Life Viewed Through an Amber Focus

One of the problems with having a productive garden in the summer is that it can be hard to keep up with it, especially when it is hot. Today I picked 1 gallon of raspberries and 2 gallons of blueberries, probably 3 if you count what I fed to the super demanding chicken flock. They are not shy at all about asking for blueberries. I suppose I shouldn't complain too much, considering the newbies are starting to lay eggs. Finally earning their keep! I have barely made a dent in the blueberries, either. I could probably pick another 5 gallons tomorrow and the next day and still have some left to do. Plus there are tons of red and green ones still. The raspberries won't be ready again to pick for 3 or 4 days. I picked the blackberries yesterday and I think I've got a week before I need to pick those again.

( A lot to do )

Was up late last night working on Vortex. I sent chapter 36 off to beta before I went to bed. I'm working on chapter 37 today and the rate at which I am going I may finish that today. I have to pick up thetesh, aka Chris, from the aiport tonight at midnight. It'll be nice to have him home again, though he very well may melt from the heat we're having. I doubt I'll have trouble getting him to go to the pool while he's home this time.

Speaking of the pool, last night it was pretty empty and I got in my 26 laps and all of my physical therpay exercises in. I am doing really well with the exercise right now and the scale keeps going down. At this rate I'll be at or near my goal before we go to Disneyland in March. I am hoping to not have to rent a scooter for my knee this trip so I am trying to build it up strong with exercise well before it's time to go. Swimming is the easiest on my body, but I am starting to walk more for exercise now. We're going to try a hike in the nearby park and see how I do while Chris is home.

And next week we are going to the Pacific Science Center to see the King Tut Exhibit. I am really excited about that. I saw it once in the 70's when I was a little kid. We went on a school field trip and I remember being amazed and awed by all the gold and lapis lazuli. I still think that lapis is one of the reasons blue is often my favorite color (sometimes it's dark red or purple). I always come back to tones like that, though.

( Update on T )

Well, enough chit chat from me. Back to Vortex. I am determined to finish that story this month. Keep your fingers crossed that the muses stay with me.

I took about a week off from writing because basically I wasn't doing anything other than banging my head against the wall.  I found a prompt that really grabbed me from the then_theres_us ficathon, which is harder than it sounds.  There's a few hundred prompts there and only one jumped me viciously, though I did have one that went kinda sorta maybe that I'll look at again when I finish this one.  I woke up at five this morning and couldn't get back to sleep.  That's not quite as bad as it sounds as I fell asleep before midnight for a change.  It's the first day of school today so I didn't even try very long to get back to sleep.  Instead I opened up a word document, looked at my prompt again and started to write.  I think it's going to be too long to be comment fic.  It almost is already and I'm just getting into it.

I'll write on it some more after I get my second kiddo off to school.  I'll take him in about ten minutes.  Then I'll write until it's time for my dentist appointment at 11:00.  Hopefully I can finish it today and maybe work on LoF, although that's probably too much to ask.  I feel in a much better place with writing, though.  Maybe I'll never get back the ability to churn out 2000 words a day, but a couple short fics or chapters a week would be nice.

I started swimming again on Monday.  I did 15 laps.  13 is 1/4 of a mile.  It's nowhere near the 45 I was up to before I got hurt again, but it's a start and I can't push myself too hard.  It's not even been two months since the surgery yet.  I am going to try to swim every other day, but we'll have to see.  My body felt better afterwards.  Swimming really helps to loosen up the back.

I started a new diet this morning, too.  So far so good and no food cravings.  We'll see where I am at the end of the day.

This whole LJ being up and down, up and down is seriously starting to get on my nerves.  Probably because this week it's more down than up.  It's terribly frustrating when I'm seriously in need of a distraction.

I've been watching the US version of Being Human.  At first I thought it was a bit lame, a pale shadow of the original, but somewhere around episode four or five it started to get good.  Although it follows some of the same storyline it's starting to set itself apart from the British version, which it would have to do with so many more episodes in a season.

Aiden (Mitchell) is probably a more sympathetic vampire character.  Josh (George) isn't quite as neurotic as I'd like him to be, and Sally (Annie) is okay, but she's definitely no Leonora Critchlow.  I'm pretty sure she's wearing the exact same outfit.  They seem to have really rushed her ghostly abilities.  They've introduced Nora (who I think is supposed to be Nina) and I like her quite a bit, but she doesn't rock quite the same way (yet).  Since Nina is my favorite character on the original, I hope this one gets a bit more bravada and spice.  But despite it all, it's becoming as addictive as the original.  Never would have thought that would happen.

I've also been watching Indian Cooking Made Easy.  I'm definitely going to try making Naan bread.  It's like $4 for 4 pieces at the grocery store and we love it and the recipe is incredibly simple and like 50 cents to make.  It shouldn't be that hard, it looks easier than making pita bread and that's dead easy.  I'd make Kulfi, too, if it didn't require constant stirring for 50 minutes.  Actually I still might try making it once, but have everyone take a turn at the stirring.  I think it might be fun to add a few more Indian dishes to the menu.  The extent of my Indian cooking before has been tandoori chicken.  They had some lamb burgers that looked divine.

Not really much going on here.  Still struggling with the chapter of Leap of Faith that I'm on.  I think I may just scrap it all and start over.  I hate to bin that many words, but it's just not working right for me.

I started swimming again.  We've been twice now.  The first time I did 13 laps.  I was really surprised.  I figured since I hadn't been in the pool since October I'd be utterly out of shape, but I did that  1/4 mile easily.  The second time I went I did 15 laps, again easily.  I won't push too hard too fast.  I doubt I'll ever do the 40 laps again (3/4 mile), but I woud like to do 26 laps (1/2 mile).  I'm just really afraid to push and mess up my knee again.  So far there has not been any pain after swimming and I would like to keep it that way.  I've also started walking again.  I've gone twice.  Once just to the end of the block and back and then a couple days later, all the way around the block.  I also am taking the stairs properly again without pain.  I hope by summer to be back to walking a mile a few times a week.

I still have some things lingering from the flu that I had for many weeks.  Just congestion and a lot of tiredness.  I have to sleep a lot more (just not tonight apparently).  I still have a low grade fever, but everything else is gone.  I just decided I needed to get on with my life and maybe the exercise would help bolster my immune system.  It seems to be helping.

I guess that's enough of a ramble for now.

Well, I didn't quite finish the chapter of Leap of Faith that I worked on today, but I am hopeful I will finish it tomorrow.  Tosh is being...uncooperative and having a mind of her own.  She's supposed to be falling for Owen, but she's having so much fun arguing with Mickey I can't help but think she might be eyeing him differently soon and I really wasn't planning on going that way or having a triangle or any such thing.  Rose and Gabe are actually having a good time working together.  And I don't even know what the hell John is doing, though he and Rose will have a date at the end of this chapter's day (but not necessarily in this chapter) where things will SERIOUSLY PROGRESS physically when they get back to the manor house.

Today was a very good day, not just for writing, but just in how I felt.  I hope it continues because quite frankly I have been feeling very old and broken down since last fall when I reinjured my knee so badly and then have caught one form of pestilence after the other all winter long.  I'm turning 41 on Saturday.  I did not feel old at all when I hit 40, but right now my body just really has been feeling it.  Not today though.  Still a bit sick but I'm on such a good upswing today.

I think I'm going to try eliminating sugar from my diet (except on my b'day when Rose makes me b'day brownies and I'll only have one) and see if that doesn't help my immune system at all.  I'm not a big sugar eater most of the time anyway, but I've been having more of it than usual while sick and I don't think it's helping things.  I hope to get back in the water next week and start swimming again.  I miss it.  I miss the conditioning I had while I was doing it.  I have lost all of it.  I am going to have to work my way up again.  I will not do more than half a mile though.  Pushing it to 3/4 of a mile put too much of a strain on my knee, so I'll settle for 26 laps instead of 39 or more.  Just wonder how many days it will take me to get there again.  Probably at least two weeks if I go every other day.  Maybe three.

I haven't written like this in ages.  To have a day where it just flows out the fingertips and onto the computer screen is so awesome.  I missed it!  Anyway, 4,181 words later I have finished my challenge fic for challenge 56 at then_theres_us.  The fic I thought was going to be the very devil to write ended up being the absolute easiest thing I've done in so long.  I'm excited.  My muses are on full alert and it's got me bouncing off the ceiling.  I haven't written that much in a day for a long time either.  Now if I can roll that flow into Leap of Faith tomorrow I will be so happy.

So Unfinished Business is with Amy and Victoria and hopefully I will have it ready for posting soon.

Went swimming tonight and did just 26 laps, which is half a mile, instead of the usual 30 to 40.  My side started aching over the back of my ribcage like I'd pulled a muscle or something, so I didn't try for more than the 35 minutes that I swam.  I did play volleyball in the water with my daughter after that for the last fifteen minutes of family swim, but that didn't hurt.  I'll have to look up exercises for that particular muscle grouping.  This isn't the first time it has done that and I've had to cut my swimming short.  I think I just need to work on strengthening the area.

So my reaction to the challenge this week at then_theres_us was sort of one of jumping up and down and raging, No, no, no, no, no, how am I supposed to do that?  Crap, crap, crap, crap.  And not even any pictures to help get my brain going.  I guess there is a reason they call it a challenge.  And then once I settled down I knew exactly what I could write.  And so far this morning 1,306 words.  So.  Hopefully I will have time to finish it up tonight after swimming.

Speaking of swimming on Saturday I did 40 laps.

Speaking of writing, other than the Five Times fic I didn't do any writing over the weekend.  My goal for this week is 4000 words on the original fiction, finish this challenge fic, and then try to finish this chapter of Leap of Faith.  Stupid fic is being difficult.

I just want to say a huge thank you to everyone who has been praying for me and my family, sending out good thoughts and good vibes.  Chris received a job offer today and accepted it.  He starts in two weeks.  We won't even miss a week of income.  His old job would have lasted until mid-December and then there was no guarantee there would be anything after that.  Not only is it a great job in the same field, he will be making $15,000 more a year.  I don't know when medical benefits will kick in, he forgot to ask, he was so astonished by the pay rate, so most of that extra money will go for a medical COBRA until they do.  He comes home tomorrow.  I am just so relieved.  The stress of not knowing what was going to happen was ridiculous.  I am so glad it is over and so very grateful to God for taking care of us.

In other news I wrote another 300 words on Leap of Faith, and 2000 words on a Ten/Rose fic.  I think I wrote either one or two paragraphs on the original fiction.  I didn't have it open for long when I had to go down and take care of something at T's school.  Remind me not to complain about being bored again. *laughs*

We spent 45 minutes swimming tonight and I did 30 laps in that time.  I am looking forward to Friday when I can spend an entire hour or more in the pool.  Oh, I wore my knee brace today.  Although my knee didn't hurt on Monday after swimming, it ached a little on Tuesday so I decided the support was still necessary.  It did not hurt while swimming tonight and hopefully it will not ache in the morning, either.

Stuff the first:  Exercise

Saturday I swam 40 laps in 65 minutes.  We had the entire pool to ourselves the whole time we were there.  This is my kind of awesome exercise paradise.  I wore the knee brace but kicked on several laps to see how it felt.  It felt okay.  No exercise on Sunday.  I did not want to strain things and honestly I was a total space cadet yesterday so driving did not appeal.  Today we got into the pool at 4:15 and family swim was over at 5.  We were late getting there.  It wasn't too crowded, just a few people and the lap lane was vacant.  I swam 30 laps today in 40 minutes (took the last five for the hot tub).  I did not wear the knee brace and I kicked freely.  Free-style kick is okay.  Whip kick is NOT (things should not snap, crackle and pop in your joints, plus ouch) and will likely never be okay again.  I would not know as I will not be trying it on purpose again in my entire lifetime, thank you very much.  It did not hurt afterwards, just during that one kick of the whip kick.  Favorite life guard was on duty today.  That always makes it better.

Second Stuff:  Writing

I wrote 3,037 words if you count the words "chapter one."  3, 035 if you don't.  On the original story.  Go me.  We will see if this continues.  We will not hold our collective breaths.

Stuff C:  Cleaning

Scrubbed the bit behind the kitchen sink between the back splash and the sink.  You know, the part that gets gunky if you ignore it for a couple of weeks.  Cleaned the outside of the toilet tank where all the dust has been collecting, like it does if you ignore it for several months.  Did other boring things like slaved over a hot crock pot (dumped beef roast in, seasoned, set timer), made instant organic potatoes and green beans from a can for dinner.  Thought about vacuuming, but it hurt my head so I stopped before I could do anything like...actually vacuuming.  Did pick up all the papers that have been accumulating on the floor between the bedroom door and the closet.

Stuff # 4:  Fanfic Writing

Decided I will work on Leap of Faith tomorrow so it will stop mocking me.  (Figures I will probably spend all day watching BSG instead, but maybe if I put it out there in the universe, I'll actually do it.  Maybe I can do both.)

Fifth Stuff:  Getting Better

Still on the tail end of the sinus infection/cold/fluish thing I had.  The worst of it seems to be over, but I am still on antibiotics for several days.  Past history has proven if I stop too soon I get sick again right away.  I still think my flu shot had a little to do with the fluish symptoms that came along with this, though.  I don't care what they say about the likelihood of that.  History proves lots of things and I always get sick after a flu shot.  This one was likely worse because it had H1N1 in it (swine anti-flu, or whatever, as well as regular).

And...I think that about does it.