The good news is that I did actually manage to make 4 beads today. The not so good news is that means I won't have anything to offer you tomorrow. I want to make another 5-6 beads to complete the set, and since I'll be working in my day job (yawn) for the next 5 days, I won't get any opportunity now to fire up the torch until at least next Saturday.
I had high hopes of finishing the set I started today, unfortunately, my back and associated sciatic pain had other ideas. After each bead I had to stop for 20 minutes to walk around the house to ease the leg pain. The problem is I find myself automatically sitting in a certain position when I'm at the torch, and wouldn't you know it, it's the ONE position that is guaranteed to aggravate the hell out of my sciatica. It was that bad that after each bead, and reaching down to put it the kiln - which only finds me bending over slightly - I'd get this awful burning/stinging pain shooting into my thigh and calf. And wouldn't you know it, it was a good beadmaking day too - the first in over a month where I *really* felt like I could have made beads for hours.
This back pain and sciatica is really starting to get me down. It was truly awful this morning - I had a major coughing fit and I was in agony the whole time. I couldn't sit, I couldn't stand, I couldn't lie down - anything I did made the pain worse, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't stop coughing, and the more I coughed, the worse the leg pain became.
Oh well, such is life.
So next Saturday I am definitely going to put the finishing touches on the set I started today. I doubt very much I'll have much chance to do it next Sunday, as Russ & I, and Yvonne & Farid, are heading over to Frankston to celebrate Arthur's birthday (Hi Art - I know you read my notes from my blog on Facebook :-)), and it will no doubt be a very late night and we'll probably end up staying in Frankston on Saturday night.
In the meantime, I hope you have a good week, and I'll catch you again early next week with new beads.
Sunday, 29 June 2008
Friday, 27 June 2008
Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps. . .
. . . I may make beads tomorrow. Or perhaps not.
I don't know what's wrong with me lately. Any time I think about melting glass, I get this awful feeling in the pit of my stomach, closely followed by an anxiety attack. A huge part of me does want to make beads, but the smallest apathetic part, seems to be winning. I hope tomorrow that may change.
I love the smell of my studio. It's not something I can actually put into words, other than to say that the memory *behind* the smell is what draws me in there. I've actually gone into my studio every day the past week in a vain attempt to elicit some sort of excitement about the 'good old days' when I made beads for a living. The good news is that a small part of me *does* react to it, and the distinct possibility that I may melt glass again. Unfortunately, I'm not sure if I will be able to follow through with that.
I think a lot of it is to do with the dramas going on in my life at the moment. A huge part is Russ being out of work. All the memories of Ansett's demise back in 2001 are flooding back, and although I try my hardest not to become despondent, it's not easy. Then there's my job, which is getting me down big time. I put in 9 hours a day and I'm barely scraping together enough to make ends meet.
Oh, and then there's my back pain. As you may know if you're a regular reader of my blog (all 2 of you), I had a massive exacerbation of back pain in March, and its pretty much been with me ever since then. The back pain itself has eased off slightly (at least I can walk now), but now I have the added bonus of sciatica - something I have never had before. I first noticed it about 2 weeks ago whilst working in my day job - I use a footpedal for the transcription, and every time I lifted my left leg, I noticed I was getting a burning/stinging type sensation in the back of my left thigh. Since then, its moved to my butt, the side of my left thigh and down into my calf. And sleeping, or I should say, TRYING to sleep, has become a nightmare. I cannot get comfortable no matter what position I try. When I first try to get out of bed each morning, it's truly farcical with a combination of moaning, wincing, and then finally rolling out of bed.
I suppose a referral to an orthopaedic surgeon isn't far off. I've been putting it off for years, but it's quickly reaching the stage where I'm no doubt going to have to have some sort of investigation, such as a CT or MRI scan. I don't even want to entertain the idea of back surgery - what with Russ going in for surgery on his back fairly soon, and all the associated costs (and we don't have private health insurance). And in the meantime, I have to keep plodding along in my day job, which is only exacerbating the problem all the more. And that in itself is worrying me - with Russ out of work, I HAVE to be working - there is simply no choice.
I'm not sure how much longer I can go on like this, and frankly, I'm just sick of it all. I feel like running (hobbling) away and starting again. Unfortunately, wherever you go, there you are. I'm realistic enough to know I can't run away from my problems - I just have to find a way through them.
Anyway, tomorrow is another day, and maybe things will improve. I live in hope.
I don't know what's wrong with me lately. Any time I think about melting glass, I get this awful feeling in the pit of my stomach, closely followed by an anxiety attack. A huge part of me does want to make beads, but the smallest apathetic part, seems to be winning. I hope tomorrow that may change.
I love the smell of my studio. It's not something I can actually put into words, other than to say that the memory *behind* the smell is what draws me in there. I've actually gone into my studio every day the past week in a vain attempt to elicit some sort of excitement about the 'good old days' when I made beads for a living. The good news is that a small part of me *does* react to it, and the distinct possibility that I may melt glass again. Unfortunately, I'm not sure if I will be able to follow through with that.
I think a lot of it is to do with the dramas going on in my life at the moment. A huge part is Russ being out of work. All the memories of Ansett's demise back in 2001 are flooding back, and although I try my hardest not to become despondent, it's not easy. Then there's my job, which is getting me down big time. I put in 9 hours a day and I'm barely scraping together enough to make ends meet.
Oh, and then there's my back pain. As you may know if you're a regular reader of my blog (all 2 of you), I had a massive exacerbation of back pain in March, and its pretty much been with me ever since then. The back pain itself has eased off slightly (at least I can walk now), but now I have the added bonus of sciatica - something I have never had before. I first noticed it about 2 weeks ago whilst working in my day job - I use a footpedal for the transcription, and every time I lifted my left leg, I noticed I was getting a burning/stinging type sensation in the back of my left thigh. Since then, its moved to my butt, the side of my left thigh and down into my calf. And sleeping, or I should say, TRYING to sleep, has become a nightmare. I cannot get comfortable no matter what position I try. When I first try to get out of bed each morning, it's truly farcical with a combination of moaning, wincing, and then finally rolling out of bed.
I suppose a referral to an orthopaedic surgeon isn't far off. I've been putting it off for years, but it's quickly reaching the stage where I'm no doubt going to have to have some sort of investigation, such as a CT or MRI scan. I don't even want to entertain the idea of back surgery - what with Russ going in for surgery on his back fairly soon, and all the associated costs (and we don't have private health insurance). And in the meantime, I have to keep plodding along in my day job, which is only exacerbating the problem all the more. And that in itself is worrying me - with Russ out of work, I HAVE to be working - there is simply no choice.
I'm not sure how much longer I can go on like this, and frankly, I'm just sick of it all. I feel like running (hobbling) away and starting again. Unfortunately, wherever you go, there you are. I'm realistic enough to know I can't run away from my problems - I just have to find a way through them.
Anyway, tomorrow is another day, and maybe things will improve. I live in hope.
Sunday, 22 June 2008
Move Along . . .
. . . there's nothing to see here.
No beads. No interesting news to share. The only thing to look forward to is another week of work - ha!
The days all merge into one long cycle of waking up, working for 9 hours, going to bed, waking up, working for 9 hours, going to bed, waking up, working for 9 hours, going to bed. You get the picture. I think the appropriate description is "same sh*t, different day".
My life is starting to read like a bad soap opera.
The one bit of good news, well good news for me anyway, is that I'm in ketosis, meaning I'm burning fat, thanks to going back to low-carbing. I also feel much healthier and have way more energy. Yay for me.
Oh, and please, don't email me about how bad low-carb diets are - it's BS. I've had every blood test known to man whilst low-carbing, and everything is completely normal. My diet consists of loads of vegetables, certain fruits, and protein. Believe me when I tell you I eat loads of healthy foods, and certainly not half a cow at each meal. I'm not really that much of a meat eater - I prefer fish and soy products such as tofu.
If you THINK you know what low-carbing entails, and have no other information to base that assumption on other than the 'spin doctoring' provided by journalists (aka scum of the earth), then you really don't have a clue. If you want to know why obesity and diabetes have increased so dramatically over the last 20 years - I'll tell you. It's due to the obsession with the low-fat diet. What do you think is replaced when fat is removed? Sugar. Sugar is quite simply white death. If you don't want to low-carb, but want to remain healthy, at the very least remove sugar and processed foods from your diet (ie. white bread, potatoes, cookies, junk food, etc). They are bad, bad news.
No beads. No interesting news to share. The only thing to look forward to is another week of work - ha!
The days all merge into one long cycle of waking up, working for 9 hours, going to bed, waking up, working for 9 hours, going to bed, waking up, working for 9 hours, going to bed. You get the picture. I think the appropriate description is "same sh*t, different day".
My life is starting to read like a bad soap opera.
The one bit of good news, well good news for me anyway, is that I'm in ketosis, meaning I'm burning fat, thanks to going back to low-carbing. I also feel much healthier and have way more energy. Yay for me.
Oh, and please, don't email me about how bad low-carb diets are - it's BS. I've had every blood test known to man whilst low-carbing, and everything is completely normal. My diet consists of loads of vegetables, certain fruits, and protein. Believe me when I tell you I eat loads of healthy foods, and certainly not half a cow at each meal. I'm not really that much of a meat eater - I prefer fish and soy products such as tofu.
If you THINK you know what low-carbing entails, and have no other information to base that assumption on other than the 'spin doctoring' provided by journalists (aka scum of the earth), then you really don't have a clue. If you want to know why obesity and diabetes have increased so dramatically over the last 20 years - I'll tell you. It's due to the obsession with the low-fat diet. What do you think is replaced when fat is removed? Sugar. Sugar is quite simply white death. If you don't want to low-carb, but want to remain healthy, at the very least remove sugar and processed foods from your diet (ie. white bread, potatoes, cookies, junk food, etc). They are bad, bad news.
Tuesday, 17 June 2008
For Russ. . .
Since Russ is always scratching his head in frustration when trying to work me out, I thought I'd help him. According to the MBTI (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator), I'm an INTJ - aka known as an Introvert, iNtuitive, Thinking, Judging type personality.
So DH, this is for you. Read it, and make sure you're taking notes (paying particular attention to point 3):
Dealing with INTJs:
So DH, this is for you. Read it, and make sure you're taking notes (paying particular attention to point 3):
Dealing with INTJs:
- Be willing to back up your statements with facts - or at least some pretty sound reasoning.
- Don't expect them to respect you or your viewpoints just because you say so. INTJ respect must be earned.
- Be willing to concede when you are wrong. The average INTJ respects the truth over being "right". Withdraw your erroneous comment and admit your mistake and they will see you as a very reasonable person. Stick to erroneous comments and they will think you are an irrational idiot and treat everything you say as being questionable.
- Try not to be repetitive. It annoys them.
- Do not feed them a line of bull.
- Expect debate. INTJs like to tear ideas apart and prove their worthiness. They will even argue a point they don't actually support for the sake of argument.
- Do not mistake the strength of your conviction with the strength of your argument. INTJs do not need to believe in a position to argue it or argue it well. Therefore, it will take more than fervor to sway them.
- Do not be surprised at sarcasm.
- Remember that INTJs believe in workable solutions. They are extremely open-minded to possibilities, but they will quickly discard any idea that is unfeasible. INTJ open-mindedness means that they are willing to have a go at an idea by trying to pull it apart. This horrifies people who expect oohs and ahhs and reverence. The ultimate INTJ insult to an idea is to ignore it, because that means it's not even interesting enough to deconstruct.
This also means that they will not just accept any viewpoint that is presented to them. The bottom line is "Does it work?" - end discussion. - Do not expect INTJs to actually care about how you view them. They already know that they are arrogant bastards with a morbid sense of humor. Telling them the obvious accomplishes nothing.
Monday, 16 June 2008
I'm Starting to Wonder. . .
. . . if I will ever melt glass again. I really did have the best intentions of doing so this weekend, but then I spent Saturday relaxing, and on Sunday we went to Farid & Yvonne's house for a 'jam session' (Daniel, Russ' son that has been visting with us, is a fantastic drummer, Farid plays the bass guitar, and another friend, Kieran, joined us as the vocalist and playing acoustic guitar), and that was how we spent the afternoon. A large group of us then visited the local Mexican restaurant as a farewell dinner for Daniel (he's heading back to Tasmania in a few hours' time), and by the time that was all over, it was going on for midnight.
So, that's how I spent the weekend - doing everything but melting glass. I've also felt a little 'down in the dumps' the past few days. Not sure exactly why, but I think a large part of it is that I don't feel my vacation was quite long enough, and I'm just settling back into the usual work routine. Oh well, this too shall pass.
Anyway, I'll keep this post brief, as that's about all the news, if you can call it that, that I have to share. Maybe *next* weekend I'll make beads. Or maybe not.
Catch you soon.
So, that's how I spent the weekend - doing everything but melting glass. I've also felt a little 'down in the dumps' the past few days. Not sure exactly why, but I think a large part of it is that I don't feel my vacation was quite long enough, and I'm just settling back into the usual work routine. Oh well, this too shall pass.
Anyway, I'll keep this post brief, as that's about all the news, if you can call it that, that I have to share. Maybe *next* weekend I'll make beads. Or maybe not.
Catch you soon.
Friday, 13 June 2008
Checking In....
Just stopping by to say hi. My first week back at work has gone remarkably quickly, and thankfully, the weekend is here. I haven't been near the studio for around 3 weeks, and I'm hoping things will change tomorrow - I have a whole bunch of new glass my good friend, Tonia, sent me as a RAOGK (Random Act Of Glass Kindness) that I'm dying to try. A few of the silver glasses (which I will probably screw up, knowing me) and a whole host of other fab colours we can't get here in Oz. I'm hoping I WON'T screw it up.. but that remains to be seen. In any case, I do hope to have some new beads to offer you in the coming days.
Well, I better say TTFN and think about cooking something for dinner. Have a great weekend - catch you again soon.
Well, I better say TTFN and think about cooking something for dinner. Have a great weekend - catch you again soon.
Saturday, 7 June 2008
Good Times. . .
Honey, I'm home!
We just had the best time away. Unfortunately, it all went too quickly, but isn't that always the way when you're having fun? Russ and I arrived at Sambar Park on the Sunday afternoon, and spent the next few days pretty much doing nothing but relaxing. We caught up on our reading, lounged around the house, I played around on the laptop, and we enjoyed the occasional (LOL) glass of wine. Many hours were also spent in the hottub, and the evenings were chilly enough to light the open fire.
On Wednesday afternoon, our friends, Yvonne and Farid, arrived. After a few more glasses of wine, and cooking dinner on the BBQ, we all proceeded to spend a few hours in the hottub. Many jokes were made about how the 'plebs' were spending the night, how we'd given the butler the night off, and trying to come up with ideas as to how we could afford to buy the house and live there permanently! After the hottub, and more wine, we spent the next 3 hours in front of the fireplace whilst Russ & Farid serenaded us with their guitars. The evening was capped off with a glass or two of Russ' homemade Bailey's Irish Cream and we fell into bed in the wee hours, all feeling very content.
Thursday was spent in Mansfield eating brunch, then back to the house to settle in for a little while before heading out to a hotel at Jamieson for *the* most delicious steaks - and more wine, of course. Then back to the house to sit in front of the open fire again, where I proceeded to fall asleep for 3 hours whilst everyone else talked. Luckily Yvonne and Farid are used to me falling asleep at some point during the evening, so it was all good.
We checked out early Friday morning and leisurely made our way back home. Now we're back to reality, and I feel like the vacation was a million years ago! Seriously though, everyone seemed to have a fabulous time, and its made me realise that we need to get away more often.
And today is our 8th wedding anniversary. We have Russ' son, Daniel, up from Tasmania, and as I'm sitting here relaxing with a glass of wine (yes, I know it's early, but I'm still in vacation mode!) he's in the kitchen preparing an 8 course dinner for us. I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but for those not in the know, Daniel is in his last year of his apprenticeship as a chef. He's keeping the dishes as a surprise, but I know it includes prawns, oysters, racks of lamb, and quite a few other scrumptious delights. I ask you, does life get any better than this?
So that's been the last week for me. It's going to be difficult to go back to work on Monday, and I have to admit, I've actually been working for a few hours today (and yesterday afternoon as well, much to Russ' disgust). All in all, I can honestly say I'm so glad Russ talked me into going away - I didn't realise how desperately I needed it.
Oh, and there will be more photos over the coming days - Farid took all the photos and I need to grab them off him before I can upload them to my Flickr account.
Thanks for stopping by, and I hope to fire up the torch next weekend, and have some new beads to offer you shortly.
PS. Just got a hold of the menu for this evening - read it and weep:
Anniversary Degustation Menu
Eight courses from around the world ...
* Coriander Naan Bread with Butter Chicken Sauce
* 1/2 dozen Oysters Kilpatrick
* Garlic Butter Asparagus
* Vanilla & Cardamom Tiger Prawns with Sushi Rice
* Cherry Tomato, Fennel & Orange Salad
* Moroccan Spiced Lamb Racks with Couscous
* Persian Coffee Pot
* Cheese & Fruit Platter with Honey Bread
I think I've died and gone to heaven, and I haven't even tasted it yet. And best of all, not only did I not have to prepare this, but I don't have to pay the bill OR clean up afterwards.
Like I said, does life get any better than this?
We just had the best time away. Unfortunately, it all went too quickly, but isn't that always the way when you're having fun? Russ and I arrived at Sambar Park on the Sunday afternoon, and spent the next few days pretty much doing nothing but relaxing. We caught up on our reading, lounged around the house, I played around on the laptop, and we enjoyed the occasional (LOL) glass of wine. Many hours were also spent in the hottub, and the evenings were chilly enough to light the open fire.
On Wednesday afternoon, our friends, Yvonne and Farid, arrived. After a few more glasses of wine, and cooking dinner on the BBQ, we all proceeded to spend a few hours in the hottub. Many jokes were made about how the 'plebs' were spending the night, how we'd given the butler the night off, and trying to come up with ideas as to how we could afford to buy the house and live there permanently! After the hottub, and more wine, we spent the next 3 hours in front of the fireplace whilst Russ & Farid serenaded us with their guitars. The evening was capped off with a glass or two of Russ' homemade Bailey's Irish Cream and we fell into bed in the wee hours, all feeling very content.
Thursday was spent in Mansfield eating brunch, then back to the house to settle in for a little while before heading out to a hotel at Jamieson for *the* most delicious steaks - and more wine, of course. Then back to the house to sit in front of the open fire again, where I proceeded to fall asleep for 3 hours whilst everyone else talked. Luckily Yvonne and Farid are used to me falling asleep at some point during the evening, so it was all good.
We checked out early Friday morning and leisurely made our way back home. Now we're back to reality, and I feel like the vacation was a million years ago! Seriously though, everyone seemed to have a fabulous time, and its made me realise that we need to get away more often.
And today is our 8th wedding anniversary. We have Russ' son, Daniel, up from Tasmania, and as I'm sitting here relaxing with a glass of wine (yes, I know it's early, but I'm still in vacation mode!) he's in the kitchen preparing an 8 course dinner for us. I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but for those not in the know, Daniel is in his last year of his apprenticeship as a chef. He's keeping the dishes as a surprise, but I know it includes prawns, oysters, racks of lamb, and quite a few other scrumptious delights. I ask you, does life get any better than this?
So that's been the last week for me. It's going to be difficult to go back to work on Monday, and I have to admit, I've actually been working for a few hours today (and yesterday afternoon as well, much to Russ' disgust). All in all, I can honestly say I'm so glad Russ talked me into going away - I didn't realise how desperately I needed it.
Oh, and there will be more photos over the coming days - Farid took all the photos and I need to grab them off him before I can upload them to my Flickr account.
Thanks for stopping by, and I hope to fire up the torch next weekend, and have some new beads to offer you shortly.
PS. Just got a hold of the menu for this evening - read it and weep:
Anniversary Degustation Menu
Eight courses from around the world ...
* Coriander Naan Bread with Butter Chicken Sauce
* 1/2 dozen Oysters Kilpatrick
* Garlic Butter Asparagus
* Vanilla & Cardamom Tiger Prawns with Sushi Rice
* Cherry Tomato, Fennel & Orange Salad
* Moroccan Spiced Lamb Racks with Couscous
* Persian Coffee Pot
* Cheese & Fruit Platter with Honey Bread
I think I've died and gone to heaven, and I haven't even tasted it yet. And best of all, not only did I not have to prepare this, but I don't have to pay the bill OR clean up afterwards.
Like I said, does life get any better than this?
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