Pain in the Head

The past week has been all about snow, me being sick, snow, shoveling, salting, snow, and more snow.  Wisconsin (and probably elsewhere) got dumped on with the snow this past two days and I’m done with the snow already.  :)  On Monday I could tell I was getting sick and by Tuesday morning, I was in hell.  It started with a scratchy throat and that migrated into the plugged ears and burning eyes with the fever.  I had been back to work for one day and I already called in sick which made me look like a real winner.  Then on Wednesday I still wasn’t ready to go back to work.  We ended up getting 20 inches of snow.  Tazz was sick as well so we both stayed home and slept pretty much the whole day.  Yuck.

I can deal with headaches and crap like that but being sick just plain SUCKS.  Nothing is comfortable and even your bed which is like the number one safe zone turns into a stink pit after two days of being sick.  We did the smart thing and changed all the bedding and kept using new cups so not to reinfect ourselves with the same crap we’ve had.  I, against my better judgment, bought the tissues with the antiviral stuff in them to prevent the spread of the junk.  We’ll see if that helps.

I’m hocked up on cold medicine right now.  I’m looking forward to a normal week of weather.  Only nice thing was both nights of school were canceled this week.  I was not caught up at all from my vacation so I am going to use this weekend to get caught up.  We’ll see if that really happens.

I’m going crazy because it’s been a nutzoid week.  School did start and it seems like I’m going to be learning a LOT (and that’s good!).  We are also going on our cruise this weekend so I’m making up for the lost week of homework amongst other stuff.  I won’t be posting until after we return.  I hope Jamaica, the Bahamas, and the Cayman Islands prove to be headache free or at least a decreased amount of headaches. 

These past few days have been crazy and I’m hoping that it finally settles down.

Our second car, which I basically use for getting to work and school starting next week, died at work Monday morning.  I had gotten to work and saw a flicker of the battery light on my dash.  After I parked my car in the office parking garage, I figured I should try starting my car to be sure it worked properly.

Nope, nothing.  Dead.

To make it even better, I lost my heat on the way to work that morning.  Not a big deal on that since a new thermostat is like $20 plus labor.  $200 later, a new battery and thermostat, and two trips to the mechanic, the car was fine.

Not.

I dropped the dog off at the groomer’s this morning before work with the intention to pick him up at lunch and take him home, heading back to work.  I got the call that the dog was finished and when I tried to start the car - click, nothing.  Again.  Shit.  Well, I said more than shit.  I was actually quite composed for this being a three day ordeal through hell.  I got a jump from roadside again, got the dog while I left the car running, went home and then accidentally shut the car off.  Talk about dumb.  Came down to a bad wire on the battery and the mechanic came and jumped the car and did the final repair for free.  I’ll go back to them again if [read: when] I need to.

We’re shopping for a new car now.

I’m starting school again this semester next week and it sucks but I can’t handle not having an unreliable second car.  I mostly work downtown which is about five miles and only a 30 minute bus ride away but on nights I have school it’s a 25 mile trip after work.  Plus now Tazz works about 15 miles from home and the bus lines make it impossible for him to take one.  Cars suck and they give me a headache.

I have finally been able to catch up on some of the big ugly sore “to do” tasks that have been a pain in my side the past two weeks and I feel like I’m wrapping up this school semester too.  I haven’t had much time for the fun things in life like playing our Nintendo Wii or even making dinner most nights.  But, in the end it’ll be worth the effort and all that hullabaloo you keep telling yourself to get over the stress, right??

After working with my friend at my doctor’s office, Anthem (my insurance company) and PrecisionRx (my mail order pharmacy) for over two months, I finally have a prescription in hand of Protonix.  The whole debacle started with me wanting to refill generic Prilosec which they don’t allow anymore and now I have to go with a name brand and pay more.  I let my insurance company have it last week, ripping some poor guy a new anus being fed up with the run-around.  Feeling like nothing was going to happen, I get an automated phone call the next day from PrecisionRx saying my order was on its way.  I was dumbfounded.  I’m crossing my fingers the refill is easier.

I consulted with my neurologist this past week about the new medication, Zonisamide as well.  The frequency of migraines seems to have decreased but not to a level that I’m satisfied.  Prior to starting we both agreed upon a game plan and also a dosage limit, etc.  We’ve increased it to 300mg/day from 150mg/day with me increasing it by 50/mg a day every few days over the next week or so.  I really want this drug to work because it is generic and also because it would mean no headaches .

School is finishing up this next week.  I need to study for my Java programming exam and also start on a final project for the Microsoft ASP.NET 2.0 C# class.  I was supposed to start on the final project weeks ago but I didn’t.  That’s just me - Last Minute Molly.  In case you’re wondering, that first image is of how to properly wrap beef.  Get it, wrapping up.  Ha, I’m funny today.

Last night we went to the So You Think You Can Dance concert in Milwaukee with our friend Marie. We had such a good time! I had a bad headache starting right before we were going to leave but I dosed myself with Excedrin and Ibuprofen which actually got rid of it for the most part. The concert was great but I regret getting floor seats. With Tazz and I being taller/bigger than your average teenage girl, the tie-wrapped seats were too close for comfort. I tried getting end seats but you know how Ticketmaster loves screwing you over. In the end, the fun outweighed the irritations. Although getting home at 11:30 on a school night wasn’t too clever of me.

I’m finally going to see my neurologist tomorrow afternoon. I figured with the increased frequency of headaches and the decreased efficacy of the NSAIDs, it’s time for a tune-up. I haven’t been to him in over a year and a half! With all my job hopping over the past 18 months I just now got insurance that has him on it. Best part of the trip? He’s located over a Whole Foods which I have yet to visit.

On another note, Tazz’s employer laid him off last week. It was sheer hell for him there and they decided to decrease the size of their workforce. Funny thing is, he already had two interviews scheduled for this week before he even knew about that. Both went well and he has a second interview at one tomorrow. Yay!

Back in July when I agreed to take upon myself extra [paid] work from a third client, I thought it wouldn’t be an issue.  Now after three months, I’m glad to say it’s almost over for that client with me.  This week alone I’ve put in 11 hours of overtime working at home.  The extra money will be nice, but my homework has been getting the back burner.  I finally told the account manager that I do not want to take on any large projects with the client and I want to be down to one client full time.

I think I have a condition where I need to be stressed.  I had an entire year off of school and took that time to job hop.  Now that I’m in a stable job I think my body said - LETS STRESS OUT AGAIN!!!  I have always liked school and learning new things.  I had taken a year off after highschool and it made it clear to me that I’m going to be a perpetual student.  My goal is to teach night school once I get my graduate degree.  Then I won’t have to pay to be in school hee hee.

My headaches have been on and off this week.  I had gotten nauseous yesterday for no reason and I believe it was a headache coming on.  Tylenol seemed to help.  As I type this (while in class :O ) I’m feeling a little bit of ice in my left temple.  Nothing too substantial but it feels like someone dragging a cold screwdriver over my skin to say I’m here bitch and ready to stick ya!!  Let’s just hope the drive home goes well.  It took me an hour and fifteen minutes to get to school and I wanted to go hide in the back seat.  I heard that affects your driving though.