Dear Diary

Can I control that?

Can I control that?

Not unless you download the photo, play with it by using some photo enhancement software, then upload it to some online site (like an MSN site) and then link to the thumbnail.

Actually, I had originally tried playing with the photo and I ended up washing out the roses' true colors.

Mapleleaf, My photo software allows me to change the lightness/darkness of the picture, and oftentimes, a little adjustment is all it needs. Can you send your avatar to me at: [email protected]? I'll try to work on it. c.i.

Jes, did you know you're avant-garde? Scanned pics of flowers are Art:

http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/15/magazine/15SCAN.html

I thought I was just lazy, e. g. just scanning the flower instead of taking a picture and scanning that.

Avant-garde, eh? Hmmm. Kewl. :-D

c.i. -

you can download the avatar directly. right-click (pc) or control+click (mac) and select "download picture to disk."

dear diary
I'm so glad to see this here on A2K. I enjoyed it on Abuzz, and I'm
sure I will enjoy it here also.......Got Christmas shopping done, and a
good thing at that, for the last 3 days have been "lost" - my rheumatoid
arthritis has acted up so bad, that I was lying in th bed in misery from my
back AND when I tried to stand up - almost fell down. Been taking heavy
steroid doses, try to get back to semi normal - it MUST before Christmas.
I must drive 5 hours for Christmas to see 2 of my grandkids, spend a
couple days there, then back to Jacksonville Beach - visit there. Then I
will no doubt come home, spend a week in bed - getting over it all.
But I am happy about Christmas this year. No down in the dumps,
depression - no feelings of panic & anxiety. So far, so good...so if my
body will just get in the groove and cooperate, things will be ok
Wishing you ALL A VERY VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Babs, I'm not quite to that point, but I do have to work at keeping my knees, back and hip joints working. I try to keep the depression at bay...sometimes, I'm not sure how affective I am.

Dear Diary,

Wow !! A possible Kara meeting !!! Actually, it is good that she is flying in to Gatwick, as living in SE London, Gatwick is fairly easy to get to. Too bad she will be with Mr K, as I would have liked her to be alone but I firmly believe that husbands and boyfriends are a minor irritant in an other wise perfect life ROFL. So if I can get the dates from her, and if it all works out - then yeah - it will be history in the making (and my first meeting with someone from abuzz/a2k)

Apart from that, living day to day. The party season is just getting to me, am completely booked till New Years - and most of the evenings I have at a minimum of 2 parties to go to - and tomorrow I have 3 !!! I just dont know what my condition will be by the time 2003 rolls around.

Work is hectic, have to complete all my post Prague work and year end admin before I go on vacation at the end of this week. Not going away anywhere, due to various social commitments, so am planning to relax, chill out at home, watch movies, listen to music, take long walks in the Greenwich park, play football..stuff like that.

Shopping list for post Christmas sales is almost complete - shoes, trousers and a wide screen TV - cant wait for 27 to rollaround, though going shopping will be bloody murder.

And am seriously gonna act on the age old saying - Avoid Hangovers - Stay drunk !!!

I had to shave AGAIN today but had no more blades.Fortunately I found a dispoable razor which did the job.
Man It´s Just Wild And Crazy over here huh?

Going for a follow up at the pain doc. Have not decided whether I will go for the third epidural. Feel pretty good now. Problem is the interminable wait at his office. Hmm, if I go early, I can stop awhile at Costco, and spend some money. That will make me feel MUCH better!

Oh dupre, here is a big hug..{{{{{{{dupre}}}}}}}. It really does sound like you are just beginning menopause, the weight gain, depression, feelings of uncertainty. Have you seen the T-shirt that says "THIS ISN'T A HOT FLASH, IT'S A POWER SURGE!"?

Be sure to find a good doctor in your area. It doesn't have to be an ob-gyn if you are otherwise healthy, just someone you trust and can talk to.

Menopause can be a hassle, but it is also very freeing. I and most women I know feel much better than we have in years, with a greater awareness of our sexuality. Maybe it is because it tends to coincide with our children growing up and moving out of the house, maybe it is because our bodies aren't having to adjust to hormonal changes every month. Whatever it is, it is really a wonderful passage into a different time of life.

Mapleleaf's suggestion of the possibility of depression is a good one to follow up on. It is very common during menopause. The thing to remember is that there are a number of treatments available that are very gentle and not invasive.

I hope you don't have an aversion toward medication. It is tailored to your needs. There is no reason to be a martyr and suffer. Maybe our mothers did, but it no longer has to be that way.

Good luck to you.

Gautam, you must promise to tell all about the parties you have been invited to. I think I enjoy this much partying in a vicarious way, rather than actually being there. I haven't been able to go all night for about 20 years!

It sounds like both husker and mapleleaf have thought about getting out of leadership roles and into more nurturing roles. Good for you. Grooming others for leadership is a sign of a good leader. Nurturing is absolutely vital in the nonprofit world, there is too much burn out if there aren't people who have lived through the problems and heart aches to be found in social programs.

c.i. when I was here last, you mentioned still having flowers blooming. I had to smile as I remembered the wonder of northern California. Your post almost had me smelling the earth and the flowers.

One of the wonders of spring in the northeast is the smell of the earth as it thaws out. It is the smell of life and rebirth--wonderful!!

This is such a nice thread. I love hearing of your lives and hopes and wishes. Love to all you wonderful people.

So if I can get the dates from her, and if it all works out - then yeah - it will be history in the making (and my first meeting with someone from abuzz/a2k)

Gautam, mon cher, I am fetched by the idea that this MIGHT WORK. I would like so very much to meet you for a cuppa or a drinky-poo.

I will run this by my significant other. If he nixes it, then of course I will be all for it and full speed ahead. LOL. This would be the most glorious fun, Gautam.

Dear Diary,

Is that some problem with this thread ? I saw that the last person to respond was Kara (and my heart leapt with joy) but I could not see her post when I clicked on the topic. So being clever old me, I went to her profile and clicked on "all posts by Kara" to see her response. And my heart leapt with joy again (it is hanging on the celing right now) when I saw that dear Kara was willing to defy Mr K to come and have a drinky poo (now what excatly is that ? <wonders>) but whatever it is, it sounds good !!!

Why cant I have the same effect on men ? <sigh>

Another day - another round of parties. But this is the one I cannot escape, as it is being thrown by moi !! So I am attending one party and then going to my party and ditching the third one I have today. Cause after my party, I dont think I will have legs to go anywhere else, as I have invited some very dear friends, who lead a more decadant lifestyle than me (and that is saying something). Last night was great, I went to one party being held in a very snazzy bar - and ran into a couple of old friends, so spent more time with them than with the guests and the host LOL. And then I had to come back home, don a suit and tie and go to a customer event - sip (not gulp) red wine and make polite conversation. Now when you are abt 5 vodkas and 3 glass of ole red down, it is extremely difficult to make polite conversation, specially if the stiff old man opposite you is giving you a lecture on how Eastern European countries are going to dilute the wonderfully wonderful European economy once they join the EU. And considering that I am a big fan of Eastern Europe (AND eastern europeans :wink: ) I was not very amused. But if the person is an important customer, u nod at the right moments and agree with him, even if you wanna rip his ba**s off. But the food was great and apart from the boring sod, I did manage to have a good time.

But am really looking fwd to today. The bar which my wonderful secy has booked for my do is described as "Funky club & restaurant combo which fuses futuristic furnishings with prehistoric themes & appeals to corporate types (which we are) and clubbers (which we think we are) alike ....... unusually friendly staff encourage gregariousness...."

Expect tales of gregariousness tomorrow

"fuses futuristic furnishings with prehistoric themes"???????????
It sounds ghastly but I look forward to reading your own review Gautam.

Dear Diary-

If I go to another luncheon or dinner, I am going to scream! One after another. Eat, eat, eat. Have another one tonight. I don't really want to go, but these are my friends, and I don't want to hurt their feelings.

Last night my neighbor's group went to this restaurant that is part of a drugstore, of all things. Wednesday was Elvis night. For 14.95, I got a prime rib dinner, and listened to an Elvis impersonator for two hours. Not bad at all. It was the dessert that this month's hostess served afterwards at her home that killed me.

Here it is hot, hot HOT...... well over 100 F for the last few days - party season is slower for me than for Gautam - but busy enough - and I have a few days off over christmas. Yay!

Dear Diary ...

This week moves apace ... a snail's pace ... which is absolutably luverly. After tomorrow, I'm off drudgery til next year. The object at present is to prolong anticipation as long as possible.

Sweltering here, too, with temp's holding steady in lower 60's all week. Snow coming on Saturday, so they say, but who give's a rat's backside 'bout that? I don't, for one.

SNOW! He said SNOW! Visions of lovely, pristine, virgin, COOL snow blanketing our parched, El Nino'd continent.... (we are having the worst drought for a hundred years or more...)