One quick rant that's meant to actually make a plea to the pregnant and future-pregnant in this vicinity: stop registering at Babies R Us! The only one nearby is in Toys R Us, and the last three registries I've attempted to look up have been a mess. Most of the items are only available online, and then the few items available in-store are impossible to find! They finally got an aisle-system down with their registries at TRU, but that doesn't mean the items are actually available in those aisles.

Today I searched and searched during my entire lunch and couldn't find anything on a registry. Not one single thing (not that there was a lot to choose from, since 90% was only available on-line). I almost offered a store clerk five bucks if she could actually locate the baby wipe warmer on aisle three, because it just wasn't there, and I was in heels, and my feet were getting tired of shopping. The clothing section is even worse than the baby-item aisles. I walked through the entire place, basically having to check clothing tags to see if the clothes were from the right company. The brand I was looking for was nowhere to be found, except one lone shirt on the clearance rack, which wasn't on the registry.

After striking out in the registry hunt, I think I'm going to have to give my hairdresser an extra $20 bill with the payment for my haircut, because even when I wanted to buy a gift certificate, the only clerk that was available was the exchange/returns guy, who had about 10 people in line. Screw that.

Remember, everyone: register AT your local store, and make sure it's not TRU, because if you want gifts, you have to make sure they're in a registry that enables your gift-buyers to actually find the gifts that you want to receive.

What's the point of going to a doctor if they are going to dismiss what you say? Every single doctor I've ever seen seems to a) think all patients have low IQs and b) not listen.

For today's physical, I filled out a blue sheet that I've filled out multiple times - the one you do for the physical that tells the doctor all about your habits, conditions, prescriptions, etc. Then the doctor came in and asked me all the same questions. This happens every year, so I just referred her to the sheet I already filled out. Heheh.

I told her my multiple symptoms that I've been wondering about. I'm not going to share all of them here, but one was that, when I'm eating fine and working out many times a week, I don't see any progress with weight loss. I just maintain the same weight. This is where a and b (listed above) come into play. I had told her that I've been working out regularly for four years (which would indicate I've been working out for a long time and have already had the initial muscle mass weight gain); she showed that she wasn't listening by suggesting that maybe I just gained muscle weight and that I need to wait a while to see results. I told her that I had been eating well for the past couple of months; she showed me that she thought I was incredibly stupid by suggesting that I sign up for a class that teaches me how to count calories. I kid you not. She listed a bunch of foods I shouldn't eat, which I don't, and told me to take multi-vitamins, which I already do. Then, after dismissing all the rest of the symptoms I listed by saying things like "maybe it's birth control" and "that's normal", she was gone. Thanks for nothing.

I'm sick of doctors telling me that I'm fine when I tell them a list of symptoms that indicate that I'm not fine. How does anyone get anything diagnosed if doctors simply tell them they're fine all the time? That's why it took 3 years to diagnose my disc problem in my back when I knew what it was all along (and the doctor who treated me with the epidural still treated me like it was no big deal and like I should just get over it). I know that doctors see a lot of stupid people throughout their days, but I'm not one of them. I research symptoms and ideas on the internet, I am aware of my body, and I am an educated person. I wish they'd give me the time of day, listen to me, talk to me like I'm not an idiot, and actually offer some suggestions that I might not have heard of.

Well, I know I can try even harder than I have been trying, so I guess that's my next course of action, since I'm obviously not going to get any further tests or suggestions from the medical field. Here's to determination!

Break-In: Reminds me of Metal Gear Solid or that old NES game Rescue: The Embassy Mission. You definitely have to have some strategy before you start moving on this one.