And it's been almost exactly a month since we trucked B off to college! It's hard to believe that, just like that, your life is restored to its state BC (before children.) Except that BC, you didn't have massive debt. You didn't have a huge house with laundry that was never on your person. You didn't have seven pets running around, and not enough hands to pet them. You had a full time job, sure, but you took an express bus to get there, and you could go out after work, because (a) you were in your 20s and (b) you did not have dogs.
But the thing is that it's not that hard to get used to this new life, but that is perhaps because I am lacking the nurturing gene. After 21 years of someone somehow placing demands on your life, from the day you're pregnant and no longer able to take your beloved advil until the day you sit up wondering why it's taking so long for your 17 year old driver to get home from a friend's house, and keeping an eye on all the Facebook pages, who so helpfully post every wreck in the county, complete with commentary from "contributors," it's kind of nice to come home and kick back with a glass of wine, take the dogs for a walk or ride a bike through the park after work. It's nice to not have to worry about what's for dinner and whether or not it's GMO-free (although I admit, I didn't really know what that meant until AFTER the kids left and I had the time to learn about it, now I really wish I'd paid attention sooner - sorry M&B.)
The best part of the new-old state is that the house is almost always almost clean - there's pet hair around, and some mail and a dish or two might sit around longer than they should, but there is no clutter everywhere. The house is clean and it's quiet. Yes, sometimes, too quiet. And sometimes we miss the sandy towels and the flip flops and the free samples of redditor-advertisers ordered by B. We know that they'll be back, but it won't be the same. So it's time to reinvent ourselves.
Kevin is off into his world of cycling, and tries to ride and go to the gym as often as he can. I'm a little slower to hop on the freedom wagon, since I still feel responsible for the dogs, even though I've had to hire a dog walker to come in every day and walk them to keep them active. They still act as if I'm the first person they have seen in their entire lives when I walk through the door each night. But I'll get there. Just exploring alternatives.
As for the transition, I am sure it is eased by social media. You're never out of touch with your children, even when they do leave the nest. They're always in that e-nest, right next to you, when they need some money, when they get sick, or when something is wrong. If you're not hearing from them, it's probably all fine. But really - thirty years ago (ish) when I was in college, all we had were in-room phones. One of my friends' mothers used to call all of our rooms until she found the one her daughter was in. She'd be frantic by the third or fourth room. That would never happen now. Everyone can be that mother, thank to the instantaneous connection through texting and social media. B's college leaders said at one of their info sessions - do not call us and say you can't find your child because they are not answering their texts. But it's true. An unanswered text, especially when you know your child is on the Broad Street Subway, or walking through Fenway at night, is definitely cause for some deep breathing, at the very least. That is the hard part of the empty nest, and I deal with it by way of disassociation. I am on a need-to-worry basis.
But social media is a good thing, for those of us in this generation. A Facebook post, a tweet, or an instagram photo can provide us a glimpse into the lives of those who've flown the nest. And although my kids would never believe it, in my mind's eye, I can still understand the horror of my parents seeing those moments when I was their age. Especially since, thanks to my empty nest, I think I am 25 again!
And in other news, everyone is doing well in their respective schools. B is settling in and has made a few new friends although he's at a school where many seem to go home on the weekends. Midterms are around the corner, but so far he reports academic success. M is busy with the start of the swim season, and a new internship which is just beginning to take shape. She will have to apply in the early spring for the accelerated program, and the outcome of that application will determine where she will spend the years following her expected graduation year - if accepted, she will stay on and graduate a year later. Otherwise, she'll have to apply to other programs and those may take her away from Beantown. Time will tell. Lots to look forward to.
Sunday, September 22, 2013
Tuesday, June 4, 2013
modern medicine
I am the survivor of a week from hell. It started out with the usual annual panic at having to go for a mammogram. But I've gone every year(ish) for about ten years, and never has there been a problem - last year they took an extra film, so that didn't surprise me this year either. My tech wasn't the usual angelic comforting one though - sort of more like a tough love nursery school marm. She made me nervous, even though she didn't do anything specific. She just made me feel like something was wrong.
Two days went by without a call, and I truly forgot that I was worrying. Then, in the midst of a panicked update/create/modification for my boss, my cell phone began to vibrate on my desk. My boss, in a tizzy of her own, insisted that I ignore it; it's probably just as well that I did, as I wouldn't have been able to finish my task had I heard that it was the mammography center.
I called them back, and it took several tries before I got past the busy signal. Then I was put on hold. Then someone picked up and identified herself as 'Debbie' and said I could come in 'next week.' I said, "Woah! I don't even know why I am coming in - was there a problem?" (Dumb question, I suppose.) At that point she apologized, and said she was only per diem, and that she didn't even have my file and assumed they had spoken to me. NO. So she got the report and told me that there was an area of change that needed to be evaluated, and that 80% of the time, these changes are nothing. So I made that appointment and had to wait out the weekend.
Yesterday, nearly a week after my first visit and probably a few pounds lighter and with a few less years in my future as a result of the initial stress, I entered the building again and was immediately filled with dread. I sat in the waiting room, listening to an office manager run through the office chattering on her phone about how she cannot work with someone, because that person doesn't like her and just won't return her calls (I wonder why?) I did note with a bit of gratitude to my spirit guides that the angelic tech was at least back, as she took in the three people ahead of me and finally, me.
I sat in the waiting area in my too-big gown and tried to play candy crush to keep my mind off of the wait; my co-waiters were not chatty at all despite our close proximity and similar plight. The angelic tech came and told one of the waitmates that her films were normal, that "it was just dense tissue" and she only needs to come back next year (what happened to HIPAA?) And then - it was my turn. But - materialized out of thin air - was the OTHER TECH! My heart sank. Once again, she was brusque although not unfriendly. Nothing specific that she did put me so greatly at unease, but she just made me feel very scared. This was my first diagnostic mammogram and - wow - do they hurt. I actually sat down while she changed the paddles at which point she determined that I was about to faint and she made me sit in a sort of high chair for the test. Not fun!
Then I was returned to the holding pen. She came out shortly after and beckoned me down to the hallway with the changing rooms. My news was not as good. I was being sent for an ultrasound! I had known that this could happen and she still said that the radiologist had not seen anything, and just wanted to be sure that this was only dense tissue, but that it did not completely dissipate when pressed flatter. She took me into a room (which I now knew was totally NOT soundproof) and put me on the phone with the place where I would have to go for the ultrasound, and not that same day, even!
She left me in the room. When I was done on the phone, after hollering all sorts of personal information to a voice that kept saying, "what? Can you repeat that?" I didn't know what to do. Finally, I made my way out to the waiting area and the receptionist got me the films and documents and got me the heck out of there. At that point, I was convinced that death was imminent. How could this have happened? Did I eat too many hamburgers? Drink too much wine? Or is it simply because I live in New Jersey? I began to consider Angelina Jolie somewhat of a genius and began to prepare myself for the eventual surgery and treatment, which would surely ruin the family's upcoming trip to California, unless I put it off and allowed this beast within to grow.
Fortunately, I am very busy at work. My boss is understanding, as she has been through this before. She even cut me some peonies from her garden, which I found on my desk on Monday when I came in. The problem was, the smell reminded me of a funeral home and made me worry more!
But finally it was Tuesday, which is today. My appointment was not until 2:30. An interesting note on that. I consulted the wise oracle that is the Horoscope app on my iphone, and it said that I would be very worried about something on Monday but for Tuesday it said that I would be distracted by something personal, but that "even in these dire times," I would get my work done. So I decided that an afternoon appointment would be best - if I was going to have to worry, best it be about an upcoming test rather than one in the past that perhaps went poorly. Also, the weather was to be nicer today. For some reason I think that happens only to show me what the outcome of my appointments will be. It does seem to correlate, I have to say.
At any rate, as this tale grows long, clearly the result has allayed my fears (for now, there will always be another) as the second I entered this new facility I just felt a better vibe. I had begun to worry because I decided to wear my lucky pants and I couldn't find them anywhere! How does one go to a test wearing something other than one's lucky pants? But there they were - in my sock drawer, right where I left them when the pants drawer was full. I didn't have to wait long and a lovely tech came back to get me. She was reassuring from the start and told me that the radiologist felt from that everything would be fine. The test took a couple of minutes, and five minutes after that, she came back and told me that I could leave! The radiologist had seen nothing. And the waitmates were friendly and chatty, and there was bright light all over the place.
The only new stress is that I will have to go for a follow-up compression mammogram in six months to make sure the spot is not changing. But the radiologist had gone so far as to say that he would not have ordered the ultrasound in the first place. And guess where I will be going in six months - NOT back to the first place, that is for sure!
And in other news - as if I have thought of anything else, we are off with B to college orientation tomorrow, and then on Thursday he has his consult with the oral surgeon. M will be home next weekend for our vacation, then back to work for a week and then home for the summer. Back to beach guarding. Fingers crossed that the wild weather takes a breather for most of the season!
Two days went by without a call, and I truly forgot that I was worrying. Then, in the midst of a panicked update/create/modification for my boss, my cell phone began to vibrate on my desk. My boss, in a tizzy of her own, insisted that I ignore it; it's probably just as well that I did, as I wouldn't have been able to finish my task had I heard that it was the mammography center.
I called them back, and it took several tries before I got past the busy signal. Then I was put on hold. Then someone picked up and identified herself as 'Debbie' and said I could come in 'next week.' I said, "Woah! I don't even know why I am coming in - was there a problem?" (Dumb question, I suppose.) At that point she apologized, and said she was only per diem, and that she didn't even have my file and assumed they had spoken to me. NO. So she got the report and told me that there was an area of change that needed to be evaluated, and that 80% of the time, these changes are nothing. So I made that appointment and had to wait out the weekend.
Yesterday, nearly a week after my first visit and probably a few pounds lighter and with a few less years in my future as a result of the initial stress, I entered the building again and was immediately filled with dread. I sat in the waiting room, listening to an office manager run through the office chattering on her phone about how she cannot work with someone, because that person doesn't like her and just won't return her calls (I wonder why?) I did note with a bit of gratitude to my spirit guides that the angelic tech was at least back, as she took in the three people ahead of me and finally, me.
I sat in the waiting area in my too-big gown and tried to play candy crush to keep my mind off of the wait; my co-waiters were not chatty at all despite our close proximity and similar plight. The angelic tech came and told one of the waitmates that her films were normal, that "it was just dense tissue" and she only needs to come back next year (what happened to HIPAA?) And then - it was my turn. But - materialized out of thin air - was the OTHER TECH! My heart sank. Once again, she was brusque although not unfriendly. Nothing specific that she did put me so greatly at unease, but she just made me feel very scared. This was my first diagnostic mammogram and - wow - do they hurt. I actually sat down while she changed the paddles at which point she determined that I was about to faint and she made me sit in a sort of high chair for the test. Not fun!
Then I was returned to the holding pen. She came out shortly after and beckoned me down to the hallway with the changing rooms. My news was not as good. I was being sent for an ultrasound! I had known that this could happen and she still said that the radiologist had not seen anything, and just wanted to be sure that this was only dense tissue, but that it did not completely dissipate when pressed flatter. She took me into a room (which I now knew was totally NOT soundproof) and put me on the phone with the place where I would have to go for the ultrasound, and not that same day, even!
She left me in the room. When I was done on the phone, after hollering all sorts of personal information to a voice that kept saying, "what? Can you repeat that?" I didn't know what to do. Finally, I made my way out to the waiting area and the receptionist got me the films and documents and got me the heck out of there. At that point, I was convinced that death was imminent. How could this have happened? Did I eat too many hamburgers? Drink too much wine? Or is it simply because I live in New Jersey? I began to consider Angelina Jolie somewhat of a genius and began to prepare myself for the eventual surgery and treatment, which would surely ruin the family's upcoming trip to California, unless I put it off and allowed this beast within to grow.
Fortunately, I am very busy at work. My boss is understanding, as she has been through this before. She even cut me some peonies from her garden, which I found on my desk on Monday when I came in. The problem was, the smell reminded me of a funeral home and made me worry more!
But finally it was Tuesday, which is today. My appointment was not until 2:30. An interesting note on that. I consulted the wise oracle that is the Horoscope app on my iphone, and it said that I would be very worried about something on Monday but for Tuesday it said that I would be distracted by something personal, but that "even in these dire times," I would get my work done. So I decided that an afternoon appointment would be best - if I was going to have to worry, best it be about an upcoming test rather than one in the past that perhaps went poorly. Also, the weather was to be nicer today. For some reason I think that happens only to show me what the outcome of my appointments will be. It does seem to correlate, I have to say.
At any rate, as this tale grows long, clearly the result has allayed my fears (for now, there will always be another) as the second I entered this new facility I just felt a better vibe. I had begun to worry because I decided to wear my lucky pants and I couldn't find them anywhere! How does one go to a test wearing something other than one's lucky pants? But there they were - in my sock drawer, right where I left them when the pants drawer was full. I didn't have to wait long and a lovely tech came back to get me. She was reassuring from the start and told me that the radiologist felt from that everything would be fine. The test took a couple of minutes, and five minutes after that, she came back and told me that I could leave! The radiologist had seen nothing. And the waitmates were friendly and chatty, and there was bright light all over the place.
The only new stress is that I will have to go for a follow-up compression mammogram in six months to make sure the spot is not changing. But the radiologist had gone so far as to say that he would not have ordered the ultrasound in the first place. And guess where I will be going in six months - NOT back to the first place, that is for sure!
And in other news - as if I have thought of anything else, we are off with B to college orientation tomorrow, and then on Thursday he has his consult with the oral surgeon. M will be home next weekend for our vacation, then back to work for a week and then home for the summer. Back to beach guarding. Fingers crossed that the wild weather takes a breather for most of the season!
Sunday, May 26, 2013
Blog news!
I just found an app for blogging! Neglect may be a thing of the past? This is a test...
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
summer? is here!
Yesterday was FREEZING cold! What happened to summer? I am glad they have revised the name of 'global warming' to 'climate change' because this is not warm. Of course, I am worried about the summer storms and excessive heat once the summer really does kick in, but something at least in the 60s would have been nice for yesterday. I hope today and tomorrow will be better!
So, again, I have neglected the blog. Nothing out of the ordinarily mundane has taken place: the usual, job interviews, high school graduations, weddings and trips to exotic locales. This weekend, as we settle into the summer season, we look to the future as empty-nesters! It is indeed true that B has managed to make it through high school !!!
Graduation was Thursday night, and up to the last second, I worried. His pre-calc grade, which was sitting just below an 80 all year, had not been updated with the final exam score, and he had proclaimed it to be six pages of problems the likes of which he'd never seen. A truly low grade could have been catastrophic, and to fail the last class of the last marking period of the last year as his first failure would have been a real kick in the gut. But strangely, the grade never made it to the portal. So we don't know why this happened, but there was in fact a diploma inside the case, so I guess we breathe deep and move on. My guess is that so many did so poorly that the final in that class is not being counted; when this happens it has to be a reflection of teaching and not of learning. But why not just curve? Perhaps we will never know!
Summer will consist of working nights at a local tavern/restaurant that struggles to keep customers coming in. B enjoys working there and it is somewhat low stress due to the lower level of patron activity. They managed to have a fairly steady flow all spring, but I'm concerned with summer, when most locals prefer a meal by the water. This is a slow season for inland restaurants anyway. We have learned that it's time to have wisdom teeth out, and of course there will also be the MRI and the follow-up visit, and a mole removal as recommended by the dermatologist. Two vacations, and the next thing we know it will be the end of this summer which has not yet begun. Why does time go by so quickly?
M will not be home until July, and I have made her an appointment to battle the stubborn warts again on July 1. I discovered that a horrible looking 'cut' on my foot was actually a wart, and when I went to the podiatrist, his treatment, while barbaric and painful, was effective in just one session. So I am sending her to try that out. The problem? She is supposed to start work on July 4, and may be expected to be able to walk or run at that point. So I hope her pain will be less than mine was, and also that this will finally be the answer to her battles with these warts. And she also is due to have the wisdom teeth out soon.
For now, she is wrapping up her time on co-op, and also working Sundays teaching children to swim for a higher hourly rate than she gets either working at the school OR risking her life guarding others at the beach. I wonder often if they will offer her a position working at their summer camp (which in July moves to her university's pool) and what she would do if they did. We have to pay for the apartment anyway, so she has the option to stay if she wants to. But I know she loves the summers at the beach and the apartment surely can get cramped and hot after ten months of living there. And at the end of August, we have to go back up there and help her move to another apartment.
And in other news, we are just back from a lovely wedding in New Orleans, a city whose charm and character I had not imagined to be quite as it was! It was an experience for all of us, punctuated by the travels fraught with challenge on the way home. But we all made it, and now it's back to the daily grind. Kevin's brother arrives today from California, so we'll take him to visit B at work. He's here for the week, but the rest of us will be working as usual. I've been really busy at work, organizing lots of travel to many meetings which cause me to suffer frequent heart jolts when I think that I have accidentally booked someone on the wrong flight, or sent them to the wrong university for a meeting, or even simply neglected to order a car to pick them up at the airport. These visits will conclude by the end of the last week in June, so I hope to breathe a little more steadily at that point!
Otherwise, we look forward to summer. The pool was opened on Thursday, so maybe one day it will be warm enough to dip a toe in. Kevin believes himself to have the makings of a triathlete, so he has been working on that, and I've just been trying to find the time and motivation to take the dogs on a two mile walk each day. I learned that my hip pain was actually coming from a bulging disc (although I have not had X-rays or followed up with massage or physical therapy - who has the time?) and have modified my activities with reasonable success, so I'm hoping to be able to increase my activity soon as well. But for now - it's off to the beach as soon as weather allows!
So, again, I have neglected the blog. Nothing out of the ordinarily mundane has taken place: the usual, job interviews, high school graduations, weddings and trips to exotic locales. This weekend, as we settle into the summer season, we look to the future as empty-nesters! It is indeed true that B has managed to make it through high school !!!
Graduation was Thursday night, and up to the last second, I worried. His pre-calc grade, which was sitting just below an 80 all year, had not been updated with the final exam score, and he had proclaimed it to be six pages of problems the likes of which he'd never seen. A truly low grade could have been catastrophic, and to fail the last class of the last marking period of the last year as his first failure would have been a real kick in the gut. But strangely, the grade never made it to the portal. So we don't know why this happened, but there was in fact a diploma inside the case, so I guess we breathe deep and move on. My guess is that so many did so poorly that the final in that class is not being counted; when this happens it has to be a reflection of teaching and not of learning. But why not just curve? Perhaps we will never know!
Summer will consist of working nights at a local tavern/restaurant that struggles to keep customers coming in. B enjoys working there and it is somewhat low stress due to the lower level of patron activity. They managed to have a fairly steady flow all spring, but I'm concerned with summer, when most locals prefer a meal by the water. This is a slow season for inland restaurants anyway. We have learned that it's time to have wisdom teeth out, and of course there will also be the MRI and the follow-up visit, and a mole removal as recommended by the dermatologist. Two vacations, and the next thing we know it will be the end of this summer which has not yet begun. Why does time go by so quickly?
M will not be home until July, and I have made her an appointment to battle the stubborn warts again on July 1. I discovered that a horrible looking 'cut' on my foot was actually a wart, and when I went to the podiatrist, his treatment, while barbaric and painful, was effective in just one session. So I am sending her to try that out. The problem? She is supposed to start work on July 4, and may be expected to be able to walk or run at that point. So I hope her pain will be less than mine was, and also that this will finally be the answer to her battles with these warts. And she also is due to have the wisdom teeth out soon.
For now, she is wrapping up her time on co-op, and also working Sundays teaching children to swim for a higher hourly rate than she gets either working at the school OR risking her life guarding others at the beach. I wonder often if they will offer her a position working at their summer camp (which in July moves to her university's pool) and what she would do if they did. We have to pay for the apartment anyway, so she has the option to stay if she wants to. But I know she loves the summers at the beach and the apartment surely can get cramped and hot after ten months of living there. And at the end of August, we have to go back up there and help her move to another apartment.
And in other news, we are just back from a lovely wedding in New Orleans, a city whose charm and character I had not imagined to be quite as it was! It was an experience for all of us, punctuated by the travels fraught with challenge on the way home. But we all made it, and now it's back to the daily grind. Kevin's brother arrives today from California, so we'll take him to visit B at work. He's here for the week, but the rest of us will be working as usual. I've been really busy at work, organizing lots of travel to many meetings which cause me to suffer frequent heart jolts when I think that I have accidentally booked someone on the wrong flight, or sent them to the wrong university for a meeting, or even simply neglected to order a car to pick them up at the airport. These visits will conclude by the end of the last week in June, so I hope to breathe a little more steadily at that point!
Otherwise, we look forward to summer. The pool was opened on Thursday, so maybe one day it will be warm enough to dip a toe in. Kevin believes himself to have the makings of a triathlete, so he has been working on that, and I've just been trying to find the time and motivation to take the dogs on a two mile walk each day. I learned that my hip pain was actually coming from a bulging disc (although I have not had X-rays or followed up with massage or physical therapy - who has the time?) and have modified my activities with reasonable success, so I'm hoping to be able to increase my activity soon as well. But for now - it's off to the beach as soon as weather allows!
Sunday, January 27, 2013
serenity on sunday
I hate Sunday nights. They mean it's almost Monday morning, time for the drive to work again. I'm getting a little tired of the traffic, although it could certainly be worse. I think it's time for a vacation. When I started this job, I was excited about all the vacation and Paid Time Off, but I don't seem to be taking advantage of it as I'd hoped. For one, I was terribly busy for several months. Although I feel as if I have come through to the other side, I imagine something will come up and change all of that.
So I decided to make meatballs and sauce and also, for the first time ever, New England Clam Chowder. I found a recipe in my crock pot book and gave it a try. It used bacon, which I thought was odd, but it actually tastes really good despite being very thin (it only used evaporated milk, not cream, and no flour). We are having a soup tasting sort of party at work on Wednesday for the winter birthdays, so I wanted to see if I could actually make my own contribution.
It's been a nice quiet weekend, although somehow I seem to have hurt my neck/back and am unable to stand or sit for too long without my back getting sore and tired. I'm just taking lots of advil and having a little wine here and there. The kitchen prep today didn't do much to help although taking the dogs around the block was good for it. The poor dogs have been housebound for so long with these awful temperatures.
Otherwise, I fear there is not much to report! B has just finished up his midterms and so far the results are mixed. Many of the most important subjects have yet to be posted, including physics, precalc and English. He's barely been home all weekend, but has been instructed to be home for dinner tonight by 7. If I spent the whole day hurting my back and cooking, the least he can do is come home! Also, last night he wanted to go out with some friends and since he's been put in charge of his own laundry and hasn't been doing it, he found himself with no clean shirts and had to borrow one from Kevin to wear under a flannel shirt that we bought him a few weeks ago at Costco!
As for M, she is just back from the second to last swim meet before the champs in Virginia at the end of February. Work and swimming together are more grueling than work and school, it seems, in terms of hours demanded. But she will have a week off from work before she goes off to champs (February break) and then will have miss the following week of work (or most of it). Bad timing, but she will at least be able to rest.
In other news, B did get the flu shot a week ago Thursday, so I hope it will be effective and keep him from the weeklong viral illness he's been prone to getting each February. I'm still waiting for all of this flu news to die down and it doesn't seem to want to go away. Although I still know almost noone who has truly had the flu, and his school has not experienced particularly high absenteeism, I still live in fear of it and pivot my shopping carts on their wheels at the sound of each hacking cough or sneeze while I'm out shopping. Kevin has traveled a few times and of course, takes the bus to work, incubating who knows what for an hour each way every day. But the good news is, tonight I can watch Downton Abbey.
So I decided to make meatballs and sauce and also, for the first time ever, New England Clam Chowder. I found a recipe in my crock pot book and gave it a try. It used bacon, which I thought was odd, but it actually tastes really good despite being very thin (it only used evaporated milk, not cream, and no flour). We are having a soup tasting sort of party at work on Wednesday for the winter birthdays, so I wanted to see if I could actually make my own contribution.
It's been a nice quiet weekend, although somehow I seem to have hurt my neck/back and am unable to stand or sit for too long without my back getting sore and tired. I'm just taking lots of advil and having a little wine here and there. The kitchen prep today didn't do much to help although taking the dogs around the block was good for it. The poor dogs have been housebound for so long with these awful temperatures.
Otherwise, I fear there is not much to report! B has just finished up his midterms and so far the results are mixed. Many of the most important subjects have yet to be posted, including physics, precalc and English. He's barely been home all weekend, but has been instructed to be home for dinner tonight by 7. If I spent the whole day hurting my back and cooking, the least he can do is come home! Also, last night he wanted to go out with some friends and since he's been put in charge of his own laundry and hasn't been doing it, he found himself with no clean shirts and had to borrow one from Kevin to wear under a flannel shirt that we bought him a few weeks ago at Costco!
As for M, she is just back from the second to last swim meet before the champs in Virginia at the end of February. Work and swimming together are more grueling than work and school, it seems, in terms of hours demanded. But she will have a week off from work before she goes off to champs (February break) and then will have miss the following week of work (or most of it). Bad timing, but she will at least be able to rest.
In other news, B did get the flu shot a week ago Thursday, so I hope it will be effective and keep him from the weeklong viral illness he's been prone to getting each February. I'm still waiting for all of this flu news to die down and it doesn't seem to want to go away. Although I still know almost noone who has truly had the flu, and his school has not experienced particularly high absenteeism, I still live in fear of it and pivot my shopping carts on their wheels at the sound of each hacking cough or sneeze while I'm out shopping. Kevin has traveled a few times and of course, takes the bus to work, incubating who knows what for an hour each way every day. But the good news is, tonight I can watch Downton Abbey.
Saturday, January 12, 2013
2013 before we knew it
Well, it's been months. Work has kept me ridiculously busy, I leave between 7:15 and 7:30 every morning and don't get home until 6 or 6:30, rarely take lunch and almost always feel like the things that are happening are always one step ahead of me. Yesterday I had a brief break in the insanity and was able to regroup and focus on some of the things I've been doing; then it began to pick back up again and I left feeling frazzled for the fifth day in a row.
Next week will be worse as I have a meeting Monday, for which I'll have to take and transcribe and post minutes AND watch a speaker that will keep me out until after 9. Tuesday (my BIRTHDAY for crying out loud) I am forced to remain at work for an extra hour for a phone call because nobody could make it work during regular business hours. Yesterday I calculated my hourly wage and it's becoming more paltry as I take on more harried tasks.
Then, on Wednesday, we have the dreaded semi-annual neurology appointment with B, and this is the one where we find out what the MRI showed back in August. We have called a few times and have only been told that we would have heard if there were a problem, so I'm going to assume that this is the case. Still a total stressor, especially as B is banking on this to be his bon voyage visit at this doctor's office, or at least the end of the six month follow-ups, and, hopefully MRIs unless as needed. Although he probably should have one at least every few years to check on his syrinx, curse its sausagey self.
So - the flu. Of course I can't write a blog post under the present events without addressing one of my usual paranoias - the flu. B has been very ill with flulike symptoms both of the last two years and I thought to myself that we'd get him the vaccine this year. He had it twice - once the year he was diagnosed with chiari and had the surgery (the healthiest winter of his life, virus-wise) and the following year, when he contracted bronchitis and developed subsequent serum sickness from the antibiotic. After that I became fearful of foreign substances and he never got the vaccine again. Also if he's had the flu two years in a row, surely he should be spared a third? Although he tested negative both times in the rapid test. But I don't believe it - only the flu could possibly have rendered him so useless for so long.
After weighing the pros and cons, I called the pediatrician only to be told they had run out. They called me yesterday and offered him a few options (which I can't make, because of the above events of this upcoming week) and he now has an appointment for Thursday at 9:30. I will have to go in late to work and he will have to leave school and go back. The good news is that I have time to think it over. If only I could be sure he wasn't going to get sick again! Then I could spare him the chemicals and possible adverse effects of who-knows-what is in that shot for a 60% effectiveness. And is it going to help or make it worse, if he gets it as the season begins to wind down?
Otherwise, M is settling in with her new job, although she has just been overwhelmed with work and practice. She has to be at the pool at 6 and at the car to meet the girls she drives at 6:50, to work at 7:30 and then back to the pool in the afternoons. For the first three weeks, she has mandatory restraint training at work which conflicts with the evening practices. And all of this as the flu rages through Boston (she was too sick to get the shot when they offered them, with her own mini-flu in October/November) and the team is trying to wrap up their season. We are headed to watch her swim in PA today.
Finally, in other news, the college search is on for B. He's been accepted to only one school so far, and has to hear from nine. I'm reasonably sure that they are all waiting to see his midterm grades and won't send decisions until March or so. But one had promised a decision by January 15, so maybe that will happen next week. Something else to add to the list. And Kevin continues his recovery from the shoulder surgery that ruled his thoughts for the better part of the fall. He's in PT twice a week and scares the animals by raising and lowering an umbrella as he lies in bed every night and every morning. Onward and upward!
Next week will be worse as I have a meeting Monday, for which I'll have to take and transcribe and post minutes AND watch a speaker that will keep me out until after 9. Tuesday (my BIRTHDAY for crying out loud) I am forced to remain at work for an extra hour for a phone call because nobody could make it work during regular business hours. Yesterday I calculated my hourly wage and it's becoming more paltry as I take on more harried tasks.
Then, on Wednesday, we have the dreaded semi-annual neurology appointment with B, and this is the one where we find out what the MRI showed back in August. We have called a few times and have only been told that we would have heard if there were a problem, so I'm going to assume that this is the case. Still a total stressor, especially as B is banking on this to be his bon voyage visit at this doctor's office, or at least the end of the six month follow-ups, and, hopefully MRIs unless as needed. Although he probably should have one at least every few years to check on his syrinx, curse its sausagey self.
So - the flu. Of course I can't write a blog post under the present events without addressing one of my usual paranoias - the flu. B has been very ill with flulike symptoms both of the last two years and I thought to myself that we'd get him the vaccine this year. He had it twice - once the year he was diagnosed with chiari and had the surgery (the healthiest winter of his life, virus-wise) and the following year, when he contracted bronchitis and developed subsequent serum sickness from the antibiotic. After that I became fearful of foreign substances and he never got the vaccine again. Also if he's had the flu two years in a row, surely he should be spared a third? Although he tested negative both times in the rapid test. But I don't believe it - only the flu could possibly have rendered him so useless for so long.
After weighing the pros and cons, I called the pediatrician only to be told they had run out. They called me yesterday and offered him a few options (which I can't make, because of the above events of this upcoming week) and he now has an appointment for Thursday at 9:30. I will have to go in late to work and he will have to leave school and go back. The good news is that I have time to think it over. If only I could be sure he wasn't going to get sick again! Then I could spare him the chemicals and possible adverse effects of who-knows-what is in that shot for a 60% effectiveness. And is it going to help or make it worse, if he gets it as the season begins to wind down?
Otherwise, M is settling in with her new job, although she has just been overwhelmed with work and practice. She has to be at the pool at 6 and at the car to meet the girls she drives at 6:50, to work at 7:30 and then back to the pool in the afternoons. For the first three weeks, she has mandatory restraint training at work which conflicts with the evening practices. And all of this as the flu rages through Boston (she was too sick to get the shot when they offered them, with her own mini-flu
Finally, in other news, the college search is on for B. He's been accepted to only one school so far, and has to hear from nine. I'm reasonably sure that they are all waiting to see his midterm grades and won't send decisions until March or so. But one had promised a decision by January 15, so maybe that will happen next week. Something else to add to the list. And Kevin continues his recovery from the shoulder surgery that ruled his thoughts for the better part of the fall. He's in PT twice a week and scares the animals by raising and lowering an umbrella as he lies in bed every night and every morning. Onward and upward!
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