Mind the Gap

Today is Hallowe'en, the very last day of October, and here I am writing only my fourth blog post of the month. It's not that I have been starved for material: there have been Presidential Debates, horrific stories about bullying, the usual crap from Rob Ford and his ilk. It is National Bullying Prevention Month; I was accepted as a Zoo Volunteer; my beautiful partner had a big birthday; it's the 50th anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis. But no matter how many times I have started to put together a few thoughts for a new piece, I have found myself unable to carry through on it. I could make up excuses, like I have done all my life. I could tell you I've been under the weather (true for part of the month); I could tell you I have been too busy planning Sarah's surprise party (also not a fabrication, entirely); I could say I was having computer troubles, or physical pains, or needed a new prescription for my glasses, or myriad other things and you would probably take it on good faith. But while none of these statements is completely false, they have had very little to do with my absence for weeks at a time from this blog.

The plain and honest truth of the matter is this: I am depressed.

I have been fighting depression for most of my adult life—likely much of my childhood, too—and I think it's reasonable to assume I will be doing so for the rest of my days on Earth. At times I have received counseling for it; medication has also helped in the past and, some times, caused more problems than it has solved. But the simple truth—although there is truly nothing "simple" about it—is that I am at constant risk of a wave of depression coming upon me with very little warning and virtually paralyzing me emotionally.

Pardon my Absence

It feels like I can finally sit at a computer long enough to put out a blog piece again, after a very frustrating week and a half, as my neck issues seem to be easing off a bit. I had no idea how attached I was to this device until it was impossible to interact with it properly. Well, that's not really true: I had a pretty good idea how attached I am to it. Didn't make it any easier, though.

So, did I miss much? Let's see, there was our buffoon of a mayor ignoring all the signs that clearly were not meant for him and walking into the Calgary Stampeders' dressing room while he was at a football game. Nothing really new there. Also this week came the news that Avril Lavigne and Chad Kroeger are engaged. The only possible good that could ever come out of such an unholy union as this one is the chance that Lavigne might "pull a Yoko" and break up Nickelback. If that were to happen, she has my vote to appear on the next $100 bill. Unless she's too "ethnic". Hey, you never know.

Then there is the story of the high school valedictorian in Oklahoma, about to enter college on a full scholarship except for one small issue: her school refuses to give her her high school diploma (which she obtained with straight-As, I might add) because she used the word "hell" in her speech. Never mind that she was actually quoting a movie that is very popular among her demographic; never mind that she didn't intend to quote it directly, but I guess it just happened that way; never mind that a valedictory address isn't supposed to be for anyone else but her classmates who gave her that honour. No, her school won't give her the diploma unless she apologizes. Here's hoping she doesn't. Oklahoma, seriously, I think you have other, more pressing things to worry about. But let's look at the bright side here: at least Oklahoma isn't Missouri, located right next door. Because Missouri, at the moment, is home to one of the dumbest, most despicable men to hold any power in the States right now. Missouri is home to Todd Akin.

No Post Again Tonight....

...that pinched nerve or whatever it is seems to be affecting the blood flow to my head and I've had vertigo all day long. I haven't been able to sit at the keyboard for more than 5 or 10 minutes at a stretch. Hopefully it will pass soon and I can get this blog back on the rails. My favourite masseuse in the world tried to alleviate my discomfort after she got home from work and it seemed to help a little bit, but I clearly wasn't the one who got the most out of the activity tonight:

Even after the battery eventually ran down Addie still wouldn't let Sarah put the wand away without a fight:

Huh. Would you look at that. There seems to be a small post tonight after all, thanks once again to my magical cat. What would I do without her?

Pinched Neck = Low Productivity

For some strange reason my neck has been bugging me for the past couple of weeks. It has done this before, but usually it has something to do with straining it playing sports. Since that's not even a thing for me this summer, I don't know what's going on... but I do know I hate it. This morning I woke up and could barely move my head and arms, so I decided to take a bit of a sabbatical from the keyboard. I'm just going to be at my desk long enough to post a short blog piece then I think I am going to have to get a heating pad on it. If it keeps up, I could have a real problem. I guess we'll see how it goes.

Happy kitty outside her fort

Because my buddy has kept me company all day while I've been suffering, I've decided to dedicate yet another blog to her - although some of these pictures were from yesterday. Last week Sarah made Addie a "kitty fort" out of her two tunnels (one large and one small) and a fleecy blanket. Addie loves her tunnels and the addition of the blanket has sent her over the moon, because she loves being covered up. Yesterday she spent some time on the floor outside of the fort, though, at first rolling around just clear of the blanket as you can see and then settling down on the carpet right in front of where I was sitting on the couch. This put her directly in the air flow of the window a/c, however, and eventually she got too cold to stay there. I thought this would have made her get back under the blanket, but Addie took a different tack toward solving the problem.

Woozy Weekend

Vertigo!

Click on the picture for cool facts about vertigo!

Late yesterday afternoon I suddenly developed a wicked case of vertigo, pretty much out of nowhere. I figured it was something simple such as pinching a blood vessel in my neck or perhaps just not enough sleep, but then last night my joints were sore as well. I went to bed hoping everything would take care of itself, but really only 50% of it did. My joints don't hurt today but the vertigo is still there and now it's accompanied by a left eye that simply won't stop running. I'm guessing now that it's some kind of a cold virus or perhaps low-grade infection in either my ear canal or (more likely) Eustachian tube on the left side of my head. Since there's no pain involved I'm going to wait on this for a day or so to see if it goes away on its own; I'm loathe to take up a doctor's time unless I think it could be really serious.

A Locked Car is NO PLACE for a Pet.

VIDEO: Suspects identified in death of dog left in car | CTV News

Firefighters finally broke the back window of this death trap

A dog died in this car yesterday. A one-year-old Chocolate Lab/Weimeraner mix was left alone for over three hours in the backseat while its thoughtless and ignorant young "owners" - a couple from Val Caron, near Sudbury - presumably wandered around Vaughan Mills Mall, northwest of Toronto. Apparently a couple of the windows were opened a very miniscule amount, but not nearly enough to keep the temperatures inside of that car from reaching unsurvivable levels (it was about 30 degrees outside the car when the dog was found, likely 2-4 times that much inside); certainly not when the car was left in the direct sun for several hours.

A Chocolate Lab/Weimeraner mix

According to the reports I have read, including on The Star's website, a passerby noticed the dog (similar to the one pictured here) "in distress" in the locked car at about 2:15PM and notified mall security. Security personnel notified emergency services and went out to the car, where they tried to splash water into the backseat, although I don't fully understand what they hoped to gain from this. Firefighters arrived after a while and they immediately broke the back window to release the trapped dog, but it was too late to save its life.

Rainy Sunday: Perfect for a Stroll

As usual, Sarah was the brightest thing I saw on the walk

"Habitat Restoration": a very good idea indeed

I finally had the opportunity to go with Sarah on one of her weekly perambulations around Taylor Creek Park. It's been drizzling on and off here most of the afternoon, but that just made the walk even more refreshing than it would have been on a hot, sunny day. There were very few people on the paths in the valley and virtually no cyclists flying along from behind us. The air smelled wonderful: clean, fresh and healthy, unlike the heavy haze of recent weeks. Sarah has mentioned that the Parks and Rec people have been letting the natural habitat take over in many areas of the valley; here is a sign that speaks to that decision, one we are both very much in favour of.

MRI Day

I had my first-ever MRI done very, very early this morning at Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto. Last year I had a series of health issues that all piled up one on the other until ultimately my lower back and pelvis just kind of gave up for a while. My doctor at Synergy Sports Medicine Clinic in the Junction area of Toronto ordered up a few tests and one of them was the MRI I had today. I guess I should be pleased that someone finally decided to have a look to see if I actually have a herniated disc after all these years of on-again, off-again back woes (instead of just guessing all the time), but I have to say that I am never pleased at having to get up at 4 AM on a day that doesn't end with Sarah and me sipping coconut-flavoured drinks on a beach somewhere hot and sunny.