I Don't Clean

It's no secret that I live a fairly messy and chaotic life.  I own a lot of stuff, and use most of it on a fairly regular basis.  This "stuff" that I own is multiplied by the fact that I live with a man who also owns a lot of stuff.  We have hobbies, we like to cook, and we hate to clean.

When I say I don't clean, I'm sure your first thought is that I live in a gross, hoarders like house with 15 cats.  First of all we only have one cat, and a snake but she lives in her own little tank habitat.  And I do clean, just not in the way that a lot of people would declare "clean."  In our house we go for "clean enough."

I like having a clean toilet so the bathroom gets wiped down on a fairly regular basis, about the only thing that I take sole responsibility for in our house.  The rest of the housekeeping chores I share with the husband.  Here is where it gets tricky...

I have Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, so chances are on a day that I have the ENERGY to do proper cleaning, my shoulder or knee or hip hurts, and makes the task 10 times harder than it should be.  Besides, who wants to clean when there are so many other exciting things to do?

Ryan is a champ, he keeps our dishes and laundry mostly caught up.  When it comes to undirected cleaning tasks it's almost like he's blind to clutter and the piles of dust, cat hair, litter, and yarn bits that inevitably build up.

For those of you who are inclined to feel the same way as I do about the horrible tasks of housekeeping, I'd like to share a little bit of my strategy and thought process to cleaning.

If there is something on the floor that should be picked up, I ask myself three questions.

• Can I vacuum it up with my handy handheld vacuum?
• Will the cat eat it?
• Will it hurt if I step on it?

If the answer is yes to any of these questions it gets picked up right away, I love my little handy sucker it saves me so much bending over.  If it's something the cat will eat I pick it up not only for his safety, but also because he most likely will barf and then I'd have to clean that up too.  That's messy and takes way more energy than just picking whatever it is up to begin with.  And stepping on things OUCH, something I don't need in my life.

If the answer is no to these questions, I file it away into the "to be picked up at another time" category.

My other chores goes as follows:

• If it's sticky- wipe it up.  We have cheap white bar towels that we use as napkins, paper towels and use for general wiping.  These save waste and are easy to throw in the washing machine.

When we have people coming over we try to wipe down the dusty things, and sweep the floor (this can be done with a vacuum or with a broom, depending on what room you are in).

I just feel life is too short to stress about having a clean apartment.  Are you a clean freak?  Or are you alright with things being "clean enough"?

Addendum (added 3:48) I forgot one important thing... If it smells take it to the dumpster!  This includes, trash, cat liter, and anything else that my be less than pleasant to have hanging around.

Links, Likes, and Love- 11/15

It's been quite awhile since I've done a Links, Likes, and Love.  A lot has been going on, but I wanted to share with you some things I'm a part of.

Links

• Make it Better: Craftalong for Sandy Relief- In response to Hurricane Sandy some folks got together and enlisted crafters to create warm things for those who are without electricity, heat, or homes.  I sent a package out this week containing some mittens I had made last winter, a few hats I whipped up, and a scarf I had been working on forever but didn't have a reason to finish.  The deadline for submissions is tomorrow, but I'll keep my eyes out for other projects incase you want to contribute.
• The Kick Start Your Handmade Holiday Shopping Giveaway- My friend Carrie is doing an awesome giveaway!  I'm thankful for her and her effort to encourage people to buy handmade this holiday season.  Hop on over and enter and you could soon be an owner of something awesome from The Pink Woobie!

Likes

• You!- I am so grateful for each one of you who keep coming back to read what I have to say.  Things are slow sometimes, but I still feel like I have a lot of important things to say, so don't give up on me.  It's only because I know some of you out there are interested that I keep writing.  
• The Weather- yes, it's getting cold but I own a lot of warm accessories from all the years of crocheting.  But it's been mostly sunny, and my body doesn't get overwhelmed like it does in the heat.  Many days this summer I hid in my bedroom with the AC cranked.  It's so nice to be able to go outside, take a walk, drink a coffee, without sweat pouring out of everywhere.
• My electric blanket- this goes along with the weather.  Although my body doesn't get overwhelmed as much in the cold, my joints and muscles do hurt a little more.  I'm combatting that with an amazing electric blanket that Ryan got me.  I highly suggest investing in one for anyone who might struggle with the cold.  I can't believe the difference it makes compared to a normal blanket.

Love

I'm not really sure this even needs words.  This is Popeye helping me with my spinning.  What a good cat!

Those Times I Forget I'm Chronically Ill

Today I wanted to share a little bit with you about what it's like living, working, and playing with a chronic illness.  More specifically I wanted to share with you those times that I forget I'm chronically ill.

Living in constant pain and fatigue isn't something that's easy to forget.  And trust me it doesn't happen often.  Things aren't always hard, or painful.  Sometimes it's just that dull reminder that I don't have the energy that I once had to do the things I love, or the nagging knee pain that I have dealt with my whole life.  And although it may sound like a good thing to forget you are ill, it usually isn't the case.  

There are two specific instances in which I occasionally forget about my illness.  On the rare day that my pain is low, or that I'm attending an event that I've looked forward to for a long time I can get caught up in enjoyment.  If you catch me on one of these days, I might even be dancing, loud, obnoxious, and generally smiley.  I've set my health issues aside for the time being, and have captured a small bit of my natural joy.

I often live for these nights! I will talk your ear off if you let me, and unless I tell you (which I often do) you would never know I struggle with my health on a daily basis.  Then morning comes..... and I again remember that my body is not as strong as it once was.

Regardless of the night's activities or alcohol consumption I'm "hungover."  My head pounds, my throat hurts, my legs ache.  After one of these "good nights" it often takes me 3-4 days to recover to my normal daily activities.  No matter how careful I am the only way to avoid this feeling is to not go out at all, and that sucks.  As much as I hate the phrase "suck it up" when it comes to pain, somedays that's just what I do.  I suck it up, enjoy myself, and know that for the next week things will be slow.

The second instance in which I can "forget" about my chronic illness is sometimes the hardest.  As you know I've been working on building a business very very slowly over the last couple of years.  It started as a hobby, became a cute idea, and now is at the point where I'm actually (almost) making money.

Before I started all of this, I had no real idea about the crafting business.  I understood the production part, and doing what made me happy, and I knew it would be a lot of work.  But I wasn't familiar with the craft blogging world, Pinterest didn't exist yet, and the majority of people I followed on Twitter knew nothing about crafting.

Starting from scratch, I'm learning slowly, and well.  It turns out I'm pretty good at a lot of things.  However, as I build my crafting business, form relationships with other crafters and bloggers, and attempt to make myself known I get overwhelmed.  I often feel as though I'm not "doing enough"and that everyone is getting ahead of me.

When the stress is really high, and I feel like I'm failing it's because I've forgotten that I have a chronic illness.  I'm attempting to function like a healthy average person in a world of overachievers.  To begin with I've never been an overachiever, but I'm also operating at a much slower pace in my daily life than most people.  This is when I need to remind myself of how far I've come, and how well things are going.  That DESPITE my chronic illness I'm still succeeding.  This is really easy to say, but oh so hard to remember.

So I thought by sharing with you, I might remember to cut myself a little slack from time to time.  Also I'm sharing this with you so you might understand a little bit more about others with chronic illness.  I'm a pretty open book, but a lot of people who struggle do not share their struggles with others.  If you can learn a little bit of what I'm going through, hopefully you can help be supportive to others.

And because I hate leaving you without a picture of something that I'm working on, here is a full bobbin of yarn that I spun last night.

Busy Bee

I haven't blogged a whole lot lately and there is really no excuse for it.  It seems that when I have the time to blog I find other things to do.  I think being on Twitter has seriously changed my blogging habits.  I'd still like to get on a more regular schedule but I'm not going to stress about it, and it's not my top priority.


Anyway, I wanted to let you know what I've been up to over the last few weeks.  I wrote about my cold, and following that I had a serious Fibromyalgia flare.  It seems to happen this time of year, everything becomes pretty painful and I feel like I have to drag myself around like I'm wearing cement shoes.

Despite feeling so crappy, I was able to get a lot accomplished.  I am now an officially recognized business with the state of Ohio.  I've registered my business name, and obtained a vendor's license.  Now the book keeping begins, so far things are going ok, hopefully I don't screw up anything too badly.  If anyone has known me for long, you'll know I'm seriously bad at math.  Thank goodness for computers.

I've also been seriously busy making items for my Etsy shop.  I try to finish one item a day.  It doesn't always happen, but I've been pretty productive.  Be sure to head over there and check out what I've been doing.

Besides the business things I've been doing I've also started physical therapy for some pain that I've been having.  I've had life long knee pain, but my hip has gotten particularly bad in the last two years, and the tendinitis in my shoulder is not really improving.  Hopefully some strengthening and stretching will help.  Really want to get back to my yoga, but it's been pretty uncomfortable with all the pain.  Soon I hope.

So, that's what is up with me.  Just wanted to update you all.  If you are interested in hearing from my a little more regularly you can check out my facebook page, where I post pictures and status updates about how things are going.  Also for all my facebook fans there is a giveaway going on that you have till Wednesday to enter.  You should check it out. :)

*Sneeze*

A celtic cabled hat that I've been working on.

So I have a cold, and I haven't blogged in two weeks.  The cold came upon me earlier this week.  Before that I was experiencing some stress that really isn't important, but kept me distracted and made me not feel well.

Last Monday as I was lining up shots for Etsy products and blog posts, I dropped my camera.  It ended up being repairable, but about 12 hours of stress took it's toll on my body.  The rest of the week I focused on resting up as friends of ours got married over the weekend.  I was in pretty good health and had a wonderful time at the wedding.

By the time I recovered from wedding festivities I came down with a cold, almost right in the middle of planning this weeks blog posts.  I was at the coffee shop and everything, had my computer, was drinking my latte and chatting with a friend.  Then BAM I felt horrible.  I retreated to my bed immediately where I spent the next 48 hours.

Now I'm experiencing a little of the manic phase I talk about here.  I haven't slept so I really don't have the mental faculties for Links, Likes, and Love or any other kind of post.  But thought I should update and say howdy.

This is life with chronic illness, and I just try to take it as it comes.

Add It To the List

I have another diagnosis/injury to add to the list.  I think I've mentioned my shoulder pain here, but I certainly have been talking about it on Twitter and Facebook.

It's been going on for about six weeks now, and hurts especially when I crochet, knit, type, etc.

I went to the doctor this afternoon and she has diagnosed it as rotator cuff tendinitis.  She said it's a pretty common injury, and happens with many professions.  Basically anything that I do in front of me aggravates it.
She gave me a shot of cortisone in the joint and I plan on resting it for another week or so.  Been doing the icing and the constant taking of NSAIDS.  Also important is to keep movement in it and doing some shoulder exercises, so I plan on being vigilante at that as well.

I'm going a little bonkers however.  My pain first flared when I was working on a knitting project, and since then have not been able to do much.  For the last 5 years I've been crocheting or knitting almost daily for several hours a day.  It's what kept me sane in my sickest months, and has provided some great gifts and even a little bit of income.

I really don't want this to become a chronic problem, so here I am, resting it as much as possible and trying to find other things to do.  I've been reading a lot, and I guess that's what I plan on doing for a few more weeks.  Will be getting to the library very soon.

Will try to keep creating blog posts, and hopefully I can come up with some kind of creative content while my crafting takes a rest.

Wordless Wednesday: Vacation

Saturday's Spinach Smoothie

For the last few weeks I've been enjoying spinach smoothies as a snack and sometimes as a meal replacement.  With my gastritis I wasn't eating a whole lot in general and it was becoming clear to me that I was not getting enough vegetables in my diet.  I did a bit of googling and found a few tips on making spinach smoothies.

I don't really think there is a particular science to smoothies, more of a personal preference.  So I thought I would give you an idea of what I have been doing to make my spinach smoothies, and maybe you can try too.

We have an immersion blender that I love, it makes smoothie making quick and easy with very little clean up.

To start, Ryan and I keep frozen fruits in the freezer pretty much all the time for the purpose of smoothie making.  We always have frozen bananas, as well as what's on sale in the grocery or we are often given berries when they are in season.  What Ryan does is cut them up (if they are larger fruits) and sets them on a try in the freezer to freeze.  Once they are hard, he pours them into a zipper bag and they are individually frozen pieces of fruit.  You can also buy pre-frozen fruit at the grocery.

What I put into today's smoothie:

• One large handful of spinach
• Between 1/2 and 1 cup of cold water
• I then blended up the spinach and water to make sure it is evenly blended
• 2 tablespoons of unsweetened apple sauce, I find this gives it a little bit of sweetness, a small amount of juice would work as well
• About a half of a frozen banana
• A few chunks of frozen pineapple

Then I blended it until it was a smooth consistency and poured it into my glass.  I've gotten to the point where I can eye ball the ingredients in the mixing cup to know just how much I need for one glass, but if you have leftovers I think they may last ok in the fridge for a little while.  Also I like to use a straw, I always feel like I have a smoothie mustache other wise.

If you are worried about not liking spinach, I can tell you that for the most part this smoothie tastes like the fruit that you put in it.  I suppose that if you have a serious aversion to spinach it may be a turn off, but I don't think spinach has that much flavor when it's uncooked.  Don't knock it until you've tried it.

So I'll hope you'll give it a chance.

For those who are already in the know, what are your favorite smoothie ingredients?

Rainy Days and Mondays

I'm sure I've used that title before, because really how can you not when it's raining on Monday.  Things this weekend were pretty quiet.  I'm dealing with shoulder pain that is most likely from overuse. Which normally I wouldn't think it would be possible to over use anything with the fibro and fatigue, but it hurts when I crochet, knit, and draw.  Three things I've been doing a lot of lately.  I'm not sure if it's a real injury or just a new addition to the Fibromyalgia pains.  I thought maybe over the weekend I should see the doctor, but I may just wait it out.  Icing and taking muscle relaxers seem to help it quite a bit, and I'm resting it as much as possible.  But sometimes it's just so hard to sit still.

Right now I'm at Stauf's, drinking an iced latte.  I've cut most caffeine out of my diet to heal my gastritis in my stomach.  The more active I am, the better I do with a little caffeine in my system.  I've gone from drinking 7 plus Diet Pepsi's a day to maybe a coffee, or a pop, or a tea every other day or so.  I think it's a pretty good change.  When I have a headache the caffeine actually helps now, and I'm such a big fan of water.  I'll post about my Sodastream soon.  I chose a latte today because it seems to be the most satisfying for me.  I drink it slower than iced coffee or an iced chai.

Some things that you can look forward to this week on the blog:

• Pictures, information, and links to my new t-shirt designs.  Hand drawn designs of my favorite things.
• Another post about "I Found it on Pinterest"
• And on Friday more Links, Likes, and Love

The picture above is from a few weeks ago, I'm actually sitting here listening to "Electric Avenue" because I switched computer bags and forgot my headphones.  Luckily, usually the music selection is pretty good and eclectic.

Until later!

New Diagnosis

It's been a bit since I've written, more or less because I've felt like crap and have a hard time telling you awesome things when there really isn't that much awesome to tell.

I do have answers though, and that is something to celebrate.  Last week my mom came to visit and I went in for my EGD, which was an endoscopy of my upper digestive system.  It was an interesting experience which included me being partly awake and gagging hardcore while the scope was taking a look around.  The long and short of it is that I have gastritis, which is an inflammation of the lining of the stomach.  There are also complicated terms about what's going on in my esophagus, but what you need to know is that it's being treated

I've had to cut out mondo amounts of good tasty things from my diet.  I miss potato chips horribly, and as for my decade long love affair with Diet Pepsi, that is pretty much over.  I'm not feeling better yet, but I'm hopeful, which is all I can be.

While Mom was here we did a lot of other fun things as well.  Ryan and I celebrated our Seventh wedding anniversary on June 25th and Mom bought us our gift on her visit.  It's a Sodastream that allows you to carbonate and flavor your own water at home.  So far I am loving it.  Pre-gastritis diagnosis I was drinking carbonated water with lemon juice.  Now that citrus is off the menu we bought some water flavors without any sweeteners in them.  VERY TASTY.  I have plans to take pretty pictures of sparkling water and fruit, but probably not today.

We also went to the Grandview Farmer's Market and bought some very tasty veggies.  I took Mom for a short walk on the Scioto Mile, and we spent some time at the Grandview pool.   Mom also bought a couple books at Half Price Books before her trip home.  It was nice to spend time with her, as it had been since Christmas.  Was sad to see her leave.

I haven't been doing much on the creating and selling front, but I have some things planned for the fall as long as I start to heal and do not get any more sick.  So even when I'm not creating I'm always thinking about what I'll be doing next, keep a look out!

Blue Skies

Just a reminder to myself, and others too, that this weather does get better and there will be blue skies again.  This is a picture I took from my fire escape yesterday afternoon.

Rain, Sleet, Snow

The weather sucks, and after having such a great week it's really kind of a let down.  When the weather gets liket his I feel like crap and my pain is heightened.  So, here I am in a ho hum mood with not a whole lot going on.  I have some crochet orders to fill, but again with the pain it's not so easy.

Not sure what I'm going to do to cheer myself up, but I am sure I will think of something.  Perhaps some hot tea and a warm blanket, or perhaps just a nap.  If all else fails I will break out my coloring book and crayons.

What are some of your go-to cheer up techniques?

Embracing Life with Chronic Pain (Part 2)

This second part is about steps I'm taking to embrace this life that I've been blessed with. You can read the first part here.

Now that you know a little bit about my history with chronic pain, I want to move on to the real reason I’m writing, which is how I plan on coping with the pain, moving on, and embracing life.  2011 has already brought a lot of changes and challenges for me which I’ve been so excited to share with you here.  I bought my awesome new domain, revamped my blog, opened up the Etsy shop, and was contracted to teach classes.  This has all been part of me stretching out and beginning to embrace my life with chronic pain.

Embracing Life with Chronic Pain

This is the first part of a series that I'm writing about embracing life.  This post describes some of what my life has been like living with chronic pain thus far.

It is no secret that I struggle with life on a daily basis.  I am almost in constant pain.  The horrible fatigue that plagued me for so long after my fight with pneumonia in 2007 is starting to ease up and I’ve been spending many more hours awake, upright, and often out of the apartment.  Is my chronic fatigue cured?  Probably not.  But it is much less severe and only gets really bad occasionally, especially when I don’t pace myself. 

30 things before 30

2011 is the year that I turn 30 and I've been finalizing a list of 30 things that I would like to do this year.  For the most part they are things I've never done before, and focus around things happening here in Columbus, Ohio. There are a few exceptions to this rule as I do have other tattoos.  I still have to decide upon one more thing, so here is my list of 30 (29) things to do before I turn 30 on December 18, 2011.

Sore Crochet Muscles

I just Tweeted that I was thinking about what to post in my blog because my crochet muscles were too sore to get anything accomplished.  So here I am with a little tid bit about why my muscles are so sore.

There is a lot of stuff I can say about my daily struggle with Fibromyalgia, but often it is hard for me to do so.  There are hundreds of blog posts and articles out there that give a good picture of the chronic condition.  There is also a lot of crap about it out there too.  For the first two years I was ill I read almost everything I could get my hands on, and an equal number of stuff that I read was either irritating or enlightening.

If you are interested in learning the basics, there is some good background information here in my archives.

Dealing with the pain isn't such a struggle these days, I've learned to cope for the most part.  Not saying that I don't have pain, because there isn't a day that goes by that I am not in pain.  So yes, my crochet muscles are sore, and that slows me down a bit.  I  have to lay in bed, and either deal with the pain or take meds that make me nauseated and dopey.  I decided a while ago that RX painkillers were just not for me.  However this kind of makes me feel like a "faker" because I won't take the good stuff.  But honestly it's not all that good too me.  This pretty much speaks to the issues I've been having lately, not physical, but mental.


I feel like I should be doing more, I get down on myself when I have bad days, I am not the person I use to be, and am not yet comfortable with the person I'm becoming.


So that's where I'm at on this crappy rainy winter night.  In pain, not able to be too productive, and feeling like a horrible person because of it.

I'm not really looking for answers tonight, just writing this to raise awareness of what people (including me) can go through on a daily basis.  I'm just one among many trying to make a life for themselves despite the challenges.  I'll leave you with a pretty picture.

Personal Life Update

Hi all!  If you've been reading my blog for a long time, I apologize for all the confusion as of late.  In the beginning of 2011 I am switching things up a bit and taking on some really great projects.

Health wise I'm doing ok.  There are no major health issues looming, just the daily tedium of the Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.  I have to say that tedious is probably a really good word for all of it.  I don't feel sick, but every small task and chore takes everything I have to complete.  The day is just so much more difficult to get through than it use to be.  But I feel better than I have in a long time, so at least there is improvement.

If you haven't noticed by now, "Living in the MidWest" has transformed into "The Pink Woobie" and I'm even sporting my own domain name.  This change came with me finally being able to get my act together and open an Etsy store.
If you don't know, Etsy is a website that sells and promotes handmade items.  For so long people have been telling me how great my stuff is and I've been thrilling loved ones with gifts, so I'm taking the show on the road and selling some of my favorite creations.  You can see what I have to offer by clicking on the "My Etsy" tab above or visiting the shop at Etsy by clicking here.  Please share this with your friends.  I take custom orders, so would LOVE to make something for you.

This past week I also interviewed and was asked to teach some crochet classes at a local handmade consignment shop.  I have three classes scheduled with different projects and skill levels.  I will write an individual post about those so you know how to sign up if you live in Columbus and are interested.  I will also be taking some of my Octopus Beer Cozies over to be sold in the shop.

So that is what is going on here.  I hope you are all well.  Please feel free to leave comments to say hi!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I can honestly say I am totally looking forward to 2011!!  It's the most hopeful I have felt in a long time.  Last year I was getting ready to head back to school and was apprehensive about that decision.  It turned out to not be the right time, but I think I definitely learned a lot more about my limitations and determination.

This year I hope to develop this site more, and get my stuff out there on Etsy.  Also, there is a promising opportunity that I will tell you about when I know more.

Here is a photo of me ringing in the New Year with a great friend!

Have a great 2011 everyone!

So long 2010

Here is the image from this years Christmas card.  I only gave out about a dozen because my addresses are all still stuck in my old computer, so this is what you would have seen if I sent them out.

New great things will be happening in 2011!

Cold/Flu

For the 5 days I have been dealing with one of the worst cases of cold or flu I've had in a long long time.   It started with a sore throat Monday morning and continued to escalate with the usual symptoms (runny nose, cough, headache, fever, body aches) till late last night.  Finally on the down swing of things I believe.  I'm hoping that after I recover from this I will feel well for the next little bit.

It's been about 2.5 years since I learned that I had fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome.  I knew then it wasn't just my imagination that illnesses that were usually no big deal for average healthy people, were way worse for me.  I had known for a long time that unlike some people I could not afford to use "sick" days as personal or fun days, that I needed to save them up because I would always need them because I would always get sick.

Does having this knowledge make spending the week in bed any easier?  No, not really.  But it does give me a little bit of comfort to know that I'm not a wimp, or that I'm not exaggerating when I can't get out of bed because of the common cold.  I just have to take these things as they come, and enjoy my healthy times.

After this past week I am really looking forward to some healthy times.