The last 4 months, briefly

It’s been a long time again since I’ve written. I was sick with shingles most of November. Fun (insert sarcastic emoticon here). Try to never get shingles. Trust me. 

Then the holidays came and went. Too quickly as far as I’m concerned. At least I got to go back to New York to visit family. My nieces and nephew have grown up so much.

When January came, I started again on the job search and managed to get a number of enquiries and phone interviews – no job offer just yet but I’m certain it will come before too long. As the economy starts trending back up, businesses will need marketers like me to make sure they get the most marketing opportunities for them (free and paid) and start making some money again!

Now we’re more than halfway through February. Time just flies by so fast! Every year it seems to go by faster and faster. Why is that? It’s like some existential countdown clock telling me to figure out my life because my time will be up before I know it! Okay. So. I’m working on the job search. My other “to do” items fall under Health and Dating/personal life.

First, Health:  In January I finally got to go back to physical therapy (my health insurance only allows 12 sessions per year, no matter what. aaarrrrgghh). My last PT session had been July 1st. At that time, I could use my right arm, although I couldn’t raise it above the shoulder or carry anything more than a bottle of water. Today, I can finally reach above my head again and am working on strengthening all the muscles around the shoulder so I can hold my arm up without wobbling and even lift a small amount of weight above my head. Next week will be the one-year anniversary of the surgery to replace my right shoulder joint (damaged by RA). I can now at least see the light at the end of the proverbial tunnel. I’m getting range of motion back and not feeling any pain, making it definitely worth all I’ve gone through. It feels so good to be pain free.

Second, Dating:  So, I bought a 6-month subscription to Match.com at the beginning of January. I wish I had more to report at this time but so far I’ve been emailing men and not getting a lot of response. I’ve traded emails with a few guys but have had only 1 date so far (not much to tell about it either:(. I don’t know if the matches I’m choosing aren’t subscribers and so can’t respond or if they’re ignoring or not getting my messages. But I’m going to just keep pressing on, staying positive that there is someone out there for me somewhere.

And that’s it for the update. I’ll try to be more consistent with my blogs going forward.

 

Back into the Dating Pool

Lately I’ve been thinking about jumping back into the dating pool. It’s been a tough decision especially considering how long it’s taken me to recover from my last fiasco of a love affair. But that’s a story for another day.

What is it that I need to prepare for? I’m not really sure where I stand in the dating world. I’m 40-something, but NOT a cougar! (I can’t imagine that single women 40+ and dating came up with that title) I don’t want to, even if I could, compete with the younger crowd. I want a man around my own age who’s not looking to date younger women. But I don’t want a stuffy old codger. He has to still be able to have fun and enjoy life. And enjoy the person he’s with, not continue to look around for someone who’s younger, prettier, more successful or anything else. He also can’t be the kind of guy who has to impress with his looks, job title, fancy car, residence or other material things. A relationship should be a partnership of equals, I think.

I don’t think I’m that picky, but so far dating-wise things haven’t worked out for me. I guess I’ll see how hard it still is or isn’t.

 

Schatzy, The Entertainer

My dog is endlessly entertaining.

Not that I’m bragging. My dog is probably not any more entertaining than other dogs. He’s probably average on the “entertainment” scale. I’m sure that’s why dogs have become such good companions for humans for however many centuries that we’ve been breeding and training them. They’re just so loyal and loving and entertaining.

For instance, I’m not sure if I ever believed that dogs really chased their own tails until I saw my dog do it the first time. It happened less than a month after I brought him home from the shelter. There we were sitting quietly and all of a sudden… whoosh, he starts spinning around and around chasing after his tail like it was his next meal. Do all dogs do this? Where did this crazy behavior come from? I can’t imagine we bred that into dogs somewhere along the line, except, of course, to amuse ourselves. But there it is. And he’ll throw that trick in every once in a while just to remind me he can.

Recently, he’s developed this new trick. He does an impression… of a cat. He found this little ball of yarn that he bats around until it totally unravels. I don’t know how he picked that up as the only cats he’s seen are the ones he tries to chase on our daily walks through the neighborhood. On second thought, this trick could just be an extension of the one where he plays ball with himself – picking the ball up in his teeth and flinging his head around so the ball goes flying in one direction with him dashing close behind it.

He definitely keeps us both entertained.

 

raising my arm

I can’t believe how quickly this year is flying by. It’s been 2 months since my last post.

Not that I haven’t written anything. I’ve got several drafts of articles started. I was just preoccupied with other things. Like finishing up my MBA and graduating! YAY! I’m still job searching – I’ve had a few interviews recently but am still waiting for that offer. I’ve had a couple friends and my mother visit me.

I’ve also been struggling to get the health insurance company to pay for and approve additional physical therapy sessions for my shoulder. It’s almost been 6 months since the surgery and I’m doing well, but I could still use some help getting back more of the range of motion. It seems pretty silly to me that the insurance company sets a maximum number of physical therapy sessions that one can have in a year and you have to beg if you still need more. They operate under the “one size fits all” idea, I guess (12 sessions/year being the one size). Wish me luck that I can convince them that I still need more so I can raise my arm over my head like I used to be able to do (or like most people can). Has anyone else tried to coax them into paying for more and won? Let me know.

 

Say “NO!” to textbooks written by Texas Board

When news of the Texas Board of Education’s re-writes to American History textbooks hit recently, I was shocked.

First, this board of people (are they teachers, scholars, history authorities? or are they elected or appointed to their posts? what are their qualifications?) have the audacity to re-write a history book.

Second, and most scary, the textbooks this board buys for use in Texas generally become the standard for the rest of the country because they buy so many (and publishers can make one run cheaper than multiple runs of books).

I can’t believe these people control what kids in public schools learn in textbooks. It’s appalling to me that whatever they decide for Texas school kids (bad enough in itself) is what becomes standard for everyone in the U.S. California is a big state too. Can’t we refuse to buy Texas’s re-written books and insist on the originals? I trust the textbooks to historians and authorities over a bunch of fundamentalist board members (who elected them anyway?). If I were a parent, I’d be mighty upset and would have to make sure my kids learned history from the original books written by history experts not those re-written by this group of people.

Just say “NO” to non-expert re-writes of our history.

 

12 Weeks Later

Now twelve weeks after my shoulder joint replacement surgery, I’m starting to see movement in the bicep muscle! Electric stimulation really helps. That plus the all the exercises are showing progress in arm movement. I can now lift my lower arm at the elbow. Unfortunately, my elbow is still a bit heavy for me to lift it on its own with my new shoulder. But, hey, I’ll take it! At least my arm is not just a dead lump anymore. I can hold lightweight objects. There’s one new exercise which stretches the medial cutaneous nerve (on the inside of the arm – I’m learning so much about the arm’s anatomy) which is hard for me to do but is helping. It also helps with the numbness in my thumb & index finger. I’m starting to see the light at the end of the proverbial tunnel in getting my shoulder replaced. It will be so great to move my arm without having bones rubbing together and causing pain. It will definitely be worth getting the procedure done.

 

The Animal Rescue Site link

Please click on the above link to help feed rescued shelter animals. I love this site and they also have great clothes and gifts to buy and help even more! Thanks.

 

Good Points

My friend DTB emailed this to me today, and it struck such a chord that I have to re-post it here. I presume it originated from somewhere in cyberspace – apologies for not properly crediting at this time (I’ll update if I hear of a definite author).

1. I think part of a best friend’s job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.

2. Nothing feels worse than that moment during an argument when you realize  you’re wrong.

3. I totally take back all those times I didn’t want to nap when I was younger.

4. There is great need for a sarcasm font.

5. How on earth are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?

6. MapQuest really needs to start their directions on # 5. I’m pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.

7.  Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died. 
  
8. Bad decisions make good stories.

9.  You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you know that you just aren’t going to do anything productive for the rest of the day.

10.  Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after Blue Ray? I don’t want to have to restart my collection…again.

11. I’m always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten-page technical report that I swear I did not make any changes to.

12. “Do not machine wash or tumble dry” means I will never wash this – ever.

13. I keep some people’s phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.

14. I think the freezer deserves a light as well.

15. I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lite than Kay.

16. Have you ever watched a movie that you watched when you were younger and suddenly realized that you had no idea what the heck was going on when you first saw it?

17. I would rather try to carry 10 over-loaded plastic bags in each hand than take 2  trips to bring my groceries in.

18. The only time I look forward to a red light is when I’m trying to finish a text.

19. I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.

20. How many times is it appropriate to say “What?” before you just nod and smile because you still didn’t hear or understand a word they said?

21. I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars team up to prevent a jerk from cutting in at the front. Stay strong, brothers and sisters!

22. Is it just me or do high school kids get dumber & dumber every year?

23. Don’t you love the feeling of that millisecond you’re sure you are going to die after leaning your chair back a little too far?

24. As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers, but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate bicyclists.

25. Sometimes I’ll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.

26. Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket, finding their cell phone, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey – but I’d bet everyone can find and push the snooze button from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time, every time!

 

Ticketmaster or Ticket-scheister?

I was so excited yesterday to get an email notice that one of my favorite bands would be playing in LA this summer. This email was an invite for a presale event because I hold a Citi-group credit card (lucky me and my 29% nominal APR). Finally! I catch a break. I can maybe get a decent seat on a presale for once! Click through to the website. Click on “More Info.” Hmmm, don’t see any prices. What does “More Info” mean if not that? The notice had already shown me the date, time, venue, band, opening band. Maybe, ticket prices? …Nope. Oh well. Wait a day for the presale to start and then surely they’ll tell me. I do want to see this band AND the opening band too!

Okay. Next day – actual day of presale – back to the website to order. Enter 2 tickets, any price, best available. Wait for the wheels to stop turning (it is a lot like playing slots – you wait to see if it stops on good seats). Yay! Nice seats! First section behind the pit. $65.50 each. Okay. Worth it. Wait. What’s this?? $15.70 convenience fee x 2!?! WTF? What’s that about? Suddenly my $65 tickets are over $80 each. For the math whizzes, that’s a 24% increase above face value. A fun night out at a concert is now a $160+ proposition, not including parking and refreshments.

Am I the only one who finds this outrageous, even offensive? Now, I’m not upset at the bands, they have expenses and deserve their cut of the $65 ticket. But who gets this “convenience fee?” Since I can only get the presale on Ticketmaster’s website, I’m assuming they get it for what…   “allowing” me to buy tickets from them? Certainly it doesn’t cost Ticketmaster 30 bucks for a worker to process my order, print tickets and mail them to me (if a worker is getting paid anywhere close to $30 for one 5-minute transaction, where do I sign up for his job??). I can see a $2 fee for a ticket, even $4-5 , but $30!!! Is this the norm now? Is TM getting this high a convenience fee for every concert? Damn! Why aren’t concert-goers revolting? Why isn’t Congress looking into this scheister monopoly move? TM is pricing good hard-working people out of the concert-going experience. In this economy. I can’t afford to pay that. How do other people do it? Guess I’ll just have to imagine the live concert-going experience as I listen to my CD of the band. Ticket-scheister has priced me out.

 

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