the Diva Platform

Yesterday the Boy had his fourth PostOp visit after his ear surgery.  It’s been close to two months since the actual surgery and about two weeks since our last trip to the doctor.  We had no idea what was in store for us–would the packing be swapped out again?  Would he finally be able to see the eardrum?  And how many more visits would this involve?

The last question was what our insurance company was curious about (yes, we’re still in the hunt for private insurance, even though we just got the COBRA paperwork to continue the health insurance we have…through today).  Nurses have interviewed the Boy, wondering how many more visits he’ll have for this thing, and he had no idea.  Until now.

The doctor took out the cotton packing, looked around inside the ear, and gave the Boy a clean bill of health.  We almost couldn’t believe it!  He said it looked great and healed nicely.  What a relief!

He does still have some gelatin packing in front of his eardrum.  It’s still crackling and popping as it dissolves, which may take up to eight weeks to fully dissolve.  He had the Boy close his mouth, hold his nose, and blow in order to move some air in that area to replace the gelatin packing with.  The Boy was a little freaked to do this since it had been orders not to this whole time, but he could feel how that helped.  The doctor recommended doing that blowing a couple of times a day (I believe) in order to aid the dissolving process.

The Boy has three more days of antibiotic eardrops to take, and then he’ll be done with those.  After that, he can also shower normally.

Then the doctor pulled out the camera so we could see the new ear and compare it to the other ear, which ended up needing a quick earwax removal (this was pretty gross–you’re lucky I couldn’t take pictures.  Even seeing the wax on the monitor was a bit gross).  The new canal was pretty cool to look at–because it’s resurfaced with regular skin, the doctor said it will be thicker and stronger and less likely to break down over time.  That’s a relief to hear.

It was also nice having the guided tour of the ear canal because frankly, it looked like any other internal body part you see because a camera’s been stuck inside you.  You know what I’m talking about?  Either the body part is red and bloody, or it looks like intestine.  If the doctor hadn’t told me I was looking at the ear canal, I would’ve guessed lower gastrointestinal tract in a heartbeat.

And after gazing at it in admiration for a few seconds, the doctor dismissed us.  The Boy has one more appointment for a hearing test in two months.  For now though, he’s pretty much back to normal, which means back to exercise, back to heavy lifting around the house, and back to being able to hear me if I’m reminding him of something he doesn’t really feel like doing.

One last picture for you–the last bits of packing.  You’ll notice that for the most part, they aren’t gunked up with blood and/or fluids, which really shows the progress of the healing.

The last of the packing!

One thing that going to the Jewel has over shopping at Peapod is that I physically get to see what’s going on in food (you can take the consumer products researcher out of the library, but you can’t take the consumer product geekiness out of the researcher).  A couple of weeks ago, the Passover kosher food section was built, and not long after that, kosher Coke was on the shelves.

As you may recall, I dig Kosher Coke.  The Corn Refiners Association is all over the attacks on high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), but they seem to forget something:  HFCS does not taste as good as regular sugar (and in the case of Kosher Coke, sucrose).  There’s a big difference in the taste–HFCS can be sweeter-tasting, and I don’t necessarily like every bit of my food to be super-sweet.  I don’t care if HFCS is “natural.”  It’s just not good.

Anyway, I don’t want to get on an HFCS rant, so I’ll just leave you with this year’s celebration of my kosher Coke purchase, a haiku:

the once a year jolt

sucrose-sweetend kosher Coke

a taste of heaven

Here are some thoughts that struck me this week:

• If you’re born on a plane and abandoned in the plane’s toilet, what does your birth certificate say for “place of birth”?  How about “nationality”?
• How many people own a set of Resurrection Eggs (according to Amazon, over 1 million sets sold/distributed)?  And do they really help children remember the story of Christ’s death, or does the adult in charge have to spend more time monitoring the kid who has the odd fascination with the thorns?
• What’s the ratio of sold vs. distributed units in those Resurrection Egg sales?  Because I’m reading “distributed” as “given away for free.”
• The phrase “man-made greenhouse gases” makes me giggle.  Sometimes.
• If I had to choose, I’m not sure which I’d rather be, a blowhard or a douchebag.  Probably blowhard.  You at least have accomplished something over which you can be blowhardy.
• A girl can sign up for the Self Challenge, but that doesn’t mean she’ll necessarily keep it up.
• Man, guacamole is so freakin’ good!

Any randomness blaze through your mind this week?

I realize you may not have a lot of time on your hands to read every great blog such as this one (which is probably tops on your list of blogs-to-visit-daily, for which I thank you). Maybe you just stumbled upon this site and don’t quite know how to make the most of all it has to offer.  Maybe you’re trying to become more efficient in using the information I’m imparting here.  Maybe you’re trying to figure out how not to get hung up on all the spelling errors that mysteriously slip past my eagle eye.

Therefore, I’ve decided to give you some best practices for reading my blog:

1.  Please be seated.  I’d rather you not walk and guffaw (or fall off your treadmill, or collapse with laughter into someone’s lap on the bus).

2.  Pause to marvel at the genius.  Seriously, I get quite pleased with my writing sometimes, and although unproven, I’m pretty sure taking in this wonderful prose could very well be beneficial to your health.

3.  Acquiring a healthy dose of schadenfreude aids your reading enjoyment; however, it is warned that you may feel secret shame about acquiring said dose of schadenfreude.  Maintaining secret shame is up to you, but I personally do not recommend it, for I do not like the thought of your angst overtaking mine.

4.  Commenting on the genius you have just read is not only an acceptable instinct, it is also greatly encouraged.  Commenting often will raise your status in my esteem, and that could be very beneficial at a to-be-determined date (hopefully this decade, but perhaps next).

5.  Commenting often will also endear you to the community of Jillites, who receive special privileges such as my gracing themselves with my presence or an e-mail or an opportunity to buy Jill-related products you didn’t know you needed but suddenly crave.

6.  Don’t keep this genius all to yourself!  Spread it around!  I do realize that sometimes you find gems in the rough and you want them all for yourself.  Sharing great thoughts written by yours truly and comments by your fellow Jillites will garner you much in the way of good karma and a general warmth in your belly.

7.  Do you really need more than six best practices?  I think you’re smarter than that.

So read on with gusto, my friends!  And thank you for allowing me to continue enriching your life on a business-daily basis!

I came across this opinion piece on the New York Times’ site the other day, in which the author discusses drinking and suggests that many of us order cocktails we don’t really want.  Maybe it’s a drink we think we want, or we want our drink to project a certain image about ourselves, or we don’t want to be judged on the drink we select.

This, of course, sounded like a bizarre behavior pattern to me.  I’m an adult, I should order up what I want (or can afford, which is sometimes the consternation I have when it comes to ordering a cocktail when I’m out).  Trying to impress others seems like it’s only a recipe for a disaster of insecurities, solved only by reading any number of magazines that boast articles designed to help fix your problems.

I don’t quite understand why we try to win approval from others at seemingly every turn.  I mean, I still like approval (pleaser that I am), but I really don’t want to pretend I’m someone I’m not (which is perhaps a reason I never made it out of the chorus at many a community theatre production).  Having a newspaper columnist point out otherwise hits a nerve.  Maybe I’m wrong, and maybe most people do do things solely to get approval.  Do you?  Do you drink/eat something simply because it’s cool?  Wear clothes because your buddy bought the same thing?  Is this behavior that should be outgrown at some point, or is it natural to behave this way?

As I’m writing this, I’m really short on inspiration.  Really short.  And I’m phenominally tired from not being able to sleep last night.  However, I do have a “Stumble button” which eventually led me to a link about what Coke does to your body.  Since it’s written by a health professional, the accuracy level is probably good.  It’s just not having the intended effect on me.

The article talks about how long it takes for the sugar and caffeine to hit your system, and since I’m zonked, all I can think is, “Awesome!”  Granted, I’m not thrilled about putting my body through a roller coaster of sugar rushes (though if there are a few loop-de-loops, I do like those), but when you can’t sleep, what can you really do?  Should I have slept until 9 or 10 AM in order to get the sleep I needed?  If I slept in, would I not be able to go to bed at a reasonable hour at night?

And then part of me thinks, well, it’s only a Coke (or in my case, diet Coke) that I’m using as a pick me up….it’s not coffee.  I realize that’s not really a good excuse, but in terms of caffeine, it is a bit lower.  Still, if I didn’t have it, I might have to call the day a total wash, and that’s probably not the best option.

This weekend’s roller derby match was a lot of fun.  To be honest, I couldn’t tell you who won each bout, nor did I really even get to watch much of the game even though I was right there manning the penalty box.  Whenever skaters were in the box, I was busy watching my little timer (or timers, if a third skater was in the box) and trying to write down when penalties happened.  And they could happen a lot.  Heck, at the start of the second half on the first match-up, my fellow box-timer and I (we had enough stats folk to have two timers per penalty box) had two skaters in the seats and one standing with 4 seconds left on her penalty.  Trying to keep it all in line meant we really didn’t get to watch much action on the track, but the penalty box saw enough action that I still felt that fun intensity of derby–intensified more by being on the floor and closer to the action.

Still, I had a great time.  Stats work may not be really glorious, but it’s fun to keep track of all the numbers.  Our stats crew is pretty large now, so we can keep track of a lot of things–almost in a baseball-like way.  I don’t know how the teams use the stats, but it must be fascinating to look at the match-ups for each jam, see how it works out, and also see how you could position your team to exploit weaknesses of your opponent.  The more stats we can gather, the more this information can be used.

I feel like I’ve found a good little niche.  I’m glad to have found an activity and an organization that I like being a part of and can get really involved with.  I’ve tried a lot of activities over the years and haven’t felt quite that way.  Oh, I enjoy running and doing triathlons/urban adventure races, but I never felt like I wanted to be hard-core about it.  It’s just something I like doing on the side.  In a sense, that’s fine–it’s a hobby.  But it’s also a hobby I can do without ever really getting to know anyone.  Other activities I’ve tried really haven’t meshed well–it’s stuff I did, but not stuff where I invested myself enough.  I’m feeling good about finding something I’m doing because I want to do it, not because I feel obligated or somebody else signed me up for it Having been an over-scheduled child, I am a little wary about extra-curriculars as an adult.  Sometimes it takes me a little while to really figure out whether or not I want to really get into an organization, and even when I’m there, I sometimes feel a sense of “don’t get too involved” because there are so many other activities out there that I could be involved in too.

At some point though, it’s good to find one or two things you like to do and really be a part of them.  Only then can you feel the comaraderie of being a part of something and moving an organization or cause forward.  Only then do you get a chance to build some skills, perhaps even stretching yourself to become a leader, even if you never considered yourself to be one, and really make a difference in the world.

Granted, I don’t know how much of a difference I’ll make here, nor do I know how much of a leader I’ll really become, but I’m glad to have found a group that I want to stick with and move forward with.  That in and of itself is pretty satisfying to me, since I think it’s a good step in overcoming the results of being a part of too many things as a child.

How about you?  What groups are you involved in that you’re happy to be in?  How did you get there?  Did you ever find yourself in something, wondering why the heck you’re doing it?  Are you involved because of your kids?  Are you not involved but want to be?  Are you not involved and content to be so?  Let me know–I’m always curious how people live their lives, how they get to be where they are, and if they’re happy with it.

As I write this, I’m pretty happy.  Yes, I know I wrote about having a glitch yesterday, but I wanted to admit it because I’m trying to work through it, and I thought talking about it a little would help me.  I’ll spare you any further self-refection though because it is quite boring (and makes you want to go, “Dummy!  Get OVER yourself and just write.  GOSH!  How hard can this be?  Even I see what you need to do!”).  I’d rather think about possibilities and that sort of thing.

Luckily, we’ve had some great weather this week, so there’s the possibility of the plastic coming off our bedroom window soon.  There’s also the possibility that I’ll be running outside more, which might help me stick to some exercising routine (somehow, I won’t even make time for a 10-15 minute workout.  Lame excuses abound for this, but I’m working on it).

This weekend I’m doing my first roller derby match as part of the stats crew.  I needed a new activity to get me out and about and meeting new people, and I do love roller derby, and I think this is going to be a great way to be involved.  I also get to make up a fun derby name–I’ll share mine once it’s approved.

The house is getting picked up on a fairly regular basis.  The Boy has taken on the very difficult task of straightening up our bookshelves (which look great when he’s partially finished, and then you turn around and see the stacks of books that don’t fit onto the shelves and for which we either need to make a place or donate).  If we’re consistent on keeping the clutter at bay, our apartment is a much nicer place to be, and I’m glad we’re trying to be good about this.

All of these things mean I’m heading into the weekend feeling positive, and it’s nice to be positive every now and then (if you need more positivity, there’s actually a “good news” site).  I hope you’re feeling the same way–have you been able to accomplish something that means a lot to you?  Big plans for the weekend?  Share away!

Last week was another rough week for me.  The writing is going well, but I’m frustrated in my ability–or lack thereof–in getting new assignments or selling new pieces.  I sometimes feel like there’s a glitch in my system (that’s a “Matrix” reference, if you’re curious) which is causing me just to falter a bit.  I have the tools and a good product; I just can’t get to where I need and want to be.  And I think this is partially my own doing, but for the life of me, I can’t quite figure out why.

The Boy and I have done a bit of talking lately about where we want to go and what we want to have for our lives.  That’s helped me focus a little bit more and go for things a bit.  Perhaps having some set goals like that are helping me to focus–a “we aren’t going to get this unless I bust a gut a little bit more”attitude.

I hope that helps because I’d like to get rid of the glitch.  I don’t want to dwell on it and have it become my “thing.”  Because revelling in a stupid glitch isn’t really a good idea.  I’d like to get over it and move on to better places.

God bless Ma Jaracz.  The Boy and I went to the folks for a visit (well, actually because I found instructions on how to make a greenhouse out of old windows, which I thought was all kinds of awesome. And then magically some windows in our building got replaced, and we were allowed to take the old ones, and my mom would dig a greenhouse, so we hauled the  windows to their house).  My mom had done a little weeding of her books and had a stack of cookbooks she thought I would like.  There’s some potentially good ones–a Rachael Ray book, for one–but the crown jewel is Better Homes and Gardens’ Cooking for Two.

I should’ve asked how my mother came to own this book. It’s copyright 1968, but this is the 22nd printing, which is 1981, when Ma Jaracz would’ve been cooking for four.  Besides, the book looks like it’s straight out of the 1960’s, so it’s a little bizarre to think that over a decade later, this book would create the same sort of excitement to warrant a 22nd printing without some massive updating (if you’re interested, there is a newer version).

Still, I’m looking forward to perusing this book–and maybe even trying some of the recipes, if I’m feeling especially adventurous.  Oh, they aren’t all super-wacky and kitschy, but some are just…”interesting,” such as:

• Peanut Butter Special (a peanut butter sandwich with butter, peanut butter, applesauce, bacon, and apple slices)
• Dutch Lunch (another tasty sandwich)
• Prune Spice Cake (topped with Prune Butter Frosting)
• Hot Sherried Consomme

And there are also cooking and shopping tips, since many cooks for two are probably slightly inexperienced.  I could potentially learn a thing or two while I’m laughing.  I don’t think this book is as bad as the old Weight Watchers cards, but it’s amazing what recipes were thought to be delectable back in the day.