Tuesday, April 28, 2009

The husband has landed!

Just got a call from O'Hare, that D's plane landed about 20 minutes early.

Wheee!

He is going to take my brother in law out for a drink to thank him for the limo service.

He is staying for 8 days. We need it SO much!!

The sucky part is that I started getting sick Sunday night. At first, it was an annoying tickle in my throat.
Then, I felt miserable yesterday at work, and it got worse as the day went along.

My fever went up to about 101 by last night, and I was awake almost all last night with throat pain and swelling that caused me to not be able to breathe once I fell asleep. My throat would relax, and the swollen tonsils or something would block my air way.

I'd waken gasping. It was VERY unpleasant.

So, today, while the fever is reduced, and the throat pain is improved, I still feel really sick.
It's not fair!

D sent me a dozen roses to work for my birthday, and they're GORGEOUS! Such a beautiful shade!

I got several cards from co workers, but this was the first year I can remember not getting ANY in the mail.

Oh well, I know I am loved anyway!

Now, to find a miracle cure for this bug I have!

Saturday, April 18, 2009

*sigh*

So, the people who viewed my condo 3 times bought the one down the hall.

It was more expensive, had cigarette burns in the carpet, a nasty, parking lot view, buckles in the kitchen tile, and an un-updated bathroom.

It's only improvements were done when the last owner passed away. Her kids bought really cheap, ugly interior doors, and cabinets.

The interior doors are the old fashioned looking kind, with panels...not sure what they're called. They're dark, almost black, and hollow.

The cabinets are contemporary ones, without handles, in a very light color of wood.

Now, my interior doors are the originals, solid wood, normal door color. My cabinets are the original, but they've been painted the same color as the kitchen walls...almond.

No, they don't match, but, in my opinion, there isn't the same disparity of style between the two.

I think my place looks MUCH nicer inside, has a lovely courtyard view, and, well, the carpet isn't covered with cigarette burns!!

But whatever.

That realtor was looking for a place for her elderly MOTHER to buy, and she probably coerced mom into buying that place because it was priced higher. As the buying realtor in the deal, she was able to wrangle a bigger commission by nailing the sale on the higher priced unit.

That's the only reason anyone can think of, since the old lady CLEARLY liked my place, and the view, a LOT better.

(I was here two out of the three times they viewed my home....once because they were 2 and a half hours late for a scheduled showing, and once because they showed up without an appointment!)

Anyway, I've had another showing since then, and another is scheduled for tomorrow.
Now, not having an identical unit on my floor for sale will hopefully help me out.

Things are starting to heat up a bit in the market, so please, PLEASE, pray that I can sell this place.

Someone else I know is going through hell renting out a property that hasn't sold, from hundreds of miles away....

and I REALLY REALLY do not want to have to do that!!!

Saturday, April 11, 2009

The sun's out!

Well, I don't know if it did any good, but I was very well behaved for the past week, and I drank my lemon liver tonic almost every day.

It's a pretty day today, bright and sunny...but that wind is cold.

I have a head ache that won't stop, but am going to go rehearse later anyway. P and I are going to do a duet at F's wedding reception.

P is also going to help me figure out how to do a fancy hair do for the wedding, which is required by the bride. I can't afford to spend money at a salon on the day of the wedding, any more than I could afford it for MY OWN wedding....and P has a book of hairstyles for long hair.

We will play this evening. That will be sorta fun, actually!

Tomorrow, I will have dinner at my sister's. I am making everyone's favorite, green bean casserole! It may seem trite, but when ELSE do we ever eat stuff like that?

I've been fighting a pretty deep depression lately, but I am hoping that the sunshine, and getting back into dance a bit, will help.

Sunday, April 5, 2009

Cleaning

I need to clean up my act.

When I tore the muscle in my back last September, it put me out of action for months. I have NEVER gone this long in my life without being physically active.

Ever.

As a consequence, I have become soft, and flabby, and have gained 10 pounds. The weight gain could be a lot worse, so I am thankful for that.

However, now I am noticing that my skin condition (I have something called rosacea. it's a permanent redness of the face and upper chest) is changing and getting worse, and that I am having more break outs in general.

That's natural at this age, as hormones change. But I can feel that there's more to it than that.

My periods are also horrendous. I mean, HORRENDOUS. Debilitating. And unpredictable.

SO...I decided yesterday that I need to do a bit of a cleanse.

Nothing drastic, like the folks at the Chiropractor's office I used to work for would do...but SOMETHING.

Unfortunately, I decided this hours before one of my horrendous periods decided to start.

So much for staying off of chemical pain killers and avoiding alcohol for a few days!

I can't stand up straight without 4 ibuprofin having gone down my gullet. And red wine is THE BEST comfort for me when it gets bad.

BUT, be that as it may, I am going to do my best anyway.

I started on the liver tonic yesterday. This will help my liver flush out months' worth of bad choices and habits. Excess fat, excess alcohol, excess excess---all compounded by little or no exercise, and the resulting lack of lymph flow.

The tonic is just lemonade, basically.
The acids in the lemon juice help break up the deposits, and the extra tonic ingredient of powdered cayenne pepper stimulates the liver, encouraging it to open up and dump those broken up deposits.

It's very safe, and very effective. Juice of one lemon, cayenne pepper to tolerance, grade B or grade C maple syrup (for added nutrients and to cut the edge), and fill to 32 oz with pure water.

I'm also drinking apple cider. The malic acid in apples does much the same thing as the lemon juice.

Since the skin is the body's OTHER toxin processing organ, it's a sign for me that my liver is over-loaded when my skin starts to break out.

My hope? That clearing out the congestion in my liver will help it process my hormones more efficiently, thus making my periods less brutal. And, that my skin will look better.

I am also eating very clean, to help this process along.
I tried to buy mostly organic yesterday, and loaded up on produce. Even after nearly 20 years as a vegetarian, I am not naturally inclined to eat my 5 servings per day of fruits and veggies.

But, I am really going to focus for a few days. I made brown rice with miso, organic chicken breast, and veggies for lunch. I will have that for dinner tonight, too, and possibly breakfast tomorrow as well.

I included brocolli, asparagus, and yellow squash, and added some ginger, for it's digestive aid properties and anti-inflammatory properties....not to mention, the flavor!

I also made a batch of veggie loaded mulligatawny soup yesterday. I want the anti-inflammatory properties of the tumeric (which is what makes curry powder yellow), and the nurturing properties of chicken broth.

Hopefully, a few days of this will get me started on losing some of this sedentary goo in my liver, as well as on my body's frame!

Did a stretching routine today, and later, I will be going to P's house to do some dance movement. Maybe having someone else to encourage me will make it easier to get back into dance.

I've tried on my own, and it usually lasts about a day. Then, I'm sore the next day, and say to myself..."I'll give it a few days and try again...." and weeks go by.

So....wish me luck! Spring cleaning has begun!

Friday, April 3, 2009

Nothing to report

Nothing to report on much of anything today....

No further comment from the repeat realtor. Oh well. Whatever. I am so used to disappointment now, that it's the norm.

The good news is that we didn't get the snow storm we were supposed to have last night, and it turned out to be a much nicer day today than it was supposed to be, and I came home to find my best friend waiting for me!

She was passing through on her way up to the northern suburbs from her home in Ann Arbor. She came in and we visited for a while before she had to go.

THAT really made my day! Sometimes, when you're apart from someone for SO long (we were last together in August), you forget how much you miss them.