Christina's PCOS Blog

2003-05-06T06:25:00.000-04:00

So, I turned in the revisions, at least this far, of the diss. Sigh....

Now, I am working on my defense presentation and feel that I am making some headway in that area. I think I am going to talk about blurring vison and Magic Eye and bring in one for example. Don't know.

I got up because I couldn't sleep and now I am dreadfully sleepy.

Been thinking a lot about names for blogs...Blogging to Byzantium (famous writer, blush), Blogging to Cambodia (Spalding Grey), Blogging to California (Pink).

2003-05-01T21:14:00.000-04:00

This bicycling thing is really working out for us. I hope that we can continue riding. I can't believe that I could weigh this much (300+) and still find such a comfortable ride. I feel really good when I am done and hopefully, all this riding will improve my performance in the pool. I would like to swim faster. I can already swim around 12 Olympic-sized laps, but I would like to swim more.

2003-04-29T22:45:00.000-04:00

Nick and I bought new bikes today. Our old ones....well, we needed new ones. Anyway, we both got Diamondbacks...Wildwood. They are both really nice bikes. The nicest bike I have ever owned, actually, so I am all about that. We both have been wanting to get back to riding, but we haven't really had the time or the inclination, so perhaps this with swimming will help with the PCOS.

2003-04-26T17:26:00.000-04:00

Getting ready to get started on my stuff for revising my disseration and I am popping into the blog to prepare myself. It is amazing how I always used e-mail as a form of prewriting, but I am finding blogging to be even better, because I can write whatever I want for however long I want.

I am enjoying a cold glass of double chocolate stout with my husband Nick. It is way better than it sounds. Very smooth. I might as well drink up now, because if I am going to go back on Glucophage this fall as I have planned, I am going to have to give up drinking altogether once again. Just too many risks to the liver.

2003-04-19T13:11:00.000-04:00

My Easter Blog.

I was sad and relieved to hear that they found Laci Peterson and her son Connor's bodies. I know that it must be horrible for the Rocha family, but now, at least, they know. I hope that whoever did it, whether it be her husband or not, explains why he or she could do such an awful, horrible thing. I am glad that they will be trying the person for a double homicide, instead of just for one murder. Two human beings died here, not just one. There are a number of things that remain unknown in this case and hopefully some of those things will be solved in the coming weeks.

On a lighter note, I am going back to Moundsville, West Virginia today to see my family. It is only a short trip, about two and a half hours, so we are living today and coming back late tomorrow night. I have to see my nephews and my mom and dad, since I have no idea when I will get to see them again.

So, it is the day before Easter. I had really hoped to go to the Easter Vigil at Church tonight, but we decided at the last minute to go home. I really miss my church and feel like I need to go back soon, but have needed the time, the separation to think about things.

2003-04-17T22:09:00.000-04:00

Watched a lot of movies in the past few days. I get on those kind of kicks and I usually do marthon movie watching. I watched Kiki's Delivery Service by acclaimed writer/director Hayao Miyazaki. He aslo did My Neighbor Totoro, which is one of the best movies I have ever seen. I have a huge totoro wallhanging in my living room. It is a must-movie. Kiki's Delivery Service was good, but lacked the punch of My Neighbor Totoro. Kiki is a 13-year old witch who leaves home in order to find her own identity as a witch. One of the highlights of the move is Kiki's talking cat played by Phil Hartman.

I also watched another movie, Spirited Away, which has to be one of the very best movies of all time. The animation is brilliant, the story-line is intense, and nothing is predictable. It is not suitable for young children, because it is frightening in many parts, but it is well worth the rent if you want to watch a movie that keeps you excited until the end. It was one of those movies that you are sad is over.

I also watched the new Harry Potter movie. It was good, but also frightening. Honestly, Spirited Away was better. Last night, we bought a double dvd, El Mariachi and Desperado, which both rock. If you have not seen these two movies, you need to, especially side by side.

In other news, the PCOS chat last night was a bust, because my server kept failing. I am scheduling a new PCOS chat for this coming Tuesday from 7-8 pm.

2003-04-15T10:13:00.000-04:00

I was just reading about how All My Children will air their first lesbian kiss, which is the first lesbian kiss on daytime t.v. and I found this really awesome timeline about Lesbians on TV and in movies. If you only watch the news, you would think that Ellen was the first on-screen lesbian ever, but according to this timeline, there have been Lesbians on the airwaves since at least 1978.

2003-04-15T09:47:00.000-04:00

It is just before 10:00 A.M. and I am not at all ready to be up yet. I didn't go to bed last night until after 3, so I haven't had much sleep at all. Yet, here I am blogging sans my Millstone Foglifter. I was up late last night playing Star Trek Uno with Nick and just goofing off. Mostly because I need a break from working, but more because I just felt like goofing off.

In typical PCOS fashion, I woke up feeling not so great, because last night have three tablespoons of Godiva Chocalte Ice Cream with Choclate Hearts. It was fabulous, okay. Build a Jacuuuzzziii, okaaay. I hate this. I mean, my friends can eat just about whatever they want and I splurge once in a while and pay for it by feeling like I am hung over the next day.

I am working on revising my PCOS site this week, no matter what and I am having a live PCOS chat this Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. on my site. I plan to hang out for an hour or so, just to see what happens. I have never held a chat before, but I figured why not. And, this will help other women who are struggling just as much as I am with this crap disease.

2003-04-15T02:29:00.000-04:00

So, yeah, I am having a super bloggerific day! Turned in the last chaps of the diss and am going to revise in the next few days, but first I have to finish the ms for this Bay of Pigs book that I am working on.

2003-04-14T11:39:00.000-04:00

Yeah, so, I forgot to write about this when I was here earlier. Have you ever noticed how damn skinny the Columbia Pictures gal is these days? She is so thin. I am wondering why this is and so I go in search of some information on why her looks were changed. First, I found this site which goes into the history of the Columbia gal. It is very interesting. Although the writer acknowledges her svelt new look, he/she doesn't really talk about the implications for her thinness.

Then, I found this site, which is excellent in analyzing the technical and artistic characteristics of the Columbia gal, but not much more. It is a fascinating look at how this icon was created.

I didn't really find anything else, but then I just began my search. I can smell an academic essay in this somewhere.

2003-04-14T11:16:00.000-04:00

It is around 11:00 am. I tried to make a post before I went to bed last night and Lo and behold! AOL crapped out. It makes me wonder how many of these I will lose over time. I mean, I really don't understand why this keeps happening. It is pretty stupid. I think that they sell themselves too much and have too many customers than they can actually deal with.

Anyway, I am watching Muppets from Space, which has become one of my favorite movies and definetely my favorite Muppet movie, mostly because I love Pepe the Prawn and did not even know that he was in this movie before his Long John Silver's ads. He is so cool, okay.

I am teaching three essays today from Minding the Body, this great book that I use when I teach Women and Writing, which I have been so lucky to do for the past two quarters. Unheard of.

2003-04-13T18:18:00.000-04:00

Well, I just finished editing, or what I call editing, chapter five and I will be giving to my readers tomorrow. I can't help but wonder what will happen to this ms once it is stuck in the library to gather dust. Will I publish it? Part of it? I would like to see parts of chapter three, the PCOS chapterl, get published and maybe parts of chapter one and five, but I don't tknow about the rest. I guess we shall see.

It is so sunny and beautiful out. Now that I have finished I think I am going to take a shower and go outside and play.

2003-04-13T15:00:00.000-04:00

You are not going to believe this, I don't believe it myself, but I finished chapter five. It took me five hours of solid writing, but I think I have a pretty good draft of it done. Woohoo!!!! So, I will be editing it today and turning it in tomorrow afternoon. Once that is done, then I will start revising the whole diss and writing the introduction. Dude, I think I can actually finish this flipping thing! If you would have asked me a month ago if I thought I could finish I would have said no friggin' way, but here I am saving it to three spaces, just to make sure I don't lose it. Yee-haw!

2003-04-13T13:10:00.000-04:00

I have been trying to update my blog all day, but AO freaking L keep screwing with me. I click post and publish and AOL bumps me off line and I lose everything. I cannot wait to get rid of AOL. I hate it, hate it, hate it.

So, what I wrote ealier is that I am working on chapter five....and I don't really like the way it is going, but I am going to finish it and turn it in. Maybe after getting some feedback and not looking at it for a week or two, I will be able to come back to it and figure out a way to go at again. Writing is such a pain.

I wish that the weather was nicer here today. The sun is out and that it an amazing plus, but it is windy and chilly and that is not good. So, I can;t take it outside and write. I can;t even leave the door open, because then the furnace will kick on or it will get to cold in here.

If you are looking for a good laugh, check out these Weight Watcher's recipe cards from 1974 (the year after I was born)...they are hilarious!

2003-04-12T23:32:00.000-04:00

I was just doing some research online about who to see for PCOS once we move to Cincinati this fall and we will actually have insurance, real insurance. This will be the first time I have had good insurance since I was 17 years old! Anyway, there is a doc in Cincy who is a reproductive endocrinologist and an ob/gyn and that is just what I am looking for. I am going to call them on Monday and see about how long in advance that I have to call for an appt. Ideally, I would like to get in and get an appt by October 1. I would really like to be pregnant by by 30th birthday, which is coming up on Halloween this year. So, Nick and I need to get to work on that. I have given up trying to get healthy or lose weight before getting pregnant again. It is ridiculous and it is not going to happen. What I plan to do is go back on Glucophage as soon as I can.

In other news, I am working on the last chapter of my dissertation tonight and tomorrow and I plan to turn the whole thing in on Monday. It will be such a relief. Chapter three focuses on PCOS and femininty and that is really exciting. I loved writing that chapter, even though it was a bit disturbing to realize how much we have to face with this syndrome. My dissertation defense is on May 29 from 1-3 pm. After that, I will have to revise and then turn it in.

2003-04-12T16:54:00.000-04:00

Just got back from a friend of mine's son's birthday party and I had a great time, except that there were, of course, so many kids there and it reminded me of the fact that Nick and I don't have any children. A good from of mine from school was there with her baby and he looked so much like my first child. It was pretty amazing. It was sad and happy at the same time.

All of my friends are having babies right now and it is easier to deal with than it ever has been, but still very hard. I can't help but think of Nicholas and Samantha when I see babies and I can't help but think of my own pregnancies when I see pregnant women, but I guess that is the way the world works for right now.

We plan or trying as soon as I begin my new job in the fall. I know that as long as everything checks out with Nick, then things will go pretty quickly if I take clomid. Of course, the big worry is how to deal with the clotting disorder and find the best medical care possible.

2003-04-12T12:38:00.000-04:00

I have always kept an online journal at my PCOS site, Christina's PCOS Pages, but this blogging thing is new to me and very cool. This is my first blog post and I am plan to do more since Eblogger makes it so easy. Come back and visit often.