Did you accomplish anything today?

[Poppylicious]

not today yet, but yesterday, I got to the beach.. finally!!  I am sore, but it's a happy sore.. *G*

I saw your pics on FB and they made me want to go to the seaside!  Still, the seaside will have to wait; the weather in England is making it seem like March rather than July.  Pffft. 

Um ... I went to work even though I really didn't want to.  Does that count as an accomplishment?

 

[Ang]

not yet 

[RichardMEL]

oooh beach babe Riki... I like it

[jbeany]

Today, I begged and wheedled until my GP agreed to pull my surgical drains for me.

 "But we don't touch anything anyone else puts in." 
I had the surgeon fax permission last week.

"But we don't have a sterile environment."
Don't need one - at the hospital, they just flip back the sheets and don't even bother to pour cleaner over it.

"But I don't know how to remove a surgical drain."
I do.  Cut stitches and pull the drain.  Put on a piece of gauze in case it oozes a bit. Tada-boring.

"Well, I'm still not sure."
Okay, hand me a pair of scissors and I'll do it while you watch, just in case I need help.

"Well, okay then, if you are that determined."
Yup.

So I'm drain free and have cut my pain levels in half without the horrid things.  Yeehaw!   

[chook]

Wow, jbeany. Loved your post AND your determination to get things done your way!

[jbeany]

Since yesterday morning.....Watched a movie, read 2 books, designed a piece of jewelry, did the laundry, changed the sheets, and sorted out clothes from the dresser that don't fit anymore since I lost weight, wrote out note cards, talked to a friend on the phone for over 2 hours, paid the bills, posted on my regular websites repeatedly, wasted far too much time watching sappy videos on Youtube, read the giant Sunday paper and drove the cat crazy with a new catnip toy.

Insomnia does have it's good points.... 

[cariad]

I survived my son's ninth birthday party! He wanted another sleepover. We learnt from last year. Cut the guest list in half (only invite two, not four) invite a smaller crowd to the film, only order a small cake and invite guests back to ours for a piece, impose a bed time and a wake-up time. Yes, this can be done - Gwyn did his mean old man bit with them and told them to look at the clock on the wall and not come down to the playroom until 7AM at the earliest.  Next morning one guest had to leave early because his grandparents were in town. We took the other child with us to the water park, where he stayed for just over an hour until his mother came to collect him. We got there just as the place was opening and it was deserted in there. Just as the one guest left, the next guests turned up and I managed to purchase her tickets for her and her boys before she could get to the ticket counter.  She said in that slightly dismayed thanks-but-you-shouldn't-have voice "I almost just came by without calling you, but then I thought, no, that would be rude." It was blind luck that I happened to go check the front gate just as the three of them were walking up!

Unfortunately, we had to leave about 45 minutes after they arrived. I told them to please stay and enjoy, though. We had to get to my widowed auntie's home to watch the air show from her front patio. My aunt and I talked about how you can never really sleep when your kids have friends over for the night - somewhere in the back of your mind is always the worry that something will happen. Aidan practiced on the Ripstik that I gave him for his birthday. Then we were supposed to meet our Fest Friend for a jazz show in the arts district, but I just could not even make myself move. Liot was breaking down into tears over the slightest inconvenience which is a sure sign that he is exhausted. We sent our regrets to the Fest Friend and stayed in and watched Phineas and Ferb: Across the 2nd Dimension while eating burgers from the fast food place that only uses grass-fed beef. (They also have a fairly nice veggie burger.) The film was adorable, although I did nod off a few times. If you have never seen Phineas and Ferb, you must! I fell asleep trying to choke down that Water for Elephants book, probably around 9:30. I slept straight through to 8AM this morning, and woke for the first time in recent memory with no backache, and some actual energy. We had a really low-key morning. We gave Aidan the rest of his presents today and took him down to the environmental centre for some more practicing on the Ripstik. He has become very good at it. A friend of mine has a son a few years older than Aidan and this boy agreed to teach Aidan how to ride it if he needs the coaching. I think Aidan is reluctant as he can be a tad shy, but he took a rather serious tumble today and may just have a change of heart.

I have to type up the minutes to a meeting I attended Friday and contact people about my possible return to school in just a few weeks.

Sorry to hear about the insomnia, jbeany. I remember those days, in fact, I still have them. I'm nowhere near as productive as you with it, though.

[kitkatz]

I rode the HOG- my bike 3.2 mile this evening!

[Riki]

I made it through another family picnic without laying in on the few cousins that attended for not answering me when I asked them if they'd be willing to get tested to see if they could give me a kidney

[jbeany]

I made it through another family picnic without laying in on the few cousins that attended for not answering me when I asked them if they'd be willing to get tested to see if they could give me a kidney

I don't think pressure is going to budge some of those anyhow, so you might as well save the stress on yourself.

Still awake here.  Went to bed at midnight, hoping to drift off.  No luck.  I got a nap yesterday afternoon, so that may or may not have helped, but I had to have some sleep at some point.  I'm all out of whack because I went off my pain killers.  I was given oxy after my surgery, and had weaned myself down to only taking one tab at night before bed - that's a far cry from the 4 every 4 hours I was on at the start.  I quit that three nights ago, and haven't been able to fall asleep at a normal hour since.  *sigh*  Guess maybe I should have tried cutting them in half and then quarters instead, but I'm not going back now.  Hopefully, I'll eventually accomplish getting off this crap and back to a normal sleep schedule!

[Poppylicious]

I accomplished the amazing feat of being able to sit on my bum long enough to watch a film (I can do it easily at the cinema, but I do tend to have a short attention span and there are many exciting things needing my attention when watching the tellybox at home) which has been patiently waiting for me to watch it since we video'd it off the telly.  It was Juno and it was 'awwwww'.  It made me sob.  How did I miss such a brilliant film at the cinema?  I'm developing a bit of a crush on Jason Bateman (again).  I not likey that.  Also, popped to the pharmacy and the library, did a couple of loads of washing, stroked my peacocks ...

It's cloudy and breezy in good ol' England.  The sun has obviously tootled off on holiday.

 

[Riki]

It's cloudy and breezy in good ol' England.  The sun has obviously tootled off on holiday.

 

I think that's the problem here too.  It had better darned well get back before the summer is out.  I'm a beach bunny (though I tend to look like a beached whale.. *L*) and from May 2004 up till last June, I wasn't able to go swimming.  I made it once last year, and it looks like I may only make it once this year too.

I haven't really accomplished anything yet, except for replanting my flower box in Farmville.. Poppy, you might have noticed that.. *G*  but I may try to accomplish sleep in the near future, since it is after 2am

[Poppylicious]

I haven't really accomplished anything yet, except for replanting my flower box in Farmville.. Poppy, you might have noticed that.. *G*

*chuckles* ... Everyday I go on FV and everyday I wonder why I'm wasting a few minutes doing something which really means NOTHING!  So many times I've been tempted to delete FV but I just can't do it.  It's like some ridiculous addiction. Send some gifts, harvest some crops, plant some crops, move buildings around, feel guilty for not always helping Riki's ducks ...

*sigh*

 

Today I danced to Boney M and listened to old women moaning in the doctors waiting room (which wasn't much of an accomplishment because they do talk very loudly, and they're so rude! I can't wait to be old!)

[Riki]

Mom came home tonight and said that we had 4 hours to clean the house because someone who wanted to buy the house was coming at 8pm, so I spent a while making my room look more like a bedroom and not a disaster area.

[jbeany]

Got my official notary public stamps and seals I ordered in the mail today.  Oooh - a gadget with my name on it!  So I've practiced how hard I need to press the seal and stamp.  Squeeze, squeeze, squeeze...   New toys are the coolest.

I also got a text from my sister.  She's been losing weight the right way - a life-style change in her diet and lots of will power.  I cheated and just threw everything up for a month with my surgery complications, but we've both lost a lot.  She was sorting out her closet, trying everything on to see what still fit.  She's still skinnier than I am even if we weigh about the same now - thanks to the 3 extra inches she got in the genetic roll of the dice.  So she let me know all her stuff is coming my way.  So I started trying on my stuff.  8 pairs of dress pants and 2 pairs of jeans that no longer need to be unzipped to get them off are now in my donate pile.  My few remaining pants and jeans are still a bit baggy, but at least they don't fall off when I walk.  I tired out after that, but it was a good start.  Skirts and dresses next!

[RichardMEL]

My horse came through at Wolverhampton at 12-1!!!!

I nearly started a riot when I realised I only had a place bet on it, rather than a E/W. Still, paid $3.25 for the place, so that was noice

[Desert Dancer]

I'm teaching myself how to sew and I learned four things today... it's always a good day when you learn something new! So:

1) Always trim the cut ends of the fabric with pinking shears BEFORE you put the fabric in the washer
2) The clutch on my machine is a little wonky and likes to re-engage when you're winding bobbins
3) When the book says to take the bobbin with you to make sure you buy the right ones, they mean it. They may all look the same but aren't, and if you buy the wrong ones... nothing happens.
4) The fabric has to be COMPLETELY underneath the presser foot or... nothing happens.

I also realized I HAD to be 43 to undertake this; I didn't have the patience until now. 

Any sewers out there?

[jbeany]

I sew, DD.  Quilts and lots of tote bags mostly, sometimes stuffed toys, usually for gifts or to sell.  I don't have patience with sewing my own clothes, but I've done lots of doll clothes for my friend's kids.  What are you making?

My accomplishment from last night - My sister brought over the big bag of clothes she had culled from her closet since she lost weight.  I've lost 30 pounds because of the surgical complications from my hernia repair, so I needed to do the same.  I tried on all the stuff she had brought, and ended up with about half the bag.  (We weigh the same, and have similar shapes, but she's taller than I am, so I'm still one size bigger than she is.)  I looked at my closet and said I needed to sort out mine the rest of the way.  So she started pulling out clothes.  We sorted the whole thing and half my hangers are empty now!  Everything is in a giant pile, waiting for my friend who is coming to stay tonight.  She can have at the pile before it goes to Goodwill.

[Desert Dancer]

I sew, DD.  Quilts and lots of tote bags mostly, sometimes stuffed toys, usually for gifts or to sell.  I don't have patience with sewing my own clothes, but I've done lots of doll clothes for my friend's kids.  What are you making?

Right now I'm just sewing on scraps, trying out all the fancy stitch cams that came with the machine (I have a solid cast-iron Kenmore from 1970-71), playing with stitch width and length and learning how to sew straight. I've got a whole bin full of clothes that under normal circumstances would be turned into rags, but I've cut them all into strips to be sewn together then crocheted into a big oval kitchen rug. (I taught myself to crochet 25 years ago.)

After that: napkins! (OOOHH!) And after that: pillows. Eventually I want to work my way up to clothing, particularly skirts. I have some very definite ideas about the kind of clothing I want - but can't find anywhere - so I'll have to make them myself. Thus the sewing lessons.

[Poppylicious]

My horse came through at Wolverhampton at 12-1!!!!

I nearly started a riot ...

You would have been a day late, my love.  Riots are SO yesterday's news in Wolverhampton ...

 

Quilts and lots of tote bags mostly ...

I think I've seen pics of your stuff posted somehwere on here, haven't I?  I love the sort of stuff you make, but just don't have the patience to actually make anything myself (I have the intention and the scraps though!) ... Still, I'm not 43 yet!  I digressed; I'd happily throw some money in your direction for something lovely and handmade and unique (I ♥ bags, much to Blokey's annoyance.)

Today I spent money on things I (semi-) needed.  One skirt, one dress, one chunky knit cardigan, two pairs of pants (that's knickers to you), two strappy t-shirts and two pairs of lounging around pj style bottoms for the grand total of ... *drum roll* ... £33 (about $53, which doesn't sound quite as good?)  I'm becoming quite the expert at hunting around in charity shops and in the sales racks of department stores.

[jbeany]

Bargain hunting rules.  Good thing I get most of my stuff at Goodwill.  I'd have been right bummed if the half of my wardrobe that no longer fits had all been purchased at full price!

I think there's pics of my totes and quilts on the hobbies thread - but I've got next to nothing made right now.  School work has kept me out of the craft room, and I haven't had much energy lately!

[HouseOfDialysis]

I paid some bills and missed work today thinking my mouth was going to fall off from pain. Turned out to be a WICKED sinus infection. Motherp*cker.

[Desert Dancer]

I paid some bills and missed work today thinking my mouth was going to fall off from pain. Turned out to be a WICKED sinus infection. Motherp*cker.

Ouch! A sinus infection is the only pain Andy's ever had that's made him cry (that's saying a lot because he's always in lots of pain everywhere). Boy, do I feel for you and hope it clears up SOON.

[Poppylicious]

I think there's pics of my totes and quilts on the hobbies thread - but I've got next to nothing made right now.  School work has kept me out of the craft room, and I haven't had much energy lately!

Ah well.  Be sure to spare me a thought when your energy makes a sneaky reappearance! 

Today I managed to dye my hair and NOT my bathroom.  Yay!  I also cancelled a Direct Debit I've been paying since 2002 as insurance for a mobile phone I haven't owned for seven years.  I'm not even going to tell you how much money I've managed to inadvertantly spend on that ... (it's hundreds! *gasp*)

[jbeany]

I stopped at Goodwill today and hit the jackpot!  Over a dozen new items, to replace the 4 bags I dropped off at the donation door before my friend and I went in.  Almost everything I found was from my favorite (drastically expensive!) store.  Wheeee!  New, flattering, clothes for the new flat-tummied me.  My friend, who just changed jobs had a go at the huge pile of clothes my sister and I had sorted out of our closets, so she went home with 4 bags of new clothes suitable for her new job.  (Well, 3 bags of work-appropriate clothes, and one bag with all my winter coats that now hang off me completely, anyhow.)  At least now I've got some summer shirts I can bend over in without flashing anyone!