short timer's oriental medicine

what's new witchoo? i've had some interesting days lately. my daughter, who is usually of a calm and sweet demeanor, has short-timer's syndrome. for those of you who are not familiar with this affliction, it happens when one is about to graduate from school, is about to get out of school for the summer or is about to quit a job. in short, she doesn't give a rat's ass about school and just wants to get it over with...now. from my conversations with other parents, i find my situation is not unique.

this morning, neither of our alarm clocks went off because i forgot to set them last night (freudian slip?). i have no problem with taking punkin to school as long as i don't have an early client. i mean, the bus comes at 6:50am! it's hard to look alive, much less enthusiastic, at that time of the morning for us. the captain is a morning person, but he knows better than to be perky around us that early. so, we had some extra time. nevertheless, punkin found something to complain about! yes, she complained that her friend, whom i am "babysitting" this afternoon, always wants to play a certain game that she is not fond of. oh, woe is me! if she only knew what the real world is like. i told her that i didn't want to hear another word until we got to school, otherwise she would have to ride the bus tomorrow (i had told her i would take her tomorrow, too). i heard nary a peep on the ride.

yesterday was interesting because i went to visit an herbalist. my boss at the college swears by her guy, but i don't really want to drive 30 miles to see him at 6pm on a wednesday when there's a perfectly good guy here in town, 2 minutes from my office. i arrived a little early and filled out the necessary paperwork. then he took me back and asked me some questions in halting english. this dude has done everything. he's a certified herbalist, acupuncturist, and is a former dean at a medical university in china! he's an elderly fellow and likes to make jokes about acupuncture 20 years ago vs. now. i hadn't planned on having any acupuncture done, but since i have had zero luck with prescription medicines, weekly shots, etc., i decided to give it a try.

he inserted several (less than 10) teeny needles in my forehead, scalp and temples. then he hooked each needle up to one of those tens units, which provide electricity to relax the muscles. he said, "ten years ago we no have electricity!" it cracked me up. anyway, the sensation is hard to describe. when he inserted the needles, there was a teensy bit of discomfort, but not anything to write home about. then, i felt a wave of relaxation sweep over me. after he hooked up the tens unit, he set it for 25 minutes and left the room, leaving me with a "panic button," in case something went wrong. I was almost asleep when the unit stopped. it was so wonderful. he gave me some chinese herbs to take ("they make you headache go away and make you happy!") i can't argue with that. he says i should need 4 - 5 treatments to see a significant difference in my allergy/migraine problems. oh, wouldn't that be wonderful to be pain free and not have to put chemicals into my body?

there's more, but i need to get in gear to get to my office. i hope you all have a peaceful thursday.

p.s. he read my tattoo, which means "dangerous" in chinese!