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shadowkatSlept late ( due to sleeping poorly, lots of tossing and turning, and knees were bugging me - so iced last night), took shower (relaxed muscles - knees stopped hurting - hmmm), iced knees, made breakfast (fried eggs, greens and grits), watched some Buffy.
10:40 am - 12:30 am :
Doing laundry - it's downstairs in the dryer, I'm icing my knee and watching Buffy until it dries. I'll go down again shortly to check on it.
Then put it away, eat something, and take off for my doctor's appointment around 1:30 or 1:45. The appointment is at 2:30. It takes anywhere from 20-30 minutes depending on trains to get there. I like to give myself more time, due to the bad knee.
PT told me not to use a cane, or a knee brace or compression sleeve. He said they didn't help any. Also canes have a tendency to make things worse.
Doctor said to keep doing PT, and once the PT found out what was wrong - he increased the exercises. He was more careful before.
While doing laundry - had a nice chat with the new guy living in the basement apartment with his two kids. He's a white guy, mid-forties, grey in beard and hair, tattoos, kids and a bartender up on Windsor Terrace, and in the midst of a divorce. His soon to be ex works as a teacher at a private school (which one of the two boys currently attends), and helps kids with reading disabilities. She lives in the apartment complex two buildings down. They have joint custody. Seem to be amicable at least. I think I got him interested in reading my non-traditionally published novel - so go me. (I left a copy in the basement laundry room library.)
Most of the people in the area appear to be civil servants (like myself), educators, personal trainers, physical therapists, bank tellers, nurses, students, and work in retail/taxis/customer service industries. Basically your run of the mill middle class.
***
9:40 am (intermittently) through 1:15 pm:
Buffy S6 - Episode 13 - Dead Things
Yep, Buffy has moved on from Angel and Riley finally, and against her better judgement, fell in love with Spike. To be clear? She didn't fall in love with the demon, she fell in love with the personality or the man still inside. The chip over time managed to suppress the demon enough to let the man emerge - doesn't mean that he has a moral compass or soul, just that he is more present than the demon is.
She pretty much confesses this to Tara in the final scene of Dead Things. I didn't pick up on it in previous watches (because of the fandom and overthinking it) - but it is there in the silence and Gellar's performance.
She's ashamed of it. When Tara asks if Buffy loves him - Buffy looks at Tara in tears, completely devastated, her eyes say it all. She does love him - even though she knows she can't, that it is insanely dangerous and against everything she stands for and believes in. It's not like Angel. Spike doesn't have a soul. The chip just keeps him from killing people himself, it doesn't keep him from doing other things. How can she love him? She's a vampire slayer - and he's a vampire. He's a demon. He's dead. He has nothing connecting him to humanity. He's not human. He is a monster. She can't love him. Buffy doesn't understand it. (Neither does Spike for that matter - he's convinced she must have come back wrong, because a vampire falling in love with a human and a vampire slayer makes no sense. And it would make even less sense for her to be in love with him.) Tara kind of does - and tells her that it is okay if she loves Spike. And when Tara suggests Buffy doesn't love him and is just using him - Buffy falls apart, because that's far far worse, after everything he's done for her. Which indicates she does love him and is devastate that she's probably using him.
I can see why she fell in love with Spike. I fell in love with Spike. I mean - he basically gives her a poetic speech when she returns from the dead, that every night he saved her. Not to mention what he did for her in Season 5, and during the summer when she was dead. Of course she fell for him, who wouldn't? But that doesn't change who he is. He is dangerous.
And no, she can't trust him. Heck, he visited Warren to get information on his chip and never told her about it, or where Warren was or what he was up to, nor cared. He doesn't help her investigate Katrina's death (which Angel or Riley would have done) - he just tries to dispose of the body, and poorly, although well enough to make it look like a suicide. He doesn't care that Katrina is dead. He only cares what happens to Buffy. He's changed enough - to want what is best for Buffy, and to not want to actively hurt humans. He's become benign evil, as opposed to chaotic evil.
But he's not necessarily someone she should trust completely. Even in S5, yes, she could trust him to fight Glory, but day to day stuff...not so much.
That said, since we are mainly in Buffy's perspective - he doesn't seem that evil. And when we are in Spike's? He still doesn't. But we're rarely in his point of view - just briefly, and it's always Buffy centric. The audience doesn't have a clue what he's up to in his spare time.
I think the love story is more interesting if Spike isn't good at this point. It's a kind of tug of war between the two. He's trying to pull her into the dark with him, thinking the rules have changed, and it's where she belongs now, and she's just realized that's not the case and pulls back towards the light, where he can't go. It's more complicated that Buffy has fallen for a vampire without a soul, and that a vampire without a soul has fallen in love with Buffy. Before he got the chip - Spike wanted to kill her, much like Angelus did - because he felt that would free him from his obsession with her. He can't have her any other way. After the chip, he realizes he loves her, and realizes he doesn't want her to be hurt or to die or for anyone she cares for to die or be hurt - and damn, that's an identity crisis for an evil vampire if there ever was one.
It's interesting. I don't like black and white or one dimensional characters. I prefer grey characters - it's why I like Buffy, particularly the latter seasons so much.
Another take away - Jonathan is the only one of the three nerdy villains who shows remorse and the only likable one - and a lot of credit goes to Danny Strong for making that happen. (Danny Strong went on to become a successful play write and screen writer - and recently brought a revival of Chess back to Broadway.)
***
1:40 PM to 5 PM:
Doctor's appointment took a lot longer than expected. I left at 1:40 pm (and worried about getting there on time - I shouldn't have). I got there at 2:20pm (ten minutes before my appointment) only to discover they were running an hour late. And the lounge was packed. Also my glucose was diving. So I left my name, and went downstairs, then across the street to a deli to grab a kind energy bar. Came back. And waited for an hour.
I got out of there around 4 and home by 5 (it decided to rain, and having little more than the flimsy umbrella I bought at the deli in case if did - I took refuge in Trader Joes and bought stuff for dinner and lunch.)
The Doctor told me that the interior portion of the knee wasn't that bad, and looked okay, it was the exterior that had issues - mostly due to arthritis eating away at the cartilage around the exterior of the knee and meniscus. But it wasn't severe enough for surgery. Nor surgery do much good at this stage. And I was a long long way from knee replacement surgery. (Thank God.) What could benefit me is an injection.
Me: What sort of injection?
doctor: a cortisone shot
Me: Eh, steroids?
Doctor: Yes.
Me: I'd rather not. Been there done that with the back and it screwed up my digestion and gut. I am ceiliac and diabetic, with gut issues. I did it once for sciatic nerve - and it did more harm than good. I'd like to wait.
Doctor: We're in no rush. And you're under no pressure to do it. Also there's lots of options and avenues we can exhaust prior to surgery. So that's not an issue at this point either. We can always do the cortisone injection into the knee at a later point in the future.
He agreed with me that PT was the best course for now, and gave me another referral for PT. It is kind of helping? I can sleep now. Also, I need to give it a shot - and haven't done so completely yet. I agree with PT that injections and pain meds are band aids, the best course of action is to build the muscle and strength around the knee.
So, back to PT, I guess.
10:40 am - 12:30 am :
Doing laundry - it's downstairs in the dryer, I'm icing my knee and watching Buffy until it dries. I'll go down again shortly to check on it.
Then put it away, eat something, and take off for my doctor's appointment around 1:30 or 1:45. The appointment is at 2:30. It takes anywhere from 20-30 minutes depending on trains to get there. I like to give myself more time, due to the bad knee.
PT told me not to use a cane, or a knee brace or compression sleeve. He said they didn't help any. Also canes have a tendency to make things worse.
Doctor said to keep doing PT, and once the PT found out what was wrong - he increased the exercises. He was more careful before.
While doing laundry - had a nice chat with the new guy living in the basement apartment with his two kids. He's a white guy, mid-forties, grey in beard and hair, tattoos, kids and a bartender up on Windsor Terrace, and in the midst of a divorce. His soon to be ex works as a teacher at a private school (which one of the two boys currently attends), and helps kids with reading disabilities. She lives in the apartment complex two buildings down. They have joint custody. Seem to be amicable at least. I think I got him interested in reading my non-traditionally published novel - so go me. (I left a copy in the basement laundry room library.)
Most of the people in the area appear to be civil servants (like myself), educators, personal trainers, physical therapists, bank tellers, nurses, students, and work in retail/taxis/customer service industries. Basically your run of the mill middle class.
***
9:40 am (intermittently) through 1:15 pm:
Buffy S6 - Episode 13 - Dead Things
Yep, Buffy has moved on from Angel and Riley finally, and against her better judgement, fell in love with Spike. To be clear? She didn't fall in love with the demon, she fell in love with the personality or the man still inside. The chip over time managed to suppress the demon enough to let the man emerge - doesn't mean that he has a moral compass or soul, just that he is more present than the demon is.
She pretty much confesses this to Tara in the final scene of Dead Things. I didn't pick up on it in previous watches (because of the fandom and overthinking it) - but it is there in the silence and Gellar's performance.
She's ashamed of it. When Tara asks if Buffy loves him - Buffy looks at Tara in tears, completely devastated, her eyes say it all. She does love him - even though she knows she can't, that it is insanely dangerous and against everything she stands for and believes in. It's not like Angel. Spike doesn't have a soul. The chip just keeps him from killing people himself, it doesn't keep him from doing other things. How can she love him? She's a vampire slayer - and he's a vampire. He's a demon. He's dead. He has nothing connecting him to humanity. He's not human. He is a monster. She can't love him. Buffy doesn't understand it. (Neither does Spike for that matter - he's convinced she must have come back wrong, because a vampire falling in love with a human and a vampire slayer makes no sense. And it would make even less sense for her to be in love with him.) Tara kind of does - and tells her that it is okay if she loves Spike. And when Tara suggests Buffy doesn't love him and is just using him - Buffy falls apart, because that's far far worse, after everything he's done for her. Which indicates she does love him and is devastate that she's probably using him.
I can see why she fell in love with Spike. I fell in love with Spike. I mean - he basically gives her a poetic speech when she returns from the dead, that every night he saved her. Not to mention what he did for her in Season 5, and during the summer when she was dead. Of course she fell for him, who wouldn't? But that doesn't change who he is. He is dangerous.
And no, she can't trust him. Heck, he visited Warren to get information on his chip and never told her about it, or where Warren was or what he was up to, nor cared. He doesn't help her investigate Katrina's death (which Angel or Riley would have done) - he just tries to dispose of the body, and poorly, although well enough to make it look like a suicide. He doesn't care that Katrina is dead. He only cares what happens to Buffy. He's changed enough - to want what is best for Buffy, and to not want to actively hurt humans. He's become benign evil, as opposed to chaotic evil.
But he's not necessarily someone she should trust completely. Even in S5, yes, she could trust him to fight Glory, but day to day stuff...not so much.
That said, since we are mainly in Buffy's perspective - he doesn't seem that evil. And when we are in Spike's? He still doesn't. But we're rarely in his point of view - just briefly, and it's always Buffy centric. The audience doesn't have a clue what he's up to in his spare time.
I think the love story is more interesting if Spike isn't good at this point. It's a kind of tug of war between the two. He's trying to pull her into the dark with him, thinking the rules have changed, and it's where she belongs now, and she's just realized that's not the case and pulls back towards the light, where he can't go. It's more complicated that Buffy has fallen for a vampire without a soul, and that a vampire without a soul has fallen in love with Buffy. Before he got the chip - Spike wanted to kill her, much like Angelus did - because he felt that would free him from his obsession with her. He can't have her any other way. After the chip, he realizes he loves her, and realizes he doesn't want her to be hurt or to die or for anyone she cares for to die or be hurt - and damn, that's an identity crisis for an evil vampire if there ever was one.
It's interesting. I don't like black and white or one dimensional characters. I prefer grey characters - it's why I like Buffy, particularly the latter seasons so much.
Another take away - Jonathan is the only one of the three nerdy villains who shows remorse and the only likable one - and a lot of credit goes to Danny Strong for making that happen. (Danny Strong went on to become a successful play write and screen writer - and recently brought a revival of Chess back to Broadway.)
***
1:40 PM to 5 PM:
Doctor's appointment took a lot longer than expected. I left at 1:40 pm (and worried about getting there on time - I shouldn't have). I got there at 2:20pm (ten minutes before my appointment) only to discover they were running an hour late. And the lounge was packed. Also my glucose was diving. So I left my name, and went downstairs, then across the street to a deli to grab a kind energy bar. Came back. And waited for an hour.
I got out of there around 4 and home by 5 (it decided to rain, and having little more than the flimsy umbrella I bought at the deli in case if did - I took refuge in Trader Joes and bought stuff for dinner and lunch.)
The Doctor told me that the interior portion of the knee wasn't that bad, and looked okay, it was the exterior that had issues - mostly due to arthritis eating away at the cartilage around the exterior of the knee and meniscus. But it wasn't severe enough for surgery. Nor surgery do much good at this stage. And I was a long long way from knee replacement surgery. (Thank God.) What could benefit me is an injection.
Me: What sort of injection?
doctor: a cortisone shot
Me: Eh, steroids?
Doctor: Yes.
Me: I'd rather not. Been there done that with the back and it screwed up my digestion and gut. I am ceiliac and diabetic, with gut issues. I did it once for sciatic nerve - and it did more harm than good. I'd like to wait.
Doctor: We're in no rush. And you're under no pressure to do it. Also there's lots of options and avenues we can exhaust prior to surgery. So that's not an issue at this point either. We can always do the cortisone injection into the knee at a later point in the future.
He agreed with me that PT was the best course for now, and gave me another referral for PT. It is kind of helping? I can sleep now. Also, I need to give it a shot - and haven't done so completely yet. I agree with PT that injections and pain meds are band aids, the best course of action is to build the muscle and strength around the knee.
So, back to PT, I guess.
no subject
Date: 2026-01-10 09:16 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2026-01-10 05:18 pm (UTC)I know I do. I was doing 16-18 flights of steps daily up until November, when I finally stopped and scaled them back to maybe five.
no subject
Date: 2026-01-10 09:47 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2026-01-10 05:20 pm (UTC)Can't comment on Discworld -haven't read it.