What's Been Going On?
Jul. 26th, 2023 10:40 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
citrinedragonflyJuly has been a very busy month. So, I'm going to write down things in highlights and ughs, with commentary.
Highlights
~ I got to see all of my family! I finally met my nephew, who is super-cuddly and sweet. My niece is super-sweet, but shy around people she hasn't met often, a category into which I currently fall. But she's amazing and funny and smart!
~ The house is coming together really well! Our new dining set arrived today, so we're putting it together tomorrow. We also have a comfy chair for the main room, and a really sweet cushion for the library floor. I've washed and styled all the Monster High dolls that don't need Goo Gone in their hair, and they're all up on shelves. I've also gotten more Goo Gone spray, and gloves to protect my hands, so I can start on the hundred or so that need the full cleaning treatment.
~ I saw the Barbie movie! I've been waiting for this movie since the first teaser dropped. I've been super-hyped about it. The movie more than lived up to all the hype! I might do a review of it later. I think I want to go and see it again before I do. It made me so happy overall, even when it hit the feels and made me cry.
~ I had a chance to read! I love reading, but don't get a lot of time, even in the summer, and especially this summer, when I've been the main person on house-set-up duty, and I've been traveling on weekends. I've been listening to some new-to-me podcasts while doing stuff around the house, though, so I've been keeping my mind engaged.
Not Good Things
~ One of my colleagues passed away last week. Seeing the email from my principal caught me totally off-guard. Said colleague was our SSO, and was the funniest and friendliest person. It's going to be weird not seeing them in the mornings when I go in, since I hit the office around the same time they're getting ready to head off on morning rounds, or to see them in the hallways. I ran into one of my recently-graduated seniors at the grocery store the other day, and we had a moment of shared grief. The school community's going to have a lot of adjusting to do.
~Plumbing. Our contractor didn't install the sinks properly, from what the plumber told me today. We've been having water leakage in our bathroom sinks. Called the contractor who installed them, and he came out to fix them. We thought the problem had been solved, until we found more water underneath. So, time to call a specialist. The plumber came today and replaced the parts that needed replacing, and did some tweaks under each sink, where things were just a bit off in how they'd been assembled, so we should be good now. But that was a tidy sum on top of other things, and a hassle in general. The plumber was great, though. Fixed all four sinks in under 2 hours, and was super-friendly.
~Panic Attacks. My wife and I are both dealing with heightened anxiety, but I had a full-on panic spiral when we went down to Hampton Roads this past weekend to see my brother. We'd booked a hotel through Expedia, and it looked great online. We go to get directions once we've had dinner in Newport News, and Apple Maps tells me it's permanently closed. No, it isn't. We manage to get directions, and when we get there, it's under major renovation, meaning there's carpet torn up, with fresh rolls ready to go, not all of the amenities are available, etc. We get our keycards, and they don't work the first time. So, my wife goes to sort that out. Meanwhile, I can hear three separate conversations from inside other rooms, the place smells of smoke and must, and the light grime is making my skin start to crawl. When we do get inside, the room isn't any better. The smells are stronger, the TV is on (seriously weird), and half the lights don't work. The bathroom's lights are bare bulbs that crackle when they come on, and there is serious mold in the shower. Flytraps in the AC vents. And I cannot handle it. My wife is icked out as well, and so we decide we're not staying. Instead, we find a hotel I've stayed in before and know is good, but by now it's like 9pm. Thankfully, they have a room, so we're good. But I'm edgy that whole night as a result. I hate getting panic attacks, especially ones that leave me non-verbal and breathing hard enough that I feel like I'm hyperventilating. At least I didn't disassociate fully.
~Heat. It has been way too hot this July. We've had so many record heat days, and I know that it's only going to get worse each year. I am not a person who can deal with heat well. I also take meds that mean I'm more sensitive to heat. So, being outside in the 95+ weather has been awful.
Tomorrow, I take one of the guinea pigs for his annual check-up. He's going to be 7 in December, and we want to make sure he's doing okay, especially after he broke a tooth earlier this summer. The vet's further away now, and this will be his first big car ride since we brought them to the new place. He's not going to be happy. Next Thursday, I take his brother. I had the option of taking them both at the same time, but since I had to schedule the appointments for when my wife was at work, I split them up. I can't handle both of them at the vet on my own.
Highlights
~ I got to see all of my family! I finally met my nephew, who is super-cuddly and sweet. My niece is super-sweet, but shy around people she hasn't met often, a category into which I currently fall. But she's amazing and funny and smart!
~ The house is coming together really well! Our new dining set arrived today, so we're putting it together tomorrow. We also have a comfy chair for the main room, and a really sweet cushion for the library floor. I've washed and styled all the Monster High dolls that don't need Goo Gone in their hair, and they're all up on shelves. I've also gotten more Goo Gone spray, and gloves to protect my hands, so I can start on the hundred or so that need the full cleaning treatment.
~ I saw the Barbie movie! I've been waiting for this movie since the first teaser dropped. I've been super-hyped about it. The movie more than lived up to all the hype! I might do a review of it later. I think I want to go and see it again before I do. It made me so happy overall, even when it hit the feels and made me cry.
~ I had a chance to read! I love reading, but don't get a lot of time, even in the summer, and especially this summer, when I've been the main person on house-set-up duty, and I've been traveling on weekends. I've been listening to some new-to-me podcasts while doing stuff around the house, though, so I've been keeping my mind engaged.
Not Good Things
~ One of my colleagues passed away last week. Seeing the email from my principal caught me totally off-guard. Said colleague was our SSO, and was the funniest and friendliest person. It's going to be weird not seeing them in the mornings when I go in, since I hit the office around the same time they're getting ready to head off on morning rounds, or to see them in the hallways. I ran into one of my recently-graduated seniors at the grocery store the other day, and we had a moment of shared grief. The school community's going to have a lot of adjusting to do.
~Plumbing. Our contractor didn't install the sinks properly, from what the plumber told me today. We've been having water leakage in our bathroom sinks. Called the contractor who installed them, and he came out to fix them. We thought the problem had been solved, until we found more water underneath. So, time to call a specialist. The plumber came today and replaced the parts that needed replacing, and did some tweaks under each sink, where things were just a bit off in how they'd been assembled, so we should be good now. But that was a tidy sum on top of other things, and a hassle in general. The plumber was great, though. Fixed all four sinks in under 2 hours, and was super-friendly.
~Panic Attacks. My wife and I are both dealing with heightened anxiety, but I had a full-on panic spiral when we went down to Hampton Roads this past weekend to see my brother. We'd booked a hotel through Expedia, and it looked great online. We go to get directions once we've had dinner in Newport News, and Apple Maps tells me it's permanently closed. No, it isn't. We manage to get directions, and when we get there, it's under major renovation, meaning there's carpet torn up, with fresh rolls ready to go, not all of the amenities are available, etc. We get our keycards, and they don't work the first time. So, my wife goes to sort that out. Meanwhile, I can hear three separate conversations from inside other rooms, the place smells of smoke and must, and the light grime is making my skin start to crawl. When we do get inside, the room isn't any better. The smells are stronger, the TV is on (seriously weird), and half the lights don't work. The bathroom's lights are bare bulbs that crackle when they come on, and there is serious mold in the shower. Flytraps in the AC vents. And I cannot handle it. My wife is icked out as well, and so we decide we're not staying. Instead, we find a hotel I've stayed in before and know is good, but by now it's like 9pm. Thankfully, they have a room, so we're good. But I'm edgy that whole night as a result. I hate getting panic attacks, especially ones that leave me non-verbal and breathing hard enough that I feel like I'm hyperventilating. At least I didn't disassociate fully.
~Heat. It has been way too hot this July. We've had so many record heat days, and I know that it's only going to get worse each year. I am not a person who can deal with heat well. I also take meds that mean I'm more sensitive to heat. So, being outside in the 95+ weather has been awful.
Tomorrow, I take one of the guinea pigs for his annual check-up. He's going to be 7 in December, and we want to make sure he's doing okay, especially after he broke a tooth earlier this summer. The vet's further away now, and this will be his first big car ride since we brought them to the new place. He's not going to be happy. Next Thursday, I take his brother. I had the option of taking them both at the same time, but since I had to schedule the appointments for when my wife was at work, I split them up. I can't handle both of them at the vet on my own.
