Random Thought Tuesday

(AKA Bullets Are My Friends)

• The reason for all the tiredness and exhaustion? My iron level which should reside at a minimum of 50 is at an all time low of 5. The doctor asked if I’d been feeling a little fuzzy in the brain. Ah, yeah. Well, that is why. When I stated that must be why I’ve been so freaking tired he said he was surprised I was still standing. All the other tests? Normal.
  
  
• My camera. My love. My huge investment that we could not afford and I was so guilt ridden about that it took me months to really USE the damn thing? GONE. I used it Saturday and now it is GONE. I swear I remember putting it in the car on our way home from a festival. It was between the seats of the van with my purse on top of it. We went to my s-i-l’s and then home. It was not there when we got home. My s-i-l searched her house and so did her husband even though I SWEAR I didn’t bring it in. I called the campus safety people and the library at the location of the festival in the pathetic hope that I remember incorrectly AND I left said camera on a park bench. This particular fantasy includes the finder of the Nikon D80 with 18-200 VR lens to actually turn it in and not keep it for themselves. So far, no such luck. This also means I have to file a police report.
  
  
• Did you know to file a police report for a stolen item you must be in the county of the theft and call 911? I did not. I thought 911 was for absolute, my house is on fire, emergencies. I was wrong. I do not live in the same county as my sil. I do however work in the same county as her. This means I must either find time in my Spring sport calendar (NONE. NONE I tell you) to go to her house and call OR I must have the police report to my JOB. It seems you must call 911 then they come to you and you file the report. I do not want the local sheriff’s at my place of business. I also do not want to wait much longer to file the report.
  
  
• I really keep hoping my brain is not working well and someone finds the damn camera. We just finished paying it off.
  
  
• I don’t think this particular fantasy is going to come true.
  
  
• I miss my camera.
  
  
• Stress + low iron = need nap now (or from now on: nnn)
  
  
• My 1^st performance review for my new job is this afternoon. And I’m blogging. I’m a bit worried.
  
  
• I hate 1^st reviews. You never know how they’re going to go.
  
  
• nnn

Friday Five

1. I called in sick yesterday. And I was sick. Just not the not able to get out of bed kind. That is actually the only kind of sick that has actually caused me to miss work before yesterday. Needless to say, the children did not understand this sick. They kept saying I wasn't. I was kind of feeling like I wasn't really sick. I mean I was up walking around. I even did a couple loads of laundry and helped the youngest complete his homework. I drove myself to the doctor's. Clearly I couldn't be that sick. But really, I was. I have serious muscle fatigue, regular old fatigue and my God I'm so frigging tired. But I did not take a nap. I actually ran out of time. Still, it was a leisurely kind of day where I did things but at a much slower pace than I'm use to.
   
   
2. The hypochondriac that I am went back to the doctor (as I mentioned above). My husband actually had to make the appointment because at the time it was determined (by him) that I really needed to follow up all those negative test results, I was too damn tired and overwhelmed to even make the phone call on Wednesday. It's sad really. I'm completely pathetic. So I went and envisioned an appointment filled with rolled eyes and pats on the head. I should make it clear here that my fine physician has never treated me that way before. But honestly, I was starting to treat myself that way and I figured if I'm sick of me being sick but not really sick with all normal tests then certainly everyone else thinks I'm a fraud.
   
   
3. You see where this is going. He totally validated my feelings. He totally believed something is wrong. He ordered a gallon of blood to be drawn and yet more x-rays and... well, I really don't want to actually think about the other thing he ordered *cough* colonoscopy *cough*. I spent my morning on a journey of needles and nakedness and no, none of it was fun in the way nakedness should be fun. The last thing on the list is not for a couple of weeks so all ended well.
   
   
4. The day got decidedly better after that. I got to have lunch with a friend (yes, I should have been napping) and her darling daughter. With cute! striped! purple! tights. Tights! I love tights! And none of the boys will agree to cute striped tights. Odd, I know.
   
   After paying bills, blech, I went with the 3 younger boys to their art class. It's a new place right down the street and honestly? It makes me want to quit my job and just hang out there. It is a wonderfully warm and inviting space designed to unleash your creativity. The owner has tables and chairs set up in front of the big front window for parents to hang at and even free wifi (which would be great if I owned a laptop). As it was, I knit and listened to their chatter. Maybe I'm a horrible person to admit this but I love to listen to my kids' trains of thought. They are so insightful and creative and wonderful. The bad part? I don't feel the same way about other people's kids. I know. Terrible. I'm really sorry. I'm sure YOUR kids are just as fabulous as mine, I just haven't met them.
   
   
5. Another way one of my children has amazed me - seriously knocked my socks off amazed me - is by writing music. Let me give you a bit of background. I have been accused of being tone deaf. I enjoy music but it's like this mysterious entity to me. I have no ear for languages either. In fact, I grew up in Massachusetts and no one can figure out why I don't have an accent. It may be because I have no audio competency. Yes, it's totally a real thing. No, I did not just make that up. Ok, maybe I did. Anyway, somehow, even with having me for a mother, my NINE year old is learning three instruments, can read music, and is WRITING HIS OWN. It's the furthest thing from my comprehension. And it ROCKS!
   
   Am I the only who thinks this is amazing?
   

Told You So

It's a good thing I learned to spell hypochondriac because it's official. I am one. Hypochondriac, hypochondriac, hypochondriac. Tests are all negative. Yes, I'm happy I can keep eating bagels and crackers and pizza. But now I can't do anything about the anemia, B12 deficiency (will have to keep getting my shots every 2 weeks), lower abdominal pain and severe cramping. Frack!

How's Your Throat Feeling?

Cursingmama guessed it! I was testing the whole post from e-mail thing. I had forgotten that was an option and decided it may help increase my posting now that I’m all anonymous and all. So I had to test it out.

Just as I realized it worked things got away from me again a between a full activity schedule and a child down with strep. But a new week! A new chance to post!

And then I got a call from the school nurse. My mother was out of town (1^st line of defense), husband was working on a big project (2^nd line of defense), so I was called up to bat. I got to work at 8am and left at 9:30. Picked up the child, took him directly to the doctors and got back a negative on the rapid strep. Stopped to buy throat soothing foods and went home. Yay! All those extra hours just waiting to be filled. And they were. They were filled with calls and visits to and from the plumber, playing nursemaid to a sick 9 y/o, balancing the checkbook (left over chore from the weekend), cooking a delicious dinner and driving a couple kids to Hebrew.

May I ask why, the one day the dinner is in the crockpot and you have things basically under control – why is THAT the day you get to go home early? It is never the day you forgot your cell phone at home and have no idea what you’re making for dinner (today).

Lest you think I’m complaining, I shall say, the situation allowed me to call the plumber in a timely manner and he even stopped by less than 2 hours after I called. This resulted in TWO working toilets in our house vs. yesterday morning when I left and only one was working. BIG! HUGE! BONUS! Living with one toilet and six people is just not an option.

As for posting today, I keep having this dream of doing a “real” post. You know the kind. The ones that don’t just talk about the day but have a beginning, middle and end and some underlying theme to tie it all up pretty – yeah, I think I forgot how to do those. Or maybe, I never really knew how in the first place.

In other news, or rather to continue my slice of life posting, the doctor’s office just called. The culture came back positive. The child I sent to school this morning because he didn’t have a fever and the rapid test came back negative, that child DOES have strep. He gets out of school 20 minutes after the result came in. That doesn’t even make it worth it to leave work again and pick him up since he will be home before I am. I am one of those parents you all hate. My kid is currently the one spreading strep to one and all. Sorry.

The most fabulous part of all of this – aside from the fact that the doctor’s office won’t prescribe the remaining 4 of us antibiotics right now instead of one at a time as the rapid streps come back negative but then the next day the cultures come back positive (2 out of 2! Whoot!) in the coming weeks – is, wait, what? Did you forget what I was saying? That may have been the longest aside ever.

Where was I? Oh, the most fabulous part is that the currently ill child has IEP testing tomorrow. My husband and I both took a half day off because they want us to be there to find out what the hell is going on with him academically/learning-wise. And now he has strep. I have decreed he will have been on the medication long enough to go anyway. But, not really. I don’t want to have to reschedule it though because you need to coordinate approximately 50 people (or maybe 6) PLUS the parents to do the testing and it may be some time in May 2010 before that happens again. I say the show must go on. The fact he’s not 100% health wise will just make it more likely he’ll be having a “bad” day. The kind of day he needs to have during the testing. If he has a “good” day, they will not be able to assess his difficulties because he won’t be having any. So maybe this is a good thing. Who knows? Justification baby! It’s where it’s at.

Is that an itch in my throat?

Results

Heard from the doctor's office today. All is fine. Nothing is wrong. So why did I cry? I am a complete hypochondriac. That is all.

Being Well Hydrated is Overrated

It totally is. Peeing 4x's in as many hours at a fairly new job is not winning me any admirers here in the office. And I work somewhere it is pretty obvious to everyone when I go.

Also, it causes untold dryness to your hands. I thought I was HYDRATING myself, not drying my skin the fuck out.

All Is Well.

The doctor called around 8:30 last night. My girly parts are fine. However, my colon is misbehaving. Why is it easier to discuss girl issues than colon issues?

Anyway, other than the Chinese water torture I had to endure in the shower this morning, the fact I couldn't sleep because of the pain, and the hormonal need to weep... all is well.

Thank you for all your kind thoughts!

TMI

Seriously. Don't read any farther if you don't want that kind of information about me.

Have you scrolled on past? Hit the little red X in the corner?

Still here?

Okay, not only is my body so sensitive right now that I can't wear a bra and moving in some ways is painful but the stuff they made me drink for the test yesterday gives you diarrhea. So there's that. And now my body has been kind enough to bestow my period on me.

Last but not least:

Dear all physicians,

When your patient knows you have test results and you do not call for more than 24 hours when they've left (a very restrained) 2 messages - they will assume the worst. Because if the tests showed nothing YOU WOULD HAVE CALLED AND SAID SO.

If this is not the case, and the results showed nothing, do a neurotic woman a favor and CALL ALREADY.

Sincerely,
A Very Neurotic Woman

PS - How many times can I call my physician without becoming THAT patient?

Hypersensitivity Sucks Donkey Balls

Seriously.

Seems that whenever I have to take steroids, like for when they don't want me to go into anaphylactic shock from the dye they are going to inject into my veins, I end up with hypersensitivity.

What does that mean exactly? It means that simply leaning against a wall or someone resting a hand on my shoulder or God forbid I forget and sling my purse onto my shoulder - it HURTS. A lot.

So far it isn't as bad as the last time this happened. That time it got to the point where the mere act of breathing, which caused my lungs to expand against my ribcage was EXCRUCIATING.

Still... sucks donkey balls.

Also, as a side note: I have confirmation that the results of the dye injecting tests are on my doctor's desk with a note to call me. Since last night. Actually, as of this writing, there are now 2 notes to call me. And yet I wait.