Cleared for takeoff

Today I had my post-op appointment with my doctor, and everything looks good. I can resume normal activities. Though, I still think it may be another week or so before I do any serious kickboxing or ab crunches.

After the tree episode last week (my street looks just *bizarre*, btw... I can't find my house) I got a bit sidetracked, but today I'm giving out blog awards! Yes!

(Look at that, I finally figured out how to post a picture in the middle of the blog. Go me!)

And the awards go to....

1) Lover of Dolphins, or "Jax", as I call her, is one of my favorite online friends, a fellow homeschooling mom and a kindred spirit. Like me, she is passionate about the things that matter to her, and she has held my hand through many of life's ups and downs over the years.

2) What is it? Anna is a woman I admire for so many reasons. She's an amazing mom, she has her hand in many different creative endeavors and she seems to really enjoy life -- something I aspire to!

3) Beauty Secrets Unveiled Lisa is a fountain of information on natural health and home remedies. I was once suffering with a sinus infection for the better part of a month, and she taught me some really useful ways of getting rid of the congestion without needing prescription or even OTC meds. I'm really learning a lot from this blog!

4) Discursiveness Anne is one of my oldest online friends -- I've known her for over ten years -- she's a great writer and she really needs to blog more ;)

Voilà! Les blogs excellents! ;)

My patriotic duty

Lots of people voted today... yay! Unfortunately, we Pennsylvanians don't get to vote in the primary for another few months. But today I got to participate in a different part of the democratic process: jury duty.

Most people I know hate jury duty; I've even talked to a few people who refuse to register to vote so that they won't get put into the jury pool. But aside from the getting up early part, I don't really see it as all that much of a chore. I get to spend a few hours among adults, sit in a comfy chair and read my book, and I get 10% off my lunch at Reading Terminal Market (today's lunch: pad thai with shrimp and a spring roll... yum!) If that's the price I have to pay every few years for the right to vote, so be it. Plus, I'd like to think that if I was ever accused of a crime, there would be someone like me on the jury. I have been summoned 4 or 5 times and have never gotten picked for a jury (might have something to do with all my close associations with police employees!) so for me it's just a break in my routine, which is always nice. My biggest concern today was the discomfort of sitting for long stretches (the stitches are still bothering me a bit) and the possibility of getting picked for a trial that would last into next week and prevent me from getting to my post-op appointment. Fortunately, I didn't have to worry about it, and I was home before 2pm.

When I got home today, I had a message from my friend Misty saying that she had given me a blog award! How cool! It made me very happy :) I also get to pass the award on to some other excellent bloggers, and I will post a list in tomorrow's blog!