Averygoodun's Personal File

(All caps because I am yelling at myself.)

( To spare you the rest of the yelling )


It's nice to be feeling better. *nods*

Maybe at some point today I'll be able to get outside for a few minutes of garden chores. If the breeze isn't blowing. That wind is still wicked cold, even if the sun is getting nice and warm. I am pleased to see Spring.

I think I'm fighting a cold. I ache that special cold ache, feel hopeless about ever having energy again, and have my sinuses bitching at me.

Geoff is fighting a cold as well. His ears hurt. He even took yesterday off because of it, though mostly because he knew going in was going to make it a thousand times worse than because he was feeling so ill.

Page, meanwhile, is a chipper little monkey, talking a mile a minute and begging for attention at every turn.

On the plus side, I had an unexpected day off from school yesterday due to the snowstorm that went by this past week. New Englanders are so wimpy cautious. But I'm grateful for their wimpiness caution, for once.

(It's kinda funny - I posted on FB about NEers being wimpy and one of my friends pointed out all the reasons for the cancellation (to which I rebutted that a delay was all that was necessary). The conversation evolved into my brother and I reminiscing (more or less) about how stupid Coloradans are about NOT canceling school for snowstorms. We both remember the blizzard of '86, him because he had to walk to school in it (some city bus drivers gave free rides that afternoon when they finally decided that canceling school was a good idea after all... after 2 feet had already fallen), and me because he was my hero and picked me up on his way home, freeing me from my powerless school earlier than everyone else. Good times.)

I slept in till 10. Probably would have slept even longer had Geoff not started talking... ;-)

And this coming week is spring break. Finally. I so desperately need it. Unfortunately, I already have a fairly substantial to do list going for what NEEDS to be done in that time frame. Fortunately, two of the items are "rest".

But still. Exhausted just thinking about it. I don't think my mitochondria are happy at all. Worn out, is what they are.

Anyhoo. I should go enjoy this alone time I've been given wrangled. The boys are out on errands; they are not to come back until they've finished watching a movie at the library ("Wreck It Ralph") and gotten their hairs chopped to reasonable lengths.

I think some reading is in order. Fun reading. And maybe napping. All in glorious silence.

*nods*

The snow it is a-cumin down,
weather maps maybe be proven sound,
a-hum, a-hum.

However, I still think the hoopla is a bit excessive for what is essentially just a bunch of cold fluff. Perhaps a larger than normal amount of cold fluff, but it's not like it's the normal cold white shit. Don't drive (Boston's enacted a driving ban from now till 4am tomorrow morning) or otherwise be stupid, and everything should be fine. No power lines should come down from this unless they were structurally unsound to begin with.

That said, I'm looking forward to what we'll wake up to! It's almost better than Christmas, because there really is an element of unknown with a storm. I will be disappointed if we only get the equivalent of a lump of coal, though (less than 12").

Though, if more snow means the power will go off, then I'd be willing to be happy with that lump.

The only thing that worries me about this storm is that Geoff will have to get home somehow, and if he waits too long, it's going to be a tough slog, battling the wind the entire way as he will be. But, he's a big boy and can take care of himself, so I shan't worry too much.

The more pressing bad thing about this storm is that it's very difficult to maintain a sober enough attitude to do what's necessary. I just want to curl up and read. In fact, that's what I've done for the majority of the day. ("Sign of the Beaver" is really quite a good (Youth-YA) book, btw.)

But now I should go cook our dinner. Especially since the power may go out at some point. We want to have food on hand, now don't we? (She says quite reluctantly.)

Right. I'm off.

Yes, I am.

No, not to the couch, but to the kitchen.

Yes, the kitchen!!!

(I was not eying those movies! What innocent look was that?)

I'm off.

Yes, I'm going! No need to be rude about it.

*grumbles*

fine.

Bossy boots.

http://news.yahoo.com/chilling-arctic-air-invasion-captured-animation-225601925.html

What caught my eye was the warm spot of Denver (and, to a lesser degree, the habitable bits of the front range). It's like there's a heat shield there...

But yeah. It's been kinda cold over here in North America. Though not cold enough to add new colors to the weather map... Granted, notice they don't have Canada on the animation... ;-)

If I had energy, I would carve the snow banks lining the streets into cresting waves. Wouldn't that be cool?

Have some sort of hangover today. Feeling all blue and weepy. Perhaps I just need to turn up the heat, as my fingers are rather literally blue at the moment. And I already have enough layers on to make any grandmother stop her fretting.

Alas, I really can't eat bananas anymore. In fact, I don't know of a sweet fruit I can eat. Dates, perhaps. In very small amounts, of course. Blueberries... Maybe. Need to get an A1C done with my next batch of blood work.

Pondering the possible link between strictness of religion and violence in a culture. I'm sure there are numerous studies done on such subjects, but I wonder if it's been applied to the US's rather fundamentalist outlook? *shrugs*

Wondering if I should ask one of my friends to order a huge bucket of unpasteurized honey (40lbs!) for me from Costco.com (my membership has lapsed), or take a rather long drive out to a "local" beekeeper for a few pounds (like, 20) of their raw stuff. Local is a little bit more expensive, but it's probably better... Maybe.

I don't wanna go to school on Tuesday. Especially at 8am. *pouts*

It's windy out, and the wind is bringing with it arctic air. That probably has something to do with my mood and my chilliness. I really don't like wind. Especially the bitter sort.

Haven't decided whether to re-up my paid account on LJ. It's not like I'm uploading a lot of photos anymore, and I've never been an icon hound. *shrugs again* I'd probably be better served at this point to use the money for my own webpage. Not that I would ever get around to designing something worth looking at...

Ah well. The boys should be back home soon, and then the day will start for real. Fun fun.

( To do: )

Well, the "snow" turned to freezing rain during the night, which left a lovely, crunchy coating of ice on everything. Fun, fun, fun. Actually, once the car started warming up enough to make the ice penetrable, it was fun breaking it off. Like a very miniature version of an ice-breaker ship going through the arctic. vroom. (Tea makes me chipper, k? Stop looking at me like that.) It also meant there was a ninety-minute delay to the school day, which meant Geoff and I got to sleep in! Oh, my body likes waking up at eight SO much more than 6:30, no matter what time I go to bed.

Meanwhile, I have my errands done, lunch eaten, and am now stalling for all I'm worth on getting the presents that need working on done. On the plus side, one of the errands accomplished was getting Geoff to the doctor for his *ahem* "annual" check-up. (It's been, what? Four years?) Blood-work has been ordered, and hopefully they will figure out some reason for why he's so very tired nowadays. Probably not, but you never know.

I suppose putting on some music is in order. Maybe that will help motivate me. Well, assuming I put on the right music. I don't think Pink Floyd will do the job today. ;-)

Right. Getting going now. Yes. I am. *nods*

Well, Superstorm Sandy, aka Frankenstorm, has come and gone, and, as expected, we are fine up here. We actually did lose power for a couple of hours, which was inconvenient, but, well, that's all it was. A first world problem thang fo' sho, unlike what they're going through farther south.

( Where I sing the blues... figuratively speaking. )

Right. Enough whinging.

Good things:
- Friends who let us invite ourselves over to mooch power and ovens. Last night was actually really pleasant for all of us.

- Amusing photoshopped images of the storm on facebook. A nice counterpoint to the horrible devastation.

- The internet. even when it does show the horrible devastation. It's nice to know what's going on and keep in touch while the weather's wild. *hugs the precious*

- (Selfishly:) The tree that fell at our friend's neighbor's house last night fell away from our car. I'm sorry the tree fell at all, especially as it fell on their neighbor's house, but, well, I'm glad our car didn't get crushed. And I'm glad that it looks like the damage to the house is minimal.

- The inhaler is keeping Page's cough in line (if given on schedule).

- Hot tea.

- No snow!


I really hope that the recovery from Sandy goes better than expected and that everything can be brought back to normal very, very soon. I also hope that everyone and theirs are safe and sound. And those of you still in Sandy's path, may you be safe and sound.

What a huge mother of a storm. My heart goes out to those suffering losses.

- The sun is shining today. It's beautiful gobsmackingly gorgeous out with the fall colors backlit against the blue sky.

- I bought 45 lbs of squash yesterday. Yes, I went a bit ape-shit at the store, but the pie pumpkins were only $0.29/lb, while the rest of the squash were a very reasonable $0.79/lb. So far, I have cooked 15 cups' worth of pumpkin, which is a truly wonderful replacement for cheese in the almond flour focaccia recipe. (Pumpkin doesn't have as much flavor or sugar as other varieties of squash, so it offers bulk and moisture without skewing the flavor balance.) I am really looking forward to cooking the buttercups I got, because they are so INCREDIBLY yummy this year.

- I have an excuse to make blueberry muffins this morning. Spiral Scouts meeting tonight will have birthday cake, so I'll need to have something on hand for Page to eat and not feel left out. The fact that it gives me a chance to take some for my own snacks is just, well, icing on the cake. ;-)

- Serendipity is being all lovely to me again. Sometimes it really is "ask and ye shall receive."

- Page is really being a wonderful boy. His maturity level has shot up, and there are way fewer tantrums and pouting matches nowadays. He still can be a grump (and super-contrary) when tired, but, well, who isn't? The good days are outnumbering the bad by a fair majority, now, though. It's such a relief!

- The apod has had some fantastic images lately. This one blew me away today, while this one is fascinating as well as being a stunning abstract composition. Geoff and I looked at it for several minutes, trying to figure out which cities all the lights represent.

So. I should go make those muffins, as I won't have time later. Busy, busy day ahead!

Well, I may have just received my first low A on a test. Not sure, but a few of the multiple choice questions were tricky in their wording, so it's possible I may have misinterpreted stuff.

I'm pretty sure I rocked the problems, though... Even if it made me twitchy not to do a journal entry for the last one but just calculate the amounts. (I triple checked the instructions, and it only said to calculate. No other instructions.)

Unfortunately, the shininess of school has officially worn off, and I'm beginning to not care. I mean, I do care about getting educated, and I will continue the slog, but... it's harder to care about the material. It's requiring discipline, darn it! I'm not good with discipline.

Of course, it doesn't help that I've determined I'm not going to go for a bachelors in accounting after all. Even if it is easy. But I am going to get my associates in accounting, and there's still 39 credits to go for that to happen. After this semester. *yawns*

Ach well.

( Randomness )

( Dream )

And now... I should go start some bone broth. Or have a nap. Or do my homework...


ETA: Oh, and I have a feeling that this is going to be a splendiferous winter. I think the exiting neighbors are stripping their place of anything and everything that can be removed. Including, if neighbor's help of a friend's pre-foreclosure stripping suggests, the furnace, kitchen cabinets, water heater and other basic things we here in the US tend to expect to be there when we move into or leave a place.

Which means, should someone buy it at auction, a noisy winter. If no one buys it, it means an expensive winter, as their place will be sapping the heat from ours. (I guess I should break out the blankets and decorate the inner walls, eh?)

I wonder if Geoff asked nicely whether they'd leave the building's sump pump in place and running? *sigh*

It continually astonishes me how much we eat. I made 14 burgers out of 3 lbs of meat on Sunday (cut with another pound of carrot/mushroom mix), and how many are left today? Three. And we did that in only two and a half meals (lunch for the three of us on Sunday, dinner last night, and Page's lunch yesterday). *shakes head* This is why I don't buy organic beef...

*

Fall is getting closer. Not only did Geoff suggest adding a full size blanket to the bed last night (I've been using a light, long, baby blanket that covers just me), but the coconut oil was solid this morning. Yay!

*

I'm allergic to something. I'm assuming it's something I've consumed, as there's an itchy lump on my hard pallet. I'm hoping it's the muffins, not the tea. It's cold, I'm drowsy from the benedryl I took last night, and I WANT MY TEA.

*

I have two bug bites in a very inconvenient area. They itch, and it's really not an area that is polite to scratch. Just as well, I suppose. *sigh* *wriggles*

*

Geoff and I watched Thor last night. It wasn't at all what I was expecting, but I enjoyed it quite a bit. I think next up is Cpt. America.

*

Almost finished with re-reading GoF. Snape is so completely horrid in this book. Really petty and vicious. Meanwhile, I've rediscovered canon Harry, who is a delight. *sigh* That won't last long, now.

*

Life is pretty good, really. *nods*