Coming out of the dark....

Happy to say that this new thyroid hormone is finally working!  It's taking a long time, but I can feel the fog and exhaustion lifting little by little.  What a shitty way to start off a school year though.
The pain from being so freaking tired is gone, and I've stopped relying on my afternoon coffee to get me through the rest of the day.  That feels so much better, and is so much better on my wallet since my afternoon runs meant a trip to Starbucks and the occasional $4 pumpkin spice latte....

I'm able to get moving in the morning too and don't feel like I'm just waking up around lunch time.  And I'm able to go to bed at a reasonable time instead of staying up until 1 or 2 because I was so wired.

Weird.

The gluten stuff is still there....I stupidly ate a piece of pepperoni pizza yesterday (it was from Regina--how could I pass it up?) at lunch, and I've felt sick all day, ranging from ridiculously hungry to wanting to throw up. I should know better.

The brain fog/memory stuff comes and goes, and that drives me insane.  I was going to type something about this, and it's gone....it will come back.  I hope.

Oh, now I remember.  I had bloodwork done in October, and the hospital has switched labs.  Because of the switch, they have a new assay of numbers, so I don't know if I'm undetectable or not.  The Tg number was 3.1, and in the past it had to be under 2 to be considered undetectable.  I'm hoping that I don't go back in a few months to find out that the cancer is back....Plus, I still have evidence of thyroid antibodies which means I still have Hasimoto's--bizarre.  How can I have this stuff without a thryoid?  I read somewhere that you can and it can take years for the antibodies to go away.
The fallout from thyca is unbelievable--don't ever tell me "it's the best cancer to have", or I will deck you.

On a happier note, even though my body acts like it's 10 years older than it is, someone the other night thought I was about 10 years younger than I actually am!  I was at BLS' annual alumni dinner.  I love when I tell people that this is my 24th year in education, and their eyes bug out.  This person was amazed and told me she thought I was in my mid-30s.  She nearly died when I said I was 45.  Little did she know that I had on enough spandex to outfit a swim team under my dress....still, that made me feel good.

My crash on synthroid added more weight around the middle, so shopping for shopping for clothes is not pleasant.  I spent about 5 hours looking for a suit or dress for the dinner mentioned above, and couldn't find anything that fit even close to ok.  Luckily I had a dress that I could wear, but my dressy wardrobe is severely limited by the self-esteem issues created by my thyroid craziness.  I'm by no means petite, but I'm probably not as large as I think I am.  My total lack of desire or energy to exercise hasn't helped--however, I actually had a thought the other day that I should get on my stationary bike and start pedaling....I didn't, but I haven't felt good enough to have that thought in months.

So that's where I'm at right now...still some room for improvement.

Yawn. Damn synthroid *&^%$#.

I'm really having a hard time functioning lately.  Not good with the start of a new school year and a new job.

I went to see Dr. N last week and told her my laundry list of symptoms, with the highlights being total exhaustion to the point of pain and hair falling out. And total brain fog.  I can't trust that those are an accurate indication of being over or under, since in the past I've had the same symptoms for both.  I just know that I haven't felt as good on synthroid as I always did on levoxyl.  Plus, after 15 years on the same drug, any change is bound to mess you up, right?  Damn you synthroid for messing with my stability.

It's funny, because I told Dr. N that while I have accepted that I will probably never feel really 100% good again, I can live with that and deal with some tiredness etc.  However, this was ridiculous.  She eyeballed me and said, "Well, we could try the Armour Natural stuff?  It comes from pigs and I'm not happy to use animal products, but we could try it.  Let's see what your blood levels show..."

I was actually hopeful because I've read some pretty good reviews of the natural hormone replacement. The next day I got my results online (very cool, no fear of missing the phone call!)  with a note that said, "No wonder you feel awful--your TSH is 2!  You need to be at 0.1.  I'm calling in the prescription now."

So I've switched, and I'm very happy that what I was feeling was legit.  Not happy I feel so crappy, but glad it was validated.  However, I'm in this weird limbo place of feeling icky but waiting for the change to feeling good.....everyone who has ever tinkered with thryoid levels knows what I mean.  It could take a few weeks.  Until then, I can sleep 12 hours on the weekends or hit a wall at 3pm and be completely non-functional.  This new job is helping a little--now that I've crossed over to the dark side of ed administration (department head of the language department), I don't have to be 'on' all day and can work more slowly in my little cave of an office.  I'm still teaching one class, but I can turn it on for one period!  Dunkin' Donuts at 7am and Starbucks around 2:30 are keeping me going--I should buy stock in both.

Dr. N also said that all of the patients she switched to Armour have said that they will never go back to a synthetic hormone replacement...I'm waiting for it to really kick in.

I'm tired of feeling tired.  And at this rate, I'll be bald by Christmas.   I just want to be a little closer to fine than I am right now.

I'm still here....

This blog hasn't even been on my radar these past few months....that's probabably a good thing, right?  I started it in 2010 right after my thyca diagnosis and had a ton of posts that year.  Good therapy.  Since then, I'm lucky if I'm posting once or twice a month.

On the thyca front, I had my annual breast squashing the other day to check for breast issues.  I'm praying that I don't have a repeat of last year where I get called back because it looks suspicious.  I know it could happen very easily and I guess I'll be better prepared for it than I was last year--that resulted in mini-paralysis freak out for a couple of days and a near total breakdown after the second ultrasound that gave me the all clear.  Lots of women get called back and it's nothing...

I have had some interesting experiences this summer with food and the whole gluten issue, and I'm completely confused now as to what the hell my body is reacing to every time I ingest something.  Of  course I haven't been formally diagnosed with anything, just a comment from the endo along the lines of, "Well, if you feel better not eating gluten, then don't eat it."

July was awesome.  Just plain amazing.  I kind of satisfied my travel bug by hitting up two continents!  China and Europe.

Three words for China:  hot, sensory overload.

Typical lunch or dinner. I  have no idea what I ate, but I didn't starve!! 

The Forbidden City, Beijing

At the Great Wall!  I climbed what I could even though it was hazy and easily 100 degrees.  

Oh my.  At a rotary in Nanjing.  

So.  damn.  hot.  At the Forbidden City, Beijing. 

At the train station in Beijing, when you realize just what a billion people feels like.

Lotus flowers blooming in Hangzhou

Three words for Ireland:  home, peaceful, heaven.

Beautiful West Cork on the road from Tragumna Beach to Toe Head, near Skibbereen

I loved them both, although Ireland always will be a little bit more than any other place on the face of the earth, even my beloved Salamanca.
But I digress....

China was incredibly hot the whole time we were there.  We spent 5 days in Beijing, 3 days in Nanjing and 4 days in Hangzhou.  We spent our time visiting about 8 schools, playing tourists and attending a national conference at the end.  I ate so many interesting things, and can now eat rice with chopsticks--I can even pick up a peanut!  Lots of the food stared back at me, but I think I gave just about everything a taste.  I can now say that I've climbed the Great Wall, seen the Forbidden City, eaten Peking duck (yum!), been to a green tea plantation, eaten chicken feet, consumed lots of TsingTao beer, eaten  fruit pizza (don't even ask), hung out with Chinese teachers and students, ridden the bullet train from Beijing to Nanjing, peed in squat toilets, shopped in a Chinese WalMart, bought jade, cruised on West Lake, seen lots of high schools and elementary schools, eaten a red bean popsicle (not bad), seen the Bird's Nest stadium and the Water Cube, ridden in a bus going the wrong way down a two lane street, survived crossing the street in all three cities multiple times....
It was just an incredible trip, and I'm so glad I did it.

Ireland was like a second home.  We rented a cottage in Skibbereen,  West Cork and basically didn't do anything for two weeks except sleep, read books, take walks , go to pubs for food and sesiuns, visit with some of the cousins, listen to great music and drink a fair amount of Guinness.  I don't know--I have a visceral reaction to West Cork and love it there.  It just feels good to be there.  We had absolutely gorgeous weather with only a couple of rainy spots.  It was the perfect way to recover from the frenzy of China and the end of the school year--I don't think I've been that relaxed in ages.

Catching up...

Oh so much to do and so little time to get it all done!  Blogging has taken a back seat these days, although I should be “letting it out” into cyberspace more often to help keep my sanity....

So a few updates. 

Thyca developments:  

 My beloved Levoxyl has been recalled.  Completely.  Until 2014.  This whole prospect really scares me--I need this pill to basically stay alive, and without it I’ll be dead in, oh, 6 months.  And I’m pretty sure it would be a slow, painful passage to the next world.  My big fear was the replacement Dr. N would use--I have never done well on the generic.  Never.  I had to fight with the pharmacist to not get the generic.  What replacement ends up in my refill?  The generic.  Mr. Wonderful picked it up for me, and I didn’t think to have him check what was in the bottle.  I just assumed that Dr. N lost her mind and switched me to the generic.  So I (stupidly) started taking it, and within two weeks, CRASH.  Oh, I was so tired and miserable!  I immediately called the office and asked to please be switched to Synthroid...the call back informed me that Dr. N had in fact called in the initial replacement as Synthroid, and the damn pharmacy took it upon themselves without telling me to fill it with the generic.  (*&^%$#@.  I’m now on Synthroid, and fingers crossed feeling ok. Probably a little hyper since I only slept about 5 hours last night and woke up feeling great.  But for now, it’s ok.  No freaky side effects, no dips in functioning that I can find.  

 I have to accept the fact that I cannot be in the sun for more than 6 minutes at a time, or I will fry myself crispy.  I had a lovely lunch on Monday with Mr. Wonderful and Aunt L on the harbor in Salem, outside in the sun.  We sat for a couple of hours enjoying the glorious sunshine--I had on a sweater because I was, of course, cold, so I was reasonably covered up.  Not so on my face and chest.  Painful.  Red, swollen face/nose/lips, and a raging burn on my chest where my tank top didn’t cover me.  We were only in the sun for a few hours.  I didn’t even think of sunblock.  Later we sat on Aunt L’s balcony on the ocean, and luckily my sweater had a hood that covered my face--I looked like the old decrepit emperor from “The Empire Strikes Back”!  I am very pale, Irish pasty pale, and am used to getting sunburns, but never like this and never in such a short amount of time.  I posted on a Facebook forum for thyca survivors, asking if anyone else had run into this post thyca, and I got a ton of responses saying yes.  So I’m not the only sun-sensitive freak out there.  Most people said they started having problems post-RAI, which makes sense.  I supposed the RAI fried me from the inside out, and now there isn’t as much to soak up the sun?  Now I need to go check my sunblock supply and really use it more than I do.  I did see a dermatologist a couple of months ago and had a whole body check, and she didn’t find any spots or suspicious thingies as a result of my Irish genes and childhood spent getting burned.  

Yup, I'm probably as pale as he is too.  

Other than that, not much else to report from thyca land.  I’m still doing gluten free stuff as much as possible and have discovered that sometimes I can eat something with wheat, like chocolate cake and frosting, and have a mild or almost no reaction.  Other times I might eat something that results in a three day bout of intestinal gastric chaos.  I haven’t figured out exactly which foods cause the stronger reactions, so I’m avoiding gluten as much as possible.  Sometimes I wonder if the gluten substitutes cause issues?  

In other news, school is still nuts.  We have a month to go.  And I’m so done.  

A new stamp for my passport! 

I’m going to China in July!!  Woo hoo!!  I can’t wait--I’m going with a group of teachers (groan) to do a comparative study about school changes in the US and China.  We’re going to Beijing, Nanjing, Huangzho and Shanghai for two weeks.  I have no idea what to expect except a long-ass flight and funky probably not gluten free food options.  We’ll hit the major tourist sites in between visits to schools and presentations we’ll be giving on change in the US.  That should be, um, interesting.  And I think we wrap up the trip at a conference in Shanghai.  Who cares--I’m going to China.  

Ahhhh.  West Cork.   

And then once I get home, I have three days to recover before jumping on a plane for Ireland to spend two weeks in the homeland!  We’re renting a house in West Cork.  I can’t wait for that either, although I supposed I’ll be exhausted from running around China and jet lag.  Still, recovering in a cottage by the sea in rural Ireland sounds perfect to me.  

July is going to be busy.   I’ll get back August 4th.  And then?  We’ll see.  School is up in the air as to what my position will be.  

Let it rain over me....

Now that I've calmed down a little from the bloodwork debacle, I can't sleep much, and my thyroid meds have been recalled with no replacements in sight until, oh, 2014.

Yup, it just keeps going!

I think I sabotaged myself into my inability to sleep since I let my estrogen run out for a few days before I had it refilled....so maybe hot flashes were waking me up?  I also had some coffee in the afternoon (including an overpriced Starbuck's Hazelnut Macchiato, but it was delicious and got me through the afternoon...) and there have been a gazillion things going on at school that demand my immediate attention RIGHT NOW.  Since I have to pay attention to them RIGHT NOW,  I keep falling behind with grading, and I only have two classes.  Ok, two demanding AP classes who are adding to my anxiety because their test is only weeks away, and they are still mostly mutes in class.  So it's like a giant vicious cycle....I can't sleep partially because of my 2:20pm coffee fix, and I can't function at 2:20 because I'm exhausted and need the coffee to get me through to bed time...and while I can't sleep, all of these work-related things are zinging through my mind, and I literally have to stop my brain and make it go to my "quiet place", which looks to me like a cottage on a lush green Irish hillside overlooking the ocean on a day when it's not raining.

Sigh. I'm making myself exhausted!

And then there's the total recall of Levoxyl, my BFF.  No more levoxyl until at least 2014, which means I either have to take the generic version or switch to Synthroid.  I have a call into Dr. N about which option is better.  I do know that the generic doesn't work as well for me--causes more swings in my functioning ability and it's harder for me to feel stable.  I've never been on Synthroid.  I still have about half a prescription of levoxyl left, and the pharmacy automatically refilled it with the generic.
Here's the dilemma--this is a pill that I literally cannot live without.  It would take a while, but without it, I will eventually blow up to a puffy person with no memory and a complete intolerance to cold, and I would die.

How's that for happy thought of the day??

I really don't feel this depressed, but writing about it might change my mood.  I'm smiling as I type that...

I won't worry about the meds for a few more days, but I know a switch is coming, and I don't know what to expect.

And then to top it all off, Roger Ebert died this week, basically from thyroid cancer from what I've read.  I'm not sure what type he had, but it wreaked havoc with him.

Hmm--did anything good happen this week?  Oh yeah!  Mr. Wonderful and I celebrated our 7th anniversary!  We went back to the restaurant where we had our first date, and we ended up seated at the same table  (awwww).  It was fun and we had a nice night.  And, there was a double rainbow over Boston that day!  Just like on the day we got married!  Ok, I only saw the picture on Twitter and not live, but I thought it was a pretty cool coincidence.

Off to take nap and enjoy the rest of the weekend....

Whew.

After a week of worrying around the clock about my thyroglobulin levels, I finally got some answers on Friday and Saturday.

It was a two-fer:  one mistake made by the lab, one mistake made by the person in the office who read me my results.

WTF?

Mistake number one:  The lab never did the thyroglobulin test.  They did the thyroglobulin antibody test instead.  The lab slip said that the thyroglobulin test was supposed to be done.

Mistake number two:  The tech/person who read me the results told me that the number 20 was for the thyroglobulin, instead of the antibody thingie.  Turns out that a 20 on the antibody test is within the normal and/or negative range.

Dr. N called me on Saturday afternoon at 3:30, but I missed the call (that figures).  She basically told me about the mistakes, and that she only ordered the thyroglobulin because I was having bloodwork done--since it's been low from the start of this whole process, she's comfortable testing it once a year at this point.   My cholesterol numbers are finally in decent ranges, but I am on a statin for that.

It was a pretty crappy week--from Monday's initial phone call to Friday morning's follow-up call, my brain took lots of field trips into dark, scary corners.  I know I need to keep myself from going there, but it's so damn hard!  Monday and Tuesday were complete washouts.  I played quite a few rounds of Ruzzle.  In English, Spanish and French.

I can't get really mad because mistakes happen, and I can't blame Dr. N for the whole think because it wasn't her fault.  Still, it sucked.

So on a happy note, I'll keep going until the next appointment in the summer (I think).....

Nononononononono. Detectable?

Trying not to panic today.

Dr. N's nurse called me with the results of my bloodwork from last week.  "All your results are normal."
That's not good enough for me, so I always ask for the numbers to compare to the last round of bloodwork--I wanted to know if the statins had helped the cholesterol numbers, and they've definitely improved.  I guess she didn't test the cardiac reactive protein thingie--I forgot to photocopy the lab orders this time, so I'm not really sure what she tested.  How did I miss that?

Anyway, I asked her about the thyroglobulin.   "Oh.  It's 20."

Um, that doesn't sound undetectable to me, does it?  Last time it was 0.5, so jumping to 20 seems huge to me.  Right?

So now I'm waiting for Dr. N to call me back so I can ask her some more questions.  Of course I've been on the computer all afternoon looking for info about recurrence.  I've always understood that chances for recurrence are high, especially since the cancer metastasized to the lymph nodes.  The rise in thyroglobulin can just mean that there is thyroid tissue lurking somewhere in my system, but usually that probably indicates that the cancer is back, even microscopically.

Maybe the nurse made a mistake reading the report.  Maybe they realigned the normal range?  Maybe I have cancer again?  

I've pretty much lost today between searching and napping.  And I did eat some cake, so the gluten will add to the joy of my day.  Sigh.

Here's hoping Dr. N will call me back tonight....

Not much to report

This blog is turning into a monthly thing this year.

I think I know why--I discovered Pinterest.

What a huge time suck, but I like it!  There is some interesting stuff out there, but it's keeping me from my other interesting stuff.

Aside from spending time organizing my pins, school has been insane.  Just crazy. This time of year is always hard, but this year it's compounded by three snow days before vacation, and then I got three personal snow days thanks to a blizzard in Denver.  We spent vacation week in Colorado so we could surprise my brother-in-law at his 50th birthday party (which we did quite successfully), but a blizzard hit Denver the day we were due to fly home.  We didn't get home until Wednesday night.  It was a fun trip, but longer than expected.  We spent time in Colorado Springs, Golden and Boulder.  Lovely places with amazing scenery when it wasn't snowing--I had to buy a pair of snow boots!  (On clearance at a Bass outlet of course)

Gearing up for St. Patrick's Day and hoping to see Solas next Friday.  I love their new album, "Shamrock City", all about the Irish in Butte, Montana as well as immigration in general.  Love it.

Off to bed, might find more to write about later.

Dodging a few bullets

Been busy around here doing just that, dodging a few bullets.  Just a few.

Bullet number 1:  Sis had a check up with our favorite Dr. N last week where Dr. N said she could feel something on her thyroid.  Sis has a few nodules that have taken up residence, but haven't done much else other than hang out on her  thyroid wreaking havoc with her endocrine system and hormones.  However, Dr. N hadn't felt anything on exam before, so she ordered an ultrasound.  Sigh.  Now what? We spent a good few days talking about the "what ifs" surrounding these little buggers but in the end figured we'd be ok one way or the other.  Sis went for the ultrasound and had a great tech who told her everything -- upshot of the exam is that the little buggers are stable.  Two are really small, and the larger one actually measured a mm smaller than the last time it was checked.  Dr. N's office called a few days later to say the scan was "stable" and see you next time.  She's still waiting for a boatload of bloodwork to come back because she isn't feeling exactly wonderful, but then again once your thyroid rebels on you, you'll never feel wonderful again.  The bloodwork results should be interesting, but at least there's no obvious evidence of cancer in her thyroid.  The tech suggested that she ask for an MRI to rule it out once and for all due to our lovely family history.  Probably not a bad idea.

Bullet number 2:  The Blizzard of 2013.  While we got 2 feet of snow and I've just finished my third snow day, everyone was safe and sound.  We had my mother-in-law and Mr. Wonderful's aunt for a few days--all nice and cozy and happily fed.  Luckily there was no damage at anyone's house, and we were lucky we didn't lose any power.  Other sections of the state weren't so lucky and had way more damage than my area.  Mr. Wonderful did all the shoveling too, so that bullet flew by me!  Back to school tomorrow to try to salvage what I can before vacation week. By the way, who decided to call it Winter Storm Nemo??

Bullet number 3 whizzing towards me, not sure how much dodging I'll do--I have an appointment with Dr. N on Thursday (Valentine's Day?  What was I thinking?) for a physical.  I don't think there will be any huge issues, but I don't know.  I haven't kept up my amazing exercise routine since school started, even though I have every intention every day of starting up again....and now 6 months have gone by and still zip from me.  I don't feel too bad, except that I've been having heart palpitations off and on lately.  Not all the time, and not every day, but every now and then I can feel a little fluttery feeling in my chest.  I'm assuming it has to do with the suppression dose of thyroid meds? I'll mention it to her I guess and see what she says.  I'll have to get bloodwork done anyway.  I'm a little anxious about the appointment, but mostly because I figure there will be something wrong somewhere....
I've been using turmeric with hot milk since it is supposed to be a wonder spice that helps with inflammation and all sorts of health issues--so far it's knocked out a couple of colds before they even had the chance to get started, so it's working for me.

Dad in Bundoran, Co. Donegal, 1991

Reki and me on my First Communion, 1976

Other than that, the rest of the week has been marked by some interesting events....Feb. 10 was my dad's 14th anniversary.  I don't know where the time has gone, but I miss him.  Feb. 11th was my grandmother's birthday, and this year she'll be gone from us for 30 years.  I really miss her sometimes and wish I could talk to her about how life is going.  She was a force....


And, eerily enough on my dad's anniversary, I got a phone call that his brother passed away.  On the same day.  The services are on Saturday and since my sister and I are the only nieces, we've been asked to do the readings.  Sad, but it's a long complicated story with the aunts and uncles in my family, and it's best to just let it be and not try to figure any of them out.

And I really should get back to my pile of essays and recordings to grade....

Janu...what?

So where did January go??

It seems like the older I get, the faster time is flying by.

Either that or I just can't remember anything and it's all blended together in one big multicolor splash in my brain.  I definitely had a bout of serious brain fog somewhere in the middle of the month, and I can't pinpoint why.  Some days it felt surreal and I could barely keep the thread of a conversation going in English or in Spanish.  And then, it passed.  At least I think it did.  It seemed to coincide with a really really cold week and half we had of frigid near zero temps and no heat in school.  I think that was a big factor and I could not get warm for days.  It got so bad that I finally bought a space heater for my office at school.  It helps, but this has definitely been the winter of large wool sweaters, wool socks, turtlenecks, corduroys and down vests.  And my oh so unattractive black cloggy-looking shoes that are oh so comfortable.

Right now I'm in the midst of trying to get enough sleep--some nights are better than others, but it's never enough.

Still cold though.

School is well, school.  It's pretty cold in there.  I've fallen so far behind on essays it's scary, and now I have 40+ speaking assessments to figure out. Not complaining, my colleagues have 150+.  It's just a pain that I don't want to deal with right now.

I'm tired.  I'm thinking that maybe I should try to go to bed a little earlier tonight--last night between the Super Bowl and Downton Abbey, I probably got to bed by midnight.

2012 Highlights

Some good stuff did happen this year....

January: It was January.  Not much happened.
February:  Saw Solas in concert!
March: Trip to lovely Turks and Caicos to celebrate Sis' 40th birthday!

And I shook hands with the President of Ireland! (that's not me though...) 

   

April: Quick trip to the Vineyard, a parade and the Red Sox

South Beach 

Mr. W marching in the Patriots' Day Parade

Red Sox game! 

May: Goddaughter makes her confirmation! Trip to California! And the puppies...

Dill, Sage, Cilantro, Rue and Basil 

June: End of another school year!
July : PEI trip with Aunt L., Womens' Weekend in Breckenridge, USS Constitution turn around on July 4th

At the Potato Museum in O'Leary 

5 Fabulous ladies in Breckinridge 

Ok got this pic from the press or Navy.  

 

August:  I think I spent most of August in NH recovering from July.

Quality time with Clancy. 

Frequent fried clams and ice cream with the family 

September: B-17 flight with Sis-in-law and Mr. Wonderful.  Don't know who the blond guy is.

October: WBS undetectable!

November: Cape weekend and Thanksgiving in NH

December: Christmas Celtic Sojourn (with Solas!)

Ok 2013, here I come.

In 2013 I will..... 

1.  Exercise.  This will always and forever be on any goal list I have because I cannot stick to it even though I know I need to do it.  My Wii is my friend.  I did feel really good when I had a steady routine going.

2.  Use my passport this year.  Preferably to get to a cottage on the West Cork coastline for a couple of weeks this summer....or hit the Caribbean in February.  Or both.

3.  Plan my gluten free life a little better.  More veggies and better meals.

4.  Try to talk to friends more.  Not via Facebook.

5.  Do something artsy, like scrapbook, or cross stitch....

6.  Keep up the cultural stuff at least once a month.  Solas is coming back in March, and I saw two (two!) movies over Christmas break (Anna Karenina and Lincoln).

7.  Write more cards and notes.  On paper.  With a pen.

8.  Recycle/sell/get rid of things I don't need or use.  That includes family stuff.  My ancestors continue to haunt me.  Gotta love Irish Catholic guilt.

9.  Be more diligent with vitamins, supplements, healthy eating....

10.  Get more sleep! (she says as she sits here at 12:30am typing away on a school night....Mr. W is busy snoring away and I can hear him in the living room, so I wouldn't be sleeping much in there right now anyway)

Goals for 2012? Meh....

Time to see how I did last year!  In keeping with this school year's theme of "using data to inform my practice" (ugh), what do my results tell me? 2012 goals are in black, end of year results are in red.

1.  Keep exercising, whether it's 30+ minutes a day on the bike or walking.  That should help control my weight and hopefully get me off blood pressure meds!  If I can do more, I will.  I know that 30 minutes is doable based on my past experience, and it's better than nothing.  I won't sabotage myself that way. 
I actually did really well with this from January until September. School started, and I have completely fallen off the wagon.  Again. New goal for 2013?  My Wii is calling me.... 

2.  Take my daily vitamins and supplements.  Daily.  Really.  My Sis-in-law gave me a pill organizer thingy that says "Hormonally Challenged" for Christmas--made me laugh. Still inconsistent here, but trying.  I manage to take the calcium supplements daily....just not the ginormous fish oil capsules. 

3.  Not stay at school so late.  Sigh.  Maybe I'll try to leave by 3 or 4 two days a week? Ha ha ha.  That's a pretty funny goal there!  Not achieved, no way, no how. 

4.  Get back to cooking more so I can avoid frosted pop tart mornings and frozen dinner evenings.  I was doing much better the year before.  Need to do less processed stuff. Not bad here--gluten issues have banned PopTarts from my diet forever.  Loving Kind bars now.  

5.  Drink more juice/veggie smoothies.  They're supposed to be really good for you, and I haven't attempted to enter that world yet.  Does my bottle of Green Goodness by Bolton Farms count every couple of weeks?  

6.  Make more of an effort to talk to my friends on the phone every now and then instead of just reading Facebook status updates and feeling like I'm in touch with them.  There's something missing, and it's because I no longer make an effort to call people to actually talk to them. Nope. Not any better.  

7.  Try again to do something cultural at least once a month.  Better get planning for this month....This worked pretty well most months--went to see Idina Menzel, "A Christmas Celtic Sojourn", Solas, ceili in PEI... 

8.  Travel outside the US at least once, preferably more. Canada counts--we went to Prince Edward Island during the summer.  

9.  Travel inside the US outside of New England.  And New York doesn't count if I go to Jul's to scrapbook for a weekend. Pennsylvania?  

10.  Take Mookie and O'Malley to a new vet. No, I like Dr. Almstrom too much to not make the trek to Meredith. 

11.  Finish a cross stitch thingy.  I have about 4 different things in progress. So why did I start a  new one?  

12.  Organize my arsty stuff so I'll be inclined to do more of it. Nope. 

13.  Figure out once and for all where my &^%$# Sullivan clan came from in Ireland, and what the connection is between Charlestown, Fall River, Lawrence and Manchester NH.  They moved around way more than I thought! I've been picking away at this, but no progress.  I'm still looking... 

14.  Read at least one complete novel in Spanish.  I started one last year.....Yes! 

15.  Finally make my house livable.  It's getting there and I'm finally making decisions about the "stuff" my parents and grandparents left here.  Need to organize so much stuff. I'm considering this a constant work in progress.  

So.  The "data" tells me that I am still unorganized, still not crazy about exercising, still spending waaaaay too much time at school, and that I need to travel more.  And my (*&^% Sullivan branch still remains a mystery despite hours combing ancestry.com for records and shreds of evidence.  I can still read in Spanish.  I'm still not a good friend in terms of communication and need to get better at that.  
What to do with this brand new year of 2013?  Stay tuned, new goals coming soon!