Twisted Spinster

I feel like I should write a post today, but I just can’t. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that I had a headache all night that just got worse and worse until I woke up with it crushing my skull this morning — and by morning I mean fifteen minutes before noon.

I really need to get up earlier. That’s one whole day basically wasted.

To top it off, I don’t know what the people who used to live in the apartment across the breezeway from mine did to it, but maintenance has been working on the place for a few days now — and by “working” I mean hammering and sawing with a very loud electric saw. Also I think they had one of those carpet dryers running, the kind you leave in a place that’s been soaked by a flood and has mold. That was what I got to hear when I woke up. Of course, I had no pain pills — I’d used them up. I did feel a little better when I got my coffee into me, so part of the headache was caffeine deprivation. Later I went to the grocery store, because I was basically out of everything — toilet paper, food, trivial things like that. And now I have a headache again, because for a very few items I paid over $35.00 — and I don’t buy luxuries except for the whole wheat bread, and that was on sale.

One of my problems is I can’t eat the cheap meals I used to eat. I don’t know what they’ve started putting in those cheap boxes of mac-‘n’-cheese mix, but the last time I prepared one of those my digestive system went nuts. On Saturday I bought one of those containers of prepared fried chicken that Publix makes, and a little tub of potato salad. I had to throw it out — I don’t know if it was the potato salad or the chicken, but I’ve been sick as a dog again. I have to be careful with pasta too — too much of that and I get gassy. I seem to be doing well on oatmeal — but it has to be the Scottish or Irish style, not the gluey regular style, whatever that is, rolled oats? — and fruits and vegetables and fish. But fresh vegetables and fruit aren’t cheap, even in Florida. I buy those pre-made fish filets that you just cook in the oven, they aren’t too expensive. I’m afraid to buy chicken — I don’t seem to be able to make it without turning it dry and rubbery. Red meat gives me indigestion, from the grease. Another problem with fresh vegetables is if you don’t cook them within a few days they are no good. Salads have to be eaten soon as well. I have been going to the store every couple of days — I can’t bear to waste food, so I tend to buy only what I’m going to eat for a day or two, unless it’s frozen.

I’m seeing more tomatoes on my plant, but I have yet to see a ripe one. That first tomato is still green and hard, though now it’s about two and a half inches in diameter. I pinch suckers off the plant every day, and also the new leaves of the new shoots that are trying to grow. I don’t need and more leaves or vines. The yellow tomato plant has finally put out some flowers — it’s growing much more slowly than the red tomato vine. I wonder if the fact that I accidentally broke off a big part of the yellow tomato vine has anything to do with that. I also need to get more stakes before more tomatoes develop. More plant reports: the cat found the garlic chives, so they’re dead; the thyme and rosemary are doing well, but the purple basil looks rather anemic and isn’t putting out very many new leaves. I’m thinking it’s getting choked out by all the other plants, and also isn’t getting enough sun, but as there are big oaks shading the patio during part of the day there is only so much sun that comes through.

I’ve done research on other non-Paypal donation systems and the only one that seems at all usable by personal blogs is this Tip-joy thing, but it’s pennies. I might add a link anyway. I refuse to put ads on my site — I just don’t like them. If I ever set up a web-shop for all the stuff I want to sell I’ll put up an ad for that. I am wondering if it would be worth going through Half.com — it seems less complicated than Ebay (I can’t find my password for that anyway and I think it goes to a defunct email address). I don’t know. I really need the money — gas may be down but food prices are still ridiculous and my last electric bill was over $100.00 even though I live in a 500 square foot studio. I hope it will be down this month as last night and tonight was the first time in a month I’ve had to run the a/c.

Oh well. I am going to try to write some more of my novel — one of my novels — ooh, shiny! (Slap!) Anyway, I need to get working on that. If I have anything I think worth putting up on my fiction site I’ll post a link.

Added: one more drawback to the Tipjoy thing is that you don’t get cash from all the donations — you either get an Amazon gift card or you can transfer all your tip take to a charity. Meh. I need cash! 😉