Some Pictures

These are a couple of weeks old from the ballpark;

Haley is recovering. The vets are all amazed she is alive. We don't know what caused her to become so sick, and we probably won't ever know (unless it happens again - please don't let it happen again). She spent some time in the most state of the art veterinary hospital I have ever seen. She was treated by board certified specialists. She had ultrasounds and X-Rays and she is taking Prilosec and a bunch of other drugs. She is also eating only chicken and rice, and the cheese we have to wrap her medications in. The smell of chicken is not a normal occurrence in this vegetarian household and it makes us all want to puke - but she is the happiest partially shaved dog you've ever seen. She has a naked belly and little stripes above each paw where all the IVs were. I swear she is savoring life. She is sniffing with such gusto, I truly believe she is happy to be alive after a second near death experience.

Haley
It's 6:45 in the morning. I've been up for two days. I haven't eaten since Tuesday. Our dog is gravely ill - right now it looks like she may have ingested rat poison. We have never used a rodent poison and I checked with our neighbors too. It doesn't make any sense. We're waiting for more test results. Neil has been out of town since Monday and I am so afraid she is going to die before he gets home. This is a horrible thing to have to deal with alone. I'm so glad my Mom is coming here this morning to help me deal with getting her back to the vet this morning. We thought we were going to lose Haley after the rattlesnake bite in July. I just keep thinking that if she made it through that, she can make it through this. But, I just don't know. I hate to admit it, but I just have a bad feeling this time. I hope I'm wrong.

When I get stressed out, I clean and throw things away. I have been under way too much pressure for far too long, and now that Neil is out of school, things should be settling down. Instead, I am working ten hour days with an unbelievable sick feeling in my stomach that may be related to the tremendous work stress, or the guilt caused by forcing Hayden to live with a mother who is constantly on the phone or on the laptop, even when we're supposed to be playing with Play-Doh. I just want to throw up and be done with it, and throw my hands up and be done with this "part time work from home" job which is more accurately a "work a thousand times harder than you did when you were a salaried employee but without the benefits" job.

So today, even though I had to squeeze it in while a CD was burning, or a computer was rebooting, I packed up all the clothes Hayden has outgrown, cleaned out my bathroom cabinets and threw away all my old make up and skin/hair products, vacuumed out my car, replaced the books and movies we keep in the car for Hayden with new ones that may hold his interest for a while, did four loads of laundry, and wrote this post (the CD will be done burning in approximately 2 minutes and 13 seconds). I also disinfected the little center console in my car with Lysol wipes, scrubbed scuff marks off the wall next to picture frames, and cleaned the grate on the bottom of my refrigerator. And it's only 1:30 in the afternoon. My life is a well oiled machine. Work deadlines are met. Pantry stays well stocked. House is always clean. Laundry is always done. Closets are organized. Drawers are neat. I get everything done; I just have no time where I'm not getting everything done.

I can see right through my own psychosis. I know I clean compulsively to find order in my chaotic lifestyle, and I'm sure I throw things away in an attempt to simplify my life, even though the complications have nothing to do with what is in my cabinets.

It's Like Prom for Grown Ups....

Here we are before the big charity ball.





The highlight of the night was the schmaltzy band's cover of Outkast's "Hey Ya." Unforgettable!!!!!!!!

Hooray Coachella!!!!

After preparing myself for a horrible, apocalyptic, Woodstock-like experience, I was shocked that everything went better than expected! That never happens. The drive was shorter than we thought. Our RV (worth every cent) allowed us to park in the very front of the lot, so we had the shortest walk when we decided to finally go in. We hung out in the air conditioning all day with the other motorhome people, and were entertained by all the people outside. Some neighboring RV-ers had a full outdoor sound system, so we could hear their techno all day, but it really set the mood. We had dinner and then drinks, and went into the show around 7:30 - all fresh and clean and ready. We watched Stereolab for a while, then The Pixies, and then right at 9:00, Radiohead came on. I don't think I have ever been to a concert that has started on time. Some photos:

This is what the parking lot looked like when we got there; and this is how close we got to park compared to everyone else:


This is an aerial view of Coachella:


This is me and Nicole just before going in:


This is me and Neil and Nicole just before going in:


This is me and Nicole:


This is the stage during Radiohead. Yes, this is as close as we got, but we didn't have to endure the 104 degree weather, blowing dust, or dehydration for fourteen hours to get a good spot either:


Here's Nicole and me dancing (maybe a little bit drunk):


Here's Nicole dancing in the shadow of my boobs (how often can you say a phrase like that?)


Here are all the people like us who stayed overnight in the parking lot:


Another shot of the morning after - those are people sleeping on the ground:





I LOVE COACHELLA (with a motorhome, of course). Radiohead was fantastic!!!!