July first week photos

Photo-a-day challenge for July hosted by Fat Mum Slim.

Here are pictures from the first week+ of July.

I apologize in advance for failing on some days.

1. Self portrait - I like this image because I've always wanted to be taller.  I know 5'8" is tall for a woman, but if I could just be 5'10" I would be so happy.  I've seen documentaries where people have had their legs broken and rods put in the bones to stretch them.  The people were all really short and ended up growing 1-4 inches.  I'm not willing to go that far.  Perhaps I would have been taller if I had consumed milk in my younger years - I have always despised milk.  I guess even from a young age, I knew that we would not have a good relationship.

2. Busy - Here is (part of) the to-do list I put together for the next day.  I ended up not getting most of it finished on the 3rd - a lot of the items carried over until Friday.

3. Best part of your day - I love the peace I have when I do yoga in the mornings.  I also love that I feel like I am becoming more flexible and developing better posture in the year plus since I have been doing it regularly.  It is also easing my chronic back pain issues - when I do the yoga consistently and fully, I save money by not having to go to the chiropractic doctor.  It is nice to sit and just breathe and (try to) not think about anything.

4. Fun - I forgot to take a picture this day.  There were some cute kids doing fireworks outside for the first time (they were 2-3 years old).  It was fun to watch them.  We could see the downtown fireworks if we stood on the sidewalk, that was cool.  But I missed it all with the camera.

5. On the floor - I love my bathroom floor mats.  They are some kind of wood.  I can clean them easily and that they don't get germy and dingy and gross like a lot of cloth bath rugs.

6. Chair - On my run through a local college campus, I noticed that they have a bunch of statues on various benches throughout the campus.  Kind of neat, though each time I pass one, I do a double take because I always think it is a real person.  I really like this one since it shows a person reading to a child - reading is fundamental, right?

7. Garden - After photographing the benches, the next day, I noticed the landscaping of the campus.  I think that they literally do work on it everyday.  I have seen some kind of tractor on the baseball field every single day - I don't know what it is doing, but it is always there.  They also have some nice flowers at all of their entrances.

8. Lunch - I didn't even eat lunch this day.  Had a dinner at the Kobe Steakhouse which was fabulous, though.

9. Big - This guy was riding this huge bicycle on the road this night.  I had to pull over to a side, perpendicular street so I could get a good pic.  I thought it was pretty cool.  Not sure how easily he gets on or off, and it seemed a bit laborious going up some hills, but it still looked kind of fun and really impressive.

10. Your favourite colour - I'm really digging the neon green and gray combination on my new shoes!  The colours don't seem to pop as much in the photo as they do in real life, but it is a great combination of really bright neon green and charcoal gray.

The things I do for hair

Long day.

I went to get my hair done.  She said to be there at 7am.  I rang the bell at 7:03.  We started at 7:15.

Finished the last twist at 9:10pm.

The hairdresser said that I have more hair and thicker hair than anyone she has ever seen.

I am not exaggerating with the time.  She did take a few short breaks to deal with her two-year old twin girls.  But it lasted that long.

Proof:  I watched six and a half movies.
The Wood
The Bachelorette
Brown Sugar
Mr. and Mrs. Smith
The Karate Kid (new one with the Smith kid)
G.I.Joe
the first half of A-Team

I'm too tired to do anything besides take the shower that I needed after sitting and having sticky toddlers crawl on me intermittently throughout the day.  I don't even want to eat - just figure out how to wrap my hair around my head so I can sleep adequately.

It will take a few days to get used to the extensions (I'm going from 2 1/2" hair to twists that now go down to my mid-back.

June fifth photos

Final part of my June photos for Fat Mum Slim's Photo-A-Day Challenge

28. On the shelf - The shelf here is my balcony.  On this night, I heard a large truck slowly trod ding down the street and decided to look out the window and see what was going on.  Turned out it was a fire truck and one of the fire fighters was removing the hose and taking it to the back of my apartment.  I go to the balcony to get a better view and it turns out someone has set the dumpster on fire.  The top photo is of two fire fighters trying to douse the flame with the hose.  It took them about 8 minutes to finish putting out the fire.  I assume it was some hot coals or some type of cigarette butt or something.  Or maybe just the incessant heat that we have been having in St. Louis.

29. Soft - I am getting soft in my older age.  I have been having injuries like my back, my neck, my knees have started to ache... the list seems to go on.  Newest pain is in my elbow.  I know this photo is similar to one from last week's photos, but it is really irking me that I am getting so soft.  Now, not only am I dealing with this pain, I also am having to deal with the tape the doctor uses on me tearing off my skin when I remove the tape.  Perhaps you can see the peeling skin above and below the brace in the above photo.  After taking the tape off, the arm not only hurt from regular pains that I have almost become accustomed to, but also from the deep tissue stimulation the doctor says will dislodge any scar tissue, and from the tenderness from the layers of skin being missing from my arm.  I used to be able to tolerate more pain.  I used to believe that my possession of ovaries made me a stronger person - after all, we have babies and periods and cramps.  Perhaps, my ovaries just aren't enough anymore.

30. A friend - For my best bud/boo, I have been making lunch each day (or buying it) and meeting him for 30 minutes of us time.  It is always nice to see each other.  Here was what I used on this day: Ham sandwich with provolone, watermelon, honeydew melon, oatmeal cream pie, and swiss rolls.

You can see the rest of my June photos by clicking these links:  1st week, 2nd week, 3rd week, 4th week.

I have fallen in love with hammocks!

Track season is officially over!

It went out with more of a whimper than a bang, but the State trip was hopefully worthwhile to the athletes I took.  I always take the participants and then pay myself for at least two extra kids to go who look promising for next season.  This way, they are not shocked by the atmosphere and the competition when they get there and compete.

One of the highlights of the trip, aside from some teams' excellent performances, was going to the local mall.  I am not really one to go into sports stores (I love some sports, but would rather look online for anything I want), but with three male coaches there with me, we ended up in a sports store.  Just as the conversation during a couple meals turned to football.  No big, deal, I can hang with guys.  I tried to hula hoop (why am I so unable to do this activity?).  I goofed around in a kayak.  I played with frisbees.  I feigned interest in golf clubs.  I made fun of tall tees.

But the best was yet to come...

Someone please explain to me why it took me three decades to lay in a hammock for the first time!

Even in a sports stores tent sale in the parking lot it was a beautiful feeling to lay on those ropes.

I stayed in it for at least five minutes as the guys continued looking at whatever they were looking at and I loved every minute of it.  I even loved the slight difficulty of trying to get out of the hammock.

After that whimsical experience, we walked more through the mall and came across some masseurs.  Of course I had to continue the tradition of associating track meets with massages, so I was in for a $12, 10 minute massage.  It was bliss!  It was fabulous!  It was much needed!

And it reminded me that I should still have a coupon from the place a few weeks ago that I can use for a discounted, full, 30 minute massage.

Must. Find. Coupon.

Stretching and finishing lists... again

Day two of track practice, day two of finishing off everything on my to-do list.

I am happy that practice is going well so far.  I am happy that I am able to use some of the time I use to demonstrate technique to the students as a way for me to incorporate some cardio into my life.  I am also able to use the cool down portion of practice to stretch more (in addition to the morning (daily) and pre-bed (sometimes) stretching that I do).

I am a little sore in my back, but not quite as sore all over as I have been in past seasons after a few days and I attribute that to my morning stretching routine.

I like looking good, but not the pain associated with it

Back when I was an athlete I would often work out really hard, but not feel the soreness until two or more days later. It was kind of nice -- hard workout, not feel it until you are ready for another hard day of lifting or workout out in other ways.

I am clearly no longer an athlete. I am completely lazy and am more of a couch potato than any type of competitor.

For a few weeks now, I have been putting off raking the leaves in the front and back of the house. Especially since the trees in the church yard next door is not done shedding their leaves. And part of me thought that I would have them come over and rake the leaves since the trees are theirs. But I guess that wouldn't work out too well.

But, I was tired of having to step through a pond of leaves to get to the car, and since no other homes on the street have trees of any substance, my home was looking like it belonged on some show like Hoarders or Clean House. I really was starting to feel embarrassed to park in front and walk inside the lone house with the messed up yard.

So, Sunday I rushed to rake the leaves before it started to rain.

And of course, when I did the raking, I tried to do see just how fast I could do it -- which led me to the way I am feeling today.

Super sore. I feel like I did a bunch of dead lifts -- my left hamstring is ridiculously tight and paining me. My back and shoulders are sore as well.

Part of me enjoys the feeling of being sore; I finally did something to work out my body. But another part of me really wants to not feel this way again. I know that I should be doing something today to counter this tightness and the soreness, but, like I said, I am lazy. Perhaps after I get off and go home I will be more apt to do something. At least stretching. For awhile I was getting good at doing about 45 minutes of stretching most days of the week due to my back issues, but I have gotten off of that plan and need to get back on it today so that I can ease this pain and hopefully keep the pain from coming in the future as well.

I can breathe again

I don't have to have back surgery. That is the thought that keeps going through my head, even as the pain continues. I had truly prepped my self so much for the prospect that it is really a relief that it will not have to happen. I had started to figure out what I would do with the substitute teacher who would take my class, I had figured out who would take care of me, how I would rearrange my finances to pay for whatever the insurance would not cover, etc.

The MRI was an experience. No one, even the nurses, warned me of what it would be like. I was impressed that I would get to listen to music from satellite while in the machine. But then I asked them how long I would be in there since I was being offered music. They said it would be between 30-50 minutes.

I got on the machine and was lifted into the contraption. It was weird, but I don't get claustrophobic, so no biggie. The lady came on and asked if the music was loud enough. I said it was fine. She said we were ready to start.

The percussive sound was crazy-loud. And seemed incessant. I could barely hear the radio in my ear. I lasted for a total of 35 minutes in any where from 2-6.5 minute intervals of loud craziness.

The doctor who looks at the stuff was not there that evening so I had to wait to get the results. No big deal since I already figured that surgery would be the only option. I slept better that night.

I went to the chiropractor again. (A really good one. If you need a guy, I will definitely recommend this one. He taught Pete, who I think is the most knowledgeable in the field of the body movement. And he was recommended by Pete since Pete is moving and didn't want to start treatment on me if he is not going to be able to see it all the way through.) This guy was able to explain the results.

Mild to moderate degenerative facet joint changes with ligamentous hypertrophy throughout the lumbar spine. (not so good news) The lumbar disc are unremarkable. (good news)

Basically I have arthritis in my back. (Yes I am still not yet 30 and have bad arthritis in my back.)

But hearing that the disc are unremarkable meant that there would need to be no surgery.

I basically have the stuff that cushions my spine bones deteriorating. That means that the bones are not able to move as well as they should and that they aren't cushioned as well as they should be. Added to this is the fact that although I look like I workout a lot, I have not done more than 20 days of exercising in the past 4-5+ years. This means that my body has not been very mobile and my spine has been made to be stuck in its position. Due to my job, I also have added stress that tightens my muscles in my upper back and neck, which add to the pain.

I decided three weeks ago that since my birthday was coming up, I would start to workout. I ran, I lifted, I did ab stuff, I did back stuff. All this felt good at the time, but the doctor said that it could have led to what turned out to be the worst pain of my life.

The sudden movement of a basically almost immobile spine was not good. It produced the feelings of someone stabbing me through my insides, the inability to bend to even spit toothpaste adequately into the sink, the inability to sit in a chair, the inability to lay on my side, etc.

To make it better, I will need to start exercising, I will need to make sure that I stretch my back to loosen the spine bones, I will need to get adjusted every so often to make sure the gaps are right in my spine, I will need to not get fat.

So far, the adjusting is working a bit. I can move easier. I have also started doing the exercises the doctor recommended. They help a bit. But my back is so tight that I can't even bring my leg to my chest when laying down without pain. I can't do the cobra stretch on the ground higher than about 10". But I am getting better.

And I don't have to have surgery.

Fear and anxiousness

So apparently I am meant to live in fear of my health.

The aching back -- may not just sore from doing back extensions. It has been really bad for three weeks. I have a really high tolerance for pain, and have been dealing with it daily. Sunday I had the sharpest pain I have ever endured. So bad that I sat down afterward and was literally teary-eyed. Couldn't move well at all. Sucked since I had a lot of work in the house I was planning on doing and needed to go in and get some ink for the printer.

I went to a better doctor this past Monday and he recommended I get an MRI since it may be something wrong with the discs. I go in today.

The doctor said that some girls when they are younger have slight fractures in their spines from doing activities like gymnastics or other exercises where they do a lot of bending and flexing and put pressure on their backs. Didn't do gymnastics, but I did wrestle freshman and sophomore years of high school -- yes I was that kind of girl. And yes I did beat some guys -- made one guy from Clayton cry after defeating him. I wasn't that good, though, definitely did not have a winning record, but I was all right. Also did high jump which is also all about back bending and falling all on the spine.

I couldn't sleep last night with fear of what this could all mean. There is a teacher in my department at work who had back surgery three years ago for a disc out of place. When my back was first hurting he was asking about numbness or tingling in the legs, which is what he felt and what made him go to the neurosurgeon to figure out what was going on with him. I didn't think much of it at the time since I thought my problem was muscular. But nothing has helped that usually helps muscle problems -- heat, massage, Biofreeze, etc. I can't lay down without pressure on my spine, and when I sit in the wrong position it is truly hell on my lower back. Sharp pains. A feeling as though my tail bone is trying to push against everything that should be in my pelvic region.

Now more waiting. But this time, I feel that the results will not be as good as the last time I had to wait for some results.

Why I'm thankful - a day late

I am really thankful for so many things this year. Here's a short list of some of those things.

• Facebook - Without Facebook and other internet sites and gadgets and games, I would not be reconnected with people I hadn't talked to in years. And would not be able to talk with my family and friends overseas as often. I also would have less distractions keeping me from procrastinating from doing work I actually need to do.
• My new job - Not only is the job so much better for my stress level, I also have a much longer commute which allows me more time to listen to NPR Morning Edition, and allows me to spend way more money on gas than even makes sense. This extra spending means less spending on the little things I used to blow my money on.
• Political Conservatives - I cannot even explain how grateful I am for this group of people this year. Without them I would never have had some of the readers on this blog that I have had this past year. Most importantly, without the vast number of conservatives out in this country I would not have been able to have the great feelings of accomplishment, of vindication, of success, of CHANGE that I felt the night of 4 November 2008.

• Back problems - Without this incredible back pain, I may never have really known how many movements the body can do that involve the lower portion of my back. I never would have known that how much the act of laughing works your lower back. I may never have experienced sharp pains going through my body that caused me to flinch and almost scream curse words in the classroom. I may never have felt the great sleep that comes with muscle relaxants.
• Black Friday - I am also happy that I am not going shopping on this Black Friday. I am happy (and you should be, too) that I am not out there today because, despite the bad back the people in the stores would, no doubt, drive me to the point where I would be imagining all sorts of thoughts/actions that would not be conducive to me staying out of jail. I can't stand crowded shops because the people there seem as though they have never been in a store and that they don't understand that they should not block the aisle with their shopping carts full of needless things/their children/their bodies as they look at something on the other side of the aisle. They make me so angry. And then the check out lines take forever because not only are the people running them new, seasonal hires, the customers inevitably put way more in their cart than they can afford. Then they must go through each item that is at the bottom of the cart after being pinged through the cashiers machine or at the bottom of the bags and decide what they can take out. This leads to their kiddos screaming and crying and begging and to me being even more angry, though happy that I don't have children, yet. I will try to avoid the shops as much as possible until after the middle of January. I will celebrate Buy Nothing Day.
  

But for real. I am very blessed to have a lot of things -- family, a great man, friends, and most importantly, life. I am alive. I am witnessing the possibility of great things to happen in this nation. I have a roof over my head that is not leaking. And I am less stressed than I have been in 4 years due to the job change. That, above many of the other things, makes my life so much better because I can enjoy all the other great things in my life that much more.

Age is a pain in my back

So, my next birthday is a month from yesterday. In case I wasn't already starting to feel age creeping up on me, I now have this incredible back problem.

I cannot even fully describe it. I got back from a fabulous dinner with Christine Monday evening, sat on the couch to talk with my man, and had this slight pain in my lower back. Then in the middle of the night I suddenly could not lay in any manner without crazy, pain in my back. Tried putting a pillow under my side, stomach, back, legs -- nothing eased the pain. I woke up and couldn't bend to even spit the toothpaste adequately into the sink. Throughout the day I had a heat pack which helped a bit, but I still had limited mobility.

Yesterday it seemed to be a bit better. Went to a chiropractor in the afternoon. He realigned my legs and back a bit and gave me some BioFreeze. (Excellent stuff. I had had my athletes use this stuff and they all love it, but had never tried it on myself since prior to this, I never really got sick or had injuries like this.) The BioFreeze wore off and I put some more. Could barely sit on the couch without pain. Went to sleep and the only way I could lay was on my back with my legs bent up and my feet flat on the bed. Not super comfy. Throughout the night I would awaken and in my sleepiness would try and turn to my side or my stomach and would regret it intensely.

Today I have to sit a perfectly with perfect posture in order to not feel the wrath of my back. I am going to take my dad up on some muscle relaxant. But I really am fearing that I have some sort of pinched nerve in there. This is crazy pain. I have a pretty high tolerance, and I am not to the point where I would cry from the pain, but pretty soon, I will cry from the annoyance of this pain. And the annoyance of not being able to move well or sleep well.

Killer pain, killer rifts

I have experienced few things worse than the back spasm I am enduring now. From just below my scapula all the way down to the hip bones. Hurts to stay in any position too long. Last night it was so bad that I wished for massive amounts of drugs. Unfortunately at the current time I have no insurance, so the thought of acquiring some (at least legally) had to pass just as the idea of sleep had to be let go. Instead I was awake. I continued reading What is the What? I played around on the internet. I tried to eat. I started to pack for the big move. I watched season three of Weeds. I tried to figure out what color to paint the kitchen of the house. All while taking breaks every 20 minutes or so to try and stretch my back and to lay down. I felt like the guy who was on Clean House's Messiest Home in America 2. Not because I am a slob -- because of the back issues.

Today I have been trying to deal with the pain. Trying to run the errands that need to be run, watch episodes from season four, and catch up on sleep, and move as slowly and as gracefully as possible so as not to agitate this here back.

Wednesday on many radio stations is Way Back Wednesday. Now it seems that some of the songs they consider way back aren't that old -- or maybe I am just getting that old, who knows.

Anyway my way back hit of the day is Prince's "Diamonds and Pearls". I tried to find a video I could embed, but I guess he has blocked the sound from the videos that are on YouTube. You can see it on this person's site, though.

There is just something about him that is so wonderful to me. Even as a small child I was amazed by him. What an amazing artist.

I wouldn't even need him to give me diamonds or pearls. I'm not materialistic. I wouldn't need him to do anything sexual to me. I just want (a little) of his extra time. I just want for him to serenade me with his falsetto, followed by talking to me with that deep voice that doesn't match his body. I want to be able to look at him dance in his cool/interesting wardrobe. I wish for him to play some awesome, awesome guitar rifts for me. I wouldn't even bring up Purple Rain or the assless pants.

I just want to be blessed with his presence.

Just let me look at him for a bit.

I would even move to Minnesota for the chance to hang with him and see him in a studio. I wouldn't even be mad at him for not performing his songs in his old manner at the last concert I saw him at. It doesn't matter that I wanted to see him grind with his guitar. I can't be mad at him for finding religion.

If I can't get Prince, then let me at least get Dave Chappelle and Charlie Murphy doing their impression of him. That was hilarious. Almost as funny as the Rick James bits.

Humor makes the pain fade into the background -- until a huge guffaw is released.

Can someone tell me what happened to Lauryn Hill? I've been bumping some of her old Fugees stuff (and solo stuff) and really wish she was still around.

Just a sampling: