Updates on this and that

1) In late May, my niece and nephew arrived a bit earlier than expected. It was a scary experience for all of the family, most especially my sister- and brother-in-law. The babies are now both over five pounds and are doing pretty well. Baby K still has some trouble digesting, so she gets some help with eating and Baby O has a brain bleed that is pretty severe, but seems to be repairing itself on its own. Both babies have been transferred to a new hospital in their hometown, so now everyone in their family is in the same zip code (yay!). They are in a twins room, so they are together all day, and they have been moved out of warming tables, out of isolettes, and now they are in cribs. They will potentially be in the NICU for another six or seven weeks, but we're keeping our fingers crossed that their progress will continue to stay on this upward course.

2) While we were in Chicago, my best friend gave me the first book in a series of books by Charlaine Harris. These books are what the HBO series True Blood is based on. (If anyone has any doubts as to what kind of people we are, you should keep in mind that we would go back to the hotel room after a long day and read quietly for an hour or two. So we're nerds.) I gobbled that book up. Then, when I got home, she sent me a box filled with rest of the series. I am addicted. So there's that.

But, the thing is that the main character in this series, Sookie Stackhouse, is a telepath. She can hear thoughts of people around her. Since I started reading these books, I am terrified that someone nearby will be a telepath and will listen to my thoughts. So I am trying to think only nice thoughts. And I had no idea until this started that my thoughts were so negative!!

3) We're still running 30 minutes three times a week. My calves are really showing results. I still look like hell when we're done (red face doesn't begin to describe it - more like purple face) and I'm still straining for breath after about two minutes in, but the results are worth it. I feel stronger and it makes biking all the more straightforward. I just started taking regular allergy medication this week , so I'm hoping that I'll see some additional progress with my breathing because of that.

In addition, let's talk about my hair. For a long time, I've been reading that people with fine, thin hair should not be washing their hair every day. And I was like, uh huh, my hair is disgustingly oily if I don't wash it everyday. Then one day I didn't have time to properly shower after my run and my hair? My hair was wonderful. It was full of body and did what I told it to do. So I now only wash my hair every other day. Because I run. Weird, huh?

4) I've been cat sitting for the last two weeks. The cat, Sally (I refuse to give her a nickname - her name is Sally), is a touchy thing. Sometimes she loves me. Sometimes she hates me. I have only been scratched once, but her family is coming back in three days and I really can't wait!! It's been nice riding my bike to feed her (it's probably a 6-7 mile ride there), but it ends up taking all afternoon, with the going downtown, spending time with her to make sure she doesn't turn feral, and the riding back. So, if you're wondering what I'm doing with my time, wonder no more. I'm cat sitting.