Orion is not breathing hard, but he's still mostly laying around. He hasn't been greeting me at the door, hasn't been joining me in the shower, and is in no hurry to get me out of bed in the morning. Most strangely, I can empty the garbage without fear of an escape. When I touch him, he whines, but he wants to be held.

I'm at a loss.

When I got home tonight, Orion was breathing quite heavily. He was still very lethargic and showed no interest in food. I told all of this to the vet, who listened to his lungs and said that he heard air moving, but he wanted to take a chest X-ray anyway.

The X-rays showed some fluid build up and a "valentine" heart. He thinks it's Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The prognosis is not good. Dr. Sullivan told me that sudden death was a possibility. (Sidenote: One of the reasons I like my vet is that he doesn't hesitate to give you the truth, even when it's not good. I appreciate that.) We need to do a ultrasound and an EKG to confirm the diagnosis. There's not much they can do besides make him comfortable.

As he told me this, I found myself tearing up. I apologized, but he understood. He's given him medicine to reduce the fluid buildup and to calm him down.

Let's hope my boy doesn't worsen overnight.

Ri did not shower this morning. Nor has he eaten dinner tonight.

Luckily, we have a vet appointment tomorrow.

But I could have.

moar funny pictures

In response to Michelle's comment on my last post, for the PharmD program at UNC, I need to take three classes. Anatomy and Physiology, Statistics, and Microbiology. It looks like I'll be taking Anatomy and Physiology online from ECU, and hopefully the other two at Wake Tech.

This weekend I spent a good deal of time talking to Peg and Steffy about my potential career change. What it comes down to is this: I can't imagine spending the next 30 years doing what I am doing now. So, put that way, the choice seems simple.

But, I've still got to get those pesky prereq's out of the way.

Hi! So, it turns out I am a lair liar. Peg does have high-speed internet. Who knew? (Answer: Not me.) I still didn't post yesterday, because I was too busy driving around the VA Piedmont with Steffy. We went here, again, and were given a tour. Also, we got to try some wine right out of the barrel. Unfortunately, they were out of my favorite of their wines, so I'll have to wait. Afterwards we drove to this vineyard. I took her home, headed back to Peg's, and we ate leftovers. Then Steffy picked me up and we went to see Enchanted, which we thoroughly enjoyed.

Now I'm home, hanging with the boys.

I have a secret. I'm scheduling this post. Why? Because on Friday I'll be at Peg's, also known as the land of dial-up. I KNOW!

Which means I'm most likely sitting on the couch reading about right now. We'll have leftovers for dinner.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving, surrounded by family and friends eating until they are in a food coma. I also hope the Jets beat the Cowboys.

Well, I've gotten everything done except for picking up the pies. I'll do that on the way to VA.

The grocery shopping proved difficult. First, I forgot the cat food, which I realized on my way out the door. So, I went back in a bought a can of food. When I got home, I realized I had forgotten the strawberries. I planned to get them on the way home from the Jaycee meeting. Completely forgot. I stopped at the grocery store on my way into work this morning.

Always troublesome, strawberries.

Here are the things I must do between today and tomorrow.

Today:

1. go to the grocery store and pick up frozen strawberries, cream cheese, sour cream, jello, french fried onions, green beans, cream of mushroom soup, and canned cat food (one of those is not for Thanksgiving dinner).
   
2. bring in garbage can
   
3. swing by Turkey Shoot and pick up 3 turkeys.
   
4. drop off box of #6 targets at Turkey Shoot
   
5. Jaycee meeting
   
6. laundry
   
7. pack for Peg's
   
8. burn cd of new iTunes song
   

Tomorrow:

1. check air in tires
   
2. work
   
3. pick up pies
   
4. drive to Peg's
   

So, the other day when I was all, "Yay, fall!" I spoke too early. It's in the 70s this week. The 70s.

Which brings me to another point. Two of the radio stations down here are already playing Christmas music. One is playing Christmas music non-stop and has been doing it since the day after Halloween. The other one seems to be playing it at lunch and during the evening rush hour.

Stop. Seriously. No Christmas music yet. Not until December, preferably not until after my birthday.

I read this article in today's Parade with interest. I've made several friends through blogging; I've only met one in real life. I am hoping to meet some of the others in the Spring, because I seriously need to get back to Boston.

To me, that's the thing that blogging has brought me, and it's why I keep doing it. I think the people who have met me from my writing see a different part of me than others. I'm glad that I have Michelle to commiserate with about our OCD tendencies. Janet makes me laugh and amazes me with her photography. Jenna gives me a kick in the pants when I need it. All are people I never would have met otherwise. I'm glad that the internet has made the world a smaller place.

When a Percheron/Thoroughbred cross steps on your foot? It hurts. A lot.

It finally is fall down here in North Cackalacky. The trees are changing color and the air is crisp.

It's about damn time.

Guess what? Tomorrow I'm having lunch with Cool Boss and Little Matty! Yay!

Also, I'll be working from home in the afternoon.

Then, we're having Geeky Girls' Night. Don't be jealous.

P.S. Got to level twelve.

• No trivia tonight. Something about Aquamama having kids or something. Whatev.
• This game is awesome. Love! Someday I'll make it to level 12.
• Work is so much better when there is actual work to do.
• Boys are strange.

Yesterday, I e-mailed Mom that I thought I had tonsillitis and was trying to decide if I needed to see the doctor. I get it occasionally, and it usually goes away on its own. This time it was getting worse, not better.

Her response? "You had your tonsils out." Nope, not me. I've had my adenoids out, but not my tonsils. I assumed she had gotten me confused with one of my siblings, but I think they all have their tonsils too. TR girl is missing one of her original ACLs (left, I think) and Goose has no appendix, but as far as I know those are the only body parts we're missing. Bud seems to have managed to keep all of his. So, it was clearly one of her other children.

I did go to the doctor, I do have tonsillitis (not strep!) and am on antibiotics. Also, I'm tired, so I'm heading to bed as soon as the dryer finishes. Because I also got new books today.

Ever since the Turkey Shoot, my house has been a disaster. I've just not had the time to clean. Not even clean so much as pick up. The clutter and mess were really getting to me, and keeping me from things I needed to do. (I can't concentrate in the mess. All I can see is mess.) So, I've spent the last two days getting things cleaned up. I'm feeling much better.

The odd thing is, 2 years ago, my house was never messy. Since my BP diagnosis and the tinkering with the meds, I seem to have lost my obsessive need for clean. Which, although it means a messy house, also means that I am no longer turning down social invitations because I need to vacuum.

Over lunch.

Watergirl: Oh, so that episode of Modern Marvels you were DVR-ing last night? It's not going to be airing anytime soon, so I have to come over and watch it.
R: I'll save it. I've got food leftover from the party. You can come over and watch!

Maybe it explains why we're both single...

So, I went speed dating again last night. (I know I said I wasn't sure I'd do it again, but this time it was at my favorite bar, so...) The guys were better than last time, but I didn't talk with any of them afterwards. Instead, I spent quite a bit of time talking to the guy who runs pub quiz there and one of the guys who usually plays. Which, probably not the best tactic, but whatever.

I've not heard if I had any "matches" yet. We'll see.

So, I just got the information I requested from MCPHS. Cost per year? Roughly $36K. Cost for UNC? About $15K. I may only have a math minor, but it seems that one is a clearly better value. So now I need to decide, should I take the Psychology class anyway? I think maybe I'll look into getting a part-time pharmacy job first.

1. Who lead MLB with 54 home runs this year?
2. Name the top three oil producing (not exporting) countries.
3. Who is the current NC insurance commissioner?
4. Of the following four countries, which has the highest per capita consumption of beer: Ireland, the United Kingdom, Germany, or Australia?
5. What is the most recycled material in the U.S., by weight?

I can register for classes tomorrow. Unfortunately, the three classes I need to get into UNC's program are either full or not offered. However, Aquamama and I were searching the web this morning, and we found this program. It's shorter than UNC's program, and also in New England. So, for that one, I need a psychology course. So, guess what I'm taking next semester?

So, cooler temperatures have finally come to NC, and with them the discovery that at some point last year I cleaned out my closets/drawers and got rid of nearly all of my long sleeved shirts. I have short sleeved shirts and I have sweaters, but long sleeved midweight shirts? I have one.

Saturday night I went out with friends of mine. Goal: to drink girly drinks. Place: Rum Runners. (Fun fact: there's a scene in the Nickelback video for "Rockstar" where that building is seen in the background.) So, we're there having a good time, much to the amusement of the woman sitting near us, there to celebrate her 7th wedding anniversary. In fact, at one point they played some beach music, and she grabbed my hand and we shagged. (Do click the link. It's not what you think.) Or she did. I have no idea how to shag. Although I was told I did a reasonable impression of one.

Anyway, Hi Joy!

Those of you who have been following along know that I did not get a job that I had been hoping to get. The job was in Chicago and would have been a more technically oriented position. It would have been an answer to two of the current issues I am dealing with.

1. I am tired of Raleigh.
   
2. I'm not particularly fond of my job.
   

As far as my job goes, I am not getting the kind of work I would like at my current employer. If you'll recall, it took me eight months to find that job, and I've interviewed with most of the major players in the area. So, I'm kind of stuck there. My supervisor and I are working on getting me more of the type of work I want, but it's a slow, frustrating process.

I'm actually considering going back to school for Pharmacy. Why Pharmacy? Well, it's heavy on the math and science (my strengths) and it's a field that is in demand. I'm still in the discovery stage, but I will be taking one of the three prerequisites I still need this spring at the community college. Both my psychiatrist and Peg think this is a good field for me. So, still exploring.

I guess the point here is that maybe I want to move, but maybe I want to change careers instead. So, probably at this point staying put is the wisest course of action.

Every year, the High School in my town has a band competition. Part of the "Band Day" is a parade through downtown. The bands line up in front of my house. Last year they surprised me and I was almost late for a volunteer thing. This year I was ready and got to watch. The boys watched too. At one point, I took Orion outside to watch, and he growled at the bands as they walked by. Other pictures can be found here.

After I got home last night, Bud called. He'd seen that I'd lost the job, and said, "Well, I'm the brother, I have to cheer you up." He's good like that. He's sensitive and oddly protective of me (oddly because I'm almost 6 years older). But he does always make me laugh, and has become the first person I call when things are bad. Don't get me wrong, we still have our moments, and he is also the person I've hung up on the most. (Usually he calls me back, saying, "I dropped your call." (I haven't ever told him this before.)) But, at the end of the day, I know that he will always be there for me. Like I will for him.

Oh, but he still hasn't come to see my house. Come back tomorrow to find out why he'd better hurry.

Last night I decided to join NaBloPoMo. The idea is that I am to post every day. I joined because I've gotten away from blogging, and this may be the kick in the pants I need. Also, it may give me to chance to do a few essay-type entries, rather than "You know what's weird?"

Of course, I don't mean today. Today I am anxiously awaiting a phone call. It's for a job that I applied for, in another city, with my current company. I want to get it. I feel like I've been in Raleigh long enough. I'd like to go somewhere else. Anyway, keep your fingers crossed for me. I think I have a reasonable chance of getting it.