Saturday, June 26, 2010

Quick Catchup: Good News & Not So Good News

Well, I have had an interesting last few weeks that have inhibited me from posting, both physically and mentally. Here's a quick catchup.

Memorial Day Weekend was awesome. I made a trip down to see my folks and just relax. They have recently landscaped the back of their yard and so we spent some time out there adding more plants. This is what they call "paradise." They had a wooded area they cleared out a lot and added landscaping and this adorable patio with adirondack chairs. My parents laid this floor by themselves. They are so handy!


I helped my mom plant up this area while I was there. The round disk was intended to placemark a future birdbath. I enjoyed helping her out but this little plot of land turned out to be my worst enemy. It was just dirt and we added the plants and straw. However, we were unaware of what roots still existed. How about poison ivy and poison oak? Yea, I managed to get that all over my legs. I refuse to dig any dirt there again. But I will tell you all about that later since it took about 72 hours to show up. More exciting things happened right before.


We also visited Charleston while I was there. I have been a few times, but always enjoy the markets and just walking around. For whatever reason, I'm really into pineapples right now. Maybe it's my Southern heritage and my love for hospitality? Nonetheless, I loved all the pineapple items in SC.

I returned home on Sunday night so that I could get organized on Monday for a new week. However, Monday's event made me wish I had stayed one more day. First let me preface with EVERYONE has made irresponsible decisions in the kitchen at one time or another. You are lying if you say you haven't. You know what I mean, when you say to yourself, "This is really quick" or "I can do this and be safe." Unfortunately, I got caught. While making sandwiches for the coming week's lunch, I managed to slice my finger open. At first, I was terrified that I had taken a chunk completely off and refused to remove the papertowel I had wrapped it in mostly out of fear to see what really happened. The actual cut didn't hurt but the splattering blood did nothing for my confidence. The kitchen looked like a CSI crime scene: blood on the counter, blood on the floor, blood on the cabinets. Chip came and took me to the ER and I returned home with 5 stitches: Two stiches on the front of my finger, one on top, and two on the back. I had made it 31 years never getting any stitches and then as a "responsible" adult, I get 5! This whole experience really has hindered my typing and functioning with the left hand. Stitches have been removed and now I'm just wearing a bandaid as I wait for it to completely heal.


These pictures aren't great because, well, I couldn't really take good ones with the lone hand available to use. But, you get the idea.

When I showed it to others, they all agreed that it was disgusting. Everytime I looked at it, I was reminded of some horrible B grade horror flick or Frankenstein's face.

As if this was not enough, I discovered the poison ivy 2 days after the slicing event. So, now I was itching all over to the point of nausea and my left hand was handicap. Argh!




It pretty much took over my lower body. I was able to get the doc to prescribe me a topical steroid when I had my stitches removed, but that was not enough. The poison continued to spread. I had washed everything and couldn't figure out why it was still going so strong. And then it hit me. MY SHOES! I was wearing my running shoes when I was digging in the dirt and had put them on at least 8 times before I realized it was the culprit. Thankfully, I talked my doc into giving me something stronger. I spent the last 10 days on Prednisone (steroids). You know it's bad when the doc tells you to take 10 on the first day. I didn't like the way it made me feel at all and thankful it is over. When I picked them up, I asked the Pharmacist if I should start lifting for the 10 day duration to see what would happen. He didn't find that funny...at all.

So, that's what occurred to my health. In the meantime, I had the most bizarre situation happen in my car. The Anti-Glare liquid found in the rearview mirror leaked out on a random Tuesday destroying my center console and staining both leather seats. Everyone I have talked to about this issue (BMW and my Insurance) say they have never heard of it occurring. However, the internet and my new friends on the E46 Fanatics forum know exactly what I'm talking about. This issue continues to unfold and quite frankly I'm not in the mood to explain. It will be some time to get my car back to how it was, but luckily insurance is paying.

If you notice the brownish liquid in the lower right corner of the mirror, you can see what is left of the substance in the mirror. I'm waiting for the rest to leak out and have the interior of my car covered. Fortunately, the mirror will be replaced on Thursday and I can get rid of the old rags covering everything.

On top of all of that, my TV died last Saturday. That actually turned into a blessing because I have flirted with the idea of getting a new one for awhile. It just sort of made me do it sooner. I'm ok with that.

So, that's what's going on here. Never a dull moment in the V-A-B!