I didn’t want to do it, but I’ve made a command decision. From now on, when I stay at my parents house I am taking the CPAP machine with me. If I’m only going to get three hours of sleep at least it will be decent sleep. Part of avoiding it was because I didn’t want to lug a jug (hehe, lug a jug, that rhymes) of distilled water back and forth. So I filled up the tank and then dumped it into a water bottle. I’ll take one night’s worth of water at a time. Ugh.
I’m doing it, damn it.
I am staying at my parents house every third night. Last night was one of those nights. I’m sort of seeing a trend. I can’t sleep well here. I know I would sleep better if I brought my CPAP machine, and I am going to have to start doing that, but that’s not the issue.
The issue is falling asleep. Another issue is staying asleep. There have been a few nights now where my watch tells me I got less than four hours. Sometimes it’s because I go to bed at a decent hour, wake up a couple hours later, and then can’t get back to sleep. Other times I just can’t fall asleep to begin with.
The last time I was here was Friday night and it definitely fell into the latter category. I was trying to sleep around midnight but I was still awake around 3:00am. Then I was up before 7:00. Saturday and Sunday nights I slept great, at home, but all day Monday I was still really tired. Last night I did okay. I fell asleep around 10:00pm, my mother was already asleep which helps, but I woke up again around midnight. I eventually fell asleep but I woke up again a few more times and finally stopped trying to sleep around 5:00am. My watch tells me I got six hours. My body tells me that’s about right.
I should be bringing the CPAP machine. The only reason I don’t is because it’s a pain in the ass to break down and set up and the idea of doing that two out of every three days just pisses me right off. It’s probably worth it. I just don’t wanna.
On a mostly unrelated note, last night I decided to explore the Netflix looking for something to watch. Somehow I hit on Mystery Science Theater 3000. Not the original show, note the Comedy Central show, not the SciFi channel show, but the recent Netflix show. I had only watched a couple of episodes. They were good. I just never got around to watching more. Something on the list of episodes grabbed me though.
Ator.
In the long history of MST3K there are a few movies that stand out as being so much worse than the norm that they become legendary. One of my personal favorites is a little classic called Cave Dwellers. Back in the old days my MST3K watching friends and I learned that Cave Dwellers was a sequel. The first movie was called Ator, the Fighting Eagle. You don’t actually need to watch the first movie to follow the second because there is a flashback in the second movie that literally shows every noteworthy “plot” point from the first.
I had never seen Ator, the Fighting Eagle and I always wondered why MST3K didn’t do an episode on it. Well now I know they actually have, and I watched it, and it was TERRIBLE. Our heroes tore that turkey to shreds in glorious fashion. I was sitting in the living room watching it on my computer with headphones on all by my lonesome and there were a bunch of moments when I literally laughed out loud.
Tip of the hat for the self referential riff where they made a joke out of the “how much keeffe is in this film? Miles O’Keeffe” line from Cave Dwellers. While the episode was wonderful, it was still nowhere near the original. Cave Dwellers is worth it for things like, “stupid rock. Stupid, stupid rock” and Joel singing “Ator, Ator my sweet friend.”
As I get older I sometimes forget how much fun terrible, awful, what-were-they-thinking, movies can be.
Last night when we went to bed we saw that there was an ambulance parked in front of our neighbors house. From the little we saw, it did not look like they were taking anyone to the hospital. They were casually packing up and leaving when we first noticed them. Still, it was scary.
This morning just as the work day was kicking off another ambulance and a fire truck pulled up to the neighbors house. Shortly after, a second ambulance came. This time they did take one of the gentlemen next door with them. The second ambulance didn’t take someone, but one of the crew got out and went into the front seat of the first ambulance. Not sure what was going on there.
They all had come and gone within about 10 minutes. I hope our next door neighbor is okay. I’m really tired of ambulances. The universe needs to knock it off.
There was just an ambulance parked in front of our next door neighbors’ house. I hope everything is okay. I’m sick and tired of people getting sick.
I just did something super stressful.
My mother takes a ton of medication. She takes various pills in four batches throughout the day. She has one of those pill caddie things that let you sort out pills for morning, noon, evening, and bed time for seven days at a time.
The stressful thing I did?
I filled the pill caddie.
Yikes.
Saturday is the agreed upon caddie filling day, and since I’m here today and it’s my first Saturday covering (save for one, but that day the caddie was filled early), today became my first pill distribution day.
Again I say, yikes.
I’m a smidge early for my allotted visit time at the hospital. I am fully vaccinated and yet here I am, nervous as all hell. Will this ever end? Sure I’ve only been in the clear for a few weeks, but I’m so tired of it.
Oh well. Time to mask up and go in. Remember to wash your hands, okay?
I spent my whole afternoon so far looking through a customer’s database for an example of a piece of data that I am now pretty convinced does not exist. Le Sigh, as the French (don’t) say.
The Bruins moved into third place in the division with a win over New Jersey last night. The win also clinched a playoff spot. There will be a post season for the Bruins in this Covid Season #2. There are still a few more games to play but if it ended today they’d be matched with Pittsburgh in the first round. Le Yikes, as the French (don’t) say.
I tore the cellar storage apart twice and that little purple knock off uni-vibe pedal is still MIA. Before the great cellar disaster clean up (I’ll give the details someday, but the wound is too fresh for now) it was in a cardboard box on top of the table next to the bulkhead door under one of the last remaining functional fluorescent lights. All of that stuff was packed up and moved into the storage area just to the left of the washer/dryer. Everything else is there, but the little purple knock off uni-vibe pedal with Jimi Hendrix painted on it is not there. (It’s a Moen Shaky Jimi, if you’re curious). I did have a thought as to one place it could be… it could be over Mike the Bass players house. I have an amp (my beloved Fender Deluxe Reverb) and a small board there that have been off limits to me since Covid. I know my Wampler Tumnus is on that board as well as an MXR Phase 95 and a Seymour Duncan Vapor Trail. I have no memory of putting the Shaky Jimi on that board, but there is a chance that it’s there. Waiting for me. Taunting me. Le Lame, as the French (don’t) say.
I’m going to see my father in the rehab hospital tomorrow. I haven’t been there yet, you need an appointment to visit patients, but my brother has. I talked to him a little today. He said I am going to have to take a Covid test before I can see my dad. He suggested I bring my vaccination card with me. Well, I bring that little cardboard bastard with me everywhere I go. I am willing to pull it out and flash it for all the world to see at the slightest moment’s notice. Hell, most times I leave the house I have to stop myself from stapling it to my forehead on the way out the door. I want everyone to see that little guy. I am vaccinated. Two shots plus two weeks, babie. I am up-to-date. Le Groovy, as the French (don’t) say.
I haven’t been doing my daily walk in place exercising since I started taking Nana-Sitting shifts a couple of weeks ago. I can’t really do it in my parents’ house so I just sort of fell off the wagon.
Earlier today my step son shared his Activity App data with me. He said it was just in case we wanted to have a competition at some point.
Well well well! Well, welly well well well! Hi Hi Hi there, Mr Deltoid!*
I guess it’s time to start exercising again, right? I gotta hold my own against the 18 year old and his boundless energy and limbs that still function correctly. Huh… I might be in trouble here.
I’ve got 13 minutes in today. 17 to go.
*Yes, once again the movie quotes come courtesy of A Clockwork Orange. That movie was so bad ass when I was in high school. Now that I have a wife and a step daughter? I have no plans to ever watch it again. I wouldn’t be able to handle it. Still, the quotes are kind of foundational to me, even if the violence is not.
I’m still at my mother’s house. I’m not sure what time the change over is happening tonight, but it’s probably soon. Let’s wrap up what we accomplished.
Four meds deliveries, three today and one last night. Three loads of laundry. Three song ideas, all of which are in 7/8 time which is glorious. One movie, Joker. Holy shit was that good. Two episodes of The Handmaids Tale. Holy shit is that show good. An episode and a half of That Pedal Show mostly focusing on Uni-Vibe effects but also Harmonic Tremelo. Uni-Vibes are cool. Harmonic Tremolo is cool too, I guess, but I’m not really a tremolo guy… though the amp I’m recording with this month has one (volume based, not harmonic based) built in and I’ve been sort of looking for a place to use it. Three bags of recycling taken out. Three calls from Dad. The last couple of cans from the 12 pack of Diet Pepsi that I brought over last week finished. Sleep… not so much.
Is that everything? It’s all I can recall off the top of my head.
I’m up and showered and ready to face the day and all that. I went to sleep at about quarter to one am. I woke up a couple of times before waking up for good at about quarter to five am. My AppleWatch tells me I failed to reach four hours of sleep. I tried to go back to sleep but couldn’t do it. Early to bed tonight, I guess.
Two WordPress.com items of note:
What else is going on? The Bruins won yesterday, They are a point away from clinching a playoff spot (I think) with five or six games left to go (I think). Color me cautiously optimistic. The Red Sox lost last night. They play in Texas again this afternoon. I thought the Rangers avoided day games at home, but I guess it’s still early enough in the spring that they won’t bake the players and the fans in the afternoon heat. Speaking of fans, the stadium was full for last night’s game. I guess Covid’s over, right? Texas says so. I hope they have contact tracing available for the thousands of folks who went to the game as an outbreak is pretty much inevitable.
Dad called a few minutes ago. He’s hooked up to an IV. Antibiotics, I’m sure. He said he thought he was going to have physical therapy this morning, but how can he do that when they have him plugged in? The hospital has limited visiting hours and you have to make an appointment ahead of time and you can only make one appointment per week. I’m going Wednesday. I haven’t seen him since January. I’m looking forward to a visit. Once again let me put my vaccination to work.
Happy Sunday, everyone. Can’t wait to go home and see Jen and Harry. Until then, I’m trying to make the best of it by writing really long, boring, uninformative blog posts. Cheerio, all.
Inside the Red Head's Head 