i think i was wrong about my toe being broken
i think it is just badly sprained
not that the swelling has gone down
it is easier to tell
that is good
though it still hurts to walk
and running is out of the question
but it will heal much faster
not that i am planning to do much running in the near future

i feel a bit embarrassed about the confusion
but it's really not a big deal
i always feel as if i've failed when i'm wrong about something
i need to let myself be human
even if being human makes my skin crawl a bit
a bit of internalized anthropophobia

tonight was the last night of the bird meds
i am glad
tomorrow we will find if dubbins is better
i am worried

tomorrow is also paddington's grooming appointment
i moved it to tomorrow so purpleglitter could drive
because i had a not-broken toe
a strain would have stopped me to
so either way
tomorrow
which might be today by some people's estimation
but i don't change the day until neitherday has passed
the penny plan goes through neitherday
the day changes at 4am

i am tired
i must be up early
i should go to bed now
but i probably won't

Skye is at Angell Memorial. She was admitted last night and is egg bound. She has an abnormally large egg in her. She's getting an additional calcium shot tonight, but if she hasn't passed the egg by morning our options are ovocentesis or prostaglandin. Both are risky. purpleglitter and I have decided on ovocentesis because we believe skye is more likely to be able to fight the risks associated with ovocentesis. We are also considering having her oviduct removed. The procedure is risky on a budgie, but so is her reoccurring problem with egg binding. Further, while introducing its own risks, having her oviduct removed would eliminate one of the key risks of ovocentesis: remaining bits of shell creating a future blockage.

Please keep Skye in your thoughts and prayers.

I saw Truman in the compost heap last night, so I know he's alright.

I made taro fries last night and they were good. Simple to make: just cut up a taro root; toss with olive oil, garlic powder, and pepper; place on a cookie sheet; and throw in the oven at 450°F (230°C, 510 K) until crisp.

I haven't made them since I moved out of the house_of_clocks, mostly because I don't make it down to the Super 88 very often since I moved here. That probably won't change, as I cook mainly for purpleglitter now and she doesn't like the food from the Super 88 except Pocky, taro and a very few other items. We only ended up getting the taro because we went with invalid_userid to pick up food for her stay.

From the The Universal Household Assistant or What Every One Should Know (1884):

Cockroaches — ways to destroy. — 1. The disagreeable odor which the cockroach emits, and which soon permeates all places that it inhabits, proceeds from a dark colored fluid which it discharges from the mouth. The cockroach loves warmth and moisture, hence its populousness in kitchens where fire and water are almost ever present. It is a night prowler, and swarms out from its secret lairs on the departure of daylight.    For the destruction of the cockroach we recommend a mixture containing a tablespoonful of red lead, the same amount of indian meal, with molasses enough to make a thick batter. Set this on a plate at night in places frequented by the insects and all that eat of it will be poisoned. Another preparation is composed of one teaspoonful of powdered arsenic, with a tablespoonful of mashed potato. Crumble this every night at bed-time where the insects will find it, and it is said to be an effectual poison. Great care should be exercised in the use of such dangerous agents. An innocent method of destroying cockroaches is to place a bowl or basin containing a little molasses on the floor at night. A bit of wood, resting one end on the floor and the other on the edge of the vessel, serves as a bridge to conduct the insects to the sweet deposit. Once in the trap its slippery sides prevent retreat, and thus cockroaches may be caught by the thousands.    2. The following i said to be effectual: these vermin are easily destroyed, simply by cutting up green cucumbers at night, and placing them about where roaches commit depredations. What is cut from the cucumbers in preparing them for the table answers the purpose as well, and three applications will destroy all the roaches in the house. Remove the peelings in the morning and renew them at night.    3. Common red wafers, to be found at any stationers, will answer the purpose. The cockroaches eat them and die. Also, sprinkle powdered borax plentifully around where "they most do congregate," and renew it occasionally; in a short time not a roach will be seen. This is a safe and most effectual exterminator.    4. Borax is a very good cockroach exterminator. Take some pieces of board, spread them over with molasses, only sufficient to make the borax when sprinkled upon it stick, and place the boards in their haunts. Gum camphor is a speedy remedy to clear the house of cockroaches.

From the The Universal Household Assistant or What Every One Should Know (1884):

Things to try. — Try popcorn for nausea.    Try cranberries for malaria.    Try a sun-bath for rheumatism.    Try ginger ale for stomach cramps.    Try clam broth for a weak stomach.    Try cranberry poultice for erysipelas.    Try a wet towel to the back of the neck when sleepless.    Try swallowing saliva when troubled with sour stomach.    Try eating fresh radishes and yellow turnips for gravel.    Try eating onions and horseradish to relieve dropsical swellings.    Try buttermilk for removal of freckles, tan, and butternut stains.    Try taking your cod liver oil in tomato catsup, if you want to make it palatable.    Try hard cider -- a wine-glass three times a day -- for ague and rheumatism.    Try taking a nap in the afternoon if you are going to be out late in the evening.    Try breathing the fumes of turpentine or carbolic acid to remove whooping cough.    Try a cloth wrung out from cold water put about the neck at night for sore throat.    Try snuffing powdered borax up the nostrils for catarrhal "cold in the head."    Try walking with your hands behind you if you find yourself becoming bent forward.    Try a silk handkerchief over the face when obliged to go against a cold piercing wind.    Try planting sunflowers in your garden if compelled to live in a malarial district.

From the The Universal Household Assistant or What Every One Should Know (1884):

Worms — treatment of. — Some members of the profession still cling with bull-dog tenacity to the opinion that worms do not affect the health of children, and that they are natural to them. The latter may or may not be true, but when they accumulate in the intestines, they produce the same disturbance that any foreign, indigestible substance would do. We find the picking of the nose, swollen lower eye-lids, restlessness in sleep, groaning, gritting teeth, starting, and lastly, spasms.    Worms kill more children than teething*; and when you find the above symptoms with a strawberry tongue and a fever, which will attack several times daily, going off as frequently in cold sweats, you can swear that you have a case of worms, and had as well prepare and attack them.    Now as to the best means of getting rid of them. I use the fluid extract of senna and spigelia in teaspoon doses for patients of eight or ten years of age, and less in proportion, night and morning, for three nights and days, following this up each morning with a good dose of castor oil, provided the senna and spigelia does not act. Then wait three days, and again institute the same proceedings, and for the same length of time.    This treatment is for the lumbricoid. For the oxyuris, or "thread worm," I see any bitter infusion by enema, sulph, quinine, followed by an enema of common salt and milk-warm water half an hour afterward, which will destroy and expel them.    The symptoms of the presence of the worm are the same as the scratching of the anus. If every practitioner will use these he will be gratified by the restoration to immediate health of many a little sufferer, who would otherwise linger in sickness for many months and perhaps eventually die.    Worms in Horses — to cure. — A remedy for worms in a horse which has never failed of a cure is to take half a cup of pure, hard wood ashes, finely sifted and mixed dry with the mash or food. If one dose should not prove sufficient, repeat it after a day or two.    Worm Lozenges. — Powdered lump sugar, ten ounces; starch, five ounces; mix with mucilage; and to every ounce add twelve grains of calomel; divide into twenty grain lozenges. Dose, two to six.    Worm Medicines. — 1. Two tablespoonfuls of pumpkin seeds peeled and pulverized, or given to a child who will chew fine. The seed does not kill, but stupefies the worm. The next day give castor oil or any other cathartic, and if the worms are present in the system they will pass off.    2. Make an infusion in the proportion of one pint of boiling water to one ounce of dried hyssop flowers; let it stand ten minutes; pour it off into a wine bottle, and take a wine-glass, or rather less, according to age, two or three times a day.

* Teething was thought to be a common cause infant mortality in the 19^th century, however most "teething deaths" were actually caused by opium poising from the opium and morphine teething infants were treated with.

From the The Universal Household Assistant or What Every One Should Know (1884):

Health — secrets for. — First, keep warm. Second, eat regularly and slowly. Third, maintain regular bodily habits. Fourth, take early and very light suppers, or, better still, none at all. Fifth, keep a clear skin. Sixth, get plenty of sleep at night. Seventh, keep a cheerful and respectable company. Eight, keep out of debt. Ninth, don't set your mind on things you don't need. Tenth, mind your own business. Eleventh, don't set up to be a sharp of any kind. Twelfth, subdue curiosity.

I love the last one: Trust us, you really don't want to know.

There were some somewhat shriveled grape tomatoes in the refrigerator. Still technically edible, but too shriveled for purpleglitter to eat and I detest eating tomatoes whole.

I know there are plenty of animals around that would love them, so I went out to the fence at the end of the driveway and threw them into the backyard sometime after 2am. I didn't throw them all at once so as not to make a loud noise.

After one throw that reached the trees near the back fence, I heard high pitched yellings and hissings of complaint. I'm guessing the opossum I've previously seen skulking about was in the brush and got nailed by a tomatoe. Grape tomatoes are small and are unlikely to have actually injured the opossum, so the interaction was simply humorous. Maybe eating the tomatoes will make up for getting nailed.

Yesterday, sophiaserpentia commented that she had heard Domina at Club Choices was canceled, but indicated that she was unsure of the accuracy of what she heard. To confirm this I looked online, but could only find one source and wasn't sure who the source was or how accurate they were. I called the number on the flier and the person who answered (apparently it's the promoter's cell number) didn't know if the night was happening or not. She said she'd call someone else and find out. Victor called after I did and she told him it was not canceled. So, we went and it was canceled. In my opinion, if you're going to put your number on promotional material under "Call for more info:", then you should be in the loop about the night. The people running the night really need to get it together.

We ended up going to Queeraoke at the Ramrod. I'd never been to the Ramrod before, but like anywhere I've gone with Victor he seemed to know everyone. I actually got up and sang, only the second time I've done karaoke. Unlike when I went as Phil to Glitterswitch Drag Karaoke at Club Hollywood many years ago, I wasn't absolutely horrible. I'm sure I wasn't memorably good by any stretch of the imagination, but at least this time I wasn't memorably bad.

My friend type_40, who I had a late meal with at Denny's tonight, has been dismayed about the lack of a decent forum dedicated to the old Doctor Who series. To rectify this, I created classic_who and set up the profile for her. I then handed her the reigns. Not much there yet; but if you are interested – go ahead and check it out.

Yesterday was wonderful. I couldn't wait until evening, so I took the bus out to Burlington to meet up with purpleglitter for lunch during her break. If it weren't for the infrequentness of the buses, I would meet her for lunch more regularly.

When she arrived home after work, purpleglitter brought me a dozen roses, one for each year we've been together. She took me out to Vinny T's for dinner, which was the perfect choice. Back at her house, we had champagne and chatted away the night. We had planned to watch Tipping the Velvet, but never got around to playing the movie.

Quiet, romantic, happy. I couldn't have asked for a better anniversary.

Good morning.

I had a wonderful thanksgiving. In yesterday's post on thanks giving, I wrote about one aspect of thankfulness. However, there are many aspects of thankfulness and there is much I am thankful for. The following is an incomplete list:

I am thankful to have been able to spend a holiday with my sister, brother-in-law, and niece. I am thankful to be able to call them family. I am thankful for the rest of my family, both found and blood. I am thankful that I have a home to head to, and that when I get there I will not have to worry about having enough to eat. I am thankful that I can express my thanks online. I am thankful that, even if I have problems with it sometimes, I have access to medical care. I am thankful that I live in a place that I can leave my house anytime day or night and be relatively safe. I am thankful for the kisses I get from Skye. I am thankful for Spy Pond. And, I am thankful that I am not so bitter and jaded that I could not be thankful for the blessing I have received.

Good returns from yesterday. I stayed up to around 1am watching them come in, then went to bed. It seems that Bush might actually have to deal with reality.

I'm confident that the democrats will pull off at least a 50-50 split in the senate, which while still giving Republicans the edge would probably lead to a system of sharing committees and staff budget as it did last time. The democrats could still pull off a complete victory and take the senate – they hold the edge in both still-contested seats but they have to take both of them.

Is it just me or do critical election results drag on more than they used to. Yeah, I know there have been historic messes such as Hayes vs. Tilden, but the frequency of messes seems to have greatly increased of late.