Ouchers

I have made it to Kansas. The trip was fine, at least, I thought the trip was fine until I got to Lawrence. I am supposed to be staying with a friend this week, but she was late getting back to town from Chicago last night. I couldn't get a hold of anyone else to stay with. So, I checked into the local EconoLodge. When I got to my room I was totally overwhelmed with the stench of Febreeze. I figured this was just because it is a dog-friendly room and I decided to suck it up for one night. My right back near my shoulder blade has been sore since yesterday and I decided to take my shirt off and rub on the muscle.

Now, this is me we are talking about. I have bad luck. I started rubbing on my shoulder and felt a tick. Okay, I go hiking, camping, backpacking. I have one full-custody dog and two non-custody dogs. I grew up in New York, the number one Lyme state, and eventually moved to Kansas, the number two Lyme state. So, I am not one of those people who freaks out at the sight of a tick burrowed into her skin. But this was painful. My whole muscle is sore. It is tender the way a really bad inside the nose zit is tendered.

I removed the tick with some tweezers and put it in a jar. I went online. Most definitely a Deer Tick. I probably got it in Indiana when Pip and I stopped to go for a long walk in a park. It was most likely only attached to me for 30-33 hours, not long enough to transmit the little bugger bacteria that causes Lyme. Still, this hurts bad. I am going to have to get a doctor's appointment for my first day of work. Haha. Loser.

While I was stressing about the tick I went outside to have a cigarette. I hate smoking inside. I got a smoke-free room because I hate the smell of smoking rooms. (Yes, I realize this is probably what the inside of my lungs smell like.) So, I leave Pip in the room. I walk 15 feet away. Smoke. I come back in the room and notice paint all over the floor. The little bitch had scraped the holy hell out of the hotel room door. So, at midnight I drove over to a friend's house and borrowed a vacuum cleaner to get thepaint chips from the door up off the carpet. My thinking is that if the house keeping person throws open the door and starts working she might not ever notice the back of the door. Fingers crossed.

I am kind of worried about what the rest of the day will have in store for me. I am off to get car tags. Then I have to go to work and fill out my paper work. I might use the rest of the afternoon to look for an apartment. I feel a bit discombobulated. It is weird to once again be home, but not having a home.