You know what I just did? I just threw open all of my windows to let in some fresh air.
That doesn't seem like such a momentous occasion that one might need to sit and write about it, huh? Well, it is. It is, because, until recently, we had screens on only three windows in the entire house ~ two in the parlour, and one in the dining room. There was very little in the way of cross-breeze capability at the new homestead.
Ahhhhhh ~ cross-breeze! I feel it right now as I sit here in front of the sliding door to the patio. (We broke down and bought a screen door for that a couple of weeks ago.) So refreshing! But, I digress. Remember? That's what I do.
What I came here to write about are the invaluable lessons my dad taught me, which have stuck with me throughout my life. They include (but are not limited to):
If something needs to be done, do it.
If you don't know how to do it, learn.
Seriously. I think my dad could probably fix just about anything. And, if something broke and he didn't know how to fix it, he would go to the library and figure it out. Now that we are homeowners, we are trying hard to follow in his footsteps. I'm lucky, because he actually taught me how to do a few things. Most importantly, he taught that I CAN do things, even if I don't yet know how.
So, when it started to heat up around here, and we got to thinking, "Dang, it sure would be nice to throw open all the windows without letting in flies," I remembered that my dad had made screens for the little blue house we rented when Kaia was born. We didn't have any screens, and we needed them, so Dad made them. He showed me how to do it, and he left the splining tool in our toolbox, in case we ever needed it again. A few years later, when we were renting a different house, the screen door needed to be re-screened. I remembered what my dad taught me, and I took the screen off it's hinges, re-screened and re-hung it. That was pretty easy. This time, we were talking about making screens from scratch (just like my dad did, for the little blue house).
I'll be honest, the first thing I did was look around and sort of half-heartedly price having someone come make screens for us. I was seeing a lot of "specials" in the $25-35/screen range, with a 10 screen minimum. That seemed like a lot of money for something I was pretty sure we could do ourselves. I kind of remembered how to do it...sorta. I thought. So, I zipped around online (I would have gone to the library, but the internet is so darned convenient), watched a tutorial or two to refresh my memory, sent links and tutorials to Shane and, a week or so later, we were making screens. He did most of the work, and he's going to post pics and blog about the whole thing over at The Low Life, so I won't tell you how we did it, just that we did.
We did it. And now, there is a fresh, cool breeze blowing through our house ~ all because, when I was a little girl, my daddy taught me one of the most important lessons of my life: I CAN.
EDIT: Shane explains it all on The Low Life
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
The Low Life
If you want to know more about our little family, check out our family blog:
http://thriftfamilyross.wordpress.com/
If you'd like to know more about the history of our family blog, and read older entries, please refer to our tumblr, which is where we started the whole thing (be sure to read the "About" section ~ you know, to learn what it's about):
http://thriftfamilyross.tumblr.com/#me
If you just want to know what we eat, read our food blog:
http://samiam-greeneggsnoham.blogspot.com/
Read, share, tell us what you think, but, most importantly, enjoy!
http://thriftfamilyross.wordpress.com/
If you'd like to know more about the history of our family blog, and read older entries, please refer to our tumblr, which is where we started the whole thing (be sure to read the "About" section ~ you know, to learn what it's about):
http://thriftfamilyross.tumblr.com/#me
If you just want to know what we eat, read our food blog:
http://samiam-greeneggsnoham.blogspot.com/
Read, share, tell us what you think, but, most importantly, enjoy!
Thursday, March 7, 2013
The Real-Life Zombie That Ate My Brain
I think I am finally ready to write about this. Maybe.
YIKES!
Really???
hmmm...
Well...let's just run it the flagpole and see if it flies, shall we?
Fibromyalgia.
That's my diagnosis.
I know some of you have been wondering, because I have been fairly publicly sick and miserable, but I have been reticent to talk openly about exactly what is going on. I'm not sure why. Perhaps, because I know that fibromyalgia is still so little understood, even within the medical community. I know that a lot people still think of fibromyalgia as an "imaginary illness." Still others know only what they see in drug commercials: "Fibromyalgia makes life moderately unpleasant, but, if you take our pill, you, too can smile like an idiot."
To be honest, I don't know a lot about fibromyalgia.
"The word fibromyalgia comes from the Latin term for fibrous tissue ("fibro") and the Greek terms for muscle ("myo") and pain ("algia").
Well, there's that, 'though it seems like a bit of an understatement.
But, look, I don't want to spend a lot of times cataloging symptoms and trying to explain what fibromyalgia is.
Here's a link, if you feel like reading about it.
What I do want to do here is to take some time to explain one of the symptoms that, to me, has been most challenging, disheartening and debilitating. It's a phenomenon that some fibromyalgia sufferers never experience, and many others experience only very mildly, but, for some of us, it becomes quite severe. It is...Brain Fog. Yes, the powers-that-be have truly chosen to call this thing "Brain Fog." Couldn't they have come up with a name for it that didn't sound like an afternoon soap opera malady? I mean, I know it is hard to take me seriously when I say I am suffering from "Brain Fog." It sounds like...what? I'm a little addlepated? Befuddled? Spacey, perhaps. That's all true. But, more importantly, for me, what it really means is this:
profound memory-loss (both short and long term)
loss of concentration
difficulty finding words/communicating
difficulty deciphering language, written and spoken
On a practical level, it means that I don't remember little things, like why I drove to the store, or that I wrote myself a list, because I knew I wouldn't remember when I got there, and it is in my pocket (will I remember to look at it? Well, that's anybody's guess.) It also means I don't remember big things, like great chunks of my childhood, most of my education and one of my pregnancies (I kid you not ~ it's all gone. Every bit of it). It means I have trouble having normal conversations ~ I lose track, get lost, forget what I (or you) were saying. This makes me self-conscious, because I know it looks like I am not listening, or don't care. It means I use the wrong word when I am writing or speaking, so I have trouble communicating effectively. I confuse people, and I am easily confused. I have trouble sitting through a movie, or watching episodic television programs. Sometimes, I have trouble reading. I might thoroughly enjoy reading a book, but, ask me what it is about, and I am likely to draw a complete blank. I don't remember names. I read things I wrote, and it is like someone else wrote them.
I think I have avoided broaching this subject for several reasons:
1. It's embarrassing.
2. It's difficult for others to understand.
3. It makes me sound kind of crazy.
4. I don't want people to worry about me.
5. I am not looking for sympathy.
So, why share this now? Well, several reasons, I guess. I want people to understand why I have had to make some very tough decisions recently. I really had no choice. I also want people to know that I really do care. If you're my friend, you are my friend, and even if I don't remember every detail of everything we ever did together, I still love you. I want people to know that I am listening, that you are important to me, and I want everyone to know that, when I have to ask the same question over and over, it isn't because I just wasn't paying attention. If I forgot something you said or did, it's not because it wasn't interesting or because you are not important to me.
I think another reason I have avoided this subject is that there is simply no way to write about one's health problems without sounding whiny or needy. I HATE sounding whiny or needy. So, let's try to end on a positive note!
My doctor believes that, if we can get my other symptoms (especially the pain) under control, the "fog" may begin to lift. We are working on it. So far, the well-known fibromyalgia-specific meds have failed me, so we are looking for other solutions. Diet and lifestyle changes seem to help, as do regular exercise for both the brain and the body. Keeping things in perspective is important, too. You may have noticed that something like, say, a broken arm, can really throw me for a loop. That's because stress and trauma can both trigger flares in fibromyalgia, so, right now, I'm a little further off my game than usual (wait...what's my game? I had a game??); but that's a temporary setback.
I don't need sympathy. This is just part of who I am, and most of you know it always has been. Now, we all know why. What I could use, if you really want to give me something (cupcakes! nailpolish! glitter!!...oh...wait...that's not what I meant to say...), is lots of patience and understanding, and the assurance that, even when I seem like a really bad, inattentive friend, you will try to remember that I really do care, and I am trying very hard to be the best friend/wife/mother/daughter/cousin/sister/spouse I possibly can.
Really. It's just that I've got this zombie munching on my brain all the time, and sometimes that gets distracting.
YIKES!
Really???
hmmm...
Well...let's just run it the flagpole and see if it flies, shall we?
Fibromyalgia.
That's my diagnosis.
I know some of you have been wondering, because I have been fairly publicly sick and miserable, but I have been reticent to talk openly about exactly what is going on. I'm not sure why. Perhaps, because I know that fibromyalgia is still so little understood, even within the medical community. I know that a lot people still think of fibromyalgia as an "imaginary illness." Still others know only what they see in drug commercials: "Fibromyalgia makes life moderately unpleasant, but, if you take our pill, you, too can smile like an idiot."
To be honest, I don't know a lot about fibromyalgia.
"The word fibromyalgia comes from the Latin term for fibrous tissue ("fibro") and the Greek terms for muscle ("myo") and pain ("algia").
Well, there's that, 'though it seems like a bit of an understatement.
But, look, I don't want to spend a lot of times cataloging symptoms and trying to explain what fibromyalgia is.
Here's a link, if you feel like reading about it.
What I do want to do here is to take some time to explain one of the symptoms that, to me, has been most challenging, disheartening and debilitating. It's a phenomenon that some fibromyalgia sufferers never experience, and many others experience only very mildly, but, for some of us, it becomes quite severe. It is...Brain Fog. Yes, the powers-that-be have truly chosen to call this thing "Brain Fog." Couldn't they have come up with a name for it that didn't sound like an afternoon soap opera malady? I mean, I know it is hard to take me seriously when I say I am suffering from "Brain Fog." It sounds like...what? I'm a little addlepated? Befuddled? Spacey, perhaps. That's all true. But, more importantly, for me, what it really means is this:
profound memory-loss (both short and long term)
loss of concentration
difficulty finding words/communicating
difficulty deciphering language, written and spoken
On a practical level, it means that I don't remember little things, like why I drove to the store, or that I wrote myself a list, because I knew I wouldn't remember when I got there, and it is in my pocket (will I remember to look at it? Well, that's anybody's guess.) It also means I don't remember big things, like great chunks of my childhood, most of my education and one of my pregnancies (I kid you not ~ it's all gone. Every bit of it). It means I have trouble having normal conversations ~ I lose track, get lost, forget what I (or you) were saying. This makes me self-conscious, because I know it looks like I am not listening, or don't care. It means I use the wrong word when I am writing or speaking, so I have trouble communicating effectively. I confuse people, and I am easily confused. I have trouble sitting through a movie, or watching episodic television programs. Sometimes, I have trouble reading. I might thoroughly enjoy reading a book, but, ask me what it is about, and I am likely to draw a complete blank. I don't remember names. I read things I wrote, and it is like someone else wrote them.
I think I have avoided broaching this subject for several reasons:
1. It's embarrassing.
2. It's difficult for others to understand.
3. It makes me sound kind of crazy.
4. I don't want people to worry about me.
5. I am not looking for sympathy.
So, why share this now? Well, several reasons, I guess. I want people to understand why I have had to make some very tough decisions recently. I really had no choice. I also want people to know that I really do care. If you're my friend, you are my friend, and even if I don't remember every detail of everything we ever did together, I still love you. I want people to know that I am listening, that you are important to me, and I want everyone to know that, when I have to ask the same question over and over, it isn't because I just wasn't paying attention. If I forgot something you said or did, it's not because it wasn't interesting or because you are not important to me.
I think another reason I have avoided this subject is that there is simply no way to write about one's health problems without sounding whiny or needy. I HATE sounding whiny or needy. So, let's try to end on a positive note!
My doctor believes that, if we can get my other symptoms (especially the pain) under control, the "fog" may begin to lift. We are working on it. So far, the well-known fibromyalgia-specific meds have failed me, so we are looking for other solutions. Diet and lifestyle changes seem to help, as do regular exercise for both the brain and the body. Keeping things in perspective is important, too. You may have noticed that something like, say, a broken arm, can really throw me for a loop. That's because stress and trauma can both trigger flares in fibromyalgia, so, right now, I'm a little further off my game than usual (wait...what's my game? I had a game??); but that's a temporary setback.
I don't need sympathy. This is just part of who I am, and most of you know it always has been. Now, we all know why. What I could use, if you really want to give me something (cupcakes! nailpolish! glitter!!...oh...wait...that's not what I meant to say...), is lots of patience and understanding, and the assurance that, even when I seem like a really bad, inattentive friend, you will try to remember that I really do care, and I am trying very hard to be the best friend/wife/mother/daughter/cousin/sister/spouse I possibly can.
Really. It's just that I've got this zombie munching on my brain all the time, and sometimes that gets distracting.
Sunday, January 27, 2013
Wooden Crate Table - DONE! (ish)
I am so sorry I haven't come back to finish this series of posts. When did I start this table? Sheesh! It has been done for some time, but, in the past few months, I
a) got really, really sick
b) got a diagnosis and got to work on learning to live with it
c) bought a house (bought a house!! ~ holy cow! We bought a house!), and
d) moved.
So, I have been kind of preoccupied, you might say.
I have not stained the table, but we did actually complete it. I have to go dig up pics of the process and add them later, but, for the time being, I will at least walk you through the steps.
Once the table was assembled, I enlisted the help of the rest of the family. We wanted this piece to be uniquely ours, and reflect who we are, and I wanted everyone to (literally) make her/his mark on the table.
I started by choosing a favourite quote. We went with: "Dance like nodody's watching; love like you've never been hurt; ing like nobody's listening; live like it's Heaven on Earth." This has been credited to Mark Twain, I believe, and it is one of my all-time favourite quotes ~ perfectly outlines how to live, IMO.
Next, I assigned one line to each girl, and Shane and I shared the last line. We each wrote our line in our regular hand, then I took then to Kinko's and blew them up (boom! ~ no, no, no...I ENLARGED them. Printed them out in a larger size).
I brought home the photocopies and handed them over to Justice, who used carbon paper to carefully transfer them on to the surface of the table ~ one line on each solid side panel. Then, she pulled out her woodburning pen and burned in the letters.
In my dreams, I will stain and seal the table, but I haven't gotten around to it yet. We did, hoever, manage to get a glass top for it. I called 55 Glass and ordered a custom top. I think it cost me about thirty bucks, but it was totally worth it. Our table is now easy to wipe up, easy to set a glass upon, and looks super cute. I am looking forward to filling that big empty space in the center with seasonal decorations, and will be sure to post pics when I do.
I will check back in with pictures of Justice doing her thing, as well as more angles of the table (and hopefully some pictures of the table after it is stained). In the meantime, feast your eyes on a picture recently snapped of our new living room, in which you can at least see the finished table.
Oh, and here I will try to crop and enlarge that same picture, so you can get a slightly better look at the table. I think. Let's see if it works.
Sorry for the complete lack of instructions. I pretty much just played around with the arrangement of the crates until I like it, screwed them together in sections, stained them, screwed the sections together to make one big shelf and stood it up. Ta-da!
If you look behind the purple chair, you will see another, smaller shelving unit that will one day coordinate with this one. Right now, it coordinates with the table, because I haven't stained it yet. (*grumble*)
a) got really, really sick
b) got a diagnosis and got to work on learning to live with it
c) bought a house (bought a house!! ~ holy cow! We bought a house!), and
d) moved.
So, I have been kind of preoccupied, you might say.
I have not stained the table, but we did actually complete it. I have to go dig up pics of the process and add them later, but, for the time being, I will at least walk you through the steps.
Once the table was assembled, I enlisted the help of the rest of the family. We wanted this piece to be uniquely ours, and reflect who we are, and I wanted everyone to (literally) make her/his mark on the table.
I started by choosing a favourite quote. We went with: "Dance like nodody's watching; love like you've never been hurt; ing like nobody's listening; live like it's Heaven on Earth." This has been credited to Mark Twain, I believe, and it is one of my all-time favourite quotes ~ perfectly outlines how to live, IMO.
Next, I assigned one line to each girl, and Shane and I shared the last line. We each wrote our line in our regular hand, then I took then to Kinko's and blew them up (boom! ~ no, no, no...I ENLARGED them. Printed them out in a larger size).
I brought home the photocopies and handed them over to Justice, who used carbon paper to carefully transfer them on to the surface of the table ~ one line on each solid side panel. Then, she pulled out her woodburning pen and burned in the letters.
In my dreams, I will stain and seal the table, but I haven't gotten around to it yet. We did, hoever, manage to get a glass top for it. I called 55 Glass and ordered a custom top. I think it cost me about thirty bucks, but it was totally worth it. Our table is now easy to wipe up, easy to set a glass upon, and looks super cute. I am looking forward to filling that big empty space in the center with seasonal decorations, and will be sure to post pics when I do.
I will check back in with pictures of Justice doing her thing, as well as more angles of the table (and hopefully some pictures of the table after it is stained). In the meantime, feast your eyes on a picture recently snapped of our new living room, in which you can at least see the finished table.
Oh, and here I will try to crop and enlarge that same picture, so you can get a slightly better look at the table. I think. Let's see if it works.
Oh, yay! I think it did!
Oh, and for the record, I also built this shelf, to coordinate with the table:
Oh, and for the record, I also built this shelf, to coordinate with the table:
Sorry for the complete lack of instructions. I pretty much just played around with the arrangement of the crates until I like it, screwed them together in sections, stained them, screwed the sections together to make one big shelf and stood it up. Ta-da!
If you look behind the purple chair, you will see another, smaller shelving unit that will one day coordinate with this one. Right now, it coordinates with the table, because I haven't stained it yet. (*grumble*)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)