Ever felt like a bump on the couch? Like that you were mostly on this Earth to keep the couch company and maybe dust some stuff off and wash some other stuff once in a while? I did for a while, but as I get out and about more, I am realizing that I have big dreams and plans. Like BIG.
I live in Northern California, land of the Starbucks and the "smoke" shop. I am actually sitting at a Starbucks right now. In SEBASTOPOL even. Next to a smoke shop. I am breaking Wild West Rule #1 and sitting with my back to the door (so I don't get too horribly distracted). Although the ladies sitting over there talking about who has died lately is sort of interesting. Mostly because I haven't recognized any of the names.
ANYway, back to the dreams and plans. First on the agenda: I want to go to CHP school and get my lights and siren for my vehicle, my tazer, and most of all, MY TICKET BOOK. Then I am going to sit outside El Molino High School and give really expensive tickets to all those idiots that drive around like they are the only vehicle in the world even though it is dropping-off-at-school time. Guess who would get the most tickets? You probably think I want to ticket the holy horsefeathers out of those teen aged drivers, but you would be wrong. It's their parents, or whoever drops them off that need some freaking tickets!! Then I would start a campaign. I am not sure of the title, but it would be something like, "If you insist on driving like the King or Queen of Douchebagistan, don't do it in a tiny little car!" My poor truck almost got a Prius stuck in it's grill this morning, and it's embarrassing to drive around like that all day...
Then I think I want to buy a "smoke shop" and call it what it really is. The name would be, "Paraphernalia Shop That Sells Some Cigarettes." (Hey dude, just because you are sitting in the corner doesn't mean I can't see you picking your nose...oh wait, eyes back to the screen, Melissa!) Smoke Shop...whatever hippies. That's kind of like the Garden Supply Store...
Well shoot, the ladies next to me are talking about their now dead dogs having seizures, and ripped the Kleenex that was my Big Dreams and Plans right out of my head. But that's OK, because I can really do a lot with this list...and the ladies are now talking about gorillas, so I have to go...
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Can't be Funny all the Time...AntiDepressants
I am not sure how I should start this, but it's a story that needs to be told, so here goes...
We have established that the last year and a half hasn't been the easiest for me to deal with. Whatev, it happens to everyone from time to time. Constantly waiting for the bottom to drop out (again) was making me tense all the time, and so I became one of those people that got anxiety attacks. OK, I have been one of those people since the bus hippie days (fight with my best friend, who was also my landlord, mostly because we were too stupid to see that our boyfriends at the time had serious issues, ended up moving into a hippie bus and that's where I discovered that I was too redneck for the hippies, lost just about everything, but got it back thanks to my parents and my 3 jobs...anyway...). THIS battle, however, became a thing I had to deal with almost daily, as opposed to bi-monthly-ish. I had also recently gotten most of my interior female organs removed, which one would think would put a hitch in your giddy up, or a bitch, whatever...
So I went to the Doctor, who once again decided that I was depressed and prescribed something for that. The first set was Celexa, I think. WOW! Let's just say they weren't exactly compatible with my system, and I didn't feel better, then one day...how do I put it delicately?? Some stuff got broken. Really really broken. Luckily no one was home to witness my tantrum, because it was really really stupid, but borderline really really serious. So we decided that we needed to change the pills. Well, not WE, but you know what I mean.
Unfortunately, I guess it never occurred to anyone, including me at the time, that my life had simply hit a rough patch, and quite frankly SUCKED. Of course I was sad, bummed, freaked out, pissed off, all of that!! So I get to take a pill for that instead of trying to fix stuff? There was no question in the Doc's mind that my lone ovary could do the job of two with ZERO effect on my sense of well being, so let's not check that, let's take this pill. Well guess what?? The PILL didn't get BF a job, or a new battery for my truck, or the bills paid, or whatever else came up that needed to be unsucktified, WE did that. Hindsight is cool...
NOW, because of a paperwork snafu, I had to go off these pills, rather suddenly. I had wanted to anyway, but was going to try to stick it out the full year, as the Doc had suggested, and I most certainly DIDN'T want to go off them cold turkey!! But I did, and let me tell you what...It's pretty rough!!! It's been about two weeks, and I am still dealing with crap, some of it is even getting worse. Like I am not allowed to sleep anymore, for some reason. And I think it's called vertigo, that delightful feeling that you stepped in a hole and are going to fall, but you really didn't step in a hole? And headaches, oh boy, doozie headaches that hit you like a 2X4, all of a sudden and HAAAAAAAARD. And what was I just talking about??? Oh yeah, side effects. I can't remember a freaking thing half the time. In the middle of a conversation something happens and I forget what we were talking about. It's like the conversation is a Kleenex, and someone comes and pulls that idea right out of the box and it's gone...
So I say, if the Doctor says, "Here, take these," before you just fill the prescription, think about it. Do you think you are depressed because you have depression, or are you depressed because your life hit a rough patch? Will these pills fix whatever is upsetting you, or would winning the lottery fix it, or getting a puppy, or a night out with the girls, or my personal favorite, punching someone in the face? And keep in mind that I had gone in for severe back pain once or twice, and came out with the suggestion of antidepressants. And the reaction to all my other symptoms was sort of, "Bummer."
Just be careful and make sure it's actually worth taking antidepressants. If they will help, great, if not...well, it sucks to start them, and it SUCKS to stop them. My family has been awesome, because I haven't been able to drag my ass out of bed lately either, so they have been picking up some slack. THANK YOU R AND M!!!
It used to be pain pills the Doctors would throw at you like beads at Mardi Gras. Now it's these...and I don't think there is a Black Market for them. Or is there?
We have established that the last year and a half hasn't been the easiest for me to deal with. Whatev, it happens to everyone from time to time. Constantly waiting for the bottom to drop out (again) was making me tense all the time, and so I became one of those people that got anxiety attacks. OK, I have been one of those people since the bus hippie days (fight with my best friend, who was also my landlord, mostly because we were too stupid to see that our boyfriends at the time had serious issues, ended up moving into a hippie bus and that's where I discovered that I was too redneck for the hippies, lost just about everything, but got it back thanks to my parents and my 3 jobs...anyway...). THIS battle, however, became a thing I had to deal with almost daily, as opposed to bi-monthly-ish. I had also recently gotten most of my interior female organs removed, which one would think would put a hitch in your giddy up, or a bitch, whatever...
So I went to the Doctor, who once again decided that I was depressed and prescribed something for that. The first set was Celexa, I think. WOW! Let's just say they weren't exactly compatible with my system, and I didn't feel better, then one day...how do I put it delicately?? Some stuff got broken. Really really broken. Luckily no one was home to witness my tantrum, because it was really really stupid, but borderline really really serious. So we decided that we needed to change the pills. Well, not WE, but you know what I mean.
Unfortunately, I guess it never occurred to anyone, including me at the time, that my life had simply hit a rough patch, and quite frankly SUCKED. Of course I was sad, bummed, freaked out, pissed off, all of that!! So I get to take a pill for that instead of trying to fix stuff? There was no question in the Doc's mind that my lone ovary could do the job of two with ZERO effect on my sense of well being, so let's not check that, let's take this pill. Well guess what?? The PILL didn't get BF a job, or a new battery for my truck, or the bills paid, or whatever else came up that needed to be unsucktified, WE did that. Hindsight is cool...
NOW, because of a paperwork snafu, I had to go off these pills, rather suddenly. I had wanted to anyway, but was going to try to stick it out the full year, as the Doc had suggested, and I most certainly DIDN'T want to go off them cold turkey!! But I did, and let me tell you what...It's pretty rough!!! It's been about two weeks, and I am still dealing with crap, some of it is even getting worse. Like I am not allowed to sleep anymore, for some reason. And I think it's called vertigo, that delightful feeling that you stepped in a hole and are going to fall, but you really didn't step in a hole? And headaches, oh boy, doozie headaches that hit you like a 2X4, all of a sudden and HAAAAAAAARD. And what was I just talking about??? Oh yeah, side effects. I can't remember a freaking thing half the time. In the middle of a conversation something happens and I forget what we were talking about. It's like the conversation is a Kleenex, and someone comes and pulls that idea right out of the box and it's gone...
So I say, if the Doctor says, "Here, take these," before you just fill the prescription, think about it. Do you think you are depressed because you have depression, or are you depressed because your life hit a rough patch? Will these pills fix whatever is upsetting you, or would winning the lottery fix it, or getting a puppy, or a night out with the girls, or my personal favorite, punching someone in the face? And keep in mind that I had gone in for severe back pain once or twice, and came out with the suggestion of antidepressants. And the reaction to all my other symptoms was sort of, "Bummer."
Just be careful and make sure it's actually worth taking antidepressants. If they will help, great, if not...well, it sucks to start them, and it SUCKS to stop them. My family has been awesome, because I haven't been able to drag my ass out of bed lately either, so they have been picking up some slack. THANK YOU R AND M!!!
It used to be pain pills the Doctors would throw at you like beads at Mardi Gras. Now it's these...and I don't think there is a Black Market for them. Or is there?
Monday, January 2, 2012
New Year's Eve
I realized this year that I haven't really gone out on a New Year's Eve without being the bartender in I don't know how long. And it's been at least a coon's age since I have even BEEN a bartender (without a golf cart anyway)...
So last night, there was no way we were sitting at home, so we wandered down the hill to The Holey Cow because we were enticed by the delicious sounding Community Dinner. As it turns out, it wasn't only delicious sounding, I was actually thinking about licking my plate...but we hung out with Jamie and her daughter Lily for a bit, the grownups toasted the Old Year while the kiddo did dishes, and it was the beginning of a pretty epic night, but not epic like in the olden days...and I don't even know what that means, so don't ask...
Then we dragged our fat and sassy butts up the hill, got the truck and headed to Northwood, or The 'Wood, as we call it when we need to sound extra cool. The Thugz were playing. HippieFest, Northwood edition. YES!!!
So we walked in and looked around for a bit. It was quite a crowd. One of the first people we saw was my pal C. He was dancing with his lady, singing all the words like he does...I used to think C was a really serious Thugz fan because he could sing every single word. Then I remembered that The Thugz play a lot of The Dead. A LOT lot. They're kind of known for that...
There's nothing quite like a HippieFest night. That's what we started calling Thugz night a long time ago, by the way. I think I came up with the name, actually...you can tell because it's not terribly creative. None of my nicknames for stuff are...HippieFest, Creepy Tom, Yucky Tom, Visor Boy, Bad Mike ;) You get the picture. But back to HippieFest...there is such an awesomely eclectic crowd ALWAYS, no matter when these people play. Ya got C and his lady, then, I saw Moss. All you locals know who Moss is, even if you don't know you know...he's the guy that is either on a skateboard, a bicycle, or a skateboard with a handle. He's maybe 60ish and likes to color his hair and has a very festive way of dressing every day. But guess what? This was special. This was NYE. Moss was wearing a black cape. Not only that, he knows the rules of wearing one. In the cape wearing rule book it clearly states that if one is wearing a cape, one must allow it to swing in an awesome way when one turns whilst walking...Moss nailed it.
We grabbed some seats and proceeded to people watch and sip our beers. Always the observer, I noticed that white people do this thing on the way to the dance floor. About halfway between wherever they're sitting and the dance floor, they make the dance face (it's different for everyone, but usually is some version of the duck face) and start dancing their way to the dance floor. I've watched a lot of people, and it's usually just us white folks. I do it too. Whether there is music or not. Well of course, soon after that I have to join the fun on the dance floor. BF thinks I laugh at him, but I always giggle the entire time I dance at Hippiefest. Why? Because it is awesome. You have C and his lady. You have BF and me. You have the one creepy dude standing in the middle of the dance floor geebing at everyone cuz he's to drunk to actually dance. You have people in their 70's dancing their butts off, having a groovy time. You have your token dreadlocked hippies, usually barely 21, but having fun. You have a lot of tye dye. You have a lot of different people doing their thing, but having a blast together. No matter what you do or what you look like, you will not be the most eccentric dresser, or the dancer with the oddest rhythm. I don't know if it's like this everywhere, but I have a feeling it isn't and I feel a bit sorry for people that don't get it. Weirdos are totally rad and it was awesome to ring in another new year with my people!!
So last night, there was no way we were sitting at home, so we wandered down the hill to The Holey Cow because we were enticed by the delicious sounding Community Dinner. As it turns out, it wasn't only delicious sounding, I was actually thinking about licking my plate...but we hung out with Jamie and her daughter Lily for a bit, the grownups toasted the Old Year while the kiddo did dishes, and it was the beginning of a pretty epic night, but not epic like in the olden days...and I don't even know what that means, so don't ask...
Then we dragged our fat and sassy butts up the hill, got the truck and headed to Northwood, or The 'Wood, as we call it when we need to sound extra cool. The Thugz were playing. HippieFest, Northwood edition. YES!!!
So we walked in and looked around for a bit. It was quite a crowd. One of the first people we saw was my pal C. He was dancing with his lady, singing all the words like he does...I used to think C was a really serious Thugz fan because he could sing every single word. Then I remembered that The Thugz play a lot of The Dead. A LOT lot. They're kind of known for that...
There's nothing quite like a HippieFest night. That's what we started calling Thugz night a long time ago, by the way. I think I came up with the name, actually...you can tell because it's not terribly creative. None of my nicknames for stuff are...HippieFest, Creepy Tom, Yucky Tom, Visor Boy, Bad Mike ;) You get the picture. But back to HippieFest...there is such an awesomely eclectic crowd ALWAYS, no matter when these people play. Ya got C and his lady, then, I saw Moss. All you locals know who Moss is, even if you don't know you know...he's the guy that is either on a skateboard, a bicycle, or a skateboard with a handle. He's maybe 60ish and likes to color his hair and has a very festive way of dressing every day. But guess what? This was special. This was NYE. Moss was wearing a black cape. Not only that, he knows the rules of wearing one. In the cape wearing rule book it clearly states that if one is wearing a cape, one must allow it to swing in an awesome way when one turns whilst walking...Moss nailed it.
We grabbed some seats and proceeded to people watch and sip our beers. Always the observer, I noticed that white people do this thing on the way to the dance floor. About halfway between wherever they're sitting and the dance floor, they make the dance face (it's different for everyone, but usually is some version of the duck face) and start dancing their way to the dance floor. I've watched a lot of people, and it's usually just us white folks. I do it too. Whether there is music or not. Well of course, soon after that I have to join the fun on the dance floor. BF thinks I laugh at him, but I always giggle the entire time I dance at Hippiefest. Why? Because it is awesome. You have C and his lady. You have BF and me. You have the one creepy dude standing in the middle of the dance floor geebing at everyone cuz he's to drunk to actually dance. You have people in their 70's dancing their butts off, having a groovy time. You have your token dreadlocked hippies, usually barely 21, but having fun. You have a lot of tye dye. You have a lot of different people doing their thing, but having a blast together. No matter what you do or what you look like, you will not be the most eccentric dresser, or the dancer with the oddest rhythm. I don't know if it's like this everywhere, but I have a feeling it isn't and I feel a bit sorry for people that don't get it. Weirdos are totally rad and it was awesome to ring in another new year with my people!!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)