And now for something more serious...

I got a call yesterday from the doctor's office telling me that my bloodwork came back positive for Celiac's disease. My initial reaction was depression: I can no longer eat regular pizza, Oreos, sourdough bread, even regular soy sauce... However, I am pleased to report that I can still eat popcorn, most chocolate, and diet soda.

On the positive side, having this diagnosis explains a lot of the other chronic problems that have plagued me: the headaches, anemia, joint pain, etc. If I can take care of this one medical issue, a lot of the other symptoms I am experiencing may ease up. And, of course, I thought that you, friends, might be interested in periodic progress reports on how my new diet is affecting me, and reviews of some of the fun (and not so fun) foods that I am now incorporating into my diet.

So, here it is, the first FULL day of me eliminating gluten from my diet. Me and fresh fruits and vegetables are going to become very good friends really fast. Nectarines, bananas, carrots, strawberries, etc. are all healthy snacks that will be replacing unhealthy snacks in my diet. Again, this is good news; eating healthier is just, well, healthier! Also, I suppose I should be grateful that I have Celiac's and not cancer. A cancer patient can't get rid of cancerous cells and symptoms merely by changing what they eat.

I started the day with gluten-free cinnamon raisin bread with a little butter on it, which was surprisingly good . The sandwich bread, on the other hand, was highly disturbing, thus prompting me to call my mother immediately after lunch to ask if she would be willing to give me the bread maker for an extended period of time. Yes, I think anything I make will taste better than the $7.50/loaf cardboard that Glutino is trying to pass off as bread. I will eat the whole loaf, however, again, because it cost so much.

I can't wait to try cooking with gluten-free products, of which there are plenty. Just about everything available with gluten is available without, including pancake mix, pasta, cereal (including one which is named Leapin' Lemurs Chocolate and Peanut Butter Puffs), and of course, bread. I will keep you informed of successes, failures, and amusing incidents in the days and weeks ahead.

Truckers

I've heard that back in the '50s, truckers were the "knights of the road." Now, I don't want to make any sweeping generalizations, because I am sure that there are a lot of truckers out there who are great, but there are a lot who aren't as well. It really irks me when I see some chain-smoking, texting-while-driving, beer-belly trucker who is driving his rig like it's a Geo Metro. I don't hold a class A license, but even I know that it's a recipe for disaster when these truckers are following 20 feet behind you in commute traffic with a Marlboro in their left hand and a CB in their right. Hello! You aren't driving a Smart car! You are driving a multi-ton tractor with a trailer attached! You have at least 16 wheels! Look - some of your tire tread is about to fly off, come through my windshield and maim me for life!

I'm just saying to pay more attention and think about what you are doing when you are behind the wheel. The same applies to drivers of all types of vehicles, but at least when the driver of the Geo Metro loses control or rear-ends me, it will be HIS car that gets jacked more than mine.

Naps - grownups need them

Part of being a child is that you get to take naps. Babies get naps, and they still get to sleep a lot of the night (if their parents are lucky). Preschoolers have nap time, kindergartners only go to school half a day and a lot of them take naps. Heck, when I was in high school, I would come home after school and take a 2 hour nap and then still go to bed around 10:30. I was so well rested. Now, I am grown up and have an 8:30 - 5 job and there is no TIME for naps. It's very disappointing because I feel more tired now, but don't necessarily want to go to bed at 10pm just to get my FULL 8 hours in. I will force myself to be in bed by 11, despite the great desire I have to stay up because I know if I don't get close to 8 hours, I will be a slobbering mess the next day. Nope - I just cannot function well.

I think employers should allow their employees an hour to an hour and a half for a nap in the middle of the day. However, I realize that I am American, and we tend to overwork ourselves, so this is probably not going to happen. Just imagine how productive we could be though if we were all well rested both physically and mentally. It would be amazing. Sadly, I think my dream of a national nap hour is not to come to pass, so in the meantime, you can all do what I did today: eat your lunch at your desk and then use your lunch hour to take a nap in the back of your car.

Cold

If you know me, you will most likely know that I am almost cold. I am not sure why this is...my fingers and my toes often feel as though they are about to fall off. I have some guy friends who like me to put my frozen appendages on the back of their necks because they think it feels good, and I am incredibly grateful for that, because usually the back of their necks are toasty warm.

Last night in class, the thermostat was having some sort of conniption fit. It was spazzing from what I could see from 72 up to 74 degrees, but I think the air blowing out of the vents was about 50 degrees. To give you an idea of how cold it was in the room, the outside temperature was nearly 100 degrees and someone had propped the door open to LET THE HOT AIR IN. Hence, my foresight to bring a jacket paid off.

*shudder*

I went to the doctor this morning, and I'm just gonna say it: I hate needles. They don't scare me per se, but the thought that there is some sharp object either injecting something into me (such as the flu shot I got), or taking blood out of me is just disturbing. I used to be able to watch the phlebotomists take my blood, but OH NO...not anymore. Apparently, I am getting MORE squeamish in my old age instead of less. Many respects to the fine men and women who choose phlebotomy as their profession: you are a necessary addition to the medical profession, and not only must you have nerves of steel, but you probably also have cast iron stomachs.

College...so much better

So, I just have to give a big shout out to Professor Susich who has graciously given me permission NOT to come to class, and to email him my homework. Yes, this is why college is good - there is flexibility. This man understands that I am taking it upon myself to be responsible for keeping up with the reading and the homework, and that the only time he will see my face is when we have tests. Now, I can use the time I WOULD be in class to study, instead of adding it on top of my already hectic schedule.

It's the small victories

So, I was driving to work this morning in bumper-to-bumper traffic, and suddenly the driver of the car in front of me starts "raising the roof" in his car. That put a smile on my face, because, let's face it; I have no idea why he was so happy, but since we are powerless to do anything about the traffic, any sort of victorious or fabulous moment we can enjoy while stuck in it is awesome.

Time to go shopping!

You know it's time to buy smaller pants when your friend looks at you as you're walking away and says, "You're right. You do have doody pants. You look like you could smuggle something in there."

Men and multitasking

Just a quick note, since I am working.

A couple weeks ago, I spent half an hour trying to get my Outlook to send three emails with attachments totaling about 22mb. Needless to say, it didn't work. Keep in mind that on this particular day, I worked from 7am - 5pm with no break, and this was THE LAST HALF HOUR of my day. After my computer crashed, I rebooted, and my Outlook still would not send this file, I finally just saved the files to the work server. Then, I rescanned the entire 78 page file into a super compressed PDF (3 mb) and tried to send, and was still unsuccessful.

I approached my boss' desk and asked if he could just retrieve the 3 mb file from the server and send it, since I had been at work for a long time and was tired. His reply was, "Why are you dumping this on me? I'm on the phone!" Okay - he was on the phone to his dad, and I had just worked 10 hours with no break and spent half an hour fighting technology!!!! I basically told him that and then left.

FF to today - I am working on importing some data into excel which is necessary for me to do this report. My boss approaches me repeatedly and asks me to various things such as checking to see if we received all the confirmations for one of our clients, to print our own books out, etc. Finally, he asks me to print a something, and I say, "Do you remember how flustered you got when I asked you to send an email and you were just talking on the phone?" That was the end of interrupting me today.

I will happily multitask, with the caveat that you place things in a neat and orderly fashion on my desk. Do not "yell" at me from across the office, do not assume that I am not working on anything. Stand up, come in here, and put whatever it is you want done in my inbox with simple instructions and then walk away. And, for heaven's sake, don't get all wigged out when I ask you to do 2 simple things at once. You ask me all day, and I don't freak, do I?

It's about that time

Well, dear readers, it's about that time. You know what I'm talking about, right? That time when yours truly will be fighting to keep her head from exploding. Yes, you guessed it - school starts this week for me.

I have such a kind and understanding boss who generously pays for my education, since I am trying to get the accounting and business credits I need to sit (eventually) for the CPA exam. Now, he's not a moron; he waits until I pass the class with a "B" or better before reimbursing me for tuition and books. My tuition is quite inexpensive, all things considered. However, my boss also says things to me like, "I don't want to hear you whining about how you have class." Why would someone so kind say such a thing to me? Oh, yeah, that's right - because we also happen to be in the middle of our June 30th year-end busy season.

For the next 3 months, my life is going to consist of working probably close to 50 hours a week while simultaneously taking 6 credits worth of classes. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I will be IN class from 6:30 until 10pm. I will also become uber organized as I try to compartmentalize my life. I must leave work at work, focus on school while I am there, and set aside specific time for homework.

Shaine and I have decided to make Wednesday nights "homework night," and hopefully, we will actually get some homework done. Undoubtedly there will be wedding talk (both hers and Becky's) and, possibly some SYTYCD (since that starts this week as well), but that's it. Homework MUST GET DONE!

I hope to not neglect my blog during this time, and who knows...perhaps some of the interactions with other students will provide fodder for some fabulously amusing posts!

Colon Magic!

First, a blurb from the news:

A Mind of Its Own - Columbia professor Dr. Michael Gershon definitily demonstrated our intestines autonomy when he performed a classic experiment on a guinea pig colon. After surgically removing the colon from the guinea pig, he showed how a pellet placed at one end caused coordinated colonic contractions that quickly resulted in expulsion of the pellet from the other end.

I don't know how many of you just had the same thought I did: this is AWESOME! We can totally manufacture semi-automatic, feces firing weapons from colons! Your enemies will run in terror as you lift your poo pistol and start pelting them with round after round of offal.

Getting Over It

You raise me and you crush me
You listen while you ignore me
You pull me while you push away
You smile as you hurt me

With you there is and was
No wall around my heart
And when things got serious
Logic overtook emotion

Did I or can I
Hurt you at all?
I ask myself if it was
All a show for me

I pull you while I push you away
I want you and I can't stand you
I trust you but I don't think
I should confide in you

You heard before
That something is better than nothing
But can I handle only that something
Or am I all or nothing?

Sound advice you gave me
Which I will try to follow
Because you're no longer
Mine to lose.