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My thoughts released; a mind set free |
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These pages contain my thoughts, from meandering ideas and persuasions to deep cerebrations and serious mentations. Why, for what purpose? To release my mind and set creativity free. Somewhere inside the constraints of my mind dwells a writer, a poet, an artist who paints with words. In here I release those constraints and set the artist free. Perhaps, lost somewhere in the depths of thought, is a story or a poem, waiting to be written. 
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| So, another entry. That's good, considering it's late, and I feel like rad-kill. Seriously, I feel that miserable. I don't know what or why, I just know I don't want to feel like this anymore. If it was the same as the last few months, sick and allergies, it wouldn't be so bad. I had started to get used to the stuffiness and other allergic symptoms, even if not the infection. But, I seem to be breathing better, the fevers have stopped, and I believe I'm on my way to a nice recovery. Slow moving as it is, I don't mind at all. After two months of suffering with the allergies and infection, a few days to a week to get over things is minor. And, I have been finding myself feeling better with each new day. It was difficult to know for sure when I was taking the full medication regime, but as I tapered off the steroids, I found myself feeling much better. Granted, many of the allergy symptoms began to return, but they were not as sever, and with the infection clearing up, I was feeling pretty good. I was feeling pretty good this morning, also. Not a lot of sleep last night, but only because I had slept in too late, and had also been sleeping a lot over the last few days. I was up on time, and didn't suffer from the extreme tiredness of the last few months, and was looking at having a nice day. It was cold today, but it started out nice and the forecast was for a nice, but cool day. It ended up colder, cloudy, and very windy, but I was done work by the time it turned cold and windy. I was having a pretty good morning up until it was time to take my antibiotic. Whether it was the medication or not, I do not know, but after taking it, I began to get cramps in my feet, my legs, my sides, my abdomen, and places one should not get cramps. Along with the cramps, I had severe abdominal pains, side pains, and even pain in my chest. Not heart attack type pain, but sharp pain in the sides of my ribs and more external/muscular. I still am not feeling very well, and I don't understand what caused the pain and cramps, but they did let up some as the day progressed. I took medications again at noon, and there was no increase in the misery, so I would like to rule out a reaction to the medication. I don't understand it, and if it goes away overnight, I wouldn't mind at all. If it does not, then I will have to do more assessments to the cause, and possibly contact my health care professional. |
| It's been chaotic again, but hopefully it's going to calm down now. Even so, I have managed to keep up my journal pretty well, but that's about it. I don't know what it is, but it seems like, every time I start to get a handle on things, something comes along and rips it right out of my grip. That's the case, over and over, and most times it's something beyond my direct control. First and foremost on the list is my job. But, I can manage around the hours and the problems that arise most of the time. The biggest setback with work is trying to keep a regular schedule. I have that pretty well under control for the time being. Of course, there are still plenty of times I get called up and have to change plans. Just last week I ended up spending most of my time off investigating and reporting on an incident that took place at work. Again yesterday, I had a call come in from the corporate office before noon, but he didn't leave a message, and has not called back. Of course, I do have my cell phone turned off. If it was important, however, they do have my home phone and should call that. The latest deterrent to getting in here and getting anything done, is illness. I can't say it was anything recent, since I've been sick since the end of August. But, the last month has been bad, very bad. Allergies are a big part of it, and now that I have completed my Prednisone regime, they seem to be getting worse again. Hopefully it's late enough in the year for things to settle down. On top of allergies, which seem to be extremely bac this year for most people, I had some kind of respiratory infection as well. Actually, I think I had the infection prior to the allergies flaring up so bad, and that is what did me in. I was sick, short of breath, very tired, and feverish all the time. So, I worked, then after I got home, I would sleep. That was about the extent of things for me. I was very out of it, and was just to tired to do anything. Of course, I couldn't continue like that for long, so I went to see my doctor and got some medications. Even as they started to kick in, the side effects seemed to be almost as bad as the illness I was treating. But, with time, the symptoms of the illness subsided and I found myself feeling a little better. Now, I'm done with the steroids, and that has me feeling quite a bit better. Unfortunately, I also have a return of the allergy symptoms, but not as severe. Hopefully I can treat them with an over the counter allergy medication now, until later in the year when things settle down more. I am still taking the antibiotics, and hope that they will kill off any infection still lingering. I'm also equipped with an inhaler, just as needed, and it seems to be needed less and less. Yesterday marked the first day in a month, maybe longer, that I did not require taking time for sleep in the middle of the day. I had slept in, and made an entire day without needing to sleep more. I'm doing just as well today, but again, I slept in late. It's still a big improvement, considering I have in the past, slept in, gone to bed early, and still slept most of the day. All in all, I'm feeling pretty good today. Tomorrow I return to work, up at three and all that same old stuff, and we will see how I feel after I get home. I may be tired, but hopefully it's only a result of not getting to bed quite as early as I should tonight, a result of sleeping until eleven today, and being up so early. Maybe, just maybe, I'll be feeling much like my old self. |
| I've really been slacking at getting in here for anything again. This time around it isn't so much a shortage on time, although that also fits into the equation. No, it's been just being so damn sick. But, I'm happy to say I've begun to recover. I still don't know how the allergies will go once I'm done with the steroid treatment, but it seems I have the infection under control, and with the rebound of my immune system aided with antibiotics, I should make a speedy recovery. Two more days on the steroids, but down to one tablet a day now. That should leave me feeling a lot better, since the medication itself was creating some unpleasant but mild side effects. The antibiotic is also making me feel somewhat sick at times, but even all of this together is nothing compared to the way I felt before starting the medications. For now, it's off to bed. Tomorrow, hopefully I will have both the time and the energy to get a little something done in here. |
| Better get this entry in so I can head off to bed. I am feeling a little bit better today, but it's kind of come and go. I worked this morning, up at three, but only worked four and one half hours, then came home, thanks to Rhonda. I had to take a dose of medicine while working, and it sure did tear up my stomach, I suppose because I didn't eat much with it, and I didn't dare take a lot of water to wash it down. But other than that, work went pretty well. I was breathing better, but it didn't last long. It wasn't work, it was the numerous guests that came through smoking and blowing the stinking stuff in my face when I talked to them. I can't believe people can be so rude. But, after I got home it was a light lunch and then a three hour nap. I woke naturally, instead of to a coughing fit, which was nice. But, I was also awakened during a goofy dream about work. Even so, it was a good sleep and I woke feeling pretty good. I got some paperwork done and worked on the next schedule as well as the one following. I still have a few things to work out for some time off, but it's looking pretty good. Speaking of time off, I do not have to work tomorrow, and another day to rest up should do me pretty good. I'm thinking I'll work a full shift on Monday and see how it goes, then I'll have Tuesday and Wednesday off to rest up again. For now, I'm feeling pretty run down and ready for more sleep. But the good news is, I seem to be improving a little each day now. Well see how tomorrow is, and that will tell the story, but it seems like I'm finally starting to get over this. I'm on my way to well, if not normal, at least back to what's normal for me. |
| Another day of the same, although I did not work today. Even so, I was up early when Rhonda got up to go in for me. She set up a new schedule to keep me off work as much as is possible. I was off today, will work the opening shift tomorrow, but only four hours, then I'm off again Sunday. Hopefully I'm on the road to recovery by then. Today was a lot of sleep, and still not feeling any better. I am coughing less, and my sinuses are not as plugged, but I'm still wheezing and short on breath, and just have no energy. This is the second day on the steroid, and the third on the antibiotic. I should be seeing some improvement by tomorrow, but if not, it may be back in to see the doctor on Monday. She did not say anything about what course of action she would need to take if I didn't improve, but I'm sure it will be a trip to the hospital. That leaves two days to see some improvement. I'm staying positive, and expect to wake up tomorrow feeling better, breathing easier, and being less tired. Then by Sunday, I anticipate feeling much like my old self again, and having most of my energy back, breathing freely again, and well on the way to a total recovery over the course of the week. |
| Not getting much done in here, or anywhere. I was kind of hoping to spend a little bit of time in here today, since I only worked a half a day, but no such luck, not yet anyway. I was up at three, and home by noon, so time was not the issue. Well, in a kid of round about way it was, because I spent a big part of it sleeping. Short of breath, aches and pains, coughing and stuffed up, and just feeling very under the weather, with fevers and chills, hot and sweating. That's the way I've been feeling for a couple of months, but I do have to add that it's been getting better and worse, during that time. Yesterday I seen a doctor, well, in a way, two of them. Anyway, I wasn't told exactly what was wrong, but it was described in a kind of indirect way. I was put on three types of medication, antibiotics, an inhaler, and steroids. I was also given three to four days to see marked improvement. If not better by Monday, it's back in, and very likely into the hospital. I picked up all the medications and started them yesterday, except for the steroid treatment. I started that today, after work. I was hoping that the inhaler and antibiotics would have me starting to feel a little better by today, but instead I found myself feeling even worse. Today I began having sharp shooting pain in both lungs, and am even shorter on breath. The shooting pain comes and goes, but there has been a steady, slightly burning sensation in both my lungs, my upper back aches, and I find myself feeling like I'm suffocating with the least bit of activity. Part of it may be the smoke at work today. Someplace close, someone was burning something, that smelled like garbage and plastic burning. it was after this that things got the worst. I also know, sometimes, the beginning of the medication can make a person feel even worse before they start to feel better. I'm hoping this is the case, but even so, I will be taking some time off from work. I just hope that a bit of rest and the medication will do the trick so that I can see that marked improvement soon. |
| Not doing very well at writing in my journal daily, but it will get better. I did have two days off, and had planned to get in here and write in my journal, as well as work on some items for my port. But, something came up at work and I had to drop everything and run and take a statement, as well as investigate an incident at work. Unfortunately the monitoring system is down so I couldn't watch the recording, but it should be fixed in the next couple of days, then I can review the incident and make any corrections and or additions to my report. Today was a bit better, no work. But I did have an appointment to see my doctor and that took a big chunk of my afternoon. I went over everything with an intern, then got to see my regular doctor. I have seldom been impressed with interns, but this young lady had a wonderful bedside manor, listened and even had a nice sense of humor. She was also very pretty, which also made the visit more pleasant, and she worked well with the doctor and nurse. Even so, I never did get an actual verdict for what is wrong. They confirmed the allergy problem, but then they also agreed there was an infection in the sinuses and throat. I was asked about contact with strep, and they also seemed in agreement that my breathing was not up to par, and there was wheezing and rasping in my lungs. But with all the talking about everything, not one word was actually spoken about what I had and was being treated for. That's typical for my doctor, she seldom says you have a sinus infection, or a cold, or what have you. She will tell you what may be the culprit, she will test and poke and prod, and then she will prescribe a treatment, but she just wont come out and say you have somethingasitis. The closest she comes when asked directly is to relate a similar case that someone recently had, no names, of course, and that you likely have the same thing, and this was the treatment that helped this person, so it should help you. I was told that if I did not see marked improvement in the next three to four days that I needed to get my butt right back over there, no delays. I have also been given this same treatment once before, many years ago. I was put on a strong antibiotic, I was also put on a steroid treatment, and I was prescribed an oral inhaler. The last time I had this combination of treatment, I was very ill with pneumonia. This is what Rhonda believed I had before going in to see the doctor, and it seems a lot like it was before. I just hope this stuff takes care of things and I can begin to feel better soon. I've been sick now for two months, and it only gets worse. But, I'm heavily medicated now, and I foresee a fast and full recovery. Soon, I will be bright eyed and bushy tailed again, and then I can get on with my writing. |
| Didn't make it in here at all yesterday. I remembered kind of late last night, and since I had to be up at three this morning, I decided not to stay up any later to write my journal entry. Normally, I would have, but since I've been feeling so miserable and just cannot shake this illness, I thought it better to get sleep than to write. I hate to phrase it like this, but it's accurate and tells just how I feel, "I'm sick and tired, of feeling sick and tired." I get feeling better, then I get worse. It's been back and forth for a long time now, and I still have no idea what's wrong, and why it gets better one day, or maybe even one afternoon, then turns worse again that night or the next day. The only thing that makes any sense is allergies, yet that does not fit for everything, either. I believe I have a cold or sinus infection, and the allergies are on top of that, or maybe even the cause of the infection. Yesterday it was calmer, and I did a lot better, yet today, it's even less of a breeze than yesterday and I'm doing worse again. That's why saying it's allergies doesn't make a lot of sense, either. There just is no consistency as to what makes me feel better and what irritates things. But, I will go to the clinic for a check up and find out if the doctor can figure out what's wrong. Hopefully along with the diagnosis, she will also have some suggestions on what I can do to recover and feel better while I do. I also hope I feel better better so I can enjoy my two days off, but at the same time, if I'm ding better on Wednesday when I see the doctor, it may make it more difficult for her to diagnose me. Either way, if I can feel better, I'm all for it. |
| Just a quick entry again tonight, but hopefully I can start getting more time to write these out. For now, however, this will have to suffice. It's not that I was real busy today, or had a lot going on. In fact, I got out of work a couple hours earlier than normal, so I had more time. I got off from work, came home and ate a nice lunch, then sent a fax off for work. After, I retired for a nap, and woke up about the time Rhonda got done work. Yes, that's right, I slept all afternoon. I have been sleeping very poorly, and not getting much time for sleep on top of it. This meant I was way behind on sleep, and then what little I have been getting wasn't much for quality, either. Add to that, long hours working, and a lot of stress, and it's easy to see why I slept away the entire afternoon. Oh, and lets not forget about my ailment. I don't know what to call it, but no matter what it is, I'm sick. I have infected sinuses, my throat is sore and restricted, I have a bad cough, and I'm very short on breath. I've been running a fever on and off, and I just don't have any energy. I was kind of thinking it was a cold, but I don't think so now. It's been hanging on for way to long. I was sick right before my daughter and her family came out to visit, and that was at the end of August. I did get better, but I never fully recovered. It kind of went into remission, but was never fully gone, and then it flared again in September. After about two weeks, it faded out some, but again it did not clear up completely. Now, a month later, it's flaring again, only this time it's surpassed two weeks and still going strong. There are a number of things it could be, and I'm not getting to worked up over it, yet. I'm still going to presume it's a virus or something, and I just need a little assistance from some medicine to finish getting over it. I will see my health care provider on Wednesday and hope to find out then. |
| What a week! I just seen the post for weekly goals and had to stop and think for a minute, "It's Friday?" Luckily I was able to start up again after I stopped, but just barely. Yes, it is Friday, and I've only been back to work for two days since my "weekend." But what a long two days. Not only in hours put in, although I have put in just over twenty hours in the last two days. It's more the lack of sleep, and lack of energy. I have some kind of illness; a cold, an infection, and as of tonight, Rhonda thinks it may be pneumonia. Unfortunately, I would have to say she may be right. I don't know, but what ever it is, it's not going away. It started over a month ago, and I was just about over it, but now it's been back in full force for over a week. In fact, it's going on two weeks with no improvements. I have a continuous cough, and it gets worse at night when I lie down. This means, not much sleep, and what sleep I have been getting is fitful and light. Add to that the long days at work, some stress, and just not a lot of time reserved for sleep anyway, and it's easy to see why I'm just exhausted. I have been trying to get a nap in, but yesterday I only got about an hour, and that was interrupted consistently with coughing and hacking. Today I had too much work to get caught up on after I got home, and tomorrow I'm back in at three. At least it will be a bit of a shorter day, and Sunday I don't have to go in so early. Monday will be a pain, but then I'm up for two days off again. I also have an appointment at the clinic on Wednesday, and if things have not improved any by then, I can hopefully get something to ease the symptoms and make me sleep. I'm going to be optimistic, however, and by then, I'll be all but recovered. Now, I'm going to bed. |
| All in all, it was a pretty good day. I got done an hour early at work, but ended up not getting out of work until two hours later than normal. But, that's the way it goes sometimes, and if the new guy we started training today works out, it's work a couple hours of my time. I also did some shopping, then came home and had a nice lunch. I had planned on doing some more paperwork for my job, but I was so tired that I ended up taking about an hour nap. I didn't sleep well last night, and haven't in quite some time. Part of it is this cold or what ever I have. As soon as I lie down, I start coughing and get all stuffed up. Also, I was running a fever again last night, and would go from being so hot I was sweating, to freezing shills, and bundling into the quilt. This has been typical for the last week or so. But, on a positive note, I feel a lot better today. I'm still kind of stuffed up, and the cough is still hanging in, but I haven't felt feverish all day, and my throat isn't so sore anymore. Hopefully I'm on the downward swing of this virus or what have you. On top of just feeling better, if this new guy works out and passes his test tomorrow, I will only have to work three days before getting a break. I have Sunday off, then will go in on Monday to assist the new trainee as needed. He will do an opening shift, and work until nine, I will just hang around and answer questions and help out if he has any problems, then I get to leave when he does. I won't have to be back, unless there's some kind of problem, until Thursday. that should give me a nice break to rest up and finish getting over this. For now, it's late, I have to be up early, and I'm going to go relax in my recliner and enjoy a cup of hot chocolate with my beautiful wife before retiring for the evening. |
| So much for two days off, they flew past way to fast. Tomorrow it's back to work, and if everything works right, we should begin training in a new guard, too. I'm hoping he will be able to start working by next week, so I can continue to get my two days off. As for the person who finished her last day, today, I am not saddened by her parting. She has been on the verge of leaving since two weeks after she was hired, she insists on disrupting my days off, and conducts her business in a very unprofessional manor. At least she did a fair job at work, but it ended with that. Even today, logging into Facebook a little while ago, and I'm reminded how rude and unprofessional she is. I use Facebook to keep in touch with some people, and to keep up on events with many others. It's a social site, and nothing more for me. But, after this person continued to call me on my days off for things that didn't need any direct attention until after my days off, I had to screen calls. I also informed her that I do enjoy my time off, and unless it's something that cannot wait, don't interrupt my off work time with work. So, then she started showing up while I was at work. Again, if it was something pressing and important, I could understand. But, it was always something that could have waited until the end of my shift, when I would have had more time to address things and take care of it. I could not understand why it could not wait until after I finished my shift. It seemed there was two choices, either put up with the B.S. during my shift, or on my days off. Even though protocal dictates that she not come by at work except during her scheduled hours. Anyway, she always had to interrupt my shift, or my time off, usually a bit of both. Today was a perfect reminder of just how intrusive this person insists on being. I log into Facebook, and find a message. I open it, and it's from this person, telling me that she will drop off her items after work today. It was her last day, so this would be expected. In the message, she also indicates there is a letter waiting for me at work from a separate agency that she wants me to fill out and fax. No other information as to what it is, or why I need to fill it out. No explanation what so ever. I have no idea what this is, and it's probably something personal she is engaging in, that has nothing really to do with me. If it's anything to do with work, they should contact the corporate office, not have her drop it off for me, and if she followed protocal, she would know, I am not permitted to provide any information about workers, it is always directed to the corporate office. I don't know what's up, but I do suspect it's something I cannot provide. Even if it is, why not call and inform me what is needed, or provide some information. It's just another case of she needs something, I have no idea what's going on, and it's interupted my day off. Now that she is no longer an employee, I can remove her from my contacts. Once I see what this letter is all about, it may be the end of any other contact, too. |
| It's almost midnight and I just got in here now, so this will be a short entry. I worked today, then after, I gave an interview and it's looking like we may have another guard hired. We'll train towards the end of the week, and I'm hoping this guy works out. That would give me a little more time to spend in here, and doing other things as well. For now, I'm going to head off to bed. It's been a long day and I'm still not feeling the best, but hopefully a full nights rest will make a big difference. |
| I barely made it in again. I don't like this last minute bull, but what can I do about it? Not much right now, but I am working on it. The biggest problem is just being sick. Other than feeling like day old road-kill, it was a pretty good day. Things were slower at work, and it was pretty nice out, too. I didn't have to get up before time, and I was done by noon. After work, I called my younger brother and talked to him for a little while. He called yesterday, but I missed the call because I was sleeping. He left a message and said he would get back to me this morning, but I was at work and he wasn't sure of my schedule. So, after work I called him and then we met up at Running's Fleet Supply and did a little shopping. He has been interested in buying a hand gun, and they had some on sale. Being limited on funds, it was nice to see some great prices, but there were also some real crazy prices, too. For instance, one pistol we looked at had a tag on that we thought read $119.99. We didn't take it out of the case or anything, but thought it was a super low price. We looked at the make and couldn't understand it being this cheap, then it dawned on us, it wasn't $119.99, we had misread it. The price was actually $1199.99. It was just a bit out of our range, but only by a grand. I just can't imagine spending that much for a handgun. For that price it better hit the bulls-eye each and every time, load itself and be self cleaning. Oh, and it also needs to clean the house and mow the grass. And, that wasn't the top of the line price, there were others even higher. Meanwhile, here we are asking about the pistol advertised in the paper for a hundred and fifty bucks. I think they had BB guns in that price range. They had been out of them all week, but got a few in yesterday. The sale was good until today, so we stopped, we looked, and I was surprised to see the handgun was actually pretty nice. My brother had looked online for some information, and they had good reviews, and I was impressed with the lifetime warranty on it. For my purpose, I don't need much, just something simple and en expensive to buy ammo for. This fit the bill perfectly, one hundred and fifty bucks for the pistol, and twelve bucks for fifty rounds of ammo. It's a nice compact little gun, well built, semi-auto, and has an eight shot clip. Just perfect for practice shooting, which is what it will be mostly used for. Also, it's compact size makes it ideal to pack along on bike rides and hiking trips. Not that there is much need for it, but it's nice to be on the safe side. It was a couple of years ago that we had a skunk attack us on a bike ride. We were pedaling along a minimum use road, and this skunk came out of the tall grass right at us. Luckily, we had just crested the top of the hill, and there was about a quarter mile of downhill trail in front of us. We seen it come out of the grass just after we passed by, and with the hill we easily outran it. But, had we been coming the other direction and had it confront us, we would have been out of breath, and unable to speed away. We figured it probably was rabid to come at us like that, and began thinking of purchasing a handgun just in case we had another situation like this, but one we couldn't just ride downhill and get clear. We also had a raccoon attack us one, the year before this. We were in the car this time, so there was no threat. We were driving along a road that was seldom used, and this raccoon came out of the grass and charged right into the front of the car. We were going about forty miles per hour when it charged us, and just before it impacted, it stood up and bared it's teeth, kind of like a bear. Then the bumper impacted with it and it was all over for the crazed coon, and we had an imprint for the rest of the time we had that car, on the front bumper where it's face had hit. Again, we figured the animal was sick to attack the vehicle like that. A couple of rare cases, but enough to indicate that it's better to be safe than to be sorry. Besides, if I have the gun I doubt any situation would arise to need it. That seems to be the law of averages, when you don't have it, you need it, then when you get it, you wont. But, it will still be enjoyable to go out and do some practice shooting, just for sport, and if we aver do need it, we have the assurance that it's there. |
| Wow, missed again yesterday. I know it's not the end of the world to miss a journal entry, especially on days that are full and busy. But, not knowing you even missed it, that's kind of scary. So, what's my excuse? None. Seriously I have no excuse. I was up at three yesterday for work, had a pretty good day and then was back home by about one in the afternoon. My brother had stopped by at work and wanted to do a little running after I got done, so we spent about an hour together, then parted ways. We had made plans to go out in the boat and do a little fishing, but not until later in the afternoon, around two or so. I had the dogs with, so when I got home I let them take a few minutes to do dog stuff before letting them in. then we shared a sandwich and I turned on my laptop. The idea was to get online while waiting for my brother to call and confirm fishing. Only, I was so tired, I couldn't keep my eyes open. I let the computer sleep while I went upstairs to round up my gear, and change into something warm and comfortable for fishing. But, when I got into the bedroom and undressed, the bed looked so inviting that I decided to just stretch out for a few minutes. I woke an hour and a half later, and was a bit out of it at first. After a few minutes, I had regained my wits and came downstairs to see what time it was; a quarter to three in the afternoon. I checked the phone, no messages. Next, I heated up some water for some coffee, and settled down with my hot beverage to get woke up a bit more. The phone rang just as I was getting ready to go online. My brother was just leaving for the lake, and I needed to get my gear together and meet up with him. So, I put the computer back to sleep and rounded up my stuff, then headed out. I got there a few minutes before he did, and we launched the boat and spent a few hours out on the lake. It was pretty nice, and I enjoyed the afternoon, but soon enough it was time to head in and get some dinner, so I could get to bed and be up for work again at three. The rest of the even went by, and by eight I was about passed out in my chair. By eight thirty I was getting ready for bed and by nine I was stretched out and ready for sleep. Only, I didn't sleep. Oh, I dozed off soon enough, but then I would start coughing. I did this most of the night, the same as the night before. Around midnight I was up to use the bathroom, and decided to take some allergy medicine and see if that would help. I had taken some cold tablets before bed, since I had not slept much the night before as a result of this cold or whatever I have. I cough some while I'm up, but at night it gets even worse. My nose is stuffed up so I can't breath, I have so much pressure in my sinuses that my head hurts, and I get this tickle in my throat that gets me coughing. This has been going on since Thursday, and it's really robbed me of any decent sleep. The allergy medicine helped a lot, but I'm not sure if it relieved the symptoms or just knocked me out. Either way, I got a few hours of sleep in. Of course, Rhonda said that I still was coughing and fitful in my sleep, but at least I had slept. I suppose just being so tired and feeling so miserable was a big part of my not remembering to write in here yesterday, but it's no excuse. I don't feel any better today, and would have to say I'm even a bit worse. I worked early again, and worked a longer day today, not getting home until about two this afternoon. Again I was too tired to do much of anything, so I retired for a nap and slept away the entire afternoon. I didn't get up until about six this evening, although I did wake up coughing a few times. After getting up, I fixed a bite to eat, and now I'm in here, writing my entry. No problem remembering today, and it was a busy day at work, I had little sleep last night, and feel even worse. Nope no excuse for not writing yesterday, I just plain spaced it. I know that's alright, it just kind of baffles me that I didn't remember at all. |
| This is crazy, and not even a good kind of crazy. I had a terrible sinus infection and sour throat about a month ago, which took about two weeks to get over. Only, I never did get completely over the cough and stuffiness. I felt fine, and the cough was minimal, just here and there. My sinuses were pretty clear, but I would get kind of stuffed up from time to time. It seemed more like allergies than anything, so I didn't give it much thought. The only thing I didn't understand was my nose. I had developed sores inside the nostrils, and they just would not heal up. I, again, figured it was allergies, and thought with some time, it would pass. After all, it's been very wet and humid here all summer. To the point that nothing wants to burn, and we have mushrooms growing in the yard; in the open, not under trees or in shaded areas. I also heard, from different people in different areas around us, that the soybeans and corn are molding in areas, right in the field. So, with harvest underway, and the beans having this white, fuzzy mold, as well as a rusty colored mold on many of them, it only made sense that this was allergies, lingering now after the cold or whatever I had gotten sick with. Rhonda had also gotten sick at the same time, but she was over it sooner, didn't get as sick, and recovered completely. Again, showing it likely was allergies. Now, here I am, sick again. An exact repeat of before on top of it. It started the same, feels the same, and it's almost like I just never got over it. But, I know I did, I was feeling fine. And, this time around, it's not as severe, at least not yet. There are guests coming through at work who are coughing, sneezing, and hacking, and there is one person at work who is also sick. So, I'm sure I have been exposed to this over and over, by guests. But the one that seems to have spread it the most is the person at work. She was sick right before Rhonda and I got sick, had the same symptoms that we picked up, and had also given her virus or what ever she has, to a few other workers in the store. She has never gotten over it. She gets worse and better, but never recovered. I heard this from her boss, who informed me that she has another outbreak going on in the store, now. So, I assume I caught this from her, again. I was going on very little sleep, and with the harvest and my allergies, I reckon I was run down and prone to infection. Now, I have to try and get over this again, but know also that until the harvest is done and the temperatures drop, I will continue to suffer from the allergies. Also, we live right next to the grain elevator, and I suppose that will have me suffering far into the winter, as they dry the grain and spread the mold spores. It's funny, in a not so funny way -- I moved here from northern Minnesota, to get to a dryer climate and away from the swamps and molds and fungi they harbor. Now, living in South Dakota, I should be done with swamps and molds and fungi. Instead, we have been having higher humidity, more rain, flooding, and I am surrounded by swamps and slews. I think it's worse here than it was back in Minnesota! Here's hoping for a dry winter, a nice spring, and a dry summer and fall next year. The kind of weather I had always known when I would be visiting relatives in this area. |
| My last entry was on Monday, after work. I guess missing Tuesday completely kind of counterbalances getting in here early on Monday. Oh well, as Forrest Gump so rightly stated after stepping in dog poop, " "It happens." To which the other guy asked, "What, shit?" And Forrest replied "Sometimes." What I'm saying, "Shit happens." And Tuesday it did. Nothing bad; in fact it wasn't a bad day at all. Rhonda and I were both very tired and run down, so we just kind of took a quiet day of relaxing and resting up. We did get a few things done, but nothing much. After dinner, we were watching a movie when I remembered I had forgot to write in my journal. But, it was just after midnight by this time, and WdC is two hours earlier than I am. So, I missed Tuesday. But, I did get a nice restful and relaxing day, and then a good night's sleep. We did get up around five our time to watch the lunar eclipse for a bit. It was pretty cold out, but worth it to see the reddish moon. It was just settling behind the neighbors big tree, but there was enough of an opening we cold stand close on the patio and see the copper colored disc glowing just above the western horizon. We went out while it was a full eclipse, but soon we could see the crescent white as the shadow passed. It was very beautiful, and it was wonderful to share it like this. We had wrapped in blankets to ward off the cold, and Rhonda was standing just in front of me. So naturally I opened my arms and the blanket I was wrapped in, and snuggled up to her, then wrapped my arms and the blanket around both of us. Then, with her snug in my arms, we watched. Shortly after the white crescent began to creep across the face of the moon, we returned inside, and retired back to our bed. Snuggled much the same as we were outside, we drifted back into slumber. Rhonda got up a little before me, but only a few minutes. then it was coffee and conversation before we started our day. Today was another wonderful day. The temperatures have dropped, and it's doing well to get into the sixties now, so we removed the air conditioners from the windows and stowed them for the winter. Of course, this meant putting the screens and storms back on, after cleaning them. It was nice to have the fresh air blowing through the house again. I also put up a knick-knack shelf for Rhonda, and moved some furniture around. Nothing too much, just making some final touches on our bigger project of moving back upstairs to sleep. We had rearranged most of the dinning room, living room, and our bedroom with the move, and now it's just a matter of a few little adjustments, and decorating the rooms again. Then, I checked email and took a shower. After, I logged in here and cleaned up my mail, wrote my journal entry, and now it's about time for dinner. I have to work early tomorrow, so up at three again. That means a little television after dinner, then bed. |
| Wow, I'm kind of surprised that I'm in here this early tonight. I was expecting to be quite late by the time I finally got in here to write. Not that I'm complaining, it's great to be in here this early, especially since I will be burning out soon. It's been a long and tiring day. I was up at three fifteen this morning to get ready for work. It was cold, windy, and frosty out this morning, but turned out to be a pretty nice day. Well, nice for this time of the year; the sun was out most of the day, and the temperature reached the lower sixties. Of course, being South Dakota, the wind blew, and today it blew plenty hard, with gusts up to forty miles per hour. After work, I came home and set into my afternoon tasks right off. I had to call my boss at the corporate office and get some things worked out, then after getting off the phone, I had to sit down and do up a corrective action on a guard who just can't get to work on time. Going by the book, he could have been terminated today, he's had three corrective actions already for being late. But, my boss and I agreed that maybe a close call to being fired would wake him up. Yes, that pun was intended. Seriously, however, we decided on putting him on thirty days probation, and if there is any lateness, he's done. After the thirty days we will put him back on regular status, but the corporate office will not tolerate any more unexcused tardiness. I hope he got the point loud and clear, and this will be the end to it. If not, there isn't much more I can do to keep him on. Besides, it's his call now, either comply or your done. I made sure he understood this was the case, but I also informed him we would prefer he just get to work on time and appreciate the hard work and good job he does. Of course, this all meant I had to work from home most of the afternoon, then go back into work, a nice fifty mile round trip, go over the corrective action with him, and then return home about fourteen hours after I started work this morning. I should also point out, not only is this all a real pain for me, but I don't get paid anything for all this time I put in off the clock. No compensation other than what they pay me during my working hours working as a security guard. I did squeeze in enough time to put some beef ribs in the oven along with a nice big squash. I turned them off while I was in talking to the guy, and now we are heating them back up, the ribs smothered in barbecue sauce, while we wait for the potatoes to cook. And, since everything is almost done, it's time for me to exit and enjoy a late dinner, then bed. |
| I missed writing in here yesterday, just never got a chance... Rhonda and I had the day off yesterday, the first Saturday either of us has had off in a long time, I'm talking years. I think it's been about three for Rhonda, and about two for me. It was a nice change, but not a very relaxing day off. Nonetheless, it was a good day. We had a birthday party to attend, but it was a four hour drive to get there. Not just a minor birthday party, either, it was for Rhonda's mom, who turned eighty. It was a grand party and reunion that lasted all afternoon. So, we had put in for the day off, and even though things started to fall in at the last minute, we managed to get the day off. So, Saturday morning we were up early, got ready and headed out. Unfortunately things did not start out well, and we ended up an hour and a half behind schedule, and late for the party. But we made it, seen friends and family, and then after the party, we all congregated at Rhonda's sister's for the evening. We didn't get going from there until after eight, and it was closer to nine before we actually started out for home. We had gone up the interstate and took the quickest route there, but I wanted to take a more leisurely route back and miss the construction. It would have been a pretty ride if traveled during the daylight hours, but even at night it was nice. It took longer, and it was early morning by the time we got home. Then it was a matter of relaxing and unwinding before bed, and by the time I actually got into bed to go to sleep, it was after four this morning. I had to work to day, so up at six. A long day, being so tired out. That meant a nap after I got home, and I slept most of the afternoon. So, no time yesterday, and little today. But, I should be off to bed in a half an hour or so, and that means a good night of sleep before work tomorrow. I'm hoping that will make for a much more productive day, even if I do have to spend it working, and doing some unpleasant tasks after work. |
| Another entry not being written in 750 Words. Oh well, it just doesn't make sense to get too involved with them right now. It's a great site for writing, don't get me wrong. It's unanimous, logs typing speed, how many days in a row you've completed your words, etc.... It's also a nice clean slate to write on, with very little around the screen to distract. It is possible to download any page you've written, and it even gives a breakdown of what you've written. Yes, and it requires you to write at least 750 words each day. It's a great place to free-write, and for me, it adds a challenge to writing in here. I mean, it's easy to just scribble something down and claim to have made a daily journal entry, but to write 750 words takes some serious thinking. Let's say it adds a challenge and holds me accountable. But, I don't like to start writing in there and miss a day, since it records this, too. I enjoy seeing how many days I've written in a row, and I get a bit discouraged when I have to start my counter over. That's what happened. I started sooner than I had intended, when I clicked on the wrong link by accident. I figured I was there, and since I was planning on starting back up in there in the near future, now was as good a time as any. Then, the other day -- or yesterday, maybe, I didn't get logged in soon enough and would have had to lose out on sleep to write my words. I was beat, and opted to miss the words. I've been trying to get myself into a routine of getting to bed earlier on the nights I have to work the next morning, and that held precedence. Tonight it's a similar setting. Only I don't have to work tomorrow, and I don't have to be in bed quite as early. Even so, I have a long drive ahead of me in the morning, a full day with relatives, then a long drive back tomorrow evening. Sunday it's back to work as normal. I haven't eaten dinner yet, and I want to get some stuff done here yet tonight, so I don't have to try and get them done tomorrow, or be behind again come Sunday. So, not much time, therefore no 750 words, and a short entry just to keep my journal current. |
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