Back in business.

I've got my computer back and the repair was very cheap. I looked at the man with my mouth dropped open when he told me how little it cost. It was my lucky day, I guess. It's working like a dream and I even managed to hook it up properly all on my own, according to the instructions of the Exfactor who had written them down on a little piece of paper. Now I will always be able to do it, after I had never done so before. Isn't that silly?

My sister and I went to pick it up together in her car and it turned out that her neighbor is the father in law of the man who owns the computer shop and he just happened to be there, so it was like a homecoming. Much chatting had to be done, and the fun part is, that in this shop they also sell turntables to play your records on, if you still own those, and there were some really nice ones there, which made me nostalgic for all the records I once owned and the crackly sound they made when the needle touched down on the first grooves. I would buy a turntable if I knew I could find some of my favorite records. Ah, keep dreaming, Nora!

Anyway, I've got my computer back and that is a true pleasure, although I was not bored when I did not have it. I drew and painted pictures and am mighty pleased with myself. I've got one done and am working on another one. I've got a box of 12 tubes of acrylic paints that I also mix to get even more colors, so I am happy. The paper of the watercolor pad is very nice to paint on, as it is thick and absorbs the paints well and they dry quickly, which is good, because I have a tendency to forget that I just painted something and lay my hand in it. Major snafu. Luckily, subsequent layers of paint cover everything up if it gets messed up.

I'm using the same technique that I use on the canvas paintings and went with the same theme, but now I'm ready to try something else. I've had my try outs now and I need to come up with something new. I've even found a pencil and an eraser, so I can sketch to my heart's delight and make errors and erase until I get it right. I've also got that nice magazine to find inspiration in. I'm thinking about a beach scene with a beach chair and an umbrella and all the paraphernalia that goes with it. Or a kitchen window with curtains and plants in the windowsill and coffee cups on the counter. Maybe a cat that sits and watches it all. I have to give my imagination a chance to unwind and go to work.

It's 5:45 pm and the church bells are ringing. It must be time for mass. I should run over and see what people are doing there right now, but I'm too lazy to do it. Maybe another day when I'm more prepared. I haven't lit a candle in a chapel in a long time. That means I haven't been hypo manic in a while, because I only get religious when I am really hypo manic. I feel the spirit of God descending on me when I'm like that and the enormous urge to be in the basilica in front of the statue of Mary who is clothed in a blue robe. Maybe it's better that I'm in this normal, in between mood. I still have all my sensibilities this way and am not submissively knelt down in prayer asking for impossible things.

Jesker is still doing really well. The only problem is that the pain medication is making him fart a lot and since he always is where I am, I get huge overdoses of it and they are pretty hefty. Luckily, I'm very fond of him, so I can tolerate them, but if he were a stranger, I would move out of the room. The poor guy, he doesn't have a clue as to how bad he smells. His farts could be used as weapons of war. But I love him anyway. Well, somebody has to.

I did the grocery shopping today, and even though the parking lot and the bike rack were very full, the big store seemed to have absorbed all the shoppers and there were many check out stands open and I was done in no time and even had enough money left in my bank account to pay for the groceries, because that was a doubtful moment. I bought fresh juice and the first thing I did when I came home, was drink two glasses of it, because I was so thirsty, which reminds me that I have to check my glucose levels, because I have been very thirsty lately and going to the toilet a lot. Could be nothing at all, of course.

The cereal I buy is high in vitamin B and iron and some other minerals. I made a point to check that today before I bought it. There is another cereal similar to it that doesn't make that claim, so I won't buy that one, even though it is cheaper. I think maybe that's why it is cheaper. I want everything that I eat to have vitamins and minerals in it that are good for me and diverse. I don't want empty calories. I have been unable to eat anything remotely like a bigger portion. I think my gastric band has shifted and I can only eat little bits of food. It is very frustrating, but now that I've caught on to it, I know what to do. It just will take me a long time to finish a meal. I have to sit and wait for the little bits to pass the gastric band. Sometimes getting up and walking around helps.

Well, my trusty four footer wants to go for a walk, so I guess I will take him now. He is trying to be patient, but he can hardly contain himself. He is looking at me with mournful eyes. You just can't ignore that look.

Have a good evening, all of you. The sun is still shining. And the temperature inside has gone up by a whole degree.

Ciao,
Nora.