselves!

Day three, post-surgery

In which your intrepid heroine attempts a field trip and partway succeeds. I'd been wanting to dash into a LYS to get some of those interlocking cardboard tubes designed to corral DP needles while in use. I also wanted to get my hair trimmed. I did a search in my checking account, and today is exactly two months since the last trim. This would have been a good day for it. However, as I walked back to the Tardis, my body said, thank you, and we're done for now. So I took a slightly roundabout way home (because: stubborn), ate a light lunch, and napped for about five hours.

While on the topic of hair, LittleBit is working at Ulta again. (Is it supposed to be all-caps, like IKEA?) And she is supposed to use her discount for family members, much like Squishy where he works. So after the surgery on Wednesday, and after we had refueled, we went to her store, and I bought what we thought was a bottle of fancy schmancy shampoo and a related conditioner but was in reality two different formulas of shampoo, one of which is not quite right for my hair.

I tried the first bottle yesterday, and today I have second-day hair that feels as good and as clean as it did yesterday. Pretty sure that I'm going to have to wash it before church tomorrow, but this is seriously cool. I guess I'm no longer buying grocery store shampoo. I'm still going to buy some of the neat shampoo I discovered when visiting my NY tribe in April, but that can be a treat for another time.

In reading news, I finished re-reading the second Magnus Chase book and have begun the third. Rick Riordan's writing (say that three times, fast) is dependably delightful.

In knitting news, I've turned the heel and picked up the gusset stitches on the first baby sock.

In recuperation news, I can get into and out of bed more easily than I have in weeks. My ab muscles have picked up the slack (tee hee), and it no longer hurts to swallow. I'm an hour past the usual time for my evening meds, so I'll say goodnight.

Day two, post-surgery

Noticeably better. I can swallow with only a shadow of discomfort. I can laugh without wincing. I can lever myself into and out of bed with relative ease, and I've only needed one nap today.

Took Middlest for the monthly checkup, then dropped off Rx's to be filled and delivered next week. On the way home we stopped at Kroger and picked up four cases of bottled water plus some toiletries. Neither of us had the spoons to bring the water in. We both agreed that I shouldn't even try, and Middlest is waiting until it's good and dark, because the temperature reached 94F this afternoon, while heat-sickness kicks in at 75F.

I finished rereading The Sword of Summer at ridiculous o'clock this morning and have handed it off to Middlest. I am now more than halfway through the second volume. I've also gotten the first baby sock to the beginning of the heel flap.

My appetite is a bit more erratic but a whole lot less demanding than it was yesterday. And I feel another nap coming on.

Day one, post-surgery

I doubt that I would have made much sense, had I posted when I got home yesterday.

The surgery went well. My doctor removed I-don't-know-how-many polyps and a fibroid, and samples of various bits have been sent to pathology. When I awoke, my throat was scratchy and dry, because they'd put a tube down it. I coughed a lot while in recovery, and ice chips have never tasted so good. The first few spoonfuls I let melt like a good little patient; the rest of them I chomped, because it was far more satisfying to have something I could chew.

I have no bruising where the IV went in, just one small red dot that is already smaller than when I got up this morning. My throat is still a little tender ~ it hurt to laugh at breakfast this morning, more in my throat than in my abs or my tush ~ and my abs think we're dying every time I try to get into or out of bed, which is why I'm taking a break from rereading The Sword of Summer to sit here and blog. My personal plumbing works just fine, which is a relief in more ways than one. I'm supposed to avoid greasy or spicy food for awhile, so no Pie5 with the doll-folk tomorrow night.

I don't have the attention span for knitting right now. I'm alternating reading with napping, scrolling through Pinterest, watching "Random Acts" on BYU TV on my phone, and playing Sudoku either on my phone or here on my computer. (My scores are abysmal, both in terms of numbers and the length of time it takes me to play a game. It would be depressing if I didn't know it's only temporary, because of the anesthetic and the insult to my body.)

They gave me Tramadol in the hospital, and it is wonderful stuff. I still have a nearly full bottle of industrial-strength ibuprofen from when my chair broke and dumped me on the floor. I took one of those last night before bedtime and another after breakfast, but my most recent dosage was a single regular-strength ibuprofen in late afternoon, and I don't think I'll need any more of it. The niggly spot in my back (the one I had PT for last year) is being humble and quiet, so overall I feel amazingly well, other than not wanting to knit. Or roll over too quickly.

I can feel another sleepy spell coming on, so I'm going to grab my evening meds, another half-mug of buttermilk, a handful of chocolate covered ginger, and see how long I'm out this time. Thank you for your prayers and positive thoughts.

Drama Mama.

No, not me. She was the ringmaster of two one-act plays put on by a bunch of kids in an extracurricular program that the daughter of one of my friends is in. I feel a little OK a lot guilty in retrospect, because a couple of weeks ago I completely spaced about BittyBubba's play or concert or whatever. I was in the throes of appointment after appointment after appointment, and tasks piling up at work and coming home exhausted.

Tonight I laughed hard, and it was fun. I stopped in at Half Price Books on the way home, hoping to find another copy of a cookbook I like, and while this store didn't have it, a nearby one does, and they will send it over. What I did find was a copy of my first treasured vegetarian cookbook, The Vegetarian Epicure, which is where I got my great spanakopita recipe. My first copy has been missing for at least ten years.

I managed to put several rounds on the sweater sleeve tonight, and the sleeve now comes down to roughly the crease of my elbow. I am not taking the sweater with me to the hospital tomorrow. I'm planning to take the baby sock. I won't weep if I have to frog a few stitches ~ or rounds ~ after coming out from under the anesthetic tomorrow afternoon.

Review of the new, lightweight compression socks that I recently ordered: I like the color options. They will do nicely for three hours of church, but they are completely inadequate for a workday. The elastic at the top is a little too snug and digs into my calf. That can't be good. So I will not reorder, and I will keep looking.

I have a little over half an hour in which to enjoy drinking cool, clear water. I'm going to make the most of it.

Oye with the poodles already!

We were short-handed today, so worklife got a little crazy. If by "a little crazy" you mean having to file an answer that was due at 10:00 for an attorney I back up, who I met up with heading to his desk at 9:51. I got that puppy filed at 10:01, technically late but the best I could with what I was dealt.

Then SemperFi got assigned two new cases with the answer due next Monday, and I won't be here to work on them after tomorrow. I'm hoping to get them wrangled so that somebody can file them in my absence. And my new attorney got a past-due case where the answer was due at 10:00am but the people who were supposed to get us certain information so we could enter the case, didn't provide it until sometime this morning. And it was on the other half of her docket, but my partner in crime was out today, so I got to take care of it. I'm almost done cleaning up discovery for the paralegal and am determined to finish it tomorrow. Then there were reports that got sent to claims over the weekend, that I had to do my bit on. And a report for the attorney I back up, who always leaves things until the last minute, that I had to wrangle.

Miraculously, my shoulders are in fairly decent shape, and my back didn't go into spasm.That one's taken care of. But if I were still a drinking woman, today would have been a day for it. I blasted zydeco in the Tardis all the way home, and I'm about to grab a Ben & Jerry's slice and head to my room with my knitting and a book or three. I am one tired mama. Middlest is sawing logs in the middle bedroom. I hope to be asleep by 10:00. Wish me luck.

So, I've had a blessing.

I won't share the details, but it was as specific and as detailed as I could have wished, and I am now, finally, entirely at peace about my surgery this coming Wednesday.

In knitting news, I'm continuing to make progress on the sweater sleeve. I've just spent most of the afternoon finishing the third book in the "Trials of Apollo" series. I love Rick Riordan's writing. I'm also reading Stephen Fry's Mythos, which is an entirely different irreverent retelling of the Greek myths. But for now I'm about to get back to work on that sleeve.

Mother's Day at church was actually enjoyable. My friend Beth gave a great talk, as did one of the good brothers. Best part was the Primary children singing a song I'd never heard before, "Courage to Be a Mother." I'm not finding it on Google, so it may have been written by a brother in our ward. There was no traditional candy bar at the end of sacrament meeting, and I was thinking "What gives?" all through Sunday School, but after opening exercises in Relief Society, the Young Men came in bearing trays with bowls of ice cream, slices of bundt cake, and plastic-ware.

I'm hungry again. Later, gators.

Thought you might like to hear something positive.

The stomach pain has abated. I am grateful (and hope to remain so) for however long that lasts.

The sleeve is not arguing with me. The new 16" circ that I bought on Wednesday is exactly the right length to accommodate those stitches for now, and I have a 12" needle should I need it as decreases continue. Also, I checked and rechecked my work, and I did not work the cable cross on the wrong round. I am zipping along, listening either to scriptures or Conference addresses on my phone. This one, from President Nelson back when he was one of the newer apostles in 1989, seems equally relevant for today:

LittleBit has confirmed that she has next Wednesday off and will be able to get me to and from my surgery. We've worked out a timeline that builds in plenty of room for error, in case of additional complications to normal rush-hour traffic. My stress level is significantly reduced.

Bills are paid or scheduled. Cosco run happened this morning, and I've enjoyed a lengthy nap. I'm going to grab one of the many books which has arrived in the past week or two and read until I'm ready to sleep.

Night, y'all.

Bleagh.

From yesterday's post on FB:

Another day in which a ridiculous amount of stuff got done in 3.5 hours at work, followed by multiple appointments in the afternoon, followed by a light breakfast-for-dinner at IHOP while waiting for rush hour to end, followed by a leisurely and mostly stress-free drive to the one yarn shop in BigD that's open late on Wednesday to pick up Chiaogoo circs in the size I'm currently using but in different lengths, followed by picking up dinner for Middlest, followed by great conversation, followed by jammies and bringing in the laundry that I hung to dry in the garage [Tuesday] night, followed by a stomach that wants me to get dressed again and go out for steak and a baked sweet potato.

Me: if you'll accept the ginger cookies and buttermilk that I'm sending down now, instead, and you and Bladder let me sleep all night, and you don't grumble about a healthy breakfast and sensible snacks at work tomorrow, we can go to Saltgrass on the way home tomorrow night and have steak and sweet for dinner tomorrow and leftovers for Friday night.

Stomach: I can't promise that Bladder is going to cooperate, but I trust you, and I'll do my best.

***

Here's how that played out:

Stomach: Feeling a little sore. Have we eaten? Please send down food.

Me: OK [eats a little something]

Stomach: Hey, I'm still achy. Please send down more food.

Me: Are you sure? We just ate.

Stomach: Really? I can't tell. Please send down more food.

Me: OK [eats something else]

Stomach: Why are you ignoring me? I hurt. I need some love. Or at least some food.

Me: I. Just. Fed. You.

Stomach: No, you didn't.

Me: Let's take a stroll to the loo, and then a brisk walk around the gallery. Maybe that will help.

Stomach: That didn't help. Feed me, Seymour!

Me: It's half an hour until lunch. I'll feed you then. Although I'm not sure where you'll put it.

Stomach: No! [stamps foot] I want it now!!!!!

Me: Calm down, Veruca. I don't know why I put up with you. [goes downstairs to the deli and orders a chicken salad sandwich, which is light enough to not sit like an anvil in my midsection and maybe, just maybe, sufficient to satisfy Stomach]

Stomach: That was good. Thank you.

Me: You're welcome. Can I get back to work now?

Stomach: Why didn't you get me any cookies? We love her chocolate chip cookies!

Me: Yes, we do, but you don't need cookies.

Stomach: But I want cookies! [stamps foot again]

Me: No cookies. Put on your big girl panties. I have work to do.

Stomach: Ugh. I'm so full. Why did you eat so much? It's not Thanksgiving or anything.

Me: [typety typety type]

Bladder: [quietly] I need to go potty.

Stomach: You're such a drama queen!

Me: [sighs]

Obviously, there was no field trip to Saltgrass after work tonight.

Pretty sure that this is just pre-op anxiety. Maybe Stomach is worried that my doctor can't tell the difference between a stomach and a uterus, and that both are going to get cleaned out next week. I just know that I've had three days now of intermittent bellyache (no nausea, just low-level pain}, and it's wearing me out.

Life is, nevertheless, good. I came home tonight, put on my jammies, set the alarm for when it's time to take my meds, and now I'm going back to bed.

My stomach, however, might have other ideas.

It hurts. Not cramps, but a sharp, persistent OW! which began after lunch and has been lurking in the background off and on all afternoon. I woke up this morning with a deficit of spoons and was still, by the grace of Heaven, remarkably productive. I even managed to scan three receipts for the next flex-account reimbursement.

Messaged Fourthborn and my knitting group that I was knackered and heading straight home. I've drunk a mug of buttermilk, eaten half a chocolate muffin and five or six pieces of chocolate covered ginger, and the ache is back.

When the going gets tough, the tough start a load of laundry. All of my compression stockings and all of my dark Gudrun pieces are dancing an aquatic tarantella. It's probably about time for me to grab a bunch of hangers and shuffle out to the garage.

Well, that was weird. Apparently the cure for a wibbly tummy is to stand in an uncomfortably warm garage, hanging up one item at a time, until the washer is empty. When I go back out there tomorrow morning, I'm reasonably sure that what I want to wear to work will be dry and happy (and if it is not, I have something else to wear). Right now I'm back at the computer, a second mug of buttermilk to my left and the other half of the chocolate muffin to my right.

I still have zero desire to knit, which leads Middlest to believe that I'm coming down with something, or that the malaise that knocked me out last Thursday is coming back for another go. I just need to get through half a day of work, go do my pre-op visits, and come home again. With any luck, the Social Security Administration wasn't kidding when they said that my benefits start tomorrow.

Meanwhile, I'm going to read a little, take my meds a bit early, and try to be asleep around 10:00.

The Cardi is still behaving.

I played a wild game of yarn chicken with the second ball of yarn. Finished a row on the body with about two yards to spare, then put those stitches on hold and prepared to start the first sleeve.

It's slow going at the moment, because I'm switching out circs about every other round, trying to find the best one for the job. What I need is a 16" circ. The 9" circs that I bought are too short at this point; the Addi Natura cable is too stiff; the 40" Chiaogoo is too short for Magic Loop with this many stitches; so I'm using a 60" HiyaHiya and hoping to pick up a 16" needle when I'm off for my pre-op visits on Wednesday.

Work went remarkably well today. I am feeling marginally caught up and only mildly frustrated with a couple of things over which I have no control and minimal influence.

I even managed to do two loads of laundry tonight, one of which is in the dryer, and the other is hanging to dry out in the garage because it was 92F when I got home tonight.

This is the part where I bring my spreadsheet up to date, take my evening meds, and call it a day.

The Cardi is behaving.

Most likely because I am counting stitches every couple of rows. I just completed the sixth cable row, updated my spreadsheet, then realized that I hadn't entered the numbers on my balance sheet (different spreadsheet; if you've been a reader for any length of time, you'll know that I'm mad for spreadsheets) for the end of April. So those are done.

Firstborn and I picked up quilt blocks this morning. Middlest was out with the king of all migraines, and Fourthborn suspected that she was coming down with something, so it was just the two of us. After that, Firstborn and I walked over to the little cafe on the corner and had breakfast and talked about everything and nothing for about an hour. She's busy with work and church and Junior League. I'm busy with work and church and knitting and Middlest.

Most first Saturdays, she brings Fourthborn and I bring Middlest, we pick up our blocks, everybody hugs, we might talk for ten minutes, and then she and Fourthborn go back to Arlington while Middlest and I run any errands between the quilt shop and home, unload the Tardis, and crash. Today we really connected, and it was wonderful.

I've had a shortish nap, added five or six rows to the Cardi throughout the day, listened to a couple of chapters of the Book of Mormon on my phone, and read several chapters in Mythos. I also dashed out just before dusk to Braum's for more milk, buttermilk, and orange juice.

Not sure what I want to do next, other than not-knitting. (No, I'm not running a fever. I just want to do something different until I feel sleepy.) Which, apparently, is now. It seems that my eyelids are as suggestible as my kidneys.

Where did those two weeks go?

Oh yeah. I was carefully tinking back eight to ten rows on my Cardi Cozy. I'm pleased to report that all mistakes have been fixed ~ including the two messed up cable crossings I discovered on Tuesday, which got taken care of at Knit Night ~ and I have finally reached the point where the sleeve sections are on holding threads, the underarm stitches have been added with a provisional cast-on, and I'm two rows into the body of the sweater.

Work has been OK-to-good. I was more or less caught up when I left the office last night after a day in which I constantly fought the urge to sleep. I awoke reluctantly this morning, got ready for work, got about halfway there and thought better of it. So I called in (but to the wrong number), came home, and went back to bed.

I'm bleeding again. Correction: I was bleeding again on Tuesday and yesterday, but it seems to have stopped. I don't know if this the cause of my lethargy or if it's something else. I'm devoutly hoping that the hysteroscopic surgery in two weeks will be a permanent fix, and that I will feel an immediate improvement in my overall health and energy.

I've missed you guys. I've had things that I wanted to say. Creative blog titles. Books I've wanted to read. Interminable meetings at work. A little more anxiety than usual. A body that wants to sleep and a brain that wants to play. Too many nights staying up until almost midnight when I need to get up at 6:00am.

Throughout it all I've felt my Savior's love as well as the normal range of human emotions. I want to get my life back on track (whatever that is) so that there's time for all of the important stuff. But for now I'm heading into the kitchen with the plates from our pizzas, running the dishwasher, and settling in on my bed with General Conference on my phone, and a sweater which is (maybe) the only part of my life that is back on track.

Later, gators. I'm really tired. (But not depressed. I remember depressed.) Prayers and positive thoughts most gratefully accepted.

Great day at work.

Bills are all paid. Placed an order with Gudrun Sjoden including a pair of the shoes I tried on in New York. Tried and failed to register for the mega singles conference in Nauvoo this fall. Have sent an email asking what gives?

Slept like a rock for six hours last night, then up around 3:00 for a comfort break and back to sleep (eventually). Have followed through on the scrap of inspiration that I got while waiting to fall asleep again.

Gack! Just remembered that I need to do something about the music for Sunday. Vacation brain.
 

News I can use.

1. Notification from Amazon that volume 3 in The Trials of Apollo is almost ready to ship and should arrive around the first of May.

2. I checked the IRS website for status on my refund, and it said: "Your tax refund is scheduled to be sent to your bank by April 18, 2018. [I wasn't expecting it until May 1.] If your refund is not credited to your account by April 23, 2018, check with your bank to see if it has been received." So I logged into my bank, et voila!

3. I forgot what a beating the first day back at work is. I had over a hundred new emails waiting for me, about 20% of them wishing me a happy birthday. Regarding the stuff I am paid to do, I got all the way through my new attorney's mail and most of the way through SemperFi's.

4. My birthday gift from my sister was waiting on my desk when I got to work. It's a lovely painting of a single, huge, scarlet poppy. Her card was equally terrific. It shows the Cowardly Lion, Tin Man, and Scarecrow watching Dorothy pull money out of a machine and drop it into her basket. Tin Man says, "All this time, I thought she was calling for her 'Auntie Em'."

5. From SemperFi: "At our age you realize something very important." Inside: "Then *poof* it's gone and you can't remember what the hell you were just thinking about."

6. From my other, still to be nicknamed, attorney: "Happy Birthday" Inside, a handwritten note: "I hope you have a wonderful birthday! You deserve it! I am so happy that I get to work with you every day. You're such a joyful and kind person! I hope this year is full of blessings for you. (heart) J"

7. I stayed awake on the drive home, and I'm almost done eating dinner. It's doubtful that I can stay awake long enough to take my meds at the usual hour.

Color me happy, relieved, grateful, and tired. Later, gators!

My uterus, the clown car?

NYC was a grand adventure. There I was, this little (old) girl from Idaho, driving in SoHo. And as I observed on Facebook, 20mph feels a whole lot faster in the Holland Tunnel than it does in a school zone.

I've found out which size of Gudrun's shoes I wear in the design I had hoped would fit me. Holding off on buying them until I get my tax refund in the next couple of weeks.

It's my birthday, and I've survived a truncated well woman (no diabetes-specific blood work, nor pelvic exam because of the hysteroscopy that followed). I was prepared for the latter to be as uncomfortable as the biopsy, and it wasn't. I got to see the little camera poking around. I am full of polyps. They are coming out mid-May and will be biopsied to make sure they aren't full of nasty surprises.

Meanwhile, I need to find somebody willing to drive me to Arlington, wait for me, and bring me home, as this isn't something I can drive myself to.

Really hoping that this takes care of things and that a hysterectomy will not be necessary.

It's been a great day. Breakfast at La Madeleine after the minimal blood work, and dinner at Lucile's in Fort Worth before driving to the new location (IKEA) for Knit Night.

I'm knackered. Don't think there'll be any difficulty falling asleep tonight.

Didn't mean to leave you hanging.

It's not cancer, huzzah! We don't know what it is, so I will be having a hysteroscopy on my birthday, quelle joie.

In knitting news, I'm 20 rows along on my Cardi Cozy, and I need a Rosetta Stone to figure out the directions from here. Went to Ravelry, and the comments on various people's completed or frogged projects tell me I'm not alone. One of them stated that she emailed MDK and received a chart in her size. So I've just sent an email of my own.

I am supposed to be off tomorrow, the better to prepare for flying out at ridiculous o'clock on Friday. However, I was nowhere near caught up when I left my desk tonight, so I am going in tomorrow, putting my head down, and hoping/praying for the best.

That's all I've got for you. I stayed up way too late last night, filing my taxes among other things, and took my evening meds two hours after I normally would. Which meant that I woke up groggy and disoriented this morning, and I dragged until the half-bottle of Coke worked its magic. I do not want a repeat of that tomorrow morning. Night, y'all.

I woke up early this morning.

Middlest was already awake and had thoughtfully set out the dishes for my breakfast. I ate breakfast and played a few games on the AARP website to try to wake up my brain. Middlest played games on several game systems and phones at once. Multitasking. It's what we do.

I struggled to stay focused and awake for much of the day, but finally five o'clock rolled around. I came home by way of one of the Dallas yarn shops that stays open late on Wednesdays, and I cleft there with two HiyaHiya bamboo circs in the target sizes and two Chiagoo bamboo circs, to see if either brand has sufficient tooth to tame the KidSilk Haze without dragging at it. I'm hoping to save myself a trip to DFW FiberFest on Friday night.

You know I love my HiyaHiya minuscule steel needles for baby socks and doll clothes. I'm hoping that I like the bamboo needles every bit as well. If so, they come in 9" lengths for knitting sleeves in human-scale. And several of my friends like the Chiagoo. (I would like to score some rosewood needles and maybe even some ebony needles.)

I also bought a small ceramic sheep pin that reminds me of Shaun the Sheep. I'd snap a picture of all this bounty, but my phone has been sulking all day.

SemperFi stopped at my desk and asked if I had any word yet from yesterday. I told him it would be about a week and, "They're not Lenscrafters." ("Eyeglasses in about an hour.)

I'm torn between firing up one of the new needles and finishing the Rick Riordan book I started last night. Decisions, decisions.

And now we wait.

I like this doctor. We should have the results of the biopsy in about a week. I have a provisional appointment for a hysteroscopy (like a colonoscopy, but meandering around in the girl bits) for two weeks from today. Which happens to be my birthday. When I'm already assuming the position that morning (well woman).

If the biopsy results are uh-oh (and he doesn't think they will be), then the hysteroscopy is cancelled, and he will refer me to a colleague who only does gynecological oncology and is very, very good at it.

After thoroughly palpating my ovaries and uterus, he said that he didn't feel anything that he's used to feeling when there is cancer.

I like the doctor. (I know. I said that already. I'm saying it again.) I adore his nurse and assistant. And I've stopped cramping, and there was only a little spotting, and I've skipped Knit Night, but I did have dinner with Fourthborn, and I bought two books and several boxes of note cards at Half Price Books.

I would estimate that I'm only about 0.5% scared and 99.5% hopeful at this point. Gonna go swatch some more on my Cardi Cozy.

Irises

That's what was waiting for me when I got home tonight. Also a LBD from Gudrun. Technically, it's a little black dress with grey and white daisies all over it, and I'm going to wear it to work tomorrow for good luck.

I'm glad that General Conference was this past weekend and that I was mostly too busy to think while at work today. I'm also going to be too busy to think tomorrow morning, before I leave for the "bubopsy." I'm hoping that the procedure is quick and painless, and that I'll feel like going to Knit Night tomorrow night. I have an unblocked Carbeth to show off. I've added another round to the current baby sock, and I've begun swatching for my Cardi Cozy in the discontinued color called "Blood."

Yes. Homeopathic knitting. It's a thing.

I would really like to eat a pint of Ben & Jerry's tonight, but I'm going to restrain myself and have some ginger cookies and a small handful of chocolate covered ginger. I had a priesthood blessing last night. I just want to know what's going on in my body and how to fix it. Oye with the poodles and the periods already!

The check really *was* in the mail

And has been deposited electronically. I never dreamed as a kid that someday I would walk around with a smart phone that gives me access to banking, shopping, scripture study, and Sudoku. When I was a kid, I'd never even heard of Sudoku.

At any rate, once the check has cleared, I will throw it on my credit card balance. Today I bought the plane tickets for my birthday getaway.

In knitting news, I added a full two inches to the length of the sleeve before breakfast. I am now going to put my jammies on and finish that sleeve. My goal is to have it joined to the body and the second sleeve cast on before I call it a day.

My sister sent a care package to my office after our talk on Monday: a really sweet card and a cute pair of earrings, which I plan to wear to work tomorrow. Because I can.

Later, gators.

Blogging from my phone.

Yesterday I got the happy news that my promotion and raise have come through and will be effective beginning April 7.

I also learned that I'm getting a sizable escrow refund shortly, because my property taxes dropped so precipitously when I turned 65 last year.

Today on the way to work, my badge leaped out of the pocket on my bag and slipped under the front seat. So I pulled a ticket at the parking garage, knowing that I could get it validated. After I parked, I grabbed the flashlight and started moving the seats forward and backward.

Not only did I find my badge, but also the earring which flew out of my hand a few weeks ago and has been hiding ever since.

Part of my Gudrun order should be here Friday or Saturday. The rest of it around the end of next week. And the book I ordered on Amazon the week after that.

I just finished the sleeve increases on my Carbeth. Now to knit 4.5 more inches before joining it to the body and casting on the second sleeve.

I emailed my sister on Monday night when I was so frazzled about the medical news. She's put a care package in the mail to my office. It should be here shortly.

Overall, my attitude and hopefulness are significantly greater than when I posted on Monday. I awoke yesterday feeling deeply peaceful and with the words of a hymn going through my mind.

Taking my meds and going to bed now.

The bubopsy.

One of my favorite scenes from "My Big Fat Greek Wedding"

Apparently it didn't load. The scene where the aunt is talking to the groom's parents about the bump on her neck that got bigger after she went through menopause. And turned out to have teeth in it.

I had a semi-random thought in the past day or so that I ought to be hearing back about that ultrasound. This afternoon, I did. I am checking Facebook while in the loo. Phone rings.

"Hello, Ms. Ravelled? This is J, the nurse at Wonderful Doctor's. Is this a good time to talk?"

Me: "I'm in the loo. I'll try not to make any explody sounds."

J: [helpless snort] "We got the results on your ultrasound, and the radiologist and Wonderful Doctor both think we need to do a biopsy. Dr. N in our practice group does them, but I don't know how you feel about having a male doctor do the procedure."

Me: "I have absolutely no issues with that. One question: does he have small hands?"

J: "I've worked with him for fourteen years, and it's never occurred to me to look at his hands."

Me: "OK, fine, when can we do this?"

Upshot is that I'm set for the afternoon of April 3, conveniently on a day when I'd already be going to Arlington to pick up Fourthborn for Knit Night. Although I'm not sure I'll be fit for company afterward. I'm currently attempting to recognize, honor, and process the various emotions that are playing Chinese fire drill in my mind and body. I've been fidgety all day, even before I got this news. Tonight my feelings tasted like pizza with a few spoonsful of Denali Extreme Moose Tracks for dessert. And now I'm going to go knit.

Prayers and positive thoughts, if you please.

We are artists, and we leave each other notes.

Frequently our sleep cycles are so dissimilar that we might be living in different time zones, rather than in the same house. Depending on which of us wakes first, Middlest occasionally sets out my vitamins for me. Some notes are more embellished than this one.

Or this one..

This has charming detail, courtesy of Middlest. Note the cat's sharp teeth, perfect for chewing up food scraps and microorganisms. Right now it's waiting on the side of the fridge while the dishwasher runs.

One of my own offerings, left for Middlest when I went to work Friday morning.

We have fun, chez Ravelled.

Yarn chicken and a lifeline

Sunday night I put a lifeline in, eight rounds up from the last band of lace, and decided to see how many more rows I could get in plain stockinette without running out of yarn. If I have calculated correctly, I will be able to knit the band as designed, bind it off, and stitch it down, with a couple of yards to spare. So I pulled my needle out, reinserted it in round 14, and frogged away. I have since knit the picot round and two of the eight rounds of stockinette for the hem. I will probably knit a round or two more before bedtime, but I had to get up and do something else for awhile.

I think we have finally come to the end of the paperwork avalanche re: my workers comp claim, my application for short term disability when I missed all that time at work, and Social Security. I read through the SS pamphlet over the weekend, and I was briefly alarmed about a couple of things, but I went to the website and got my questions answered fairly quickly. The first paperwork said I'd be getting my deposit on the third Wednesday of each month, but the most recent information says it will be the second Wednesday. Who am I to argue with that?

Last night, as we ate dinner, Middlest and I had a long and heartfelt discussion. It was very sweet and tender. I sure do love that kid!

Finish-itis has overcome much of my desire for reading over the past couple of weeks. However, I borrowed a book from my office manager this afternoon and am thoroughly enjoying it. In fact, it's calling my name as I type. Later, gators.

P.S. I find it delightfully ironic that a catalogue from World Vision should appear in my mailbox three days before I get my bonus.

So, that's over with.

I had my "to boldly go where no man has gone" (in five-plus years) ultrasound this morning. The procedure was less uncomfortable than I remembered, perhaps because I had girded myself for it to be fairly awful, and it wasn't. Can't remember if it was the same tech as last time ~ it was the same facility ~ but she was very gentle while being very thorough. I asked her if she saw any space invaders in there, and she cracked up. "Nobody's ever asked me that one before!"

Came home, heated up hamburger patties for Middlest and me, knitted while mine settled, then slept for something like five hours. Weird dreams, and I'll spare you the details, but there was lots of singing, a little dancing, and me telling some guy I've never met "No, because then I'd have to tell my bishop."

Not, "That's morally wrong, and I won't do it." Just the implication that I had better things to do with my time than spend it repenting of that particular sin. My subconscious is a funny, funny place.

In knitting news, I am playing yarn chicken. I have one last band of lace to knit, then fourteen rows of stockinette, a row of eyelets that will form the upper picot edging, and eight more rows of stockinette. My ball of yarn has dwindled to just smaller than fist-sized.

Something tells me that the top edging will end up significantly more shallow than the bottom edging.

I'm trying to wind down for bedtime, remembering that overnight we spring forward, and notwithstanding that nap, I will be an hour short on sleep.

Musings on Nutella + I got new bras

You don't get a visual with either, sorry. I wish it were possible, when I am approaching the bottom of a jar of Nutella and scraping the last bites out with an iced tea spoon, to wiggle my nose like Samantha on Bewitched and turn the container inside out, or transform it into a wide, shallow dish so that not one atom of choco-nutty goodness would be lost.

I ordered two new bras about ten days ago. They arrived yesterday. Things I like about this:

1. I got to throw away my old bra, with the broken-but-not-quite-poking-out-through-its-casing underwire.
2. These hook in the front, and I bought them in a larger band size and smaller cup size, hoping that I'd guessed right on both volume and support, and that I would no longer have to chase after bra straps which were heading for my elbows. I have small, sloping shoulders. Band size is one problem. Cup size is another. Spacing of the straps has been a nightmare for years.
3. They're not ugly.
4. I did not, in fact, have to wrangle my bra straps today. They pretty much stayed put once I was hooked in and fluffed.
5. I have cleavage. Nobody gets to see it, but it's there.
6. They don't bunch up the top of my temple garment like the old bra did.

Things I'm not crazy about:

1. They're not molded and slightly padded like the old bra, so every time my shoulder harness slides around as I drive, my right boob hollers, "Hey, you don't know me that well!" I spent most of the drive home tonight with my right hand tucked inside the shoulder harness, holding it slightly out from my body about midway between boob and waistband.
2. Minimal lift. I'm not sure how the catalogue models manage to look demurely perky, but on me the look is more like a souffle after you've taken out a serving or two.
3. I thought I was buying a posture bra, where the back section rises several inches above the band, but apparently I did not.

If I were going to design a bra for myself, it would have lightly molded cups, underwires, a posture back, and be available in nearly-A, nearly-B, nearly-C, etc., cup sizes. Maybe that's a second career for me, once I retire: Bespoke Brassieres - Get those puppies off the floor.

In other news, last night I asked for recommendations for a house painter, and I had three leads by the time I went to bed. I don't know if the gallons upon gallons of green paint that Beloved bought on deep discount are still any good. That would be a tender mercy. I like the current color, so I could easily live with it until the house needed repainting again.

But for now I'm going to shut down this popsicle stand and go knit until bedtime.

Tree dudes came (before and after pics)

Front of the house, with stump, pecan, something behind it that I'm keeping for now, vastly overgrown crape myrtle, miscellaneous volunteer trees, and a Texas sage that is staying because it's so pretty when it blooms. Even though I'm probably allergic to it.

Here you can see the poor pecan tree. That branch extending to the right is going, as is the one reaching out to you in front, and probably the one extending to the left.You can see the "something behind it that I'm keeping for now" more clearly in this photo, as well as one of the small crape myrtles that will get topped off at about 5' high. The rolling tractor seat has been shoved up against the pecan tree to keep it from rolling down to the retaining wall. The Lawn Dudes never put it back in the right spot, so I'm going to have to figure something out that establishes its home.

Profile of the trimmed tree. The birds were cussing me out this morning.

This the second crape myrtle.

And after its haircut.

This is a dwarf Burford holly, and it's getting trimmed and shaped.

Like this.

Au revoir, Stumpy. It was great while it lasted.

The guys pitched my little planter. I made them put it back.

This is the front of the house now, with all of the trash trees gone.

  

This is that little crape myrtle bush that was hiding behind the pecan tree in the second picture

OK, I'm done. Night, y'all.

Stake conference weekend

Wow, the adversary *really* didn't want me to share this. First my phone battery died, then the Facebook page fritzed and rebooted on my laptop.

I went to the Saturday evening session yesterday, which is usually the best session for me in terms of ability to concentrate. And even when it isn't, it sets my mood for the general meeting on Sunday. It was great to sustain President Nelson as our new prophet, seer, and revelator. The visiting general authority did not disappoint. (They never have, at least for me.)

But my big take-away was when our second counselor shared the inspiration he'd had to purchase a new Book of Mormon, refer to the threefold purpose listed on the title page, and start going through his new copy, highlighting each instance he found of each purpose in one of three colors.

My "new" Triple is almost 30 years old, and I'd been thinking it was about time to replace it. I was slightly amused to see that sometime in the past, I'd highlighted the keywords of those purposes on my current copy. I don't see that I ever tried to do my own scripture chase regarding these purposes.

This is a small and simple thing I can do to enrich and deepen my understanding and application. Color me (😜) excited!

My bonus hits in two weeks, and I've added "large-sized quadruple combination" to my spreadsheet and pasted the URL of the page to order it. I'm a little sad that the only color options are black and brown. I bought my current Triple Combination and Holy Bible in 1992, and they have burgundy covers. Back then, you could get your scriptures in burgundy, teal, or green as well as black and brown. I understand that reducing the color choices means that no out-of-fashion colors will be languishing at the Distribution Center. But I was kinda hoping to get a teal quad this time around. This will be a stay-at-home set of scriptures, for when I want to chill in bed and dive into the Word.

My phone dying for the second time today means that I can show you neither the before-and-after post of my front yard that is halfway written and illustrated, nor pictures of knitting progress from last night and today.

I hope your Sabbath was as blessed and peaceful as mine.

So much to say. No idea where to begin.

Yeah, I've missed you, too. OK, I'll start with the good news.

This was my first week working with the new attorney, and it went well. I'll have a new case to open for her on Monday, but right now my half of her docket equals six cases. When I left the office today, I had long since wrangled all my ToDo's, gotten her mail and SemperFi's mail out, and reduced the emails in my inbox to approximately twenty. I had also winnowed out my pending folder for SemperFi, worked all of her mail and part of his, and left with a desk that looked functional and organized.

I like my new chair. It's a little wider in the seat than the one which bucked me off, and I think I've got everything adjusted reasonably well.

I've been drowning in paperwork for the workers comp claim and the short term disability request. I mailed off a packet to the workers comp administrators today, and I also got confirmation that all the days of disability I had requested, have been approved, and my PTO bank has been restored to happy levels.

Middlest's doctor's appointment on Monday went well. The dosage level of both the migraine med and the ADD med have been tweaked upward, and my kid is in the throes of adjusting to that. The migraine med now provides about a five hour window wherein Middlest's ambient pain level drops from an 8 to a 3. (This is on the Middlest pain scale, wherein a 3 is probably somebody else's 8.)

I have spent most of my evenings this week in my room with the door slightly cracked open in case Middlest needs me, but mostly hiding and knitting. I need to wind two balls of the bright yellow laceweight yarn so I can resume banging out my Carbeth. I learned midway through the first ball that doubling the yarn on itself and doubling again did not guarantee that all four ends would finish at the same place. So for the next bit I will have two separate balls and pull strands from inside and outside on both, to make up the four strands I need to approximate the girth of two strands of DK held together. I love how the stitches look. I have about three inches of sweater body done.

Tuesday morning I had my quarterly blood work, and all of the numbers came back in acceptable ranges. This was the closest I've gotten to a proper score on my HDL, and my overall score was 149, so I have to concede that the Pravastatin is doing its job.

After that, I drove back to Dallas for my appointment with Social Security, and the cha-ching is a few dollars higher than the guesstimate they gave me when I made the appointment. I was able to set up withholding, so I won't have to remember to file quarterly estimates with Uncle Sam.

We (Middlest, Fourthborn, and I) had our every-four-months cleaning at Wonderful Dentist's, and none of us had any cavities, and we celebrated as usual at Cheesecake Factory.

Now for the less exciting news. When I was at the doctor's Tuesday morning, I let her know that the blood in the urine that made me think "kidney infection" in mid-December had returned, exactly eight weeks later. Apparently one of my ovaries has been playing Rip Van Winkle and decided to wake up, because I had a three day period last weekend. So next Saturday I am having another high-tech ultrasound, quelle joie. And maybe the cause will be non-scary and easy to fix. (That procedure I had four years ago was supposed to take care of things.)

In happier news, the tree dude is coming over tomorrow to go over the yard with me. I've taken a few "before" pictures and need to take more, because I think the "after" is going to be amazing, other than the fact that the need to repaint the exterior is going to be that much more obvious with the jungle cut down. Lawn Dude texted me today and asked me to let him know when he needs to start up again. I thanked him and told him I would.

It was a beautiful day today. Our paralegal and I took SemperFi to lunch for his birthday, which is Sunday. I had the best quesadilla I've eaten in years. We ate at the Owner's Box in the Omni Hotel (the one they built in that $4 parking lot I used to use when I was taking the train from Fort Worth but needed to drive in). The service is glacial, but the food is so good.

Tomorrow we pick up quilt blocks, and I have a small project in mind. If it works out, I'll blog about it. If it doesn't, you'll never know.

Cowlabunga

Neither my laptop nor my phone were cooperating last night. The colors are ridiculously muted here. Maybe I should use something other than my paisley sheets as a backdrop. Skew the blues to teals and brighten the beige to gold, and you'll have a better idea of how snazzy this turned out.

In other good news, I was told the amount of my raise for 2018, and I am pleased. It becomes effective on February 24 and will show up in my checking account in mid-March, along with a bonus that is considerably better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.

I've spent bits of the last several nights working on my spreadsheet and refining my budget. I set some financial goals on Monday night and began to plan out how to achieve them. I tweaked the spreadsheet a little night and no doubt will be doing more of that as the year progresses.

I go back to the doctor tomorrow afternoon for a recheck on last week's fall when my chair broke. I have felt immensely blessed all week, and I've been ferociously productive at work. Which means that tonight I am knackered but victorious, realizing that I could have done little without major help from above.

Theoretically I was going to sew on the RS project tonight, but instead I'm going to pour myself a glass of buttermilk and grab a handful of ginger cookies and make an early night of it.

Flying by the seat of my pants. More or less. And a finished object.

Crossing "rodeo cowgirl" off my bucket list. Friday my chair at work broke, tipping the seat perpendicular to the floor and bucking me off in the process. (Perfect three point landing!) All the pertinent parts were X-rayed to a fare-thee-well at an urgent care center after work. One tiny bruise, but otherwise nothing damaged but my dignity.

I was pretty stiff Friday but slept most of it off overnight. I had a six hour nap yesterday and woke refreshed and almost ache-free. However, I slept so long that I missed the window of opportunity at the pharmacy and had to get my prescription for industrial strength ibuprofen filled after sacrament meeting today.

Bonus of sorts: I learned that I have arthritis in my right hip and right hand at the thumb, which were both more tender than usual after my fall.

I didn't have too much difficulty standing up to lead the music in sacrament meeting today. Sitting down was slower and more painful. Plus, for the intermediate hymn and the closing hymn, I felt a little light-headed after standing. Not vertigo per se, just the slightest sense of disconnection.

I got a priesthood blessing after sacrament meeting from my good home teacher and another friend, and then I came home and grabbed what I thought was my prescription, but was not. So, in all, three roundtrips to the pharmacy to get that prescription filled, but it's done, and at no cost to me.

This is actually finished object #3 for the year, but I have a great pun for the second one, so it will get its own blog post.

I made this hat from the yarn leftover from the mitts that I made for Middlest last year. The ball band is long since history, and I don't feel like jumping over to Ravelry to see if I remembered to record it there.

The pattern is another Daniel Yuhas recipe, and it was a joy to knit. I've handed over the last dab of yarn to Middlest, along with the hat.

I have a good-sized ball of fat charcoal grey acrylic yarn that I used when knitting for the homeless in late 2016. I thought a hat from this same pattern would be a good idea to use up the yarn productively, but either the needles I chose were too small, or the yarn was insufficiently elastic for the multitude of K1fb increases. I knit until the crown was about 4" across, and it was a stiff and cranky bit of fabric, so I frogged it and put those needles away. There's the slightest possibility that I have a crochet hook of the proper size, but more than likely I will just hand it off to Fourthborn for her dolly rehab projects.

I'm feeling another nap coming on, so this is it for today.

Coordination.

The colors are skewed here. in real life, that skirt is russet verging on cranberry, as are the darker stripes in the shirt and the border on the scarf. The tights and lighter stripes are sort of an electric pumpkin. Items on the left are from Gudrun's catalogue. Scarf on the right courtesy of my sister, several years ago when she purged her closet.

This is me in my Knit Swirl. Corporate was wanting pictures of our favorite sweaters, but I procrastinated having a coworker snap a picture until after the link was gone. Oh well. Cheesy grin at no extra charge.

Last week at work was intense. Not brutal, but intense.It was with great relief that I wore Beloved's BYU shirt and jeans and sneakers to work on Friday. I got a whale of a lot accomplished each day, but I came home not wanting to write or think. Read a little. Knitted rather more. I finished my cowl and will be sending the leftover yarn to my sister on the way to Knit Night after work on Tuesday. I took the remaining yarn from when I knitted those infernally cabled mitts for Middlest last year and cast on a ribbed watch cap for said child. I'm using a recipe from my Daniel Yuhas "from the center out" book. Finished the increases before bedtime last night and have a little over two inches worked on the straightaway.

When this one is done, will cast on another from the super bulky charcoal grey acrylic I bought year before last to knit for the homeless. And then I will begin a new round of baby socks from the bag of yarn I brought home from church today. One of my friends is moving to Tennessee. I am the beneficiary of her sock yarn stash. There's some really good stuff in there, yarns I've always sort of wanted to try but never got around to. Now's my chance.

This is all I've got for you tonight. But I've missed y'all. Work is less stressful. My health appears to have stabilized. I've gotten two good naps in this weekend. And right now I just want to knit until I can no longer keep my eyes open. Later, gators.

Another long week.

But a slightly better one. I worked overtime three nights of it, and I was pretty much caught up until the system went down yesterday afternoon. Thankfully, I had my knitting and made some progress there while waiting to see if the system came up before quitting time. (It didn't.)

I also had plenty of time to clean off my desk and dust my cubicle. We are having bigwigs in the office next week. No jeans until they're all safely gone. Everything shipshape. I'm assigned to the kitchen committee. Quelle joie! Which means that every so often I need to go in and make sure that the counters are spotless and that the break room looks as if nobody ever eats in there. I got to muck out the big fridge yesterday afternoon.

Today I did the Costco run and the Braum's run and washed six small-to-medium loads of laundry, sorted by color, urgency, and dryer heat. The last load is about to go into the dryer. Everything else is folded and put away, which is in itself a miracle on the order of the loaves and the fishes.

Strangely, I am not knackered.

There has been knitting. And reading. And I finished my tax return but cannot file it until we get an exemption certificate for Middlest so I don't get dinged for my kid having no insurance. No job = no income = no insurance =  frustration on both our parts, because last year I just filed with none of this nonsense and no repercussions.

It was a glorious day to be outside running errands. Temperate breeze while I tanked the Tardis. I love feeling my hair fly about (as long as I am not wearing lipstick, that is).

I tried on the cowl I'm knitting, and it fits exactly as I'd hoped. I'm not sure how much longer to make it. I'm inclined to knit until I run out of yarn, but if I knew that I had enough yarn for it, I'd stop now and knit coordinating mitts. As it is, I think I'll just keep going with the cowl and find a fatter yarn in the funky neutral and whip up another pair of Fetching.

The new Gudrun Sjödén catalogue arrived midweek, at the end of an exhausting day. I stayed up way too late drooling over it. Basically, I want one of everything, in one color or another, and a walk-in closet or maybe just a larger house. *snort*

The yarn is calling. Later, gators.

A long week.

I made it to work all four days from Tuesday through Friday. Got my emails wrangled. Got my ToDo's pretty much whipped into shape. Got all of the outgoing mail sent. Reviewed the mail my coworkers wrangled while I was out and deleted those folders. Endured three separate meetings and watched switchboard during a meeting for the admin team.

Came home the first three nights tired but triumphant and grateful. Came home last night grateful for my anti-anxiety and muscle relaxer prescriptions. Not to mention 28 minutes of inadvertent overtime. I was ready to pinch SemperFi's head off. I was almost ready to email the office manager and ask her to assign me to someone else.

At home, Middlest was having an equally difficult day. When I messaged to saying that my day had gone south at the end and that I was taking myself out to dinner so as not to bring that toxicity home with me, my kid asked me to bring something home as well. And then my phone went berserk as I walked down to the Tardis and sent Middlest about a dozen crying/screaming stickers, which I didn't see until I was halfway home, and which didn't help my beloved child's mental state at all.

I decided that Panera take-out was a more sensible solution than the steak/baked sweet/Caesar salad (surrounded by people) that I'd initially envisioned. So I picked up my dinner and hit Bueno for Middlest's, put Middlest's on the kitchen counter, and took mine to my room.

I was almost immediately grateful that Middlest had asked me to do a small kindness, and it was almost immediately effective in beginning to turn my attitude around. I knitted a little after dinner, read my scriptures, and crashed somewhat earlier than I've been doing since going back to work.

Today has been a good day. Adequate rest last night, successful runs to Daiso (for disposable face masks) then Costco then home. Quick lunch after helping to put the food away. Lovely nap. Knitting in companionable silence while Middlest ate dinner. Loading the dishwasher and making my own dinner, eaten with my legs up in bed. After which I ran to Braum's for the usual plus a dozen eggs and a package of discounted white chocolate macadamia nut cookies that I have divvied up for lunches next week.

I've downloaded the first book in one of my favorite mystery series (Lord Peter Wimsey) to my Kindle for re-reading. It's time to take my evening meds, sort out my pills for next week, and go knit or read until I'm ready to sleep again.

I am so looking forward to attending church tomorrow. I haven't been well enough to attend in almost a month. I need to take the sacrament, and I want to see my friends and fellowship with them.

Kind of a weird but good day.

Lots and lots of sleeping. I could probably get an Olympic medal for sleeping. Not much else has happened. Less coughing than yesterday. A little coloring while listening to "Adventures in Music" tonight. Several more chapters in the novel I'm reading. Multiple trips to the shipping notice to see if my latest order is still hung up in Cologne (Koeln). It is.

I did a (very) little work on my taxes today. Changed my password, confirmed my personal information, and entered a handful of numbers. I set the timer in the kitchen so I would not lose track of time and sit here too long.

The Cranberries' lead singer is dead at 46. I loved her voice. Cause of death is not known at this time. She leaves three children. I hope she is at peace, and I pray that her family may be comforted.

Today is Beloved's fifth angelversary. Ordinarily, I try to spend this day in service to others, but that's difficult when I'm convalescing. I'm pretty much limited to prayers (not a small thing), positive thoughts, and scattering joy on Facebook.

One of the best things that happened was finding the name of an artist I'd never heard of (Rackstraw Downes) in an interview of an LDS artist on Segullah, googling him, and IMing Fourthborn's roommate the artist's name. As I'd hoped, my friend was delighted.

Another good thing was a picture my dear friend R shared on Facebook, painted by a Haitian artist, of Dr. King gently shushing the POTUS. I shared that as well, and I will probably get unfriended by a lot of people for it, but the man is anything but presidential. I was not a huge fan of the prior POTUS's politics, but I respected him as a human being. I wish I could say that for the sitting one.

Happy thoughts, need some happy thoughts. OK, here's one: I spent a few minutes this afternoon whirring ginger cookie crumbs in the food processor and adding them to the stash in the freezer. I think we are almost to the point where I can use them as the crust for a pumpkin cheesecake.

A very happy thought, indeed!

Turning the other cheek

That's all I seem to be doing these days. Sit up in bed until my tush goes to sleep. Lie on one side until my hand goes to sleep. Sit out here in the dining room on a hard chair until my legs go to sleep.

Today is my sixth wedding anniversary. It's been a lovely, calm day, dampened only by the fact that I kept my germs at home instead of going to church. Two of my kids have posted photo memories on Facebook.

I've knitted, colored, listened to classical music, taken a long nap, and figured out things to eat that won't make me cough. There really has been minimal coughing today, and very little drainage. While I'm still not fully recovered from this flu, I feel infinitely better than I did a week ago today, when I dragged myself to the after-hours clinic and came home with an Rx for Tamiflu.

I just want to be well and stay that way for a good long while, if that's Heaven's plan for my growth. My parents have been popping up in my dreams with increasing frequency. They're typically reproving me when they do. And they weren't picky-picky people in mortality. Maybe the next time I'll have sufficient presence of mind to ask if this is a big hint from the Universe or if they're just there to remind me that I need to do more family history research.

Willing to do that, absolutely. (The latter, not the former.) I need to be able to sit with my legs and feet down long enough to make it happen.

In which your intrepid heroine finishes a book!

After 65 years, I've finally read The Princess Bride. It's good, different in several respects from the movie, and I liked it.

I'm also on the third volume of Doescher's William Shakespeare's Star Wars series.

Yesterday I frogged the cowl I'd been working on for a week and cast on something else. Today I frogged that and am forging ahead with a different idea.

I'm at the crabby stage of convalescence. (I may have said this before.) Doc says I can think about going back to work on Tuesday. I've been coughing a little all day, not sure why. I just want to be well and whole and normal. Back at work, earning a living, visiting with my friends.

My appetite is erratic. And imperious. If I'm not hungry or eating, I'm napping or thinking about it.

Popcorn. Ooh, yes please. Later, gators!

Three days later, and I'm still on the mend.

Which is a good thing. I sent a secure message to my doctor's office, inquiring as to when I'm no longer a danger to public health. I suspect to hear back sometime tomorrow. I have zero intention of going into work until next week, or my doctor OKs it, whichever comes first.

So what I have I done today? Read a nice chunk of The Princess Bride. (Don't faint, Fourthborn.) Cleared one small spot on the living room floor and moved its contents under the orange buffet thingie by the window in what used to be the breakfast nook. Cleared a smaller spot and finished filling in under the buffet and between it and the tall chest of drawers. Swept up some feral dust bunnies that had set up camp around both cleared spots. Finished loading the dishwasher and ran it.

That's about as domestic as I got. A friend from church was kind enough to include our short list in her Costco run and drop it off. A different friend will make a Braums run tomorrow for fresh milk, OJ, and the like.

I've done some coloring and completed the first lace band on the cowl that I'm knitting. A handful of items have gone into the paper bags by the front door that will be tossed into the recycling bin once they're full. A handful of other items are tossed against the door to the garage and will get washed tomorrow (or whenever).

It's supposed to freeze tonight. We have our taps dripping slowly. I have zero desire to walk out into the garage and start a load of darks. Ask me again tomorrow.

I needed to come out here and sit in a different position than I settle into when I'm resting in bed. My tush is no longer asleep, but my legs are both tingling in warning. Later, gators. Ms. Ravelled is feeling remarkably human again. Thank you for your prayers and positive thoughts.

What am I supposed to be learning from this?

I've been puny for a little over two months now. And I'm sick (ha ha) and tired of it. I did not go to church yesterday, because the cough that sprang up Friday night got worse over Saturday, and while I didn't think I was contagious, I also didn't think it was fair to my friends to go and be wrong.

It is a measure of how lousy I felt that Saturday night I set the alarm for 9:00, reasoning that it would give plenty of notice to the bishop and two friends who could sub as chorister, entirely forgetting that this is a new year, and we are now meeting at 9:00. Thankfully, one of those friends stepped in.

I was at the after-hours clinic a little after they opened at 1:00, and I was not the first person there. I tried hard not to cough on anyone. I had a pocketful of Ricola, which I consumed well before I got called back to an examining room. I was sitting in a chair that backed up to a window, and I was not wearing a jacket. After I'd been there a couple of hours, I started shivering. As soon as the bench emptied which backed up to an inside wall, I claimed it.

When the nurse took me back for triage, she swabbed my nose for flu and took my temperature, which was 100.2. (In normal people terms, that would be 101+. And my BP, which is normally around 106/65-70, was 143/79.) She sent me back to the waiting room until an examining room became open.

The doctor was great. His name was Short, and he was not. I pointed out to him that that was false advertising. He gave me something more than a pity laugh and confirmed that I have the flu, and since I am diabetic we would be attacking it with Tamiflu.

Thus far, I am impressed. I've taken three doses. My temperature is only about half a degree above normal, my coughs are productive, less frequent, and no longer bone-shattering. It will probably be a day or two before my abdominal muscles forgive me. I could barely roll out of bed this morning. I'm sleeping a lot. And I'm finally developing an appetite.

I was ravenous when I got home from the pharmacy last night, and my body kept NOPE-ing. Buttermilk? Three sips and put the cup in the fridge. Leftover chipotle mashed potatoes? Three bites and what the hell do you think you're doing? One pretzel and you spit that out right now, missy, and go straight to bed! So I did.

Somewhere around the end of the day I was sufficiently awake to search Ravelry for a one-skein cowl, cast it on, and work most of three rounds. As of this writing, the picot hem at the bottom is finished, and I'm ready to gallop onward. Since the yarn I'm using is DK, and the pattern is written for fingering, I'm eliminating rows methodically in hopes of having enough. I like what I'm seeing thus far.

I wore one of the new stripedy shirts to the clinic yesterday. It fits perfectly. The skirt and tights that I ordered last week are scheduled to be here on Friday. Now I just need to be well enough to wear them out in public.

First FO of 2018!

First finished object of the new year. Knitted "necklace" from Daniel Yuhas's Knitting from the Center Out ~ a find at Half Price Books several weeks ago. His design features two yarns and round after round of twisted knit stitches. I opted for Cascade Yarns Heritage Silk Painted (the first yarn I've liked from that company) and no twisted stitches.

I've now cast on Willow Cowl by Amelia Lyon. I'm knitting it in the same Araucania yarn that I gave to my sister for Christmas. The shop owner wound the ball for me and forgot to pop the ball band into the core of the ball, so I've emailed my sister to ask her for specs. I'm three rows in on the picot hem at the bottom, knitting it very carefully on DP's. This will be a stay-at-home project unless and until I move it onto a circular needle. I've only dropped one stitch thus far.

Likening the scriptures.

This is something we are encouraged to do: read the scriptures, ponder them, and see their application in our personal lives. This evening I was reading in Alma 43, and this verse jumped out at me.

Alma 43:8 "For behold, his designs were to stir up the Lamanites [historically the bad guys] to anger against the Nephites [historically the good guys]; this he did that he might usurp great power over them, and also that he might gain power over the Nephites by bringing them into bondage."

What popped into my mind next was the current political climate in this country and in many parts of the world. Evil men twisting their scriptures or dogma to incite hatred, whether it be ISIS among the Muslims, alt-right among ostensible Christians, or the worst element on the liberal side of the spectrum. Why do people do this? The desire for power over others. First they enslave their own people. Then they endeavor to use their slaves to conquer the Other.

Opposition is necessary in this life. Without struggle, failure, or heartache we cannot appreciate achievement, success, or joy. We need people who are tender-hearted, those who are tough-minded, people who can solve problems using logic and orderly progression, others who solve problems with compassion and education. Not all pegs are square; not all holes are round. We need inventors who create tools to free up people's time and other resources. We need dreamers who create art and music and literature with the time the inventors have freed up. We need prophets and scriptures and personal inspiration and revelation. We need to see the miraculous in one another. We need to see how our differences fit together like yin and yang to make a more interesting whole.

After the resurrected Savior visited the New World, several generations passed away in righteousness. 4 Nephi 1:17 "There were no robbers, nor murderers, neither were there Lamanites, nor any manner of -ites; but they were in one, the children of Christ, and heirs to the kingdom of God."

We are all children of the same Heavenly Parents, descendants of Adam and Eve, Noah and his sons, Father Abraham. Even those who do not consider themselves People of the Book are literally our brothers and sisters.

And we need to play nicely with one another, to spite the Devil.

Found objects.

First of all, I found that missing 4" DP. I don't remember if I mentioned it before, and I'm not inclined to go check. It was hanging out inside the ball of yarn that I'd checked three or four times. Best guess is that Beloved or one of the Three Nephites was having a bit of fun at my expense.

I also brought the bag of knitting inside after our Costco run yesterday, and I finished another tentacle (for lack of a better word) on the current project. I got maybe a quarter of the way along the sixth, penultimate one before falling into a book and coming out only to throw dinner together.

The January "Ensign" came yesterday, and I devoured it. I've been looking for the December issue, off and on, since I've been home with cellulitis, and I'd figured out all of the places it wasn't. This morning I found it in a stack by my computer desk. Where I've not been sitting since before Thanksgiving because my CPU was not speaking to its monitors. So I've spent some time reading that today but have not finished.

Right now I'm typing on the laptop at the dining room table while Middlest eats dinner. My toes are freezing. The rest of me is not far behind. I should probably put on a sweater or grab Beloved's sweatshirt and maybe think about putting on socks. It's supposed to be cold all weekend, which suits me fine. Far easier to put on layers than to peel through epidermis and let the wind whistle through my ribs in August.

Ankles are continuing to heal. The color is almost normal, and there's only a hint of swelling in the left one.

Time to stow the leftovers from dinner and set the taps to dripping. I would love to dive into a giant vat of hot chocolate and poach away this chill. Later, gators.

At the urging of my friends...

I went to the night clinic Wednesday night, and as it happened, the doctor who attended me was Beloved's (now mostly retired) PCP. He extended my Rx through Monday.

Both legs are looking better. I've mostly rested, except for the bit where we went to Costco yesterday and hit two Half Price Books on the way home, with a stop for a sit-down lunch. I now have the Shakespearean Star Wars episodes 4, 5, and 6 in hand, and I ordered 2, 3, and 7 from Amazon.

Since I did not need to go to the ER Wednesday night for IV antibiotics, or be admitted to the hospital, I came home and took advantage of the sale at Gudrun Sjödrén. Five new tops and a dress will show up on my doorstep in the next week or so. One of the tops has a loose and slouchy turtleneck, and I think it will be perfect with the necklace that my sister gave me for Christmas.

I cannot get in to see my doctor until Friday, unless she's scheduled to work the night clinic in Arlington before then. I've set a reminder to call her office on Tuesday (closed for New Year's Day, as is only right and proper) to see if they've gotten the schedule. They hadn't when I called late yesterday morning.

I was a good kid and used a handicap scooter while at Costco. The basket looked like something out of Grapes of Wrath by the time we were done buying the things we've been putting off. We still managed to get out of there in half an hour or so.

More progress on the current knitting project, which spent the night in the Tardis after our trip to the clinic, because I didn't want to bundle up and go back out to fetch it. Right now the fabric for the December quilt blocks is soaking or hung to dry in my shower. I'll take however many days are necessary to get it pressed, marked, cut out, and sewn together while honoring the need to rest and elevate my legs.

That's all I've got for you, poppets. I stayed up long enough for a half muffin and a mug of warm milk, and now I'm going to set the alarm for dark-thirty and call it a day.