A Most Unreliable Narrator Issue #122 Please download notes for your reference
book filler
Dear Internet,
It’s Wednesday.
This morning I went to my local GP to have them look at my mouth. It’s been three weeks since my accident and there is an ulcer on the inside of my bottom lip. At appointment one with the office a few weeks back, the PA were able to take out two of the seven stitches. Appointment two, the PA wanted the doc to look at it, so this morning was appointment three with the doc.
Per the doc, who got out another four stitches, ER used the wrong kind of stitch material in my mouth. This one doesn’t dissolve that well and because there were some knots outside of the mucus membrane that was causing the ulcer. He numbed up my mouth, dug through the ulcer to get the stitches, and cauterized it with some kind of liquid. He believes now that the errant stitches causing the ulcer are now gone, the lone remaining stitch will dissolve on its own, and I should see remarkable improvement in the next few days.
(Thursday update: The mucus membrane skin is now normal colored and has gone down considerably. I shant be surprised if it’s healed in another couple of days. Saturday update: All that is left is a little bump.)
We’re leaving for KY on Friday, and I have an appointment with my KY GP in the next week for something else so if it doesn’t look good, then I’ve got a plan in place.
Right now, my bottom lip is swollen (yep, lip fillers still not a good look), I’m drooling since my lip is numb, and I can only drink if I stick the bottle to the side of my mouth and gingerly wrap my lips around the head. I’m also wiping off blood from my teeth.
Sounds beautiful, doesn’t it?
J (6’6”) and I (5’10”) are both big people in height and stature. When we last flew to Europe, we were jammed in close together in our seats and he was in pain for the long haul which also meant his anxiety shot through the roof. First class or even business class is stupid expensive but there is business class lite which is comfort class. Comfort class gives you extra leg room and longer pitch of your seat (which is apparently very important).
Viking booked our flights but they don’t handle upgrades because they only have access to the main cabin. When I went to the Delta’s site and tried to upgrade, I kept getting an error and to try again later or call the support number. First call patched me through in under 10 minutes but couldn’t figure out the problem, so they referred me back to Viking. Called Viking where they discussed the only access to the main cabin situation and then I called back to Delta. The second rep couldn’t fix it and said they would need their team lead and then I was put on hold for 20 minutes. Frustrated, I hung up and decided to try after work.
After work was no better. When I called back, hold time was 33 minutes. I hung up, this time pissed, and went to Delta’s chat. First rep did the song and dance about going back to Viking but when I explained why Viking sent me to Delta, they got ahold of their team lead who fucking fixed the issue. Turns out that when Viking sent over the ticketing information, they sent it wrong which wasn’t an issue on my side per se but didn’t allow upgrades or any kind of changes. Team lead fixed everything, and I was able to upgrade. Now here’s hoping the previous three attempt charges fall off my credit card before too long. (Saturday update: pending charges fell off my card.)
I went to the KLM who are flying us from Barcelona to Amsterdam and then from Amsterdam to Atlanta and upgraded our seats there. Easy peasy.
It’s Saturday and after a 10 hour drive on Friday, we’re back in KY for the winter.
Four months of mail. We tossed 98% of it and kept the few bills that we need to pay. The rest is getting recycled.
I love traveling. I’m obsessed with packing lists and I’m obsessed with taking that knowledge to know five items will last me three weeks.
(I’m also obsessed with buying traveling items like RFID wallets and passport holders and travel toilet paper. In many places in Europe, the public toilets sometimes cost a euro or two and sometimes there is no TP because a little old lady who doesn’t speak much is selling it and of course you never have that few euros to buy it from her. I’ve dripped dried enough that I don’t want to go through it again.)
J and I are not checking luggage. We got burned on our honeymoon when Air France left our luggage behind. We spent the first few days in Paris with hotel washed underpants and our teeth brushed with complimentary brushes from the hotel. We packed two large bags for three weeks and we didn’t (well I didn’t) wear half the shit we brought. We did laundry in our bathroom in Brussels (1/2 through the trip) which was fine but not ideal.
Since then, we’ve been traveling with carryon bags even if we’re driving for a few days. I’ve got the toiletry part down pat and I can do clothes for a week with few items but three weeks? In my head I am constantly putting and deconstructing outfits. I own too many clothes. And I’m buying more because what I own isn’t right for the trip. I think I have my bottoms figured out: Two pairs of jeans, two black leggings, velvet leggings, skirt (the mini in dark grey. I own one in midnight blue and it has pockets!). I have a navy sweater and possibly a cardigan. Tops are throwing me for a loop. I get my current aesthetic is aging punk rock GenXer who wears jeans and logo t-shirts but I’m not packing 10 t-shirts for a 17-day trip. We have access to a laundromat on the ship so no need plus trusty handwash (bought special soap to do this) in hotels. Plus, I want to prove to myself I can pack little for a long trip. (I might get rid of one pair of jeans and survive on five bottoms instead of six. Still thinking.) Plus, underwear, bras, socks, and tights. Shoes I think I’ve narrowed down: one pair of black knee-high walking boots and my white Chucks. Bring the new to me heel lift. I’m thinking of also bringing flipflops to walk around the boat. And I bought a travel yoga mat. Plus, I can’t forget make-up. Is less more?
(Recent actual conversation:
J: I think I’m bringing one bag for the trip.
Me: Don’t forget to have room for your quart bag.
J: I’m not bringing toiletries with me. Why do I need a quart bag?
Me: Well, if you don’t, I may need it.
J: You know there are drugstores in Europe, right?
Me: GASP!
J: Just buy some French moisturizer and call it good.
Me: GASP!)
Pick two:
If I have learned anything, always have a back-up pair of glasses.
Things I Recently Wrote
If you read #97.5, you’ll recall I’ve ditched the We’ll Read Anything Once (Twice If We Like it) book review blog for a newsletter of the same name.
What I’m Reading
FINISH A FUCKING BOOK LISA BEFORE STARTING A NEW ONE.
Glenarvon Byron’s ex-lover was so distraught about their breakup; she wrote a roman à clef about their relationship
Shades of Milk and Honey (Glamourist Histories #1) If Jane Austen wrote fantasy
Crime and Poetry (A Magical Bookshop Mystery #1) Cozy mystery with bookshop as the background
Lords and Ladies (Discworld #14 / Witches #4) The elves are back and this time they don’t want just your teeth
Pride and Prejudice Read this a zillion times but doing a read-a-long for Austen Mondays
The Christmas Cupid Can Zoey match six couples before Christmas Eve?
The Seventh Sinner (Jaqueline Kirby #1) Errant librarian solves a mystery in Rome
Hotel du Lac The book that won Anita Brookner the Booker prize. It asks the question, “What is love?”
The Pursuit of Love (Radlett and Montdore #1) Satirizes British aristocracy in the 1920s and 1930s
France: An Adventure History (audiobook) A social history of France from Roman era to Macron
Spoiler Alert Romantic comedy set in the world of fanfiction
Men Explain Things to Me Essays by Rebecca Solnit
The End of Everything (Astrophysically Speaking) A look at five ways how the universe could end
The Art of the English Murder Lucy Worsley’s social history of murder in the UK
Want to see what I’m reading or watching? Check out my list for 2022!
Wonderful Thing
This week: libraries.
You may ask yourself: How does Lisa get ahold of so many books and the answer is: libraries.
Some of you old timers know I trained and worked as a librarian and archivist for a few years before I moved over into content design but I still carry my librarian heart.
I’ve been using libraries since I was kid and there hasn’t been one city I’ve lived in during my life I haven’t had a library card. Right now I have three: N. Michigan, Grand Rapids, and Louisville. I heavily use Overdrive (ebooks) and depending on library, check-out is for 14-21 days. I read fast, but I also wander across books, so it works for me. All three libraries have a wish list feature and at LFPL, that list is up to over 500 books. At one point I’ll go and clean it out but probably not because you never know.
lisa x