melaniesuzanne: (Edward's cool hat)
It's been an exhausting ten eight days (obviously exhausting: I can't do math). Last Tuesday, Hubbyfink underwent a thirteen hour surgery -- we were separated for fifteen hours -- to remove what turned out to be a tennis ball-sized tumor from the balance nerve behind his left ear and his spinal cord. Since I had nothing else to do but fret, I wound up putting in a full day of work from the waiting room. Around 11pm, I finally got to see Hubbyfink in the Surgical ICU and did a very good job of blinking back tears and being cheerful for him.

He looked like an extra from "M.A.S.H." His head was covered in bandages, there were bruises on the visible parts of his face, and he had wires and tubes all over the place. He faded in and out of consciousness but we did get to say that we love each other. I drove home in a terrible thunderstorm and got to bed twenty hours after waking.

When I got back to Holy Cross Hospital (in Silver Spring, MD -- about an hour from our home) on Wednesday, Hubbyfink was sitting upright in a recliner. He didn't have an appetite, but he drank Ginger Ale like a champ. His head was still wrapped in bandages, but the bruises had faded and some of the tubes were gone.

On Thursday, he felt even better and was eating breakfast when I arrived. He moved from SICU to a regular room that evening, no longer needed pain medication, and was off the saline drip.

Friday evening, Hubbyfink was discharged from Holy Cross and transported to Shady Grove Adventist Rehabilitation Hospital in Rockville, MD where he stayed until Tuesday morning. During his time in rehab, he underwent occupational and physical therapies. He aced both. I was present for his PT Saturday and Sunday, and during Monday's session, I told his doctor that he would be discharged Tuesday at the latest. The rehab doctor wanted him to stay through this weekend, but Hubbyfink was MISERABLE in the facility. He, his surgeon, and his surgeon's therapist tried to get him discharged, but it wasn't until I showed up in my ass-kicking clothes and boots and bullied the doctor that we got the process going.

Do not question Ass-Kicking Wife.

I sprung Hubbyfink from rehab yesterday morning and carted him over to his surgeon's office for a follow-up appointment. The office staff was amazed by his progress, considering he'd had surgery a mere week ago, and his surgeon told him to get rid of the walker the rehab center made him use. Hubbyfink's homecoming was an emotional affair. It took a little while before the cats warmed up to him, but we wound up with the entirety of our small family in bed last night.

He's moving around very well on his own, although I do watch him on the stairs. He's ecstatic that he doesn't have to ask someone to help him to the bathroom or to move from bed to the sofa. I'm working from home until I feel comfortable leaving him on his own. If he's up to it, we'll take my car over to the campus and I'll let him try driving a bit. He won't be fighting or back on the bike any time soon, but we'll work on getting him back to normal.

Oh, and speaking of my car, it's a good thing I love it so much because from Saturday to Tuesday I put 290 miles on Bebe. Sure, there are lots of folks in this area who put that kind of mileage on their cars in that time frame, but that mileage typically takes me a month!
melaniesuzanne: (Spring)
Saturday was absolutely lovely. I practiced my uke a bit and learned a few more chords. The transitions to and from G are coming along except for my middle finger trying to jump onto the ring finger's string. There was some cursing, but no tears. I also worked on learning the bluegrass and Calypso strums. Fun!

In the early afternoon, I cajoled Hubbyfink into going on a quick (for us) bike trip to the post office and grocery store which ended up with us cruising through neighborhoods and along the bike trail. I met girlfriends for dinner and was flattered by the flirting of an adorable waiter/bartender. My single girlfriends were less than enthused about the smug-married getting all the attention, but I guess it's easier to flirt when you know there's nothing to come out of it. After dinner, we indulged in shopping therapy at Ulta (yay, makeup!) and Target (yay, everything else!). I grabbed a spring headband for each of us to wear as we cruised up and down the aisles. We looked like a bunch of lunatics, I'm sure.


[livejournal.com profile] pirategirleee, LJ-less Kim, moi, and [livejournal.com profile] psalite


Sunday was not so great, unfortunately. I awoke with Scott's cold, bleagh. I spent the day on the red sofa of AWESOMENESS and burned through back episodes of "Enlightened" via HBO On-Demand and introduced Hubbyfink to "The Jerk". He questions my taste in movies, and this one was the absolute cherry on the cake of what he calls "effed-up movies". I blame my parents.

Bedtime was super early for me. In fact, I almost crashed half way through "The Walking Dead", thinking I'd watch it later this week on the DVR. But I soldiered through and crawled into bed, fortified with a healthy dose of Nyquil, for a not-as-fitful-as-expected night. I still feel like crap, but I'm upright crap and have gotten quite a lot accomplished in the office. I lament that I'm too unwell to bike commute, but warmer days are ahead and I can go two-wheeled again before too much longer.
melaniesuzanne: (skyclad by Coop)
Frankenstorm is on its way and the right side of my face hurts so badly that I only managed to cat nap with an ice pack on my face, two Tylenol PM, and four Advil. Good times. Other storm-related unhappiness is that I will dismantle and stow away the graveyard and ghosts lest they blow away and create hazards for other people. The one year that I decorate well in advance of Halloween... Ah well. The Halloween weather forecast has gone from dry and sunny to rainy and windy.

Poop.

Saw "Sinister" last night. I alternated between boredom and tension. At one point, I even pulled out my phone to check Fandango to see how long the movie was supposed to be. The jump scares were cheap, the characters were stupid, and the lighting was atrocious. I'm pretty sure that the lighting was supposed to be "atmospheric", but the darkness was annoying and distracting. I should have sneaked out of the auditorium and into "Paranormal Activity 4".

Happily, I am working a half day due to a mid-afternoon hair appointment and getting a jump start on my birthday weekend. Tomorrow is the big four-oh and I've got a lot of celebrating planned. Tonight, I'm heading over to [livejournal.com profile] carthew's house to play sous chef as she prepares my birthday cake. Tomorrow, I make the final tweaks to my costume for [livejournal.com profile] flonzy and [livejournal.com profile] azpapillion's Halloween/Birthday party. I may also jump on a bike and take a forty mile ride if my sinus stops hurting long enough for me to stop feeling like I'll pass out.

Oh, and Scott did get me the Lego Haunted House. It hasn't arrived yet, but he did order it. Yay!

So.

Jan. 16th, 2012 11:02 am
melaniesuzanne: (Default)
I found out last week how much the stomach flu sucks. You know, I've always thought that food poisoning was a quick and dirty unpleasantness, but it turns out that stomach flu is the quick one. I spent one day hurling and another day and a half doing the other symptom of stomach flu while burning and freezing with fever. I also lost five pounds in those two and a half days and got a trip to the ER where I was pumped with two bags of saline (or whatever solution they use), anti-nausea medicine and a painkiller. And then I spent Saturday and Sunday recovering. Oof.

When I wasn't clinging to the toilet bowl on Thursday, I was angry that I was so sick on such a beautiful day. I'd planned to bike to work but noooooo, my body had other things in store.

On the upside, I got a LOT of reading done. I started Feed by Mira Grant (aka Seanan McGuire) which is set in a world in which we've cured the common cold and cancer, but the virus created by the mixture of those cures has also made humans (and mammals larger than forty pounds) reanimate upon death. The story follows a team of bloggers who cover a senator's presidential campaign in this not-quite-post-apocalyptic world. Some of the technobabble is eye-rolly, but I've been staying up WAY past bedtime because the story is a page-turner. It took a lot of willpower to leave the Kindle at home this morning.

In other news, the kitties got poked and prodded by a profession cat poker/prodder on Saturday. Oreo was angel; Margie was a hissy-spitty-white-hot-ball-of-feline-fury, according to Hubbyfink. Oreo has the start of an ear infection. Aside from that, they are both in good health if quite overweight. Oreo's topping out at seventeen pounds. Oof. I'm going to talk with the vet about the best food options when I take O back for his follow-up.

That's all the news that's fit (or unfit in the first paragraph's case) to print. I'm happy to be upright and once again a semi-productive member of society.

melaniesuzanne: (Default)
I appear to have succumbed to the New Year plague which is going around. I suspect the VP with whom I nearly collided while cornering a cube passed his cold to me. He was out Wednesday and, I suspect, yesterday. I can't confirm yesterday since I spent Thursday passing in and out of consciousness on the Red Sofa of AWESOMENESS. Today I am back in the cube farm playing the role of Typhoid Mary and stuffing tissues up my left nostril.

I am the epitome of class.

And of course today is the most gorgeous and warm day of this week. I really, really, really wanted to bike commute, but in my heart of hearts I knew that would put too much of a strain on my compromised system. Hopefully I'll feel well enough to take advantage of the beautifully warm weather tomorrow. I'm also hopeful that I can bike down to Vienna for the BikeMeDC Winter Cycling seminar meet-up on Sunday. It looks like the previously-forecast rain will hold off until evening or completely pass to the south. Either is fine with me.

In a weird collision of fate, both my youngest brother and I mentioned immigrating to Melbourne (Australia, not Florida) to our mother last night. My plan is much more of a pipe dream -- if one can call studying the Australian immigration, customs, animal quarantine [only 30 days for healthy animals and not six months], and real estate web sites pipey -- than my brother's. Johnny has dual citizenship going for him and he doesn't have nearly the amount of stakes to pull up that Hubbyfink and I do. He's trying to figure out what to do after he graduates next(?) year and I've got a case of the wanderlusts again. On the upside for the 'fink and myself: both of our employers have offices located in Melbourne. In fact, one of the engineers with whom I regularly work is there...
melaniesuzanne: (Homeowner mouse is home)
Hubbyfink and I woke up sick on Sunday and have been slogging through the past four days in a cold-medicine haze. We both stayed home Monday. He was sent home Tuesday. I very nearly called out sick yesterday and today, but managed to drag my sorry self into the office. I would have stayed home with the laptop, but there's no one to infect in this cube farm and I'm happy for the respite from the cats. I'm ever so grateful that I have tomorrow off as a holiday. Unless I'm feeling 1000% better, all weekend plans are canceled.

In other news, I've been torturing myself with local real estate listings. There are SO MANY beautiful single-family, stand-alone homes in Sterling for equal or less than what we paid for the townhouse. I've had all sorts of daydreams about fixing our current place up enough for renters and buying an actual house for us to live in. Of course, this elaborate scheme requires that we secure renters into the townhouse; there's no way we could afford mortgages on two places. I'm torn between thinking that this is merely a pipe dream and coming up with ways to make it a reality. What I need to do is cool my jets and continue repairing our current home with an eye towards saving for a down payment on our next home. We've been in the townhouse only four years and I'm quite sure the market won't rebound in the next year. There's time.

And because I've been so sick, I've been comfort eating a LOT. Oh, so much ice cream for the sore throat and soda for staying awake during the day. Lots and lots of other comforting and oh-so-fattening food. Got a less-than-delightful wake up at this morning's weigh in. I'm giving myself today and tomorrow to wallow and then I'm back on the righteous path on Saturday. And that includes exercising! We're getting a warm snap and I am going to take advantage of it.

Good gravy, I hope Bossman decides to make today a short one. The last email I received was at 6pm yesterday. Talk about a slow news day.

Good times

May. 4th, 2010 11:50 am
melaniesuzanne: (Default)
I don't know how people with IBS and Crohn's manage it. Something from yesterday's lunch (I suspect the salad dressing or broccoli) upset my GI system and I spent the afternoon and evening in excruciating pain plus other unmentionable predicaments. The lower tummy area is still rumbly this morning, but nothing like last night. Holy cow, if I had to feel like that all the time, I'd go mad.

I guess one never knows how good one has it until the shoe's on the other foot, eh.

It figures

Dec. 17th, 2009 10:18 am
melaniesuzanne: (Default)
I have a doctor appointment today and I haven't coughed much. Of course, that could be due to finally remembering to use the humidifier in the bedroom last night. I was wonderful to wake up and not be completely parched.

Oh. Typed too soon. That was a nice barky cough.

Miscellany

Dec. 10th, 2009 11:37 am
melaniesuzanne: (Merry Ratmas!)
MucinexDM for the win! The pills are the size of horse pills and taste like ass, but I'm not coughing, not wheezing, and I have my voice back. WHOO HOO!

Also, these shoes ) are the cutest things evar. Tarzhay has them in black as well. I think I will go with this shoe ) for my black ankle boot needs. Although, this one ) is pretty damn cute, too, but I didn't see it at my local Target.

While at Home Depot last night, I strolled through the garden department and drank in the aroma of evergreens. I definitely want to get real evergreen garland for the banister and an evergreen spray for the front door. I am ready to go nuts with the Christmas and winter decorations. First, though, we have to clean the house. It's frightening how badly the place falls apart when I'm down with illness for a month.
melaniesuzanne: (Default)
Hey! Not only am I upright, I am also in the office. Whoa. That hasn't happened for two weeks. Not only am I in the office, I was in early because I suspected there might be a call with the engineering team in India (there was). I won't say that I'm bursting with energy, but I am happy to be out of the house and wearing something other than PJs or sweats. I've had only one horrific coughing fit in the last two hours -- while on the phone with Bossman, natch; he said, "Okay, okay, I believe that you've been sick. You don't have to put on a show!" -- which is a personal best since last Tuesday. Spending most of yesterday crashed out on the sofa and/or in bed definitely helped with the healing.

While I was zombie-esque this weekend, I couldn't do much besides grind away at Farmville (shut up; I can quit anytime) and dream about things Venetian. I've decided that my next sewing project with be a ca. 1490s ensemble like that depicted in Durer's "Drawing of a Venetian Lady". I also want to learn how to make chopines. The chopine project will have to wait until the basement remodel is further along, though. In the meantime, I can research to my heart's content. I'm also noodling about teaching a University class about Venice's history beyond courtesans, canals, and Carnivale. We shall see.

Hi.

Nov. 13th, 2009 12:21 pm
melaniesuzanne: (Default)
Not much going on except for barking with bronchitis and gathering materials for my drawing class which started yesterday. I'm still looking for the right size drawing board and matte spray fixative. Hopefully, AC Moore will have those items.

My sister-in-law has started having contractions. Looks like I'll have a new nephew sooner rather than later. I decided to make the baby visit coincide with Thanksgiving and will fly to Memphis on the 24th and come back home on the 30th. Mom wants me to help redecorate the living room and assist with removing carpet from the upstairs bedrooms. It's going to be a busy visit, but the visits always are.

Things

Jul. 2nd, 2009 11:13 am
melaniesuzanne: (Default)
I think I've been swaplifted and it's ticking me off. The seller had wonderful feedback (and we'd had a good transaction when I sold her a bottle a few months back), but it's been over two weeks since I paid and she hasn't responded to private messages. Grr. Another couple of weeks and I can report her to the swap mods.

I cancelled last night's call because I simply wasn't up to reading ten pages of notes to a disinterested audience. It also didn't help that most attendees of the call are on leave this week. Everybody has the notes in email and they can or cannot read those notes as they please. No skin off my nose.

With my newly acquired "free time", I sewed the bodice lining to the skirt, sewed the armholes and made six of the twenty-four lacing holes. I need to finish the lacing holes so I can don the dress and mark the hem. The dress should be done tonight. I am hopeful, anyway.

I'm also hopeful that I will stop feeling like death warmed over toast sometime this week. I left work early yesterday and crashed out for a couple of hours. Hubbyfink's concerned, but I know it's just a really bad allergy attack (all physical signs point to that, anyway). The Zyrtec will eventually kick in and do its thing. In the meantime, my abs are getting a decent workout from marathon sneezes and coughs. Whoo hoo.
melaniesuzanne: (Buffy: Stabbity  by sparklypoof)
Or maybe a sharpened melon baller. Something, anything I can use to relieve the pressure in my head.
melaniesuzanne: (Default)
So. Either the Hubbyfink punched me in the eye during the night and I didn't notice the damage until just now...

Or I'm coming down with my first bout of allergic conjunctivitis for the year.

Yeah, I'm VERY happy not to be in Jamestown this weekend. Needs must add benedryl and artificial tears to the grocery list.
melaniesuzanne: (Merry Ratmas!)
Things are improving around the Mid-South Home for Disease & Decrepitude. Mom and I are both improving and neither of us has needed cold medicine since this morning. Little brother [livejournal.com profile] beaznuts not only left his deathbed, but also went to work. His doctor gave him gooooood drugs. Aunt Trisha's still sniffly, but she's huddled under a blanket watching a movie with Mom downstairs. Somehow Hubbyfink, who manages to be patient zero for most illnesses, has remained unscathed through this round of colds. [livejournal.com profile] zipmeister, however, is not doing so well.

Hubbyfink and I met Zippy, Jim, Becky, Andy and Carol at Huey's for lunch. Zippy had to leave the restaurant early because of severe abdominal pain. I had hoped he'd go to a minor medical place or call his doctor boyfriend or something and I called his cell on our drive back home to see how he was doing. His dad answered and said that he was being looked at by an emergency room doctor. Skip hasn't called back with an update; I'm trying not to bite off what tiny slivers of nails I have in worry. I want my best friend to be okay.
melaniesuzanne: (Default)
Still sick. Very crabby. Yelled at the cat who was just trying to snuggle but I couldn't (and still can't) stand to be touched. Provided Hubbyfink is well enough, we'll go to Memphis tomorrow. If we're both feeling like death on toast, we may wait until Sunday.

Yeah, I'm a bundle of joy. This cold is making me a raging beeyotch.

Holy cow

Dec. 18th, 2008 11:04 am
melaniesuzanne: (Default)
How'd it get to be 11? I was up early for an 8am call to Hong Kong and have been revamping port and bandwidth projections based on sales projections ever since. Finally finished that project, looked at the clock and realized that two hours had passed. Woof.

The loss of time could also be chalked up to the amazing head cold I caught last night. I was fine and dandy and then about 8:30pm I sagged on the sofa sniffling and snorting and holding my aching head. Yay! So, Monday I worked from the comfort of the red sofa of AWESOMENESS so I could wait for a UPS package which wasn't for us because UPS STILL hasn't delivered a package. And Wednesday I worked from the comfort of the same sofa because the Prius was in the shop and I can telecommute while Hubbyfink cannot. Today I work from my Homer Simpson-like divot in the same sofa because I'm a snotmonster sick.

Hey, at least we're not flying this weekend. Driving with a headcold is muuuuch better than flying with one. And yes, I'm drinking juice and soup like they're going out of style.

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Mary F'ing Sunshine

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