last day of summer
the weather should start getting cooler. time to get my jackets and coat cleaned and drag out my sweaters and corderoys.

it's funny, just as you get tired of the weather, the seasons change. i'm tired of the cold when spring comes and ready for the cooler climes as summer comes to a close. i think i would get bored living in an area where it's always hot or always cold.
the cooler temps will make ken happy. the man must have been a polar bear in a previous life. either that or it's his danish heritage on his mom's side. he loves winter.

right now, you'd hardly know that summer was ending, it's that hot out. it's like the season is trying to get every last bit of heat in before the season changes.

i've been busy. mostly at work or visting ken. weekends are mostly spent out on lake norfork with ken and his folks, before it gets too cold. they will still go out in the fall for the retriever, goldie. she like to go fishing as much as the lab, lucky, but she's so sensitive to the heat. this will let her enjoy the fun, too. i don't fish, but i find plenty to do: read, play my game boy and draw.

speaking of drawing, i'm currently penciling page 11 of blue canary. i found a routine that is working. instead of bringing a book to work to pass the time on my lunch break, i draw. when i visit ken and he's working on his 3D portfolio, i draw.
the speed at which i complete pages has slowed, but i'm still plugging along. i believe i messed up my stride when mom got sick earlier this month. i have all of chapter one's layout in thumbnail sketches. chapter 2 is completely scripted and i'm working on scripting chapter 3.

poor mom. 8^( she has some swallowing problems. sometimes things she eats get "hung up" in her throat. they never block her airway or anything, but it's uncomfortable. well this time it was a doozy! it blocked and mom couldn't shake it loose by walking. she hadn't eaten or had anything to drink for 2 days when she called me from the e.r. to ask if i could bring her a blanket. the hospital ones were too thin and she was cold.
i could tell she was upset. this one scared her i think, or at least it scared me! they couldn't find a blockage either. they put in an i.v. to hydrate her at least. they released her and she saw her regular doctor the next day. the verdict? the doc thought it was bad acid reflux but wanted a scope to be sure. that was scheduled for the next day, much to mom's frustration. she didn't want to wait.
the doc gave mom some new acid reflux meds that dissolve on the tongue and sent her home. the stuff helped! mom was able to get some water down finally.
the procedure went well the next day. they dialated her esophagus and spotted a small hernia near her stomach. 8^( otherwise, she was fine.

she crashed at my place the entire time. i was glad to help. it felt like it was time to start paying mom back for all the e.r. visits and doctor's appointments she been through with me.
i also carted her to the doctor and to the hospital. i missed some work to be with her, but tracy said i could use sick time to cover it. 8^) she's a sensible one, that tracy at work. that's why i like her.
mom is home now, taking it easy. she is back at work, but went on a soft food diet for a week or so, just in case. in fact, mom was getting desperate for food, but kept her sense of humor about it. she kidded the doctor about wanting to drink ensure.
"you know you're sick if you want to drink that stuff," joked mom.
the doctor laughed and agreed.
so, when she was done with the scope, i went to get some popsicles for her throat and then to sam's to pick up a case of the nasty-tasting ensure, at her request.
mom later felt up to driving home. i followed her, just in case. you're not supposed to drive after one of those scopes. mom did wait until evening, but i was shocked she wanted to try it. i thought she would have stayed another night.
on my way back home, mom called on my cell. she was shocked because the ensure tasted like slim fast, which was an improvement.

let me see if i can remember what else has happened since my last post:

• i have a new battery for my car. the dealership wanted $130 to $150 for a new one one. 0.o um...no! dad got one for $75 and replaced it himself. it's nice to have a mechanic for a dad.
  
• after that, the a/c on my car would only blow hot air. i finially scheduled some time to take it to the dealership. the problem? my compressor is kaput. luckily, that part, unlike my lately departed battery, is under warranty. woo hoo! the part is on order and they should be able to install it next week. of course by then, the weather will have cooled down. *sigh* i guess you could say my a/c is 2w55 for the moment. 8^)P
• i'm playing golden sun on my game boy when i'm at the lake. i'm currently at suhalla dessert in the game. i try not to play it too much at home because i have drawing to do. i also got copies of the legend of zelda: link's awakening dx and tetris worlds to have something else to play when on the lake. i like game stores that sell used games. it makes me happy. 8^) i will admit that i have gotten stuck in golden sun and have turned to an online walkthrough. *hides* i feel so ashamed! believe it or not. i used to be a nintendo freak in... well, you would call it jr. high. our high school was 7th through 12th grades. anyhow, i loved video games, even though i couldn't afford many game cartridges and wasn't very good playing them. they still have the ability to take over all my free time, so if i want to get any progress made on blue canary, i try to limit it to lake play only.
• dad and carter made steaks last saturday 8^) yummy! dad got a sweet potato to go with mine and i have never seen one this large. "and this was the small one," dad told me. o.0 yikes.
  
• i visited with caroline some last sunday. it was good to see her again, it's been too long! maybe she and i can get some girl time in this weekend.
• i saw another luna moth at ken's parents house monday night. it was fluttering in a oak tree in the backyard.
• i've been downloading and listening to the gigcast. 8^) hey, jo's in it! cool. i'm enjoying it.
• ken's making changes on the opening title sequence for jodain.
• i've had a muscle twitch on my right eyelid since monday that's buggin' the fire outta me! *grumbles* at least it's not as bad as it was on monday.
• still drawing blue canary. anyone know a good colorist who willing to work for free? i'll give them full credit for their work and portfolio rights! (they have permission to use those pages in their coloring portfolio as long as they don't try to claim my drawings as their's.) or what about someone who good with digital manga tones? same deal applies.
• at work it looks like i'll be becoming the assistant A/R girl who just happens to be able to design things. 9.9 oy. this is frustrating me!
• it's payday! too bad most of it is going to be spent on october's rent and a college loan payment. 8^( i hate being poor.
  
• after a couple of month abstinence, i've resumed reading books for fun. see my book blog for details on what. these can take a good chunk of my time too, just like video games which is why i haven't been reading much lately.

ok, kit out.