Sunday, March 22, 2015

Potpourri for an Endless Winter

A few notes about the things revolving around my life:

1. The move to Boston has been completed, at least temporarily. I have moved into a room in a house in Roxbury Crossing. The lease ends at the end of August, unfortunately (or fortunately as the case may be) the lease is not renewable. So in August my search for someplace with an on-going lease will commence.

2. I say that this is probably fortunate because the room I'm in is in the basement, and since winter refuses to stop, the basement is cold. I froze while trying to earn enough to pay all the rents (first, last, current) and slept on the floor until just a few days ago, when I bought a lounge chair that I'm using for a bed. I also bought a space heater, so things are warmer and slightly more comfortable than before.

3. I did have an issue with the chair at first, when, after setting it up for the first time, and trying to sit in it, the chair slid on the tile floor and I landed rather hard on my rump. I jarred my back to the point where I felt a burning pain in the middle of it. I was seriously tempted to call for an ambulance, but after carefully sitting in the chair, the burning eased. But then the next morning I had difficulty walking. I did not go to the hospital and eventually the middle back issue stopped being an issue. My lower back, however, is acting up again. The chair is not comfirtable to sit in for long periods of time, and somewhat uncomfortable to lie in overnight. I sometimes wake up to find no feeling in the arm I'm sleeping on. The feeling does come back, but I may still wind up taking the chair back - once I find an alternative to sleeping on the floor.

4.But things are starting to settle down financially and that will help make things more comfortable. I suspect during the hot summer months (they do get hot in Boston, right?) that the room will be the most comfortable in the house.

5. In other news, work is going well. I work as a contract employee, technically for Astadia, but the client is Vertex in Boston. Vertex has 3 buildings near the courthouse in Boston, making things somewhat uncomfortable with the Marathon trial going on next door. But what makes it really worthwhile is their cafeteria. That's not even a fair word to use. It's like an actual restaurant, with high quality food at a reasonable price. Reasonable in Boston means you eat for $10 or less per meal. I tell my co-workers that I'll go broke eating there and still be happy. I still mean that. About going broke and being happy.

6. I've already blogged about the Boston Subway, the MBTA. Things have improved since that blog. I now get to work early every day. The trains run more often and cars aren't quite as jam-packed as before. I could see why Bostonians were so upset if what I'm experiencing now is the norm.

7. Personal health: Other than back problems, the rest of my health is pretty much unchanged. The amount of stairs in the subway stations was killing my knees, so I've found the elevators in short order. The bottom line is: one moment the knees feel fine, the next they either hurt or feel very uncomfortable. The shoulder has not changed a bit in the last 2 years. I still have limited movement and no strength on it. Such is life for me.

8. On the good side, I now have health insurance for the first time since 2009. Maybe I can get some of this stuff taken care of.

9. My writng has been off and on. I don't have a desk at home yet, so I have to lay on the chair with the laptop on my chest and type, just like I'm doing with the blog. It's slow and uncomfortable, but it will get the job done - eventually.

10. I will be seeing my daughter for the first time in 3 years when we both attend Anime Boston. I'm looking forward to both events.

And on that happy note I'll leave you.