Better Living Through Chemistry

Ok, now that I have your attention.


Sorry, I got distracted too.  Anyways.


I've been off the blog for a little while.  Okay, months.


I've been a bit overwhelmed with life this fall, primarily with school.

As I've blogged about previously, I have a VERY full teaching load and with our new schedule, the school day doesn't give my mind much of a chance to "breathe".

By the end of the day, my brain is exhausted and I haven't much been in the mood to blog.  In mid-November we had parent/teacher conferences.  I had meetings with 95 parents over the course of 4 days (in addition to my normal teaching duties).

Mentally, I hit the wall.  Conferences are like being on stage for four hours a night, you have to be "ON!" for the parents and when they are over each night, my brain would just seem to stop.  By Thursday, I think the appropriate word was "numb".

I had noticed that I was a bit more emotional this fall than I had been in the past - reading an article about emotional Pixar moments was making me bawl - so I knew I needed to talk with my doctor.

My doctor and I did talk and he diagnosed moderate depression.  As we were talking about the symptoms, I was thinking, "OMG I've been depressed for 15 years!"

So for the last couple of weeks I have been on medication.  It's a low dose and it'll take about 4-6 weeks to fully build up in my system, but I can already feel it working.  I'm less anxious at work and I'm better able to handle pressure situations.  I've also noticed that I've dropped a few pounds (probably a side effect of not having much of an appetite).

And as a few of you have maybe noticed, my blues affected my blogging.  There just wasn't a "drive" to do it, but over the past few days I've rediscovered my spark and will be working to post on a more regular basis.

Thanks to everyone for hanging in there with me.  To those of you who checked in to see how I was doing, I really do appreciate it.

I missed you Awesome Nerds,
Robert

Out Bobsledder Simon Dunn

This week I discovered Simon Dunn, a member of the Australian Bobsled Team  (don't snicker, if Jamaica can have one, why can't Australia?).

Simon is also a member of the Sydney Convicts rugby team and, he's openly gay.

He's presently in Canada training and is raising funds through a GoFundMe account.  I've made my donation. :-)

Simon is also very active on Instagram.  I've posted a few of my favorite photos below.

I'm looking forward to seeing more of him in the next few years and may need to attend the next Bingham Cup in 2016 when it's held in Nashville.

The Lost Weekend

Happy Labor Day weekend!

Ugh.

I was really looking forward to this weekend after an incredibly busy beginning couple of weeks at school.  Three days off with a few plans and ample time to rest and recuperate.

Until Friday morning arrived.

I went to be on Thursday night feeling perfectly fine, but woke up Friday with sinus pressure and a sore throat.

Crap.

It was too late to get a sub, and we had a special schedule for Friday AND I was giving quizzes to two of my higher ability classes. I kinda had to be there.

It was not a fun day.  I was cranky and irritable, but I did my best to not let it affect my teaching. I'd say I was 90% successful.

At the end of the day I packed up and headed to Wal-Mart. I needed my wonder drug, i.e. Wal-Mart Cold and Sinus (the generic Advil stuff). Of course I forgot to get Powerade, but that's what the hubby is for. :-)

I got home and crawled into bed. We were supposed to go see the Iowa State volleyball team play Stanford.  As soon as Matt got home he took one look at me and said, "you are NOT going". I crashed for the rest of the night.

Saturday wasn't much better - and this was the day that I was really bummed about missing. We were to go to Des Moines for a college football party in the morning and then a bad movie night party in the evening.

Yup, missed both of those by being on the couch feeling miserable.

Sunday I woke up feeling a bit more human, so we attended the Iowa State vs. Florida State volleyball match (we lost 3-0) and then lunch with friends. I was drugged up beyond belief, so at least I felt "normal". I was grateful that I would have Monday off to recover further.

Today I felt about 60%. The congestion in my head has moved south into my chest - yay coughing! I was able to go have lunch with Mom and then work on getting caught up on schoolwork - yay grading!

I told Matt tonight that I felt like this was a wasted weekend. Obviously it was a good thing that I had three full days to work my way through this cold and not have to take sick days from school, but that still doesn't make me feel any better about the "lost" weekend.

Oh well.  There's always next weekend.

Love you awesome nerds.
Robert

300!

It's my 300th Post!!!

My next post will be about what I've been up to for the first couple of weeks of school.

I haven't actually seen the "300" movies, I probably should.

The sequel to the original - "Rise of an Empire" starts Australian actor, Sullivan Stapleton.

Thought I'd post a few photos of this 37 year-old hottie for my 300th entry.

Enjoy.

TMI Questions - Happy Birthday!!!!

 HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

1. Do you enjoy celebrating your birthday (forgetting about the getting older part)?

I'm a bit ambivalent about celebrating my birthday. As I've gotten older, I've put less stock in the actual day and and am happy just getting together with friends for a quiet dinner.  

2. What's your sign and is it accurate?
Libra. 

Libra is among the most sociable of the signs. As scales of old were really "balances," so to do you seek balance in all that Libra does. You respond to situations with grace as Libra attempts to put others at ease. Artistically, Libra tries to balance form, content, colors and elements, and for this reason can be drawn toward creative endeavors. 

Libra know how to be the charming host or hostess. Libra can sense what others want before they ask for it. And you can make the needs of others a higher priority than your own. In fact, Libra is the shuttle diplomats of the zodiac, going back and forth between the extremes until a solution is negotiated. 

Yup, that's me.

3. What's your Chinese zodiac sign and is it accurate?

The Pig, the last sign of the Chinese zodiac, is clear evidence of the old saying, “nice guys finish last.” You are honest, good hearted and present a kindly face to friends and strangers alike. Your affection is genuine, and your love has no bounds. You are usually very chivalrous. Courtesy and generosity are a way of life with you.

Being a social animal you have many opportunities to exhibit those qualities. You tend to be naturally happy, due in no small part because you most often avoid making judgments and see the good side of people. You are no punster, but you probably have a nice, earthy sense of humor. All in all, you are pleasant, cheerful, co operative and normally do well in group situations.

I have to say, it's kinda interesting how both Libra and Pig are similar in their descriptions. So I'd have to say that I agree that it's a good description of me. 

4. Do you celebrate your pet's Birthday?

Don't have a pet, so I'd have to say, no. 

5. What was your best birthday?

Hands down my 40th was my best birthday.  One of my best friends and I were born 1 day apart. He and I had a joint celebration - dinner at a very fancy restaurant. The next night, Matt threw a get together for my birthday with a lot of my friends coming over for a great party. I still have many fond memories of that night. 

6. What was your worst birthday?

My 21st birthday SUCKED! It's the big one for a college student - the day you can officially buy alcohol. I was a senior in college and was anticipating that my best friend would plan some sort of celebration. 

Nothing.  Crickets chirping.

I was beyond pissed. No one remembered my birthday.  I'll be honest, I was crushed.

7. What has been your best age so far?

35. It was a good year (that was the "Jeopardy" year).

8. Birthday cake? Candles?

I'm a whore for cake, so YES, YES, YES!  Candles, well, I don't wanna have to have a fire extinguisher nearby.

BONUS

Is birthday sex expected, a present or a rarity? Do you get spanked?

Never expected, but always appreciated.  And what happens in the bedroom, stays in the bedroom. :-)

Commercials I HATE

I admit it, I watch a lot of television.  A lot more than I really should.

Over the years I've become a bit jaded on commercials.  There are the ones I love - that make sense, that are entertaining.  And then, there are the ones that I HATE!

I'd like to share a few of the ones I can't stand, and why I can't stand them.


Dairy Queen - S'Mores

I hate Hipsters.  Even more, I hate commercials that embrace Hipsters as somehow being cool.  What gets under my skin even more is when they are singing the praises of a Dairy Queen blizzard.

REALLY?!  Ugh

Breyer's Gelato  

The kid's asleep, let's have our ice cream!  Oh no, the kid woke up!  We have to defend ourselves.

Be adults!  Grow a pair and tell the kid to go to bed.  Life ain't fair!

T-Mobile - Samsung Galaxy S5

BUY THE NEW GALAXY S5!

RUN DOWN ALLEYS!  LAUGH HYSTERICALLY!  PLAY THE TRUMPET!  SHIMMY!

CHEST BUMP!  SKYSURF!  HOLD BURNING THINGS IN YOUR HAND!!!

PRETEND TO SUBWAY SURF!

YES!  YOU CAN DO ALL THIS IF YOU OWN THE GALAXY S5!!!!

Really?!  Make it stop.  I think I hate this one most of all.

Ice Bucket Challenge

You've probably seen multiple videos online of people doing the Ice Bucket Challenge.

The basic rules are that, once challenged, a person can either dump a bucket of ice water over their heads, videotape it, and then challenge three other people to do it, or make a donation for ALS research.

Dozens of athletes, celebrities and regular folk have gotten into it.

ESPN ran a story on how the challenge started.  I'm not normally moved by stories like this, but I have to admit, it got to me.