Friday, March 31, 2006

we just call them nuts


"we just call them nuts"
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
happy friday kiddos.

how is it that the week seems to fly by and drag it's ass at the same time?

I'll never figure that out, never.

The week was emotionally exhausting for Mark and I, physically draining too. Joe seems to have perked up but we're not entirely sure that he's out of the woods yet. It's nice to see him alert and chatting though, very nice.

This weekend, I have a bunch of chores to get done around the house but I hope to very little else. Of course, we'll be down at the hospital but I don't think I have any errands to run or that there is anywhere we have to be and that's really nice. Hopefully, I'll be able to get my stuff done, sleep a lot, watch some tv (our dvr is getting kind of full) and drink large amounts of tea. mmm....tea...

Thursday, March 30, 2006

wish list


kingscourt backyard
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
This morning I was thinking about how much I can't wait to see the lilacs bloom again.

We had a lilac in our yard at the old house and hated to leave it behind. When we moved in to our new house, we realized that there was a lilac there too. Fortunately, it's very close to my kitchen window so I could see the bloom and smell them while I stood at the sink. I'm looking forward to seeing them again.

I also found out last night that Architecture in Helsinki are playing in Toronto and Montreal in May. It might be a nice birthday gift for me if I got to see one of those shows. Given that they are from the land down under, I doubt very much that they tour much in our neck of the woods.

On the Joe front, we're back to wait and see again. For a few days, we were optimistic that he'd get back to the nursing home quickly. It's not looking like that will happen. He's developed some new symptoms and we're not sure exactly what his prognosis is at the moment. Hopefully tonight, we'll get to meet with the doctor again. It doesn't feel like we're going to be given good news but, knowing Joe, you never know.

Wednesday, March 29, 2006

this bird has flown


birds in the medical quadrangle
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
As I eat a banana and see sunbeams out of the corner of my eye, I wish I could be outside. Unfortunately, I'm a little busy today so I'm only take a short break. Basically, enough of a break to eat my lunch.

Joe seems to be doing better in some aspects, not so much in others. We met with his doctor last night and he told us that Joe's heart is in terrific shape and that his lungs are looking good. Unfortunately, for some weird reason, he's sleeping about 23 hours out of 24. No one can figure out why. He's not under any sedation and I can understand that he'd be tired after being so sick last week but he should be getting up and out of bed a little bit. If he doesn't, I'm afraid that he'll get pneumonia again.

I have many reasons for wanting him to be out of the hospital and back home again. One of them is really selfish. I want to not have to go to the hospital every day and face the smokers outside. It hurts my heart to see folks out side the doors of the hospital, hooked up to three or four different I.V.'s, smoking cigarettes. I've never smoked and I do understand that it's an addiction but seeing this just makes me sad and a little angry. It's not bad enough that they are sick, perhaps with a smoking related illness, but they make me breathe in their smoke every time I come and go. It's irritating and it's sad and I'll be glad when Joe is back home and I don't have to deal with that anymore.

Tuesday, March 28, 2006

have you taken the test?

I am 11% White Trash.
Not at all White Trashy!
I, my friend, have class. I am so not white trash. . I am more than likely Democrat, and my place is neat, and there is a good chance I may never drink wine from a box.

Monday, March 27, 2006

mondays?


blue skies over rona
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
I'm busy today.

It's not a "hey I'm so busy that I am hyperventilating" kind of day but rather the type where you start into one thing and then get distracted so you move onto an other and shortly after realize that you haven't accomplished anything so, gosh darn it, you'd better get back to the first thing you were working on...what was that again?

Yeah, fun huh??

Hopefully this isn't the way the whole week is going to be. I'm hopeful that this is the worst it can get and that it's all golden from here on out. How's that for optimism?

Sunday, March 26, 2006

sad day for country music

Country singer Owens dies at 76

Country singer Buck Owens, who had a string of US hit records, has died at the age of 76.


Owens, who notched 15 consecutive US country number ones in the mid-1960s, died at home in Los Angeles, his spokesman said.

Owens co-hosted US variety TV show Hee Haw from 1969 to 1986 and had hits with singles including I've Got a Tiger by the Tail and Love's Gonna Live Here.

The Beatles recorded a cover of his song Act Naturally in 1965.

Born in Texas, Owens moved to the Californian town of Bakersfield in 1951 and became associated with the electrified "Bakersfield sound" style.

Spokesman Jim Shaw, who played in Owens' band The Buckaroos, said the singer had "a raw edge".

"I think the reason he was so well known and respected by a younger generation of country musicians was because he was an innovator and rebel," he said.

Recording break

In 1992, Owens said: "I'd like to be remembered as a guy that came along and did his music, did his best and showed up on time, clean and ready to do the job, wrote a few songs and had a hell of a time."

After a decade-long break from recording, he released the duet Streets of Bakersfield with Dwight Yoakam in 1988.

Owens had surgery for throat cancer in 1993 and was hospitalised with pneumonia four years later.

His business interests included TV and radio stations.

Saturday, March 25, 2006

waiting for a train


waiting for a train
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
Joe is doing sooo much better today than yesterday. It's so nice to see, seriously. I told him that it was so nice to see him smiling after all that he'd been through. He looked at us and said, "you know, I guess I didn't understand how sick I really was." I know he didn't understand it but we sure did. It's a huge relief to see him improving, amazing.

Other than a visit to the hospital, we didn't do a whole heck of a lot today. This morning I baked some oatmeal muffins and a loaf of multi-grain bread. I also enjoyed a really long soak in the tub and we did a few errands this afternoon.

We primarily needed to finish up our grocery shopping but I also needed to get some new shoes. I had intended to get a new pair of sneakers but ended up with four pairs. Two are definitely summer shoes, one is the sneakers I needed and the fourth was a new pair of shoes for work. They are all very comfy, which is important but they also look nice!

Tonight the plan is to have dinner at home and maybe watch a movie. Last night we watched "Ham & Cheese." I've read some reviews by people who called it stupid, I thought it was funny. Of course, it was stupid too which was why it was funny. I know that not everyone shares our sense of humour though, it's okay, they don't have to. I really liked it though, several times we laughed out loud, like really loud. After the week we've had, we needed a big laugh, a really big laugh. If you like silly movies and you're a fan of Jason Jones or Samantha Bee from the Daily Show, I think you'll like it too.

Friday, March 24, 2006

optimistic

Joe's doing much better today.

I tell ya, he scared the crap out of us but he seems to be on the mend again. It's been quite the roller coaster.

Today, he's breathing on his own, he can talk a little bit. He's still very weak but the anti-biotics are really doing their thing and they hope to get him back on his regular meds tonight (his heart rate is a little wonky because he's been off his regular meds for a few days now).

So, it's good news. Hopefully he'll be home soon.

One sort of funny in a "holy shit this is a small town" kind of way... I discovered this afternoon that the man in the bed next to Joe is the father-in-law of a friend of mine. He fell the other night and broke his hip. He and Joe are roommates right now while he recovers from surgery. Kingston really is a small town!

Thursday, March 23, 2006

not so good news

I haven't had a lot of time to be in front of the computer this week.

Joe is back in the hospital and this time, we're not sure that he's going to bounce back. He's had a cold for a couple of weeks now and at the beginning of this week, it developed into pneumonia. This isn't good. The oxygen levels in his blood are very very low. He's not really conscious but they are pumping him full of anti-biotics and keeping him on oxygen. He's not on a ventilator but he's really struggling. We're not sure how long he'll hang on like this. There is also a concern that if the anti-biotics do their thing and knock the pneumonia, that he'll have suffered some permanent brain damage because of the low oxygen.

Waiting and seeing is all we can do right now. I've been going into the office for a few hours here and there. It keeps my mind off of things for a little while any. Fortunately, the hospital is directly across the street from my office so that does make things easier.

When Joe first moved to town and got set up in his little apartment, I got him a plant. The plant lived in a really sunny spot and it thrived. It quickly out grew it's tiny pot and I had to repot it for him. When he moved into our house, the plant continued to do well and we kept it in his bedroom for him. Last summer, when Joe moved into the long-term care facility, the plant moved with him. It had a fabulous, sunny spot on his window sill. It was really huge and green and healthy looking.

A couple of weeks ago, I noticed that some of the leaves had started to turn yellow. On Monday, when we were there to visit him, I saw that someone had pruned the plant for Joe. They had really cut it back and it was down to one or two small vines. Last night as I lay in bed thinking about all kinds of things to do with this particular situation, I remembered the plant and how it seemed really connected to Joe. When he was healthy, the plant thrived. Now, that he's not doing so well, the plant isn't either. It's probably just a really strange coincidence but it's been on my mind a lot.

I'm not sure when I'll have a chance to post again but I really wanted to pop in and let you all know what was going on.

Sunday, March 19, 2006

a little less lazy


reconfigured
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
So the weekend wasn't as lazy as planned but it was still pretty good.

Yesterday, Mark reconfigured the shelving that our tv sits on and we rearranged the living room furniture. When we were done, I finally unpacked our dvd collection so at least now, we can actually watch something without having to rummage through boxes in the basement.

Today, in addition to unpacking another 5 boxes of stuff, I got the laundry done. We also slept in a little bit and didn't go out of the house at all. It was really nice.

For dinner tonight, Mark made us a lovely barbecue of pork loin, potatoes and grilled asparagus. Delicious. We both feel really good about what we were able to accomplish this weekend. It's nice when you can get some stuff done and still feel rested, isn't it?

Saturday, March 18, 2006

picking and grinning


picking out oranges
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
So far, "operation: weekend lazy" is well underway.

I "slept in" this morning until around 6 a.m. Just in case you think that this is not "sleeping in", this is totally sleeping in for a person who is up at 4:30 a.m. through the week. Mark got up about an hour later and he spent a good chunk of the morning cleaning fish tanks. I helped out a little, scrubbing their toys and air rocks but he did the biggest chunk of it.

Last night, after dinner, we went out and did a few errands. Neither of us really wanted to but I'm glad we did. It means that there is really no where we have to go this weekend. That's a nice feeling.

I have a few things that I'd like to accomplish this weekend: laundry, change the bed, sort out two huge mounds of paper, install tax software. Once the papers are sorted and the software is installed, we can actually do our taxes. I hope not to be doing them at the last minute this year. They aren't difficult, I just tend to put stuff like that off as long as is humanly possible.

Once the papers are sorted out, it should be easier to figure out what to do with the glut of "stuff" in my office here at home. I still have a bunch of stuff in boxes on the floor because I don't really have a "proper" desk. We got Mark one shortly after we moved in. The trouble with my office is that there is a closet, a window and a door in it, and it's a long, narrow room so finding something that will fit without blocking the window, door, heat vent or closet, is a challenge. We'll figure it out eventually but I don't think it'll be today! I would like to go through the boxes though. I'm hoping that because most of the stuff in them has now been packed up for the better part of a year, I may discover that it's not stuff I need to hang onto.

Speaking of a year, it was exactly 52 weeks ago today that we came and looked at our house for the first time. In a way, it's really hard to believe that it was a whole year ago. In another way, I have a hard time remembering what it felt like to live in the old house. I really love our house. I know that you're not really supposed to love things but I don't care!

Friday, March 17, 2006

top 'o the morning to ya!


downtown montreal
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
I always say this after I'm sick, because it's always true, you never really appreciate how good normal feels until you've been sick for a few days.

This morning, I feel pretty close to "normal." Boy, it was a long week. The head cold part of the bug is still hanging on a bit, my head's still a little stuffy, my eyes are a smidgen watery and my back's still twingey at times but the worst of it is definitely behind me now. Thank goodness.

We don't have anything planned for St. Patty's Day tonight, we don't normally. My brother calls it "amature night" and he's right, why go out and have to deal with drunken morons? We have a few errands to run this weekend but other than that, we're not doing much at all. We've had to put some unplanned money into the car the past couple of weeks (new catalytic converter last week, the brake line sprung a leak last night). Nothing major thankfully but it was unexpected so I think we'll just stay home and putter around the house and save some pennies.

Saving pennies, getting some rest, sipping tea, it all sounds really good to me right now. Happy weekend kiddos!!

Thursday, March 16, 2006

mending and dreams


speedy auto glass
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
I went back to work yesterday. I felt marginally better but it was a really long day. It seemed long anyway.

Last night, I was completely exhausted, to the point where I felt as if I was completely incoherent by the end of the day. I honestly don't think I moved a muscle all night last night. I woke up about 30 minutes before the alarm went off this morning. I don't even remember falling asleep last night, it seems more like I passed out.

One thing I do recall though is a weird dream I had. It wasn't a bad weird dream but it was odd. I dreamed that Mark and I were out somewhere, not sure where exactly, it could have been costco or a garage. We ran into Stuart and Bob from Belle and Sebastian. They were having bus issues and weren't going to be able to drive to their next show.

Mark and I offered to drive some folks in our car and helped them arranged cars for everyone in the band. When we got to the venue, for some reason, we were given press passes so I was able to stand in the front and take lots of photos and no one said anything to me.

It was a little strange but good.

So, I'm back at work today again. Feeling a little better than yesterday and hanging on for the weekend. I feel like I really need a couple of days to sleep so I can get rid of this nasty bug. Bug be gone, please. Soon, now. Seriously!

Tuesday, March 14, 2006

icky


costo - marche central
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
I've been sick for three days now.

It's a fun thing that consists of:
- feeling cold
- feeling warm
- coughing
- sneezing
- nausea
- headache
- major back ache

I've been pretty much on my back in bed since Sunday morning. I get up for meals and last night, I sat up in the living room for an hour or so to watch tv but other than that, I've been in bed.

Today, Mark went to the office and picked up my computer so I could do some work. Laying flat out in bed, with a laptop on a pillow on your lap, is not ideal. I got some things done though, which is good.

I feel a little better tonight. Poor Mark came home with the bug this morning but he was feeling well enough to go out and grab us some noodle soup for dinner.

Hopefully, tomorrow, I'll be walking more or less normally and will be able to get back to the office. Being sick sucks.

Sunday, March 12, 2006

get me away from here I'm dying


put the book back on the shelf
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
...not dying exactly but feeling really craptacular.

I woke up this morning with a head full of cold.

I couldn't breathe, I was a little dizzy.

As the morning progressed, as sometimes happens, the cold from my head moved into my back. My hip to be precise, my left hip actually. I'm all hunched over to one side and have spent the best part of the day on the heating pad.

Fun times huh?? Hopefully tomorrow will be better. Goodness knows I my stomach can't take many more pain killers.

Yuck. Why can't I just get a normal head cold like everyone else, just for once? Oh well, I shouldn't whine too much. Afterall, there is a new Sopranos on tonight.

Saturday, March 11, 2006

I heart spring


my dog
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
It totally felt like spring today.

You could smell mud.

The birdies were out and about.

The snowbanks which have been frozen brown clumps in parking lots were melting.

Our barbecue was smoking and we had yummy hot dogs for dinner. It wasn't the healthiest option in the world but at least we had whole wheat buns.

Spring is the best!

Friday, March 10, 2006

old


ben's deli - montreal
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
The other day I realized that it's been almost 20 years since I graduated from high school. It doesn't seem possible but it's true. I can look at the calendar and know that I graduated in 1986 and it's 2006 so that's 20 years.

It kind of flew through my head and I didn't think about it again until today. Earlier today, at a work-related event, I saw my old high school english teacher, well, one of them, he taught me for 2 years (two different courses). When he walked in, I knew it was him immediately, he hadn't changed much at all. He had a little grey hair but his face looked the same.

I had a name tag on so he didn't have to struggle for my name when I said hello. We got to chatting and he said that he'd been teaching now for almost 29 years. It was nice to see him, we caught up a little bit. After he left though, I realized that when he was teaching us, he was younger then I am now. I remember thinking that he was so much older than us but he wasn't really, 15 years or so I guess. Of course, when you're 17, 15 years is forever, when you're 38, it's not such a big deal. It kind of made me feel old, realizing that.

Perspective huh?? Fun stuff.

Thursday, March 09, 2006

air is good


kickass snowfort
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
hyperventilating is not so good.

breathing is fun.

crying is not.

crying will help you release frustration though. it'll get your lungs working again and it definitely keeps your tear ducts lubricated and you know that they're working again.

sometimes crying makes you feel better, other times it can make you feel worse. when it makes you feel worse, you sometimes have to cry a little more, until you start to feel the benefits of it.

it's sort of complicated I suppose so I guess it's a good thing that most of us don't have to do it very often huh?

Tuesday, March 07, 2006

blurry


taxi meter
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
We're almost an entire week into March already. Spring is almost here.

The weather is definitely warmer this week than it was last week. It feels good, the sunshine, when it's poking through the clouds.

When it does shine, the sun seems really bright. Able to burn holes through your sunglasses bright. I guess we need some ozone. It's beautiful but frightening. It reminds me of that episode of the Simpsons where the sunbeam chased Milhouse up to the front door of Chez Simpsons. I imagine it's going to be an other scorcher of a summer.

The upside of this, if you can have an upside to global warming, is that our heating costs have been relatively low this winter (compared to last year anyway). Sad but true folks, sad but true.

Monday, March 06, 2006

where'd it go?


master bedroom ceiling fan
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
I have no idea where the weekends go.

Part of it was busy I suppose, the other part, not so much. I think we got some time to veg out but I really can't remember it now.

It feels like it was a really long time ago but, in reality, it was just yesterday.

Back to work today, still trying to find a balance between the tasks I am responsible for in my new job and the stuff I am still doing in my old one. It's difficult right now, extraordinarily busy. I know it won't be like this forever but for now, it's a little tough.

Hopefully, as the week rolls along, things will ease up a bit. *fingers crossed*

Saturday, March 04, 2006

speedy rocks


broken water main
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
So I called Speedy Auto Glass this morning.

They rock.

Jeremy, the young man who works there, fixed my door. Turns out, the little plastic switch was broken, the rest of it was fine. He didn't want to take anything for the work he did so I gave him some money to go towards lunch for him the boys in the shop.

How sweet is that??

Friday, March 03, 2006

hey hey hey


good mail day
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
it's the weekend.

yay!

Woke up this morning to sounds of trucks outside the house. I was sure it would be the garbage trucks but it turned out to be city trucks. The water main on our street was broken. The street was a skating rink.

It's all fixed now, water service was never interrupted.

I'm pretty brain dead at the moment, more so than I normally am on the weekend.

Chalk it up to being out of town on Monday and starting my new job on Wednesday. Either way, I'm taking it easy this weekend. Hopefully...

Tonight, the passenger side door window wouldn't close. If it doesn't start working magically tomorrow morning, I'll have to find somewhere to get it fixed.

In the meantime, I had a good mail day earlier in the week so at least I have the new East River Pipe disc to listen to. It's never all that bad really, isn't it?

Wednesday, March 01, 2006

I loves me some calm


near malpeque
Originally uploaded by Julep67.
Today was busy.

It was good busy though, accomplished a lot this morning.

As I expected, I was still working on "old job" related tasks. It was okay though because I was able to spend the afternoon sorting through some things for the new job. Unfortunately, my new boss was out sick today. It seems like every other person I know right now, either has a cold or the stomach flu. Not fun.

I'm sure that by the end of this week, I'll have a better sense of how long I'll be juggling both jobs. Right now, I'm just happy to be in my new office. Despite the sort of crazy-ness of it all, it's good, really!