Finally, a health post that I don't have to lock down - even though it is something like #47 in the series of "How cho is not like other people."

In most people, myopia (near-sightedness or short-sightedness) is caused by lengthening of the front-to-back axis of the eyeball.

But it turns out that mine isn't. And this is actually something of a good thing.

This is the regular ol' seasonal flu shot, not the N1H1 swine thingy.

>shows off sore arm with the enthusiasm of an 8-yr-old<

Real world to doubters: it's not in their heads. Medical research now links this devastating condition to a retrovirus:

A Case of Chronic Denial (New York Times)

(Tip of the hat to PG, commenting on Alas, A Blog.)

Reply to this meme by yelling "Words!" and I will give you five words that remind me of you. Then post them in your LJ and explain what they mean to you. These are the words given to me by redbrunja:

... but I signed up for a pinch hit. A favorite character in a favorite series, for which I'd already imagined an appropriate scene for my own amusement some time ago - and it sounds like said scene would be right up recipient's alley.

I should be OK as long as I stick to that one scene (and not allow it to explode from 1,000 to more than 7,000 words, like my main Yuletide assignment did).

In related news, I am still sick.

Yesterday I spent close to two hours digging out of the bottom of my compost bins. Last year, when I was out of commission, the Mr. did it, and he just piled it up near the bins. I don't know whether that encouraged the evil English ivy to grow into the bins, but the older bin, especially, was a wad of tiny rootlets, and it was hard to get anything out. Still, I got out about a dozen pails-ful, and poked and turned the upper stuff a little so that it fell down into the empty spaces I'd just made. Then I started planting bulbs, with lots of nice compost in the holes, but didn't finish. I have 30 narcissus (3 kinds), 20 crocus, 20 miniature iris, and 10 squills (pushkinia). The narcissus need to be 4-6 inches inches apart from each other, and the ground is tough - it's ground that's now getting some sun since the big dead oak came down and no one's dug in it for decades at least.

So today my hands and forearms are all stiff and sore. But I was outside in the daylight for about 3 hours, so that's got to be good. I hope to plant the rest at the end of the week, when I'm off for Thanksgiving.

And on Saturday I got a therapeutic lamp for phototherapy for Seasonal Affective Disorder. Man, that thing is bright! I have it in the kitchen because the first thing I do on weekdays is made breakfast and pack lunch for the Young Lady.

... about the plantar fasciitis in my left foot. And he basically said "Well, our Round 1 therapies haven't been effective, so I have several possible things you could do for Round 2." And in the interest of efficicacy and time-saving, I opted to ...

( Cut to spare the squeamish )

Anyway, it's still a bit achy, but he said it should improve rapidly. And I'm also supposed to see about physical therapy twice a week for 4 weeks or so.

Now if this stupid cough I picked up in Cophenhagen would just go away! It seems to be fading, but it's slow.

I came back from Katsucon about 3:00pm on Sunday, and by midnight (despite a nap) felt wretched and was going through Kleenex like I had most of my savings sunk into their stock. There followed low-grade fever (100-101°F) and really nasty aching muscles that made it torture to go up and down the stairs - it felt like I was carrying a 40-lb. pack. Now I'm just tired and still sniffling a bit. But the Young Lady has it now, too. Interestingly, she has a higher fever (which is typical of children - but she's not much of a child at this point ...) and hardly any aches.

Feh.

Because I was tired and icky and I think my body has had it with the medical activities. Only 3 more sessions to go ... . I came home after today's session and played Civ for about 30 minutes and read a fic I had saved offline and then went back to bed and slept for about 4 hours!

We already get lots of junk mail because I shop online, so all those places (and those places' buddies) send us their dead-tree catalogs. To that mass has recently been added college mailings for the Young Lady. Thank God we have curbside recycling, is all I have to say!

Well, here it is 10 days into the new year, and a week after receiving some very good advice from the f-list about how I should spend my time, and I have not done any of those things. No new manga or books blogged, no costumes even started, no new fic written.

On the other hand, right here beside the keyboard is a stamped, addressed envelope with registration form (and fee check) for the Tai Chi class, which starts on the 24th. I'm hoping I'm not too late - I will mail it on my way out tonight (I'm waiting for a server swap to occur - I need to make sure things are running on the new server before I leave). And I have been playing with the specific fic idea that was suggested.

Major obstacles to progress: that blasted cold, persistent low-level pain at the surgical site (which I was told is normal - I've just got to remember to take ibuprofen before the pain gets annoying), having to go to radiation 5 days per week, and preparation for late X-mas this weekend with the Mr.'s family. (At least that one will be out of the way soon.)

Two steps forward, one step back ... .

Honestly, the health situation is already stupid enough without having my nose imitating a dripping faucet.

(And if the title of this post looks familiar to anyone, it may be that you read Ballet Shoes as a child ... that's more or less what Pauline says when Dr. Jakes asks her why she's sitting on the steps looking miserable, when they first meet each other.)

I have new eyeglasses. They have snazzy rose-red frames (very thin - it's a clear red coating over a wire frame). And for the first time in ages, I have the "new glasses distorted world" effect, especially in my left eye. They really had to up the correction on that one - I'm starting a cataract in that eye, apparently.   :-(   Eventually it'll need an operation (anywhere from 3 to 10 years, the optometrist said)

I swear that this is the year that the warranty ran out on chomiji-nee-chan ... .