Mosquito Test

My JDs always knew that I could hear everything! :-)

Created by Train Horns

The lastest

The lastest KnitPicks catalog is out, and this was my project:

These are the Woolly Baby Tights from the book "Cute Knits for Little Feet." I used 4 balls of Swish DK in the Cobblestone Heather colorway for the 18 month size. Details are here. They're a very easy, quick knit if you're looking for a present for a small person!

They've arrested a 24 year old for arson - he's the one who set the fires at my college campus. The local paper has been running stories about this since it happened; here's the latest one. We still don't know if we'll have class on Monday.

I have another baby item to knit for KnitPicks, 31 papers to grade, a paper to write (for Monday's class, if we have it) and 2 research projects to work on. Back to work!

Holy Cow! Fire at School!

I have graduate school every Monday and Wednesday through Ashland University. My classes are at Lorain County Community College in Elyria, from 5:00 to 7:40 pm.

About an hour into class this evening, we started to smell something funny - like electrical burning. After a few minutes, we mentioned it to the professor. Right at that moment, there was a loud ZAP and the electricity went out. The smell of burning was getting stronger. We looked out the window (the Wednesday class is on the second floor) and there were a bunch of people standing outside, pointing at the building!

The professor said "Maybe they're having a fire drill?" I said "if that's the case, I'll come back in, but for right now, I'm going outside!" The rest of the class agreed, we filed outside (the hallway was starting to get smoky) and when we got outside, the BUILDING WAS ON FIRE! It was actually the building attached to the building that my class is in, but THE BUILDING WAS ON FIRE! Holy crap! Black smoke was pouring out of the building - I had to shower and wash my coat when I got home because everything smelled like burning wires and wood smoke.

All of the local news stations are carrying the story, but there aren't many details yet. Channel 19 has some pics with the story here. It doesn't looke like anyone was hurt, but they did have to call in neighboring fire departments.

The damage must be pretty bad - I just got a text that they closed campus for at least tomorrow...

Not how I expected to spend my Wednesday evening!

THAT was a week?

Holy cow. Where to start? Well, let's start at the beginning (of the week, that is!) (Warning: this is long, but there are nice pics at the end!)

Sunday: Doing homework for grad school and lesson plans for Romeo and Juliet. Gave Kyle cough medicine for the persistent hack that started Saturday afternoon.
Sunday night: Kyle uttered those words that every mom dreads: "Mom, I don't feel good." By 9:00, his fever is 104F. I call off school for Monday - for both of us.

Monday, 6:00 am: I drove to school and set up for my sub. I was worried because my freshmen *have* to have R&J done by the 13th, and we're not even halfway there. The Great Lakes Theater people are coming to visit my class the week of the 17th-20th, and they must have the play read by then. (When they get subs for me, they tend to get subs that can handle the 5 periods of JDs, not necessarily the ones that are good with lesson plans for a class). I plan to catch them up tomorrow, and we'll be back on track for the rest of the week.

Monday afternoon: Kyle's fever won't drop below 100F. Ugh. Kelson and Kevin came home, and I left for grad school. 2 hours and 40 minutes of Ed. Psych. which entailed 2 hours of "Think, Pair, Share" type of activites. I felt like I was in 2nd grade...blech. I got home, tucked in Kyle, and worked on homework.

Tuesday am: Kyle still has a 99F. He's feeling perkier, and able to take care of himself for the day. I called him off of school, dropped off Kelson at the bus stop (grandma's house), and I left for school. At 9:30, Kevin called - before he left for work, he had to go pick up Kelson at school because he was throwing up. I was able to stay at school, because Kelson went to sleep - and grandma lives right down the street if either of the boys needed anything.

Tuesday afternoon: I started coughing. Uh-oh... I set up for a sub for Wednesday, because I didn't know if Kelson would be able to be home by himself.

WEdnesday am: I'm trying to figure out if I can make it through a school day with a 99.5F fever, when my high school called a snow day. Perfect timing! I sent Kyle off to school, crawled under blankets, and took some medicine. I let Kelson sleep. By noon, my fever was 102F. It snowed all day - but they didn't cancel grad classes.

Wednesday afternoon: I drove to grad school through unplowed roads and driving snow (my grade is tied into my attendance). It took over an hour. Five minutes into class, my professor sent me home. That drive took and hour and 15 minutes. I got home, took medicine, and called off school again. At least I had set up for a sub...

Thursday: Both boys went off to school, and a lot of the day was a blur. I couldn't get my fever to drop, and my cough had gone into my chest. By Thursday night, even my hair hurt. I was also getting shooting pains in my left jaw. Kelson started to cough...

Friday am: My fever broke, but I still didn't feel well. I *had* to go to school for my English class. I took some Tylenol Severe Cold, and went in. At 9:50, Kelson called from school; he was running a fever and shivering uncontrollably. My BIL went to pick him up before work. At 10:00 (my lunch period), I went to the school nurse for my daily blood pressure check (my doctor asked me to get a daily reading for a month). My BP was 160/108. I mentioned to the nurse that I was really tired of this flu-like stuff, and that I really wished that the shooting pains in my jaw would quit. She made me call my doctor immediately, who insisted that I go to her office NOW. But...I haven't had my English class yet! She said go NOW, or they were going to call an ambulance. Crap. I called the office, and they got internal coverage for me for the rest of the day.

Doctor's Office: BP is still 155/100. They give me an EKG, which is normal. Then they give me a 325mg aspirin and a NITROGLYCERIN! Holy crap! (That stuff is awful, btw - it makes you fell like somebody blew up a balloon in the middle of your head!). I try to explain that my chest hurt because I had been coughing; she was more concerned with the fact that I was getting shooting pains in my jaw. She asked me if I had somebody that could take me to the hospital for tests. I called Kevin (he was in University Heights - 45 min away) and my BIL (who was in downtown Cleveland). So...the doctor called an ambulance. I protested, because I still think that this is related to my fever/coughing/crud.

So I had a ride to Southwest General with some very nice EMTs who managed to get an IV catheter into my left arm despite the bumpy roads. When I get to the hospital, I gave them my medical history (again - I had given it to the EMTs, too), including the fact that I had a hysterectomy last February. I was poked, (they couldn't get a good vein in my right arm, so they took blood from the back of my hand instead - you should see the bruise!), prodded, hooked up to monitors and IVs, and then I was told that I was going to be admitted.

WHAT? No! I didn't want to be admitted - this was all related to my flu! (which, I found out, wasn't the flu. If anybody *ever* says that they're going to give me a flu test again, I'm going to hit somebody and run like heck). Kevin got there right after that - he managed to calm me down a tad.

They wouldn't let me move, because they hadn't determined if I had a blood clot or not. When they finally let me go to the bathroom, they took me in a wheelchair. They got their urine sample, and I went back to wait...and wait. I was supposed to be getting a CAT scan - what was the wait?

An hour later, Kevin went to go find me some magazines in the gift shop before he left to go home and check on the boys. While he was gone, they took me for my CAT scan. Imagine the technicians surprise when she asked me the question," Is there any chance that you may be pregnant?" Ummmm....definitely not! It turns out that the CAT scan was delayed because they were waiting for the results of my pregnancy test! That was actually really funny - I got a good giggle out of it. The dye that they use has some really bizarre effects!

While they were waiting for the CAT scan results, Kevin went home, and they gave me another Nitro (yuck) and 2 doses of Lopressor in my IV. Within about 15 minutes of my second dose of Lopressor, my BP dropped to 115/74, and my heart rate dropped from 110 to 74. My jaw pain went away, too... They gave me IV antibiotics, because I have bronchitis.

An hour later, they decided that I *wasn't* having a heart attack, and they decided that they were going to send me home instead of admitting me (Hooray!) I called Kevin, and he came back to get me. It looks like I may need to be on blood pressure meds - I need to make an appointment with my doctor. I already have an appointment for my monthly B-12 shot, but it's not until the end of the month.

When we got home, it was about 5:00. Kelson was feeling worse, and his fever was spiking. He had to perform in a low brass quartet for Solo and Ensemble contest on Saturday, and it didn't look like it was going to happen. By evening, his fever was 104F. I feel like my house is turning into a hospital ward.

Saturday am: Kelson's fever broke - hooray! We left at 11:15 for Mantua, which is about an hour away. He performs (with medicine in him - his throat is still bothering him quite a bit), and they did well; they got a I, which is the highest score. We got home about 5:00.

Saturday pm: for the first time in a week, we spend the evening quietly. I knit, watched TV, and worked on homework/lesson plans. Whew. I went to bed at 8:30.

Sunday am: Kevin let me sleep in (until 9:30! I haven't slept that long in ages!). He's starting to cough. Oh, Dear God, no...

Anyway, that was my week! There was a bright spot in the middle of all of that, though! On Thursday (I think - or was it Wednesday?), my Secret Pal sent me a package! In that package? 3 skeins of Berrocco Comfort Sock!She has a theme of "Keeping warm in an Ohio winter" and gave me the idea of making legwarmers with this yarn! I don't normally knit with acrylic, but this is machine washable and durable, so it would hold up to shoveling wet snow/salt/ice, and can just be tossed in the washer! :-) I think that I just may make EZ's "Nether Garments" without the feet.

This was also in the package:
3 skeins of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Astrakhan! This is a VERY soft, squishy Merino/Microfiber/Cashmere blend, and it's going to be a neckwarmer for me. :-)

Thank you, Secret Pal! Your package was a bright spot in an otherwise terrible week, and I appreciate it!

I have been plodding along on my own Secret Project, but it's for a surprise, not a magazine. I don't think that the recipient reads my blog, but just in case, this is all that I'm going to show you:

This is actually more purple than the picture shows - I dyed Wool of the Andes in several shades of purple. I'll be able to show you more when it's done and the recipient has received it. :-) Any guesses as to what it will be?

All of the excitement this week didn't faze Gracie in the least. She took up residence in her favorite spot:When I don't feel well, she won't leave the room that I'm in. She wanted to be on the couch with me, but when you're feverish, an 85 lb heat machine isn't exactly what is wanted. :-)

Tomorrow we start it all again! Grad school on Monday and Wednesday, and I'm proctoring an ACT after school on Tuesday until about 7:00. I'll see if I can get into the doctor on Thursday...

Twitter!

Because I seem to have lemming-like tendencies, I am now Twittering! I am Sanityknit - stop by and say hi!