Teeth

I really hate tooth pain. HATE HATE HATE.

I have 5 bad teeth from childhood. Don’t ask about they whys and wherefores – just trust me that I have problems to fix from my childhood regarding my teeth.

Teeth 1 and 2 cost me a small fortune and are fine. They were in the upper left back part of my mouth. $3,000, including 4 sedations. Yes, my childhood dental experiences now require that I have sedation. These teeth were done in 2008.

Tooth 3 was done this autumn. I went in July for my 6 month checkup and we figured out that this was the next one, based on the idea that a pocket of nastiness on the x-ray was on its way to the root. I was not in any pain at this point. This tooth was to cost about $1,700.

So I started the appointments in August. The first one revealed that the pocket of nastiness was really a pocket of raging infection and when they opened the tooth, it all just ran out.

Appointment 2 was finishing the root canal and determining that I had recovered, without antibiotics, from the infection.

Appointment 3 was making the post, molding the perm crown and putting on the temp crown.

Appointment 4 was last week, and it was to put on the new tooth.

And today at 8am, the tooth, which has NO NERVE and thus should have NO PAIN, is KILLING ME. And there is no professional dentist in the office until Monday to help me.

Tylenol ain’t cutting it, people.

UPDATE: The theory is that there is infection in there. An Rx has been called in for both antibiotics and pain relief.

Lists

Lists, lists, I love lists. So did my mother. And so does my sister. Which means it’s pretty much a learned life skill.

I have a lot of lists, especially for my quilting. Because you see, I love to start quilts and I love when quilts are done, but I do not quite make sure that process always fully happens. I have a lot of unfinished objects. I mean, a lot. Like probably over 100+ if I thought really long and hard about it. Which I don’t do because it will drive me to paralysis.

So of course I went downstairs into my sewing space and tried to make some sense of it recently. This was no easy task, but no sewing was happening because it was driving me nuts. So clearly something had to be done. So I headed down there and cleaned up all of the batting scraps (yes, I save them) that someone small who shall remain nameless had strewn about everywhere. I then put away fabric pieces in their color bins and scraps in the scrap baggie. I made sure the cutting table was clear. I made sure the floor was clear. I made sure the ironing board was clear.

I can now cope.

So I then decided to make a list of UFOs that I really should just finish because hey, I need some space. The UFOs I planned to take on my trip to Patsy’s are still on my stairs, so that is where I started. I also cleaned out a drawer in a cabinet and took a bunch of block sets out of there (no, the drawer is not empty – sad but true). So by the time I was done thinking and writing, I had 24 UFOs to finish. Some are farther than others. The farthest anything is is the sandwiched stage. The worst that anything is is not all the blocks are done. So there’s some piecing in there.

Clearly, based on where things are, I like to piece lots and not so much on that other stuff. But things must get done. So this is my goal – get through those 24 in 2010. I’ve seen one blogger who just uses a random number generator to pull out the number of the one she’s working on that month. I plan to do that for 1 UFO and pick the other one. I gotta have some say or I’ll lose it!

So here I am, going happily along working on my UFO’s because anything I can get down before 2010 will make me feel all accomplished, and it hits me.

My SIL has moved and she doesn’t have a quilt. (Her kids do.) OK, can I get that done by 12/13? Yes, I can, through the miracle of Bonnie Hunter. Judy Laquidara over at Patchwork Times is going to do a quilt in an hour quilt that is to DIE for. Can I do that too? Sure, why not? Who will I make it for? Oh, some friends have a child that is in her big girl bed now – she can use it. (Today the parents confessed to me that the moment the baby quilt was too small for the child they stole it and hung it as art in their bedroom. Cracks me up!)

OMG, I’m just hopeless! I’m trying to get rid of 2 dozen UFOs and all I can think about is making 2 more quilts!

Tami is the Crazy Dog Lady

My co-worker Tami is the crazy dog lady. I just want to let you all know that.

The city of Peoria is having budget issues (OK, what city isn’t? Oh, yes, Bloomington , who found $4 million lying around. I want their problem.), and Peoria is threatening to close PAWS, the no-kill animal shelter.

Which prompted Tami to announce that she must single-handedly must save them all.

Tami is the crazy dog lady. Just sayin.

I don't wanna play today

I think that was the motto for the weekend. I really just didn’t want to participate in anything. But of course, sometimes one just must participate. So I did.

I slept for 11 hours both weekend nights. That was really super nice. It also made it incredibly difficult to get up this morning, especially since Ted and Renee were sleeping in, as she has the day off. (Don’t feel sorry for them – they’re getting flu shots today.) But I managed to get myself to work today, so all is not lost.

I was able to meet one friend for homework on Saturday morning and then attend a child’s birthday party where parents were invited. I also made it to group work on Sunday, although I did not do anything. No fear – neither had anyone else. MKT 430 is the most overwhelming class known to man. I’m pretty sure of this fact, so go with me on it.

Today holds 2 meetings, but it also holds finishing chapter 8, writing up a log for chapter 8, and writing 2 ad-hoc memos. Plus reading 2 more chapters, and starting research. And class. Let’s not forget about class tonight.

Less Worse

Another week has past and this one can best be described as the Week from Heck, which is a slight upgrade from last week.

This week’s events:

Good:

Ted comes home today!

Got my last round robin out the door – no more deadline sewing

Got an 87% on the midterm from last week

Ted has amazing friends who helped him when the car broke down

I had to bank by mail to my other account and everything made it and I didn’t get overdrawn

We had a food day for my birthday here at work

My friends came over for study group and brought food (it was during the labyrinthitis)

Bad:

Ted’s car broke down on the way to his conference - $400

I had my marketing midterm, which was 5 essays and 4,000 words

I experienced a not so fun bout of labyrinthitis

I am still really tired

I had stupid people forget their Market Day

For the next 2 weeks, there are some seriously intense projects due for my marketing class. Then we have 4 weeks until anything else is due in that class. So we are just trying to cope. I have no idea what is going on in the other class; I’m waiting for the project manager to tell me the next steps. Any time now buddy would be helpful.

Meanwhile, my sewing area is a disaster. I have not quite figured out how to attack it. I have to quilt 2 panels (one’s started) that will become my winter curtains for my sliding glass doors. I’m thinking of just concentrating on that because the need is coming. I want to get them hung when the clocks change.

Sleeping also sounds like a plan…..

Yes, It Got Worse

OK, for the record, my life just got worse.

In a week that could be described as the Week from Hell by a Thousand Little Slights, it has officially just gotten worse. Let us list the slights, shall we?

It was my birthday and everyone at work forgot
The food day this week was for a wedding
I had a 100 degree fever for 2 days, one of them being my birthday and I had to work
I had a midterm
The midterm had questions with ‘for option d – a and b are correct and option e – all are correct’
My dog died (seriously - she was put down on Wednesday)
I’m out of PTO
I have a Brownie mom who refuses to volunteer
I am exhausted
I got a C on my marketing case

And lastly, the icing on the cake…

The MBA program has gotten rid of the one class I wanted to take – Accountants as ITS Professionals. Totally up my alley. Totally me. Totally justifies my degree to my job. Well, now it’s gone.

And so I have to take another semester to find another elective that will not kill me, like let’s say derivatives or financial planning or international marketing.

Revised graduation date is 05/11. I will still be 40.

There are 2 good things that came out of this process of reviewing the MBA tentative 4 year class schedule. One is that since I really had to review every elective available to determine my options, I have found a class that I think will be meaningful. The other is that my last year will be 1 class at a time, which is a significantly less stressful load.

Excuse me while I go assume the fetal position now.

Oh Thank God

I just got home from class, which means that this post was all ready to be a melancholy one about how I got a C on my individual case and I'm all blue.

Then I check my email here at home. And now this is a drastically different post.

The Chicago Tribune sent me an alert that indicated that an arrest had been made in the slayings of 5 family members here in central IL. This story has gripped this area of IL for the past 2 weeks.

Ever read "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote? Well, if you haven't go google a synopsis of it. I'll wait.

The murders that happened here in a very small town of only a few hundred people rocked us to the core. How could 5 members of a family, 2 parents and 3 kids, be so brutally, violently, horribly murdered? How, in our safe little hamlet, where corn grows and the church only holds 80 people? Where the extended members of the family live on the same block? Why this house, why this family? It has been so shocking, we were advised to lock our doors, which in rural central IL is quite the statement. When we heard of it, "In Cold Blood" were the first words out of our mouths.

Well, it appears that the killer is the son-in-law of the dad in the family. It's a blended family - he's got kids and she's got kids and they have kids together. Well, his oldest child was/is married to this killer. Police have not confirmed it, but that is what the local townsfolk are indicating.

We can all rest a bit easier.

Also, there was one lone survivor. The couple's 3 year old daughter has pulled through. She has been under police guard at a major children's hospital in the area since this happened. She has lost nearly everyone, but we are all pulling for her.