Hump Day Blog

Yes, it is midweek at last, and finally a sunny day, if a bit cool and windy. I think they are predicting more rain, so I want to get out and move some things around in the yard. I'm running out of spots for new things, so I bought a small holly and am going to replace the deer-ravaged small euonymus, and bring that poor thing inside the fence to a spot where it can try to recover. It isn't doing as well as its larger also-ravaged cousins, who are sprouting new greenery left and right.

But I woke up with a headache today. I don't know why, as is often the case. Maybe from lifting the 40 pound bags of potting soil yesterday, or from the stress of driving the Monster Truck to Englishtown for the cheap shrubs and annuals. I took advil and went for a walk, it didn't hurt too much, but then my mouth felt cold in the shower, which usually accompanies a migraine attack. So I drank a coke and now I'll pop a couple more advil before I go dig in the holly.

Speaking of the holly, I have concerns about my beloved holly. As a female, she must have a male nearby, or she will not bear fruit. Last year, she was full of pretty red berries. At the nursery, all the hollies have them by now. Mine is abloom in pretty white flowers, but I don't see any berries! I am going to inspect more closely, but I may have to invest in a young man to keep the ladies happy. The other holly, the one that will take the place of the ill-fated euonymus, is also a little girl, all adorned in red. So she may become sad and lonely next year, too, if I don't act soon. I should have grabbed one yesterday when I could have done so for $15. It will end up costing me at least twice that now, that was my last trip to Englishtown this year.

Finally, my biggest news of the day. I got my hair cut. I was tired of the ridiculously long locks, most unbecoming to someone of a certain age, such as myself. Trapped in the quandary of "where to go?" I decided to go with the cheapest and simplest option, the woman who last cut Megan's hair. So I got a haircut for half the price, and she seems to have done a reasonably good job at salvaging the bang-up bangs. They have grown out quite a bit, but now they taper into the rest of the hair. I'll report later on how I like the cut when I have styled it myself.

In other news, it's been a quiet couple of days. Brian winds down with the testing, and Megan is back to the Y. She's babysitting tonight and again on Saturday, for a new family then. On Sunday, she is attending training for the Bottlecappers, a group of high school students who travel around to the younger children and teach them about not drinking or doing drugs. I'm always unable to comprehend how the group got their name. It makes me think of those little candy bottlecaps that taste like root beer, coke, or orange soda.

My God, What Have I Done?

Thanks to the Talking Heads, Once in a Lifetime, this has become my catch phrase for everything and anything blundersome. For me, today, it is my hair.

I am now 42. It was my birthday yesterday. As is standard around my birthdays, I feel the need to change. I am campaigning for a new car, something more fuel efficient and 'green', but I also decided it was finally time for a haircut. I went to my regular guy and told him I was considering bangs. He said he would angle them so I could still pull the hair back if I wanted to. This sounded good.

Partway through my appointment, a woman came and began to talk to him, which I found to be rather rude. I listened to everything they said, and they included me to a degree, but they were discussing people and places with whom and which I am not familiar. Afterwards, my hair looked ok at first glance.

When I got home and took a better look, this was no longer the case. The angled bangs are only angled on my right side - on the left, I have just a very short piece of hair, angled into nothing. Then I have very long layers and very, very little change in the length. Which, to me, is a little long to have at age 42. Or 41. Or 40!

The next day I let it curl and the results were just not good. The small piece was ok, it curled to look more like a little curl. The 'angled' side was a wild runaway experiment.

Yesterday I tried to straighten it, but was so discouraged with the unevenness that I just gave up. So today I say to myself, "My God, What Have I Done?" I want to call and request a fix, but I am generally non-confrontational. I feel like they will resent this and I always feel I will be expected to tip again, and I don't want to. Plus, I hate going there, and now I have to go back again - and I don't even know if I can get an appointment.

But in other news - I am working on the car purchase(or waiting to see if I will get permission to get it!) Puff is recovering well and seems thrilled to be spayed! No more heats, no more peeing. I take her into the bathroom and close the door, and she hops right into her box and pees. She is so good. Swimming is still in full swing, and now Brian has started basketball, with baseball just around the corner. One of his teachers sent back her questionnaire and I think it is pretty clear that he will not end up being diagnosed with any learning issues, if we're going on those responses. So I guess that is good news.

Megan is still undefeated in the 200 and the 500 free, but for some reason no teams ever put their better swimmers up against her. There are two meets coming up where that may not be the case, but I expected her to have a good race last night, and she did not.

I've read a few chiari pages and many of the kids are having problems. Some are having unexplained pain and issues, others are developing reherniated tonsils. It is so upsetting that this is something that should be so simple, and yet it just isn't. It makes me so grateful that Brian has done so well, and yet so anxious for the future at the same time. I ""knock wood"" every time I talk about this. It is a monster.

And so, as I do the loads of laundry and suck down advil today, I work up the nerve to look in the mirror. Then, I ask myself, "Where does this highway go?"