shawnp0wers

I'm a bloggy blogger who blogs.

Headache? Pull My Finger!

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Yes, now the colon cleansing makes sense.See, that’s the sorta thing I got today at the doctor’s office. I haven’t really been that public with the horrific problems I’ve been having with migraines lately — but suffice to say it has affected my daily comings and goings quite severely. After another trip to the hospital on Sunday night, I decided to try the doctor approach again. See, I have bad luck with doctors and my brain.

So this is a new doctor. No preconceived notions, no hidden agendas, no reason to treat me any way other than “textbook”. And textbook is what I want at this point.

  1. I’m allergic to Triptan drugs. Those are the drugs like Imitrex, Maxalt, and the like. You know, migraine medicine. So yeah, that sucks.
  2. I have no idea what triggers my migraines. Raw onions give me a headache, so I try hard to avoid them. Other than that, there seems to be no pattern to the triggers.
  3. There is no 3. Really, I’m not that medically interesting for a 3. Apart from my car accident (click above if you don’t know what I’m talking about), I’m a normal bloke. Slightly overweight, slightly high blood pressure, and on an SSRI for some OCD issues I struggle with. That’s it.

The new doctor with a fresh pair of eyes thinks I’m full of crap.

Mind you, if it was a figurative “full of crap” I was referring to, I could write it off to me looking like a drug seeker or something. I dunno, maybe I’m too twitchy. Maybe the stress I’m under makes my eyes dart around in a “crazy heroine addict” sorta way. But no, when I say “full of crap”, I mean just that. The doctor suggested a colon cleansing.

Oh, I’m sorry. Does that make you uncomfortable? Yeah, well it didn’t really thrill me either. My colon is causing migraines? I actually looked for a smirk to see if he was kidding. But again, no.

So, because I’m a good patient, and because my health insurance won’t let me see a neurologist without a referral, I’ll be pooping like a goose for the next few weeks. We ordered “Oxy Cleanse” or some such supplement, and while I’m sure it will flush my colon, cleanse my aura, and purify my spirit — I’m rather doubtful it will help with my migraines.

You know, maybe the doctor was hard of hearing, and thought I was suffering from chronic hemorrhoids. At least that would make more sense.

Tofu: The Other, Other, OTHER White Meat

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Yes, I like to eat this stuff plain. But only *real* tofu, not that weird, jiggly Silken stuff. Bleh.In my attempt to de-fattify myself, I find that cooking is a must. You see, it’s just too easy to buy fast food. And, it’s like, fast and stuff. When I cook, I tend to cook vegan, or at least very vegetarian. I think it takes a REALLY good cook to make something delicious when you don’t have meat as a flavoring ingredient. Plus, veggies are absurdly expensive to buy fresh, and if you add meat to the budget, well, the restaurant starts to look reasonably priced…

Yesterday we bought tofu. I really love tofu. I can eat hunks of tofu cold, and think it’s a great snack. (My family vehemently disagrees with me, but whatever) Seriously though, tofu is often thought of as a way to cram protein into a vegetarian dish — honestly, I just think it’s cool how versatile it is. I mean really, it’s a blank slate flavor-wise. That means you can make it taste any way you like. Heck, I’ve even seen people cook tofu in lard, so it takes like meat, but I’ve never really understood such a procedure. (Just buy meat!)

Anyway, this tofu is going into a huge pot of miso soup. So yes, it’s basically soybeans in soybean soup. But I’ve added veggies, so it’s not all soybeans. 🙂 I make miso soup with spinach instead of wakame, because my family DOES NOT like seaweed. Oh well, they eat tofu. I suppose I can’t complain!

Losing Weight

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It’s very difficult. However, both Donna and I really need to lose weight. I need to lose about 40 pounds, and Donna needs to lose some too. (I’m not going to say how much she wants to lose — I’m transparent, but I’m not stupid) Donna paid for a month at the local “gym”, which is really a physical therapy place that has aerobic classes and such. She LOVES going there, and the exercise is great for her.

I still hate exercise.

I’ve put a lot of thought into this, and it’s not physical activity that bothers me, it’s the lack of accomplishing anything. If we had a woodstove, I would happily chop wood for hours. If I had to crank start our car every morning, I would do so without complaint. Heck, I think if I had to ride an exercise bike in order to generate electricity to watch TV — I would do it. I just hate exercise for exercise’s sake. And no, “getting healthy” doesn’t count as a productive activity. I’m too short sighted for such a thing. 🙂

If it wasn’t for the ice and snow 6 months out of the year, I would buy a bicycle and ride to work every day. But that gets REALLY unpleasant around this time of year. Also, it makes hauling equipment difficult. It also makes it hard to take the kids to school and such. I don’t know what I’ll do on the exercise front, but for now I’m concentrating on food.

Food. I really like food. I’m going to try taking this opportunity to cook more at home, and cook healthier than we’ve been eating. Most of my “specialty” dishes are vegan, and very healthy. (Vegan and healthy are not automatically inclusive) I’m hoping to rekindle my love of cooking, and in turn eat foods that make me skinny instead of fat.

Wish us luck!

Everything I Managed to Write for Nanowrimo This Year

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Don’t worry, it won’t take you long to read. I still like the ideas I had, so perhaps I’ll finish it sometime this winter. 🙂

Black Holes, and Other Things That Suck

You ever bark at a dog, and wonder if you’re really saying something? I always imagine we sound absolutely ridiculous to our canine buddies when we try to bark back at them. And don’t get me started on mooing at cows. (But yes, I do that too)

Imagine for a minute, if someone tried to create a human being without any real idea regarding what was important to look human. That’s basically what I was looking at. This “thing” towered over me at about 7 feet tall, and yet the skinniest little legs you could imagine. Since it was naked, I can give you some uncomfortably specific information about misshapen breasts, strange patches of hair, and anatomically oh-so-incorrect placement of certain things. But that wasn’t the disturbing part. It had hairy eyes. Like, actual eyes with hair growing from them.

And it wanted to have sex with me.

Thankfully this wasn’t the strangest thing I’d seen today. In fact, I was sort of expecting it, although in my wildest dreams I didn’t expect it to look like this. Let me catch you up though, because I’d like to get the image of this “thing” out of my mind. Things got weird this morning with Ed.

Fellow Space Nuts: Don’t Forget the Leonids!

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The photographer claims this is a Leonid meteor, but reall I think it's a space ship. Or maybe a laser FROM a spaceship. That's the REAL reason I watch at night. Be sure to wear a tinfoil hat.For those of you with a fascination for space, fire, and sitting in the dark — tonight was made just for you. Tonight is when the Leonid meteor shower peaks, and the conditions should be pretty good. While the show in Asia is supposed to be the best, here in North America it will still be worth going outside to watch.

If you’re in the US, the East Coast will have a slightly better view, because the best show will be around 4AM Tuesday morning, which will still be very dark. On the West Coast, you’ll want to stick it out until daybreak if you can, because before that there will be many over the horizon you’ll miss.

For more information, check out this site. And don’t forget: HAVE FUN!!!

Help Me Hack a Wii!!!

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Yesterday on Twitter, I commented that I would be asking everyone for a HUGE favor today. Well, it’s today. 🙂

Over at Natuba (the folks that put me in their ad), they are having a “funniest photo” contest in which the winner will win a Nintendo Wii. I have mentioned it before, but today is the last day for entries and public judging.

That’s where you come in. If you would sign up for a Natuba account (if you’re not already a member), and go to my photos and give them “Thumbs Up” ratings, it will get me into the running for winning the Wii. If you are willing to do so, and possibly rope your friends into doing so too, if I win I’ll hack the Wii, and document it with photos and instructions.

I realize it’s sort of a pain in the hiney, but I think I have a real shot at winning — I just need your help to get into the judge’s table. 🙂

Again, my entries in the contest are HERE, and all the other entries are HERE. If you think I’m worthy, please vote mine up! (Note, some of them aren’t funny unless you click through and read the captions… just sayin.)

Thanks a ton, I really appreciate it.