Another late-night Sunday post...

Another late-night Sunday post that probably no one is going to see, but it's ok.  I'm doing it anyway.  😃

I don't know if anyone has noticed, but this weekend I got some stuff done.  I did homework, studied, made nail decals and actually put them on my nails... I even finished a necklace for Emily and started a new one for a friend of Shadow.  Did a load of dishes and cleaned the kitchen, got together the recycling with the help of the kid, and even put away my laundry.

That might sound like just normal life stuff that most people do all the time, but for me it felt amazing.  I hadn't realized how little I was able to accomplish before until I was able to do things again.   I can't say with 100% certainty that it was due to my arthritis meds, but I really believe that's what it was.  In its list of known side effects were fatigue and brain fog - not to mention nausea and migraines... the last two on the list being the reason I quit taking it a few weeks ago.

On the bright side I feel more energetic and able to think, but the downside is that my skin is starting to break out and the joint ache is settling back in.  It's not terrible yet, but if it gets as bad as it did when I decided that I needed to see a doctor I'll need assistance getting up stairs, at the very least.  School has elevators, and at work I have Shaun, so I guess I'm covered.  But it really sucks living with pain like that.  It wears you down.  😕

Since I am uninsured this year probably the only medication available to me will be the one I just quit, both because it has a low risk of major side effects and because it's the least expensive.  Thankfully, I have some left if I need to go back on it and I honestly imagine that is how I'll get through this year - on and off methotrexate.  That is not my favorite way to do things, but I don't have a lot of choices right now.

Anyway.  Just my thoughts on things right now.  If any of you have any OTC ways that you deal with arthritis pain, let me know.  Mine is caused by inflammation (my body attacking my skin and joints), so NSAIDs are my go-to.  I don't feel great about taking an ass-ton of Ibuprofen, but I've been told that I could take up to 800mg at a time if need be.  Maybe I will start there and see how it goes.

Well, ❤ to all my friends and goodnight.  Tomorrow is a busy day.

Just a test decal I started.

Just a test decal I started. I saw the idea of a butterfly over lace on a YouTube video. The person was using a different method, but I think I can make it work in decal form. All of the previous decals I made only required stamping once, but doing it this way will require stamping twice.

Biggest mistake? Not using holo pink and purple on the butterfly because holo makes everything better. 😃 The polishes I used on the butterfly were actually too sheer, but that's the purpose of a test. I'll know better when I actually start making these for real. I think it will look nice over a nude pink.

You can see a glimpse of my new mat and ever-messy work space. Also, check out the rainbows on my thumb, even in indoor lighting. Woo! 😃

I've been working on Trig homework today.

I've been working on Trig homework today.  At first I was like "OH NO!!!," but now I'm like, "I'm ok.  It's ok.  I think I get it."

We are graphing Trig functions.  SOMEHOW, I went from hating graphs to loving graphs in Ms. Wheelers class over the past two semesters.  I am so grateful for that.  And now the graphs are getting more interesting!  Curvy lines, woohoo!  😃

I feel like I started off really shaky in Trig, but the longer I go the better I feel about it.  I'm sure that my teacher is saying things, but a lot of it I don't feel like I get AT ALL until I get in there and start doing it.  That's a very scary way to get through a class, but I'm making it.

I went over my newest set of Biology notes yesterday and I plan to do it again before the weekend is up, too.  Now that things are levelizing in my life back to some sort of normal I need to super focus and get back on top of things.  No more failed Biology tests and no more B grades in a math class.  😉

Ok, so this is definitely not my most fabulous photo.

Ok, so this is definitely not my most fabulous photo.  I know that you aren't really supposed to take pics in full sunlight - BUT THE RAINBOWS.  😳

I am not even about to admit how late I stayed up doing my nails, but I was having a lot of fun.  I finally ended up getting the nail art mat I wanted, so I was dying to play with it.  The holo swirls are actually more stamping decals, but instead of being made on a stamper they were made WITH a stamper, ON the mat.  Which for me - since I don't have quite a thousandy stampers yet - meant that I could make enough decals for all of my fingers at one time.  And I did.

So why only 3 on this hand?  Well, the time was getting ridiculous and since it was my first go at making them, not all of them turned out perfect and that's just not gonna cut it.  LOL  On my best days I have perfectionist, OCD, tendencies, but in times of stress it gets worse.  MUCH worse.  I have a ton of homework this weekend, so I couldn't be using some ugly, janky decals on my right hand.  LOL

So my left hand is fully adorned in decals, but mostly because I was making sure I I was doing a great job at getting them put down without messing them up.  These were a little thicker because you had to start with two coats of clear, unlike the ones made on the stamper where you start with the stamp only.  I used some of the less-great ones on that hand (because it's the test hand!  LOL), but it's ok.  Lefty is allowed to be janky, for some reason.  I can't explain it.

Anyway.  I used 8 different holo polishes to fill in the swirls and I love how in the sunlight the holo-ness sometimes makes them blend, like you can't tell where one color starts and the next stops.  Might be a thing that only happens in person, but dang - I'm really happy with these.

So the stars?  Yeah, I can't even fathom the idea of having all matching nails. I can't.  I just can't.  I mean, with all of the choices of things you can do it almost seems wrong to make them all the same.

Finally got around to putting on my other stamping decal.

Finally got around to putting on my other stamping decal.  This isn't the one you saw before - it's actually rather crooked on the ring finger of my left hand.  😛  I put it on my left hand because I had to clear it to soften it back up since it had been sitting for so many days.  That actually worked for this, even though it didn't for the glitter decal.  Maybe that's the difference.  Anyway.  Since I cleared it rather than top-coated it (topcoat makes it tougher), I accidentally smudged the kitten, so I banished it to my left hand, which often looks like crap and weirdness in comparison to the right.  LOL

Anyway.  Crap-tastic, rainy, cloudy day - not great for wearing a beautiful holo polish that makes rainbows in the sunlight, but I didn't check the weather before doing my nails the other day. Oh well.  It's still pretty and though I normally hate wearing white polish, this was ok.  It's probably coming off soon, though.  LOL  There is only so much I can take.

I am super embarrassed to admit this...

I am super embarrassed to admit this, but I failed my Biology test.  She posted grades on Monday, but I thought "That can't be right."  She handed out the test today and it had a big old 58 right on there.  We didn't get the test  - only our answers so I still feel like I can't believe it.

I actually felt ok about that test and I hadn't planned to beat myself up if I'd made a C given how the past 2 - 3 weeks of my life have gone.  But an F?  Seriously?  I'm having so many emotions.  Fury is one of them.  I can't even fathom how or why that happened.  Like - I literally can't wrap my brain around it.  I feel like I need to see the test and my answers at the same time.  I emailed her to ask if we could meet.  I just need to see this beyond a shadow of a doubt for myself.

Everyone else is like "That's not bad for her class."  Um, I don't give a shit if it's hard.  That is like, literally unbelievably bad for me.  😳

Just took my Biology test. I don't feel horrible about it.

Just took my Biology test.  I don't feel horrible about it.  If I made a B, that's ok.  The last two-ish weeks were bad and there is only so much I can do.  I guess I could have stayed home and not watched a movie yesterday, but my guys were going and I really don't go out often.  I just wanted to, and sometimes that's a good enough reason - for me, anyway.  I'm responsible and productive like, most of the time, so yeah.

Anyway.  I have to finish Trig before tonight and get ready for class and that long, dark drive.  Thankfully, I made a lot of progress on it over the weekend, but there were a few hard problems I skipped, plus the latest section on graphing.  Maybe after this I can call myself caught up!  That sure would feel nice.  🙂

Happy Monday, y'all.  I think this is the first one I haven't hated in a while.  ❤