Happy Tuesday folks! Enjoy this picture of the youngest of our furbabies to start your Tuesday off on a dose of C-U-T-E.
The Hubbins sent this picture to me over the weekend. I thought it was too darn cute not to share! Also if you aren’t reading Text From My Dog you are missing out!
A friend recently suggested I write about my bucket list.
Which reminded me that I lost track of my bucket list. I had one ages ago on the site 43Things. But I seem to have forgotten everything to do with that account. Plus I don’t seem to have the email I think was associated with said account. Go figure. So I did the next best thing…I started a new one!
But I had to decide to return to 43Things.com or try out another site? Well, I opted to try something new…you can find me over on Bucketlist. I like the way the site works…seems easier to find goals to take on and people to follow who have the same goals/interests. So you can follow my over there by searching for GalInTheGreyHat. Some of my current goals:
Publish a novel
Meet Amanda Palmer
Learn to Fence
Travel to England (again)
Travel Coast-to-Coast
Do something scary everyday
Clearly some of these are a little out there. But that’s what a Bucket List is…fun things you know you can do. But they should also be things to work towards. Either way you should have fun with it. So do you keep a list? Is it online? Or do you have a list tucked away in a drawer somewhere?
Seriously…I had my blood drawn on the 13th of this month. I was promised the results by last Friday. When last Friday came I called the doctors office and was told they were waiting on all the results of my tests to come in as well as blood results from other patients. Great, but you know I’m going on vacation soon. You know in a week. So it might be nice to have the results and any needed meds BEFORE I go. Hopefully these results will come by tomorrow.
And yes I know it can take a while after all they took 16 vials!
I just want to know if I have nothing, or maybe need to up a vitamin or four, or if its something worse. But here I sit with no results and building anxiety. I know it isn’t my doctors fault. Any fault lands on the folks running the blood tests at this point. But I am proud of myself for not calling today to see where we were with everything. I’m trying to turn over a new leaf. Which is working out well for the office staff at the rheumatology office. Not so much for my anxiety AT ALL.
Sigh…anyway…you’ll know when I know.
No it isn’t about the doctor. I’m hoping to hear that call soon. Like tomorrow or guess who I’ll be calling Friday?
The news is a few things. The first is the Facebook page is only FOUR likes away from 100! When we hit that magic 100 I will be doing another giveaway! So encourage your friends to take a look and like. Thank you in advance.
The other has to do with a new writing gig. This gig will be reviewing all types of games for Engaged Family Gaming. The site is run by a friend of friends who had an idea to share a means of gaming with the internet. Here you may find game reviews for board games, video games and the like. But you might also find parents asking for advice through gaming. Basically the site is all about how to engage your family in gaming.
I know what you might be thinking… “you don’t have kids”. This is true, but I have the Niece and friends who have kids. Plus I must tell you I am not a Gran Theft Auto gamer girl. I much prefer Lego Harry Potter or Lego anything for the PS3. I’m just not a blood and guts gamer. However, L. A. Noir is FUN! Plus if there’s a board game about something I’ll play it. Sometimes it takes a little prodding. But eventually I’ll play.
So not only will I be getting to review all types of games. But I might find a few I can play with the Niece. Generally she’ll play anything she can play with us. However, she still doesn’t grasp the concept of co-op play. Which might be an article to work on. So I invite you to check out Engaged Family Gaming. Who knows you just might learn something to share with the young people in your life.
But I’ve got nothing. I went to the doctor as promised and she in turn took 16 vials of blood. To say I was feeling a little lightheaded would be an understatement. I thought I was going to pass out. I should have the results in by the end of the week.
After the mad rush to the lab we were off and driving to Vermont for a weekend away and a challenge in the Green Mountains…the Green Mountain Adventure Challenge to be exact. Basically a huge scavenger hunt on trails and in local businesses. I was sadly laid up with a migraine on day one. But on day two I was off and running with the group.
Which included a 2.2 mile hike up Mt. Snow! Did I want to give up? Yes! Did I want to just sit there and let my Hubbins come back for me? Yes! Did I? NO! No I pushed myself, probably a little too hard. Ok really hard. I even managed to slip and hurt my hip and knee. You know because I am oh so graceful to begin with. What did I learn from this little hike up the mountain? I’m really out of shape.
So I’m looking for some ideas from you for what it is you do to stay fit? Keep in mind running is not something I enjoy. I’ve tried it several times. It isn’t my thing. Zumba? Nope. Gym Membership? Tried it, no thanks. So let me have your ideas people…I need some help here!
Actually I HATE lists with a passion. But the current list I am working on is for my doctors appointment tomorrow. I’m finally getting to the Rheumatologist! But that means making lists of current complaints, current meds, past surgeries, past diagnosis, allergies, and family health issues. Yikes!
I called mom first, seeing as she knows AND remembers everything I’ve had or had done to me up until um now. So we enjoyed a little chat while she filled me in on all my past procedures and family ailments. Good times. I think every person I had to list had SOMETHING. Well, except my brother who is apparently perfect in every way. A fact he’s mentioned to me off and on for the last 7 or 8 years. Yes, yes, picture of perfect health he is…he’s lucky he’s my brother….
So I’m hoping to get on the road to some answers starting tomorrow as to why I constantly have joint pain, why high temperatures make me get super tired, and most important…just what was that blood test that came back funny (twice now) to cause me to have this appointment in the first place? The only thing I know is I don’t have Rheumatoid Arthritis.
Stay tuned…and remember…
…at least I hope it isn’t.
I have to have a little fun with things like this or else I’d probably end up crying in the corner while sucking my thumb. I’ll keep you all posted.
A week or so ago I titled a post “She went from bat to shit in no time flat”. Yesterday, I posted about Suicide Prevention Week and my own mental health concerns in dealing with anxiety. Well, one of my readers called me out on the older post for good reason. It sounded as though I was making fun of someone with mental health concerns and thus adding to the stigma.
I was not. What I did was fail to give context in the post. That the comment was in reference to a time (college) and person we both knew in then (over seven years ago) who had the ability to be overly dramatic when things got a little too quiet in the dorm. My use of “she went from bat to shit…” was in poor taste no matter how funny I thought it was at the time or if any of you found it funny. I probably should have used something else, but that was the first thing that came to mind and without thinking I ran with it.
If I caused anyone to feel uncomfortable or shamed, or anything I apologize. I would also like to apologize to the mental health community. I am grateful every day that I am able to see the therapist I do and have friends who I can share my ups and downs with my own anxiety with as well as be there when they need someone to listen. I also apologize to the person I was talking about in the other post…we don’t talk anymore, but if you happen to read this I apologize if I offended you. To my readers, I also apologize if I offended any of you with my poor attempt at humor. In the future I will chose my words more carefully and try to dial down the sarcasm.
To the reader who called me out on this. Again I thank you! It’s nice to know someone is reading what I write and not afraid to call me out when I’m wrong.
I have also removed the offending post from the blog. Thanks again for reading and I hope you all stick around to keep reading.
If you happen to be new to this here blog…welcome! And now I’m going to get unfunny for the rest of the post. Why? Because what I want to talk about is serious business. Did you know this week is Suicide Prevention Week? Well, now you know. Therefore…
Anyway, as most of you know I’ve had OCD for quite a while. But was only recently diagnosed with high anxiety that tend to come along with a good old fashioned panic attack. Always a “good” time let me tell you. I even take a generic of Lexapro (escitalopram and no the irony of the name of the generic is not lost on me) to attempt to keep me from getting said anxiety/panic attacks. Does it always work? No. But I’d say it does it’s thing 90% of the time.
So what does this have to do with Suicide Prevention Week? Well, it’s my way of showing you that ANYONE can have some type of mental health issue.
But not everyone seeks out help. Sadly instead of getting help some folks chose to end it all because they don’t know there are people they can talk to or services available to them.
But if they do know, even then they may not seek treatment because of the MONSTER stigma attached to mental health issues. Heck it even took me a month or two to get up the nerve to tell my family doc that something didn’t feel right and I needed help. No I wasn’t feeling suicidal, not at all. Just that even my doctor would not want to help me. But thankfully she did and prescribed the anti-anxiety meds AND connected me with a great psychologist. Who I might add thinks I might just have my anxiety under control. Wooo! BUT I still know I have a long way to go and I’m ready to dig in thanks to my many friends and family who love and support me.
So please, please don’t dismiss people when they may ask you for help or look like they may need help. Reach out to them, and offer them any help you might be able to give. You might just save someone’s life.
Here are a few handy resources to have, just in case you or someone you know needs them:
Lifeline – this is the National Suicide Prevention Hotline
This link takes you to another area on Lifeline’s site that lists ways to get help via social media sites like Facebook and others.
Many thanks to The Bloggess for sharing all of this and more information on her own blog. You should go check it out!
Thanks for reading and sharing.
Yeah, I wasn’t going to post anything this weekend. Mostly because I thought I would be in bed by now. Which might have been true if not for that nap from 5pm to 7pm…I guess asking someone ::cough::Hubbins::cough:: to wake me in an hour was the wrong thing to do. Plus King Purr (aka Ty) was super good at singing me the song of his people. He’s sort of a dick like that. But I still love him. So here I sit…sort of wide awake at 11:06pm (as of this typing).
I have a lot to go this week. Most of it involves sending out mail I should have sent a while ago…letters, cards to engaged friends I had for ages (but I’m throwing in a surprise so all good there. I also have tea to share with some tea pals…that is also late. Not being able to drive (thanks eyeballs) sucks when you have all these things you need to do but can’t get there without the help of others.
BUT I did manage to get from Downtown Saratoga to Ballston Spa via the bus without getting lost or having a massive panic attack. I’ll chalk that up to a win in my book. I didn’t get any writing done in Saratoga like I had planned. Why you ask? Every kid from Skidmore took up all the tables in the coffee place I wanted to write in. Ok, maybe not every kid, but it sure seemed like it.
So I wandered instead. My wandering took me into Bettie’s Cakes. She now sells gluten free cupcakes! I knew this when we wandered in last weekend and they were yummy. I picked up a red velvet one this time around. I also had some of her maple bacon ice cream as well as some red velvet ice cream. All I have to say is YUM!
I suggest stopping by. I also got to meet “Bettie”…very cool.
Saturday was very full and exciting…which meant today was very low key and quiet. Thankfully. But still no writing was done, unless you count this post. Which you can, but it isn’t book writing. I also got another idea for a different story…thanks a lot Neil Gaiman! I read Volume 1 of his graphic novel series Sandman. It was great and now I have an idea…
I’m also working on something else super secret for now. I’ll let you know when I can share more. But I do have some good news…I’m feeling sleepy. Which is good because this post just ran all over the place. (I’m sort of sorry)
Picture it if you will…Labor Day weekend and no plans at all. So naturally I ask to make plans. I’ve been wanting to check out Northshire Bookstore’s new location in Downtown Saratoga since they opened at the beginning of August. Lucky for me the Hubbins had his own agenda (more on that in another post) and soon we were on our way!
From the outside it looks like a rather small store, but let me tell you looks sure can be deceiving. This place is HUGE.
I lost the Hubbins somewhere in the Science Fiction section of the store…he can do that, me I need to keep moving, looking at anything and everything the store has to offer. Of course I did pause long enough to grab a copy of Gail Carriger’s book Soulless.
We follow one another on Twitter but I didn’t put two and two together until that very moment…smooth. I think my exact words were:
“Holy sh*t, I know her!”
“Know her, know her, or Internets/Twitter know her?” Said the Hubbins.
“Anyway…” I then wandered off, with a copy in my hand. (I should have bought the whole set right then! Ahem, as I was saying I was off and walking leaving the Hubbins in my dust. I did get a little turned around in the stationary/small gift section of the store. But I did take note of a very comfy spot to sit, if I felt the need.\
I swear it seems like many a bookshop these days doesn’t want you to sit and enjoy a book you may purchase. Instead they offer up hard wooden chairs or none at all. As if to say “buy your book and get out!” But not this store, there was seating tucked away everywhere!
Three purchases in hand now (two new Moleskine journals) and I was on my way to check out the Children & Young Adult section. I was in the mood to pick up something for the niece that would make her put down the Nintendo DS. But I have no idea what 4th graders read. So I did what any Aunt would…looked for a helpful sales person. I found one (I don’t recall her name, but she was PERFECT to work in this section of the store), I told her who I was shopping for and a little about what she did and didn’t like and off she went to “the” book….The Penderwicks on Gardam Street. One of the young ladies in the book is apparently trying to write her own book…which I knew would appeal to the niece right away! She being the budding novelist – who will probably publish before I do…
I naturally added it to the pile. I then asked about books for the younger set. We know a little lady who turns one very soon and I figured books would be best. But I wanted books with a story. Again, my faithful book seller had just the picks for me. I’d show you, but mom and dad might see and that could spoil things just a bit! But I will show you some cool things the upstairs offers their younger visitors….
Once I had my fill and my arms were full I went in search of my Hubbins. Who I found right back where I left him. When he saw my pile of books he simply added his book to it and walked on to explore the rest of the store. I headed in search of a seat! I found it in the New Age/Health/Religion section. Which I might add would be perfect for a small meditation group perhaps…you see it’s a bit sectioned off from the rest of the first floor…
It was there I examined my “loot” and knew this would not be a cheap trip. But I was buying books and buying books is a good thing…buying local is even better!
If you find yourself in Saratoga I suggest you stop in and explore (can’t make it, visit them online). But don’t blame me if you don’t leave empty-handed!
*Once again I am doing this review on my own…for your benefit dear reader*
Gal In The Grey Hat 