Adventures in health care

Turns out, I'm anemic.

Well, that's not what the doctor said. The doctor said my 'hemoglobin was down', and that I seemed to be 'holding on tight' to iron. I have no idea what that means. My Hb is at 131 (I take it that that's grams per liter), where 'normal' for men is 140-180. So a) I'm now on an iron supplement, b) I have to go off the iron supplement and follow a special diet for several days to do the Occult Blood test, and c) after that, it's off to the GI specialist.

Could be a diet thing. I did check through all my meds and none of them specifically mention iron absorbtion problems. Assuming I'm not bleeding internally or have any of the more dire possibilities, which are really very remote in the circumstances, the obvious solution is to eat more red meat. Yay. I love red meat. I always assumed too much.

I assume that has consequences for the cholesterol and the B12 (or one of those Bs, I forget which, which is only available through red meat or supplements). But whatever. I'm not worried. Except for the forthcoming adventures in medical testing, which I don't expect to be a problem, but won't be any fun.

The season's first mosquito bite

I went out to get a little exercise (very little, but at least I did it) and pick up some groceries. And when I got to the store (a whole block away, see above) there was this persistent itch on the back of my left ankle. Itch itch itch. Itched so much it almost hurt. Every couple of steps in the store I had to stop and rub it with my other foot. (I don't go around touching my feet in grocery stores with my hands as a rule.) When I got back home, I checked. Yup. Little tiny blood spot, raised little welt around it. I'd been bit.

And it's supposed to snow tonight. Hard. Damn little buggers. Die! Die!

Note to self: Don't take yourself to bed in the afternoon with the excuse that you'll snuggle under a warm blanket (did I mention it's expected to snow tonight? Hard?) while you catch up on some reading, because you'll just end up taking another four-hour nap.

The vicious cycle continues.

Almost typed that 'viscous'. *sigh*

Freaky sex videos

Don't ask me how I stumbled across this, but here goes. Brooke L W(eaver) Miller, apparently some kind of graduate student in evolutionary biology or ecology or something at UC Santa Cruz (Home of the Mighty Banana Slugs) is studying sexual competition in, you guessed it, banana slugs.

As if slugs weren't disgusting enough--and banana slugs are more disgusting than most (they're big, yellow, sort of phallic, and in the northwest where I come from they produce enough slime that they can actually crawl out from under a coating of salt)--now, thanks to Brooke, we can watch them a) have sex, and b) gnaw off each other's (and apparently their own) sexual apparatus.

Not for the faint of heart.

Now ask me how I was supposed to be spending my evening.

No cute kitty, but you know he's there

Some of you know I'm a fan of a cat called Sparta. Sparta's owner is a video producer (among other things) with YouTube, and I've previously posted a link to the Mean Kitty Song video, featuring Sparta and his antics.

Well, I went to YouTube and subscribed, so I get e-mails occasionally about new videos. Which I keep up with quite faithfully. But I had to share this one. I *so* relate this this sort of thing. And it's got some cute backstory. So here it is.

Of course, this result isn't really any better, given threeboot.

Which Legionairre are you? [awesome pics]

You're Chameleon Boy, an awesome shapeshifter! you can transform into anything, even beings of your own imagination! you make people laugh but can be irritating at times. but given the chance, you can be a great leader!
Take this quiz!

Great, he has a habit of dying a lot too.

What Legion Super Hero are you?


You are like Lightning Lad. A brash, aggressive hotshot who wields spectacular lightning powers, Lightning Lad is a handsome, hotheaded jock with a serious sense of entitlement who turns out to be much more sensitive than his brash, aggressive behavior might suggest.Good-natured, fun-loving and loyal at heart, Lightning Lad is nonetheless quick to anger. A brilliant hand-to-hand combatant and an extreme action junkie, he is an accomplished (if occasionally reckless) pilot and loves a good fight.As a founding member of the Legion and its field leader, Lightning Lad is used to being the most powerful and experienced Legionnaire and to calling the shots.So when Superman joins the team, Lightning Lad is a little threatened. Pushed out of the spotlight, he can become a little jealous of the attention Superman receives from the other Legionnaires (especially Saturn Girl and Phantom Girl).Lightning Lad's bioelectrical powers are most commonly used to shock and stun his opponents, short-circuit electrical equipment, split asteroids and boulders, destroy spaceships, burn objects or shatter walls. He can also recharge batteries and generators, and weld metals and ores like lead or Kryptonite.Although seemingly self-generated, Lightning Lad's powers are inextricably linked to his energy and his will. If tired, sick or even depressed, Lightning Lad can barely muster an electrical charge, let alone manifest lightning bolts. His powers can also be reflected back on him, effectively shorting him out, and are essentially useless underwater.
Take this quiz!