I´m finally reading The Silmarillion! (and other things)

... what on Middle Earth took me so long?!

OK, so I´m only on Chapter 10, but it´s the farthest I´ve ever gotten and I´m really into it. I´m actually reading two books at the moment, the other being a non-fictional book about Anne Boleyn (I´m trying to read more history).

Currently I am awaiting my dinner, Pio Pio tonight (delish). During the pandemic I have been cooking every night, but tonight I just was not feeling it. I´m having some pretty awful mid-cycle side effects, and the mittelschmertz will be making an appearance any minute now. Does anyone else experience extreme pain during ovulation? My pain is unpredictable. Some months it´s a minor pain, other months I´m nearly in tears. The nice thing about it is how predictable (contradicting myself much?) the timing of it is, it never lasts more than an hour. I recently had a CT scan done to try and figure out why my pain is sometimes so intense and lo and behold, I have not only cysts on both ovaries, but fibroids on my uterus and cysts in my right kidney! Gosh, I´m such a lucky girl! I´m going to visit a new OB-GYN soon and hopefully he will help me learn how to navigate through this pain and give me some peace of mind as far as monitoring my afflictions goes. Fingers crossed I like this new one, because the last one kind of just blew me off. I even told her that I have a history of fibroids in my family and she told me it wasn´t that. Girls, be your own advocate! If you know something is amiss, and the doc ain´t listening, find a new doc!

Alors, this post will be short. I don´t have too much to say at the moment, and I got the venting out of my system. Also, my husband is home with dinner! ´Til next post...

Butt pimples? Try this! (product rave)

Well hello there Blog, I´m back! Can you believe it? Ok, ok. This is only my second post, but it´s a big deal that I even made it here in the first place!
Today I want to rave about a skincare product that I discovered a few months ago and let me tell you, it is an absolute game changer and it has changed my life. So, Adult readers, have you ever had a big pimple? Multiple big pimples? What about multiple big pimples... on your ass? My hand is raised, is yours? Keep reading...

Let me start off by saying that this is obviously an incredibly embarassing subject for many. A backside covered in inflamed pustules is unsightly and really affects the self esteem. I myself have kept this secret for most of my adult life. I´ve gone through so many dermatologists, however I have shared this humiliating secret with only a few due to the shame (please guys, don´t be like me, just tell your doctor). Starting in my late teens/early 20s, I would get large, painful pimples on my keister. These things were gnarly. If I tried popping one (don´t recommend this, and yes, ew), nothing would be expressed. In fact, it would usually just get bigger and more painful. Does this sound familiar to anyone? Still suffering silently? Well here is what worked for me and trust me, it took me years of trying Rx and OTC creams, bodywashes and ointments to finally find relief.

My solution? None other than Gold Bond Rough and Bumpy Skin Daily Therapy Cream. Hallelujah! Chemists of Gold Bond, thank you thank you thank you! Like I said, I spent years trying different products to no avail. Once I´d make it through one bottle of (insert brand name here) without any relief, I´d move on to something else. I´m not going to name names, but let´s just say that it feels like I tried them all. My dermatologists told me that the pimples are called folliculitis which is caused by irritated and infected hair follicules. Nothing that was prescribed to me for the folliculitus, whether we approached it as a bacterial or fungal infection, worked. But my goodness, did Gold Bond do the trick! No longer is my butt speckled in active angry zits nor discolored scars from past eruptions. My skin is now clear, smooth, and glowing. After each shower (no skipping, ever!) I use about a half-dollar sized amount of cream and spread it all over my derriere. I´m now on my 5th tub of this stuff and Gold Bond, I swear if you ever change this formula or discontinue it, I´m going to march down to your corporate office and give you a piece of my mind! Or... maybe I´ll just write an angry letter and shake my fist at you. Let´s not allow this to happen, OK? Anyway, it feels incredible having clear skin on your toosh. It really really does. SO if you´ve got zits on your bum, give this Gold Bond stuff a try, maybe it will be as worthwhile for you as it has been for me!

Have you found a product that works for you? Let me know in the comments!

I want to add a disclaimer to this post. I have not been paid to endorse this product. I am simply sharing a solution that worked for me and I hope it works for you, too!

Mon premier post!

Yeah, I´m one of those people who like to randomly inject french into their writing because we erroneously believe it makes us sound smart while simultaneously using poor English grammar. Hey, I´m no writer.

Be that as it may, here I find myself starting another blog after 20 or so years since the last one (livejournal? xanga? not sure which came first...) I´m heeding the advice that one of my therapists from years ago gave me: start writing a journal. I´m a little late but dagnabbit, at least I´m here!

Like most people, the state of global affairs due to Covid-19 has really taken its toll on my mental health. The uncertainty of the future is what has most affected me as of late. My daughter is now 4 1/2 and I worry about her often, but she is one tough cookie (aren´t they all at that age?) and she´s been handling confinement very well. I, on the other hand, have been incredibly bored and have had the toughest time getting off of my ass and doing things that need to be done. I recently visited my GP to request a med change. Years ago I used Vyvanse for my ADD. It helped me in so many ways, but the side effects (at the time) were too much. I was a gym rat and was losing a lot of weight b/c of the appetite supression, so after 6 months I stopped taking it. Well, I requested to get put back on it as my untreated ADD typically leads to my depression and Wellbutrin is no longer efficacious for me (and I´m also a good 20 lbs heavier than the gym-rat days). The insurance I currently have is not nearly as good as that provided to me by the state during my years of civil servitude, therefore Vyvanse was unfortunately out of the question due to cost ($260 a month!). Thus my GP decided to try Adderall and now here I am, starting a new blog, while experiencing for the first time in many years the type of mental clarity I wish my brain could provide to me unaided by pharmaceuticals. It feels good (why can´t that initial euphoria always hang around?!)

I don´t expect to have any kind of audience with this blog, and honestly that isn´t the goal. But if you are a stranger reading this, hello! I´m a mid-30s housewife, happily married with a pre-school aged daughter, and live in Central Florida. Some of my hobbies include gardening, raising butterflies, learning new languages, cooking, and watching backyard wildlife. I´ve had a hard time making friends since moving to Central Florida, so perhaps writing my thoughts down here will be cathartic for me, like talking to a close friend. We´ll see.

Speaking of goals, I´m told having a list of goals is beneficial for the mind, so I´m going to list some of the things I want to accomplish in the coming days and weeks!

• Do one hour of schooling with Elise every weekday
  
• Finish Mrs. T. rex Diamanté
  
• Read more history books
  
• Lift weights 3 times a week, Do cardio 3 times a week
  
• Continue French and Swedish studies daily for at least 15 minutes each
  
• Write in my new blog at least once a week
  

Alright, I think this is a decent start. Keep it short, keep it simple!

À la prochaine!