Being sensible...

I suppose that a lot of times it's difficult to do the thing that's best for you and you choose the thing that is the most agreeable. I should be sleeping right now and I have been to bed. I spent two hours there, but I didn't sleep, so I got up again and made myself some coffee because I knew that would put me in an excellent mood. I wanted to enjoy the wee hours of the night while I was in this good mood and I was not disappointed because I am. 

I have the alarm clock set for five hours from now and at this rate I'm not going to get a lot of sleep at all. I'm not worrying a lot about that now and I will see what happens when the time comes. I will deal with the difficulties as they arise. No doubt I will be taking a nap later on in the day if I don't want to run into the inevitable problems. 

I was in too good a mood when I went to bed and didn't feel at all sleepy. I went there out of a sense of responsibilty. It was late so I had to go to sleep. I was not nearly done being awake and active and was not in the mood to slow down. I thought lying down in my bed would get me in the proper mood, but it didn't work out that way. You know about best laid plans...

I have been having a slight migraine since this afternoon. It gets worse if I move my head around or bend over, so I avoid doing those things. Sometimes I forget and do them anyway. I haven't had a real migraine in a very long time. I do have a history of them when I was younger. I remember spending lots of time in darkened rooms. I don't know why I should have one now. It's a mystery to me. I've got to put paracetamol on the shopping list.

I suppose I'll go to bed now and try to get a few hours of sleep. I must be sensible sometimes. I do feel a little bit of pressure to do the right thing.

Have a good day everyone. Enjoy the week. 

Ciao,

Irene

Irene's Dutch Diva Blog

Can't make up my mind...

I was already in bed but found it impossible to go to sleep. I got up again and now I'm drinking coffee because I didn't know what else to do. It's such a ritual that I automatically made a pot. I normally sleep first though, but I don't mind, every new experience is one to be savored.

It's not quite coherently that I sit here. I'm under the influence of my sleeping pill and I'm waiting for the effect of it to wear off. I don't quite like the way it's making me feel. I'm hoping the coffee will do the trick, but it's making me burp something awful. The sound effects are out of this world.

Sooner or later I'll end up going to bed. I will get tired enough in the end and get the sleep I need. I've already set the alarm clock for 7 am. That's when I'm planning on being up again. I have some things to do and the day is going to start early. I'm getting up an hour earlier so I can drink my coffee contemplatively. 

I lightly decorated myself with make up today and was pleased with the effect. I didn't overdo it, so it was not too much of a shock to my system after having had a bare face all this time. The most fun was trying out the lipsticks to see which one would last the longest. I kept having to reapply them after having had something to drink.

Luckily, I still had a face wash to remove the make up with when I got ready to go to bed. I used that with a warm wet washcloth. I applied a night creme afterwards and now have a soft skin. I'm actually starting to care again and making a fuss over myself. They're good deeds I do for myself. My skin deserves it. Wearing make up makes me pay more attention to my face and its care.

It's good to be a woman and indulge in taking care of yourself and paying attention to the little things. They are all small ways to pamper yourself and give yourself the tokens of affection that you need. They are things that nobody else is going to do for you. They're little rituals that you perform for yourself and can be very nurturing and restful. If you end up looking especially nice, then that's a bonus. It's icing on the cake. 

I'm already making my resolution for the next year and that is that I'm going to take good care of my appearance and I don't mean my clothes because those are alright. My whole self image is going to change and improve and that includes my hair and the perfume I will wear. I'm going to give myself an overhaul and it will be a long term project. I will give myself a whole year to achieve it. I do have the patience for that.

I will go to bed now. I do need to get some sleep before it's morning. I have sat here and dawdled quite a bit and I've gotten sidetracked a few times. I have to take good care of myself because if I don't, who else will? 

Ciao,

Nora

Tripping lights fantastic...

No, I'm not really going to, it just seemed like an interesting post title. I couldn't think of anything else and this one was stuck in my head. Now that I've used it, it won't bother me again. 

I woke up feeling very good and I was happy to open my eyes. Anticipation tingled through my body, but I don't know what for. I was struck by giddiness all by myself for no reason at all. It sure was a pleasant feeling. 

I'm more sedated now that I've sat here for a while and read some other people's blogs. That will get your head on straight. Of course, drinking a cup of coffee will too. It works as well as taking any kind of pill. 

I stopped drinking milk yesterday morning and have been drinking green tea with lemon since then. Not pots of it certainly. Just enough of it to quench my thirst in tall glasses with just enough sugar to make it a little sweet. 

My stomach feels better for not drinking the milk and is not in an uproar anymore. Hopefully soon the soreness will disappear. It dawned on me that I had not tolerated milk for quite some time, but I had been drinking so much of it that I had gotten used to an upset stomach. 

I am changing my diet drastically and will be eating beef, fruits, vegetables and rice and taking certain vitamins and food supplements. This will be in an effort to get my whole body healthy. I think I may be suffering from some anemia causing me to get very dizzy on occasion. 

Tomorrow, I will go to the grocery store with the Exfactor to pick out the kind of foods that I want. I want to have a good look around and see what's available. I have no idea what kind of fruits there will be now and how expensive they will be.  

Today I will be going to the optician with my sister to have my eyes tested and to pick out my new glasses. I'm very excited about this because I hope I find the right pair. They will be covering my face from some point on soon and it's important that they look good. 

I have some idea of what I want and I hope I find what I'm looking for. I do have expectations. I have been thinking about them for some time and paying attention to the kind of glasses that I see advertised. I saw some that I really liked and I hope that I will find some like it at this optician. 

I have to go back to bed and finish sleeping. I have to set the alarm clock to get up early this morning. I have to be wide awake soon enough for my sister to come and pick me up. 

I hope you'll all have a nice day.

Ciao,

Nora

Loving every minute of it...

I'm serenely seated here behind the computer in the middle of the night (or call it early in the morning) and I've just about had all the coffee I want to drink. It's time to switch to that old stand by, a glass of ice cold milk, to make me burp some. I'm almost used to the special effects and expect them now. It wouldn't be the same experience without them. So you see, you get used to any strange phenomenon as long as it's familiar. 

When I say I'm serene, I mean I have a fairly peaceful mind as I have had for a long while now. I went to bed with it and got up with it. As we say in the Netherlands, I fit into my skin well. I don't know where that saying came from, but it is widely used and it sounds more appealing in Dutch. We use the word 'lekker' which is untranslatable. Some words and concepts aren't, which is a shame because so much feeling is meant by them. 'Lekker' is everything that is good and then some.

I woke up writing a blog post in my head before I had even opened my eyes. I now don't remember what it was about, but I think it is funny that I'm so occupied with it in the middle of the night. Apparently, I'm immediately ready to go write one when I wake up. Maybe I dream about it while I'm asleep. It wouldn't surprise me, although I know it's mostly nonsense what I think of first. I do remember that much.

For a change it wasn't the dog who woke me up. I did it all on my own and I must have an internal alarm clock that tells me to get up at a certain time of the night. It's when I'm temporarily all done sleeping and I'm ready for some entertainment to interrupt my long night. I don't really mind this, but I wouldn't mind either sleeping all night and not waking up until the morning. It would be awfully nice to be woken up by the real alarm clock. I wouldn't mind having to set it before I went to bed.

It's funny how you learn to accept any kind of schedule as being normal simply because that's what you have gotten used to. In my former life, I used to sleep long and hard all night long and you would have had to shoot off a canon to wake me up. Now I sleep like I'm alert to the least little noise and I'm ready to get up for no reason at all. I do long for those deep, heavy sleeps of long ago. They were very restful.

At least I'm not comatose anymore when I wake up in the morning. That's a big blessing. I function fairly well. I'm more then capable of making a very decent pot of coffee and I don't have to drink the whole pot in order to get dressed and be ready to take the dog for a walk. And getting dressed is simple if the weather is cool and crisp and you know which clothes to put on. I always think that makes things much easier.

I've got to go back to bed and sleep a few more hours. I'm going to see my new therapist this morning for my first official appointment. I do want to be alert and fresh looking when I get there. I do want it to be a productive meeting. Wish me luck. 

Have an especially nice day in this autumnal weather.

Ciao,

Nora

Both feet on the ground...

One good thing about having quit almost all the tranquilizers is that I no longer sit here in the middle of the night higher than a kite and getting even more so because I'm drinking coffee. Nowadays, I'm pretty down to earth and mostly myself and not under the influence. 

At least, hardly any at all. I will stop taking the last tranquilizer tonight (Tuesday) when I go to bed. I will notice that I did for the first couple of days and will be a little bit off course, but I will recuperate soon enough and being off course doesn't have to be all unpleasant (I may be a little exuberant). 

It's a relief not to be high because I thought that was intrinsic to me and it's nice to find out that it was because of the tranquilizers. It certainly took me long enough to put two and two together. I always thought I was in a hypo-manic state in the middle of the night. 

It's a pleasure to find out that I'm not and that I'm as normal as anybody else. Especially since there's not such a huge difference compared to how I am when I wake up in the morning. I'm not like two different people.

I woke up yesterday morning to the alarm clock and it agreed with me better than sleeping until I was done sleeping. I think I get too discombobulated when I do that and get too much sleep. 

Waking up to the alarm clock was better, as it made me alert immediately and I felt I had to get into action right away and plan my moves. I have set the alarm clock for this morning too, even though I can sleep late. I just don't want to.

I have opened all the windows in the apartment at the top to air the place out properly and because there's a strong wind blowing due to the tail end of the hurricane that came off the Atlantic Ocean.

There's a strong enough draft blowing through here now and it smells a lot better in the living room. All that stale smoky air is gone. I'm going to keep the windows open this season as long as I can and hope for regular winds. 

It was sunny when I walked the dog yesterday, but because the wind was blowing, it felt quite blustery and I could imagine myself at the seaside. I like this kind of weather. It agrees with me quite well and this is what I like about autumn. 

The wind gives you a sense of freedom. It blows all your dark thoughts away and cleanses you from any worries you may have. I also like the way the sunlight is coming in at a lower angle. It seems less harsh and more comforting. 

I think I'm an autumn type of person and I always forget that about myself. It surprises me every year. Every year I make the same discovery. I should know this by now. I should know that I like the season of my birthday. 

It's time to go back to bed for a while with a glass of ice cold milk.

Have a great day.

Ciao,

Nora

Exit - stage right.

I'm waiting for the dog to wake up so we can go for our evening stroll around the fields. It's not raining now, so it would be the perfect opportunity. There is a brisk wind blowing, but I've put some strong hairspray on my hair that's hurricane proof, so I have nothing to worry about. 

The dog is snoring in the armchair, but I know that just as easily he can wake up any moment. It's just a nap he's taking. I know he has to go out because he hasn't eaten his dinner yet. He only does that after he has been aired properly. He does have his steady habits. 

I've taken a nap, so I'm in good shape. I was doing less well before I took it and that is because I was woken up prematurely by my personal helper this morning. I wasn't done sleeping yet.

I had set the alarm clock, but had shut it off and turned over for some more sleep. I was taken by surprise when she rang the intercom. It took two cups of coffee for me to become enthused about being up, but I was approachable and not grumpy. I just didn't move and talk at a great speed right away. 

I've got a decent outfit on and I will try to wear it as long as possible this week. I must try to keep it clean. It's very warm and comfortable and it looks good and those are my main concerns.

I was wearing something yesterday that looked okay, but it made my flabby stomach stick out and that won't do at all. I had to keep trying to remember to tighten my muscles and of course I didn't. That made me look like a saggy old woman, unless you only looked at me selectively. 

I'm very critical of how other people look, so I assume they in turn are critical of how I look. Or maybe it is the other way around. I don't know which comes first, the chicken or the egg. I'm sure I have some sort of complex. 

I watched 'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone' on YouTube. I had never seen that movie, although I tried to watch it once on an airplane very unsuccessfully. I'm going to watch 'Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire' next. I can see how a person could get completely hooked on these movies. It's especially interesting to see the actors get older with each one. 

I have to wake up the dog and take him for a walk. At the rate he is sleeping, we're never going to go anywhere. I still have to eat dinner and watch the news. There will be no thriller on tonight. Too bad, but there's that movie. 

I hope you'll all have a good evening.

Ciao, 

Nora

...and what else do I have to say?

The good news is that there has not been a mouse in the apartment yet. At least, the cat has neglected to bring one in today to play with much to my relief. She could have done it easily while I was taking a nap, but luckily she was bright enough not to do such a foolish thing. I would not have forgiven her quickly. 

There is no bad news, unless you count the fact that I've only had one cup of coffee and that I'm not going to have another one unless I make another pot of it. I'm undecided if I will do that. I need the caffeine because my brain is not functioning optimally yet. I'm still stuck in the drowsy setting.

I'm wearing a tunic that has been hanging in my closet for a long time, but that I had not worn yet because it was too small. Much to my relief, it fit me today and I'm proudly showing off my svelte body in it. It's tight fitting and made of stretch material and I really feel daring in it. I'm glad I rediscovered it. 

I've made that other pot of coffee and am drinking a cup of it now. I slowly am getting unstuck from the drowsy setting. There's something to be said for a fresh pot of coffee. It does work miracles. 

*

I just walked the dog in the still warm evening air. It smelled like blossoming things and there was lots of pollen in the mild breeze. If I were really allergic to stuff, I would be in much worse shape now. The conclusion is that I'm not and that I only have eczema. That's bad enough, of course, but it's nothing compared to what people go through who have hay fever and asthma. 

I have to look through my closet to see what other clothes are going to fit me and what is too big. I'll have some sorting to do. It is with a certain amount of pleasure that I'll do this. I'm going to do that next, as soon as I'm done writing this. 

Oh yes, I forget that I have to eat some dinner first. That is important. I would forget something like that. No problem, something is easily microwaved. Isn't that the best invention ever? It's perfect when you live on your own and you need to make only one portion. 

Have a good evening and enjoy the weather. 

Ciao,

Nora

Being absolutely absorbed...

I've moved the radio/CD player from the bedroom to the living room and I'm listening to my music at random. Just picking out CDs that look interesting and that I haven't listened to in a long time. I'm not being too picky. I just listened to The Doors and now I'm listening to Queen. 

It's been very enjoyable so far. These are CDs that don't have too many memories attached to them for me and I can listen to them easily without much tugging at my heart strings. I have a lot of Cds that do and I think I'd rather not listen to them, so I'm avoiding them. I guess I do have some selection process. It's not completely random.

I spent all afternoon and the early part of the evening yawning and two hours taking a nap. I was feeling very sleepy, but I've gotten over it now. I'm perky again after two cups of coffee. That's what it took. I don't know why I get these attacks of sleepiness. 

I don't want to go to bed too early, because I want to have another good night's sleep like I did last night. I'm postponing bedtime as long as possible. I will get my pajamas on shortly, because it is so cozy to sit here in my bathrobe. That's the most comfortable outfit to spend the evening in.

I shouldn't have said that I was feeling perky, because I've started yawning again. I guess I'm doomed to do that tonight. I wonder if it has something to do with writing blog posts? I was doing that earlier too. No, it couldn't possibly. I probably just need more sleep than I've gotten so far. One good night's sleep doesn't cure everything. It's going to take a few nights' worth. 

I'll just have to get some decent amounts of sleep. Going to sleep and waking up in the middle of the night is not a good system. Even if I do go back to sleep early in the morning. I'm going to try not to do that tonight, just like I didn't last night.

I have to sleep until a decent time in the morning, because my personal helper is going to be here at 8:30 am. If I can wake up before that time and make coffee it would be perfect. I do want to be functioning up to some point. I don't want to be comatose. I can be very perky when I wake up and be in a good mood right away. Sometimes it doesn't quite work out and I need a little bit of time. 

I still have to find a battery for my alarm clock. I forgot to ask the Exfactor to buy some for me when he went to the grocery store. I think I may know where there is a one. I will have to go look there in a minute. I did remember to have him buy lighters for me, I thought that was very smart of me. I forget to write things down on the white board in the kitchen. That's too easy. God forbid I should do something as simple as that. 

I should end this now and get my pajamas on. I'll also see what's on television. My CD has ended.

Have a nice evening.

Ciao,

Nora

Some of everything...

There was icy rain last night when I went to bed, but it has since turned to snow and there's a new layer of it on top of what was left of the old one. It's going to snow today and tonight and tomorrow too, so we will have a white Christmas. That doesn't happen very often, so I guess we should be happy about that, because of that song that says that we're always dreaming of it. Just like the ones we used to know. Even back then people were nostalgic for white Christmases. Well, we are having one, so that takes care of that.

Because it's been too long since I've had my hair cut, I get to go to the hairdresser this morning. I can't wait to go and get a decent haircut. It's more than high time. I called for an appointment yesterday afternoon and they were kind enough to squeeze me in, even though they were pretty much booked full. I think it helped that I've been a steady customer for such a long time. Cutting my hair doesn't take such a long time, so it can be done somewhat easily in between everything else. I do appreciate that. 

You all know that I love going to the hairdresser and getting my hair washed and fussed over. I like nothing better than sitting there and watching the girl shape my hair with the scissors. I'm never in any fear of it being ruined, as long as she follows my instructions. You must never be afraid to speak up. That's what's so good about always going to the same hairdresser. You aren't shy when you want to put your two cents worth in. 

Yesterday, I received a large box with a Christmas care package in it. There were all sorts of wonderful and practical foods in it. I found out that I had gotten it from the Green Cross through the mediation of my Wednesday personal helper. She got to pick out some clients who she thought were deserving of a useful surprise and had picked me amongst them. It was a true cornucopia. 

The Exfactor was here when it arrived and we looked through it together, which gave me the opportunity to give him the things that were made of meat, such as the large salami. I would never eat that. I saved the can of knackwursts for Tyke. There were enough foods in there that I can use, though, including a big piece of cheese and a package of coffee. I can't tell you how happy I was with it. It really was a big surprise. 

Last night, I left my mobile phone sitting on the small table next to my armchair and you can all guess what Tyke did with it, right? He chewed on it to the point that it isn't working anymore. Now nobody can call me, because I don't have my land line anymore. Luckily, the Exfactor has another mobile phone that he can let me use and he is going to bring it by on Friday. I will be able to stick my memory card in it and have it work, hopefully. Unless it is ruined also. That darn dog! And the Exfactor had just bought him new rawhide bones and he had one available that he had been chewing on. Grrr...

It's going to be colder for the next several days and I think I'm going to need to wear a warmer cardigan than the one I've been wearing. It will be a great opportunity to wear my red one, which is my favorite one. All my clothes are starting to smell like the new perfume I'm wearing and it is very pleasant, until I wash them. My scarves all have that scent. I've just found out that this discount store where the Exfactor bought it, also sells Gloria Vanderbilt perfume very cheaply, so I may want to get a bottle of that and alternate scents on different days. 

Well, it's been a mixed bag of news. Some good and some not so good, the former outweighing the latter.  I think I'll get dressed now and get ready for the rest of the day. I've got to find a battery for my alarm clock. It's stopped working and continually points to 5 o'clock. 

Have a good day.

Ciao,

Nora 

Domesticity...

I was up for a while during the night, but I had enough sense to go back to bed when it was still early in the morning. I set the alarm clock for 10 am and woke up a little bit before that. I wanted to have time to go to the tobacco shop and to do a few chores. First I had to wake up properly and I took about 45 minutes to do that with a cup of coffee and some cigarettes. They weren't home made, so they didn't taste as good. I don't know what manufacturers put in ready made cigarettes, but it tastes like junk. Not at all like when you make your own cigarettes from plain tobacco, and they're expensive too. They're almost 3 times as expensive as home made.

I got dressed and took my wallet and a plastic bag and Tyke and some baggies. Off we went on our merry way. It wasn't too cold outside and the weather is supposed to be improving soon. When we got to the tobacco shop, Tyke tried to jump into the bin of candies, as usual, and I got my tobacco and filter tubes and some lighters. I must always have lighters. Tyke had the audacity to bark at someone he decided not to like, which happens rarely, and we left the shop at high gear. I needed two baggies, one on the way over there and one on the way back. Tyke always dawdles. He thinks he has to sniff at every bush and blade of grass. I am patient, but sometimes I just drag him along.

When I came home, I started making cigarettes and then the domestic help got here. A cat had killed a bird and brought it home and I had cleaned it up and disposed of the dead bird, but there were still some little feathers lying around. She didn't comment on those and just vacuumed them up. Domestic helpers ask no questions. They've learned not to be curious. For all she knew I had slaughtered Cornish game hen in there, but not a word came over her lips. She did say that the apartment looked tidy and I said that I'd done it myself. She saw in the workbook that nobody had been here on Friday, so she was surprised. Now she could see for herself that I'm really a neat person.

I may be a neat person, but I haven't got the laundry out of the washing machine yet. I may hang it up to dry outside, because no more rain is expected. The temperatures are supposed to get higher each day until it will be hot by the weekend. I don't know how I feel about that. I suppose I have mixed feelings. I am happy because of the sun, but I am less thrilled because of the heat. I am curious to see if I will be less tired. The sun has already come out this afternoon, although there are still big clouds in the sky. It's getting a little warmer inside too, which is good, because I was about to put another cardigan on and may still.

I had taken my medicines real early this morning, rather then taking them late when I would wake up at 10 am. Subsequently, I didn't take them again until 12:30 pm and the gap was too big, because I started to feel awful. I became neurotic and obsessive and I couldn't at first figure out what was wrong. I didn't think anything was wrong, but that the grievances in my head were legitimate and that I should act on them. I was making all sorts of plans to put them into action, but then as time went by, they started to disappear as snow for the sun and that was because my medication had started to work. Finally, there was nothing left of them and I felt silly for having had them and lucky for not having acted on them. You see how precarious this all is. Imagine what would happen if I accidentally missed a dose. I could get into deep sh*t.

By the way, does anybody know what that volcano in Iceland is doing? I never hear or read about it in the news anymore. I just heard another airplane fly over and it reminded me of it. It was so nice and quiet when air traffic was banned for a while. I sure miss those days. The airport is close by, so we have a lot of noise from landing and departing airplanes. It really irritates me and the airport is only going to get more busy as it becomes more international. It does have restricted hours, but you hear airplanes fly over from 6 am on. It can't be much fun for the people who really live close to it. That airport was not one of my grievances, by the way, but I wonder what happened to that volcano in Iceland. I suppose I could google it.

It's time to take Tyke for a walk. The poor thing must not be neglected. I'm trying to teach him that when Gandhi is sitting on my lap, she's not to be molested. Actually, I wish she never was, but she's partly the blame for that herself, because she does seek the danger and doesn't get out of the way on time. She's not mean enough to fight him properly like Toby does. Toby uses his claws.

I hope you're all having a good day and that you will have an equally good evening.

Ciao,
Nora

On the day...

On the day you can sleep late, you never do. I woke up just before the alarm clock went off and why do I have it set in the first place you ask? Well, this is a tricky alarm clock that has a mind of its own and fools me into thinking I have shut off the alarm when, in fact, I have not, and then it goes off again one hour later, so some serious alarm clock studying must be done. It has multiple times that it can ring and I think it and I are totally confused.

I found out what the Überhund's problem was with his front paw. I found a split toenail on the bedroom floor that was split all the way down the length off the nail to the root, so that is what he had been gnawing at during the night. He is fine now and then I realized that that strange hairless skin colored growth on his toe is also gone and when it disappeared, I have no idea, it just isn't there anymore. It was quite large and very noticeable and I wonder why I didn't notice it not being there anymore before? I just checked again and there is absolutely no sign of it even having been there. Strange.

Anyway, I had ergo therapy yesterday and quite some attention was paid to my hypomanic episodes and how to deal with them better and how to prevent me from spending too much money. First, I had to explain to the rest of the people what it is like to be hypomanic and that it isn't just about going out and doing a lot of shopping. How you are hypomanic in every area of your life and how it affects all aspects of it. That you see the whole world through rose colored glasses and that even the sad things don't seem properly sad.

It was then decided, that I need someone who will check in with me once a week to see what my state of mind is and how my spending pattern is behaving itself. On Mondays and Wednesdays I have my therapies and on Tuesday I usually see my SPN, but at the end of the week, I am sort of on my own and have a tendency to get out of hand then.

It was asked if my sister could be this person and I said, no, she could not now, at this point in her life. It was suggested the Exfactor do it, and although I had some trepidations about it, I could not think of anyone else who could play this role in my life.

So, I called him and asked him to come over yesterday afternoon and I explained the situation to him and he said that he would be more than happy to come by every Friday to check on me and to talk with me about how things are going and if I still have myself and my finances under control. He also had some practical suggestions, which means that he does have some understanding of the complexity of the situation.

I'm assuming that this is a good solution, time will tell. It is better than no solution at all.

Oh, yes. I started dance therapy yesterday afternoon. One hour of dancing to beautiful ethnic music. If you think that is easy, think again, because we had to learn to make some pretty difficult movements and it is going to take quite a bit of practice to learn them well.

When the therapist asked me what sort of music I liked, I said, Björk and Massive Attack and dEUS, and she said, oh, you're a rocker and I said, well, I guess I am then. I think we were both surprised at that. Imagine me being a rocker at my age.

I can only eat one slice of bread or one slice of raisin bread, if I try to eat more, I upchuck it. I can eat a good sized portion of rice, so that is very filling. I do enjoy eating rice and so does the Überhund. I can eat a good sized portion of yogurt or soup, depending on how thick it is and how chunky. Chunkiness is the key term, chunks don't go down well. Not even little chunks.

Well, it's time to get the day started. For a change, it is not raining and I must walk the Überhund before it does again. Today is house cleaning day, yippee!

Ciao...