....because I could hear your entire conversation.

Every year, we book a room for the 3rd of July fireworks event at the local horse track. It's a great time because:
A: You're in an air conditioned window room watching horse races in July
B: It's horse races! Fun!
C: After dark is a fabulous fireworks show
D: Most people don't have to work on July 4th, so nobody really cares that they're out late

This year July 3rd falls on a Saturday. Even better! Even better for my friends, my company is paying for everyone. (you know, the one that I own- - tee hee)

So I called a couple of weeks ago to book the event. I was told that I had to wait until June 15th. OK, fine. I called at 9am (when they open) on June 15th and was told that I'd have to wait until today (June 19th).

I called today and the gal said that they're all booked up. I said, "how can that be? You just started taking reservations this morning 1/2 hour ago." Her reply was that the phones have been very busy.

I wasn't going to stop there. I said, "are you SURE you're booked up for "x" room?"

Dummy: "You mean the restaurant?"
Me: No, it's the big room on the 4th floor all the way over to the left. They do a buffet
Dummy: "That's the restaurant, we do a buffet on special days" How big is your group?
Me: 30, and I've never had a problem booking this in the past.
Dummy: OK, let me check with my supervisor.

The dummy didn't put the phone on hold so I heard the entire conversation. Things like, "What do we tell people who were told that they couldn't book until today?" "Tell them that our computers are down and we'll call them back later" More dumb questions and more dumb answers that I heard. der...

So she came back on and said that someone would call me back. I said "I also wanted a race named after my company".

Light bulb goes on in dummy's head: OH- THAT room! You need to talk to group sales. They're not here today. I'll have them call you.

So, tick tock. It's not fun trying to plan an event less than two weeks away not knowing if I'll get the room. I can't really invite people to something I don't have booked, yet I don't want to book a bunch of 'seats' and have them paid for and empty.

Nothing I can do about it but remain calm. Hopefully by mentioning that I wanted to pay for advertising will get me somewhere.

I often have dreams that I'm floating, rather than walking. In these dreams, if I want to go higher (such as if something is in my way like a house) I have to concentrate and breathe more deeply. It's not flying though, I'm floating.

When I have this dream, it's a pleasurable experience, but I try to hide it from everyone because I know it's not normal. The problem is, that as much as I try, I can't hide it and the best I can do is to do a floaty-bouncy walk, kind of like the astronauts on the moon.

I had another one of those dreams last night. I was floating away after someone told me that I was "magnificent" (ha! healthy self-esteem, anyone?)

I'd been sitting in a field of wheat reading a book, when a woman came up to me and told me she saw me from afar and asked me if I was from this planet. I told her that I was (and in the dream it seemed like a normal conversation...) and she said that she'd never seen anyone from this planet so magnificent.

Should I really be admitting this dream in public? ha ha!

I had to leave for some reason and then the floaty thing happened. I was glad that I was in a big wheat field because it made it less obvious that I was floating.

I decided to look up "floating" on some dream interpretation sites and it varies. All I know is that I feel REALLY good and light when I'm floating in these dreams, and I have these dreams a few times a month. That's good enough for me.

This interpretation is fairly universal:

To see yourself floating and enjoying this action in a dream generally bears a positive significance and relates to a general balance achieved in one's life. To calmly float in water or through air is a metaphor for acceptance, for wellbeing and peace of mind, for letting go of past problems and conflicts and the release of negative emotions and feelings buried deep down inside you, which have prevented you from achieving a general equilibrium in your life.

But it's not.

I haven't been on the elliptical since my foot injury which happened before I was diagnosed with P.O.T.S. I'd forgotten that I'd assumed that the heart monitor function was broken because the rate would go from 70 to 180 to 40 to 210 to... well you get the idea. Sometimes it's even zero! I'm dead!

Still not sure, but armed with the knowledge that my heart beat is irregular, I asked BJ last night if the heart rate function worked for him. Ummm, yes it does. It goes from lower to higher in regular increments as the workout becomes more strenuous, and then back down again at a regular pace.

Well, well well.... that's what I get for assuming. What a dufus. Next thing you know, I'll be on the next episode of "I didn't know I was pregnant". I really need to investigate things a little more, eh?

I think I might just mention this when I have the follow-up appointment with my cardiologist next Monday. Maybe he'll give me a life-long pass from exercise!

Who knew that wearing matching shoes would be such a big deal? These are MY feet at the dog park.



Last week, I was still limping along with a crutch (graduated from two crutches and/or a wheelchair) and this week, I'm wearing normal shoes, off the pain meds and getting on the elliptical!

I can only do about 10 minutes before my foot starts to hurt, but it's something right? RIGHT!

Since I can now do the elliptical, I'm on a sugar and refined carb detox and I'm lifting weights. Oh, and I'm doing sit ups. Why not just go all out, right? RIGHT!

Did I mention that this surgery enables me to wear fun shoes again? No ol' lady shoes for me. Nope.

Since I'm at it- I think I'm going to do a really fun color combo in my hair tomorrow.

What can I say, I don't do things half way.

I went for my third post-op trip to the foot surgeon today. Things look great on the outside, but I'm building up too much scar tissue on the inside, so I have to beat up my foot as much as I can stand. The surgeon told me to make BJ mad and then ask him to rub my foot. My surgeon is a funny guy.

Either I've been too drugged up in the past to understand what the surgeon has been telling me- or he never really told me the full scope of the surgery. He said that he took out a tunnel of bone that goes from one side of my ankle to the other, about an inch wide. Hmmmm... THAT explains the pain. He also told me that I'm having pain up the back of my ankle and lower leg because the tendon is getting too tight from not being able to move my ankle around. He sees physical therapy in my future.

He said that there's nothing I could do to harm my foot (except what happened in the first place, fall and break stuff), so I can so whatever I want as long as I'm willing to put up with the pain. That's comforting in a way, I guess.

I've been driving myself around the last few days and having a blast being on my own. It's been over a month since I've been able to go anywhere by myself. Unfortunately, I tend to overdo it when I get excited about things, so now I'm sitting with my foot up on a pillow with a percocet (without the 'cet since tylenol is not my friend) on board.

Here's the list of things that I've enjoyed about being temporarily disabled:

1. I got to ride in a wheelchair at the airport and go to the front of security and board the plane first. The wheelchair was fun until my brother Michael started pushing me and tried to scare me. Some things never change.



2. I got to see what it was like to be under suspicion for carrying a bomb on a plane. Apparently the stuff they use to make the crutch pads is also used to make bombs. I was frisked from head to toe (from a woman- meh!) and all of the contents in my backpack were wiped down with bomb detection stuff. After that, security had to make a decision as to whether they'd want to be on an airplane with me because they STILL couldn't tell if I was bringing on bomb-making materials. I told them to not take the company I keep into consideration (my brother).



3. People are nice to me when I'm on crutches. In fact, today a man offered to take my shopping cart to the cart return for me. I thanked him profusely



4. I got to ride in one of those silly carts at Walmart. It's not as fun as it looks, but I do recommend that everyone do it at least once! Do not judge my hair in this picture. I haven't had it cut in 2 months, but I'm willing to forgo the pride to let you see me make a complete fool of myself.
   
   

I'm not going to make a list of things I haven't enjoyed, because I fear you'll go blind from all the words.

Next up on my list of things to blog about in no particular order:

• Our family visit to see my parents


• My new HTC EVO 4G. Holy smokes, it's my new favorite toy. ::ahem:: I mean phone.


• Ummm... I've lost my train of thought- but there's something else. Stupid drugs...

PS- Einstein is hosting a 40.00 gift certificate giveaway on his blog. Everyone is eligible to enter. You don't even have to like dogs (but why wouldn't you? tee hee)