Category Archives: Inspiration

2018 – Not All Bad

01 Tuesday Jan 2019

Posted by in #sitsblogging, Challenges, guitar, Health, Inspiration, Me, Music, Random Thoughts

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I went through my calendar items and my photos for the year. All in all, 2018 wasn’t a great year, but it wasn’t all that bad either. I spent a good third of the year sick, and I’ve lost more weight with my stomach woes. I also spent three-quarters of the year pushing myself and learning.

My starter guitar kit

On the learning side, I was inspired to use a $100 Amazon gift card on a very cheap beginner’s guitar package (a cheap electric guitar and a tiny amplifier). I took lessons as a kid on an acoustic and didn’t stick with it. I’ve always regretted not following through so I decided to pick up the cheap guitar to see if I could still do it. I could. Guitar one became eight guitars and two bass guitars (guitar acquisition syndrome). Daily practice sessions where I pushed myself to learn using DVDs, books and online lessons turned into weekly guitar lessons with a private teacher. She’s going to teach me bass, too, since I’ve been doing those lessons on my own for about a week now.

The sick of it was a series of infections – SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth), a UTI, an infected tooth and emergency root canal, and a long, drawn-out bout with a c. difficile infection that still hasn’t completely resolved itself. I’ve eaten a lot of bland food, taken lots of medication (thus the c. diff infection) and taken more medication to combat the CDI monster. My house smells like bleach, but I guess it could be worse.

2018 also brought two new tattoos and three rock concerts in five days. Not bad considering I was sick and on an antibiotic the week we attended the concerts, one including a trip out of town for two days.

Seen on the way to York, PA

I have no New Year’s resolutions for 2019. My only goal is to get well again. I’d like to spend some of my free time cleaning up the clutter that has taken over my house, but being sick most of the time, working full-time takes the majority of my energy. When I get home, I expend the last of my reserves on practicing the guitar and then I’m done. I sit with my feet up, a heating pad on my belly and a cat on my lap, and I fall asleep in my recliner.

Not a very exciting life, but not all bad either.

This Week in Photos

19 Wednesday Dec 2018

Posted by in #family, #sitsblogging, Animals, Blogging, Cats, Chase, Chase and Ginny, Family, Ginny, guitar, Holidays, Inspiration, Me, Photography

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Tree up on Sunday
Stockings ready for Santa
The cats love the tree
Even old lady cats get excited
My awesome Christmas present from my boss
Overwhelmed, amazed and so happy
His favorite spot
Yes, I bought a bass, too

Better

09 Sunday Dec 2018

Posted by in #sitsblogging, Health, If We Were Having Coffee, Inspiration, Me, Random Thoughts

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I returned to work on Thursday and made it through my short work week of two days. It felt more like two weeks! I haven’t felt overwhelming exhaustion like this since I had newborns in the house. Recovering from this infection is hard work. 

After three weeks away from my job, my ‘to do’ stack is, of course, mountainous. The urgent things got done while I was out. Everything else is waiting for me to pick back up again. It will take some time to get closer to caught up. I’m never completely caught up with everything. That’s impossible in my job. 

Right now I’m operating at nowhere near my usual level of performance. Thursday I was at about 60%. Friday I was closer to 80%. I stayed the full day both days, but I was staggering tired by the time I left. My weekend is all about resting up and recharging. It is much needed. 

I picked up my guitar again Saturday night for the first time in three weeks. I had been too sick to touch it before this. I canceled four weeks of lessons and stopped playing. I actually thought I did okay tonight. It didn’t sound entirely bad. Most of what I know and learned came right back. Newer notes and chords were harder to remember. The strings hurt my fingers again. I noticed some of the calluses and blisters I had developed peeled off while I was sick. I’ll have to build them back up again. 

I sampled something different for dinner Saturday, too. I ate a few cheese ravioli but only a trace amount of sauce. I’m starting to develop more of an appetite again, and that’s a good sign, too. 

Meme courtesy of Pinterest 

One More Day

05 Wednesday Dec 2018

Posted by in #sitsblogging, Health, Inspiration, Me, Random Thoughts, Weight Loss

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My antibiotic is finished. My bloodwork is normal. Today is my last day home. Tomorrow I return to the rat race. I do not want to go. 

I do not want to return to deadlines, stress and a huge volume of W-O-R-K on a daily basis. I’ve been able to read, rest and write. All that will fall by the wayside when work returns to sucking the life out of me. 

I used to love what I do. Now I’m not sure if it’s too much or not. I’ve enjoyed being home even as sick as I’ve been. I can breathe. Work is just that – work. 

I like my coworkers. I just hate the idea of working and the reality of my job. It’s been divided across three people since I’ve been gone. That’s how BIG my job is. It’s always been too much work for one person. I wonder if the stress contributed to my health issues. 

I know I have to return. I have student loans and a mortgage. I also carry the family’s medical and dental insurance. I have found myself wishing and wondering what if. 

I wish that I had been better at web design and could’ve found a way to work from home. I have a degree in it, but we couldn’t afford for me to start over from scratch. Building a business and building a client base would have taken time, money and talent that I didn’t have. 

I wish I could afford to retire. The closer I get, the more I’m ready. I am not a traveler, even less so since the digestive issues that have caused me to lose thirty pounds in a year. I just want to rest and relax. 

I will miss the quiet, and the calm and the comfort of being at home. I don’t want the stress and the expectations and the discomfort of work. Here I can put my feet up, I can nap, and my family is familiar with my digestive issues. These issues are not always group appropriate or group-friendly. 

I will try to enjoy my last day at home in my cluttered, messy house. I’ve been too sick to do anything about the messy inside and out, too. Even with the clutter, it’s home. Home that I will miss. Home that work will take me away from. 

I used to say that work was where I went to stay sane. Now I’m not so sure anymore.