Have Four Minutes?

If you have four minutes (and who can't carve out just four minutes), watch this.  Then come to my house every Sunday night this month to watch the History channel.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wir4fH6hUxw

At The Halfway Point

Today is the halfway point for the elimination diet.  I am glad to say I have not cheated.  (Though I did find out after eating some things that I had accidentally had food that was "not allowed," but it was in very small quantity, so I am not too worried.)

I have been eating a lot of rice over the last week and a half.  Good thing I rather like rice.  I was able to incorporate fish last week and not think it tasted too fishy.  Plenty of beans in the diet right now, too.  I am dying for a cheeseburger, though.  I think I was not cut out to be an herbivore.  I am craving meat - any kind of meat - this week with it being the fruit, veggie, bean and rice week.  That's not all I can have, but that's pretty much how I've interpreted it.  I have had avocados and kiwis up to now.  Today I managed to include broccoli and butternut squash.  Fresh vegetables and fruit are so expensive!  Only a handful more days of meatless meals left to go.  Looking forward to having some more fish and some chicken or turkey (those are allowed in small portions).  I told the chiropractor that the very day after the diet is over, I am going to sit down and eat a pound of beef by myself.  He thought that sounded gross.  I am daydreaming of what form it will be in - ground for sloppy joes or something like that, formed into burgers, meatballs, meatloaf...kinda' don't care.

But the point of the whole thing is to calm down my insides, get rid of toxins, and find out what foods my system just doesn't like.  I'm supposed to be feeling better and better.  Hmm...Am I?  Well, some symptoms have been reduced, it seems, but in general I'm not sure I really feel too different.  But, there is still a week and a half to go, so I suppose that could change.  I need to get some more and different fruits and veggies.  I should be eating more of those anyway.

Grandma Geu

I think the 5 or so of you who actually read my blog I have already told or otherwise already know, but just in case others do who aren't members of the family and haven't heard, my Grandma Geu died last night.  Mom and Uncle Dave were with her.  She was an amazing woman and an excellent role model.  I may have said before, but my penchant for singing in church came from her.  I wish I had visited more often being only about an hour away.  Don't have any details yet about funeral, etc.  It will be good to see all the family.  I think it will make the family reunion this summer much more somber...assuming we have it...which I think Grandma would want.  This is so hard.  :-(

Hanging In There

Some days I feel so old.  Still fighting this upper-respiratory infection crud, meanwhile something has happened to my shoulder/neck.  The chiropractor thinks I've pinched a nerve, but says that (at least the day I saw him) it was so inflamed that it was hard to tell exactly where the injury is.  It is finally calming down...and then it flared up again today, but could be worse.  So basically half my back, plus my neck and my whole left shoulder hurt, hurt, hurt...but could be worse.  I keep thinking if I could shake this crud that has been hanging on to me for a week and a half now, and get some sort of relief from at least some of the pain, I wouldn't feel like I am 60.  The work with the chiropractor should be helping with that though (if I hadn't managed to mysteriously hurt myself without even trying), so I will just be hanging in there.

Yea!

I survived!  In fact, the concert went well.  It was fun and the organist was amazing!  By divine intervention, my voice held out just fine (high notes and everything) through rehearsing for an hour and a half and then another hour and a half of concert.  Even my speaking voice was not too bad.  Then I got home and started coughing and sniffling again.  I woke up several times during the night and the worst of the coughing has moved into my chest.  However, despite the light coughing this morning in church, I even survived that.  The last bit of singing I have this weekend is rehearsal from 3-5.  My voice is tired, but I think I'll be okay for that, too.  I will just need to try to rest it during the week so I am ready to go again next weekend.  At least there are no more concerts until April.  So, thank you, Jesus, for keeping my voice from giving out this weekend with all the singing.  I guess he knows how much I love it.  :-)

Feeling Brave

Still sniffly and coughing and headachey.  But I'm feeling brave.  I got through this morning's rehearsal for tomorrow and  still had a singing voice (though my speaking voice took a hit).  That combined with the medicine doing its job and I think I will be able to survive tonight.  I also went over the music for the concert and again kept a voice.  I will be taking medicine again about an hour before the concert, so it should be keeping me unachey and decongested (more or less) which saves me from the cough (also more or less).  I am looking forward to the singing despite my goofy health.  I will try to sit on the end, though just in case I do start having a coughing fit or some other embarrassing event prompts me to step out.  I am hoping I can have a little bottle of water with me just in case.

...So that's a lot of "just in case" and hoping and praying and adding a "y" to words thus making up my own words.  How's your Corrine-ese?  :-)

Okay.  I'm going to watch this Nova episode about physics and then take a nice hot shower which should also help clear the gunk out and give me another leg up on the singing adventure.  And shouldn't what we enjoy be a bit of an adventure?  Keeps us from getting bored and reminds us to be grateful for that thing.

Bad Timing

This is sucky.  The concert is tomorrow.  I am hoping God imbued Sudafed Cold & Sinus with some sort of magic healing powers because I really need to not be coughing up gunk while trying to sing a G above high C.  I've tried this week to come home from work and not do anything but rest and stay slathered with Vics in the hopes this crud would go away in time for all the music stuff I have scheduled for tomorrow.  I'm thinking things will get interesting with my throat tomorrow.  Fingers crossed and prayers raised that overnight I am the recipient of some divine intervention.  I would be very, very sad if I was too sick to sing tomorrow night. I have hope since there has been some improvement between yesterday and today.  Guess I'll be finding out in a few hours.