Gross.

Gross.

View through my bedroom window because that's as close to this mess as I'm voluntarily willing to get.

I had enough breakfast DoorDashed to me to last a few days. Not going outside until I have to go back to work.

I am far too hype this early in the morning.

I am far too hype this early in the morning. I got to work and checked my email and there is an add on called "Free Blocks" in the company Gmail. I LOVE IT. I think that's gonna be really handy for scheduling meetings.

I also discovered that we have something called "Layouts" so we can send branded emails or just really beautifully designed emails rather than plain text. That might have been there for a while - I don't even know - but I just noticed it.

I'm such a nerd for office stuff and tech. This day is off to a good start! 😁😁😁

Meia came to work...

Meia came to work this past week to teach us some stuff. I was SO, SO happy to see her. It had been too long! We hung out every day after work and it was amazing.

One night while we were out I mentioned that I wanted to take a helicopter tour and she said she was up for going with me... so I booked it immediately! It was a beautiful day - perfect weather, nearing sunset - it was so much fun!

I've wanted to do this for years. I found out that they also do light tours nearer to the holidays. I'm already booked for that. If I gotta be out here away from my family I might as well have whatever fun I can! Don't mind me; I'm just tryna live my best life!

Pardon my face. The excitement was TOO REAL. 😂😂😂

I feel like rambling, so... here I go.

I feel like rambling, so... here I go.

I got some skating in today.  The weather here is really cold in the morning, but sometimes it's the 60s - 70s° F in the afternoon.  Today was gorgeous and I should have spent more time outside, but I did what I felt like doing.  I almost fell on my face due to running over a rock that I didn't see, but I caught myself.  One side of my back hurts a bit when I skate lately.  I don't know if I'm doing my posture wrong or what, but I'm not a huge fan of that.

There is apparently a very nice women's care center here in Cincy and I have an appointment there on Friday.  They do a range of things excluding ob, which is fine because that is not what I need.  I probably need my hormones checked and this IUD checked.  I'm so grateful for the care I'm able to get now that I'm out of Alabama.  I know there is a lot to love about Alabama.  It's beautiful.  But I will never live there again.  I love myself too much to put me through that.

I'm gonna talk about my ears now.  I used to wear earrings all the time, but when I worked at my last job I stopped.  I spent so much time on the phone there that my earrings were uncomfortable and I eventually just said "Screw it" and took them out.  This probably happened in about 2010.  (Btw, I'm not blaming anyone and I wasn't even upset about removing my earrings - it was a choice I made and it was fine.)  My lower lobe piercings were a size 2 gauge at that point, I believe.

I could've decided to start wearing earrings again anytime in the last 5 years because I haven't spent much time with a phone held to my ear, but I never did.  It's no secret that I was in a rut about my appearance by the time I graduated college... and during school there was a lot more to think about than my ears, as was also the case after graduation and with us moving.  And to be honest I was kind of over the "body jewelry / all that's available are barbells / horseshoes / captive-bead-rings / variations on that" type of look.

Anyway, at work a lot of the people have stretched lobes and it looks so good and I have started to miss my holes.  The guys at work usually wear very nice-looking plugs and I finally decided to see if anything had changed since I last shopped for earrings and OH MY.  YES.  YES IT HAS.

Ok, so...there is some really beautiful stuff out there.  Nice wood and stone plugs and tunnels (instead of just metal or acrylic plugs with like, peace signs or someone flipping the bird or pot leaves on them).  Not only that, but there are dangly plugs and tunnels with dangles that thread through!  I'm so fucking excited!!!  I love dangly and pretty earrings!  Obviously, now that I'm making the big bucks I ordered (quite) a few pairs of earrings.  In a size 2 gauge.  That - as you might have guessed - will not even think about fitting in my ear holes. 😂😂😂

That means I had to order some smaller stuff, too, to get back to my old size.  I misjudged and thought I could get a 10 gauge in there... nope.  I've shrank all the way back to a 14 gauge.  I've gotta start over basically from the beginning.  But that's ok.  It's a journey!

I liked my ears at a 2 gauge.  Not too big, but big enough to see through.  I'll be able to wear my old jewelry or my new stuff.  And I've also been thinking of ways to modify my EVEN OLDER regular earrings so that I can wear them, as well.  I love the threading-through tunnels idea.  I think it looks so cute!  I know that's not exactly a new idea, but I definitely like the way it's being done with petite little chains better than what we were doing before.

Well, I have a little bit of homework to do for my job.  Yesterday was the office Halloween party and this precious pupper was there (his name is Chewy and we wore him out with ALL OF THE ATTENTION) and I think most of us got VERY LITTLE done.  Kelsey dressed up as Wednesday Addams.  I went as Three-Hole-Punch Blu.  If you don't get my costume, then you clearly are not a fan of The Office.  The few people who got it appreciated it, so that was nice.  But yeah, we have a group presentation coming up on Tuesday with a test run on Monday, so I'd like to go ahead and get my part finished.

I hope you all are doing well!  I am.  I really am.  I miss home, but I started to realize yesterday how much I'm going to miss my office mates when it's time to head back.  But there are bigger problems to have, so I'll take it.  Talk to you all soon!  ❤️

Someone rescue me...

Someone rescue me from this cold, wet hell. I'm having to defrost my car. Gross.

Today has been rough.

Today has been rough.  I'm about to talk about my period and IUD, so fair warning on that.

I think I'm starting perimenopause.  For much of this past year I've been a sweaty mess at night.  That wasn't a huge sign for me - maybe I was simply hot.  But my current menstrual cycle was (I'll spare you the details) almost a week late and a bit weird.  I'm usually like clockwork, but lately the lead-up to actually bleeding has been longer and longer.  Like I'll feel like it should be here, but it's not.  So PMS has definitely changed for the worse because it's been dragging out.  Such fun.

I was never much of a cramper before, but since having my IUDs I have been.  I can live with cramps, but what hit me this morning had me considering Ubering to an ER (because there is no way I could have driven).  I love my ParaGard IUD, but I'm thinking that our time together has come to an end.  This is not the first time I've felt like I was giving birth to it.  If anyone has ever had one inserted and had their cervix sounded open beforehand, then you know exactly the feeling I'm talking about.  (Btw, that feeling is totally worth it ONE TIME for the security / effectiveness of this birth control, but not so tolerable for a random or monthly occurrence.)

There have been some non-period times that I've sat the wrong way and it hurts in my cervix - which I know is not normal.  There have been quite a few times that has happened and left me catching my breath from the pain.  Today was even worse, though.  I'm kind of wondering if this IUD has embedded in me somewhere.  I can't think of a reason why a cramping uterus would hurt my cervix so much, especially if this never happened before I got this last one.

Anyway.  Fun times.  While I was having the doom cramps and considering just dying in the bathtub so as not to leave a huge mess when I inevitably gave birth to my insides, Shaun was looking up places in my area that I could go for help.  I'll be calling and trying to make an appointment this week because I don't think I can deal with perimenopause changes AND extra pain from an IUD.

Or, I just need to find out if I'm correct with my self-diagnoses here because I could be totally wrong about what's going on.  Either way, today was NOT ok and now that I'm working I don't need to have chunks of time where I am straight-up not functional - especially if they are expected to possibly happen monthly.

After the cramping subsided, I slept for a few more hours and re-started this day.  I've been crampy, but ok since the doom cramps subsided.  Hopefully, that doesn't happen again.

I hope you all are doing well.  I'm not 100%, but I'm ok and I'm hanging in here.  ❤

Every morning I wake up and am SHOCKED...

Every morning I wake up and am SHOCKED by this. Kelsey leaves her coffee and sometimes her breakfast on the counter unattended while she showers. My first instinct is to put it somewhere "safe."

I have endured enough kid spills (as well as cat feet and dog noses) in my food and drink for so long that leaving anything without a lid alone is insanity to me.

Yet here her coffee (and often breakfast) sits, undisturbed. 😳🤯🤯🤯

It really is a whole different world out here for me. 😂😂😂

P. S. I love her cauldron mug. ☕🧹