I had truly massive insomnia as in not-even-feeling-like-sleeping last night. Usually I collapse of tiredness at some point, but I could have kept going past 3 AM. Expecting to be a bit zombified today.

Timelies all!

Why can't I stop scratching my bugbite(s)? Woke up with one on my arm and it itches like mad. (Anti-itching creams seem to do nothing for me)

Ethiopia!!!

Why can't I stop scratching my bugbite(s)?

I rip them to shreds. It is easier for me to deal with pain than itch. I do not recommend this behavior.

Ethiopia!!!

?? Maybe I skipped. Are you going?

I've been a stranger due to picking up the plague on my flight from FL to NY. Girl next to me was all red nosed and going through tissues. Yes, I got it. Likely the result of burning the candle at both ends for a couple weeks preparing to leave. Ugh. Now the whole reason for coming north for the summer is to visit with my mom and I can't go near because she can't be exposed. Now I have to worry about the time I spent there the first day or two after I arrived when I didn't know I was sick. Also, breathing is not at all overrated.

No, Sara's friend at the Y.

Aw, I hope you get over it soon so you can spend time with your mom (and just feel better and breathe easily!), Laura.

I really want to just write today off productivity-wise and spend it curled up on the couch with a book and maybe The Musketeers and perhaps even hot chocolate.

I really want to just write today off productivity-wise and spend it curled up on the couch with a book and maybe The Musketeers and perhaps even hot chocolate.

I'm still getting over a cold and I feel run-down and lousy, but we have to use a Groupon to the shooting range before it expires, so we're going to shoot handguns today.

This is part of my goal to get outside my comfort zone this year, and the shooting range is a BIG one. I'm not a fan of guns, I'm way more on the extreme end of gun control than most people are, and handguns scare me. (I've shot a rifle -- badly -- before, and I've shot -- or attempted to shoot -- clay pigeons. But handguns seem like a totally different scary kettle of fish to me.)

Tangential funny story: the rifle I shot was my grandpa's, which my brother got after our grandpa died. My brother was already living in Vermont, so one year when my mom and stepdad were driving to Vermont, they were going to take the rifle up to him. But first my mom had to get the rifle from my aunt (who was living in my grandparents' house). So my aunt and mom met up to hand over the rifle -- in the parking lot of St. Thomas More Church after noon Mass. 100% true. That cracks me up. "Peace be with you." "Thank you, Father. I've gotta go get that rifle out of my car."

No, Sara's friend at the Y.

Ah, cool. My SIL and her husband hope to go, but that has more to do with Rastafari stuff. I know they have been to Africa before, but I don't remember where at the moment. (foggy head)

Steph, I can totally see that happening in this area too. I hope that shooting range makes guns a little less scary. I am out there on that extreme end with you. My early personal experience was my father and other family members hunting. But most of my life has been spent away from hunting areas and in cities where accidental shootings and deliberate killings are way too frequent.

Good for you getting out of your comfort zone, Tep. I hope the shooting range is a good experience for you.

I think maybe I will compromise by puttering around the house and cooking (with a generous sprinkling of sitting on the couch) rather than doing stuff out in the world. The puttering and cooking need to be done at some point, after all, and the gym and grocery store will still be there tomorrow.

I forgot to bring with me yesterday the one allergy med that I have to take every four hours, so I missed a couple of doses and today my sinuses are complaining. I am telling myself that taking it easy today will mean feeling better tomorrow; I hope it's true.

Bummer of a cold, Laura. Hope it passes soon.

Steph, I do know what you mean. I see rifles as functional in a way that handguns are not. I've never shot either one, but grew up around folks who go hunting and therefore had rifles. But I married into a gun-owning family. It sometimes feels like C & I are the only adults who aren't armed.

RE productivity and the lack thereof: I need to get some stuff moved over to our house today, and take a load to donate too. Really what I need to do is start going through my own belongings and getting rid of what we no longer use. And need to straighten things up a bit since we didn't have the housecleaner in this week.