Mild Eyeball Peril Caused by Little String of Sweater Fluff

So it all started this morning on my drive to the GO Station. I thought the stinging, poking pain in my right eye (every time I blinked) was just a result of rogue mascara or an eyelash. When I got to the parking lot, I peered anxiously into the car mirror searching for something - anything - that would be causing all this blinking and tearing, but I found nothing. This stinging pain and tearing continued intermittently for the rest of the morning. I confessed to my co-worker that I thought I had pink eye! I was certain that my symptoms (which represented 3 to 4 of the 8 listed on those trustworthy medical sites) matched half the typical pink eye symptoms. My co-worker assured me, that the condition would most likely include a 'gooey discharge' from the affected eye. This, I had not. Still, unconvinced, I moaned and complained and continued to attempt to view (in my boss's mirror) the eyeball stowaway that was causing my pain. Finally, my co-worker (bless her persistence) marched over to my desk and demanded I tilt my head back, and open my eye wide so she could have a look. And lo and behold, but what did she find in my right eye!? A thin, thread of fluff that she diagnosed to have probably come from my white sweater. Now, armed with this new information (and relieved that I probably did not have pink eye; Side note: the pink eye theory was not really that far-fetched, I visited with an out-of-town friend on Sunday who was suffering from pink eye recently, and hugged her) I successfully spotted this little fluffy bugger myself, in my boss' trusty mirror. Unfortunately, another co-worker and my boss materialized at the exact time that I was poking and prodding my eye in my boss' office. Admirably, they were both concerned - one running to get me eye drops to flush out the culprit and my boss then peering into my eye to catch a glimpse of this thread that was causing all the fuss. Once I realized that I was absolutely useless at placing eye drops in my eye, my boss then proceeded to do it for me. This did not work as hoped. And the afternoon progressed with more of my moaning and complaining and attempted removal of invading eye thread. But, don't give up hope yet.... there is a happy ending to the story. Finally, after getting really exhausted of all the tearing and eye stinging (if I had to describe it, I'd say that my eye was bathed in scalding water laden with razor blades) I paid a visit to the ladies' room, where there was a wall mirror one could stand directly in front of, without obstacles. With a few pokes and some strategically placed Kleenex, I successfully removed that nasty, uninvited stringy eye thread! Then, I was finally able to proceed with what precious few hours remained of my work day.

A special thanks to:
- co-worker D - for identifying the pesky eye thread, and squashing my pink eye paranoia
- co-worker R - for providing eye drops
- boss L - for placing eye drops in my right eye; for listening to my relentless complaining; and for the all around support and encouragement for the mild eye peril I was enduring
- co-worker C - for putting up with my endless complaints and gross exaggerations ("My right eye feels like it is bathed in acid")

Much love and hugs to all involved. Me, and my right eye, thank you. =)

More of that rant stuff....

Well I know you're all dying to know how the treadmill thing is going and frankly, it's really going well I mean who knew that it actually facilitates burning calories and causes me to sweat (when it is used.... or while it's being folded.... you take your pick) And it's not just an expensive way to fling the cat across the room to see if he actually lands on his feet or his furry grapes Right now Charlie is lying behind it while it's folded and I think I may actually see a bead of sweat on his chin which may imply that sitting behind a treadmill and thinking about using it could actually cause someone to burn calories Or rather it's more likely that Charlie just finished dunking his head in his water bowl and now has a 'water-droplet-fumanchu' on his chin So I've been really itchy lately and I wanna believe that it's from dry skin, but someone suggested it was from stress or anxiety... I mean getting up in the morning (itch, itch, itch) doesn't really bum me out that much nor does a really irate (itch, itch, itch) student I really need to re-evaluate this stress-itch theory because surely we can't say that a GO train delay (itch, itch, itch) would cause me to scratch endlessly Hmmmm.... interesting I'm itchy as I'm typing this Could it be that the mere thought of trying to come up with something stimulating to write in my blog is making me itchy? Right now I could think of all the fabulous things I could scratch myself with For instance, a pitch fork, a rake, a rabid chinchilla, a chainsaw, a birch tree, an old lady's toenails, a punk with a lotta piercings, an angry hedgehog..... (itch, itch, itch).... the list is endless.....

Update: Designer Babies

Anna dies in the end.... *sigh*....

It's Quiet.... Too Quiet.

Well today is the day we've all been waiting for.... the day we get our treadmill! Anthony and I are both excited.... and dying to use it. Not sure how the workout schedule is going to work, but I suppose I perfectly prepared to flog him with a wet noodle so that I can use the treadmill first.

So in honour of our new piece of exercise equipment arriving this evening, I thought I would entertain you with a list of exercises we all can do..... even without the benefit of expensive equipment:

• Parkour. For those of you who may not know what this is, I shall include a link here that will explain it for you: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parkour.

• Trying to put an uncooperative cat in a cat carrier. Apparently I'm not the only one in the universe that has had difficulty with this. Check out this product (*Note: This is intended for those with a sense of humour about animal care and not for those that cry when a toy animal is injured): http://www.msgr.ca/msgr-9/Cats%20cat%20carrier%2001.jpg.



• Leaving the GO Station parking lot in your car. If it isn't the gracious drivers that constantly cut you off, it's those wonderful people that won't let you in. Before you know it, you've spent 15 minutes in a dreadfully slow line-up of exiting cars, causing every muscle in your body to tense: PRESTO! Instant total body toning!



• Laughing. Oh it really doesn't matter if you're laughing at something or someone.... or even if you just amuse yourself: it is still a bona fide abdominal workout.

Well... that's all I've got for now......enjoy your new workout!

My Sunday Rant

So today is Sunday at about 10 am and I'm still in my pajamas and it amazes me how much cats can sleep the only activity they really do is move around to find another place to sleep oh yeah and use the litter box if that can actually qualify as an activity I'm thinking of getting out of the house today need to get my eyebrows waxed and then may want to go to the mall Anthony has said he's going to buy a Treadmill today.... that's totally nuts! I mean they are really expensive and I don't have any doubts that I'll use it regularly but I hope it's not just a phase for him there are little footprints out in our backyard (if you can really call it a backyard - it's just a little deck with very little grass and only fenced in on the sides looking out into a common playground - I've always wanted to push Charlie down the slide) just under the dining room window and I really would love to see which neighbourhood creature is making them like is it a cat or that darned skunk which I really hope does NOT live under our deck but what can you do when your neighbours leave their stinking' garage door open it's like a darn invitation that reads 'hey all undesirable creatures of the neighbourhood, looking for a place to bunk? Well look no further' in fact sometimes they park one of their 2 cars in the garage and they can't even close the door because the car sticks out.... here's an easy solution: BUY A SMALLER CAR! Sheesh! Getting kinda hungry over here and I had a dream about being in Mexico with my family and my mother wanting pancakes so I went to the grocery store on the resort and found pancake mixture but it took me forever to find flour (the mixture called for flour) when I finally did find the flour I had to make my way through the maze of sofas (sofas?!?) and living room furniture (what the...?!?) well I DID say it was a dream and it doesn't really have to make any sense I also went to a kind of basin with change in it and traded a 'dollar ribbon' for 4 quarters..... yesterday I was having a staring contest with Charlie (he lost) and I wondered what the heck goes through his brain at any given moment like does he feel happy, relaxed, confused, angry ..... man am I ever hungry, I'm going to have (can you guess?) pancakes for breakfast alone, like yesterday, because Anthony is still asleep.... I'm beginning to think he is part cat.....

Designer Babies

Currently, I am reading a book loaned to me by a friend/co-worker, entitled "My Sister's Keeper" by Jodi Picoult.

Basically, the premise of this book is that an infant girl, Kate, is diagnosed with APL (acute promyelocytic leukemia) that Wikipedia defines as:
"a subtype of acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), a cancer of the blood and bone marrow .In APL, there is an abnormal accumulation of immature granulocytes called promyelocytes. The disease is characterized by a chromosomal translocation involving the retinoic acid receptor alpha (RARA) gene and is unique from other forms of AML in its responsiveness to all trans retinoic acid (ATRA) therapy."
(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acute_promyelocytic_leukemia)

Her prognosis is not good, as it is quite a rare disease, and she requires various risky treatments. Anyway, the parents make a very controversial decision to genetically engineer a 'test tube baby' to be a perfect genetic match to Kate, in order to increase Kate's longevity. Anna, the 'designer baby' has spent her entire childhood/life (she is 13 years old at the time of the story) donating red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets and bone marrow to Kate, to help her fight off the leukemia. Not too far into the story, Anna is seen consulting local counsel in order to sue her parents for the rights to her own body, which sets the stage for the rest of the novel. What seems to have set her off is (not to mention her lifelong role as a forced 'donor' for Kate) the fact that Kate's kidneys are failing and naturally her parents are expecting Anna to donate a kidney.

Now, what's frustrating me throughout the book (I'm approximately in the middle now) is how Anna seems to be easily waffling between her convictions (to sue her parents and her rights to her own body) and her devotion to her sister. What seems to be the antagonist is their mother, Sara. Sometimes I just want to smack her. Sometimes I can't even imagine what it's like to live in constant fear that you will lose your eldest daughter to cancer at any moment. Regardless, having no children myself, I totally sympathize with Anna's plight. I see blaring favouritism and exploitation going on in this family. It's simply not fair that one child's life is worth more than another child's freedom. And don't even mention the fact that Anna was conceived (if you can call it that) for the sole purpose of providing 'spare parts' for her ill sister.

It seems perfectly appropriate that I would go to the wreckers and pick up a car that's rear end has been rendered useless for the purpose of extracting it's perfectly good engine; when I need this engine to repair my current vehicle. However, it does not seem perfectly appropriate to choose the attributes or 'parts' in a prospective child for the purpose of 'repairing' another child.

Children/babies should be conceived out of love. Out of a sense of wonder and commitment to their well-being and future. It is unfortunate for a family to have to deal with a fatal diagnosis in one of its children..... a diagnosis that will inevitably require their extreme time, money, effort and patience. Why would they want to bring another human being into the already volatile family unit? And risk depriving that new human being of its much deserved time, money, effort and patience?

I hang on with bated breath to see what lies ahead in this story. Deep down, I am rooting for Anna. I hope she gains the rights to her body. I hope she gets to go to prom, without having to worry about Kate's imminent hospital stay. I hope she gets to have her first kiss. I hope she gets to go to university. I hope she gets to live a full life. But most of all, I hope that her parents will finally give her the love and respect she deserves as a child of theirs....... not a child produced out of medical need.

So whatcha, whatcha, whatcha WANT?!?

Yes, I'm back (by not-so-popular demand). I suppose I can claim I have an audience now..... albeit only of one, but that still counts, dammit!

Anywho, perhaps I should find a theme for today's blog, seeing as it is so long-awaited (don't you know it, CC!) So today's theme will be: "not so well known ways to bond and strengthen your relationship with your significant other". Oh shhhuuuuuure, we all can quote Dr. Phil upsidedown and sideways and credit him with suggestions that we silly humans communicate, relate, empathize and gesticulate (?) with each other to bring ourselves closer together. But really, when you get down to it, sometimes that just simply takes far too much work. Here I present to you some 'real world, no nonsense' techniques for forging a healthier relationship with your partner:

1) Play XBox games together. The more violent the better. In fact, if you have the option to beat each other up in some form of street-fighting game, go for that. Not only will you end up swearing up a blue-streak at each other, you will CERTAINLY find more creative phrases to use in the bedroom.

2) Go to the museum. Chances are you'll probably have an engaging intellectual discussion about the merits of futurism in Italian architecture. Or you can just be happy with the fact that you'll likely be puzzled by the perspective of some piece, and wind up tilting your heads towards each other in bewilderment.... then PRESTO! you're engaged in a liplock..... Hey, I can dream, can't I?

3) Put Ikea furniture together. For those of you who have purchased items from Ikea, I probably don't need to elaborate. But, honey, if you can do this together..... you can take over the universe!! Mwa ha ha ha!

4) Watch a romantic 'chick flick' together. Either you'll end up crying and he'll comfort you with a cuddly hug..... or he'll end up crying and you can have a good laugh at his expense. Either way, it's win/win for you.

5) Cook dinner together. I don't know what it is about the smell of cooking food and bumping into each other in the kitchen..... ah, most would say it's the teamwork and preparing a rewarding meal together. But it's what happens after you both sample a little too much of the cooking wine that REALLY matters.

6) And lastly..... dance like no one is watching. That's right, it's sounds cheesy. But I'm not talking Barry White or Diana Krall, but rather Gwen Stefani or even better, 'SexyBack' by Justin Timberlake. Oh sure, you can show your partner how they do it in the strip clubs... but it's WAY funnier to compete to see who can dance the silliest. No, it won't land you a spot on "Dancing with the Stars" but it will guarantee you burn at least 17.45 calories with all the laughing.

Well, that's all for today.... tune into the Nebula next time.... you never know what space junk will turn up.....