Six Years and Counting!

Happy Anniversary, Babe!! These six years have been great. I can't believe we've been married this long already. It really just seems like yesterday. Hope you feel the same!! I love you. Now for some celebrating...

Yuck!

Working out just does not seem to be in my future. I ended up with either food poisoning or the food just didn't sit well on Wednesday night to the point that I couldn't get out of bed yesterday. I felt so sick that walking Louie was a hassle. Maybe, I should forget about working out until I truly feel like doing it.

Ok, who's ready for autumn? I am! I am not sure how I dealt with Miami for two years, but I can't take much more of this summer. I actually don't like the summer unless I am living directly on the beach. In that case, summer could last all year round. I love meditating in the water. I could spend all day in it. Being that the only time I went to the beach this summer I had stitches, this summer is not so fun. Another thing about living in Miami is that I've become a beach snob. I can't take how cold the water is up here. It's not fun.

Anyway, my favorite season of the year is autumn. If it could stay like this all year round, I would be in heaven. I love the leaves changing colors. I love that you could throw on a sweater and feel warm. I love the cool air you breathe in. Autumn, please come soon. I am melting away!

Well, I got to go. Now that I actually have energy, I must do some cleaning. How fun!

Ok, Maybe I Really Don't Want to Workout!

Between my toes still being ever so slightly numb and the window guys surprising me yesterday (all new windows are being installed in my building), I haven't worked out! I can't go to the gym today either because I'm watching the window guys install the windows over next door. Maybe, mentally, I'm not ready to workout again.

Then again, with all the walking I've been doing since I started my new job, it's not such a bad deal. With walking, I mean in the job and walking to and from the subway station. Also, over the weekend, our elevator broke. I live on the fourth floor, which is really the fifth floor (the lobby doesn't count as a floor). I've been trekking it up and down the stairs (sometimes with Louie in my arms) several times a day. Actually, now that I think about it, the stop I get off on in Manhattan has three flights of stairs. There you go that's my workout!

To top it off, since the new windows were being installed, the amount of soot that blanketed my apartment was utterly disgusting. It was so bad that Louie's paws were dark grey. My dog is white (with some beige)! After I came home from work, I had to give him a bath, which that in itself is a workout. I just couldn't tolerate looking at his dirty paws. I also had to lather him up four times. The rest of him was also covered in soot, which made the water black. Poor baby! I wonder if he felt gross. You know, I'm kind of tired. I'm taking a nap!

BTW

There will be no working out today. My feet are still way too swollen for me to work out. Even now the bottom of my feet hurt, especially when I walk. My toes continue to be slightly numb. I will have to take it easy.

Weddings are Fun!

My hectic week ended with the most beautiful wedding I've ever attended. I'm very happy for the couple. They are just wonderful people and they deserve all the happiness that comes to them. The bride looked absolutely gorgeous and the groom very handsome. I loved how the bridesmaids were dressed. They were all in black. The dressed that the bride picked flattered each one of the bridesmaids. That's important! Sometimes brides don't think about that.

The wedding was so much fun. I can't believe how much dancing I did! I was in three inch heels and never took them off!! I danced so much that if I hadn't been completely and utterly exhausted (and beginning my hangover), I would have showered when I got home. Instead, I took off my dress and passed out. My feet suffered the most (I wonder why). My toes are numb. Not all of them, but some are. I'm starting to get some feeling back, but it's not a very pleasant experience.

Saturday morning wasn't fun getting up at eight in the morning. Boy, was I hungover! I never got drunk last night, but I did continuously drink throughout. Right after the ceremony, a group of us went to Houlihans for drinks to kill sometime since the reception wasn't for another hour and a half. It all started there! Not to mention the drinking we did during the cocktail hour and throughout the entire reception.

I did, however, suck it up and went to work. By noon, I was fine. I made sure I drank lots of fluids and the headache went away. I am beat up. I don't remember the last time I danced so much. Usually, I'm somewhat shy about dancing. It will take me awhile to get out on the dance floor. Not at this wedding! The minute the music started, I was out there dancing. I think it had a lot to do with my friends. The group of us that were there are really good friends. Give us a couple of drinks and we were all dancing queens! Of course, the men sat out most of the songs. It was just the girls dancing away.

What a fun night! This makes me want to do something really big for when Dan and I renew our vows. Hopefully, we'll be able to pull it off.

Some Catching Up

As of today, I am done with my training. Yay, this means I start making money! Saturday is my first real shift. The people I've met so far are nice. Some are very eccentric, but that goes with the territory. It seems that I'll have a good time working there.

On other news, my finger is doing well. I tried taking pictures of it, but they were not coming out. The finger is still slightly swollen. I do have a lump on the side where the skin was flapped open. I'm hoping in time that will smooth out. The bottom part of my finger does have hard scarring. I think that'll stay the same. I have a similar scar on my pinky from falling when the buckle of my rollerblade snapped off. This happened a year and a half ago. I still have the scar. It's scarring from the inside, which is visible by looking rather white and feeling hard.

Now that I'm going to have somewhat of a normal life, I do seriously want to work out. I know, I keep on saying that and don't follow through. I want to get into it before my life gets hectic, again. I want to be fit by the time I go back to school. So, I have six months to do so. I don't want to go crazy, but I do want to lose twenty pounds. I think that's a very reasonable goal to accomplish in the six month time frame. I would have to lose about 1.5 lbs. a week. That's not impossible.

I want to attempt to go to the gym tomorrow. I don't know if tomorrow is a good day to start because I have a wedding to go to at 4. It may be just a tad too hectic. Nonetheless, I would like to start no later than Sunday. My goal is to go 4 to 5 times a week and burn 700 calories a work out. The 700 calorie goal might be a lot at first, but I don't have a problem reaching it. That will take me a little over an hour to reach.

Ok, now I'm going to sleep. Talk to you soon.

Vacation is Over!

Back to work!!! Actually, I'm starting a new job. Although I hate starting new jobs, I'm ok with this one. Starting today, I'm officially a New Yorker! I will be commuting to Manhattan for this job, which is great. The train I have to take is directly under my building. My stop in Manhattan is only three blocks away. So even when the temperature drops, I won't freeze my ass so much. I have a feeling this job will be loads of fun.

As to my finger, I will definitely challenge it tonight. It's still swollen, but not as much as it was the day I got the stitches out. It is healing very nicely. My scarring will be minimal. To make sure of that, I bought cocoa butter, which helps with stretch marks and wrinkles. It should alleviate the scarring some more. We'll see what happens.

Wish me luck!

No More Stitches!

Thanks to Dr. J, my stitches are all gone! Dr. J came over my next door neighbor's place (you know the best friend that called Dan for me when I stabbed myself). She heard about my finger, took a lok at it, and told me that I should have the stitches removed. After we were done eating, she grabbed a pair of scissors and tweezers (sterilized them, of course) and began taking them out. The stitches on the top of my finger didn't hurt, which makes sense since I have no feeling there. The ones on the bottom part of my finger hurt a bit. I had one stitch that was imbedded. That one did hurt. Dr. J explained that when stitches stay in too long, they become part of your skin. Since they've beome part of your body, removing them is painful.

The scars are looking fine, but my finger is still swollen. I feel as if the swelling increased a little. I am icing it right now, which is making it difficult to type. I could only bend my finger slightly. Dr. J recommended that once it is completely healed, to make sure I massage the area for some therapy. My finger has been stiff for the past week and a half so it's natural that I can't really move it around.

I'm glad I got these removed today. I have a few more days to recover before I begin my new job. Hopefully by then, I'll have more range of motion. We'll see!! Dr. J, thank you so much!!!!!

Superman Returns and Then Some

Dan, his coworkers, Cody and Andrew, and myself went to watch Superman Returns at the Regal Cinemas by Union Square in the East Village. I found the movie to be very enjoyable even though it did have a few holes (that is about as much as I am willing to reveal about the movie). Either way, I found it to be fun and I couldn't stop staring at Brandon Routh (definite eye candy).

The night kept on getting better. After the movie was over, we were standing on the corner of 13th street discussing the movie. At first, I notice the guys acting a bit strange as if they just saw the most gorgeous woman in their lives. Standing right behind me was Gabriel Byrne. I probably would not have realized who he was unless someone pointed him out, but nonetheless it was cool.

We're still chit-chatting when I spot Regis Philbin with his wife Joy. I start saying "Look, it's Regis. Look, it's Regis. LOOK! It's Regis Philbin!" At this point, Regis probably heard me, and so did the guys. Regis, I hope you mention me tomorrow on your show, since I know you heard me! I was very excited about seeing him. Yeah, I was actually star struck. This has never happened to me, but tonight was there just the right amount of stars.

Then as on cue, Cody is looking and says, "No fucking way! It's Tom Hanks!" We all turn around to see Tom Hanks and I'm guessing his family get into a Suburban. That was really cool!! We were all in awe at what was happening around us.

Then we all notice that there's a Suburban still hanging out by the theater. Now, we purposely hang out to see who else was coming out. We guessed that there was some kind of screening going on. It's not possible to see all of these celebrities hanging out in the same spot for no reason.

We waited a few more minutes and to not be disappointed, Jerry Bruckheimer came out chatting it up with his friends. We couldn't believe what was going on! After all the excitement, we decided to hit a bar. We went to Spain Restaurant & Bar, which offered complimentary tapas. Our bill was so inexpensive that we are all returning tomorrow night for some drinks and paella.

Overall, the night was awesome! Out of all the people I saw, I was most excited about Tom Hanks (not that the other ones aren't cool). It seems that Tom Hanks is a pretty nice person and definitely a great actor. I very much enjoy all of his films.

Finger Looking Good!

My stitches don't hurt anymore! I've actually been playing around with them. The swelling has gone down and the green color (from the bruising) is disappearing. It appears to be healing nicely. I don't think I'll have a dent on my finger, either. I'm slightly vain and I was worried that my finger would be disfigured. Even if it is, I'm very lucky that that's the worse thing to happen. The damage could have been worse. The top part of my finger is still numb. Honestly, that bugs me out a bit.

On a different topic, I am changing jobs. No longer will I need to commute to NJ. It's a different restaurant where I will only be bartending. The money is also incredibly better, which I'm psyched about. The downfall is that I will have to work weekends. Either way, I will be saving around $200 a month between tolls and gas. We'll only be using the car on weekends (and rarely). Our car is getting old (it almost has 100,000 miles) and I want it to last us a lot longer. That's one of the wonderful conveniences of living and working in NYC.

Once my stitches are out, I start the job. Another great thing about this new job is that I'll be working under an old friend who is the executive chef. He's a great guy and a pleasure to work with. I have another friend of mine working there. I won't be lonely when I start. The other job is becoming too much of a hassle and the mood is not great there. They just fired one of my friends (a chef) who is expecting a baby in August. That kind of leaves a bad taste in your mouth. Time to move on.

On the school note, I'm more inclined on getting a Master of Arts in Liberal Studies. I could curtail this degree to Latin American and Caribbean Studies, which is what I wanted a Master's in to begin with. I pretty much have it narrowed down to two schools. It'll either be Empire State College, which offers the degree without having to take the GRE, or the Graduate Center at CUNY. I think I'm leaning more towards the Graduate Center. It sounds more appealing and it has more resources. ESC would be completely online, which throws me off a bit. I'm the type of student that likes having interaction with professors and other students. Besides, you end up networking when you have personal contact with others in your field. As we all know, networking is the name of the game (as I demonstrated by my new job).

The only drawback is the GRE. I am terrified of taking that exam and not passing it. I tend not to do well on standardized exams. Then again, I won't know how I'll do unless I take it. Once I find out the exact days I'll be working, I'm signing up for it. The worse case scenario is that I don't do well, then I go to ESC. Regardless, I'll come out winning.

BTW: What happens when the hubby tries to throw a piece of chocolate into your shirt? Your stitches end up catching it!! Yup, that's exactly what happened tonight. He threw high and towards my left. I went into automatic and tried catching it, which I would have caught had it not hit my stitches directly! I can't even begin to tell you how painful that was. That hurt more than when I stabbed myself. I dare say that it probably hurt just as much as when I got injected with anesthesia without the burning sensation. Anyway, I had to take my pain killer (which I hadn't taken it since Thursday) to ease the throbbing. Needless to say, Dan felt horrible.

I seriously need to do some long meditation to get rid of all the bad vibe. That'll be one of my goals for tomorrow (besides consolidating my student loans).

Tag, You're It!

5 things in my refrigerator:
1. Iced Tea
2. Grapes
3. Milk
4. Old yogurt (I really need to throw that away)
5. Dove milk chocolate (I need a piece a chocolate a day)

5 things in my closet:
1. pants
2. jeans
3. blouses
4. shoes
5. stuffed animals

5 things in my purse:
1. lipstick
2. vicaden (just in case my stitches hurt)
3. bacitracin
4. gauze
5. bandaids

5 things in my car:
1. phone charger
2. napkins
3. $115 parking ticket I got today
4. cds
5. quarters

I'm Storm! Who are You?

You Are Storm

Exotic and powerful, Storm descended from a line of African priestesses. Emotions can effect your powers, but you are generally serene. Powers: controlling weather, creating winds that lift you into flight, generating lightning

Which of the X-Men Are You?

What Does Your Birthdate Mean?

Your Birthdate: September 20

You are a virtual roller coaster of emotions, and most people enjoy the ride. Your mood tends to set the tone of the room, and when you're happy, this is a good thing. When you get in a dark mood, watch out - it's very hard to get you out of it. It's sometimes hard for you to cheer up, and your gloom can be contagious. Your strength: Your warm heart Your weakness: Trouble controlling your emotions Your power color: Black Your power symbol: Musical note Your power month: February

What Does Your Birth Date Mean?

Finger Update

I have to say that everyone has been wonderful making sure I'm ok. I've received numerous phone calls and emails, which make me feel special. Thanks! You guys are the best!

I found a hand specialist through our insurance's website. She just happens to work at NYU Medical Center and is the top hand surgeon in the state of New York. Not bad for picking her name out of a website!! She wasn't going to see me yesterday. After I told them what had happened, they figured this was serious enough and squeezed me right in.

Once I got there, the nurse removed my dressing. My finger doesn't look so bad. It's swollen, but the stitches came out nice. I did take pics of the stitches, but I'm sure nobody wants to see that. After touching my finger, the doctor determined that I did indeed cut a nerve. Fortunately, the nerve I cut is very tiny and it's on the top part of my finger. She told me that surgery wasn't necessary. In fact, surgery would probably make things worse.

The numbness will most likely lessen with time. She doesn't gaurantee 100% recovery, but it will repair itself. That's good enough for me! She told me that if this would have happened to her that she wouldn't get operated on. I can't argue with the top hand specialist of the state.

You could say I did a number on myself! Thank goodness that everything will turn out to be fine. I was a bit worried about surgery, but I figured that things will work out on their own. My stitches are staying in until July 10th. So no work for me! I'll end up picking up some hostess shifts to somewhat compensate for my money lost. I'm not worried. Things will work themselves out.

Injuries Run in the Family

After going through a frightening time with Louie, it was my turn, today. I wanted to make a makeshift planter to pot a flower that had fallen off of one of my plants. I found a plastic container and decided to make a tiny hole at the bottom of it so that the water could drain. Tiny is an understatement!! The knife slipped into one side of my left middle finger and out the other (at that moment I only thought I cut myself).

With blood spewing everywhere, I opened the faucet and started washing my injury. I grabbed a bunch of paper towels, wrapped my finger, and applied pressure on it. My stove, sink, and counter top were full of blood. I wanted to call Dan, but was unable of letting go of my hand. If I did, I would bleed profusely. So very calmly, I rang my best friend's door (man do I love that she lives next door) and asked her if she was busy. I knew she was getting ready to leave for school and felt horrible for doing this. I didn't want to upset her on her first day of school. She quickly realized what was going on since there was blood all the way down to my elbow.

I asked her to please call Dan for me because I couldn't. We finally get Dan on the phone and I asked him to come home immediately. Sal wanted to drive me to the hospital, but for some stupid reason I refused. I felt that I had control of the situation. Luckily, her mother-in-law was over and I stayed with her until Dan got home. While talking to Debbie, I felt my blood pressure drop and began feeling queasy. I asked her for some juice, which always works. The queasiness didn't stop until I threw up. My body always reacts in that manner when something like this happens. Afterwards, I felt better.

Luckily, the only pain I felt was when I actually stabbed myself. The whole time I waited for Dan and to be taken to the er, I was fine, which wasn't so bad. Needless to say that when Dan finally made it home, he was very upset that I hadn't gone to the hospital. I don't blame him. My finger was a lot worse than what I had anticipated.

We went to Montifiore Hospital in the Bronx, which luckily is within walking distance of our apartment. We decided to drive over, which turned out to be a disaster since there was no parking. I had Dan drop me off and go back home. Once he got home, he took a cab over. I was in the er for two and a half hours. Not bad! I expected to be there a lot longer. The last time I was in the er for an allergic reaction, I stayed for six hours. Most of the time, I sat there with an oxygen tank on my lap.

Once I was inside and the doctor was checking my finger out is when I learned that I had actually stabbed myself. We also found out that the numbing I had (or still have--I can't tell right now) could be possible nerve damage. A second doctor came in and also took a look at it. They both told me that I need to see a hand specialist to have my finger checked out. I might need surgery to repair the nerve. I definitely wasn't expecting that.

The doctor proceeded to stitch me up. He injected me with anesthesia, which was extremely painful. I did squirm on the bed. After my finger became numb, he stitched me up. I got five stitches on one side and five on the other. He also injected me with a tetanus shot. I got a prescription of antibiotics and vicaden (luckily it's not that strong because I'm only feeling slightly sleepy). I was very happy with the way I was treated at this hospital. Everyone was very nice and helpful.

After we left the hospital, we grabbed a bite to eat and walked over to my doctor to see if she could refer me to a specialist and to write down what happened in my chart. By the time I got home, I was pretty drained. Dan picked up my medicine and I've been relaxing ever since. Tomorrow morning I'll call the specialist. Hopefully, he could see me right away. And hopefully, I won't need surgery!!

Dan took some pictures of me at the hospital. Here's is the picture of the bigger wound:



This one is after I got stitched up:



Well, I won't be working for awhile! I'll know more once I see the specialist. I could only hope for the best. I'll keep you updated.

Happy Anniversary!!

Folks, you've been reading my crap for the past two years. To be honest, I never thought it would last anywhere near this long. I thought that I would stop at some point like I do with many things, but it's been a lot of fun for me. It's a way of keeping in touch with my friends when I seem to be lost in my little world. I hope you've enjoyed these past two years!

Louie's Update:

He's doing great! His bites are healing properly. He has scabs, but they're all dried up. He is finally off the pain killers, but is still taking his antibiotics. He's not drowsy anymore, which has relieved me greatly. He is still not eating as much as I would like him to, but I give him enough food throughout the day like fruits and cheese. I think we'll attempt to bathe him this weekend. It seems that he could handle it.

On a Better Note...

I have pictures of my niece's and nephew's birthday party. These pictures are incredibly adorable and I would like to share them with you.

Bryan smiling for the camera:



Jacquelyn blowing out her candles:


Bryan getting ready to hit the pinata:



Bryan having fun with the pinata:



Last but not least, Jacque and Jose picking up the candy:

Louie's Update

Thankfully, Louie seems to be healing properly. I was afraid that one of the bites on him would become infected. Unfortunately for him, he's out most of the day. The painkillers and anitbiotics are making him very groggy. He sleeps most of the day without wanting to eat much. If I'm cooking or in the kitchen, he does get up to see if he gets any treats. That's his only motivator.

I got more picctures of him from the morning after the fight. These pictures are very clear and you could see how swollen he was.

This picture is so cute that I had to post it even though it doesn't show any of his bites:



You could see how bruised and swollen his neck is in this picture:



Here you could clearly see the bite marks on his back. This picture makes me cringe:



My poor baby!! I'm glad the medication he's on is taking away the pain. I'll keep you posted on his improvements. I can't wait until he's back to his old self.

My Louie!!

This deserves it's own post! Last night, we received a phone call from Dan's aunt about Louie. She was watching him for us this week. The phone call was something I never expected. Louie was attacked by a pit bull. Needless to say, Dan and I thought he was going to die. Thankfully, no one was hurt in the process of this vicious attack. Dan's cousin, whose ten years old, was the one walking him when the pit bull caught site of Louie. Christopher, trying to save Louie, tried choking the animal by grabbing his collar. When he saw that that wasn't working, he began kicking him (he's in karate).

His mom jumped in and began hitting the dog with the leash that he had ripped off Louie. My poor dog was dragged by the ear from in front of their house to across the street. He was bitten all over. Louie fought back, but to no avail. He couldn't get a bite in. It took about four or five people to get this animal off of Louie. Once they managed to do so, Louie laid on the floor in shock. Lucy scooped him up
and off to the hospital they went.

From the shock, he threw up a couple of times. Once he got to the hospital, they x-rayed him to make sure he didn't have any broken bones. They shaved the areas he was bitten, which was a lot. The vet said that most of the bites are superficial with a few deep ones. They wouldn't give him any stitches because they were bites. Once they got home, they noticed that he wasn't able to walk. He kept on falling on his face. His front right leg and his left hind leg were bitten into the muscle, which made it painful for him to lean on. So, he kept on falling on his face. Poor baby! He fell asleep in Lucy's arms because he couldn't lay on his pillow. He got bit by his penis (yup) and it was uncomfortable for him to lay down.

When we finally got to see him this afternoon, he looked better (I got to see the before pictures; not a pretty sight). He was excited to see us and seemed animated. I'm so grateful that nothing else happened. This situation could have turned horrible. The reason this pit bull got loose was because the eight year old that was hanging out with him, decided to take him out for a walk by herself without a leash. The parents didn't realize she had opened the door. Anyway, the worst is over. Louie is recovering.

He's now knocked out on antibiotics and pain killers. Poor thing is all bruised and cut up. Although the pictures don't do him justice, I'll post them anyway.

This picture is of his back area where he got the worse bites:



Pay close attention to his neck; you'll notice the bruising:




This one is of the bites by his penis:



If you look closely, you'll see the bite on his ear and neck. I couldn't get a good picture of this:




As you could see, we'll have to pay close attention to him for the next few days. I'm glad that he's doing better and that the swelling has gone down. We walked him earlier and he seemed pretty alert. He'll be in pain for a few days. Thank God he's alive!

We're Back!

We're back in the NYC! Our vacation was nice and relaxing. Unfortunately, I don't have pictures (yet!). We never needed to use our digital camera. We did, however, buy a waterproof disposable camera, but left it in Miami. We only took about ten pictures and left the camera to my sister-in-law. Once she's done with it, we'll get our pictures.

The reason we bought the waterproof camera was to use it when we went to John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park in Key Largo. There we decided to kayak, which was a first for both of us. We lasted for about an hour and boy were we tired! The sun beaming down on us didn't help either.

We, of course, went to the beach! We normally head out to Key Biscayne, which is not as hectic as South Beach. It does get packed, but I find it to be more relaxing. There we spent a few hours enjoying the water and sun. That was another perfect day, until we saw the dark, grey clouds looming over us. We packed our stuff and left quickly. It was just in time for the downpour. As quickly as it started, it stopped. We ended the day with a few drinks and some great barbeque.

Throughout the week, we went out to eat and have drinks. We hung out with Sandra (my sister-in-law) and her man, Dave, and also my cousin. We had an awesome time. Without a doubt, we enjoyed our stay in Miami. It was a nice change of pace that we both needed. Once I get my hands on the pictures, I'll make sure I post them for you.