The DC Relaunch

Okay, what I was trying to say in my previous post can be summed up by this guy, who I think I might actually be. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing.

The End Of An Era

Tonight at midnight, many comic book stores across the country are opening up to do midnight sales in honor of two DC comic books.  They are Flashpoint #5 and Justice League #1.  Flashpoint #5 features the end of the DC Universe as I've known it my entire life.  Justice League #1 is the start of the brand new DC Universe (aka the DCnU.)  I've been rather depressed about this since the announcement was first made a few months ago.  DC Comics, in an attempt to remain relevant, is rebooting their entire line of comics.  Everything that has come before is now thrown out the window (contrary to what Dan DiDio keeps harping) in favor of all new heroes, all new continuity, all new creators.  Every single mainstream DC comic book has been cancelled and replaced with either a new #1 of the same title or just plain cancelled and replaced with something totally different.  I've tried to remain positive about this, but it's been hard.  Every time I start to feel a little better about the change, a new announcement comes out and takes the wind out of my sails.  The last one was something that rather annoyed me.  I'd come to accept that everything I love was gone.  I was psyching myself up to try the new stuff and then Dan DiDio, one of the big wigs at DC, says that this isn't really a reboot, but more of a retooling.  And then lists off a whole bunch of things from the past that he says still happened in the new continuity.  This really doesn't work for me.  They're trying to make a fresh start, retool or completely overhaul all the characters in their line, throw out everything that's come before, set a strict "superheroes never existed before five years ago" time frame and then tries to say that all these things, all these years of continuity still happened.  There's no way you can take the old and shoehorn it in with the new.  It doesn't work that way.  DC is missing a giant opportunity by wiping the slate clean and starting completely fresh.  

I'm still very skeptical about how this is all going to pan out.  It's really taken my enthusiasm for comics away. The last few months of books have been hard to read knowing that by the end of the current storylines, the stories no longer matter.  

Since DC is giving this a huge push, I was able to secure a huge discount for all the new #1s.  Because of this, I've decided to try all 52 books.  I have them all on order.  The same discount was available for the second issues of these books, but I decided to only order the ones I had any sort of interest in and that would be 16 out of the 52 books.  By the third issue, I'm sure I'll be ordering less.  I really hope I'm wrong, though.  I've been a lifelong fan of DC Comics.  I started reading them back in 1976 when I was ten years old and I've never looked back.  Thirty-five years of reading comics and for the first time, I'm questioning whether or not I still want to go on.  I've NEVER EVER entertained that thought before.  But this really is a great jumping off point.  Everything I like has ended as of this week.  There are always trade paperbacks of the stuff that I love, so I don't have to quit cold turkey.  I can ease myself off.  

It's just sad.

Do Over

I want to call Do Over on today. I really don't know what happened to me, but I spent most of the day in a fairly crumby mood. And it didn't help that I kept hearing the same Hurricane Irene stories from the same people at work over and over and over again. And I kept hearing everyone freaking out at the rising river and stream waters. And every time I heard one of those stories again, it irritated me even more. It gets exhausting sitting there, stewing and just being miserable. I wasn't planning on hitting the gym tonight, but I had to. I needed to get rid of some of these rotten feelings. It helped, but not enough. I'm hoping a solid night of sleep will take care of the rest. I'm looking forward to being in a better mood tomorrow. I'm just glad Ken isn't around tonight to (a) have to deal with my pissiness and (b) not here to press my buttons. Instead, he's dealing with his on irritation. He needs a new hose and strap for his sleep apnea machine. Every time he needs a new part, all he gets is aggravation. The doctors won't just give him replacement parts. He first needs to make an appointment with his regular doctor to get a referral to the sleep clinic people. Then he needs to go and spend the night there, hooked up to machines, just to get a replacement part. It's quite the procedure when it really doesn't have to be. To me, it seems like a giant scam for the sleep clinic to collect from the insurance companies. So he's away tonight, not sleeping at the clinic and I'm here, not feeling the joy.

Tomorrow is going to be a good day!

A Little Of This, A Little Of That

I'm listening to Art of Noise right now.  I haven't really paid them much attention in a really long time, but a Google+ friend just recently got back into them and was posting about it and it got me to wanting to listen again. I had forgotten how much I liked them.  It's interesting listening to them now.  I think they've aged incredibly well.  They still sound relevant even though some of this music is 25 years old.

I just got back (well, a week ago, but still...) from another vacation in Austin.  I think it's safe to say that this is now an annual thing being that this was my third August there.  I really love going there.  Not only is it a nice break from life, but it really wonderful to see my Austin family.  I never realize exactly how much I miss them  until I see them.  This year's trip wasn't going to happen.  I didn't have a solid plan to go until close to when the trip actually happened.  I've got a Southwest Airlines Visa card and every purchase on it helps to earn me free flights.  They recently changed their program and any free flights I had under the old program were going to expire.  I had one and it was going to expire in November, which is unfortunate because I don't have any travel plans until December.  So with that in mind, I decided that I couldn't just let the ticket go to waste.  And my vacation was born. 

This year's trip differed in a lot of ways from the previous two.  Freddy had the fucking nerve to get a job and started it shortly before I arrived.  I was used to having him around 24/7 for my visits.  But with him at work, I got to have a lot more solo time with his boys.  In fact, a few days before the trip, I got a text asking if I would mind babysitting the first full day I was there.  I was pretty psyched about it.  I love those little fuckers more than I can say.  And we had a pretty great day.  They never broke me down!!!

I also got to spend a little bit of time with Jed, which I hadn't really gotten much of a chance to do in the past. We got to geek out and talk about comics, play Words With Friends and talk a little bit.  I'm really happy that happened.

On the flip side of this, not everything panned out like I'd hoped.  I really didn't sit myself down and properly plan out the trip.  There were things I wanted to do and people I wanted to see, but they just didn't happen.  I'm lucky enough that I got a chance to see and spend time with my friends Diane and Gregg.  If I had actually started getting in touch with people the day I booked my flight, I might have had a little more success.  But that just gives me a reason to go back as soon as I can justify it. 

I was looking through my photos from this trip and realized that I just didn't take all that many, not like in years past.  But that makes sense.  The first year, I took hundreds and hundreds.  It was the trip of a lifetime. The second year, I still took a ton, but not as many.  This year hardly any at all.  Looking through them, I realized that there were a few things I wish I'd taken pics of.  I didn't get a single shot of Jed.  I got a few shots of me and the boys and there are a couple of Freddy, but not a whole lot.

Adrian, my and my sunglasses.  I hate that he looks so much better in them than I do.

Me and the boys.  It took about twenty or so attempts to get one decent picture of the three of us.  Adrian and I were doing pretty good until Hurricane Nathan blew in.  He finally sat still enough for this picture, which I love.

This bumper sticker made me laugh.

This print was hanging in the guest room.  I instantly fell in love with it.  I tried to decipher the artist's signature, but it's one bit scribble.  Jed couldn't remember the name of the guy.  I'm bummed because I think it's so great.  If anyone recognizes it, let me know.  I want to get one and see what else the artist has available.

I don't know what the hell I'm doing in this picture, but I know Diane is looking HAWT!

Another picture I LOVE.  

I took my fair share of food pictures, but I didn't photograph everything I ate.  I'm a little bummed now that I missed a few things.  Here is a burrito from Chuy's.  It was so good, but a little light on the chicken.  The sauce more than made up for it, though.

I look forward to a fried avocado when I'm in Texas.  I got mine at Torchy's Tacos when Jed, the boys and I went out to breakfast.  This is just one big basket of love.

The white trash in my couldn't get enough of these cheese topped tater tots.  

And if the tots weren't enough, how can you go wrong with corn dogs?

Gregg came up with a fantastic idea.  When it's 107 degrees in Austin, what better is there to do than to go underground?  We hit Inner Space Cavern.  It was a glorious 72 degrees and out of the sun.  

After dinner cocktails.

On Wednesday Jed and the boys left for Galveston and I was on my own for the afternoon.  I ended up walking all over town.  I had a blast.  I hit the book store, then the comic shop, then hiked across town to get frozen yogurt, went to the toy store, stopped by Nathan's school and then headed home.  I was in sandals and my feet got filthy.  Why I felt the need to take a picture is anyone's guess, but I did.

Just as we were leaving for the airport to drop me off, I realized I didn't have my sunglasses.  I ran back in and did a quick search, but couldn't find them.  I was hoping that I packed them by mistake.  A few hours after I left, I got this picture via text.  Glasses found!  I left them out on the back deck.  I still have no recollection of taking them off there, but that was the only place I didn't look.  D'oh!

Going home from Austin always sucks.  I'd be a liar if I said I didn't cry, but I think I did much better with "goodbye" than I have in years past.  But yeah, I still cried.  But the sadness turned pretty quickly to extreme annoyance.  My flight home was a little more involved than anticipated.  I flew from Austin to Orlando and then Orlando to home.  My flight home was supposed to get in at 10:20 Friday night.  When I got to Orlando, I found that my flight was delayed.  I figured it was going to be maybe 30 minutes late or some such bullshit.  Instead I was told that my flight wasn't going to depart Orlando until 10:20, the same time I was supposed to arrive home.  I wasn't counting on a couple extra hours in the airport, but I tried to make the best of it.  I got pizza, candy and found a comfy seat to read comics in.  And I thought the two hour delay getting to Austin was bad!

I love my Austin family.  I don't think I really show them this enough, though I'm sure I'll be told I'm being ridiculous for saying that.  

And to add to the continuing theme of the last few posts I've had, today I hurt myself.  I managed to pull a muscle in my chest.  I don't do this very often, but when I do, it hurts like hell.  I was changing the sheets this morning when I did it.  It hurt, but wasn't too bad.  Until I grabbed the laundry to bring upstairs.  I made it worse and now it hurts like a bitch.  If this goes as it usually does, it'll take a day or two before I feel back to normal.  Seriously, can I please stop hurting myself already?

Ouch

Hurricane Irene is heading up the east coast and we are in her path. Tonight after the gym, I headed out into the back yard to start moving the patio furniture. Since we're expecting heavy winds, Ken and I decided to put everything in the shed and garage until the storm passes. It was pitch black out when I got home, but I put on the back light and started lugging furniture to the shed. Some of the foliage back by the shed is a little overgrown and I brushed up against something with my left arm. I thought it was some sort of pricker bush or something because I immediately felt something. When I got in, I showered (still sweaty and smelly from the gym) and headed downstairs. That's when I noticed I've got a bunch of bumps on my arm. They're itchy, but not red or anything. I'm having a reaction of some sort to whatever I brushed against. Joy. Just when I finally got rid of the spider bite, now I've got this. (Did I write about the spider bite? I need to look back and see.) I'll pop a Benadryl tonight and hope that does something. I really don't want yet another trip to the doctor this soon.

Kim Wilde - It's Alright

Kim Wilde has a brand new covers album out called "Snapshots." It's got a really neat and varied song selection, which makes me happy. As much as I love covers albums, sometimes they get a little earnest and predictable. This one, not so much. I'm loving it. Here's the video for the first single, originally a song by the group East 17.

Old

I hate getting older. Hate it. For one reason and one reason only. My body continues to betray me. Tomorrow I need to do two things. I need to call the urologist and reschedule my upcoming appointment. I'd forgotten all about it until I found my appointment card and realized the appointment is supposed to be the day before the wedding. Normally not a big deal, but I'll have company at the house and I don't think taking them to the urologist is a good way to entertain. The second thing I need to do is set up an appointment with an orthopedist. Ken saw one he really likes, so I need to get this guy's name and hope he can see me before my fucking foot falls off.

Otherwise, I've had no issues with aging.

993

Just noticed that I'm very close to 1,000 posts on this little blog thingie. How the hell did that happen?

Anyway, I've been itching to write about my life the last two weeks or so, but just haven't had the time. Tonight I've got the time, but not much motivation, so this will undoubtedly be short.

I've been home from Texas for a few days now and it feels like my feet hit the ground running since getting off the plane. I was planning a quiet and relaxing weekend to ease myself back into life, but that didn't happen. Lots of errands all weekend long led straight into a hectic work week. The first week back from vacation is always pretty busy. I've got this kid who covers the most important part of my job while I'm away and it's rare that he ever does much of it. This time was no difference. I spent all day Monday and part of today catching up the work he chose not to do as well as some of his work because he never bothered showing up yesterday. And another peer's work because he was out sick. Then there was the one/two punch of work stoppage. Management threw an ice cream social for us today as a thank you for the amount of work accomplished in the last year. By the time that was dwindling down, the earthquake hit and that caught everyone off guard.

My internal clock is still not quite adjusted back to where it should be. Too many late nights in Texas and too many early mornings here at home.

I hate having so much going on right now, too. But vacation is now behind me, I've got a few weekends with plans coming up, we're working on refinancing our mortgage and the wedding (ours, and then three different sets of friends soon after) coming up. Oy.

I Got....

I got a new crown on Monday morning. My root canal was a complete success and the crown fits beautifully. When my dentist had it made, he compensated for the crown above it that screwed up my bite just the teeniest bit. My bit feels terrific now.

I got the insurance reimbursement check from the root canal yesterday in the mail. I've heard all sorts of different stories from a bunch of different people about how much the insurance reimbursement was going to be. Anywhere from 10% to $750. Most people seemed to agree it was going to be about $325. And everyone was wrong. I was quite surprised to see just over $500 was covered. Still means I had to fork over just over $400 that I wasn't planning on spending, but it's done now. I don't believe I have enough benefit left to get the other root canal I'm in need of, but I've lived this long with the tooth not behaving, I can live a couple more months.

I got a bug bite. I woke up Saturday morning to find a red rash on my right arm about the size of a quarter. I clearly was bitten by something.

I got a little concerned. Sunday, my bug bite had doubled in size. It didn't hurt and it didn't show any of the symptoms associated with a tick bite. I was a little concerned that it grew, but I figured that was it.

I got freaked out. Monday morning I woke up and in addition to the bug bite, I had a long streak running up my arm from the rash. I was out of work Monday morning for the crown, so right after I headed to the local urgent care to have it checked out. I was given some antibiotics to fight the rash and sent on my way.

I got kicked in the ass. These antibiotics are kicking my fucking ass. I tend not to feel the general side effects associated with antibiotics, so I was completely unprepared for feeling like shit. But everything I'm feeling is a typical side effect of the pills. They're potent. But they're starting to work. My rash is starting to fade. Oh, and from what the doctor said to what a few co-workers said, it's likely my bug bite was actually a spider bite. However, the spider did not appear to be radioactive and I can't climb walls, shoot webs or have a spider sense.

I got a big chuckle from the Planet of the Apes YouTube video I posted just before this blog post. It made me smile more than any recent YouTube video has. Love it.

I got more details. Ken and I have decided on and booked a place to have our makeshift reception for our wedding. I call it makeshift because it's not really a reception, but a lunch out with a few close friends who are also going to be there to witness us trading in our current lives for ones of wedded agony. :-) We've been talking a lot about wedding plans and Ken is starting to freak out a little bit. He doesn't think we've invited enough people. I both agree and disagree with him about this. I'd love to invite a lot more people to this, but that goes against two important laws we laid down first. We wanted it to be very small and intimate. And we only have a limited budget to play with. I understand we're going to get shit from a couple people about this, but I'm not going to take it. If I was in a better financial situation, I'd have a much bigger soiree.

I got a new job. I'm babysitting on Friday and I can't wait! I'm going to try my best not to be manipulated and used, but I'm sure I've already failed and it's only Tuesday.

Planet of the Apes Party Fun Time (remix to Benny Benassi Presents the Biz)

Quickie

Took today off from work.  I had an appointment at 11 this morning to finish up my root canal.  I'm very pleased with the entire experience.  The whole thing was the best dental experience of my life.  I can't believe that I'm looking forward to my next root canal.  Okay, maybe not "looking forward," but not dreading.  Monday I get my new crown and I'll be set until I can figure out if I have enough dental benefit to do the next tooth now or in January.

I went back to the gym today this afternoon.  I stuck with the bike since my foot has still been bothering me.  It felt so good to sweat my ass off.  Since getting home, my foot has been bothering me, but not to the extreme as it has been.  It's still not good, but it's tolerable.  It really pisses me off that as I'm just finishing up taking care of one part of me that's falling apart, this has to happen.  Some days it feels like I can't catch a break for anything.

Wedding plans are still gelling.  I got very emotional this week when one particular plan was confirmed.  I can be such a big girl sometimes. This Sunday Ken is psyched to be going to a Gay & Lesbian Wedding Expo.  I could care less to go, honestly, but it'll make him happy. 

I mentioned a few posts ago about planting a garden.  It's finally motivated Ken to get cracking.  Last weekend we bought some plants and the other night he finally planted them.  He's learned so much in the past from gardening.  He actually planted them all far enough apart that as they grow, they won't grow over each other.  The bed looks pretty sparse right now, but it'll look great once they start growing.

PotA

Ugh

My foot has been killing me for two days. I'm not sure what's going on, but it really, really hurts. Some sort of wacky joint pain. I sitting at home tonight rather than sweating my balls off and now I'm feeling full of guilt for the cupcakes I had today. Add to that my sciatic nerve is yelling at me. It's been so quiet for a long, long time now and all of a sudden it's awake. I don't know if the foot pain and the sciatic pain are connected, but they're both in the same leg. Here's hoping that (a) the scale doesn't start screaming at me (b) the pain leaves quickly. I've got too much on the horizon happening for this to happen now. Ugh.