A Few Quick Notes 618

-After about a week and a half of unseasonably warm temperatures we've again seen the mercury drop to something approximating the seasonal norm (even if we're still a few degrees above where we normally are).  The nasty consequence of the warm weather is that much of the snow that we had on the ground melted and then re-froze as ice and because many people hadn't been completely up to date on their sideway clearing much of this ice is now on sidewalks around Regina.  Snowfalls, however slight, since the drop in temperatures have conveniently masked much of the ice making walking even more treacherous than it was when it ice was exposed.

-This morning at about 8:30 I went out for a nice shovelling session.  I managed to take care of our shovelling and to also shovel the sidewalks of our neighbours on both sides.  Much to my surprise, I think I managed to take care of this shovelling before any humans walked along the sidewalk.

-For dinner tonight we should be having a nice batch of mushroom and barley soup.  If I decide to be ambitious we may even have some type of freshly baked bread or dessert to accompany the soup (maybe even both).

-I think that after about a month since we first felt the symptons of a cold Jeannette and I are both back to about 98%.  There's a bit more phlegm than either of us would like, but it's not too bad.

Cats

For approximately the past 2 years we've had cats.  First came Marie and then a few months later she was joined by Pierre.

Though I've basically gotten used to their presence, there are still moments when they surprise me.

Then there are moments when I forget about them trying to climb into drawers or knock things off of ledges to get our attention.

Of course, it's still hard to come to terms with the idea of having several animals loose in our house.  It still just seems a little weird.

A consequence of their arrival, to which I hope I never become accustomed, is the presence of their hair on just about everything.  It's incredible how much of this stuff exists just about everywhere.  Maybe even more infuriating is that whenever clean up attempts are made hair can be found in the cleaned areas just moments later.

In an attempt to combat this longstanding frustration about two weeks ago we purchased a pet Roomba to somewhat passively and regularly clean the main floor of our house.

When we first ran it we were disgusted to see how much hair and dust we picked up - the hopper was completely full.  Since we've had the device we've run it at least once a day - sometimes twice - and we're always amazed to see how much cat hair we manage to collect.  While the hopper is no longer packed after each session, it's still regularly about 50% full.

So anyway - cats...

Sleeping skills

For as long as I can remember I have thought of sleeping as a low risk and low skill activity. Over the past ten or so days my sense of sleeping is beginning to change. 

About ten days I woke up with a rather intense pain in my shoulder, which I originally attributes to a poor sleeping position. As pain wore in over the next few days and even grew in intensity I began to fear that my original diagnosis may have been a little off. 

Fortunately, Jeannette recommended a topical patch and the pain cleared up overnight. Though, given that this was like nothing I had ever experienced as a result of a poor sleeping position I was still a little unsure about the cause. 

Fortunately or unfortunately, last night, just minutes after going to bed, I noticed that what I had taken to be a rather normal sleeping position (on my side with a pillow under my head) had triggered the same sensation I'd just gotten over. Bummer. 

Now that it's the next morning my neck feels as bad as it did days ago, though at least I feel quite comfortable that this has all been triggered by bad sleeping position choices I've made. 

Presumably, now that I know the risks that come with certain positions, I will have to be much more careful about chosing such positions in the future (and as some other positions have occasionally lead to snoring) the number of options is quickly diminishing. So now I am definitely in a position where an absence of skill will certainly increase my risk of injury. Who know an activity as seemingly mundane as sleeping could lead to such challenges?

A Few Quick Notes 617

-After several weeks of unRegina like Winter weather, we've finally moved on to the type of Regina winter weather I've come to know and love - it's about -20 and sunny.  As far as I'm concerned this is almost perfect Winter weather.  It just doesn't get better than this.

-While doing some supplementary shovelling today (I did the driveway, paths, and sidewalk immediately after the snowfall) I had the pleasure of taking in some of this wonderful Winter weather first hand.  Of course, to prepare for the low temperatures I put on my coat, mitts, scarf, face mask, and hat.  I was amazed to find that when I came in about 30 minutes later I was really sweating (and at no point did I feel cold).

-A few months ago This American Life began a new spin-off show - Serial.  Almost immediately Jeannette and I became rabid listeners.  During the run of the show we more or less restricted ourselves to the weekly podcast and the various discussions we would have with each other after each new episode was released.

Now that the podcast's first season has ended but various related stories have been independent news outlets we've gotten sucked into the Serial Reddit vortex.  We can seem to spend an entire evening just reading Reddit comments about alternate theories of a 1999 Baltimore murder case.  When not reading these comments I am compulsively contemplating my own (or Jeannette's particularly good) theory/ies of the case.

How is it possible that I am spending more time thinking about a 12 episode podcast now that it has ended than I did while it aired?  How can I be waiting for new articles from The Intercept, articles that I know will just upset me, with a greater sense of anticipation than I had for new episodes? (I've probably checked for the concluding segment of the Kevin Urick interview 20 times today.)

-At some point soon I may have to start thinking about what to make for dinner tonight.  On the other hand, because of our ongoing illnesses it seems likely that neither of us may be as inclined to eat in a timely fashion as we normally might be.

Sickness

Starting on about New Year's Eve I began to feel a cold coming on.  Over the next few days things progressed rather nicely and before I knew it I was in the midst of suffering through a full-fledged cold.

By Monday and Tuesday of this week things were in such full swing that I stayed home from work.

By Wednesday, though still present, the cold was beginning to taper off.

Thursday wasn't great, but it also wasn't that bad.

Today's been pretty cough and phlegm filled but otherwise pretty good.

Of course, just as I was starting to get a little better Jeannette began going in the opposite direction.  Now that she's a few days in, Jeannette's just about where I was at the beginning of the week.

Kind of a disappointing way to ring in the new year.