Asthmagirl- Is my cape fluttering

Entries in ways to embarrass yourself (8)

Tuesday

Jul062010

Readiness?

Tuesday, July 6, 2010 at 6:35AM

I snapped this the other day on the way down to main street in my little town. It may have been when K3 and I were on our way to see Eclipse. I had the camera set up totally wrong, but I loved the image of the island across the sound and the Olympic Mountains in the background. Although the weather was spectacularly crappy this June, we have had the occasional nice day... followed by a couple days of cloudy and 65!

All of that is coming to an end this week as temps climb into the mid to upper 80's. We'll see if I can keep from whining about the warm weather I wished for!

In other news, I think I leave for Virginia (and Blogfest!) in 9 days! Which means I've entered the mental preparation phase. This consists of:

wishing I wasn't so "jiggly"
wishing I were mildly thinner (I know they'll love me anyway)
wishing the self tanner I've been smearing on my legs religously would kick in
wishing my hair wouldn't frizz in the humidity
wishing I were better with my camera in stead of (still) struggling along
wishing my leg hair would grow so I could wax before I leave
wishing this blotch on my forehead would develop into something I could treat instead of sitting there teasing me

Stay tuned for the next phase which consists of panic attacks about packing and wondering if my summer clothes still fit.

With the warm weather on the way, drop by the Asthmatic Kitchen to see what I'm scarfing down huge bowls of!

What are you eating?

AG out!

Update on Tuesday, July 6, 2010 at 6:59AM by

Asthmagirl

Good grief! I just checked the forecast... they're predicting 93 by Friday. All bets are off, let the whining commence!

Asthmagirl |

8 Comments |

tagged

hot weather,

waiting,

ways to embarrass yourself in

Blogfest,

Dithering!,

What's it all about?

Friday

Jun252010

Survival!

Friday, June 25, 2010 at 7:08AM

The event is over and we survived!

My event was to construct and run a golf cart obstacle course. It was very entertaining and the teams had a great time "conquering" it!

Now, I would like to collapse.

Instead I'm going to get dressed and go to work, and finish putting away games and dis-assembling signs and cleaning up my office.

Before I sign off, I would like to thank yesterday's sponsors...

The butt crack of dawn

Sweat

Sunscreen

Water pistols

Darts that bounced off Balloons instead of popping them

Foam dice with round edges that kept rolling and rolling and....

Illegally driving the golf cart down city streets without a ticket

Asthma attacks (mild) that sneak up on you

Camera batteries that die in the middle of the scavenger hunt

Granitas!

Air conditioning on the drive home

Daughters that did the dishes while you were at work

And the last minute sponsor, the 85 degree day instead of the cool 65 and showers that was predicted

Wishing you all a lovely weekend!

AG out!

Asthmagirl |

6 Comments |

tagged

gah,

hot weather,

ways to embarrass yourself in

Modern life

Thursday

May272010

The Alley

Thursday, May 27, 2010 at 6:47AM

While in Victoria, we took K3 to see Fan Tan Alley, promoted as the narrowest "street" in Canada. Given that you can't get a car down it, I don't see how it qualifies as a street, but who am I to quibble?

I'm a non-quibbler... it's part of my endless charm.

That and ability to be functional on very little sleep!

Back to the alley... which is filled with adorable little shops. I saw this cutie guy. I thought he was calling my name...

Yes, he's blurry. As it turns out, he was surrounded by incense, thus the lungs seized up and I took this picture as I was hurrying out of the shop, without adjusting any of my settings. Bother!

So we loitered in the alley, my inhaler and I, waiting for my husband and child.

Yet another one of my charms... the ability to loiter inconspicuously while I wait for the inhaler to kick in!

I am also able to multi task by snapping even more pictures while I loiter in the alley. I loved this door! I thought it said Hogwarts for a moment, but no... Still a very appealing door!

The view of the alley looking the other way. I love the light seeping in!

And then this shot....

Best name for a store EVAH!

No, I didn't go in, I was still wheezy and TOG had to walk me down by the harbor to re-inflate my lungs! But next time, I'm skipping the incense shop and going in here. Because that bare bulb, just inside the shop...? It's calling to me!

Happy Thursday!

Asthmagirl |

8 Comments |

tagged

Canada,

photography,

ways to embarrass yourself in

family,

photography,

vacation

Monday

May032010

CatchCon 2010 - Deadlist Catch ala Seattle!

Monday, May 3, 2010 at 7:12AM

What a busy weekend! Here's my CatchCon experience... I'll start off with two words:

Amazing!

Lines!

On one hand it was the dream experience... the captains are here, the boats are here, there's fun and games and this air of excitement that everyone feels...

And then there's the lines... a good 45 minutes to get in the door and register, an hour and a half wait to get on the Wizard and Northwestern. Lines for food, not enough seating for the panel discussions. I think because they had so few people last year, they didn't anticipate the crowd this year. There folks from all over the US and overseas there.

There was also a bit of chaos (thankfully). The rules for captain's autographs at the end of the day were: you could choose one captain and get one item autographed. So much for my hope of getting an item autographed by each of them to auction off at my agency's auction this year... And the thought of standing in those lines made my think I would just take off early and go home to K3. Then, after the captain's panel, all the captains were out on the pier and frankly... they were mobbed, politely mobbed. People were getting pictures, autographs, hugs... And I participated. I desperately wanted to be there, and I desperately wanted to get home and be with K3. So I took advantage of the opportunity...! here's my photo odyssey!

The captain's panel was awesome! Thank goodness for my 24-300 lens because I assure you, I was all the way in the back! The captains were unedited, salty and hilarious...

Just like I hoped they would be... They had fantastic stories about Cap'n Phil and each other and the pranks that never make the show. Totally entertaining!

Afterwards, I went outside and waited for my shot at a boat tour...

This is out on the pier... the space needle looks to be the same height as the mast from the Wizard (left), but it's much taller!

And this is where I was able to get two ladies from Oregon to save my place in line while I photo stalked captains and crew...!

Captain Keith... who was taller than I thought!

Jake from the Northwestern, who was thinner than I thought, and really nice!

Captain Sig!!!!!

And then... you get to the front of the line and onto the boats. It's surreal because you see these boats on the show with waves coming over the deck and ice all over them... did you know it takes like $80,000 in fuel to bring them down to Seattle?

Anyway... suddenly, there you are standing on the deck! And they have deckhands there waiting to have their picture taken with you! And you feel like you know them because you've been watching them forever! They also had helpers on the boats that you just hand your camera to and then you walk up and get your picture taken...

So here I am on the Wizard!

I did not know Paul, on the left... but I remember when Lynn, on the right was a greenhorn, maybe two seasons ago. And now I'm standing there getting my picture taken with him....!

On to the Northwestern, where I totally geeked out. Do not scroll down unless you're okay with that!

You've been warned!

I felt like I was gonna pop! Here I am ON THE NORTHWESTERN!!!! Standing between Nick and Matt!

When I saw Nick (on the right) I just blurted out "Oh my gosh, it's really you!" and hugged him! Poor guy. And Matt must have thought I was a loser because I couldn't even look at him!

Thankfully, when the lady taking the shot said I looked like an idiot (paraphrasing), Nick said it was cool to take one where I was actually able to compose myself...

Thusly!

So there you have it! A pretty cool experience all in all! I'm really glad I went! The Discovery channel crew and the captains and the deck hands were awesome! And in case you're interested, they had the best iced tea ever there. The cookies were pretty good too!

AG out!

Asthmagirl |

10 Comments |

tagged

catch con,

deadliest catch,

ways to embarrass yourself in

CatchCon,

Deadliest Catch,

Irresistable

Tuesday

Feb162010

The Meteor

Tuesday, February 16, 2010 at 6:17AM

Not so long ago, following K3's being run over, TOG's bout with swine flu and the loss of TOG's step dad, Asthmagirl's boss took her out to lunch.

Asthmagirl must preface this further by saying that her boss inherited her from the CEO who retired last year. Thus althought they have worked together for 6 years, they have not worked TOGETHER. Their working relationship is still developing. So when he said lets go to lunch, she was not sure what to expect.]

After discussing the minor upheaval which was (is?) her life and how it might be handled at work, he looked at her and said "I swear I don't know what will happen to you next. I expect to recieve a call some morning saying that you can't come in because a meteor has struck your house."

Yet another digression here... Asthmagirl cannot seem to tell a story in sequence to save her life.

You know those people that have an occurrence in their life and then say things like "I knew it would happen to me!"? Asthmagirl is not that person. She is always utterly surprised because her glass is half full, is it not? This is why she never recognizes the Asthma Lungs barreling toward her until it is too late to dodge them.

So there the comment hung and Asthmagirl found herself rather amused by it. So much so that she shared it with a comrade at work, KT. Oh how they laughed... A meteor... [insert lilting laughter]. Then they joked about it. Was this the meteor? Was that the meteor? [insert more laughter except this time a scoffing guffaw, cuz REALLY...!]

And the reason Asthmagirl could joke about it so readily was that she never expected the meteor. Glass half full and all that... Thus, no one could be more surprised than our wheezy heroine to have the meteor knock on the door (metaphorically) and announce "It is I!"

As it turns out... Asthmagirl had a boo boo in her arm pit which TOG assured her was from over shaving. Except she hadn't. (what with caring for K3 and all, Asthmagirl has neglected certain procedures and is regretfylly rockin' 'a 5 o' clock shadow') So she went to the rookie Dr. because she didn't have time to drive all those miles to see Dr. M because K3 was having surgery the next day. The rookie Dr. said "this too shall pass" and Asthmagirl heaved a great sigh (as much as the lungs will allow) and thought 'crisis averted'! There was much rejoicing!

And then it came back except it was like it was Barry Bonds on a steroid bender and it was all going medevil on her arm. So finally TOG drove the feisty and reluctant AG to Dr M's yesterday. AG was fully prepared for "this too shall pass" and instead got "we better swab you for MRSA".

Asthmagirl is now taking 3 different antibiotics and drinking a barrel gallon (3.78 liters for my Canadian readers) of water with each dose. Her glass is more than half full, it runneth over! And even through the the thick frames of her rose colored glasses, Asthmagirl is pretty sure she recognizes the meteor.

It was laughing at her...

AG out!

[Asthmagirl sincerely hopes that you will laugh with her. It really is funny!]

Asthmagirl |

11 Comments |

tagged

humor,

on the mend,

ways to embarrass yourself in

humor,

nursing

Monday

Feb082010

Retard

Monday, February 8, 2010 at 6:38AM

Retard

What a dreadful, ugly, soul stealing, hope shattering, gut wrenching word. If this word makes you uncomfortable, I recommend you read no further.

Retard was in the news last week and after much thought, I decided I wanted to respond in my own forum:

The news coverage started when the press reported that back in August, in a closed white house meeting, Rahm Emmanuel called some members of congress “effing retards”.

Predictably, there was much negative coverage, but it didn’t seem like much of an outcry until Sarah Palin called on Obama to fire Emmanuel stating “his comments were offensive to children with developmental disabilities.”

But it does not end there. A Palin aide criticized an aide of Texas Gov. Rick Perry for using the word “retarded” in a conference call regarding political logistics during his campaign.

Finally, in an effort to call attention to how ultra sensitive we’ve become, Rush Limbaugh stood forth with his assertions that “Our politically correct society is acting like some giant insult’s taken place by calling a bunch of people who are retards, retards”.

Asked for a comment, Sarah Palin’s aide responded by saying “Governor Palin believes crude and demeaning name calling at the expense of others is disrespectful.”

I’m stopping there because this piece isn’t purposed for political observations. It’s personal.

When K3 was labeled retarded early in her kindergarten career, I took it personally. Having the label Retarded applied to your child meant the end of possibilities. The hope and vision I had for my child came to a screeching halt. Moving from “delayed” to retarded implied not just a different life, but a partial life, a life with limited opportunities… Further, it gave me many sleepless nights thinking of how she would be perceived by her peers… devalued, mocked, ignored….

I became hyper sensitive and hyper vigilant about short bus jokes, retard references and name calling. I coached… I educated…I got in blazing arguments with family members… I might have continued down that path, but I came to realize that it wasn’t a healthy focus. Changing the words people spoke was a far cry from changing their thoughts of K3 or anyone else with a disability.

And I needed to concentrate on my daughter and her needs. Policing everyone in my vicinity wasn’t a productive use of my energy. And as a strategy, it lacked realism. The odds that I could change the world to conform to my daughter’s needs were nil. I was far more likely to succeed in keeping my daughter’s corner of the world K3-friendly. And long term, I needed to focus on getting K3 “world ready”.

And that I suppose may be the difference between someone still coming to terms with a child with a disability… or it may just be me. Either way, I’m happy to be at peace with K3’s differences.

In closing, my opinion is that people like Rush Limbaugh harbor a special kind of evil in his heart, one that goes beyond ignorance or naiveté or even showmanship. If our purpose on this planet is to help each other and accept our differences and live in harmony, I think Mr. Limbaugh shows his limitations through both his thoughts and his words.

My little K3 is worlds ahead of him.

AG out!

Asthmagirl |

11 Comments |

tagged

K3,

evil doers,

ways to embarrass yourself in

Love of a Lifetime,

Ruiners,

What's it all about?

Saturday

Aug292009

Not so much....

Saturday, August 29, 2009 at 7:25AM

Yes... I've been off the blog. Yes, there's a story...*sigh* Yes, I have to backtrack.

So, there I was... just having met Ben and getting ready to go to San Diego. Beneath all the Wheemaw joy I was having headaches that week but it was easy to say "stress, packing, busy, full schedule" and take something for it and move on. It wasn't until the day before we left that I started wondering why the heck it was so perpetual. But the flight left at 7am the next morning so I threw a bottle of ibuprophen in my carryon and off we went to San Diego.

The day of the flight, the headache was wicked. Again... I had lots to tell myself about "the flight, stale airplane air, altitude, smog in San Diego, lack of sleep". I focused on getting an ibuprophen down every 4-5 hours and by the next day, the headache was better... but again, it was best to take that ibuprophen regularly to avert "the headache" reemerging and spoiling our lovely vacation.

By the time we left San Diego, I'd had a wonderful time. My asthma had been surprisingly high maintenance but I'd brought the entire array of medicine and lungs had responded well. The headache had also been pretty managable the last day or so and it wasn't until we were ready to leave for the airport that I began to realize how many ibuprophen I'd taken over the last week. The bottle was empty.

Ironically, when I got back to Seattle, I felt good. Really good. I was out of ibuprophen but my schedule was packed and I didn't buy any more reasoning that whatever the issue had been, it was clearly resolved. The headache appeared to be gone and Ben was cute and I had a ton of stuff to catch up on at work.

And then it hit in spades.... Mega Eye Watering Headache. So bad that I left work in the middle of the day and drove the 30 miles to my doctor....

...who promptly diagnosed a nasty sinus infection, which was making my asthma unstable because of drainage and which I'd probably had for a while, well before it started giving me headaches... likely much of the summer. The only reason I had gotten better in San Diego was because I'd taken so much anti inflammatory that even after I stopped, it was still in my system when we came home.

The cures included sleeping upright in the recliner, two weeks of heavy anitibiotics, which I'm sensetive to, and lots of Prednisone. Crap.

The prednisone was a surprise. I've never taken it during the summer and I knew it was a new and ugly step down this path asthma is dragging me along. A path I don't want to travel. So much for "seasonal asthma" which is what I've claimed since it set in 6 years ago. "Oh, I only have bad flare ups in the winter... summers are great for me!" Yes, I'm very convincing when I want to feel better about things!

Knowing what my next week or so was likely to become, I decided to sign off for a few days. I was feeling oh so pathetic and sick... so sick and I didn't want to blog about it this time. (yes, I recognize the irony that I'm blogging about it now) Not only do I not want to be this asthmatic, but I don't want to be this sick person. I don't want any of this.

I understand that much of this denial is fear. Loss of control, loss of health, loss of privacy... I don't want the asthma to be out control. I certainly don't want to be publically asthmatic. I don't want... I don't want....Well, we don't always get what we want...

Unfortunately, I had a reaction to the antibiotics and I'm on my second one which is going better. My head only throbs occasionally. My stomach is completely shreded from all the meds (I think). I'm almost done with the steroids and I'm ready to go back for more allergy testing which is what my doctor wants. Bless his heart. He never gets tired of me crying in his office... What a guy!

And there you are... going "that's it? she signed off because she doesn't want to be sick"?

Yeah... that's me. Asthmatic in Denial. A masterpiece.

And how are you doing?

Asthmagirl |

14 Comments |

tagged

asthma,

liars,

ways to embarrass yourself in

whining

Thursday

Jul302009

Fame and Notoriety (and the song within)

Thursday, July 30, 2009 at 6:40AM

In case anyone has missed it, BlogFest made the news in Mathews, Virginia! I think we made such an impression at the General Store, they felt they must tell everyone! Here is the link!

Now I love the picture they used!

But as I was reading the article, something in the second paragraph caught my eye... "Asthmagirl's love song to hard cider". As much as I would like to take credit for having written such a song, and as much as I do enjoy hard cider and might have indeed written a song about it.... let's set the record straight. I have not written a song about hard cider.

Until now.

I have to live up to the hype! I know I'm no Foolery or Soup is not a finger food, but bear with me!