a short 2008 recap, the end of xmas, mustache guestbook

so how did 2008 turn out for you, corn pops? for me, it was either complete bullshit or pretty darn cool but nothing in between. for every really good thing (the moderate success of s&f (which, i'll be honest was a *hell* of a lot more successful than i thought it would be),



(royal tennenbalms from that site, btw.)

the obama election, hitting 35 and not caring *too* much about it, becoming an aunt, meeting my adopted cousin and some awesome new friends, etc) there was a directionally proportional shit equivalent. (my first (and, hopefully, last) root canal, having to learn to walk again due to having depth perception for the first time ever, damaging my spine and having to learn how to do EVERYTHING again so as not to damage it any further, sarah palin (ok, these are mostly physical pains. sarah palin included...))

so, yes, i will be glad to see the year go for the most part.

you know what else i was glad to see the back of? all of that snow



and *definitely* the holiday season.



although the xmas pizza was lovely as usual.



i won't bore you with the details as to how i spent my (mostly) snow/homebound holiday. it's enough for you to know that most days it took me 30 minutes to walk the two blocks to physical therapy due to ice/snow/slush. and that the rest of the time was spent watching netflix on the xbox.

oh! and leff and i also started a blog called "mustache guestbook".



simple premise: we have a shawnimals son of mustachio mustache and we're going to photograph everyone who visits our apartment wearing it. so, you know, drop by. the mustache is waiting for you.

happy new year, jitterbugs!

p.s.--laser radiohead is incredible.  you should *totally* go.

did you hear that it snowed in seattle? no, really.

before i get to the snow that EV-ERY-ONE in the seattle blogosphere has been tweeting, blogging, vlogging and generally screaming about, i want to say thanks to cakespy jessie for the wonderful tele-graham crackers!





i am indeed feeling better. physical therapy is *fantastic*! i mean, don't get me wrong, it's hard work with a lot homework but i'm *completely* dedicated to the program. (plus, traction and having electrodes hooked up to me twice a week are both really spectacular. i feel like a new person after those things are finished.)

right, i'll now add to the bitching about this snow. see, at first it was kinda' cute.





yeah, maybe a bit more than usual in seattle. still, kinda' on the adorbs side, right?

not anymore.











when is the hurting going to stop?

i'm just glad that i don't drive. i do have to admit to being a bit saddened by the condition of my back precluding any sledding activity on my part but i'll get over it.

that is, if it ever stops freaking snowing. damn it.

spines, spines, everywhere there's spines

i just got back from my neurosurgeon. the great news is that I'M NOT GOING TO HAVE TO HAVE SURGERY!!!

here's where we (and by "we", i mean "me") stand. i've got physical therapy twice a week for a while. i'm also continuing on my anti inflammatory medication for a month or so.

and, wait for it....I GET TO GO TO D.C. FOR THE INAUGURATION!!

my "walking ban" has been lifted but i'm not allowed to bend over or carry anything over 5-7 pounds. also, my doc said she was surprised that i wasn't screaming in pain because my mri was, and i quote, "impressive".

(it's, apparently, a new injury unrelated to the car accident that i had at 18. in other words, bad genetics will get you every time.)

k, i'm going to do a modified dance now. you know, the kind that doesn't require lifting.

it snowed

did you hear? it snowed in seattle this weekend. leff took some nice pics of it at counterbalance park on saturday night.



(more photos here)

i'm feeling a bit deflated today. this is due, in part, to a fairly serious car accident that occurred to someone i know last night (she and the people in the other car are ok as far as we know at this point. it was a head on collision.) as well as my trip to the neurosurgeon this afternoon.

you can understand why i'm all airless and in need of personal fix-a-flat.

still, leff's office party was fun. he wrote about how we banished a trench coat illusionist with the power of europe on his blog.

and i should mention that breakfast cucumbers are both portable AND anti inflammatory if they are coated with turmeric.

possible medical update later this afternoon.

we have a verdict!

for those of you who care, i got the results from my mri today. two bulging discs in the lumbar region, one of which is putting pressure on my sciatic nerve. hooray!

as mentioned previously, i plan to not go on about this at length. i have an appointment with a neurosurgeon next week to see where we go from here. i might post an update about that, i might not.

no, i'm not planning on getting surgery. i'd rather explore other options.

anyway, i've got some catching up to do on suspect and fugitive. and since i've been given the green light to walk for short periods of time, i'll be getting out of my house. now THAT is something i'm excited about!

on hiatus

hey, kids! i have to get an mri! i'm also on pain meds that knock me on my ass and it's possible i might have to start physical therapy! hooray!

what this means for you is that i'll be gone for a while and i can't give you an estimate as to when i'll be back. i don't want to post a zillion things that say "sat on couch and watched turner classic movies after trying to walk through a modified balancing beam contraption" every day.

so, yeah. see you soon, i hope. i'm gonna' go watch turner classic movies on my couch now.

we'll try this tomorrow

my leg is KILLING me so, yeah. i'll try to write tomorrow. sorry.