New CPAP cushions to Etsy

Howdy ho neighbooroonies!

Well, I finally got off my butt (yeah right, like I ever stop!) and got some more cpap cushions up to etsy. I got 3 new sets up last night before I was too tired to do anymore-posting at midnight-hmmm, no wonder I was tired. Here is a link to one of them http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=18800385 I have (I think) 10 different patterns done, with more in the shopping bags, waiting to be cut down. Fleece is hard to resist! Tactially, it is so pleasurable to work with. Its easy going-soft, warm, flexible, forgiving. Besides, with millions of colors and patterns-I will never get bored!

I hate being bored.

I think that was part of the reason I stayed at my last job so long. Retail hell sure. Retail management-another level of hell. But you know, even in hell, I was never bored. I used to say that my job was constant craft hour, that it changed from one day to the next. I never knew what new challenge was waiting for me.

Well, I gained a reputation over the years of being able to do almost anything. Having that reputation can be its own curse. I was expected to pull the impossible out of my ass! I even had customers waiting in the parking lot for me when I arrived at work... Let me tell you, nothing is quite like getting out of your car at 7:30 in the morning, coffee in one hand, purse in the other, and having someone barge up to you and say "I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU! I WANT ____". People, I havent had my coffee. Coffee is what made dumb bearable. So you can imagine my mood if someone interupted my coffee.

Yeah, not pretty.

Oh well, now life is better! No retail, no customers, no register, no nametag, no uniform. Peace and quiet which lets me crank work out. I still get my constant craft hour, but without the innane "How do you make the copier work". I always wanted to answer "press the damn button, just like the last 10 times you used it" but Im too nice, I never did. Just goes to show, you can lead a horse to water but you cant teach him how to use a copier. Ever.

I have tons of copy center manager stories, anyone interested?

New CPAP strap cushions to Etsy!!

I just got my new varieties of cpap cushions loaded up to etsy! I now have 23 different designs of cpap cushions! Bright and happy, simple, earthy you name it! I just got some tye dye, pink ribbons and other colors of fleece. Keep checking my shop at www.recycledbootybags.etsy.com to see my latest designs. Yes, more bags are coming, but this seems to be my current obsession LOL!

Wierd tired brains and Sleep Apnea

So, I'm sittin at my desk-yawning. Mr. Booty and I went to the midnight show of The Dark Knight last night. Totally packed. Didn't get to bed until waaay too late. I had coffee at home AND got the 24 oz super coffee achiever coffee at Circle K on the way to work. The movie-GO SEE THIS MOVIE! I'm not gonna discuss at length because I refused to spoil it for anyone. All I can say is go.

I just joined a website called cpap talk http://www.cpaptalk.com/. Good site with a large hosehead community and lots of info and support. I was telling them I really felt that there are millions of people walking around sleep deprived. In the US, we dont get enough sleep. You know it, I know it. We lead such busy lives we forget that we have to rest the engine.

Well, interestingly enough, yahoo this morning had a buzz article about 14 reasons we are not getting enough sleep. Here is a link http://www.forbes.com/2008/07/16/health-sleep-reasons-forbeslife-cx_avd_0716health.html?partner=yahoobuzz You guessed it, the lead story was about a person with sleep apnea.

I guess I'm lucky, the only problems I ever had with wearing the cpap was the the seal didnt seal, which was an easy fix by tightening the straps and strap marks. I dont wake up at night at all-ever. I sleep like a stone.

If I think about it, I sleep walked through life for at least 9 years before I was diagnosed. I remember falling asleep everywhere, the library, out with friends, in the car-passenger AND driving, movies, shower, work, etc etc. I got so angry at people commenting about it. My mom would elbow me at the movies if I fell asleep. I was to the point of wanting to smack her for it. I got in trouble at work for falling asleep in meetings. They told me I needed to get more sleep to set a good example for the employees. They thought my falling asleep was me staying up too late, partying and whatever else came to mind. Everything EXCEPT a severe medical condition. That's the jist, they basically thought I wasn't taking my job seriously. That's what people think when they see a person falling asleep at their desk or wherever. "That lazy ass stayed up all night again, look at them nodding off-that is one sorry employee." Never occurs to them that you are suffering from a medical condition.

I look back now and shake my head. Soo many people thought I was a lazy and bad employee. You know, I had so many tricks for staying awake. I popped caffenne pills like candy. I would blast the radio and sing along. Ice in the bra, cranking the ac to arctic, stopping when I started to nod to get out of the car and stomp my feet... Driving by myself to Phoenix scarred Mr. Booty to death. He thought I would fall asleep at the wheel and die on the road.

Now, even with being tired from being up to late I am more alert than I was in those years. If you are tired all the time, nodding at your desk or anywhere else, waking up every 2 hours - talk to your docter and have a sleep study done. If you think you might have sleep apnea, ask yourself this one question-"Do I fall asleep while driving." If you said yes, call your doctor for an appointment today. Please. You endanger yourself and others. Someone I know served 5 years in prison for manslaughter for falling asleep behind the wheel. That person caused an accident that killed a child. That person had undiagnosed sleep apnea.

Now, gotta slam that coffee before it gets cold!
Peace to all!

Im in the Main Etsy showcase today!!

Im excited! This is the second time I've done it. It was up a couple hours and I have my first sale! YEAH! Lovely lady in WA purchased some of my CPAP cushions. This was the last of this rockin bright blue that I had so good for her!

Ive been really productive the last 2 days. I have started to sort my belts. That is no small feat let me tell you! I use them in my bags, therefore I have tons. We are talking 50 to 60 at least. I got a couple belt organizers and Ive been goin to town! So much easier if I can see what I have, then I can match up belts to bags much easier.

I also complete 12 pair of my CPAP cushions. I listed 6 pair on etsy today. They are soo cute-you gotta check em out!

What's a CPAP (crap is the most common typo LOL) you ask? Well, a CPAP is a machine that people with sleep apnea use (like me) to manage their condition. CPAP stands for continuous positive air pressure. Sleep Apnea is the condition where you stop breathing in your sleep. This can be caused by blockage in the esophogeus, large tonsils, weight, etc. I have #3 and did have #2. The cpap is a machine that blows air into your throat and lungs continuously. The positive air pressure allows the person with apnea to sleep without stopping breathing.

Apnea is a sneaky sucker. You are tired all the time. No matter how much you sleep its never enough. Me, I blamed my hubby, he snored loudly and woke me up, over and over, all through the night. I had to pee-I had a bird bladder. "I wake up to pee and he snores" was my excuse for falling asleep at meetings, at work, on the couch, at the library, in the car-I admit, sometimes DRIVING the car, while eating, at the movies, while standing in the kitchen, shower...you get the picture. Apnea makes you feel like you're sleep walking through life. Its dangerous and can kill. I finally found out that was what was going on after almost dying from a combo of severe double pneumonia and sleep apnea. If I had ignored it that night, the dr told me I would have died in my sleep. Let me tell you, the rest of the shit in our lives doesnt matter if you dont wake up.

When I was finally tested I was told I had stopped breathing 30 times in 15 minutes. The tech said it was a wonder I slept at all. No wonder I could seriously fall asleep standing and talking to customers, have my legs go out from under me and fall to the floor (happened).

Now, 3 years later and the discovery that hubbys snorring was because he also had apnea, I am happy to be here. No matter how crappy of a day Ive had at work, I woke up, its still a good day!

If you have any of the symptoms Ive talked about here, talk to your doctor. You might have sleep apnea. It can kill you, get treated :)