Thursday was uneventful except by about 2:30, I did not feel good at all. My foot was aching, and as sometimes happens when you are in physical pain, that made me have a headache and a stomachache. My Assistant Director was very, very understanding and encouraged me to go home two hours early to sleep and told me I was a trooper. I did. I slept for about three hours, woke up for dinner, and then slept until the next morning.
Sterling was still behaving.
Sunday, August 19, 2012
The Tragi-Comedy of Shannon Schinagl: Part 5
Wednesday! Wednesday was a Big Day! The movers were arriving! I felt insanely guilty leaving my Mom to deal with the movers while I went to work, but I didn't have much of a choice.
I had barely arrived at work when my cell phone rang. (My work has been very accommodating about my cell phone. They know I am in the process of moving, and they know I have been a walking [somewhat] catastrophe.) The movers had arrived, but they had determined that four items would not fit up the stairs. They would come back on Friday.
What?!?! Here's where I started to get pissed off, and the phone calls came fast and furious. I had told everyone who would listen, who was part of the moving company, that my stairs were narrow. Everyone. Over and over. They should have been prepared for this situation. They should have sent someone over to my place to see just how narrow the stairs were. (Answer: narrow.) I had been told that local guys would meet the movers to help hoist those large items over the porch. The local guys were, apparently, very used to this.
I was told that I would have to pay extra for the hoisting equipment and the extra guys. What?!?! Even though I had told people over and over how narrow the stairs were? You see, I had signed a "binding agreement," which meant the movers could not increase the price even if my load weighed more than had been estimated. However, apparently I was the only one bound. The moving company certainly wasn't.
Folks, I was mean on the phone. Flat out mean. It was very hard for me, because I am not usually mean. But I was truly pissed off. Did my meanness have any effect? No. The movers would be there Friday, and I would pay extra for hoisting and the extra guys. The woman on the phone had the gall to ask, "So, does that work for you?" Duh. I replied, "Well, of course it does NOT work for me, but apparently I don't have a choice if I want my belongings, do I?" This was met with silence.
May I state here that this was Andresen Movers. Got that? Andresen Movers. Do not use them. If you hear about someone considering them, dissuade them. Andresen Movers.
Sterling was still behaving.
I had barely arrived at work when my cell phone rang. (My work has been very accommodating about my cell phone. They know I am in the process of moving, and they know I have been a walking [somewhat] catastrophe.) The movers had arrived, but they had determined that four items would not fit up the stairs. They would come back on Friday.
What?!?! Here's where I started to get pissed off, and the phone calls came fast and furious. I had told everyone who would listen, who was part of the moving company, that my stairs were narrow. Everyone. Over and over. They should have been prepared for this situation. They should have sent someone over to my place to see just how narrow the stairs were. (Answer: narrow.) I had been told that local guys would meet the movers to help hoist those large items over the porch. The local guys were, apparently, very used to this.
I was told that I would have to pay extra for the hoisting equipment and the extra guys. What?!?! Even though I had told people over and over how narrow the stairs were? You see, I had signed a "binding agreement," which meant the movers could not increase the price even if my load weighed more than had been estimated. However, apparently I was the only one bound. The moving company certainly wasn't.
Folks, I was mean on the phone. Flat out mean. It was very hard for me, because I am not usually mean. But I was truly pissed off. Did my meanness have any effect? No. The movers would be there Friday, and I would pay extra for hoisting and the extra guys. The woman on the phone had the gall to ask, "So, does that work for you?" Duh. I replied, "Well, of course it does NOT work for me, but apparently I don't have a choice if I want my belongings, do I?" This was met with silence.
May I state here that this was Andresen Movers. Got that? Andresen Movers. Do not use them. If you hear about someone considering them, dissuade them. Andresen Movers.
Sterling was still behaving.
The Tragi-Comedy of Shannon Schinagl: Part 4
After work on Tuesday, my Mom picked me up after work and we decided to head to Target. We had made a little list with enough items on it to make it worthwhile to go. "Worthwhile to go!" you say. It's always worthwhile to go to Target! I agree, except that my nearest Target is 20 minutes away. And not 20 minutes of city driving, but 20 minutes of highway driving. It's kind of weird in that it's all by itself -- no other stores, no restaurants. Nothing but Target sitting in the wilderness.
I was exhausted after a day of working with my broken foot and new boot. After getting our items we headed back to the car, where my Mom and I realized that neither of us had the car keys. Oh, yes. In my broken foot delirium, I had put them in the special pocket of my backpack that I take everywhere. Everywhere, that is, except for Target. My backpack was sitting in the car.
I called AAA, and while we waited my Mom did some more shopping (how could she do anything else while trapped in a Target?) and we had a delicious dinner at the Target Pizza Hut. 90 minutes later, AAA showed up, and the very nice AAA guy opened my car in about one-and-a-half minutes.
Home we went to our cozy air mattress and Sterling, who was still behaving. Had Armageddon arrived?
Another day survived.
**************************************
Has Armageddon arrived?
Can Shannon do anything without mishap?
And why isn't there a closer Target?
(That last question will not be answered in the next post. I just wanted to toss that out there.)
I was exhausted after a day of working with my broken foot and new boot. After getting our items we headed back to the car, where my Mom and I realized that neither of us had the car keys. Oh, yes. In my broken foot delirium, I had put them in the special pocket of my backpack that I take everywhere. Everywhere, that is, except for Target. My backpack was sitting in the car.
I called AAA, and while we waited my Mom did some more shopping (how could she do anything else while trapped in a Target?) and we had a delicious dinner at the Target Pizza Hut. 90 minutes later, AAA showed up, and the very nice AAA guy opened my car in about one-and-a-half minutes.
Home we went to our cozy air mattress and Sterling, who was still behaving. Had Armageddon arrived?
Another day survived.
**************************************
Has Armageddon arrived?
Can Shannon do anything without mishap?
And why isn't there a closer Target?
(That last question will not be answered in the next post. I just wanted to toss that out there.)
The Tragi-Comedy of Shannon Schinagl: Part 3
Thankfully, the rest of Sunday was quite uneventful, including Sterling's behavior. What is going on?
Monday morning, at the crack of dawn, I called the orthopedic doctor, hoping to get an appointment that day. Success! Until they realized I didn't yet have a Primary Care Physician to refer me. Apparently the ER doctor was not enough. Not success. Then I started melting down on the phone, saying that I didn't want to delay going to the orthopedic doctor by trying to find a doctor in town, making an appointment there, going there, and then getting a referral to go to the orthopedic doctor. The person on the phone took pity, consulted with someone else, and decided Blue Cross/Blue Shield would probably let meet a referral retroactively. Success! So we loaded up Sterling and "moved" into my place! Finally! Why is "moved" in quotes, you ask? That would be because we moved in with an air mattress. And suitcases.
We left Sterling trying to find a place to hide (not much choice with nothing but an air mattress) and headed off to the doctor. The doctor confirmed that my foot was broken and told me that it would have to heal itself. With this break, there was really nothing they could do. And so I got the boot.
And then, off I went to work. Everyone at work has been so nice. Apparently there have been a lot of various foot ailments, because I've been getting a lot of advice and sympathy. The people in the Children's Room, especially, have been going far out of their way to keep me from standing and walking.
While I was at work, my sweet Mama was -- can you guess? -- at the laundromat spending more than $30 and almost six hours washing every single thing that can possibly be washed to get the skunk smell out. Had you forgotten that part of the story? She did an amazing job, and all of the clothes were odor free. Unfortunately, everything else still stunk: the suitcases, our shoes, magazines, books. Basically everything that wasn't washable. Those items would just have to air out over time, or we would have to go over them with Clorox wipes.
After the laundromat, my Mom picked me up from work, we both went home and fell fast asleep.
**************************************
How will Sterling adapt?
How will Shannon adapt?
Will anything else go wrong?
Read on!
Monday morning, at the crack of dawn, I called the orthopedic doctor, hoping to get an appointment that day. Success! Until they realized I didn't yet have a Primary Care Physician to refer me. Apparently the ER doctor was not enough. Not success. Then I started melting down on the phone, saying that I didn't want to delay going to the orthopedic doctor by trying to find a doctor in town, making an appointment there, going there, and then getting a referral to go to the orthopedic doctor. The person on the phone took pity, consulted with someone else, and decided Blue Cross/Blue Shield would probably let meet a referral retroactively. Success! So we loaded up Sterling and "moved" into my place! Finally! Why is "moved" in quotes, you ask? That would be because we moved in with an air mattress. And suitcases.
We left Sterling trying to find a place to hide (not much choice with nothing but an air mattress) and headed off to the doctor. The doctor confirmed that my foot was broken and told me that it would have to heal itself. With this break, there was really nothing they could do. And so I got the boot.
And then, off I went to work. Everyone at work has been so nice. Apparently there have been a lot of various foot ailments, because I've been getting a lot of advice and sympathy. The people in the Children's Room, especially, have been going far out of their way to keep me from standing and walking.
While I was at work, my sweet Mama was -- can you guess? -- at the laundromat spending more than $30 and almost six hours washing every single thing that can possibly be washed to get the skunk smell out. Had you forgotten that part of the story? She did an amazing job, and all of the clothes were odor free. Unfortunately, everything else still stunk: the suitcases, our shoes, magazines, books. Basically everything that wasn't washable. Those items would just have to air out over time, or we would have to go over them with Clorox wipes.
After the laundromat, my Mom picked me up from work, we both went home and fell fast asleep.
**************************************
How will Sterling adapt?
How will Shannon adapt?
Will anything else go wrong?
Read on!
Well, at Least I Have Floors!
Stage Two! I now have gorgeous floors, and most of my place is painted!
Compare to my earlier post.
Ooo, pretty, shiny floors.
Ahhh, pretty paint.
Hm. Same kitchen.
Bye-bye, door! Poof! You are now a wall.
Yeehaw! Air conditioner!
Sterling's litter box -- which she's using! -- on the shiny, pretty floor. Sigh...
Compare to my earlier post.
Ooo, pretty, shiny floors.
Ahhh, pretty paint.
Hm. Same kitchen.
Bye-bye, door! Poof! You are now a wall.
Yeehaw! Air conditioner!
Sterling's litter box -- which she's using! -- on the shiny, pretty floor. Sigh...
Thursday, August 16, 2012
Newburyport Public Library -- Reading Room
Yet another room of the Newburyport Public Library! This is the gorgeous and very comfy Reading Room.
These are the two seating areas, as well as the new books (far end of second picture), the large print (the collection parallel to the fireplaces), and the magazines and newspapers.
The room has two fireplaces! Two!
A word about this room. Each morning when the library doors are unlocked, there is a group of older gentlemen who race to the reading room for the papers. It is one of the funniest things I've ever seen! I was told (though didn't see it myself) that one time there were almost fisticuffs over a paper.
The Tragi-Comedy of Shannon Schinagl: Part 2
Saturday!
I went down to the first floor to head to the basement to get my laundry, but the lovely woman I was staying with had already done that for me. I met her in the kitchen where I learned that her sweet dog, Trudy, had gotten skunked. That was the smell.
Apparently this woman had gotten up in the middle of the night and went downstairs for a drink of water. She thought she might as well let Trudy out while she was down there. But she knew the minute she opened the door. Trudy raced down the steps and moments later, the stink bomb went off. This poor woman spent the rest of the night washing Trudy using every method the internet could provide. By morning, Trudy smelled pretty good. The rest of the house, however, was still skunked.
This is Trudy. Sweet, silly, skunked Trudy.
Skunked or not, my Mom and I began packing to move to the pet-friendly Red Roof Inn in anticipation of Sterling's arrival. As we spent the morning packing (I had been in this house for two weeks), I limped around doing what needed to be done. As the morning went on, my foot began hurting worse and worse. We decided we would stop by the local CVS to get a bandage and see if I could rent crutches. Bandage yes, crutches no.
We were only a few blocks from Newburyport's very own hospital, so we decided to quickly stop by. We knew it was just a sprain, but we wanted to make sure, and perhaps I could get some crutches out of it.
So we stopped by, and wouldn't you know it, but some sort of Mud Run was that morning, and the ER was filled with muddy racers with various sprains, breaks and ailments. If we had realized the whole process would take almost five hours, we probably wouldn't have stayed.
As it was, we did stay. We watched the Olympics, chatted with a couple who wondered if the husband's ankle was broken (he didn't think so), and were generally happy we weren't muddy.
Here, I would like to put a word in for Mike, the x-ray technician who x-rayed my foot. He was the funniest medical professional I have ever met, and had the best bedside manner a person could have! You are the best, Mike!
We finally got in to see the doctor, and...my foot was broken. I was in shock. How on earth was I going to have a broken foot when I hadn't even started my third week of work and was about to move into a third-story walk-up? However, I was also strangely calm. I had (have) so much going on with this move that I've kind of decided to just roll with the punches. What else can I do? So they bandaged my foot, told me to ice it four times a day, and gave me a hard shoe to wear until I could see the orthopedic surgeon, hopefully on Monday.
By the way, the husband mentioned above? His ankle was broken. A bad day for both of us.
Toward the end of our hospital visit, I received the first of my Sterling-related phone calls. Sterling had been staying in the boarding facility of her vet: Elliott Bay Animal Hospital. Saturday she was being picked up by my very good friends, Danielle and Killy. (Those of you who know Sterling know they must be very good friends indeed.) A piece of information had somehow fallen by the wayside, and the vet didn't know that Sterling was supposed to be drugged to the gills before her flight. She was calling me to confirm and to discuss her concerns. After a conversation, I made what I considered a perilous decision not to sedate her. To be clear, this decision was not perilous for me, but for every other person who would need to interact with Sterling until I picked her up from Logan International Airport.
We left the hospital and headed to the hotel. This Red Roof Inn was fine except for the very difficult fact that every single ice machine was broken, and I needed to ice my foot four times a day. It did have a little fridge, so after my poor, beleaguered Mom went out and bought some ice, we kept it in the fridge. It lasted long enough.
That evening, I received the second of my Sterling-related calls. Danielle and Killy were at the airport, and Alaska Airlines decided Sterling's carrier wouldn't work because the screws holding the top and bottom together were plastic. Really, Alaska? Really? Dani suggested zip ties, but no. They're good enough for violent criminals, but not for Sterling. So I ended up buying a $60 carrier from the airline. The funny news was that Sterling was one of three cats there, yowling and howling together. I wish I could have seen that! Anyway, Sterling was officially on her way.
The next morning, my Mom and I headed out to Logan. Poor Sterling. Her carrier was sitting next to a carrier full of German shepherd puppies that were going nuts. The minute she saw us, she started meowing with a wild look in her eyes. I'm pretty sure she was saying, "What the *%#&? Get me away from these &@#!$% puppies! And what the *%&# is going on anyway?"
We took her back to the hotel, where she sniffed everything, ate (this is Sterling we're talking about -- nothing interferes with a meal!), and hid under the bed.
A word about Sterling's behavior at Dani and Killy's. She was good! I was so shocked! Relieved, but shocked! They put her in the bathroom for the four or five hours they had until it was time to leave for the airport. She used her litter box (!) and hid behind the toilet. She even let Dani pet her! And in the car, as they were switching her from carrier to carrier, and Dani was taping a puppy pee pad to the bottom of the new carrier, Sterling let Killy hold her! Wow. They truly have the magic touch.
*************************************
Will Sterling keep behaving?
Will Shannon survive her broken foot?
Read on to find out!
I went down to the first floor to head to the basement to get my laundry, but the lovely woman I was staying with had already done that for me. I met her in the kitchen where I learned that her sweet dog, Trudy, had gotten skunked. That was the smell.
Apparently this woman had gotten up in the middle of the night and went downstairs for a drink of water. She thought she might as well let Trudy out while she was down there. But she knew the minute she opened the door. Trudy raced down the steps and moments later, the stink bomb went off. This poor woman spent the rest of the night washing Trudy using every method the internet could provide. By morning, Trudy smelled pretty good. The rest of the house, however, was still skunked.
This is Trudy. Sweet, silly, skunked Trudy.
Skunked or not, my Mom and I began packing to move to the pet-friendly Red Roof Inn in anticipation of Sterling's arrival. As we spent the morning packing (I had been in this house for two weeks), I limped around doing what needed to be done. As the morning went on, my foot began hurting worse and worse. We decided we would stop by the local CVS to get a bandage and see if I could rent crutches. Bandage yes, crutches no.
We were only a few blocks from Newburyport's very own hospital, so we decided to quickly stop by. We knew it was just a sprain, but we wanted to make sure, and perhaps I could get some crutches out of it.
So we stopped by, and wouldn't you know it, but some sort of Mud Run was that morning, and the ER was filled with muddy racers with various sprains, breaks and ailments. If we had realized the whole process would take almost five hours, we probably wouldn't have stayed.
As it was, we did stay. We watched the Olympics, chatted with a couple who wondered if the husband's ankle was broken (he didn't think so), and were generally happy we weren't muddy.
Here, I would like to put a word in for Mike, the x-ray technician who x-rayed my foot. He was the funniest medical professional I have ever met, and had the best bedside manner a person could have! You are the best, Mike!
We finally got in to see the doctor, and...my foot was broken. I was in shock. How on earth was I going to have a broken foot when I hadn't even started my third week of work and was about to move into a third-story walk-up? However, I was also strangely calm. I had (have) so much going on with this move that I've kind of decided to just roll with the punches. What else can I do? So they bandaged my foot, told me to ice it four times a day, and gave me a hard shoe to wear until I could see the orthopedic surgeon, hopefully on Monday.
By the way, the husband mentioned above? His ankle was broken. A bad day for both of us.
Toward the end of our hospital visit, I received the first of my Sterling-related phone calls. Sterling had been staying in the boarding facility of her vet: Elliott Bay Animal Hospital. Saturday she was being picked up by my very good friends, Danielle and Killy. (Those of you who know Sterling know they must be very good friends indeed.) A piece of information had somehow fallen by the wayside, and the vet didn't know that Sterling was supposed to be drugged to the gills before her flight. She was calling me to confirm and to discuss her concerns. After a conversation, I made what I considered a perilous decision not to sedate her. To be clear, this decision was not perilous for me, but for every other person who would need to interact with Sterling until I picked her up from Logan International Airport.
We left the hospital and headed to the hotel. This Red Roof Inn was fine except for the very difficult fact that every single ice machine was broken, and I needed to ice my foot four times a day. It did have a little fridge, so after my poor, beleaguered Mom went out and bought some ice, we kept it in the fridge. It lasted long enough.
That evening, I received the second of my Sterling-related calls. Danielle and Killy were at the airport, and Alaska Airlines decided Sterling's carrier wouldn't work because the screws holding the top and bottom together were plastic. Really, Alaska? Really? Dani suggested zip ties, but no. They're good enough for violent criminals, but not for Sterling. So I ended up buying a $60 carrier from the airline. The funny news was that Sterling was one of three cats there, yowling and howling together. I wish I could have seen that! Anyway, Sterling was officially on her way.
The next morning, my Mom and I headed out to Logan. Poor Sterling. Her carrier was sitting next to a carrier full of German shepherd puppies that were going nuts. The minute she saw us, she started meowing with a wild look in her eyes. I'm pretty sure she was saying, "What the *%#&? Get me away from these &@#!$% puppies! And what the *%&# is going on anyway?"
We took her back to the hotel, where she sniffed everything, ate (this is Sterling we're talking about -- nothing interferes with a meal!), and hid under the bed.
A word about Sterling's behavior at Dani and Killy's. She was good! I was so shocked! Relieved, but shocked! They put her in the bathroom for the four or five hours they had until it was time to leave for the airport. She used her litter box (!) and hid behind the toilet. She even let Dani pet her! And in the car, as they were switching her from carrier to carrier, and Dani was taping a puppy pee pad to the bottom of the new carrier, Sterling let Killy hold her! Wow. They truly have the magic touch.
*************************************
Will Sterling keep behaving?
Will Shannon survive her broken foot?
Read on to find out!
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