The client I’m at didn’t renew our contract through the end of the month, so I’m heading back in the office after April 24th.  I may already have another client booked but that hasn’t been finalized yet.  To be a consultant on the bench isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but I’m not bringing in money and it isn’t cheap to sit around doing nothing.  I’m not too worried as I’m continually adding to my skills to be more of a selling point to potential clients.  Enough about work.

School has been crazy, as usual.  I’m looking forward to finishing at the end of this month because Tazz and I are heading to New Mexico for five days and then to San Antonio for four days.  We’re going to see Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico along with the VLA (Very Large Array) near Socorro which was featured in the film Contact.  San Antonio will be four days of unplanned activities, mostly sitting around relaxing with my Aunt and Grandfather.  Tazz has never been to SA so he’s looking forward to it!

The household work has been a blast this spring, already.  Finally got the garage door replaced and entry door removed.  The chimney was falling apart and just dropped $2200 on a new liner and repair.  Next up, our driveway is getting ripped out and replaced because of water issues we were having in the basement.  It’s the year of repairs and I’m doing my part to stimulate the local economy.  (read: sarcasm)

Starting this fall, maybe even this summer, I will be starting initial work on my iPhone application for a migraine diary.  If you have interest in being part of my focus group and potentially a beta tester, let me know via a comment or send me an e-mail through my blog.

I have two classes this semester.  My Monday night class is called “Software Engineering” and it seemed like a fun class when I got the book.  Remember here, I am a geek at heart and stuff like physics and engineering are right up my alley.  Within 20 minutes of night #1, I was already crapping my pants.  Every computer class that I’ve had up to this point with a group project includes a fake company and project to work on.  This class has a real project that we MUST complete by the end of the semester.  Why am I in software engineering if I hate working with other people?  Not quite sure, really.  The application we’re building is going to help the disability services group on campus to manage requests for accommodations due to a disability.  It’s going to a good cause but already, I can see they don’t even know what they need for an application.  Thankfully my Thursday night class is somewhat of a repeat of an undergraduate class I took.

Work took kind of a weird turn at the end of last month.  The current client I’m at (remember I’m a computer consultant/bitch for hire) had me contracted through December 31st.  They are a relatively small hedge fund and recently had to “reorganize” their staff which ultimately led to me being dropped at the end of September.  My employer found me a new client to interview with and they accepted me to start 10/1.  I do feel lucky that I don’t have to sit on the bench waiting for a new client – some of my coworkers don’t have an engagement to follow up with.  The only thing that scares me is that this will be my first real development job.  Up until now, I usually work on reporting with some programming mixed in.  This is going to be a real project with deliverables.  Frightening.  It’s good that I’m finally getting what I want to get into but I can be a baby about it, right?  (Remember, I said back in October 2005, I like to bitch about everything!)

As for vacation, Tazz and I have had our share of adventures this year.  A cruise to the Bahamas in January, camping twice, road trip to Niagara Falls & Toronto and a casino trip last weekend.  All in all, we had fun.  I’m going to San Antonio again this coming Thursday and will be back in town Monday night, late.  I like visiting my family and have been fortunate enough to be able to do it every six months for the past two years.  Our last trip of the year was supposed to be tent camping October 10th.  We decided, because of being rained out last week, to switch it up and rent a cabin so we can’t be rained out.  It’s going to be at a KOA campground, which is to say the least the most commercial campground ever.  We’re going to have WiFi – that’s NOT camping.  But, alas, we’ll be able to have a fire and still do things in the area.

So that’s kind of the catch-up.  I need to get back to the homework so I can relieve the anxiety I have about not having a good grasp around my classes.  Toodles!

I was pleased to find the room being very clean and none of that “was once a smoking room but now isn’t” smell.  The beds were clean, soft, and not full of stinky detergents.  I’m not THAT sensitive to perfumes and smells but sometimes I get whacked upside the head with things like cleaners, gasoline vapors, and perfume.  I don’t have to ask for a scent-free room but it was nice not having to!!

The casino was fun, smokey, but still fun.  We play the “cheap” slots and had a good time.  Ended up ordering take-out to the room and watched the Weather Channel all night.  Weather geeks at heart and the hurricane Ike was more entertaining than I thought it would be.  Strange how we’re getting rain from the remnants of Ike.

This Friday I have a certification exam for work, Saturday is a 5km walk for Milwaukee Children’s Hospital, and then Saturday night Tazz’s family is coming up to my parents’ place for dinner.  Busy week coming up.  Cheers!

The trip home was fairly uneventful except for the annoying habits of Chicagoland drivers.  The entire trip, driving-wise, had very little delays and issues except coming home through Chicago.  What a mess!  I luckily had some insider information on how to get around the bad stuff.  We even ran into my father driving home in his company van – almost two hours from home!

Last night’s headache was shitty.  Like I had mentioned, I ended up taking a nap in the hotel trying to get it to release my left temple.  Upon waking up, I was greeted with a headache hangover and a general sense of nausea.  Attempting to salvage the rest of the evening, I took the last three Ibuprofen I could find and we headed to a Starbucks in Mississauga.  Surprisingly, a good strong cup of coffee seemed to steam off the hangover vapors.  I felt more human within an hour and we ended the night off on a good note.

After 12 hours of driving from Toronto back to Milwaukee, I’m about done.  Another ice pick is starting to dig into my left temple and I don’t feel like medicating again.  I think I just need to sleep in my own bed.  :)

I love being on vacation, but I just miss my own pillow!

Luckily I haven’t had too many incidents at work with the migraines.  It’s hard to manage work flow and a consistent software development schedule when you keep getting distracted from the pain.  It’s been that irritating “I’m here to annoy you but I won’t kill you” pain.  It’s almost like I’d want one big ass headache a week instead of these little headaches.

Senseless rambling is also a sign of irritation, from what I know about myself.  :)

We’re keeping busy on the social calendar this weekend.  Tomorrow night we’re meeting our friend Marie for dinner.  We haven’t seen her in months and I miss talking with her almost every day on IM.  Friday we’re off to my parents’ house for dinner and a bonfire out back.  Saturday it’s our turn to host and Tazz’s family is coming over.  Sunday is my homework day.  Actually, tomorrow my current client is closed so I’m taking the day off for cleaning and homework.  I had the opportunity to come into the office to work on other tasks, but I need the time off.

Storms coming in tonight and I think I’m turning into my mom.  I can tell the barometer from how much my head hurts.  I wonder if mercury will come shooting out my ears when the storm hits?!

The weather systems have been playing hell with my migraines, too.  I’ve been using abortive drugs more than normal and I think it’s been killing my stomach too.  Sigh, woe is me.  I’m not to a point where I even want to consider going back onto antiseizure medications, but if my stomach is getting nailed, I bet my liver isn’t liking it.  My doctor is finally getting me off of beta blockers by decreasing the dose.  I forgot to refill the lower dose and today I’m going through, for a lack of a better term, withdrawal.  My heart rate is usually pretty low, around 60bpm, with the beta blocker and with it being higher I feel weird.  Stupid me for forgetting to get the pills earlier.

In any case, school will be over in a little over a month.  Tazz and I are going to be driving out to Niagara Falls in August and camping in July and September.  I’m hoping the mosquitos aren’t horrible in July!!

Tazz and I also went camping two weeks ago and it was a lot of fun.  The weather was decent and the headaches kept themselves to a minimum.  We’ve already planned another weekend trip in July and September, camping in local areas.  I found that being away from technology and being active kept my mind off of the headaches.  Sometimes I wonder if they’re self-induced anyway!

I started this post early this morning and am now finishing it up before I leave from work.  Since I left during lunch to take a walk around downtown, I’ve had a wicked headache.  Caffeine, Ibuprofen, and now Naproxen isn’t even touching it.  I’m thankful that I’m leaving work soon because this one is kicking my ass right now.

Part of the problem with being on vacation and having migraines is you never know what could happen.  If you’re traveling with one person or ten people, you kind of feel like you have an obligation to not “ruin it” for the other people.  I plan on keeping a good stock of my abortive drugs on hand and not getting myself wrapped up in the triggers like alcohol.  I don’t want to be a stick in the mud either but I will stay aware of how I’m reacting.

I know that most people that know I have migraines are understanding if there is a problem when we’re out having fun.  I still feel it’s my responsibility to keep the party going, however.  I probably got that from my mom who wouldn’t tell you if her arthritic joints were locking up if it meant going home.

So simply be aware of what’s going on around you and don’t be afraid to tell people you have boundaries.  Most of the time they’ll understand, and you know what if they don’t, screw ‘em.  I’ve been out at a club/bar too often having to suck it up to keep the night going.  I also didn’t know where I should have stopped.  Don’t feel afraid ordering the bottled water or going with the bland salad if it’s going to keep you migraine free for the night.

Camping shouldn’t be a problem but in August we’re driving out to Niagara Falls and that could be interesting.  Hopefully the temps stay down so I don’t get overexerted.  Nothing like being hot, crabby, and migrainy to ruin a time that’s supposed to be fun.