Week in Review – Week Ending May 9

This past week I was back on my usual late shift. It made sleeping easier for me; although of course now I’m back to keeping other people up to all hours when sometimes they have to work in the morning. Oops. The next three weeks will have me working during the day or back on the 2 AM shift, so I guess my friends and lovers can stand one week of late nights this month. B)

Sunday morning Jero and I stayed up near dawn around the bonfire, partially to enjoy the revelry, and partially because we didn’t want to return to our tent and freeze to death like we had the night before. When we did return to our tent we came up with a new sleeping bag arrangement that was much warmer and so we slept better than we had on Saturday.

When Jero and I woke up we had some sandwiches, showered and then broke down the tent. We said our goodbyes and headed to Bloomington for Jero’s derby practice. I got to hang out with Jalyru, which was fun, and afterward Jero and I dragged Jalyru out to dinner. After eating, Jero and I headed back to Jero’s where we unloaded her car and then promptly passed out. It was a good weekend. B)

Monday morning Jero headed to work early and by the time I got up I realized I’d left my keys and wallet in Jero’s glove compartment. *facepalm* Luckily Jero got off work just a couple hours into my shift, so I was able to take a minimum of unpaid personal time and hustle into the office as soon as Jero got home. Unfortunately as soon as I got there I got yelled at since one of the managers is a jerk, but c'est la vie.

After work Monday I went back to Jero’s to eat and pick up my laptop and then went over to Ke to hang out and give her some snuggles. She’s been feeling cranky and since I’d just spent the weekend with Jero she was OK with me canceling our usual Monday plans so I could go cuddle Ke until she felt better. Ke and I talked a bit about what was bothering her and she was decidedly less cranky by the time we slept.

Tuesday morning Ke cooked me breakfast (yummy Canadian bacon, cheese and egg English muffin sandwiches) and then I showered and headed over to Jero’s with lunch. Jero and I got in a little bit of snuggles before I had to head into work. At work I talked to Mars about joining Ke and me for Star Trek this weekend, but since we were going to the 10 PM show near Speedway it was too late for him. B! and he went to an earlier IMAX showing instead, so I’ll have to talk to Mars about it Monday.

Tuesday after work I went to Chpa and Nivagi’s to meet up with Nivagi. We ran by Jimmy Johns to pick up sammiches and then headed back to my apartment to eat. I ran downstairs to pay my rent and hang a derby poster and then came back up with the intention of snuggling Nivagi and watching Dexter. However, the more Nivagi and I cuddled and talked, the less we wanted to watch DVDs, so we eventually snuggled and slept instead.

Wednesday morning I dropped Nivagi off at work and then went home from some alone time. I got to talk to Mira on the phone and accomplished a little journaling and laundry. I tried to grab some caffeine on the way to work but after sitting in the drive-thru for 20 minutes I had to give up and just go into work, which left me cranky. I napped during my break to re-set my mood, and felt better by the end of my shift.

Wednesday night I escaped from work and ran home to put in some more laundry before Gwde arrived. Gwde grabbed food on the way to Indy so we’d have time to hot tub before it got too late. After hot-tubbing we showered and then lay down to listen to music, relax and snuggle. It was definitely nice to hang out with her twice in one year. We’ll have to get together again before another year passes!

Thursday Gwde didn’t have to work so we slept in before going out to the Bonjour Café for breakfast. I tried some new spiced-chicken pita that was pretty good and then headed to work early enough to get some caffeine this time. At work I found out we might be getting dual flat-screen monitors soon which will definitely make me feel more like a super-villain. Muhuhuhuhahahah!

Work was busy in the morning and then quieter later in the evening. After work I went to Jero’s to hang out, since we’d cut out usual Monday date short. Unfortunately Jero’s laptop is dead, so she spent some time fighting with it while we ate and hung out. She was eventually defeated by laptop gremlins so we gave up and went to bed so she could get some sleep before work.

Friday morning I slept late at Jero’s after she went to work (cruelly teasing her about it over Twitter). When I woke up I played on my computer until Jero got home and then hung out with her. Ke called to tell me she was free after her last final and work for the week, so I went over to Ke’s and we napped until it was time to get up and go to meet Chwi and Melawi to go see the new Star Trek movie.

I loved Star Trek. I’m a long-time fan and I’m impressed how they captured the essences of the classic characters, while giving themselves room for a fresh start and a new continuity. I’m fan enough to get most of the little references without screaming about how they had the wrong number of pips on X character’s cuff and therefore the movie was crap. After the movie Chwi, Ke, Melawi and I retired to Denny’s to dissect and discuss.

Saturday morning Ke woke me up with breakfast and exuberant post-finals energy since she’d finally caught up on sleep at last. She ran around her house getting things accomplished while I tried to sneak five-minute naps where I could. Finally I left to head to Bloomington to meet up with Chhu since Chhu and I were driving down to see Mom today for Mother’s Day.

I drove Ke’s car to Chhu’s since Ke was taking mine up to have my brake pads changed by her mechanically-inclined brother (thanks, Ke!). Chhu drove us the rest of the way to Evansville, where we met Mom at her sister Jamcde’s. We drove Mom home and ordered pizza, and then all hung out until Chhu and Mom were ready to head to bed. I got to see Mira briefly when she dropped by to pick something up, so that was a pleasant bonus.

Today Chhu and I are hanging out with Mom and plan to take her out to dinner tonight. Happy Mother’s Day, all!

Shredder: “You fight well... in the old style. But you've caused me enough trouble. Now you face...The Shredder!”
Don: “’The Shredder’?”
Mike: “Maybe all that hardware is for making coleslaw.”

-- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Week in Review – Week Ending 2009.04.25

This has been a very nice week. The weather’s improving, I’m still working, and I’ve had a lot of time to spend with people whose company I enjoy. Next week I work from 2 AM to 10:30 AM, so this might be the last time I’ll be able to function coherently for several days while I adjust to a radically different sleep schedule. Of course, once I do – it’s back to 1:30 PM to 10 PM! *headdesk*

Sunday Jero had to leave early to go down to Bloomington for a roller derby promotional event, so I stayed at her house and at three PM signed us up for Gen Con events when registration opened. I was hoping to see Mika that night, but she was sick so had to cancel. Instead, I hung out at Jero’s for a while and then went out to dinner with Asca. After dinner we hung out and snuggled until she had to head home.

Monday morning before I went to sleep I brought Ke ice-cream and stayed there to snuggle. In the afternoon I got up and had lunch with Jero before going into work. After work I’d planned to go home, but Jero said I could come back over, so I wound up going to her place where I logged onto the MUX and got to role-play with Spike as Buster before Jero and I headed to bed.

Tuesday night after work I picked up Nivagi from her apartment and we grabbed Jimmy Johns before returning to my place. Nivagi had wanted to show me some Star Trek songs by Voltaire, so that of course started an all-filk evening of Voltaire, The Great Luke Ski, and Jonathan Coulton. Before we knew it it was 2AM, and Nivagi had to be at work at 8:50 AM. I set my laptop aside at last, and we went to bed to sleep as long as possible.

Wednesday morning I drove Nivagi to work and then went to Jero’s to pick up my flash drive, which I’d left there Tuesday morning. I hung out at Jero’s until work, and then after work went to Ke’s, bringing her food and ice-cream. We hung out and watched The Colbert Report and other shows (as well as listening to the Voltaire Star Trek songs) until Ke lured me to off the laptop and into bed for cuddles and sleep.

Thursday morning Ke got up and showered early enough to grab brunch at Qdoba’s. That night I went to Jero’s and we snuggled while I caught up on Dollhouse. Jero was sleepy but I wasn’t, so I let her doze while I stayed up and watched The Colbert Report and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. When I was drowsy enough I snuggled her up and joined her in sleep.

Yesterday work was busy since it was the last Friday of the month and they let everyone else go home early with E-time, but the phones finally quieted down at the end of the night long enough for me to relax a bit before the day ended. When I got home Jero joined me and we went downstairs to hot tub. After we showered we watched an episode of Transformers and Jero went to sleep while I laptopped.

Today ERRO is coming over so Jero can tutor her in statistics. Mira is coming up from Evansville to spend the weekend, and tonight I’m hosting a small game night in the piano room of my apartment building. B!, Chpa, Jogr, Ke, and Nivagi are going to join us for the game night, so that should be fun. Tomorrow Ke and Mira plan to sit on me and make me sleep so I can go into work at 2 AM. Oy.

“Sometimes I wonder what it's like to have political discussions with sane people. Envy.”
-- Bob Harris, http://www.bobharris.com/

Last Week

Last week was a difficult week for me emotionally. I was stressed about health and relationship issues, and it made me depressed and touchy. Luckily I was surrounded by good people who were very patient with me, and ultimately the week ended on a high note. I got to spend a lot of time with Mika last week, which was especially nice because I needed a chance to reconnect with her.

Last Sunday was a really pleasant day. Jero and I slept in ridiculously late and then we went out to Outback before meeting B!, Jobe, and Mars for a last-minute birthday Runebound game night. We still didn’t get to complete a game, but we did come a lot closer than the last time we played. I hadn’t expected to see Mars that weekend, so his unexpected freedom was an enjoyable surprise.

Last Monday I went to my first radiation oncologist appointment. The appointment went well – Dr. Leagre was very reassuring, and was happy to oblige my request to move my treatments to closer-to-home Methodist Hospital. It meant switching radiation oncologists, but I like Dr. Yeh just as much. After my appointment I headed to work. I had to work late since I traded with Napl so I could go to the doctor’s appt, so Monday night Jero and I skipped MUXing and went to bed relatively early.

Last Tuesday I went to another doctor’s appointment to meet Dr. Yeh, my new radiation oncologist. Ke picked me up at work and brought me to Methodist Hospital Radiation Therapy. I thought I’d just meet Dr. Yeh and he’d give me the same rundown Dr. Leagre did, but while I was there he had them CAT scan me as well in preparation for my radiation treatments. He answered more of the questions I’d had, and although the appointment lasted a lot longer than I’d planned, I felt like I got a lot accomplished in one visit.

After work I went over to Mika’s to spend the night with her for her birthday Wednesday. Mika and I had dinner at Texas Roadhouse and then stopped by Trader Joe’s to pick up ingredients for breakfast. When we got back to Mika’s apartment we snuggled on the couch and watched Firefly until we were both ready for bed.

Wednesday I had the day off for Mika’s birthday, so we slept in and Mika made breakfast. I had to run up to my urologist’s so they could take more blood, and then when I returned Mika napped while I watched the History Channel’s specials on end of the world scenarios – happy birthday, Mika!

Wednesday night Mika and I met up with Tojo, and the three of us went to see Mudkids, Flobots, and Matisyahu at the Murat Egyptian Room for Mika's birthday. After the concert I headed off so Mika and Tojo could have the night alone, and went over to Ke’s to snuggle and fall asleep with her to The Colbert Report.

Thursday night Amsc drove in from Illinois to see me. She was worried about her new tattoo, but she stopped in on the way to Indy and her tattoo shop reassured her it was healing just fine. Amsc’s visit was a short one, but it was good to catch up with her since I didn’t get to see her for her important rites weekend. We snuggled and she spent the night, and I get to see her again for Halloween.

Friday night after work I got back together with Mika for her birthday weekend. We had dinner, and then started in on two days devoted to the Star Trek Roleplaying Game. I have to love a woman whose request for birthday weekend activities includes role-playing Star Trek. *^_^* I had a great time with her, not just for the role-playing, but also for the chance to hang out with in an unhurried, non-sleepy setting.

Saturday Mika and slept in again and then went out to Le Peep for breakfast. We hit the knit shop, so Mika could stock up on yarn. Coincidently they were having a clearance sale, so Mika spent way too much, and then we headed home to role-play more Star Trek. We ordered in Jimmy Johns so we didn’t have to venture out, and spent the evening role-playing and snuggling.

The weekend was just what I needed. Mika had backed off from me a bit since I’d gotten sick, mostly so she didn’t get in the way of everyone else who was wanting to take care of me (I have an abundance of good fortunes!). This coincided with some NRE on her part, which left me feeling a little insecure. A weekend of snuggling and catching up was perfect for making me feel better in a lot of ways.

Arthur: “Oh, would you look at this. How many times have I told you about the toothpaste?“
The Tick: “I know what toothpaste is.“
Arthur: “When you leave the cap off the toothpaste the toothpaste gets hard and you can't get it out.“
The Tick: “Doesn't do that for me.“
Arthur: “That's because by the time you get the toothpaste, I've already cleaned it and put the cap back on!“
The Tick: “Well, good gravy! We are a well-oiled machine!“
-- The Tick

Week in Review

This week has been spent mostly recovering from my surgery last Thursday. I’ve been exceedingly lucky to have very sweet girlfriends who have been going out of their way to take care of me and to make things as easy for me as possible. I got an infection in my lungs that made part of this week rather uncomfortable, but otherwise things are going well overall.

Sunday I slept in and spent the morning with Jero. In the afternoon Ke and Mira came over and brought the four of us food. We all ate dinner, and then Jero headed home. Ke, Mira, and I hung out, watching episodes of Pushing Daisies and an episode of Star Trek Next Generation. Mira helped Ke study while I putzed on the computer.

Monday I hung out with Mira while Ke was in class. When Ke got back the three of us had lunch and snuggled until Mira had to head home. Ke took me to Jero’s, where I was looking forward to being able to get on the MUX before 10 PM for a change. However, by the time I got on I wasn’t feeling that great, so I idled watching Heroes, and then took a Vicodin and went to lie down.

Tuesday I hung out at Jero’s while she teleworked, and then she took me home so Mika could come over for a short visit. Mika brought me dinner. We ate, and were snuggled up to watch Firefly when Nivagi called to say she was downstairs. I had security let her in, and she joined Mika and me in my bed, with me in the middle. The three of us cuddled and watched “Bushwacked,” and when the disc was over we joked and teased while I enjoyed their company.

Wednesday Ra came to visit from St. Louis! Ke picked her up at the bus station and brought her over with lunch for the three of us. We ate and hung out until Ke had to head home to take a test online. Ra and I spent the rest of the night hanging out, catching up, and watching funny videos online. Ra eventually went to bed since she wasn’t feeling well, and I joined her soon after.

Ra and I spent most of Thursday in bed, until we had to get up and dressed for Jero to pick us up for dinner. Jero took us to Murphy's Steak House and treated us to an excellent dinner. After we got back Jero hung out with us for a while before heading home, whereby Ra and I returned to our previous sloth-like existence. Ra and I did take the time to have a long Relationship Talk, and discuss how labels were creating unrealistic expectations that I can’t hope to live up to. Here’s hoping she and I can work out a solution.

Friday morning I woke up coughing my head off, and after resisting Ra’s advice all week, finally called Dr. Moretto and got an appointment. The doc checked my lungs and said I had an infection, but also assured me that the prognosis for my testicular cancer was good or else I’d have heard back from my urologist already. I got medication and spend the day recovering with Ra.

Saturday Ra had to head back to St. Louis, so I took her to the bus station and we bid farewells. I spent most of the day alone, puttering around my apartment, reading, and attempting to get things done. When Ke got a break from work she brought me food, and we grabbed a nap (my second that day!) before she headed back out. She came back to sleep, and in time I joined her.

It’s been a week of sickliness, but also of seeing people I never get to see. It’s sad that I missed seeing Amsc this weekend since I was too sick to drive seven hours to the Grove. It was nice though to get unexpected time with Mira and Ra at the beginning and end of the week. I have my follow-up appointment with my urologist this Wednesday, and then back to work Friday.

"You know, I could run for governor but I'm basically a media creation. I've never done anything. I've worked for my dad. I worked in the oil business. But that's not the kind of profile you have to have to get elected to public office."
-- George W. Bush, 1989

Weekend

I had a very nice night last night in Bloomington with Caro. I went down to see her after work, and helped her truck stuff out to a multi-family garage sale. Caro is moving to Minnesota in a few months (*sob*), and she’s starting the delicate getting-rid-of-crap process now (had to act fast to save the meerkat I’d bought her a while back). After dropping off her stuff and helping set up a bit, we went out to Borders and bought a few DVDs. I picked up the second season of The Venture Bros. for me, and got The Silence of Sleep for her.

We went back to her house and dug some tables out of her storage room for the garage sale, a task that looked daunting but actually wasn’t that bad. We then snuggled and watched The Silence of Sleep while she knitted. Needing to explore the experience of sleep by the time the (very interesting) movie was over, we headed to bed to cuddle and snooze. This morning came far too soon.

Work sucked today, of course, and ruined the excellent mood hanging out with Caro had put me in. Also, looking at my calendar reminded me again that yesterday was A1’s birthday, and although I passed along birthday greetings and heard he had a good time, it’s still weird to no longer be that involved in his life. With luck Jaru and I can get together soon so I can see him. I miss hanging out with them both.

Luckily, Jero came by today and visited me for lunch, which lifted my spirits. The second half of work was a little less frenetic, except, of course, when I tried to get on the phone to make plans with Ra. We finally worked out a plan for a post-Memorial Day visit, and then I found out that since I’m the last person here on Saturday, there’s a bunch of extra crap I’m supposed to do. It’s a big hassle, however, and it’s not working, so I’m giving it another try, and then I’m leaving.

Tonight I’m hanging out with Ke, and starting her birthday weekend celebration. We’re going to the club tonight, and then tomorrow I believe we’re laying around all day being lazy, which sounds very, very nice. Knowing us, we’ll probably watch Star Trek. Ah, geek love. Her actual birthday is Tuesday, but we’re getting started early on a weekend so we can actually sleep in for a chance.

Ah, well. Almost six. I’m outta here. Have a great weekend, all!

“Now, to unleash screaming temporal doom!” -- Invader Zim