Take A Bow January...

Somehow, the 1st month of 2014 is already over & done with.  That went quick.  I guess it just seemed that way because the month was filled a lot of unfun things for my household.  There were health issues & computer issues.  There were problems with my pharmacy, the van & getting our new phones.

This is the 1st month in a while that we won't meet our monthly rain totals.  It  might rain later int he day.  If not we're leaving this month nearly 2" under what we should've gotten this month in precipitation.    It's weird to have fire bans in January.

We're warm today.  We've made it into the mid 50's F & aren't supposed to get much colder tonight.  After today however, we drop back down into the 30's.  That's alright, that's more like what we should be anyway.

January could've been worse, but I'm seriously hoping February is way better.  Least it's not as long.  So far long January, until next year.

Cya...

Windy Day...

The wind is whipping & it's still fairly cold here.  My head is pounding from sinus issues & I'm really ready for this season to be over.  I know we need the cold & hopefully more precipitation, but enough already with the weird, roller coaster temps & blasting winds.  My head is killing me already.

I've never been a fan of Winter & this isn't helping the matter any.  Even though we've been fairly humid this season, we're way under our average, monthly rain totals.  We've had a fire ban in place for a while here.

We thought we'd lost the outdoor cat Clementine.  I hadn't seen him in over a week.  I assumed either someone had taken him in during the cold or he'd met his end.   I looked out the window this morning & there he was.   I'm not sure where he was, but he's back now & seems none the worse for wear.

There's little to do today & I'm happy about that.  Yesterday was a bit tiring for both of us. We need not tho be bothered with anything for a bit. 

Cya...

Cold & Busy...

OK, it is seriously cold here, it's still in the teens.  We might make it to the 40's today.  This is supposed to the last really cold day for a while.  I hope so.  My fingers are so cold  & swollen from this mess I can barely type a few characters without making a mistake.    This is taking forever.

I have a lot of errands to do today, both inside & out of the house.  I'm not happy about going out in the cold, but I have to go pick up my roomie from Fort Smith.  It's her 1st serious excursion out of the house in weeks that hasn't involved something medical.    I hope her day goes well.

Anyway, I've got things to do, bills to pay & trash to take out.  I will type more tomorrow.   Hopefully, it'll be warmer.

Cya...

Another Tuesday...

Not much going here today,  My roomie & I are just trying to get our normal routines back.   Between her medical stuff, my feeling off & the damn weird weather, getting back to normal is no small feat.  Even as loose as our definition of normal is.

When it's this cold, it's hard for me to get motivated to do much of anything.  I hate the cold.  Still, we try.

I have 2 appointments in February.  I  need to see my specialist & my dentist.   Both are regular visits, nothing to be concerned.  At least as far as I know.

January is winding down already.  This 1st month of 2014 has definitely made an impact.  It could've been worse, but it could've been better.  I'm mainly back into my exercise routine.  That's a perk for me.  I plan on adding to it next month.  Here's hoping February is in a good mood this year.

Cya...

Bit Rushed...

We're cold today & I had to run out this morning to get blood drawn for my lab work.  My appointment is the 3rd Wednesday in February, but I wanted to give the lab time for a redraw if there's a screw up.  I got up early in hopes of missing a rush.  That didn't work out as well as I had hoped it would.  The out-patient area at the hospital was packed.  I finally got through it & got my blood drawn.

I put off a lot I normally do in the morning, so I could get around on time for this.  Now, I'm playing catch up.   Which is why I'm rushing a bit now.  Mondays have a tendency to get rushed for me.  It seems if I have nothing planned they go by slowly.  If I have a single thing planned, then everything else has to happen at the same time.  

Here's hoping my labs go well.   These things always make me nervous.  You think you're fine, but you never known until the results get back.  For now, I wait.

Cya...

8 - 71 F...

2 days ago it was 8 F in the morning.  I was not a happy camper being that cold.  Today on the other hand, is supposed to get to 71 F.  My head is spinning from sinus pressure.  To hell with there being no screw ups in the weather & global warming.  Several times this month the jet stream has been so off, the lower 48 states (US) have been colder than Alaska.  That is not supposed to be.

I'm not feeling well today.  I have to go get my blood drawn tomorrow & it's supposed to be very cold again.  My hands & feet are having a hell of time. The chillblains really react to sudden surges in warmth.  I just about got my hands over this, but this warm up has them swollen again.

We went shopping this morning & it wore me out.  I didn't sleep well last night.  I'll be glad when we get a more normal weather pattern back.  That'll probably never happen.  Oh well, I'll do my best to stay comfortable.

Cya...

Back...

Blogger is cooperating more today.  A lot of Google's products had issues yesterday.  I'm not sure what happened, but I'm glad they got them fixed.

My roomie's situation is being more actively dealt with & that's lessening the stress in the house.  The unknown is always a point of contention.  You can't make plans for the unknown, because you don't know what it is you're planning for.  This leaves you feeling anxious & fairly helpless.

We did our best (mostly her) to come up with possible plans of action in case of various scenarios.  Right now she has 2.  Number 1 is the preferred more effeceint route.  The 2nd, is the in case of plan 1's failure.  

That doesn't leave much room & she can't start dealing with it further for a while, but at least we have plans.  Sometimes having a plan is enough to settle your mind.  If you do have to do something, having a plan can make things go smoother in a bad situation.  

Of course all plans can fall to pieces the moment they're implemented.  Still it's better to have 1 & see where it gets you, as opposed to being totally unprepared.   Here's hoping plan 1 goes well. 

Cya...

Blogger Is Screwed...

I have no idea what's up with Blogger, but it took me almost an hour just to get in & then it kicked me out 3 times.  So that's all for today.  This 1 is on Blogger not me.

Cya...

Brief...

I'm going to take my roomie to her regular physician today.  Finally, she's getting in to see this person.  I have no idea what to expect from this appointment.  The possibilities are numerous, including this doctor does nothing at all.  

For myself, the process has become annoying.  There's little I can do in the way of helping the matter & those who could, aren't doing so.  For my roomie, this ongoing incident has proven to be beyond trying.  There's only so much a person can be expected to put up with before they have to start making some serious adjustments in how their situation is being handled.  

Again, I don't know what to expect from this meeting.  Hopefully, it will go well.  If not, this will just be the 1st step in a new course of action.  Albeit a new approach maybe appropriate, the timing sucks.

Oh well, fingers crossed.

Cya...

Annoyed...

Right now, it's a little hard to think about this blog.   My allergies are kicking in, yes in January, I'm having to deal with allergies.   The weather has done a fairly good snap back to the cold side.  Maybe this will knock the allergens down a bit.

There's a disturbance in our house right now.  My roomie is going through a medical issue (I won't go into detail, that's her's to divulge) & it's proving to be taxing.   The issue is enough of a thing to go through, but the reaction, or lack thereof, she's getting from her doctor is even worse.  

Perhaps, this issue doesn't seem as anything significant to a doctor who hasn't even seen the my roomie, but to her it's become almost debilitating. She has an appointment with this doctor on Friday.   At that point she'll be faced with an even greater stress, how to deal with this unresponsive medical ass.  

It's quite likely she'll have to look into getting a new physician, oh f'n yippie!  Getting a new doctor when you're healthy is trying enough.  I'm not sure what's going to happen, but something has to for my roomie's sake & it needs to start happening soon.  

You are never under any obligation to stay with a medical professional who treats your healthcare as their part-time hobby.  Still the process of finding a new doctor is frustrating.  The whole bother of the thing is probably why most people don't do it.   Still, I'm wishing some seriously bad things on my roomie's doctor right now.

Cya....

What?

I looked at Weather.com this morning & was surprised to see we had an alert.  These are usually reserved for inclement weather & the like.   We've cooled back down a bit, but nothing severe.  There were no signs of extreme weather.   What was this alert about?

Pollen.   It was a high pollen alert.  A high allergen alert in mid January.    There shouldn't be anything growing in Oklahoma midwinter.  Still, there it was, a high pollen alert.

That explains at least 1 of the reasons I've felt like crap the last couple of days.  This has been an extremely odd Winter so far.  We've vacillated between frigid & unseasonably warm.  We've been wetter than normal & then arid.  Now, we're dealing with Winter pollen counts.  This sucks.  If this keeps up, I may have to break out my Claritin, I'm already using allergy eye drops.

Cya...

Shoot Him...

According to this article & many others across the net today, HIV + Michael Johnson was charged with exposing sexual partners to the virus.  The 22 year old not only knowingly exposed his partners, but he filmed the occurrences.  There are at least 32 of these incidents.

It's everyone's personal responsibility to protect themselves from HIV & STD's.   That does not excuse Mr. Johnson's behavior.   While exposing these people to the virus, he secretly filmed these encounters.

 IMO, this man is a serial killer.  I realize treatment is available.  I know his victims had choices, but so did he.  He willingly altered their lives.  The lives these people had are forever, irrevocably changed.  For what reason?  So this sick bastard could get his jollies laughing as he infected them.   He even has souvenirs of his escapades.  

This man deserves to be put down.  He's far worse than a rabid dog & should be put down.  This is the time to realize that bullets are cheap. Shoot the SOB.

Sorry for the ranting.

Cya....

Too Warm & Windy...

We shouldn't be in the 60's F during January here in Oklahoma.  At best we should be hitting upper 40's during the day & dropping down into the 20's at night.   We're warm enough to have mild allergy alerts.  

My eyes are itchy & my sinuses are congested.  This have left me with a low grade fever.  Things like this are trying on a healthy person, but they're taxing as hell for me.  

This weather has left me tired & feeling rundown.  I'm still having nosebleeds.  I've been sleeping a lot, but that's only taking the edge off of this tiredness.  I can't believe I actually want it to chill back down.  Oh yes & for the damn wind to settle down for a while.

Cya...

Atmospheric Issues...

Even though it's been unseasonably warm here. We've still had the heaters going in the house & car.  My nose & sinuses hate heaters.  I can handle it for a while & then the dry air gets to me.  Then the problem begins.  I get nosebleeds.

They're not bad, just annoying & way too frequent.  I can usually get them to stop very quickly.  But, they get tiresome.  For someone who's +, it means constantly having to make sure you got every drop cleaned away.  You don't want to contaminate anyone.

The drier air & the shifts between it & moister air are the bane of nose during the cold months.  I can get nosebleeds from allergy pills as well, but they're usually less frequent & far easier too deal with.  Besides the cold, we've also had a lot of wind this last week blowing everything up in the air.   That's not helpful at all when you're trying to get your nose to calm down.

Oh well, just another seasonal issue like colds & chillblains. Not much you can do about it, except push forward.  

Cya...

Have To Run

Sorry, but no post today.  I have to run my roomie on an emergency.  I have no idea how long this will take.  More later.

Cya...

Not Much...

There isn't much going on here today besides warring with a stubborn program that doesn't want to be removed.   I'm glad there isn't much going on, we could use a breather with nothing going sideways or having to run errands to Fort Smith.  There's a lot of catch TV watching to do. Then some cooking. That's about all for the day.   

The net seems fairly absent of articles that I want to cover. Many of them are repeat topics.  Another dentist is causing issues due to negligence, this time in Sydney.  It's mostly just the same old right now in article land.

We're mid way through January & nearly a month in Winter.  Other than the wind, the last few days have been warm. We're supposed to be dropping back into more seasonally appropriate weather later this week. 

Here's hoping for a calm remainder of the month.

Cya...

Just Getting Back...

My roomie has a development requiring us to make a trip to Fort Smith.  This is making my morning a bit rushed.   Somehow, Wednesdays are almost always busy for me.   Anyway we have to run over & pick up some things & it'll be a little later getting back. 

We have errands & then driving home to take out trash.  I'm really hoping my phone is in today.  It's over a week since I ordered them from the store.

Other than being a bit rushed, I'm doing fairly well today.  I hope everyone else is doing as well as possible.  Until tomorrow.

Cya...

Still Warm & Waiting...

It's still warm here & I'm still waiting on my new phone.  It was supposed to be here Friday,  but it wasn't.  I called yesterday & they said it will be here today.  That's what I get for going to the local store & not going over to Fort Smith.   If it's local, it pretty much sucks.  Except my mechanic & doctor.

Just getting through the month & lounging in the warmth while it's here.  I have to get labs drawn this month for a specialist appointment in February.   Other than that, everything is pretty much SOSO.  Hopefully, it stays that way.

Cya...

Still Here...

The warm weather is still here but at least the wind has died down.  The winds yesterday were rather extreme considering there wasn't a storm.  I'm mostly caught up on the new computer.  I'm just waiting for some stuff to arrive for it.  I'm also working on getting our laptop up to speed.  It was bought when we 1st thought mine desktop was dying.  It's taken all day just to get the updates started.

The problem with things like the computer is that they never go as planned.  As much as you try to organize the process, things you didn't count on always pop up demanding attention.  

I'm still feeling a little off from the weather shift. I'll probably get used to things right as the temps nose dive again.  That seems to be how things go with me.  

I was really hoping January would be a less stressful month.  So far, it's been more stressful than I'd cared for, maybe the rest of the month will calm down.  

For now, I'm just catching up with things.  I'm trying to get things in my life squared away again.    But like Sondheim said, "I'm still here."

Cya...

Keeping This Short...

Somehow, it's 70 F here in January after being frigid last week.  My head feels like crap from this.  I had to go out & get some more DVD-R's to do backups for the new computer.  I'd done them, but after the update to Windows 8.1, I have to do them again.  

The wind is ballistic today.  We're holding steady at winds of  26 mph from the SSW.  The gust are getting up to 52 mph.  The humidity is way down.  The leaves & dust are getting swirled into the air.  Not good for my breathing.

I'm glad I'm in for the rest of the day.  It's so weird to be this warm after being that cold.   Flu has been hitting pretty hard here in Oklahoma.  This kind of weather will only aggravate that situation.  It looks like we're going to warm for the next few day.  I just hope it gets back to being seasonal weather.

Cya...

Snap Weather...

After a rather nasty bout of frigid weather, we've snapped back.  Unfortunately, we've gone too far the other way.  Yesterday was in the mid 50's F.   The rest of the week is supposed to be that warmer or even into the low 60's.   

I love the warmth, but it happened so quickly that my head is spinning.  My sinuses are seriously off & I've been coughing a lot to clear my throat.  These rapid weather shifts are hell on me.

I'm slowly working my way through my new computer set up.  I've just not been up to rushing through it.  The beginning of 2014 has been rough so far.  It's warm now, but I know we're going to cold again.   I hope the rest of Winter isn't like this.

Cya...

Bye Bye Gecko...

Hello Progressive.  I've been busy with a bit lately.  1 of the things occupying me was my car insurance.  Geico had raised my rates twice in the last 2 years & it had nothing to do with my driving.  It was going to have my rate at $185 US  for just liability & no uninsured motorist on a '94 Mazda.  They left me no choice but to shop around.

Esurance quoted me nearly the same rate.  But, Progressive was $138, which included uninsured motorist.  I could've dropped down to 125 if I'd not taken the uninsured part.  Still it dropped me nearly $50.

The point is simple, you have to keep on top of these things.  I didn't intend on changing insurance agencies, but Geico's rates were ridiculous for a 20 year old car with nearly 300K miles on it.  I really don't like having to change things once I've got them where I like them, but sometimes you have no choice.

That's happened with both my insurance & my computer this month.  I'm also changing my phone plan & phone.  At least I choose those changes.  It may be time to see what else in my life & routine needs reevaluation.  I'm looking at you CVS pharmacy.  I 'd love it if I could change that.

Cya...

Still Recovering...

I feel better today, but still not up to par.  These things usually take a few days for me to get past.   That sucks, but at least I don't have much to do today.  

I'm still trying to set up my new computer.  I'm also still waiting on the last part of my meds delivery which they screwed up on Monday.  I couldn't really go anywhere even if I wanted to, because I'm stuck here waiting on  meds.

A lot of places around us got hit with some nasty ice & freezing rain.  It's cold & wet here, but no real ice that I can see.  For that I'm thankful.

Hopefully, things will settle down more & I'll feel better tomorrow.

Cya...

Overdone...

I got a good reminder I'm not the most healthy person yesterday.  Monday, I had to run to Fort Smith & get a new computer.  I had to go by myself because I was expecting my meds.  My roomie stayed home to sign for them.  (Of course they didn't arrive until after I got home, but if she'd gone they'd been there early).  Then the idiotic pharmacy screwed up my order again.

Yesterday, I had a lot of errands to run.  We were just getting ready to go & then we noticed the damn tire on the van was low again.  That cost an hour & a half to get fixed.   What were looking for in Fort Smith was eluding us & I finally found it at the 4th store we hit.  What should've taken a couple of hours, wound up taking over 5.

Between the weather, stress (from tires & change in schedule), the driving & the irritation of other people's driving I was suddenly left exhausted.   I haven't done that to myself in a while & I don't plan on doing it again any time soon.  I am not that healthy & even if I feel alright at the beginning of the day it doesn't mean I will halfway through it.  

I pushed too much Monday & Tuesday.  Nothing seemed all that big at the time, but all that little crap added up & zapped me.  When I say exhausted, I don't mean tired.  I mean my energy is just gone.  There is no slow tapering off like when you get tired.  This is like you're a vacuum cleaner someone just unplugged.  

The biggest problem with this is, a single night's sleep won't remedy the situation.  It may take a few days of doing little to nothing before I feel well again.  I had to get trash out & I'll do some cooking, but beyond that, nothing much is getting done today.   I hate it when I push myself like that.  It's just another thing no one tells you about being + & in your 40's.

Cya...

Blogger & Tires...

Blogger will barely let me in here today.  I have errands to run.  Add to that the van's tire is flat again.  I have stuff to do, a computer to set up & an uncooperative Blogger.  Hopefully, tomorrow will be back to normal.

Cya...

Gotta Go...

Sorry, no real post today.  My computer is dying & I have to go get another 1. Until tomorrow.

Cya...

Cold Fingers...

We've hit our high today of 24 F.  For now we're fortunate & there's no wind.  There's a light snow over snow frozen mist.  By this evening, the winds will begin & we're supposed to be at 10 F before the windchill.  

I seriously dislike cold weather.   My fingers are cold & I'm bundled to the point that typing is a real pain.  I'm making more typos than I ever do.  

Tomorrow is supposed to be as cold. Luckily, beyond that we're supposed to warm up a bit.  I'm looking forward to warmer days.  I've already replaced the outdoor animals water once today because it was frozen.  When I looked out just a bit ago, it was nearly frozen again.  I'll have to keep changing it.

Wherever you are, I hope you're warm.

Cya...

Headed Into Serious Cold...

There's supposed to be a big Arctic push into our area.  It looks as if we'll be spared most of the major snow, but the cold is another matter.  The overnight colds for the next few nights could be into the single digits for the 1st time this year.  Hopefully, it won't get that cold.

I am not, nor will I ever be, a fan of weather below 40 F.   I'd prefer it if the temperature stayed between 60 - 95.  Having to wear layers, keep the heaters on & be bundled in blankets is not my idea of a good time.  It plays havoc on my sinuses, muscles & skin.

Still, it is Winter & this is what the season does.  I still don't like it.  Bears have the right idea, sleep through the whole blasted thing.  If we don't freeze solid, I'll blog more tomorrow.

Cya...

PS.  I realize many places get colder than here & all I can say to that is, it sucks to be where you're at.

Anniversaries For Me & My Blog...

Yes, There are 2 anniversaries today.  1st is my HIV-Day.  On this day, back in 2000, I was diagnosed  HIV +.    This announcements altered many things in my life.  Well, most things actually, but not all.  

It wasn't until 3 years ago that I decided to start blogging about it.  This is the 3rd year of this blog.  It's still going & doing what it's supposed to, at least for me.  

I have spent almost 30% of my life as a + person.   I've had a lot of ups & downs since then.  I'm hoping to try for more ups than downs this year.  Maybe I can actually start adding more to my life.

The blog will continue.  As usual, I'm never entirely sure which way it'll go.  It'll take whatever route it needs to, I suppose.

In  recognition of these days, I say cheers & here's to next year.

Cya...

Power Blips...

OK, I've tried to write this post 3 times now & we keep having blips in our electricity. I can barely get into Blogger before the power goes out again.  I"m not sure why it's doing this, but it is.  I'll post more tomorrow.   Sorry about the short post.

Cya...

January 01, 2014...

This is the 1st time I've written the a date with the new year.  It's always something tricky.  It usually takes me a bit to get into the habit of writing the new number.  Still, it is now 2014, not 2013.

I have reasonable hopes for this year.  I hope there are more positive moments & less stress.  It would be very nice to make it through the year without 1 of the cats being seriously ill or worse.  I'd like less car drama.

My roomie believes what you do the 1st day of the year will impact the remainder.  Today, we both got our exercise in.  We ate a good breakfast.  Took our meds.  There were no major issues this morning.  Finally, we took out the trash.  

I think the last 1 is the most potent.   We rid ourselves of things no longer beneficial or productive in our lives.  I think that's a great thing.

So, 1 last time, Good-Bye 2013.  Welcome 2014, lets see what you might bring to my life.  

Cya...