Sat 04 Apr 26: Chilly overnight (for us, of course). probably high 50s, which is indicative of high pressure -- so hopefully some nice weather for Wash Day tmw... Recently chg'd bedding from the prior setup (expensive memory foam atop cheaper dbl-layer foam) -- which was fine for some time... but had an inkling the way the supposedly higher-value mattress topper were made, were more for some almost-indistinguishable amt of cooling (wif a blended white-&-2-blues color scheme baked in from the factory, apparently to reassure buyers )... plus a quickly deteriorating capacity to actually wake w/o pain. It's so compromised for add'l features rather than actual support -- which is the whole reason why you pay extra for memory foam, the support. What were actually happening... is my hips and torso'd sink into the stuff > 80% of its unloaded thickness (2"), and body warmth would degrade that to < ¼". Leaving the lighter bits of my body floating atop it, esp shoulders and arms. The cooling effect also would last about a min before feeling like slipping on a very oversized neoprene wetsuit over the contact half of my body Comp'd that wif a pair of cooling fitted sheets... but needing allergy protection due to the ever-persistent dust issue downwind from miles of poorly-managed cropland, meant they had to be very poorly moisture-wicking -- resulting in only slightly less soaking during the month... plus 100% humidity bain-marie-baking us like Cinnabons in our beds, esp when power'd cut out. Procrastinated on the solution, since you can't test a mattress topper in the store before buying But finally tired of waking wif shoulder and thigh issues from wonky sleep support... so dove into the problem. In essence, simply dbl'd the dbl'd original cheaper memory foam, resulting in a luxurious-sounding 4" of topper. This cheaper stuff doesn't have all the claims-to-feature the pricey $50 one did... but significantly more supportive in a way I prefer (not waking w/ upper limb / joint issues). Also sh*tcanned the more impervious (and far more expensive) cooling allergy-barrier fitted sheet of the two, and replaced wif an identical flow-through cooling one, lower allergy rating. Weirdly like two layers of lycra, stretching around like women's leggings... but I'd not steam like a bao in a rainy week. Attached the somewhat-comical elastic suspenders underneath, to keep the show tucked and in-place*... and found the whole setup was about half inch less thick than before, hmm. A quick lie-down had me cheering tho, as this simpler setup was indeed far more like a $400 foam mattress -- much more supportive. A sleep would be the litmus test so reserved final judgment for it... Got up about 4am (fell asleep ~10pm). Obvi expected the body after using that wonked setup from last summer to now, would object a little bit... and did so, mostly in the neck (old setup allowed shoulders to sink whilst leaving the head suspended, stretching the neck and causing slight neck issues at first, then body adapted). However, turning the head to the other side 45º (an adaptation pre-CPAP to allow more airflow past my apparently fatso-gullet), resulted in 0 pain, which felt weird tbbh. Amazing how when forced we make friends with pain, Stockholm-syndrome-style Moreso the longer hours I'd sleep the worse this issue got... so if rousing before 7 hrs, no problem for sleep length nor pain. And the protest this time were also in neck and L shoulder, but far less than even the best day on the old. So need to give the body a minute to adapt, as injured R knee -- which hated the merest fraction of a point off perfectly fluffed and positioned on the aging conventional mattress underneath -- popped up, no problem. The old setup let the heel sink further into itself than calf or thigh... so knee's bent under tension all night. Apparently this new setup chg'd that, hopefully indefinitely -- can get used to waking w/o needing to nurse both hams / quads a few secs on random days (a sign your knee joint's interior tissues are being held in a position damaging to it over long-term). So yeah. Realising and thus confirming, I didn't need to spend almost dbl the amt for the useless, all marketing-blather old topper, was a horse pill. But all fixed now, hopefully * got them at Wally's in the search for toppers -- attach wif these odd silicone knobs which wire loops fasten around when sheets cover the knob. Seems like any movement'd sproing these things off in mins... but they've held onto the thicker bad topper + good dbl'd foam, so see no issue wif the thinner setup. Installed correctly, tho... looks like you're trying to hide the fact your topper has both suspenders and a G-string on --- bodywork story after day's clients --- sorry, client work today was routine, not enough to remind of past stories. Hope Mon brings something more reportable
Sun Wash Day, 05 Apr 26: Got the 5G finally cleaned thoroughly and ceramic laid down (now past 2wks since getting it back from the body shop). It was filthy... Something odd about this week's chore, which came from nowhere, really: I wasn't that sore. Still can't kneel down as in years past due to R knee but wasn't as bad as it has been. Have been on this med ~70d now... and a worrying trend is as I stay on it (haven't missed a dose since the start)... the weaker I feel esp during this once-per-week exertion. But the knee's actually better -- and dovetailing into bodywork... something also happened during the wash & wax, that improved it even more. Very strange to go about the tedious task of digging grit and road spray deposits out of every hiding place in the doors and jambs... but oddly, it didn't hurt. Exhausted and feeling a bit older due to it, but none of the wincing pain I normally had on caffeine. Given this was the first real wash in over a month... guess my body's compensating by releasing some tone, esp around the knee. Can almost get to a squat, but at the very end have to bail as pain quickly jumps to 9 and above. However today, just working around the fact I can't just drop to a sit on the pavement (to do end caps)... very strange not to have the usual groaning-uncle bleats getting up, or walking to the head after eating lunch (before the wax)... Also... reinforced what a waste of time and money it'd been, trying to orbitally-buff the vertical surfaces of the car, esp doors. I'd developed a routine that got max lustre and refined it over months... but ever since giving up on Griot's on those surfaces (leaves a white powdery residue it doesn't on horizontal surfaces), have been using the old trusty Hybrid Solutions Ceramic Spray Wax. But it too doesn't like the buffer... so out of pure frustration, bunged it on by hand, with a couple of microfibre cloths -- and f***ing voila, the best shine of all -- rivalling the Griot's on the roof, which is as flawless as a driveway ceramic wax can be. F***ing shake the bottle, set nozzle to ON and pump a few sprays onto the ground (clears the tube of old ceramic polymer which can affect the finish), and spray a bit on the door. Spread with one cloth, buff with the other, 45 secs max. Like a f***ing mirror, optically shiny So a job that used to take 45 secs per pass x 4 for final finish... now takes 45 per door, and blows the old buffer jobs out of the water. I give up But was pretty happy the outer surfaces let go of the week's dirt, after just washing and not waxing lest week. Griot's on horizontal surfaces and layered many dozens of weekend's worth of ceramic, is the real deal. Loves the buffer moving even faster than I'd detailed here in a past post, so this is the current Griot's protocol: using the same microfibre towel you use to clear beaded water from the rinse... start on one side of the roof, and gently wipe away any grit and dust, until your fingernails don't catch on anything on random spots. Then shake the green stuff thoroughly, and 4 short brief pumps... immediately followed by the cordless orbital buffer on its lowest speed. Move the bonnet fast -- 1m/sec -- in 1m passes over the roof in tight formation, just to spread the liquid wax. When you can see the buffer making swirls on the paint vs. moving liquid around... change to figure-8s from the midline of the roof to the door opening, the entire roof half. Once you begin seeing lustre poke thru hazy areas, change to small circles in the opposite direction of the orbits of the buffer, and slowly move over the roof-half one buffer-diameter at a time, until the haze turns to a mirror lustre. The more layers you set down, the better this will look when properly done: that foot-deep shine that mirrors everything around it. Apparently... same with the layers of HS on the doors. Sure they'll collect spots and road grime thrown from the front wheels... but just a wash w/ a weak Meguiar's Gold Class wash solution, then a hand application of HS... can't be happier. Just blown out tho, with this liver-stunting, caffeine-depriving med still needing another 30d to do its job... need a nap but have other Sunday chores to do --- Epilogue: whilst reaching over some stuff to get to the back seat... lost footing and hyperextended my R knee slightly, which hurt a bit. But felt a loud but muffled 'pok' near my fibular head walking it off (where a bunch of scar tissue from the injury set in)... and now feels better. As if needed a bit of hyperextension to pull a bit of scar tissue free, or re-seat the knee on the damaged meniscus. We'll see how it feels tmw morning... Also: we're expecting more sloppy weather with yet another low-pressure system to our NW, drawing hot humid air across us from the SE. Great... at least I know the car's further protected in case I need to wash / no wax thru that
