Wow -- time flies!! Unfortunately, I had a three-day bout with a migraine last week and then was on vacation to spend time with my sister in Pittsburgh. I had to delay going to Pittsburgh for a day because of the stupid migraine. I got up there on Friday, and had a great time, but I have to say, it's getting harder to spend time with smokers. She didn't smoke in her apartment while I was there (just out on the balcony) but the smell lingering in her apartment was really strong, and I was aware of it the whole time I was there. Sitting out on the balcony with her or riding in her car was a real experience. I know that I smoked more than she did for all those years, and I do not judge; I'm just saying that I am very, very grateful to be back to my smoke-free environment.
Today was a challenge -- not smoking-wise -- but I'm trying to maintain a positive attitude. I was driving back from Pittsburgh and was on the highway here in Virgina that takes me to my home, going about 65 miles an hour with traffic, and all of a sudden a large black metal THING appeared seemingly out of nowhere and hit the front of my car and bounced off the hood. First of all, it scared the you-know-what out of me, and second of all I am really lucky that it didn't come through the windshield. However, I am really unhappy that my car is messed up and I have a $1,000 deductible, and even though I didn't do anything wrong, I'm out $1,000. Since my hood is bashed in I'm sure the damage will be a lot more than $1,000 but I have been very grumpy ever since it happened. Also, in Virginia you have to have both a front plate and a rear plate, and whatever this THING was, it knocked my front plate to Timbuktu. So I spent 2 hours at the DMV today getting new tags. Not the way I wanted to spend the last day of my vacation. Also, when I had the psychological testing, they told me I had to give them my whole deductible ($750) so I borrowed against my credit card to do it. Now my insurance says I should only have paid $157 so the psychologist owes me more than a $500 refund. On August 19 I sent him an email and he responded on August 21 saying he had been paid by the insurance company and would "look into this." I assumed (stupidly) that I would certainly have the refund by the time I returned today (ten full days after that email) and it wasn't in the mail. So I called him, and he said oh, right, I'll get that in the mail tomorrow and it will probably go out on Wednesday. That makes me angry; I'm paying interest on that money which is going to go right back to my credit card when I receive it, and he acted like it was a minor nuisance for him.
So I really AM grumpy today, but the good news is I never think "I need a smoke." I may even have reacted more strongly than I would have when I was smoking because we all know we stuffed a lot of feelings in that haze of smoke around us.
There have been some really striking blogs written over the last few days -- my sister doesn't use a computer and I didn't take my laptop, so I was out of touch completely for the last four days. I never cease to be amazed at this incredible community -- the collective experience here is staggering. The wisdom is boundless and the heart of this community is always full. I'm glad to be back!!
