Catching up in November

[aadler]

 
My life has been so damn boring lately that it hasn’t seemed worth the trouble it would take to write it out. Gradually, though, enough small things have accumulated that I’m willing to give a brief summation.

Open first cut — Personal Stuff

Bad news, I’m still peeing blood. Good news, that apparently is normal under the current circumstances. Those being, my last two PSA readings were significantly elevated, so I went into the VA for a prostate biopsy. Not only was there absolutely no sign of cancerous cells, the PSA for the blood sample they took beforehand showed me back to normal. So, another few weeks for recovery (because internal stuff has to be treated a bit more delicately than items that only affect skin and muscles), and I can get back into something like a respectable exercise regimen.

Exercise matters to me because, 1) I have to maintain basic fitness — and acceptable weight — to meet military standards, and 2) my unit is having an activity in three weeks that requires me to show up in my Class A uniform, and I need to be about ten pounds lighter (five minimum) to feasibly fit into it. I’m at my maximum allowable weight right now, and I’ve lost fifteen pounds since returning from deployment, so I have a reasonable hope of meeting my goal. This morning I was barely able to squeeze into the trousers (I even tempted fate by making sure I could sit down while wearing them), which means I’m within operating parameters, and everything more I can do is just more to the better.

Along that line, Susan has lost seventy pounds from her highest weight — back when she was still bloated by the prednisone she had to take for sarcoidosis — and about forty of those since I returned. I bought her the first three seasons of Army Wives (and it still seems a bit surreal that she actually IS one now), and every morning and most evenings she walks on the treadmill while watching one or more episodes. Our daughter’s wedding is in January; I am determined to wear my Class A — ‘dress greens’ — to give her away, and Susan likewise wants to look good. We’re both well along the way.

Close cut

Open second cut — Job Stuff

I still don’t have a job since my terminal leave ended, and I’ve filed with the local state office, which also doubles as the unemployment office. Unlike the last several times I did that, upon return from downrange, I’m actually seeking employment this time instead of trying to cover the margins before I could get into language school (which now is almost certainly to never happen) or deploy again. The unit administrator for my Reserve company won’t be returning; the admin NCO is putting in for that position, and I’ve expressed interest in taking his slot if he moves up, in response to which he said I’d be a good fit for his job and he’d be happy to recommend me. I just need to find out what the likely schedule is for the changeover … assuming, of course, that he’s approved for the upstep and I’m approved as his replacement.

Meantime, I’m getting restless. I’ve thought of volunteering for another deployment, though it would have to be with another unit since mine isn’t scheduled to go out again until 2012. I put in a resume for a contractor position in Iraq, but by the time I got the contact information, the slot was already filled. I’ve even put in to serve as a USO director (somewhere in ‘Southwest Asia). Damn it, I like this life, and won’t be able to continue it for more than another three to five years, so I want to rack up as much mileage as I can while it’s still possible.

Close cut

Open third cut — Fanfic Stuff

Among the various award sites where I’ve recently been nominated, the White Knight Awards have announced the latest winners, and I’m not among them. waddis was, however, for “He’s No Jack Sparrow”; m_mcgregor, for “See Noir Evil”; and bastardsnow, for “I Play My Part (You Play Your Game)” and “Thirteen Days”. Regrettably, deird1, brutti_ma_buoni, snickfic, and bellatemple — all deserving of note and respect — accompany me in not achieving any wins. A shame, and surely anomalous; sometimes, the competition is just a bit too steep.

Once again I considered signing up for this year’s NaNoWriMo, and once again decided that things were just a bit too hectic to allow it. And then I later decided — when it was too late to change my mind — that there was never going to be a good time, the whole point of NaNoWriMo is to produce a  novel-length work within the vicissitudes of real life rather than the (elusive and never-to-be-realized) ideal conditions. So, okay, maybe next year. Along the same lines, I investigated Yuletide this year, and just found it too confusing for me to attempt at the last moment; again, maybe next year.

Finally, the new fic idea that I blithely announced — on 14 October — that I would finish by the end of the month … well, I never got started. (Okay, I finished one paragraph before getting caught up in other matters.) It hasn’t gone away, though, and my current aim is to complete it by the end of this month.

Close cut

Okay, there we are. Enough for now.