erin, I don't know if this would work for the type of pain you're having, but have you tried Salonpas patches? Sometimes my back pain won't yield to anything but those.

smonster, I'm glad it was nothing serious for Bella.

Excellent Mal! Studies have shown (Which studies? Where? By whom? IDEK) that cats purr at a level of decibels which promotes healing, and cats have also proven nearly as acute as dogs at pinpointing illness or infection in the human body. So, really? Very good Mal!

smonster, how ick--for her and for you. But I'm glad she's gotten relief and that it was nothing more serious.

Purring is proof of a benevolent universe. Okay, maybe that's overstating it, but it's proof that God is willing to throw us a bone every now and then.

I'm stuck on the phone with my faux niece again. At least teenage girls are easy to have phone conversations with -- you barely have to say anything. She's almost 16. Talking about this boy she likes and how he likes this other girl who likes someone else but she's stringing him along anyway even though she knows I like him OMG I HATE THEM BOTH but they're like both my friends so I can't even say anything on Facebook and OMG.

Just had to cancel my classes for today. I woke up with a ton of pain in my ankle, and after TENSing it for an hour, I could still barely walk. Needs some meds, and I can't drive or teach when I take those.

Oh, Hil - may the meds help quickly.

Hil, I feel you. My back is giving me a lot of pain, and I am full of tramadol and lying on a heating pad. It started giving me grief after I got in bed last night, though I was finally able to find a comfortable position and sleep.

I didn't do anything yesterday to injure it, but maybe it's a delayed reaction to Saturday's leafblowing extravaganza. Boo. I have stuff that needs to get done today, and most of it requires that I be mobile. Come on, heating pad! (Although I can't drive with tramadol in my system anyway, so errands have to wait until this afternoon at the earliest.)

pimping the gift exchange - YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO.

Well, I took some time this morning to do yet another one of the stupid surveys that the university is making us do to make it look like they're doing something. This time, it was answering questions about the campus culture and values and community. I particularly liked the question about whether I have seen undergraduate students engaging in substance abuse. Does alcohol count? If so, then I doubt there's anyone who lives in this county who has not seen undergraduate students engaging in substance abuse.

It also wanted to know whether, when a university team wins something, I say "They won" or "We won."