Heading Out...

We're going to see a movie if all goes well today.  We have to go do some shopping & then wait to see if we hear back from the repairman we had to call about the washing machine.  It's been giving us problems. 

If he gets here & does his thing in time, we'll head for the theater.   If not, we'll just go get some Chinese food.  What a Halloween tradition.   

Actually, we had our major point of Halloween last night.  We watched the Great Pumpkin.  It's not my fav Charlie Brown, but it's probably  my 2nd.   Peanuts, is always an odd thing for me.  I always liked the idea of it more than I actually liked the strip.   Its a great comic & has some wonderful parts.  Still, I never connected to it as a work, as much as I did an idea.   Or maybe that's an ideal.  

Whatever it may be, it's still part of our tradition.  Lucy & Linus Van Pelt will always be my favorite characters of the strip.   Maybe next year Linus will find the right pumpkin patch.

Have a great Halloween everyone.

Cya...

Early Morning...

I'm getting out of here a little early this morning.  I need to go have my blood drawn for lab work.  I have a specialist appointment in mid November.  It'll take at least a week for my labs to come back.  The extra time covers me in case I have to a redraw.

I'm getting my 4 basic labs:

1.  CBC

2.  CMP

3.  CD4

4.  HIV-VL Ultrasensitive  Quantitative 

It's cooling down again.  Everything looks pretty damp out there.   Hopefully, it won't be too chilly yet.  My blood doesn't like cool mornings, makes the veins hide.  

More tomorrow.

Cya....

Another Trash Day...

Once again, trash has been drug to the curb.  It was easier this week.  I think I'm getting over whatever knocked 2 weeks ago.   I still feel off, but that's due to the ragweed.  

We're still figuring out plans for what we'll do on Halloween.  Probably a movie, but which 1?  On Saturday, I'll go raid the leftover candy at Walmart.

2 days & October is over.  Just 2 more months in 2014.  This year has flown by, the situational stress, made it seem to blur.   Now on to the holiday season.  I'll try not to bah humbug.  Seriously, I'll try.

Cya...

Ragweed...

 According to Pollen.com, we're having a low allergy day.  Tell that to my eyes, nose & throat.    The problem is simple, the only allergen listed for my area today, is 1 I'm especially reactive to, ragweed.  

I've wrote about this nasty piece of work before.  I hate it.  I can't see my screen clearly right now, because all the grit in my eyes from this stuff.  

I was hoping last night's rain would wash it away.  If anything, it stirred things up a lot.  My head is not in a good place because of this.  

That's all for now.  Looking at the monitor is not fun right now.  Until tomorrow.  

Death to ragweed.

Cya....

Revving Up...

We're supposed to get a storm sometime today.    It feels like it.  It was windy all night & it's gotten more so this morning.   The weather should cool down a bit after this.  The 80's were nice, but the high humidity wasn't.  Maybe the rain will wash away some of the stickiness.

I'm not sure what has become of Clementine, the outdoor cat that got sick.   I haven't seen in a couple of days, but that's not uncommon.  He disappears for weeks some times.   He's never stayed put long enough for me to even try medicating him.  I can't bring him inside with my older cats.   Hopefully, if his end comes, it'll be quick.  He's a good cat, just not interested in being an indoor cat.

We have a new kitten outside,  He's been here since about August.  He's feral.   The momma cat was around a bit.  She'd only let me get near enough to pet her if I had food.  This little black bolt won't even do that.  I don't know it's male or female.  It'll watch me put food out from around the corner.  It's gotten to where it'll meow if it's hungry.  That's a step.  Usually, I only have to work a cat for a few days, at most a week, before I get them to come to me.  This guy is having none of it.

We went shopping.  The store was busy.  I'm glad we're back in now,  My head isn't feeling all that well.   I'm looking forward to the rain.  Hopefully, I'll breath better afterwards.

Cya...

Last Sunday...

This is the last Sunday of October.   This month has flown by.  I think it's because this has been the 1st month in a long time we weren't spending the entire time focused on some potentially, life threatening issue.  There's been no huge crisis, no runs to doctors in Tulsa, no major break downs.  

Even so, once we let our guard down, all the built up tensions of the year finally started creeping out.  There was a lot of pent up anxiety this year.   Now, we're in a place when it can start emerging.

I'm glad this the last Sunday of this month.  After the 1st weekend of November, the time change happens & I get my hour back.   More importantly, I get some light in my room in the morning.  I really am not a fan of this time of the year.  Albeit, I hate it getting dark at 4:30, I also detest waking up at almost 8:00 AM & it being dark outside.

I'll need to have blood drawn soon.  Halloween is this Friday.  Maybe we'll find a decent movie to see.  My roomie's normal plans are off due to another friend who's very pregnant.  There's always next Halloween for that.

Have a great rest of October.

Cya...

Willingly...

There have numerous news articles about people purposely exposing others to HIV.  Maybe the exact purpose wasn't to infect them.  The fact is, these people who knew they were + willingly engaged in unprotected sex.  That alone is intolerable & should be punishable.  However, in many cases the other party could've insisted upon using a condom.  

Yesterday, there were reports of a Texan who raped a girl & young child,  He was + & transmitted the virus to his victims.  They were targets of an assault,  They had no choice & now there already shattered lives are furthered injured by this virus.   This man does not deserve jail time, he deserves a rope.

I understand why people want to take laws that criminalize HIV or discriminate against + people off the books.  At the same time, these people should be prosecuted further than other rapists.   They transmitted an illness they knew they had.  HIV may not be a death sentence these days, but it's far from the living the life anyone had before they were diagnosed as +.

If you willingly & knowingly transmit HIV, HEP C or any other similar illness you should be put down.   Any person who would do that is nothing more than a rabid animal.  They are not only endangering the health of this other person, but the community at large. What if the victim for whatever reason doesn't go to the authorities.  They might not know they are + & could continue to spread the virus.

Knowingly transmitting HIV to another is heinous & should forfeit that person's right to life.

Cya...

Another Friday...

I woke up to a wall of fog outside my window this morning.   It was chilly & damp.  Still we had shopping to handle.   We made it through another ordeal with Walmart.  

The sick outdoor kitty, is still with us.  Apparently, Animal Control didn't see our call as being of any significance.  I don't care for this little town much.   So for now, the cat lingers & coughs.

It's finally cleared & started to warm up a bit.  We're supposed to get to 80 F.  That will be nice.  It'd be nicer if this humidity would go away for a while. 

Next Friday is Halloween.   We're working our way of October.  This month has flown by.  Have a good weekend everyone.

Cya...

Sad Kitty...

1 of the outdoor cats, Clementine, is nearing the end.  He's had a respiratory issue since this Summer.  We've tried to do what we can, which isn't much I'm afraid.  I'm not sure if it's viral, cancer or he got hit by something.  His gait's been off since then as well.

Other cat's I would've taken to the vet & dealt with whatever meds were to be given.  But this boy doesn't stay put.  He wonders off for days or weeks at a time.  Today was the 1st day we've seen him in just over a week.   He looks horrible & sounds worse.

I don't want to handle him too much.  I have to make sure I wash well enough not to spread anything to the indoor cats.  We had to make a decision.

We didn't like it, but we decided to call animal control.  He's obviously in pain & my vet won't just let me bring him in without an appointment,   By that time he'll be gone again.  This cat is not in a good way & likely in a fair amount of pain.  I hate calling them, but maybe they can put the poor guy down.  I seriously hate this.  

Cya...

Trash Day, A Week Later...

For the past couple of weeks I've been in a slump.  I've had very little energy & was feeling poorly.  I wasn't doing bad in any particular way, I was just exhausted & weak.  Taking trash out last week, or doing much of anything, was a serious exertion for me.

I took the trash out today & didn't really notice it. Mind you, I collected it earlier in the day.  Still I walked the yard looking for fire ants.  I'm not great, but I'm far better than last Wednesday.  

I made an appointment with my dentist for the 1st week of November,  If all holds, this will be my last major dental work for a while.  I started this over 5 years ago.  I went in for an exam & then freaked out at the estimate for all the work.  I eventually got dental insurance & have been picking away at it ever since.  I've had to put several $1,000 into my dental health over the last few years, but I'm almost done.

I'll get blood drawn towards the end of the month.   I have an appointment with my HIV specialist mid November.  It should go smoothly.

That's all for now.

Cya,,,

Don't Tell Me...

This article is long, but needs to be & it should be read.  It details a possible link between the injectable contraceptive, Pfizer's Depo-Provera & the transmission of HIV.   It may be this hormone based medication exacerbates  the situation & leads to up to 2X the possibility for transmission of the virus.

The problem here is the data concerning this matter has been gathered via observation & not clinical trials.   That doesn't mean that the data is wrong, but it does mean it hasn't been proven to any significant level.  

Observational data led to the ice cream causes murder statement.  It said the more ice cream sold, the more murders that happened.   While this is true.  The murder rates weren't altered by the ice cream sales.  Instead both the murder rates & ice cream sales were both influenced by the same phenomenon, heat.  The hotter weather led to higher rates of violent crimes & ice cream sales.

Scientists are worried this accusation against Depo-Provera could be something similar.   The rub lies in the fact no one wants to fund a study to prove or discount this hypothesis.   Why?

If it's proven, then Depo will be impacted in a very negative manner.  It could mean many women's health groups have had an indirect part of spreading HIV.  It could take out a  cost effective & efficient means of birth control in poorer regions.   It would also impact the stocks of the companies making & distributing the medication.  

So far, this isn't a case of intentional pharmaceutical wrong doing.  However, if at any time this is proven & the people who could've funded this research refused, then that would be a different matter.  It would seem Pfizer would want this handled.  However, if they already know the answer, then it could be they're trying to go as far as they can before the sale of Depo-Provera is blocked.

I understand this a very widely used contraceptive.  However, if there is a possibility it's doubling chances for HIV infections, then people need answers, not avoidance strategies.   The charity groups seem worried about their image, the governments are worried about an increase in children being born & Pfizer is worried about the bottom line.  Who's worried about these women?

Even if it's proven to double the transmission rates, doesn't mean the sales or usage would stop.  It would just mean people had to be made aware of the possibility,  That isn't too much to ask of Pfizer. 

Cya...

Heading Out...

We have to head back out.  Morning shopping at Walmart was a partial bust.  Unfortunately it was items we needed that they didn't have in stock.  We've called over to Fort Smith & 1 of the 3 stores still has some in stock.  We're heading over to get them before that store sells out as well.

Half our trips to  Fort Smith are like this.  At least we called over 1st, instead just going over & finding nothing.  More tomorrow.

Cya....

Long Year So Far...

It's been a long, trying year so far.  Amazingly enough, neither the house nor cars were the source of the drama.  I haven't been my most healthy this year.  But that's nothing compared to what my roomie has gone through.

After a host of medical issues & surgeries, she's on the mend.  She still has to have follow ups, but so far that's all.  Still, understandably the emotional/psychological cost of these events have been taking their toll,

In this past year, she has undergone a lot of changes & events.  These health events have very trying, even for myself.   There have been a lot of unknowns & not so great possibilities.   As things seem to be settling down, the stress of the situation is starting to surface.

Whenever you go through a big event, especially something you had little or no choice in the matter, the situation can be overwhelming.  That emotional burden can come in waves long after the major action has taken place.  People often say, "OK, it happened, now it's time to get over it."  Some folks can, but a lot can't.   Telling someone to just get over it, is like telling them stop breathing.  They can't.   Things like cancer or other traumas scar us, they leave a permanent mark.   

I was diagnosed with HIV on January 3, 2001. I'm still coping with that development.  The ways it impacts my life & how I handle are constantly changing.   My parents divorced when I was 8, I still remember the day someone finally told me.  There are numerous nasty days in my life, days I don't want to dwell on, but they're always the back on my mind waiting for me to stumble over them. 

The point is, life marks us.  Some of these marks don't go away.  Some are nearly impossible to live with in any productive manner.  These marks & scars may make us who we are in life, but quite honestly, some of them I could've done without,  What would I have been like if I hadn't smoked for 16+ years?    Where would I be now if I hadn't contracted HIV?   These are things I'll never get to know,  Things I won't just get over.  

Before you tell someone, it's done, now time to move on with your life.   Remember, whatever happened marked them.  They aren't the same person anymore.   Nothing in their lives is exactly the same any more.  They have to come to terms that, if they can.  What you can or can't do, really isn't their problem, that's yours.

Cya...

Saturday Again...

I'm very happy we have nothing to do today.  My roomie & I could both use some nothing time.  Its a day to catch up on TV & that's about it.   With any luck, our neighbors won't be loud jack-asses.  There seriously needs to be a quiet day around here.

That's pretty much all I have.  I'm doing my best to be well, which isn't easy for me this time of the year.  Here's hoping for no major illnesses this Winter.  I'm making plans for my next dentist visit.  I have 1 remaining crown that needs replacing.  

Have a good weekend everyone.

Cya...

Somewhat Better...

We went shopping this morning.  I'm doing some better.  I don't feel like I'm dragging everywhere.   I was at least able to get the groceries in, even though they felt like they weighed far more than they should have. 

I'm dealing a  lot with the changes in seasons & light levels.  I'm not sure if I have full out Seasonal Affective Disorder, but my mood definitely alters as the light lessens.   I've looked at articles regarding SAD.  So far I don't see any direct relationship between it & HIV.  However, HIV does reduce my ability to cope with a lot of things.  This would mean that HIV was simply making me more susceptible to the effects of lessened light levels that come with Fall.

Luckily it's brighter & warmer today.  I can get a chance to bounce back a bit.  I'll take it easy for the rest of the day.

Cya...

Still Off...

Suddenlink struck again last night for almost 5 hours we had no internet.  They did Friday & Sunday Night.  I guess I can look forward to this in another night or so.    

It's weird whenever I comment on here about that company within a day or 2, I get a comment from a Suddenlink rep.   They want me to private email or to message them on the matter.  I don't.  There's nothing they can do about it.  

The physical nature of their equipment (cables, boxes, towers)  in my area is ancient.   This area didn't get cable until the mid 80's & I think most of the infrastructure is still from then.  Suddenlink needs to completely overhaul everything they have here, but they never will.  They'll just keep making crappy patches that never hold for more than a couple of days.  I feel sorry for their field guys, they bear the blunt of people's frustration with this horrible company.

I'm still feeling out of it & the net going out only added to my stress.  Yesterday was trash day & I barely got my part to the curb.    I was just too exhausted.  I'm still low on energy.  

Most people worry about crisis.  I can usually handle crisis.  It happens, I freak out for a bit.  Then  I focus on the matter to come up with the best plan I can to handle it.  

For me, it'll be the straws that make me snap.  I get the camel analogy.  It's not the loud boom of the crisis that gets to me,  It's the constant needling & aggravation of ever growing mounds of little BS that will cause me to lose it.  

Some people say that if "A" happens they'll be happy.  That never works.  Things/events don't make you really happy, you do, but sometimes you just can't.

There are things that can make it harder to be in a place where you can let yourself be happy or at least less stressed.  Getting rid of clutter helps me.  Eliminating as many problems as possible does wonders.  Unfortunately, there are some problems/issues you can't get rid or, at least not easily &/or possibly legally/ethically.  

For example, right now I live in an old, problematic house, with crappy internet, weird power outages, noisy neighbors, shitty outdoor dogs & with aging, annoying cats.    At the point, when 1 or more more these change for the better, my life will improve & hopefully my stress levels will lower.  

Albeit, external things or happenings can't really make you happier.  The removal of some of the crap, can make it less anxiety ridden.  Less anxiety means less stress.    That gives your chances at happiness a big boost.  So, do your best to take the stressful trash out of your life.  I will,

Cya...

Feeling Off...

I got up early & made it to my appointment this morning.  I hate waking up early when it's dark.  I'm morally opposed to rising at dark o'clock. 

The appointment went well.  I got my flu shot & my lab scripts.  I picked up something ot eat & went home.

We ate & then put put trash.  I'm exhausted.  I barely got the trash to the curb.  I noticed another couple of fie ant mounds.  I dealt with those & went back inside.

I'm achy & tired.  My allergies are going hard,  I'm probably shot for the rest of the day.  I'm not a fan of this time of the year. Or any time of the year that has allergens for that matter.

Cya...

PS:  Add to that, 1 of the cats is doing her best Pukezilla imitation...

Wind...

It was blowing hard all night.  I'm amazed limbs weren't littering the yard this morning.  It's still blowing & the net hasn't been that trustable lately.  This will be brief.

I'm feeling a bit better.  Hopefully, that will continue.  I still hate dreary Autumn weather & dark mornings.  The cats are driving me nuts.

I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow, early. I'm not sure how long a post I'll do tomorrow.  Wednesdays always turn out busy for me.  The appointment is routine & I'll order blood work while I'm there.   I'll have the labs drawn towards the end of the month.  I need to get my flu shot soon.  

Past that, all seems to be going well for a bit.  Maybe that'll hold out for us.  That would be nice.

Cya...

Not Well...

I've not felt all that well this weekend.  Thanks to storms last night, I'm not faring any better this morning.   On top of that, I had to go shopping in the wet.

I usually love thunderstorms during the rest of the year.  But. I've never been a fan of them during the Fall.   They mess with what precious little light I have & I get seriously sick of the dismals quick.  I hate grey, overcast skies.  They do nothing for my mood or how I feel physically.

We're back to that time of year when I have a hard time waking in the morning.  No morning sun leaves me groggy & irritable.  There's something about Autumn morning storms that tend to leave me with a headache.  

Here's hoping this rain crap leaves soon.  We don't need to give Suddenlink another reason to stop working for the 3rd time this week.  A crappy company for a dismal weekend.

Cya...

More Issues With Suddenlink...

My net just came back on & I have no idea how long it will stay going.   They've been crap all weekend.   I'll just post this & try to get back online tomorrow for more.  I'll be so glad when that damn company leaves my area.  

Cya...

Here We Go Again...

Yes, I'm a cynic on this matter.  This article details an Australian biotech company's successful trial in killing not only HIV, but also hepatitis C.  The article is brief, but the point is, after the subjects were administered the treatment they stayed at undetectable levels up to 60 weeks out.  

Pointer of concern here:

1. It's a trial, it hasn't been repeated yet
2. Having undetectable levels doesn't equal being cured
3. 60 weeks isn't that long
4. They say nothing of the costs or reactions

Not enough has been done to call this a cure.  I hate it when they used the word.  Even if it is a wondrous medication, we won't know the full ramifications of it for years to come.  It might be a cure, but the odds are against it.

I hate it when people publish things like this.  It's irresponsible & gives people false hope & expectations.   Then it's up to their doctors to tell them this drug isn't available yet & may never be.  Even if it turns out to be a great treatment, that doesn't equate to a cure.

Cya...

Storms A Brewing...

We're supposed to be heading into some serious thunder storms soon.  Its already dark & moderately raining.  If the storms hit, then the internet is probably doomed. 

I'll jot this down before the power starts blipping & the net dies altogether.   I'm not complaining, we need the rain.   Maybe it'll help all the mounds of mushrooms that have sprung up in the yard. 

I'm just glad we got shopping done before any major rain hit.  I hate unloading groceries in a downpour.  Until tomorrow.

Cya...

Not Much Today...

I'm feeling better than yesterday, but still not the greatest.  Allergens have kicked in pretty hard core.   It's left me with a lot of drainage & pissed off my throat.  

The weather is nice.  We're about to drop out of the 80's F for the rest of the year.  We're heading into some more rain & lower temps.  I'm still hoping we can make it fairly far into November before cranking up the stoves.  Out average balance on the gas bill is still running about $10 higher than it usually does.

A lot of new TV shows are starting & we're trying to keep up.  We've already chopped a few.   A couple were new this season, others weren't.  I hate getting to the point of axing a show we used to  like, but at the same time I like not dreading having to watch something that got ruined along the way by bad writing.  You should never feel like its a burden to watch a show.

That's it for now.

Cya...

Recovering...

After running our errands yesterday, we grabbed a bite to eat.  More like a lot of bites, we hit a buffet.  We managed not to stuff ourselves, but we still paid for it later.   

I hate it when you eat some where 1 time & everything is fine.  Then the next time things don't go as well.  I had this happen with a Pad Thai place last year.   The 1st time was great, not so much on the following visit.  The same happened at the buffet & for the same reason.  MSG.

I don't know why it is that I don't always react to the stuff.  I know plenty of people say it does nothing contrary whatsoever.  There's even been studies saying MSG does nothing bad to you.  To that, I call BS!

I don't always react to it, but when I do it's always the same.   I usually notice the taste isn't quite there, not bad, just  a little off from what it should be.  Within half an hour of eating it, I start feeling tired, bloated & get an annoying headache.  

By the time we got home, I was exhausted & my head was pounding.   I took off my shows & my feet vibrated from being so swollen.  It took me the rest of the day not to feel like crap.   I still feel a bit off & bloated this morning.  

There are worse things a restaurant can do than serve bad food.  They can have crappy service, rude staff, be unclean & any of those will make me stop going to that place,  To me, the worse thing a restaurant can do, is to be inconsistent.   I don't know what to expect from this buffet now.  I do know that at best it's a crap shoot.

Hopefully, this will be over with today.

Cya...

Need Out For A Bit...

I've been a bit restless lately, so has my roomie.  We've decided to head out for a bit.  Not sure what we're going to do, but we do have a couple of errands that need handling. 

I have a quarterly appointment with my primary care doctor next week.  I'll order blood work for my appointment with the specialist in November.    I need to get my flu shot soon.

I hope everyone has a great day.  

Cya...

Further Marginalized...

I've talked about how marginalization affects health before.   The point is the further a person is from the mainstream culture the more apt they are to be marginalized, isolated & suffer the consequences of the situation.   With HIV, it's how far you are from being a straight, white male, who's usually Christian.  With every step you take away from that "norm", you become more & more at risk for dangerous behavior, unsafe sex, lesser education, lesser opportunities.  Basically your chances for anything good or beneficial go down & the chances of bad things or detrimental events goes up.

I, like every person no longer in their 20's, has complained about having less in common with other people today.  Everyday I hear about people I grew up watching on TV or listening to on the radio have died.  There are very few of the places I went as a kid still standing as they were.  Skating rinks  & drive-in theaters are all but a memory in most places.  The grand movie halls are gone, replaced by cheap multiplexes, that charge a day's earnings to see a movie.  The diners & dives have been replaced by chain restaurant crap factories.   All the cars look like boxes & the music is made on & sometimes by a computer.  I could go on.

I've tried to make peace with most of this.  Even though each 1 of them made me feel like I'd lost part of myself.  Each time I felt a little less present.  But this week something happened that just absolutely sucks.  CW ran the last ever Saturday morning cartoons.  This article & many like on the web say what I mean.  Cartoon Network is an abject failure.  There will be no more kids up before dawn, anxiously awaiting the new cartoon lineup.  Instead they will find, pseudo-news, sports crap, edutainment hell & useless animal shows.  All of which can be found on dozens of other channels any other time of any other day.  

Another bit of my childhood is gone.   Like cruising down the drag or being a mallrat.  Bit by bit, they're destroying the childhood landscape of Boomers & Gen X'ers.  My cable company recently killed off Viacom channels, so most the local kids only have Cartoon Network's crapola.  If they don't have cable, they don't have anything.

Thank you so damned much American corporate TV asshats.  Kill another piece of my life.   Make me feel even less involved with everything than I already did.   1 day, you'll find yourselves in this boat as well.  When it happens, I hope people remind you of what you did before.  

Goodbye Saturday Morning Cartoons, you will be missed & remembered.

Cya...

1st October Weekend...

This is the last day of the 1st weekend of October 2014.  For us, it's been fairly low key.  Other than some idiot burning leaves when my allergies were already on fire, it's been pretty easy.  

Its been chilly the last couple of days.  We got down in to the 40's, 2 nights ago.  Luckily we're heading back up into the 80's for a while longer.   This week could wind up been rainy.  

The leaves are starting to fade.  They aren't quite changing colors yet, but soon they'll be reds & golds.  It's been odd adjusting to the light levels & the lack of fan noise at night.  Now, I really hear all the dogs, birds & blaring trains that sound off in the night.

The 1st of the month was a little rushed as always.   We've got a lot of the bills taken care, but some had to wait until this upcoming week.  Then we'll be caught up again.  That's always a nice feeling.

So far, so good, for October.

Cya...

Planes, Trains & Automobiles...

Since, I found the article yesterday about possibly the earliest known existence of HIV, there has been a plethora of followups & reiterations.  Many focus on the why's.  Some point fingers at various groups; gays, Africans, European invaders, etc...

The reality seems to be a bit more objective than that.  The culprit behind the spread of HIV is the same 1 behind all illnesses, locomotion.  All virus, bacterium & other micro nasties need a means of transport in order to do their deed.    In the natural world this is usually via the air (sneezes/coughs), physical transmission (touch/bite) or water.  

However, as man developed, so did the means of locomotion of modern illnesses.  These ailments, like rats, caught a lift via man.  Instead of waiting for animals/man to migrate, they now had horseback travel, then watercraft & finally there was the development of the engine that allowed for trains & eventually cars.  The most modern illnesses' preferred mode of travel is jet of course.  

It wasn't gays, Africans or colonists that spread HIV, but instead it was engineers.  Those people who made it possible to rapidly move many people from location to location.  The technology used to spread mankind also spread illness.  The plane, train & automobile are the modern Typhoid Mary.  Sort of punches a hole in the who's to blame arguments.  

Cya...

Origins...

This article details a new statistically backed theory of the origins of HIV.  They feel the virus can be tracked to a city in the Democratic Republic of Congo during the 1920's.   It's worth reading & so are the comments.

While I understand the drive to know more about the virus, I'm really not that enthused.   To be blunt, I'm being fairly self-interested here.  Knowing the actual origin of HIV won't in all likelihood help me in any way.   Yes, I get that it might help others or even others with similar viruses someday.  But to honest, I just don't have the energy to care about something so removed at this point.

The comments to the article were as diverse & reactionary as I expected.   There's still a big conspiracy this illness & others are due to the colonization of Africa.  Some people believe HIV & Ebola originated in Europe & were transplanted by White men to the native populations of Africa.  I don't have enough info to support an argument pro or con regarding these beliefs.

It's an interesting read.

Cya...

Not Much...

The plumbers finally came yesterday & fixed a part in the toilet I'd never had to deal with before.  Something called a Mansfield ring.  They redid the fill valve & it was done.  Finally.

I'm waiting for the garbage men to get here & haul away the trash.  I'm having to keep an eye on it lately, because of dogs.  I really don't like other people's dogs.  They rarely seem to take care of their pets.

I've got to run over to Ft Smith & pick up my roomie later.  It'll be earlier than normal.  We're expecting quite a storm later in the day.  Hopefully,  can over there & back before it sets in on us.  

Cya...

Hello October...

It's time to say goodbye to September & hello to Halloween, I mean October.   September has been an odd month for me this year.  I'm ready to let it go.  OK, nothing horrible happened to me, but a lot of little annoyances kept popping up.   There was also a lot of bad drama in the lives of people near me,

I'm not asking much October.  Just try to be pleasant & not suck.  I've used up a lot of my allotted energy for 2014 already & I feel spent on a lot of things.  Hopefully, things will mellow out this Fall.

Have a great October everyone.

Cya...

PS:  The blasted plumber never showed up yesterday, so I'm still waiting.