Import things first.... at the race last night, we didn't win anything, but finished in the top 1/3 of the competitors. Unfortunately, there was another Mach 5 in the competition, and it was much more detailed that ours was. Had a driver, mirrors and a whole lot of other stuff. That one captured 2nd place in the design category, and he deserved it. He must have been working on it for a month. Speed wise, it was slightly faster than ours as well, and given the wheel base they must have put in a lot of work on the wheels and axles.

I'm happy with the showing, given that I haven't done this in such a long while. Chip was disappointed. At the end of the night, he got wild with the car and broke off the fins of the thing, whipping it along the floor. I tried not to be upset with him.

Appointment this morning with Theresa, the Physician's Assistant at the neurologist's. I was massively impressed with her. She did a full neuro assessment, and picked up tremors in my left arm. So it appears that the problem I experienced after spreading the grass seed was real, and not just a function of my arm being tired. We talked about the depression, and she told me that depression wasn't uncommon, but generally didn't show up until later in the Avonex treatment. When we discussed the dosage, she told me that I should have done a "ramp up". The conclusion was that because I did the full dosage from the start, I got the depression early. She told me to take a break this week, then start with 1/4 dose next week, increasing it by 1/4 each week until I get back to the full dose.

I'm really optomistic about this treatment. I've been feeling better, although today isn't very good for me. Problems with my eyes and fatigue. Really being lazy too with the business. But, I've set Monday, the 23rd as the kick-off date for the new work regimin, and been marking time this week because of the car. Making some progress with the distributable. Today should've been productive, but had the appointment with Theresa this morning, and now we're going to lunch with Bobby, the Fresh Air kid. I'll write more about that later as we're just about ready to walk out the door.

Scale - 10 is worst
Weather - 70 and sunny

Shaking - 5

Neck Pain - 0
Upper Back Pain - 5

Fatigue - 5
Foggy Head - 4

Tinitus - 5
Ears Full - 5
Hand Numb - 0

Spatial Orientation - 4

Gastro - 2

Insomnia = 0

Eye Focus - 4

Sleep Kick - 0

Pain Meds - Yes

Benedryl last night - 0

This is what I've been working on for the last week, and its finally done. Its a rendition of the SpeedRacer Mark 5 for a Pinewood Derby race tonight. It took about a week total to make, and I'm pretty happy with it. I don't think we'll win, but I wanted to give something to Chip that he'd be proud of when with his peers. To tell the truth, I was sick of it at the end, there was too much work for the time I allowed, and it got to be all consuming at the end. There is good news though. Look at the canopy. I tried a dozen times to make one, with no success. Used a couple of water bottles and plastic sheeting, and couldn't get it. I prayed for an hour, and promptly found a bottle (Fornsby Lemon Oil) that had the exact curvature that was required. God is good.

The last time I did this was with Razor, and that was 8 or so years ago. At the time, the internet wasn't as well developed as it is today with forums and information. In researching making a car, I found that the guys that are "into" it, are into it from the engineering side. CG, CM, Camber, Toe-In, Rail-Running are all topics I've been exposed to in this exercise. What ever happened to the kid's experience? Ah, and I'm guilty too, I did most of the fabrication on this one, pulling in Chip for the paint sanding and the wheel/axle prep. But I can't imagine that the kids associated with the posts I've been reading have a lot to do with the construction or tuning, its over my head as a software engineer. We'll take a break from this for a couple of months, then Chip and I will make a Mark 6, and he'll do most of it with me. I'll have the luxury of doing it as there will be no deadline. From what I read, this car won't win.. the wheelbase is too short, the distribution of weight isn't right between front and back and it pulls too much to one side. But its ours, and its done, and it looks really good.

Starting to feel pretty good physically, relatively speaking. I'm tired right now (2:30pm) and will rest for an hour after this post, but only because of the event tonight. Been getting through the days all this week with little problem. I've come up with a priority of work for the business - one third each of web site, distributable and local business. Target is Monday to start. Wifey is off work right now, so she's handling the homeschool stuff for me. I should be able to make progress over the next 30 days on the distributable. In the schedule, I'm going to take 1 day a week to drive around trying to get label business.

Why is Wifey off? Basically it comes down to the degradation of nursing care. She started on a new case and ended up doing all the work for them. When she pointed out problems, management told her that she was "controlling" and that she wasn't right for the agency! This after she said she wouldn't work the case any more because of the liability. She knew more than anyone working it, did more work than anyone (20% unpaid) and found things that were life threatening and overlooked by management and the folks that should have caught it. She's in a difficult place now, with only 1 major agency left in the area. Basically, her experiences have taught her to treat her job as a way to make money only....not as a vocation. We've both observed that something has changed in society....people aren't concientious anymore. They don't care.

Appointment tomorrow with the neuroligist, to see about depression meds. As I mentioned before, the Avonex is giving me an exquisite depression. The Doc offered anxiety meds before, so I thought I'd nip this problem in the bud and try something to see if it made me feel better. I'll let you know.


Scale - 10 is worst
Weather - 60 and sunny

Shaking - 4

Neck Pain - 0
Upper Back Pain - 3

Fatigue - 4
Foggy Head - 3

Tinitus - 4
Ears Full - 4
Hand Numb - 0

Spatial Orientation - 2

Gastro - 2

Insomnia = 0

Eye Focus - 4

Sleep Kick - 0

Pain Meds - Yes

Benedryl last night - 0

Been having some problems of late with our younger son, 9-year old Chip. He's adopted, like Zilly and Blueberry. Mom was an alcoholic and coke positive. He came with some issues. We're working through them. Chip is a PITA, but he's also the "apple of my eye". He worships the ground that I walk on - to the point that I'm very careful how I act around him. He has an eye to detail, shows patience and perseverance. He's got a wonderful heart. And I get a chance to not make all the mistakes I made with Razor.

About 2-years developmentally delayed, but doing well in his academics, Chip tends to be a bit neurotic. He has about 100 pounds of matchboxes, and is contented to play with them over and over. Lines them up. Sorts them by type and color. Sometimes its cute and sometimes its worrisome. With all the other crisis here, I tend to accentuate the positive.

Lately, he's started to become obsessed with guns. He picks up a stick and makes believe it's a gun. We find sticks in his pockets all the time. He loves the tanks and hummer army vehicles the best in his matchbox collection. Has a set of little green army men that he loves to play with. I showed him a couple of movies (Zulu, Zulu Dawn, The Magnificent Seven) to try to get him to understand the tragic consequences of guns. It backfired.

Last night, we realized that he was neurotically obsessed. Wifey searched his room and found a bunch of everyday objects fashioned into guns hidden around the room. And then she found a Monopoly game piece - if you guessed it was a gun, you're the winner. He had to have gotten it from school. When confronted, he lied about it. Finally told us the truth.

Today, we called the principal at his Christian school. As his teacher last year, she's familiar with his day-to-day struggles and has witnessed his spiraling, willfulness, lack of social skills and other quirks first hand. I explained the situation to her, and asked for a meeting, and for punishment if she thought it was appropriate. We set a time, but she didn't say much. I was hopeful (thanks barak) but skeptical. You see, most times we've tried to follow through with a lesson for one of the kids and it includes relying on others, we're usually left wanting.

But not this time. The principal handled it beautifully. Chip was honest. Apologised. Was hanging on her every word. In love but with firmness she explained the seriousness of what he had done. Told him what the consequence would be. What the consequence would be if he ever did it again. Told him that he's got to ask for help when he gets tempted. That he needs to fight the good fight. That she loved him, but hated what he did!

Thank you, Lord. Tomorrow is the Skuzz meeting. I'm dreading it. More of the same of the CYA baloney. "Feel good" words covering up incompetence.

But today was a wonderful breath of fresh air.