Casper decided to celebrate being 2 by staging The Great Nap Battle of 2005. She's just fallen asleep on the couch (after nearly 2 hours of attempts), and we're expecting people in 45 minutes. I am drinking a big iced coffee and considering inserting Kahlua.

She is long and lanky - we haven't had a checkup in a while, but I measured her against the wall about a month ago and got 35", which is a smidge taller than I was at that age. Based on "double your height at age 2 to get adult height" she'd be 5'10", but then, by that measure I'd be 2 inches shorter than I actually am. She's several pounds heavier than I was at her age. She's consistently been 90% for height and 75% for weight, though to my eye she's gotten thinner lately.

Anybody got a good site with detailed histories of earlier hurricanes? I'd like to read up on Camille, Gloria which I witnessed in CT, and whoever it was that hit New England in the 1930s that my grandmother drove a car through.

Started there in April. Became official, and done with the probationary period, on July 18. Which is when my health insurance was supposed to have kicked in...

As opposed to the fiasco that did happen where the coverage wasn't in place until last Thursday, which is when I finally got in and saw my doctor. Frankly, I would have gone Monday given the chance and likely my back would have healed much faster if I had started treatment then.

This, in my bitter bitter heart, is partially their fault.

My doctor's office actually faxed a note to the company on Friday when he found out I was at work (In my defense, he forgot to mention on Thursday that I should be on home rest), the HR people have the documentation and my boss knows about it.

I just honestly fear that my boss is going to make life a little more difficult for me if I actually take the time.

Man, that's such bullshit on your boss's part. (Though I don't think *my* bosses *really* believed how badly my back was injured until I had the surgery scheduled; I think they thought I was just being a whiner who would take any excuse to miss work.)

Still, if your doctor actually wrote a letter saying that you *shouldn't* be at work, can't your HR department bring the smackdown on your boss? Even a little?

You should check their policy about sick time and even short term disability then. Unfortunately, the federal medical leave laws don't kick in for a year after you are hired, and most companies follow that, but some have it kick in earlier.

Either way, I hope your boss stops being a jackhole about it.

Yeah, when I said I was going to try to be back on Monday because I felt like I needed to be, it was made clear that I should take the time if I needed to. And technically, sure, I can take the time.

But apparently boss had a cracked rib once and *she* came to work... While taking demoral... Yes, you can roll your eyes here.

She thought I seemed like I wasn't in *that* much pain. Which, yeah. Because I loathe people knowing any of my weaknesses. And I would go into the bathroom, lock the door and then cry for a few minutes and try to breathe through the spasms and pain.

Maybe I will call her later and her mood from Friday will have passed. It's much relieved but that strange spot that was causing all of this mess has twinges today. If it doesn't stop, I am taking tomorrow off because being at work Friday definitely caused more problems. I like my back far more than I like my job.

It just shouldn't be this hard.

it really shouldn't. I hope your boss realizes it soon.

Me too.

I need to ice now. And try to otherwise chill.

Sigh...

Chilling and icing are both good, though I think the icing might be easier in the situation.

In mememe news, I finally bought a printer, which means I need to clear off my desk and a bunch of other stuff so that I can actually use it.

Yay new printer. I need to do that at some point. Mine gave up the ghost and seems disinclined to be a zombie printer. It's just dead. Plain old boring dead.

Ice has been applied. As well as iced cafe au lait and Indy racing at Sonoma, which is just a pretty, pretty track. Thus I am achieving some degree of chill as well.

Jesus, category 5!? That's just really bad news. I can't imagine how horrid it is going to be for those that *can't* evacuate, or even get to higher ground.

If this falls out as it looks....there's going to be a lot of reckoning, human, political, financial afterwards.

I spent the day at the zoo. It was nice. I should get a membership so I can go wander there on weekends without shelling out $15 a pop. It isn't the nicest of zoos I've been to and they sorely need better maps and signage, but the animals are well cared for and have nice digs. And the property itself is very much set in the local- meandering in and out of MD forest. Nice for just walking in the woods.

I saw lions (heard them roar!) and antelopey critters; rhinos; zebrabutt; warthogbutt;otters ; chimps - found ALL about a big old rumble that happened last week and how they are putting the female whose pheremones likely prompted the males to go try to beat each other up on depro. And their poor basket case chimp who was rescued from a private zoo and she will not go into the open. She follows the walls. However, she is an excellent mother and the other chimps sorta protect her, so they're hoping she'll get knocked up again soon. (docents seem to love to talk to me. Every one I saw stopped to talk to me. ) Oh and lemurs! I want a lemur.

The leopards were being big cat puddles, but I got to be there for "feeding" of the cheetahs. The male and female are in separate areas but right next door since they are TRYING to get the male to figure out how to mate. Allie (the female) is game, but he can't seem to figure it out. They've resorted to bringing in an elderly male cheetah to, um, show him the ropes. And hopefully motivate him through competition. It's funny. Mr. Cheetah was supremely unimpressed by the bloody bone- he rolled over and showed his belly. Allie, otoh, was pacing and leaping as soon as she saw the staffs' green shirts. She lept and snorted and wrestled the evil bone to the ground. It was fun to see her move.

I went in the lorikeet cage and did not get shat on, though they really liked my earring.

And there were polar bears. Only one was out on exhibit, sleeping when I arrived. But when I left, she was studiously trying to drown her ball in the water. For 45 minutes. So that was cool.

I really need to borrow someone's kid next time I go. I try not to be that creepy grownup pointing stuff out to other peoples' kids, but it's hard. I mean, am I going to allow a kid to miss the lion stretching back in the corner because the parents are 8 feet back? No. And then of course, they start asking me questions and....and it's just cool and ... Maybe that's why the docents always talk to me. I'm kinda one of them in temperment. Based on the reception, I don't think anyone thinks I'm a creepy grownup (parents were asking me questions) but still ...I fear.