I'm not in a good mood. How's that for a starter? It's probably because I'm worried. Maybe I'll write why at the end of this post.

I spent a lot of money today. I've been on the lookout for a new computer for Emily. The one she uses is outdated and extremely slow. I've been checking the ads and reading computer magazines and just plain educating myself about what features to look for in a new computer. Last night I found the right one in the Office Depot advertisement. I bought the computer bundle, a new camera, warranties, and an external hard drive. I got lots of stuff that will be free once I mail in and receive the rebates. I got free Norton Anti-virus, free Berlitz Learning Spanish, a free 512 mb flash drive and free highlighters. Oh, and a free Canon photo printer, after the rebate. It was fun doing all that shopping. I don't think I'll be keeping the camera because I bought the wrong model. I thought I was getting the Canon that has 4X optical zoom, but it has the standard 3X. It is an excellent camera. I'll use it for a few days to see.

We had a really hard time figuring out how to attach the base to the 20" LCD monitor. Emily put it on and when I tried to take it off it scratched the screen in 3 little places. I'm still depressed about that. Emily is fine with it and really, they're little when compared with the size of the screen. Still... It reminds me of when I got my very first camcorder when I was very pregnant with Emily. I had it out of the box while I was reading the instructions. I must have gotten up and mistakenly sat on it when I got back on the couch. It broke the viewfinder. I was beside myself with anxiety over what I'd done. Fortunately it was very inexpensive to replace the broken part.

I went to the big Labor Day party at the community pool that I grew up at and that my family still belongs to. My parents and sister were there along with my friend Kit and her family, and a bunch of members of my book club. It was a picture-perfect day. I didn't go in the water, just socialized. That part of the day was great.

I'm back on a shrimp kick. I bought it for the second time this week and made the same meal. Here's how I grill potatoes: I use red potatoes and microwave them till done. Then I thickly slice them and coat them with olive oil and garlic powder. I put them on the grill on Reynold's no-stick (yeah! another hyphen) foil over high heat and cook them till they're browned and crunchy on the outside. Very delicious. Anyway, I also coated the shrimp with the oil and garlic and grilled them on the foil till done. I used wild shrimp and they had a lot more flavor than farm-raised. We had corn to round out the meal. Tasty. I had my favorite ice cream, Edy's caramel praline crunch. I'm still full.

My neck started bothering me when I was in Myrtle Beach. I'm thinking it's my thyroid, something I've been treated for for years. I had a doctor's appointment two weeks ago that I had to cancel, but I have another appointment on Tuesday. Whenever I've had something wrong with me, I've always thought the worst, and it's always turned out to be fine. This time I'm sure it's bad and I hope I'm wrong again. It leaves me with a floating feeling of anxiety. Thus, my bad mood. We all have them, sometimes.