Things are finally getting back to normal. Last workweek was a complete clusterfuck. Monday was the holiday/tail end of Frances. Tuesday and Wednesday were actually productive. Then the power went out at work Thursday and half of Friday which meant I could get little accomplished. I ended up only working about 3 hours on Thursday. First thing Friday was spent hurricane-proofing the lab (again). The power was still out, so I said "fuckit" and went to renew my soon-to-expire driver's license. I'd have to take time off to do it anyway, so why not do it when I couldn't work anyhow. By the time I got back, the power was on, so I got cracking.

Monday was another day off (sort of) because of Ivan. The Powers That Be decided on Friday to make Monday a hurricane day. It seemed a bit early for that call, but whatever. Ivan thankfully decided to head away from us (not so fortunately for folks from the panhandle to New Orleans), so they decided to make Monday a work day. I didn't hear anything about it until yesterday, so I never came in. At least they decided not to penalize those of us who took the day off at face value.

Yesterday we had no a/c, as is always the case after a power outage (which happened LAST WEEK). After complaints from several of us, we have partial a/c now and the system should be fully functional next week. Let's just say that an 88 degree lab + a pregnant woman with nasty allergies and a raging sinus headache = a very unhappy situation.

So, on Monday, I was busy registering at the maternity hospital and by chance ran into a co-worker and her new baby. So cute! I also dropped $70 at the vet's for tick treatment for the dog, cats, and house. We are having a tick invasion and it's horrible. I cannot express how much ticks gross me out. I picked 2 out of my clothes last week and started getting concerned. Then I found an engorged one on the couch (ohmygod it was sick). After that, I made hubby help me inspect the dog. We found 5 more ticks in between her toes. I've been doing daily feet checks on the dog and generally find 1 or 2 every time I take her out for a walk. Monday I also tore apart all her favorite sleeping places and did several loads of laundry, including the doggie bed. I found two more engorged fuckers hiding under it. Monday night I was stretching out on the floor and found yet another tick crawling along.

I've been researching outdoor tick controls and may try some neem oil if I can find it. If that doesn't work, we may make the move to chemicals, which I would prefer to avoid. I generally don't use chemicals, and am worried about Peanut and the cats. Most tick controls have pyrethrins in them, which can be fatal to cats. We're also going to be more diligent about cutting the grass. It'w weird, though, because our neighborhood is fairly sterile as far as wildlife goes. We have no large trees and few bushes for hiding places.

On a happy note, Peanut was really active last night. Hubby and I were on the couch watching TV, so I put his hand on my belly. He couldn't believe the strenght of Peanuts kicks. As usual, he kicked once or twice, then stopped...It never fails. So, we tried talking to Peanut and it worked! He responded by kicking some more. Hubby kept grinning.