I started a post about Ash Wednesday at work. I was writing it on scratch paper during lunch and then I left it there. I don't want to try to reconstruct it so I'll post it on Friday and we'll all just pretend like it's Ash Wednesday.
So first things first. I don't have cancer. I have atypical cells that were connected with suspicious-looking mole. There are more atypical cells still in my arm. They will have to be cut out later this month.
Second things second. I was going to make a joke about how I got food poisoning because the last post I wrote before I fell off the face of the planet was about my tendency to eat food that has been in the fridge too long. But I didn't really have food poisoning and then I waited too long and then it seemed wrong to joke about food poisoning when atypical cells were involved. Not wanting to invoke the wrath of bad joke karma (when your bad joke comes true), I decided to just be honest. This is more along the lines of what happened.
True story! And not just in my blogging life, but in everything. The only goal I made any headway on during the month of February was reading a bunch of books. I also took lots of long, hot baths. I wish that were one of my goals because I'd be 3/5 finished with it by now. Yep, read, bathe, age--that pretty much sums up my February. (Other than the most awesome trip to Savannah. But you don't have to take my word for it. Others think so, too.)
In "this is March and the first quarter of the year is almost over and we all should start freaking out about personal finance" news, Husband called our phone/internet provider today to negotiate a lower rate. He spent 45 minutes on the phone and we got our bill cut in half. Like $36 a month savings. And we get call waiting now, too. So all you have to do is call and say, "Yeah, I want to pay you less money and I think you should give me more services for it." And it works. Who knew?
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Thursday, February 24, 2011
"The Margins Are Involved"
"The margins are involved." I think that's how she said it. That's how I remember it, anyway. It was less than six hours ago, but I couldn't have repeated it word-for-word after just six minutes.
I can't imagine a less human way to say it. It sounds like a error at the print shop. It doesn't sound like biopsy results. It doesn't even really convey any meaning to me, whose margins those are. What were they involved in? A torrid affair with the neighboring non-suspicious-looking mole? A wild party near the elbow? Certainly no one dropped the c- bomb and no one whispered "it" over the phone.
I couldn't even think to ask the question. I was too busy looking for a pen to write down the phone number for the Skin and Cancer Clinic. A specialist. I got the news too late to make an appointment. The making will have to wait until tomorrow. The appointment is a bigger question mark. Surely not long, right?
Right now, the suspense of not knowing what my margins are up against is worse than having a plan of attack. But, I hope suspenseful is as bad as it gets. What I do know is that my 1 inch by 1/3 inch by 1/4 inch of flesh did not equal a pound and more will have to go. At best, more local, more cutting, and more stitches will go in to get more margins out.
It's scary, you know, but it feels like it shouldn't be. Why make a mountain out of a mole? Maybe it's not malignant. Maybe it's just a few more weeks with stitches and a wicked-ass scar. But right now there are so many possible maybes that they are weighing heavy. Sometimes it feels like I have to lift them all with my chest just to create the space to breathe.
I really want to shake the pressure this weekend. I don't need it dogging me like a Charlie Brown cloud on happy fun girls' weekend. So I'm putting it out here, kind of like therapy. Maybe the internet can think about my margins for me--just until I get back home. Then I'll pick up where I left off.
I can't imagine a less human way to say it. It sounds like a error at the print shop. It doesn't sound like biopsy results. It doesn't even really convey any meaning to me, whose margins those are. What were they involved in? A torrid affair with the neighboring non-suspicious-looking mole? A wild party near the elbow? Certainly no one dropped the c- bomb and no one whispered "it" over the phone.
I couldn't even think to ask the question. I was too busy looking for a pen to write down the phone number for the Skin and Cancer Clinic. A specialist. I got the news too late to make an appointment. The making will have to wait until tomorrow. The appointment is a bigger question mark. Surely not long, right?
Right now, the suspense of not knowing what my margins are up against is worse than having a plan of attack. But, I hope suspenseful is as bad as it gets. What I do know is that my 1 inch by 1/3 inch by 1/4 inch of flesh did not equal a pound and more will have to go. At best, more local, more cutting, and more stitches will go in to get more margins out.
It's scary, you know, but it feels like it shouldn't be. Why make a mountain out of a mole? Maybe it's not malignant. Maybe it's just a few more weeks with stitches and a wicked-ass scar. But right now there are so many possible maybes that they are weighing heavy. Sometimes it feels like I have to lift them all with my chest just to create the space to breathe.
I really want to shake the pressure this weekend. I don't need it dogging me like a Charlie Brown cloud on happy fun girls' weekend. So I'm putting it out here, kind of like therapy. Maybe the internet can think about my margins for me--just until I get back home. Then I'll pick up where I left off.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Repugnant Me: Leftovers
Ever since I finally posted that blog about repugnant ideas that make economic sense, I started thinking about some of my repugnant ways. Since I'm finally blogging now, I've decided to jump in with both feet and start making a few confessions...
This first one is about leftovers. I just confessed this one to Whatever this week, so I might as well share it with the rest of anyone who reads this blog. Unless refrigerator leftovers smell funny, taste funny, feel funny or look funny, I'll probably eat it. PLEASE NOTE: If you come to my house for dinner, all the food will be fresh. I only feed suspicious leftovers to myself. Not to you, not to Husband, not to anyone else in the family.
I've convinced myself that I have an iron stomach. It probably has more to do with the fact that I tend to eat stuff relatively soon after it's been made, otherwise it gets pushed to the back of the fridge and I forget about it until it smells, tastes, feels or looks funny.
It is likely that I will one day give myself food poisoning. I figure it won't be anything fatal, simply unpleasant. Until that time, I will continue to pretend that expiration dates and rules of thumb about when to throw something away don't apply to me.
Eat on, friend.
___________
Pre-run breakfast: toast and orange marmalade 28 cents
Post-run breakfast: Fancy McD's coffee $2.72?
Lunch: Chili and a mozzarella roly-poly (a melted cheese wrap thingy) 48 cents + 30 cents
Snack: Girl Scout Cookies 36 cents
Dinner: Yum, Yum, Yum: Pasta with mushrooms, asparagus and red peppers in a spicy smoked sardine-tomato sauce topped with mozzarella and a piece of toast to sop up the leftover sauce. $1.05ish
Total: $5.19
This first one is about leftovers. I just confessed this one to Whatever this week, so I might as well share it with the rest of anyone who reads this blog. Unless refrigerator leftovers smell funny, taste funny, feel funny or look funny, I'll probably eat it. PLEASE NOTE: If you come to my house for dinner, all the food will be fresh. I only feed suspicious leftovers to myself. Not to you, not to Husband, not to anyone else in the family.
I've convinced myself that I have an iron stomach. It probably has more to do with the fact that I tend to eat stuff relatively soon after it's been made, otherwise it gets pushed to the back of the fridge and I forget about it until it smells, tastes, feels or looks funny.
It is likely that I will one day give myself food poisoning. I figure it won't be anything fatal, simply unpleasant. Until that time, I will continue to pretend that expiration dates and rules of thumb about when to throw something away don't apply to me.
Eat on, friend.
___________
Pre-run breakfast: toast and orange marmalade 28 cents
Post-run breakfast: Fancy McD's coffee $2.72?
Lunch: Chili and a mozzarella roly-poly (a melted cheese wrap thingy) 48 cents + 30 cents
Snack: Girl Scout Cookies 36 cents
Dinner: Yum, Yum, Yum: Pasta with mushrooms, asparagus and red peppers in a spicy smoked sardine-tomato sauce topped with mozzarella and a piece of toast to sop up the leftover sauce. $1.05ish
Total: $5.19
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Mmm, Mmm Good
I love soup. It doesn't matter what kind of soup. I'll drink a cup of chicken broth--just because I think it is delicious. No matter what you call it: stew, soup, chili, bisque. Just give me a spoon.
Here is my elastic soup equation and a recipe for the Beans, Greens and Sausage Soup I made last night:
Beans, Pasta or Rice: I used one cup of dried beans that I cooked overnight in the slow cooker. 35 cents
Something Meaty: I used 1/4 pound sausage and 1/3 package of Boca meatless crumbles. $1.75
Something Veggie: I used a 10 oz package of frozen spinach. I would have added some sauteed onion or other veg but Husband doesn't like onion and I didn't have any other veg I thought would work. 99 cents
Something Soupy: I used about 4-5 cups of chicken broth (one can and the rest homemade). 50 cents
Something Spicy: I used garlic powder, onion powder, Tabasco, Worcestershire, a tiny bit of Apple Cider Vinegar, Salt, Pepper and a tiny bit of sugar. I'm guessing about 20 cents.
Cook what needs to be cooked and let it all simmer together.
Total: My soup made 8 cups. 47 cents for a cup.
There is nothin' like a steaming bowl of soup for lunch or dinner on a cold winter day and, believe me, we've had plenty of those lately.
And (bonus) there's nothin' like some hot oatmeal for breakfast. I used to think the only way that oatmeal was edible was those Quaker instant oatmeal packages. Apples and cinnamon was my favorite. But (very recently) I've grown up and appreciate the control you have over your own breakfast oatmeal with just a box (or bag) of your favorite oats and whatever junk you have in your house to dress them up.
My favorite combination of oatmeal is 1/2 banana and 1-2 spoons of peanut butter. Because I'm always running late in the morning, I mix up all the ingredients and put them in a microwave container with a tight-fitting lid. The first thing I do when I get to work is cook up some breakfast.
Here are all the things in my house that I would combine or use to make my own special flavors of oatmeal. In my freezer: bananas, blueberries, strawberries, peaches, nuts, powdered milk. In my fridge: apple butter, butter, milk, coffee mate, flax seed, wheat germ, apple cider, orange marmalade, applesauce, orange juice, grape jelly, chocolate icing. In my pantry: peanut butter, honey, pancake syrup, rice syrup, sugar, brown sugar, hot chocolate mix, cocoa powder, chocolate chips, sweetened flaked coconuts, dried cranberries. In the spice rack: cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and allspice.
__________________
Breakfast: oatmeal, banana, peanut butter 21 cents
Lunch: Beans, greens & sausage soup 47 cents
Snack: Orange and chips 42 cents
Dinner: My dinner out for the week-McDonald's Dollar Menu $3.24
Total: $4.34
Here is my elastic soup equation and a recipe for the Beans, Greens and Sausage Soup I made last night:
Beans, Pasta or Rice: I used one cup of dried beans that I cooked overnight in the slow cooker. 35 cents
Something Meaty: I used 1/4 pound sausage and 1/3 package of Boca meatless crumbles. $1.75
Something Veggie: I used a 10 oz package of frozen spinach. I would have added some sauteed onion or other veg but Husband doesn't like onion and I didn't have any other veg I thought would work. 99 cents
Something Soupy: I used about 4-5 cups of chicken broth (one can and the rest homemade). 50 cents
Something Spicy: I used garlic powder, onion powder, Tabasco, Worcestershire, a tiny bit of Apple Cider Vinegar, Salt, Pepper and a tiny bit of sugar. I'm guessing about 20 cents.
Cook what needs to be cooked and let it all simmer together.
Total: My soup made 8 cups. 47 cents for a cup.
There is nothin' like a steaming bowl of soup for lunch or dinner on a cold winter day and, believe me, we've had plenty of those lately.
And (bonus) there's nothin' like some hot oatmeal for breakfast. I used to think the only way that oatmeal was edible was those Quaker instant oatmeal packages. Apples and cinnamon was my favorite. But (very recently) I've grown up and appreciate the control you have over your own breakfast oatmeal with just a box (or bag) of your favorite oats and whatever junk you have in your house to dress them up.
My favorite combination of oatmeal is 1/2 banana and 1-2 spoons of peanut butter. Because I'm always running late in the morning, I mix up all the ingredients and put them in a microwave container with a tight-fitting lid. The first thing I do when I get to work is cook up some breakfast.
Here are all the things in my house that I would combine or use to make my own special flavors of oatmeal. In my freezer: bananas, blueberries, strawberries, peaches, nuts, powdered milk. In my fridge: apple butter, butter, milk, coffee mate, flax seed, wheat germ, apple cider, orange marmalade, applesauce, orange juice, grape jelly, chocolate icing. In my pantry: peanut butter, honey, pancake syrup, rice syrup, sugar, brown sugar, hot chocolate mix, cocoa powder, chocolate chips, sweetened flaked coconuts, dried cranberries. In the spice rack: cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and allspice.
__________________
Breakfast: oatmeal, banana, peanut butter 21 cents
Lunch: Beans, greens & sausage soup 47 cents
Snack: Orange and chips 42 cents
Dinner: My dinner out for the week-McDonald's Dollar Menu $3.24
Total: $4.34
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Me and the Electric Company
We're conspiring together to make Husband more frugal, Electric Company and I. He got a call from Mother-In-Law today that shook his whole world-view to the core and caused him to call me at work. "Mom and Dad's electric bill went up $20 for the month and Aunt's went up $30." Weird, because there wasn't a rate hike and our bill didn't go up too much. What was going on?
Upon closer inspection of our bill, Husband noticed that Electric Company was re-figuring everyone's "spread it out evenly over the year" bills. We pay roughly the same amount throughout the year, no matter how much electricity we use. Electric Company guesstimates and evens out your bills--except they must not be too good at guesstimating. Our bill will go up next month--about $45. Ouch!
On the other hand, I'm pleased to report that there may be some changes around here--changes I fully support but never believed I'd be able to talk Husband into. Not only are almost all our lightbulbs either LED or CFL, but they're not on as much as they were yesterday. I'm a fan of the "one person, one bulb (or at the very least, one fixture)" rule whereas Husband seems to like to keep all the switches in the "on" position. Also? We're not leaving things plugged in anymore. Yay! He's changing all his power strip settings to be able to cut electricity-suckers (like the Xbox) off the power source completely when they aren't in use.
And here's the thing I never saw coming...Husband advocating using the drying rack instead of the dryer. Wha? I used to do this ALL THE TIME. I mean, to the point where I would use every chair in my apartment as a drying rack if I was doing multiple loads of laundry. Now, everything goes in the dryer--even if I don't want it too. (I'm lucky, I guess. He washes clothes.) I mean, one of my favorite things in the world is a clothesline. I may not be very conservative or liberal, politically speaking, but I'm a huge supporter of the right to have a clothesline in spite of what your covenants say. (I call my parent's covenants "comunants." Hmm, that doesn't look as good written out as it sounds. Ok, say it to yourself.) Husband generally ignored me outright every time I mentioned putting up a clothesline. He also never understood why I put anything on the drying rack at all.
Do you think I'll be able to argue that keeping the fan on all night is a waste of electricity? Will this new-found electricity conservation ethic hold until the summer when it's time to turn on the air conditioner? Only time will tell. But just in case I start to lose these battles, Electric Company hopes to hike rates some more.
__________________
Breakfast: Toast, peanut butter, apple butter 27 cents
Snack: orange 17 cents
Lunch: polenta and green beans 50 cents
Snack: pudding cup 36 cents
Dinner: chili and crackers with cheese and salami 48 cents + 44 cents
I forgot I ate some Thin Mints too! 31 cents
Total: $2.53
Total: Blerg. I don't feel like adding this all up today. It's cheap. I'll figure it up tomorrow and update this post.
Upon closer inspection of our bill, Husband noticed that Electric Company was re-figuring everyone's "spread it out evenly over the year" bills. We pay roughly the same amount throughout the year, no matter how much electricity we use. Electric Company guesstimates and evens out your bills--except they must not be too good at guesstimating. Our bill will go up next month--about $45. Ouch!
On the other hand, I'm pleased to report that there may be some changes around here--changes I fully support but never believed I'd be able to talk Husband into. Not only are almost all our lightbulbs either LED or CFL, but they're not on as much as they were yesterday. I'm a fan of the "one person, one bulb (or at the very least, one fixture)" rule whereas Husband seems to like to keep all the switches in the "on" position. Also? We're not leaving things plugged in anymore. Yay! He's changing all his power strip settings to be able to cut electricity-suckers (like the Xbox) off the power source completely when they aren't in use.
And here's the thing I never saw coming...Husband advocating using the drying rack instead of the dryer. Wha? I used to do this ALL THE TIME. I mean, to the point where I would use every chair in my apartment as a drying rack if I was doing multiple loads of laundry. Now, everything goes in the dryer--even if I don't want it too. (I'm lucky, I guess. He washes clothes.) I mean, one of my favorite things in the world is a clothesline. I may not be very conservative or liberal, politically speaking, but I'm a huge supporter of the right to have a clothesline in spite of what your covenants say. (I call my parent's covenants "comunants." Hmm, that doesn't look as good written out as it sounds. Ok, say it to yourself.) Husband generally ignored me outright every time I mentioned putting up a clothesline. He also never understood why I put anything on the drying rack at all.
Do you think I'll be able to argue that keeping the fan on all night is a waste of electricity? Will this new-found electricity conservation ethic hold until the summer when it's time to turn on the air conditioner? Only time will tell. But just in case I start to lose these battles, Electric Company hopes to hike rates some more.
__________________
Breakfast: Toast, peanut butter, apple butter 27 cents
Snack: orange 17 cents
Lunch: polenta and green beans 50 cents
Snack: pudding cup 36 cents
Dinner: chili and crackers with cheese and salami 48 cents + 44 cents
I forgot I ate some Thin Mints too! 31 cents
Total: $2.53
Total: Blerg. I don't feel like adding this all up today. It's cheap. I'll figure it up tomorrow and update this post.
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