Unintended leave of absence

::tap, tap:: Is this thing still on?

I'd not intended to be gone so long, but, well, life happens.

Not that it's been particularly exciting, or I would have had things to write about. A bit of what little has happened over the last month:

1. I finished the month of Whole30, which was an overwhelming success, from many points of view. I kept up with the program, mostly, for the two weeks after. Since then, well, let's just say I need to get back to it. Not even "need", but want to get back to it. I felt so much better on it.

2. Confirmation that the program really is a good thing for me came in the lab results at my doctor appointment yesterday. My A1C - the biggest indicator of the control of diabetes - went down by .4. This is a great thing. It had been on a very slow downward trend; this decrease is twice what I saw at the appointment four months ago. And that was with only one of those four months on the program - can't wait to see what happens when I'm consistently on it.

3. Earlier this week, I signed the home equity line of credit papers. Yay! I'm now free to go further into debt! Truthfully, I'm both excited and terrified at finally being able to bring the condo into this century. The key is discerning where to put the money in, and where to say "Eh, a basic update is ok". The kitchen, for example, does not need to be a showroom. The condo is not an open floor plan; the kitchen is only really visible when you are in it. Since it's a galley, only two people fit in it (unless you are really, really good friends with no personal boundary issues). There is no need for granite or quartz countertops (and good arguments against - there is very little counter room, and inevitably, hot pans will be set down directly on the counters), fancy cabinets (eh, they store stuff) or high end appliances.

Except the stove. The only non negotiable is the stove. Gas. Powerful burners (yay, no more taking half an hour for a pot of pasta water to come to a boil!). Convection oven. And it will not be included in the sale, if I ever move. (I'm just crazy enough to pick a new home based on whether or not my beloved stove will fit).

4. Thus far, I've avoided the flu. My boss, however, brought a nasty cold virus into the office. I've been sniffly and congested, but not even enough that the doc noticed. Just enough, however, to want to sleep every moment I can.

5. At long last, I may finally get the new curtains put up in my bedroom this weekend. While there are still some things to do (paint the armoire...which I bought unfinished over a decade ago, finish some wallhangings), the room is essentially done. Up next is the loft, which mostly needs a bit of rearranging and decluttering.

6. Actually, there is one thing in the loft that is a bigger project. There is an alcove on one wall (90" wide, 80" high, 3 feet deep) that is a closet in other units. Not sure why doors were never put on in mine. At any rate, it gives me a chance to try out a friend who has a very small contracting business. I'm pretty easy on exactly what type of doors (proved there are absolutely NO mirrored doors (yeah, have those on the front hall closet and the 13 FOOT closet in the first floor bedroom), and NO louvered doors (kitchen pantry and utility closet, kitchen sliding door and upstairs linen closet-yeah, hate them). There are a couple of challenges, like the fact that the internet port is IN the closet space, but we'll figure it out.

7. The first Saturday in February I'm off to a quilt shop to see a demo of the APQS longarm quilting machines. This same shop offers the machines for rent (at the shop, obviously) to quilt your own stuff. I'm still toying with the idea of setting up a machine quilting business after I retire. APQS machines have a great reputation.

I am not, however, a fool. If I do decide to go ahead with this, I'll figure out what model I want and wait patiently for their demonstrator and used machine sales. The prices make me swoon a bit. If I decide I want a longarm, but don't intend to make it a business. there are other companies that offer similar machines for a lower cost (though with out the excellent education and spectacular warranty). At this point, I'm not sure I really want a business...

8. Work is, well, work. There was a flurry of insanity before the tax law was signed, trying to predict the impact of the various versions of the bill on the university. This next few years will be difficult, as the new president has a bunch of initiatives he is pushing that will need quite a bit of our generally thin resources. Yet in his "state of the university" address last week, he also announced another "gift of time" (we are given the "gift of time" for the work days between the Christmas and New Year's holidays as additional, paid vacation time) for the week of July 4th. Nice, but the first thought I had was "does that mean no raises this year?". Cynical me.

9. Reading...while I've been rereading some fiction, my new reads this year so far have been nonfiction. I've finished Washington: A Legacy of Leadership from The Generals series, and am mostly through the book on Robert E. Lee from the same series. Pershing, Sherman and Patton are also available. While the books are biographies, they focus primarily on each man's military service. They are well written (different authors, though same editorial team) and accessible for those of us whose knowledge of military history is sketchy at best (as a side note, it was kind of fun to read the account of Washington and the battle at Monmouth, as I've actually visited that battlefield).

10. Sewing...I've not touched the machine yet this year. I hope to remedy that in February, as I'm in a "twenty minute a day" sewing challenge. That should help me knock out some long over due projects.

That's about it here.