Get Your Shine On!

No, not the Jesse McCartney song.  Though it is a nice dance number.  :)

Since seasonal affective disorder has been plaguing me much of my life I've finally decided to stop talking about getting a light box and get one.

Done my research and found a model I like that is in the middle ground on afford-ability and is portable.  I will be able to have it on my desk at work.

The light box I'm ordering later this month is: Verilux HappyLite Deluxe Sunshine Simulator.  Long name but I like the look, the specs and it's well reviewed online.

Then I also stumbled upon alarm clocks that are dawn stimulator.  So I'm going to invest in one of those as well.  I think I want to try the new Phillips model that came out Nov 9.  It's Philips Hf3485 Wake-up Light Plus.

So going to give those products a go.  Plus have started taking some vitamin supplements and changing how I eat.  There's a lot of evidence to support the idea that vitamins help and proper nutrition is super mood changing. Here's a couple links: Vitamins, Diet and Depression, Depression Diet guide from WebMD.

Though the vitamin supplements are still a little controversial I think they are helping me.  Placebo effect if nothing else. :)

Google Chrome

Well, I hate to admit it but I really do like Google Chrome.  I think Google's motto of "Don't Be Evil" masks the fact that the company wants to control the world...and for me it's reminiscent of Microsoft from decades ago. (I'm cool enough for a Mac but I'm a girl on a budget for now.) Of course I think Apple wants to tightly control the world.  Come to think of it, I'm wary of most big conglomerations.  I think they're all bent on ruling the world.

But my email works better on the net book with Chrome.  (IE has issues and I haven't yet downloaded Firefox, which I love on my laptop)  The easy way it keeps my history is cool.  And I have a neat theme...always a bonus.  Hey-I make no apologies; I'm shallow geek. I like stuff that looks good.  The tabs are easy to create, the basic layout is very user friendly and I like the shortcuts I've found.

Hmp. I still think Google is evil though.

:)

Cat Update

So, we're instituting some new rules based on some advice I got from some friends.  No more cats in my bedroom at night.  I need my sleep to function and if I have to use ear plugs to get over their whining at first, so be it. 

Feeding time is a set time or times I guess.  Then the food goes up so no one will try to eat anyone else's food.  And I need to find a way to trim Cleo down.  She's got arthritis (well she is like 12) and I think she would be better off trimmer.  She doesn't do much anyway so she really doesn't need to eat a whole lot.

And I'm getting a water bottle.  When the fight or hiss at each other, they're getting hit with a spray of water.  I've actually seen them legitimatly fight today.  Not cool.  I will not let my life be run by a couple of narcissistic, drama queen cats.  I'm the only one that gets to be a narcissistic drama queen in my apartment. :)

Cats...no not the musical

So I have two cats now.  I used to have one but then I moved in with a girl from church who needed a roommate and I was looking to move to a new place when my lease was up, so it worked out.

Except for the part about her being allergic to cats.

So my ever loving bro and his wife took my cat.  They already had a cat so we hoped they would get along. It was temporary til I got a new place of my own and would take my cat back.  They did not get along well at first but eventually came to a mutual avoidance.  My bro and his wife got a dog, who likes to terroize the cats not long after.
Fast forward 2 1/2 years.  At 2 yrs old, I finally am okay with the dog, but he still terroizes the cats.  Plus my sister-in-law is expecting, so no more caring for the cats.  (Pregnant women are to avoid contact with cat feces due to fecal bacteria and such).  My bro was looking to pass back my temporarily placed cat.

So I moved out to a new place.  It was hard leaving my roomie.  We get along well (two weeks and I miss her), and have many shared interests.  She's influenced me in ways: like I'm actually paying attention to the US Men's open with Nadal and what's his name and I've become bolder in sharing my faith with strangers.  I've influenced her: she likes Phineas and Ferb on the Disney Channel and has a white board by her door to write down people to prayer about.

I do enjoy my new place.  I was only there a few days before I trekked to my bro's to get the cats.  Oh, yeah, since I was taking back my cat, could I take the other cat as well? I thought, "sure! I owe my bro and sister-in-law."

I didn't think it'd be too big a problem.

Wow, was I wrong.

They don't get along but manage to ignore each other most of the time.  My cat hisses unexpectedly at the other cat despite being around her for nearly three years.  My cat also seems to eat both cats food.  Which led to some vomiting this morning.

Honestly, I'm torn.  There are moments when I love having them.  When my cat will sit on my lap and demand attention, when my bro's cat sleeps by me on top of the covers when I'm in bed.  When I see either contently sitting at the bay window overlooking the lake or see my cat curled up on her small chaise (yes it is a pet sized chaise, I found it on sale and knew my cat would like it)

But then there's the lack of sleep for me.  They're nocturnal after all, and it's not a big apartment.  One likes to eat at night, one roams around and loos for the other''s food to steal.  One likes to meow and wake me up at 3am like everyday.

I'm committed to these cats I guess.  or maybe I should be committed....hmm.

I love my CrackBerry...I mean BlackBerry

I think I am addicted to my Blackberry.  

I love having Facebook at my finger tips; checking the latest news at the NY Times is easy with their app.  Local news apps abound.

I'm not much into games.  Literally I have one game-solitare.  

But I can check my email almost anytime, anyplace.  (Except at work.  I get really poor reception in the lab.  Which is probably a good thing.)

Now I have developed the "phantom vibrating" sensation.  I think the phone is vibrating when, in point of fact, it is not doing anything.

The only thing worse that the "phantom vibrating" is checking your pocket and realizing you don't even have your phone on your person. :)

Computer still down

My computer is still toast.  There has been a lot of craziness in life the last couple of months.  Not a lot of time to think, let alone blog.  Hope my brother can fix my computer....

Pain

There is a great song by Greg Long called 'In the Waiting'.  It's a song that has been really helpful for me in the past when I was going through hard stuff.  Check out this link to hear it.

Here are the lyrics.

Pain
The gift nobody longs for, still it comes
And somehow leaves us stronger
When it's gone away

Pray
I try and pray for Your will to be done
But I confess it's never fast enough for me
It seems
the hardest part is waiting on You
When what I really want
Is just to see Your hand move

I want a peace beyond my understanding
I want to feel it fall like rain
In the middle of my hurting
I want to feel Your arms as they surround me
And let me know that it's okay
To be here in this place
Resting in the peace that only comes
In the waiting

Time
Time to let it go and just believe
Trusting in what no one else but You can see

Free
Freedom from the fears that close me in
When I can't get beyond where I have been, but then
Again

The silence doesn't mean that I'm alone
As long as I can hear
That I am still Your own

It's a beautiful song and it encourages me so much.  I remember that I'm not alone.  Even in the silence God is with me and I am His.