A call out to all blog-smart people..

You know those gorgeous buttons that so many of you have?  How do I get one? Did you make your own?

And also, while we're at it.  Some of you, on your sidebar - instead of a basic blog roll like mine, have one that has a pic/icon and the person's last post.  How do I do that?

Polly Dolly

I've missed it the past couple of weeks, so I'm so glad I've remembered (and had a chance) to join Dani in her Polly Dolly Polyvore challenge this week.

From her blog -

Every Thursday I'll post a new Polly Dolly Theme Challenge, then you toddle off and get creative. You can credit the items if you want and add a bit of an explanation of why you chose the pieces or you can just share your clipboard... it's up to you. When you're done maxing out your imaginary credit cards, simply add your link below using your blogs name as the "title" and a direct link to the specific blog post. Polyvore publishes your outfit straight to your blog with a simple click of the "publish" button... too easy!

This week's challenge - Little Black Dress.  Now, while we are allowed to imagine ourselves with an unlimited budget, even I can't imagine myself in anything little,lol.   So, it may not be exactly a LBT - I do love it.

Little Black Dress by Melissa4444 featuring christian louboutin pumps

Pinup Couture slip dress
$118 - modcloth.com

Jimmy Choo patent leather handbag
$1,150 - net-a-porter.com

Kit Heath sterling silver earring
20 GBP - johnlewis.com

Hair accessory
15 GBP - houseoffraser.co.uk

Tattoo Art Lips 2 - Sticker Giant
$1.99 - stickergiant.com

Signature Hydra Lustre Lipstick - 75 Cherry Kiss ( Unboxed ) - ESTEE...
$17 - strawberrynet.com

Liquid Eye Liner WP # 001- Anna Sui-Beauty-Face-Foundation & Concealer
$61 - sears.com

Cheryl Eyelashes
5 GBP - missselfridge.com

Amazon.com: Coco Mademoiselle by Chanel for Women - 3.4 oz EDP Spray:...
$70 - amazon.com

CHANEL LE VERNIS NAIL COLOUR

Nordstrom.com
$25 - nordstrom.com

Bobbi Brown 'Lash Glamour' Extreme Lengthening Mascara
$24 - nordstrom.com

WiseDecor Live Preview
wisedecor.com

"Well Behaved Women Rarely Make History..." 25mm Pin Button Badge ∴...
0.99 GBP - bigcheesebadges.com

Why don't you join in?  Hop on over to Dani's blog and add your link.  I love the things she picks -  I wish I was nearly as brave.

Memories

I was at Lucy's blog this morning, and she had up one of my all time favourite songs.  A song that never fails to take me back to my early childhood, lying in bed with my mother, listening to the radio.  I get nostalgic, sad, happy - all at the same time.  Beautiful memories, beautiful song, a sharp longing for the woman I still miss every single day.

I used to listen to this song, and wonder how much my mother related.  Barely 16 when she gave birth to me - a single mother back when single mothers were still scandalous.  A girl with a genius IQ, who had the brains to be anything she wanted.  Who chose to keep a child that shocked all of those around her, to bring me up alone. 

I wondered, many times if she regretted that choice - what her life could have been had I not come along.  Not that she ever, once made me feel that way. But I was sensitive, a deep thinker even as a tiny girl - and I always felt a sense of guilt. 

Now I'm older, a mother, and I realise just how much I had missed the point of the song...




Another song from my childhood that also reminds me of my mother.  Every time those opening bars wash over me, the memories start to swirl - glimpses of my mother and I - the radio that was never off, afternoon naps in her bed, chatting as my younger siblings slept in their cots. In those early years, before she met and married the man who became my beloved father, I so often felt it was her and I - a team.  I was only 3 years older than my next sibling, but I felt so much older. 

Anyway..all beside the point.  Lucy was asking if we had songs that made us nostalgic, and this is one of mine. 





What about you?  Do you have songs that transport you back to another time? In Lucy's words:  Do you have a song? One that makes you think? One that makes you stop and listen? One that makes you happy, sad, grateful and nostalgic, all at the same time?

Mon petit soleil

There are moments, more and more of them lately, when the darkness seems almost omnipresent. My head knows, logically that this is at the very least, being exacerbated by the Prednisone.  My soul doesn't care.  It rolls in like a storm, a swirling mass of black and grey; a bleakness I've not felt since..well, since then. Back when it was all black and red and hopeless.

There are moments of red still, though not as many.  A fair bit of black, when i just want to world to end, or my pathetic role in it, at least.  But most of the time, it is the ubiquitous grey that swallows me up and threatens to simply leave me a shell of who I once was.  I think perhaps it is the grey I fear most. It is so...nothing. It makes me feel like nothing. Noone. Like maybe nothing good can ever happen again.  Like there is nothing about me that is good anymore.

Except.  There is Sam.  My littlest love, my last baby. He is an entirely different child than he was last time.  Hell, he's an entirely different child to who he was just a month ago.  I've no idea what happened, but it is as though someone flicked a switch in his cheeky 3 year old mind, and lit him up.  

He lights me, this baby of mine.  Warms me from the inside, like my own little sun.  Forces me to step out from the shadows, eyes blinking as they adjust to his light.  Feeling his warmth spread across my face, onto my skin, into my heart. So full of life, of laughter.  From almost non-verbal to full sentences in a month.  Huge blue eyes that barely contain the mischief lurking within, a dimpled smile charming us all.

He's got this entire family ensorcelled, my Samuel Thomas. His words, his dancing, his singing - he floats through our day and lights it up.  Impeccably behaved (with the mortifying exception of our Parent/Teacher/IEP Meeting on Friday morning, just hours before I was admitted), suddenly completely toilet trained and oh-so-completely aware of the spell under which he casts all and sundry, my littlest boy is revelling in the love of everyone around him.

He makes me breathe.  He makes me think I'll get better.   It's not just him, of course.  Joel is being wonderful, as always.  Strong, sweet, gentle Joel - always completely there for us.  And my Alexander - the earnest, impossibly sweet child of my heart. Bittersweet though, as I watch him sad this year, having lost his best friends and all that he had aqquired last year. I watch him and my heart swells, with love and with hurt.  It hurts to look at those beautiful brown eyes and see the pain that they simply can't hide.

But right now, with my Sam.  There is yellow.  It is all warmth and happiness. Everything about him right now is good and easy and worth living for.  Worth being here, engaged in every moment - terrified to miss the next funny thing he says.  The next deliberate batting of the eyelashes-head to the side "Pleeeeeease Mama" as he swipes another cookie.

Casting his light and warmth on me, coaxing me out of my exile. I'm so incredibly grateful for this face.  These chubby arms that are constantly wrapped around my neck.  The softest, softest skin I have ever felt as I stroke his cheeks.  The cutest backside and chubby legs running from one room to another - one adventure with "Brubba" to the next. 

Update

Didn't end up getting to talk to GP about the prednisone.   Managed to have a 10 minute coughing fit in front of him - complete with blinding headache.  He sent me next door for a chest x ray.  I have pneumonia and an enlarged right ventricle.

Am heading out the door now - being admitted.  Twice in a month - awesome,no?

I'm hoping I can talk the hospital out of an admission, but I'll have to see.  

Deadline

I have an appointment with my GP tomorrow, to discuss the prednisone issue.  It's about 10 hours away and I have no idea what to do.

Do I stay on the prednisone?  If I do, we will have to increase the dose, as the dose I'm on is only having a negligible affect on my joints. My pain levels are only about 10 or 20% better than they were before I started.  It's an improvement, but not a big one.  When I was on the 50mg dose, there was a vast improvement, but here, on 10mgs - it's not nearly worth what the prednisone is doing to me.

Is it worth what this is doing to my state of mind? Or the headache that has not gone away for more than 6 weeks now. The fact that it upsets my stomach so much that I can't keep down any of my other medications? 

But if I stop it - I go back to how I was before.  Phyically, I mean. Barely walking.   I'm in constant pain now, but I can walk a couple of hundred metres.  I can walk to Alexander's classroom and pick him up.  I couldn't do that most of the time before the prednisone.

I have no idea what to do.  I have to see the Doctor, and he's going to ask me what I want to do, and I have no freaking idea. And no matter how many times I try to sit down and ask Joel what he thinks (since he has to live with this as much as I do), I can't draw him into an opinion.

It's making me angry and hurt and resentful.  Why can't he have an opinion?  I feel like he doesn't care either way.

Sunday Sessions

It's time for Sunday Sessions again. Hop on over to Thea's Blog for more details.

This week, I'm actually kind of surprised at my choice for new. I've known this song was on the Billboards charts for weeks, but havne't bothered to listen to it, as I'm not much of an R&B fan anymore (oh, I sooo was in my teenage years. There's nothing I wouldn't do for Boyz II Men back in the day).


Anyway, I heard this the other day, and without even registering who it was (have never been an Usher fan, and could probably barely name one of his other songs), I found myself really loving it. And so does Alexander (who has hated every other R&B song he's heard), so I'm guessing I'm going to be hearing a LOT of this in the near future.



Joel's going to die. ;-) He'd rather submit to a prostate exam, I'm guessing.







And I may as well stay on theme for the Oldie. Back to my old R&B favourites. There were so many I could choose from, but when all is said and done, this was my favourite. Enjoy. This song brings back a looooot of memories. Happy memories with my sisters before it all went to hell. This song will always remind me of them.

When the cure is worse than the disease

I remember, a couple of months ago, being curled up on our bed one night, crying hysterically. After months of chronic, severe pain, exhaustion, a horrid rheumatologist and drowning financially, I felt like there was simply no light at the end of the tunnel.  I would never be well.  I would never again walk properly or be able to play with the boys.

Joel held me in his arms and whispered reassurances.  The one we both clung to "It's ok.  You see Ian (GP) tomorrow, we'll get you started on the prednisone".

It had been such a big step to take - the decision to start me on Oral Prednisilone was not one that we or my 2 Doctors took lightly.  I am an insulin dependant diabetic.  I have Bipolar 2 - severe anxiety and depression.  I have IBS and Fibromyalgia and I suffer from chronic migraines.  I have PCOS and am morbidly obese.  I was diagnosed with my first stomach ulcer at the age of 9 (A dodgy gene in my mother's family - both of my grandparents, my mother and 5 of her siblings all have/had duodenal ulcers).  I am a chronic insomniac.

Side Effects of Prednisone:

upset stomach - tick this.  It's causing so much of a problem that my body isn't able to absorb my other ide Effects of Prednisone

Prednisone can weaken your immune system, which can make it easier for your body to acquire new infections or make it harder for your body to fight off infections that you already have.  It took almost a month, and 4 courses of antibiotics to clear the kidney infection that gave me the kidney stones last month.  As i'm run down, I'm also covered in cold sores and the Prednisone is giving them plenty of leeway.
Problems with your vision  Yep. 
Swelling  Can't get my wedding rings on and my feet are swelling so much, they are painfully tight. My face is puffy - I look like I've been crying for hours, even when I've not at all.
Rapid weight gain The cause of a LOT of tears so far.  I've been on Prednisone (starting at a 60mg dose) for about 6 weeks.  I had started to put on weight earlier, when I started the insulin.  But the weight gain since starting Insulin has been astonishing.  I've literally never heard of anyone putting on this much weight this fast, for anything.  I wore clothes today that I last wore when I was 7 months pregnant with Samuel.  Clothes that haven't fit me in 4 years.

Shortness of breath
Severe depression So far the most crippling of the side effects.  It is worse than I was at the end of 2009.  And I thought that was as low as I could go.  Tonight I was thinking about suicide, yet again.  And I swear, I suddenly saw an image of myself on a morgue table.  And was mortified.  I am so disgusted with myself that I can't bear the thought of being seen, even by medical staff.  It's a bad sign for your self esteem when you're too embarrassed to commit suicide.

Unusual thoughts or behavior  Yes.  Intrusive thoughts again.
Seizures No
Bloody stools No
Coughing up blood No  I think it's safe to say I'm relieved to at least have escaped these side effects).
Severe stomach pain, resulting in nausea or vomiting (this can be a sign of pancreatitis)  Yes.
Uneven heart rate, extreme thirst, increase urination, leg or muscle discomfort (this is a sign of low potassium) Yes (not the heart rate, but the rest).
Severe headache, blurred vision, buzzing in your ears, anxiety, chest pain (these symptoms, together, are a sign of low blood pressure)  Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

The following symptoms are less severe, but your healthcare provider should know about them as they occur.
Sleep problems  I'm lucky if I'm getting 3 hours a night.  And that is with the sleeping pills the Dr prescribed me.
Mood changes  Whiplash, anyone? 
Acne  Yep.  Fun stuff, no?
Dry skin  Yes
Thinning skin or bruising or discoloration Yes
Slow wound healing  Yes
Increased sweating  This one has been mortifying. 
Headache  As above - this is one of the worst side effects I'm experiencing.
Dizziness  Yes
Nausea

Drug Interactions
Some drugs can have negative effects if they are taken at the same time as steroid drugs such as Prednisone. These side effects may sometimes be more likely to occur in these instances as well. They include:

Aspirin, if taken on a daily basis
A diuretic
A blood thinner
Cyclosporine
Insulin or Diabetes’ medication taken orally
Rifampin
Seizure medications

So.  Clearly a drug for me, don't you think?  When they started me on the high dose, my body reacted immediately.  At 60mgs, my joints showed immediate improvement (within just a few days).  They weren't all better, but there was at least a 50%-60% improvement right away.   Since weaning me down to 10mgs (where he plans to leave me a while, probably until I see the new rheumatologist at the end of July), I'm back almost to where I started.  It's better than it was - I'm not hobbling.  My joints and back/neck/shoulders hurt - a lot.  But I can walk and drive most days (provided the headache or dizziness don't prevent me).  

But I'm probably back down to only a 20% improvement.  It's enough to prove my GPs insistance that this was a systemic, autoimmune inflammatory disorder.  He was LIVID that the rheumatologist dismissed me as a hyperchondriac fibromyalgia patient and reccomended no further treatment, but rather a psych assessment.  As my GP said, he didn't even look at my blood test results.  Fibromyalgia and Bipolar do NOT cause the levels of inflammatory markers (CRP, ANA, Sed rate and white cell count - the ANA was only borderline, but the others are through the roof) showing up in my system.

I'm falling apart over here.  I've never, ever in my life, felt more hopeless or alone.  I am only functional (mentally) when I'm with the boys.  I seem to be able at this point to engage, most of the time (when I have to).  But as soon as they are gone, or asleep - I'm a weeping, angry, suicidal mess.  It is not so much the anxiety (previously always far outweighed my depression) as the depression. Utter hopelessness. 

Nothing in my life is going right.  My body is falling apart almost as quickly as my mind.  I am virtually friendless.  I have rapidly gained more weight than I imagined possible.  I am in constant pain and am often dizzy and confused.

And Centrelink denied my Disability Pension because my arthritis wasn't fully treated....I hadn't tried prednisone.

I remember those words of Joel's, just months ago - the hope I felt as I thought about starting this drug that would surely be the answer to my problems.  But tonight, he stroked my hair as I sobbed insconsolably for 2 hours and whispered that we'd talk to Ian (GP) and talk about stopping the Prednisone. 

I would not have imagined having this conversation 2 months ago.  What am I going to do?  Is a 10 or 20% improvement in mobility worth the rest of this?

Tell me what to do.  Please.  I'm so lost and I feel so alone.

Blog Gems - Air Your Archives #2

Again, taken from Jen over at The King and Eye.

How many posts do you have languishing in your archives? Great posts that will never be dusted off and brought out to breathe again! Maybe you created fabulous content before you had lots of followers, or maybe you have been blogging for years and your current followers haven't seen your older material.

I have a plan.


Blog Gems - Air Your Archives is a forthnighly linky list where I will give a prompt and you select a post from your archives that fits the prompt. You do not have to create content for the prompt, unless you want to. All you have to do is copy and paste the url of the post into the linky list. Voila, an old post gets a second shot!






To take part:






1. Follow my blog to get future Blog Gem posting information and linkys.


2. Grab the Blog Gem button and place it on your sidebar (html code here or above)


Putting the button on your blog is not a dealbreaker, some people just don't like doing it and I have no problem with that at all. What I will say is that something like this can't be successful without 'word of mouth' so I would appreciate if you could find another way to let people know that this is available and they are welcome to join in.


3. Enter your link.


4. Read and comment on the submissions of the two blogs posted before you on the linky list. (Please!)

5. Help me spread the word by telling your blogging friends, either by tweeting this or blogging about your entry.

The theme this week is creativity.  It's interesting timing, because I've been thinking a LOT about that these past weeks.  I realised, that the last piece of creative writing I did was almost a year ago!   

This one here, entitled "Kate" was one of my favourites.

I miss writing, desperately.  I miss the buzz of creativity, the small smile I felt on my face as the words flowed.  (I don't miss then wondering if I should have posted/published,lol - convinced it's atrocious and everyone hates it). 

I don't know how much of my lack of creativity is the medication I'm on and how much of it is just life, being sick all of the time, wearing me down.  All I know is that I've been so sad lately, just wishing I could get it back.   Tanya over at Meaninless Meanderings of a Madmother restarted my Muse Wars last week.  I stared and stared at the picture.  Willing it to speak to me. 

Nothing.  Eventually the headaches win.  Or the jitters.  Or my back.  Or my children.  Or my desire to just not be...anymore.   How can you call yourself a writer, if you've just stopped writing?  And what if it never comes back?

Jumping on Averil's Bandwagon...

My lovely friend A (one of the 2  blogs I love the most) has set herself the challenge of reading 40 books this year.  Being a stay-at-home to 3 children under 5, I'd say that's pretty freaking impressive.  Moving house in the process - amazing!

Taken link down to her site (sorry, it's private, so you probably can't see it, I realised)..



Now, you know me.  Or at least, most of you do.  Reading is what I love most.  I never, ever leave the house without a book.  The only way to make the school runs bearable is that I get to read at least a few pages each afternoon).  Of all of my health scares in the past 8 months, losing part of my eyesight was without question the most distressing.  I'm still restricted to large print novels (a whole other vent, remind me, won't you?), but at least it's something.  I HATE not being able to just pick up any book I want anymore.

Having said that, I've read a LOT this year.  So even I can see that this list so far is a bit ridiculous.  But bear in mind 2 things.  1)I'm virtually housebound, and immobile.  There are more days than not that I am confined to bed, or at least the sofa.  So there's plenty of time at the moment to read.  2)It's my form of escapism.  And I confess, right now, I am in desperate need of somewhere to escape to.  My life (just the health issues, mostly) is pretty terrible right now.  Burying my nose in a book, as light as it may be, is one of the only ways to keep myself from drowning right now.

So.  It's so far, a reasonably big list.  You'll also notice, it's a pretty light and fluffy list.  There are really no books here that take any brain power or concentration.  I simply don't have it anymore.  Right now, I swing from either a drug-induced (pain killers) or painful blur. I am short, over-emotional, jittery and angry at the world. I need my books, for the moment, to be easy, happily-ever-after nonsense. 

Chick lit, basically.  I have never read so much chick lit in my life, people.  I'm buried in it.  And have made some interesting discoveries.  There are a couple of authors I just love, and a couple I am so embarrassed to have picked up.  I'm reasonably certain my IQ dropped just by borrowing a few of these (you'll know which ones.  Because I'm going to be blunt and tell you.  I'm going to warn you not to ever bother with that tripe - call it a public service.  My good deed for the day).


I quite like Erica James - again, don't forget, I'm talking fluff.  It's certainly not deep and meaningful, she's no going to change your world, but she's easy and enjoyable.  I've read about 3 or 4 of her books now, and quite liked them all.

I've read a couple of Maggie Aldersons that I loved too.  This was most definitely not one of them.

1.  What Alice Forgot - Liane Moriaty

2.  Paradise House - Erica James

3.  Handbags and Gladrags - Maggie Alderson

4.  Life Swap - Jane Green

I've posted before about my love of Matthew Reilly.  I hate action movies, and I almost never read the genre in books either.  But for pure, escapist, unrealistic FUN, Matthew is my go-to guy.  I'd read the first two books already, when they were released, but when I bought Five Greatest Warriors early this year, I just had to sit down and read the entire series again.  I love the Jack West books, more than the Scarecrow ones.  I read these three in 3 days.

5. Seven Ancient Wonders - Matthew Reilly

6.  Six Sacred Stones - Matthew Reilly

7.  Five Ancient Warriors - Matthew Reilly

Ok.  Now, here's something I didn't expect.  A few months ago, I was given a Jodi Picoult book (a couple, actually).  I've never made a secret of my dislike for Picoult, particularly for her popular My Sister's Keeper.  I hated it.

But I was given one called "Plain Truth", a mystery set in an Amish community in Pennsylvania.  It didn't rock my socks off, but I found myself rather attached to some of the characters in the story.  Despite the nature of the story (warning: the crime in question revolves around a baby who has died), I found the parts of the story set in the community gentle, relaxing.  I can't explain it.  But when I was at the library recently, I stumbled across An Amish Gathering and thought I'd pick it up.  It was 3 novellas, set in Pennsylvania Dutch country and again, I found myself enjoying them immensely.  I became attached to the characters, and was sad when the stories ended.

I've now read maybe 4 or 5 books with similar themes, and have enjoyed them all.  I find myself slowing down and longing for a more simple, peaceful life when I read these books.  I'm not saying I'm ready to move and convert to the lifestyle (the thought of going a day without my high speed internet connection makes me break out in hives), it does have me pondering how much more complicated we have all let our lives become.  And whether there is something to be said for toning it all down a little, stepping back and finding a simpler life.

8. An Amish Gathering - Beth Wiseman, Kathleen Fuller and Barbara Cameron

9. The Covenant - Beverly Lewis

Ok.  This is around the time my Temporal Arteritis set in, and I went almost a month without reading.  I raced back to the library a week or so back and went to the Large Print section.  Talk about depressing.  The selections are woeful, honestly.  Not only are their precious few books available in large print (without having to order them - and where's the fun in browsing that way?), but the selection was sub-standard, as I was to discover.  The first four books I read made me literally throw a tantrum that had Joel in stitches!  They were just so poorly written.

I'm going to save the worst of my wrath for two in particular. 

I'd seen lots of Nora Roberts books, but never quite gotten around to picking one up.  But I knew that she was constantly on the NYT Best Seller list, so I figured, she was probably worth reading at some point, right?  Well boy was this the wrong book to start with.  I don't care if this was a #1 Best seller on NYT.  It just proves the idiocy of a LOT of people.  Worst.Book.Ever!!!!!!!!! (Now, before you all mock me - I didn't know that this was basically a Mills and Boons. I'd never heard of Silhouette Romance, and it wasn't written anywhere on the book, being the large print copy. This is my only defence).

Another author I'd heard good things about was Fern Michaels.  So, desperate, I picked this one up and decided to give her a try.  I swear, I got dumber. Just having the book in my house, I got dumber.  Almost the worst book ever.  (Look - there are reviews to back me up!). I will never get those two days of my life back.  I could have done something interesting - washed my hair, scrubbed a toilet, watched my grass grow.

10. How to Knit a Love Song - Rachael Herron

11. Songs of the West - Nora Roberts.

12. The Future Scrolls - Fern Michaels

After these three, believe me when I tell you, ANYthing felt better.  The Land of Summer only barely though.

13.  The Land of Summer - Charlotte Bingham

14. Sister's Choice - Emilie Richards.

Currently reading...

This one is very cookie-cutter Cathy Kelly, but I don't mind so much.  It's a relief after the last half a dozen books I've read.

15.  She's the One - Cathy Kelly

Now, to be honest, there are about 4 other books I borrowed from the large print section, but for the life of me, their title's escape me.  I'm heading back to the library on Saturday and I might see if I can find them again.  If I can, I'll update this page.  If not, trust me...they were crap too.

So - a larger list than A's, perhaps (so far).  But all in all, of the 15, I'd recommend maybe half.

Sunday Sessions

Again, it's time for Thea's Sunday Sessions.  An oldie and a newbie. 

New song first.  I heard this for the first time this morning.  In fact, today is the first time I'd ever heard her sing (though I'd heard rumblings at some point that she could, I couldn't be bothered previously to follow up).  Scarlett Johannson has recorded this song "One Whole Hour" for the album "Wretchers and Jabberers", where money raised will go to the American Autism Society.

I have to say - I was more than a little surprised.  She can sing.  It's kind of Norah Jones-esque.  And since I LOVE Norah, this was a pleasant surprise this morning.  It's almost enough to make me forgive her that woeful Oscar Dress....

Almost.  But anyway, here it is.  What do you think?  Do you like it?

Now for an oldie.  I am a huge, long time fan of the Eagles.  When we talk about the music of my childhood, there aren't many groups that make me more nostalgic than the Eagles.  Fortunately, Joel and the boys love them too. We had dinner at the In Laws on Friday night, and when we walked into the house, my favourite Eagles song was playing.

Joel and I have the DVD of this very concert, and this song probably gets played more than any of the others.  Joel plays this one on his bass as well.  Major brownie points!

So. Get on board.  Join Thea at her blog and add your Sunday Sessions picks.  It seems she has also linked up her Sunday Sessions with another blog - 5 Minutes Just for Me.





We're all pretty sick here - colds for Joel and Alexander, as well as Sam (on top of his whooping cough) and my kidneys are still hurting (both now).  The headache from my Temporal Arteritis won't go away, we're a month or so in now, and my GP doesn't feel like it's going to go away any time soon.  So not a lot of blogging here of late.  The prednisone (or maybe just being so sick?) is playing havoc with my depression and anxiety - with fairly major (scratching) panic attacks most days now.  It's hard to blog anything substantial (hence the fluff on here lately) becuase that's where my head is at - it's sad, dark and more than a little self absorbed.  I confess to feeling a little sorry for myself and I don't really want to blog too much of that - it just pisses too many people off.

Have a good Sunday though, my friends.  We're aiming for a quiet, relaxing, cuddly day indoors.  Lots of music, maybe a movie together.  I'm going to finish my book and Joel and Sam will undoubtedly head back to the lego that has taken over our living room. :-)

What are you up to?