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| Wednesday, April 30th, 2008 | | 2:57 pm |
Bleagh and Sunny B
Sick at home again, but getting over it. After successfully parenting several virutal pets and fish (one Betta lived for over a year and a half, even surviving a week without power), Guido has advanced to the Hamster stage. First, she had to earn it by keeping her room OCD-clean for an entire month (she caught a bit of a break, as we were all out-of-state for a week). Then she had to pay for it from the 10%/week she saves from her allowance, plus some birthday-card money from grandparents. She picked a cute little 'Black Bear' hamster and named it 'Sunny B' after Sunny Baudelaire (the baby in 'Series of Unfortunate Events'. Sunny lives in a CritterTrail Dazzle cage, which has a large enclosed wheel on top of the cage. The little rodent is adorable and has a wonderful disposition, but one habit that rather annoys everyone in the house (except me, of course). She pushes large food pellets up to the big wheel, so they constantly rattle after her as she's running on the wheel. All night. | | Friday, April 25th, 2008 | | 9:08 am |
Almost a break
My manager insisted I take a couple days 'comp time', so I'm taking a 4-day do-nothing weekend. Only problem is, I've been working too much lately, and now I'm sick :P We're doing a 'team lunch' today for a team member that's leaving. After talking the team into going to Kohana's - I'm too sick to join them. I'm definitely going to finish Buffy season 6 so I can get it to Silly. Sleep more. Lot's more. After going a zillion miles an hour at work for the last two weeks, I'm having trouble disengaging. My brain is all wrapped up in how the heck are we going to handle the load when we're losing another engineer. We've got one new-hire, and he's just going to be amazed at how fast I ramp him up to a full case load. Arg, stop thining about work.. Oh, maybe I can get something done on the current (24,000 piece) puzzle this weekend. It's starting out waaaay slower than I thought it would - help Pete! | | Thursday, April 17th, 2008 | | 10:05 pm |
Tragedy!!
Kohana's Mongolian Grill in Bellevue is closing!! Woe is me! This is one of my favorite places to eat. It's the only decent Mongolian-style restaurant in the area. :( They plan to close their doors at the end of August (so eat there lots until then). Their landlord is raising the rent, and has already found another tenant willing to pay the higher price. | | Thursday, December 20th, 2007 | | 2:25 am |
Be-puzzled
For the first time, I actually asked my friends and famiily to leave jigsaw puzzles off my Christmas list this year. I'm somewhat backlogged. I did finish my first 18,000 piece puzzle. It took a little over a year, spread out over a year and 3/4 (I took a few long breaks in the middle). Now I'm trying to figure out how and where to store a 9'x6.5' puzzle, so I can start on the next. Still to do: 9,000 pieces of the Tower of Babel 18,000 pieces of old-world maps ~5000 piece jumble of an unknown number of similar puzzles A smaller jumble of an unknown number of similar puzzles A mix of 4 Thomaz Kinkaid puzzles, but I've misplaced the pieces (just have the edges) A book of puzzles When I am ready for a new puzzle, I have my eye on that new amazing 24,000 piece puzzle with sailboats and sealife. [Update] Here is a link to Life, The Greatest Puzzle. OMG! One customer finished in 400 person-hours over 34 days. NO WAY! That's insane. | | Wednesday, December 19th, 2007 | | 9:45 pm |
Wet Spot Rules
I have the coolest kid :D Apparently this happened awhile ago, but I just heard about it tonight at AT's and my 23rd wedding anniversary dinner (2 days late). Guido (age 9) was riding in the car with AT, and asks her "Mom, what should I do when I'm playing with my friend, and one of their friends that I don't like comes up and starts playing with them?" Falling back on what she teaches a couple times a month, AT starts explaining about Boundaries. She tells Guido that you need to be really polite, but it's up to you to remove yourself from the situation if you don't like what's going on. Take your toys with you if you can, but if they won't give them back, just be polite and say they can give them back later. A couple of weeks later, AT gets called in to have a talk with the Principal of Guido's elementary school. That's still scary, no matter what age you are. AT goes in, thinking "oh no, what did Guido do now?". The Principal tells her "Guido has started a rally. The playground teachers are getting bored". Apparently the kids on the playground are all starting to be polite. Instead of fighting and arguing over who can be friends with whom, they just politely walk away from situations they don't like. You GO, Guido! | | Tuesday, July 10th, 2007 | | 12:49 pm |
Heat wave
"No pleasure, no rapture, no exaquisite sin greater than central air" Azreal - Dogma So... come visit :D Got the central air and the big screen HDTV. Anyone up for a Movie Night? | | Sunday, July 8th, 2007 | | 1:43 pm |
Now, in HDTV
I really should get around to scheduling a Movie Night... I was recently gifted with a new 65" Mitubishi HDTV (WD-65732 rear projection with DLP). The giver was thoughtful enough to make sure it fits snugly into my custom-built entertainment center. Of course, I had to upgrade my DVD/VCR unit (Toshiba D-VR600KU) and buy lots of expensive cables to get the best picture and sound (Dolby Digital 5.1 via H/K AVR630). At least I didn't have to pay to exchange my Comcast box for one with HDMI output. Worst thing about it: I may have to return the TV. It doesn't decode captions for HDMI inputs. That's an unforgivable sin. Apparently Mitsubishi feels deaf and hard of hearing people don't need the best picture quality :(. Best thing about it: The Myth becomes Reality! ONE REMOTE to RULE it ALL | | Saturday, March 24th, 2007 | | 3:55 am |
| | 3:18 am |
Medical/School update for Guido
(email to our sleep doctor) Guido received her report card the other day, and we had a meeting with her teacher, Mr. U. He was very enthusiastic about Guido's recent progress! She's shown improvement in every area (with one exception, related to an unproductive group she was sitting with). She showed considerable improvement in "Accepts suggestions and opportunities for improvement". I think Mr. U's most telling comment was "Where before she would be completely unaware of what the class is working on, now she is aware of her surroundings and willing to participate. She will realize the other students have a particular book out, and ask what page she should be on." Mr. U is very optimistic about the direction of Guido's progress. Guido is also working one-on-one with an IEP specialist (Occupational Therapy or Special Education - I don't remember what IEP stands for) to help with her writing and math, where she's particularly below standards. The IEP report also has page after page stating that she's making good progress in every area, and "demonstrating increased fine motor control and attention to task". Before, Guido would often try to 'jump' to the answer before carefully assessing the problem. Now "she is paying attention to the symbols before solving the problem." There were many other positive comments throughout the report. One concern I have is that Guido often appears groggy in the morning still, even though she is clearly sleeping a good number of hours, and continues to have dark circles under her eyes. I'm wondering if her PLMD is affecting the quality of her sleep. Guido mentioned a week or so ago that Mr. U had taken her aside after lunch and complimented her on how well she's doing in class. I later suggested to AT that we may be seeing some benefit from the medication. Guido overheard this, and indignantly asserted "It's NOT the medication. I've been working HARD!" | | Friday, March 2nd, 2007 | | 2:05 pm |
| | Saturday, February 17th, 2007 | | 11:01 am |
Medical Update
I've been gradually increasing my Xyrem (GHB - for Narcolepsy) dosage per doctor's orders, and I think we're finally approaching my optimum dosage :D I'm awake this morning. Fully awake and alert, without even taking any amphetamines. I feel 'normal' in a way that makes me realize I haven't felt this way in a *very* long time. Wheeee. There's a whole world around me - coool. Current Music: Suzanne Vega - "Tired of Sleeping" | | 10:43 am |
Update: end in sight
Yesterday, there was quite a bit of scrambling around done in attempts to get my car on the road. I called my Toyota dealership and talked to a parts manager, who did some digging around and found that the part I need is available at their portland warehouse. It later turned out he had identified the part incorrectly. I also talked to the insurance adjuster supervisor in the area that has been working with the body shop. He also did some digging, as did the body shop production supervisor. It turns out the part I need is about a $5 part, but it is part of a $2500 assembly. Ultimately, the shop was able to manufacture (jury-rig) a replacement for the part (the wiring that connects the coolant tank temperature sensor for the electric motor to the dash assembly). I got a call last night around 8pm (while I was at the theater watching Ghost Rider), and the message said everything seems to be working well. The car just needs to go to the dealership now to get the check engine light cancelled and codes reset. I may actually have my car back next week! | | Thursday, February 15th, 2007 | | 9:41 pm |
Suckage, big time
I still don't have my Prius back :( It has been taken apart, reconstructed, put back together, bent back into shape, and repainted. The only thing left to do is replace one small broken electronic part - the inverter cooler sender unit. Apparently driving without this is possible, but an exceedingly bad idea. The unit was ordered nearly 2 months ago, when they started taking the car apart. It's on Universal Galactic backorder from Toyota, with no indication of when or if it will become available. Apparently, these vehicles are selling so well that the assembly line consumes the entire production of this part, and it's not profitable to take it off the line for a used car. Grrr.. The shop contacted quite a number of wrecking yards at my suggestion, but no-one was willing to tear down a wiring harness (is that the word?) to extract this one part. I'm dumbfounded that the car is as good as totalled for the lack of a part that likely only costs $100 or so. Meanwhile, the rental car that I've had over 2 months is coming out of my pocket. Today I announced to the family that we have to figure out how to get by with one less vehicle, because I can't justify continuing to rent a car at nearly $1k/mo when there is no end in sight. I love(d) that car, but I'm seriously considering trading the damn thing in if and when I get it back. All this from a bump we barely felt. | | Thursday, February 8th, 2007 | | 8:23 pm |
Lost and Found
Here's a bit of family trivia that I lost for many years, but was able to recover tonight: My surname at birth was 'Shoman' (it's changed a few times since then). This was an americanization of my paternal grandfather's name (this is the part I wasn't able to remember): Roman Chuymenchik My paternal grandparents emigrated from Russia. My grandfather was originally from Moscow, and my grandmother from the Ukraine. The name I go by is nothing like this, due to our convulted family history, but I guess technically, I'm a Chuymenchik. | | Monday, January 29th, 2007 | | 8:04 am |
Sleep-somewhat in Seattle
Last night was typical for my nights lately. I woke from my first dose an hour before the 2am alarm for the second dose. I probably should have checked to see if Guido was also awake, but instead I killed an hour by having a snack and working on the puzzle. I've got a good start on the final quarter of the 18,000 piece puzzle. At the scheduled time, I give Guido her second dose, take mine and put my CPAP on and lay down. Wide awake 10 minutes later, I take off the CPAP and read for a bit, until I start to doze off - YAY finally. I put the CPAP back on, turn off the light and lay there... I pass the time by repeating my lucid dreaming 'I will know I'm dreaming' mantra. I know it won't work because the medication has blocked my narcoleptic tendency to dream lucidly (dammit). However, I have a theory that maybe it hasn't blocked it completely. Maybe I just need to work harder at it, like 'normal' people. Nothing much happens and my mind begins to wander a little. Suddenly I realize I'm still laying there not sleeping. Now I'm pissed. This damn unpredictable medication has done it to me again and I'm not getting any sleep. Then it occurs to me to check the time. It's 1/2 hour before the alarm and I've slept 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Time to work out. I realize that technically I'm getting better sleep than I've ever gotten in my life (literally), but man this is weird! | | 7:10 am |
Perscription drugs
It's an interesting ride Guido and I have embarked on... I followed the link left by ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) derekja, and learned a bit more about how it works. It turns out that it's not that my body won't let me get more than 6 hours of sleep (3 at a time), it's the GHB that's waking us up. I'm going to need to keep Guido up later, and have her go to bed when I do, so she's not up hours before everyone else (like now). The Erowid link also cited some pretty decent refs for the pro-sexual and body-building properties of GHB as well. Many of the recreational uses of GHB will not be available to me, since I'm only using it to sleep at night, but (based on this reading) I suspect it may have helped me lose weight last week even though I missed a workout and didn't follow my eating plan very closely sometimes. Heck, if I gotta put up with the stuff, I might as well get some bennies :) OTOH, I'm wondering about the wisdom of giving a growth enhancer to a kid that's already a head taller than the rest of her class... | | Sunday, January 28th, 2007 | | 1:39 pm |
Running with sissors
Yesterday morning, I did some online research (what an oxymoron) to learn more about the Xyrem/GHB that Guido and I are taking for Narcolepsy. That was quite a sobering experience. The stuff can be highly addicting, and has severe withdrawal symptoms. It can be quite dangerous and unpredictable. Symptoms can develop in seconds or minutes. An overdose is a 911 call. I'm very motivated now to lock up my supply and follow the doctor's perscription with excruciating care. Reportedly, the drug is not addictive and does not have significant withdrawal symptoms at the theraputic levels used to treat Narcolepsy (so, let's keep it there). ( Read more... ) | | 1:39 pm |
Weight report
I slacked off on exercising and tracking my meals during the holiday/power-outage/storm/accident season. I though I was eating reasonably, but I guess that comes with having an eating disorder. I was appalled a couple of weeks ago when I finally got back on the scale, and found I'd gained back 30lbs since the end of Phase I on my 20/20 program (almost half the weight I lost). Obviously I needed to pay more attention during the maintenance phase. I guess on the good side my new 'appalling' weight is the lowest I attained when I did the Body for Life program. I started working out regularly and watching my food again. I've lost 5 lbs/week the last two weeks - now at 205 lbs. I'm still sucking at tracking meals, but I keep restarting and trying again. I'm diverging from the 20/20 program by declaring Sunday my 'semi-free' day. I'm not going to pig out that day like I did on BfL, but I am going to relax the regiment a bit. Once I get my weight back down, I need to get on the scale at least once a week, so I don't bounce around so much. I might need some kicking in the ass to remember that. | | 8:44 am |
Which is better?
I'm interested in your opinions and experiences. Not so much advice, but if you feel you must, go ahead ;) I was cited for a moving violation (failure to yield) related to an accident I was in on 12/1/06. My Prius is still being put back together, but no-one was hurt. I requested a mitigation hearing, and got my court date in the mail. Included with the notice was something I'd never seen before: Mitigation Hearing by Mail ( Read more... ) | | Monday, December 25th, 2006 | | 12:29 am |
Guido decided to make her own Christmas stocking from one of the spares we have. She took a purple and a yellow fabric pen, and wrote "Dear Santa, I've bin good. (her name)". ROFLMAO!! |
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