luckymeliscious

My Xanax Prescription Runneth Low.

It's gonna be slim pickin's in the Xanax bottle after November.  I have to get on a plane twice.  And to prove to myself (and you all) how stupid and all consuming my fear of flying is, I share.

See this lovely couple, enjoying some wonderful tropical sand and surf?  That will be me at the end of November (if I survive the first plane trip in the beginning of November).  Most people look at a picture like this and think one of two things, either,
A).  Wow, that beach and water look beautiful or
B).  Those lucky friggin' bastards.  Why are they there and not me?  Why do they look good in a swimsuit and not me?  Well you know what?  Fuck them!  That's what!!
And then there is option C., the option reserved for the truly insane and medically dependent.
C).How can these people be so happy and carefree?  They are frolicking for christs' sake.  Are they frolicking to their death?  "cause their gonna need to get on a plane to get to this tropical destination, and that plane is goin' DOWN!

Don't get me wrong....I would never let my insane fears stop me from traveling.  I enjoy it too much once I am at my destination, and sometimes even when the plane is still in the air.  If I didn't travel, I couldn't enjoy sunsets like this, or take pictures that I think are arteeesticly cool after a few cocktails on my balcony.  So the benefits far out weigh the fear.

But still, the anxiety that I experience before any trip.  Blah!  Leaves quite a bad taste in my mouth

Does anyone out there have a cure for this insane fear?  Is anyone reading this a licensed therapist that happens to owe me money?  I'll take payment in treatment.....

Waitress's are Underpaid

Preface:  After I had Liscious, for reasons that don't need disclosing, I was tested for anemia, and lo and behold, I had anemia (macrocytic to be exact).  So the testing continues, every 6 months or so, for about a year or so and each time, not good(failed! failed! failed!.) Eventually, I was told to take extra B12 and Foliate over and above the prenatal vitamins I had become so attached to.... and then again about month ago, another 6 month test... and surprisingly...everything was quiet........ no results were reported. A month went by, so I thought I was good.  One would think, that no news is good news, correct?  I mean, hey, a month has passed.  Surely my results have long since been returned to my Dr., reviewed by said Dr., and if any action needed to be taken, I surely would have been notified sooner than an entire month later, right? 
One would think.  And one would be wrong.

Preface over. The following is the week I have had trying to beat the test results out of the nurse at my Dr's office....

On Monday (almost a month later), I got a call from *Rachel (names have NOT been changed to protect the dumb and incompetent).  I was still anemic and worse, and could I please call her so she could let me know what the good Dr wanted me to do next.  So, I called back and left a message for her.  All day Monday comes and goes...no call back.  eh. OK.

Tuesday.  No call back in the a.m. so I let it ride a while.  Although, you all know what a FREAK I am, so in the meantime, I am busy self diagnosing and sweating it out over what disease has caused this anemia and when will I die.  By 4:30 when I leave work, I still have not gotten a call back, so I call their office.  IT IS CLOSED.  Bitches!

Wednesday.  I call again in the a.m. before they open and leave a message on their machine.  That should prompt a call back from ol el Nurso, right?  No. not really.  By 2 p.m., I call back again (because, remember, I am a FREAK) and I talk to the receptionist who informs me that Rachel has not called back because...well....errr....they lost my chart a couple days ago.  LOST MY CHART.  But, she good naturedly puts me on hold because Rachel is available, and maybe Rachel can "recall" what it is she was supposed to tell me. (gggreeeaaattttt). No, Rachel confirms that she cannot tell me anything without my lost chart (and this I am actually happy about, because who wants this person pulling from their memory what the Dr may have prescribed???).  But after more thought, it occurs to me that my file should have been backed up somewhere, right?  This office does own a computer....I've seen them...and now I'm thinkin' that the Dr. may actually have a backup of this information somewhere...Of course he does.  But what I'm also thinking now is Hey Rachel, it might be a good idea for you to finally fess up to the Dr. and admit that YOU LOST MY CHART YOU DUMBASS.  Anyway.

Wednesday afternoon.  " Hi Diva, we have your chart now, ha, it was right here all the time under someone else's lab, ha ha ha"  " anyhow, Dr. X wants you to go see a Hematologist to better manage your anemia"
WHAT?????????? A WHAT???????????
Exactly what does that mean????????????????????????????????
EXACTLY WHAT DOES THAT MEAN????????????????????????
Isn't that some kind of CANCER DR???!!!! (stop it FREAK)
"Well, I really can't tell, but they'll look at your chart and be able to tell you how to manage this deficiency"

Oh really.  Will they? That is truly comforting after this whole ordeal.
Truly comforting.

How much do we pay these people?  For this kind of information?

Amazing.  I need to tip my waitress's more, like allot more, with good reason.

Second life? I still need to get a handle on this one!

Because I have so much free time in my real life, I started to play with my Second Life as well. 

Have any of you ever tried this?  It is very entertaining, and free (free is always good).  For a bit more detail, you're better of reading this explanation.  I don't know enough about it yet except to offer that the Help and Orientation areas of the game seem to be a breeding ground for players wanting to pick up / hit on other players.  It's like a catapult for all of those marriages out there just waiting to be ended by fake on-line sex. On Friday night, someone blew me a kiss when I went to sign off.  Of course, my character (avatar for all you die hard gamers) looks like a Bronx hooker.  That helps.


I joined about a week ago.  And honestly, it took me all week to actually get up my second life nerve to leave the Help Island area.  Once you leave Help Island, you can't go back.  And once you leave, it is more likely that you'll have to actually interact with one of the over 1 MILLION players of this on-line game.  Of which, i am sure that 999.999 of them know how to get around Second Life much better than I.  Yes, I know it's only a game, and no one that I could possibly speak to could ever know anything about me that I don't tell them.  So why the reluctance and paranoia?  Who knows.  Just another chapter in my book my book My Psychosis, a Life Long Journey waiting to be written.

My husband also created a character.  His character ran kicking and screaming out of the Help Island area to get onto the Second Life mainland just minutes after "arriving".  Usually, he can be spotted in disco's or most recently in porno-land.  He claims he can't figure out how to leave.  (ahem.)

Yes, Second Like contains porn areas, mature only areas and it's fair share of violence (although, it is against the law, just like in real society).  There is actually a police blotter you can read to keep up on the latest infractions.  It also has beaches, malls, oceans, fabulous city centers and areas rated pg where not even a swear word is tolerated.  It's up to you where you want to go and what you want to see.  I think Suzanne Vega actually gave a concert here in August.  I'm not kidding.  Real stars and businesses have set up shop here.

I'm not a big gamer, so the chances of me playing very often aren't too high, but if you're ever in the neighborhood, look up Delany James and say Hi.  We can check out the bar scene or go to the mall.  Although, I don't have any "Linden" dollars to spend, so you'll have to buy.

Cho Vs Smokey- Kitty Fights!!!

I've got my money on Cho!

Go Tigers!

For those of you who don't know me, (uh....I think that the three of you that read me DO know me, but I'm an optimist) I live in a northern suberb of Detroit.  As in the Detroit Tigers that are in the World Series, and if I was a betting person, I'd guess that this has not happened in about a bazillion years (if I was a sports minded person, I probably wouldn't have to guess).  Needless to say, tickets to any of the upcoming series games sold out in less than an hour.

Bad news for some, good news for those of you seeking some entertainment.

Check out this post on Craig's List.  It's amazing what World Series tickets can buy you these days....

Some kitchen cabinets.  Hey, why not.  I need an entire kitchen addition buddy, but alas, no tickets.
An offer for housing.
A tropical vacation.
Oh come on!  No one would do this!
Oh, yeah. Everybody's lining up for This one.
People are also willing to barter their tickets for some interesting items
Okay, this one has nothing to do with the Tigers, but WTF people?? Is this something one should barter for????
And I'm sorry, but eat what?

Anyhow, go Tigers!
When is the first game on? (like I said, not very sports minded,,,,but I'll take any humor I can get)

These links probably won't be good for very long.  Sorry about that.

EDITED OCTOBER 18 for this special  Craig's list offer. 
I've been waiting for this one.  Glad to see that I was not disapointed....

A New Addiction

It's been a little slow at work lately and I've developed a new bad little habit called Sudoku.  I first heard about it at a bar in Birmingham about a month or so ago (yes, I know, me at a bar, GASP!)

Anyhow, this older gentleman was sucking down the scotch's without ever taking his eyes off of this piece of paper where it seemed he would, think, scribble scribble, drink drink, back to think, smoke, scribble scribble, drink drink, back to think...you get the pattern.  Anyhow, being the nosy girl that I am, I eventually got up the liquid nerve to ask him exactly what he was working on (that took about 5 minutes by the way, those damn Dirty Martini's)

First off, that was a mistake.  I had assumed that the gentile older man was quietly working away at this piece of paper, keeping to himself, because he enjoyed it.  Apparently, it was only because no one else had been stupid enough to ask him about his damn game before.
HE WOULDN'T STOP TALKING.  With an Asian accent.  A drunk Asian accent.  I turned to Chris for help....for escape, but the look on my husbands face was easily read as "way to go buzzed girl, look what you've got yourself into now.  Sorry, no help here, see, I am staring quietly at the TV above the bar, I refuse to be drawn into this BORING conversation."

DAMN DAMN DAMN. 
And boring it was, mostly because I couldn't hear him in the loud, crowded bar, but more due to the drunk Asian accent.  But I got enough to remember the name of the game.

Eventually, my new friend tired of my blank stare...so much that he actually left the bar.  Either that, or he had a Japanese barmitzfa to attend.  That's how well I could hear him.

The history is of the game is actually kind of interesting. If you're into that sort of oh my god I have nothing to do and it is only 2 p.m. on Monday sort of thing. (Yes, I know I can be a nerd.  I get it from my husband.)

I may not have gained a new friend, but I did gain a new way to pass those 40 hours I am meagerly paid for.  And to my new friend, Good luck!
よい運, 平和はあなたのSudoku とある。

Hello again, old friend...

Sooooooooo...................

I'm going back, not too Shiseido, but something close, something more than the drugstore varieties of skincare.  I appreciate that my dermatologist has like a degree and all but I just don't feel that the drugstore varieties are doing as good of a job for me.  I know, being a dermatologist and all, I have facts and knowledge to back up my feelings.  No.  I don't.   But it is how I feel. I tried all the free samples she keeps giving me (in a cute pretty bag by the way) Dove, Aveeno, DML (what is that?), and various others....but I don't feel that they are doing the job my old good friend did.  Do I want to spend the money? No, the idea of savings was great, but I used Shisiedo for years, and I loved it.  So I am going back.  However, I am going back half assed.

No more expensive facial cleanser, no more toner...we're going to keep it at a minimum.  Moisturizer...and maybe some eye cream.  But that's it, I swear (I sound like a desperate alcoholic, just one more drink and that's it, I swear!!).  And we're not going back to Shiseido.  I haven't narrowed the winner entirely down yet, but I have been doing allot of research and reading on this.  Apparently, Dr's find Shiseido to be pricey and a bit redundant in their ingredients (yeah? so?). 

If any of you care, below is what I have found on some various product categories (god help me if I ever get a real job)

Cheap vs. Expensive (what you should and should not spend your hard earned money on)

CHEAP:
Mascara: Maybelline!! proven years of goodness, the number 1 seller in America actually. Loreal, Revlon...all of them are said to be just as good.  Supposedly there is only so much you can do to pump up those mascara polymers
Face Wash: Try some Aveeno, some Dove, Ponds ...experts claim that unless you are standing in the shower with the product on your face for at least 5 minutes, those special ingredients are just washing down the drain.  Let's face it, if I had that kind of free time, I'd probably take a nap.  Yes, in the shower.
Toner: It's true, you don't need it

Expensive:
Foundation: I tend to switch allot between brands, so I can't really say which one I love most.  I find that I enjoy Vincent Longo and Chantecaille (but I still have a beloved bottle of Neutragena Healthy Skin Tint, just don't tell anyone)
Powder:  Supposedly, you should go the pricey route.  I haven't bought any new stuff in years, so I have no opinion....the Shiseido has lasted that long..or maybe I am a sad under user of powder, who knows.
Bronzer:  NARS.  I swear by this stuff.  For those of you who know me, I am one pale assed girl, and yet I brush this on every day.  Helps to hide any skin tone issues, and gives even us "Caspers" a nice natural glow.  Something us Caspers would pay for again and again, believe me.
And on the happy side, the one I haven has lasted 2 years now, and still bronzing, so you truly get your moneys worth.

Hair: Oh yes, now we are even getting into hair.  DON'T, I REPEAT, DON'T use anything with Sodium Laurel Sulfite. Yes, it makes your shampoo all fizzy and stuff so it lathers up nice and big, but it also strips your hair of everything.  Natural oils, any color you may have put in, baby snot, EVERYTHING is stripped out.  The only 2 products I can recommend here are: Kiss My Face ($) and Mastey ($$$), and that's just because those are the only 2 I know.  It's very hard to find a shampoo with out the nasty Sulfite.  But not having it has done wonders for my pathetic hair.  Also, don't actually wash your hair every day, wet it down in the shower, sure, but don't put detergents on it every day (and this, coming from someone who would swear she was a grease monkey without a daily shampoo).

And lastly...this scary link.  I think some of us may have seen this circulate a few years ago...but I stumbled on it again in my vanity motivated search for the perfect moisturizer.  Makes me want to live in a plastic organic bubble (not plastic, plastic toxic, plastic BAD)

Had enough of my beauty update?  I have.

What do you guys find works great for you?  After years of being stuck in my ways, I am open to suggestion.

Today is October 12, 2006

It is a freezing 37 degrees outside, and we have been watching blizzards roll through all day.  Oh, and guess what, we don't have power at home. 

Again, please reference the title here people. 
Today is October 12.  OCTOBER. 

Is this the kind of winter I have to look forward too.

BAH HUMBUG.

Deep Thought Tuesday

Why is it that if you can come up with enough change from the bottom of your purse to buy the bag of Doritos, they are somehow not quite as BAD as they would have been if you had to break an actual dollar bill to buy them?

The Evolving Baby

Just recently, I have noticed big changes in Liscious. Changes that I am sure have probably been there for some time, but perhaps I was too busy working, cleaning, eating, living, breathing, playing to notice and then BAM.  Like a ton of bricks.  Who is this new little boy with all these changes?

First change:  FOOD.  The boy can put it away.  and no longer is "his" food good enough.  Oh, don't get me wrong, he'll eat "his" food.  ALL OF IT.  Whether it be baby food, mac and cheese, baked beans, scrambled eggs, you name it.  But then, he also wants YOUR food.  The food that you are trying desperately to shove into your mouth before he notices that you are in fact eating and had better damn well be prepared to share.  Maybe this will be a new weight loss program for me.  And despite the fact that he will in fact eat everything in sight, at his 1 year appointment, we were told that although he keeps getting taller (32" right now), his weight has plateaued at a mere 25 lbs. and we need to kick it up a notch with some more fats and carbs.  That's an added bonus of being a baby.  What a happy girl I would be if MY Dr. said that.  Ah Yes Mrs. Diva...my charts indicate that you're getting taller still, and seem to be thinning out too much.  As your doctor, I must insist that you spend some more quality time on a bar stool with some potato skins and chicken wings.

Second Change:  He actually wants "things".  Certain "things".  And although his vocabulary is a series of "euah?", " Mumumumumumu", "didididididi" and various chirps and bubble blowing, he can and will point his arm, shift his gaze and torque his 25lb little body into any contortion necessary to either reach the object, or have you ultimately reach it for him.  Monday, it was the Thomas the Train cake topper that had WAY too many edible parts on it, this morning, it was the left over helium balloon still hanging onto life on our ceiling from his birthday party.  Many times it is his bottle of milk.  His "Traveler" as we call it.  (see it traveling below)

That's the easiest wish to grant him.  Even though I wish it were a sippy cup.  That's one change he hasn't made yet.  But lets not speed the boy along too much, mkay?

Third Change:  His independence.  or lack there of.  Wait no...his independence.  Oh damn, I mean his lack there of.  All in about a 5 minute time span.  One moment, he is happily playing, scooting through our house on his Winnie the Pooh Boat (AKA: Devil's Toy from Hell pictured above), and the next...he spots you.  And then it is all over.  He jumps of the Pooh boat with all the fury and might that a little baby can muster to propel himself at you full speed to be picked up (and nothing is sweeter than having a cute lil munchkin rampage at you).  But it's only for a short time.  He only needs a few moments to be carried around, cooed and kissed on, and then another toy catches his eye, and he's fighting just as hard to be let down.  Jeezus woman!  Put me down!  Can't you see that I have no need for your now.  That Lion, you know, the one that roars in the jungle?  That is where my allegiance lies now.  PUT ME DOWN I SAY!

Fourth Change:  F*ing bed time.  Well.  This hasn't really changed.  Maybe I just listed it here because I WANT it to change.  If Liscious even THINKS that you are going to put him in bed, the screaming and crying ensues.  Really, we don't beat him at bed time, his crib is NOT full of broken glass, and any monsters in his closet are just there looking for some hand me downs from GQ baby.  We try the routine....a little bit of bottle, a little bit of story in his quiet, darkened room....he'll be rubbing his eyes, yawning, and you'll slowly move towards the crib and OH MY GOD YOU BEAST OF A PARENT!  YOU HATE ME!  I KNOW YOU HATE ME OR YOU WOULD NOT PUT ME IN HERE!! At least that is how I think he feels when I put him to bed.  The crying never lasts very long, and some days, there is no crying at all.  But those days are few and far in between.  Kind of like paid holidays where I work.

All those changes in just 1 year.  And each day brings more.  As long as he keeps smiling, that's all I really care about.