No longer a unicorn

No longer a unicorn

February 18, 2024 / 3 Comments

After four long years of being what my boss astutely described as “covid cautious,” I’m a novid no more.

Society may have decided to say screw it and just get sick, but I continued to avoid crowds, wear a mask in public, maintain my vaccinations, etc., in order to avoid catching this illness. Alas, the latest variant is highly contagious, and so after several days of caring for my sick husband, I became infected. Ironically, M contracted it at the gym while trying to stay healthy. So frustrating!

My symptoms began showing themselves on a Sunday, and by early Monday morning, I had collapsed into my chair, unable to even make it upstairs to bed. I remained positive for eight days, suffering from all of the usual symptoms (coughing, sneezing, sore throat, exhaustion, foggy thoughts) and then that blasted blue line finally disappeared from the test strips. Oh, I’m still coughing my brains out and my voice is trashed. My lungs feel like they’re filled with cement. And after hardly sleeping at all last week, I crashed hard this weekend. But, I am finally on the mend.

Also, I’m thrilled to say, the vaccinations worked! My fever didn’t climb too high and my O2 sats never dropped below 92 so I didn’t have to go to the hospital, for which I’m very grateful. I’ve only just finished paying off the medical bills from last fall and I really didn’t want to add more to the pile.

M and I haven’t decided what to do with our new, albeit temporary, immunity. We’ll probably grab a meal in a restaurant, an activity we haven’t experienced together in years. I may even hold a book club meeting in person (in addition to our twice-monthly Zoom gathering), especially since exhaustion meant I missed the last one. If you have any other suggestions, let me know in the comments.

In the meantime, please take care of yourselves. Stay safe, stay healthy and stay well!
“The groundwork of all happiness is health.” –Leigh Hunt

February 21, 2016 / No Comments

My health, it’s fine: I saw the doctor for a complete physical last week and she ruled that I was in good health. However, now that I am officially middle-aged, she encouraged me to get more exercise and sleep, and to watch my moles for unexplained changes. I asked for tips about how to unwind, mostly because the weight of stress from work has been bearing down on my shoulders lately. Other than encouraging me to do some yoga, she had no helpful advice. For that I will have to look elsewhere.

M’s health, it’s mending: M caught his second cold of the year last week and was less than thrilled about it. The two of us rarely get sick, which is why this physical setback left him feeling a wee bit grumpy. Thankfully, the cold was a small one, giving him the icks, the sniffles, the sneezes and the tireds rather than the more serious coughs, aches and fevers. We stayed inside this weekend and mostly just read and watched Hulu as he recuperated.

The tumor, it grows: Sera’s cancer, on the other hand, is getting worse and while my anger about her dying is something I work hard to manage, it occasionally boils over (fuck Cancer). The tumor on her breast has tripled in size since November and it’s clearly taking a toll on her small, furry body. When the cancer reaches her lungs, we will take Sera to the vet and end her ordeal. But in the meantime, she remains in good spirits and I intend to do everything I can to keep her that way.
Seeking music to move my feet

October 7, 2014 / No Comments

While my husband was jaunting about Europe for his 40th birthday, I was tasked with walking our dog Duncan. To keep myself from going mad from boredom, I would take my iPhone along and turn on a wonderful app called Zombies, Run!.

Here’s how it works: The zombie apocalypse has arrived. The undead are everywhere, and it’s your job to run/walk for a certain amount of time and obtain supplies for your tiny town of survivors. When zombies get near, you run/walk faster (thus providing interval training). All the while, the app’s characters are giving you orders, sharing stories and basically making you laugh. In between the story segments, the app connects to your workout playlist and plays your favorite tunes to keep your spirits high as you trudge through the monotony of exercise.

The app’s tagline says it all: Get fit. Escape zombies. Become a hero.

After using the app for more than 20 hours, I’m almost finished with the first season of adventures. I reached my step goal last week and will likely do so again this week. More importantly, I’m dreading these physical activities just a little bit less.

The downside? I’m getting tired of my music. Here’s what I’ve been listening to:

* $165 Million + Interest (Into) The Round Up by David Holmes
* Abracadabra by the Steve Miller Band
* Ain’t Nuthin’ But A She Thing by Salt-N-Pepa
* All I Really Want by Alanis Morissette
* Alphabet St. by Prince
* Beat It by Michael Jackson
* Bittersweet Symphony by The Verve
* Bodyrock by Moby
* Breakin’… There’s No Stopping Us (12″ Club Mix) by Ollie & Jerry
* C’mon And Get My Love by Cathy Dennis
* The Chemicals Between Us by Bush
* The Classic Drum Battle by A&T
* Diamond Dogs by Beck and David Bowie
* Everybody by Black Box
* (The Forgotten People) by Thievery Corporation
* Freakshow On The Dance Floor by Bar-Kays
* Freedom by George Michael
* Get Off (Extended) by Prince
* Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now) by C+C Music Factory
* Hard to Handle by The Black Crowes
* If by Janet Jackson
* Jazz Machine by Black Machine
* Jump N’ Move by The Brand New Heavies [featuring Jamalski]
* Jungle by Jamie N Commons & X Ambassadors
* Let the Music Play by Shannon
* Let’s Dance by David Bowie
* Let’s Go Crazy by Prince
* Living Dead GirlRob Zombie
* Love Runs Out by OneRepublic
* Man In the Box by Alice In Chains
* Mas by Kinky
* Modern Love by David Bowie
* Open Of My Love by Jennifer Lopez
* Peter Gunn by Art Of Noise
* The Power by Snap!
* Pump Up the Jam by Technotronic
* Pump Up The Volume by Marrs
* Push It (Remix) by Salt-N-Pepa
* Raspberry Beret by Prince
* Salome by Chayanne
* Samba Hey (Magalena Mix) by el general
* Shake Your Bon-Bon by Ricky Martin
* Shakin’ by Eddie Money
* She Bangs by Ricky Martin
* Sidewalk Talk by Jellybean
* Situation (US 12″ Remix) by Yaz
* Slang by Def Leppard
* Smooth Criminal by Michael Jackson
* Supermassive Black Hole by Muse
* Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This) by Eurythmics
* Techno Rave Entrance by Blade
* Thunder by Prince
* Too Funky by George Michael
* The Truth (feat. Roisin & J-Live) Techno Rave Entrance by Handsome Boy Modeling School
* U Got the Look by Prince
* UK Jamaican by Tricky
* Unbelievable by EMF
* Vogue by Madonna
* Weapon Of Choice by Fatboy Slim
* You Dropped a Bomb On Me (Single Version) by The Gap Band
* You Spin Me Round (Like a Record) by Dead or Alive

As you can see, I have eclectic tastes. While I do tend to prefer tunes from the ’80s and ’90s, I’m game to try just about anything with a good beat. If you have suggestions, feel free to leave ’em in the comments.
In which I paid complete strangers to cut my husband’s neck

April 19, 2014 / 1 Comment

Yesterday was Operation Day. Not fun.

M was recently diagnosed with hyperparathyroidism. Per the Mayo Clinic:

Hyperparathyroidism is an excess of parathyroid hormone in the bloodstream due to overactivity of one or more of the body’s four parathyroid glands. These oval, grain-of-rice-sized glands are located in your neck. The parathyroid glands produce parathyroid hormone, which helps maintain an appropriate balance of calcium in the bloodstream and in tissues that depend on calcium for proper functioning.

According to the docs, this problem occurred because one of M’s grain-of-rice-sized glands had an adenoma (noncancerous tumor) on it. Best course of action? Surgical removal. So early yesterday morning, we drove more than an hour north to Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital, the only teaching hospital in New Hampshire.

As far as hospital experiences go, this one was pretty good. The place was immaculate and quiet. Most of the doctors and nurses were both competent and caring (one was more competent and cocky). And the waiting room staff kept me updated on the surgery’s progress (via beeper).

M was a real trooper, though. Over the course of several hours, he was poked, prodded, drugged, anesthetized and then cut open and stitched back up. He’s home now and in bed recuperating, but it looks like someone took a garrote to his neck.

As for me, I held up my end of the “in sickness and in health” vows. I maintained my composure during the drive, admission, the pre-op tests and procedure — but lost my cool when I visited M in recovery. Just seeing the man I love hooked up to a bunch of machines measuring his vital signs and completely out of it from the anesthesia made me burst into tears. I guess I was so focused on the surgery that I never really allowed myself to consider the aftermath. Thankfully, the moment passed quickly and I was able to resume my wifely duties of hand holding and ice chip feeding.

While I’m thrilled the operation was a success and we were well cared for, I’d like to avoid going to another hospital any time soon.

Or, ever.

—Photo by Nuiiko. Used with permission.
Just a headache? Hardly

March 3, 2014 / 2 Comments

For those lucky folks who’ve never experienced a migraine, you may think it’s just a “bad headache.” But it is so much more. A bad headache can be beaten by extra-strength aspirin. A migraine is a debilitating experience that leaves you in pain, in tears, exhausted and struggling for hours, and sometimes days on end.

Since I cannot physically transfer the many symptoms of a migraine and give you a sense of what it’s like, I thought I’d show you. Picture #1 is me on a normal day. When I took this photo, I was wearing comfy clothes and no make-up. It is me, ordinary me.

Picture 2 is me after nearly 18 hours of pain, nausea, exhaustion, muscle-tightness, crying and light-sensitivity. It is the migraine version of me.

Sunday’s migraine lasted for no less than 32 hours. I couldn’t work. I couldn’t read. All I could do was suffer and sleep.

Today, the migraine diminished, but it is still not gone. As you can imagine, fighting the pain has left me utterly drained. But as one of my “firsts,” I vowed to share this side of my life. And so now I have.