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Well, shearing weekend came and went. There were scattered light showers throughout, but the really big rains held off until all of the alpacas were finished. I didn't get to spend any time with the alpacas, because I was relegated to kitchen duty for both days. It was miserable - tiring, stressful, long hours - but someone had to do it, and Dar was needed for the medical stuff. Maddie was a great help, and ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
sffan, bless her, came in from Toronto to help with the set up and the shearing. I'd been dreading it, but at least it's over. This week we'll be helping out with our friend Dee's shearing weekend; this time I'll be on the skirting tables separating out the good fleece from the bad. Boring and tiring but not stressful or long hours :) And I want to help her; she's always been here for us.
It's been a tough couple of months, guys. Since mid-February when Dar's health really took a scary downward slide until now, I've been pushing myself a lot. It's had a cumulative effect on my health, which was already taking a hit from being weaned off the prednisone. (I'm halfway finished with that, btw. Another four months should do it.) I wasn't sure I was going to make it through shearing, but I did it; I'm kind of proud of myself for that. I also slept 12 hours last night :) I haven't done that in ages! And I'm heading to bed early tonight, too. Heh.
Just to add to this, I found out five days ago that I was on a dangerous medication. I've been taking this drug called metoclopramide for over two years now. I wasn't even sure why I was taking it; I thought it was for nausea caused by prednisone and plaquenil. I finally got around to checking it out online, and found out that it was supposed to be prescribed for no more than twelve weeks! Big ass FDA warning on it and everything. And I've been on it for over two years. It has some dangerous and, in some cases permanent, side effects. (I think it's the cause of the bad tremors and uncontrollable high blood pressure that I've been experiencing.) But the big bad side effect is Tardive Dyskinesia, which causes uncontrollable facial contortions, protruding tongue, and violent head jerking. It's incurable once it's contracted, and its chances of happening increase the longer you're on the drug and the older you are. The real kicker is that the symptoms don't always appear until after you stop the drug, because up until then the med masks the symptoms. Fiendish, eh. The side effects from withdrawal can take several weeks to appear, and in most cases last for several months. I've already got a few of them after five days, and I'm just hoping like mad that I escape the big one. The fun never stops. I'm just thankful for the internet, because this obviously slipped through the cracks with my multiple doctors; if I weren't able to look it up for myself, I'd be in even worse shape.
Oh, and I cracked another tooth. Ha! I'd had a tooth bisected back in the late '80s. I was getting a lot of work done at a dental school, and I believe that they did the bisection more for a teaching enterprise than anything. The cubicle where I had it done was overflowing with students, and there was someone taking pictures of the whole thing throughout. At one point I had to hold the mirror so the photographer could get a better shot :) Anyway, I was left with half a tooth; I'm not surprised that it finally bit the dust. So to speak. I have a sliver of tooth left along with its filling. The nerve is dead, so I'm in no rush to replace it or have it fixed. I blame stress (my jaw has been permanently clenched for months now) and Sjogren's Syndrome (another autoimmune disease I have) which is infamous for causing tooth damage. I expect that in a few more years I'll have a mouth full of jagged, broken teeth, whereupon I shall hie me to Hollywood and hire myself out for horror films or period British pieces where they need toothless hags for colorful background characters. A star at last :)
I never got the chance to take any pictures during shearing, but if the rain ever lets up I'll try to get some pics of the absurdly adorable, newly-shorn alpacas. The huacayas especially look ridiculous with their skinny little bodies and their big poofy top knots. I can't help but giggle when I'm around them - especially the macho males. I've seen miniature poodles that look tougher! Poor babies :)
OK, to bed with me. Busy day tomorrow. I know that some on my flist are going through bad times right now, and my heart and thoughts are with you, my friends.
sffan, bless her, came in from Toronto to help with the set up and the shearing. I'd been dreading it, but at least it's over. This week we'll be helping out with our friend Dee's shearing weekend; this time I'll be on the skirting tables separating out the good fleece from the bad. Boring and tiring but not stressful or long hours :) And I want to help her; she's always been here for us. It's been a tough couple of months, guys. Since mid-February when Dar's health really took a scary downward slide until now, I've been pushing myself a lot. It's had a cumulative effect on my health, which was already taking a hit from being weaned off the prednisone. (I'm halfway finished with that, btw. Another four months should do it.) I wasn't sure I was going to make it through shearing, but I did it; I'm kind of proud of myself for that. I also slept 12 hours last night :) I haven't done that in ages! And I'm heading to bed early tonight, too. Heh.
Just to add to this, I found out five days ago that I was on a dangerous medication. I've been taking this drug called metoclopramide for over two years now. I wasn't even sure why I was taking it; I thought it was for nausea caused by prednisone and plaquenil. I finally got around to checking it out online, and found out that it was supposed to be prescribed for no more than twelve weeks! Big ass FDA warning on it and everything. And I've been on it for over two years. It has some dangerous and, in some cases permanent, side effects. (I think it's the cause of the bad tremors and uncontrollable high blood pressure that I've been experiencing.) But the big bad side effect is Tardive Dyskinesia, which causes uncontrollable facial contortions, protruding tongue, and violent head jerking. It's incurable once it's contracted, and its chances of happening increase the longer you're on the drug and the older you are. The real kicker is that the symptoms don't always appear until after you stop the drug, because up until then the med masks the symptoms. Fiendish, eh. The side effects from withdrawal can take several weeks to appear, and in most cases last for several months. I've already got a few of them after five days, and I'm just hoping like mad that I escape the big one. The fun never stops. I'm just thankful for the internet, because this obviously slipped through the cracks with my multiple doctors; if I weren't able to look it up for myself, I'd be in even worse shape.
Oh, and I cracked another tooth. Ha! I'd had a tooth bisected back in the late '80s. I was getting a lot of work done at a dental school, and I believe that they did the bisection more for a teaching enterprise than anything. The cubicle where I had it done was overflowing with students, and there was someone taking pictures of the whole thing throughout. At one point I had to hold the mirror so the photographer could get a better shot :) Anyway, I was left with half a tooth; I'm not surprised that it finally bit the dust. So to speak. I have a sliver of tooth left along with its filling. The nerve is dead, so I'm in no rush to replace it or have it fixed. I blame stress (my jaw has been permanently clenched for months now) and Sjogren's Syndrome (another autoimmune disease I have) which is infamous for causing tooth damage. I expect that in a few more years I'll have a mouth full of jagged, broken teeth, whereupon I shall hie me to Hollywood and hire myself out for horror films or period British pieces where they need toothless hags for colorful background characters. A star at last :)
I never got the chance to take any pictures during shearing, but if the rain ever lets up I'll try to get some pics of the absurdly adorable, newly-shorn alpacas. The huacayas especially look ridiculous with their skinny little bodies and their big poofy top knots. I can't help but giggle when I'm around them - especially the macho males. I've seen miniature poodles that look tougher! Poor babies :)
OK, to bed with me. Busy day tomorrow. I know that some on my flist are going through bad times right now, and my heart and thoughts are with you, my friends.
