Finally Better

I've had a run of difficult days with cramps, headaches, drowsiness, aches and fatigue. I had to get to a doctor's appointment fairly early yesterday which helped me to get my rear in gear. I did get an adjustment to my medication which allows me to pay far less for one of them in exchange for taking pills twice a day instead of once. Good news!

Unfortunately, I had missed a dose of that medication (all out and waiting on doc for authorization), and it has such a short half life that I was starting to have withdrawal symptoms. So there I was crying on the way home from moodiness and feeling so bad, and my jaw muscles were so tense that my teeth were chattering though I wasn't cold. I went straight to the pharmacy for a refill, straight home for water to swallow my medication, and shortly began to feel better.

While at the pharmacy, I bought the local newspaper because the headlining story was about a woman who'd been arrested and jailed overnight for disorderly conduct in defense of deer. I have waited on that woman at the library and can confidently say that she is a strange and sometimes hostile person. She seems to hate Kentucky, so I'm not sure why she continues to reside here-- obligations? financial restrictions? sheer stubbornness? I believe that she needs mental health assistance, but I'm sure she would be offended at the mere suggestion-- she sees herself as normal and everyone else as deficient. I have seen her be charming and funny on at least one occasion, and it saddens me to see her spin her wheels and burden the community with imaginary issues. Life sure is complicated and amazing sometimes.

I took a walk in the late afternoon while my dinner baked and snapped this picture. I think the photo aptly captures my feelings about the last few days and my desire for something better for ailing people in this world. I've titled it "A Break in the Gloom". If I were a professional photographer and selling my work, I'd donate the proceeds to some mental health organization that is successfully impacting people's lives. But since I'm not, enjoy the photo. ;-)


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Addictive Photography!

I had no idea that I was going to be so interested in taking pictures of every landscape feature I see!


On the other hand, when I was a kid living in Savannah, Georgia, I took a photo of the oak tree (which we nicknamed Sarah) in our yard-- it looked like it had a face. I also took a sunrise picture over the Rhein in Bacharach, Germany, when most of the other kids in my sixth-grade-class were taking shots of each other mugging for the camera. Maybe I shouldn't be so surprised at my focus on the scenery after all. ;-)

My few readers are lucky that my camera's batteries ran out while I was on my morning walk-- otherwise, y'all might feel like a captive audience at a slide show of someone's vacation!

I do think Kentucky is a beautiful place-- especially in the spring!


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Quick Account of the Day

I should be going to bed right now but wanted to post something.

I woke up a trifle late this morning because I couldn't get to sleep last night-- I was starving, having forgotten to eat an evening snack. Oops! too busy recording song snippets to notice hunger. Overfocusing again.

Had a great laugh while drinking my morning tea and facebooking-- all about wascally wabbits in the garden and the Elmer Fudd solution. Sentimental memories of childhood's Saturday mornings to boot. And amazement at the quality of those old cartoons-- great facial expressions and vocal intonations. True art!

Once I was able to get going, I headed out to the garden and put up the second grid. A robin and a male cardinal oversaw the process. I planted 2 squares-- romaine in one and Brussels sprouts in the other. I suspect the weather is going to get too warm too soon to get good results from either plant, but I wanted to try.



I still need to plant some mesclun (but I want a free-standing container for that so I can keep it right by the back door) and some pansies. Also, I should trim the excess weed fabric from the beds and PLANT that blueberry bush-- no time today, but it needs to be outdoors ASAP.

Afterward, I showered off the garden and dressed to do errands. I had to get groceries TODAY since I was out of ALL the staples-- milk, eggs, bread, cheese, fruits & veggies. (I ate some odd meals today, making do.) So happy to have cooking ingredients on hand again. My pantry is usually stocked thanks to my parents, but I can't live on canned foods and dry goods alone!

I also picked up a device that allows me to transfer digital photos directly from the camera's memory card through the USB slot of my laptop. I've been using my printer as a "router", but this device eliminates the printer from the process. For $8, it seemed worth it!

I came home, unpacked groceries, ate, and caught up with my Facebook account, then took a short walk-- I saw at least 3 plant subjects I want to photograph, but I forgot to bring the camera along. Bummer. Hopefully tomorrow.

I'm amazed at how quickly the evening flew by. I had a DVD on, but simultaneously played on my iPod doing who knows what. Solitaire, Facebook, prioritizing for tomorrow, changing my wallpaper, etc. Day is done.

A good day. Not a lot of projects accomplished, but some significant ones. Got to turn in-- my brain is falling asleep. ;-)

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Animal-Proofing

Yesterday I did some errands then selected a book to read while eating my lunch; the next thing I knew, it was dinner time! (It was a nonfiction health book, not particularly suspenseful; sometimes I overfocus.)

I took a lovely dusk walk to stretch out the kinks. Someone was barbecuing, and the smell of the sauce was torturously wonderful. Maybe my mom will make some BBQ chicken for us soon. (I can make it, but I think it tastes better when she does it.)

Anyway, my gardening time was a short period just before sunset. All I had the opportunity to do was to cut and secure some bird netting over each bed with the corner stakes assisting; however, I don't think it's going to be effective at animal-proofing. In fact, I may have given the cats a comfy hammock to curl up in.

I woke this morning at 4:30am, scheming about other possibilities: What if I...? Maybe I could try...? Would it work if...? What would be the advantages and disadvantages of using...? Since my brain was definitely awake, I got out of bed shortly after 5am.

It's going to be a rainy day, so I can scheme to my heart's content, but in all likelihood I won't be able to try out any plans today. That's okay though. I need to wash dishes. ;-)

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Grass Seed

Mostly, today was spent doing more errands, but there was progress in a couple of areas: gardening and physical activity.

Since I didn't suffer any severe damage from yesterday's stroll, I repeated the fifteen minute exercise today. With such lovely weather, I didn't even need a jacket! (Echoes of the movie Miss Congeniality in my mind...anyone else pick up on that?)

Secondly, I planted rosemary and sage seeds indoors for transplanting later. That's the last of the herb seeds-- REALLY, I promise! ;-)

I also cast grass seed over the front lawn. I wanted to take advantage of today's wonderful weather to be outdoors-- as well as the next few days' rain showers with warm daytime temperatures for sprouting the grass. But according to the package directions, it's rather early in the season for grass, temperature-wise. If we should slip back into winter (God forbid!)...uh-oh. I just hope I'm doing more than feeding the birds! I have visions of a lush green yard instead of the barren hard-packed clay with dead weeds that I've come into.

Image source:http://www.flickr.com/photos/idletype/356078445/
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Dinner Divine

Tonight's evening meal tasted better than any cheese fondue I've tried, and with nutritious vegetables incorporated, it's a definite keeper!

Portobello, Broccoli, and Red-Pepper Melts. Umm-umm good (to steal a soup slogan).

The recipe is from Everyday Food and is available on Martha Stewart's website. A garlic-mayo is spread on thick-sliced country bread, topped with broiled veggies and Gouda, then popped into the oven until the cheese is melted and lightly browned.

I broiled extra veggies, so guess what I'm having for lunch tomorrow! Can hardly wait.


Prior to fixing my dinner, I took a fifteen-minute walk. It wasn't a power walk, just an ordinary stroll to enjoy the day and introduce myself to exercise. The terrain was almost entirely flat, but the two (very) slight inclines had my breathing picking up. I also suspect that I'll feel the exertion in my muscles tomorrow.

Bottom line? "You might be out of shape if... a fifteen-minute amble kicks your butt."

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