Laundry, laundry everywhere...

I little over a year ago, S and I bought our first house.  It needed, and still needs, some work to get it just how we want it. But time and money seem to keep it in an under-construction state.  Several rooms are half-finished, with piles of stuff in the middle of the floor.  Admittedly, it does not help that I cannot do just one project at a time.  I have to have several projects going on, or else I get bored.

Anyway, with all of the piles everywhere, I got a bit lazy and started throwing my dirty laundry in to piles, too.  I HATE washing laundry, so the piles grew.  As the piles grew, S grew more and more annoyed with me.  (And I don't blame him.  I was being quite a slob.)

I decided to do something about my dirty little habit, and I turned to Ana White's blog for inspiration.  Not only did I find the inspiration I needed, but I found a solution -- a very easy, why-didn't-I-think-of-that solution.  On Ana's site, I found, and printed, plans for a laundry basket dresser.

The laundry basket dresser is basically a plywood (Purebond plywood) box.  The box has six supports -- three on each side -- to house three standard laundry baskets.  The baskets can just slide into the dresser when you need them.  Genius!

I took Ana's sketch, added legs to it (but without a brace--they're just screwed in), and got to work.

Unfortunately, the day S took me to Home Depot to get plywood cut, I was in a lot of pain.  And pain medication + writing down measurements = wood cut to the wrong width.  The back of the dresser is about an inch too short, but it's not noticeable at all with the back being against the bedroom wall.

When I was more clear-headed, I built the box, working hard to get things square.  (Getting projects square can be a bit challenging when S is at work and I'm building by myself.)  In a very short time, the dresser was built.  I then painted it with two coats of Annie Sloan's chalk paint in graphite.  After a soft wax finish, it was ready to go into our bedroom.

I bought three laundry baskets and labeled them for sorting.  I put a thin basket on top of the dresser for my silks and cashmere.  A small glass candy dish is a catch-all for items left in our pockets.

And since I hate laundry so much, I thought I'd try to make it seem a little more pleasant by placing one of my favorite possessions on top of the laundry dresser.   When my sister was pregnant with my niece, she didn't announce her pregnancy.  She wanted us to all find out at the same time.  So for Christmas, she gave each of us a framed sonogram photo.  My little niece has brought so much joy to my life and that photo reminds me of how blessed I am.

Lupus update

I now have a local rheumatologist, and I LOVE her!  I'm back on my 3 mg of prednisone (yuck) and my Imuran (I was off it while my liver enzymes were sky-high).  I'm still on the same dose of plaquenil that I've been on for several year.

This summer, after I got out of my funk, I was doing well.  I had bad days, but they were outnumbered by the good days.  But, now that it's getting cold, I feel worse.  I'm getting several oral and nasal ulcers.  My joints are so sore.  Granted, when you live with daily pain, you can often push through the soreness.  I had to do that during the race today.

When I got home from Iowa this afternoon, I was wiped and had to take a nap.  After I woke up from my nap, I realized I kind of overdid it this weekend -- and the weekend is only half done!  One of the first things I noticed when I woke up was the presence of that oh-so-lovely butterfly rash.  When my face starts to discolor, I know I need to scale back a bit and relax.

Race 14: October 6, 2012 - 12:1 Half Marathon in Danville, Iowa

Last night, I went to bed very early (between 7:30 and 8:00 p.m.) since I had to wake up at 2:00 a.m to get ready for my drive to Iowa.  S. couldn't join me on this trip, so I needed some rest to make it to and from Danville, Iowa safely.  When my alarm -- or alarms, since I set 6 alarms just in case -- screeched it's morning wake-up song, I really did not want to get out of bed.  It was in the mid 30s outside, and I was quite comfy on my heated mattress pad.  But I somehow managed to get up, get ready, and get out the door by 2:45 a.m.

The drive was peaceful and uneventful.  That early in the morning, there were hardly any cars on the road.  I made it to Danville with plenty of time to pick up race packet and bib.

But when I entered the expo, there was no bib with my name on it.  Apparently, my name was in the computer with at 2010 registration date!  The address under my name was incorrect.  It was a big, odd mix-up.  The race workers were so sweet, though, and found a bib for me.  They didn't charge me another fee.  But since the race was for a good cause (clean water for underdeveloped nations), I gave them all the cash I had.  I was just so impressed with how kind and courteous everyone was.

It was 34 degrees at the time of race start, so I stood inside as long as I could.  I only braved the cold after the race instructions were issued to the runners.  Luckily, I warmed up pretty quickly after I started running.  I started at a pretty good pace, but quickly realized my time goal would have to change.  I wanted to finish under 2 hours.  But once I discovered how challenging and brutal the VERY hilly course was, I decided I wanted to finish under 2 hours and 20 minutes.

I spent the first 6 miles in complete awe of the scenery.  This was probably the most beautiful course I've ever run.  The course went through two amazing parks and over a lake.  All of the leaves on the trees were turning, so we were surrounded with golden and fiery leaves.  It was mesmerizing.

I continued to admire the course for the rest of the race, but I was a little distracted because I started talking to another St. Louis area resident.  An older man who was running the same pace as I was talked to me about his 50 states goal.  He and his wife (who ran much faster than we did) were completing their 18th race.  It was so inspiring to talk to him.  And it's a lot harder to focus on the tough hills when you're busy talking.

I left my new friend when we reached mile 12.  Once I see the finish line, I can't help but speed up.  So, I raced to the end, and reached my goal.  I ran 2:19:26 according to my stopwatch.  Yay!

After the race, I hid in the bathroom and cried.  I was just so relieved to have completed a race after taking so much time off.  It was one of those wonderful moments that you need to keep going.  I'm am just so thankful.

Race 13: April 17, 2011 - Kansas Half Marathon in Lawrence

I've been meaning to update this for a while.  Now, I no longer remember the details of my 13th race.  I blame it on Lupus brain ;)  I remember it was a beautiful sunny day, and I had fun looking at the town as I ran through it.  But, really, that's all I can recall. 

The only hints I have about this trip are photos S. and I took with a crazy-looking Jayhawk statue.

Sadly, this was my last race until today.  I went almost a year and a half without completing a race because life just got in the way.  My grandfather was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and S. and I used all of our race fee money on gasoline to drive to visit Grandpa and Grandma as often as possible.  My grandfather was a strong and sweet man -- he loved running with his dog, delivered meals on wheels to seniors younger than himself, and was still so in love with Grandma.  He fought hard, but in January, the cancer finally won.  After that, I was admittedly a little depressed.  I no longer had the energy nor the strength to run.

I didn't start running again until June.  In June, S. and I registered for the Walt Disney World Marathon.  Registering for this race and paying the exorbitant race fees gave me the kick in the pants that I needed.  I began running again, starting with short 3 mile runs.  Now, I'm back up to race distance runs.  Last Saturday, I had a very successful 17 mile run.  Today, I ran a somewhat slow half marathon on a challenging and hilly course.  It may sound out, but finishing another race today was such a relief.