Aeärwen's Corner

Yesterday was not quite but almost a lost day. I wanted to get my fasting blood test done right away - but a trip to the kitchen while still half-asleep netted me a quick drink of cranberry juice at 4:45AM, which blew that out of the water. I still went to the lab tho - Hubby needed to get his bloodwork done. Then later, went shopping and generally tinkered with IDD Chapter 24 and hung out on Facebook. Crashed into bed early.

Today was Saturday, and my normal 8AM appointment with friends for coffee and conversation. Have decided I need to learn how to filter Facebook to take out all of the political crud mentioning, ridiculing or otherwise discussing our current federal leadership. I do spend time reading a couple of news sites, and I do so at length, so it isn't as if I don't know what's going on - but I'm tired of going to FB to relax and coming away depressed and half-angry. That's a good part of the reason I love coming here!!! There is so little of that, and it's SOOOOOOO refreshing!!!

Okay... On with the meme. Today's a catch-up day, with two prompts:

34: Where you’d like to be in ten years.

I'm at the age that, ten years from now, I'd like to be alive and well and still functional. Maybe even still writing either fanfic or O-fic. I want to still live in the same house I'm in now, in the same area I live now - hopefully with no water shortage issues.

35: Your views on drugs and alcohol.

When it comes to alcohol, I'm not a teetotaller, but I do believe in imbibing with moderation - and seeking help if one has trouble knowing when to stop.

I also am a proponent of legalized marijuana, and of doing the research into medical cannabis' potentials. I make and use my own cannabis ointment for topical use to help with the arthritis pain. I do NOT believe marijuana to be a "gateway drug" anymore than I believe it about alcohol. I believe the research demonstrates that marijuana is far less physically addictive than either alcohol or many other so-called "legal" substances.

My views on drugs, however, are a different story.

I have lived my life - and taught my kids - that "Drugs are for sick people only." In other words, if you haven't got a physical condition that demands that pill, you shouldn't be taking it. That said, I recognize that there are a lot of facets to drug addiction other than poor self-control. I have friends who are part of the 12-Step programs available, and seen the good they can do. I believe that rehab should be the recourse given to those convicted of drug crimes (along with any restitution that should realistically fall to them) and not prison time (unless the crime committed was one that included violence.) Prison doesn't make the problem better or go away; it often exacerbates some of the other issues of which the drug use is only a symptom.

I think that the way the pharmaceutical industry has flooded the airwaves with commercials for pills to cure just about anything that ails us - with a zillion and one side-effects that will, in turn, require even more pills - are a major contributor to the problem at hand, and I would like to see ALL advertisement of prescription medications banned, period, end of statement (except in publications aimed at medical professionals who would know what the heck they're about.) I advocate self-education in the many naturopathic remedies, and use of the same up to or until one finds them inadequate - and only then consider artificial (as in man-concocted) remedies.

More than you wanted to know, right?

Okay. Until tomorrow, folks. Have a nice rest of the weekend.

Well, it only took less than a week for me to completely and utterly miss a day's posting to the meme - and a doubled-up day at that!

My excuse - and a lousy one - is that it was a pretty full day. Hubby needed to get to a lab for a blood draw, so we'd scheduled about 10 AM. What time did the hardest part of the first storm system to dump on us start to dump on us? You got it - about 10:15, just about the time we were coming out of the lab. And dump it did!!! We got, all told, 1/2 an inch in a little under an hour.

Needless to say, neither Hubby nor I were really keen to climb out of the car in the middle of a deluge like that, so we decided to drive around a bit. Hubby, being house-bound, doesn't get to see how the area is "developing" (if you want to call it that, grrrr!!) so we tried first to go watch the ocean. Nope - traffic issues related to a mudslide on the freeway made that impossible. Okay, so we turned around and started driving Hwy 1 home - but nope. In one little town, a 20 yard-long section of Hwy 1 was under probably about 2 feet of water. Goodie, we get to use the residential streets.

We finally maneuver around the flooded part and get back on Hwy 1 - only to come up to a police car blocking the way and a telephone/power pole sitting skitty-wonkus at about a 60% angle. Okay... *sigh* back onto residential streets we go. By this time, Hubby needs to get out of the car, so we head home as quickly as traffic and the rain will allow - and both of us get soaked getting in the house. Hubby was more soaked than I was, because he needs a walked and simply can't walk fast at all.

Then, that afternoon, I had a meeting - and in trying to get out of that meeting, ran up against the traffic issues of Hwy 1 traffic being re-routed past where I wanted to turn left. *another deep sigh* Thank you to the kind-hearted soul who took pity on me and simply waited so I could slip in front of him, or I'd possibly still be sitting there.

Today, it's been fairly quiet - but I suddenly realized I hadn't posted yesterday at all, and not today yet either. So...

BAD AEARWEN!!!!!

Mea culpa. Mea culpa. Mea maxima culpa.

So...

On with the questions - all four of them today.

13: What are you looking for from life?

Experiences. A little enlightenment. Lessons to be learned. "Life is its own answer."

14: Who is the last people to tell you they loved you?

My brother, over the phone, a little over an hour ago. My family has never been shy about telling each other that - and I'm very glad of it.

15: What is your favorite piece of art you own?

I collect Oriental artwork, and my favorite piece is a scroll about 4 feet high that is a brush painting of a sky dragon, done in blacks and gold accents, except for the flaming pearl in red. Lovely piece. Second favorite: a dragon worked in mother of pearl on a black, lacquered background.

Did I ever mention I love, and I collect, dragons?

16: Whats the last thing you apologized for?

For slacking off and not finishing plugging in the lyrics into the songs I wrote for a small production so I can print off a copy for the author/director/producer. And now that we've decided we're going to make it a video rather than a stage-play, I need to get off my cast-iron keester and get that done so that we can get our performers and at least get the audio of the music taped.

YAY!!! I'm caught up again!!!

See you all tomorrow...

( It's been a long time, I know. I was starting to wonder if I'd burnt out again - I guess not. )

Okay. So that's what's going on with Aearwen lately. I know I've been quiet. That's why, and that's what I'm up to nowadays.

Have a good day, f-list folks!

The last couple of days have definitely proven interesting. I've been to see The Hobbit (and in 3D, after promising myself I'd only try 2D,) learned that my "almost-not-quite-officially-adopted" son from Tennessee is gonna spend a couple of weeks with us over the holidays, and finally finished the application for health insurance required by the ACA.

( All kinds of yattering under the cut )

So... The days ahead seem full and busy, even for folks like me who don't celebrate Christmas at all. I play the piano at Halcyon this Sunday, then Christmas Eve service, and then the next Sunday too. This Sunday, I have my piano/organ duet cohort Nashoma with me, which is a treat (she's 81 now, and has nerve damage that sometimes makes playing quite difficult for her.) I have two (count 'em) fishtanks that need serious maintenance. I have several large meals to plan.

It should keep me out of the bingo parlors, eh?

Happy Holidays, f-list! Have a great time, and stay safe!

I know, I know. This isn't exactly the time of year that one normally kvetches about heat waves - and yet we had one here. Wednesday it damned near hit 100°, Thursday, it was a relatively (and comparatively) sane 85°, and yesterday it barely hit 80°. Today, it's barely 70° and overcast. I can tell the barometric pressure is doing The Yoyo from the way my arthritis is acting up. No fun.

Mind you, I live in an area that gets warm maybe two days a year, so very few folks in these parts own an air conditioner. This year, this is the second - maybe the third - heat wave. I don't like heat. I'd rather be cold than hot; because when I'm cold I can bundle up and stand over my floor furnace and have hot air blow up at me. When I'm hot, I am miserable.

My daughter Súl was less lucky. Her health issues have her fairly unbalanced energy-wise anyway, and I guess the heat really knocked her for a loop. No air conditioning in the shop either, so when I was there yesterday I saw that she had two fans going: a small one on the floor aimed up at her, and a Big Bertha one kinda aimed at her client.

Hubby has a Big Bertha that he normally keeps out in the shop for days like this; but even he didn't have the ambition to go out and putter. My poinsettia got half-baked (no, not that way!!) and the irises I put out this summer really were quite wilty. Even the crows outside weren't flying around a whole lot in the real heat - and you know it's hot when they don't have much to say.

Writing-wise, I'm continuing alone. My DW fic is edging slowly towards the climax, and I have my beta worried about the welfare of at least one character now. Finally I'm getting to the scenes that have been part of my dreams for months now! The job now is to write it down and make certain that it 1)makes sense within the givens of the story; and 2)is as exciting as I hope it will be. Time will tell.

Oh, and my daughter did my nails yesterday and gave me the cutest set of spider nail art for Halloween. She's really quite an artist, and I can tell she's getting better health and mood-wise because she's getting more creative and whimsical. So I leave you with a shot of my nails, taken at the shop just after she finished them.



Enjoy...

Believe it or not, I'm still alive and kicking. Busy and working on things that I thoroughly enjoy as well, which is also good. Shoulder starting to hurt again, and not going back to the orthopedist for another set of cortisone shots until early September, which is not so good.

( More trivia and miscellanea under the cut )

That's it from the Left Coast of California, folks... 'Til next time...

Yes, I'm still breathing air.

( Misc. Natterings Under The Cut For The Uninterested )

So that's the news - what little there is of it. My son in OR will be down for a few days' visit in a couple of weeks, which will be wonderful. My daughter Súl is struggling with panic attacks lately, and is finally starting to move towards seeing an MD and getting herself checked out. Hubby was crowing loudly this morning that he's lost 10 pounds in the last week (he restarted his diet.)

And I managed to do some piano practice, but could probably use a few hours to work on the Mozart I'll be playing for the prelude next Sunday. Dammit! I wanna mess around with a harp too!! *grumble*

Until next time...