bunsen_h | Learning to drown

There's a big poster up on the wall beside the "shallow pool" at the Nepean Sportsplex. I think it's created and distributed by the Lifesaving Society.

In 7 days, your child could ride a bike... because he learned.

In 4 hours, your child could tie her shoes... because she learned.

In 20 minutes, your child could say his ABCs... because he learned.

In 30 seconds, your child could drown...

The logical structure, and its conclusion, make me itch, metaphorically.

On the other hand, right at the moment, I'm feeling somewhat overwhelmed.

I had a follow-up appointment with the neurosurgeon a week and a half ago. The MRI shows distinct improvement in my spinal cord; the syrinx is much smaller. However, I'm having increasing discomfort in my left shin and foot — very likely due to compressed nerves getting back into proper shape after all these months, and yelling at me about the state of things. The surgeon recommended that I back off on my exercise somewhat for a couple of weeks, and also suggested that massage and acupuncture may help.

My stamina for sitting up, including in front of the computer, is still poor.

I'm still having a lot of trouble getting to sleep at night. Part of this is due to that pain, part to gastric reflux, part to simple fretting about things. On the other hand, I'm tending to drop off to sleep rather abruptly in the late afternoon, lying on my sofa reading or watching a DVD. It's very odd for me to suddenly wake up, lying down, with a mouthful of food, and realize that I must have dozed off while eating supper.

My friend Phil Whiteside passed away early Tuesday morning. I feel... odd. Distant, emotionally flat. It hasn't really hit me yet. I didn't get to see him in the last few weeks, because of my own difficulties in travel and because I guess I kept hoping that he'd rally one more time. About a week ago, I woke up in the early morning, utterly overwhelmed with grief, but without any clear focus for the emotion that I could identify.

Many of my friends are dealing with a lot of their own problems. There's too much crap going on around here.

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*hugs you very tight*
I feel very outside of the mourning that is happening for Phil. I heard from Xiphia. If I had known about the memorial I would have offered to try to get you there, if you had wanted.
You deserve so much better than to be in pain all the time. But lack of sleep is probably increasing the pain. Don't fight the naps. I'm a nap expert and am highly in favour of them for all age groups. I take them myself in the afternoon, if my body tells me it needs one.

I've come down with a cold so might hold off on a visit for a few days, but please let me know if you are up for company this coming week.

We did get him there. The choir sang.

Thank you for arranging rides.

I was pleased with the choir's performance -- not perfect, but very good considering the short notice and lack of practise time. The third song was one we hadn't touched in about 12 years, and several of the singers hadn't sung with the choir for years (if ever).

I have no intrinsic objection to napping, but I want to get into a normal schedule/routine. I'm tired when I go to bed, but I don't get to sleep for several hours; mid-afternoon napping is probably contributing to that.

I'd be happy to see you sometime this week, but we'll have to see how timing works out... I might have a couple of too-busy days coming up.

I am so sorry about your friend. And that your recovery is being so protracted. It must be very frustrating.

P.

Phil's death wasn't exactly unexpected -- he's been through a lot of medical problems in the last few years, and it was only recently that I really got to understand that he was failing more than coping. But it's still a very sad thing; he and his wife finally managed to achieve pregnancy, and Phil was very much looking forward to having the baby. Towards the end, his memory and other cognition were very poor, but he never forgot that he was about to be a father.

My overall condition is improving. I'm swimming three times a week, and that's helping enormously. But it's very frustrating that my pain, and stamina for sitting, don't seem to be getting better noticeably. It significantly reduces my ability to socialize, and though a former employer has told me that they'd like to have me back when I'm fit, I can't do that until I'm sitting comfortably and thinking clearly (which depends on good sleep). There are several books by friends waiting in my to-read pile until I'm in better mental shape. I started

papersky's Lifelode a couple of months ago, and realized that I wasn't holding it in mind well enough to appreciate the writing.

Just wanted you to know I'm thinking about you, although I haven't shown it much lately.
Along with the obvious suckage, ChefCat was fired from his new job after two shifts...for informing his fellow staff members about a part of the sanitary code, and refusing to break it. His boss literally said "I don't appreciate you telling my staff about the law, that's not something they need to know". 0_o
So, well...I'm afraid my focusing on FlowerGirl and otherwise kind of flailing wildly is going to continue for awhile.

Should ChefCat be reporting the place to the city's health department or other agency? If the owner has that kind of attitude towards sanitary standards, it's probably a good thing that ChefCat didn't stay there -- his professional credentials might be at risk.

I completely understand your focusing on D.-; she's going to need a lot of support. I wish I could help more; I know that being available to lend an ear or a shoulder is useful, but I'm used to being able to FIX things, dammit.

Oh, City of Ottawa knows all about it. That was part of boss's fury. They are shut down, and cannot re-open until they have a new commercial hot water tank, which will cost thousands, apparently. Hellooo, failwit owners: that residential water tank turned out not to be such a great idea, huh?

I know you're used to being out and doing. No matter how healthy you were, Dr. B., there would be no fixing this. Lending an ear will come in handy, though.

So where is this glorious establishment? It sounds like one to avoid.

I went too far with this without Chefcat's knowledge or permission. He's happy to tell all and sundry - in person, not on-line.

Understood.

Oh, I see. Dishes must be washed at a temperature of at least X°, and/or using a three-sink system with detergent, bleach, and rinse. That one? And they figured they could sneak past it?

They have/had a residential hot water tank. They're cheaper than a commercial tank, but unsurprisingly they can't do the job. At a certain point on busy evenings, hot water runs out. When it ran out, Chefcat said "Don't wash the dishes in cold water, that doesn't sanitize them. If the dishes run out, we shut down. This is why a residential tank is illegal, guys." They didn't run out of clean dishes/pots, so they closed at the regular time.

Chefcat was going to speak to the boss about it (to the tune of "WHY don't we have a commercial tank?"), and then report if it was not addressed. One of the line cooks had other plans, and reported it that night.

Frankly, I agree with you. He's best out of there.

What can ChefCat get in the way of severance? Given that he was fired for reasons that impinge on his professional credentials, and refusal to violate sanitation laws..?

Given that he worked exactly two shifts and there was no contract, I'd imagine they could fire him because they forgot to drink decaf. They can say anything, and Chefcat has better things to do with his time.

I really wish I could have been there and been part of that with all of you.

I think you can take heart in the improvement, however slight.
*hug*

hear you on the nap issue. struggling with that one myself on weekends.

acupuncture wasn't a big win for me. but massage therapy has always done amazing things. i need to think about starting again. i had hoped to postpone for a bit longer, but old issues are coming up with the increased sitting. finding a good one that you mesh with & does the right type of therapy is a bit of a trick though. i know that active release techniques work well for me. cranio requires the right person (but jaw dropping when that happened).

*hugs* i really will try to call, we're long overdue for a chat.

Learning to drown

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