B manga... plus snapshots of today...

As promised, here is the manga B drew for Tomoko, featuring two of his Pokemon creations, Buttox & Crystal Worm :) He drew it in traditional manga sequence, reading from right to left, top to bottom. He asked me to write the Japanese dialogue & sound effects in... Essentially, Buttox is minding his own business (first panel) when surprised by the Crystal Worm popping out of the ground (CW says "don!" which means "tadaaa!" & Buttox says "beeku!" which means "eep!"). Buttox is frightened & begins a "poison fart attack" (it says "kusai", which means "stinky"), which surrounds CW (who also says "kusai"). CW faints from the smell, causing Buttox's heart to pound ("doki"). Then Buttox says "gomen nasai, onarashite!" which means "sorry, I farted"... Tomoko is going to laugh so hard when he gives it to her tomorrow. B begged me to let her tell him how to say "fart" in Japanese last week, & when I agreed, she made sure to teach him the polite form :)

B certainly had a better day at school today, although it began with some fireworks... I was brainstorming some ideas for cutting the energy off from the OCD anxiety with B over breakfast when I said the wrong thing (again) & he freaked. I managed to comfort him & bring him back to earth, & we ended the meal happily sharing more ideas for his birthday party, which was a great relief on all counts, since it's just a week away (beeku!, I mean, eep!). His class was performing their play for the first-floor kids (pre-K- first graders) this morning & he was really looking forward to it.

I had a busy morning, with a visit to my new chiropractor (my back has been bothering me a lot lately). I feel so blessed to finally have found someone who understands my perspective on my physical health. Most of the chiropractic folks I have seen in the past have tried to guilt-trip me into a fitness programme or some kind of activity that turns out to be completely inappropriate for my body's state of health. I am actually quite healthy these days, but have a constant level of inflammation, & therefore intermittent swelling in my joints. I never know from moment to moment if I'm going to suddenly not be able to get up the stairs easily because a knee has gone out on me, & recently my left thumb has been quite swollen, not to mention the sciatic flare-up... I have gone through all of the anti-inflammatory medicines available & either they don't work, give me major side-effects, of were recently taken off the market because they're unsafe :( So, I have found that any sort of fitness regimen is too hard on my body & just gets me hurt. What I try to do is eat a healthy diet, park away from entrances to places so I walk a little extra, & supplement with herbal remedies as I can. I feel like I am taking a balanced approach & finally I found someone who agrees! It's always felt like a catch-22 when I seek help for intermittent flare-ups because the relief of the pain has always been accompanied by increased stress from being told I'm not doing enough to get myself fit & healthy. With times being so intense with B right now, it's doubly a blessing to find someone who supports what I'm doing, & gives me gentle suggestions for taking my own approaches even further- more herbs to try, etc. Strangely enough, taking care of myself like this is also making me feel like I'm taking better care of my family by giving myself some relief from pain & stress. All I can say is it feels like just in time... :)

After the chiropractor I met a friend who is moving apartments & helped her set up her new kitchen, which was fun. Home for lunch, then I messed about with herbs for a bit, making a cold care tea for Cherie, B's consultant teacher, who is coming down with a cold. It hit me this morning that I wish I had more energy to give back to the folks who give B & us so much, so decided that the tea would be a good start.

B had a great day just up until I came to get him. He was looking sullen when I came to get him, coat on & sitting in a beanbag chair in the cozy corner of the special ed. resource room. He just wanted to get out of there, it seems... although he had to wait until I gave Cherie her tea :) When we got home he really wanted to do stuff with me, so I made a deal with him to read more of Terry Pratchett's "Bromeliad trilogy" for a bit & then we would draw for a while. We finished "Truckers" & began "Diggers", then sat down to draw. B wanted me to show him how to make "manga eyes" but turned out not to have any patience for the process of learning to do it. I pointed out that the eyes he draws on his Pokemons are perfect for them & I really like how he does it, so he was content to do his own thing. He drew a new Pokemon while I sketched some (I'm trying to put bodies on my heads these days...) & then he decided he wanted to google Pokemon for more sites to explore. We have a house rule that B has to have an adult with him when he googles (& permission before he downloads anything, too), so I helped him find a site for the Pokeman rpg & left him happily doing the tutorial.

My mom has a sick cat, so she called to say she wouldn't be over for our usual Friday evening family dinner. I decided to make onigiri (rice balls) & practice making tamago (rolled omelette) as a side dish (I definitely need practise...). B decided he wanted onigiri, too (he usually has a bowl of rice) but unfilled... he still hates mixing food. We had a fruit tray with the Japanese food, too. C likes his onigiri with tuna salad in it, & I tried one with a little bit of tamago & one with chopped tsukemono (pickles). Mmmm....

After dinner B had his bath, with dad presiding, then we had a fire in the fireplace. B was narrating the habits of his mole-rat Pokemon & told me that it has arthritis like I do & hops in a sock to keep warm. It uses a hat that's been tacked to the ground as a tent, too :) I wondered out loud if he might imagine the OCD anxiety being stuffed in a mitten & talking in a muffled voice, which made him giggle (I said something right!!!). Then we read more Bromeliads & off to bed...

We give Tomoko her manga in the morning & I'm looking forward to that very much. Tomorrow afternoon is the play! B decided that he wants Rufus, usually clasped under B's arm, to sit with me & help me take pictures of the play. Afterward C is hoping that they can go swimming, to take the edge off any over-excitement. Sunday will be busy, too, with church, & then our nearly 16-year-old goddaughter is coming over to learn to make onigiri & talk Fruits Basket (a manga that features onigiri :) & watch the new FB dvd I got (she & I are both mad for Furuba). Then we are having a good friend from out of town to dinner. So, another busy weekend that will go by in a flash. But the play is tomorrow! I can't wait... :)