Looking Back

Wow!! Wednesday already so how about a little recap??

Sunday I was up early in the afternoon to help Lynda with 'that' job we do each weekend. She had some car trouble Saturday evening so there was some checking around to do with that and stewing because she has extra hours booked to work all week. We both crashed before 10 that night.

Monday was a steady go from 5 a.m. straight through until after 10 that night. If my A.A. home group wasn't so small I would have begged off but I felt obliged to show up - and did. During the day I got some household stuff cleared up, some running around town done picking up car parts and shopping. Plus, catching up on blog friends new posts. The car got fixed by a friend. By that evening I was exhausted and wound up spending 12 hours between the sheets without feeling the least bit guilty.

I got up Tuesday not feeling all that great - headache, heavy feeling in my chest and generally blah. The plan was to take it very easy and do not much of anything but all it took was an early call from my Mom to rouse me. As my sister is leaving on vacation (again!) and weather isn't supposed to be good for the rest of the week she thought she'd best get a few things from the grocery store. No problem Mom.

My stepson was called back to work from his layoff and started back Monday. Lynda drops him off on her way to work and I pick him up at days end. That has worked alright so far but I figure there are already 3-4 inches of snow on the ground now at 10 a.m.; there is plenty more forecast and there is quite a distance to travel and get him. Oh, joy.

Yeah, the weather. Friday we had a tease of mild stuff to come - we actually got up to freezing!! That night it dropped right back to -20C; I could have cried. There were a couple more cold days but as this storm system moved in it brought much milder temps. I think we're sitting at about -5C which is comfortable.

Lynda is doing her regular shift all week but T, W, & Thurs she is putting in an additional 4 hours on-call for another department. She goes back in Saturday for a super shift; 16 hours from 7 until 11. (Then we do that job on Sunday again and she's back at work Monday. Fun, eh?? She's definitely working way too much.)

What's my day hold?? Well, shovelling snow for sure while trying not to blow a gasket. That trip to get stepson #3 and then have dinner on the table for when Lynda gets home. Last night it was pork chops in mushroom soup, sherry and seasonings with rice. Tonight it is schnitzel with peppers, onions, roasted garlic and garlic mashes potatoes.

Y'all have a good day; that's my plan.

Slow Motion Man

By the time I got home this morning I had been up for 21 hours and surprisingly felt pretty good. I had gone through a tired stage through the night and that was why when I posted I kept it on the short side and to the point - a bare bones account of the weekend. It seems that tonight is when I'm paying the price. The dogs had me awake around mid-day and I've been up and around ever since. Ever feel like you're slogging along wearing a heavy damp cloak long after your energy has run out?? That is me tonight on 4 or 5 hours sleep. During the day I kept busy with household stuff - laundry, dusting and vacuuming, and cooking - and managed to get away from the house to make it to work a bit early.

Primarily for our youngest dogs benefit (Milo), Lynda and I have adjusted our work schedules so he is well tended to. We had a talk tonight and decided we've done this long enough, he is grown enough that this shouldn't continue to be necessary. So, at long last she and I will have some common time at home instead of an hour here and there spotted through the week. Hallelujah!! Lynda will go back to her regular day shift and occasional rotation into a week of afternoon shift instead of every other week. We will enjoy having the chance to actually go out and do things together again.

We haven't had any sun since getting that dumping of new snow but I did get a couple of pictures that could be alright to post. There also hasn't been a breath of wind so everything has an 8 to 12 inch hat of pristine snow atop. Looks pretty damned cool. Really must get back into posting photos on a regular basis again - there's a worthy goal.

Today marks 6 years since Lynda quit smoking; or 2192 days.... and she has never looked back. Doesn't miss it and has no cravings. Pretty remarkable since she went along with my sister and I to the hypnotherapist not really intending a serious quit attempt. Right time; right place; right outcome. Sister Linda is coming up on a year soon via a different method. I'm back pretty well where I started; smoking daily but not as heavily as before.

Merry Merry

Hope everyone has the merriest of Christmases!!

I haven't been my usual verbose self this week as I've had little sleep..... which really kills the urge to write. Last night I had to put my head down for a while here at work (which of course is verboten.) Couldn't keep my eyes open. Driving to and from work has been nerve wracking with all the never ending snow we've had. Ah well, I'll be a long time dead and can catch up on my rest then.

Today Lynda and I will have her two younger sons over for the day and dinner along with one of their girlfriends, plus her 5 year old daughter. When I arrive home from work come morning I'm to get the turkey out of the freezer, figure out how long it needs to cook, baste it with oil and depending on time pop it in the oven. By the time I sleep, get up and clean up it ought to be time to join the rest of the crew for dinner before I come back to work. Hmmm.... turkey for breakfast.... might start a new trend.

Last night before I had that lie down I watched the 2nd of those documentaries. This was the video exploration and expansion of Tom Harpur's book 'The Pagan Christ'. It made for interesting viewing especially so close to Christmas. The premise of the book was that there is no real historical evidence that Christ 'the man' ever existed. No hard biographical fact in the four gospels or elsewhere. Further investigation showed paths to Egyptian Coptic sects which predated Christ's birth by more than a thousand years. In Coptic beliefs there are a large number of like stories which parallel the story of Christ. Like I said - interesting viewing that provokes thought, asks pertinent questions and provides a few answers. I'll try to watch both productions again before returning them to my friend Cindy.

Tonight I brought to work a number of videos; a variety of music, action and drama. I think it's time to choose one, go sit and pass some time.

Winter Wonderland

We had a small snow storm earlier this week but now we're into a cycle which will bring accumulations like we haven't seen since last winter. One system is coming east - cross continent from California -, another is slipping north from the Gulf of Mexico. Forecasters are saying there are 3 storms backed up that we have to face one after the other. When I got up today I was expecting to see some snow but it didn't start until about 8:30. Now already at 11 my car, driveway and walks are completely covered. They're calling for up to 35 cm before this one is over and up to 60 by the end of the weekend. (That is over 15 inches today - over 25 inches total) We will be digging out for quite awhile; where to put it all?? Mom and I were supposed to go out to do some running around town but we thought better of it.

Yesterday after I left work I arrived home and put some beef ribs in the oven to slow roast through the day. Then I got into cleaning; with 2 dogs and 2 cats dusting, sweeping and vacuuming is a necessary daily routine otherwise the fur and dust bunnies quickly get knee high. (A slight exaggeration, but you get my drift.) A few loads of laundry and then it was time for a lie down before getting cleaned up in time for Lynda's arrival from work. We had dinner, cleaned that up and headed out to do some shopping for household supplies. I was surprised the stores were so quiet this close to Xmas. There wasn't much of interest on TV when we got home so we caught an early night.

Lynda has been caught up in a cycle of increasing pressure at work. They've lost a couple of people through buy-outs and so her workload just keeps increasing despite the fact she's very good at what she does. She is burnt out and about ready to blow a gasket. Overdue for a break. I put a call in to her earlier suggesting she leave early today as driving will get increasingly dangerous.

After that 11 day stretch of work, and different shifts, I'm pretty burnt out myself and trying to go easy. Quick rests when I feel in need of them; lots of water and tea; small frequent meals; vitamin supplements; whatever seems appropriate. I really don't want to be sick over the 'holidays'. (Holidays in brackets because I don't get any time off.)

I've had a look at a few blog buddies sites so far today and hope to find time to get completely caught up on blogland later on. Have a good one. It's time for me to find the business end of our snow shovel.