Standin' in the light of your halo

I am not a fan of that song by Beyonce (the one I quoted in my title). I don't even know why I put that as my title. I'm never going to look at this post again.

Well, first things first, it's kinda late. I went to Starbucks this evening and got a half-caffeinated vanilla latte. I don't think I got too caffeinated, but this shortened workweek also has me slightly off-kilter. Anyway, I plan on going to sleep RIGHT AFTER I finish this post. Take that, Blogger!

Yesterday the Braves fell out of first place for the first time since May. It hurt. It truly did. However, the good news is that there's still plenty of time. I really don't want it to come down to the wire, so I have trust that they'll pull through. I changed my Facebook profile picture in their honor today, so they better not do anything crazy.

I'm in tomorrow night's show, so I'm excited for that! Also, we found out tonight that we're going to have Mondays off of rehearsal for the next couple of months. I'm pretty sure I'm in shock, but I am also feeling super-relieved. With how run-down I've been feeling lately, I could definitely use an extra night to rejuvenate - especially at the beginning of the week. I can't wait to get on that stage tomorrow!

I had a marathon study appointment yesterday. It was this big check-in appointment where I did basically everything that I did when I was originally screened for the study. The ironic part is, since I haven't been on the study drug (OR PLACEBO!) for almost two weeks, testing these things was absolutely unnecessary. The bottom line is that I'll get paid and they wanted me to do it, but it sure was worthless. Regardless of whether or not I was on the drug or the placebo, it would have been out of my system.

Tomorrow I have my sinus CT scan, so hopefully I can schedule my surgery sooner than later and proceed like normal. I can't believe my ENT appointment was only a week ago. It seems like I've been waiting to schedule this surgery for MONTHS. Ooh, drama queen.

Honestly, I know there's more to say, but I don't think I'll try to retrieve it from my brain. Odds are that it's just more rambling...per usual.

Have a good night!!!! HAPPY THURSDAY!

Party in my mouth

Cherries make the day better.

Well, today was an interesting one, I must say. Early this morning I got an email from the study coordinator. Although the blood level we were originally concerned about was normal, I've had two abnormal creatinine levels. Basically, from my understanding, if this level is high, it indicates poor kidney function. So, I got taken off of the drug. Now, I don't know if this is a permanent or temporary thing. I believe I am going to be getting an ultrasound done tomorrow, but I don't know for sure. The study folks are consulting other folks and I guess I'll learn more. It's got me wondering if the bouts of pain were from an actual kidney stone or just my kidney. I WANT AN ULTRASOUND! In other news, I have GOT to be on the real thing, right? Vanilla doesn't make your body go haywire.

I went to the grocery store today during lunchtime. I picked up a few items, and one of those items was CHERRIES. They have made me happy despite my angry kidneys.

I had rehearsal tonight and we worked on dialects. I was in a surprisingly good mood and laughed A LOT. Dialects are funny.

The Braves blew a 9-run lead today, so that was impressive. Thankfully the Phillies have also lost three games in a row, so we're still hanging on to our 2 1/2 game lead. Today's game was an absolute embarrassment. I kind of wished I hadn't been telecommuting so I didn't have to see it unfold.

I better rest up for tomorrow. I'd like to exercise in the morning and I have NO IDEA if I'm in the show or not. Plus, since I may or may not be getting an ultrasound, tomorrow will be spontaneous.

SLEEP WELL!

Upside down

I guess it's officially Tuesday. Booooo! I mean, I have no problem with Monday being over, but I wish it was about an hour earlier so I could get enough sleep tonight. Oh well! I'm over it.

Sunday was a good day. I slept in pretty late - almost until 11:00 a.m. It felt GOOD. I headed to the pool for a bit and it was literally unbearably hot. It caught me off-guard. It was almost impossible to sit there. I read a little bit and spent the rest of the time people-watching.

The Braves then DESTROYED the Cubs 16-5. It felt so good.

I then headed down to an improv workshop at the theatre. We worked with someone named Chelsea from Upright Citizens Brigade. While UCB does longform improv and we do not, it made me think about some things differently. The three hours passed by really quickly, but I had fun. It was neat to hear a different perspective on improv.

Monday was a good day! I don't like saying "Monday" because it still feels like it's Monday. Anyway, I hoped to work out before work, but I simply couldn't make myself get up. I headed to work and had some meetings. The Willy's group went on Monday instead of Tuesday, so that was a fun start to the week. I ended up leaving work a bit early so I could...............drumroll...............

get bloodwork done! When they drew (THAT'S ME!) blood for the study last week, one of my levels came back pretty low, so they needed to retest it. I should find out on Wednesday (hopefully) whether or not it is back to normal. If it isn't, I'm pretty sure I have to temporarily discontinue the drug.

I also got my official diet recommendations regarding this oxalate thing, and basically the list of restrictions is a mile long. The saddest part I read today was that I am not supposed to eat pretzels. That was surprising.

I worked out after work and hope to go in the morning if I can get some solid sleep. We had 9:00 p.m. rehearsal tonight, which explains why I'm up so late. We spent the time talking about strengths/weaknesses/goals, so I've done a lot of self-reflection today.

Looking forward to a new day... <3

One last thing! Today I checked my mail and got summoned for JURY DUTY! I am way excited. I'm in a standby group, so I am super-hopeful that we have to go. Then, after that, I hope I get selected to be on the jury. I love learning how things work.

You're beautiful

Sing that title like James Blunt sings it, please.

Well, it's late, but I haven't even been home for an hour. Tonight's show was fun. Like I mentioned, it was a private event for a consulting firm. Ironically, when I ran out at the beginning of the show, one of the first people I saw was a person I had a lengthy meeting with the other day at work. He is a member of the alumni board. That was actually extremely shocking, and I could tell he was just as surprised. In the show, I played Conducted Orchestra, Buzzer, Repeat-Scene-That Kind of Family, and Emotion Interview (with a physical characteristic thrown in the mix). I had a lot of fun in every single scene, which felt really great!

Today was a very hectic day work-wise. Yes, I worked from home, but it felt almost busier than if I'd been in the office. When I walked out the door for the show, it hit me that I hadn't even eaten a real meal all day. I'm not saying that like I'm proud, but I'm just surprised that today was that crazy. For the first time ever, I even forgot two of my three study drug doses. I'm not proud of that, either. I did end up using my lunch hour to go to the grocery store today, and I successfully bought a cart of groceries for the first time in at least three months. Pathetic, I know.

I can't remember if I mentioned this or not because my mind is so ... gone, but I have my endocrinologist and study appointments tomorrow. Then I'm heading to meet my friend (ED) for a late lunch. I am pretty excited for the day! It's a little busy for a day off of work, but it will be nice. I work at the theatre tomorrow night, too. Saturday means floating down the Chattahoochee with some really fun people. I soooo look forward to this day!

Well, my voice is halfway gone, which is a great foreshadowing for tomorrow's appointments. I am interested to see where my PFTs sit; the hospital is typical for me in August...

I am feeling a lot of positive energy lately. Heck yes!

One last thing - I had a crazy dream this morning. Sorry to all you cat people. I was walking to my front door and there was a cat staring me down. The cat was gray and pretty fluffy. I noticed as I neared the door that his tail was unattached, sitting next to him. When I got close, he jumped up and tried to bite my hand. I was trying to violently shake him off because it hurt so bad. I ended up hurling him off and the funniest thing is that this happened in real life. I literally woke myself up chucking a pillow across the room. I know that probably doesn't sound as funny as it was, but I could totally see that being a YouTube sensation if it had been recorded.

Late December back in '63

Guess who hasn't gone to sleep yet?! Guess who isn't going to sleep tonight?! This was not intentional.

Today was such a busy day. Between trying to finalize everything under the sun for work and get ready for this trip, I have been going nonstop all day. I stayed up later than I should have last night, but I think the adrenaline was kicking in because I wasn't feeling tired. This morning I woke up pretty early, too, probably because my body knew how much there was to accomplish today...

DANG! THE BRAVES LOST! They didn't just lose or anything. It hit me that I didn't see any of the game, so I checked the score.

Anyway, I did go to the fitness center for a brief stint today and met a neighbor. That was a highlight of the day because it was the only moment when I forgot how much stuff there was to do. Fast-forward through a day of nonstop work (I am still emailing work people right now) into a crew shift. The camera is officially jacked up, so it was a challenge to train tonight's pupil appropriately, but he got the gist of it. The show was a blast.

Right before the show I was in decision-making mode. Knowing how much stuff I needed to get done when I'd get home at midnight, I made the decision to drink a Monster at 9:00 p.m. for my shift drink. I was tired enough that I never really got a boost, but at least I'm coasting right now. About an hour ago, I had to make another decision - whether to take a nap or not. I started to lay down to take a nap, but then I decided maybe I should truck through. So, I went and unloaded the dishwasher.

I'm very hopeful that everything goes smoothly with our travel arrangements tomorrow. My biggest source of paranoia is all of my medicine. I tried to make phone calls to make sure I have it all figured out, but I'm not sure how effective that was. Let's just say that my study drug looks shady... little homemade-looking packets of white powder. Being the person I am, I would like to be up-front at the airport about all of my medical stuff and what not. However, I don't want to end up going through some ridiculous drama just because I chose to be honest. I'm carrying all of my medicine in my carry-on and I have the best documentation I could get for each of the items. I don't think I will bring anything up unless I'm asked. Once I get through the airport shenanigans to leave, though, I'll have to go through Customs. I hope I'm not in a jail in the Dominican Republic by the time you read this. Maybe I could sue someone and make a lot of money if that happened. I must officially be delirious to be having these trains of thought. Choo. Choo.

I need to make a luggage tag.

I don't feel so hot today, but I know that relaxation is just around the corner. It doesn't help that I've been up forever, but oh well. I might drink an Emergen-C after I finish my morning breathing treatments that I just started. I'm getting picked up in 1.25 hours.

Man! I set up my out-of-office reply a few hours ago. That felt so good! I literally won't deal with work for the next 16 days. BALLER! I know I'm going to have some revelations over the next few days of things I forgot to do, but I'm going to let them slide.

It's weird when an occasion finally arrives that you thought would never get here. It's still a little surreal to me, and part of that probably involves the fact that my brain isn't functioning at its full capacity right now. Wait, I don't think that makes sense. It's not acting to its fullest potential? I would hope its capacity isn't maxed out because I don't feel very smart right now. I am talking in circles.

I hope I haven't forgotten anything. Luggage tag. Luggage tag. Luggage tag. I just finished my breathing treatments, so I guess I'd better pack up my little machine and put it in my carry-on. La. Dee. Da.

I'm gonna miss y'all. I love everyone. Please bail me out of the DR jail.

Oh, and I doubt I'll have access to blog-writing. But I'll try to document each day so that I can write upon my return.

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!

Foooooooood.

The days fly by lately. I can hardly believe I worked from home all day because I wonder where all the time went. I wrote a few donor profiles for some solicitations, worked on some mass emails for send, etc. It's just a mystery to me lately. I feel like I'm making significant progress, yet there are hardly any signs that I'm moving things forward (in many areas of my life). This is precisely why I need to be in paradise for two full weeks. Soon. Enough.

Speaking of, I took a gamble today. Since I had such online bathing suit success and really hadn't gotten new ones in years (still wearing some from six years ago), I went ahead and splurged today. My definition of 'splurged' is funny because it's different than 95 percent of society's, but I bought two more that were on clearance (AKA averaging $10 per suit piece, which is far from breaking the bank). The risky part is that, because I like to save money, I didn't choose for any expedited shipping. The estimated arrival date was June 7, which will be my second day in the Dominican Republic. I received the last bathing suit several days before the expected arrival date, so I'm praying the same will happen. I hope the holiday doesn't throw things. I am trying to use my subconscious to receive an email saying the items have shipped. This ease of online shopping is scary. I see how people become shopaholics.

I wish I could give you a visual update on my arm bruise, but I don't have that technology (notice the cheapskate theme tonight?). It's getting to the green stage of bruising. I think it should be starting to disappear at any point. I really have no updates on the vanilla front. I still am trying to be optimistic and tell myself I'm taking the real drug, but I haven't noticed many real physical symptoms. The physical symptoms I had the other day don't appear to be drug-related, so that's good (although a little bad!). I just wonder how long it might take to notice true positive results from the drug in the first place...

Braves game Friday night. Baller! I know I don't mention them much anymore because I'm having a hard time following them, but they'll always be in my heart. Go Braves!

Have you noticed I don't mention Mexican food with the same fervor I did? There are some major things awry in my life!

Perhaps I'll come up with my updated life plan as I go to sleep tonight. PEACE!

Into the fog

What a day.

Well, I woke up feeling strange. I didn't make it to the gym this morning because it was really difficult to get out of bed. Something seemed off the entire morning. As I drove to work, I kept feeling like I had a meeting or something, but nothing came to mind. Then, right as I passed one building in particular, it hit me that I was supposed to be there. Oops. It was for a training and it completely escaped me. The weirdest part is that I had an urge to check my calendar last night because I felt like I was forgetting something, but I forced myself not to get on work email because I didn't want it to keep me up later than I already was. Well... lesson learned.

I had a 3:15 p.m. appointment with a colleague at Starbucks. Right as I turned at the intersection with Starbucks and glanced at the street sign, it hit me that I wasn't at the Starbucks listed on the Outlook appointment. Oops. I had just headed to a Starbucks without even thinking.

The weird thing is that both of those mistakes are so unlike me. I usually check and double-check things to avoid mistakes like that. It's odd, too, because my hands aren't typing what I'm thinking today.

Anyway, I finally made it to the appointment (LATE) and enjoyed that. It was probably the highlight of my day because we were talking about life. I also had my Iced White Chocolate Mocha Latte.

I got back to work and knocked a few things out, then hopped on the elliptical for 30 minutes. I was feeling okay as I was on the elliptical, but I started feeling really lightheaded when I finished. I don't know if I've ever had a hot flash, but it seemed like it could have been one. I got really flustered and felt like I was going to pass out. I left work as soon as possible to try to get to the grocery store because I felt like I couldn't get to food fast enough. I ended up getting some sushi and ate it on the way to rehearsal.

Rehearsal was odd because I was feeling really foggy-headed. I was feeling weak and slightly disoriented. I felt like I might tip over if I got up again. It was strange. I was also freezing, and I don't really think it was cold in there. My teeth were chattering the whole way home.

That brings me to here - bedtime. I hope I feel better and can make it to work tomorrow. If I didn't have a pretty important meeting tomorrow, I would have already warned my supervisor that I might not make it. I'm hoping I will just wake up feeling better. Maybe I'm on the real drug and it's jacking me up? Hope not. I mean, I hope I'm on the drug, but I hope it's not messing me up.

Placebo effect in effect

Here I am... all vanilla'd up. So, I had my study appointment today. My arms decided not to give blood at the study appointment, which seems to be the norm nowadays. I drank water all morning to make sure I was hydrated and did the best I could, but my arms were not interested in cooperating. I ended up getting 8 sticks for not much blood. One of these attempted areas is gonna be a WHAMMY because I insisted on continuing to try. In the team's defense, I'm the persistent one who wants to keep fishing around until they get in the vein.

I learned today that I will actually never be told whether ot not I was on the real drug. Here are all of the reasons why I already think I'm on the real thing...

1) It tastes absolutely awful. If this really were just some kind of vanilla extract, I can't imagine it tasting this bad. It tastes so bad that it's GOT to be real!
2) Right after I took it I was feeling a little weird - just like a slight disorientation as though I had taken a chemical of some kind.
3) My throat has been hurting although I haven't been coughing... Just a few minutes ago I pulled up the list of side effects reported in the last stage of clinical trials and 'sore throat' was one of them. Please note that I was 100 percent unaware of this until moments ago, but my throat has been hurting for a few hours...

All of my reasons are kind of funny because they're so placebo-esque. I mean, I realize reason #2 is just me deciding like I 'feel' like I took something. I am just trying to use the power of my subconscious to make this drug for real! Another thing to note is that I also just started exercising hardcore.

So, with that in mind, I might start feeling better independent of the vanilla, but we'll see. I did end up getting up this morning and exercising. I was a hair away from skipping because I knew I hadn't gotten much sleep. However, I really didn't want to miss a day and knew that I wouldn't have the option later in the day, so I went for it. I ran 3 miles - almost 15 minutes of continuous jogging and about 15 minutes of sprints/short bursts. It sure wore me out!

YES! I might have just heard thunder...

Tonight's show was a lot of fun. The audience was a really good size for a Thursday night - the biggest I've seen in a little while. I played Emo Interview (changer), ABC Buzzer, Meet the Experts (Barbara Buchanan on "Going Green"), and Repeat Scene Direction (dumb blonde and stoner). I had a great time! I talked to some really nice folks after the show.

It's time to sleep!

It was 1980-something

Well, I am tired and really shouldn't be writing this. I am up way later than planned. I had every intention of getting in bed before 10:00 p.m., but I was up trying to finalize some roommate stuff. Now I don't even feel sleepy...

Today was a pretty good day. It's kind of weird not having Drew's Crew to talk about anymore. I remember last year that I experienced some post-walk funk because of the rush I get raising money for the CF Foundation. Well, I guess I can still talk about Drew's Crew because I got two $100 donations today, as well as an envelope with $358 from a good friend who couldn't make it to the walk. If I'm adding things up correctly, this will all total to be more than $21,300. I can't wait to see the total continue to rise! I mean, it's over, but donations can still come in and I won't refuse them when they do! Logistically I couldn't refuse them if I wanted to, but I was being expressive.

I exercised today, and it felt GOOD! I ran on the treadmill for about a mile. Then I hopped on the elliptical for a little while, and ended with another bout on the treadmill. It totaled to be more than 40 minutes of exercise (about 44), so I'm glad. The whole being-up-late thing is sort of interfering with the plan I had to exercise tomorrow morning. However, I think I'm still going to do it because tomorrow's a big day and I could use the good start...

RANDOMIZATION THURSDAY!!!! I have to be at Emory by 8:00 a.m., so that's pretty stinkin' early. However, I'm just looking forward to it. The photographer is going to come and it should be a good time! I'm interested to see what my PFTs are. I have been feeling a tiny bit funky for the last two weeks(ish), so I have no idea what to expect PFT-wise. Only time will tell...

Speaking of, 'only time will tell' is probably a good thing for me to remember right now. Of the things in my life that aren't quite what I would like, they really are all things that ought to be corrected with time. Sometimes I wish time could be sped up so that change wasn't so difficult and life lessons didn't take so long, but oh well... How ironic. Lately I have been so focused on there not being enough time, yet today I'm proposing the idea of fast-forwarding time. This is one of life's many complexities that I love!

Today I was thinking about my book, mainly because of an inspiring message I received. I need to quit talking/thinking and start doing/writing. The darn thing isn't going to write itself.

I've got a show to do tomorrow. Good night!

Bye bye bye

Well, well, well... It's almost Wednesday.

Today was an okay day. There's not a whole lot to say about it, but it was pretty okay. I got up at the crack of dawn to get to work early as planned. I arrived at work at about 10 after 7:00 a.m., which is even earlier than usual. Right as I got out of my car, it hit me that I might not be able to get into the building. I'd forgotten that I switched to a very small purse over the weekend because of the concert. I'd still been carrying that small purse because it only had necessities. However, I realized right as I got out of the car that I wouldn't have my access card which is a problem when you're the first person at work. So, I did a lap around the building hoping that maybe someone would show up or that maybe someone from facilities was inside. No luck. So instead I went to Starbucks and got my new favorite - Iced White Chocolate Mocha latte. It was the silver lining!

I had a meeting today to discuss my unpredictable workload, so hopefully something good comes of that. I also saw my boss and her brand new baby. He was extremely cute. He is a thin little guy and has a very expressive face. I also got to have a miniature heart-to-heart with her, which was good and bad. Ooooooooooohhhhhhhhhhhh.

My friend KQ and I went to Willy's for lunch, which was awesome. I really enjoyed that. Food is so good when I'm feeling kind of rough emotionally. It was nice to get away and catch up with KQ for a bit... and talk about this upcoming weekend's adventures together, which include a wedding and Dierks Bentley.

I came home from work at the time I'd planned, even though I got into the building late. I just dodged the traffic and worked from home for the remainder of the time so that I could have my Tuesday night like usual...

I visited the gym again and got in a good workout. I did a combination of the treadmill and the elliptical. I also lifted some weights at home and I have a pretty good feeling I'll be sore tomorrow. I'm a little sore today, so that's good; that means PROGRESS! It really does feel great to exercise. I am so glad I'm making a conscious effort to get back on track with it. Now I've just gotta maintain and keep making it a priority.

Well, today I feel a bit better. My face has been feeling tired like it's something allergy-related. I'm not sure, though. I've been vesting like a champion in order to hopefully kick whatever it is that might be bringing me down. It definitely doesn't feel like I'm getting worse, so that's good.

I have my study appointment at 8:00 a.m. on Thursday. Did I mention that a journalist is coming to my appointment to photograph me? Barring that there aren't any issues with him being there, he's going to get some images of me in a clinical setting. I met him at the walk and he is a photojournalist. I'm probably more excited about that than I should be... narcissistic fibrosis. Bring on the vanilla!

Off to bed I go. I'm telecommuting tomorrow and hopefully finishing the ceiling fan project.

Just a small town girl

Hmm, it's late. Guess why I'm still up?! We had late rehearsal! I have only been home for a few minutes. I did take advantage of the late rehearsal start by napping during the time that I normally would have been at earlier rehearsal, so let's hope I can conk out tonight.

I worked from home today so I could get some handyman projects started during my roommate transition. Most of a ceiling fan is put up in the other bedroom, so that's nice. It is lightless and bladeless right now, but it's up and functioning.

What else? I am really trying to get in a good exercise routine for several reasons... 1) I feel better by all definitions when I'm exercising. 2) I've sounded kind of junky the last few days. 3) I am going on vacation in a few weeks and feel kinda blah. Today I exercised for 38 minutes, so that's a good start. I also lifted some weights. I don't know that I did enough to be sore tomorrow or anything, but, again, it's a good start. I'm going to be in gung-ho mode these next several weeks. I'm already trying to plan when I might exercise tomorrow... before or after work? Hmm.

I think tomorrow I'll pull the early-to-work move so that I'll have the whole night ahead of me. My sleeping patterns have been kind of unusual, so I should probably get home, exercise, and have a restful evening. I am blabbering for no good reason.

Oooh! I think I am starting on the study drug/placebo on Thursday. I think for my ego's sake, I'll begin referring to it as 'the vanilla.' All I know is that it's vanilla-flavored regardless and it will save face for me in the chance that I receive the placebo. Ugh, it sickens me to even type that. Positive thoughts. Positive thoughts. Give me the REAL vanilla! Now that defeats the purpose of calling it by a nickname... Vanilla. Period.

Time for bed. I don't have much to say today.

An amazing day

Today was an incredible and inspiring day. Yeah, I worked way more than I was supposed to on what was going to be my day off, but there was nothing but positivity in every other aspect of my life. Let me start telling you all of the great things that happened today...

• First and foremost, Drew's Crew is sitting at an ONLINE total of $20,226. We even have at least $500 that hasn't posted, and I'm still collecting donations!
• I got the green light to get randomized for my study! Hopefully I will be on the vanilla goodness within the next week or so. FINALLY!
• I watched a space shuttle launch in real-time on the Internet. Yes, I would have loved to have been there in person, but I do have a friend who was and took some video, so I'm excited. That space shuttle launch blew my mind.
• My new favorite drink at Starbucks is the Iced White Chocolate Mocha Latte. For real. I'm glad I made that choice to branch out yesterday, because I got another today.
• I was feeling so pumped up from all of the good news that I went to the gym and ran two miles without stopping or even feeling tired, despite not exercising like that in over a week. Then I walked another mile on an incline.
• Being excited and humbled from the success of Drew's Crew, I donated $100 to another Great Strides team for tomorrow's walk.
• It didn't stop there, though. I saw a CF friend on Facebook posting a link to donate for Relay for Life and was intrigued. I thought of a friend (KM) battling CF and cancer and wanted to make a donation. Ironically, the person was $65 short of his goal, and '65' is associated with CF from the mispronunciation of cystic fibrosis as '65 roses.' All of the stars aligned, so I donated the $65 in honor of my friend KM, knowing how good it feels to meet the goal.

Now I'm looking forward to tomorrow. I'm excited to celebrate the success of Drew's Crew at the walk, as well as ALL of the money raised to support CF research. I think there will probably be about 20 people walking for me, which should be fun! I will get to see some friends I haven't seen in a while, too, and meet some other CF-related folks that I only know online. It should be AWESOME!

In all of the craziness that's been my life these last few weeks, I might have forgotten to mention that I'm going to a concert tomorrow night with my friend (and soon-to-be roommate) AH. We are going to see Tim McGraw and Lady Antebellum. I am really looking forward to it. It's been forever since I've been to an outdoor concert like this! Hopefully I'll nap between events to recuperate. I took an Ambien over an hour ago hoping to get a good night's sleep. I have just been so excited that it's tough to sleep. That's a good problem to have - it's GOOD excitement keeping me up versus negativity.

I am so happy and thankful. I'm truly on top of the world.