On this last day of January (actually, there is one more day–oops), I updated the 401K balance; I did it manually in my Quicken software to reflect all my near liquid and liquid assets at month’s end. I only update the house and car value once or twice a year. My 401K has a -19% return over 12 months, but (and they just started supplying this number, I think to stop people from panicking) the three-year return is over 10%. Last year I spent more than $70,000 on medical items (excluding over-the-counter items such as gloves), and I expect to pay close to $100,000 this year. Thus, every expense is tracked, and asset evaluations are reviewed.
I woke tired and dizzy, breathing troubled by some irritant in the air. It was a hard morning to rise from; I managed to not stumble, but I decided not to risk an asthma attack during my stretches and exercises. I kept my inhaler near me all day. I used it every couple of hours. I rested a few times during work, and that helped. I also decided to stay inside, except to visit Susie. I called a friend with asthma, and she was also having issues.
Ignoring the challenges, I also could not sleep anymore and got started at 6AM and made a breakfast of instant oatmeal (low sugar), adding some goodies to make it good (no, not sugar, but walnuts and dried cranberries). I opened a can of peaches in their own syrup and had that, too, just 1/2 the can without much of the syrup. I took my pills; I had messed up taking them on Sunday, which also can explain all the health challenges.
Work was a blur of meetings and discussions about issues. I was unhappy as folks were not talking to me and others about the issues. As a result, I was grumpy and made more frustrated throughout the day. This continued until 6:PM, with one meeting running over by forty-five minutes. No details here, but I was unhappy.
Bouncing around, I managed to dress in the early part of the morning before my first meeting. I then slipped out to see Susie before noon. Monday traffic was light, and there was no police out in the cold–apparently, Beaveton’s Finest only come out on warm sunny days. It is a bright and clear day with frost from the frosty early morning still clinging to roofs, shaded plants, and structures.
Susie was exhausted, with dark circles showing under her eyes. She fell asleep while her mother was talking on the phone. As usual, I called Leta, her mother, and connected with Leta at lunch. She was enjoying Panera’s lunch. Susie and Leta called about skating–there is more next weekend. I sat with Susie for some extra time as she fell asleep again. After she slept holding my hand, I finally got a kiss, said goodbye and headed home.
Lunch was the last of the hotdogs and sour kraut. Excellent. It was too cold to use the grill, so the dogs were microwaved. Even cooked that way, the Olympic Provision hotdogs were good. I started dinner at 3ish, checking on work, and chopped up sausage, ham, and kielbasa to heat in a heavy pan. Once the meats browned and tasty brown stuff was forming on the bottom of the pan, I then added a can of diced and seasoned fire-grilled tomatoes and stirred until the pan was cleaned. Next, I added boiling hot water, 1 1/2 cups, and the jambalaya mix from a box. I got that quickly to a boil and then let it simmer.
I had dinner before the long meeting! It was excellent. It is more traditional with shrimp, but with Susie’s allergies, I never cook with seafood. It is just a habit, and while I have made it with shrimp, I like the all-meat version too. I had hot tea with this, and that worked for a while to keep me going.
I watched the first episode of The Lord of the Rings series again, The Rings of Power, and liked it. However, I was falling asleep at the end, not from the show, but from the food, warm tea, and all the stress lifting. Not to mention I can only count a total of 12 hours of sleep for three days.
Thanks for reading. Sorry if I am complaining, and hope that Tuesday will be better.
Alohawild (Michael Wild's) Website 