Just need to get through today, and then I've got a glorious long weekend to look forward to.
Tomorrow is Matt's and my eleventh anniversary. We weren't able to line up a babysitter for the kids for this weekend, so Matt and I decided we'd take Monday off from work and go out for lunch. (We thought about lunch and a movie, actually, but since we'd need the movie to be over by 2:30 so we're not late picking Penny up from school, that doesn't seem very likely. But I decided months ago that I was going off the diet for our celebration, so I'm looking forward to that.)
And then I decided that I was so stressy over work that I need another day off, so unless something goes horribly wrong at work today, I'm taking Tuesday off as well. I don't have any solid plans for that, yet. Maybe do a little shopping, go to the gym, take a nap... That probably fills up the day for me, right there, to be honest.
Whatever. Four glorious days of not being at work. I can't wait.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Headless Chicken
If the state of my email this morning is going to be any indication, it looks like I'm going to be spending today running around like a headless chicken.
I've got three software deliveries prepping for delivery tomorrow. One of them involves two separate applications. Each application must be accompanied by a version description document. Plus there's a status report document due out today and another two status report documents due out tomorrow. Each application and each document has about five pages of paperwork to go with it. Plus I have to verify that all the applications have been tested and all the bugs fixed, and I have to review all the documents to make sure they're technically and grammatically correct.
And my document specialist is out of the office today, and I'm taking Monday (and possibly Tuesday) off next week, so I have to try to avoid getting any new work added to the calendar until at least Wednesday next week.
And since we're past the middle of the month, I have a status report to write. Though that could reasonably be postponed until next week if need be.
Also, I need to call and make an appointment to get my car inspected, find some time to get online and order some short-sleeved shirts and bras that actually fit me (since the idea of finding time to go to an actual store is laughable).
I am So. Freaking. Ready for this weekend.
I took off work a bit early yesterday to take Penny shopping, so she could use her Easter money to buy a toy dog she'd seen a few weeks ago and fallen in love with.
In the car on the way to the store, she said, "I hope no one already bought it!"
So of course when we got there... it was gone. "But I was going to name it Penny," she said, almost too softly for me to hear. I thought for a minute that she was going to have a breakdown and cry, but she didn't. She held it together. The store owner came out and helped her look all over the store (it's a crowded little junkshop) just to be sure, but when they didn't find the dog anywhere, Penny wandered around doubtfully for a few minutes and eventually decided to pick out another toy. She settled on a pink and white striped cat, instead, and proudly counted out her money at the register.
"I'm going to name her Kitten!" she crowed. "You know what her middle name is going to be?"
"No, what?"
"Pinky-Kitteny-Kitten!"
"So her name is Kitten Pinky Kitteny Kitten?"
"Yes!"
Well, all right then. Kitten Pinky Kitteny Kitten slept with Penny last night, and rode with her in the car this morning. Apparently, the love transplant was successful.
I've got three software deliveries prepping for delivery tomorrow. One of them involves two separate applications. Each application must be accompanied by a version description document. Plus there's a status report document due out today and another two status report documents due out tomorrow. Each application and each document has about five pages of paperwork to go with it. Plus I have to verify that all the applications have been tested and all the bugs fixed, and I have to review all the documents to make sure they're technically and grammatically correct.
And my document specialist is out of the office today, and I'm taking Monday (and possibly Tuesday) off next week, so I have to try to avoid getting any new work added to the calendar until at least Wednesday next week.
And since we're past the middle of the month, I have a status report to write. Though that could reasonably be postponed until next week if need be.
Also, I need to call and make an appointment to get my car inspected, find some time to get online and order some short-sleeved shirts and bras that actually fit me (since the idea of finding time to go to an actual store is laughable).
I am So. Freaking. Ready for this weekend.
I took off work a bit early yesterday to take Penny shopping, so she could use her Easter money to buy a toy dog she'd seen a few weeks ago and fallen in love with.
In the car on the way to the store, she said, "I hope no one already bought it!"
So of course when we got there... it was gone. "But I was going to name it Penny," she said, almost too softly for me to hear. I thought for a minute that she was going to have a breakdown and cry, but she didn't. She held it together. The store owner came out and helped her look all over the store (it's a crowded little junkshop) just to be sure, but when they didn't find the dog anywhere, Penny wandered around doubtfully for a few minutes and eventually decided to pick out another toy. She settled on a pink and white striped cat, instead, and proudly counted out her money at the register.
"I'm going to name her Kitten!" she crowed. "You know what her middle name is going to be?"
"No, what?"
"Pinky-Kitteny-Kitten!"
"So her name is Kitten Pinky Kitteny Kitten?"
"Yes!"
Well, all right then. Kitten Pinky Kitteny Kitten slept with Penny last night, and rode with her in the car this morning. Apparently, the love transplant was successful.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Misinterpreted
Someone vastly misinterpreted something I said yesterday, accused me of implying they were an idiot, and -- in effect -- stomped off in a huff.
Despite several witnesses agreeing with my "WTF?!" reaction and backing me up on this person's overreaction, it affected me more than it should have, nearly to the point of an honest-to-god anxiety attack. Several hours later, I was still feeling faintly nauseous.
Why do I do that to myself? Is it another manifestation of the stupid PMS thing? Even knowing that I hadn't done anything wrong, I let it eat me. Even thinking about certain other people makes me feel judged and anxious and inadequate. Why do I let people who don't even care about me that much matter so much?
More to the point, how do I stop it?
Sorry about this. I had a semi-lighthearted rant going in my head this morning that I was going to use, but it really kind of belongs over on the diet blog, not here. Maybe I'll get some time to post it later.
Despite several witnesses agreeing with my "WTF?!" reaction and backing me up on this person's overreaction, it affected me more than it should have, nearly to the point of an honest-to-god anxiety attack. Several hours later, I was still feeling faintly nauseous.
Why do I do that to myself? Is it another manifestation of the stupid PMS thing? Even knowing that I hadn't done anything wrong, I let it eat me. Even thinking about certain other people makes me feel judged and anxious and inadequate. Why do I let people who don't even care about me that much matter so much?
More to the point, how do I stop it?
Sorry about this. I had a semi-lighthearted rant going in my head this morning that I was going to use, but it really kind of belongs over on the diet blog, not here. Maybe I'll get some time to post it later.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Ten Again
I neglected to write about this last week, because I try to keep the diet talk over on the diet blog, and because last week was pretty insane at work. But assuming that I haven't completely gone crazy on Easter candy (and I'm pretty sure I've stayed within limits on it) then I've passed my second 10% marker. That's not 20%, since each 10% is calculated based on where I start it. But it is more than fifty pounds lost since last October.
Which makes it a milestone worth mentioning here. The last time I went on a diet (three or four years ago) I got to about this point -- which was the thinnest I'd been since before Matt and I got married -- hit a plateau, and gave up. I've got a better support network this time, though, so I'm hoping to push through it and onward to my final destination.
Every pound I lose for the next twenty or so will be the thinnest I've been since... well, I didn't track my weight while Matt and I were dating. But I know about where I was when we started dating, and about where I was when we got married (which is heavier than I am now). This next 10% journey will cover what remains of that territory. It seems appropriate to start it off, then, just before our anniversary.
And the next time I mention the diet here, I'll be back to grad school territory.
Cool.
Which makes it a milestone worth mentioning here. The last time I went on a diet (three or four years ago) I got to about this point -- which was the thinnest I'd been since before Matt and I got married -- hit a plateau, and gave up. I've got a better support network this time, though, so I'm hoping to push through it and onward to my final destination.
Every pound I lose for the next twenty or so will be the thinnest I've been since... well, I didn't track my weight while Matt and I were dating. But I know about where I was when we started dating, and about where I was when we got married (which is heavier than I am now). This next 10% journey will cover what remains of that territory. It seems appropriate to start it off, then, just before our anniversary.
And the next time I mention the diet here, I'll be back to grad school territory.
Cool.
Monday, April 13, 2009
Cold Spring
Well, I was just about to tell you about my good weekend. There's some pictures over at flickr of Penny dying eggs and the kids with their bunny ears, if you're looking for something cute and uplifting this morning. (Alas, I didn't take any pictures while John and Sam were over for dinner, but that went well, too, and we had a good time with them.)
But my post-good-weekend mood just got crushed.
There's a guy I work with. He's closer to my dad's age than my own, and in fact was kind of a buddy with my dad, when Dad used to work here. He's not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he does his job well, and he's a really good guy. He always stops by my office when he walks by and says hello, and tells me to say hi to Dad for him. When he goes on travel to foreign places, he always brings back little souvenirs for all the non-traveling folks. I've got probably half a dozen little bric-a-brac things in my office that he gave me.
Last week, on Monday, I found out that his wife -- whom I've never met, but he always speaks of her in terms that let you understand she's the light of his life -- was in the hospital, in ICU, and expected to be there for the next several months.
What puts a fifty-something woman in ICU for months? Well, she's diabetic, and she scratched an itch, and didn't notice when it got infected. Then the infection crossed into her bloodstream, and it was a matter of hours before she ended up in the emergency room, and from there admitted to the hospital and installed in ICU. There were gory details, but I won't pass them on. It might've been less serious, but her religious beliefs forbade her from allowing a blood transfusion.
("I wish I hadn't been there when she went to the ER," the guy told me last week. "Then I could have told the doctors to go ahead and do it, and claimed ignorance. But she told me, 'No blood,' and I can't go against her wishes.")
He stopped in this morning to tell us that she died on Saturday, after several days of apparent improvement.
So somehow, I'm not quite ready to talk about chocolate bunnies and lamb chops, just at the moment.
But my post-good-weekend mood just got crushed.
There's a guy I work with. He's closer to my dad's age than my own, and in fact was kind of a buddy with my dad, when Dad used to work here. He's not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he does his job well, and he's a really good guy. He always stops by my office when he walks by and says hello, and tells me to say hi to Dad for him. When he goes on travel to foreign places, he always brings back little souvenirs for all the non-traveling folks. I've got probably half a dozen little bric-a-brac things in my office that he gave me.
Last week, on Monday, I found out that his wife -- whom I've never met, but he always speaks of her in terms that let you understand she's the light of his life -- was in the hospital, in ICU, and expected to be there for the next several months.
What puts a fifty-something woman in ICU for months? Well, she's diabetic, and she scratched an itch, and didn't notice when it got infected. Then the infection crossed into her bloodstream, and it was a matter of hours before she ended up in the emergency room, and from there admitted to the hospital and installed in ICU. There were gory details, but I won't pass them on. It might've been less serious, but her religious beliefs forbade her from allowing a blood transfusion.
("I wish I hadn't been there when she went to the ER," the guy told me last week. "Then I could have told the doctors to go ahead and do it, and claimed ignorance. But she told me, 'No blood,' and I can't go against her wishes.")
He stopped in this morning to tell us that she died on Saturday, after several days of apparent improvement.
So somehow, I'm not quite ready to talk about chocolate bunnies and lamb chops, just at the moment.
Friday, April 10, 2009
Not The Best
Not the best start to the morning ever.
At some point, apparently, I turned off my alarm, so I didn't get up quite on time and the whole morning felt slightly rushed.
I stepped on the scale this morning and discovered that I've apparently gained back the pound that I lost last week.
Alex pitched a wobbly fit when I went into the kitchen to get everyone's lunches out of the fridge and take my meds.
Penny broke down in tears when I dropped her off at the daycare and had to be pried off me.
I am so. so. so ready for this weekend.
There is a picture I want to take. A very specific picture.
There are redbud trees all around here, especially along the edges of the roads. In the spring, when they're blooming, they look like this:
I love redbuds in the spring. They're sort of symbols of spring for me, and I love it when I come around a corner or over a rise and another spray of purple surprises me. (Pink dogwoods take me the same way, but they're much less common.) There's a thick cluster of redbuds just as I get on the interstate on my way to the gym or my allergist from work. On a clear day, it's an explosion of color that always brings a smile to my face.
My camera has a function that will take pictures in all black and white except the color you tell it to keep. I don't use it often because it's a pain to set up, but the results can be pretty interesting.
I very much want to take a picture of the trees along the road, that's all black and white except for the purple of the redbud flowers. I'd especially love to do it along that stretch of interstate, where there's so much purple to pick up, but really almost anywhere around here would work. We even have a redbud tree in our back yard (well, technically, it's in the neighbor's back yard, but it leans over our yard a bit), though the presence of houses and fences would sort of spoil the effect for me.
But it's not going to happen. Redbuds only bloom for a couple of weeks, and I saw this morning that they're starting to show green on their tops already. And it's going to be cloudy for the next few days, and...
Every year, I plan to take a picture of the tulip magnolias blooming in our neighborhood -- they're in full bloom for only a matter of days -- and every year, I miss that, too.
Why is this bothering me so much? Am I PMSing? Is it because I'm having a bad day or a stressful few weeks? Is it a metaphor for all the other things that I've let slip me by? Is this what my midlife crisis is going to be -- flower pictures? How stupid is that?
At some point, apparently, I turned off my alarm, so I didn't get up quite on time and the whole morning felt slightly rushed.
I stepped on the scale this morning and discovered that I've apparently gained back the pound that I lost last week.
Alex pitched a wobbly fit when I went into the kitchen to get everyone's lunches out of the fridge and take my meds.
Penny broke down in tears when I dropped her off at the daycare and had to be pried off me.
I am so. so. so ready for this weekend.
There is a picture I want to take. A very specific picture.
There are redbud trees all around here, especially along the edges of the roads. In the spring, when they're blooming, they look like this:
I love redbuds in the spring. They're sort of symbols of spring for me, and I love it when I come around a corner or over a rise and another spray of purple surprises me. (Pink dogwoods take me the same way, but they're much less common.) There's a thick cluster of redbuds just as I get on the interstate on my way to the gym or my allergist from work. On a clear day, it's an explosion of color that always brings a smile to my face.
My camera has a function that will take pictures in all black and white except the color you tell it to keep. I don't use it often because it's a pain to set up, but the results can be pretty interesting.
I very much want to take a picture of the trees along the road, that's all black and white except for the purple of the redbud flowers. I'd especially love to do it along that stretch of interstate, where there's so much purple to pick up, but really almost anywhere around here would work. We even have a redbud tree in our back yard (well, technically, it's in the neighbor's back yard, but it leans over our yard a bit), though the presence of houses and fences would sort of spoil the effect for me.
But it's not going to happen. Redbuds only bloom for a couple of weeks, and I saw this morning that they're starting to show green on their tops already. And it's going to be cloudy for the next few days, and...
Every year, I plan to take a picture of the tulip magnolias blooming in our neighborhood -- they're in full bloom for only a matter of days -- and every year, I miss that, too.
Why is this bothering me so much? Am I PMSing? Is it because I'm having a bad day or a stressful few weeks? Is it a metaphor for all the other things that I've let slip me by? Is this what my midlife crisis is going to be -- flower pictures? How stupid is that?
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Weekend Sighted
Okay, so yesterday wasn't quite as smooth and productive as I'd been hoping, but it wasn't a total flop, either, so I guess that's something. Today promises to be fairly busy, as well, but hopefully not too crazy. It's kind of a vain hope, though, I expect.
But the weekend is on the horizon, so that's something! And it'll be a good one. Penny will get to dye eggs on Saturday (Alex is definitely too little to even try it, yet) and I get to put Easter baskets together and hide eggs for Penny and Alex to find (though Alex hasn't really glommed onto the game yet) and I'm considering making lamb for Easter dinner. (I need to get over to my local hoity-toity grocery store today and see what they've got -- it's only the 4 of us, so I don't want a whole leg, but they might be able to give me shank steaks or some stew cuts. It has to be today because I also need to pick up some chips for Alex's class party tomorrow. I've been forgetting that all week. Bad Mommy!)
Also, I need to go to Sam's Club to pick up diapers and chicken nuggets, so I should look around and see what else we need before I go.
And our front bushes are threatening to eat the porch, so I should get out the trimmer and hack at it for a while.
But I'm even looking forward to the chores, because they won't be work.
I just have to get through today and tomorrow...
But the weekend is on the horizon, so that's something! And it'll be a good one. Penny will get to dye eggs on Saturday (Alex is definitely too little to even try it, yet) and I get to put Easter baskets together and hide eggs for Penny and Alex to find (though Alex hasn't really glommed onto the game yet) and I'm considering making lamb for Easter dinner. (I need to get over to my local hoity-toity grocery store today and see what they've got -- it's only the 4 of us, so I don't want a whole leg, but they might be able to give me shank steaks or some stew cuts. It has to be today because I also need to pick up some chips for Alex's class party tomorrow. I've been forgetting that all week. Bad Mommy!)
Also, I need to go to Sam's Club to pick up diapers and chicken nuggets, so I should look around and see what else we need before I go.
And our front bushes are threatening to eat the porch, so I should get out the trimmer and hack at it for a while.
But I'm even looking forward to the chores, because they won't be work.
I just have to get through today and tomorrow...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)