Friday, February 26, 2016

This Week in My Life: Week 8 of 2016

Update on the car drama:

Took the car to a different place and was told that 1. the part had been put in totally incorrectly by the previous place and that 2. the real problem was something else entirely and that 3. it would cost about $400 to fix. Great. So the total with the part (that maybe wasn't even needed) + a rental car for one day + a new fuel pump + labor, the grand total came to $550. That would have paid for the new tires the car desperately needs, but oh well. At least the car is working again!

The view from here:

book + coffee + blanket = happiness

my mom made me this delicious breakfast burrito

it's looking and feeling a lot like spring out there
not at all typical for a MN february

On the MS:

Various paresthesias have been continuing, and now a more troubling issue has joined them: significant weakness of the left arm. Much like how I enjoyed making faces in the mirror when I had Bell's Palsy, I'm morbidly fascinated by this. Holding both arms above my head, or straight out, or in any position really, my left arm will slowly dip down lower and lower. It started yesterday and doesn't seem any worse today, but is also not any better. I experienced this before during my first awful year of MS struggles, especially difficult because I was trying to finish my master's degree in horn performance at the time and holding my horn up with my left arm was a major challenge. I'm still not sure how I completed my master's recital for this reason alone.

What I read this week:

  • Reread my beloved favorite, To Kill a Mockingbird. It's as great as ever. So many dear characters and plenty of tears.
  • Crimson Shore. Another thrilling adventure (ending with a massive cliffhanger) with one another beloved character, Special Agent Aloysius Pendergast.
  • About three-quarters through Tess Gerritsen's Playing With Fire. This author usually writes medical thrillers, but this book centers around a piece of music for violin. Turns out Gerritsen is some kind of superwoman  - not only is she a doctor and a bestselling author, but she also wrote a 7-minute composition for violin and piano to go with the book. I bought a recording and it's pretty cool to listen to while reading the book since the piece of music is such an essential part of the story.

1 comment:

Traci said...

Some responses in list form:

1. I need to reread Mockingbird! I'm impressed that you got right on that.
2. Wow, putting Playing with Fire on my reading list. The composition accompanying the book is a new one!
3. Oh, Subie...what is wrong with her now?
4. Your mom makes the most beautiful and tasty things like that! ;]
5. Hooray for spring weather in the tundra!!!
6. You should post that video of the arm thing.
7. I have to end on an odd number. Muah!