The semester is over, and grades should be out in the next day or two. I know I've got As in three of the classes, likely As or A-s in two of the others, and really not much clue on the sixth, though hopefully at least a B+.
Now I just have to start madly reviewing for next semester since my last accounting class ended 8 months ago. If I had realized that I wouldn't be able to take Intermediate II until spring, I probably wouldn't have taken Intermediate I last spring. I also have work to deal with, perhaps even a full time gig through April. Funny how going back to school is so much busier than just working, even if you aren't working while taking classes. Working and taking classes? Don't expect to see much in the way of updates, except perhaps during spring break, and maybe not then either.
Monday, December 28, 2015
Wednesday, November 04, 2015
My how time flies.
It's been a very busy two months. I've survived school thus far, but now that we're in the second half of the semester, the work for a lot of the classes is picking up.
I also was on the ballot for the local Representative Town Meeting, and without doing a single bit of campaigning, came in 4th of 9, and the top 7 get seats. The Republicans swept pretty much everything, even in areas of town which never, ever go Republican. I guess the average voter is getting really pissed at how the Dems are running the state right now.
So, I'll probably be really quiet until closer to Christmas and the end of the semester, unless something really interesting comes up that just demands that I blog about it. My guess is that that is very unlikely.
I also was on the ballot for the local Representative Town Meeting, and without doing a single bit of campaigning, came in 4th of 9, and the top 7 get seats. The Republicans swept pretty much everything, even in areas of town which never, ever go Republican. I guess the average voter is getting really pissed at how the Dems are running the state right now.
So, I'll probably be really quiet until closer to Christmas and the end of the semester, unless something really interesting comes up that just demands that I blog about it. My guess is that that is very unlikely.
Friday, September 11, 2015
9/11 - Never forget
http://attacked911.tripod.com/
If that won't play, it's on YouTube here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JkuVKm4oNZw
If that won't play, it's on YouTube here:
Monday, September 07, 2015
One week down...
and fourteen more to go (more or less).
I have survived my first week of a 19 credit semester. So far it looks like my MWF classes will be easy, and not horribly time consuming. I do indeed seem to have most of the background for Human Biology, so at least I already have the basic framework to hang everything on. Macroeconomics is being taught the same way as Micro was, and I already know what the project is, so I'll probably try to get that mostly done in the next week or so. And Business Computer Applications doesn't look like it should take much time outside of class either.
And then there is TTH....
Principles of Marketing will be a fair bit of reading, but at least as a "mature student", much of what they are talking about isn't totally new. Principles of Management will have more reading than that, and I don't know as much about it. And Business Law? We've been warned to expect lots of reading, and flash cards, study groups, and alcohol are all recommended.
I don't think I'm going to get that much recreational reading done between now and December 21st.
I have survived my first week of a 19 credit semester. So far it looks like my MWF classes will be easy, and not horribly time consuming. I do indeed seem to have most of the background for Human Biology, so at least I already have the basic framework to hang everything on. Macroeconomics is being taught the same way as Micro was, and I already know what the project is, so I'll probably try to get that mostly done in the next week or so. And Business Computer Applications doesn't look like it should take much time outside of class either.
And then there is TTH....
Principles of Marketing will be a fair bit of reading, but at least as a "mature student", much of what they are talking about isn't totally new. Principles of Management will have more reading than that, and I don't know as much about it. And Business Law? We've been warned to expect lots of reading, and flash cards, study groups, and alcohol are all recommended.
I don't think I'm going to get that much recreational reading done between now and December 21st.
Sunday, August 23, 2015
Email equivalency.
I spent some time yesterday discussing the Hilary email situation with my younger sister. It started because she posted a bit on FaceBook about how you couldn't complain about her emails if you hadn't gotten all upset over Bush and Cheney (actually the RNC) deleting millions of emails back in 2007.
Here's the thing. I didn't hear about that. Which seems weird since that was when I read a lot of political blogs and news since work was really slow and there wasn't anything else for me to do. And I find it even harder to believe that the MSM didn't find that and run with it, given that by that point both houses of Congress were controlled by Democrats.
But in a lot of respects that's neither here nor there. Say those allegations are completely true, and then stipulate that there was classified info in the stuff that was on the RNC server. Whether people got outraged about it then shouldn't dictate whether they can get upset about now. If you don't like something when it's done by the other side, if you think them doing it is criminal, you can't just say well they got away with it, so we should too, because then so should any one who ever does that in the future, and you are saying that you will have no right to be upset whenever it happens in the future. Likewise, you can't say it's OK for your political team to have some sort of power, or be allowed to act some way if you know you'd hate it if any other team was in the majority in the future and did the same things.
Here's the thing. I didn't hear about that. Which seems weird since that was when I read a lot of political blogs and news since work was really slow and there wasn't anything else for me to do. And I find it even harder to believe that the MSM didn't find that and run with it, given that by that point both houses of Congress were controlled by Democrats.
But in a lot of respects that's neither here nor there. Say those allegations are completely true, and then stipulate that there was classified info in the stuff that was on the RNC server. Whether people got outraged about it then shouldn't dictate whether they can get upset about now. If you don't like something when it's done by the other side, if you think them doing it is criminal, you can't just say well they got away with it, so we should too, because then so should any one who ever does that in the future, and you are saying that you will have no right to be upset whenever it happens in the future. Likewise, you can't say it's OK for your political team to have some sort of power, or be allowed to act some way if you know you'd hate it if any other team was in the majority in the future and did the same things.
Saturday, August 15, 2015
Baby Names - some un-PC thoughts
Over the years, I've semi-regularly stopped over to read a blog called "Baby's named a bad bad thing". If you find some of the names we as a society are burdening some of our children with ridiculous, here is the place to go to read comments and snark from other like-minded souls.
We all want our children to be unique and special, but there are limits. Naming the poor thing something that no one can spell or pronounce is not "unique" and definitely not "special". It more likely borders on child abuse.
We have the proliferation of "y"s inplace of every other vowel when said vowel has a generic ə sound. Madison becomes Madysyn, Katherine Kathyryn, etc., etc., etc. You have the strange syllabic emphasis as in the (hopefully apocraphyl) tale of the woman who named her daughter "Female", pronounced to rhyme with tamale. You have the "African" names, which probably have never been seen by any African tribe or nation. You have children saddled with names like "Moon Unit" and "Pilot Inspektor".
You get the idea.
Today's OMG WTF were they thinking moment comes from I don't know where, because the new's outlet doesn't specify a state. The tale itself is horrific - an illegal immigrant nephew kills his aunt, his cousin, and her husband in brutal fashion, so bad that the crime scene folks say it's about the worst they'd ever seen.
But the sister of the husband, who has the sensible, handsome name of Michael is called this: Derquiasha. The mind boggles. I don't know her. She is probably a lovely woman. But I have absolutely no idea what her mother was thinking when she put that name down on the birth certificate. I won't say I have no idea how to pronounce it, I do, but it's probably wrong.
Years ago when I worked for H&R Block, one of the other preparers had a regular customer who, every year, had his electronic filing rejected because his daughter's name wasn't spelled the way Social Security thought it was spelled. This happened even when they got a new card for her from SS and copied the name exactly. It took at least two tries to file his return every. single. year.
One year the preparer asked him about the name. He said that his wife, who had walked out on them years ago never to be heard from again, had been "going through her African history phase" when the daughter was born. The tax preparer asked if the daughter liked the name and he admitted that she didn't. The final decision was that he would take her to the court house after the return came in and let her choose a new, legal name. I don't know but I bet it didn't have a "q" or an apostrophe in it.
We all want our children to be unique and special, but there are limits. Naming the poor thing something that no one can spell or pronounce is not "unique" and definitely not "special". It more likely borders on child abuse.
We have the proliferation of "y"s inplace of every other vowel when said vowel has a generic ə sound. Madison becomes Madysyn, Katherine Kathyryn, etc., etc., etc. You have the strange syllabic emphasis as in the (hopefully apocraphyl) tale of the woman who named her daughter "Female", pronounced to rhyme with tamale. You have the "African" names, which probably have never been seen by any African tribe or nation. You have children saddled with names like "Moon Unit" and "Pilot Inspektor".
You get the idea.
Today's OMG WTF were they thinking moment comes from I don't know where, because the new's outlet doesn't specify a state. The tale itself is horrific - an illegal immigrant nephew kills his aunt, his cousin, and her husband in brutal fashion, so bad that the crime scene folks say it's about the worst they'd ever seen.
But the sister of the husband, who has the sensible, handsome name of Michael is called this: Derquiasha. The mind boggles. I don't know her. She is probably a lovely woman. But I have absolutely no idea what her mother was thinking when she put that name down on the birth certificate. I won't say I have no idea how to pronounce it, I do, but it's probably wrong.
Years ago when I worked for H&R Block, one of the other preparers had a regular customer who, every year, had his electronic filing rejected because his daughter's name wasn't spelled the way Social Security thought it was spelled. This happened even when they got a new card for her from SS and copied the name exactly. It took at least two tries to file his return every. single. year.
One year the preparer asked him about the name. He said that his wife, who had walked out on them years ago never to be heard from again, had been "going through her African history phase" when the daughter was born. The tax preparer asked if the daughter liked the name and he admitted that she didn't. The final decision was that he would take her to the court house after the return came in and let her choose a new, legal name. I don't know but I bet it didn't have a "q" or an apostrophe in it.
It's amazing what you can learn from an X-ray
I had a visit to ortho last weekend because my knees still hurt from the five point landing I had when I tripped back two months ago. They took x-rays to make sure that I hadn't chipped anything (I hadn't) and while looking at the pictures, the PA commented that they showed that I'd had Osgood-Schlatter disease.
Since no one has ever mentioned that to me, I asked what it was. Apparently if your bones don't grow in sync with the soft tissue, the pull on the bones causes some very minor remodelling which shows on the films even much later in life.
As soon as he started describing it, I said, yes, indeed, I had had something like that. Starting when I was about 11 or 12, I had awful knee pain, especially after activity. Not that I was very good at it anyway, but I'd had to give up ballet lessons, because after one one hour class I wouldn't be able to straighten my leg for about three weeks. I saw the ortho at St. Joe's (who also looked at the UofM football team's knees) and he poked and prodded, maybe there was an X-ray, and told us not to worry, it was just growing pains, and he described it exactly that way, as the bones growing first and the connective tissue having to catch up. From then on, I always knew when I was having a growth spurt, even in my 20s, and during my last 1/4 inch just before my 31st birthday.
My knees have enough problems now, thankfully that's no longer one I have to worry about.
Since no one has ever mentioned that to me, I asked what it was. Apparently if your bones don't grow in sync with the soft tissue, the pull on the bones causes some very minor remodelling which shows on the films even much later in life.
As soon as he started describing it, I said, yes, indeed, I had had something like that. Starting when I was about 11 or 12, I had awful knee pain, especially after activity. Not that I was very good at it anyway, but I'd had to give up ballet lessons, because after one one hour class I wouldn't be able to straighten my leg for about three weeks. I saw the ortho at St. Joe's (who also looked at the UofM football team's knees) and he poked and prodded, maybe there was an X-ray, and told us not to worry, it was just growing pains, and he described it exactly that way, as the bones growing first and the connective tissue having to catch up. From then on, I always knew when I was having a growth spurt, even in my 20s, and during my last 1/4 inch just before my 31st birthday.
My knees have enough problems now, thankfully that's no longer one I have to worry about.
Saturday, August 08, 2015
The political silly season
is starting earlier and earlier each election cycle. I guess the hope is that we'll all be so sick of it by the time the actual election rolls around that no one will turn out except for those bought and/or dead votes.
Since we don't have the cable hooked up to the TV and I didn't remember anyway, I missed the GOP debate on Thursday, but I've read a lot about it since. It would seem that The Donald did what he does best, which is be supremely politically incorrect as well as extremely boorish. I'll have to find it and watch the debate to be sure, but from what I've read and seen about him so far, this is by no means hard to believe.
So boorish? It won't get my vote. But the un-PC is a good thing. Hopefully the rest of the candidates will realize that that's what fires up Trump's base (heck, I'd say most of the conservative base at this point) and start refusing to bow to the leftist media and the noisemakers on Twitter and other social media platforms. The noisemakers are just that, noise; their actual numbers are small and the more they attack dearly held positions on the right, the more folks get fired up to do something, anything about it. And that would include getting out and voting, if they are only given a candidate they can believe won't turn around the day after the election and throw his/her hat in with the business-as-usual crowd in DC.
Since we don't have the cable hooked up to the TV and I didn't remember anyway, I missed the GOP debate on Thursday, but I've read a lot about it since. It would seem that The Donald did what he does best, which is be supremely politically incorrect as well as extremely boorish. I'll have to find it and watch the debate to be sure, but from what I've read and seen about him so far, this is by no means hard to believe.
So boorish? It won't get my vote. But the un-PC is a good thing. Hopefully the rest of the candidates will realize that that's what fires up Trump's base (heck, I'd say most of the conservative base at this point) and start refusing to bow to the leftist media and the noisemakers on Twitter and other social media platforms. The noisemakers are just that, noise; their actual numbers are small and the more they attack dearly held positions on the right, the more folks get fired up to do something, anything about it. And that would include getting out and voting, if they are only given a candidate they can believe won't turn around the day after the election and throw his/her hat in with the business-as-usual crowd in DC.
Saturday, July 18, 2015
I'm not dead yet
Things have been fairly quiet here lately. We have a boat picnic to go to tomorrow, so should see some friends we haven't seen in ages.
To fill more of the post for the few folks who stop here, some photos I've taken lately.
First, a butterfly that was wandering around the back steps and the raspberry bushes:
We're pretty sure it's a Great Spangled Fritillary.
And then some of our sleeping kitties. Especially amusing is the fat fuzzy one's hind toes which can be seen in the upper photo.
It is rather disturbing how much dreck in the carpet doesn't really show to the naked eye, but when you take a photo using the flash it pops. Just proving why I want to tear the whole thing up. It's crap carpeting anyway, and I know the wood underneath is in fairly decent condition. Worst comes to worst, and we can buy a few cheap area rugs, but anything to make it easier to clean up the cat hair and hair balls.
To fill more of the post for the few folks who stop here, some photos I've taken lately.
First, a butterfly that was wandering around the back steps and the raspberry bushes:
We're pretty sure it's a Great Spangled Fritillary.
And then some of our sleeping kitties. Especially amusing is the fat fuzzy one's hind toes which can be seen in the upper photo.
It is rather disturbing how much dreck in the carpet doesn't really show to the naked eye, but when you take a photo using the flash it pops. Just proving why I want to tear the whole thing up. It's crap carpeting anyway, and I know the wood underneath is in fairly decent condition. Worst comes to worst, and we can buy a few cheap area rugs, but anything to make it easier to clean up the cat hair and hair balls.
Saturday, July 04, 2015
New cat
Last weekend we got a new cat, and after only a week she seems to be getting on with the other cats without much growling and no bloodshed.
She's about 6, and has come to us rather severely overweight. Today she tried to get into the bay window which apparently involves standing on the Wii board, climing onto the paper shredder and then into the window. This morning she fell off the paper shredder. Twice. So when she tried to get up later you could see her spending time calculating whether it might not be easier leaping over the rabbit cage. Thankfully she figured out it wouldn't be, and this time she didn't fall.
The weather is iffy today, and the husband had to work, so we're going over to the parents' place for the barbeque tomorrow when the weather is better and no one is tired.
On the shoulder front, it still hurts like the dickens. I am really, really looking forward to being able to sleep for more than 5 hours at a stretch.
She's about 6, and has come to us rather severely overweight. Today she tried to get into the bay window which apparently involves standing on the Wii board, climing onto the paper shredder and then into the window. This morning she fell off the paper shredder. Twice. So when she tried to get up later you could see her spending time calculating whether it might not be easier leaping over the rabbit cage. Thankfully she figured out it wouldn't be, and this time she didn't fall.
The weather is iffy today, and the husband had to work, so we're going over to the parents' place for the barbeque tomorrow when the weather is better and no one is tired.
On the shoulder front, it still hurts like the dickens. I am really, really looking forward to being able to sleep for more than 5 hours at a stretch.
Thursday, July 02, 2015
The "T" in "PT" stands for....
supposedly, therapist.
Terrorist or torturer work just as well.
I got home from PT and a visit to the DMV to get my new handicapped tag and took a six hour nap.
This morning I woke up after only 5 hours sleep, having taken 800mg of ibuprofen right before I fell asleep, because I was in too much pain to stay asleep. It took several hours before I could move the shoulder. I know it's improving, but the work to get it there isn't fun at all.
Terrorist or torturer work just as well.
I got home from PT and a visit to the DMV to get my new handicapped tag and took a six hour nap.
This morning I woke up after only 5 hours sleep, having taken 800mg of ibuprofen right before I fell asleep, because I was in too much pain to stay asleep. It took several hours before I could move the shoulder. I know it's improving, but the work to get it there isn't fun at all.
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
Post-Op Day 26
I had my three week check up today, and was cleared to drive. I probably could have done it earlier; as I suspected since it wasn't written on my instructions, my doctor was leaving it up to my discretion. But it's only in the last few days that moving my arm as you have to to drive hasn't been painful.
My mother and husband are happy that they don't have to drive me everywhere anymore.
So now it's off to job hunt in earnest, second shift and/or part time so I don't have to drop any of my classes for this fall.
My mother and husband are happy that they don't have to drive me everywhere anymore.
So now it's off to job hunt in earnest, second shift and/or part time so I don't have to drop any of my classes for this fall.
Tuesday, June 16, 2015
Post-Op Day 12
I had my first post-op PT session yesterday. It wasn't as not-fun as I'd thought it might be, but it was not-fun. I've lost some range of motion, though not as much as my PT guy had expected (probably because I'd already started doing some very gentle stretching on my own), and stretching it out hurts. My PT guy has requested the op notes from the surgeon's office, which required me signing a release because his name wasn't specifically in their files. Damn HIPAA, because he didn't need a release what with being one of my medical providers for this particular issue, but many providers have gone overboard on requiring patient releases because of that damned law. He agreed that unless the op notes showed something very different from my understanding of what was done, avoiding using the sling as much as possible is the better plan. I just find that the sling is actually more uncomfortable than no sling most of the time.
On a much lighter note, this means that there is a good chance I'll be able to drive by sometime in early July, so I can start job hunting again.
As it is, I'm sitting on the sofa listening to the sirens go by on the main road and watching my cat in the bay window as he loses it every time a bird goes by. He has this hysterical little a-a-a-a noise he makes when they tease him. My husband has today off, so we're going to get caught up on dishes and laundry, most of which require the pushing, pulling and/or lifting I still can't do so, surprise, we've gotten a little behind. Once that's done, I'm going to make liver and onions and bacon with mash for dinner. Which reminds me we need to order more Beef Roast seasoning from Penzey's.
On a much lighter note, this means that there is a good chance I'll be able to drive by sometime in early July, so I can start job hunting again.
As it is, I'm sitting on the sofa listening to the sirens go by on the main road and watching my cat in the bay window as he loses it every time a bird goes by. He has this hysterical little a-a-a-a noise he makes when they tease him. My husband has today off, so we're going to get caught up on dishes and laundry, most of which require the pushing, pulling and/or lifting I still can't do so, surprise, we've gotten a little behind. Once that's done, I'm going to make liver and onions and bacon with mash for dinner. Which reminds me we need to order more Beef Roast seasoning from Penzey's.
Saturday, June 13, 2015
Post-Op Day 9
I took the steri-strips off today and the incisions seem to be healing nicely. There are some very diffinite lumps under them which would be where the stiches are tied. Hopefully they will absorb properly, unlike the stiches when I had my deviated septum repaired last year. I'd rather not have my surgeon have to make incisions in the incisions to remove them.
I'm definitely doing better, though I'm still using the sling, though not around the house (I'd like to keep my balance, thank you), and I'm being very careful about trying to remember to NOT "push, pull, or lift" with my left arm. The doctor didn't say I should stop using the sling, but she didn't say I had to continue, and there is nothing in the post-op instructions about it, just the no "push, pull, lift" bit. Since I think the sling can actually make things worse, I'll keep it handy, but not use it if I don't obviously need it.
I have my first day of PT on Monday, with a re-evaluation, so that will be interesting. I can tell that the shoulder is a lot more frozen/stiff than it was before surgery. I don't think PT will be fun.
At least I feel that I can now start job hunting, since I should be driving well before the beginning of the fall semester. It just needs to be a second shift/weekend position.
Wednesday, June 10, 2015
Post-Op Day 6
I saw my doctor yesterday about the fall. She checked out the arm, and the verdict is that I didn't seem to have done any damage to it, so I don't need to go in on Friday for my post-op check, and I'll go back in three weeks, which will be after 2+ weeks of physical therapy. So I think the take-away from this is that, if it doesn't hurt, I might as well do it.
So I've stopped wearing the sling around the house, which allows me to move the elbow and hands much more easily, as well as keep my balance better. I saw my GP today about the increase in my idiopathic peripheral edema, and the best advice she can give is that all my labs and other tests look fine, so I really just need to lose weight. Even if I don't lose weight, if I get more active the swelling should improve, which I did notice after walking to the local mini-mart. So I guess I need to find my Reeboks and start taking a daily walk as well as using the Wii.
I can already move almost as much without pain as before the surgery, so PT should now actually increase my movement and strength rather than have to just focus on keeping the joint from freezing. All told, so far at least, this is going much, much better than I feared it might.
So I've stopped wearing the sling around the house, which allows me to move the elbow and hands much more easily, as well as keep my balance better. I saw my GP today about the increase in my idiopathic peripheral edema, and the best advice she can give is that all my labs and other tests look fine, so I really just need to lose weight. Even if I don't lose weight, if I get more active the swelling should improve, which I did notice after walking to the local mini-mart. So I guess I need to find my Reeboks and start taking a daily walk as well as using the Wii.
I can already move almost as much without pain as before the surgery, so PT should now actually increase my movement and strength rather than have to just focus on keeping the joint from freezing. All told, so far at least, this is going much, much better than I feared it might.
Tuesday, June 09, 2015
Post-Op Day 5
I tripped over my own damn foot yesterday evening and made a five point landing inluding my face (didnt break my glasses and don't seem to have a black eye, but a bruised and swollen cheekbone) and of course extended the operated shoulder and landed on the elbow since it was in the sling. I go see the doctor after lunch to make sure I didn't do anything too horrid.
Ouch.
Ouch.
Monday, June 08, 2015
Post-Op Day 4
Quite sore this morning, but the sling loosened overnight and I think I shifted my arm in ways it wasn't really happy with. Today will be a take it very easy day.
Sunday, June 07, 2015
Post-Op Day 3
Still stiff and sore which is hardly a surprise. I got to take off the bandages to find that in addition to the three ho;es I also have a 2+ inch incision. I was able to get most of the orange sterilizing stuff off, though I probably wont get all of it until I can do a proper bath or at least sponge bath which I'm still too tired to deal with. I'll try for that later today or tomorrow. Right now Im going to relax and watch Amazing Stories on Netflix.
Saturday, June 06, 2015
Post-Op Day 2
Damn, but I want to stretch my left arm. I've found that ibuprofen does indeed work quite well on the pain, which is more ache and sore and stiff than pain, though I did add half a percocet last night so I could sleep. I get to take all the padded bandages off tomorrow, so ice will have a little more effect, and I'm supposed to be moving everything from the elbow down, just no pushing, pulling, or lifting with the left arm.
sore
sore
Friday, June 05, 2015
Quick up-date : post-op day 1
All things considered I'm feeling pretty good. I woke in a sling rather than an immobilizer so that in itself was good news. The percocets aren't doing anything ( or at least anything noticable) so i'm switching to ibuprofen. 800mg half an hour ago seems to be having more effect than the percs do after the same time lapse.
i am realizing just how much you use your shoulders to get out of chairs. I'm also giving up on capitals when typing one handed.
i am realizing just how much you use your shoulders to get out of chairs. I'm also giving up on capitals when typing one handed.
Thursday, June 04, 2015
Today's the big day.
Bathed, dressed, and ready to head off to the hospital in a few minutes. Yay!
Of course I haven't had enough sleep, but then it's not like I have to do anything myself, except lie there asleep.
I wonder how long the nerve block is going to last. It can be up to 24 hours. I would just like to avoid pain as much as possible.
Of course I haven't had enough sleep, but then it's not like I have to do anything myself, except lie there asleep.
I wonder how long the nerve block is going to last. It can be up to 24 hours. I would just like to avoid pain as much as possible.
Tuesday, June 02, 2015
Two more days
I hope.
I woke up this morning with a scratchy throat. So I'm bundled up (it's June, damnit, it's not supposed to be in the 40s at 7am!), have had my coffee, and plan to spend the rest of the day drinking copious amounts of Camomile tea to try to head this thing off.
I do NOT want to have this surgery put off. I've already had to start taking the percocet in the evening if I'm going to have a hope of getting some sleep. I'd like to not have to start taking multiple doses a day before hand.
Which reminds me, I've got a nearly full script of tramadol to get rid of, since I see no point in keeping a med that doesn't do what it's supposed to while giving me a nasty headache and an upset stomach.
I woke up this morning with a scratchy throat. So I'm bundled up (it's June, damnit, it's not supposed to be in the 40s at 7am!), have had my coffee, and plan to spend the rest of the day drinking copious amounts of Camomile tea to try to head this thing off.
I do NOT want to have this surgery put off. I've already had to start taking the percocet in the evening if I'm going to have a hope of getting some sleep. I'd like to not have to start taking multiple doses a day before hand.
Which reminds me, I've got a nearly full script of tramadol to get rid of, since I see no point in keeping a med that doesn't do what it's supposed to while giving me a nasty headache and an upset stomach.
Friday, May 22, 2015
Time to prep
So, school news first.
On Monday I was able to check the grade for Finance, and since I managed to get an A on the final, that was an A for the entire course. I got an email from my Accounting prof to let me know that I had been given a 95 on the project (a few minor issues, but as he said at the last class, if anyone got everything right about it, they should be up teaching the class rather than taking it), and a 92 on the final (which meant I got to drop the exam with the 87), for an average of 95 something, and another A. I finished the Quickbooks review, took the exam, and when I checked it Tuesday morning, I'd alsso managed an A in that class. That left Statistics, but I had to wait until after the last day of class to see the uploaded grade in the unofficial online transcript. Sadly, that was only an A-. Awwww.
Now I get to concentrate on prepping the house for surgery and getting younger child through her Geometry, Algebra II, and some grammar before the start of school in the fall. I was able to get an unofficial copy of her high school transcript, and they've double counted some stuff, and not given credit for other stuff, but when I added in her home school stuff, she's not doing too badly, and if we get through all the stuff for the summer, she'll be in great shape for next year.
I need to do a fair bit of work to get the house ready for surgery, and of course now that classes are done and I don't have anything else to procrastinate from, it's much harder to find the will power. Typical. I tried the pain med I was given for pre-op, and I'm not taking that one ever again. The nausea and headache were/are terrible, and there's no real pain relief.
I've got an appointment with elder child and her ortho in a little bit to see if her upper spine curve is behaving, or if it's why she's having so many shoulder and neck issues lately. If it's the problem, I hope we can still use Children's.
On Monday I was able to check the grade for Finance, and since I managed to get an A on the final, that was an A for the entire course. I got an email from my Accounting prof to let me know that I had been given a 95 on the project (a few minor issues, but as he said at the last class, if anyone got everything right about it, they should be up teaching the class rather than taking it), and a 92 on the final (which meant I got to drop the exam with the 87), for an average of 95 something, and another A. I finished the Quickbooks review, took the exam, and when I checked it Tuesday morning, I'd alsso managed an A in that class. That left Statistics, but I had to wait until after the last day of class to see the uploaded grade in the unofficial online transcript. Sadly, that was only an A-. Awwww.
Now I get to concentrate on prepping the house for surgery and getting younger child through her Geometry, Algebra II, and some grammar before the start of school in the fall. I was able to get an unofficial copy of her high school transcript, and they've double counted some stuff, and not given credit for other stuff, but when I added in her home school stuff, she's not doing too badly, and if we get through all the stuff for the summer, she'll be in great shape for next year.
I need to do a fair bit of work to get the house ready for surgery, and of course now that classes are done and I don't have anything else to procrastinate from, it's much harder to find the will power. Typical. I tried the pain med I was given for pre-op, and I'm not taking that one ever again. The nausea and headache were/are terrible, and there's no real pain relief.
I've got an appointment with elder child and her ortho in a little bit to see if her upper spine curve is behaving, or if it's why she's having so many shoulder and neck issues lately. If it's the problem, I hope we can still use Children's.
Saturday, May 16, 2015
And we're getting there....
Also known as 4 down, 1 to go. I just took the last Finance exam, and feel pretty good about it. I only needed a 78 to get an A in the overall course. There were 20 questions and there was only 1 that I totally guessed on, and two or three that I wasn't completely comfortable with. So, fingers crossing and all that.
We made it to New Jersey yesterday afternoon, later than I'd planned, but not too bad, and that was in spite of the best laid plans of New Jersey signage. Their road signs and what the GPS thinks things are called don't seem to match in the Piscataway area. However, having to pull over when it looked like we'd screwed up for a third time was actuallly a Good Thing, as just as I pulled over to the break down lane a large piece of scrap metal went careening through were the car would have been, and while I think we would have survived it, I don't think the driver's side of my car would have. So there was that.
And then the hotel turned out to be at the beginning of a major remodel, and lots of stuff had issues. But being polite but a little loud and very unhappy got many things fixed. The staff are great, but it seems that upper-upper management isn't giving them much to work with. So I'd probably avoid the Hotel Suomerset Bridgewater until later in 2016 after they've sorted it out and reopened as a Crown Plaza.
My daughter got her makeup and costume on and I got her dropped off and checked in to the Steampunk World's Fair, and went back to the hotel, (which was when I was polite upset and got a new room), moved some of our stuff, and then went and had a half price G&T. I felt much, much better after that. I picked the kid up around 10 after the dinner with the band and heard all about her photo with them, and her selfies with them, and meeting all sorts of people she knows from the tumblr group.
Today I got her dropped off fairly early for the meet-and-greet, and she wasn't planning on coming back before the concert is over, which will be around midnight. So I'm going to head down shortly, as soon as it hits 5, for another G&T and some dinner.
And then it's going over the last three chapters of QuickBooks, so I can (hopefully) take the test in the morning while kid's over at the fair, and then we'll head home sometime late afternoon/early evening. Even if I don't get the test done until Monday (it closes Monday at 23:59), after that it's all over for the summer.
School, that is. My school. I still have to work with younger child on her math, and get the house and stuff ready for surgery on the 4th. I want to not have to worry if I do wake up in an immobilizer, and then if it goes as planned, everything will be fine too.
We made it to New Jersey yesterday afternoon, later than I'd planned, but not too bad, and that was in spite of the best laid plans of New Jersey signage. Their road signs and what the GPS thinks things are called don't seem to match in the Piscataway area. However, having to pull over when it looked like we'd screwed up for a third time was actuallly a Good Thing, as just as I pulled over to the break down lane a large piece of scrap metal went careening through were the car would have been, and while I think we would have survived it, I don't think the driver's side of my car would have. So there was that.
And then the hotel turned out to be at the beginning of a major remodel, and lots of stuff had issues. But being polite but a little loud and very unhappy got many things fixed. The staff are great, but it seems that upper-upper management isn't giving them much to work with. So I'd probably avoid the Hotel Suomerset Bridgewater until later in 2016 after they've sorted it out and reopened as a Crown Plaza.
My daughter got her makeup and costume on and I got her dropped off and checked in to the Steampunk World's Fair, and went back to the hotel, (which was when I was polite upset and got a new room), moved some of our stuff, and then went and had a half price G&T. I felt much, much better after that. I picked the kid up around 10 after the dinner with the band and heard all about her photo with them, and her selfies with them, and meeting all sorts of people she knows from the tumblr group.
Today I got her dropped off fairly early for the meet-and-greet, and she wasn't planning on coming back before the concert is over, which will be around midnight. So I'm going to head down shortly, as soon as it hits 5, for another G&T and some dinner.
And then it's going over the last three chapters of QuickBooks, so I can (hopefully) take the test in the morning while kid's over at the fair, and then we'll head home sometime late afternoon/early evening. Even if I don't get the test done until Monday (it closes Monday at 23:59), after that it's all over for the summer.
School, that is. My school. I still have to work with younger child on her math, and get the house and stuff ready for surgery on the 4th. I want to not have to worry if I do wake up in an immobilizer, and then if it goes as planned, everything will be fine too.
Thursday, May 14, 2015
Slowly, slowly...
Two finals down, and one more tonight, leaving just two. I'll take one online tomorrow and try to get the other out on Saturday, but I've got until Monday evening for that one.
I spent a busy morning today getting my car its oil & lube, tire rotation, and a new cabin air filter. Then I spent an exciting hour at the DMV getting my new license. Lord but CT is expensive. $72 for six years. The photo doesn't hide the pudge, but at least I look like I'm alive, rather than something that was poorly embalmed a few months back. And then over to the outpatient lab center for my pre-op workup of blood and an EKG. I had to fill out a full H&P, again. It would be so much easier for me if the hospital would just give me a print out of my last one with spaces for changes. Really, I haven't had any new surgeries since the last one done there. I suppose I should be happy that (at least so far) they've only asked me to fill it out once. For one of the last two surgeries I gave up when it happened a fourth time, and just wrote in big letters "SEE PHYSICIAN'S COPY!!". I had done one for the surgeon, one for the OR, one for anesthesia, and I don't remember who the last one was for. They never got back to me to complain, so I have to wonder if anyone even looked at it.
I had the pre-op with the surgeon yesterday. Apparently what radiology calls tears is, in my case, more like fraying hems. So if it turns out to really be that I won't be immoblized for weeks, and will be able to use my elbow and wrist pretty much from day one. On the other hand she may get in there and find it looks very, very different. I'll only know for sure when I wake up and find out whether I'm in a sling or immobilized in lots of black strapping.
So, back to last minute studying and notecard creation.....
I spent a busy morning today getting my car its oil & lube, tire rotation, and a new cabin air filter. Then I spent an exciting hour at the DMV getting my new license. Lord but CT is expensive. $72 for six years. The photo doesn't hide the pudge, but at least I look like I'm alive, rather than something that was poorly embalmed a few months back. And then over to the outpatient lab center for my pre-op workup of blood and an EKG. I had to fill out a full H&P, again. It would be so much easier for me if the hospital would just give me a print out of my last one with spaces for changes. Really, I haven't had any new surgeries since the last one done there. I suppose I should be happy that (at least so far) they've only asked me to fill it out once. For one of the last two surgeries I gave up when it happened a fourth time, and just wrote in big letters "SEE PHYSICIAN'S COPY!!". I had done one for the surgeon, one for the OR, one for anesthesia, and I don't remember who the last one was for. They never got back to me to complain, so I have to wonder if anyone even looked at it.
I had the pre-op with the surgeon yesterday. Apparently what radiology calls tears is, in my case, more like fraying hems. So if it turns out to really be that I won't be immoblized for weeks, and will be able to use my elbow and wrist pretty much from day one. On the other hand she may get in there and find it looks very, very different. I'll only know for sure when I wake up and find out whether I'm in a sling or immobilized in lots of black strapping.
So, back to last minute studying and notecard creation.....
Sunday, May 10, 2015
Procrastination
is something I'm usually pretty good at.
I procrastinated on my Finance paper until 8 hours before it had to be uploaded. I spent 5 hours writing three pages (I did have an outline already) on a topic I know next to nothing about. That final portion of the project was worth 60 points. (The earlier sections were 5 points for chosing an acceptable topic, 10 points for the title page, abstract, and outline, annd 25 points for the first draft/portion of the paper - I got 40 out of 40.) The final paper was to be at least 5 pages long. My 1st draft submission was over that. I needed to finish the last sections, because I still don't really write drafts, I write the paper, or at least each section, in one go, and then I copyedit. So anyways, after 5 hours I had an 8 page paper in APA format with lots of inline citations, a corrected outline, because of course it changed a bit as I wrote it, a slightly changed bibliography, because I used some things I didn't know about at the beginning, and I didn't bother with some stuff I had included, and the original abstract and title page for a total of 112 pages.
5 hours work got me 60 points out of 60.
I really can't decide if this is because I'm just that good at writing papers, or if it is saying something about the quality of paper expected at the undergraduate level these days. Or maybe it's a bit of both.
Not that I really care, I got the grade.
So now I'm down to studying for the accounting and statistics in-class finals; at least stats isn't cumulative. And I have two online tests to take. I was going to start all the studying on Friday. It's now Sunday. Oops.
I hope to have everything done by Thursday night so I can spend the whole weekend sleeping or Netflixing except when I have to chauffeur my kid someplace at the Steampunk World's Fair. After that I can take real pain meds for my shoulder until the surgery; it's not like I have to worry about being charged with housecleaning under the influence.
Wednesday, May 06, 2015
The end is nigh!
At least of the semester.
I'm finished with microeconomics. I got a 95 on the last test (it would have been higher but I reversed two numbers, though at least I remembered what they were) so my average for the semester is over a 93 for the A, and I don't need to do the take home cumulative final to get one of the earlier test grades dropped.
Last night saw the accounting company financials presentations, and my group didn't do too badly; we went over the last test after handing in the answer sheet so know I missed 4 out of 42. I'm kicking myself because one of the answers was obvious if I'd read the question one more time. It was one of those where you are given a fair bit of extraneous data, and I didn't get rid of quite enough. But I've also got the trial balance project completely done, as well as the school's accreditation exam, so all I've got to do is show up next week after doing some (relatively thorough review) and I may not even have to take the cumulative final in this class either.
So. All that's left is going over the last three chapters of Quickbooks for the online exam which opens on the 12th, finish the last chapter and it's homework in Principles of Finance, and review for the online exam, which opens on the 12th, and study like mad for the Statistics final on the 14th. At least class tomorrow night will be completely review.
On the 15th I drive down to the Steampunk World's Fair with my eldest, and other than chauferring her (which may not be too necessary as the hotel we're staying at is a satelite Con hotel so there may be at least some limited shuttle service) I should be able to sleep. Especially as I'm going to ask my doctor at the pre-op appointment on the 13th for some decent pain meds. 6 hours broken sleep a night is getting ... interesting. And not in a good way.
I'm finished with microeconomics. I got a 95 on the last test (it would have been higher but I reversed two numbers, though at least I remembered what they were) so my average for the semester is over a 93 for the A, and I don't need to do the take home cumulative final to get one of the earlier test grades dropped.
Last night saw the accounting company financials presentations, and my group didn't do too badly; we went over the last test after handing in the answer sheet so know I missed 4 out of 42. I'm kicking myself because one of the answers was obvious if I'd read the question one more time. It was one of those where you are given a fair bit of extraneous data, and I didn't get rid of quite enough. But I've also got the trial balance project completely done, as well as the school's accreditation exam, so all I've got to do is show up next week after doing some (relatively thorough review) and I may not even have to take the cumulative final in this class either.
So. All that's left is going over the last three chapters of Quickbooks for the online exam which opens on the 12th, finish the last chapter and it's homework in Principles of Finance, and review for the online exam, which opens on the 12th, and study like mad for the Statistics final on the 14th. At least class tomorrow night will be completely review.
On the 15th I drive down to the Steampunk World's Fair with my eldest, and other than chauferring her (which may not be too necessary as the hotel we're staying at is a satelite Con hotel so there may be at least some limited shuttle service) I should be able to sleep. Especially as I'm going to ask my doctor at the pre-op appointment on the 13th for some decent pain meds. 6 hours broken sleep a night is getting ... interesting. And not in a good way.
Friday, May 01, 2015
June 4th
I got my surgery date today, June 4th. That gives time to finish this semester and get myself, and hopefully the house, ready for me being functionally one armed for the following 6 weeks or so. I've got a pre-op appointment on the 13th to sign the paperwork and find out exactly what the doc is planning to do. The surgical appointment manager started reading and after the second item said "and a lot of other stuff". There's some debridement in there, and opening stuff up to remove the impingement, and shaving some bone off the clavicle (?), etc., etc. It will make a lot more sense when the doctor explains it, especially since she knows exactly what she's talking about so she can explain it to me.
I also need to learn to recalibrate my personal pain scale. The ribs have hurt since the car accident in 1990 and I'm so used to it, I don't even notice it most days unless something makes me think about them (like writing this). It hid my gall stones until it was so bad I ended up in the ER with it (and surgery four days later). I've also been told that defining a 10 as "makes you pass out" isn't considered realistic. So I guess I just need to start taking my original number and adding 2 to it.
So, I should enjoy being able to blog right now, because starting in June I won't be doing much since I don't have voice recognition software on this thing, and the thought of having to type everything out one handed? Ain't happening.
I also need to learn to recalibrate my personal pain scale. The ribs have hurt since the car accident in 1990 and I'm so used to it, I don't even notice it most days unless something makes me think about them (like writing this). It hid my gall stones until it was so bad I ended up in the ER with it (and surgery four days later). I've also been told that defining a 10 as "makes you pass out" isn't considered realistic. So I guess I just need to start taking my original number and adding 2 to it.
So, I should enjoy being able to blog right now, because starting in June I won't be doing much since I don't have voice recognition software on this thing, and the thought of having to type everything out one handed? Ain't happening.
Tuesday, April 28, 2015
Family, gotta love them
I've been trying to explain to my parents why I'm not currently job hunting, and why I'm not going to be taking any classes this summer. My mother understands, perhaps because she's gone through something moderately similar with her hip replacement.
My father has been wondering aloud on a daily basis why I'm not job hunting right now, and explaining that no one is going to want to hire someone who will have to go out on medical leave for at least two months hasn't cut it. I'm obviously just being a wuss. And then earlier this week he ran into a young man on campus with his arm in a sling and got talking to him. The kid had a similar surgery to what I'm going to have, but his was about two months ago. He's still using a sling a lot of the time, and his rehab team have just started letting him use his hand to pick up relatively light-weight objects, like a cup of coffee.
Suddenly with outside, independant verification (NIH, Mayo clinic, Yale, etc online apparently don't count/sigh) Dad can suddenly understand what I've been talking about for over a month and why I'm doing what I'm doing (or not doing).
So now I just have to fill out paperwork to see if I can be counted as "disabled" either temporarily because of the shoulder (sadly, I think I won't be for long enough unless, God forbid, something goes wrong in surgery) or perrmanently because of the knee. Any degree of disability might make certain types of assistance available, and right now any extra funds coming in will be a Good Thing. Also, sad to say, being officially "Disabled" might make me more employable, because folks still have to tick of those EEOC boxes. It's stupid, but as long as it's there, I might as well see if I can use it to my advantage. I've got a family to help support.
Now, if anyone can find a job which doesn't mind a new employee leaving for two to three months of medical leave right after starting , I'll be happy to apply. At least I can truthfully say I've never had to leave a job because of something that was my fault.
My father has been wondering aloud on a daily basis why I'm not job hunting right now, and explaining that no one is going to want to hire someone who will have to go out on medical leave for at least two months hasn't cut it. I'm obviously just being a wuss. And then earlier this week he ran into a young man on campus with his arm in a sling and got talking to him. The kid had a similar surgery to what I'm going to have, but his was about two months ago. He's still using a sling a lot of the time, and his rehab team have just started letting him use his hand to pick up relatively light-weight objects, like a cup of coffee.
Suddenly with outside, independant verification (NIH, Mayo clinic, Yale, etc online apparently don't count/sigh) Dad can suddenly understand what I've been talking about for over a month and why I'm doing what I'm doing (or not doing).
So now I just have to fill out paperwork to see if I can be counted as "disabled" either temporarily because of the shoulder (sadly, I think I won't be for long enough unless, God forbid, something goes wrong in surgery) or perrmanently because of the knee. Any degree of disability might make certain types of assistance available, and right now any extra funds coming in will be a Good Thing. Also, sad to say, being officially "Disabled" might make me more employable, because folks still have to tick of those EEOC boxes. It's stupid, but as long as it's there, I might as well see if I can use it to my advantage. I've got a family to help support.
Now, if anyone can find a job which doesn't mind a new employee leaving for two to three months of medical leave right after starting , I'll be happy to apply. At least I can truthfully say I've never had to leave a job because of something that was my fault.
What accounting and finance classes do to your brain.
I was talking to a family member today about our car insurance rates and found myself using "Time Value of Money" and "Present Value" and "Future Value" in sentences without using air quotes. I can see that these classes will have as much of an effect as working as a tax preparer did.
The more you learn about finance and money, the more it changes how you view everyday stuff.
The more you learn about finance and money, the more it changes how you view everyday stuff.
Sunday, April 26, 2015
Cat Valente moans/whines about Puppygate.
Tom Knighten does an superb job fisking the woman here.
There isn't much I can add. Certainly not on the Hugo front, he says everything much better than I ever could.
But Cat's take on diversity (or what she thinks is the Puppys' definition), which matches the other in-clique writers?
Her attitude towards diversity makes me think of the problems we're having where I live. Our school districts aren't uniform enough, because the state has decided in their infinite wisdom that children can't learn if there isn't the right balance of melanin in a classroom. It can only be a certain percentage off from the overall town "balance". (That a proportion of "minority" that is too much in one town isn't enough in another is completely lost on them.) So we're having to spend thousands coming up with a remediation plan, and then thousands more a year bussing kids who've been going to the same schools for years to opposite sides of the town. A former board of ed member told me that she's read plans (Agenda 21 maybe) which would involve not allowing people to purchase or rent housing in certain areas based on skin color, to achieve that magical racial diversity.
There is no proof that this will improve anyone's education, and for that matter, stuffing kids on busses for 45 minutes each way can only hurt, taking away homework and play time, and irritating the heck out of them when they wonder why they have to be bussed past the school they've attended for years to one where the only kids they know are the other poor bussees.
I've been arguing for years that all this sort of crap does is tell kids what hypocrites adults are. We spend years preaching at them about how they need to ignore skin color and concentrate on content of character. Then we turn around and tell them that they have to change schools because they don't have the right color skin to keep going to the one down the street.
How does this functionally differ from having two water fountains labeled "Black" and "White", or having a diner with a sign "No blacks"? Yes, blacks (and hispanics, and asians, and [insert minority group here] are allowed entry to all establishments, but only if they pass a "racial balance" test now. If their presence would make too many of [minority group], they can't enter, they have to go a mile down the street to the next restaurant, and hope that not too many of [minority group] are already seated at that one too.
There isn't much I can add. Certainly not on the Hugo front, he says everything much better than I ever could.
But Cat's take on diversity (or what she thinks is the Puppys' definition), which matches the other in-clique writers?
Her attitude towards diversity makes me think of the problems we're having where I live. Our school districts aren't uniform enough, because the state has decided in their infinite wisdom that children can't learn if there isn't the right balance of melanin in a classroom. It can only be a certain percentage off from the overall town "balance". (That a proportion of "minority" that is too much in one town isn't enough in another is completely lost on them.) So we're having to spend thousands coming up with a remediation plan, and then thousands more a year bussing kids who've been going to the same schools for years to opposite sides of the town. A former board of ed member told me that she's read plans (Agenda 21 maybe) which would involve not allowing people to purchase or rent housing in certain areas based on skin color, to achieve that magical racial diversity.
There is no proof that this will improve anyone's education, and for that matter, stuffing kids on busses for 45 minutes each way can only hurt, taking away homework and play time, and irritating the heck out of them when they wonder why they have to be bussed past the school they've attended for years to one where the only kids they know are the other poor bussees.
I've been arguing for years that all this sort of crap does is tell kids what hypocrites adults are. We spend years preaching at them about how they need to ignore skin color and concentrate on content of character. Then we turn around and tell them that they have to change schools because they don't have the right color skin to keep going to the one down the street.
How does this functionally differ from having two water fountains labeled "Black" and "White", or having a diner with a sign "No blacks"? Yes, blacks (and hispanics, and asians, and [insert minority group here] are allowed entry to all establishments, but only if they pass a "racial balance" test now. If their presence would make too many of [minority group], they can't enter, they have to go a mile down the street to the next restaurant, and hope that not too many of [minority group] are already seated at that one too.
One of those weeks
I spent Thursday trying to get my schedule for the fall semester sorted out. I had called Iowa day before to tell them that the college had never recieved my transcript only to find out that they had never sent one.
Iowa: But you only ordered one, to be sent to your home address.
Me: No, I ordered two, one for me, one for TRCC. I can't use the one for me for them since it's been opened and is no longer "official".
Iowa: We only billed you for one.
Me: (thinking of bill for $32, $16 each), but I know I ordered two!
Iowa: Well, let me check the files..... Oops. We'll get it out tomorrow.
Thursday involved going to the cashier's to see why I still hadn't recieved my studnet loan check (there's only 4 weeks left in the semester, for heaven's sake!). So the poor guy looks it up, sees where we asked them to cancel the first one I never received and sent out a new one. He calls someone (I think) in Hartford, and they check, and.... the request was never processed. I just put my head down on the counter and started laughing. Hopefully it will get sent out this week. We could really, really use the funds which I was supposed to get over a month ago.
So later Thursday, as I'm taking a break and getting ready to microwave my dinner I try to sign up for my fall classes, to have every single one of the not go through because they all require me to have been placed in English 101. So I got to spend an hour in admin, part of it waiting, and then part with a counsellor who agreed that if I already had BA from UConn, I should definitely meet the requirement of being placed in English 101, so she manually overrode it, and I'm finally registered.
Iowa: But you only ordered one, to be sent to your home address.
Me: No, I ordered two, one for me, one for TRCC. I can't use the one for me for them since it's been opened and is no longer "official".
Iowa: We only billed you for one.
Me: (thinking of bill for $32, $16 each), but I know I ordered two!
Iowa: Well, let me check the files..... Oops. We'll get it out tomorrow.
Thursday involved going to the cashier's to see why I still hadn't recieved my studnet loan check (there's only 4 weeks left in the semester, for heaven's sake!). So the poor guy looks it up, sees where we asked them to cancel the first one I never received and sent out a new one. He calls someone (I think) in Hartford, and they check, and.... the request was never processed. I just put my head down on the counter and started laughing. Hopefully it will get sent out this week. We could really, really use the funds which I was supposed to get over a month ago.
So later Thursday, as I'm taking a break and getting ready to microwave my dinner I try to sign up for my fall classes, to have every single one of the not go through because they all require me to have been placed in English 101. So I got to spend an hour in admin, part of it waiting, and then part with a counsellor who agreed that if I already had BA from UConn, I should definitely meet the requirement of being placed in English 101, so she manually overrode it, and I'm finally registered.
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
Surgery it is.
I got the MRI report today, and was ludicrously happy for reading such a crappy report. It's just that finally I've got some solid evidence explaining why everything hurts the way it does. It's not just "all in my head", or "You're over-reacting", or (my father's favorite) "hypersensitive". I'd love to see how cranky he would be if his ribs had hurt like mine have 24/7 for the past 25 years. I'd love to see it, but not have to deal with it, mind you.
I haven't torn my rotator cuff tendons, which is, I suppose, a good thing. I have pretty much destroyed everything they attach too though. It sounds like there essentially nothing left of the posterior glenoid labrum, and tears in the superior and anterior. The only thing still intact (maybe) is the inferior quarter.
Aren't I special?
So they're calling the insurance, and once they get approval, I'll get a call for scheduling. We're going to have to push this off into very late May or early June, and it's a good thing I hadn't signed up for any summer semester classes yet. This will probably put getting my accounting BS/BA off by a semester, though I may be able to catch up later, but we need to fix this, and it's only going to get worse, so...
I need to fill out the paperwork to see if the state will label me "disabled", at least for the short term, because there is no way I'm going to be able to start a job if I'm going to be out for six to eight weeks right after starting.
But hopefully, I'll stop needing to muffle my screams in public when I move the wrong way and less pain is always good. It was a little disconcerting to have the surgeon start out by saying that they'd be planning on arthroscopic, but might have to switch to open. That's always a given, but usually not so large a chance that they say it up front like that.
So off to do some accounting homework. I've got three of my tests back, with a 94, an 88, and a 93, though I'm contesting one of the missed questions on that last one. It was on quickbooks, and supposedly the correct answer for how to export a report to excel was to open the report window and then hit the "Export" Button. The problem is, that there is no "Export" button; there is an "Excel" button with a drop down menu, and neither of those if "Export" either. I'd answered to go into the report and hit the "Excel" button. So I've asked him to look at it. I wonder if the test question which is from a test bank, is based on an earlier version of QuickBooks, and hasn't been updated?
I haven't torn my rotator cuff tendons, which is, I suppose, a good thing. I have pretty much destroyed everything they attach too though. It sounds like there essentially nothing left of the posterior glenoid labrum, and tears in the superior and anterior. The only thing still intact (maybe) is the inferior quarter.
Aren't I special?
So they're calling the insurance, and once they get approval, I'll get a call for scheduling. We're going to have to push this off into very late May or early June, and it's a good thing I hadn't signed up for any summer semester classes yet. This will probably put getting my accounting BS/BA off by a semester, though I may be able to catch up later, but we need to fix this, and it's only going to get worse, so...
I need to fill out the paperwork to see if the state will label me "disabled", at least for the short term, because there is no way I'm going to be able to start a job if I'm going to be out for six to eight weeks right after starting.
But hopefully, I'll stop needing to muffle my screams in public when I move the wrong way and less pain is always good. It was a little disconcerting to have the surgeon start out by saying that they'd be planning on arthroscopic, but might have to switch to open. That's always a given, but usually not so large a chance that they say it up front like that.
So off to do some accounting homework. I've got three of my tests back, with a 94, an 88, and a 93, though I'm contesting one of the missed questions on that last one. It was on quickbooks, and supposedly the correct answer for how to export a report to excel was to open the report window and then hit the "Export" Button. The problem is, that there is no "Export" button; there is an "Excel" button with a drop down menu, and neither of those if "Export" either. I'd answered to go into the report and hit the "Excel" button. So I've asked him to look at it. I wonder if the test question which is from a test bank, is based on an earlier version of QuickBooks, and hasn't been updated?
Monday, April 20, 2015
A sigh of relief
I finished the exam week from heck tonight. Five exams, each worth at least 20% of the grade for their respective courses in six days. I did the last two online this afternoon (or technically I guess yesterday afternoon?). I've got feed back on one already, and only an 88, but that leaves me running a 97, so I shouldn't freak too badly. And it's in Principles of Finance, which isn't my best course anyway.
I spent the rest of the evening doing logic puzzles and watching episodes of Grimm, Agents of SHEILD, and Fringe.
And I got one of the Sasquan "scholarships" that Mary Robinette Kowal organized. I'm really looking forward to receiving the voter packet. I suspect there will be some difficult choices. I haven't read any of the nominated works this year, so if nothing else I'll be busy.
I spent the rest of the evening doing logic puzzles and watching episodes of Grimm, Agents of SHEILD, and Fringe.
And I got one of the Sasquan "scholarships" that Mary Robinette Kowal organized. I'm really looking forward to receiving the voter packet. I suspect there will be some difficult choices. I haven't read any of the nominated works this year, so if nothing else I'll be busy.
Sunday, April 12, 2015
Spring! (maybe)
Just so this blog doesn't look like I died...
We seem to have finally had spring arrive in our neck of the woods. The rest of the country may have had the warmer winter than usual to make the AGW folks happy, but we missed it and saw more snow this year and last than most of the previous decade put together. We had frost the day after Spring was official. But our daffadils are finally starting to poke their heads up though no blooms yet. It's time to shift the bunny hutch so we can dig out the rest of the winter's fertilizer production, and add some more blocks underneath to raise it a bit further. They will probably complain bitterly because it will make it harder for them to interact with the local wildlife. But for today at least they are happy lying flat like little fur rugs soaking up the sun.
I'm procrastinating, having five exams in five classes this week. I swear that university and college types get together and decide to put all their exams the same week every time. I'm hoping to get my summer and fall registration done tomorrow or the next day, though this summer will be online and the two courses will be at two different institutions from my home college, though at least part of the same system. I think the state would save a lot of money if they'd make the community colleges one big instutition with 12 campuses rather than 12 separate colleges. The registration system is already integrated; you can check for courses on all 12 sites at once. The state university system isn't as integrated, but at least there are only 4 of them. I'll have to take one course there, at more per credit than the community college charges for the whole course. But at least I don't have to take any from the flagship university, which costs nearly twice the state university charges. I'm so glad my youngest was accepted into the local middle college program and will graduate from high school with a college transcript and 20 or more credits.
I won't go on about the shoulder issue right now except to say that my current ortho is talking surgery. I demanded another MRI to assess the changes from last fall before the current problems; I don't want anyone going in essentially on spec, especially when it will probably leave me functionally one armed for two months or more. I'm also looking for a second opinion, preferable from someone who specializes in shoulders.
So now I'll try to get back onto the review work, and some more pain meds. I suppose I should be happy so much I have to do right now is not on the computer, making this sort of procrastination harder. 8)
We seem to have finally had spring arrive in our neck of the woods. The rest of the country may have had the warmer winter than usual to make the AGW folks happy, but we missed it and saw more snow this year and last than most of the previous decade put together. We had frost the day after Spring was official. But our daffadils are finally starting to poke their heads up though no blooms yet. It's time to shift the bunny hutch so we can dig out the rest of the winter's fertilizer production, and add some more blocks underneath to raise it a bit further. They will probably complain bitterly because it will make it harder for them to interact with the local wildlife. But for today at least they are happy lying flat like little fur rugs soaking up the sun.
I'm procrastinating, having five exams in five classes this week. I swear that university and college types get together and decide to put all their exams the same week every time. I'm hoping to get my summer and fall registration done tomorrow or the next day, though this summer will be online and the two courses will be at two different institutions from my home college, though at least part of the same system. I think the state would save a lot of money if they'd make the community colleges one big instutition with 12 campuses rather than 12 separate colleges. The registration system is already integrated; you can check for courses on all 12 sites at once. The state university system isn't as integrated, but at least there are only 4 of them. I'll have to take one course there, at more per credit than the community college charges for the whole course. But at least I don't have to take any from the flagship university, which costs nearly twice the state university charges. I'm so glad my youngest was accepted into the local middle college program and will graduate from high school with a college transcript and 20 or more credits.
I won't go on about the shoulder issue right now except to say that my current ortho is talking surgery. I demanded another MRI to assess the changes from last fall before the current problems; I don't want anyone going in essentially on spec, especially when it will probably leave me functionally one armed for two months or more. I'm also looking for a second opinion, preferable from someone who specializes in shoulders.
So now I'll try to get back onto the review work, and some more pain meds. I suppose I should be happy so much I have to do right now is not on the computer, making this sort of procrastination harder. 8)
Thursday, February 05, 2015
Do you REALLY work in a library, Dim Girl? Because you just are NOT very bright!
Bill Schmalfeldt (@PatOmbudsman) May 4, 2014
That from a man who couldn't figure out until the defendants pointed it out to him that it was going to cost him thousands to sue ten of us for "intentional infliction of emotional distress", because we had the nerve to fight back when he defamed us, stole our copyrighted materials and published them in "books" for profit, wrote about us and used photos of us in said books without permission, (violating both privacy and publicity rights), etc., etc., etc.
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