feren: I AM THE MAN (doctor-pwned)
I got my blood pressure checked at the little automated kiosk thing while we were shopping at Meijer last night. The machine came back with results that were not terribly surprising to me: with a resting heart rate of 79 my blood pressure was 143 over 86. So my systolic (the first number) tells me what I already knew, I'm Stage 1 hypertensive (and my diastolic is getting close to crossing from "pre-hypertensive" into Stage 1 as well).

Yay.

The theory is that you're only truly hypertensive if you consistently come in with elevated numbers. I don't have any current measurements besides that one to compare with so this is all supposedly just theory. But let's face it, this was taken at 12:10 in the morning and I'd had the entire week off for vacation. My blood pressure isn't going to get any lower then when I'm away from the office. Speaking of the office, I'm back in the office today and tomorrow. After that I have the rest of the year off for vacation. Let's hear it for "use it or lose it" vacation policies!

Signs goin' up
feren: I AM THE MAN (ashryn-enthusiastic)
My [livejournal.com profile] lady_curmudgeon surprised me this evening when I came home by presenting me with a belated (and entirely unexpected) birthday gift! Waiting for me, all snug in its carboard packaging and shrink wrap, was a shiny new Microsoft Natural Elite ergonomic keyboard. As those of you playing along at home may remember, about 4 months ago my old and much-abused keyboard decided to finally start failing in earnest by failing to recognize one of my most often used keys and just generally disintegrating. I've been hobbling along with it ever since, always telling myself that I'd be getting a new keyboard for myself Real Soon Now.

While not a "perfect" one-for-one replacement of my now-deceased workhorse (the old one had some function buttons that I never used, a built-in un-powered USB hub that could only ever support my mouse and a slightly different layout for the arrow keys and home/pg down/delete/etc) this keyboard still has what really matters to my wrists: the proper wrist support molded into the base and all the same sexy curves and breaks in the keyboard layout. And it's so much quieter!

I should take a picture sometime tomorrow, something so you can do a "compare and contrast" between the old keyboard and the new keyboard. The difference is, frankly, astonishing. You can see just by the discoloration what sort of punishment my old keyboard labored under.

All Hail The New Keyboard and the wonderful lady who got it for me.

And when I read it on your keyboard
feren: I AM THE MAN (card)
Last night [livejournal.com profile] lady_curmudgeon and I went to the store to get some supplies so we could bake up a batch of the 'mudgeon's delicious chocolate chip cookie bars. While I was in the pharmacy getting a new bottle of Naproxen for my poor, poor wrists (Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is a bitch, my friends) I also acted on the advice of a friend and picked up some Valerian capsules to try. I was hoping that I might get a better night's sleep thanks to one of these little pills and last night was the first night I got a chance to try something that apparently works quite well for most people out there in the world.

They didn't help me at all. Like most of my nights this one was full of the standard routine: Toss. Turn. Awaken, get up, pace, go back to bed. Repeat.

I'm mildly disappointed but not entirely surprised -- I've been dealing with an entirely broken sleep pattern for the last few years and my past experiences with over-the-counter medication have all turned in results that were far from satisfactory. However, one night does not by any means represent a perfect trial so I'm going to keep taking the pills as directed (1 capsule, 30 minutes before bed, with a glass of water) for the next week. Hopefully something will change and I'll get a decent, uninterrupted night's sleep. I don't really believe that I am going to achieve anything remotely close to that goal, but hey... what have I got to lose beside the $11 I paid for the bottle of capsules?

In other news, I found something that [livejournal.com profile] yakko and [livejournal.com profile] ottr will probably enjoy -- if they can deal with the horribly cliche music. Via our friends at BoingBoing we are given a link to an anti-Sony song from folks who have been betrayed by their PS3. Further evidence that the only real console battle here is between the Wii and the Xbox 360. I didn't plan to give them any more of my money anyway (not after they diligently tried to root-kit my PC because I made the mistake of wanting to play one of their audio CDs) but it's interesting to see how the reasons to ignore their new console continue to pile up and a greater backlash builds in response.



In news unrelated to sleep and consoles: the 'mudgeon and I will, later this evening, be complete fools and brave the elements of the storm to attend a birthday party for [livejournal.com profile] markvd. Several coworkers of mine should be there and we will undoubtedly drink and commiserate and harass the birthday boy well into the evening hours.

sail me down the river
feren: I AM THE MAN (fcy2k)
So this morning I had the distinct pleasure of waking up at 3AM with searing pain in the left side of my chest. It felt like my heart was caught in a vice and there was quite a bit of pain every time I tried to move. I've never had a heart attack before, so I had no idea if that's what this was or not. Even though I didn't think it was a heart attack (I had no shortness of breath and had no other secondary symptoms I could associate off the top of my head to a heart attack) I didn't feel like finding out the hard way, so I hurriedly downed two aspirin and drove myself to the hospital for a check out.

The good news is that it wasn't a heart attack. The best guess the doctor could come with is that it's a muscle pull or bruise, though I tell you it feels a hell of a lot worse than just a strain. Further conjecture is that this is manifesting as a result of a near-perfect combination of stress, too many cigarettes, too much caffeine and "just sleeping wrong" (apparently my sleep posture is sub-optimal, or something. I just know I've been tossing and turning too much). I also found that my blood pressure is running the ragged edge of hypertension again (137/90), something I'm none too pleased to see.

I got back from the ER well before I had to go to work but I decided staying home today was probably my best bet. I'm going to quietly spend my day in the recliner and try to do some thinking in between naps. I've been thinking for a long time now that I should take an honest, more-than-a-three-day-weekend vacation (I haven't had one in over 17 months, and it's starting to show) so I guess this was my body's way of reminding me not to forget. Frankly, I would have rather it just sent those appointment reminder cards like I get from my dentist -- then I could easily ignore them and throw them out with the rest of the trash.

On and on, does anybody know what we are looking for?
feren: I AM THE MAN (koz)
Not sure if it's the microwave move from Monday night (MMFMN?) coming back to haunt me, or if I slept wrong, or if it's a little of both.... but "ow." At present the small of my back feels like there's an axe lodged in it. A large, double-bitted axe, probably something you'd expect to see a dwarf carrying in one of the "Lord of the Rings" movies. A few minutes ago I dosed up with naproxen, which will have the pleasant side effect of making my wrists behave a bit better today... but right now I'm mostly waiting for the searing agony I feel with every movement I make to become something more closely resembling a not-searing agony. I'm not greedy, I'd settle for "obnoxious pain." However, until that happens I'll be sitting stiffly here at my desk, looking for all the world like a department store mannequin.

But at least I'm a well-paid mannequin.


. o O o .

Edit 0818 1/22/04: Does anybody remember the Stephen King novel Christine? Does anybody remember how Arnie hurt his back? I'm beginning to wonder if I was out pushing my Expedition around last night and I don't even remember it...
feren: I AM THE MAN (nuke)
Tickle leads to sniffling.
Snliffling leads to sneezing.
Sneezing.... leads to back spasms.

Ow.

You all realize that no good can come of this.

Profile

feren: I AM THE MAN (Default)
feren

April 2020

S M T W T F S
   1234
567891011
1213 1415161718
19202122232425
2627282930  

Syndicate

RSS Atom

Most Popular Tags

Style Credit

Expand Cut Tags

No cut tags
Page generated Jul. 15th, 2025 01:18 am
Powered by Dreamwidth Studios