Since Simon is in the Grand Canyon for the next few days, I have a lot of time on my hands to get some blogging done. Not that he kept me from blogging before, but when we have time off together, I'd rather not spend it sitting in front of the computer. There are too many fun things for us to be doing around Flagstaff together, and the weather is much too nice to be sitting indoors.
Well, it's early morning and I'm killing some time before my massage, so here goes.
About the massage...so Monday night I seemed to have done something rather awful to my shoulder...while I was sleeping. How does one injure herself while sleeping? I literally have no idea, but what I do know is that for a better portion of Tuesday, I had a really hard time turning my head to the left...or looking down...or making sudden movements. Ibuprofen and Aspercreme helped, but still the pain persisted. I went for a nice little walk and tried to move my arm around, which helped. This morning it's feeling a little better, but I think a nice, long massage is in order. And really, do I honestly need an excuse to go get a massage? Nah.
Back in early July I had ordered a panty box from Amazon Prime. It was amazing...it was like Christmas. So Amazon Prime has this huge list of items at discounted prices that you order in one big purchase...it all comes in one big box called the Prime Pantry Box. So I ordered a bunch of things...granola bars, olive oil, toilet paper, paper towels, crackers, cleaning supplies...you know, household things that I need every now and again. It was great, and the prices were cheaper than the local stores for name-brand items. I found the selection to be quite good. But...they didn't have my brand of toilet paper. We needed toilet paper, and since I was ordering this giant box of goodies, I figured I'd give Quilted Northern a try. Bad idea...I need my Charmin back, ASAP. And it's funny, because for the love of Pete, it's toilet paper...is one brand really all that different from the next? Yes. Yes it is. I used to be somewhat indifferent to toilet paper...until I lived with my buddy Franko in Minneapolis. This man is a toilet paper snob. One brand, and one brand only...Charmin Ultra Soft. It's pretty much magical. I keep trying to remind myself that I need to just toss the Northern and buy some Charmin, but the only time I think about toilet paper is when I'm actively using it. I don't wander around Target thinking about toilet paper...I'm usually wandering around Target resisting the urge to wander through the clearance rack in the women's clothing department...hahaha! I don't have time to think about toilet paper! There are dresses on sale! So yeah...I guess I'll just have to make a list...my poor little rear depends on it.
In the same vein of potty talk, I've noticed some odd behavior I display when I'm taking Cooper for his daily walks. I always always always carry a poop bag with me, no matter how far we're going. I refuse to be one of those dog owners who finds it acceptable to let their dog poop in someone else's yard. So I wander around the neighborhood with a little bag of poop in my hand...no big deal...although I never see anyone else wandering around with a bag of poop in their hand. So what I've noticed is this...when I'm out walking Cooper and I meet someone on the sidewalk, I call out "Good morning!" and wave with my right hand. The right hand holds the poop. So I wave at people with a bag full of poop. I try to be aware of it and to not do it, but once Cooper has pooped I really don't have any other option. I hold his leash in my left hand, and the poop in my right hand. I can't very well wave with my left hand because then I would jerk on his leash, and given that he wears a harness that is designed to push against the pressure points under his arms (it prevents pulling), it would be uncomfortable for him. Not to mention confusing for him, as I typically only jerk on the leash when he is misbehaving. So that leaves the poop hand. I wonder if people notice, or if they're grossed out or offended. Most of the people I see on our walks are dog people, so maybe they get it.
Very recently I discovered the phenomenon known as the t-shirt dress. And I am in love. Old Navy recently had all their t-shirt dresses on sale, and of course I stocked up on a few. They are literally the most comfortable things ever, and even though they're basically just a bit t-shirt, they look put together because they are also a dress. I can dress them up with a necklace and some cute shoes, maybe some tights when the weather starts getting cold, or I can just lounge around in them in the house, feeling like I have a night shirt on. It's pretty much a win-win situation. And Simon thinks I look cute in dresses, so there's that as well. Lately they are my go-to item...I wish I had one for every day of the week, but that would be just silly...or not? Hmmm...
A few weeks back Simon and I met a bunch of people from the hospital at one of the local breakfast spots as a send-off to our favorite pharmacist, Gayle. Gayle is one of the top 2 pharmacists I've ever had the pleasure of working with (the other is Bob, who I worked with in Rochester...like the male version of Gayle). Gayle was quick, she was efficient, she was willing to take the time to educate us nurses on how we could make both her job and our job easier when it came to pharmaceutical queries, and above all, she was hilarious. She will be sorely missed, as there's only one Gayle in the world. The next hospital she works with better treat her good, because they're inheriting an absolute gem. So where I was going with this...there were a bunch of us sitting outside on the patio of the restaurant, trying to decide what we wanted to eat, chatting away, laughing about this thing or that, sharing traumatizing stories from the previous night shift...typical nurse stuff. It's a good thing we were out on the patio so we didn't gross out any of the other non-hospital patrons. But as we were sitting there, we wondered aloud why breakfast doesn't have appetizers. Every other meal has the option of appetizers, but not breakfast. How about a little platter of mini doughnuts, or mini quiches, a breakfast sausage plate, those mini corndog things that are breakfast sausages wrapped in pancake. Seriously, how has this not become a thing? Breakfast small plates. I'm telling you, that's where it's at. Someone get on that.
I recently learned that in Arizona (and a lot of other states, apparently), new drivers don't have have to go through driver's training to get their learner's permit (they do have to pass a written test, however...but seriously, anyone with half a brain can pass a 30 question multiple-choice test). In Minnesota a person can't get their learner's permit until they have attended a driver's ed course, and they can't take their driver's license test until they've completed at least 6 hours of behind-the-wheel practice sessions with an instructor (who has his own brake pedal on the passenger side of the car...hahaha!). I just assumed it was the same everywhere. Well, that's not true...the running joke in Minnesota is that Iowans don't have to go through driver's training, so we were always told to avoid those Iowa plates while out on the road...hahaha! It dawned on me then that maybe that's why there are so many bad drivers out there (not that driver's training makes a person a good driver, but it's a good start). If teaching a person to drive and giving a person the fundamentals of how to be a good driver are left up to parents who already have bad driving habits and who don't follow or aren't aware of basic traffic laws, that might explain why some people drive so poorly. Granted, there are plenty of good drivers out there...probably more good drivers than not, but the bad ones are the ones you take notice of when you're out and about avoiding accidents on the road. Case in point, I pulled up to an intersection the other day...there was a gal in the right hand lane with no blinker on, sitting directly behind a Jeep who was turning right. I was going left, so I pulled up next to her and prepared to make my turn. As I looked to my right to check for traffic, I saw her in her car incredulously gesturing at me with her mouth open in what I assumed was some sort of swear word. Apparently she wanted to go left as well and I was now blocking her. A) If you want to go left and the person in front of you is going right, why are you sitting behind them? B) it's not customary to make left turns from the right lane. C) if you want to go left from the right lane, at least put your blinker on so I have some idea of what your idiot brain is thinking. I waved her forward and on she went. I caught up with her at the next stop sign as she was struggling with timing a right hand turn with oncoming traffic...thankfully, she was in the correct turn lane this time...still no blinker. Several of us making the left turn were able to clear the intersection while she was still sitting there. I'm not saying I'm a perfect driver, and I'm sure I make my fair share of traffic violations, but seriously, it takes a special kind of stupid to make some of the driving mistakes that I see on a daily basis around town. Don't even get me started on Phoenix.
And there it is...my ramblings for the day. Hope everyone has a good day! Watch out for those crazy drivers! ;)
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