A youngish shut-in with a limp

I wonder what someone would say if they watched me for a day this week, through my windows, unbeknownst to me. Would they say, "that poor girl," or, "I wonder why she is walking like that," or, "is this what she does everyday?" Being snowed in, with a lingering cold, a banged up leg, combined with working full-time from home can get discouraging. I wonder what I look like from the outside. Confusing I bet. A youngish shut-in with a limp. That's me!

They are calling for even more snow. More snow. And ice. And freezing drizzle. Whatever that is.

What I've learned this week:
-29 is warm. Compared to 17. No really, it is.
-A "heart healthy" cream sauce is actually just evaporated milk with some pepper and chipotle sauce.
-Working from my kitchen table instead of my desk totally mixes things up. In a good way. This way I can see the TV.
-I like winter. I don't love it.

The good news is, well, good. More than good. I have a safe, cozy place to lay my head. I have plenty of food in my refrigerator. I have power and heat. I don't actually have to go anywhere to do my job. And, and...I have a fancy fajita pasta dish covered in heart healthy cream sauce to feed me until my neighborhood thaws.

A frozen youngish shut-in with a limp and a homemade heart healthy cream sauce pasta dish. That's me. For now. And that's cozy and good.

Post 100

This is my 100th post! So very exciting! I wish I had something "100th Post" worthy to say. When a TV show reaches it's 100th episode it usually has a great plot twist, great character moments, (they finally kissed!) and sometimes even an extended time slot. Sad to say I have no fun post twist, no kissing going on, and this probably won't be the longest post I've ever written.

Happy 100 posts blog!

I'm not going to write off all of 2011 yet but January and I are not enjoying each other's company much. Last week I was si-ick all week but somehow made it through that first week back from the holidays. My si-ick week meant doing 8 hours of work over 12 hours with extended breaks for sleeping or vegging, and a lot of nights going to bed around 8:00. I was not sad to see the week end. The weekend was ok. I was still recovering from my cold but there was some pretty good playoff football to watch and I always find that healing.

Saturday night I did not sleep well. I woke up sweating all night; it was strange and I began to fear I had a fever. Or the flu. After a nap on Sunday I felt a little better. I headed over to my friend's house to pick up a few people for a birthday extravaganza. Ok, wings. But they were good wings.

Pause - have I mentioned that Asheville has been covered with snow and ice for days and we are getting about a foot of snow as I type this?

As I'm walking from the car to my friend's house I "bit it" in the driveway. Big time. I was very happy go-lucky in the moment. Fresh off a nap, finally feeling almost back to normal. I think I was actually smiling and had "doot doot de doot" in my head as I walked along. Black ice. My feet. I lost. Whooooosh, down I went. My leg twisted, turned, and finally laid to rest in a very uncomfortable position.

I believe I said, "Ow." And then some obscenities. And then silence. I was hurt. It was 29 degrees. I looked up at the windows. Surely someone saw that right? Where were my friends? Why weren't they rushing to my aid? I let the pain subside, then dragged myself up the icy stairs into the house. It took a few minutes but I finally let myself get talked into an ice pack. Long story short, I'm in pain but I'm ok. No major swelling or bruising. Just pain. Worse pain this morning than yesterday but I'll survive. Good thing I don't have to go anywhere for awhile seeing as how we have about 6 inches of snow and it is still snowing, with weather predictions of up to a foot. Maybe I'll take my gimpy knee out in the street for some photos later. Sigh. Really not a fan of January so far.

Happy 100 blog! You don't look a post older than 21.

My wound looks like Mary, er, pepperoni!

My knife wound is healing nicely. In its final stages of healing something strange started to happen. As I examined the healing wound, I began craving pizza. I stared more intently over the course of the day. Pizza. Pepperoni pizza. That's what I wanted, but not just any pepperoni pizza. Salumi. From via Tribunali in Seattle. It took me most of the day but I came to the conclusion that the way my cut healing was shaped exactly like a piece of pepperoni on the Salumi pizza from via Trib. I know, I'm weird. At least I didn't see the virgin Mary in my scar. Then it would be all over the news, I would have to do press conferences and interviews. Who has time for that? I have to go eat some pepperoni pizza. There is no time for book signings people.

Apparently in Asheville it snows all the time in the winter. ALL THE TIME. We have had a few inches of snow on the ground for most of the week. I suppose it would melt - IF IT WOULD EVER GET ABOVE FREEZING. On Monday they are predicting a hum-dinger of a storm. Great. Just as my cold starts to heal, my knife wound starts to heal, and I feel like leaving the house I will be snowed in forever and ever.

Too dramatic? Ok, ok. Life isn't so bad. Just life in January hasn't been so great yet. I guess I'll prepare for a few more days of relaxing and reading. That's not so bad. Oh, and pizza. Better get some pizza. Clearly my wound cannot heal without pizza. What else could it have been trying to tell me?

Tissue? I hardly know you!

Why is it that when I have a cold the tissues seem to pile up around the house? Next to the couch, next to my desk, on the floor beside the bed. Am I that much of a slob that I just pitch my filthy germs everywhere until I'm well enough to actually throw them away? If it wasn't a health code violation of sorts it would be comical. Another thing about this cold in particular is that it has me craving cookies. I'm a salt, not a sweet. I rarely crave cookies. Really body, cookies will not help me heal. Or will they?

As a child I don't recall having colds often, though I'm sure I had plenty. I do remember having the flu, at least once a year, that would ravage my body and make me pray to see tomorrow. This is just a measly cold but man, nothing makes you feel more alone and pathetic than having a cold. I have to make my own soup, buy my own Nyquil, tuck myself into bed at 8:00 every night.

Last week, as I was chopping some vegetables, I sliced right into my finger with a newly sharpened knife. The reaction of my body was really interesting to me, even in that moment of pain. Adrenaline appeared and I felt woozy. It wasn't THAT bad of a cut but it hurt and for a second or two I didn't know how bad the cut was. So my body reacted by saying, "I think we should sit this one out," and tried to get me to pass out. Well, when you're alone, holding a knife, and standing on a very hard tile floor, you don't want to pass out. (Or so I assume.) I put my finger in the air, my head between my legs, and all was well. Man, first aid training does come in handy sometimes.

My finger is healing and I think my cold is too. But not before they both reminded me that I am starting 2011 all by myself. There are worse things than being alone. Unless you are passing out or fighting a cold. Then it's nice to have someone around to "tissue."

And....I'm sick! Awesome.

Nothing says "new year" or "fresh start" like a stuffy nose and sore throat. I felt its approach on New Year's Eve so my celebratory drink of choice was orange juice. I barely made it to midnight and headed to bed about 12:02 am. But I made it darn it!

Today is my first day back at work in over a week. It's not going well. I'm sleepy, I'm sick, I'm cranky, I don't want to be working. I need more time! More time to relax, more time to explore my town, more time to sleep. I really could use about 3 months off. I think after 3 months I would start to get bored and ready to head back to work. 3 months off would be glorious. I've been working since I was 16. I'm tired.

Wow, I am really starting out 2011 on a whiney note. Truth is, I don't have much to blog about. I guess I could blog about how little I have to say. Or is that what I've been doing? I keep saying I am going to force myself to get out and meet people and volunteer and all of that well-rounded-life/community-involvement type of stuff. I just can't do it. I have no interest in making new friends or being part of my community. There, I said it! I don't want to.

But I want to want to. That's a start I guess.

Hey, at least my 2011 blog posts can only go up from here right?

PS: My niece turns 3 today! In San Francisco. Sigh.