Sunday
Thursday
BREAKING NEWS ON BREAKING DAWN!
Guys. You guys. Guys. It's official. It's been confirmed.
It will be two movies.
You know what this means, right? (Actually, I hope none of you have read it so I get to horrify you right here and now.) In order to get even one movie out of this god-forsaken aborted mess of a book, they will not only have to keep in everything, they may have to extend some parts. EXTENDED PREGNANCY/BIRTH SEQUENCE MAYBE?
I am trembling in terror and excitement.
PS - fingers crossed that "high-end director" means Uwe Boll.
It will be two movies.
You know what this means, right? (Actually, I hope none of you have read it so I get to horrify you right here and now.) In order to get even one movie out of this god-forsaken aborted mess of a book, they will not only have to keep in everything, they may have to extend some parts. EXTENDED PREGNANCY/BIRTH SEQUENCE MAYBE?
I am trembling in terror and excitement.
PS - fingers crossed that "high-end director" means Uwe Boll.
Tuesday
Cat photoshoot!
With bonus vistas of my basement floor.
Blurry
Arty
Pissy
(I didn't know the flash was on. Sorry cat! I colored in her pupils with photoshop, hence their lookin' all funky.)
Done with this.
(I didn't know the flash was on. Sorry cat! I colored in her pupils with photoshop, hence their lookin' all funky.)
Monday
Cat!
In a relatively recent development, I have a cat. Or rather, I have a cat in my house. I hesitate to claim any ownership, authority, or kinship, because she doesn't seem entirely thrilled about her circumstances. At least when she's not getting tuna.
Let's backtrack! Shortly after Christmas, my neighbor asked if we'd seen a little cat hanging around in back of the houses. I said "No," while mentally amending "...yet." Because, seriously, if there's a cat nearby, you can bet it will come to my house.
And so it did! She showed up a couple weeks later with that "I heard this was the place" look about her. We gave her some food. A lot of food. Then she would come back every few days or so. One time she brought a friend: a tom cat who has been around for a couple years. Only I don't actually know if they are friends, because she wouldn't let him eat anything, and he eventually went under the car and waited until she finished. We hope he's not her baby daddy.
For the past few months, it's been consistently below freezing. And this poor girl is seemingly terrified of everything in life. She was scared of a plane flying overhead. So, this sealed the deal on moving her inside. She'd been taking her meals on the porch, which is enclosed, but still well chilled. And the only napping I'd seen her do was scrunching up her eyes while sitting tense and contracted.
On Thursday evening, we decided to move her into the basement. This involved a carrier and no small amount of ingenuity. Unfortunately, it was completely traumatic for the cat. Like, "curling into a ball and shaking" traumatic. But, you know, at least she's not going to freeze to death. Which is progress.
So now she's in the basement. And she's not entirely convinced that we don't plan to eat her. We've made slow but sure progress in building a little trust back (food helps), but it's totally weird because I've never had a hiding cat before. Of course, the other cats I've had have either been from shelters/other homes, very young when we found them, or in Bert's case, special. Apparently this is not atypical. But seriously cat, when are you going to start doing cute crap?
I'll try to take a picture in the next few days, when she's in a relatively gregarious mood.
She's a mostly black tortoiseshell, with little bits of white on her eyebrows, front paws, and chest. Her name is Penny.
(PS Stephanie - I don't want to comment on the litter situation, because apparently there is still a learning curve.)
Let's backtrack! Shortly after Christmas, my neighbor asked if we'd seen a little cat hanging around in back of the houses. I said "No," while mentally amending "...yet." Because, seriously, if there's a cat nearby, you can bet it will come to my house.
And so it did! She showed up a couple weeks later with that "I heard this was the place" look about her. We gave her some food. A lot of food. Then she would come back every few days or so. One time she brought a friend: a tom cat who has been around for a couple years. Only I don't actually know if they are friends, because she wouldn't let him eat anything, and he eventually went under the car and waited until she finished. We hope he's not her baby daddy.
For the past few months, it's been consistently below freezing. And this poor girl is seemingly terrified of everything in life. She was scared of a plane flying overhead. So, this sealed the deal on moving her inside. She'd been taking her meals on the porch, which is enclosed, but still well chilled. And the only napping I'd seen her do was scrunching up her eyes while sitting tense and contracted.
On Thursday evening, we decided to move her into the basement. This involved a carrier and no small amount of ingenuity. Unfortunately, it was completely traumatic for the cat. Like, "curling into a ball and shaking" traumatic. But, you know, at least she's not going to freeze to death. Which is progress.
So now she's in the basement. And she's not entirely convinced that we don't plan to eat her. We've made slow but sure progress in building a little trust back (food helps), but it's totally weird because I've never had a hiding cat before. Of course, the other cats I've had have either been from shelters/other homes, very young when we found them, or in Bert's case, special. Apparently this is not atypical. But seriously cat, when are you going to start doing cute crap?
I'll try to take a picture in the next few days, when she's in a relatively gregarious mood.
She's a mostly black tortoiseshell, with little bits of white on her eyebrows, front paws, and chest. Her name is Penny.
(PS Stephanie - I don't want to comment on the litter situation, because apparently there is still a learning curve.)
Friday
Part 3.
Isn't it crazy how much I'm posting? All on the same thing! I haven't even told you about my cat!
Katherine was right to assure me! Turns out I have an ordinary (though sizable) chunk of whatnot floating around in my vitreous humor. Nothing is torn or sagging or broken or otherwise in danger of blinding me. So for the next several months I can just expect a little extra bling in my visual field. Optical razzle dazzle, if you will.
In other eyeball news, I mentioned that I was concerned that my vision has seemed less sharp in the past few years, since all the thyroid stuff. The doctor was very nice, but he glared at me through his spectacles with an "i hate you die" vibe that I have gotten lots of times in the past (and which, actually, I'll probably be getting from you in a moment!), before telling me that my vision is 20/15. Yay!! (Sorry.)
Then he got up in my grill about my scleral show. Not saying that there was anything of concern, just that it was weird. And man, whatever. Haters gonna hate.
Katherine was right to assure me! Turns out I have an ordinary (though sizable) chunk of whatnot floating around in my vitreous humor. Nothing is torn or sagging or broken or otherwise in danger of blinding me. So for the next several months I can just expect a little extra bling in my visual field. Optical razzle dazzle, if you will.
In other eyeball news, I mentioned that I was concerned that my vision has seemed less sharp in the past few years, since all the thyroid stuff. The doctor was very nice, but he glared at me through his spectacles with an "i hate you die" vibe that I have gotten lots of times in the past (and which, actually, I'll probably be getting from you in a moment!), before telling me that my vision is 20/15. Yay!! (Sorry.)
Then he got up in my grill about my scleral show. Not saying that there was anything of concern, just that it was weird. And man, whatever. Haters gonna hate.
Thursday
More on all that.
Today I am out:
[-] One-tenth of a unit of blood.
[-] More bucks.
[-] Of patience with the doctor I saw today. His parting suggestion to me was: "Why don't you try losing some weight? That should make you feel better." He means the weight that I gained after he lowered my thyroid dosage to an amount that he doesn't even remember, which I reminded him of several times, probably. WHY DIDN'T I THINK OF THAT EVER. He also asked how things were working out ("Good?") with the medication that I stopped taking over a year ago, because it was completely ineffective. I tried to be helpful by bringing in a typed list of my symptoms and complaints, and he told me he didn't have time to look at it. Gotta bounce! Call me next week sometime!
But I am in:
[-] An ophthalmology appointment tomorrow morning! Woooooo!!
[-] One-tenth of a unit of blood.
[-] More bucks.
[-] Of patience with the doctor I saw today. His parting suggestion to me was: "Why don't you try losing some weight? That should make you feel better." He means the weight that I gained after he lowered my thyroid dosage to an amount that he doesn't even remember, which I reminded him of several times, probably. WHY DIDN'T I THINK OF THAT EVER. He also asked how things were working out ("Good?") with the medication that I stopped taking over a year ago, because it was completely ineffective. I tried to be helpful by bringing in a typed list of my symptoms and complaints, and he told me he didn't have time to look at it. Gotta bounce! Call me next week sometime!
But I am in:
[-] An ophthalmology appointment tomorrow morning! Woooooo!!
Wednesday
A day in the life.
A while back I wanted to write something conflating the state of health care in the United States with my personal health care and insurance experiences. It was godawfully depressing, so I scrapped it. TL;DR: Health care reform doesn't only benefit the uninsured.
Anyway, here's a story.
Yesterday (It's Groundhog Day!) was my father's birthday. Just for reference. Shortly after waking up, I noticed a gray spot floating in my vision. If you'd like to help diagnose me, I will tell you that it's in the middle and slightly to the outside of the field of vision of my right eye. The best way I can describe it is that it looks like a sequin. It's perfectly round, with a hole in the middle, and sort of blinky. I can also see it when I close my eyes. My vision is not otherwise affected. I waited for it to go away or develop into a migraine or something, but it just kept on as is.
I hit the internet and learned all about floaters. From what I could tell, I was either perfectly fine and had nothing to worry about, or my retina was about to detach -- a completely painless process that might cause me permanent blindness. I think this is not likely based on what I've read, but you never know.
The best idea would be to call up an ophthalmologist. But of course, it is generally hard to get an appointment with a specialist in short order, which I figured is what I would need if something gruesome and irreversible were happening to me. So I opted to make an appointment with my primary care physician, who could at least let me know if I should start panicking and seek urgent care, or calm down and wait it out.
My doctor, it turns out, is on vacation for the next several weeks. I was able to secure an appointment instead with one of his associates. While this fellow may not have been the tooliest tool who ever tooled, he was still a real tool. I told him I had a spot in my vision. He then immediately told me that there was nothing he could do for me.
"Why didn't you go to your eye doctor?"
"Um, I don't have an eye doctor."
"Oh, so you need a referral."
"I don't know what I need. That's why I came here."
Before he scuttled out the door I asked if he could at least tell me whether or not my retina is detaching, and he told me know he has no way of knowing that. I did not, at that point, ask if I could have my money back. I should have though, because, seriously.
The referral actually came from the girls at the reception area. And, they are nice, but they are not doctors.
"Do you want someone in [the town where I live]?"
"Uh. I want someone who's good."
"Oh, they're all good. Here, this one's in [the town where I live]."
So I called this guy for an appointment when I got home. His receptionist kept trying to get me to specify a time window, and I tried to get her to specify a date. I mean, I can guarantee that I have more openings in my schedule than a doctor's office does in theirs. So you tell me what you have available, and I'll see if I can make it then. (I mean, seriously, is it me? With these people?) Anyway, the earliest appointment I could get is two weeks out. Which I now have, tentatively, booked.
Tomorrow I'm going to look for someone else who may have a closer appointment available. I called a place today called Retina Associates which seemed like a good bet, but was informed that, despite the fact that all the doctors there are listed as ophthalmologists, none of them are actually ophthalmologists. They deal exclusively with retina and inner eye issues, so unless I already know that's where the problem lies, they are not my best bet.
I'm seeing my endocrinologist tomorrow, and I'll ask him if he knows anyone, on the off-chance. Endocrinologists usually know people, I've found. He called me this morning to ask if he can bump my appointment up an hour. I agreed to it, but ... hell. That throws off my whole morning.
Basically, multiply this day by every 4-8 weeks or so, and you have what I do with myself all the time and where all my money goes.
Anyway, here's a story.
Yesterday (It's Groundhog Day!) was my father's birthday. Just for reference. Shortly after waking up, I noticed a gray spot floating in my vision. If you'd like to help diagnose me, I will tell you that it's in the middle and slightly to the outside of the field of vision of my right eye. The best way I can describe it is that it looks like a sequin. It's perfectly round, with a hole in the middle, and sort of blinky. I can also see it when I close my eyes. My vision is not otherwise affected. I waited for it to go away or develop into a migraine or something, but it just kept on as is.
I hit the internet and learned all about floaters. From what I could tell, I was either perfectly fine and had nothing to worry about, or my retina was about to detach -- a completely painless process that might cause me permanent blindness. I think this is not likely based on what I've read, but you never know.
The best idea would be to call up an ophthalmologist. But of course, it is generally hard to get an appointment with a specialist in short order, which I figured is what I would need if something gruesome and irreversible were happening to me. So I opted to make an appointment with my primary care physician, who could at least let me know if I should start panicking and seek urgent care, or calm down and wait it out.
My doctor, it turns out, is on vacation for the next several weeks. I was able to secure an appointment instead with one of his associates. While this fellow may not have been the tooliest tool who ever tooled, he was still a real tool. I told him I had a spot in my vision. He then immediately told me that there was nothing he could do for me.
"Why didn't you go to your eye doctor?"
"Um, I don't have an eye doctor."
"Oh, so you need a referral."
"I don't know what I need. That's why I came here."
Before he scuttled out the door I asked if he could at least tell me whether or not my retina is detaching, and he told me know he has no way of knowing that. I did not, at that point, ask if I could have my money back. I should have though, because, seriously.
The referral actually came from the girls at the reception area. And, they are nice, but they are not doctors.
"Do you want someone in [the town where I live]?"
"Uh. I want someone who's good."
"Oh, they're all good. Here, this one's in [the town where I live]."
So I called this guy for an appointment when I got home. His receptionist kept trying to get me to specify a time window, and I tried to get her to specify a date. I mean, I can guarantee that I have more openings in my schedule than a doctor's office does in theirs. So you tell me what you have available, and I'll see if I can make it then. (I mean, seriously, is it me? With these people?) Anyway, the earliest appointment I could get is two weeks out. Which I now have, tentatively, booked.
Tomorrow I'm going to look for someone else who may have a closer appointment available. I called a place today called Retina Associates which seemed like a good bet, but was informed that, despite the fact that all the doctors there are listed as ophthalmologists, none of them are actually ophthalmologists. They deal exclusively with retina and inner eye issues, so unless I already know that's where the problem lies, they are not my best bet.
I'm seeing my endocrinologist tomorrow, and I'll ask him if he knows anyone, on the off-chance. Endocrinologists usually know people, I've found. He called me this morning to ask if he can bump my appointment up an hour. I agreed to it, but ... hell. That throws off my whole morning.
Basically, multiply this day by every 4-8 weeks or so, and you have what I do with myself all the time and where all my money goes.
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