Actual conversation with my pharmacy

For the first time in my adult life I have a health insurance plan that covers therapy. Needless to say, I've been using many of my sessions to try and trouble-shoot (as my mental health person also has prescribing rights) that fine balance between antidepressant side effects screwing up my life and depression screwing up my life. Since we can't change my wacky schedule, we've been trying to do other things to help with the insomnia.

(This is a vast improvement over my previous system in which I'd go to my primary care doc and complain that Ihateeverbody wasn't working. Wherein he'd sympathize and give me a shiny new pen emblazoned with Noyougotohell and tell me he'd heard good things about its efficacy for depression and did I want some free samples to go with that scrip?)

And when I filled my prescription for a sleeping pill this week, I had the following conversation with the pharmacy intern about side effects and drug interactions:

Me, skimming through attached pharmacy handout: "It says here not to take it with GHB. Isn't that illegal?" (To your average layperson, GHB is best known as a date rape drug.)
Intern: "Well yes, but you're not supposed to take it with it."
Me, succumbing to morbid curiosity: "So what happens if you do?"
Intern: "It can be really sedating."

Extra points to my beloved pharmacy for placing a label on the bottle that says "Warning: May cause drowsiness."

I thought they were on vacation

I thought that, just as pretty much everyone else in the northern hemisphere is appreciating summer by slowing down and doing less, so would the Yarn Pixies. Apparently I was mistaken.

Last night, as I was trying to sleep and failing miserably (I'm going to go back to referring to myself in the first person plural, like I did when I was pregnant with Shirley. Except that this time "we" refers to "me and my sleep disorder.") I was accosted by the Yarn Pixies. They suggested that I could design a surplice-style wrap sweater that was loosely based on those tie-to-fit baby sweaters.

And being gullible and unable to sleep, I took them up on it. So, I'm trying to design a new sweater. Unfortunately, I won't know if it turns out at all like the pictures in my head or the drawings in my notebook until it's finished. But the yarn is amazing and sooo soft, and I'm starting to realize just how much I have under-appreciated the tactile qualities of well-done garter stitch. Beautiful aqua silk yarn to work with, and a lengthy vacation coming up.... yippee!

Mini-vacation!

I had to work Memorial Day Weekend, except for Monday. But because I work night shift, I got paid 7.5 hours of time-and-a-half from 0001 to 0730 on Monday for working Sunday night! Very nice.

Monday was also Brad and Carin's engagement party in Eugene.

I still question Carin's sanity at wanting to marry my brother-in-law, but I'm very happy for them. I was less happy to attend their party, as I got home at 0800, and then woke up at 1130 to ride to Eugene for their party. Fortunately, by the time we arrived, my Pepsi had kicked in and I managed to get through the party without saying too many stupid things.

Then on Wednesday, we piled in the car and went to Crater Lake. Shirley was very happy at getting to climb on a new bed.


We'd planned to meet with friends of ours from San Francisco, but they weren't able to come after all. This was the view from our window at the Lodge:


In spite of the 70-plus degree weather, there was still five feet of snow in places. So we bundled up the Mimi and let her experience lots of snow for the first time in her life. All went well until she ate some.


Apparently snow that's been on the ground for Lord knows how many months doesn't taste very good!


While we were on the trip, I also started on yet another version of the Sonnet cardigan done with my bulky weight handspun yarn. I've got the body completely done and I'm working on the sleeves now.