read with me/vote with me

Al Qaeda endores McCain:

"Yet the endorsement of Mr. McCain by a Qaeda-affiliated Web site isn’t a surprise to security specialists. Richard Clarke, the former White House counterterrorism director, and Joseph Nye, the former chairman of the National Intelligence Council, have both suggested that Al Qaeda prefers Mr. McCain and might even try to use terror attacks in the coming days to tip the election to him.

“From their perspective, a continuation of Bush policies is best for recruiting,” said Professor Nye, adding that Mr. McCain is far more likely to continue those policies."

Are there any reasons left to vote for McCain? Honestly?

Okay, I do still agree with him on two things: (1) corn subsidies tied to ethanol production are no good at all since it takes more energy to produce ethanol than ethanol provides; there are things like, you know, the sun and the wind which cost NOTHING that we could subsidize instead; and corn is, well, still good for eating--especially in the middle of a global food crisis (though in an election year, I forgive Obama for sidestepping the issue entirely); (2) nuclear power is an energy option that needs to be seriously considered--the current methods of its production disallow nuclear meltdown, and they are insanely efficient, hence better, than crap options like clean coal. "Clean" coal? More like "what's going to happen when those hydrogen-filled caverns break through the earth and kill me" coal. And again, the sun, the wind ...

But notice that is two subpoints of energy policy. The man has left me gaping with everything else he says.

I don't like abortion but I want to run as far away from legislating "moral choices" about people's bodies as possible; I don't like either candidates' take on gay marriage (I want more equality, if you were wondering); I'm not convinced that any options for health care reform and economic crisis-averting are going to work.

But good god I'm ready to vote. But I think I'll wait until the 4th. Voting early sounds like a hoax.

smells like coffee after using the grinder at Trader Joe's for her folks' Costa Rican blend and subsequently collecting coffee particulate on her splints and splint liners.

has put a grill pan on her wish list.

has eaten meat everyday for something like two weeks. she's a carnivore.

(in facebook status format)

is convinced her nightly healing imagery therapy is working good things on her canker sore.

is still in stl.

is sweeping up the remains of her shattered neti pot.

is now using a new, all-plastic neti pot and breathing free.

is now smelling that whiff of death that comes from inside her head when her sinuses are clear.

is a little sick of passive voice, oh well.

is also sick of resting her elbows, wrists, hands, and arms.

is glad to have taught some really great poetry students who are pursuing poetry in various ways. she's getting interested in creative writing pedagogy again.

is almost definitely moving to chicago.

is praying that republicans don't steal the election again.

Still Alive

Sometime next week I will find out if, in November, I will be paid 66% of 25% of what I normally am (since I'm 25% work-restricted and compensated at 66% of that), or 66% of my normal pay.

It's a weekend of repurposing, folks ... from pantry ingredients to things stashed in the closet to NEVER BUYING ANYTHING EVER AGAIN. Also, have you heard we're in a recession? And this whole financial crisis too? And that if worries about money were something you or I had before, those worries could triple now and that would be a reasonable amount of worry?

However, within the next few weeks, Noah will finish some interviews and decide on a future job and a city to move to, and with all that comes a different sort of salary. Did you know engineers and editors make different amounts of money? They do. And so while these tripled worries are reasonable, they will also pass in a very definite time frame.

To end, I will tell you I am still alive, figuring out ways to manage pain, letting Noah do kind of everything our house needs, and thinking thoughts of reduced inflammation and the opening of nerve tunnels (folks now say I have carpal and cubital tunnel syndrome, and bilateral tendinitis in wrists and elbows).

Also, a brief list of awesome RSI prevention/recovery things:

for PC's--Workpace is a free customizable break timer and activity tracker, and it is awesome. It includes stretches to do on breaks, a "lock my computer" thing to do in one click if you get up and walk away ... really good for offices.

For Macs--Time Out is also a free break timer, though with no activity timer, and has a very pleasing transparency/opaque thing to indicate break time.

Honestly, anyone and everyone who is reading this should install either, or both, if you use a PC at work and a Mac at home like me.

I'm doing some new stretches for shoulder, neck and upper back muscles ... if anyone is interested, let me know, and I'll make some PDFs of them to circulate. I'm doing easy stretches every hour and hard ones four times a day ... and they feel good. My OT is pretty sure that if I can loosen the insanely tight muscles I have there, I'll reduce nerve pinching throughout and feel generally better.

the right to bear arms

So, Noah has a list going of circumstances under which he will buy a gun and drive to DC--things like, the government says they're postponing elections until this crisis is over, things like that.

I don't like guns so much, and I'm not up for that long of a drive, but ...

What's your list like?

my job tried to hurt me

*i believe my worker's compensation claim has been approved

*OT says, 6 months until i am all better

*OT also says, you have cubital tunnel (elbow) and nerve pinching there, not damage

*OT also has me in two custom splints for wrists, elbow gel pad tube socks, currently some kineisiotape for my right wrist going up my forearm, and two stretches to do ... arm straight out in front, hand flexes up; arm straight out with elbow to floor, hand goes back/down ... with a terrifyingly tiny range of motion

*also, i believe my worker's compensation claim has been approved

*also, my work restrictions will probably be revised on monday morning; i'm betting the doctor will say, three days off, then you can work only 6 hours a day -- because when i'm not working or doing anything at all, i'm in pain, but less, and when i work over six hours, i'm in way more pain

*i have decided that pain, in this case for me, is an accurate ethical barometer: i am in pain, so what i am doing is bad; i am not in pain, so what i am doing is good

*my company's short-term disability insurance policy says, if you have to stop working, we'll pay you something, but if you leave in the next six months, you have to pay it all back. umm ... uncomfortable conversation possibly in my future

*noah has interviews on the way, wahoo!

Wrong Again

The EMG and nerve conduction tests say ... I do NOT have carpal tunnel syndrome. Or at least I have no nerve damage. The doctor said I might have had mild carpal tunnel when I started wearing the splints three weeks ago and that it's had time to recover since then. Whichever it is, I am SO HAPPY to not have nerve damage because ... nerve damage doesn't get better. You can't regrow nerves or heal them, just kind of cope with them. And nerve damage is in my family, of course: paternal grandfather with myasthenia gravis; mom with spinal cord injury and now MS ... I can stay off the list for now.

I do have bilateral wrist and elbow tendinitis, though. The doctor was like, this is rare. You're still 25? So ... I'll stop typing soon ...

Doctor's orders for the weekend: don't do anything. I think yarn dyeing can stay on the list, though. Our full-DVD-collection of The West Wing finally arrived, so I have things to watch at least.

Six more weeks of occupational therapy, with better splints on the way, with the great elbow gel pads already, nice OT named Becky ...