Newness

I started my new position at work yesterday. I'm still a copy editor, but they broke up our copy editor serfdom and integrated many of us into different departments. I'm with the metro desk now.

I had to move across the room, but I welcomed that. I like change, and on the plus side, I now have light. I used to sit in an area where there were a few people that hated the light.

I started trying to move on Saturday night at the end of my shift. I started cleaning out the desk, which had previously belonged to someone who was let go during the layoffs. I guess I don't blame him for not sticking around and cleaning out his desk, but I do blame him for saving every last paper that he's ever come in contact with. It took me a good hour and a half to get all the drawers emptied and the top of the desk cleaned. I also had to vacuum and deal with mouse poop. Helllooooo hantavirus!

Sunday night, I moved all my stuff over and I started my new shift yesterday. It went really well on our side, though the area I moved from looked a bit overwhelmed. I suspect we'll have to change things as we go.

My mouth feels good nearly two weeks after my gum graft surgery. It's healing well, so far. I had a bit of a scare because the surgery site was really puffy, but I went in yesterday and was told that it looked totally normal. I was told I could exercise moderately, but I went on the elliptical today and my mouth was throbbing at the surgery site, so I'll have to lay off a bit longer.

I'm anxious to get sewing and finish up my Eiffel Tower outfit! After that, I'll get going on my Prairie Girl dress.

At the Santa Fe bureau of my work, the editor often puts a note on the top of a story saying "efforting art." Translated, that means she's looking for a photo to accompany it. I'm not sure if there's a more jargony way to say it.

Anyway, I apologize for not "efforting art" for this blog post, but all I can think of is a picture of my wounded mouth or mouse poop, so you can thank me later.

Vintage sheets and gory gum tales

I'm feeling great one day after my gum graft surgery. I have really had very little pain. Yesterday, after the shots wore off, I felt fine all evening. Right before bed, I bent over to get my purse and remembered immediately that I'm not supposed to bend over, because allowing the blood to rush to my mouth is a really bad idea. I then went and did my first rinse with Peridex, which is prescription antiseptic. It hurt really, really bad for several minutes afterward, but ever since then I have had no pain.

I felt good enough to eat real food, albeit very carefully. I found out on facebook that a high school classmate has to go tomorrow and have the same thing done, PLUS a bone graft and a tooth extraction. So she has a lot more to go through and I'd like to send good vibes or prayers or whatever to her.

So today, I felt like getting out of the house a little bit, and what is more fun than rummaging through stinky thrift stores for old, used sheets?

I usually go to Savers, a big, monster of a thrift store near my house. There is a Goodwill a little further away, but I think most of the other thrift stores are way across town (**whisper and shifty glance**you know, where all those poor people are). So today I went to Goodwill and found absolutely nothing. I stopped in at Savers on the way home, and every time I think that surely I have cleaned that place out of the good vintage stuff, they have more!

I was really excited for this yellow one, and it's a whole sheet, so besides making for a more colorful Clothesline Quilt (aka Nine Pillowcase Quilt) when I get to it, it may make a cute skirt or top, too. I'm also thinking of selling the leftovers of my vintage sheet collection on eBay or etsy, because they seem to fetch a pretty good price.



I bought this pillowcase on eBay today for $3.50, and at Savers they are only 99 cents. But I figured, what if I grab the ones I don't really want or need and then can't unload them? And if I do, it's just a few bucks profit and all the trouble of packing and going to the post office.



For fun, lets look at all the ones I got before:

Grandma update

The surgeon called me last night about 12:30 a.m. to update me after my grandma's surgery. She said she's really, really glad we decided not to hold off and see how things go. She said it wasn't a blockage, but rather her intestines had twisted up and the blood supply was cut off. She lost about 3 feet of her small intestines (I think, I was tired). The doctor said she could have died even if we'd waited one more day because they would have possibly ruptured. I think she's doing fine after surgery -- haven't made it in yet. That's what I've go to go do now.

Meanwhile, here's a picture of her on her "throne" on Christmas 2004:

You have to find SOMETHING to laugh about

Today I got a call that my grandma was in the hospital. This took me by surprise because despite the fact that she's 85 years old, she's been healthy as a horse all of her life. Healthier, really. I mean, she has perfect organs -- no heart trouble or anything. No diabetes. The only health problem she has is acid reflux. They think there's some sort of intestinal blockage. Well, she got terribly ill Thursday night and didn't call my mom until after 5 hours of vomiting and other problems. She was taken to the ER, but since NO HOSPITALS ANYWHERE IN ALBUQUERQUE had any vacancies, she languished there in the ER for 20 hours. I had to yell about that because Albuquerque is a city of more than half a million people. You'd think you could get a hospital room around here if you need one. She finally got admitted to a real hospital room across town around 8 pm tonight.
The surgeon said that often they hope they can resolve these blockages without surgery, but my grandma's white blood count keeps rising, so the doctor was afraid to let it go. So she is currently in surgery. In a way, I think she's glad because she was so tired and all she wanted to do was sleep. They promised her she can sleep all she wants during surgery.
Grandma doesn't like people fussing over her. This is a woman who got walking pneumonia a few years ago (one of the few times I've seen her get sick at all) and swore till the end it was just allergies.
I'm waiting to hear from the surgeon whether all went well. I have a positive outlook because my Grandma's strong and mighty.

OK, here's the funny thing. We were in her room and I needed to go to the bathroom. That's when I noticed there's a toilet in the room -- not a separate bathroom or anything. Next to the toilet is a window that has blinds you can lower. But say there's someone in the room with you and you have to use the bathroom. Never fear -- there's a curtain that pulls all the way around the toilet. Only the curtain, as you'll notice in this picture, would reach to about your upper arms if you sat down on the toilet, thereby not offering one ounce of privacy for the region that actually needs it. I'm thinking it's that baby mentality that if they can't see you, you can't see them, and since your face is blocked by the curtain, your naked butt is invisible. Here is a camera phone-quality photo (the curtain is not the curtain for the window, but the toilet "privacy" wrap-around curtain):