Mary Kay

Reportage

marykay@kare.ws — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 05:22:25 GMT

Crash. Thud. matociquala wins.

Birthday Greetings!

marykay@kare.ws — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 19:01:56 GMT

Many happy returns to my evil twin womzilla!

And thank you to all my birthday well-wishers I've not had time to find yet. Life's a bit busy just now. Will write a post all about it at some time in the near-ish future.

Alrighty then.

marykay@kare.ws — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 22:38:26 GMT

Well, somewhere between 9 and 10 hours of sleep and putting of the trip to Vancouver until Tuesday has helped me feel a lot better. I'm only coughing a couple of times a day and I feel much better. (I've been using aromatherapy to help and it really does. I don't think it's placebo effect because I'm always vaguely surprised that it does, but it really seems to help. In this case, lemon, eucalyptus, thyme, and rose geranium for the win!) matociquala is off touring the underground and the aquarium this afternoon and I'm thinking about a trip to the Sculpture Garden for sundown.

I had pumpernickel with goat cheese and strawberries with cream for breakfast. Yummy!

Now for some tidying up and figuring out dinner.

Whew!

marykay@kare.ws — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 05:28:10 GMT

Last 24 hours about wiped me out. Plane arriving late. Up early for the farmers market where Bear and I really pillaged. Oh ghu, the fruit. The planned convertible top down tour of Seattle highlights ran afoul of the Pride Parade. There there were the Locus award and SF Hall of Fame ceremonies. Bear is off gothicking and I'm going to bed. Real Soon Now.

Okay

marykay@kare.ws — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 19:34:12 GMT

Maybe a semi-hermit. But I'm done -- with a lot of stuff including giving people access to my vulnerabilities.

I just wish I were done being sick. Still coughing. Still exhausted. Have about 15 minutes of energy before I have to sit down and rest.

No, really

marykay@kare.ws — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 03:29:40 GMT

If you people paid any attention to what I say, you'd remember I'm the least suicidal person you're likely to know. The only thing I'm more afraid of than death is Alzheimers. I am not suicidal. I'm just resigning from the human race and becoming a hermit. Really.

Goodbye

marykay@kare.ws — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 21:09:09 GMT

Apparently I am incapable of normal social intercourse without (inadvertently) giving or receiving more pain than it's worth. That's it. I quit. I can't do this anymore.

So

marykay@kare.ws — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 22:43:04 GMT

Not only am I sick with things to do (like this morning - I had to go see the rheumatologist because I needed the pain meds renewed (schedule 2 is *such* a pain - heh) and they couldn't cancel and reschedule for me because it takes like 6 weeks to get in to see him and what was that about horrible socialized medicine and its awful waiting times?) but everything I try to do turns to shit. My email was out for 24 hours. I was in a minor traffic accident Tuesday (like in I bumped a guys bumper as I was pulling out of a parking place and Some People have decided to be pissy about it). My computer is being very slow and everything I try to fix that makes it run even slower. Somebody hit my big red button labelled REJECTION really hard this morning. I'm sick, exhausted, and I can't stop crying. And my knee hurts. The one I had replaced. I fell on it a week ago and it still hurts. Oh, and I've stood 2 people up today.

Okay, nobody has died, yet. My husband hasn't filed for divorce, yet. I'm not out on the street and starving. But right now life is sucking. Do you have any good news for me?

Words Fail Me

marykay@kare.ws — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 19:02:26 GMT

You know back a bit when I called my doctors' office and they gave me to someone to talk to who didn't understand English very well? Yeah. Well, I saw my doctor yesterday, and I ought to have been told to come in then, because my flu had morphed into bronchitis and I really shouldn't have gone to Milwaukee. And now I'm still sick and I Have Stuff To Do. Dammit.

Reporting In

marykay@kare.ws — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 19:17:17 GMT

I'm back from a week at Bead & Button in Milwaukee. It was cold the whole week! Since it was, ya know, JUNE, I hadn't taken a sweater or long sleeves and I about froze. I don't remember it being that cold in Milwaukee in June! I understand I missed some lovely warm weather in Seattle too. Sigh, my timing has always sucked.

I took 3 classes. The big, one a 2 day looming class did not go at all well on the first day. The teacher was Japanese and had pretty good English but not really up to the strain of that sort of class. She was an awfully nice lady, but... I woke up early the 2nd day with a migraine so had to bag the 2nd day, but am told I didn't miss much. That was a lot of money for very little return. After I woke up again in the afternoon with the migraine under conrol, I went over to the Pfister Hotel for a massage in their spa. Man can I recommend that! It's a beautiful old hotel too. Spent Wednesday doing little errands and chatting a bit with Christi Friesen and her helper Laurie. Wednesday night was meet the teachers and I chatted with folks and bought a couple of kits and one really super lampwork bead with a dragon.

Thursday I had one final errand and then spent some quiet time in the sun with a book as it was warmer. Took a nice walk too. Thursday night is the opening of the sales floor to students before the general public gets in on Friday. It runs from 4-9pm and is really wonderful. The first thing I did was go straight for Sharon Peters table where we chatted a bit and I bought the most magnificent dragon I've seen in a while. (He looks not unlike this, but he's orange with cobalt blue trim.) It's so completely fantastic I'm going to string it very simply (though I did find some matching beads at another lampworkers table!). In fact, I put him on a cord and wore him for the rest of the night and everyone oohed and ahhhed over him. Those who've been around for a couple of years took one look and said, "Sharon Peters, right?" I got most of the other stuff on my list (Yes! I made a list!) as well as a few other things I just fell in love with or which were *such* good deals... Well, you know how that goes! After close I went out to dinner with Christi, Laurie and a bunch of the other polymer clayers. We went to a really nice restaurant and had lots of fun talking, flirting with our adorable waiter, Justin, and telling stories. We were also the last folks out of the restaurant. Hope the staff weren't too annoyed. (The group included Lynne Ann Schwarzenberg and her SO Tommy, Christi, Laurie, Janet from Twocan Clay, and Pam who I have no idea what her last name was - they were all so nice and funny too!) Out like a light after the long and and tiring shopping, but woke up at 4:30am and couldn't go back to sleep. Sigh.

Friday morning I finished my shopping and stopped by Christi's booth to get training to sit in for her on Sunday morning. I really didn't buy as much as I expected, mostly because I tried really hard to stay away from the 'dangerous' booths, except for Sharon. Eclectica had some really excellent deals on glass beads, some of them vintage, so I did buy a fair amount there, but Out on a Whim seemed to have a much smaller selection of Swarovski and vintage Swarovski than in past years so I didn't get that much there. I have a couple of seed bead projects I want to try so I may be ordering from them later. Friday night was the second loom class I signed up for. This one went MUCH better and the teacher was excellent, Sheilah Cleary FYI. I got the project about half finished and expect I will finish it off in a couple of hours this week. We've learned a new way of terminating all those warp threads so it doesn't take the enormous amounts of time it used to. I really enjoyed that class and it was very useful.

Saturday was mostly an all day class with Lisa Pavelka on making polymer clay millefiori canes. It was *so* much fun. Lisa's a great person and a good teacher (though she was trying to cram too much in!) and I both enjoyed it and learned a lot. Also brought home some canes to experiment with. I had tried to do some canes from a book a while back and it was a dismal failure. It amazes me how much easier it is to do those things after watching someone do it and then having them watch you. After class made a quick pass through the show floor, stopped by Christi's booth to reconfirm about the morning and headed back to my hotel. A Chicago friend (erikvolson) had driven up and we went out to dinner at Mo's Irish Pub a couple three blocks down the street. We had a great time catching up, having a good dinner, and just talking. After he headed home, I packed and cleaned up so I'd be ready to leave the next day. Just as I had finished and was settling down to look through the stack of papers I had accumulated, the phone rang. My friend beadslut was down in the bar with her friend and would I like to join them. Well, hell yes. More talking, drinking, catching up, and storytelling. I tried to get to bed a relatively sensible hour since I had to be up early and mostly succeeded. Unfortunately, I was so tired I forgot to take my pain meds before I went to sleep. And they wore off at 3:45 am, after which I couldn't go back to sleep even after the pill kicked in.

Checked out of the hotel and checked my luggage. Went over to the convention center where I helped Christi set up for her class and got the money bag from her. Went down to the show floor and set up her booth to be ready. While I waited for the show to open I chatted with the folks in the next booth (one from Port Townsend!) and the folks in Lisa Pavelka's booth. It was a very slow morning once we did open and eventually Tommy came to take over so I could leave for the airport. Our plane was late getting into Milwaukee, so we were late getting out, but I had plenty of time. I think, though, that I'm going to investigate ways of getting from O'Hare to Milwaukee that don't involve tiny feeder airlines and not use the Milwaukee airport again. It really underwhelms me. Got upgraded to first class for the flight from ORD to SEA. Finished my book, read a couple of magazines and had a very short nap. (I don't sleep well, or at all, on planes, even with only 3 1/2 hours of sleep the night before.) Got into Seattle on time but it took for-fricking-ever for the luggage to arrive and we went home. So good to see my husband and cats again and to sleep in my own bed. Which I did for 10 hours. I'm going to really take it easy today, before leaping into a whole pile of stuff tomorrow.

Updatage

marykay@kare.ws — Sun, 31 May 2009 03:48:50 GMT

Well, the Acura now has 4 new tires. Shouldn't have any flats for a while now! That took a huge hunk out of yesterday and today I've been running around like a mad thing trying to get ready to leave. I'm heading out tomorrow for a week in Milwaukee for Bead & Button. Taking a loom class that lasts all day Monday and Tuesday, a Friday afternoon class, and an all day class on polymer clay canes on Saturday. The only thing I've got left from the last couple of weeks is bad sniffles. And I get tired easily. Sigh. If any of my readers will be at B&B or ortherwise in Milwaukee - I'm staying at the HIlton near the Conference Center.

Two steps forward, one step back

marykay@kare.ws — Wed, 27 May 2009 01:49:25 GMT

I was well enough to go to a small cookout yesterday afternoon and then pick up Jordin at the airport. Of course, I also went to bed about an hour after we got home which was pretty darn early. It was so nice to have my husband back in my bed. I'm not sure why I find such immense comfort in a warm body next to me, but I've always hated sleeping alone. One of the downsides of feeling better is that I now have enough brainpower to remember my losses one year ago this past weekend. Had crying fit over Loki last night, and at today at lunch, ran across an unexpected reference to Bob and nearly lost it in public.

Stopped briefly by the grocery store and came out to a nearly flat tire. That's 3 flat tires in 2 weeks. WTF? Barely managed to get home before collapsing into a 2 hour nap, and that's without changing the tire. Which I couldn't do because the spare is on the car aleady... I don't really feel bad, but I keep trying to do things only to fall over unexpectedly. The late 50s are not a good time. But as I told my father when he moaned about turning 50, it's better than the alternative.

Whiiiine!

marykay@kare.ws — Fri, 22 May 2009 21:38:38 GMT

You have been warned (see Subject). Read at your own risk.

So I felt amazingly better 24 hours after beginning the Tamiflu. And better still 24 hours after that. Since then it's been downhill. I now have horrible head congestion that I didn't have before. Throat is still a little sore, coughing greatly decreased but still present. No horrible muscle/body aches but sooooo tired. Alternately sniffly and bitchy. So I called the dr office this morning. They take my name and number and someone will call me back. Unfortunately, the person who called me back had no explanation for why the culture wasn't back or any idea when it would be. Also unfortunately, she did not speak or understand English at all well. The THIRD fucking time I told her that I hadn't *had* the head congestion when I'd been in on Tuesday so it couldn't be either better or worse, I lost it and hung up. I don't feel like my concerns got heard adequately and I got no advice I could count on or trust and I don't know what to do. She said not to worry, although I still had some symptoms and had developed new ones and was starting to feel bad again and give it a couple more days. Which would be Sunday of a long weekend. She also tried to explain to me that 98.9 was not running a fever. Completely ignoring the fact that I am *always* at normal or below it and virtually never have higher than 98.6. This has made me angry and tearful. And I'll probably do nothing but sit here feeling sorry for myself.

Additional reasons to feel sorry for myself: there are several really cool cons this weekend where many of my friends are and are twittering about how wonderful it all is. My husband is at one and hasn't even called me today to see how I am. Absolutely no one has called or emailed to see if I need anything or if they can do anything in spite of the fact that it's fairly widely known that I'm home with the flu while Jordin's out of town. Even the cats are ignoring me. Everyone is whining about how hot it is where they are. It is sunny in Seattle, but the last time I checked the temp was in the low 60s. Yes, Memorial Day weekend and we can even break 70F. I'm not really happy til it hits 75F. Whiiiiine. Whimper.

(Edited to fix wrong day in 1st para)

Holy Cow!

marykay@kare.ws — Wed, 20 May 2009 20:29:28 GMT

This Tamiflu stuff is amazing. It's been @ 24 hrs since my first dose and I'm feeling amazingly better. I mean, I still have a runny nose and sore throat and occasional coughing fits, but I don't ache all over and feel like nothing but a pathetic heap of viral misery.

I even felt well enough to cook myself some lunch and to read my book with pleasure. If this keeps up I should be totally fine tomorrow or Friday. I think, though, that I'm still not going to Marcon. The doctor said I'd still be contagious even if I was feeling better and I didn't think to ask how long that would last. Maybe when they call to tell me whether I had swine flu or some other strain.

I mostly used my emergency meal supplies to fix lunch and it was yummy. I chopped some onion and started it sauteeing in EVOO while I rinsed and dried a can of chickpeas. Added them to the onions and EVOO. Opened a can of saffron cream sauce (a mild Indian sauce) and poured it in. When it was simmering nicely got out packet of already cooked, frozen organic brown rice. Microwaved that. Poured chickpeas with sauce over rice. Good, easy, flavorful, and nutritious. I ate most of it, and then had an (organic) ice cream sandwich for dessert.

Followed by more Tamiflu. Really, I can't believe how good this stuff is. Expensive though. We have pretty good health insurance, but our co-pay was $35. For 10 pills, and worth its weight in gold actually.

Quick update

marykay@kare.ws — Tue, 19 May 2009 21:05:30 GMT

Saw doctor this morning. He's sure enough it's flu that I've got Tamiflu to help me recover and Jordin has it prophylactically. So I won't be going to Marcon or anywhere else this weekend. They took a swab to culture to see what sort of flu it is and will let me know when they have the results. Sigh.

Well Fuck

marykay@kare.ws — Tue, 19 May 2009 00:57:55 GMT

So I'm not just tired. I hurt all over. I have a headache. My throat has been getting progressively more uncomfortable and feels kind of raw. I may be running a fever. The thermometer is 2 floors up and I'm not climbing that many stairs. And there's this pain all down my left diodes. So I wasn't just tired from the drive and visit. I'm sick dammit. So what are the symptoms of swine flu again?

Not Dead Yet

marykay@kare.ws — Mon, 18 May 2009 18:07:44 GMT

No, really. I just suck at this keeping in touch thing. I drove down to the Bay Area and back for a week and that just sucked up amazing amounts of energy. Which I don't seem to be generating very well. I don't know what my problem is, but I hope I get over it.

We're leaving for Marcon on Thursday and will be back Monday. I don't expect I'll be writing much then either. And after that life gets really crazy.

Go Maine!

marykay@kare.ws — Wed, 06 May 2009 17:48:46 GMT

Today the Maine leg passed a bill allowing same sex marriage and in less than an hour the governor had signed it. I feel we're getting close to a tipping point. Hope so anyhow.

Magpie Alert!

marykay@kare.ws — Tue, 05 May 2009 20:46:02 GMT

She isn't going to be in the dealers' room at Wiscon, so elisem is having a big sale to raise money for Wiscon expenses. Go here.

Wonder What's Going On

marykay@kare.ws — Mon, 04 May 2009 06:05:24 GMT

So, people I don't know have been friending me on LJ and following me on Twitter. Though I don't know them, we seem to have side-ways sort of connections. At least, they all appear to be involved in the sf community somehow. I wonder if someone's been pimping me out. Facebook has been totally bizarre. I joined 3-4 weeks ago and send a few friend requests and now I have 123 friends on Facebook. Some of whom I have no idea who they are. This online social networking stuff gets weird, ya know?

Interstitial Goodness!

marykay@kare.ws — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 17:47:48 GMT

The Interstitial Arts Foundation is a not–for–profit organization dedicated to the study, support, and promotion of interstitial art: literature, music, visual and performance art found in between categories and genres — art that crosses borders.

The Foundation has already published one anthology of interstitial fiction (to great acclaim) and there is a second one due in November of this year. In connection with the publication of Interfictions 1, the Foundation held an auction of jewelry inspired by the stories. It was so successful that this year, they're expanding the types of art inspired by the stories to be included in the auction.

The Interstitial Arts Foundation is pleased to announce the second Interfictions Auction, a benefit event to support the IAF and Interfictions 2. Artists, crafters, jewelers, musicians, anyone who loves to create art – the second Interfictions Auction needs you! We need your creativity, your boundary-breaking inspirations, and your really cool stuff!

You can find out more at the auction announcement on the Foundation's web site:.

It looks like I might get to contribute an art piece this year and I'm really excited. Please, help us out by distributing the announcement and links far and wide. Thanks.

Help meeeee!

marykay@kare.ws — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 21:51:57 GMT

I know! I'm not lazy - or afraid of success - or afraid of failure - or any of those other unpleasant disabling messages I've been giving myself. I'm just overwhelmed with projects and can't decide! (That's my story and I'm sticking to it.) So let's let my imaginary friends help me decide. Which polymer clay project should I tackle? (OMIGOD it's a poll. That is *so* 2006.)

View Poll: Which Project Shall MKK do?

If you have another suggestion, I suppose you could mention it in comments, but...

Today's Acheivements

marykay@kare.ws — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 23:34:38 GMT

Started several false rumours about the recently dead.

Made appointments with all three of my primary doctors (GP, Psych, Rheumatologist).

Also programmed all 3 into my shiny new iPhone. Yes, I have had it 4 months, fuck you very much.

Put away the groceries Amazon delivered.

That's it. See previous post on sleepfail.

Five Random Things

marykay@kare.ws — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 21:08:43 GMT

1. Oh, so pretty! Of course, by the time you converted it for a size 18, 38DD body... And of course, I still am resisting learning how to knit. Because, just what I need! Another craft that involves buying small expensive bits of pretty color! But wouldn't that look great on me in blue violet or periwinkle?

2.Sleepfail last night. Got the usual 3 hours between 730am and 1030am. Ick. Must call doctor.

3. Leaving Thursday afternoon for Conestoga and seeing Sarah. Her 21st birthday is this week and I have a really cool present for her. If anybody wants to do lunch or something while I'm there gimme a shout.

4. So there's this person, fairly well known in your community. But your one biggest memory of this person is a very rude thing they did to you that hurt your feelings a lot. Then the person dies and *everybody* under the sun eulogizes them as the greatest, kindest, most generous person they have ever known. Makes you wonder what the FUCK is the matter with you, you know?
ETA: Am not talking about Ballard! Never met him.

5. Cannot brain. Invent 5th thing on your own. Tell me what it is.

Wow

marykay@kare.ws — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 22:33:18 GMT

It's sunny again today (though I wish I'd brought the jacket after all) and I had a small hot fudge sundae for dessert (here. Then proceeded down the street to Remedy Teas where I had small pot of 71 and a chocolate pepper shortbread cookie. It's kind of startling how much better I feel. I really hate being at the mercy of my brain chemicals.

I'm supposed to be writing but I've been surfing around the web and reading Twitter instead. And now I'm going to go read some more of Corambis which I started over lunch. (If my writing buddy shows up I'll write. If not, it's all *her* fault! ahem.) Is that supposed to be Kay on the cover shirtless, in tight leather pants with non-functional chains draped across his chest? Wonder what people who see that cover in the hands of a middle aged, middle class white chick think?

Thought some about Felix and MIldmay while eating lunch too. I've been rather in love with Mildmay almost since he appeared, but Felix holds no attraction for me. I *think* it has to do with their completeness. Not as characters but as human beings, if that makes any sense. Felix is so damaged he can't be complete and whole and I find that off-putting. Mildmay is damaged too, no doubt it, but his approach is so very different. Life has taught him, quite firmly, that whatever he does will be the wrong thing, but he does not use that as an excuse not to do anything. He goes right ahead and does even if it's going to be wrong. (It isn't actually always, but often enough.) That feels so courageous though he'd never think of himself in that way. Sigh. I do love Mildmay.

Well, writing partner showed up. Must go put (other) words into pixels.