Δαφνη Ευτυχια Αρθουρος

<p>Haven't been writing much (here or email) the past couple of days; barely keeping up (maybe not quite keeping up) with reading (even got behind on the few webcomics I'm currently following -- am waaaaaay behind on email). Got a lot to do, trying to get it done, not doing very well at it; sleeping very poorly and spending the rest of the time feeling sleepy; eyestrain and headaches have been a problem for about the past week. <lj-cut text="Troubleshooting my body and complaining">Part of the problem is the weather -- I'm going to have to start running air conditioners again soon. (It's been warm enough in the house that I've had to move the chocolate back to the fridge.) But my BGE bill is hard for me to pay as it is. Some days have been about right for opening the windows (the ones that aren't painted shut), and I've felt silly about putting the air conditioners back in the windows when the weather is still nice, but another part of the problem is pollen, so I've been hesitant to open the windows. When I've gone out, my eyes have itched really badly, and I'm having some trouble keeping my sinuses clear even with an antihistamine. Of course, the fibromyalgia is reacting badly to my sleeping so poorly. </lj-cut> I've had a really serious problem with leg cramps (shin, not calf) keeping me awake, and my forearms hurt.</p> <p>The Post Awful left me a "Sorry We Missed You" notice on Monday. Now I did crash pretty hard Monday afternoon, so it's <i>possible</i> that I slept through the doorbell, but not bloody likely. Yeah, I can be hard to wake up sometimes, but that doorbell is <i>loud</i>. I mean, "jolt me <b>painfully</b> out of sleep" loud. Put the slip back in the mailslot Tuesday and asked for the package to be redelivered Wednesday. Was only sleeping <i>lightly</i> the brief part of Wednesday afternoon that I napped, so there's no fscking way I slept through the doorbell Wednesday -- the mail carrier didn't bother to ring; just put another "Sorry We Missed You" note, <i>incompletely filled out, like the first one</i> (left off the "Sender's Name" part, so I've got no idea where this package is coming from -- I wasn't expecting anything), and wrote (instead of what's supposed to go in the "Article Number(s)" space), "2:00 PM, 2nd Notice, Must Pick Up." <lj-cut text="Further ranting and some history on this subject">Now, at 14:00, I would've been <i>just</i> starting to nod off on Wednesday. Lazy SOB didn't try. When I go out to do the stuff I need to do this afternoon, I'm going to have to hit a hardware store for parts to securely hang my videocamera out the window pointed at the front step, so that the next time they're supposed to deliver a package, I can document that the carrier didn't even try. (This is a battle I've been fighting for three years. If someone's going to put enough postage on a package to pay for having it delivered to me, the USPS should f'ing well <i>deliver</i> it, right?) The local postmaster is no help at all, refusing to even consider the possibility that his staff aren't doing their jobs, and I've never gotten any responses to letters of complaint I've sent in and CC'd to the Postmaster General. Note that <i>some</i> carriers on my route (I've seen at least five different faces) are consciencious and cheerful, and one has even gone out of her way to redeliver a package when the back office staff screwed up. The problem is that four times out of five, I'm not dealing with one of the good ones when a package is supposed to be delivered.)</lj-cut> If I get out early enough, I'll try to pick up the package at the Post Orifice, but if I don't manage to make an early enough start then I'm going to try to get them to redeliver it Monday or Tuesday. I don't <i>think</i> that "Must pick up" notation is kosher... If it winds up getting returned to the sender, I hope they hear about this problem and ask for a refund of their postage. (If any of you want to mail me a surprise, consider using a different carrier.)</p> <p>Busy the next few weekends: <lj-cut text="Details"> photographing a wedding this Saturday, performing with <a href="http://www.wam.umd.edu/~eowyn/3LF/index.html"> Thrir Venstri Foetr</a> ("Three Left Feet") at the <a href="http://www.fairiefestival.net/about/index.html"> Fairie Festival</a> in Pennsylvania on Sunday. The next weekend, Thrir Venstri Foetr is performing at an event in Bowie on Saturday, then <a href="http://www.homespunceilidh.com"> The Homespun Ceilidh Band</a> is playing in Frederick, MD on Mother's Day (Fredericktowne Mall). I think the weekend after that is open (my DayRunner is in another room), but June is starting to look pretty darned busy.</lj-cut> Hoping to get to Balticon at the end of this month. (Really hoping the convention will ask The Homespun Ceilidh Band to perform again. We've drawn good audiences playing there in the past.)</p> <p>Actually got a very small work assignment this week, after a couple months of nothing. Hope it's the start of a trend. <Wish the sleep problems and headaches weren't happening at the same time as that though. <lj-cut text="What else I have to do">Been procrastinating on a lot of the other things I need to do, 'cause of not feeling well and because I want to get this assignment turned in and out of my way. But I absolutely need to get out to the pharmacy and a camera store when I get up -- I'm nearly out of painkillers, running low on tummy drugs, and need to stock up on antihistamines, and I need to buy film for Saturday. Did get to Thrir Venstri Foetr rehearsal this week despite feeling kind of crappy; </lj-cut>Homespun Ceilidh Band rehearsal was cancelled due to our having had a reeeeeeally long day at Southern Maryland and doing well enough to be able to afford to take a week off. But we really need to start work on our second album soon.</p> <p>Okay, now that I've gotten a few things of my chest, it's time to go back to the quest for sleep, a better attention-span, or both. Wish me luck. And if you're waiting for an answer to email, uh, please be patient.</p>