I lost a good friend this week. This friend has been there, through thick and thin, in good times and in bad times. No matter what kind of mood I was in, or how long it had been since our last interaction, this friend never left me. This friend passed no judgements, offered no criticism, was around for every holiday, work day, weekday, weekend. Every winter and summer, spring and fall . For about five or so years this friend has seen it all. Best of all, this friend came free of charge.
Yes, it is sad but true. My TV has finally passed on. Thank you, TV, for your years of dedicated service. I shall never again know your like (mostly because they don't make your model anymore....that and I'm broke).
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Crazy? Plenty of evidence for it...
I spent last night on my couch. Again. Sigh.
I'm not the best at keeping things clean. Since moving to this back apartment, though, I've never let it get too out of hand, but if you were to walk in at any given moment you would invariably find something that has gone undone, most typically the dishes. For a week or so, though, I've had clean laundry waiting to be put away. Not to be deterred from my leisure in order to do it, however, it spent some time migrating back and forth from the bed to the couch and back again. If I was too tired to move it from the bed I would just sleep on the couch. While I do have a comfortable couch, my neck is paying the price.
A week or so I got an email announcement for my ward's book club, for which there wasn't yet a meeting place set up. Having been in charge of the book club before and wanting to help (and knowing I'd be much more likely to attend if it was at my place), I emailed the new leader and offered to host. It was on a Wednesday, and I anticipated having the entire day beforehand to get my home cleaned up and ready.
A few days later, my boss and I were discussing the schedule. All of his meetings had been moved from Monday and Wednesday to Thursdays, one of his days off. Having experience in scheduling, I knew the thing that made the most sense was for us to switch days off (which he had already discussed with his boss, but I made the suggestion before he could ask :)). It wasn't until later that I realized that this would put a damper on my plans for book club. I wouldn't get home until a few minutes before it was scheduled to start. Oh dear. I started cleaning a bit on Sunday, but didn't get anything major done until Monday. I got some dishes and laundry cleaned while making brownies for FHE that night, which turned out very good, thank you very much.
I had thought I'd have more time on Tuesday to finish up, but after receiving an email that day with an offer for free tickets to Curtains! at Hale Centre Theatre, I got a couple and took my sister Amy along. The play was great--a musical, murder mystery comedy. I got a kick out of the guy in the lead, he was perfect for it--so expressive, engaging, and not to mention attractive ;) It was also rather amusing to watch the crowd- Hale has a center stage, with seats all around. The people on the front rows across the way provided a nice side-plot--the family with a dad soo excited to be there that the teenage son (in a pink shirt...) finally got into it as well. The man who when one of the actresses was dancing in front of him watched her while occasionally shooting guilty glances in his wife's direction to see if she noticed and then later tried his best to avoid looking at the actress (hard, as she played one of the main characters, lol). Just off to my left on the front row was another, older man who, during the same dance kept staring at the actress in front of him. When she winked at him, his wife whipped around to glare at him suspiciously (or at least I would suppose, as I didn't actually see this part but Amy did).
I made it home sometime around 10:30 or so and set to cleaning up. It only took until...oh...2:30 or so. My laundry was put away, my movie shelves arranged, my dishes (while not clean) all moved to the kitchen, my table cleared off, a couple of pictures put up. I knelt to pray at the end of the night and got the impression that I needed to read my scriptures to help me through the next day. After a chapter of the Book of Helaman, I finally went to sleep sometime around 3:00.
I got up the next morning and made it to work. One of the first things I found was a virus on our main Retail register. I ended up having to trade that system with another register, which took about 20 minutes or so. We also had an event that day for which we got the check-in information a bit late, but fortunately I work with some very talented people who were able to work it out. I did however run up against several challenges of my own throughout the day. The Lord knew what He was saying when I was prompted to read the scriptures. For all I don't recall anything relating to what I went through, the spiritual boost was definitely needed. I was very happy to be on my way home.
Book club went well. Mom kindly baked my cookies for me, so that when I made it all I had to do was set up some extra chairs and put up a couple of signs. After everyone left, I enjoyed my clean living room and relished in the fact that I had the next day, today, off. I ended up falling asleep on the couch, despite the fact that no laundry covered my bed. Ah life. My neck is stiffer than ever, but at least I know better than to avoid going to the trouble of walking the 15 feet or so to my room :)
I'm not the best at keeping things clean. Since moving to this back apartment, though, I've never let it get too out of hand, but if you were to walk in at any given moment you would invariably find something that has gone undone, most typically the dishes. For a week or so, though, I've had clean laundry waiting to be put away. Not to be deterred from my leisure in order to do it, however, it spent some time migrating back and forth from the bed to the couch and back again. If I was too tired to move it from the bed I would just sleep on the couch. While I do have a comfortable couch, my neck is paying the price.
A week or so I got an email announcement for my ward's book club, for which there wasn't yet a meeting place set up. Having been in charge of the book club before and wanting to help (and knowing I'd be much more likely to attend if it was at my place), I emailed the new leader and offered to host. It was on a Wednesday, and I anticipated having the entire day beforehand to get my home cleaned up and ready.
A few days later, my boss and I were discussing the schedule. All of his meetings had been moved from Monday and Wednesday to Thursdays, one of his days off. Having experience in scheduling, I knew the thing that made the most sense was for us to switch days off (which he had already discussed with his boss, but I made the suggestion before he could ask :)). It wasn't until later that I realized that this would put a damper on my plans for book club. I wouldn't get home until a few minutes before it was scheduled to start. Oh dear. I started cleaning a bit on Sunday, but didn't get anything major done until Monday. I got some dishes and laundry cleaned while making brownies for FHE that night, which turned out very good, thank you very much.
I had thought I'd have more time on Tuesday to finish up, but after receiving an email that day with an offer for free tickets to Curtains! at Hale Centre Theatre, I got a couple and took my sister Amy along. The play was great--a musical, murder mystery comedy. I got a kick out of the guy in the lead, he was perfect for it--so expressive, engaging, and not to mention attractive ;) It was also rather amusing to watch the crowd- Hale has a center stage, with seats all around. The people on the front rows across the way provided a nice side-plot--the family with a dad soo excited to be there that the teenage son (in a pink shirt...) finally got into it as well. The man who when one of the actresses was dancing in front of him watched her while occasionally shooting guilty glances in his wife's direction to see if she noticed and then later tried his best to avoid looking at the actress (hard, as she played one of the main characters, lol). Just off to my left on the front row was another, older man who, during the same dance kept staring at the actress in front of him. When she winked at him, his wife whipped around to glare at him suspiciously (or at least I would suppose, as I didn't actually see this part but Amy did).
I made it home sometime around 10:30 or so and set to cleaning up. It only took until...oh...2:30 or so. My laundry was put away, my movie shelves arranged, my dishes (while not clean) all moved to the kitchen, my table cleared off, a couple of pictures put up. I knelt to pray at the end of the night and got the impression that I needed to read my scriptures to help me through the next day. After a chapter of the Book of Helaman, I finally went to sleep sometime around 3:00.
I got up the next morning and made it to work. One of the first things I found was a virus on our main Retail register. I ended up having to trade that system with another register, which took about 20 minutes or so. We also had an event that day for which we got the check-in information a bit late, but fortunately I work with some very talented people who were able to work it out. I did however run up against several challenges of my own throughout the day. The Lord knew what He was saying when I was prompted to read the scriptures. For all I don't recall anything relating to what I went through, the spiritual boost was definitely needed. I was very happy to be on my way home.
Book club went well. Mom kindly baked my cookies for me, so that when I made it all I had to do was set up some extra chairs and put up a couple of signs. After everyone left, I enjoyed my clean living room and relished in the fact that I had the next day, today, off. I ended up falling asleep on the couch, despite the fact that no laundry covered my bed. Ah life. My neck is stiffer than ever, but at least I know better than to avoid going to the trouble of walking the 15 feet or so to my room :)
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Yep, um, yeah, uh huh, and how!
I keep waiting for something that seems worth blogging about, and in the meantime I've let much slip past. Go figure.
And here is what the look like as of a few minutes ago when I took the picture:
I took last week off for a "stay-cation," during which I stayed home almost all day every day. I had a migraine from Sunday through Monday morning, at which point it finally left and I could function on some level. That being said, the migraine wasn't as bad as usual, and I'm wondering if being on an aspirin a day has helped. For FHE that night we combined with several other groups at the church for pumpkin carving, though I confess I spent most of the hour socializing for a change :).
The highlight of Tuesday was taking Michael up to the Clark Planetarium. After some debate, we got tickets to one of the IMAX shows and then got dinner from the food court to pass the time. We got back to the Planetarium in plenty of time, but unfortunately the upper floor was closed down for a private event. We spent the time wandering the open exhibits and the gift shop, then sitting at a table where Michael kept trying to convince me it was time to buy concessions. Not wanting to run out, I held out, though most of it was gone before the movie was half over. The movie was called Fighter Pilot:Operation Red Flag, which followed a jet pilot through portions of training in battle simulations, quite fascinating, informative, and intimidating all at the same time. What our soldiers go through is both amazing and daunting, and I hope that we as a country can honor them for their service.
At the end of the day I went up to the front of the house to visit mom and dad for a bit, and found them in the middle of a conversation. Afterwards I ended up helping mom empty a set of bookshelves, which she gave to me, and then helping her bring in another set that better matched her decor. On Wednesday the highlight was a visit from my Visiting Teachers. It gave me a reason to clean the apartment, and I finally had laundry and clean dishes. I was also able to get all of my books shuffled around the way I wanted them, and happy day! I love books, and this certainly reaffirmed my satisifaction in my collection, though I confess that I'd rather not move anytime soon, thank you very much. Here is the before picture from when I moved in:
And here is what the look like as of a few minutes ago when I took the picture:Happy Day :) For the last big event of Wednesday, I finally assembled a 3D puzzle of the Eiffel Tower while watching Star Trek: Voyager. I've had the puzzle for years, seven or eight at least, and it had been started but never finished. Now that I have a place of my own and am free to decorate it however I choose, without fear of it being moved, or disassembled or in any way. I was up until at least 3 AM completing it:
On Thursday I slept in until past noon. I got up and picked up Voyager where I left off. I had borrowed all 7 seasons from my friend Nate, and had fallen off watching it some time back. I was half way through season 2, and am now almost done with season 4. It was 4:00 before I realized the time, and had only a short time to prepare a Visiting Teaching lesson of my own. After our first visit, about two hours later, I had another hour or so to refine the lesson, and to help dad in getting dinner for him, Michael, and myself. After the second and final lesson, I returne home and watched more Voyager, but only an episode or two as I went to bed early in hopes of a productive Friday, and to not completely blow my sleep schedule as I had to work on Saturday.
Mom woke me up on Friday to ask if I wanted to go to WinCo with her, a new discount grocery store that opened recently on 7200 South right off the freeway. As it was payday, and I had spent the week on the last of my food supply, I jumped on the chance and spent the entire morning with her, first at WinCo, then Costco, and finally Walmart for some last minute additions. All told, I spent over $300 between groceries and bills. After unloading everything I did some more laundry and spent the rest of the day doing...something...mostly involving watching Star Trek and playing Taipei on the computer. We were going to attend the neighborhood Halloween party, but opted to stay home instead.
Saturday marked the last morning I had to myself and my first day back at work. I think I enjoyed the morning, but I confess it hard to remember. At work I first helped close out a couple of registers, and then spent the next three or so hours going over and correcting the reports that had been generated in my absence. In the meantime the museum's Spooktacular event was going on, and our admissions numbers were significantly higher than they had been for the weeks prior, keeping everybody on their toes. Welcome Back, eh? It was both frustrating and exciting, though I confess I wouldn't have minded a couple more days to myself ;)
Fortunately I had Sunday as a buffer. I went to Sacrament Meeting and then choir practice, followed by yet more Star Trek and then cards at Grandma and Grandpa Petty's, where of course mom and Grandma blew the rest of us completely out of the water, despite Grandpa's cheating ;) Several more episodes of Star Trek later, I finally went to bed for the night, not sure whether to be excited or dread the next day.
I suppose dread won out, as I got off to a bad start and it only got worse. When I got home I was in no mood to prepare an FHE lesson, but got right online and chose a General Conference talk. I guess the Spirit had a hand in it, as I finally chose one that ultimately helped me, while seeming to help those to whom I taught the lesson. It was That Your Burdens May Be Light by L. Whitney Clayton of the Presidency of the Seventy. I spent several hours working on the lesson, in the middle of which I made lasagna. Ah lasagna, one of my long-time favorite meals :) Since giving the lesson on Monday things have been going better. While most things have not changed, my attitude has. Here's hoping that I can continue to remember what I've learned, and things will continue to improve.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
On Brains
I took today off from work for my follow-up appointment. I'm pretty glad I did-I had a migraine yesterday, and this way I actually get to enjoy my day off. Well, for the most part at least--I was still rather nervous this morning and spent pretty much the entire time reading Harry Potter fanfic and avoiding getting ready. I finally dragged myself off the couch and headed off to the Heart and Lung Institute.
It caught me off guard when the nurse checking me in asked why I hadn't had an EKG at my last appointment. Not knowing I should have had, I said as much, at which point I learned that that was the procedure for people with a history of bradycardia (slow heart rate, the reason this whole shebang got started in the first place). About ten minutes and one EKG later, I was visited by Dr. Kenwood's PA, who told me that my MRI was completely normal. Yay! I didn't exactly jump for joy, but the feeling of relief, while somewhat more gradual than expected, crept over me. A few minutes later Dr. Kenwood himself came in and spoke with me for a bit. As the PFO hasn't led to any mini-strokes or any such thing (I got the impression that MRI's rarely came back clean to their office), he recommended that I talk to my doctor before I make a decision on whether or not to close it, which I plan on doing next Wednesday. I'll have a follow-up in two months with Dr. Kenwood.
Dad asked me if it was kindof like being a kid--when the other kids have a cast or something, and while you don't exactly want a broken limb, you want the attention that goes with it. I have to confess that perhaps a small part of me does feel that way. Fortunately, it's a very, very small part. While that small part has perhaps enjoyed the drama of the last couple of weeks, I'm definitely excited to stop losing sleep over it. To have a worry I can cross off my list. I've always secretly worried that I've had a tumor or something that caused so many migraines for so many years, and the last week especially added fuel to the fire, but now there is proof out there that I have a perfectly normal brain (lol well, healthy at least, even I wouldn't say I'm perfectly normal).
It caught me off guard when the nurse checking me in asked why I hadn't had an EKG at my last appointment. Not knowing I should have had, I said as much, at which point I learned that that was the procedure for people with a history of bradycardia (slow heart rate, the reason this whole shebang got started in the first place). About ten minutes and one EKG later, I was visited by Dr. Kenwood's PA, who told me that my MRI was completely normal. Yay! I didn't exactly jump for joy, but the feeling of relief, while somewhat more gradual than expected, crept over me. A few minutes later Dr. Kenwood himself came in and spoke with me for a bit. As the PFO hasn't led to any mini-strokes or any such thing (I got the impression that MRI's rarely came back clean to their office), he recommended that I talk to my doctor before I make a decision on whether or not to close it, which I plan on doing next Wednesday. I'll have a follow-up in two months with Dr. Kenwood.
Dad asked me if it was kindof like being a kid--when the other kids have a cast or something, and while you don't exactly want a broken limb, you want the attention that goes with it. I have to confess that perhaps a small part of me does feel that way. Fortunately, it's a very, very small part. While that small part has perhaps enjoyed the drama of the last couple of weeks, I'm definitely excited to stop losing sleep over it. To have a worry I can cross off my list. I've always secretly worried that I've had a tumor or something that caused so many migraines for so many years, and the last week especially added fuel to the fire, but now there is proof out there that I have a perfectly normal brain (lol well, healthy at least, even I wouldn't say I'm perfectly normal).
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Dr. Horrible! Yay!
So for those of you who don't already know, I'm a huge fan of Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, which was made during the writer's strike. It stars Neil Patrick Harris, Nathan Fillion, and Felicia Day and is about a villian (NPH) striving to get in to the Evil League of Evil. In the meantime, he falls in love with Penny (FD), who he met at the laundromat. While stealing some Wonderflonium for his freeze ray, Captain Hammer (NF) barges in and 'saves the day', getting credit for saving Penny when he is the one who actually put her in danger in the first place.
Neil Patrick Harris hosted the 2009 Emmy's, during which there was a very cool Dr. Horrible bit. They start by having the accountants come out to explain the Emmy selection process, which suddenly gets interrupted:
HAPPY DAY!!
I actually caught very little of the Emmys, but was most definitely happy that this was part of it. Owing to my continued excitement, I figured I'd spread the joy :)
Neil Patrick Harris hosted the 2009 Emmy's, during which there was a very cool Dr. Horrible bit. They start by having the accountants come out to explain the Emmy selection process, which suddenly gets interrupted:
HAPPY DAY!!
I actually caught very little of the Emmys, but was most definitely happy that this was part of it. Owing to my continued excitement, I figured I'd spread the joy :)
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Babies, Books and Brains
It's been an eventful three days. You've already read about Uncle Darren's departure, so I'll forge ahead with yesterday's big occasion: Megan Leigh Wampler was born at 4:02 pm, weighing 7 lbs 2 oz, 19 1/2 inches long. She's such a cutie!!
While the newest addition to the Wampler clan adjusts to 'life on the outside', her sister Jane is visiting us here in Salt Lake for a while. Here's a pic of some quality time with her and my brother Michael, who is most certainly one of Jane's favorite people:
And so on from Babies to Books: I swung by Barnes and Noble yesterday to pick up a highly anticipated book: The Squire's Quest by Gerald Morris. I've been reading the series for a few years now, and this most recent addition features the original main character, Terence, who at the beginning of the series becomes squire to Sir Gawain, named a knight in King Arthur's court early in the book. Characters throughout the series include Terence, Sir Gawain, Sir Tor, King Arthur (of course), Sir Kai, Sir Bedivere, Sir Dinadan, Sir Lancelot, Tristan and Iseult, Sir Palomides, and soo many more classic characters of Arthurian legend. Finding it hard to go to sleep last night, I ended up finishing the book in the wee hours of the morning.
Now along to Brains--as to why I found sleep slow to arrive (despite the fact I was really truly yawningly tired early in the evening), on Monday I had scheduled my MRI for today at noon. I had to convince myself that reading Harry's Future really wouldn't prepare me for the MRI and hauled myself out the door ten minutes before my appointment. Three minutes later I walked into the office and filled out the paperwork. Fortunately I didn't have to wear a gown for the MRI, and so was able to remain comfortable in my own clothing for the test. I was also able to listen to the radio during the test, though I think they need to get Bose to take a look at quality headphones that wouldn't interfere with the imaging. I was slid into the snug machine after being told to remain completely still, which oddly enough wasn't that difficult. The headphones fit comfortably and helped keep my head stable in the machine. I didn't care for the contraption they put over my head and snug over my chest, but the air was well circulated so I didn't end up feeling particularly claustrophobic once I'd gotten used to the noises of the machine itself. I was a bit dizzy and fuzzy afterwards, but made it home safely. I'm glad I have the day off to just sit back and do whatever the heck I want to do :)
I'm not sure how long it'll take before I get the results. They'll send them to my cardiologist once the radiologist has a chance to look them over, at which point I'll also be able to request a copy of the results. I'm a little nervous of the unknown, but at the same time until something is known I'm trying not to stress about it. Time, and the results, will tell. Again, until then, there are lessons I am learning in this process, and I know that I will be able to use whatever information I gain now in the future, for any number of experiences to come.
UPDATE: I'll be meeting with the cardiologist for the follow up next Thursday afternoon.
While the newest addition to the Wampler clan adjusts to 'life on the outside', her sister Jane is visiting us here in Salt Lake for a while. Here's a pic of some quality time with her and my brother Michael, who is most certainly one of Jane's favorite people:
And so on from Babies to Books: I swung by Barnes and Noble yesterday to pick up a highly anticipated book: The Squire's Quest by Gerald Morris. I've been reading the series for a few years now, and this most recent addition features the original main character, Terence, who at the beginning of the series becomes squire to Sir Gawain, named a knight in King Arthur's court early in the book. Characters throughout the series include Terence, Sir Gawain, Sir Tor, King Arthur (of course), Sir Kai, Sir Bedivere, Sir Dinadan, Sir Lancelot, Tristan and Iseult, Sir Palomides, and soo many more classic characters of Arthurian legend. Finding it hard to go to sleep last night, I ended up finishing the book in the wee hours of the morning.
Now along to Brains--as to why I found sleep slow to arrive (despite the fact I was really truly yawningly tired early in the evening), on Monday I had scheduled my MRI for today at noon. I had to convince myself that reading Harry's Future really wouldn't prepare me for the MRI and hauled myself out the door ten minutes before my appointment. Three minutes later I walked into the office and filled out the paperwork. Fortunately I didn't have to wear a gown for the MRI, and so was able to remain comfortable in my own clothing for the test. I was also able to listen to the radio during the test, though I think they need to get Bose to take a look at quality headphones that wouldn't interfere with the imaging. I was slid into the snug machine after being told to remain completely still, which oddly enough wasn't that difficult. The headphones fit comfortably and helped keep my head stable in the machine. I didn't care for the contraption they put over my head and snug over my chest, but the air was well circulated so I didn't end up feeling particularly claustrophobic once I'd gotten used to the noises of the machine itself. I was a bit dizzy and fuzzy afterwards, but made it home safely. I'm glad I have the day off to just sit back and do whatever the heck I want to do :)
I'm not sure how long it'll take before I get the results. They'll send them to my cardiologist once the radiologist has a chance to look them over, at which point I'll also be able to request a copy of the results. I'm a little nervous of the unknown, but at the same time until something is known I'm trying not to stress about it. Time, and the results, will tell. Again, until then, there are lessons I am learning in this process, and I know that I will be able to use whatever information I gain now in the future, for any number of experiences to come.
UPDATE: I'll be meeting with the cardiologist for the follow up next Thursday afternoon.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Thank You Uncle Darren
I was very grateful to have today off, as I was then able to go out to see my Uncle Darren off. He was deployed along with 44 other National Guard members to Iraq. This will be his second tour there. The departure ceremony started at 10:00 this morning, with Uncle Darren standing out in front of his platoon. Yep, that's him, in the center (this picture is from ksl I believe--several tv crews were there and our family made it on several of their cameras):
And here is a view from my seat amidst the friends and family of the soldiers:
After the initial ceremony we all gathered around our loved ones. Here's a quick picture of Darren, Karsen, Ethan and Joey:
Though it was certainly chilly, we soon made our way out to the Black Hawk helicopters. As the leader, Darren had signed for them, so we of course appreciated the fact that they were all "his" ;) We spent the next hour or so around the helicopter that he would be leaving in-taking pictures, talking in general, striving not to cry (some of us were more successful than others), and chasing Michael and Ethan around. Karsen also got a piggy-back ride from me, and then we helped keep each other warm.
I was able to get several videos, but as they are on my cell phone I won't subject you to each of them. I did want to offer this one at least. I wanted to get all four helicopters with their blades going, but my angle was wrong to have them all in one shot. The main focus is on his craft, though I warn you, turn down/off your computer volume before hitting play-it's loud, and my cell phone mic isn't exactly the best:
It was quite the sight, watching those 45 men and women take off in formation to serve our country (actually 21 left today, the rest will be leaving tomorrow). My thanks to all those who stand for our freedom, and my special thanks to you, Uncle Darren, for your great example. We all love you.
And here is a view from my seat amidst the friends and family of the soldiers:
After the initial ceremony we all gathered around our loved ones. Here's a quick picture of Darren, Karsen, Ethan and Joey:
Though it was certainly chilly, we soon made our way out to the Black Hawk helicopters. As the leader, Darren had signed for them, so we of course appreciated the fact that they were all "his" ;) We spent the next hour or so around the helicopter that he would be leaving in-taking pictures, talking in general, striving not to cry (some of us were more successful than others), and chasing Michael and Ethan around. Karsen also got a piggy-back ride from me, and then we helped keep each other warm.
I was able to get several videos, but as they are on my cell phone I won't subject you to each of them. I did want to offer this one at least. I wanted to get all four helicopters with their blades going, but my angle was wrong to have them all in one shot. The main focus is on his craft, though I warn you, turn down/off your computer volume before hitting play-it's loud, and my cell phone mic isn't exactly the best:
It was quite the sight, watching those 45 men and women take off in formation to serve our country (actually 21 left today, the rest will be leaving tomorrow). My thanks to all those who stand for our freedom, and my special thanks to you, Uncle Darren, for your great example. We all love you.
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