when we left

Academy the other day, I noticed a reflexology place in the shopping strip.  I was sitting here yesterday and decided I'd give them a call.  I've only gone for reflexology once but I noticed a couple of things that told me it worked.  So yesterday I made an appointment and went, hoping it would only help with all this sinus stuff going on.  There were other people there getting massages but I was the only one there for the foot stuff.  She got me settled in my chair and left me to go get a tub of water.  I was ready for a nap at that point.

Hiding my jeans but I wasn't sure why.

Only one here.

So while she had my feet soaking in hot water, she massaged my head, neck, shoulders and arms.  This is hard for me because while it does feel nice, I have a hard time relaxing.  First of all, it's too quiet.  Sure they have the soft spa music playing but I don't do public quietness well... at all.  Quiet makes me laugh.  When I get facials in a similar atmosphere, I don't fall asleep like most people, we talk to each other.  I was trying to focus on other things like "RELAX, MELANIE, MOST PEOPLE FALL ASLEEP", "What's that smell? Is that someone's lunch?", "Dad should really try this in China", "What are they saying to each other? Are they wondering if I'm asleep? I'll scratch my nose and wiggle my fingers just to show them I'm not", "Is someone going through my purse while they have this towel over my eyes?", "RELAX"...  I just tried to keep my brain focused on anything but the quietness and the second problem: someone was touching me.  I don't do touching well either.  All these thoughts were also having to distract me from thinking about someone touching me.  When I left they told me I should come back for a combo with a full body massage.  Nope.  Unless they can do it with my jeans pulled up to my knees and a short sleeve shirt on, I'm not doing it.  And honestly, even if they said they'd do it that way, there would definitely have to be a conversation going on.  Foot stuff is as daring as I get.  As awkward as it all was for me, my throat was a little sore last night from sinus drainage and I woke up this morning with no machine running in my ears.  While I did end up using the extra pillow last night, I'm pretty sure the foot stuff helped. 

Now that I don't hear any extra wind blowing or machines running, I'll go enjoy the extra quiet time and appreciate that it isn't a public quietness.

here we are on

Tuesday and my ears are doing better.  I've still been waking up with them sounding a little like an air conditioner or a machine running but it has worn off after taking a decongestant in the morning.  I guess my teeth hurting might've been sinuses after all.  In the meantime, I'll probably end up on the DEA's list of watched people at the rate I'm buying the meds.  I know I'm using it for sinus stuff but when I have to show them my drivers license and go through the whole process, I can't help but think they might think I'm up to no good.  Tonight I'm going to sleep with an extra pillow to see if that helps. 

Honestly, that's about all I have going on.  I'm still thinking about what to do to the floors and what color pillows to put with my new bedspread but then again, that's nothing new.  I'm one of the best at thinking about what needs to be done next.  It's just the actual doing where I fall short. 

Oh well, here are a couple of pictures I took the other day at the tennis court.  (No, I'm not playing, just hanging out.)

And that museum exhibit I wanted to see over the weekend?  It was sold out Saturday and Sunday so we decided to go Friday.  When I went to buy the tickets on Friday after having a better idea of what time we would be able to make it, those were sold out too.  Maybe this weekend... or the next...

every so often

I wake up and my ear sounds clogged.  It doesn't feel clogged, it feels normal but the sound is a little off.  Does that make sense?  Sometimes your ears feel clogged like you need to pop them or something and that's not how this is.  You know how when you plug your ears up some sounds are amplified?  That's kind of how it is.  It's hard to explain.  Anyway, I did a search this morning on something like "when ears sound clogged" and here's what I came up with:

Done.  Zyrtec D taken at 5:18.

 So that's what people are doing.  I always wondered but it makes sense now, like a toilet plunger.

Okay but only if necessary and as long as nobody else is around.  And as for the second bullet point, I'd try it if I hadn't been sleeping on my left side all night and woke up this way.  Apparently that doesn't work because it's my left ear.

NO.  No. No. No. Definitely, NO.

So the Zyrtec was taken about 2 hours ago and while my ear might sound slightly less clogged, my nose is now running.  Maybe I'm getting somewhere.  The next step will be hopping on one foot with my head tilted.  Come on, Zyrtec...

i bathed the cats

again yesterday.  Strat gave me no problem.  Lucille cried but afterwards I bundled her up in a towel and let her calm down.  I managed to get a couple of pictures.

Totally stressed and clinging for safety.  And don't feel sorry for her.  She heard Strat getting his bath first so then it took me about 30 minutes to find her.  I actually don't even know where she was hiding and I only caught her off guard when she thought I'd given up.  The look on her face was priceless.

Trying to erase all memories of the bath.

As for me, I was soaked and that's about it this time.  I did have the Thieves on standby.

Today's starting out to be a pretty awesome day.  It's just one of those good mood days and it's not just the Zyrtec talking.  There's an exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts and I'm planning on us seeing it this weekend.  It looks really cool.  Check it out HERE.  Click on the "view slideshow" under the pic.  There's just two pictures but that's what I want to see.  Anyway, it's limited to how many people can see it at once so you have to either buy tickets ahead of time or I guess risk getting there and finding it to be sold out but the next available is in 2 hours.  You know?  I just know me and how I operate.  It's almost like I get anxiety knowing I have to be somewhere by a certain time.  Then again, I think it gives me more anxiety to have to wait for a certain time while I'm already there.  What can I say?  I'm messed up like that.  Which ever way I go about it, I do plan on seeing the exhibit and I do plan on getting a few pictures.

we've decided to

change out a few things around the house.  It'll be a slow process but I am determined.  We've been talking for a while about how sick of the tile we are.  Not necessarily tile, just this tile.  It's everywhere.  I explained it to the girl at the flooring store that it's like the tile truck backed into the driveway and threw up in the house.  And as with any good plan, I made a list.  It's not just a to-do list, but a list in the order I'd like these things done.  Our first project will be to change out the floor in the front bathroom.  One of the last things on the list is the entry way and kitchen.

I stopped by the flooring store the other day to get an idea of what's available and how much things are and I ended up coming home with two samples.  I had a sample for the bathroom and a sample for the entry way and kitchen (which will be the same). 

Bathroom sample.  We decided it's too busy.

Kitchen sample.  Of course we like it and it doesn't matter at this point because it's the last thing on the list.

I'm serious when I say I want all the tile replaced.  And also, everything will have dark grout.  Light grout will turn into dark grout in no time and it DOES NOT clean and turn light again. 

So anyway, that's what's going on in my head.  That and what kind of cookies I should bake.  I bought walnuts so I don't know if I should do chocolate chip and walnut or if I should do an oatmeal cookie, maybe with chocolate chips and walnuts.  Decisions, decisions. 

I'll think about it longer.  Maybe it'll help keep my mind off my mouth hurting.  It's a deep hurt so I'm guessing it's not a cavity.  That would be too simple.  I'm hoping it's sinuses and not something like a root canal in the making.  It's not constant and nothing really triggers it, like hot, cold or chewing.  It's not a sharp pain, just more of a dull ache.  Oh well, I guess it's time to get back on the Thieves toothpaste to prep myself for a dental appointment.  Yeah, that's how it usually goes for me.  This time I'll take care of it before Thanksgiving.  I hate having those temporary crowns on Thanksgiving.  It makes eating so stressful.

ps- I'm sick and tired of the tile in this house.

and then there are

those rare times I boil eggs and they all come out of the shells without any struggle.

So many times my boiled eggs look like something's been gnawing away at them.  It's not very pretty.

And then there are the times I realize there's an impromptu family reunion happening.

Just kidding.  They probably never met or laid eyes on the other.  I guess they could be cousins though.  If so, the older cousin smelled delicious and the little cousin tasted pretty good and looked awesome.  This was all for dinner the other night.  I had the weird urge to make that delicious salad I had in Colorado.  Then at assembly time, it didn't sound good at all.  I still have leftover chicken breast in the refrigerator.  sigh...

I was thinking about Strat the other day.  He's never been difficult but lately he's been moody and grouchy.  I'm sure some of it has to do with Eric being out of the house.  I mean the first night Eric was gone, Strat slept outside his bedroom practically leaning against the door.  It was pretty pathetic looking.  Then something else crossed my mind.  He's almost 9 years old.  He's not a senior but he's mature and 9 human years translates to early to mid-fifties in cat years.  So maybe just like they age "faster" than humans, he turns into a curmudgeon faster than humans.

On a more positive note, I found my earbuds and decided to start walking again.  This morning was my first and since the temp and humidity are HORRIBLE, I left the house before 6:30.  I only did a mile because I have stuff to do today but I also was speed walking (that has nothing to do with my health but only because other people were out for their morning walks and I was trying to get ahead and avoid everyone - mission accomplished).

Now I need to start laundry before conquering the important things for today, like getting a pedicure.

first i'll give you

an update on yesterday's headache.  I think Jack in the Box tacos were definitely the missing link.  While it wasn't an instant cure, it got me going and before I knew it, I felt like my head was functioning at 100%... well, as 100% as my head is capable of functioning.  Bottom line, the headache went away.  Today I decided I was going to tackle it early on.  I went to bed with a Benadryl, woke up this morning and took a Zyrtec D, made myself eat some breakfast and while I'm not having my Coke yet, I'm having a Diet Dr Pepper so there's my caffeine fix.  I'm ready.  I started cleaning out the cat room/guest room yesterday and was putting Eric's stuff aside.  I sent him this picture but this is like me this morning, getting ready for any headache trying to sneak up on me.

I'm ready. 

While I woke up feeling brand new, the wifi wasn't.  I got on my AT&T app to troubleshoot...

You don't say...  A three second hold of the restart button and things are back to normal.  (Exactly what I needed yesterday.)

Now, about this latest thing I'm a little bit hooked on.  It's YouTube videos to motivate you to clean.  This is seriously a thing and as lame as it sounds and is, it works for me.  People post fast-motion videos of them cleaning and after a video, or sometimes two, I'm up and either starting laundry or doing dishes or whatever.  It's crazy but it works.  The one downside about watching these videos is that I've noticed that I must be a little OCD about making the bed.  I always kind of thought it in the back of my head but watching other people make their beds confirmed it.  I know Cosme has always given me looks, comments and laughs at the way my sheets must be even, tight and smooth but I figured it was just him.  Now I'm figuring out that it's me.  But you know what?  So what if my pillows must be going the same direction, at the same height and angle and in place, I like it that way.  And in the last year or so I may or may not have considered following in my grandmother's footsteps and ironing the pillowcases.  (And to think that when I was a kid watching Dodo iron her pillow cases, I thought she was nuts.)  Talking about it has made me realize that I still haven't made the bed.  I guess I'm off to get it done... or maybe watch a video to get me going.  Actually, at the noises coming from the dogs, I think I'll have an extra chore this morning if I don't let them out.

if i could get a redo

for this morning, I would've either taken a Benadryl before bed last night or at least gotten up to take one in the middle of the night.  My head is killing me.  It hurts to move.  It hurts to think.  It hurts to hurt, if that even makes any sense.  I took a Zyrtec D this morning but I feel like it might've been too little too late.  Now I'm starting to feel a little sick at my stomach but I don't know if it's from the decongestant or that I haven't eaten anything or both.  Probably both.  I just know I don't like it.  I could make some breakfast but I don't feel like moving or thinking.  I could go grab a quick bite but that would involve moving, thinking and sunlight.  The more I consider the two options though, I'd rather go grab something.  For now I'm drinking a Coke.

I was going to post a picture from dinner last night.  I tried a new recipe.  Well, it's another one of those things I wouldn't even consider a recipe but just a way of cooking something.  You melt butter with minced garlic and dab it over mushrooms and then put them in the oven.  They're kind of delicious but I don't feel like looking at them so I'm not posting the picture today.

I just took two ibuprofen and I sure hope they kill this headache.  UGH.  I'd go back to bed if I didn't have stuff going on today.  I'd cancel the stuff for today if it didn't include Gabi coming.  I really need her today.  Maybe I'll just explain how bad I'm hurting and go into another room and be miserable.  That sounds like the best idea I've had all day, besides opening this can of Coke.

Maybe I'll go get food now and see if that'll help my head.  Hopefully I'll be better and back tomorrow and then I'll go on and on about my latest addiction/obsession I picked up about a week ago.  It's not a bad thing though.

And tonight I'll take Benadryl, hoping for a less painful tomorrow.  And now to see if Jack in the Box tacos are the missing link to this headache solution.

so like i was saying

cats are jerks.  I gave both of the cats baths on Tuesday.  Lucille hates every second of it.  It honestly sounds like she's saying "NO" the whole time.  Yes, that's all caps and bold for a reason...  Strat doesn't like it but once he takes his position in the sink, he looks like he's at the spa.  He's pretty chill for his bath.  Then there was Tuesday.  I did Lucille first because she's sometimes hard to catch.  That went fine.  Then I got Strat into the water.  He wasn't having it and bit me!  He BIT me!  Yes, the arse hole bit me and I'm not talking about the little nips he's done in the past.  I immediately told him he can bite or do whatever but I would win.  So he got a bath.  The bite was a first.  I ran it under the water.  There was a little blood but it stung more than anything.

I took a picture of it right after and sent it to Eric, just to show him what a jerk his cat can be.

Tuesday afternoon

I figured the bruise would fade out.  And it did.  I noticed while I was up at the church how hot and sore it was.  It faded out, swelled up, got really hot and formed a bump underneath.    None of that sounded like the wound was heading in the right direction.

Wednesday afternoon

Thursday it was still red and sore and that lump wasn't helping.  I thought about what I could do and remembered all the Young Living oils I have.  Thieves.  That's it.  I've read how Thieves kills germs and infections so I put some on.

It was about the same on Thursday.  Still sore but maybe not as red, maybe.

Thursday afternoon

That's when I started researching cat bites and how dangerous they are.  This really didn't sound like what I wanted to hear.  I told Cosme about the danger of cat bites and described all the symptoms of infection.  Yeah, yeah, this was far from looking infected but my plan was to nip this issue in the bud.  I came home and put more Thieves on.

Cosme and I were convinced to call a doctor this morning but I was determined to try extra oils just to see.  Here is the latest picture after Thursday's dose of Thieves and then another this morning.

Friday morning

I woke up this morning and it is barely noticeable.  The redness is almost gone, it hardly hurts and the lump is almost down to nothing.

I'm not saying I just cured a horribly infected cat bite, I'm just saying I could tell this was not going to end well if it kept going the way it was.  The bite itself didn't look gross (yet) but the skin around it was way too red, puffy and hot for my liking.  So I guess this can go down in history as the week I used Thieves oil to prevent Cat Scratch Fever.  (Which, fever is one of the infection symptoms and while I didn't have fever, I woke up yesterday not feeling 100% and it lasted all day... just saying)

 Now, any cats need bathing?

i'm ready for another post

after crashing hard last night.  Wow.  I was tired yesterday.  I decided I'd get out this morning and pressure wash some of the brick where it was dirty but that turned into also cleaning part of the driveway.  About an hour later I was ready to come inside and suffer from heat stroke.  It's hot outside.  I checked my phone afterwards and saw that the temp was only 88 and the humidity was a mere 72% but the "feels like" was 101 degrees.  It's times like that where a pool would come in handy.

Day before yesterday I made Jeannine's bread pudding recipe and finally got around to taking this pic to put with the recipe.

I already had the recipe started and then wondered if we had any whiskey.  Oops.  I mean it's normally something we have on hand but Eric did just move out and I'm not sure what all he took.

Plenty, and then some. 

I swear.  The sauce that goes along with it is awesome.  I could stand there and slurp down spoonfuls... and I have.  I just had an idea.  I already thought it'd be awesome on ice cream but how about on ice cream and sprinkle either toasted or praline pecans over that?  Blue Bell Buttered Pecan ice cream with the whiskey sauce.  OMG.  I'm doing it.  (In a few days because today I'm making a blueberry tart thing.)

I also grilled rib eyes the other day.  I picked some up because they were on sale.  I never buy the bone-in but that's what it was so that's what I got.  They were huge.

No bandages came into contact with the food in the making of this meal.

Need an extra plate, anyone? 

Now that I've gone through all these pictures of food while sitting here eating lunch, I'm double stuffed.  How am I supposed to think about what's for dinner?  I guess I'll go fold clothes and let it all settle. 

Tomorrow I will fill you in on my proof that cats are jerks.

today's post is short

and late.  I'm really tired.  No, I'm exhausted.  I'm worn out.  I'm ready to make dinner and go to bed.  Wait, I'm making a batch of brownies right now.  I'm ready to sample the brownies and make dinner then go to bed.  It's been a busy day and it's too hot to be busy.  Seriously.

After I made a quick trip to Walmart this morning, I went to the church to help count but we were off and had to find where things weren't adding up.  Counting normally takes about an hour.  Today it took three.  After that I had to run a few more errands around town and then to Lake Jackson.  When I got home my face was red from being in and out of the car.  UGH.  I'm getting tired all over again just thinking about it.  I even made a pit stop at Sonic for a happy hour Coke and it didn't help with my energy at all.

Let me tell you why I went to Walmart this morning.  Yesterday I went to buy detergent.  I got up to the checkout and it came up as $11.97 but it was marked $10.77 on the shelf.  I told the checker and went to get a picture for proof.

No problem.  She fixed it and then asked for the info so she could pass the error along to be fixed.  So I got home and realized I picked up regular detergent and not the HE kind.  DOUBLE UGH.  I knew I wasn't going back yesterday so I went first thing today.  I returned my regular detergent and went through the checkout line with a few other things I picked up.  Guess what.  Did you guess that it STILL came up $11.97?  If so, you'd be right.  Today I made sure that I picked up the HE detergent and that when the wrong price came up, I was ready to show my picture from the day before.  The moral of the story?  Pay attention... which is really hard when you're as tired as I am right now.

On that note, I'm off to TCB around here so that I can fall into bed as soon as dinner's done.

it's sunday but

I figured I'd do a post since the last one was a week ago tomorrow.  I could make it a solid week and wait until tomorrow but tomorrow's a holiday and I kind of feel like it so I'm doing it now.  So, there.

Eric had dinner at a friend's house the other night and told me about this awesome cheese his friend's mom put on the grill and ever since then, I've been craving cheese.  I haven't had any and the more I think about it, the worse the craving gets.  I'd love a big hunk of rat cheese right now.  Maybe I need to make a trip to the store.  Maybe in a little bit.  Or a few minutes.  It depends on how much longer I can stand it.

Yesterday we moved Eric up to the city.  I went to the top of the parking garage and wanted to check out the view.  Like nobody saw that one coming.

He's in a really convenient location.  A funny thing happened yesterday though.  Cosme and I ran to the grocery store for beer, ice and water for the friends who were helping.  So we got to Kroger and couldn't find the beer.  I jokingly said to Cosme that maybe it was a dry neighborhood.  I stopped a lady to ask and yes, the area is DRY.  Who would've thought in the middle of the city that there was a dry spot?  So we drove a few blocks down the road and bought the beer.  I never would've imagined that in the fourth largest city.  Brazoria?  Yeah, I can see it.  Maypearl?  Yeah, there too.  The middle of Houston?  Whoa.  Oh well, that was what I learned yesterday.

I can't stand it.  I'm making a cheese run.