Another kind of heat

As I write this, Andy and I are living at Comfort Suites in Peoria near the sports complex. Our A/C system has finally bitten the dust. When I got home from work on Thursday evening, the temperature in the house was in the high 70's, and the A/C was blowing hot air. Andy got on the phone called the home warranty people, who said they would have the A/C guy call the next day (the same company they sent before). We turned on all the fans in the house and spent a restless night trying to stay cool as the temperature continued to rise through the night.

On Friday, I went to work while Andy stayed at the house to wait for the A/C repairman's call. I checked in with him at lunchtime, and it was 95 degrees inside and there had been no phone call. The guy did not call until almost 3PM, and just told Andy that they would be out to check on the system on Monday between noon and 4PM.

There was no way we could spend the entire weekend in the house with outdoor temps over 100 and inside temps in the mid 90's. Andy thought about getting a small portable A/C unit and just isolating ourselves in the bedroom for the weekend, but that wasn't my idea of making lemonade from lemons. So I checked Priceline.com and found a good deal on this hotel--$55 per night--so I reserved the room for the weekend.

We packed up our clothes, along with the cat, and moved to our "staycation" home last night. Macho, of course, was pretty freaked out at first, but he seems to be settling in all right now. I went out to get burgers last night, and stopped by PetSmart and bought a small scratching post and a new feather toy for him. He's eating OK, and he's using his litter box, so maybe we'll make it through the weekend.

My concern is that with the repairman possibly not showing up until 4PM on Monday, we're going to have to extend our stay here next week. I have no idea how long it will take to get a new unit installed, especially since they'll probably have to put in a new air handler upstairs as well, in order to meet the efficiency qualifications for the tax credit that we want to take.

Another complicating factor is that I'm scheduled to show up for jury duty on Monday. I'm hoping that when I call in tomorrow night (Sunday), they'll tell me that I'm excused. But the worst case scenario is that I get chosen to serve, and then Andy will have to juggle work and the A/C fiasco on his own.

This place is comfortable, but of course it's not home, and it's an extra, unanticipated expense. All we can do is try to enjoy having someone else clean the room while we use the pool. It would be less of a hassle if we didn't have Macho with us, but that's the joy of having a pet.

Gonna miss my big screen TV this weekend as football season opens, but what can you do?

Cooling off

Not sure I want to take a chance on jinxing this, but my hot flashes seem to be decreasing in both frequency and intensity.  I actually got a pretty good night’s sleep last night, and I’ve only had to turn on my fan a couple of times today at work.  The intensity is definitely less, as I haven’t had sweat dripping off my forehead and arms like I usually do.  Not sure if it’s the black cohosh finally getting into my system, or just simply my hormones settling down, but I’m not one to look a gift horse in the mouth.  I’m just glad that I’m getting a little relief and hope it continues.

The Kindle Review

So I've had my new (used) Kindle I for three days now, and since Andy already owned one, my learning curve has been very short. I've already started to form some opinions, and of course I'm sure that others must certainly be interested in what I have to say (that's a joke...don't get all uptight!!)

On the "PRO" side:

• I love using the Kindle's dictionary to look up words as I'm reading. I can usually figure out the meaning of unfamiliar words just from the context, but it satisfies my OCD need for completeness and order to be able to, with the flick of a thumb, look up the definition of words that I don't use in everyday conversation. And since I now know the meaning of said words, I can actually start using them everyday!
• There's a search function, so if you can remember a word or phrase you can search your Kindle to find it. Much easier than trying to find it in a non-digital book.
  
• I like having a subscription delivered to me weekly, right when it's hot off the press. My new issue of "Opinionated" eZine downloaded wirelessly to my Kindle this morning, even though it's a holiday. If this had been a print subscription, I would have had to wait since the post office doesn't deliver mail on Labor Day.
• It's an electronic device, and I'm a geek, so that's reason enough to love the Kindle.
• When I take it out of the leather case, it's ergonomically comfortable in my hands, like holding one side of a regular book. I don't have to use muscles to hold the book open, I just use little thumb muscles to turn the pages, so it's less tiring. "Really", you ask, "how tiring can it be to hold a book while you read? " Try a Kindle and you'll know.
• The previous owner left about 25 books on the device, and I can hold them all in one palm. How cool is that?
  

And now the "CONS":

• The darn thing has to be charged when the battery runs down. This morning when I turned on the wireless connection to receive my new issue of "Opinionated", it immediately ate up my remaining battery power, so now my Kindle is charging and I'm not reading.
• My Kindle looks exactly like Andy's Kindle--leather case included--so I can't tell them apart. This is stressing me out (my OCD again).
• The leather case has this little tiny plastic tab that is supposed to "catch" on the back of the Kindle to keep it from sliding out of the case when you tilt it to the right. It doesn't work. It DOES NOT work. So now I'm stressing, trying to figure out a way to use little Velcro dots or something to hold it in place. Of course, I normally take it out of the case when I'm reading, so does it really matter? Really?
• The graphics are really poor when photographs are involved. My first Kindle book, "The Year of Living Biblically" contains photographs of A.J. Jacobs as he progressed through his year of following a literal interpretation of how men should look and dress, and the photos were really BAD on the Kindle. I understand that this device (Kindle I) only has 4-tone greyscale rendering, so what can you do? That's why I didn't buy the Kindle II--why settle for 16-tone greyscale when I'm positive that there's a color Kindle on the horizon somewhere? Might as well wait for something I'll be satisfied with.
• I'm still accidentally turning pages when pick up or set down the Kindle, but I'm getting better about it.
• The dictionary does not provide the pronunciation for the words that you look up. Even if I know what the word means, how can I feel comfortable adding it to the daily vocabulary if I'm not sure I'm pronouncing it correctly? I would just sound stupid.
  

There are multiple features to the Kindle that I haven't tried yet:

• You can load MP3 files on the device and play music to listen to while you read. I may try that feature once my battery is charged up.
• You can download books from Audible.com and listen to them on the Kindle. I doubt I'll use this feature because I already have an MP3 player that I use for audiobooks, and it fits in my pocket. When I'm listening to audiobooks, I'm normally driving, and I don't think the Kindle would fit in the cupholder of my car like my little MP3 player does.
• You can highlight and annotate reading material on the Kindle, and your notes are saved for you. I'll probably play with this feature when I come across things that I want to remember for later.

So thus far, I'm very happy with my new toy! My goal is to spend less time on the computer and more time reading, and I've accomplished that in the past week, especially since I moved my laptop and desk up to the loft and out of the living room. There are just so many books to be read, and I want to make the most of my reading time. I'm always on the lookout for good book recommendations, and hopefully I'll select ones that teach me something and touch me deeply.

Kindle-ing

I got my new (used) Kindle last night and spent about an hour cleaning off the old newspapers and magazines that the previous owner had subscribed to and stored on the device. There are also about 25 books on there--a lot of Stephen King (some of which we own in hardback), but some other selections that I'll be interested in reading at some point. She even had a big collection of Edgar Allan Poe, so I can explore those writings at some point.

Just for kicks, I purchased and downloaded "The Year of Living Biblically" by A.J. Jacobs. I also subscribed to a magazine "Opinionated" just to check out the subscription functionality. It's only $1.49 monthly, and it's a weekly eZine...sounds like a deal.

Not sure how much I'll use the Kindle, but at least it will cut down on some of the book storage for purchased books. And I can use some of the SD cards that I have just lying around now to store books on. Now if I can just learn to use the device without accidentally turning the page.

Who turned on the furnace?

I’m sitting here with sweat running down my forehead, a small desk fan blowing in my face, and a bottle of ice water in my hand, trying to cool off.  By the time I finish writing this update, I’ll be having chills and putting on my sweater.

 

The hot flashes are back with a vengeance.  My last round with hot flashes was back in 2007, in the months leading up to my parents’ 50^th wedding anniversary.  I was under a lot of stress, trying to plan the big reception from halfway across the country, while at the same time working at a job that I hated.  The day after the anniversary party was over, the hot flashes went away, and except for an occasional night sweat, I didn’t have any further problems with them.

 

But they’re back now!  For about five weeks now, they’ve gotten worse, so much so that it’s impossible to sleep through the night.  I’m so tired that I don’t feel like going to the gym, especially since I know I’m sure to have a flash right in the middle of my workout, which just makes it doubly hot.  They give me a weird, dizzy feeling like my head is being constricted, and sometimes my heart rate goes way up, which isn’t cool when I’m on the treadmill or the elliptical machine.  Sometimes they make me feel panicky and anxious, although I’m pretty much able to control it because I know what’s causing it.

 

I don’t want to get into medication for this, so I’m trying the herbal remedies (black cohash, primarily).  I’m trying to avoid hot beverages, spicy foods, wine, and tight clothes, all of which set them off.  Heck, just walking out of the air-conditioned building does it.  I know I’m getting cranky, and I’m going to have to learn to deal with it, especially if I’m like Mom and this goes on for years.  I’m getting a headache just thinking about it.

 

It’s been 53 days since my last TOM, so who knows, it could be the official beginning of menopause.  But that’s what I thought two years ago, and I got disappointed then.  But it has to happen sooner or later, and it just wouldn’t be fair for me to have to put up with periods AND hot flashes, now would it?  Are you listening out there????

 

So, I’m trying to find ways to make my life less stressful.  I had begun to spend entirely too much time in front of the computer, especially playing that stupid but addicting game, Farmtown.  I finally overcame my OCD and let my “farm” “go to waste” (that was so hard!!), and I quit playing the game.  Last weekend, I got rid of the elliptical machine on Freecycle.org, and moved my desk and laptop upstairs, so that I’m not so prone to sitting in front of the computer all evening.  It has really worked well this week.  I’ve started reading more in the evenings, and we’re going shopping this weekend to purchase a new chair for the “reading corner” in the living room where the desk used to be.  And I found a used Kindle on Craigslist yesterday so I can download books that are more in a spiritual line…ones that I don’t want to spend so much on, but which may not be available from the library.

 

Now if I can just find a way to get a good night’s sleep so I can get to the gym on a regular basis, maybe I can survive this time in my life.  But right now, it just sucks.

 

San Francisco and the Blackberry

Wow, time flies by quickly. Just as a follow-up to my last post, I did go back for a more detailed mammogram, and it was fine, just as I figured. So, no worries on that front. In exchange, I've begun having the severe hot flashes again, at least once an hour. It's making me absolutely miserable, but not much I can do about it but turn on the fan and wipe off the sweat.

Andy and I went to San Francisco last week to celebrate his 60th birthday. We stayed at the Hotel Carlton on Sutter @ Larkin again, and enjoyed it just as much as we did last time. We went to see Beach Blanket Babylon, which was a riot. We walked from the hotel to the Ferry Terminal at the Embarcadaro, but took the bus and cable car pretty much everywhere else we went, which included Ocean Beach, Chinatown, Little Italy, and Fisherman's Wharf. The hotel was kind enough to gift us with a bottle of wine for Andy's birthday, and we enjoyed their daily wine receptions each afternoon at 5:30 in the lobby. Our favorite meals were in Little Italy at The Original U.S. Restaurant and Trattoria Volare, but we also enjoyed chowder at Fisherman's Wharf, a great Meditteranean meal at Persimmon. Our favorite site was probably the Japanese Tea Garden in Golden Gate Park. I've posted photos at Flickr. All in all, it was a relaxing trip.

Before we left on our trip, we visited the Verizon store and upgraded our phones to the Blackberry Tour. I had been looking forward to this upgrade for over a month, ever since I found out that the Tour was coming out. Andy originally had no interest in a Blackberry, but after seeing how much easier it was to text on the QWERTY keyboard, and then finding out that Verizon was offering a buy one, get one free special, he was hooked. By the time we left for SF, he was more addicted to his BB than I was, and he used it constantly on the trip. Funny, but almost every picture that I took of him, he has that BB in his hand.

So now, we're home and things are getting back to normal. I went back to the gym after almost 10 days off, and I'm feeling it today. Fortunately, even with all the extra eating, I didn't gain any weight on vacation, so my clothes still fit. I'm back to trying to eat more healthily to try and get my cholesterol lowered without medication. I had my 6-month dental check-up, and everything was fine. Now I just have to face the colonoscopy on 9/14, and then all my health-related checkups should be done.

I've booked our flights to go to Mississippi to visit Mom and Dad in November, and I'm hoping we can squeeze in a quick camping trip or weekend excursion somewhere in October for my birthday--we'll see.

Life is good!

Playing "Doctor Phone Tag"

I absolutely despise trying to get in touch with my doctor on the phone. Remember, she was the one that left the message on my phone yesterday, asking me to call about the mammogram. She was the one that included a note on the cholesterol results that said "Call Me!". So this morning at 8:30, I called their office....and got the answering service, whose recorded voice told me that their office hours were from 8:30 until 4:30. So why the hell weren't they answering the phone? I waited ten more minutes, tried again, and still got the answering service.

So I went back to my desk, waited until 9:00 and then tried again, and this time, after listening to the 45-second recording of all the options, I hit "0" and got Tammy, who promptly put me on hold. I waited on hold with no music, no one telling me how long my wait was, just complete silence. After ten minutes I called back, hit "0" without listening to all the recording, and got Tammy again, who asked if she could put me on hold. I informed her that I had already spent ten minutes on hold, and she apologized, and then put me on hold anyway.

After about five minutes, she came back and I explained that I was returning Dr. Brown's call. She took my name, date of birth, reason for calling, and (very important!!) my call-back number, which was my cell number. Then I went back to my desk with my phone in my pocket and awaited a call back. I figured she would probably call while I was at the chiropractor, but she didn't.

When I hadn't heard anything by 2:00 PM, I called them again. This time Tammy answered promptly and didn't put me on hold. I told her I was still waiting for a call back from Dr. Brown, and she said that the doc was still seeing patients, and that she would give her the message again. Again I gave her my name, date of birth, reason for calling, and (very important!!) my call-back number, which was my cell number.

By 3:30, I still had not heard anything, and was getting a little anxious because the doc is leaving for vacation after today. So, on a whim, I called my home phone answering machine...and sure enough, there was a message from the doc that was left there about 10:40 this morning. "Hi, Suzanne, I don't ordinarily like to leave these types of messages on an answering machine, but..."
DUH!!! I've given them my cell number countless times, and they insist on calling the number where I am least likely to answer during the day. I WORK during the day, so I'm not at home. That's why I gave them my freakin' cell phone number. Her message didn't mention the cholesterol results at all, but just said to come by the office and pick up the orders to have the ultrasound done on my right breast. She said Tammy would have the orders. How nice.

So, today, I've been very good with my diet. I even resisted the ice cream that they gave away at work today, and had a fresh peach instead. It wasn't even a close substitution, but I felt pretty good about it. However, I forgot to pack something to eat before I went to the gym, and by the time I was halfway through my leg workout, I was dragging, and didn't get around to doing any cardio. I came home and had a protein drink, and then fixed a light dinner of grilled chicken, polenta, green beans/edamame/mushrooms, and canteloupe, with a glass of white wine for dessert. My tummy is growling now.

I know I'm just trying to fool myself when I think that I've been eating healthily for the past couple of years. I eat Lean Cuisines followed by cookies, yogurt followed by donuts. I can do better, and I must do better if I'm going to have any chance of avoiding cholesterol meds. But when we go to San Francisco, I'm going to enjoy every tasty bite...I'll just pay for it when we get back.