Life Lately

So...blogging more over the summer is not happening.  It's fine though because I think the only people who read this are my mother and my son.  LOL.


A couple weeks ago I decided to follow the Matthew 18 principle and sent an email to the owner of our charter and I am so glad I did.  Amazing things happened and I have a new job on the horizon.  I will discuss all those details in another post. 

Last night, I walked into the kitchen and found this.........

Um...speechless.  

Awhile back, when I still had money, I paid for Zack to enter a Super Smash Bros tournament in Daytona Beach.  He went last year when it was in Orlando and enjoyed it so I offered to pay for him to go this year as well.  Obviously, he goes without any intention of winning but just to enjoy the atmosphere.  An added bonus this year was the opportunity to play the Ultimate game coming out in December for the Switch. 

My parents live about 20 minutes from Daytona so we packed up the car and took a little trip north to stay with them for a couple of days.  

The first day of the tournament (Friday), I decided to drive A1A and take in the ocean view even though it added about 15 minutes onto the trip.  It was an absolutely gorgeous morning.

image from google

The tournament was at the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach

Image from google

In the end, Zack spent about 5 hours there on Friday and about 4 hours there on Saturday.  The event was open on Sunday too but we needed to get home because I didn't want to leave Sadie home another night.  He did manage to win his first match so he was excited about that.  

And that's about it.  I am putting in a lot of hours at Huntington this summer - or so it seems that way.  They call me just about every day to pick up a shift but it's usually only for 2 hours.  On Wednesday, I will begin putting in my 4 seasonal days at Universal.    

Throwing it Back Thursday

I took these pics from a friend's FB post a while ago now and just keep forgetting to share them.

I'd say circa 2009 or 2010 - some dress up days from Valley Christian High School

And I have to add this one of the Spanish teacher - cuz hilarious!!!!

And Then ----It All Went So Wrong

6 periods---0 goals

Enough said

What a waste of talent

And Finally They Got it Right

And finally, in game three, the players showed up for the whole game and pulled out a 4-2 win.  

I still believe the Lightning are the better team. They have more experience and more talent - but those things do not matter if you don't play with heart.  

Now all they need to do is keep it rolling...

Then There Was the Game The Players Showed Up for the First Period and Left Early

My kids will be the first to tell you that I am a pessimist when it comes to sports.  If my team is down by the least bit - it's over! 

Some may look at this as a fair weather fan ~ I prefer to say that I am "mentally preparing myself for the worst outcome."  LOL.

That being said, when it comes to the Lightning ~ it's over!!!  They are down 2-0 going out on the road.  I'd have a little more hope or positivity if they had shown up for more than just 2 of the last 6 periods of play but, as it stands now, they will get swept in four.  

You recall that on Friday they were physically present but mentally absent for the first two periods of the game.  Yesterday, it was the opposite.  They were only mentally present in the 1st period where they built a 2-1 lead.  Then they physically took the ice leaving their brains in locker room and let Washington score 5 unanswered goals in the 2nd and 3rd periods.  

Again, some may call me a fair weather fan...I don't see it that way.  I'm still a fan...I still back them...I still root for them.  It's just hard to watch the underachieving that goes on with such a talented team and not feel frustrated.  

That Lightning Game We Went to Where the Players Didn't Show Up

Last night, CJ had three tickets for the first game of the Eastern Conference Finals.  His dad did not want to go so I got picked as the replacement.  

I was slightly skeptical because I have been a spectator for three Lightning losses this year - out of the four games I attended!!! That is not a great record.  

We got there early, the pregame festivities were in full swing, the crowd was enthusiastic and rowdy. Everything was going so great -----and then the game started!  

I'm not sure what to say except that it was the worst period of hockey I have ever seen played ----by any team.  TWO shots on goal says it all.  

Second period I spent out in the hall area convinced that I was the curse causing the wretched play.  However, that myth was debunked when the Capitals  got two more goals while the Lightning only managed 8 more shots on their end.  

I returned to my seat for the third period.  And suddenly, the players realized they were playing a hockey game!  They did score 2 goals in the 3rd and made 15 shots.  

It's only game one ----and they lost game one against New Jersey and Boston and still came back and won the series...so all hope is not lost.  But after making the ECF three out of the last four years and with only 1 Stanley Cup appearance (which was a loss to Chicago), it would be extremely disappointing to lose here. 

Fibromyalgia Update

It has been a long, long time since I have talked about my journey living with fibromyalgia. 

It's hard to believe that five years ago at this time I was about to go through the most difficult summer of my life.  My doctor had just taken me off of the Diclofenac because my liver levels had spiked tremendously.  This was a huge disappointment because it was actually helping control the pain more than the Vicodin had.  

Diclofenac is a high dose anti-inflammatory medication and was prescribed in February of that year when a blood test indicated my inflammation level was at 39.  Although I did not yet have a diagnosis, that test was conclusive proof that something was going on inside my body.  A month later, the pain was under control and my doctor was encouraging telling me he had patients who had been on this medication for years with no problem.  Because Diclofenac is filtered through the liver, it requires periodic blood tests to check on the enzyme levels in the liver.  Unfortunately for me, my very first blood test, while revealing a healthy decrease in my inflammation levels (down from 39 to 13), also showed an alarmingly high level of enzymes in my liver.  My doctor made me discontinue immediately and warned me never again to take medication filtered through the liver because of how quickly the enzyme level rose.  

This eliminated a lot of other possible medications that may have helped and so within a week, I was back on the Vicodin.  The Vicodin was not helping much so I moved up to Lortab.  

My summer consisted of regular doses of Lortab while applying jars of Icy Hot - going through 3-4 jars a week.  Through all this, the pain was still so intense.  

Then, in September, two things happened that would change my life.  I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia (on the 5th) and started Tramadol (on the 19th).  

Almost five years later I remain completely pain free. One would wonder if I truly have Fibromyalgia since I am so free from pain (many are not so fortunate) but trust me when I say, I KNOW I DO.  First, there are the classic tender points.Even the slightest touch causes pain.  Also, the couple of times I have tried to cut back on the Tramadol, the all too familiar throbbing, pulsating pain has returned.  

So, I remain on 6 pills a day..1 at 7am, 11am, 2:00pm, 6:00 pm, and 2 at 10:00 pm.   I have been at this dose for well over 3 years now without needing an increase and live a normal, pain-free life. 

Very blessed.