ooo, a meme. that should make me look busy.

as seen at brian’s blog.

What is the first music album you remember owning?

i remember getting gloria estefan and george michael records for my 10th birthday.

If not the same, what is the first music album you purchased for yourself?

it was most likely new kids on the block’s hangin’ tough.

What artist currently occupies the most space either in terms of shelf space or megabytes on your hard drive?

over the rhine, patty griffin, radiohead, and sufjan stevens monopolize my ipod.

How many different types of music media (vinyl, cassette, CD, etc) have you owned in your lifetime?

cassette, cd, mp3, vinyl, cassettes with songs recorded from the radio.

Who or what has had the biggest effect on your music taste?

my sisters early on (boy george, michael jackson, stray cats…)
my dad schooled me in jazz and big band.
and mostly i’ve been the influential one as an adult. i’m a music geek.

How do you currently prefer to listen to music?

through my ipod. on my bose speakers at home, itrip in the car, and plugged into my ears at work. also love our record player. we’ve been building our collection of inherited vinyl, and i lovelovelove it.

In terms of music memorabilia, what is your most prized possession?

hmmm. not much of a memorabilia enthusiast…maybe signed tour posters? or my julie lee woodcut? it’s so pretty.

Have you ever “swapped headsets” with a complete stranger (meaning have you ever unplugged the earphones from your listening device and plugged them into someone else’s player and had them do the same)?

someone did that to me once. erie, pa. city bus. a girl was really really into erasure. her headphones were crappy, and i didn’t hear much. still, i was 15, and it was an adventure.

Have you ever been completely obsessed with a particular artist? Who and to what level did your fandom go?

10th grade: sarah mclachlan. i had her picture in my locker. seriously. how did anyone think i was straight??

What is the farthest you’ve ever traveled for a concert?

highschool, used to drive 13 hours to go to the cornerstone festival.

Who have you seen in concert the most?

over the rhine. when i lived in ohio, it was so easy! le sigh. i miss their live show.

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insurance update.

1. the insurance company thinks the ineptitude of my (soon to be former) dr is ridiculous. they are giving me an extra day to hopefully get everything taken care of.
2. i just informed my boss of the situation, and he has promised that the time taken off already will be approved and not counted against me. ie, my job is secure.

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aaaaaaarrrrrgh!!

remember the fmla intermittent leave i was praising so excitedly? yeah, well, the paperwork was faxed to dr c on 10/24, with a deadline of 11/7 to return it. my insurance company has called me every day to advise they haven’t received the forms. in turn, i have called dr c’s office, and have told the nurse: please. fax. forms. my job depends on it. nurse’s reply: we are short staffed, but it’s on my desk and i’ll have dr c sign it “tomorrow”.

today, of course, is 11/7. i called dr c’s office once again to confirm that everything had been signed and faxed back. the nurse just called me: dr c refuses to sign the intermittent fmla form. we can give you a dr note for any days you’ve missed, though, she says. dr c won’t sign fmla leave until after the delivery.

fuck fuck fuck. debbie the nurse just got a fucking mouthful from me. i tried to calmly explain that pregnancy leave and post-pregnancy leave (ie maternity/bonding leave) are separate. one does not affect the other. and unless dr c approves pregnancy fmla, i am fucked. i will lose my job. because i have already missed days of work that were promised to be covered under fmla.

i told nurse debbie to call the insurance company and get the paperwork down to a language that ensures me the freedom to stay home from work when i feel like shit during this first trimester and still makes dr c feel comfortable…whatever the fuck that means.

i cannot even fathom the level of unprofessionalism happening right now.
i can’t wait to call and ask for my records to be sent to the midwife.

oh god, though. i’m worried about my job.

hopefully, this will all be resolved within the next two hours.

in the meantime, here’s an 8 week 3 day belly shot. (what i was doing when nurse debbie called.)

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all about food.

apologies for scant posting this week. the sick has taken a turn toward all-consuming. sea-bands have lost their magic powers, though h still wants to sew little stars on them so i look like wonderwoman. (wonderwoman is her “root”.) i cannot look at a gingersnap, crackers leave a funky aftertaste in my mouth, as does ginger ale, and if it were up to me, i wouldn’t eat anything. ever. again.

but, for the sake of sparky, i eat.

this, dear friends, is an example of how i eat. in my head, i go through a constant menu of possible foods: spaghetti, hamburger, yogurt, pizza, stirfry…ok, self, does anything sound edible? if i get a ‘yes’ on any of the suggestions, i envision myself eating it. i prepare myself for flavor, texture, and overall satisfaction. if i can get through the mental meal, i will then try the actual meal. after all of the mental olympics, though, sometimes the food of my dreams is not available. [last week, i languished over the idea of a piece of veggie lasagne as i drove home from work, only to find h had eaten it b/c the night before, i turned up my nose at the thought of it. i had to start over.]

the other night, my brain landed on tuna. (picture my food process as spinning the wheel of fortune.) i looked through our overcrowded pantry, and we had no tuna. and so, i drove myself to the neighborhood grocery store. in my pajamas. wearing a sports bra that hadn’t before covered my pregnant beasts. the cleavage bursting forth from my hanes vneck was unbelievable. i got ogled! i digress. i bought the tuna. hardboiled an egg. mix mix mixed until i had before me a perfect tuna salad. and of course you know the rest of the story: one bite later and i was gagging. it’s currently hanging out in the fridge, preparing for a garbage death. h doesn’t eat tuna, and lord knows i probably won’t want it again for months.

that same evening, i lay on the couch–sad and hungry–watching a dr. oz show on discovery health, when a pro bowler with crazy high triglycerides grilled some asparagus in order to save his own life. asparagus! that sounded fantastic! and so i texted h, who was in class, and asked her to pick some up. and lo, at 10 pm, she made me a wonderful dinner of asparagus over toast, complete with a lovely swiss cheese and egg white sauce. i ate two pieces before the urge to vomit overtook me. i consider that meal a rousing success. i did not vomit, and i actually had a healthy portion of vegetables. i win!

last night, we all went out for the coach’s birthday. i picked the restaurant–all of our favorite–the clay pit. think really really divine indian food. all day, i practiced eating dinner. i knew what i’d order: chicken tikka masala. i had a contingency plan: rice and naan.

when i entered the restaurant, the aroma overtook me in a positive way! my belly began to rumble and i was hungry! with an appetite! we ordered. i ate. and it tasted so. good. i very nearly finished my whole dinner. (the texture aversion kicked in only at the very end.) and another thing, i enjoyed two cups of clay pit’s homemade chai. it’s not sweet, and last night it had a lovely cardamom (had to look up the spelling) flavor. that chai was my savior of the evening. it sat in my belly so well. i remember it fondly even now.

my wonderful meal with beloved friends did not make me ill afterwards. as we sat around our house eating cake afterward, i felt blessed and blissed out with non-nausea. just a few hours’ reprieve made me so thankful for anything remotely normal.

this morning, sparky is growing, and i’m achy and tired and can’t sleep. my belly is expanding a little more every day, and when i sit down, the top of my pants rolls down. today is 8 weeks 3 days. tomorrow is my first official appointment with our midwife. the nausea isn’t overwhelming thus far today. and i am grateful and quiet.

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