And Even More Shoes!

These are totally unrelated to the wedding, though I did consider saying I'd changed my mind just to see what people said. Anyway, last week I read this article (courtesy of Chris, who in turn got it from Chappysmom), which is basically about how bad shoes are for us biomechanically and we're better off going back to barefoot as much as possible.

Given that I already preferred wearing as little as possible on my feet during the warm months and given all my musculoskeletal issues, plus the fact that the article was backed up with hard data, I was an easy sell. The Vivo Barefoot line profiled in the article is pretty much all sold out at this point, so bought myself a pair of these at half the price:



Because they shipped from just outside Boston they were delivered the next day - Friday afternoon - literally a couple of minutes after I left for work. I think the UPS truck deliberately waited around the corner for me to leave, just to be spiteful. David will attest that I called him several times that night to see if he'd touched them or tried them on (He didn't. The toes scare him.) I tried them on briefly on Saturday, but it was too cold to wear them for long.

Sunday was little different, except that it was wetter. So today they got their first real breaking in. I had a few errands to run then spent the bulk of the afternoon working on the garden beds and getting seeds planted. The website doesn't say anything about them being good for moving wheelbarrows full of partly-composted manure to spread on the garden, but they worked quite well. And when I was done, I just tossed them into the washing machine.

I think I may get another pair for the gym and maybe, possibly a pair for work. I think the Vivo Barefoots might freak clients out less, though. When they're back in stock, that is, and assuming I can spare the pricetag.

Other Stuff in the Mail

I did get one package before I left for work on Friday. It was my prize from VUBOQ that I won from entering his 10% Tax Refund Challenge and donating 10% of my refund to a charity of my choice (and getting my name drawn out of a bag.) Unfortunately, when I picked it up I heard a faint *clink* that didn't bode well.

Inside was a pair of handmade pottery mugs, but the handle of one is in about four pieces. Eventually I shall take a tube of epoxy to it, but it was sad because I know VUBOQ put a good bit of work into them. The other mug, at least, is in perfect condition and very lovely.



The Rest of the Weekend

Saturday was quite a big day around the farm. It was David's 40th and Landlady Paula's 60th birthday, so we had a big 100 year birthday bash for them in Paula and Wendy's brand spanking new barn, complete with live band, lots of food, and lots of booze. A good time was had by all, though the size of the crowd was a bit overwhelming.

On Sunday, the main order of business for us was setting up a wedding registry, as friends and loved ones have been asking us more and more frequently. Now, we're hardly just starting out in life, so our needs are relatively few, but one thing we really need is some coherency in the dinnerware department. David had been living in single mode for a decade when we started dating, and I had come away from the relationship with S with his old hand-me-down med school dishes - leaving behind the nice dinnerware set our parents had chipped in to get for us.

So we agreed on putting together a multicolor set of Fiesta® ware, which meant a trip to the local Macy's to get a better visual idea of some of the options available and a couple of hours of discussing which pieces we actually want and what colors were available in each piece - not a straightforward task when you're trying not to have the exact same color grouping in any two pieces. Eventually, though, we managed to put together a list that will give us some nice multicolor place settings but give our guests some inexpensive gift options.

I also added on a few bigger ticket items, just in case anyone is so inclined. After all, that's what wedding registries are for, and I really could use a decent food processor. And a workbench, and a handmixer, and....

Gimme That Buckled-Down Look

With 53.9% of the 152 votes cast, the buckle shoe is the clear crowd favorite. It's also the one David and I agreed on. In fact, I ordered it because it immediately made me say, "Oooh!" Honestly, I love all three of these styles, but (in my best Sean Connery) there can be only one*.

Um, yeah...anyway, the other two pairs will be headed back to the store soon, though there may be a bit of wailing and gnashing of teeth over seeing them go.

No pulling of the hair, though. That's going away well enough of its own accord.



*I did not know until I just read it on IMDB, but the big scary guy who plays the Kurgan in "Highlander" also does the voice of Mr. Krabs from SpongeBob SquarePants. The things you learn.

OMG! Shoes!

One of the big discussions we've been having is over footwear for the wedding. The concept has been to go with something dressy casual, since we're not planning on formal wear clothes. David's found a very nice pair of loafers here.

I had initially thought to wear ghillie brogues (for a better pic, check out the ones modeled by James's cousin here), since they're sort of considered standard with kilts, but they tend towards the ornate and formal, which doesn't really fit the look we're shooting for. Since I'm wearing an 18th century-style kilt, the other option was to go with period buckle shoes comme celles-ci. Just a little too Plymouth Rock, though.

So I decided to turn to Doc Martens and see what they had to offer. I came up with these three options, which arrived today:



The stripped down, basic brogue



The hip and edgy slip-on



The new and improved buckle shoe

I didn't specifically go into this looking for shoes that were so similar, so it was interesting to see how directed my tastes were - same basic outline and even the same lining for all three of these styles. I'd love to keep all of these because they all look fabulous, but I need to narrow the decision down to just one. I think David and I are pretty firmly in agreement on the one we like best, but I thought I'd throw it out to the rest of y'all to see what everyone else thinks. So go vote already!






FYI: If you can't see the poll just above, check to make sure you have the latest version of Java installed and enabled.

Weekend Wrapup

This week was supposed to be my week off, but when I commented last Monday at work about how ready I was to have the next several days off, our head tech reminded me that I'd agreed to fill in on Wednesday night. So my eagerly awaited 5 days off was shrunk down to 3 days. As I've recently mentioned, I really need a vacation, so this was not a very happy realization. Still, I had agreed to work the shift and it's always good to have a little extra income to pay down debt.

Wednesday night went pretty well, though, and I made the most of those 3 days - or at least the first two of them. On Thursday morning, I did my first workout at the gym around the corner from work and was suitably pleased. I also made an appointment for my first massage in 2½ years on Monday (which I am soooooooo looking forward to). Then I came home, got a few hours' sleep, then got up and went to get my hair cut at the Aveda salon in Portsmouth. I've been there a few times now, and I think I'm done with SuperCuts forever.

On Friday, my big project was this:



I've been wanting to put in raised beds pretty much since I moved in here, and I finally got out the power tools and made it happen. I made them with very simple frames of wood/plastic composite decking stacked two high. I couldn't come up with a really good way of connecting the stacked frames, but I decided that I actually prefer them not attached to each other, as they'll be easier to disassemble and move if/when it becomes necessary. I just drove plain wood garden stakes in around the inside to help hold them in place and then filled them lasagna-style, à la Norma.

Of course, not having bags of leaves or newspapers at my disposal, I got a roll of thick paper and a couple bags of peat at Homo Depot when I got the decking and layered that with some of the mulch we had delivered this week and some composted 'paca poop (of course). I just ordered materials to set up a drip irrigation system and now I just need plants. Some seeds are on order from Fedco and I've put in a request for my mom to pick me up some more at Johnny's, which is right in my parents' town, but I plan on hitting Portsmouth Farmer's Market for the first day of the season next Saturday.

As for today, it was spent trying to recuperate from everything I did the previous two days. And addressing wedding invites.

False Economies

I cancelled my gym membership the other day. Even though it was a local gym, inexpensive and not too far from the house, I just could never seem to manage to get there. I went twice, I think, in January, and hadn't been back since. My financial advisor and life coach pointed out to me that this worked out to about $40 per visit. So maybe not so inexpensive.

So today after work I drove around to gyms near the clinic to explore my options. I figure the biggest reason I haven't been going to the gym is that after working a 15 hour overnight shift and driving an hour home, the last thing I want to do is to delay my arrival home. Or to leave the house once I am there. So my hope is that I can make myself do it more easily on that end of the drive.

Of the four options, there is one literally around the corner from the clinic that I liked relatively well. They also offered a 14 day free trial, so I shall be taking them up on it. The only downside is that their steam room is broken and the new ownership apparently doesn't have a firm timeline for getting it repaired. I can schedule a massage appointment there, though, so I'll likely get over it.

A Little Reminder

If you are on any prescription medications, be sure to check them before you pop them in your mouth. Last week I went to my local pharmacy of choice to pick up a prescription refill - my last refill, in fact, which means I need to schedule a checkup. I have been on Requip for the past year to deal with a particularly bad case of restless legs syndrome in conjunction with periodic limb movement disorder. The medication helps both me and David get a better night's sleep.

Anyway, the legs were particularly bad on Sunday, as they often are after an exhausting night at work, but when I went to crack open the new bottle, I found very unfamiliar-looking pills within. I was quickly able to ascertain that instead of 0.5mg Requip, they had filled my prescription with 0.5mg Risperdal, which is a medication most commonly used for bipolar disorder or schizophrenia. This could have been bad. Very bad.

The pharmacist on duty when I took the pills in today was at least properly mortified and promised to get to the bottom of how that error had occurred (two drugs side-by-side on the counter, pharmacy tech not paying attention, pharmacist not checking behind them - that's the likely sequence of events). When the local pharmacy I used to use made a similar, though somewhat less egregious error, I basically got the brush-off ("I wasn't on that day."), which is why I no longer take my business there.

Anyway, the moral of the story is: Always double check your prescriptions. Pharmacy of choice actually has a description of the tablet printed on a tab on the label and on the information sheet they staple to the bag, which would have clued any non-medical types in had they bothered to read it. But how many people actually read all their labels?

Long Night

When I got to work yesterday evening, everybody was standing around bored and there were no patients in the hospital. Unfortunately, we made up for it overnight.



This photo doesn't include the charts for my three inpatients. At least I didn't kill anything, which is always good, but it'd be nice if the caseload would just spread out a little more evenly.

Now We Are Twelve

After the onslaught and in between writing up records, Rabbitch and I had a little discussion about the etymological origins of the word jahoobie. She decided that it must be Sanskrit (I'd vote for Hindi from Persian, but whatever), so I wrote it out in Devanagari and took a picture for her.



Just in case you were wondering.


A Little Request

My friend Dena has a little problem. If you happen to have a few yards of Cascade Ecological Wool in color 8095 you could spare, she will probably love you forever.

Bullet Post

I am so totally stealing this from Annie, but it's technically not Wednesday anymore. I don't intend to make this a regular feature; I'm just too tired tonight to string more than a couple of sentences together coherently.

• I don't think I mentioned the Easter card David's parents sent us.



• It contained a photocopy of the first chapter of Romans, you can read the highlighted verses here.



• His mother also wrote a little note saying that our wedding would be "like a funeral" to them.



• We felt very loved. Um, wait, no...the other thing.



• She called this afternoon. David didn't answer. She left a very cheery message on the machine, though (no, srsly, like she hadn't practically called us devil spawn a few weeks ago). She and David's father will be en route to Washington State soon for David's older nephew's confirmation.



• I suggested we send the boy a copy of the Tao Te Ching or the Dhammapada to mark the occasion. David suggested The Gay Guide to the USA



• Apparently, the boy takes after his Uncle David more than anyone cares to admit.



• *sigh* It's rather a bit frustrating.



• Also today, I stopped on the way home to vaccinate a few puppies, then came home and vaccinated a few juvenile alpacas, and then had to do surgery on one of the ducks. The old male goose pecked her eye out, and I had to remove it the rest of the way. There are no photos.



• You're welcome.



• As you might imagine, this meant that I did not get much sleep.



• On a cheerier note, one of my clumps of species tulips opened today. I shall try to get a photo before they wilt.



• I also opened most of the storm windows in the upstairs today. It's getting warm.



• It may sound trite, but I love spring.



• For dinner, we had leftover peanut curried tofu and veggies. We also watched another bad karate flick.



• In the past year, I've taken 5 days off (none of them, I don't think, just to be idle and rest) but worked an extra 15 or 16 shifts. I really need a vacation.



• I expect Steph will also be mentioning this, but I'm willing to bet she's sleeping just about now, so I'm going to tell you first that today is Juno's birthday. Juno is one of those people I always enjoy being around, and she's a hell of a good Scrabble player (I'm pretty sure I won't recover from "monoacid".)



• I'm pretty sure there was something else, mostly because there's always something else, but it's tired and I'm late I need some sleep. G'night, all.

Mini-Panic

A few nights ago, David had what he called his "first bridezilla moment." He decided that the invitations he'd designed and gotten printed up - after two attempts to get the color right - were not acceptable. Truthfully, they weren't, so we'll now be getting pre-designed invitations from a different company - at twice the cost, but hopefully with much less stress.

Then the angst turned to clothes. His original idea was to have something tailored, but now it seems he's turned to off-the-rack options and is having a hard time making a decision. One of his worries is that, with me in "folky" kilt and handknit vest & hose, we'll look too different. I pointed out that bride and groom don't usually dress alike, but that didn't seem to wash with him. So then I suggested that maybe he consider wearing the folk costume of his ancestors.



He didn't care for that idea, either, though I think he'd be dead sexy in it. Still, considering it would cost well over half our wedding budget (26,000 NOK works out to a little under $5200 US at the moment), it's not a very realistic idea.

And then there's my own little source of angst, also known as the wedding vest. It will likely come as no surprise that gauge swatches lie. This is a reality I have been very mindful of as I've plugged along slowly at this item, but it's only just gotten to a length where I could really measure it well. It is, as I feared, too big, but only by about 4 inches.

Now, that's quite a bit of extra ease to have in a vest, but I'm going to trust that I can count on one of Shetland wool's most well-known traits. It fulls like nobody's business. So I'm just going to continue on my merry way and hope that a nice hot wash will pull it in enough, even out my stitches a bit, and make everything perfect.

If not, I'm going to have to channel some of this:

Satsujin Ken

This week our movie fare has been trashy early 70's karate flicks, from a DVD box set I got dirt cheap years ago. Very violent, but in a B-flick sort of way that makes them particularly fun. Tonight's selection (above) inexplicably had the following as a DVD extra.



There seems to be no relation between the two, aside from some very racist depictions of black people. And for some reason, the town crier scenes in the cartoon were cut from the DVD version.

Maybe he demanded royalties.

Another Birthday Alert

Today is Stephen's birthday. I'm sure he'll be gettin' some smooches from Janie Sparkles and the man, but be sure to go give him a little extra birthday lovin'.

Render unto Caesar

Today was dedicated to finishing up my tax returns and getting them filed, since I'd been dilly-dallying and this was going to be my last good chance before the deadline. Once upon a time, I'd have them finished in February and the refund spent by mid-March, but not for the past few years. Every year I think that I really should have an accountant to take care of them, as I could probably deduct a good bit more than I do, but every year it ends up being just me and TurboTax. I still end up with a decent refund and considering I'm one of those people who understands the necessity of taxes to keep the government doing its job (though I may occasionally disagree with how they're doing it), I just don't get too uptight about getting back every possible nickel and dime.

This year, I also pledged to meet VUBOQ's 10% Refund Challenge and donated a bit over 10% of my refund to charitable organizations & funds. Some of it was divided among some of the various check-off funds on my state tax return - endangered wildlife, pet spay/neuter, and children's funds all got a little something from me - and then I donated a pretty good chunk to Seva Foundation. I very much like the work that Seva does and highly recommend them. They'll likely get another donation from me near the end of the year. I didn't realize it at the time, but I was only a couple of blocks from their headquarters when I surprised Stephen at work last week.

At some point, I also need to sit down and figure out how much spare change has accumulated in my underwear drawer (Yes, that is where I keep it.) so I can send a donation to Médecins sans Frontières.

Game On!



When I was in California weekend before last, my friends Karl & Michael spent a good bit of their down time in the evenings playing Scrabulous on Facebook. Now, I've never been much of a gamer. Video games for me pretty much ended with Frogger and I've never really played them online. But I love me some Scrabble and can generally kick butt at it, so the other day I added it to my Facebook applications. Now I know how those WoW geeks feel.

Well, maybe.

Birthday Reminder

Today is QueerJoe's birthday. Since Joe, as we all know, is a total hits whore, you should go show him some lovin'.