So, this bird walks into a store...

(I received this as an email today.)



Watch! He s-l-o-w-l-y enters the store......and then he runnnnnnns........OUT!

A seagull in Scotland has developed the habit of stealing chips from a neighborhood shop.

The seagull waits until the shopkeeper isn't looking (so a camera was installed), and then walks into the store and grabs a snack-size bag of cheese Doritos.

Once outside, the bag gets ripped open and becomes a feast, for other birds!

The seagull's shoplifting started early this month, when he first swooped into the store in Aberdeen , Scotland, and helped himself to a bag of chips.

Since then, he's become a "regular". He always takes the same type of chips.

Customers have begun paying for the seagull's stolen bags of chips,... because they think it's so funny!

Shoulder update #2

Just went to the rheumetologist. I may have earlier stated that I was going to the orthopaedist. I was wrong. I also forgot until I was nearly in Norwood that my appointment was in Dedham, not Norwood. So I was 10 minutes late. Then I went to the Orthopaedic department, only to find out I was two floors away from where I was supposed to be. Yeah. Great morning.

Anyway, I DO have bursitis. But as I suspected, the bursitis is secondary to the original pain. THAT is caused by TWO -- count 'em -- TWO syndromes: Scapulocostal Syndrome, and Trapezius Syndrome. These are apparently caused by lots of typing and poor sitting posture and can be rather common in women of my age who have office/desk/typing jobs. I think if you look them up in the dictionary, there is a picture of me there.

So, I got a nice shot of cortasone for the bursa, and then THREE shots at my various 'trigger' points on my scapula area. Fuckin' meow. I'll go back in two weeks to see if I need another round of shots or not. I hope not. They kind of hurt a little. And when I say, 'a little', I mean, 'a REAL fucking lot'. And we'll also check my left shoulder bursa, because I do have some bursitis there too, but it's not really causing pain right now (unless you poke it) so he didn't give it a shot today.

Hopefully, I'm on the mend now.

Shoulder update

Still having a problem. The worst is during the night and in the morning. I can only sleep flat on my back; anything else causes pain in my arm. But I don't like to, and barely can, sleep on my back, so I wake up several times a night, in pain anyway. So I'm basically tired every day. In the morning I use the heating pad for about 20 minutes before even getting out of bed. Then the whole routine of washing, brushing teeth, etc, and driving to work...all painful. So by the time I get to work, I just sit and eat my breakfast and use the heating pad for the first half hour. After a few hours of being up and moving, it feels better. I still have not used the mouse with my right hand, but I am doing a little bit of typing. And I ice it several times a day, and take Tylenol. Most nights I can do the dishes. And yesterday, I did ALL the laundry (seven loads). The boy helped. He's cool. This past Wednesday I went to the doctor (my GP). And even though I didn't think it was bursitis, it is. I guess that when the bursa first swelled up it must have pinched a nerve and that was what the original pain was. But now that the doctor has poked and prodded my bursa, that hurts now, like proper bursitis should. Doc confirmed my thoughts that I DO need to avoid ALL of the NSAIDs. Even aspirin. And I've been referred to the Ortho guy for my only other course of action: cortisone shots. Earliest appointment is this coming Wednesday. Huzzah.

Stolen from Menley Nin

Career meme

1. Go to Career Cruising,www.careercruising.com

2. Put in Username: nycareers and Password: landmark.

3. Take their "Career Matchmaker" questions.

4. Post the top twenty results

My results:

1.
Logistics Specialist

2.
Medical Secretary

3.
Gunsmith

4.
Cartographer

5.
Dental Lab Tech

6.
Health Records Professional

7.
Upholsterer

8.
GIS Specialist

9.
Bookkeeper

10.
Picture Framer

11.
Manufacturing Machine Operator

12.
Furniture Finisher

13.
Administrative Assistant

14.
Telephone Operator

15.
Bank Teller

16.
Tailor / Dressmaker

17.
Postal Clerk

18.
Quality Controller

19.
Air Traffic Controller

20.
Electronics Assembler

21.
Purchaser

22.
Cabinetmaker

23.
Printing Press Operator

24.
Machinist

25.
Computer Network Specialist

26.
Tool and Die Maker

27.
Ship's Crew

28.
Bicycle Mechanic

29.
Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner

30.
Production Woodworker

31.
Musical Instrument Builder and Repairer

32.
Sheet Metal Worker

33.
Mathematician

34.
Humanitarian Aid Worker

35.
Enlisted Member of the Armed Forces

36.
Security Systems Technician

37.
Boilermaker

38.
Welder

39.
Automotive Painter

40.
Vending Machine Servicer

Please, just shoot me now

My shoulder is fucking killing me. I've been using ice, using heat, and taking Tylenol (I can't take ibuprofin, I'm allergic). It's been a week, now. My boss is being great, in that I left two hours early Monday (our busiest day), and I've been spending the past few days doing stuff other than my usual stuff, just because of the shoulder. I have been using my left hand for the mouse and doing as little two-hand typing as possible. But I feel useless and stupid. I hate it. And my co-workers are helping me out, for which I am grateful, but it makes me feel...bad or stupid or something.

Last week, Phil massaged my shoulder. On Monday, Joan massaged my shoulder. Yesterday Judy loaned me her shawl, as her mother always told her that wool helps these things. Today, Louise went out on her lunch time to pick up some Arnica gel for me at the Vitamin Shoppe. Then Judy got me a different chair to use and gave me her mousepad (I'm pretty darn sure this problem started due to bad ergonomics at work here), then she rubbed the Arnica gel in and massaged my shoulder. These are great people, here.

But this hurts and it's tiring and I want to feel better and I want to be able to do my job, and some housework, too.


Would I like some cheese with this whine?

Shark Boy doesn't live here anymore.

Yesterday morning, The Boy and I went to the orthodontist. He had x-rays taken, impressions done, and spacers placed between some molars on the bottom. As we were leaving, we stopped at the desk to make an appointment for his five tooth extractions. And were told there was an open appointment right then. And, well, The Boy and I really haven't done anything spontaneous lately, so we went for it. Ouch. There was pain. And anger. I'm actually kind of suprised he didn't kill me in my sleep. And then there was a lot of ibuprofin and Tylenol, and ice cream, and butterscotch pudding, and yogurt. He was pretty hungry but couldn't really eat anything solid at all, or even anything warm.

Today, he's back to school. I loaded him up with ibuprofin first. I think it's a good sign that all he's complaining about is the pain of the spacers on the bottom (which I still feel bad about, but at least the extractions don't hurt anymore). I've packed his lunch with an Uncrustable sandwich, a banana, yogurt, and applesauce. We'll see how that works out for him. Tonight, we might try spaghetti.

Goodbye, Shark Boy.

VOTE!

Vote for Serenity as top Sci-fi movie.

My boy is awesome

Today, I showed him these 20 year old pictures of me:



He looked, kind of disbelievingly, and said, "that's you??"

I said, "Yes, that's me. What do you think?"

And my angel pointed at me and replied, "This I see as my beautiful mother", then he pointed at the pictures and said, "and this is a supermodel!"

Scene from my living room:

The Boy selects a popsicle and heads for the living room. I put the box away, and turn to find him eating it on the sofa (which he knows is expressly forbidden). Boy sees me see him, and quickly leans forward, with an air of I've-been-leaning-forward-this-whole-time-no-of-course-I-wasn't-eating-on-the-couch about him.

Me: Did ya forget I have eyes?

Boy: Yeah...






Me (earlier, as the boy searched in vain for a purple popsicle, vehemently refused an orange one, and finally settled on a red): Poor orange. Nobody likes orange. Orange is the red-headed step-child of popsicles.

I NEVER thought this would be a mother-son activity

Today, my boy and I waxed our eyebrows together.

He'd been complaining about the unibrow he's developing. So I offered to wax it for him, and he readily agreed. While I heated the wax up, I realized I'm way overdue for my own eyebrows. Plus, I thought it would be easier for him if he saw me do it first. So I did mine. Then I applied the wax between his brows, and he ripped it off.

It was such a bonding experience. ;)