This Past Month
August 29, 2010 | Filed under Body, House, Media, Relationships/Men
I have excellent reasons for not posting for a month, and for not answering the questions posed to me in the last entry. Do you want to hear them? Probably not, but to appease my blog conscience, I’m going to tell you anyway. Be warned, this is quite a lengthy entry.
I moved into my apartment
After a week’s delay from the tenant that I couldn’t do anything about as they’d paid their rent a month in advance, I finally moved into my apartment on Saturday the 14th of August.
“Moved into” is a relative term here though, as I spent the first week and a half sleeping on blankets on the lounge room floor as I waited for my bedroom furniture to be moved. Even now, I really only have the two bedrooms furnished – one as a bedroom, and the other as an office. It’ll be the end of September before my couch is delivered, and as all other pieces of furniture in the living space hinges upon the placement of the couch in the living room, I won’t be purchasing or commissioning those until the start of October. Ergo, my apartment won’t actually be fully furnished until probably the end of the year. At least I’m waiting for perfection and not settling for second-best furniture?
There are other bits and pieces I want to do around the apartment before I’ll be fully satisfied, largely as I’m a meticulously anal bitch:
- Replace the exhaust fan in both bathrooms
- Get the drainage system looked at in bathroom B
- Add towel rails to the wall of bathroom B
- Replace plastic venetian blinds with canvas roll down blinds
- Repaint skirting in certain areas
- Get the dishwasher looked at – it’s not functioning correctly
- …and other bits and pieces?
Anyway, speaking of setting the second bedroom up as an office – did you know that my boyfriend has moved in with me, along with a huge fish tank which now takes up a quarter of the office? I’m now living with a partner (and six temperamental and high-maintenance tropical fish) for the first time ever. There are pros and cons of course, which will no doubt be covered in length in another blog entry further down the track. It’ll probably be written right after he forgets to do the dishes (again), or lets the laundry accumulate until I do it (again), or spends twelve hours straight playing Starcraft and ignoring the fact that I’m in the apartment (again)…there may be more cons than pros listed.
I Got Sick
For those who know me, I’m not very good at being sick. It’s largely because I’m never sick. I’m clumsy and constantly cut myself and get bruises, but I rarely ever get the flu, migraines, aches, pains, etc.
Well, for the last two weeks, I’ve been subject to a terrible case of conjunctivitis. It started on a Saturday night in my right eye and caused me to take a day off work on Monday to see a doctor who prescribed eye drops for bacterial conjunctivitis. It then spread to my left eye on Thursday morning, causing me to take another day off work to go to another doctor who prescribed other eye drops for allergic conjunctivitis. By the Saturday (one week after the first symptoms), my vision in both eyes was affected to the point of half-blindness. This occasioned a visit to the emergency ward of the Eye and Ear Hospital.
I know in the past I’ve praised Australia’s health care system. My parents have both received excellent treatment in public hospitals. I on the other hand, spent about eight hours in the waiting room of the emergency ward of the Eye and Ear Hospital, with both eyes flaming red and oozing pus, while other patients were seen before me, with no discernible eye injuries at all. Upon complaint to the nurse on duty (after six hours of waiting!), we were told that other more urgent patients were being called in before me, because they were in danger of losing their vision. Apparently my case wasn’t serious because I’d already lost my vision from the streams of pus oozing out of my eyes. What. The. Fuck.
Anyway, after doing what I do best and causing a scene in the waiting room (eight hours! I’d been waiting for eight hours!), I finally got to see a doctor who basically said:
You have viral conjunctivitis. The eye drops you’ve been taking all week are no use at all, and there’s no drugs I can give you to address the problem. Cases like yours will take about two weeks to clear up, so all you can do is sit and wait to get better. But here, have this medical certificate so you can take the week off work!
Oh, hoo bloody ray. A diagnosis with no cure, two oozing eyes, and an inability to see or do anything. I basically spent the next week lying in bed listening to the radio with a cold compress over my eyes, and my phone an inch from my eyes, squinting at it trying to update Twitter (hey peeps, I’m back on Twitter!). If you check out my old tweets actually, you’ll see the progression of my frustration at being utterly useless and unproductive.
And now? I still have trouble focusing on things like text in books and computer monitors (so, only doing half days at work) and still can’t drive without feeling nauseous, but general vision is clearing up. Eyes are still red, but there’s less pus on the whole. Given another week, and I just might be at 100%.
Long story short – I hate being sick, and I’m terrible at it. I become (even more of) a grumpy, cranky, whiny, miserable bitch.
And some other miscellaneous stuff
Before all of the above, I got the chance to watch Katy Perry perform on Sunrise, a morning talk/news show. She performed three songs: California Girls, Teenage Dream and Hot and Cold. She also signed my chest and by default, touched my boob. Are you jealous?
I have a six thousand word essay due on the 8th of September and I’m actually still utterly clueless. Because of the conjunctivitis, my progress is basically set back two weeks. Combine that with the fact that I didn’t understand the relevance of the reading material of the first few weeks of semester, and it all equates to a “what the fuck” for the essay. I may just break my High Distinction average for my Masters. Bollocks.
Having a fancy TV that receives the digital channels now means that I’m watching more TV. I’m addicted to Total Wipeout UK on the Go! Channel – I love watching people fall out things and get hurt. Yes, I am a bit of a sadist.
On a finishing note, the technician is supposed to be out this week to install our phone line and by association, our internet connection as well. If all goes according to plan, I may very well soon be spamming this blog with more blog entries.
4 Responses to This Past Month
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Aww, that sucks to be out of action for so long. :( Can’t you ask for an extension for your essay given you were ill? Or would that just mess up other deadlines/work?
But yay for moving into your apartment! :D Sorting out the furniture and making home improvements when you move in is all part of the adventure. Envious that you have control of it all and aren’t having to chase after a landlord!
Ruth on August 30, 2010 #
Aw, sorry about the eye business. Really the hospital doctor told you the right thing and it’s good that he didn’t prescribe you some bullshit drug that wouldn’t have helped. (As the first two doctors did, neh?) That is my biggest pet peeve, overprescription of drugs, and I basically refuse to go to doctors unless I already know what I have and that it can only be cured by an antibiotic. (Otherwise I assume it’s viral and will pass on its own.)
You should post pictures of the new place!!! I want a new place to decorate. Very jealous.
gem on August 30, 2010 #
What a month. I can’t imagine having both eyes infected!
I’m with Ruth – any chance of asking for an essay extension?
Happy nesting and happy cohabiting, eh?
Reply: I’d actually already received a week’s extension on the essay because I’d anticipated the move would set me back…so instead of being due tomorrow, it’s due in eight days. OMG!
eemusings on August 30, 2010 #
I have only one thing to say about this and that is that it’s weird your doctor gave you medication for bacterial conjunctivitis!
Y’know, since they’re trying to avoid misusing antibiotics and all that crap, and I’m pretty sure it’s common knowledge that ALMOST ALWAYS, conjunctivitis is caused by a virus.
(and also, “Conjunctivitis resolves in 65% of cases without treatment, within 2 – 5 days. The prescribing of antibiotics to most cases is not necessary.”)
Hrrrmph.
Rose on August 31, 2010 #