Movie Night with Penelope

Today I received a phone call from my good friend Darla requesting my presence. She hadn't seen me for a while, and inquired as to my health. I believe her exact words were, "Are you still on drugs?" I assured her I was not, and hurried over to see her. As an added bonus, our friend Penelope was there as well. Sitting down, I began to relax. However, this was a short-lived moment of bliss; Penelope immediately told me that we were leaving. "Now?" I whined. "Now." she told me. Below Darla looks on while Penelope speaks to me with authority."We're going to pick out a bracelet for Carrie." I should probably mention that Carrie is Darla's daughter, and Penelope and I are the godparents. So we made our way to Wharram's, where Penelope got the thrill of her life. The sales girl was truly a gem (pun cleverly intended) and noticed her interest in the large, sparkly engagement rings. Not only did she engage (again, clever!) her in a conversation about them, but allowed Penelope to try several on. At one point, she had an estimated $25,000 on one finger! Eventually we made our single selection, one baby bracelet - although Penelope entertained the idea of maxing out every single one of her credit cards just to add a little sparkle to her day.

Since she didn't get a chance at something shiny, Penelope and I decided to treat ourselves - to Tim Horton's. We figured this was somewhat more in our price range. Here Penelope is, navigating the drivethru. When she saw my camera she said, "You're putting that on your blog, aren't you?" Yes Penelope, I am.

After a stop at the grocery store for supper ingrediants, we settled onto the couch for a relaxing night of movie watching. However, just as my visit at Darla's, it was not to be a long stay. My phone began ringing - the ringtone that I dread. Dolly Parton singing Workin 9 to 5. You guessed it, I was being called in to work midnights! So here at work I sit, wishing I had enjoyed my day more while it was still my own.

Wii Party

Last night I decided to brave the ice and snow. With the trusty little car at my desposal, I made my way to A & P. I picked up chips, dip, and a pie. I would have made these things myself, but the uncertainty as to the condition of the roads left me pressed for time. After my purchases, I went over to a friend's house for my first night of (real) excitement since my surgery. But before we go any further, I'd like to introduce you to somebody. It's Mii!
I went to a Wii party! This handy-dandy little guy is saved on my Wii remote, and comes with me wherever I go. After a meal of tacos (which some of us overindulged!) we headed downstairs, remotes in hand. The tension in the air was unreal, the fierce look of concentration upon our faces sending chills to our competetors. That is until we turned the system on and started laughing. I really do think that I ripped a stitch! Here's a picture I snapped of Cupcake bowling.

Here's Licorice after winning a game of tennis. She's quite pleased with her skills!

Another fun part of the evening was Licorice's Mii - made by her son. Poor Licorice!

In the background of Licorice's picture, you can see both myself (over the blue 3) and Cupcake (beside me, over the blue 4) waiting to bowl. What a fantastic way to spend six hours!

Snow Daze

I slept in today. This may be because I'm lazy, but I would also like to think that it has something to do with the fact that I could qualify for the regional shoveling champion. No, our driveway is not the largest, no, I don't think I'm better than anyone else that had to shovel, but I had to shovel three times. Forgive me, but I'm tired!

Isn't the karmic rule that whatever you send out into the universe comes back to you threefold? I ponder as to the wonderful things in store for me due to my triple shovelling spectaculaire!

Another blissful part of sleeping in today is the fact that I have nothing to do. I have things that I can do, but there is nothing that must be done! This is most likely why I am typing while still in bed under the covers. I'm not saying this is a bad thing, but I'm getting hungry. Soon I'll have to face the fact that I need to do something productive today.My television looks lonely, perhaps it could use a friend - but I don't think mindnumbing hours can be called productive. All right, it's settled. I'm getting out of bed!

I haven't even looked out the window yet to see if it has snowed again, but I think I'll make an effort. Who knows what the day could hold for me? I'm suddenly full of energy as I realize that I'm in the prime of my life, there's nothing to stop me, and the possibilities are endless!

Except it's 1:15, and the day is already half gone.

Maybe I'll go back to bed.

Solid Foods on a Snow-Filled Wednesday

Today's the day - how I've waited for it! I finally have enough relief from the pain in my mouth to begin eating 'real' food again. Sure, I had some pasta the other day, and some Italian wedding soup, but the real stuff starts today! There's something I realized when I was sitting semi-comatose in the chair. We always say that we need to be thankful for our health, but it's something done in passing while we are healthy. While sick, we long not to be; but once we start feeling just a little bit better, we still complain about how 'bad off' we are. I need to take this time to look at the past few days, and feel even better about being better again!

First, the food. Pudding and jello are wonderful for the first few days - but it's time to move on.

Then, the pills. They were wonderful! But even I get tired of taking a pill, and sleep. Pill, sleep.
Lastly, my constant companion. She kept me warm and entertainted at all times.

So, since I felt so much better, I decided to do something nice for my parents. I realize that it wasn't my fault, but I most likely wasn't the nicest patient. Hey, it happens. I looked outside and realized that it had snowed throughout the night, and the sidewalk was completely covered. Bingo! This also gives me a chance to take a nap (drug-free) whenever I want today. That's physically exhausting labour! Stepping outside revealed that it wasn't really as cold as it looked. The glow of the Christmas lights on the snow made such a pretty . . . wait - Christmas lights? Sure enough, Mom had them on. Our house was shining like a beacon for all our neighbours to see, and here I am standing right in front of the house! Thankfully it was quite early, and I only saw two or three cars drive by (but I can only imagine what they were thinking!).

Walking inside reminded me that it's no better there - Christmas lights have become year round fixtures in some rooms. Take for example the bathroom,

and the kitchen.

I have to conclude that I don't mind Christmas the whole year round, who would? But there still is one thing that bothers me. Where are the daily presents?

Welcome to Me

Here it is, my first blog. Mainly, this has started off as I've been exceedingly bored from having my wisdom teeth out last Thursday. I've never had surgery before, and Ihave to admit it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be!

Initially I was nervous because of the IV. It's kind of funny, I work at the hospital and I see IV's all the time, but the thought of one of them sticking into me drip-drip-dripping away has always filled me with dread. So I was expecting my blood pressure to be astronomical. Surprisingly though, it was lower than some nights when I'm working! After the IV was in (and my mother came to look at me lying on the stretcher) I began to relax. This wasn't achieved by imagining myself somewhere nicer, it came from lying perfectly still. Playing a mind trick on myself you might say, but if I didn't move my hand - at all - I could pretend that I was just getting ready for a nap. Just when 'zen mode' was reached, the nurses came to wheel me into the Operating Room.

I was taken to the second room, as the first room was full. Full of what? Naked pregnant woman. Here I am trying to keep my 'zen' going, and the next room is full of a woman screaming bloody murder. Yes yes, I know. I can't ever know the pain of childbirth, but come on! Aren't there anaesthesiologists near by? Just say yes to drugs! Don't be a hero! Is it so wrong to want and expect a peaceful extraction?

The nurses then covered me with a warm blanket. Again, working at the hospital, I hadn't expected the comfort factor that this provides. I was wrapped almost like a baby, keeping my arms tucked in place. My anaesthesiologist came in, and smiled. Hoo boy, I thought. "I'm going to change over your IV bag now. This will be the pain killer." Just don't jerk the line! I took my first look down at the IV (another denial technique - if I didn't see it, it wasn't there) to see it was firmly taped on my arm in about three places. Deep breath.

As I mentally prepared myself, the nurse nearest to my head brought down an oxygen mask to my face, explaining what she was doing as she did so. Fine by me. Then the doctor said, "Now when this starts going through, it's going to sting a little. Then you're going to feel light-headed." Okay, a little pain. I can handle that. As I waited for the pain, I noticed the oxygen starting to taste funny. My head began swimming, but because of the weird taste, I held my breath. Not wise. "Are you breathing?" Oh yeah. They have oxygen saturation monitors on me. "Oh, okay," I said. I took a deep breath in, and in doing so felt as if I had just tossed back three Manhattans (yes, I know what this feels like). "Whoo! There it is!" I said.

I expected to have to count back from ten, or one hundred. Isn't that the staple of 'going under?' Alas, this was not to happen for me. The next thing I knew, I was sitting up without being able to see. I'd say it took a good five minutes for my eyes to clear, and at that minute I knew but one thing.

I WAS ALIVE!