How is it possible, that in a week’s time, I went from this:

To this:

How is that possible? I mean really?

So, something interesting is happening in my house. Someone put a pox on it. It all started yesterday when Pancake Land called me when she got out of bed, something she normally doesn’t do. (She likes to take a little time to wake up before having to deal with me who has been up for a few hours at that point.) Anyway, she called to tell me that she had a rash. Covering her entire torso. Oh, okay then. The best part is that we have no idea what it is. I’ll list off the (non)symptoms, and you let me know what it is:

a) Little bumps placed randomly on torso.

b) They are not red.

c) They do not itch.

d) They are not in patches or groups, but they are individual bumps.

e) They are not accompanied by fever, nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, headache, weakness, exhaustion, or any other normal symptom of illness.

Figure it out, yet? Neither have we. It is terribly bizarre. I mean, you can’t even see the bumps if you aren’t being shown them under direct light. The best we have come up with is heat rash. Since the rash is relatively localized to just her torso (it has not spread to her face or lower arms or legs) we figure that she is breaking out where she has been bundled up to prevent her from shivering on the couch/office chair. If I manage to get out today, I’m going to pick up some Benadryl. It may help. If nothing else, it’s pretty handy to have around just in case. Yeah, anyway, if you have any idea what she’s got, let me know.  She is sort of under house arrest until we find out if she is contagious or not. This is especially sucky seeing as how tomorrow is the Super Bowl and if she is contagious, she can’t be around G-Man in his weakened immune state. Awesome.

Okay, enough of that pox business. Today might be a day of going and doing stuff or it might be a day of staying home and doing stuff. Either way, there’s stuff to be done. The main thing I have to have to have to get done is reading this chapbook called Printing Digital Type on the hand-operated flatbed cylinder press by Gerald Lange. It is written in advanced-letterpress-printer-and-graphic-design-ese. Which means nothing to me. Given my being a terribly slow reader when it comes to all things not Harry Potter or Nora Roberts, it is taking me forever to read this book. It is like stereo instructions in German. Teacher Sis tempted me with her copy of Chamber of Secrets, but I had to deny it due to the fact that I would much rather be reading that and it wouldn’t be hard for me to cave and ignore Mr. Lange for another adventure at Hogwarts. Want to share my pain? I’ll give you a taste of my 44 pages of Hell. Here:

“There are particularities with photopolymer plates that differ from photomechanical engravings or metal type and are thus to be considered in regard to presswork. During exposure the subsurface relief of a photopolymer plate grows upward and fills in during photopolymerization; the longer the exposure the shallower the final relief structure.”

Yes, he said “photopolymerization”. He even said “thus”. See what I mean? Ugh. I get that all day today. It’s okay though. Because I have this golden nugget that Teacher Sis sent me:

Well, that’s all I’ve got for today. I’m sure there’s more, but I that’s all I’ve got on my notes. Until tomorrow, stay warm. More soon. ~SC

P.S. Oh holy shit! I almost forgot! Did you hear what McDonald’s is offering this weekend only? A 50 piece bucket of chicken McNuggets for only $10! I am so there. Here, peep the glory of the paper nugget-bucket:

I want  it. Anyways, more soon. ~SC