While driving past a cemetery on the way to my parents’ house for Christmas Eve dinner:
“Hey, have you thought about where you want to be buried when you die? Here, or in Iowa?”
Looking at me in disbelief: “Merry Christmas!”
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My Happy for the Day: Nurse Caleb Checks on His Patient
Caleb has fussed over Coraline more than usual since she’s been sick. Fortunately for him, she loves the attention.
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From Bad to Sicker
Song Lyric of the Day:
Waiting for a ride in the dark / The night city grows / Look and see her eyes, they glow
M83 / “Midnight City“
I survived my MRI yesterday without freaking the hell out, which was a very real concern for me. The only other time I’ve ever gotten an MRI was a few years ago to check out my right hip. My feet were tied together to keep my hips aligned, which contributed significantly to the feeling that I was going to suffocate in that sleek, too-narrow metal tube; the technician actually had to remind me repeatedly to just breathe. Which is why I asked my doctor to prescribe something for me this time around. He gave me a benzodiazapine tablet, which was supposed to work as an anti-anxiety med. I took it an hour before my appointment like I was supposed to, but other than feeling a wee bit dizzy, I didn’t feel any more relaxed or prepared to be shoved into that claustrophobic metal coffin. But lo and behold, the pill worked its magic right when it was supposed to (in tandem with a towel over my eyes), and I didn’t freak out during my 17 1/2 minutes of scans. I only know exactly how many minutes because the technician announced how long each scan was going to be: 1, 3, 1, 2 1/2, 5, 2 1/2, 2 minutes. Which made me think of that scene in Clue where they count the bullets.
One Plus Two Plus Two Plus One
Clue
— MOVIECLIPS.com
While I should hear from my doctor in a couple days regarding the MRI results, right now it’s Coraline I have on the brain. After seeming, once again, to start to be on the mend from this awful stomach bug she’s had since Saturday, the diarrhea returned last night and she woke up even sicker today. Rich managed to get her to drink almost four ounces when she woke up, the most she’s drunk in one feeding in days, which she then promptly threw up in her bedroom. And in the kitchen. And in our bedroom. I called the pediatrician’s office again as soon as I dropped her off at my mom’s (I had to be in the office today) and left a message explaining how we’re more concerned than ever about her getting dehyrdrated. The nurse promptly called me back and told me to bring Coraline in again. So I’ll be leaving work early today to do just that. Poor Coraline is beyond miserable at this point, as are Rich and I from worrying about her. Even a couple of days ago, she was still smiling despite being sick. Now she’s almost letharghic and not herself at all. Any healing thoughts you can send her way would be greatly appreciated.
Coraline doing her best to stay hydrated with water and apple juice on Saturday
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The Barfing Baby and the Brain Scan
Song Lyric of the Day:
I want you to take over control / Take over control
Afrojack (featuring Eva Simons) / “Take Over Control“
Holy cow, it’s been more than two weeks since I last updated. And now it’s mid-November. Holy hell. Anyhoo. So what’s been happening of late? Poor Coraline woke up with a fever Saturday morning, produced some of the worst diarrhea on the face of the earth, and threw up. And that’s been going on since then. Well, the vomiting, anyway. Her fever cleared up by Saturday afternoon, but after she threw up again on Sunday night, we decided it was time to take her to the doctor, especially since our friends put the fear of rotavirus in us. To be fair, we thought Coraline’s symptoms sounded a lot like rotavirus, too, after reading up on it. But the pediatrician put our minds at ease yesterday. Apparently, if it was rotavirus (which Coraline was vaccinated against), the vomiting and diarrhea would essentially be nonstop, which is why so many kids who get it wind up hospitalized because of dehydration. Miss Baby just has a really nasty stomach bug, one that has made her throw up on me not once, not twice, but five times now. That’s in addition to other, non-Mommy-hitting vomit, including waking up covered in it. So it’s been a pretty miserable few days around our house. At least I already had yesterday scheduled as a day off, which made taking her to the doctor that much easier. Sure, it wasn’t the fantasy day off I had planned (house projects completed! laundry done! desk excavated! holiday shopping!), but I was happy to be around and provide some comfort to my sick baby. Even though she was near inconsolable last night. Thankfully, Rich had the magic touch and got her to settle down and finally go to sleep. Now if we could just get her to drink some Pedialyte. Because so far, Coraline is not a fan.
As I write this, Miss Baby is upstairs napping and my mom’s on the way over to sit with her while I walk over to my doctor’s office for an MRI. That’s right, I’m finally getting the ol’ noggin scanned. Those of you who have been reading this blog (hi, everybody!) for the last three years or so know that I’ve had some issues with overheating. As in, I overheat for no apparent reason, including at least two instances where I ended up throwing up (wow — lots of vomit references in today’s post. Sorry about that). I’ve basically lived with it the last three years or so, including unbearably hot summers where my Xterra’s AC wasn’t working. I finally reached my breaking point, though, about three weeks ago. It was a Wednesday when I was working from home, and I had to run out with Coraline on my lunch break. As I was buckling her into her carseat, I started sweating. I was wearing a thin T-shirt and my flimsy, unlined windbreaker. Oh, and it was 45 degrees at the time. I called my doctor later that day to explain why I wanted a physical, including getting my thyroid tested. I mean, it had to be my thyroid, right? Two 24-hour urine sample collections and a lot of bloodwork later, my doctor ruled out the thyroid as well as pheochromocytoma and carcinoid syndrome, which is what the urine tests were for. Which put us back at square one and the scheduling of an MRI. At this point, I’m not sure what I’m more afraid of: the MRI showing something or it not showing something. Fingers crossed that if the MRI does show something, though, that it is at least treatable. Because this overheating — and the extreme, frigid cold I feel when not overheated — is about to drive me crazy. I shouldn’t be sweating when I’m doing next to nothing and when it’s so cold out I should be wearing a heavy coat instead of the thin shirts I can tolerate. Here’s hoping I get some answers soon, whether it’s from this MRI or other, as yet unscheduled and unforeseen medical tests. I’m tired of being a walking medical mystery.
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Halloween 2011: Behold Baby Gaga!
Baby Gaga puts her best foot forward.
Showing off her frogs
"Baby Gaga sends a kiss to all my little monsters ..."
"... I love you all."
HAPPY HALLOWEEN, EVERYONE!
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Flashback Friday: “Feels Good” by Tony! Toni! Toné!
For this week’s Flashback Friday, I’m trotting out a song that I keep hearing over and over on SiriusXM these days, a song I used to listen to all the time in high school. Did I just age myself? It was early in my high school career. Maybe it was even middle school. OK, you got me — it was fifth grade. Anyway, today’s song is “Feels Good” by Tony! Toni! Toné!. It’s a great example of the New Jack Swing sound the band was known for, a sound that, sadly, I don’t hear much of anymore these days. But as long as we’ve got radio stations and YouTube, we can enjoy songs from New Jack Swing’s heyday. I know when I hear “Feels Good,” I can’t help but sing along to the music and enjoy the memories that come along with it. Hearing this song again feels good indeed.
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Faves: Horror Movies
Creepy Halloween Music of the Day:
John Carpenter / ” Halloween Theme“
In honor of Halloween, I thought I’d list some of my all-time favorite horror movies. I grew up on horror movies. OK, horror movies and Mel Brooks’ movies, but mostly horror movies. Every time a new Friday the 13th premiered on cable, it was family night. (And despite what the spouse says, I turned out just fine after having watched so many horror movies throughout my life, thankyouverymuch.)
You may notice the absence of such classic horror movies as Psycho and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. That would be because, being of the generation I am, they don’t scare me. My list also doesn’t include any torture-porn movies, either, because to me, gore is not scary — it’s just gross (I admit I liked the first Saw, but the franchise as a whole was overkill).
This is my list of horror movies that for one reason or another scared the shit out of me.
I made the mistake of watching this late at night, by myself, right before bedtime, in our cave-dark basement bedroom in our A-frame. Because I’m smart like that. What makes this such a scary movie to me is how we never actually see the killer. And the phone calls are the creepiest ones in a horror movie outside of When a Stranger Calls and The Ring. The tagline says it all: If this movie doesn’t make your skin crawl, it’s on too tight.
Skip the horrible remake, which featured an actor dressed unconvincingly in drag, indistinguishable characters (Girl With Bangs, Girl From Party of Five, Girl With Glasses, etc.), and a green villain — yes, green. It’s impossible to be scared when Kermit the Frog’s son is the killer.
This is the first haunted house movie I remember watching that really frightened me. And, boy, did it stick with me. Never had a house seemed so creepy, and so life-like. Who can forget how those half-moon-shaped windows looked like the house’s eyes? I won’t get into the terror the little girl’s “imaginary friend” instilled in my young, impressionable self.
*I could not for the life of me get the trailer for this embedded, no matter how many different versions/URLs I tried. Go here to watch.
The Shining (Kubrick version)
“What?! You’ve never seen The Shining?!” My friends introduced this movie to me in college. And after watching it, I realized it was one of the best, most atmospherically creepy horror movies I’d ever seen. The Shining is proof that sometimes the best scares don’t involve any blood or gore. Except for that classic elevator sequence. And the twins in the hall, of course.
(It seems like sacrilege, but I saw The Simpsons‘ spoof, The Shinning, before I ever saw the original movie. Talk about a dead-on parody.)
This movie is the reason why, up until maybe three years ago, that being in fog, driving in fog, or so much as merely seeing fog scared the bejesus out of me. I love how this movie still has the power to scare me. That morgue scene? That’s the stuff of nightmares right there. This is a horror movie that has it all: a good ghost story, spooky, danger-concealing fog, people trapped in an isolated church, and leper pirates. Leper pirates! Thanks so very much, John Carpenter.
This was my introduction to Americanized J-horror. It stuck to the J-horror tradition of minimal (or no) gore, a central story about a ghost done wrong, and an overall sense of creeping, impending doom, best exemplified by how it took something as innocuous as everyday phone calls and transformed them into something to fear. Combined, it added up to a scary movie that inspired me to dive into a whole new genre of horror. Oh, and it inspired a few nightmares. The image of a creepy dead girl crawling out of a well — and out of your television — will do that.
Great female friendships? Check. Characters that embody female strength and empowerment? Check. Hungry, blind, creepy-ass things living in caves? Check. The reason why I will likely never go caving? Check.
The not-a-zombie-movie zombie movie (it was an infection of rage) that introduced the concept of fast-moving, well, zombies. Sacrilege to some, a fresh new terror to others. Count me in the latter camp. The living dead were scary to begin with. 28 Days Later made them a force to really be reckoned with.
A haunting gothic horror movie in the best sense, El Orfanato has the hallmarks of a few other Spanish horror movies I’ve seen: a spooky haunted house, mistreated and possibly vengeful spirits of children, and a strong story, altogether resulting in a relentlessly creepy, atmospheric film that will ultimately break your heart. Add in a devastating, powerhouse performance by lead actress Belen Rueda, and El Orfanato is a movie that will stay with you long after it has ended.
Be sure to watch it in Spanish with English subtitles.
This movie is the reason why, at Girl Scout camp as a child, I made sure to always flank myself with my fellow hikers. That way, in case Jason Voorhees grabbed someone, it would be my friends on the outside of the path, giving me a chance to run and my best odds of survival. See? This is what happens when you watch horror movies starting at a young, impressionable age. I blame all those family nights.
The movie that changed the face of horror, Halloween is largely credited as the original slasher movie. I credit it as the movie that still scares the living crap out of me with the theme music alone. And imitators be damned — Michael Myers is the boogeyman.
Honorable mentions: The Changeling, El Espinazo del Diablo (The Devil’s Backbone), Rec
*The originals, not the (mostly bastardized) remakes.
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Scene From a Marriage #14,672
After finding out that Bundle was a girl:
“God, I hope she has your hair.”
Gently placing my hand over his: “Aww. Me, too, honey. Me too.”
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Photoblogging: Hair-Raising
I took this the second Rich pulled a blanket off Coraline's head, and you can see how crazy her hair went thanks to the static (day 363, 9/21/11).
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My Happy for the Day: “Do You?”
I first heard “Do You?” by Iffy the Bad Man a few weeks ago, and have only fallen more in love with it since then. There’s something about the song’s lyrics and sound that I just adore. For me, it brings to mind a neo-soul sound, a la Amy Winehouse and Duffy, and makes me visualize those great all-male groups of the ’60s, like The Temptations, all lined up in a neat row, dressed in tuxes with sparkly jackets, as they sing a song like this. Were it not for that free Sirius XM subscription that came with buying my Elantra, I never would’ve heard this song. And, boy, am I ever glad I did. Because it never fails to make me happy when I hear it. This song — and Iffy himself — deserve to be so big.
When you’re home and all alone / If I’m ever on your mind / It’s a sign that we should be together
Oh I try to make it work / But your listening to her / And that’s why we couldn’t make it better
I’m falling behind myself, no I can’t move on / We don’t even speak anymore / I can’t close my eyes, I’m up all night long, and baby / I miss you more than before
It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you / Oh I hope you didn’ forget about me / You know your friends say that you’re lonely / But what if I told you I was too?
Oh-oh do you / Do do do / Do you / Do you still think about me?
Oh-oh do you / Do do do / Do you / Oh do you still think about me?
Oh baby come on, you know I didn’t mean that
You said you want a break / Baby I don’t wanna wait / What If I was to show up at you door? / When I think about us and what our love once was / It’s just something I can’t ignore.
I’m falling behind myself, no I can’t move on / We don’t even speak anymore / I can’t close my eyes, I’m up all night long / And baby I miss you more than before
It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you / Oh I hope you didn’ forget about me / You know your friends say that you’re lonely / But what if I told you I was to?
Oh-oh do you / Do do do / Do you / Do you still think about me?
Oh-oh do you / Do do do / Do you / Oh do you still think about me?
Burning through my veins like that acid rain / I’ve been following your tracks / Gonna catch that train / I don’t wanna play this game, but I can’t complain / ‘Cause your loving is enough to drive a man insane
It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you / Oh I hope you didn’t forget about me / You know your friends say that you’re lonely / But what if I told you I was too?
Oh-oh do you / Do do do / Do you / Do you still think about me?
Oh-oh do you / Do do do / Do you / Oh do you still think about me?
Oh-Oh do you / Do do do / Do you / Do you still think about me?
Oh-Oh do you / Do do do / Do you / Oh do you still think about me?
(Spoken) Oh baby, I know you still think about me, I know you do / I know you dream about me at night, I think I do too
Ha ha, your amazing and your breath / Your breath doesn’t stink, Your breath smells good at night / I like that. / I like that alot.
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