Friday, June 29, 2007

I went to meet with the people I'm going to be working with/for. It was incredible. First off, I had to meet with the superintendent of the Maranacook school district, since I'll be on their payroll, and it started off sort of intimidating since I've NEVER had anything of a job interview before, but it was comforting to know I already had the job, and it was basically just to prove I knew what I was doing and would be an asset to the team.
He began professional, and sort of edgy, and he asked me "So...what do you know about the Maine Support Network?"
And I proceeded to tell him, "Well, I've been involved with them for about 7 years," and he was immediately impressed and relaxed. We chatted for about 20 minutes and it ended with us talking about camp (He asked, "so do you do any public speaking...") And he closed with. "WELL. you really made my day!"
which clearly made MY day. I felt really really good about it, and the fact that he was psyched to have me on board!

Then I rode over to the MSN office with a lovely lady named Coleen, and she was wearing lime green crocs, which was only ok cause it showed me these people were super down to Earth, but when we got to the "office" I nearly died.
First of all, it's basically just an adorable house and it just happens to look like I decorated the place. Never have I walked in somewhere and had such an "oh my god, I belong here!" reaction. The first thing I saw was a Vera Bradley towel, about which I gushed, and come to find out, one of the girls' (who is absolutely lovely!) family owns the CALICO PATCH IN FARMINGTON!!! So I totally know them!
Coleen asked if I liked coconut coffee (favorite!) and she made me some, then we went to sit in another office that had THE SAME exact PURPLE carpeting as my room, as well as the purple desk chair I just retired!
A bit later, I met with my supervisor, and she asked me questions about my working/learning style, and we just chatted. Her signature colors are pink, purple (um remember my room at school anyone?) and zebra! She's amazing. She told me all sorts of things I need to get for work (they're going to give me a work expenses credit card!) and one of them is a bluetooth headset and she already had a pink one, as well as ringtones for all her coworkers. We're SO on the same page! I can't wait to start. truly.

After being pumped from all of that, I called Colin and we went to Starbucks. Sometimes we go out and it's like we both have so much that is unsaid, and it's strained and weird, but this was one of those times that was just wonderful, where we're just 100% open and comfortable, and we reminisced about old dramas, theater drama, and laughed way too hard at stuff that wasn't funny. It was good.

When I got home I realized I ached all over and didn't feel that great. People were going to reconvene that evening at Brandon's but I layed down for a couple hours, and woke up feeling warm. I had a low grade fever and I decided I had better pass and rest up since Colin's party was the next day.
I went to bed early and felt fine the next day....weird.
Mom and I went to Portland for a dr's appointment and came home to get ready for the soiree. Which was absolutely FABULOUS.
Jess was there, and all my boys of summer.
It was seriously such a great time. My parents went too and we all had an amazing time. I love all of those people.


My rents left a little early, and the rest of us snuggled in the living room warming up and telling crazy stories of our ends of college. It was so perfect.
I got home at like 11, uploaded my pictures, and went to bed.
Before long, I felt muscle twinges start in my legs, and I got cold. I snuggled deeper under the blankets, trying to will what I knew was coming, away. but it didn't work. My teeth began chattering and my body shook to the point where all my muscles were contracting. I tried to straighten my legs or curl up into fetal position, but I couldn't stop the pain of my hip joints shaking and grinding together. It hurt. I tried for a few minutes more to get the feeling to go away, but it was more than being cold, and I knew it.
I reached for my treo above my head and dialed my dad's cell phone that I knew was by his bed.
Soon my parents came down and got me a heating pad and eventually the chills subsided and I was able to fall asleep. But we all knew something was going on, and my dad stayed by my bed for at least an hour (I think he actually kept checking to see if I was breathing. It was scary shit)

In the morning, mom and I went to the lab to get blood cultures because usually that means a line infection, although, I usually would get a high fever during or after the chills and there was none, so we were a bit confused. It was a task trying to get blood, because for some reason my line wouldn't draw and my veins just suck. We went to Denny's to escape everything and eat really crappy food that was SO GOOD. I am now in love with their hash browns!
The day went on, and again I went to bed (after watching Breakfast at Tiffany's- it IS a good movie)

Saturday we were supposed to go to CT to get Maisy from camp, and for my cousin's grad party but because we didn't have the lab results back yet and I still wasn't feeling up to par, we decided it would really be a good idea to just stay home (I have good instincts by now and sometimes you need to go with your gut) So that day, dad went, and mom and I stayed home and did house things.
That night, after an amazing meal of stuffing myself with all the chinese food I could eat, I got hooked up and as I was surfing myspace I felt my legs get twingey. Nooooo.....
Sure enough, in the time it took me to put up an angry away message and get in bed the chills had fully errupted again. I tried to relax, but we decided we had to do something, so we quickly tapered my TPN and unhooked me and by then, I was able to relax but my hips and muscles still hurt to the point where I could barely walk.
From 11-2 that night, mom and I sat in the ER. We read all the magazines in the place, ate sherbet and I had more blood cultures and a chest X-ray before we went home. By this point we just wanted answers.

We got a phone call the next day that the second set of cultures had come back positive and we needed to go back to the hospital. Finally. At least we knew!
I got admitted and sent upstairs (after the triage guy thought my name was Nancy...psh...and I lied about my husband Tom...come on now)
I got hooked up to fluid, since I was also severely dehydrated from not getting TPN and my bloodwork was all off and some antibiotics.
Colin is the best BFF I could ever have, and since we were supposed to hang out that day before he went back to CT, as soon as I was settled in he came bearing iced lattes.

I was in the hospital for 2 days before we got back my labs got back and we had been told what antibiotics would work for the infection. I watched way too much MTV and actually got a good portion of the way through Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, so I'll be set when the movie comes out! But I have concluded, the worst thing in the world is to be in the hospital when you feel OK!!!!! Even going to the cafe with Starbucks was rained on since my vintage IV pump had a battery life of .2 seconds!

BUT now I'm home on IV antibiotics once again, and hopefully that will take care of things. I start work on Monday! Excited.

So for now I am going to drink tea and read more HP! There's a week in the life... see what happens when I go like A DAY without writing!?

Thursday, June 07, 2007


Sometimes I have to wonder why the Cyr family can't catch a break. I know, I understand the "everything happens for a reason" mantra and that "God doesn't give you anything you can't handle" but I mean SERIOUSLY. The extreme ups and downs are just sucking. It's not like a sunny day, then it rains, it's like, we built a mansion then a tornado came through just to say hi.

The Good:
Mom and I drove down to camp on Thursday, and it was really fun, and nice. I don't think we've spent that much uninterrupted time together in.....months? I made a huge playlist of all songs that represent everyone in our family and they were great to sing to. Then we got Aunt Annie's pretzels, which always rock my world.
Camp was beyond amazing of course. We got settled into our lodge which was gooorgeous and had some time to kill before dinner so we just sat outside and read for awhile. Then Karen found us, and we talked forever and she taught my mom how to drive the golf cart. Camp is so beautiful this time of year and it is truly so strange how while you're there, all negative or confusing thoughts just leave your mind, and you're just THERE. In the moment, being peaceful and young. I needed it more than I realized.
Dinner was a vegetarian feast of pita, couscous, hummus and everything amazing that I adore, and they had pitchers of iced chai at every table. Delish. After, of course, there was singing, and Marissa, one of Maisy's counselors grabbed me and pulled me into the circle and said "oh come on Mal...." because usually I try to keep a low profile before I speak, then I get in with everyone after. But I did join in and the first song we sang was Seasons of Love. Thanks guys. Followed by Hero (maisy recorded last summer at camp), and Can You Feel the Love tonight (first NYC moment). Gah.
We went up to the theater for a "campfire" since it was raining, and they did that whole thing...ending of course with Stars in the Sky... all of this working up to my speech. Thaaaaanks.
Before my speech, they played the camp video from 98 when I climbed the wall, which of course made me cry because not only is the video playing but the entire theater was cheering and saying "YEAAA MAL." like I was doing it again! that's camp for ya.
THEN Matty read off my intro and credentials (which did sound pretty impressive I must say) and Peaches and Hilary marched into the theater in graduation gowns singing pomp and circumstance with the biggest bouquet of flowers I've ever seen. It was amazing.
THEN I had to speak. But I did, and it was awesome and I think it was one of the best speeches I've given, like ever...
This sounds silly, but I know it's the power of that stage. Do you know all of the people who have been on that stage.... No you probably don't...cause I don't, but just of the ones I know, it's pretty amazing. And you can feel it. It's so cool to think of how many little kids will be able to be on that stage without even knowing the power of it. It's pretty unreal.

After my speech we went back to the dining hall and had ice cream and just socialized. Eventually it was just me and mom and Noodle and it so quiet except for the crickets and summer night noises and it was just perfect. One of those times you just want to freeze to carry with you when you need that kind of atmosphere.

The next day, we drove home, and felt hungover with emotional exhaustion but it was still nice to spend time with mom. I wish we could do that more often. But I guess the more time that passes, the more we have to talk about.

On Friday, Maisy had friends over, and we all went to Portland and I had a SUPER amazing shopping trip. One of those where you just get so many good deals, you go home and end up forgetting how much you bought. It was lovely.
I christened our Coach store too and the girls were SOOOOOOO sweet. I tried on sunglasses and really wanted to buy them, but they were > $100 so I decided to be good...
Maybe with the first paycheck. hee hee.
But I did get this:
(for those who don't know.. it's an amazing teeny wallet that fits all my worldly necessities)


Cause I needed a new one. My other one is from last year, and I bought with Megan. Er...time for a new one....

and there was Sushi to be had, and sales to be utilized, and it was just amazingly perfect.
Then we came home...

The Bad:
Long story short. We had the dog put down this past weekend. He bit one of Maisy's friends (the third or fourth person he's ever bitten) and she didn't clean it out (cause she's stupid and irresponsible) even though Maisy persistently asked her if she was ok. she ended up going to the ER, the cops were called. It was a drama of dramas. Later that same night, he bit Maisy. Not just nipped.

We knew it would happen eventually, and in all reality, we just bought him time. He wasn't realistic to have as a pet. He was unpredictable. We couldn't have people in our house unless my mom was home to go through the "routine." If anyone else tried...well, we know what happens.

It's a blessing in disguise (house party anyone?), but man, even though I bitched about him all the time, it suuuuucked. I woke up on Sunday morning as late as possible, and Dad had been on the phone with various vets and animal people. I came out of my room to get coffee just as he went out the door. Maisy was just standing in the hallway, hysterical. The kind where you cry so hard there isn't any noise...
I told her it was ok, and it wasn't her fault. Then we just sat on the couch and held each other and cried. She broke my heart.
After a while we were composed (semi...) and I started making breakfast, and she went to watch TV in her room (I seriously was afraid to let her go, I didn't want any emo episodes) Then dad came home. He said that was one of the hardest things he's ever done, then he went in Maisy's room and we all cried together some more. Yea, my dad cried. That pretty much did us both in again. But somehow it just seemed right that we were all together. We got it together once again and we all sat down and had brunch together, and laughed about how I'd have to get out of the habit of throwing food on the floor, and whether our cats would all move downstairs and back into our house. (still hasn't happened)

It was a rough morning to say the least, but then Maisy went to the farm to take her mind of things, Dad and I went to Verizon (helloooooo TREO) and we all reconvened at Nana's for dinner and I had a luxurious cosmo with my favoritest aunt. and we all played cards.
My mom still is pretty upset, since they were the tightest, and it is definitely way lonely here when I'm all by myself during the day. But things are easier now...sadly. And I will have my flip flops for a long long time. I guess it just ends another chapter....
but seriously? Where is the break.... we just didn't need that.

RIP EVIL PUPPY :(...please don't bite God...