First vacation blog

After a beautiful week I am now sitting in a crappy café blocks away from the state capitol where Devin is pleading his case against a stupid proposed bill. My love, the politician. I have been away so long that I scarcely know where to start. Perhaps I will give a brief synopsis of our trip day by day until I can think of something better to do.

Monday
I finish at Grant, go to my last final, and pick up the refill to my prescription before getting the car. Everything takes much longer than expected and I am not at Devin’s house until 6ish. We leave at around 730, but only after Devin has made himself a protective bag for the new Ipod mini I gave him for his birthday. So off we go to Seattle.
Umm.. Not really very interesting. I don’t even remember what music we listened to, that’s how unmemorable it was. I do know that I love going to his parent’s house… they are just so lovely and the place is so relaxed.

Tuesday

We get up early and drive into Seattle so that Dev can work for a day. I am on a mission to find a café and then head to the new Library to chat up the librarians. I was there not one hour before I felt extremely sick to my stomach. I barely made it back to Devin’s office, which was in the process of moving up two flights. I camped out on the floor, tucked in any corner that didn’t have a desk in it. It was terribly embarrassing, but mostly I was trying not to be sick on their floor.

When we got back to the house, people started arriving for his birthday party. His family was all there, except his grandma who is on a 6-week tour of Africa. Awesome. Love every single one of them. I also got to meet Devin’s teacher who is just how I wanted her to be – wise, funny and lovely. Unfortunately I was constantly having to excuse myself and lie down and/or go to the bathroom. Not that anything was happening there. I never did throw up, but dang I felt awful. I think that Devin’s Aunt was sure I am pregnant. She didn’t seem to believe me when I told her that it was highly unlikely (unless condoms don’t work like they claim) Anyway, it did make me have dreams of babies, some pleasant, some not.

Wednesday

We finally got out of town at about noon, I think, and headed up to the most northwest point in the US. We missed the ferry in Anacortes that would take us to the Islands so we went shopping at Safeway. It turns out that Devin and I would go grocery shopping about 4 times in 4 days. The last time we finally admitted that we both loved running up and down the aisles and finding all the fun food. Fun food! We settled on camp friendly food this time, oatmeal, instant soup, beer, juice boxes, and cheese and bread. We finally got on the ferry headed for Orcas Island. The ferry alone was a thrill.

By the time we got on the island it was later than we had hoped, so camping for the night was nixed and we hunted for cheap lodging. One wild goose chase through the back woods later and we finally settled on the first hotel on the main strip. It was tiny and overpriced but it was lovely. We didn’t have our own bathroom either, but we didn’t really need it. We decided to cook for ourselves and set up the dragonfly stove out on the side porch. Sweet Dev sat out in the cold wet heating the water for our Mac and cheese. It was very yummy. We made a picnic on the bed, and then after entertaining ourselves on the bed (Devin got too stoned to play Cribbage anymore so we had to find other ways of entertaining ourselves…ahem) we fell asleep before 11. I felt decidedly less nauseous than yesterday but I was still having issues. Uck.

Thursday

We got up late, I took a shower and then opened up the drapes to see the most incredible view that we had missed in the dark the night before. We were on the edge of the beach in a small cove. Oh dear it was beautiful.
We explored the town a bit that morning, wandering around the quaint smallness, looking for locally made soap. The only thing we bought was a belt for me because my pants kept falling down. We went to the library and Dev made up some posters and fliers to hang up about YFU. Brilliant! I did some emailing. I loved every inch of that town. It was absolutely astounding. I was still feeling kinda sick but I didn’t care. I just wanted to wander around. I want to have my retirement home there when I get old. The water was clear and still, the forests beautiful with bits of mist and fog clinging to the tops of the trees, the beaches artfully strewn with driftwood and small rocks, the skies filled with bald eagles and flocks of birds. You could look over the water and see other islands. Oh. And the weather was perfect!

We drove up to Mount Constitution, which has possibly the most beautiful view on earth. When we walked up to the top, we couldn’t see anything off the edge because the mist was lingering just at the edge of the cliff. As the mist blew around different islands would be revealed and then disappear from view slowly while your attention was diverted by another new view. There was a big lovely tower built for the sole purpose of going up and being able to see further out. We sat at the top of that tower for what seemed like forever. I don’t know when I have felt so safe and at peace. Devin sat behind me with his arms around me and I felt so in love. Sometimes you just have a perfect day, and I am willing to bet that this day will be one that sits at the top of my “favorite days” list for quite a while.

Dark clouds eventually started rolling our way, and instead of getting caught in a rainstorm we elected to hunt out a camping site. It was a bit cold on the mountain so we tried to go to this granola-hippyish resort with cabins and a campsite but it is only open on the weekends during the off-season. I thought it was one of the most beautiful little coves I had ever seen, and I definitely want to go back someday. We moved on to a campsite that we had heard rumors about and hoped we wouldn’t freeze.

We found the campsite and after a confusing and frustrating time trying to register our car we made two discoveries. The first was that we had a nail embedded in our front tire. The tire wasn’t flat, and just to save you any worry it never did go flat, but it did continue to worry me for the next 4 days.

The second thing that we discovered was that I had been overdosing on my medication for three days. I am not sure what made me look at the bottle but I read my refill for the first time as I transferred it to the bag I was taking to the campsite. I discovered that, without informing me, the pharmacist had changed my pills from two 10mm to one 20 mm a day. I continued taking my two pills faithfully each day, and thus we now have the perfect explanation for why I had been close to throwing up for several days. Frightening, but in a small way relieving as I was beginning to believe that I might be pregnant, as astronomically remote that possibility would be.

Anyway we hiked half a mile into the campsite and found the most amazing view. Dev made up the tent while I went on a firewood search. It was a bit damp so it was hard to find, but I did it. We got a fire going and after poking at it a while we decided to try and make some soup. Very shortly we realized that the soup required almost all of our water. Fortunatly we had more in the car but the hike back wasnt really inviting so we tried to make do without. We even saved enough water to make instant oatmeal and the less advised instant-in-a-bag coffee in the morning. Oops perhaps that should go under the Friday heading. Hmm... I guess that is all. Oh wait, I have to say one of the loveliest things was that we could hear the waves as they came in all night. Oh and sleeping pads are a must when camping... why have I never had one before!!

A Sass list

Well it has been a long time, and since I have written several comments on my friends' blogs chiding them about the lack of entertainment, I feel that I am bound to speak up a bit about what is going on. Looks like it is time for a Sass List:


1) School is over. Sort of... I am taking an incomplete in one class to write my final paper better, but other than that, it's over. Well, not over over... I mean, I still have 5 classes to take, so I will be here through August, but it is over until the end of the month. Spring break feels really good. I finished a paper 5 minutes before it was due in typical, brilliant Sass style and I think it is really a masterwork. It really is unfair to ask me to summerize the class experience as a final paper, because I am so flippin good at spouting off opinions that the teacher wants to read. Some people would call this "bullshitting" but I say NAY, it is what the assignment requires! If anything, the assignment is bullshit, but not my writing. Everything I write is brilliant! Even this. If I learned one thing from my Dante class it was that if you proclaim your writing to be brilliant, people will still be talking about it in 700 years. I am the god of writing... You'll see.

2) I am leveling out on my medication. Fewer side effects, but less effective. Perhaps we will have to up the dose or something. I found that I really did not miss the shakes.

3) I got new Prana clothes! I love this company, and I look cute in everything it makes. I love the fact that the clothes are cute (even perhaps a bit sexy), and are able to sit on my floor for days and then be worn effectively. I also love the fact that my best friend works there so I get a discount! Hurray for friends! I got 4 shirts, a vest, a hat, 2 pairs of pants and some knickers (CUTE!!) for under 150. Ok this is the last time you will hear me gush about clothes... but really.. I am so damned cute!

4) Today I rented a car to go Camping! Dev and I leave in a couple of hours to run up to Seattle for a couple of days and then we have budgeted 6 days of "whatever" time, during which I think we will be camping for most of that. OHHH FUN! If I freeze to death or fall off of a cliff, know that I love you all.

5) I am seriously thinking of becoming a librarian. I would be in the running as the Cutest/Sassiest librarian around! There is a great "distance Learning" program in seattle that I am contemplating. Now all I need is 25,000.00 dollars and good GRE scores and three years. But then I could be a Librarian!

ok, I have to smell the dishes to decide if they need to be washed before I go on my trip (I try not to lie and say that I am going to wash the dishes, when in reality they probably won't get done) I wonder if I rinse them really good if I can get away with that?

Have a great week

-sass

Annnnd Here we are

For all those readers that are waiting with bated breath to know how my little mind is doing, here is a quick update:

After trying St. John's wort for what was probably not long enough I decided that I could not stand one more day in which I cry for more than half of it. Less than half is managable, more than half is not.
And so I met with my Psychitrist, who had me stop the St. Johns (thanks, anon commenter, I knew to stop:) and start taking the drug of all drugs.... Prozac.
I had/have deep seeded negative issues with this specific drug, as well as all anti-depression medications in general, but I don't feel like I had much of a choice. There is pain and then there is great pain and I had slipped into the latter category.

The last week has been a whirlwind of mild side effects. The drug is not supposed to start effecting my depression for another week or so, and not be fully effective for another month or so. But right now I am sometimes zombie-ish, sometimes exhausted, sometimes wired, sometimes nauseous, never hungry, somtimes poopy, often cloudyheaded and sometimes headachy. I am some combination of that at all times.
The biggest effect I have discovered is that my water supply has been cut off. I don't cry...even when I feel sad or bad enough to be bawling non-stop. So I still feel bad, I am just more socially acceptable.

I have to say that the most interesting thing about all of this has been the parallel nature of my downward spiral in relation to my reading of Dante's Inferno. I hesitate to blame one on the other, but it is an astounding coincidence that my worst week was the week I read about Lucifer crying in the icy center of hell. AND now that I am figuring out my drugs I am working my way through Purgatorio.... What I hope this all means is that someday soon I will be done with Purgatorio... I am going to buy Paradiso just in case... call me superstitious, but I am looking for any help, even if it is from a 700 year old italian mad-man.

-sass

Zombies

Thought I could get away, but it appears that if Zombies invade we will all be undead in a matter of minutes.
See : zombies! to see what I am talking about. All it takes is one!

Feeling groovy

I feel better today than I have in a long time. I feel motivated, interested, and perhaps able to get something done. I am also not crying, which given recent days is quite an accomplishment. Why so happy (ok, not happy exactly, not bouncing off the walls but definitely heading there.)
Thursday I was diagnosed as clinically depressed. Not a good day. My psychologist says it is common to have anxiety attacks and depression go together and it looks like I am one of those lucky people who get the pleasure of both. Not only do I get to worry constantly and freak out occasionally, now I get to feel like a horrible person while I do it. My appointment with my brand new psychatrist is in two weeks (or rather two weeks from thursday) so that gives me some time to think about the drugs they want to put me on. My feeling is that I hate the idea of drugs, that I hear so many stories about people who do not in fact get better but are more erratic and less sane on them.... But I cannot handle this anymore. The crying in the mayonaisse was really the breaking point. I realize that I have become quite a bit less spunky and sassy and much more of a "sigher"
Friday I went to my accupuncturist who at one point dramatically held my head as I wept and proclaimed "YOU. are. NOT. going on Drugs! You KNOW what I can do!!" . He prescribed a rather large dose of St. John's Wort and more accupuncture. And today I feel pretty good. I am hoping with all my might that I stay this good. I am hoping that it is not just a coincidence that Devin left the same day I started feeling better... heehee. With him running around D.C. I feared this week would be worse than any yet, but it just might be ok. I just might get a bunch of back due homework done and clean my house. Or this may be a brief respite in my journey through hell and back (been reading a bit too much Dante frankly)
I am off to play with the new program that allows me to rip dvds and then burn them again... Hurray, all movies are now mine! Oh wait, never mind, I have a 15 point to do list of things that all needed to be done a week ago. Better start on that.

-the re-sassified sass