One A Day is Just Too Much!!!

There is no way that I can possibly write a post each day! So, I’ve changed my posting goal to one a week. This is much more realistic for me. If more exciting things happen within a week, then I’ll do my best to post about it. Until then, just one. The main reason behind this decision is that my life is boring (not really, just nothing new really happens out of the ordinary, I do have a great life though), and I can’t seem to think creatively at this moment. I would love to be able to write everyday, but without any idea where to start, I simply just give up. I could try a ‘Picture a Day’ but it seems like everyone else does that already. Even if I did a pic a day, it’d most likely be our cats you’d see everyday… And even I know that gets old!

My Husbands Phone Broke!!!

Which means that I got a new one!!!

I gave him my old one and used his upgrade for a new phone for myself. He breaks a phone at least once a year, so giving him my used one is better than having him break a brand new one.

I got the Samsung Galaxy S4 in the Blue Arctic color. Which is an exclusive color only sold at my work. So pretty! And fun too!

He got my Samsung Galaxy S3, and is still learning the UI. He’s had iPhones for the past several years and only used my phone a handful of times before now. I think he secretly loves it!

Do You Have…

That one (or two, or several) friend that, without fail, has made plans with you then made you sit there? You call, text, e-mail, and/or leave them a voicemail after waiting about an hour (or more) for them. With no response? Until eventually when you call it is immediately sent to voicemail. Your entire night was planned around this person who, after you personally realizing it, didn’t give a second thought about you and your plans together? Well, my darling husband and I have had this happen to us several times with the same ‘friend’ and, frankly, I will not tolerate it any longer! We will send him the hand-carved, hand-drawn Christmas gift I made him and call it good. If he wants to be a true friend then he needs to prove that our 8+ hours of waiting for his ass where he said to meet was worth it. Otherwise, thank you for being our friend when it was convenient for you, but we need to get on with our lives now. We will always love you and think of you fondly.

*There is no ‘HATE’ intended in this post. Just FRUSTRATION! The decent thing a ‘friend’ or any person, really, could do is show a little bit of RESPECT! We had plans, you broke them, time and time again. The failure is on us for believing this day would be any different from the past several times. It doesn’t take more than 10-30 seconds to text or reply back “Sorry. Can’t make it tonight.” We just ask that you would show us that much respect, at least, to give us the heads-up that you won’t be there.

*My beloved and I eventually turned our night of ‘waiting’ into a night out of our own. I thoroughly enjoyed our time together, just us!

P.S: Here is the hand-made gift they missed out on for tomorrows game.

I Want to Quit

This past week off from work I’ve had a lot of time to think about what I love in my life and what I would like to quit. To simplify, I made a list (I love lists!). Here are the things I want to quit:

• Frozen Pizzas
• Hard alcohol and drinking just to drink
• Smoking (which I only do when I drink)
• Negative people (been working on this one for quite some time and have been doing well, got me some great new and true friends)
• Unnecessary spending
• Nail biting
• Fast food
• Watching TV more than hour (or two depending on the show) each day

Mythological Horses

Pat Moriarity, Me, Adam, Shawn Holley, Ali

We went to The Highline to watch our friend, Shawn’s, CD release show for his band, Mythological Horses. They only made it through 3 songs before an amp gave out and they had to end after that. On a more positive note, they sounded FANTASTIC! The other bands that played were:

• Nervous Talk
  
• Brain Drain
• L.A. Drugz
• Bad Future
• The Pharmacy

We had a wonderful evening of music and friends. My husband and I also got to meet Pat Moriarity, who not only did the album artwork for our friends, but who is also well-know for his other cartoons and album artworks.

Shawn Holley and Pat Moriarity signed our copy!

Be Grateful!

Enough said!

Looking forward to…

…next week. I get next week off from work for company revamp purposes. I love my job but at least I’ll be able to get a good jump start on some much-needed things within my homeworld. Also, my oldest brother’s gal asked me to create a website for her new business. I hope that I’ll be able to get together with her at some point to do that for her!

The 24 Books I Will Read

After scanning my 100+ ebooks that I have yet to read, I have set my ‘To Read’ list for the year. 2 books a month. And to make it easier on myself, I’ll read them in this order! I’ll also try to write a short review afterwards on my Goodreads page (feel free to add me and/or send me some of your recommendations). You can also follow along through my ‘Currently Reading’ widget to the right.

2014 Reading List:

1. £6.19 per Witching Hour (Paranormal Personnel Saga, #1) by Joanna Mazurkiewicz
2. NOS4A2 by Joe Hill
3. Silver Justice by Russell Blake
4. Dead on Demand by Sean Campbell
5. A Hidden Fire (Elemental Mysteries, #1) by Elizabeth Hunter
6. Season of The Harvest (Harvest Trilogy, #1 by Michael R. Hicks
7. Nikola Tesla: Imagination and the Man That Invented the 20th Century by Sean Patrick
8. The Pearl Savage (The Savage Series, #1) by Tamara Rose Blodgett
9. The Savage Blood (The Savage Series, #2) by Tamara Rose Blodgett
10. The Savage Principle (The Savage Series, #3) by Tamara Rose Blodgett
11. The Diary of a Nobody by George Grossmith
12. My Life And Work by Henry Ford
13. An Evil Shadow (Val Bosanquet Mystery, #1) by A.J. Davidson
14. Quicksilver by Toni Dwiggins
15. Darlings of Darkness by Trina M. Lee
16. Running from Giants: The Holocaust Through the Eyes of a Child by Margareta Ackerman
17. The Silversmith by Jeff Carson
18. The Streets Will Run Red by C.M. Kragel
19. Not That It Matters by A.A. Milne
20. The Trial by Franz Kafka
21. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick
22. Blood and Justice by Rayven T. Hill
23. Transfusion (Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, #1) by Nikki Jefford
24. Having Fun by Simon Kemp

The GYM!!!

So, for those of you that don’t know me, getting (and using) a gym membership is a phenomenally HUGE DEAL for me. Growing up, I was never allowed to take P.E. or play in any competitive sports whatsoever. I was finally given consent from my doctors to join a bowling league back in 2005. 2 years later they told me I had to stop working and doing most of my regular activities that I had paced myself to enjoy. After my most recent surgery, I was cleared to work again and, to my surprise, even join a gym to fight the 55 pounds of fat that had attached itself to me (due to medications) in that first month and a half of no longer working. I will now put, in some detail, below the reasons of my sedentary life the past 30 years, followed by the most recent letter I received from my cardiologist.

Originally posted 4/09/2011:

I’m just going to keep this short, sweet, and to the point!

I’m getting a S-ICD (subcutaneous-implantable cardioverter defibrillator) implanted on Thursday, April 14th. I’m so excited! What they originally thought was A-fib is actually Ventricular Tachycardia. That means I’m at a very high risk for sudden cardiac arrest (heart attack).

I am a 27-year-old woman.

I have an enlarged heart (a little more than twice the normal heart size), CHD, and have had so far:

11 Open-heart surgeries
14 Electrocardioversions (defib shocks to get heart back into normal rhythm…was in the high 100’s to low-mid 200’s heart rate)
12 Cardiocatheter procedures
1 Failed Multiple Cardiac Ablation
Numerous other heart-related procedures
I’m still not “FIXED”, numerous future operations/procedures will be due as medical technologies allow…
AND I’M ONLY 27!!!

Averaged, that’s approximately 1.45 heart-related procedures EVERY YEAR THAT I’VE LIVED.

BUT I’M STILL HERE!!!

Despite all that I’ve been through, I’ve found others telling me that “You’re the most optimistic, positive person I know!”
I have never found myself wishing that I didn’t have to go through it all. It has been with me my entire life and will continue to be. If I didn’t have these issues, then I wouldn’t be the person I am today! I wouldn’t change ANYTHING that has happened. Keep your chin up, ladies and gentlemen! Hope, determination, and love for everyone & everything are the keys to living the life and finding the cure!

I’m still here!

This is what was implanted in me April 14th, 2011… And I’ve ‘activated’ (been shocked) only once so far, on November 16th, 2012…

* I’ll be 30 on June 10th this year (2013) and am scheduled for yet another heart related procedure on August 1st… At least they’re doing what they can and I’m still here!

Originally posted 6/04/2013:
Another (minor-ish) Heart Surgery… WhooHoo!

So, for those that don’t know yet, I will be heading back into UWMC for another (minor-ish) heart related procedure on August 1st. They will be doing a Melody Valve Placement and I should only be there a night or two. When they performed my last open-heart surgery on July 28th, 2009, they had left my sternum open with about a 1″ gap when they stitched me up to allow more room for my conduit to fully open and work properly. Well, it’s still being squished in there despite that and, therefore, needing this to further (hopefully) assist it along!

Originally posted 8/06/2013:

New Pulmonary Valve!!!

Here’s an inside view of Before & After my new pulmonary valve surgery. Big difference! Just can’t wait to be fully healed up and out and about again!

Here’s some good news finally!!!
This is a letter I received from my cardiologists office regarding my recent stress test:

December 13th, 2013

Dear Mrs. Kilborn,
I’m writing to inform you that the results of the Cardiopulmonary Exercise testing you had performed recently have been reviewed by Dr. Stout. The results are normal for gender and age, and much better than the last time! All looks stable and we will continue to monitor you in the future as needed.

Sincerely,
Amanda, RN
UWMC Regional Heart Center

Now ya’ll know why I’m so freakin’ excited!!!

My Goals for 2014

I don’t make New Year’s Resolutions on the simple idea that if I fail to complete them, I’ve failed myself. Instead I like to set a small amount of GOALS, that, if circumstances allow, I strive to achieve. This year, my set list is short and sweet. Here they are:

• Read a minimum of 2 books a month. (Should be easy since I take the bus to work most days)
• Utilize every advantage of my Gym membership at least 3 times a week, even if my husband can’t join me some days.
• Cook healthy meals at home (prepare lunches the night before, overnight/while at work crock-pot meals for time-saving, ready-to-eat deliciousness). Eat out WAY LESS!!! (If I do, order a simple salad and/or healthy appetizer)
• Be more mindful of spending habits. Ask myself: “Do I NEED this?” or “Do I simply just WANT this?” And weigh the pros and cons of my ultimate decision.
• Save for and find a good house to rent. One that’ll accept our 4 cats (which makes this even more of a challenge).
• Advance in my career.

So there you have it! My goals for the year. Ready, set, go!