Chugging along (another update)

Given the absolute shitshow that is US politics right now, let alone “we are still in a pandemic, stupid”, and “there’s a war in Europe, so food and fuel prices have risen because war profiteering is a thing US corporations do really well”, I thought to try for a bit of cheer.

I’ve been stitching along on the #RomancingTheVote pouches, getting ever closer to being done, as you can see from the image at the top. I am really happy how different these all look. I’m using very few fabrics, as I’m limited to what is usable from mostly old work shirts and jeans, but by varying the color of the quilting thread, as well as the design on each piece, I have managed to make each unique.

I am hopeful the recipients will like them, and I’m forever grateful for their understanding and patience.

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After a longer delay than expected, my bruises finally faded, and I was finally able to donate blood on Star Wars day. (If you want to see what my right arm looked like for more than a week, there’s a photo at the end of the post.)

It wasn’t a cake walk (once again, both technicians had to try, until one finally got past the scarring and things got going), but the bruising is minimal. Plus, I was done with that part in half the time it took them to sign me in, poke me, and get things going.

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Since I’m now on wait mode for the next donation window, I went to get my second COVID booster/fourth COVID shot overall, on Cinco de Mayo (why not, says I). I was much more lucky this time around, compared to the first booster ¹. First off, a masked pharmacist (the same competent and lovely woman who gave me the first two shots).

Second, she actually read my records, and asked if I wanted to get the shingles vaccine and the TDAP booster too. (I have been wanting to get the shingles vaccine for years, but between one thing and another). I said I would, but that I thought I needed a prescription for my insurance to cover them.

So, to her computer she went again, and lo, THE THREE SHOTS WERE COVERED.

Third, she took the time to talk to me about the potential complications of three vaccines on the same day (and shoulder, because sleeping on a vaccinated shoulder just doesn’t happen, and I already struggle to sleep ²).

Fourth, she made a point of checking on me for the fifteen minutes post-vaccine waiting period, and to give me printed reference materials for any potentially worrisome reaction for any or all of the shots.

Fifth, the shoulder does not hurt as much as with any of the previous shots–it’s probably even less than the pain of a regular flu shot. That’s probably because I have been very diligent in moving the am and shoulder, and taking ibuprofen as needed. Hell, I even had a two-hour or so nap!

I was feeling pretty damn blessed until oh, ten or eleven last night, when I started getting chills, a low-grade fever, joint aches, and a slightly tight throat (not sore, but like the muscles are straining a bit). And you know what? Considering the shock I gave my immune system, I’m pretty damn blessed.

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Still no reading this week, but a lot of thinking about old books, blogging, reviews, and integrity. I hope to put something coherent down and perhaps post it next week (for the curious, I’ve been thinking about such a post since May 2012–that draft will likely never see the light of day, but having it to look at has helped figure out what I would like to talk about now).

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Finally, I’ve settled on THE PHOTOGRAPH, a 2020 film, for May’s #RomancelandiaMovieNight, to happen next Saturday, May 14th, at 9:00pm Eastern. (Beware a perhaps too-detailed plot summary at the link.) Since Willa is now exclusively on Mastodon, I’m likely going to cross-post to both places. (The movie is currently available as a ‘free with ads’ selection through the z*n.)

It’s now very late (or really, really early), and I’m finally feeling sleepy again, so here’s to everyone reading: take care of yourselves. The fight is for the long haul, so take breathers as necessary: make your rage sustainable, so your labor/time/money is not fruitlessly spent in one burst even before the battle is engaged.

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¹ Here’s a link to the twitter thread, but the short version: went to get my shot on December 10, the pharmacist who administered it had his whole nose over a very loose mask; I started to feel like utter shit within two days. By the time I got my hands on home test kits, the result on two consecutive days was negative. Long story less long, I was ill for weeks (cough, brain fog, exhaustion), with varying degrees of symptom discomfort until about mid-February.

Was it COVID? Maybe (perhaps even likely), though I’ve heard of people who had just as strong a reaction to the third shot, and since I never felt bad enough to consider the ER, I just dealt with it. Can I ever be sure either way? I doubt it–between DeathSantis wanting to keep reported numbers down in FL, and the Biden administration lack of leadership on THE single most devastating public health crisis of a century…well.

² Insomnia has been an increasingly debilitating issue for a few years now, but the latest, ongoing bout, has been brutal–I’m lucky if I manage four or five hours of sleep in any 24 hour period, for over a month. I can’t afford to make my only reliable sleeping position uncomfortable, so all the shots had to go on my right shoulder.

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The bruise is about two inches across, and while neither puncture site was painful–or really, even tender–the technicians told me to wait until they were fully gone for at least a week.