Lots on my mind

Today I have quite a bit on my mind.
This week has actually been more eventful than usual, and that's not just because I found a new show to watch:

Another strong jawline to enjoy. The superman abs aren't too shabs, either.
Tom Welling isn't what I've been thinking about, though.

I started my volunteer time with the local domestic violence/sexual assault agency.  I worked the crisis line on Tuesday for three hours.  Wouldn't you know it- no one was in crisis for the entire shift!  Just what this bored social worker needed!  Thursday I was on call for SART- the sexual assault response team.  Nada (not too shocking, sexual assaults are, thankfully, not too common).  I'm on call for the overnight shift tonight, maybe I'll see some action.

In the meanwhile, I've been pondering a support group that I could get started for the agency. After assault, it can be difficult for individuals to reclaim their sexuality in a healthy manner.  I would like to help those who were victims of marital rape, date/acquaintance rape, molest, etc, and I would like to help to agency by creating this curricula and the tools to evaluate the effectiveness (evidence-based practice, ftw!).  The clinical staff is very busy, however, and I'm finding it hard to stand by while my social worker skills get rusty.  So, I've been doing some research.

When I'm not trying my hardest to volunteer against the agency's will, I scour craigslist, governmentjobs.com, and county websites looking for openings.  I applied to a few more part-time jobs this week, but all is quiet on the employment front.  I keep thinking more and more about my future.  Will I ever be able to work full time?  How am I supposed to get experience if I never get a job?  How am I going to get my license?  It will take years to get all the clinical hours.  Until I get a new job my resume is looking pretty vacant.  So, I've been looking at PhD. programs and wondering if I shouldn't just go right into it.  School is easy- sitting all day does kill me, but it doesn't really take any energy.  The PhD program I'm looking at requires the GRE- I think they almost all do.  Did you know that there's no calculators allowed during the test?  I really should have learned to do long multiplication (the problem with being transferred to the "advanced class" right when they were teaching that). Also, analogies are the bane of my existence.

Shut up, Mr. Smiley Face. (Source)

It doesn't help that I'm not doing super well this week.  It may be the kidney infection and/or the antibiotics, but I'm just not bouncing back.  My physical therapy sessions have been leaving me exhausted, my sleep hasn't been restful, and I have wonderful moments of fatigue, chills/hot flashes, nausea, and dizziness.  It just makes me want to curl up with my dog and Tom Welling.

Swoon.

I feel better already.
So, that's what I had been thinking about today- support groups, long multiplication, clinical licenses.  And babies.  Always babies.  Then, my twin sister called me not too long ago to let me know that Mama wasn't feeling too well.

Now, the biggest thing on my mind is my grandmother.  Mama and Papa (that's what I call them) raised me and my siblings.  For lack of anyone else to fill the role (RIP, Mom), they were my parents and will always be my parents.  Earlier today she was taken to the hospital with possible pneumonia and hypoxia.  So far, it's not super serious, but I'm a worrier. Makes my own current issues seem a bit less significant.  However, it doesn't make me stop thinking about the future- especially my strong desire that she be in it for a very long time.

I already had a trip planned up to Spokane- leaving next Tuesday- to go meet my brand new nephew, Logan Scott.  Sooner now, if necessary. I hope my very small group of readers will keep her in their thoughts.

Ballin' on her scooter with my nephew, Riley

Back in the day, it seemed that I could conquer my lupus to take care of Mama.  No matter how crappy I felt, I could always rally when she needed me.
Who or what seems to defy the lupus-odds in your life?

MIA like a bad kid...

Well, I finished my time with CPS last week.  That kept me pretty busy, plus I had the pleasure of a FOUR DAY migraine.  Lord knows why... maybe car accident, maybe lupus, maybe bad karma... Looking at a computer screen made my head explode, so after long days of work (by long I mean three or four hours, seriously, my head was killing me) I would come home to a darkened apartment and watch several hours of Charmed.  With puppy snuggles.

I'm not proud to admit I like this show, but it's real good bad television.

Thankfully, Saturday saw the end of the super migraine.  That gave me the chance to truly enjoy my weekend with my hubby and enjoy the opening Sunday of football!

I made:

Creamy Spinach Feta Dip

Recipe

And tri-tip sandwiches with horseradish sauce.  I made a delicious marinade out of red wine, some balsamic vinegar, seasonings, and a bit of Worcestershire.  It got happy in the fridge for over 24 hours, and then the love of my life grilled it to a delish medium rare.

That's right, my baby can grill.  

Yesterday marked a very important day for me.  As a day of sandwiches, spinach dip, and spirited drinking (GO SEAHAWKS!), I ingested a ton of carbs of the gluten variety.  I've decided to give gluten-free eating a shot.

Could I have picked a worse Monday to start?  Today I started a 64 hour Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Crisis Intervention Training.  Ka-blammo, that sounds intense, huh?

Breakfast was two hastily peeled hard-boiled eggs and a banana, eaten in my car.  I peeled them at home, just to clarify.  That would NOT be safe.

As for lunch, I always have difficulties in these situations.  You really can't count on a microwave being at the training center, and eating out would be expensive, fattening, and gluten-filled.  So, I took some very responsible measures...

I prepared by whipping up a delicious rotisserie chicken:

Slaved my fingers to the bone, I did....

And then making a bit pot of quinoa, and buying a ridiculous amount of salad fixin's: I got a Parisian salad blend, a pack of romaine, spring mix, arugula, cucumbers, olives, sliced roasted almonds, and shredded carrots.  As soon as I got the chicken out of the oven (*ahem*) I shredded all of the breast meat and carved the dark meat for lunches for my Kevin.  Before bed last night, I assembled most of the salad, storing the quinoa and chicken in a baggie separate from the salad.  The result?  Well, it was me sitting alone in the training room eating a huge salad.  But, it was very delicious AND I didn't end up feeling bad about myself.

I rounded out my day with snacks of hummus (which tasted off) with (stale) tortilla chips and one of my new favorite flavors of Larabar.

It really tastes exactly like a lemon bar.  it's very tasty.  Plus, dates, lemon, cashews, almonds.  That's it.  Can't get more pure than that.

I have to say, though, that after having a major carb binge yesterday I was starving.  That gods some genius found the time to throw a pot roast in the crockpot before leaving the house.  

Pay attention, everyone:

Pot Roast Recipe:  

Glug some red wine (leave yourself a glass for dinner) and some low sodium beef broth into the bottom of your crockpot.  Add a few thyme sprigs, some red pepper flakes, and a couple bay leaves.  Dig through cupboards and find an onion soup mix.  Read that it's also gluten-free, then do a little dance. Salt and pepper a big hunk o' meat.  Chuck, preferably.  Sear on both sides in your shitty apartment kitchen, risking setting off the smoke detectors at 6:30 in the morning.  After searing, put in the crockpot.  Top with onions, then quartered yukon golds, then a ton of baby carrots, and some whole mushrooms.  Cook on low for seven hours- or whenever you get home.  Enjoy with some Tony's.

Time to go spend some time with Kevin and a glass of wine.  I leave you with one last picture.... my nephew D has decided on his Halloween costume:

GAH!  So cute!  

Have a great week everyone!