#Skybound2 whines lot

[skybound2]

What do you mean if I put my laundry away it'll be easier to find the specific article of clothing I'm looking for?

That sounds fake and I don't trust it.

[skybound2]

So I'm having a pretty crappy time at the moment, and I don't really want to talk about it, but I'm hoping folks could maybe just send me some cheer? Apparently this introvert is in need of a little externally sourced comfort.

[skybound2]

Bad things that have happened in the last several days:

The snake that we took in 2 weeks ago escaped its enclosure sometime between Tuesday at midnight and Wednesday at 8 am. We still haven't found him. There is now an adorable and incredibly docile ball python loose in our house with our 2 cats, the younger of which plays rough with ANYTHING even remotely ribbon like 😬😬.

Our 15 year old greyhound who has extreme breathing problems tripped on a stick in the backyard yesterday and managed to damage BOTH her front right dewclaw and one of her rear left nails. The rear one we had to actually have pulled yesterday because it was so bad. This required a trip to the Vet, who then performed the procedure for us while our dog remained in the backseat of our car because she was too stressed out and they were afraid to move her into the clinic because of her breathing issues. She's doing okay now and is on antibiotics, thankfully. But she's also having a VERY hard time walking, which just makes her breathing issues worse.

Our older cat is notoriously fickle about his litter. Meaning that if you don't clean it fast enough after every use, he pees outside the box in protest. (Never mind that we have 3 boxes. If the one he goes to is dirty, you lose.) We have several rewashable litter mats to address this issue, because NORMALLY he pees DIRECTLY outside the box. But yesterday, because of everything else going on, I didn't respond fast enough I guess, so he peed on the Death Star rug near my desk, which is in the same room as a litter box. I only discovered this when I leaned down on the rug to look under the desk for the missing snake...

The same cat is also notorious for peeing on dirty towels if you stupidly drop one on the floor and leave the door to the bathroom open. For this reason the doors to the bathrooms are always kept closed. We've avoided him peeing on any towels in YEARS this way. Now guess what I didn't do yesterday after getting washed up from leaning on cat urine unexpectedly? Ya know, because of the forgetfulness that comes from extra stress and anxiety? *sigh*

Last week, I started using a cane for the first time ever because of some nerve issues in my left leg due to my MS. Luckily, this week I've noticed an improvement in that leg. Unfortunately, the reliance I've been putting on my right leg to compensate has caused a long term issue in my right ankle to flare up pretty bad. So today I started using the cane to help me walk because of THAT. I'm hobbling on both legs now. Joy.

I just stepped in cat vomit.

My husband's one sister, her husband and their daughter all have been confirmed with Covid. They are all symptomatic and obviously sick and in quarantine but stable at present. My sister-in-law, who has asthma, is doing the worst of the lot and has been advised that if she gets any worse then she will need to be admitted to the hospital.

Every year in spring I get contact dermatitis the way most people get seasonal allergies. I am a MESS of itchy hives and rashes right now and regular doses of benedryl are the only thing stopping me from scratching myself to death.

I have a rotten headache and could probably use a good cry, but I don't have the energy for it right now so I'm writing this post instead.

And now for a few good things to take the edge off:

Tonight, we got take out from one of our favorite restaurants because cooking was not a thing that was going to happen. It was delicious.

My husband just made me tea, brought me an ice pack for my ankle, and presented me with a platter of chocolate and strawberries. He's wonderful.

Today is another of our niece's birthdays. She is now 15, and is unbashadly a fangirl. I had a video call with her tonight and she spent most of it squealing happily over a Dragon Prince book she got. It was BY FAR the highlight of my entire week and I adore her a tremendous amount.

[skybound2]

Raise your hand if you had a very stressful day of work and proceeded to follow it by reading the NEWS and also know you are going to have a very stressful day tomorrow and are trying to find a way to calm down but nothing is working and you just

[skybound2]

Freaking Healthcare

So good news, for ONCE my company isn't jumping ship to a new health insurance carrier this year. This saves me a TON of annoying scrambling to make sure everything is in place so that I don't miss any meds.

The bad news is that:

My annual deductible is going up (from $1000 to $1500 per person - there are 2 of us on the plan);

My annual out of pocket coinsurance amount is going up (from $5500 to $6000 per person); and

The weekly cost to me for coverage is going up (not sure yet how much that is changing, I just know that it is).

I'm HOPEFUL that I'll still be able to get my copay waiver from the manufacturer of my medicine, since the cost my insurance expects me to pay every month for my medicine is STILL set at $1000. And in no world can I afford that.

I skipped my MRIs this year because I just didn't want to spend the money and I've been doing well (and okay, I also didn't want to get in the damn tube, I needed a break okay?). But I KNOW that means I need to get them done in 2020 regardless of the cost, as they are important for my long term care no matter how well I may think I'm doing.

In all honesty, NONE of the above is a surprise. This is the state of Healthcare in this freaking country. And I KNOW it could be worse. And yet I'm STILL angry enough about it that I'm currently making this post from the freaking STAIRWELL at my office while contemplating going home earlier in silent (and annoyed) protest.

*heavy sigh*

And really, I have a 16 hour day scheduled for tomorrow, so I can TOTALLY justify leaving early today to boot... *ponders*

[skybound2]

I'm at that really frustrating and annoying point where I both simultaneously can't wait for this work week to be over and am DESPERATELY hoping that I can find an additional 20 or 30 hours somewhere around here just to get all of my shit DONE so that I can stop DROWING under it all.

But of course the only place I'd be able to find those hours would be at night when I'm sleeping, or right now when I'm whining on the internet after an 11 hour day and am prepping to play Death Stranding until I can't see straight, and trying not to find the lifestyle of a post-apocalyptic UPS delivery guy to be a better option than my own at the moment.

[skybound2]

Only 10:30 in the morning and

I've already taken 3 ibuprofen, had 16-ounces of black tea, and 3 hershey kisses all in attempt to make this headache go away.

No luck yet so far. Wish I didn't have a major report I needed to finish today. Could really use a half-day. *sigh*

[skybound2]

Fun with fuzzy eyesight!

You know what's great? What's the ABSOLUTE BEST? Having had bad eyesight since you were a small, and also being a poor sleeper your whole life (insomnia FTF!) then getting older and having a chronic illness that could POTENTIALLY cause you to experience random and unexpected changes in eyesight (Maybe. Possibly. Because MS is just fun like that!) and then being at work and reading an email and having all the words go fuzzy and out of focus for a bit, and having NO CLUE WHATSOEVER if the cause is:

1. You are getting old. This shit just happens, lady. Relax.

B. Since you were nine, you've had the visual acuity of a mole whose head is caked in mud because she tripped and fell into a puddle while her friends laughed and laughed and laughed and didn't do anything to help her. Wash your face and stop pretending this is new.

III. You. Are. Tired. Drink some tea and stop complaining, dammit.

🎯 You have MS, and it is FUCKING WITH YOU. Eat some chocolate and get back to work.

[skybound2]

Status Update

I've awoken from my approximately 20 hour long nap (give or take) that started... About 5 minutes after my post last night. The dizziness is beginning to ebb - though it's not gone completely - and I've even managed to eat some food. So, progress.

Unfortunately, given my current state, the date night the husband and I had planned tonight has been postponed while I continue to recover, but progress is progress, ya know?

Thanks to @thayerkerbasy, @lionheartmadre, and @missroserose for the kind wishes/words last night, it helped! *HUGS*