i must've slept wrong, because the back of my neck, down to my left shoulder blade, to the center of my back, felt like somebody stabbed me with a knife. initially i was scared. anytime i feel any discomfort near my heart region, i immediately think it's a heart attack. it wasn't perpetual discomfort though, there were certain awkward positions i could get into that could alleviate the dull muscle aches, but i couldn't turn my neck without hurting, and i'd wince before i start moving around in anticipation of the pain.

despite the suffering, i had to continue with my freelance work, pressing forward with a few solid hours of coding magic (including revealing my aim name to the client) before i stopped in the afternoon. my ability to work comes in short bursts, followed by a long period of unwinding, which included eating lunch (curry flavored rice noodle), watching tv (something good, although i can't remember what), and changing the leaf for my caterpillar, who is now eating a leaf a day, which means it'll only be a matter of time before it becomes a chrysalis.

in the evening, julie came over for what is starting to become a tradition of dinner followed by queer eye. she made dinner this time around, a homemade basil pesto with chicken on pasta. she brought all her own ingredients and her own tools, including a braun hand-held food processor she used to shred the basil. the basil was then simmered in a pan of creme, tossed with some cooked vegetables (dried tomatoes, garlic, onion), mushrooms, and grilled chicken (fresh crushed peppercorns, squeeze of lemon), all over some linguine. it was very delicious and my only regret is that the portions were too small (although we some leftovers, about a serving's worth). i also found out julie doesn't drink orange juice after pouring her a glass of orange blend.

we ate in the living room with air conditioning on, watching boy meets boy, trying hard to pick out which of the guys are gay and which are straight. mandy arrived just in time to watch queer eye. since nobody was staying in my spare bedroom for the next week, i invited mandy to stay as long as she wanted, a change of pace from her sister's guest couch. mandy brought along some work, a set of wedding schedules designed as fans she had to tie these little fortune tags on with taffeta string, and was busy tying on the couch while watching the show. after that was over, we watched the daily show with jon stewart. julie left after that, but not before giving me a present from her car, a dead fiery searcher beetle she found on the beach, wrapped up in piece of paper. i went around the block to get some more milkweed leaves for my caterpillar, came back to throw out the trash, before finally able to chat with mandy, who showed me the book of the yoga instructor she's taking the class from, and some of her portfolio work.