Got a leg up

Good morning!

So, first and foremost, let me address that yesterday's high in Atlanta was 86, and tomorrow it is 58. The lows this week are dropping into the 30s. WHAT IS THIS?

Well, this weekend was pretty eventful. I'm going to post this picture before I give any explanation.

Yep, that's my leg hanging out of a window. On Sunday, we filmed a video for the theater, and I had to play a goth teenager sneaking in through a window. This picture just cracks me up; I can't imagine what neighbors were thinking.

In the Fantasy Football department, I'm still in first place. Mwahaha! Ultimately it won't matter what place I get, but I'm having fun. Winning is always fun!

I went to the doctor yesterday, and it went surprisingly well(ish). I got the flu shot, and I woke up a little achy. The flu shot deliverer was amazing, though. I honestly had no clue she had given me the shot. That may also reflect on my attention span.

Speaking of shortened attention spans, I better get going. Thank you to a lot of folks this week.

Whether the weather is cold...

Greetings! It's Sunday! Normally I would be bummed because it would mean the weekend is coming to a close, but, if things go according to plan, it's going to be snowy and icy and we won't have to go to work tomorrow.

It has been a theatre-filled weekend. Yesterday I worked the box office for the kids' show. I performed last night and it was fun. I played Conducted Rap, Sounds Like a Song/Rap, Foreign-Dubbing (as a dubber), Sit Stand Lean Oscar, Buzzer Courtroom (Barbara as the bailiff), and Musical Styles. It was sold out!

Friday night I went out with some work friends (KQ and SS) and we stayed out entirely too late. I had a lot of fun, though. I messed up my sleeping routine, so that's another reason I'm voting for snow.

What else? I'm going to an apprentice celebration tonight. It should be fun!

It's pouting time

I'm in an unexplained bad mood right now. I really can't rationalize it, but I think it's probably a combination of being tired and having a long to-do list. WHATEVER.

Thursday's show was awesome! It was sold out and we got a standing ovation. Hoorah! I was in a straight scene, ABC Buzzer, Emo Second Date (not changing emotions), Meet the Holiday Experts and Oscar Musical. The audience was great and had a lot of energy, so we responded with a lot of energy. I enjoyed myself! 'Tis the season...

Friday I telecommuted for a bit and went into work for another little bit. One of my colleagues (HA!) was having her going away party, so we all went to El Azteca for happy hour. Me, TO, and a couple work friends (KQ and SS) then went to the theatre to watch the show. It, too, was a sellout, so we watched it from the cafe.

Yesterday I made myself useless for a lot of the day and then covered someone's lights shift at the theatre. That definitely wasn't in my plans, but duty called. Soooooo, I stayed up way too late again. I did get a present, though, from ES! I got the Elf DVD (LOVE IT!), some rum (LOVE IT!), and the Jimmy Eat World CD (LOVE THE TRACKS I'VE HEARD!).

I'm pretty sure it's nap time.

Vrooooom. Vroooooom.

First and foremost, sorry for the delay. I don't actually think that people care that much, but I do realize that this is how most people have been keeping up with the hospitalization/surgery, so I figured I ought to break the silence.

Well, I got out of the hospital on Friday at around noon. I was having mixed feelings about it, as I usually do when I'm leaving the hospital. I don't exactly know what causes me to feel like I'm on an emotional roller coaster when I'm hospitalized. In a way, the hospital setting is relieving because you get a free pass to feel however you want to feel. At the same time, though, I've noticed that the hospital breeds pity parties, which isn't something that interests me. Anyway, I said all of that to say that the last few days have carried with them many ups and downs - fluctuations that seemed acceptable in the hospital, but are a little harder to carry back into real life.

When we left the hospital, my mom and I went to a few different pharmacies trying to get a handle on the prescriptions that I needed. By the time we got home, I was wiped out and took a nap while my amazing mom went to the grocery store to get me some things. My IV medications got delivered Friday evening and the nurse came by to make sure I had everything under control. I wasn't quite feeling up to being alone, so my mom spent the night with me. We slept on the couches and I was very thankful to have her company.

I sat around a lot on Saturday. We got up and my mom headed back to her house. I took my plethora of medications. Then I sat outside writing for a little bit. I was in a very 'deep' mood, and that has continued into today. Then I took another nap (I'm good at that lately) and my mom came back and took me to my parents' house. It was good to spend one more night with company. My mom and I made a quick stop by my grandmother's house on the way here this afternoon.

I had some visitors today. Two friends from the theatre stopped by (LG and EG), and it was good to talk creative with them. We talked about creative endeavors, but we also talked about life, so I was in hog heaven. PLUS, they brought me some queso from Willy's. AWESOME! Anyway, I really enjoyed their company; it got my creative juices flowing. Another friend (JM) also stopped by for a bit, and I continued my philosophical discussions with her. It's days like today when I remember how fortunate I am to know such caring people.

Tomorrow will be my first would-be-workday at home. I think my brother plans to come by WITH HIS DOG!, so that will be fun. I'm hoping this post-hospital funk has almost passed.

Our house. In the middle of the street.

It is late! I need sleep!

I just got home from my first night of training lights at the theatre. It was a lot better than I expected it would be. For one, it didn't take as much out of me as is does when I'm mingling with the patrons. Mainly, though, it was easier than I thought it would be ... probably because my teacher was DA BOMB (KW)! I watched the entire first show and then did (almost) all of the second show with moral support. Awesome!

What else? The stone. I had another bout of kidney stone pain this morning. It wasn't Vicodin-worthy, but it was pain of a there-are-almost-tears-in-my-eyes level. Thankfully I took some ibuprofen and it was pretty short-lived. The anxiety-provoking thing about this is that, now that I know what I'm expecting, I know that the pain should be returning. That is NOT a good feeling! I got some twinges of pain throughout the night, but nothing long-lasting. Let's see how tonight goes!

I had J. Christopher's today. Spinach and bacon skillet in the houuuuuse! It included many things that I believe are on the do-not-eat list, but that's okay. I forgive myself.

Tomorrow evening I have a workshop at the theatre. That being said, I'll probably take it easy all day since the weekend has been a little hectic. I went out last night and was up until about 2:00 a.m., and here I am at the same hour again tonight. What a wild child I am! At least I'm enjoying myself...

The eyelids are heavy, so I better give in and sleep.

You will be there

Yo! It's Tuesday night.

The Braves won big tonight and it made me proud. They've been scoring a lot of runs lately, so that makes me smile! I was kinda hoping to go to the game tonight since my theatre schedule isn't exactly conducive to seeing games. Buuuut, I wasn't feeling all that great and already had plans to meet my friend (MV) at Starbucks (AGAIN!), so I didn't go. It would have been fun, but perhaps I'll be able to go to some more games in the coming weeks... Before we head to the play-offs. UNNNH!

Well, let me go ahead and say that this Cipro oral antibiotic is not making my body happy. Lung-wise I'm doing fine. Stomach-wise... NO. "Food" sounds like a curse word. That didn't stop me from eating Willy's today, which may or may not have been a bad idea.

I got blood drawn yesterday! It only took two tries, so I was very pleased. I sat there using a space heater for about 20 or 30 minutes before we even attempted. I don't know if that actually helps, but it comforts me from a mental standpoint.

I'm telecommuting tomorrow. I need to go to the gym either before work or during lunch. I went for a hot second this morning, but I felt too sick to my stomach to continue. So, it's time to kick it back into gear. I feel a little lazy lately.

Tomorrow will probably be a late(ish) night at the theatre. Our annual fundraiser is on Thursday, so tomorrow will likely include a lot of last-minute prep. Friday is the only night I don't have to be at the theatre until next Tuesday. Sometimes I understand why my body doesn't like me so much anymore.

Enough yapping. Life is a cool thing.

Waiting is the hardest part

Oh, kidney stone, how I hate thee.

So, this kidney stone thing is getting a little awkward. I get a text/email/call every couple hours asking me if it has passed. As people know, I'm not very shy about much, but it's just kind of a strange topic since it involves human waste and what not. Anyway, as far as my body and my strainer indicate, it is still hanging out inside of my body.

Since I've been fortunate enough to have never experienced this before, I really don't know what to expect. I mean, theoretically, it could be out in a few minutes and everything would be back to normal (excluding the fact that there's another one in my kidney that could choose to jump out whenever it wants). I'm hopeful that it will be gone today, but in my "big picture" mind, I'm already trying to strategize about tomorrow. I feel most secure at home since people aren't here to witness everything, but it's also hard not to leave the house when I'm feeling pretty good. Who knows how much of that has to do with the painkillers, though...

Today I'm supposed to go to my grandmother's for a little birthday celebration for my mom and uncle. The trickiest parts about that are: 1) I'd have to get a ride, 2) packing the strainer is awkward, and 3) I keep dozing off at a moment's notice. I haven't yet decided whether or not I'll try to truck it over there.

I didn't make it to the theatre last night. I was confident that I could be pain-free while I was there, but I'd HAVE to use the bathroom in the time I was there, which would involve bringing the strainer. AND, given that the camera person is literally in the audience, I'd need to guarantee I wasn't going to fall asleep. Thankfully the theatre folks were very understanding and encouraged me to stay home and get better. All I'm waiting on is the "get better" part.

Well, this is going to sound nutty, but I might go try to exercise. I read that activity can help it pass, so perhaps that's what I'll do. The thought of it makes me anxious.

It feels like it's time to take another narcotic, though, because I feel the dull pain returning in my lower right back. The doctor told me to take medicine at the first sign of pain because the oral painkillers only work up until a certain point before IV painkillers are needed. Maybe the exercise thing needs to be moved to the back burner for now. Sigh.

Thank you to all for being so supportive!

Weight a second

Well, today was a fine day. I really didn't experience much pain at all since I kept myself medicated all day. I only got nauseous a few times and truly only felt some minor pain in my back. That pain was nothing compared to yesterday, though.

The weirdest part of all of this is that I am gaining tons of water weight. Since the stone is just before my bladder, everything isn't flowing through quite like normal. So, I literally weigh five pounds more today than I did a full day ago. Isn't that nutty? I feel like I'm pregnant with a Gatorade baby. It will be GREAT when this is over!

The Braves won today after being swept by the White Sox in a three-game series earlier this week. I was relieved to see that!

Today my mom helped me take my car to get an estimate since I am not really up for driving with these medications. It is truly going to be pretty cheap. I've just gotta work out the details surrounding getting to and from places while the car is getting perfected. I'm relieved that this isn't going to be THAT big of a deal.

As of right now, I plan to work at the theatre tomorrow. If tomorrow is anything like today was, I should be completely fine getting out of the house for a bit to work. I'm only on camera for both shows, so that sounds like it could be easy. My biggest concern is just the drowsiness. I seem to have made vast improvements on the pain front, but I don't want to be dozing during my crew shift. I guess I'll make the final decision tomorrow.

I need to go downstairs to get more Gatorade to add to the rest sitting inside my body waiting. This has to be causing hiccups somehow. I've had them about six times today.

Time for some sleep!

Holla back

Hi.

Last night was fun! I was scheduled to work a Saturday at the theatre, which is typically close to an 8-hour ordeal when all is said and done. However, because of the holiday weekend, the 10:30 p.m. show got canceled and I believe the crowds were consolidated into one sellout 8:00 p.m. show. When I got there and learned the news, I was relieved, but I also love seeing the shows, so it was a double-edged sword. I was training someone on camera and, since we had a big crew, it was a relatively easy night. After the show, I went to Tin Lizzy's to get dinner with some folks since we finished so early.

I slept in today and loved it! I woke up at about 11:00 a.m. and did my medicine, then went to the gym. I ran a few miles on the treadmill and more than a mile on the elliptical. I'm not sure what the grand total was, but I felt accomplished! I'm going to try to work out every day this week, so let's see if it fits into the schedule. I feel pretty good when I'm exercising lately... Maybe it's the VANILLA!

What else? I went shopping today with my mom! I had the most success I've had shopping in forever. I ended up getting two bathing suit cover-ups, a pair of jean capris, a pair of jeans, a dress, and four tank tops. Anybody who knows me knows that this is a miracle. I usually end up in a horrible mood when I have to go shopping, but I was pleasantly surprised today! Woohoo! I started setting things on top of my suitcase. This is becoming so real! Saturday is departure day!

Tomorrow I'm going to the Braves game with some theatre folks and some friends. It should be a blast! I haven't checked the weather forecast because I'm not sure if I want to know how it looks after Friday night's shenanigans. It's probably better if I just play it by ear! Maybe we'll sit in the club level... Now I'm really curious if it's gonna rain. It's been dreary in Atlanta lately. Mmm, I accidentally checked - 60 percent chance of scattered showers. WHATEVER!

Time for bed! I've got a big day of Philly-hating ahead of me.

Roadblock

Yesterday was CRAZY!

My bathing suits shipped! I just went and tracked the package and it appears to be in the ATL. Guess who's getting her bathing suits on time! Awww, snap. Now let's just hope I got the right sizes.

I got up and worked for a while and then decided I wanted to go pick up something from Starbucks, so off I went. I quickly grabbed an Iced White Chocolate Mocha Latte (mwahahaha!), which kicked the day off right.

Then, for my lunch hour, I went to the fitness center where I witnessed a miracle. I'm being overdramatic, but I did run 3.36 miles without ever even slowing down. In fact, I increased the speed after two miles. Usually I end up standing on the side of the treadmill for a few seconds several times, or may even turn the pace a little slower for a bit. Yesterday, I was ON FIRE! I honestly couldn't believe how energetic and unfazed I was. There wasn't a single moment when I thought I needed to stop. In fact, I only stopped because I needed to get back home. Maybe Starbucks for breakfast helped...

The afternoon was consumed with work changes that are under way that I'm probably not allowed to mention. It's good, though.

At this point it was almost time for the Braves game debacle. Well, I had a drink or two before we hopped on MARTA to ride down to the game. It was raining when we got on MARTA, and my sister decided we should bring an umbrella. I'm very glad she did because I said I was willing to tough it out, but didn't realize it was going to be a monsoon. When we got down to the Five Points station to hop on the bus to the stadium, it was raining so unbelievably hard. Everyone was standing under the awning waiting for it to stop, but we made a run for it with the umbrella. It was a pretty bad call because we were sloshing water everywhere. Then, I proceeded to get on the bus and sit in a seat next to a leaking window, so I sat in water and it continued streaming in the window and getting on my pants. We moved across the aisle.

We got off the bus and hurried to a covered portion at one of the ticket gates. Our parents were in a parking lot tailgating (inside the truck) nearby. We were going to wait it out because we didn't think we should even try the long walk in the pouring, horizontal rain. Well, I asked the Atlanta Police Department officer if we could drink beers and he said no because we were in public. So we decided we were ready to venture to the truck. Our dad met us halfway, but it was a long journey. We got to the car and I ate a footlong (yes!) Publix sub. I also drank three Bud Light Limes. Finally, at about 8:45 p.m., it seemed to be clearing up so we headed to the stadium.

Thankfully our seats were in the club level and were covered. The game was a good one, and I improved my seasonal record to 3-0. It was 7-3 in the top of the 9th with one out when the bottom fell out of the sky. So, they called a rain delay at about 11:30 p.m. I wanted to stay and wait it out, but then they announced that the Friday night fireworks were canceled due to a noise ordinance (since it had gotten so late). With that information, I really didn't push back on my family because they were ready to go.

We took the long journey back on MARTA and got in the car a little after 12:30 a.m. Well, when we got to my sister's place, there were tons and tons of cop cars on the road. It appeared we had stumbled upon a roadblock. It was just past my sister's place and just before mine (we live less than .2 miles apart). They were letting cars through one at a time and talking to everyone, so needless to say, I did not feel prepared to drive. Instead, I fell asleep on my sister's couch. I woke up at about 1:30 a.m. and went outside to look. The roadblock was still in-process. So, I went back to sleep again and got up at 3:30 a.m., just in time to realize I'd missed my vanilla for the first time since the study began. Oops. Stupid cops. I finally headed the .2 mile home since the cops were done.

Is it just me or am I interacting with a lot of cops lately?

I'm getting ready to go down to the theatre for a lengthy shift on camera. Let's. Get. Energized!

Go girl, it's your birthday

Well, what to say, what to say. I'm torn between what to say because I don't want to make it sound like my day was absolutely miserable. Buuuuuuut, I didn't have a very good day. I had a difficult time sleeping last night because my mind was going a million miles per hour. It's been a while since I've had a night like that, but it happened last night.

Since it was difficult for me to sleep, it was also tough to get up this morning, but I was set on getting to the gym. I ended up resetting my alarm a few times, and got up and did a quick 22-minute workout. I did about 4 1/2 minutes on the treadmill, but was having a hard time, so I got on the elliptical for 7 1/2. Then, I ran on the treadmill for 10 minutes to seal the deal. I'm not exactly sure why it was so difficult compared to last week, but maybe because I wasn't feeling well...

I went to Starbucks on the way to work and got an iced mocha latte. Then, when I got to work, one of my wonderful coworkers surprised me with a McDonald's Mocha Frappe or what not. So, by 11:00 a.m., I'd completed both of those drinks and was pretty rowdy and feeling decent, although coughy. Haha. Coffee. HAAAA! I didn't even mean to do that, but anyway...

My coworker and I went to my FAVORITE Mexican restuurant (Monterrey) for lunch, where I had two grilled steak quesadillas. It was so delicious, and she surprised me by treating me! It was so sweet. One of my coworkers had also brought cupcakes, so I was excited about that and brought some of them home.

After lunch I was just having a really hard time. I wasn't feeling very well and it was really bringing me down; I've had a lot weighing on my mind. I ended up having to duck out of work early because I was feeling pretty bad. I came home and things didn't improve much. Then, I headed to rehearsal still in a bit of a funk, but everyone was really sweet and tried to help me out of it.

I got a few really thoughtful gifts that I'm excited about and, even though I probably didn't show it tonight, I am so thankful to have my theatre friends.

So many people wished me a happy birthday and, although Drew's Crew didn't rake it in like I hoped we might, there's still time left. Even though I seemed like a hot mess for the majority of the day, I am so lucky to know so many great people. Now if only the Braves can pull out a win tonight; it's tied right now...

Well, I'm hoping for a great day tomorrow - for everyone. I'm sending positive thoughts all kinds of directions.

Yawn

What a day! Well, today I got up and hit the fitness center before work. I surprisingly ran two miles without stopping, and then walked for a couple minutes before heading back home. I reset my alarm a few times, so I didn't have as much time to exercise as usual when I go before work. Oh well! It was better than nothing. I was really excited to run for 20 minutes without ever even stepping my feet on the side of the treadmill; I haven't done that in a bit!

I went to work and knocked out a TON of stuff all in a few hours of time. I was in the office from a little before 9 until a little before 1, then headed to my CF study appointment.

So, the appointment went really well. Well, it didn't, but it did. When I did my PFTs, they were surprisingly low - lower than my appointment last week, and about on-par with my first study appointment. The doctor basically told me there were two options... 1) try IV antibiotics and see what happens, or 2) have him declare me 'stable' so I would be eligible for the study. Since a drop of a few percentage points can be attributed to many things other than my true lung function, I went with the tell-me-I'm-stable route.

I then proceeded with my EKG, bloodwork, nasal PD (measuring electrical activity in your nasal cells - WILD!), sweat tests, etc. All in all, it took about five hours to complete all of the necessary testing. It looks like I'm good to get randomized as long as today's results come back looking good! It's funny because, after all of the things that could have kept me from being in the study, the biggest issue today was getting blood out of my arms. We moved from arm to arm with multiple people trying to get a good result. Finally we got a good vein and, of the nine tubes that needed to get filled, we got to the ninth one and my arm gave out. Someone else had to come save the day by poking and prodding around to get that final BIG tube filled. Thankfully I don't mind needles in the arms.

After all of that, I met a few theatre friends at El Azteca (Midtown area) before the improv show tonight. It was a showcase put on by the folks in the Improv Studies group, and I had a lot of fun. I probably stayed out later than I should have, as you can probably tell, so I'm about to hit the hay. I have a crew shift at the theatre tomorrow night, so it looks like it will be Saturday before I can relax.

FIGHT

Well, I ended up staying home from work today because the sleeping thing didn't work out too well last night. I was also short-of-breath, so I thought it would be best to work from home today. I was feeling decent the first few hours after waking, but my health started to gradually decline over the afternoon, and now I'm feeling probably the worst I've felt all day. I just took my second dose of the antibiotic, though, so I think it's too early to make a judgment on whether or not that's working.

One of the doctors checked in today and would like me to get admitted Friday if I'm not feeling any better. I am confident that I'll start feeling better, but I must say that my body has surprised me a bit over these last few days. Usually I feel kind of in control even when I'm out of control, but not so much in recent days. I am scheduled to be in the improv show on Thursday, so my goal is to at least hang in there for that. I know it sounds like a lot of work, but surprisingly I tend to check my health problems at the door when I walk in there. Sooo, I'm not concerned.

Today I made my squares for this CF quilt that is being auctioned off. They look kinda decent, but they also look a little child-like. The fabric markers I got this weekend were bleeding a bit on the fabric, but I think they turned out okay. I had one for Love, Peace, Beauty and Smile. I know those words don't necessarily go together, but I had to keep it to basics when I realized how the markers were working out on the fabric. Oh well... it's for charity. The paper said I could write the person's name and age and I almost put something like 'Mary, 4' to save a little face, but whatever! I don't imagine any of the other participants having much luck with the type of material we had.

I got a few donations today, so those made me smile. I think I'll have some luck in the coming days since it's almost a new month... The best thing that could come out of being hospitalized is more awareness. That'd be the light at the end of that tunnel. I really, really think I can shake this without IVs. I might try walking on the treadmill tomorrow if it seems at all feasible.

Mmm, I am looking forward to a much better day tomorrow. I think I just realized I haven't even laughed today, which is so not like me. There's a chance I laughed during a quick phone call earlier, but I remember wondering if I sounded as out-of-breath as I felt. Oh, Drewdle. Get it together.

Send any extra positive energy my way. NO! HOSPITAL! FOR! DREW!

This post is me psyching myself up

Woooooooooo! Wooooooohooooooooooooo! I am so energized!

I have to be in Midtown in about an hour, and I'm extremely tired, but at the end of this post, I will be ENERGYFIED!

On the way, I plan to go to Starbucks and try the newest thing that caught my fancy - the Dark Cherry Mocha. I tried to get it a week or so ago, but they said they didn't have it yet. I am excited to try it because I think it's exactly the potion I need.

Tonight's gonna be a long one at the theatre... I start at 6:30 and will probably get to leave around 1:00 or 1:30 a.m., which will kinda be 2:00 or 2:30 a.m. given the time change. DON'T FORGET TO CHANGE YOUR CLOCKS! We're so inundated with technology that most clocks will just change for us, but in case you're confused...

I think that's about all I have to say. There's definitely more I could say, but the longer I type, the more hectic it will be trying to make it to the theatre on time, and we all know I can't sacrifice that Dark Cherry Mocha I just swooned over.

ENERGY! ENERGY! ENERGY!

A success story

Hmm, well, going to sleep is long overdue, but I figured I ought to write in here since it crossed my mind. I got home from the CF event I spoke at not too long ago. The event was in a very nice home in the Lenox Mall area. It took me forever to get there because I forgot about the roads that are still washed out due to the flood. The good news, however, is that I got there.

I winged it, for the most part, but I think it went well. It was a small and intimate gathering, so it wasn't as intimidating as it could have been. I met some very nice people all there to support my cause, so that's always uplifting!

I also found out some news I deem super-exciting. I was speaking with a CF doctor about clinical trials and one just got approved this week. Less than 10 percent of the CF population could benefit from this drug, and I happen to be in that small group. I have been following this drug for almost three years now, so I am way excited that my treatment center will have access to it. It could seriously make a huge difference in my life. Guess who's looking into that tomorrow!

Well, I ended up working from home today. I've had a headache since Monday and just wasn't feeling up to driving to work today. I also had a very difficult time sleeping last night, so that wasn't helping matters. The headache hasn't bothered me all evening, so let's hope this is indicative of what tomorrow will bring!

Tomorrow I am doing camera/suggestions at the theatre. It's funny that not being there in two days seems so weird to me. I think that means I'm officially in deep. I also don't have to be there for any reason this weekend, so that will feel unusual, too.

Anyway, I can hardly keep my eyes open, so I think I'll call it a night. I don't know the last time I was up this late on a weeknight. I know I didn't say a whole lot worth hearing, but whatever. I'm excited about that drug. YEAH BABY!

Papa. Paparazzi.

It seems like I just wrote in here yesterday, but obviously it wasn't... This week flew by, probably because I was anticipating the show.

So, Thursday night was my first apprentified show at the theatre, and I had so much fun! Just for my own memory and not so much yours, these are the games I was in: Emo Interview, Sit Stand Lean Oscar, Remote Control Styles, ABC, and Oscar Musical Rap. I had soooo many WONDERFUL people supporting me and it couldn't have gone any better. I can't wait until the next - whenever that is!

Well, I'm up so late because I just finished working the 8:00 and 10:30 p.m. shows at the theatre. They were both sold out, which was fun. I was in charge of walking around getting suggestions for the show, and then pretty much watching and helping out if anything came up during the show. During the 8:00 p.m. show, a guy asked his girlfriend to prom onstage. He had planned it in advance, and it was actually very cute. I hate to admit it, but it almost made me cry. It was just so sweet, primarily because of its innocence.

Today I went to lunch at Mimi's Cafe with a friend that lives in my complex. I hadn't seen her since New Year's, so we had a good time catching up. I got a cheeseburger and onion rings. Woohooo! It was pretty good. When I got home from lunch, though, I literally passed out and didn't wake up for an hour and a half... I have no idea how I was so tired! Tomorrow night I'm meeting some friends for Mexican, so that's going to be AWESOME!

I went to the fitness center this morning, even though it took everything in my power to get out of bed (and this was at 11:00 a.m.). I ran a mile on the treadmill, then did 1.7 miles on the Stairmaster, then alternated between sprints and walking for 1.1 miles on the treadmill. I'm pretty surprised I'm not sore yet because sprints usually do it to me, especially if it's been a while.

Well, I'm about to go to sleep and not set an alarm. I usually set an alarm just for the heck of it, but not tonight. I'm just going to sleep until I can't sleep anymore... So excited!

Oozy rat in a sanitary zoo

Greeeeeeeeeeeeeetings. Today is 12-21, which is a palindrome. Therefore, I also used a palindrome to title this post. DORK!

Well, what a weekend! I worked at the theatre on Friday and Saturday nights. I did pre-show suggestions both nights, and also ran the camera on Saturday night. It didn't feel much like work, so that's cool. I also got to laugh a lot in the process, so volunteering was surprisingly fun. I was out pretty late both nights... Friday night I got home around 1, and Saturday it was more like 2. WILD CHILD!

Saturday I got up and exercised, then went shopping and knocked out pretty much everything you can imagine. It was relatively painless, which I didn't expect the weekend before Christmas. It's amazing how efficiently you can shop the closer you get to the deadline. I mean, the lines may be long and what not, but there's no longer time to debate, compare, pick and choose.

Sunday I got up and ran 3 miles (you heard me) and then went to lunch with a friend. We went to J. Christopher's and I had the spinach and bacon skillet. It made my mouth water! I could eat another right now. I debated getting the pancakes, but restaurant pancakes often don't do it for me. They are too...solid and calculated. I can't wait to eat some homemade pancakes this week!

Last night we had a theatre holiday party, and it was a lot of fun. I brought apple tart for dessert and my white elephant gift was a bottle of Bailey's. I ended up getting a tumbler... too bad the Bailey's already belonged to someone else at that point. There was so much delicious food to eat, including one of my favorites... buffalo chicken dip!

That brings me to a very important point. Back in September, I ranked my top three foods as Mexican, pancakes, and grilled cheese. However, I have an amendment to make. I'm officially replacing grilled cheese with buffalo chicken dip in my all-time top three favorite foods. Buffalo chicken dip is just sooooo savory.

Well, it's time to go to bed around 8:30 p.m. because I stayed up too late last night. Tomorrow is my last day in the office this week. YEAAAAAAH BUDDY! GET IT CRUNK! I'm seriously so excited about it. Plus, I'm going to lunch with my old boss, so that's always fun!

Today. Was the happiest day of her life.

Before anyone gets too rambunctious, I'm just singing the lyrics in my head in the title of this post. So chill out, fan club.

Well, guess where I was tonight.... The theatre. HA!!!!!!!! Bet nobody guessed. Tonight's show was a lot of fun, and I'm super-glad I went. Even though I was tired and didn't know if I should go, I am confident that I made the best decision.

Everything that happened today is blurring together. Things that happened this morning feel like they happened two days ago. One of my frizziends had a dead car battery this morning, so I left work to go lend my car's strength to a car in need. It was successful. I don't know why watching people with jumper cables makes me so anxious.

After work, I met a friend at Willy's to grab something to eat before the show. I had been in a Willy's drought (probably three weeks), but I went twice this week, so that satisfied my stomach and soul. I got the same thing both times..... steak nachos. Yeah buddy.

I need to hit the gym tomorrow. I have failed at my attempt to work out this week. That's okay, though. One step at a time... I figure I can work out during my lunch hour since I won't be concerned with getting sweaty (telecommuting). Then, I'm working at the young alumni holiday party at night, so that will be hilarious.

Off to bed!

Umm..... What?

I can't even fathom that it's Wednesday night. My internet wasn't working the last few days, and I hadn't had the time to try to figure it out. However, it's amazing what unplugging a couple cords can do for you. Primarily if you plug them back in after you unplug them. So, I'm up and running again!

I have been at the theatre the last three days... I had my first apprentice rehearsal on Monday night, went to a graduation show last night, and had rehearsal again tonight. It has been a busy, but fun week. I can tell I am going to learn a lot and I'm going to learn it quickly.

I installed my cruise card on my dashboard today. I use the term 'installed' like it involved more than sticking a sticker on the windshield, but it seemed like a pretty big deal. I cruised right through the toll plaza today and felt so free. I felt kind of rebellious. I also thought everyone was probably looking at me as I cruised by, so I felt narcissistic. Not fumbling for 50 cents was such a relief. Sadly, I am being serious.

Yesterday at work, we volunteered at Project Open Hand packing meals for people who are homebound. My first task was scooping broccoli into plastic trays. My second task was putting grape juice boxes into the bags of meals. My third and final task was putting chocolate chip cookies into bags. It was so much fun! We were having such a good time listening to music and moving things down the assembly line. I kind of wish we went there every day.

What else?! I worked out before work yesterday, and I'd like to get in the habit of doing that since I'm going into work a little later so I don't have much time to kill between work and improv. I got a pretty killer workout in by getting up a simple 35 minutes early. It doesn't mean I'm going to do it tomorrow, but it felt very productive. I might try to hop on the elliptical at work tomorrow since I left my gym bag at my desk...

Well, I just got sleepy very suddenly, so I'm off to bed. Happy December!

Stop the clock

The last few days are such a blur to me.

Sunday was a pretty lazy and relaxing day, but I can't say the same for Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday.

Monday I struggled through the day for some reason, feeling an overall exhaustion. I went straight from work to my final improv practice, which was fun. We did a faux show to prepare for last night's performance. There was not a single thing I did in the faux show that I did in the real show last night, but hey. You live and you learn! I guess I was just getting those out of my system.

Tuesday was just a loooooooong day. I got up and went to work like usual, and had to be at the theatre at 6:00 p.m. When I got to the theatre, we went through the line-up. That's when I found out that I'd be in two games I'd never played before and in two singing games. Surprisingly, I was too tired to realize what was happening to want to gouge my eyeballs out. In fact, I was somewhat anxiously excited to see what would happen. I thought the show went pretty well. I keep having flashbacks to random things I said or did and I'm afraid to watch the DVD next week. Oh well! It was a lot of fun and feels so much more natural than it did 7 months ago.

Today I finally feel the worst I have in several weeks. I know I haven't felt up-to-par in a few weeks, but today I can officially say I feel a little lousy. I am coughing, my throat is starting to hurt, etc. Then again, that seems to be the norm these days; a lot of people seem to be a little ill. Speaking of sick, I think I am getting the H1N1 vaccine tomorrow. I am in the high-risk group and can get it for free at work. I'm a little skeptical for no good reason, so we'll see what I decide.

I came home from work and napped for almost 5 hours. Now I'm getting ready to go back to sleep. Tomorrow I am giving a speech at a CF Foundation event. I haven't made an outline yet, but an outline seems trivial after I had to rap in front of an audience last night. An outline seems like a good project for...tomorrow.

Time to go back to bed. Like a log.