It's still snowing! Ben is out with friends. Jack is in bed. I'm in the basement. It looks like this:

Despite the blizzard outside I made it to my salon. Some things are worth fighting for ;-)

Jack woke up crying this morning. He's had a cold all week. I don't know if it was bad dreams or a stuffy head or what. After some cuddling together in bed while petting Molly he recovered. (Not enough cuddling for me, but I'll take what I can get!) We had reheated chocolate chip pancakes and he laughed out loud at Kipper, his new favorite show, before I left.

Last night I had the pleasure of going straight from work to open spinning night at Fancy Tiger. It was actually pretty fun! I was overly proud of myself for socializing with other adults- and strangers, no less! We didn't talk about dialysis or babies and it was wonderful. We oooed and awed over Em's angora bunny pictures and Dan's silk and baby camel blend roving ($50/oz!). We discussed the burgeoning possum fiber industry and environmental motivations. (Where I suggested that possum fiber needs a better sounding name, like angora for rabbits, if it wants to sell. I nominated "posoma."). Beers were offered and much yarn was spun. I drastically improved my drafting technique just by watching others.

I'm indebted to Ben for letting me be out at work and play all day while he wiped noses and cooked a delicious chili dinner. Tonight I give him my blessing to go to the One-Up bar with friends, or whatever they decide to do. I also look forward to aunt Amanda babysitting tomorrow night so we can see The Artist. We just don't date enough. Does anyone have teenagers they can recommend? I'd gladly accept phone numbers.

Ps: this blog title is a Parks and Rec quote. So is "I do want that. Please do that for me." That had Ben and me in stitches last night.

Jack likes to put keys in things to see if they will fit. When he started on the ottoman tonight Ben gave him an Allen wrench. After just a few minutes of work Jack had a very loose screw. Thanks Ben. Can't wait for the poang to collapse on me tomorrow. :-)

PS I'm doing a lot better. No narcs for a couple days and just a little ache at work. Driving is the worst.

PPS a rare early shift end with no call attached! We are off to Jose O'Sheas for dinner!

This is me for most of the week.  Sunday night I was writing at a desk and stretched back, like I have before thousands of times.  But, for whatever fluke reason, this time a nerve in my neck was pinched.  I had sharp neck pain, muscle spasms down my upper back and under my shoulder blade, and transient right arm numbness.  Hoping it would go away after a night's rest I went to work Monday morning.  But it only got worse.  I left midday and went straight to my doctor.  She provided a note to excuse work, an Aleve regimen, and prescriptions for Vicodin and Soma (a muscle relaxant). 

Luckily I already had three days off mid-week, so I really only missed one afternoon of work.  Since then I have been on my back in the basement with an electric heating pad.  I had to miss dance rehearsal Tuesday, although Amanda video chatted me from the stage so I could give some pointers.  Yesterday Ben drove me up to Bailey so I could teach.  It was hard for me not to demonstrate full-out, but the kids really stepped up and learned quickly. 

Jack has been super cuddly.  Ben has been a dear taking care of me.  I can't really complain about the rest.  As illnesses go this one has a fun treatment.  My netflix and DVR queues are empty now.  I drove to a staff meeting today and experienced only aches rather than full on pain.  I hope I'm healed enough that finishing my two shifts Friday and Saturday won't be too strenuous. 

Sorry, boring post, I'm sure.  But I felt like documenting it.  Here's some photos from Sunday, where I spun some yarn before the injury started acting up.

And here are photos of me playing with Jack at the Tattered Cover, courtesy of Amanda.  I haven't synced my phone for photos from my folk's visit yet.  It was really fun to see them.  We ate well, did a lot of shopping, and Jack was showered with attention. 



I better lay back down.

Grandparents make different choices than parents.

This is fun! I finished this hat in a week. I improvised the fair isle. I had to re-knit it three times before finding a pattern that would fit this yarn. But I really like the simple snowflake in the edge. This hat is super warm too. We're having a warm, windy spell in Denver now, so I look forward to chilly days to put this hat to the test.

The special thing about this hat is I made it from home-spun yarn! The gray was the first skein I ever spun, using a drop spindle. The ivory was the first yarn I spun on my wheel, made double ply. Both are natural colors from corridale sheep. My coworkers were suitably perplexed/impressed (perpressed? implexed?) that I made this.

I'm on call tonight, my last shift of the week.  I hope I don't go in.  My folks are on their way to visit for the weekend and I'd really like to have a relaxing dinner with them.  They should be implexed by his recent growth spurt.

I've hit a choreography style writer's block.  Gaston is a rousing, mug-clinking dance number.  There's a bit of music that has me dumbfounded.  I should just glaze over it and go by counts instead of awkward music writing, but I just can't put moves to paper.  I hope a little procrastination forces me ahead - I have to teach it next week!  The good news is Amanda found a classroom with mirrors that we can use for rehearsal.  The kids have so little body awareness.  Using mirrors should boost there form immensely.