i actually really did mean to write last week, but lately i tend i to get wonderfully and happily caught up in and busy with my writing. i am almost done with this pass of my first finished novel. it needs two more—one for some corrections i decided to make, and another after my beta readers get done with it...assuming i get any beta readers. from what i hear, that won't be too hard. getting them all to respond with comments might be, but getting the readers isn't usually too hard. i have two other novels in process, both moving along nicely for where they're at in my process, but, as you can imagine, 3 novels, a writing group, and the short stories manage to keep my pen moving. and i love it, but because it's all on dragyncat (the laptop) now, i'm rarely at the desktop, which is where my whysper stuff is stored. and, no, i can't store whysper on dragyncat because the programs i use for it won't work with vista. the desktop may be becoming an oversized paperweight, but it still has some use.

and i missed whysper's 9th anniversary. 9 years. how is that for scary? ;)

but i really did want to write last week because there was quite a bit of good news i wanted to share, especially after all the crap news of the week before. things have taken a turn for the better in the health department.

this past wednesday, i went in for a nurse visit to have my bp checked again. i'd been on the new dose of my meds for 10 days. of course, my bp wasn't the only thing that was checked at the time, but it really was the most important thing since it was at a life threatening level, and the doctor had ordered me to stop exercising to avoid a possible stroke. my blood test results still hadn't come in, as far as i knew (i'd be getting a snail mail on them once they did), but my weight and bp were checked in office.

in that 10 days, i lost 6 pounds! just from cutting my portions! seriously!

and the new dose of the meds brought my bp down to just above good. not out of the woods yet, but i do have permission to exercise again!

now i know the appetite thing is going to get harder from here on out. it started going up when i was just doing the core rhythms program twice a week. now i'm aiming for five times a week, and i know the hunger thing is just going to get worse. and i'm still working on adjusting servings. even with portions cut, i don't get enough veggies and tend to go heavy on the bread and protein. the good news is that the reduced portions haven't been that big of a deal—i tend to be full after meals as long as i eat healthy. like i said, i'm aware that's going to change, as is the rapid weight loss, but it was quite a kick to get such nice results so early and with so little effort. (and, btw, just checked on my scale—will need to check at the right time tomorrow morning since monday at about 10 or so is going to be my weigh-in time—and i've lost another pound since!)

with half my issues taken care of, and no new meds in play for the bp, all we needed to do was wait for my blood test results...which came in the next day...or friday. one of the two.

anyway, most of my results are within range. a few things were low—mcv, mch, hdl cholesterol; and a couple things were high—rbc, rdw, and hgba1c. most of these were only off by a few tenths. my actual glucose was 1 point over the range. everything else on the list (two whole pages of stuff) were in normal range. my ferritin was within range, but in the really low end of the range and it was the only thing in bold. the attached letter only mentioned that my anemia was acting up again and that i needed to take iron pills daily (i've been taking a daily vitamin with 100% of the rda for iron and an iron supplement every other day—i've avoided taking that daily because of the constipation issues, but i guess i'll just have to deal with it as soon as i get some money to purchase more of the iron i buy). NO mention of diabetes at all.

which is not to say that i'm not at risk, just that i don't have it now. and i can help prevent it with this whole diet and losing weight thing i'm doing.

this is such a relief. no new meds or supplies to add to our already strained budget. no new issues to navigate on my way to a healthier me. all i have to worry about now is how on earth i'll be able to afford new clothes after the first 80 pounds and again after the second 80 pounds, and hoping that as my period kicks back in (yes, it's already trying even with only 7 pounds lost), it doesn't become the nightmare it was at the beginning of last year.

in other semi-good news, froggy didn't make the grade in her math or biology classes, but she did salvage everything else. considering all but maybe two classes were at risk, this is a good thing. we still have no way to make the two she failed up since the schools require a paid summer session for that, but we might be able to figure something out before she graduates. or she might be able to get an extra semester. when i was subbing and did a long term for an english class, i had a student who was definitely older than 18 (or even 19, i believe) who was making up a class he failed. who knows, she might be able to do the same. all i can say is this "push 'em forward even if they fail" bullshit is just that: bullshit. as is paid summer school, particularly in a school where most parents aren't making a whole lot of money to begin with and certainly must be having an even harder time with the recession. but this is the no child left behind act in all its stupidity: keep the kids with their age mates even if they fail. this doesn't make our future brighter or give kids the incentive to do better; it just risks everything.

anyway, before i get too ranty, i need to head off. have to get up in 5 hours and take kitten to work. she's going to finally get some real hours and some real paychecks. and just in time too. that tight budget of ours is starting to create some of the same old problems we had before she moved in. and, yes, still looking into the house thing, just going to have to look a little harder since the last realtor didn't call back. :P i suspect any news on the house will take awhile. it's a long process, assuming we even have the credit score that will allow us to even try for a house. so for right now, all my health news will have to do. at least it was all good news! ;)