The Future Mr. Scotch & myself have been trying to find a good wedding song for our first dance as husband and wife. Well, that's a simplification. He said he has no opinion, but vetoed my choice, which was Little Red Corvette by Prince. Now, I haven't been to many weddings, but the ones I have attended have featured a LAME first dance song. I want something that's funky, soulful, and romantic. Any and all suggestions will be considered. We have 35 days left and I'm getting really antsy to pick one. Keep in mind, the first dance will take place at an outdoor luau here:
Alternately, if you agree with me that Little Red Corvette is an AWESOME first song, please post that sentiment here and perhaps my man friend can be convinced.
More documentary footage on bee attacks:
I know that the more committed followers will be quick to point out that this doesn't violate separation of church and state, because it mandates that the organizations don't use funds to convert people, but I'm calling bullshit on that. You can't enforce that without a HUGE effort. Besides, if there truly are huge numbers of people out there that just want to help people without saving them or converting them, then they should be perfectly willing to start a non-profit NON-FAITH ASSOCIATED organization with my tax money.
Fuck this shit. I'm voting for my dog.
Don't ruin our sweet lawn
When I was a kid (this was conveniently during the time I lived in Hawaii), I became obsessed with starfish. What stunned me most was their ability to, rather quickly, shed and regenerate a limb. I wondered if it hurt to do this, or if it was some sort of everyday occurrence. I noticed the same thing about geckos and their tails and sea cucumbers that would vomit out their own internal organs. All of these biological feats are meant to be life-saving, so I imagine shedding a limb or spilling out one's guts isn't taken too lightly in the animal kingdom, but I cannot tell you how many quivering gecko tails wound up in my hands sans rightful owner.
Fast forward to a couple of months ago. I lost someone who I deeply admired and respected. A month ago, I went to her memorial service and sat through nearly three hours of people saying why loved this woman and how much they would miss her. During the entire service, I watched two of her best friends, with whom I was much closer, hold each other and try to make it through the entire thing without completely melting away (3 hours equates to buckets and buckets of tears for anyone not familiar with such services).
It occurred to me that a couple of years ago, they used to be a gang of 4. For reasons that are unimportant here, one of them was marginalized due to work events that, unfortunately, I was privy to and slightly involved in (no malfeasance on my part). Now, these two women were mourning the very real and physical loss of a second, with just the two of them to anchor themselves. It seemed to me that it must be the equivalent of losing a limb. How do you stay afloat when you are missing a limb you have relied on all this time and always expected to be there?
I watched all of my departed friends and family members cling to each other for support and strength, never realizing that we have our own form of regeneration. Since then, I have watched her family go about their daily business (5 days a week I pass her house and see her husband buckling the kids in the car), her friends out and about with other friends, and her workplace move on in her absence. Most days, I even see smiles on the faces of those she left behind.
I know from my own experience that the grief one experiences after loss waxes and wanes. It becomes less biting over time, though on most days you can still feel it there if you look for it (or even if you don't). But recently, I have been struck by the idea that if you do things right in this world (by this I mean not alienating everyone around you), when you lose someone, especially someone who is like a limb, it seems that the universe has a way of helping you regenerate that support, love and community. You, of course, have to be open to it and have to accept it. And it obviously doesn't happen overnight. But the limb will return to you.
I was off the Coumadin for exactly one week.
Instead of baby aspirin (81 mg) I was taking regular aspirin (325 mg) for extra protection against my "sticky platelets."
Yesterday evening, I got up from a restless nap feeling a little weird.
By the time we had walked to Cala and back for dinner supplies (6 blocks total), I was feeling weird enough to tell Dave I thought something might be up. I meditated for a few minutes, took a Xanax in case it was just panic, then gave the word and we headed up to CPMC on Nob Hill (5 blocks away).
Yes, having a previous stroke is the quickest way to be seen at an ER, aside from actively bleeding on someone.
No, the three-hour window doesn't include the time for wondering if all the symptoms have prevailed long enough to warrant a trip to the ER.
I missed the window, but luckily it was a mini-stroke, aka a TIA.
They wanted to admit me because of their new stroke center, but Dave and I reasoned that since the hospital is so close, and the symptoms were subsiding, I could safely head home.
This morning, I was happy to open my eyes in our bed, with two cats and a warm hippy.
Apparently I am a lighting rod.
Now we get to search for the happy place between vigilance and paranoia. At least this makes the case for continued disability more obvious.
Nat attended Camp Gourmet in San Francisco this week. It's his second year attending the camp, and this year was better than last year. They made more complex and interesting food, including this beautiful and very tasty Strawberry Rhubarb Galette. It's a folded pie crust made with cream cheese, delectable, flaky, amazing. I'm so impressed with this I've even given it a French name (correct my grammar, please): Galette de la fraise et la rhubarbe.
I'm going to beg him to write the recipe down and make it again for us. Soon.
I just watched two dudes get married. They've been together for eleven years.
Better make sure to drink a lot of water!
