Finger of Doom

So the Finger of Doom lives on. I've been in occupational therapy for it, and I don't do the exercises enough, so finally the therapist (or terrorist) told me I was losing my window of opportunity and if I didn't get on the stick here, I wouldn't be getting the function back like I should. Then after making me cry (not really), he gave me some "Theraputty" to work with and set me loose.

A week later I returned and thoroughly impressed him with increased range of motion etc etc (entirely undeserved).

I still have a certain amount of swelling in that finger, and I have to wear a little homemade Coban (that stretchy wrap that looks like an Ace bandage but sticks to itself) support-hose stocking on it. I ran out of the brown kind and when I went to get more, they only had white or purple. So I got purple. Yay me!

Check it out!

My first ever video, over in the videos tab. Woot!

Birthday Girl

So, Delia's fourth birthday is next Monday. Last Sunday we had a family party for J's side, a joint party for Delia and two cousins who have birthdays on either side of hers. It was the usual mayhem -- six kids ages 8 and under, four of whom are girls ages 4 and under. Lots of fun.

Fortunately but unfortunately, one of the aunts gave Delia a Playmobil Noah's Ark. The minute she opened that thing, she became a giant pain in the ass. She wanted so bad to go play with it by herself. She refused to go outside, she protested loudly if anyone else wanted to touch it, she didn't want to do anything but play with that toy. Alone. Right now.

Nonetheless, we all survived, and here are a few pics:

The birthday girl with an apron set given to her by our housemate.
Delia puffy hearts the cake, featuring "sea creatures" that she picked out herself.

Blowin' out the candles!

She knows her letters!

So this evening after dinner we had a tiny spot of ice cream. There wasn't much, so when Delia wanted more we told her she could write it on the list (a dry-erase board on the fridge) and then we would get more when we went shopping. So, she got up there and started. I told her which letters to write, and only had to help her on the "R".

Ladies and gents, I proudly present to you:

Deluge

So it got ridiculously hot the past few days and we fired up Ye Olde Aire Conditioner it worked like a champeen.

And then I went out to get something out of the car on like the second day of the miniature heat wave, and saw two tiny dabs of water peeping out from beneath the garage door.

Huh.

So I opened up the garage door and there, sheeting across the floor and inconveniently passing under the enormous pile of now-sodden future garage sale items, ran the water.

Um.... damn.

Luckily, J's brother The Amazingly Handy Guy happened to be coming to our house, and he crawled around a bit and diagnosed the problem. Remember the little rat problem? Yeah. As if taking up residence in our foundation and crapping everywhere wasn't enough, the little buggers had to go and chew up the hose that drains the water away from the a/c. I don't feel so bad now about the fact that we had to get an exterminator to, uh, exterminate them (at significant personal expense, and only after unsuccessful attempts to humanely relocate them ourselves).

TAHG patched up the hole with some hose he found at Goodwill and a couple of hoseclamps. Problem solved. Wonder if he'd like to stay on and sift through the pile of dampened junk to see what's salvageable?

Deluge

So it got ridiculously hot the past few days and we fired up Ye Olde Aire Conditioner it worked like a champeen.

And then I went out to get something out of the car on like the second day of the miniature heat wave, and saw two tiny dabs of water peeping out from beneath the garage door.

Huh.

So I opened up the garage door and there, sheeting across the floor and inconveniently passing under the enormous pile of now-sodden future garage sale items, ran the water.

Um.... damn.

Luckily, J's brother The Amazingly Handy Guy happened to be coming to our house, and he crawled around a bit and diagnosed the problem. Remember the little rat problem? Yeah. As if taking up residence in our foundation and crapping everywhere wasn't enough, the little buggers had to go and chew up the hose that drains the water away from the a/c. I don't feel so bad now about the fact that we had to get an exterminator to, uh, exterminate them (at significant personal expense, and only after unsuccessful attempts to humanely relocate them ourselves).

TAHG patched up the hole with some hose he found at Goodwill and a couple of hoseclamps. Problem solved. Wonder if he'd like to stay on and sift through the pile of dampened junk so see what's salvageable?

Beware

From the fine folks who brought you Noassitol

Imaginary Buttcheeks Redux

I have written before about my brother's legendary lack of hindquarter. See, for instance, this post. The part about his behind is down a ways in a description of our trip to the state fair.

So when my friend Liz sent me this link, I knew just whom to send it to, with a note that if he ordered now he might be able to get some in time for Mother's Day (as a sort of gift to his wife, you see).

I received the following reply:

"It's a MEDICAL CONDITION, for Pete's sake.

It even has a name, DGS.  Diminished Gluteal Syndrome.
And it's an ORTHOTIC."

I was then forced to email back: 

"I hear there's a new medication you can take for it.  It's called Noassitol."