Tuesday, March 03, 2015

Ugh, Virus.

You know last Wednesday I said I was feeling better??

I was mistaken.

I started coughing almost non-stop overnight. Coughed myself sick - literally. By Thursday morning I was too ill to get out of bed. I spent the whole of Thursday in bed, sleeping when I could - in between bouts of coughing. By Friday afternoon I could get up, have a shower, and get dressed. I made it as far as the armchair and that's where I spent the rest of the day.

The doctor said, "It's viral, nothing I can do. Drink plenty and rest."

All I could eat was soup. Which didn't taste right. Even coffee tasted awful.

By yesterday I was starting to feel better. The coughing has now subsided to the odd bout every couple of hours or so. Coffee tastes good again, and I ate proper food this evening. OK - it was only beans-on-toast but it was still food.

I'm going back to work tomorrow - wish me luck.

Ze

Monday, March 02, 2015

Beginning of the Work Week

Our weather continues to astound us. Spring, really...in February and March? Totally nice out and all the bulbs and trees are sprouting. The work week is going to be busy, but over all should be pleasant as well. My direct manager is gone and one coworker is leaving for a month. Should make things this week a little easier and definitely fewer meetings.

Enjoy those updates.

Peace, Health and Happiness.

Elisa

Sunday, March 01, 2015

Hooray for Health!

I've managed to stay healthy this weekend despite being worried about a sore throat on Thursday. Today I'm extremely sleepy, however. I got really good sleep all weekend. Perhaps my sleepiness is due to excessive sluggishness all weekend. That or menopause.

E and I were a little desperate for tonight's update. Our usual sites gave us nothing new so we took a page from Ze and visited the Archive of Our Own site. That yielded a few. I know Ze will have plenty more for you from that site on Tuesday. We just snagged a few likely candidates.

Tamara

Saturday, February 28, 2015

Rest in Peace

Years ago I went with Tamara to the Emerald City Comicon and it was the year Leonard Nimoy was the special guest. I watched from a space outside of the chaotic signature line. He was getting up to head to his panel with folks clamoring all about. He brushed by me ever so lightly, turned and and in a thoughtful manner asked if I needed a signature.

Amongst all the people and chaos this man was completely pleasant and calm. He played this character and it was who he was. May he Rest in Peace. Thanks for all that you brought us. You will be missed.

Elisa

Friday, February 27, 2015

Field Trip Fun

The sixth grade field trip to the Pacific Science Center was today. My student had his fill of the building around lunch time. After lunch we walked. And walked. And walked. And walked some more. To say my feet are tired would be an understatement.

Next week I repeat the experience with the 8th grade class. That trip, however, should involve less walking.

Tamara

Thursday, February 26, 2015

Stupid Cold

Damn it. My throat is sore. I really don't want to succumb to the crud that's going around work.

*sigh* I'm going to prepare myself for being sick this weekend.

Tamara

Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Still Coughing

But feeling a little better.

I slept. Boy, did I sleep!! Didn't wake in the night at all. This morning the alarm went off at the usual time, I woke, turned it off, and promptly went back to sleep. I woke again and half-past-seven. Which, considering I needed to shower, dress, breakfast, and get to work (an hour away) by eight, was a little inconvenient!!

So I was late for work.

They were surprisingly understanding. Probably because I sounded as though I was at death's door - or at least like somebody who'd been smoking 60-a-day, unfiltered, for about a century. I think they were just glad I'd gone in at all.

I feel quite a bit better tonight. Still coughing, but shorter bouts with longer breaks between. And my lungs don't feel quite as sore. I am so grateful for the existence of Benylin original!!

Ze

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

Cough, Cough

Only a small update for you tonight folks as I'm feeling like crap. I've a cough that would give granite a headache and my lungs feel as though they've been sandpapered.

Probably as a result of spending 9.5 hours in a tin-can, twice, with a bunch of strangers, all hacking their lungs out.

I can barely keep my eyes open, I'm sure I dozed off in the first half of this football game that I'm (theoretically) watching...

I'll try & get a good night's sleep and have more for you tomorrow

Ze

Monday, February 23, 2015

Monday Ramble from Joan

Ramble night...

Authors and Editors
"Jubal," Anne said worriedly, "is your stomach upset?"

"Always."

"That one's for the file too?"

"That's for the New Yorker. Their usual pen name."

"They'll bounce it."

"They'll buy it. It's morbid, the'll buy it."

"And besides, there's something wrong with the scansion."

"Of course there is! You have to give an editor something to change, or he gets frustrated. After he pees in it himself, he likes the flavor much better, so he buys it."

—Robert Anson Heinlein, A Stranger in a Strange Land
I love it when real-life authors write about fictional authors, like in Jae's excellent Second Nature. I can't help but feel that some real experience spills over into the story. But what do we have here? Let's get back in time for a spree.

-- RAH's novel was published in 1961, and he had been forced to cut back the word count from about 220,000 to about 160,000. Could he have refused? Certainly, but then this brilliant novel would probably not have been published at all. You see, RAH has long been dubbed a "Science Fiction" writer, a category that was received to be at the lowest end of literature, if literature at all. ("Wham! With a smile, Buck Rogers blew the smoke from his Universal Disintegrator and warily surveyed the remains of the extraterrestial intruder.") Only few people seemed to notice that, while investigating tomorrow's science as part of the deal, RAH always concentrated on the the social impact of that science. To him SF probably translated as Social Fiction.

Imagine his frustration when he had to shorten this novel by such an amount. Of course, it was simply too long, wasn't it? Could have done nothing to do with the fact the he was challenging commerce, certain aspects of capitalism, government and human sexual behaviour, could it now?

Fast forward. Today, lesbian fiction seems to emerge from the bottoms just as SF was about to then. It's still on the fringe (classics like Jane Rule's Desert of the Heart aside), but there are publishers who will judge your writing solely on the merit of your text, not accepability of the ideas expressed. See ylva-publishing.com for one shiny example, and no, I am not getting payed for mentioning them here.

Mind you, it's not a song and a dance with them. Their editors will work you to exhaustion, shivers and desparation -- not to make you conform, but to get the very best you can deliver out of you.

So, Ladies, keep on writing. If you want to undergo the struggle with publishing, I whish you luck and endurance. If you just want to entertain yourselves and your friends, have fun. But keep at it.

Best, Joan
Please take the time and thank Joan for coming by and sharing some words. Always good.

Enjoy those updates.

Peace, Health and Happiness.

Elisa

Sunday, February 22, 2015

Oscar Night

I haven't watched the Academy Awards in a long time. Even though I'm haven't seen all of the movies being showcased I decided to sit down with Cal and watch it in real time using our digital antenna. We have to deal with the digital drop outs every now and then. I'll take those over the cost of cable any day.

It's definitely weird watching a show with real commercial breaks. Thank goodness for my ability to multitask...watch the Oscars, read, watch the Oscars, play a game on my tablet.

Tamara

Saturday, February 21, 2015

End of Vacation

A nice easy day today. Everyone but I headed off to a movie and I spent the day uploading pictures from our trip to the beach. Tomorrow a day of chores and taking T's mom to the airport as she heads back home to Oklahoma and vacation officially ends for us all. Hope you all have a wonderful weekend and may the week bring Joy to y'all.

Tamara asked that I post this link to help raise funds for season two of Nicki & Nora: Nikki & Nora Season 2 crowd funding at Indigogo.

Peace, Health and Happiness.

Elisa

Friday, February 20, 2015

49 and Counting

I haven't had a birthday at work in quite some time since it always fell during mid winter break. My new school district's mid winter break ends after Tuesday. I took Wednesday off due to vacation but headed back to work yesterday. This meant that I had to suffer through many birthday wishes at school. It surprisingly wasn't too bad.

I, along with a co-worker, brought some fruit to give everyone something to eat while we celebrated the two birthdays that happened this week. This let our gluten free and diet kids eat all they wanted without any worries.

All of the kids were super sweet and interested in what I was going to do for my birthday. I don't think they quite understand that when you're older you don't really go all out for your birthday.

I went out to dinner for pizza with the family. Then we headed to Third Place Books because it was nearby. Home after that to get this update done but not before being surprised by homemade German Chocolate cake. No bakery has ever made a German Chocolate cake that passes muster so this was a very nice surprise.

Now I'm looking forward to hitting the hay and sleeping in tomorrow.

Tamara

Thursday, February 19, 2015

Vacation Ending

Tomorrow wraps up vacation for me. Tamara had to head back today and she even has to work on her birthday which is tomorrow.

We had a good time at the beach and will look forward to it again.

Enjoy your updates.

Peace, Health and Happiness.

Elisa

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Shrove Tuesday

Pancake day!!

And I've eaten too much.

As always.

Not quite as much as usual for you tonight I'm afraid, I've been having intermittent connection issues.

Ze