Mishaps and other haps

I finally made it back to work today, after being sick for several days. The worst physical symptom I experienced over the extended weekend was extreme FATIGUE, which makes me think it could have been flu, rather than a cold. There was also sniffling, sneezing, some coughing, general stuffiness, fever, etc.

I am not entirely over it, but I have been eating a little more the past day or two and some of the food I have been eating has been solid, so that’s a good sign.

But I have been totally out of it for a few days now, so I apologize for not being more with it. I have been exhausted, emotional, feverish, sluggish, and yes, many variations on those four basic conditions.

That being said, this morning, I almost posted about how my life was at a crossroads (or *the* Crossroads, as I tried to twist it into a WoW metaphor).

However, after eating lunch I feel better about the state of things. Nothing in life is ever perfect or certain. Or that’s what I have been told and am now generally favoring as the ruling Theory of Life. While various relationships, career, other things are not necessarily exactly where I want them to be, the details are manageable and things are generally OK and positive. I guess that is as much as you can hope for most days. It just takes a lot of energy to keep moving and I don’t always have that kind of energy.

But I do have people who will look after me if I start to lag. That is more than I can say for the networks Signy has been connecting to upstairs, though, so she has been visiting downstairs for a few days now. Smoother ride, easier connection. This may limit my non-WoW computer usage time somewhat, but I think that’s OK. There’s something to be said for disconnecting yourself once in a while and focusing on other business that needs to be taken care of.

I seem to have come down with the respiratory thing that’s going around, as opposed to the stomach thing that’s going around. I am glad it is not the stomach thing because that sounds like the kind of thing that would pretty much keep me in bed for a couple of days.

However, the respiratory things generally take longer to recover from, so I am not sure how I am feeling about that. I had bronchitis chronically in the Fall and Spring as a kid. I would only miss a couple of days of school here and there, but it tended to stay around a lot longer– would take weeks or even a month or more to feel completely over it, with multiple doctor visits sometimes.

I don’t really have bronchitis anymore (or rarely), but the seasonal cold/flu sometimes takes a week or longer to get over. Last night I had waves of feeling cold/hot and I felt completely wiped. I am going to try to be social this weekend, but I may bow out if I start feeling tired/feverish.

I will admit it. The thing that freaks me out about mushrooms is the darker colored bottom bit when they are sliced up. They look like they have little millipede feet! I think I am eating BUGZ!!! Also, that foamy, almost non-existant rubbery texture … meh. But put em on a pizza or in a stew and I am mostly OK with them.

Gruntac was calling people last night, so I got to talk to him for a few minutes. Sounded like his usual Gruntac-y self! Thanks for calling, Gruntac!

Tomorrow is onlyunjeu’s birthday, so Happy Birthday! I am sure that he will run out at 6 AM to buy 100 packs of cigarettes and a dozen cigars to smoke all at once, just because he can. OK, so I lie. I think he has better uses for his money. But his days of being charged as a minor are definitely coming to an end … I hope that doesn’t cramp his style too much … What else does he get …. OH YES, VOTING!!! Well that’s something, anyway!

1) I think this is my favorite nutrition-related blog right now. The articles are timely, well-informed, and supported by tons of scientific data.

2) Did anyone read Susan Lampert Smith’s article about PETA’s KFC stunt? She attacks the bikini-clad women involved, then she attacks PETA, then she makes fun of the opinionated women with farm backgrounds in her journalism class. Huh. Not impressed or swayed by her piece. Mostly just irritated at her pompousness.

3) What is up with Old Chicago’s salad menu. Seriously? EVERY main-course salad selection is a chicken salad. I guess chicken is the new popular health food? Sure, I’d like to see more veggie salads (I can ask for a salad without chicken, but please! Show some creativity!), but what about a salad with steak strips or a chef’s salad?

4) Wow, the Madison area school districts are getting all worked up over the junk-food-sold-in-schools debate. It is really interesting that the students, parents, and officials defending junk food sales in the schools cite the revenue it brings into the school. So they couldn’t sell more nutritious alternatives and still make money for schools?

Those who oppose the ban also point out that high schoolers are old enough to make their own food choices. This is true in many or most cases, but even as an adult I know that I am more inclined to eat junk when it is around and readily available. I don’t think I am the only one. Evidence: my workplace and the large number of overweight people employed therein. Any connection between environmental influences and the health issue? Maybe.

If readily-available junk food exacerbates problems for students who are overweight, why promote/sell it at school? The suggested ban is on items SOLD AT schools, not items brought from home– so it won’t affect what kids choose to bring in for consumption and it hasn’t been aimed to curb occasional bake sales and the like. Those sort of claims have apparently been made without consideration of what is actually being proposed: mostly elimination of the soda and candy machines.

The way I see it, the point is this: nutrition/health is supposed to be included and taught in the curriculum, especially for elementary school kids. This is part of science education, usually. Food sold at school should reflect the best nutritional standards as part of a standard public school education.

I think a lot of schools have retired the old-fashioned Home Economics classes where high school kids actually learned to cook. I went to a high school that had “required” electives and a minimal amount of painful, tortuous cooking happened as a part of electives. I can’t say I learned much from it since I hated those classes and I was a Freshman at the time. However, it makes me think that years ago, nutrition WAS part of high school education and less junk food was sold at schools … and kids were thinner back then.

Somehow, the schools managed to have enough money, too …

I missed our guild meeting last night since my network connection died for the second time and I couldn’t manage to reconnect. I wonder if the interference may actually be the number of wireless signals bouncing around in our building. I can usually detect about six networks from my computer.

Anyway, after a bit, I gave up and went to bed and got more sleep than usual, which is good because my body has been signaling that it is tired the past couple of days and despite wanting to miss work, I don’t think I REALLY want whatever my roommate has because she has been congested and coughing at night and her voice has been croaky

I wanted to share the most recent Alien Loves Predator (#175), which features Hillary Clinton. I skip reading this comic for weeks and then I go back and read it and remember why I love it.

People have been talking about the possibility of Condoleezza Rice and Hillary Clinton running against each other for president in 2008. As UNLIKELY as I think it would be for two women to be chosen at the same time to represent each of the two major political parties as their presidential candidate for the first time ever … it kind of makes sense. In fact, it makes more sense for the parties to do this than to put up other candidates against Rice or Clinton.

So that’s what my semi-awake brain has been pouring over this morning. Have a good day!

I spent pretty much the entire day with my boy. It was his birthday. It was a good day.

The following things happened:

– church
– a wedding
– brunch at The Edgewater to celebrate engagement/wedding/birthday/acceptance
– cigars, toys, and birthday cupcakes
– exploring Sunken Temple (most of which I watched– I have been there before)
– birthday dinner with people at Old Chicago

Read this blurb in someone’s profile this morning. Doesn’t this just sum up the whole “just graduated from college and entering the workforce” phase for most people?

“Work without passion for ideas and intellectual challenge is highly uninspiring, and sooner or later I’ll settle on a graduate program, after entertaining many ideas of future life and career options … Academia calls, but I resist. Who knows where I’ll end up, but I’m having one hell of a time.”

I guess I shouldn’t poke fun, but this is such a universal theme … reflects how the education level of the workforce and opportunities for employment don’t match up too well right now.

Or maybe people are raised with career expectations that are too high? We are told we can be/do anything and it’s NOT “inspiring” when you look at the job market. I mean, if you don’t save the world and aren’t intellectually and spiritually stimulated by every moment of the day, you’re doing something wrong, right? But millions of people are needed to fill those office grunt jobs … so how do we ensure that every person realizes their right to an inspiring and fulfilling career?

I mean it IS our “right”, right? That’s what our parents taught us when we were growing up … and it was kind of expected of us and we kind of expected it of ourselves …

I am up kind of early for a Sunday. Looks like it will be a beautiful, sunny day here.

Happy Birthday, PhysOrg!

Friday night we watched Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and Mirrormask over at Inle and Mlitiagrl’s place. Artie and Guffey drove down from Oshkosh and a friend from Mlitiagrl’s lab also came over and hung out with us. Pizza was ordered and cheesecakes from LMNOPies were consumed.

Indeed, it is a dangerous habit to start ordering pies and cakes regularly from a bakery.

Potentially deadly if you live in Harry Potter’s world.

But enough about that.

I intended to join the Saturday morning raid group in WoW, but it didn’t happen. Laundry needed to be done, online news/posts were read, and I missed the guild activity.

We gamed Saturday afternoon, but quit earlier than usual. This left much of the evening open. PhysOrg and Inle decided to go pick up a copy of a game that was played at my roommate’s birthday party back in August: Arkham Horror. Mlitiagrl and I had not played the game at the party. We are both kind of specific about the kind of board/card games we like and we have to be in the mood for playing them.

For me, I’d rather play something cooperative and fairly simple. Arkham Horror has about fifty piles of cards and three or four phases of play each turn, so it’s not all that simple. However, it is a cooperative game rather than a competitive one and that’s rare for board games. It helped that PhysOrg and Inle already knew the rules because I am also not inclined to sit down and read through the set of rules for a game. (Just ask me how long it took me to get a handle on D&D rules … no, don’t)

I don’t know how Mlitiagrl felt about it, but I enjoyed it. We didn’t actually finish the game we were playing because it takes a while to finish a game and people were tired by 11:30 or so, but we left the board set up for the time being and I wouldn’t mind going back to it.

Inle and Mlitiagrl cooked a delicious tortellini/kale/garlic cheese sauce dish for us (plus meat for the three meat eaters).

A couple of visitors dropped by for a bit with an Important Life Announcement early in the evening, also. That was exciting!

BTW, defaultlisa’s old persona, the Keeper of Tea, has been revived this week with the order of one metric fuckton of tea and fruit/herb concoctions.

It is almost bedtime and I am drinking Rooibos Savannah, which is tea-like, but caffeine free! Well, there might be a little bit of caffeine because of the chocolate flavor. I had forgotten what the description said, but I was drinking it and thought “This kinda tastes like rum a little.”

My people have run off to see V for Vendetta tonight without me. I’m the only one who has to be at work early tomorrow. This is OK. I am good with getting some sleep tonight since we are having friends over and watching DVDs tomorrow night.