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We Need To See You Today...

 

...if you're bleeding that heavily.

 

So sayeth the gyno's office when I called this morning. So off I went. After much poking and prodding (in both a physical and verbal sense) anything serious was pretty much ruled out. Just whacked-out hormones creating a bumper-crop of uterine lining which is all trying to exit NOW. And I was also given the first official recommendation for the endometrial ablation procedure. They also did a blood draw to check hormone levels and see if there's anything wonky going on there (given my track record with this stuff, there probably won't be.)

 

Left work to go to the doc's office, then back to work until one of my part timers could there, then home early...and right into the shower to get cleaned up. Feeling somewhat better now (cleaner, anyway) and the horrid cramping has subsided. Still bleeding like a vampire's fantasy, though. (Yeah, yeah, yeah...TMI, I know)

 

Given the amount of sleep I didn't get last night, a nap is sounding really, really good right now. Perhaps I'll go do that....and hope I don't have to interrupt it in 45 minutes due excessive bleeding.

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120/74

 

At yesterday's doctor visit...even though I was in severe pain, feeling sick and stressed out.

 

Guess I'm doing enough cardio often enough to make a positive difference. That's certainly a much better (lower) number than a year and a half ago.

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It Was Inevitable

 

You said you liked games, I said I had a 2 minute attention span. This was inevitable.

 

in other news, got results of the blood tests from Friday. My thyroid is normal, I am not showing any hormonal markers of being in menopause, and my hemoglobin is 11.2. On the very low end of normal, but not low enough to require any sort of treatment. But at least I have one more thing to blame my occaisional extreme fatigue on.....hooray?

 

Had my final therapy appointment (for this go-round anyway) earlier this month. I'm in a good place right now. Well, except for the periods that go on for days on end and make me wonder how much stuff a uterus can hold. Since I already went and spent the $60 on medication, I'll go ahead and try managing that mess with the Aygestin for the next couple months. If that doesn't work out - and bleeding like I was bleeding the last half of last week definitely meets the definition of "not working out" - then it's, "Hello, endometrial ablation."

 

Been researching that procedure the last few days. I can't figure out if I have some sort of feelings about it or if I just think I should feel something about it. I mean, I've known since 15 I didn't want kids. I've known since 27 that I probably couldn't have them. I have always been happy with both of those things. One of the things I see mentioned in almost everything I read about endometrial ablation brings up the fact that it's permanent fertility loss, no going back. Once you have this done, that's it. If you do happen to get pregnant (and that's still possible since they don't touch the ovaries), it can be dangerous/life-threatening since there is very little or no endometrium for a fertilized egg implant itself into.

 

So, why is there something I don't like about having an option I never wanted in the first place taken away from me? Maybe it's partially that knee jerk reaction I have to being told, "You can't....." Even when it's something I don't want to do or don't have any interest in doing, there's still that bratty voice that doesn't like being told that it can't have something. Perhaps it is part perception that "this should be a big deal" that I get from reading this stuff....apparently it *is* a big deal for some women (?). I'm starting to think, though, the biggest thing for me is not wanting to be reminded of aging. There was a point when this procedure wouldn't have been brought up (let alone brought up several times in the last few months). I would've been "too young" for a doc to even consider doing this because I might change my mind about wanting to reproduce. Now it's, "yeah, this might be your best option, here." Like, "yeah, you're old enough to be over all that child-bearing malarky.....and your plumbing's gonna be shutting down in a few years anyway....so why don't we just go in and obliterate your endometrium so you're not bleeding all over yourself/bleeding for weeks on end?"

 

Yeah. I'm thinkin' that's what it really comes down to. I mean, who really needs one more road sign indicating you're moving forward to your inevitable demise?

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  • 2 weeks later...

Blocks....Road, Mental, Stumbling And Otherwise

 

I should go to bed, but there's a lot of thought droppings rattling around my brain.

 

So, back at the beginning of March, I thought I'd try a little financial experiment. Basically try to live off the freelance income and bank the checks from the job. Coincidentally (or not-so-coincidentally) March was the start of 3 straight months of not-so-great freelance income. Oh, I've managed to make enough in freelance each month to cover the house payment....but there's been very little beyond that. So what's the block there? Since I don't buy into "coincidence," I've started to wonder what the block is. More importantly, how do I remove it? I'm not even sure it's enitrely necessary to fully understand what it is to remove it. The upside is my 2nd quarter estimated taxes will be lower since my income was lower...I suppose there is that to attempt a positive spin on it.

 

I bought a catnip plant to put in the bed by the patio door. It was doing real well until some stray found it. Over the course of 2 days that flea-bitten feline proceded to crush, mangle, chew and completely destroy the plant I put there for my cats. Then that intruder had the nerve to sit in the middle of my back yard doing that b****y kitty yowling last night. Probably because there wasn't anymore kitty dope. I shoulda gone with my first thought, which was to get a hanging basket and plant the catnip in that.

 

I have a lot of mixed feelings about the office gig. The less I care about it, the more they appear to like me and the better they treat me. So weird. I've been going about this work/job thing all wrong. My mistakes prior to exiting radio were having "a career" instead of "a job," and then deeply caring about/loving that "career." If I hadn't been so in love (and being in love does make one a bit stupid), I woulda been more likely to tell them to get bent when they kept asking me to do more work, rather than think I was doing it for some greater good or something. I've had dreams the last couple nights about Dysfunction Junction and/or people I knew from back there. The place was a *huge* part of my life for a couple of decades....it was my income source and it was a lot of my social life as well. It was a big part of my identity back then. I look back now...10 or 15 years ago...and while I know I lived it, it's really hard to see myself there...let alone see myself there & loving it like I used to.

 

For the last 18 months, I have made my house payment with freelance money. Money I earned for myself doing VO work. Enough people paid me to talk that I've been able to keep a roof over my head for the last year and a half. Looked at that way, it's pretty amazing to me. Especially when I make one of my very infrequent stops at a VO message board and see people complaining about how little they're able to make doing VO work.

 

So what blocks are holding me back now? What ideas/thoughts do I have that are preventing me from generating what I'd like to generate? What do I need to be doing (or need to stop doing) to get to the next destination?

 

These are the thoughts that have rolled around my head in the last couple weeks. I have to say, they're probably going to be much more productive in the long term than some of the other crazy-ass thoughts I've had in the last year or so.

 

*******

Last Fall, my thought was you were some sort of catalyst. And, looked at a certain way, that is the role you have played....albeit not in the way I thought you would. But the thing about a catalyst is it changes things or people around it without being changed itself. It's funny how often my gut feelings about things turn out the be right. Those odd little glimmers of insight I have sometimes....things that pop into my head and I just know without knowing how I know....how often they do turn out to be proven true over time. I still wonder how this episode fits into the larger picture....it's still too close to see that. Perhaps it was all just a creatively clever way to get things here back on track when nothing else was working. In that case, you may have been the catalyst....but I was the creator who made the role for you.

 

And if it wasn't you, it would've been someone.....or something....else.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Here's Yer Sign(s)

 

Sign #1 - You buy this item: link removed

 

Sign #2 - You actually make one (or more) of the recipes in the book

 

The signs say "This way to becoming a Crazy Cat Lady."

 

The gray and white boy seems to like the tuna & oatmeal cookies. The tiger cat is not so sure about them.

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Food Snobbery...Or "I Get My Food From A CSA, So I'm Better Than You"

 

I had to chuckle a bit when I saw this article:

 

I was introduced to the concept of the CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) about a year ago. Thought it sounded like a cool idea. Get your produce from small local farms that (for the most part) use organic growing methods. But, since the spouse is not big into produce, figured it'd probably be a lot of waste (or giving stuff away to other people).

 

Fast forward a few months. I see a brochure at the gym for a CSA group that does produce, meat, eggs, dairy, honey, and just about any other farm-produced food item. I exchange a few emails with the couple who run it. I join for the meat & egg CSA, then pick up the produce CSA for the spring through fall run. The meat is locally raised/processed, grass-fed. The eggs are from free-range chickens. I cannot believe the difference it makes in the flavor of the meat and eggs. I've been getting the CSA meat & eggs for several months now, and just started the produce in the last couple weeks.

 

And, yes, it has made me more food snobby than I was before. So when I saw the article about organic food, I had to laugh at myself...because I have caught myself getting a wee bit "holier than thou"....particularly on our (now) infrequent trips to the grocery store.

 

However, I will say it is expanding my horizons (lamb is part of the meat share...and it's not something I have much experience cooking), and making me approach meal planning & prep in different ways. Instead of "what do I want?" I now have to start with "what did I get in the share?" It's also helped me adjust portion sizes (downward) to something that's more reasonable and rational. I've found it to be true - if you're eating the good stuff -- the real stuff -- it takes less to satisfy.

 

The longer I eat the food from the CSA, the more I find myself veering away from the mass-produced/factory farm produced food. Grocery store white eggs just don't have the same flavor as the all-varying-shades of brown eggs I get from the CSA.

 

Health benefits from organic/hormone-free and all that is secondary to me. That's great and all. But the thing that will keep me buying the CSA share is the way the food tastes. It just plain old tastes better than what I was buying at the grocery store. And if it keeps some small, local farm in business....all the better.

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Acknowledging The Blocks Made Them Move?

 

There's been a definite ramping-up of voice work since I wrote about the blockage. This week has been crazy busy thus far....getting up early to edit audio, going to work, coming home and going right back to creating/editing audio until I'm dozing off.....and then doing the same thing over again the next day.

 

All of a sudden, it's Thursday....and it's the 14th. Quarterly estimated taxes need to be mailed. Before that happens, though, I really should move some money around to the right account or that check will go bouncing all over the place.

 

I have about 5 weeks' worth of Cymbalta left. Do I just get the refill or do I go to hunky soap opera primary care doc and ask about backing down the dosage? Hmmmmm. I feel pretty damn good on it. My only gripes are the dry mouth & drowsiness. I kinda wonder how I'd handle things if I wasn't on it. Like this week...slammed 6 ways to Sunday at the office gig and on the VO front, and still having to take care of feeding and general upkeep. On the Cymbalta, I just look at it and think, "that's just how he is" and "well, if you were single & living alone, you'd have to deal with (fill-in-the-blank) yourself anyway...let it go." And after a brief period of annoyance (like, maybe a few minutes) it just goes away. I re-adjust my expectations and focus on what needs to be done here and now.

 

Is it bad that I'm becoming more and more convinced that the way to go about it (and remain sane) is to not expect him to do anything, ever? Even when he says he wants to or is going to do something, I just go with a neutrally-toned "uh huh" and think to myself "eh, not gonna happen....what do I need to do today?" It's either totally crazy or very practical and sane. I guess those two things sometimes look the same to an outside observer, though. So how do you tell which it is as you're living it?

 

Eh, I've done enough for one day. It's time...past time...to crash.

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Care For Some Cheese To Go With That Whine?

 

Silence is Golden.

 

Silence also appears to have solved my "what do I do with that?" problem, so it's best to let sleeping dogs lie.

 

In addition to being full of cliches this morning, I am also full of irritation and annoyance....and wanting to whiiiiiiiiiiiine. I don't need a sympathetic shoulder to cry on (or sympathetic ear to listen). What I need is to put on my big girl panties and just f'n deal with it. I do not want to hear other people whining, let alone hear myself whining.

 

Deep breath, re-set, re-focus, another deep breath.

 

So, what have you done/what will you do?

 

I have contacted (yet another) lawn maintenance company. Maybe I can actually get somewhere with this one. Saw their truck in the gym parking lot a few weeks ago and looked up their website when I got home. Small, locally owned and appears to be run by one guy. Played the, "hey, we go to the same gym" card (FWIW) in my website inquiry.

 

Came up with a neutral way to bring up that if he's going to get up that stupidly early on a regular basis now, he either needs to feed the cats or shut the bedroom door. The cats know he totally ignores them, they don't bother asking him for food. But they think if he's up, I should get up and feed them. He started this several weeks ago -- sets his alarm stupid-early, gets up, and then sits around doing nothing much for an hour or so before he starts getting ready for work. Meanwhile, I don't *have to* be up for a couple hours, yet I have cats purring, meowing, and walking all over me to let me know it's time for kitty breakfast. I don't think it's asking too much for him to either shut the bedroom door or take 5 minutes to feed their furry asses.

 

Deep breath, re-set, re-focus. This is who he is. You cannot change that, only work with it.

 

Tempting as it is to go whine, you also know what the truth of that person's being is, as well. Your initial impressions of him were more accurate than you want to give yourself credit for. You did what you have always been prone to do, though -- give the benefit of the doubt a few times more than some people deserve, and see more good than what may actually be there. In the long run, I'm pretty sure I'd rather be like that than prone to judge quickly and more harshly than is (usually) necessary.

 

And, in keeping with the underlying theme of the recently-ended round of therapy -- it all relates back to daddy issues in general, doesn't it? Men who say they'll take care of things/take care of you.....but when push comes to shove and it's time to do more than talk....it's a 50/50 shot at best. Oddly enough, this dovetails with the underlying theme of my life in general, now that I think about it. Why do I still want to believe them? I'm approaching 50, and I still fall for it -- the idea that "he" (whoever "he" may be in any given set of circumstances) will take care of something....and then I end up taking care of it myself for any number of reasons.

 

I'm getting too old to waste time screwing around with the middleman. Just take care of it yourself, or decide it doesn't need to be done and let it go. You can do that. You're experienced enough that you can discern what needs to be done and when and how to go about it. If you hire people to do things for you, they can be held to a higher standard than He Who Says He Will Take Care Of It (whoever "he" may be...and whatever "it" is).

 

BYOD. This is my new mantra.

 

Be Your Own Daddy.

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And 4 Weeks Went By

 

The silence is deafening. Just as well, really. It confirms the things I'd started to suspect. It was just a little fantasy-story trip for you, and that's all it would ever be. No matter, I still see it as (mostly) win-win. One of those experiences I have that bring about necessary changes, but are of limited duration.

 

....and now we return you to your regularly scheduled life....lol

 

There certainly has been the extreme uptick in voice work the last couple weeks. Mostly one client, but it's some nice validation. I'm getting the bulk of the work on their current project because I'm turning out good audio faster than the other VO people they work with. I'm reliable, and I don't miss deadlines or ask for more time. I make very few mistakes and I edit them quickly & seamlessly when I do. And, from what I have heard on other pieces of the project, I just sound better than some of these other people they are working with.

 

It's been a rough couple of weeks between doing the voice work and the office gig. It took a couple days, but he caught on that he needed to pick up some slack - like handle meal planning/prep and pick up some pet care tasks. That's more than I had a year ago...and that is improvement. I still have those moments of resentment, but they are further between...and they pass. I take a few deep breaths and re-focus. No one's making me do this stuff. I'm choosing it. I'm choosing to build a business and work full time. I'm choosing to agree to projects. I'm choosing to push myself to meet deadlines. If I don't like it, I really don't have anyone to blame but myself.

 

His ambition level isn't the same as mine, and it may never be. It doesn't need to be. I'm sure I look like a slacker to some people, too. (She says as she thinks up ways to kill time on a very slow afternoon at the office gig.) Yeah, there's something kinda funny about that, isn't there?

 

Still no forward movement on the lawn service. The last company I contacted said they'd come out and take a look the other day and leave an estimate in my mailbox. It's a few days later and I don't think they've been out at all.

 

Argh.

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Weird Dreams

 

OMG...you (and that place) again? I mean, I realize I spent a couple decades working there and all, but why are people from there popping up in my dreams the last few days...especially you?

 

Get outta my head. You have no reason to be there. No reason at all.

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5 Simple Steps.....

 

Ran accross this recently. Unfortunately far too many people think this is really the way to go about it.

 

5 Simple Steps To Make Yourself Feel Better

 

1. Instead of looking at your own flaws, find other people's and always point them out.

 

2. Blame other people for why your life sucks because it's everybody's fault but yours.

 

3. Tell everyone how bad you had it growing up because being a victim is a good excuse for the bad decisions you've made.

 

4. Hate on the people who did good things with their lives or make fun of people who tried and failed. This will help you justify why you never gave effort and make you feel comfortable about being a loser.

 

5. Keep saying the phrase, "We all die in the end." This will rationalize your apathy, while at the same time devalue other people's hard work and accomplishments.

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Sorry....

 

I'm sorry if I'm failing to commiserate about the 5 hours of mandatory overtime you have to work this week. It's just I'm a little too busy with 38-40 hours at my office gig, then cramming in voiceover work before and after the office gig, and trying to keep up with with other frivolous things like...going to the gym (or at least moving around some) and keeping myself and the other living beings in the house fed to have much time to chat.

 

So, a week where I was expected to work only 45 hours sorta sounds like......a vacation.

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Me Time, I Haz It

 

Today and tomorrow. Both days off but the spouse is working. Today, I knocked out a couple of voiceover projects. Still have one script to work on...about 40 minutes completed audio...and am working toward reading it today, editing tomorrow. Did an hour of yard work (in nearly 100-degree heat with high humidity) and cleaned out the refrigerator. Threw out old stuff and scrubbed the shelves & drawers. Tomorrow, I'm setting my sites on the freezer.

 

Yet, to me, this is a day where I've done very little. But a day where I do "nothing" sees more things get done than a day most people do "nothing." Go figure.

 

Went out of town last weekend. Not my trip (i.e. there was nothing at the destination I was really aiming to attend or see), but went along for the ride. Very odd...and choppy. Went from being enjoyable to "wow, really????" a few times. The destination itself was bringing up some stuff....which I spent about an hour scribbling about at a cafe while waiting for my spouse to complete the activities he'd wanted to do. Which reminds me....I still have that piece of paper folded up and and tucked away in my purse. Really should throw it out. It was just to get it out of my head and doesn't need to be saved.

 

I alternate between laughing at myself and being angry with myself. I keep hearing the voice of my ex-college boyfriend, "You did the best you could with the knowledge you had at the time."

 

Yes, we can't live our lives with the benefit of hindsight, can we?

 

Like a bad episode or poorly thought out story line in an otherwise great TV series....it passed. Overall, I don't think my life jumped the shark even though I had that episode that guest starredlink removed............

 

I'm gonna go read my 40 minute script now.

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Now That's More Like It

 

Dreams of/dreams with Mr Good Hair last night. We were in some sort of business venture together doing voice work, but we were also roommates (or living in our recording studio). In any event, I didn't feel like I needed to wash my brain when I woke up. It was good to "see" him. Even 20+ years later I am still blown away by the class, compassion and kindness he extended to me.

 

Maybe it's a reminder to align my behavior with his example. Because, frankly, some of the things I've been thinking about in the past day or so have me getting annoyed again. There have been a series of short trips planned for this summer. Some of them are 100% spousal ideas/spousal interests, some are shared interests. None of them are 100% of my instigation. I was doing some personal and business bookkeeping earlier this week and started to notice how much of the expenses for these trips I am picking up....along with some other financial wonkiness - things he said he'd pay for and/or pay me back for, but so far hasn't. Then I note how swimmingly things are going - he's upbeat, happy, pleasant to be around - since it's not all financial struggle and me saying "we can't afford that right now" like I've had to in the last few years.

 

I don't want to think about this, but it keeps coming back. I want to look the other way and say it's not like that. But, dammit, there's some part of me that won't let it go....even after therapy and even over a year on the Cymbalta. Is it higher self or lower self speaking? Is it truth speaking or drama making? I don't know.

 

But I do know that having some awareness of it means I have the power to cut off the fundage.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I Never Knew That About You

 

It has come to my attention that people will post things on fb about their beliefs/attitudes that never come up during the course of "normal" interaction with them.

 

I never knew one person had such...passionate beliefs on gun control and the nature of those beliefs. Or that this other person I've known for a couple decades was *that* politically-minded. Or that another person is likely homophobic. And on and on. We saw/see each other on a practically daily basis for a good period of time, and I never knew these things about you until facebook happened.

 

 

The funny thing is, in most cases, I'm left with the feeling that I'd have been happier to not know that about you.

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Check Those Expectations, Girl!

 

Yeah, it's an on-going process that takes near-constant vigilance....to keep one's expectations in line with reality. Sometimes that is at direct odds with my tendency to see good in people that isn't necessarily there....

 

Sigh. I think this is (yet another) something you're going to have to figure out and handle on your own. Fortunately, you have a couple of good resources and haven't killed off all your brain cells yet. There are still enough of those functioning that, given enough time, you'll piece it out somehow.

 

It's not 3 little words I want to hear...it's 5. I want to hear them, believe them, and have them be true. The words? "I'll take care of it."

 

Instead, I end up saying them to myself. BYOD, indeed....

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12 Hours Later

 

Consultation with tech support and the radio station engineer, and I have a diagnosis....and 2 options to fix the problem. All because of the digging I did. Yeah, that's how I figured it'd come down. It is, after all, the underlying theme of my life. Not like it's going to change now.

 

Been mildly tempted to summon up a virtual shoulder to cry on, but resisted the temptation. It would be momentary relief/satisfaction at best. It wouldn't change anything, so there's really no point to it. Not worth the time or the energy. Especially at this late hour and with the level of physical & mental tiredness I have going on.

 

I'm going to bed now.

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The Dream

 

He looked like link removed.

 

I watched the story play out as if I was watching a movie.

 

He noticed the girl. They were living with their respective families in some oddly configured housing. Apartment-like...but it seemed like everyone in the neighborhood was in everyone else's space. There was little privacy.

 

He had an old car. He was driving her somewhere. He talked about the crowded living space, how he wanted out. She felt the same way. "Let's go to LA," he said, turning the car onto the expressway. "What? Now?" she said. "Yeah, now," he said.

 

She figured she had nothing to lose, so she agreed.

 

They went off on a series of wild, passionate and crazy adventures. In the course of this time, she learned he was married. He didn't seem to care, so she didn't either. The over-crowded crackerboxes they left behind seemed like someone else's life to her. The life they were living was what was real and true. But, eventually, they returned to where they started. They tried to go back to their old living arrangements, but couldn't. So they orchestrated a way to get their own small room in the apartment building.

 

That's when it started to fall apart.

 

She got pregnant, he went back to his wife. When I woke up, the last images I saw involved her trying to use a computer that was loaded with viruses and malware, and would only show her pictures of him.

 

It is almost noon. I've been up since about 6:30 this morning. And I cannot get this out of my head.

 

Even in my dreams, she ends up having to handle everything herself.

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Misfiring Synapses

 

Just a collection of stray thoughts I've had in recent weeks.

 

I read this book link removed about a month or so ago. It was an eye-opener. It's amazing to see how times have changed (and also how they haven't). The public was sold a story as "true" when a lot of it didn't happen outside of someone's imagination. What are we being sold today as "true" that is anything but?

 

The gray and white boy cat has developed hyperthyroidism. We are getting him stabilized and will go over treatment options after he has put some weight back on and his blood levels are better. I am soooo glad we switched vets a couple years back. I could not imagine trying to get this figured out and taken care of with the old vet.

 

I started playing Warcrack almost 6 years ago. I think about some of the stuff that has happened that can be traced back to my involvement with that game. Would some of those things happened in other ways if I had never started playing? Do you blame the game or do you say that those sorts of things happen when humans interact with each other -- no matter *how* or *where* those interactions take place? Online, at work, at church, at your bowling league or country club....people interact with each other and find themselves in situations created through those interactions. Does it make sense to blame an online game when, really, the interactions and situations themselves are nothing new?

 

Also read this link removed in recent weeks. Right after the Sybil book, actually. So, again, I was confronted with things we are sold and told are "true" that actually are not. The politics behind food production and weight loss are mind-boggling....and if they don't make you angry, then you're not paying attention.

 

After a few days of pity party, I have returned to the pithy conclusion "It is what it is" (or more accurately - "He is who he is.") Expecting him to be anything other than that is setting myself up for disappointment. So, if the kitchen is still a huge disaster when I get home (even though he is off today), I refuse to let it bother me. If there is no sort of dinner planned/prepped when I get home....same thing. He is who he is.

 

BYOD, m'dear....BYOD.

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I'm Psycho....err.....Psychic

 

(even though he is off today), I refuse to let it bother me. If there is no sort of dinner planned/prepped when I get home....same thing. He is who he is.

 

Called that one.

 

Apparently heating up leftovers requires detailed instructions. Either that or the Cuisine Genie is responsible for the appearance of meals.

 

If the Cuisine Genie looks like Aaron Sanchez, I'm fine with that.

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