December: Colonoscopy, Collectibles, Cinema, & Christmas

Picture from jupiterimages.com

December 5th, 6th, & 7th - Prep for a colonoscopy, a colonoscopy, and a day of recovery. Sigh. It makes me sad to know I have had a colonoscopy. It's even sadder that I need to have one every three years. (I cheated, though. Last one I had was 6 years ago.) For those who have never had a colonoscopy, (lucky) let me give you a few hints.

Take three days off from work. Never go to work on the day you do your prep and never go to work on the day of the colonoscopy. And take another day off because you're going to want to, believe me.

Also, schedule your procedure for the early morning, because then you won't have to fast as long. Plus, you'll get to sleep a lot after the procedure. It'll be nice.

If you have the cash, do an endoscopy at the same time if you need it. That way you can get it all done at once and not have to go back for more procedures. (They still charge you, though.)

On the day of your prep, DO NOT GO OUT. You're going to be uncomfortable most of the evening so you might as well do it in the most familiar surroundings. Plus, keep a clear pathway between you and the bathroom AT ALL TIMES.

Get someone to bring you home and put you to bed. I was knocked out completely for my procedure. I almost didn't realize a procedure had been done. But it was an hour later so I got the hospital to call Daryl and he picked me up and put me to bed. It was nice to have him there.

December 8th, Saturday - The Collectibles Warehouse! Daryl and Christian and I went to a warehouse filled to the brim with collectibles of all kinds. I was drawn to the comic books, of course. And Christian was there scoping out possible gifts for soon-to-be Japanese relatives and getting lots of foreign DVDs. There was a stall that was completely devoted to memoribilia from The Nightmare Before Christmas. If you're into Disney pins, a memento that I had no idea existed, this is the place to get them. I cannot even count how many pins there were for Disney. I'm actually surprised that there are so many of them. But I guess if you've been around for 50 plus years, things will tend to build up. Daryl and I were very good and didn't buy anything. (We're trying to save money!) But now we know where to go if we want a Nightmare Before Christmas lamp and old Buffy comics.

Picture from skyandtelescope.com
December 13th, Thursday - The Geminid Meteor shower! I wasn't sure we'd pick up any meteors in our neighborhood. The streetlights throw off so much light pollution it's a wonder we see any stars, let alone meteors. But we did! And I made at least two wishes.

December 15th, Saturday - We saw THE GOLDEN COMPASS and ENCHANTED. I liked ENCHANTED better because it had a sense of humor about itself. The overwrought musical numbers were pitch perfect and who knew Amy Adams and James Marsden could sing? Marsden has a lovely voice, I had no idea. Cyclops can sing! And so can Junebug! Anyhoo, if you like Disney movies, you'll like this one. It very kindly makes fun of them and there's a very funny scene of waterbugs scrubbing out a tub. Why McDreamy's lawyer cannot afford a maid is beyond me, but maybe it's because he spends hours in Central Park with a complete stranger who gets the entire population of NYC to dance and sing with her. I don't think he can bill hourly for that.

I'm disappointed with THE GOLDEN COMPASS, though. For some reason the book seemed more exciting than the movie. The CGI animals were pretty good, though. And is there anything Freddie Highmore can't do? And they cut off the end of the book because they wanted a happy ending. Well, [SPOILER ALERT!] the whole series is not really a happy ending so if that's the reason why they made the films, they're in for a big surprise. Nicole Kidman as the villain was pretty good, but she did seem like she was made of plastic and I have no idea what is up with her and her daemon. She is one messed up character. The one kid who has a daemon lobotomy, though. That was horrible. You felt for him and you admired him for seeing through the BS and then they mess him up so bad...I'm giving too much away. And what's with all of the violence here? It's a kid's movie, right? Why so many grusome deaths? All in all, it left me cold. Didn't help that it was mostly set in a frozen wasteland.

December 16-19, Sunday-Wednesday - Sick. Boo.

December 25-31, Tuesday-Monday - Daryl is out of town. And I am alone. Boo. Not a way to spend the holiday.