On A Dime

I Love a Rainy Night
Originally uploaded by CreativeExile.

Life has been throwing me some loops lately. My stomach issues are only a part of it.

Last night (this morning?) I woke up in excruciating pain again, despite the Prilosec ("I'm on Day 8," TYVM). NOTHING was helping -- not standing, certainly not lying down, not even on my knees with my head on the couch. Then I remembered a trick I learned --somehow, desperation, I guess-- pressing the top of my head, like an accupressure point. Whaddya know, instant relief. Well, that and 4 Tums and a big glass of water, that probably helped too.

All bloodwork has come back normal, so I have no idea what's going on. I was a bad girl yesterday, drank coffee and ate fistfuls of Jelly Bellies (my "car candy" -- I only keep a bag in the car). Bad, bad, bad, what was I thinking?! Coffee, sheesh.

Most theorists (i.e. E, Mom) feel it's stress (my doctor will probably diagnose me with IBS, as I've been diagnosed before, the label they give crackpots like me when they can't figure anything else out).

My father-in-law just began in-home hospice care, E's over there every other day or so (they don't want any other visitors, and I'm fine with that). My father is due to have surgery on his liver soon (they're waiting on a second biopsy report). He had pancreatic cancer 6 years ago; this same surgeon operated then, removed 1/3 of his pancreas and gave him 2 rounds of chemo and radiation; he was declared cancer-free just last fall. Oh, and did I mention I have an infant and a very unruly preschooler on my hands? And that Peach's voice from Finding Nemo is on a loop in my head: "She's a FISH KILLER!" Nope, no stress in my life, none at all.

My SIL and I swear we are going to take up yoga together. I HAVE to get back to the swimming pool, soon. As soon as I can coordinate an appointment for my infant in the gym's daycare center, which is more complicated than moving an Army, I swear. More stress? No thanks.

Anyway, there I was, driving through downtown Ann Arbor, when the holiday lights caught my eye yesterday. I did the unthinkable, I went down Main Street instead of turning onto Williams to bypass it and get to Huron, or Miller. Traffic was light and I even hit a red light, which allowed me to take this photograph. Peaceful. Relaxing. Deep breath.

Now I just took on a copyediting job that came to me out of the blue. Believe it or not, despite it being a rush job (I have to have it back to them by the 15th, and it's a 300-page non-fiction book), I'm loving the distraction. I may even skip my usual Friday night crop to get to the library for some quiet reflection of the manuscript.

E and I were just talking about my getting back to work -- in about 5 or 6 years. But it's good to keep my feet wet when it comes to the publishing world. God knows I could use the extra cash, too.

Creating Keepsakes University (CKU) is coming to Detroit and I'd love to attend; however, it's not so much the "tuition" as the time -- 3 full days -- away from home that's got me thinking hard about it. I'd love to go, but time truly is money when you're a full-time mom. And now a part-time copyeditor, too.