Yeeeeeeerrrrrrrrrrrp

Hello world!

It's Thursday night of the longest week known to man. I'm being a bit dramatic there, but it feels like this week has gone on forever. I am so tired right now that my blinks are lasting 43x their normal length, and it's not even 10:00 p.m. I am going to sleep like a baby tonight!

Well, what's new with me? I don't know. I am going to go stream-of-consciousness here, but what's new in that regard?

My little Noodle doggie is sitting in the computer chair being the cutest thing known to man. Apparently "known to man" is the best phrase known to man. I love her warm little torso. Aww, she just sighed. That was the sweetest sound known to man.

The Falcons are playing right now. Yeehaw! Obviously it's preseason football, but I've missed it. I actually went to the first preseason game last thursday with RA. My brother-in-law (How weird is that?!) offered me tickets the day of, and I snatched those babies right up. The game was fun. It's a lot less stressful watching preseason football than it is the real deal.

Speaking of football, I am managing a fantasy football league this season. Our draft is next Monday night, and I am way excited! Fantasy football = real fun. I can't wait to get unreasonably competitive over something that I can't control. That's my idea of a good time!

I've gotten back on the post-hospital exercise bandwagon. I'd been exercising some here and there, but I'm once again trying to meet my 180-minutes-a-week goal. I'm in pretty good shape time-wise for this week; I need to get 55 minutes over the next two days. Fifty-five, shmifty-five.

Today I had a tiny red velvet cupcake.

I have a lot of work to accomplish tomorrow. This week has been insanely chaotic. I haven't had a week like this in quite some time.

Okay, I've reached the point of exhaustion where I'm staring randomly into thin air. I think it's time to put an end to the most worthless blog post known to man.

Have a good night, creatures!

Sparkling

Hello! It's time for my occasional post. I'm pretty sure the last time I posted was around the time of my birthday. I've been going pretty much nonstop ever since, but does that surprise anyone?

First and foremost, my sister got MARRIED this past weekend. It was so much fun, but I am wiped out. I spoke at the rehearsal dinner, and that was a lot of fun. I was told my speech was "epic." I also got my first pedicure on Friday. My toes are lookin' good!

The wedding day itself reminded me of prom. We got up super early to start getting our hair done. I loved mine! The photographer arrived at 10:30 a.m., and it was pretty much paparazzi fest for the remainder of the day. I can't wait to see some of the photos, especially where we reenacted the cover of the Bridesmaids DVD. The ceremony itself was pretty short. I felt like I might tip over at a few points, but I think that part of that was due to my lack of spectacles.

The reception was a blast. We did the Wobble. Claire also dedicated Montell Jordan's "This is How We Do it" to my brother and me. There were some awesome mashed potatoes with all kinds of toppings. By the end of it, I was so worn out that I fell asleep around 10:30. I had so much fun! I am so happy for Claire and Billy. Claire was gorgeous, Billy was handsome, and they both looked so happy. Happy ever after!

The improv benefit show (Laugh 'Til You Cough) was a huge hit. My team is still short of our Great Strides goal, but I am pleased. The walk is on Saturday! I wish we had raised more money at this point in time, but I know some years are tougher than others. I'm also missing several walkers from last year, and I didn't factor that in when setting my goal.

(I know this post is dragging on! I should break it into several to look like I've been blogging more frequently!)

I had a doctor's appointment today, and it didn't go as well as I'd hoped. I'm not surprised, though, given how busy I've been. I got put on two oral antibiotics and have to go back in two weeks. I think that, if I can increase my sleep and decrease my running-around-like-a-crazy-person, I ought to be just fine.

I've been exercising like a champion! I've met my minimum of three hours every week except one. (I started probably two months ago.) I feel a lot better when I'm in a good workout routine.

I was planning to get to bed at 9:30, and I just realized it's a few minutes after. I better go ahead and post this so that I can get up and exercise before work.

Go Drew's Crew!

Huddy birthday to me!

Guess what! I'm going to the Braves game today! I haven't been to a game yet this season, and I'm fortunate to make my return on the same day Tim Hudson makes his. The temperatures are going to be in the high 80s today, so I'm prepared for a doozy. I'm excited!

I celebrated my birthday on Thursday, and it was nice! I got up pretty early, exercised and scheduled a massage appointment. Then I headed to meet a friend (CP) for Tin Lizzy's (Mmm... Mexican Food Round #1). I then hurried to my massage. It was glorious, but I did think the masseuse might rip off my Achilles' tendon at one point. My Achilles' tendon is my Achilles' heel. I came home and showered before heading to Mexican Food Round #2 with RA. It was a nice, simple day!

This weekend I did the hat trick of improv shows -- Friday's show and both Saturday shows. The shows were a blast! I laugh a lot backstage and even on-stage (oops!). Last night's most surprising moment was when I got hit in the rib cage by a dill pickle spear. Man, it was so unexpected and hilarious!

I know this is a short post, but I better start slathering (weird word) on the sunscreen before I head down to the stadium. Happy weekend, world!

Vortex

Good grief! You're killing me, Blogger.

First and foremost, happy Easter to all Easter celebrators out there! I went to a family gathering at Gran's house today, where I ate some delicious food and spent some time visiting. The weather couldn't have been more beautiful. Spring has sprung! My eyes are still itching a bit, though. I wouldn't mind a nice April shower!

So, I was really impressed with myself because I thought I'd written last week. However, I re-read my last post and realized that I last wrote two weeks and one day ago. I couldn't decide whether to be more disappointed that I didn't accomplish the two-posts-in-two-weeks feat or that I have lost all sense of time.

That being said, a lot of good things have happened since I last blogged, especially as it relates to fundraising. My team is above the $6,200 mark, and I can only hope that the momentum continues. I am so grateful for all of the donations I have received thus far. I am continually amazed by strangers' generosity. (Shameless plug: If you are a stranger that happened upon this page, here's what I'm yapping about: www.cff.org/great_strides/drew). People are wonderful!

I have been doing a pretty good job of exercising recently. I feel like I mentioned this in my last post, but I'm too lazy to check, so you can hear it again! I've set a goal to work out three hours a week, and I have been quite successful. This is a time when my stubbornness comes in handy. I did 30 minutes today; I'm one-sixth of the way there. (I love semicolons!)

My eyes and I are both (all three of us!) super excited by the prospect of sleeping. Sweet dreams, world!

Weeeeeeeeeee belong

I should probably be asleep right now, but I took about 2-3 hours of naps today, so I think it's fine that I'm up late (Yes, 10:30!).

Life has been crazy crazy crazy, but when isn't it? I don't even know where to start.

My sister's wedding is fast approaching. We've still got about seven weeks, I think, but the time has just flown by. Yesterday we went to her first dress fitting, and I spent the majority of the time fanning her because she was hot. She then stated, "I hope it cools down by May," which got a good laugh. I'm pretty sure it's going to be HOT outside by May, considering the thermometer has already hit 80 and it's March. That reminds me that I should probably check this week's weather; it's about time that it gets freakishly cold or blizzard-esque. Nevermind. It looks like tomorrow will bring a high of 80 again. I'm not complaining! Yet.

The CF walk is also fast approaching. I am a bit behind schedule on everything, but I'm going to kick it into gear this week. Hooray! I've had a handful of walkers sign up for my team so far, but I'm hoping to get some more! Just for recordkeeping purposes, my team is sitting pretty at $2,502 right now. My page can be viewed here: http://www.cff.org/great_strides/drew. Go Drew's Crew!

Things are going really well on the health front...knock on wood! I've been doing surprisingly well allergy-wise (I've attributed this to knock-off Zyrtec.), which is awesome...especially since Atlanta had a record-shattering pollen count of 9,000-something last week. The whole stomach fiasco is hopefully drawing to a close; today has been the best stomach day I've had in weeks. I had an endoscopy on March 12, and the doctor pretty much said my stomach was inflamed, but that he didn't see an ulcer. I had a good week or two, and then it really started bothering me again. Yesterday was a bad day, but today was a good day.

In case you were wondering, the mouse on my laptop quit working, so I busted out an old-school mouse that is attached to my laptop. Please don't lose any sleep over it.

I have been exercising, kids! It seems like lately I exercise in waves. I get in a good routine, and then I jack my back up or something along those lines. Then things get hectic for a bit, and I take some time off. Then I have another good week, and then I fall off the horse. (Is that a phrase?) Last week I decided I would keep track of the time I spent exercising, thinking that it would help hold me accountable. I knocked out a surprising 184 minutes of exercise, which makes me happy. I'm hoping to beat that this week. I'm already at 45!

A few things have happened recently that make me remember how precious life is. Someone recently gave a presentation at work, and she said, "When your head hits the pillow at night, you're the one who knows what you did that day." (I'm sure she said it more eloquently, but I didn't lose the message.) Anyway, I try to do the best I can every day, and, if I have a day that didn't quite measure up, I know that I don't need to dwell on it. Instead, I can use that as inspiration to do better the next day. Cherish the days!

No rain, no gain

Well, well, well... Here we are on this rainy Monday. It actually rained all weekend, but the rain has resulted in warmer temperatures than usual for this time of the year. I'd much rather it be raining and warm than dry and cold. Take that, Winter!

I'm not sure if it was the temperature change or what, but I didn't feel well for much of the weekend. I took about 45 naps on Saturday (I'm seriously not exaggerating.), and spent much of Sunday on the couch coughing. It was pretty exhausting. I took Theraflu and got about 10 hours of sleep last night, accompanied by the occasional waking-up-coughing. I was already on antibiotics when I went to the doctor on January 13, but they upped the dosage and put me on a second one as well. Due to some incompetencies by Target pharmacy workers, I just got the second antibiotic yesterday, so I'm hoping that this whatever-it-is can be put to rest. I've been feeling under-the-weather for entirely too long.

Now for life's non-complaints...

I have been working out lately! I forgot how much fun it is to get some physical exercise. Plus I'm going to be on a beach exactly one month from today, so that's motivating, too. Hooray for strength and sun!

I performed improv Saturday night at 8 and had a blast. I got to do something I'd never done before -- dubbed for a film that was put on silent and projected on the TVs. It was a blast!

What else? It's crazy that it's already nearing the end of January. I feel like we were just counting down to 2012! I can tell it's going to be a good year.

Here's to a NyQuil-enhanced sleep!

A change will do you good

Well, I started my new job today. It's crazy to take the life you've known for so long (2 years, 8 months to be exact) and venture down a new path. Today was exciting -- meeting new people, learning new stuff, exploring a new building, etc. Yes, the information overload can be quite exhausting, but I know I'll be in good hands. It's funny because I'm resistant to change in some respects, but I love it in others. Cheers to new beginnings!

The biggest adjustment for me is the routine I'd come to know. Interestingly, though, I'd come to know a life without much routine. So, lack of routine was the routine. When I was working at Emory, I was in the office three days a week and at home the other two. Also, the start and stop times were very flexible in that some mornings I went in at 7 and other mornings at 9. That being said, it's crazy knowing that I need to get up at the same time each morning. It's good, though, because I think I was able to better regulate other areas of my life (like exercising, sleeping, etc.) when my days resembled each other. I didn't quite accomplish the exercising feat this morning (no surprise there), but I'm hoping to get in a quick workout in the morning.

I was at the beach last weekend and had a great time. The weather was beautiful, the company was amazing, and I just enjoyed every minute of it. As I've said many times before, the return-to-work-from-vacation day is usually about as tough as they come. It probably didn't work to my benefit to get home around 8:30 p.m. yesterday, so I imagine tomorrow might be a bit easier than today energy-wise. I also didn't drink any coffee today. What is the world coming to these days?

I guess it's off to bed if there's any hope I'll work out in the morning. I hope everyone had a wonderful Tuesday!

Whatever!

I just saw the coolest clock ever. All of the numbers are randomly piled in the bottom corner, but the hands are still on a time -- just without numbers. On the face of the clock, it says "Whatever!" I love it! It literally made me laugh out loud.

Onto other things... I went to the Braves game last night and got a Dan Uggla bobblehead. It is awesome! It doesn't exactly look like him, but it's still cool. The Braves won a good game off of a solo HR by Chipper Jones. I don't make many predictions in baseball, but right when he came up to bat, I said, "I feel like he's about to get a solo homerun." Two pitches later, he knocked one out of the park, scoring the only run of the game. GO BRAVES!

I've had a pretty productive week between cleaning, going to the doctor, exercising, etc. It's amazing how much you can accomplish when you're not working! I feel like I would get a lot more done if keeping up with myself was a full-time job. :-) Do I usually use emoticons in blogs? Oh wait, I haven't been blogging regularly enough to know the answer to that.

I just ate some pancakes and bacon and it's 12:40 p.m. Yeah, you know it!

I really want to publish this post so I can take the "W" key off of my keyboard to see what's making it difficult to press.

Lately I've been really happy. Busy, but happy. I worked really hard over these past few weeks to leave Emory in the best shape possible. Although it was a lot of work, I feel good about it.

Well, I hope life is treating everyone well. A friend from CF camp, Megan, died this week, so she's learning what it's like to breathe easy. It's just a reminder that life is precious and that there is plenty to appreciate.

Love to all!

Horsing around

Happy Tuesday!

Well, I'll go ahead and get my venting out of the way first. Way back in March or maybe April, the ENT scheduled allergy testing for today. I had to discontinue some medications and what not for a week to prepare for the appointment. I took half of a day off work for the appointment. Per usual, I got my appointment reminder phone call on Friday. After riding MARTA down to the appointment, I walked in and the receptionist was like, "Oh, that appointment was rescheduled for Tuesday, June 28 at 9:00 a.m." I was like, "Umm, what?" She said, "Oh, the allergy nurse is on vacation this week." I'M GLAD I CAN READ MINDS. NOT. So, needless to say, I'm not a happy camper. High five on failing.

In other news, the Charley horses are running rampant (AKA galloping). I am literally on the verge of horsing at all times. The weirdest occurrences today were in my hands and in my chin. Yeah, for real. I have been feeling horse-free for the last couple of hours, so I'm hoping this spell is about over... I've never experienced anything like this.

What else? This morning, after I'd been at work for a few hours, I went to Kroger and got biscuits for me and KQ; I had a craving. I also had a major disappointment because I went to two different Krogers, and they didn't have sushi made yet. SIGH.

It's almost my mom's birthday. Happy birthday, cutie! I love you!

I've been pretty inspired to write lately. I haven't exactly pulled the trigger yet, but there is a lot of material brewing. "Brewing" sounds pretty creepy more often than not.

I exercised yesterday morning before work, but I was pretty unsuccessful this morning. I did go up to the fitness center, but I just couldn't make it through. I was feeling a little off-kilter, and I kept thinking I was going to cramp up. Tomorrow...

Well, I guess I'll call it a night. The next several days are gonna be BUSY!

The Braves won tonight. GO TEAM!

CHARLEY HORSE!

Hey!

Man, last night when I was sleeping, I got the worst Charley horse in my leg. There's not a lot that makes me feel as out-of-control as a Charley Horse does. INTENSE!

Let's see... I came back to town on Wednesday; I was at the beach. My cousin and I flew back, so that was an adventure. Airplanes are pretty freaky, but it's not as bad when the entire flight is 42 minutes. The taking off and landing parts are what creep me out, but I remained pretty calm.

I was also in the newspaper on Wednesday. The CFF is hosting an event on Thursday, and the paper came to my [ransacked] place for an interview. You can access the article here. Celeb! I'm excited, too, because it mentions Drew's Crew!

So, the total fishing count for the beach was 12 sharks and 14 non-sharks. The sharks were so cute! I won't say that next year when one of 'em bites my leg off, but I liked them!

Yesterday I ate some funnel cake! I went to a festival and it poured! I don't know why I'm typing so many exclamation marks.

My floor and walls are still MIA right now, but I'm going to get insurance on the horn tomorrow for an update. It's a little frustrating that it's been almost a month since the fiasco and no repairs have been done yet, but I'm hoping we can get the show on the road this week.

I'm about to go to sleep. It's early and all of that, but I'm exhausted! I met KW at Starbucks this morning because I had to work on some stuff for the CF center communications plan. I got a lot accomplished, but I'm still not quite done.

I'm going to get up and exercise in the morning. MARK MY WORDS!

LKAJSLKDFJALKEJA!

It's Saturday morning!

Well, this week had a heavy water-on-the-floor focus. The workers came and picked up all of the dehumidifying equipment on Tuesday. Then, by the end of the day on Tuesday, I noticed water was back. Hoping it was simply residual, I tried to give it until Wednesday morning to panic. The water remained pretty steady on Wednesday and into Thursday, so I was convinced that there was something new happening. I realize it sounds like I was taking my sweet time, but I kept unsuccessfully trying to get in touch with my claim representative.

It turns out that my neighbor's water heater started leaking. Yes, for real. The worker who came back on Thursday said, and I quote, "I've never seen anything like this before." When my neighbor got home from work, she and I looked around her place to confirm, and there was a continuous stream of water coming from her heater. She had it replaced yesterday and GUESS WHAT! THE WATER HAS STOPPED! Knock on wood (which is easy considering it's exposed all over my place!).

Given all of the shenanigans and the fact that I was stressed out, I made exercising a big priority over the past week. I ran three miles every day and, MAN, I feel good. It's hilarious that I hadn't exercised consistently in a while and then I went and ran 20+ miles. I'm actually going to exercise after I finish this blog.

One of my best friends (AM) moved to Atlanta yesterday. I have to say that it's all kind of surreal to me because I haven't seen her yet, but I will today. Ahhh! We have been reunited!

Man, I want some cheddar cheese.

I feel like I have more to say, but it's tough when I wait so stinkin' long between blogs lately. The festival shows on Sunday were a lot of fun despite the 95-degree weather. It was easier than last time because the tent was smaller and wasn't positioned next to anything too loud. LOVED IT!

Well, I better channel this hyperactivity into my workout.

HAPPY JUNE!

Troubled waters

What a week. WHAT. A. WEEK. It's been a while since I've had a week as eventful as this week. Aaaaand I don't exactly mean that in a good way.

Highlights include:
-Dealing with the cops Sunday morning due to some "malicious mischief"
-Losing my phone and wallet on Tuesday night
-Ruining my hardwood floors Thursday/Friday courtesy of my water heater losing its mind

My phone ended up being in my roommate's coworker's car, so it only took about 12 hours to track that down. My wallet ended up being in the grass at the amphitheater after the Jimmy Buffett concert. It took me way longer than it should have to realize my wallet was missing, but an amphitheater employee called me and I went to retrieve it. Everything looks to be intact, with the exception of someone stealing my cash. Oh well, mo' money, mo' problems.

That's the perfect segue into the fact that I spent almost $800 yesterday on home repairs. I had to get a new water heater and the accessories required to install that, so that totaled almost $300. My mom gave me a card for $25 off a purchase of $250+, so I went and got that cost adjusted today. I also had to pay the $500 deductible for the water mitigation and water damage.

Right now my living room is missing about one-third of its hardwood floor and probably six square feet of sheet rock. My utility closet is missing all of its floor and probably 12 square feet of sheet rock. And, finally, my kitchen is missing the hardwood floor bordering two of the walls. The fans and dehumidifiers are so loud that I'm starting to get a headache. However, they're like a whisper compared to that jackhammer that was tearing up the floor today. RIP you jerk of a water heater.

Let's try to move on to more positive things... I ate Yogli Mogli with my mom today! I worked out yesterday and today, which majorly helped in the destressing department. I also got a check in the mail from my mortgage company, so that was a welcomed surprise in the aftermath of Spendfest Friday. Hooray!

I can't believe it's a holiday weekend. I missed improv rehearsal on Wednesday because I felt like I was getting sick, although I'm pretty sure it was stress bogging me down. In retrospect, it's a major positive that I'm not performing this weekend (except for a festival tomorrow) because it would have been so hectic trying to manage that with all of the home repairs. The weekend has felt insane enough without any obligations. It's pretty ironic because, on Thursday before the water incident, I was running my mouth about how I hadn't had such a lengthy stint without an obligation in as long as I can remember. Enter: water.

Well, I'm gonna try to enjoy the rest of my Saturday night. I think it's about time to take some headache medicine. The Braves are in extra innings right now, and I really think I need to give them some attention.

Happy Memorial Day weekend!

Sappy Magee

I am such a sap right now. Man, it's absurd. I think it's expected, though, given the events of the past few weeks.

So, Friday night was my grandfather's visitation. It was actually really great. A lot of people were there showing support and it meant a lot to our family. I imagined that it was going to be pretty difficult, but it was very pleasant.

The funeral was absolutely beautiful. I spoke and, although I had a difficult time deciding what I'd say, the words came to me on Friday night. If you'd like to see the tribute I wrote, let me know. That isn't a ploy or a friendship test, by the way; I just don't really feel like shoving it down your throats.

I have to say that I've never felt comfortable in a cemetery until Saturday. I think there are many factors that contribute to that. The casket was draped with an American flag and military people were there giving a final salute and playing "Taps" (I didn't know the name of it until just now, but it is beautiful). Aside from some difficulty folding the flag into a triangle, it was perfect. Honestly, though, the folding debacle made it even better. The weather was amazing and the sun was shining!

Here is a photograph of the flag:



Hmm, what else? On Sunday, the family celebrated Easter at Gran's house and that was nice. I wasn't the most endearing person to be around since I was feeling pretty exhausted by that point, but it was great to get to see my other side of the family. After the Easter celebration, I came home and exercised in an attempt to clear my mind and freshen up my mood.

Then, I ended the weekend by heading to my other grandmother's house to spend the night with her so she wasn't alone. We hadn't had any one-on-one time in quite a while, so it was nice to visit with her and lend her an ear as she adjusts to her new life without my grandfather.

This is really dorky, but I stumbled upon something that made me really excited last night. I had been looking through a lot of photo albums last week because I was asked to pick out the photographs for the slide show at the visitation. I looked through a lot of pictures of my grandparents' trips to all different places like China, Australia, Italy, etc. However, last night I ran into a photo album of random pictures my grandfather took. It's funny because I remember him having a disposable camera at Christmas a few years back. In this album, there were several pictures of us (at Christmas) that he'd taken with the disposable camera. However, the rest of the disposable camera consisted of pictures he'd taken of geese at the lake. It's the same journey he was on when he died last week. It was really neat because I was a little too far removed from the pictures of faraway places, but the geese pictures were so simple and documented something meaningful to me; it was almost like I was walking right there with him. I took two of the pictures -- one he took from the bridge of the geese swimming (you can see his finger in the photo), and one of the geese crossing the sidewalk right in front of him. They were so amateur and I love them because it's like viewing everyday life from his eyes. How long can I talk about some photos of geese? You tell me.

Today I returned back to work and, although I really hadn't been gone, it felt like it. I was greeted by tons of termites running rampant on the carpet outside of my office. I didn't notice them at first because I got to work so early and didn't turn on the light in the hallway. However, a little while later, I looked at the carpet and realized it was like an optical illusion. Seriously. The carpet looked 3D like a Magic Eye puzzle. Are you grossed out yet? I spent the rest of the morning being paranoid that they were crawling on me and, after the Orkin man came and said they were coming up through the floor, the folks in my suite called it a day and headed home. Ugh, I shouldn't be thinking about this so close to bedtime. I'm gonna dream of termites bringing me donuts.

Well, it's about to become my birthday if anyone's counting. I've set a goal for Drew's Crew to raise $2,500 on my birthday. I gave us a tiny head start because I was getting impatient. If you'd like to contribute to the cause, first let me commend you for making it this far in this novel of a post. Secondly, here is the link: http://www.cff.org/great_strides/drewdotson5267.

I want to thank everyone who has shown me some love over the past several days; it has really helped.

Hello, bed of mine! How I've missed thee!

Whoa-oh-oh-oh-ohhhhh. How sweet it is!

Helloooo. I don't know why I am staying up so late when I have such a big day tomorrow. Perhaps it's the silly in me.

My friend Brian died on Wednesday night. I received the notification at 12:04 a.m. Needless to say, Thursday was a very challenging day. I was overwhelmed, though, by the support from my friends and family. Although it's very hard to know someone has lost the battle with CF, it's also refreshing to know that he lived a life that should make him proud.

Thursday was a big mass email day and involved interviewing candidates, so there was a lot going on and very little time to process the news. It kind of amazed me how well I was able to contain myself when necessary, but how shameless I was in the brief stints alone in my office. I honestly think that my composure, even in tough situations, has really been enhanced by improv. When it's time to perform, I have to rid myself of everything going on outside of the theater so that I can go on stage with a clean slate. I feel like I handled it all so gracefully, which is a lot for good ol' "macaroni water" me.

The big whammy is that I performed in a show Thursday night, too. So, having had probably 25 tiny tear outbursts throughout the day, several interviews to sit in on, and a huge technical failure day with our mass email tool (WHAT A TOOL!), it amazed me how well I was able to compartmentalize it for the duration of the show. I felt like I had a really great show, and I think it's a result of all of the emotion circulating in my body.

I got to do several new(ish) and exciting things: I was the therapist for Emo Couples Therapy, I commentated for Slow-Mo Sports Commentary (I think that was the name), I played Oscar Musical, I was a caller in Phones, and I played Musical Styles. It was also my friend's birthday (BA) and he was in the show, so there was great energy among the entire cast. Fun times! It was such a positive end to a day that started so painfully.

Today has been a nonstop day. I was still troubleshooting yesterday's technical issues, but I got everything finished. I got some groceries, too, which I'd needed to do all week. I also went to the bank. I had a crew shift tonight at the theatre and, since I was running super early, I had time to stop at Marshalls on my way. I got an orange shirt and some teeny tiny boat shoes. They're navy, red, and white, and they are now named "My Braves Shoes."

Well, tomorrow I have a ton to do... like perform at a festival and go see Tim McGraw. It's going to be exhausting, but I really can't wait. I'm going to try to exercise, too, so I better get to sleep. When did it become so late? Geez!

Thank you again to everyone who reached out to me on Thursday. Here's another way you can help: http://www.cff.org/great_strides/drewdotson5267.

Little Miss

Here I am... I'm once again surprised at how much time has elapsed since I last wrote. It makes me a little concerned that I'm not stopping to smell the roses, but perhaps instead I should embrace that I'm packing my days to the brim.

The ENT went pretty well. He said that my sinuses looked pretty good, and he attributed it to the antibiotic that I've been taking. He also recommended allergy testing to help treat my absurd allergies, but we're not doing that until summer because he said the testing (and the lack of allergy meds leading up to the testing) could make for a real miserable time. So, more on that in June...

I didn't do anything for St. Patrick's Day other than send a ton of mass emails and wear a very gray shade of green. I needed a relaxing night in, and that's exactly what happened.

Friday afternoon I went to lunch with an old friend (BS), so that was a lot of fun. We got to catch up and ate some swell food! Friday night I had a crew shift and got Yogli Mogli with KW beforehand. That was awesome! I'd been craving it for some time...

On Saturday I performed some improv. I played Buzzer Talk Show, Sit Stand Lean, Narration Switch, and Musical Styles. It was a relatively small crowd for a Saturday, but it was still fun!

Sunday was a kind of lazy day. I did make some progress on my fundraising video for the year. Then I went to El Azteca AND Yogli Mogli (again) with ES. I fell asleep surprisingly early for having been up until 3:00 a.m. the previous night (or morning... WHATEVER!).

I totally feel like I'm just going in order of days, but deal with it. You know my brain likes some organization. Yesterday and today were pretty largely uneventful, with the exception of getting Yogli Mogli today. Is anyone noticing a trend? I also worked out both days, so that's been a big improvement. I'd been feeling way too drained to exercise for the last several weeks. I'm thinking I should have forced myself because it's helping increase my energy level, but oh well. Another day, another dollar. That phrase was pretty irrelevant here.

That's about it. Drew's Crew is about to get silly up in this fundraising arena. To give the first update of the year, the team currently stands at a total of $5,604. That's pretty awesome considering we have barely started. We are going to raise more than $30,000 this year, and I mean it...

Night!

Slow your roll

Per tradition, I need to start off this post by commenting on the frequency with which I've been posting. I was doing so well earlier last week and then the weekend arrived... Such is life!

I performed in an improv show Friday night. It was an actor's final show (LB), so it was sad, but I was really glad to be part of it. I played Conducted Rap, Sounds Like A Song/Rap, Remote Control Styles, Buzzer Game Show, and Oscar Musical. It was sold out (with a lot of familiar faces in the audience), a lot of fun, and ended with a standing ovation; doesn't get much better than that! I was also super-excited because one of my friends (JS) from CF camp (that I hadn't seen in close to nine years) came to the show. That sentence sure was complicated.

Most of the weekend consisted of taking it easy. Yesterday I went out to lunch and had a few drinks with CW. The roomie and I were going to go out last night, but we were having a hard time figuring out a plan, so we just hung out at home instead. Today we worked out, went to the grocery store, and watched about a million episodes of "I Used to Be Fat" on MTV. It was one of those awesome days that lasted FOREVER!

I plan on going to sleep early tonight so I can start the week off on the right foot. Thankfully this week should be less hectic than last week at work (knock on wood!), so I ought to be able to better manage my stress level.

Hope everyone had an incredible weekend; the weather here was amazing!

Hello warmth

Hmmm. Well, happy Monday/Valentine's Day/sunny day! Man, today was absolutely beautiful outside. The allergy count is on the rise, so let's keep our fingers crossed! It's a noseroid kind of night...

I ended up telecommuting today because I was feeling pretty rough when I woke up. I slept about 12 hours, yet again, but it just didn't seem like enough. My eyes were not having it. We'll see how tomorrow goes. I feel like I've got to be fighting something in order to be capable of sleeping so much.

I don't really have a lot to say. I've been a little short-tempered today. I'm thinking it's a combination of things, but mainly that I'm not feeling well.

My goal for tomorrow is to exercise before work. Can I succeed? I think I can.

Night all!

New day, new mood

Hi!

There have been a lot of things weighing on my mind lately and I'm not exactly sure why. I think that it's partially due to the fact that I haven't had a routine in what feels like forever. When I returned to work after my surgery and what not, it was practically time for the holidays. Then, when the holidays finally passed, the Atlantan Ice Debacle 2K11 kept us out of work for almost an entire week. And now, despite yesterday's MLK holiday, we're supposed to work from home this week while they move our offices. I'm not exactly complaining because of course it's nice to be at home, but I'm looking forward to establishing some kind of routine for the first time yet this year.

Things are going well on the exercise front. I've been going to the fitness center occasionally, riding my spin bike, and dancing to the Wii. I haven't exercised this frequently in a long time, so I guess that's a perk of having such a jacked up schedule. I can't believe my roommate and I got up at 5:30 a.m. to exercise. I'm still in denial.

Today I'll be heading to campus for the first time in 12 days. Can you believe it? I need to get some things from my desk, go to a lunch for Patient Family Advisors, and attend my last protein study visit. I've got a big day ahead! The first step is actually changing out of sweatpants for probably the third time in two weeks. I bet you can sense why I've been feeling out-of-sorts...

Last night I was thinking about the people we meet throughout our lives and how they affect us. I'm thankful to be surrounded by such great people. There's no such thing as too much love in this world. Just think about it...

Hi, 2011.

I feel like the appropriate thing to do would be to write some sort of commemorative blog about my year in review or something along those lines. However, "appropriate" really isn't my style, so I'm just going to go for a more stream-of-consciousness approach.

AM and I had a fun weekend! We ended up going out with some friends on New Year's Eve, but didn't do anything extravagant. We kept it low-key at a local bar and had fun. We spent most of New Year's Day trying to decide what to eat, which resulted in a quick (after four hours of deliberating) run to a local Chinese takeout place. Throughout this sweet and sour journey, the paparazzi photographed me trying to find a menu I'd thrown away.



Desperate times call for desperate measures. Clearly.

Oh! Saturday night I performed in an improv show - 1/1/11! I had a blast and played Sit Stand Lean Oscar, ABC Buzzer Holiday Story, Emo Interview (straight), and Remote Control Styles. The audience was great and the cast was a lot of fun. Hooray to kicking off the new year with improv!

I'm in denial about the fact that I'm about to go into the office. You know I LOVE returning to work after an abnormal holiday schedule.

So, I've set some resolutions for myself, but they're relatively simple. I'm mainly working on developing some better habits, which will hopefully be facilitated by my Habit Streak app. Yes, I have become that phone person. Anyway, I'm trying to develop better habits as far as exercising, writing, lung health, organization, and overall well-being, so we'll see how it all shakes out. I like the feeling of a new year; it gives me a sense of freedom even though it's really no different than the week before. What gives?!

Happy 2011! Let's make it a swell one!

Candy caaaaaane

Where has the week gone? That was rhetorical.

Monday I went to the neurologist and basically learned that I need to stop taking headache medicine. I haven't taken it very frequently, but apparently it can perpetuate migraines by causing rebound headaches. Who knew? After the neurologist, I had my exit appointment from the study that my kidneys didn't like. Woohooo! I promise I've had probably 30+ doctors' appointments this year.

I've had some good eats this week! I had Pure Taqueria, Ippolito's and El Azteca! I feel like I've eaten a ton, but I guess it goes hand-in-hand with this time of year. Deeee-lish! Of course I've had Starbucks about 78 times this week, too, because that's officially become a problem of mine... I'm on a vanilla latte streak right now.

I ran about 3 miles yesterday and plan on doing it again tomorrow. Booyow!

I'm thankful for...
-living comfortably
-enjoying alone time
-getting a warm shower
-public service workers

Happy Thanksgiving to all! <3 Every day's a good one!