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35 Gifts: Days 26-30
Jan. 29th, 2010 10:54 pmI've been really sick with a nasty virus which seems to cause migraine sufferers to end up with 10 or so days of migraines, but only produce a mild headache and generic virus symptoms in non migraine sufferers. So migraine, migraine, migraine ... it's at a low ebb right now, but if I use the computer too much it'll come back so I'll keep this short.
With Apple announcing their iPad I also had to rush-produce an article about Accessibilty and the iPad which used up what little energy I had collected.
Due to the same migraines, unsurprisingly, gift-related activities have also been small. I've written slogans on about 10 of the origami hearts and promptly given them away ... ahem. That was not my plan, but I felt that each time I had written a few somebody who came here really needed one of them, so I went with what felt right. I'll be making a few more to make sure that I have at least 35 of them on my birthday day, assuming I'm well enough. I'd really like to have 35 of them all finished on day 35!
I've also given away a few more keychains, including (in advance) the one I'm currently working on and one I haven't even started yet! This means I now have negative 1.5 keychains so I had better finish making these two. I've been experimenting with a new method of braiding that produces round braids instead of flat ones and it's tempting to play with new techniques instead of finishing these two keychains. I am nothing if not persistent though, so they'll get done.
My wonderful gift-to-myself new screen finally arrived today, a few days later than expected due to the courier company messing up and confusing the "sender" and "recipient" addresses and delivering it back to the shop before they got their act together. Due to a lack of helpers I haven't even been able to see it yet, but the enjoyment of just having the box in my living room is awesome! Hopefully I can collar a geek or two this weekend to help me - any volunteers?
With the help of my wonderful carers I've been rearranging some of the cupboards in my kitchen (by "I've", I mean that I've been masterminding the process and they've been doing the physical bits, for those not familiar with Ricky-speak). This has included discovering that for some items I've got two (or three, even) of the same item - not so surprising since last year I absorbed all of my Nana's kitchen things into my kitchen. I've put all the spares out on my coffee table to be offered to friends and the local op shop, in that order. Already been able to give a whole, if small, set of cutlery to one friend which is great.
I have given out extra compliments in the form of some emails and comments to friends who came to mind as needing them. Some text messages too. I've also been able to provide hugs and listening to a friend in some emotional distress, which I felt grateful to be able - and asked - to do, but helpless that it was all that could be done.
I have procured a secret gift for another friend, but I'm fairly sure she reads this journal at least sometimes so I'm not telling you about it!
A neighbour with two little children (a 2 year old and one who's crawling) popped her head in my garden door to say G'day today after her elder child came up to the door in an effort to find the cat. I was able to reassure her that the sign saying that children were welcome in my garden really was serious and that if it meant occasionally a toddler pulled out a plant or broke something then that was fine with me and not to worry. I had to say it several times in different ways and explain a little bit why I felt like that before she believed it at all, but I think I was able to put her mind at rest - there's a lot of stuff that little kids can pull, pick up, push around, and so forth in my garden and she was very worried that I'd be upset. Honestly, I adore the fact that the kids like to play here and I love watching them and if a kid manages to wreck something we can always plant another and it will grow again. The fact that these city kids had a chance to play in a garden without too much "don't touch that!", and that I got to enjoy their delight in it, those are far more important - and bigger gifts to me - than any plants or soil or ceramic statues could ever be.
Oh, and I've been practising my expertise as cat furniture for Anekin, especially today as he seemed to be experiencing painful joints again unfortunately. Thankfully, most days have been good days for him and he's doing a terrific job looking after me in this migrainey time.
I guess lots of gifty things have been happening, really. It's just all perspective, isn't it?
Cheers and love to you all,
Ricky
With Apple announcing their iPad I also had to rush-produce an article about Accessibilty and the iPad which used up what little energy I had collected.
Due to the same migraines, unsurprisingly, gift-related activities have also been small. I've written slogans on about 10 of the origami hearts and promptly given them away ... ahem. That was not my plan, but I felt that each time I had written a few somebody who came here really needed one of them, so I went with what felt right. I'll be making a few more to make sure that I have at least 35 of them on my birthday day, assuming I'm well enough. I'd really like to have 35 of them all finished on day 35!
I've also given away a few more keychains, including (in advance) the one I'm currently working on and one I haven't even started yet! This means I now have negative 1.5 keychains so I had better finish making these two. I've been experimenting with a new method of braiding that produces round braids instead of flat ones and it's tempting to play with new techniques instead of finishing these two keychains. I am nothing if not persistent though, so they'll get done.
My wonderful gift-to-myself new screen finally arrived today, a few days later than expected due to the courier company messing up and confusing the "sender" and "recipient" addresses and delivering it back to the shop before they got their act together. Due to a lack of helpers I haven't even been able to see it yet, but the enjoyment of just having the box in my living room is awesome! Hopefully I can collar a geek or two this weekend to help me - any volunteers?
With the help of my wonderful carers I've been rearranging some of the cupboards in my kitchen (by "I've", I mean that I've been masterminding the process and they've been doing the physical bits, for those not familiar with Ricky-speak). This has included discovering that for some items I've got two (or three, even) of the same item - not so surprising since last year I absorbed all of my Nana's kitchen things into my kitchen. I've put all the spares out on my coffee table to be offered to friends and the local op shop, in that order. Already been able to give a whole, if small, set of cutlery to one friend which is great.
I have given out extra compliments in the form of some emails and comments to friends who came to mind as needing them. Some text messages too. I've also been able to provide hugs and listening to a friend in some emotional distress, which I felt grateful to be able - and asked - to do, but helpless that it was all that could be done.
I have procured a secret gift for another friend, but I'm fairly sure she reads this journal at least sometimes so I'm not telling you about it!
A neighbour with two little children (a 2 year old and one who's crawling) popped her head in my garden door to say G'day today after her elder child came up to the door in an effort to find the cat. I was able to reassure her that the sign saying that children were welcome in my garden really was serious and that if it meant occasionally a toddler pulled out a plant or broke something then that was fine with me and not to worry. I had to say it several times in different ways and explain a little bit why I felt like that before she believed it at all, but I think I was able to put her mind at rest - there's a lot of stuff that little kids can pull, pick up, push around, and so forth in my garden and she was very worried that I'd be upset. Honestly, I adore the fact that the kids like to play here and I love watching them and if a kid manages to wreck something we can always plant another and it will grow again. The fact that these city kids had a chance to play in a garden without too much "don't touch that!", and that I got to enjoy their delight in it, those are far more important - and bigger gifts to me - than any plants or soil or ceramic statues could ever be.
Oh, and I've been practising my expertise as cat furniture for Anekin, especially today as he seemed to be experiencing painful joints again unfortunately. Thankfully, most days have been good days for him and he's doing a terrific job looking after me in this migrainey time.
I guess lots of gifty things have been happening, really. It's just all perspective, isn't it?
Three Good Things
- Anekin's love, hugs, and lickings while I've been feeling so sick
- So many wonderful audiobooks and podcasts to keep me from doing nuts with boredom when I'm too migrainey to look at the screen. Currently reading S M Stirling's "The Sunrise Lands", part of a series I've been going through.
- The weather has been quite mild, which is an extra-good thing while I have a virus. I can deal with hot days with my air conditioner but it's one extra thing I'd have to cope with and I feel that my reserves are very low.
Cheers and love to you all,
Ricky
