Not fluffy

so last night not long before i went to sleep (11:30, 12?) i started to get a headache. on the back left side of my head, about where the skull connects to the neck. i had my hair in a ponytail & thought that might be the reason. so i took it down. and went to sleep. the pain was at about a 5 on pain scale (maybe a 4). i should've taken something, but we're trying to save money and not use up stuff.

i woke up sometime later to use the bathroom & the pain was on both sides about where the skull connects to the neck & a lot worse, like a 9-10. i took an ibuprofen and laid back down. the pain like throbbed with every heartbeat & at times would radiate into my ears, cheekbones & eyes. it was the worst pain i have had since just before my gallbladder was removed in late aug. 2015.

my brother was still awake and on the laptop, so i got up to tell him what was going on. now, by this time my stomach was feeling...odd. not a pain, not unsettled, just that something was not right there. he is googling symptoms, i'm gently rubbing the back of my head. then i take two acetaminophen. then my head gets hot, sometimes a sign that my stomach is about to empty it's contents. my brother gets the old, cleaned up ice cream bucket we have for such occasions & my stomach rejects everything. including the pain medication i guess, but i don't look too closely.
when it's done, i go empty the bucket out & rinse out my mouth with water. (my brother is no help, he hates stomach rejections more than i do.) i lay down in my bed because my head still freakin' hurts! plus i'm a bit shaky. he informs me he his googleing says my problem is possibly a migraine, which i've never had before. somehow i fall asleep not long after this.

i woke up today & the pain is down to a 2-3, with flareups to a 6-7. i had an ibuprofen which helped a little. my stomach is much better, but it's still a bit unsure. i've since looked up migraine symptoms & am not sure if that's what it was. since the pain was on the back of the head, not the side, and i didn't have any of the other symptoms typical of a migraine. it may have been "just" a bad headache with the stomach freaking out along with it.

got the latest COVID shot on thur. morning at CVS again, they still have the pfizer one.

the shot itself was a big pinch for me (nothing really for him) & we got regular band-aids, not the inject-safe barrier bandage that wal-mart was using. i bled more from the injection than he did. both of us had injection site/arm pain, my brother had his felt like he had a cold that night and the next day thing that he usually gets with this shot.

at 48+ hours later we both still have a bit of arm soreness & a rash near the injection site. mine is not as bad as i would get from moderna, his is almost as big as his palm. he usually doesn't get the rash, hopefully this is not an indicator of a rash for him with future COVID shots.

1. What areas of your life are causing you stress?
the general state of the world.

2. What areas of your life are bringing you joy?
not really "joy" but reading (e)books is nice.

3. What is your earliest childhood memory?
the funeral for my paternal grandfather, i was 2 1/2*. i know a lot of people can't recall much, or anything, before age 7, but i do. both good & bad.

4. What is the one thing you would tell your teenage self if you could?
try harder. i guess, i don't know.

5. What has been the greatest accomplishment of your life so far?
surviving?


*you might be thinking; "she doesn't really remember. it's just stories her parents told her." but there were things from that time that my parents were not present for that i told them about later.


other answers over here.

1. If you could instantly become an expert in something, what would it be?
history.

2. If you could do anything in the world as your career, what would you do?
archeologist & part-time librarian.

3. If you could be immortal, what age would you choose to stop aging at and why?
30, or at least no older than 35. it's generally a good age.

4. If you could be any supernatural creature, what would you be and why?
a werecat of some sort.

5. If you had to teach a class on one thing, what would you teach?
the history of star trek, with a focus on failed star trek projects. such as the star trek; phase II series they were going to have in the 1970s, the captain sulu with his ship in the beta quadrant series they were considering before settling on doing ENT & the rumored star trek academy series with a young james kirk.
i got into the history of ST: phase II & what might have happened in trek history if it got made here.


see what others said over here.

in march of last year i got an email from booklender* that they were under new ownership & they had plans for all kind of improvements.
well, i decided to see what their prices were like not, and they've gone up by four dollars. at least the plan that i had; 2 at a time, multiple orders in a month. i guess they have to pay for all of those improvements somehow. but i was struggling to get 2 orders in a month to justify the cost, between the time it took to read the books & the turnaround time. plus the time in transit going to/from booklender. i can't imagine doing that now with the higher price.


*the company i used to rent paperback books from for several years.

from amazon (book 1);

When Prudence Alessandra Maccon Akeldama ("Rue" to her friends) is bequeathed an unexpected dirigible, she does what any sensible female under similar circumstances would do -- she christens it the Spotted Custard and floats off to India. Soon, she stumbles upon a plot involving local dissidents, a kidnapped brigadier's wife, and some awfully familiar Scottish werewolves. Faced with a dire crisis (and an embarrassing lack of bloomers), Rue must rely on her good breeding -- and her metanatural abilities -- to get to the bottom of it all. . .

this is a sequel series to her The Parasol Protectorate books that feature the children of some of the characters of those books.
overall i was very lukewarm on the whole series. i don't regret reading them, but I just feel like the sequel series (next gen series, really. the characters from the first series only have guest roles.) was not needed. like many sequels.
and when characters from the previous series do show up, they feel like parodies of their former incarnations.

minor issues; the author uses "bedsit" to describes where a character is living. the definition is a single rented room that serves as both a bedroom and a living area, often featuring basic cooking facilities while sharing a bathroom with other rooms. but then she mentions a library, a hall & hints at a kitchen as a servant is going to make tea at one point.
has a character "chivvy" up to someone, implying that they walked up quickly when the word means to persistently nag, badger, or urge someone to do something they do not want to do, or to hurry them along.

long ago the place where i live would have two community days/block party things per summer. they stopped having them in 2019.

this year they decided to have some thing. at first it was just a "kids day" with games to win cheap prizes (bead bracelets, crayons, small toys), face painting, a slip n' slide thing and some food.
then it was a "end of summer event" with most of the above and "light refreshments".
it became a "back to school event" with the everything listed, plus a backpack (with some school supplies) giveaway.

we were not going to attend, but were part invited, part "encouraged" to go. they had hot dogs, chips, baked beans, fruit punch, shaved ice & cupcakes (full size).
despite a big turnout (or what looked like one to us) there was some leftovers that we got; an unopened bag of chips (like party size), several hot dogs, a full pack of hot dog buns, some baked beans & 6 cupcakes.

it is too hot most of the time. some rain now and then, but that makes it too humid.

the sun is too bright. daylight lasts too long into the evening.

we had smoke from wildfires a couple of weekends ago. we kept the windows closed & i was sweating like crazy*. i think the temp inside was 110+, but my brother disagrees. if there's smoke again, i'm tempted to keep the windows open & deal with the smoke.


*there's an old joke about a guy with a lamborghini that pulls up to a gas station. he tells the attendant (gas jockey) to fill up the tank, leaves the car running & goes inside to pay. he's talking to the clerk when the attendant come in and says; "hey mister! can you come out & turn your car off? it's gaining on me!" (meaning that car was using the fuel almost as fast as the guy put it in.)
that's how i was that weekend. it seemed as soon as i drank water, i was sweating it out.

1. What is your cellphone wallpaper?
i have this blue nebula thing (called universe under the microscope 3 or something) for my lock screen & just a basic color of blue gray for my home screen.

2. Are you sunrise, daylight, twilight, or nighttime? Why?
twilight/sunset. because sunsets are just as good as sunrises, but you don't have to be up early to see them.

3. What season would you be?
i don't know. maybe fall.

4. As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
at various times; the girl versions of indiana jones, han solo, or james bond.

5. Have you ever been told you look like someone famous? Who was it?
no.


other answers are over here.

1. What would you do right now, if money were not an issue?
get my hair cut & dye it blue.

2. What would you do for the next three years, if money were not an issue?
travel.

3. What is bringing you the most joy right now that requires little or no money?
reading e-books free from a library.

4. What types of things do you find enjoyable that require no money?
naps. watching the rain come down.

5. Is there anything you've been meaning to do for a long time, but put off because of money?
buy some clothes to replace ones that are pretty worn .


other answers over here.