Well I was bored so I started another project.

The Strawberries and Cream Pinwheel Sweater.

Started: December 2nd
Needles: Pony 16 inch 4.5mm’s
Yarn: Left Overs
For: ???

Done the correct way this time . Clever Starry. I’m about 5 rows short of moving on to the sleeves the sleeves will probably take me a few days. Same garter stitch on the sleeves though. And also I saw an awesome ribbed one on ravelry and I want to try that too now. I think I might make a mini one for my doll once she’s finished of course. She still needs shoes and socks besides her face tut. My mom is already calling me a neglectful mother lol! We are crazy .

I also started a crocheted baby jacket but I know this one is going badly when the back seems almost as large as the pinwheel and it’s supposed to be 1-3 months :|. Won’t make a very good baby gift but maybe it can be salvaged for an older child.

I’ve been going stir crazy at home lately. I have had awful joint pains especially in my hips so I haven’t been sleeping too well . Hopefully once my bloods come back we’ll know a bit more what’s going on. Does mean I have been stuck at home a lot though. Which usually I would love but with the weather so dreary I crave the sunshine.

I got a few new CD’s though which gives me something new to listen to, plus the additional projects now. I have a meeting on Friday (joy of joys) least I have something to do though .

Time for bed now!

I seem to have some new and unexplained illness everyday. Today it’s a migraine. Thankfully not the bad stay in bed hoping to die kind but the flashing lights and nausea kind. The vision problems have subsided but I’m more than a bit miffed as to why I seem to have had a glut of illness. There must be a reason. Can’t just be unlucky.

So I decided with my mom earlier some sun would be beneficial. So I’ve been investigating some cheap flights to somewhere warm nov/dec time. I’m thinking sprain but I’m not sure. I had wanted to go to Italy but I want to save that for a longer break next year. So Alicante sounds like a good choice so far but I don’t know much about Spain aside from it being sunny. The sun would also be good for my skin. My psoriasis always flares up in winter but due to the lack of sun this year it’s worse than usual. Doesn’t itch or hurt much it’s just unsightly. I’ve always wanted to go to the dead sea and see if that helped but don’t think my budget would stretch so far this year .

So this week I have barely done anything. I knit about 2 rows of the Pinwheel Sweater, done a bit of web design, a limited about of graphics and worked on my blog. Not really much to show for a whole week. I am disappointed in myself.

I have however got out my possible favourite book (I have so many loved books). It’s called Addict and it’s by Stephen Smith.

In his autobiography, Stephen Smith has given a most revealing insight into the inner tormented mind of an addict. At the age of fourteen, caught stealing, he was locked in an asylum and after being sexually molested by a doctor, he was given his first amphetamine tablet.

I originally obtained this book when a friend left it at my house. I started reading it and refused to give it back lol. After I had finished reading it mysteriously disapeared. I loved it so much though, I tracked down another. Now I’ve had this one a few years but it is well dog eared as it has been passed on to so many people. Apparently they made a film but I’ve never seen it. I think it’s one of those books that wouldn’t work as well as a film, much like War Of The Worlds and Dreamcatcher were. If you read this booke without knowing it was real life you’d think someone made it up. This guy goes through some seriously messed up stuff! If you’re looking for a good read I recommend it.

In music terms you may have noticed I have weird and varied tastes. Right now my most listened to songs are Danity Kane – Ride For You, Soulja Boy – Crank Dat Soulja Boy, Eternal – How Many Tears and funnily enough O’ Holy Night and acapella version by N-SYNC. Might I add i hate them but it’s the best version of that song I’ve ever heard and I think I have about 5 different ones .

When I used to live in a different part of London called Canning Town, every year we used go christmas light spotting. Props going to the person who spotted the earlliest house. Now I live in a predominantly Hindu and Muslim area so we don’t get such a turn out but I do expect to see some going up soon. I myself am semi traditional. Decorations do not go up till December 1st and come down promptly on January 6th. Generally earlier as it doesn’t feel like Christmas after New Years. I do however listen to Christmas songs all year round. Can’t help it. I love hymns and Christmas songs. As a child I performed in Liturgies and the church choir. I still sing in bed when I can’t sleep as my sister and I used to do many years ago.

It was amusing in the years gone by to see the totally over the top house covered in hundreds of lights, tacky blow up Santa’s and all the lawn and roof ornaments you could imagine. One even had Santa on their chimney which frightened unsuspecting school children when it fell off. They thought Santa had died!

Well that was a huge blog post! Hopefully I will be feeling better this weekend and will take plenty of pictures and have lots of interesting things to share!

About 2 years ago something momentous happened in my life that’s basically changed it forever. I had a mini stroke or in other words, a brain attack or clot on the brain. They’re still not sure what caused it but think it may have something to do with the contraceptive pill. Today I received my two year end of recovery appointment which reminded me.

I don’t think I will ever forget the experience. Confusion mixed with fear seemed to make the time whiz past and slow down at the same time. I still remember exactly what I said to my mom as I felt my left side seizing up. The moment I simply fell out of the chair and couldn’t get up. Some things seemed like a dream. Like I’d gotten an itch and went to scratch it and was surprised to see my arm laying limp on the ground still. I remember asking my sister if both eyes still blinked amusingly enough. It’s funny the things you think of at those times. I also remember the ride in the ambulance and thinking this isn’t how I expected an ambulance to be like. It was like the back of a transit van! I remember the hospital smell as I was wheeled in to A&E, being embarrrassed when the cut off my t-shirt and having an x-ray taken right there in the middle of the room. All this took several hours but it seemed like only a few minutes. Then I noticed I could wiggle my fingers just lightly but there was movement. A huge wave of relief washed over me. I remember asking for a glass of water too only to find I couldn’t drink it. Much to the amusement of my mother and sister. They also found it amusing when I was given an allergy tag that read “Nuts”. They obviously knew who I was lol. I still have that tag incase I ever feel I should warn people .

I don’t know if any of you have ever had an MRI scan but that is the scariest thing ever. First off it didn’t help when the doctor came and asked if I wanted to be sedated! I said no then started to panic. Why would he have said that? Should I have said yes? So they take me down for this MRI and basically they strap you down onto a sliding bed and they stick you in this horrid noisy tube for what seems like ages. I wish I had of been sedated. They gave me a little head dress with a mirror so I could see out but all I could see was my own boobs and the wall so didn’t help much. I didn’t even get to see my brain scans .

I stayed in the ESSU for the first 3 days of my stay. The emergency short stay unit. They were lovely there and I met some nice people. I had my first meal there and it was amusing to learn how to chew all over again. I knew what I was sposed to do but putting it into action didn’t seem quite so easy. I ended up with many a bitten cheek and lip but I didn’t care because I could feel it. The vampire came everyday to steal my blood and though we tried to hide from her (Very nice lady actually) she always got us. I seriously felt like a pin cushion by the time I left 5 vials of blood every day for like 2 weeks. Ick!

I’m still some what of a novelty every time I go to the hospital. Everyone wants to see the 22 year old who had a stroke. Sometimes I get quite an audience.

I guess the lasting effects are minimal. Lower immune system, slight weakness on the left hand side and no longer being able to navigate so well. I can climb stairs reasonably well now. I try not to limit myself. I won’t do something only after trying and failing and that doesn’t mean I won’t try again later.

Here’s to a wonderful year after recovery!