Baby, It’s Cold Outside

 

The sun is shining and it is beautiful outside today. Until you look at the mountains which are, of course, quite beautiful but very, very cold looking. The wind is the chill factor and it is unreasonably chilly. And that puppy-nose? Very cold; very healthy. However, upon closer inspection, he appears to be in need of a little orthodontic work. Get in line, buddy. Mojo, our Bichon Frise’, is 8 months old today. His nose is indeed quite cold. Still, my hands are colder.

I have been cold for days now. I just can’t seem to warm-up no matter how much time I spend in a hot, steamy shower. Just when I think I’m starting to get warm, I get one of those body-chills that make my teeth rattle.

Yesterday I had the distinct pleasure of meeting the Superintendent of Albuquerque Public Schools, Dr. Beth Everitt. I was invited to a “Community Conversation” meeting that started at the UN-Godly hour of 7:30AM. I walked through the door and beelined it to the restrooms because a.) I had to go and b.) the meeting doors weren’t open yet. I washed my hands in warm water and ran them under the little hand-dryer. You’d think that would have warmed them but no…

As I walked through the door of the meeting room, I was greeted warmly by Dr. Everitt. The first thing she said to me was, “Oh, my goodness! Usually I’m the one with the coldest hands in the room!” Yup. I’m cold. I’ve been cold. I have been no-amount-of-coffee-warms-me-up-cold. Even though I had coffee, was offered a breakfast burrito, fruit, juice, and sweet rolls, the warmest part of the morning was that each time I introduced myself to someone, they fawned over me with hot praise for being the only solely designated “Parent” in the room. I gained instant clout by saying that I was there on a Communication Agenda. I had a lot to say and I jumped right in. I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Dr. Everitt sat next to me. Maybe she thought I was going to be a demure, wallflower; no such chance, Beth. Not me. I held a hot issue in my cold hands. It was a productive and enlightening meeting that I will hopefully be invited to attend again. I will be known as the Chilly Chatty Natty.

I am usually the one with warmest hands in the room. Not lately.

Today I was told that I have great oxygenated blood. I was just glad to see that it was really red. I thought, since I’d been so cold lately, that it would be blue. I joked that my oxygenation levels were high because I have a high level of air between my ears. It goes with the blond hair. The lab tech laughed as she sucked out 10 mil’s of my blood. She was great. You know how they say, “You’ll just feel a little prick…” which makes me laugh and want to retort something totally inappropriate; well, she was a true pro. It didn’t hurt a bit and it was fascinating to watch my blood flow into the vial. Is it weird that I found it so fascinating? I mean, that stuff had just pumped through my heart, in fact, through my entire body, and hadn’t been reduced to something that looked like Folgers, freeze-dried “flavor crystals.” Don’t you find that fascinating? Yes, I am fully oxygenated. Why do you ask?

My mom and I gave blood to a research project that is trying to find out why the rate of breast cancer amongst Hispanic women has more than doubled. The researcher needed “normal” blood to balance against her research subjects. She was having trouble finding anyone to donate their blood for the study. My mom mobilized the women’s groups she belongs to and they really came through. (If the measure of one’s heart and character is the friends you surround yourself with, my mom is golden. GOLDEN.) They still need more blood, particularly from healthy Hispanic women, for the study. This could help save lives. If you are interested in donating your blood to this project, please email me at NatalieB39 {at} gmail {dot} com and I will get you in touch with the researcher.

We left the cancer research building and braced ourselves against the cold, cold wind. We both decided we needed to go out to breakfast to, you know, rejuvenate our blood supply with green chili. Green chili is the Great Healer for just about everything ’round these parts. Or so we told ourselves as we drove to the restaurant. We both had breakfast burritos (which is becoming quite the habit) and lots of coffee. Yum!

It’s time to put on another pot of coffee. I am all bundled-up and have the heater turned up to (gasp!) 75 degrees. I will nuke the Herbal Comfort Pack (affectionately known as the Tummy Warmer.) Maybe I will put in a heat-related movie like, “Man on Fire” or “Blue Crush” or “50 First Dates” or something else in a tropical setting.

I need to remember this day in June when I find myself stripped down to shorts and a tank top, watching the movie, “The Day After Tomorrow”, and sucking down ice-cold sweet tea.

For now, I’ll sit on my hands and hope that ol’ whistle pig “Phil” predicts winter will end.