IT AINT EASY BEING GREEN... On Wednesday afternoon, I puked my brains out at school and finally finished at midnite. About halfway through the diarrhea began...and it still hasn't ended.

So, needless to say, I feel like crap...no pun intended. I've lost 5 pounds the hard way. My stomach muscles are so sore, even my rib cage aches. According to my aide, my students are dropping like flies.

I will catch up with you when I can spend more than 15 minutes out of the bathroom.

P.S. Thanks for the feedback re: goodies at school!

Hey!
Omigod! EVERY CHILD AT MY SCHOOL HAS LOST THIER MINDS! I am having the week from **** literally. Yesterday was absolutely horrendous.
First I have this boy who keeps writing me "love notes" saying you are so sexy blah blah blah. Yesterday he gave me his phone number.......Saying he is gonna buy me diamonds. Ok, so you are all probably saying oh he's just a boy. Well this same boy stood behind another teacher and pretended to hump her leg. Then, I was doing duty in between elective change and this boy wouldn't go to class. I said What in the world am I going to do with you?
He said "I know, you can take me to your bedroom........" I"m not even going to say what I did because it is horrible, and was a reflex action and I am fortunate to still be employed at this point. So, after talking to my principal and assistant principal who just laughed and said he is an ***, I feel better. But, omigod!!!!!!!Then I had a boy in fourth period with a nose bleed that lasted forever, they had to call the rescue squad because his nose wouldn't stop......I was supposed to leave right when the bell rang so that I could pick up my son, change clothes and be back at work by five for an awards banquet. It was tough, since I live thirty minutes away and was stuck at school til almost four, but I made it.
It's just craziness.....................THREE MORE DAYS...................One full day, and two half days and it's all over but the singing. You will hear my jubilant whoop of joy in all four corners of the earth.
There are so many more wonderful things I could go on and on about, but I won't bore you with the details.
Son has been working a full week. Hasn't quit his job yet, ok well I haven't seen him today so anything could happen.
Lost half a pound finally after three weeks. I started working out with hand weights this week. My muscles in my back are a bit sore, but feel good. That feeling you have when you know it came from hard work. I did good at the awards things also, only ate one sugar cookie. It was an ice cream social. I could have done some major damage!
I'll be back later when I can talk to everyone a little more personally.
Take care!
Pam

Survived another day.....SO glad it is Friday.

Summer- feel lots better ok???? You picked one dilly of a way to lose weight. Hopefully you can salvage some of this weekend and do something fun.

Pam-oh, you really have only 3 more days????? Lucky!!!!!! made me laugh with the story of the oversexed boy- you deserve the medal of honor for that one! So glad your principal has a sense of humor (and reality too!) with regards to this idiot. Gosh, kids act like such morons toward the end of the school year. And Ds.....could this be a world record???? One week without quitting? Congrats. Hope it sticks.

Ah, the ever hysterical and ebullient Robyn. Hope your weekend, however busy, turns out to be just great.

Me, I am in survival mode. Stuff with Dm is driving me nuts- her level of facing reality with regards to her own health is not great. Guess she is handling this as well as she can. Looks like surgery will be the end of next week- but we should know more by Tuesdsay. Kiddies on the bus were ok......I bribed them with "free Friday"- sit whereever you want, and even gave out cookies. It was SO funny- the little kids who usually sit in the front ran to the last rows.....and I had 5th graders (who sort of like their own domain and could not stand the nonsense asking for permission to sit in row 1! Thought I would die laughing. But they were good- I threatened them with never ever having free Friday again if they were bad.....and they were amazingly good. They actually had me laughing on the way home..something I have not done all week with all the other junk going on.

Trixie- our silly kitten- goes in next Thursday for her check up. Can't wait- she wants to be out with us, and our other cat really does not seem too upset by it all. (we let trixie out if RC is sleeping to avoid contact.) I Love kittens. aw I love cats too.....

Gotta go. House looks like a pig sty. Have a good weekend.
Ginny

Mouse- glad the camping trip went so well. Your first exposure to pit latrines eh?????
Ah, indoor plumbing is such a blessing. Hope you feel better too!! And those leg cramps too...after a bad one the leg can be sore for days.
Find a good date yet for the interviews? Sounds as though you have 2 good alternatives. As I said before, even if both jobs seem less than wonderful, it feels so good to be able to know that you had a choice! Good luck. Thanks for the kind words/thoughts about Dm. I do need all the help I can get (Dh has stayed not unsupportive but unreactive about it all-an interesting mix of uncooperative and only mildly supportive, guess he figures I can handle this by myself, however, if this were HIS family the United Nations, Army, Marines, Red Cross you name it would be called in- or should I say he would tell me to call them in for him.)
Nuff babbling. Enjoy your weekend and feel better.
Ginny

Well, after HOURS with the orthopedist...quite literally: I was late for my appointment because the University of Maryland graduated today at the Hippodrome across the street. Baltimore City decided to help matters by using their oh-so-talented traffic cops. If those people had brains and knew what they were doing, they'd be flat out dangerous! As it is, I think some of my certificate students could do a better job!
Anyway, hours later... X-Rays... exam... I sprained my ankle again, and pulled the calf muscle. Its back to physical therapy for me. 15 visits to start, and I have to go see him in 6 weeks. I guess that puts the cabosh on my getting a different job: nobody in their right mind would hire me the way I'm walking right now. I look like I'm drunk...
I have to do all the proproceptive exercises and stuff over again, and damn it, I HURT!
He gave me something for the pain, but at the moment all its doing is making me sleepy. I still hurt. Boy, am I whining or what?!
Yes, this was my first exposure to stinky pit latrines. The ones in Poland, Czechslovakia and the Ukraine didn't smell anywhere NEAR as bad as these did! Ick!
Summer: FEEL BETTER SOON!!! Throwing up is absolutely no fun at all!
Ginny: I know some people at the Red Cross if you need 'em. (So speaks the weekend dispatcher who is probably high right now from pain meds. Woo hoo!)
Pam: Your 4th period sounds like my 4th period. Sorry 'bout the nosebleed and the sex maniac. I've had to deal with the latter... we have some pretty strict protocols in place regarding that issue.

Mouse- hope that ankle feels better soon!!!!! I would still look for jobs- any idiot should understand that sprains do happen and heal very nicely too. thanks for the kind offer about the Red Cross.....it is after all MY mother who is ill, and not Dh's. If it is his mom getting ill, I will be sure to contact you....and then the Red Cross might not be able to handle it all.....might need FEMA, National Guard, Royal Canadian Guard and anyone else to lend assistance!!!!!hehehehe. Loved your comment about the Baltimore police.....Dh is a former military police (army) and spent lots of time with TCP's (traffic control point in army lingo) and he goes beserk when he sees police trying to direct traffic. In his opinion, only about 1/4 of them know what they are doing and the rest are still boy scouts.

Hope everyone's day is going well....doing some gardening here.
Take care.
Ginny

Awww, geez. I went to swim lessons today, and if I thought I hurt yesterday, I was wrong. I am flat out stupid. But, I had to go. And I have my private lesson tomorrow night, so I'll be there then. I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do about work on Monday. I'm even wondering what is going to happen because when I left the camp site on Thursday, I had no idea that I'd sprained my ankle again. Not a clue in the world. My *ankle* didn't hurt.
And Ginny... I know you can handle it, but I got a vest here waiting.

Hi-
Mouse, thanks for the vote of confidence for me~I will call if I need a life vest, or for that matter a shoulder to cry on. Sure hope you are feeling better and in a ton less pain. Sprains are usually the worst the day after, and I do hope that you are on the mend. How did the swimming lesson go??? Meant to ask you too, how is your new eating plan going? ( ok maybe I missed an earlier discussion of it, but I have been in twinkie land for a few days).

Well, today is our anniversary. Got up early and went to church and then went out for a nice breakfast. I broke down and had french toast( I love french toast and have not had it in ages.....all 7 points of it and 2 points of syrup.....don't care either!!!!!!)
So, I will have to sneak in a walk or something today- and will skip all eating until dinner so that I don't go over my range. Been a tough couple of days eating wise......stress...stress.....stress......did I mention I was under stress?????
Dh and I also got our veggie garden in (well, most of it, some must still wait) and that is something we enjoy doing together.
Kitten update- the little bugger goes to the vet Thursday and hopefully will be ok to hang around with RC after that. She is SO cute! Her eyes are changing colors, no longer the kitten blue but seem to be turning amber. And with very limited exposure she and RC get along ok. As long as Trixie does not touch RC's food, she might live.
Nuff of me babbling.....sorry to be so trivial.....in a brain dead mode here. Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend!
Ginny

Hey, Ginny. Right now, I'm doing pretty good... but I'm also way out of it from the pills. I don't usually react to pain meds, except that they keep me awake (my limited exposure being to Tylenol 3 (codeine), or codeine in cough syrup!). But this stuff works. Knocks me out, but it works.
Kittens are really truly adorable... my mother's kitten is just about a year old now. The occupational therapist at work had a friend giving away kittens last year, and my grandmother's dog was on the deathwatch list (poor Bandit... they had to put him to sleep because he was in pain), so my mom asked for one. We got one, and it became Wiccan. He was started off named Puffin, became WICKED on the car ride to my mom's house where he kept getting out of his box (I couldn't use Imp's carrier because Wiccan hadn't been to the vet yet), so I drove 1-handed up 83 from Baltimore....1 hand on the wheel, one hand smushing a kitten into a box and saying, "no, no, you wicked beast. IN THE BOX!" It helped that I was listening to the CD from the Broadway musical Wicked as well.
And the vet didn't hear the 'ED' at the end, so his name went in the records as Wiccen. My mom allowed that she probably needed a wizard (since only females can be witches) to deal with an Imp and a Bandit.
Imp and Wiccan do NOT get along, at all. Period. We have massive hissing and spitting going on when the two are together. They're going to have to learn though, becuase Imp will be spending time with my mother this summer if I move or if I work at that summer camp in Illinois in August.
Eating plan is going pretty well, but the cold had me side-tracked just a bit... the ONLY thing that cuts the taste of cough syrup is chocolate, and I refuse to take it if I can't have a piece. Its the only time I ever have chocolate, seeing as how I'm allergic to it. And I also definitely eat more sweets if I'm taking other meds... so I had a brownie last night. BUT... I couldn't eat the whole thing, I divided it up, and ate bits of it over the last 24 hours. Its finally gone.
I went grocery shopping last night after swimming and have a fresh supply of berries and green veggies. I still need some FF ricotta cheese, though... I refuse to pay $5 for a small conatiner of it at Whole Foods because its "organic". I really should take the blackberries I bought there back, if I can find the receipt, becuase they were moldy. Guess that's why that big huge 2 pound thing of blackberries was $3 at that store! Its okay,t hough, because they had strawberries and raspberries on sale for good prices too.
Strnagely enough, the WholeFoods near my house costs a lot more than the WholeFoods in Falls Church, VA. I thought THAT store was expensive, but I saw really clear price differences. In Falls Church, I paid $1.99 for my salad, here it was $2.50.

Mouse- glad you are doing ok......and hopefullly able to wean off the meds too. Did the ankle swell much???? Love your story about Wiccan.....I had a black kitten that I brought home from college...he ate his way out of the cardboard cat carrier I bought at a pet store (the kitten himself was a stray) and there I was driving up the NJ Turnpike (aka interstate 95) with him all over the place....NO fun at all. It was the beginning of 16 years of a very interesting life with a very interesting cat. He was part siamese.....had many of the siamese personality elements and facial structure but was all black. What a character.
This eating plan sounds great for you. Surely the little bit of brownie won't be a problem~ if all other areas of your eating are good. Hope your day went well and you were able to function with the bum ankle.

Me, doing ok. Got 6 AP's in (4 from a tape, 2 from a walk) so I am all workedout for now. Gotta go fold some wash. See ya later!
Ginny

HEY!!!!!!!
How's things? So far I'm still employed, so that's a good thing. TWO MORE DAYS. Did I mention the fact that we only have two more days???
Actually, only two half days so not bad. I promise not to kill, maime, injure anyone within the next two days.
Been a busy weekend. I decided this weekend that I was sick of my hair, and needed a new "DO". My hair was below the shoulders and it's very thick and wavy. So, I have been debating it for a while now. My husband was opposed since he is a fan of long hair. However, all I have been able to do with it is just put it up in a ponytail, so I said what is the difference really.
I finally went on Saturday, looked through some books and talked to the styleist and told her to go for it.............OMIGOD, I WAS CRYING when I got home. It went from being below the shoulders to below the ears, and barely there. I had a stacked hair cut. Which is shorter in the back than in the front. Although, I like it now. It just requires more effort than the other one. My husband said dang, you've lost weight, you got a new hairdo..Hmmmm you gonna get a boyfriend? I said, Well, I hadn't thought about that but I'll have to see if any interesting propositions come my way.
SONS CAR BROKE DOWN AGAIN.....................He just got a pizza delivery job, and so now his job is in jeopardy. Lord have mercy. THis was a job he loved and was making good money at........The funny thing, he had ordered a muffler for his car which he is trying to turn into the Fast and the furious car and it came today. It is now put together in the middle of the living room floor. What an attractive addition to my living room.............
Anyway, Mouse: leg cramps: the school nurse just sent out a memo saying for leg cramps a dab of mustard under the tongue will take them away. You sure are having a time of it.
Ginny; I LOVE KITTENS! We have a cat Sassy who is spoiled. We're not sure exactly what she is, but she is so pretty and sweet. I just love her. She goes around and visits the other neighbors on a daily visit. If we walk, she will follow us slinking through the bushes, it's funny. When she sees our car pull in, she comes bounding over like a dog would. Our dog doesn't like her but we love her.
Everyone else: HEY!!!!!!!!!!
I'm at 175.5 and holding. In spite of the fact that we went to the Shoney's breakfast bar yesterday. My littlest is going to spend a week at my mom's starting Wednesday while I'm still in school, so I'm hoping to get lots of working out done.
See ya later!
Pam

Hi, all. If only you were here, because nobody could possibly believe my trip to Hopkins today. Its not a requirement, but our HR department and high school administration prefer that if we're injured we get checked out at the occupational health clinic at Hopkins. Since we're partners with them and all. But these people are truly, truly slow.
I had a prescription with me from my orthopedist (saw him Friday). He's with one of the major competitors for Hopkins... University of Maryland. He's my ONLY doctor that isn't with the other hospital system I work (the one that runs the gym). Anyway, the nurse practioner is looking for my orthopedist's name, and says, "Is he XXXXX?" I looked at him funny, trying to figure out where he got XXXXX from YYYYY. I said, "No, its YYYYY... and its on the other side." He had a photocopy of the script in front of him, and he FLIPPED IT OVER TO LOOK ON THE BACK FOR THE DOCTOR'S NAME!
The photocopy, of course, was blank on the back. Then, he tugged at my ankle and the brace, and says, "Does this hurt?" No... it feels GREAT!!!!!
I start physical therapy tomorrow. I was pretty obviously hurting this afternoon when I told my supervisor. The only appointment this week was at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow morning... and he agreed that I needed to go.
Are we making progress? I'll hold my breath.

Aw Mouse.......I believe you. You must admit, you would find this whole sordid tale funny, if it were not happening to you. Actually, it is not funny.........pretty pathetic.
Fortunately for you you have been well prepared for such hilarity, with all the other medical morons you have dealt with. Feel better and hang in there......

Pam- I'll trade decorating with automobile parts for baseball equipment??? now lets see, is that the retro look...aw, I got it shabby chic!! Sorry about Ds's car. May the force be with you and it is repaired quickly. The hair sounds cute.....are you used to it now??? (I am so unnervy with my own hair, I can identify with your saga).

Looks like Dm'ssurgery will be next Tuesday.....and I will deal with it then. We'' know about the hysterectomy tomorrow for her.....what a mess.
Gotta go. Have a good one.\
Ginny

Hi Ladies,
Things have been a little hetic with me this past weekend. I went to the doctor on Friday to have a lump on my back checked out. He told me that it was a cyst and that he could remove it right than and now in the office. So I was like sure, just let me go use the restroom and that way I won't pee my pants when you cut me open. So I have an inch incision on my back with stitches. I was pretty bumped out this weekend since I couldn't go to Curves to workout. So I did get some walking in though on Sunday (2 mile walk to and from Mickey D's for a fruit salad that I took on my church's hike. We hiked about 4 miles at the one state park near me.) My sds' and sdd's ballgames on Saturday and last night. So I am pretty tired. I only have three more days with my lovely children and than it is hello summer vacation. I am looking forward to it even though I have to take 5 workshops to become highly qualifed to teach my special needs kids. One of my coworkers slapped me in the back this morning where my stitches are. Needless to say, I was not happy. They were itchy already but now they are driving me nuts. There is a dull little achy feeling around them now. I have done my best not to go around him for the remainder of the day. If I see him out in the hallways, I go the other way so he can't slap me again. Enough about me.
Mouse how was physical therapy today? I hope all is well with you.
Pam sorry to hear about your ds's car. Hope it gets fixed soon. Glad that you are getting use to your hair. I know what you mean about the hair and having to get use to it. I had to do that in March. Enjoy your last few days of school.
Ginny glad that you are able to get your walk in. I bet that little bit of time to yourself was relaxing and just what you needed to calm down from all the stress in your life right now.
Hi to Robyn, Paisley and Summer. Hope your week is going great for you! Talk to you all later.
Kerry