Posted on Leave a comment

Septem … what do you mean it’s October?!

hells bells

How did that happen?! I swear I was still writing August on things when suddenly it was October! What even happened in September?!

::consults Facebook wall::

oh. right. September was full of crazy – good and bad – and it flew by. Everyone was back in school – here is photo proof:

2013schoolpics

Wow.

And then there was the headache week from hell that ended with me getting shots in my butt on Day 6. Day 6!! damn. But to spin a positive from all that pain, I did create a couple more pieces of ‘migraine’ art.

A Day 4 painting:

afistintheskull420

And a Day 6 photo became a drypoint that I’m still working on:

day6sm

Of course that was the end of my 29Faces run. That week really wiped me out!

The next weekend had me and Kyle in San Mateo for the 2-day tournament that starts the fall volleyball season. Always fun. And then Ericfish and John came to visit! And that was more fun! And then, just like that, is was October. so yeah. September was a blur and it’s already the 11th! The Halloween decorations have been up for over a week, and its time to think costumes. Someone wants to be a bat.*

 

 
* with over 2 weeks to go, this will most likely change.  I think she should goes as Pig-Pen. 1st grade Erin is the dirtiest Erin yet. And did you hear her snort?

 

 

Posted on 2 Comments

I can’t take the pressure!!

Well, that blood pressure medicine I was taking finally kicked in on Tuesday and it was not good. My blood pressure was low. Way low. Passing out now low. So a quick call to the doctor’s office and that experiment is done. No more Norvasc for me. Two days later I’m starting to feel normal again. Well, normal for me. shut up.

Turns out I’m going to need my energy, I’ve got a lot of work to get done this weekend. Vox has found a new home and I’m happy to say that I’m going to be exhibiting  in the October show! And we hang that show on Monday!! Looks like I’m gonna be framing some photographs and transfers over the next couple days.

Also on my to-do list – self portraits for my photography class. gah. Luckily the critique has been pushed back a week so I have a bit more time to get the roll shot, developed, and an enlargement made. But I can’t continue slackin’ on this for long, because in 2 weeks Chris and I are going to Boston for a long weekend!

So to recap:

This weekend: shoot some photos and frame some other photos.

Monday: spend the evening helping hang show at the new Vox location.

Next weekend: Second Saturday!

And then Boston! 4 cameras/3 days.

Posted on Leave a comment

human guinea pig

Oh joy. I am again playing human guinea pig with a new drug. I’ve already mentioned the routine doctors appointment last week to get a refill for my migraine medication. Well, my doc is still not happy about the number of headaches I have each month. “So, how about we try another preventative treatment?” I like how he says “we“. But since I am not happy with all these headaches either, I said yes. He scribbled something on his prescription pad, said somethings I didn’t catch (I had a fever remember!) including a warning about dizzy spells, and sent me on my merry way. I should have asked him to repeat all that. I had no idea what I was going to be taking until I actually picked up the pills and talked to the pharmacist.

Turns out I’m going to be taking the  calcium channel blocker Norvasc, which is used to treat high blood pressure and angina. Apparently it also help with migraines since it relaxes the blood vessels. So the warnings were about potential low blood pressure. oh boy. My blood pressure has always been on the low side of normal. This might get interesting. I’m not sure how my sessions with Evil Trainer Adam will be effected.

Hey, since I am not always the most observant person and (as Chris is oh so happy to point out) I have no self-preservation skills, if you notice that I start mentioning being tired, or dizzy, or anything out of the ordinary, let me know will ya?

And now, apropos of nothing, a picture of Erin! Enjoy.

Erin

Posted on 1 Comment

Programmed to self-destruct

Hmm. Remember last year when I declared I was never going to take another programming class ever again?! Yeah. Well, last month when I said I was starting my Programming with PHP class, why didn’t you gently remind me of this? Hell, why didn’t you just start hitting me over the head with a toaster?!!

At first I thought things were going to be ok. PHP seemed to make a lot more sense than JavaScript ever did. But that optimism was short lived and PHP done went and broke my brain this past weekend! I spent most of Saturday trying to get my little program to work. As my head was starting to ache, I finally gave up and went to bed completely frustrated. So it was no surprise when I woke up Sunday morning with a wicked bad migraine. Fun. Of course my assignment was due Sunday at 11pm. At 8pm, after another nap, I turned on the computer. As if that wasn’t painful enough, I gave my program another couple attempts – nope, wasn’t happening. I just could not figure it out. Had to turn it in anyways. Double ouch.

Yesterday I started the next assignment, which includes having to read 5 chapters! I read 2 and called Chris. I was not getting it. He ordered me to go the bookstore to get another book on the subject. And I’m pretty sure that’s going to help. Seriously. What didn’t help was taking Kyle with me. Damn, that boy would not shut up! So I bought him ‘Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’. “No, I will not buy you the whole series tonight!”  – jeez. And then Kyle fell in love with the dude working the cash register. Ok, maybe not “in love” but he certainly seemed to like him. The guy – who kind of had a shorn Seth Rogan thing going on – commented that Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy was a classic and one of his favorite books! He then agreed with Kyle that I must have spent my childhood living under a rock because I’ve never read ‘Where the Wild Things Are’. sorry. And then (and I missed this) the dude put his hands together and gave us a little bow! And Kyle thought that was the coolest thing ever. I heard about it the whole way home. We also discussed when and how the Buddha gained enlightenment. Kyle kills me. What a kook.

And because I know you are as worried about my grade as I am, I am happy to report that the teacher email me back saying that I was really close. Gave me a couple pointers and voila! I got the program to work. I am ashamed to admit how happy this made me.

Posted on 2 Comments

Feelin’ uninspired. Think I’ll start a fire…

The left hemisphere of my brain has been ruling the roost lately and it’s left me very quiet. Not one little ounce of inspiration to write anything about everything that’s going on. My creative muse has been trapped under my 5 lb Dreamweaver book. And then, last Friday morning, the right hemisphere of my brain tried to stage a coup and almost killed me in the process with another wicked migraine. Stupid brain. But on Saturday the visual part of the design process kicked back into gear, so maybe we can get a little balance here.

I’ve been immersed in pools and code. Car pools, swimming pools, test servers, databases! No wonder I’m feeling a bit stretched out. And I went and signed up for another class at Sierra College in the fall. Web Programming with PHP. Oh yes, this should be fun for all of us. JavaScript was fun right?! It only broke my brain and ruined my eyesight. But apparently everything I want to do is done with PHP, so what’s a girl to do but learn another programming language. Joy.

But classes don’t start until next month. Before then I really need to get my shit together. Life without Positron is turning out to be a hard adjustment. I don’t know how to manage my time yet. With swim lessons and soccer camp complicating the mix, I haven’t had a chance to get into any kind of routine. I feel like I should be “working” at every minute. I’m still trying to do too many things at once and am not getting anything finished. Well, I’ve gotten a few tasks completed, but not that damn resume.

Posted on 2 Comments

And the ones that mother gives you. Don’t do anything at all…

Hmpf. This blog needs a new post. I finally have a little breathing room this morning while I wait for IT to call back, and what do you know- I feel like crap. I’m border-line contemplating getting a headache. So, fun for you. Buckle up. Odds are this will make no sense at all. Hmm, I wonder if Bob Mould is on Twitter. No. So onward for better or worse. Ya know, somewhere there is a smart-part of my brain that is shouting “take the pill now!” I’ve heard it’s message faintly a couple times this morning. I suspect that part of my brain is being sat on by the ‘you-only-get-6-pills-a-month’ pill-horder part of my brain. The same part that has enough vicodin to choke a cow stashed away in the bathroom, but never sent up the suggestion to take some while I was suffering excruciating pain pre-ER visit last month. Yeah, that part. The evil s.o.b. part of my brain. Oh dear, this is not going well. Must focus.

So, last Friday was a good day. I had planned to write a nice post on Friday afternoon, telling you all about this wonderful chickpea sandwich that had brought me one step closer to world domination. But no. As soon as I got home – woosh! I was swept away by Chris’s Big Weekend Project. His plan is to get rid of our storage unit. To do that we need to make room in the garage for the stuff from storage. Of course this can only happen after a giant purge of crap that we no longer need. So Chris started to go through all the boxes and sort the things we wanted to keep and the crap to toss or items to donate. Now, my possessions were already pretty streamlined. But Chris has been luggin’ around a lot of stuff. Like all his college text books! All of them! To the dump they go! In fact much stuff went to the dump. Two van loads of stuff. And then a van load of stuff went to Goodwill. That’s a lot of stuff!

It was a weekend trippin’ down memory lane. Chris looking through boxes of old climbing mags – literally – boxes! Photos. I won’t even mention the love notes from high-school girl friends. Yikes. I went through all my old artwork. Whoa, the Blurry years watercolor phase is some seriously weird shit. Sadly for you, I didn’t think to pull out the camera and photograph any of it. Now it is all repacked is nice new portfolios and back up on the shelf. But my old canvases are still to come back from storage so we have that to look forward too. I’m sure that some twisted stuff in that stack too. I did find the self portrait I painted while I was going to Wayne State. I don’t think Chris will let me hang it in the house.

So, the point – yeah, like there is a point to any of this! – is that we worked in the garage all weekend. And we got a lot done – beside my canvases, a couples chairs and the shelves, the storage unit is empty! But my thoughts of world domination were lost. And when I got back to work on Monday, I was faced with an email migration that still is not working right. So blah. What’s a girl to do? I babbling on one monitor and staring at this on the other.

All while waiting for someone from the IT dept Helpdesk to call me back. It could happen.