On July 9th I started to feel really sick. Over the course of the illness I experienced a sore throat, fever, chills, dizziness, nausea, lost my voice, gained a cough, and mucus galore coming out of multiple orifices. In the photo above you can actually sort of see my corner of tea/vitamins/jello/salt behind Ada. Only now does it seem to have finally passed, but my appetite still hasn't fully come back, there's a lingering cough, still mucusey and my voice still isn't quite right. I probably lost about 10 lbs in a week from my jello & soup diet, and I think my stomach shrank. I was really annoyed that I got so ill; all my home organizing came to a screeching halt, and I couldn't offer my help to friends who needed it. I hadn't been sick like this for over a year and a half at least, too.

On July 15th Philippe left on a small family trip. He came back late last night which we were both very happy about. During his absence I went a little nuts and purchased a bunch of stuff. I think it was partially to fill the void, partially because I realized I have a credit card [eek], and partially because most of the things I bought I sincerely wanted for a long time. I felt so guilty buying so much. I never ever do this sort of thing, yet I felt possessed at the same time, and couldn't stop. To balance out the purchases I was also productive with arting, though. I did some stuff for Etsy, but also began a series of paintings that I hope to make into a long term project. The studio is still in disarray so I have only been able to do the under drawings for three paintings. Tomorrow Phil and I will tackle the studio and get it in working condition. I cannot wait to have a place to paint again.

Today I am supposed to help a friend paint her apartment, but she has not contacted me yet. Later, at night, we are meeting up with Phil to see Wall-E. I am excited!