I had every intention to...but...
Mood:  happy
Now Playing: "Fox and the Hound" - found Dearest Son a new F&H book, and he wants to see it over and over.

 

Yeah, it was one of *those* days. Where the day before, ya make all these 'tomorrow I'm gonna' plans, and you go to sleep thinking of what a grand day the next one will be.

 

My first indication that things weren't gonna go that way was Tuna's limp when she came in last night. It was bad. She couldn't use her visibly swollen right rear leg at all, and wouldn't let me near her.  So I made sure her new litter box and dinner were close at paw, and left her alone for the rest of the night. But I knew I'd be at the vets - if I could find one to take her - for part of the day. Her favorite room is, of course, my studio. :) 

 

Second was that I got very little sleep again. Coughing a lot. Since I was feeling better, I'd slacked off considerably on the medicine. Bad move. Now the gunk remaining was the stubborn, hard-to-eliminate kind, and the coughing you end up forcing from your chest is the type that makes strangers edge away from you while praying for your health. So I'm back on the nasty tussin-type stuff, at least until Friday. If this hasn't cleared up by then, it may be a serious issue, according to the label.

 

Third was that DSL was out again. And when it did work, it was flakier than gramma's finest pie crust. Beloved Hubby had a short list of some stuff I could do for him online, but it wasn't happening. So I called and got some guy I could barely understand, who mostly had me unplug the modem. Like I hadn't tried that six times in the last 24 hours. He then wanted me to unplug the phone and modem, and plug just the modem directly into the phone jack. Wouldn't that disconnect the phone, would they call me back ? No, he'd get another caller. So...wth ? Tried to puzzle it over with my 'customer service' rep, who basically couldn't help and it was OK with him that we'd be disconnected.

 

I noticed that the old wall-plug filter from our old place was on the desk. We were using a splitter-type one they'd sent us. I thanked the accented guy for his help, didn't want a work order ticket that might cost us $$$ unless I tried what I knew first, and unplugged the splitter. Plugged directly into the wall, the modem still didn't work. But plugging phone and modem into the filter, then securing the filter to the wall socket - that worked. It's been stable and super-fast all day. So forgive my bragging, but it's not often you can say you fixed the DSL all by yourself (even if my fix was dirt-simple !). 

 

So I didn't get any of my grand sorting and unpacking and housework done. I barely even got the dishes to soak. Haven't been eating, which makes my stomach ache, and along with everything else, all I've really wanted to do all day is sleep. Which is what I did, twice, after Tuna's visit to the vet.

 

She's OK - didn't get hit by a car or throw her leg out of joint. She has an abcess on that paw, on the big center pad, and it's infected. She got a shot - I've never heard her make *those* sounds before ! - and had her temperature taken. That was really not something she enjoyed, either.  A cat's normal body temp is 100.5 to 102.5 degrees. Tuna's was 104.5. It was odd to me, because she felt like she always does when she's on my shoulder or lap, not hot at all. Beloved Son's recent fever you could almost sense from the other side of the room.

 

By the time I got out of the vet's office, I was exhausted. All the pet dander and the effort of keeping Tuna from bolting came with a price tag. I only had an hour and a half before I had to pick up Dearest Son from school, and, you guessed it, I slept an hour and fifteen of it. Passed out again watching a movie later. Sad thing is, I could just lie down and go right under this very second.

 

I'd really intended to cheap-serge the new fabric, get the last of the doll stuff out of the garage and into the studio, sort a few additional boxes, and finish the kitchen cleaning from the weekend. Didn't do a bit of it. Oh, well. Provided my coughing improves, I know what my plans are for tomorrow !  

I'm back ! Didja miss me ? :)
Mood:  happy
Now Playing: XM 150 - Uncensored Comedy

 

Whew ! Looks like we're finally back up ! As you can probably tell,  I wrote a bit each day while our DSL was down or the computer was in one place and we were in another. I figured a little cut/paste would be fun and easy, and a way to keep track of everything.

 

But for some reason, our DSL has been wonky. Wouldn't even load the blog or the site until today. Went off for hours for no discernable reason, and came back up the same way. And everything timed out from taking sooooo long to download. Probably the only reason it works now is because I found the old DSL filter switchplate and used it instead of the splitter they sent us.  

 

Got the fabric all placed, and there's only a few boxes of Barbie-scale props to fish out of the garage. Then my studio will be complete, until I decide to redo something or find out that this arrangement doesn't work as the one I'm newly imagining will. Or something.

 

No time to play, though. Moving all that fabric gave me the wheezes. I hereby ban myself from *ever* going near material again. I have soooo darn much, I don't need to look at more for the rest of my days. I do need some infant hangers for Baby Chrissy's wardrobe. It's currently in a drawer, but I want all the doll stuff in one place, and I can hang her stuff up. She wears real baby clothes, ya know !

 

Oh, and I lucked out and found the next two sizes of Dearest Son's shoes - identical to the Cars ones on his feet right now ! By the time he wears these two pair out, we'll be ready for his next beloved fad...hopefully ! :) 

 

It's been a long day of material handling and sorting, so I'm heading off to bed. I'm so glad the online connection is back up, and hope you don't mind the 'moving blogs'. It's all live from here, everyone !  

Monday's fun
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: traffic noise

 

Back to the old grind. We're supposed to get our DSL back today, and I'm hoping. I've missed my online time ! Especially when there's not much I can do with my day ! Right now it's just not working, but I can at least get this written and ready when it does.

 

Dearest Son's bragged to everyone about the new place. But I just today noticed how bad his shoes have gotten. Wonder if anyone still has Cars shoes, or if it's a dying fad ? Well, if the speed at which any new toy disappears from the stores is any indication, it ain't dead yet ! It's just finding it harder to find branded shoes to walk in.

 

Got to hit the grocery store, run a few errands. The old place has a ‘For Lease' sign out front, but the only thing they've done is close the blinds. No one's cleaned it. I wish now we did, but at least the new tenants will know there's mice. If the realty company is silly enough to leave it that way.

 

DSL was up - and now it's down. Well, a girl has to do something with her day. Decided that all the doll clothes would be in the closet, from Kelly and Barbie on up. Luckily Baby Chrissy and MSB Casey and Gracie's clothes hang up. The rest remain in their various containers on the closet's floor. Beloved Hubby also got the second bookcase in there, so I spent some time with the never-deboxed dolls and at least got them out of their storage box ! Played with everyone on the bookcases until I had something I liked - or could at least live with for a while. Not bad at all. Still have to take photos.

 

That freed up the floor space, but the fabric's gonna have to wait ‘til Tuesday. I can barely catch air right now. 

Sleepy Sunday...
Mood:  chillin'
Now Playing: 'Robin Hood' - DVD favorite of Dearest Son's.

I slept in today ! This may not be a momentous thing, but I was sleeping for nearly twelve hours, barely waking to cough, in bed ! I can sleep horizontally again ! There's still some gunk, but it's manageable, and I'm still taking my meds. Maybe by Tuesday, I'll be all better !

 

I was ready to take on the world, but Beloved Hubby urged caution. So I rested and watched movies, relaxed and read a book, played a bit with Dearest Son, and had some time to spare for Tuna. I felt like a lady of leisure !

 

The studio's still a mess. It needs major work before I can do anything in it - I got my stuff everywhere ! Can't move in the fabric that's still in the garage until I do something will the doll stuff. Can't move the doll stuff without wheezing and coughing. So it has to wait while I start a Gregory Maguire book I've never read before - Lost. Bought it at a yard sale, brand new. You may remember my affinity for Mr. Maguire's work, he wrote Wicked.

Still sucks to be sick...
Mood:  crushed out
Now Playing: XM 150 - Uncensored Comedy

  

While the party wasn't as well attended as Beloved Hubby would have wanted, the folks who came had a fine time. We even got a few gifts ! It was so sweet of everyone, and the conversations lead out into the night. And everyone took home leftovers for lunch. We have a few, too.

 

Kitchen's trashed, but I'll either take care of it Sunday or he will. Doesn't much matter. He did just about everything, I did some tidy work and coughed a lot. I will be so glad when this cold/asthma/whatever illness is next is over. I feel like I've been under the weather forever ! Haven't even had any interest in the doll room. Or food. Well, I did munch heartily on the Chex Mix...

Friday follies
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: "Sky High" - if it kills me, this will be returned tomorrow !

 

It's hard to believe we're already in March. It's like a new month = a new life, but I'm still blasted sick. The new cough medicine Beloved Hubby got me is doing great, just wish it'd work faster. I'm darn near religious about taking it.

 

Tackled the laundry and closets today. It was about all I could do. Did a few more loads, and we're nearly caught up. I'll probably go over to the old place after dropping Dearest Son off at school Monday - he has today off, teacher workday. We haven't gotten any mail at the new place, so I need to check there.

 

I have another long ‘to do' list for Monday. We're also supposed to regain our DSL then, but I don't wanna count on it. Phone co. remotely activated our line yesterday but didn't bother to check it, so our phones didn't work until today. I doubt DSL will go any easier.

 

Beloved Hubby's invited a bunch of work friends and family over tomorrow. Sort of a housewarming. He's wanted to do this for every move, but we never have the time or the cash. We have a little of both this time, but I'm still sick. I just hope he knows he'll be doing 90% of it. I'm still a geyser of gunk, so nobody wants me around food.

 

I have too much to do for this now !
Mood:  incredulous
Now Playing: me muttering 'I hate being sick !' over and over

 

Well, it would have been a busy day - but while my asthma seems to have cleared up, all the gunk in my lungs hasn't gone with it. So, while my airways weren't constricted (and believe me, you learn how that feels PDQ !), they were still clogged with ick. In some ways, this is slowing me down more than the asthma did. With the asthma, I had the inhaler I could take for emergencies or when the time was right. With the phlegm, I have to cough it up, blow it out, and wait to catch my breath again.

 

So I didn't get jack-all done today, and I'm glad all of my ‘need to do' list was done yesterday. I'm taking some expectorants and still sleeping vertically on the couch. My thrashing around and coughing wake Beloved Hubby up, and it's easier to sleep sitting up on the sofa. I'll just be glad when this is all over. I got too much to unpack !

Goodbye, so long - and welcome to the new Chez Insanity !
Mood:  celebratory
Now Playing: quiet new place

 

And today is the day it's all said and done. Beloved Hubby moved semi-functional Leia-chan to the new place this morning. He's left the decision to me - do we fix the van (White Jade Dragon) or the sedan (Leia-chan) ? We can't do both right now, so it's down to whichever I prefer to drive. As you can imagine, if one has it, the other lacks it, so it's not an easy decision. Both vehicles have problems, both have benefits.

                     

He gave me his key to turn in, and I took a few minutes for one final check-through and a last good-bye. The place really was too small for us, and we had waaaaay too much junk and stuff in there, but it was a decent place for the most part. The ambulances and police cars heading to the apartments at least twice daily was just added entertainment. Barking dogs who are ignored 99% of the time by their owners were also a nice touch of spice, and the seven speed bumps that traversed every road but ours - where cars roared at 70mph hourly - may become a fond memory eventually, although it's doubtful.

 

I bundled up the last of the garbage - Hubby said to just leave it, but I felt bad about it - and pushed the can to the front for Friday's pick-up. I'm hoping it doesn't get blown over between now and then. Turned the keys in to an indifferent staff, and that was that. We're done with the place, and I'm happy...but there were some nice memories there.

 

But now we have a whole new place that has lots of space for more memories ! Starting with the metric ton of stuff in the garage. (sigh) I'm feeling much better - only woke up three times last night ! - and ordinarily I'd whine that I'm sick. I'm coughing hard, my throat feels like raw meat, my nose is stuffy or dripping, depending. But this is the best I've felt all week, so I'm joyous. Did all the running around that's been put off all week. Filing change of address forms, renewing Jade's license plate, turning in the keys, dumping off trash that didn't fit in the pick-up can, recycling the month's soda cans, picking up a few midweek groceries, balanced the checkbook, all ‘missions accomplished'. In a half-hour, I go pick up Dearest Son from school.

 

After that, I think I'll store all the fabric. And I promised Son I'd help arrange his books. Beloved Hubby has another busy day, so I should be able to get a lot done. I'm just not gonna rush it. I'm gonna *enjoy* it instead !

When you can find hope in an asthma attack, you start to wonder about yerself...
Mood:  spacey
Now Playing: "Sky High" - one more time.

There’s a subtle gift in asthma. I never understood it before, I just knew it slowed me down or prevented me from doing something I wanted to, so I hated it. But today it was seriously bad. I had to sit down after walking Dearest Son into school. I didn’t trust myself to drive, my eyes weren’t focusing, and I’d already taken the med limit for that time frame. I had the energy, mostly, but walking across a room empty-handed was an exercise in ‘low and slow, darlin’ chile’.


Even if you’re not in the midst of a full attack, asthma makes sure you move at your own pace. No matter how fast anyone around you is going, or even what speed you want to go, you have to tread slowly and carefully. Another attack is always just on the next moment, so going your own pace soon becomes habit, albeit an annoying one most others don’t understand. They think you should just hit that inhaler-thingie again, and like on the Primatene ads, everything will be fine.


Umm, no. Both prescription and OTC inhalers are steroid speed. Take it more often than directions call for, and you’ll be on the fast track to arrhythmia. I know. Those inhalers speed up everything while ripping your airways open, so they have to be used carefully. They’ll save yer life, but they’ll kill you faster than the attack will if ya get stupid.


In new home news, we got our city trash can today. Only someone with two full, smelly bags ready to go can truly enjoy getting a new pick-up can – and that’s me. It’s brand-new, too ! The one we left at the old place is crammed full and has been split on the bottom since we moved there. I almost hate to put trash in our new one. But I did it anyway !


At the old place, it’s all done. Loaded up the old trash can and wheeled it for Friday’s pick-up. All our stuff is either put away or is in the garage. Beloved Hubby’s inviting people over for a party Saturday, and I don’t know how we’ll have this place ready. Just hope I’m better tomorrow, and even if I’m not, I’ll do what I can and ignore the rest. That’s all anyone can do when it’s all said and done.

...and on, but it's nearly over...I hope...
Mood:  don't ask
Now Playing: like I'm even noticing...

 

Beloved Hubby's really worried about me, and he probably should be. My airways are still constricting - asthma - and I'm wheezing like a broken calliope. He did most of the moving today, I was mostly along for company. He has tomorrow off, too, but Wednesday, he's back to work. At least he got to enjoy his new shop this evening !

 

He also painted the rest of the kitchen and covered the crayon-scribbled hall with more paint. It actually looks really good. We're leaving behind a new front door, a playhouse, a bathroom cabinet, and two ceiling fans we just don't have a use for here, so don't feel too badly for the management company. That place is much better now than when we first moved in !

 

Computer's now here, at our new home, but I still rarely have a minute to use it. DMIL and DFIL can't help anymore, so the rest is on us. Few things here and there remain, but we're pretty much done. Tomorrow I can clean and take out trash, and then drop off keys early. I'm really looking forward to that !

 

Got to take a shower today - the water here is via well, and it's really soft. My face and skin's not nearly so dry as it usually is. Dearest Son didn't have a terribly good day at school. So many changes, so busy. He came home and crashed for three hours. At least he's not sick, thank Everything.

 

We have the washer and dryer installed ! And I'll soon have a clothesline ! So many things to be happy about here ! Just wish I had time for playin'.