Long Silence
Jan. 1st, 2025 06:43 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lydamorehouseHAPPY NEW YEAR to you all!!
My apologies. once again, for being silent for so long. However, I come bearing good tidings! Shawn has graduated from the cane and is now officially walking UNAIDED. WHOOT!! Once again, Shawn passed all her tests with flying colors. The only disappointment is that she has not reached zero degree extention (being fully straight). For whatever reason, despite all her work, she's still hanging out at 1 degree. Otherwise, her flextion is 134 degrees, which is outstanding. Now she's been tasked on working on STAIRS.... dun dun DAH! (She's been going up and down them since day one; this is to get her doing stairs like normal people).
This big graduation has allowed me to start to return some of the fetch and carry duties to Shawn... and I feel like I finally have enough spoons of my own to return to the wider world.
I've been complaining about this, privately, to a number of people, but I had no idea that caretaking would wipe me out the way it has. I often really enjoy being that person who asks, "Can I get you anything?" But, something about it being non-optional was weirdly SPOON sucking. I wasn't even the one who had major surgery! Why? The only thing I can figure is that I apparently get very tired by being interrupted? This tracks if only because I remember having a lot fewer spoons/energy for extra/thinky things when Mason was a toddler. This is not to say that Shawn was as much work as a toddler, just that there was something similar in the way her needs interrupted my... flow? I dunno. It was weird and I'm glad it's mostly settling back into to normal.
How was your New Years Eve? New Year's Day?
We are very boringly traditional on New Year's Eve. Outside of skipping the general drunkeness, which I guess makes us at least somewhat atypical, we do try to stay up (or be woken up for) the countdown. We no longer try to find it on television, but just watch our phones and make our best guess. Then we all toast the new year, usually with sparkling apple cider, and then attempt to sing "Auld Lang Syne." With apologies to Bobby Burns, "Auld Lang Syne" is possibly THE DUMBEST SONG IN THE HISTORY OF TRADITIONS. First of all, I absolutely can never remember the words. Second, I can't find a key that works for me. I mean, to be fair, I am not normally fussed by "what key is this song in??" because I can't hear such nuances in music, but I am REALLY BAD at this particular song. I'm almost as BAD at "Auld Lang Syne" as I am at the US National Anthem, "The Star Spangled Banner." Luckily, I am so BAD at "Auld Lang Syne" that my family and I have a tremendous laugh as we attempt to sing it (or howl it, given that I'm involved.) Shawn and I always share a quick kiss and then stumble back to bed. (Vogue has an interesting article about why we kiss at midnight on New Year's Eve that I linked to.)
I have this weird supersition around whatever it is that I do first on the first day of the year, it's an indication or omen about what's awaiting me for the whole year.
The upside is that this means I tend to do all the dishes on New Year's Eve so that I don't spend a lot of time having to do them in the morning. I generally take out recycling and garbage, do some other light housekeeping--like sweeping and whatnot, so that I also don't find myself feeling an urge to do that first thing in the morning. Also, this year I made make-ahead hot cross buns (which didn't quite work out, but more on that in a second) so I'm not tempted to spend the morning cooking or baking.
Last night, neither Shawn nor I could fall back to sleep. So, we ended up having one of our "midnight chats." These rarely actually fall at midnight exactly, but we have this thing that I'm sure a lot of couples do, where sometimes we are just awake at the same time at night and we end up just talking about everything and nothing. Because we talked for more than an hour, I'm counting that as my first activity of 2025. This bodes well for my relationship, if nothing else.
Also there have been some indications from the universe that "friendship" might be a general theme for the year. The New York Times ran an interesting article called "The Vexing Problem of the Medium Friend," which got me thinking about friendships, in general. And, with a certain in-coming presidency, a number of my friends have put out "circle 'round" requests to stay in touch, etc. So, I will also take this as a Sign of Things to Come.
Because otherwise we are left with my sad Hot Cross Buns. And, yes, I know hot cross buns are typically an Easter traditional food, but as I noted I found this really great recipe that worked like a charm the first time I made it that seemed ideal for a make-ahead plan. I COMPLETELY misread the recipe last night. I put in too many eggs. Like, I don't know what was wrong with me exactly. I did not have my reading glasses, which I should just CHAIN TO THE KITCHEN WALL OR SOMETHING, because then I *also* put in an extra teaspoon of salt. So, they just did not rise the way they should have. The extra egg did, at least a little, do the heavy lifting so that they weren't fully inedible, but they were not the fluffly, light delight that I was expecting. As I told another friend, that felt like the 2025 omen was, "We have f*cked up the recipe for Democracy, so we will have to make do."
Which is just not nearly as nice as having nice "midnight" chats with one's loved ones.
Of the two, I know which one I'd prefer.
I hope you all had less fraught and/or omen free New Year's Days.
My apologies. once again, for being silent for so long. However, I come bearing good tidings! Shawn has graduated from the cane and is now officially walking UNAIDED. WHOOT!! Once again, Shawn passed all her tests with flying colors. The only disappointment is that she has not reached zero degree extention (being fully straight). For whatever reason, despite all her work, she's still hanging out at 1 degree. Otherwise, her flextion is 134 degrees, which is outstanding. Now she's been tasked on working on STAIRS.... dun dun DAH! (She's been going up and down them since day one; this is to get her doing stairs like normal people).
This big graduation has allowed me to start to return some of the fetch and carry duties to Shawn... and I feel like I finally have enough spoons of my own to return to the wider world.
I've been complaining about this, privately, to a number of people, but I had no idea that caretaking would wipe me out the way it has. I often really enjoy being that person who asks, "Can I get you anything?" But, something about it being non-optional was weirdly SPOON sucking. I wasn't even the one who had major surgery! Why? The only thing I can figure is that I apparently get very tired by being interrupted? This tracks if only because I remember having a lot fewer spoons/energy for extra/thinky things when Mason was a toddler. This is not to say that Shawn was as much work as a toddler, just that there was something similar in the way her needs interrupted my... flow? I dunno. It was weird and I'm glad it's mostly settling back into to normal.
How was your New Years Eve? New Year's Day?
We are very boringly traditional on New Year's Eve. Outside of skipping the general drunkeness, which I guess makes us at least somewhat atypical, we do try to stay up (or be woken up for) the countdown. We no longer try to find it on television, but just watch our phones and make our best guess. Then we all toast the new year, usually with sparkling apple cider, and then attempt to sing "Auld Lang Syne." With apologies to Bobby Burns, "Auld Lang Syne" is possibly THE DUMBEST SONG IN THE HISTORY OF TRADITIONS. First of all, I absolutely can never remember the words. Second, I can't find a key that works for me. I mean, to be fair, I am not normally fussed by "what key is this song in??" because I can't hear such nuances in music, but I am REALLY BAD at this particular song. I'm almost as BAD at "Auld Lang Syne" as I am at the US National Anthem, "The Star Spangled Banner." Luckily, I am so BAD at "Auld Lang Syne" that my family and I have a tremendous laugh as we attempt to sing it (or howl it, given that I'm involved.) Shawn and I always share a quick kiss and then stumble back to bed. (Vogue has an interesting article about why we kiss at midnight on New Year's Eve that I linked to.)
I have this weird supersition around whatever it is that I do first on the first day of the year, it's an indication or omen about what's awaiting me for the whole year.
The upside is that this means I tend to do all the dishes on New Year's Eve so that I don't spend a lot of time having to do them in the morning. I generally take out recycling and garbage, do some other light housekeeping--like sweeping and whatnot, so that I also don't find myself feeling an urge to do that first thing in the morning. Also, this year I made make-ahead hot cross buns (which didn't quite work out, but more on that in a second) so I'm not tempted to spend the morning cooking or baking.
Last night, neither Shawn nor I could fall back to sleep. So, we ended up having one of our "midnight chats." These rarely actually fall at midnight exactly, but we have this thing that I'm sure a lot of couples do, where sometimes we are just awake at the same time at night and we end up just talking about everything and nothing. Because we talked for more than an hour, I'm counting that as my first activity of 2025. This bodes well for my relationship, if nothing else.
Also there have been some indications from the universe that "friendship" might be a general theme for the year. The New York Times ran an interesting article called "The Vexing Problem of the Medium Friend," which got me thinking about friendships, in general. And, with a certain in-coming presidency, a number of my friends have put out "circle 'round" requests to stay in touch, etc. So, I will also take this as a Sign of Things to Come.
Because otherwise we are left with my sad Hot Cross Buns. And, yes, I know hot cross buns are typically an Easter traditional food, but as I noted I found this really great recipe that worked like a charm the first time I made it that seemed ideal for a make-ahead plan. I COMPLETELY misread the recipe last night. I put in too many eggs. Like, I don't know what was wrong with me exactly. I did not have my reading glasses, which I should just CHAIN TO THE KITCHEN WALL OR SOMETHING, because then I *also* put in an extra teaspoon of salt. So, they just did not rise the way they should have. The extra egg did, at least a little, do the heavy lifting so that they weren't fully inedible, but they were not the fluffly, light delight that I was expecting. As I told another friend, that felt like the 2025 omen was, "We have f*cked up the recipe for Democracy, so we will have to make do."
Which is just not nearly as nice as having nice "midnight" chats with one's loved ones.
Of the two, I know which one I'd prefer.
I hope you all had less fraught and/or omen free New Year's Days.
no subject
Date: 2025-01-02 01:55 am (UTC)If there were omens, I missed them. Unless the omen is "you're going to spend a lot more time on the floor and staring at patterns than you intended."
no subject
Date: 2025-01-02 06:14 pm (UTC)And thanks. We are actually off to an unexpected clinic visit today because Shawn poped a stitch. Fun! (Although we are being super cautious.)
no subject
Date: 2025-01-02 03:20 am (UTC)Aww those late night meandering chats are the best.
no subject
Date: 2025-01-02 06:15 pm (UTC)And thanks. Shawn is a PT powerhouse!
no subject
Date: 2025-01-02 03:22 am (UTC)I had it in the back of my head as well, that today would set the tone for the year - and then I got sick and decided that was NONSENSE :D I laid in bed this morning thinking that I *really* should drag my snotty butt to the gym, because it's January 1st and GRIT and, and - and ultimately gave myself permission to Just Be Ill and that there will be many more opportunities to go to the gym in the next 364 days.
Still mad about it though :D
no subject
Date: 2025-01-02 06:16 pm (UTC)And the gym will be there.
no subject
Date: 2025-01-02 01:41 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-01-02 06:17 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-01-02 02:54 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-01-02 06:18 pm (UTC)