voted

I just went downtown and dropped my postal/early ballot in a dropbox outside the main library, and am feeling accomplished. This is a bit later than I'd intended, but in plenty of time; Election Day is next Tuesday, Nov. 8th.

Part of why I didn't do this sooner is I was trying to decide how to vote on one of our ballot questions, which is about how many store liquor licenses one company can have. I thought it over, decided that I didn't have an opinion, and abstained on that.

I voted yes on the other three ballot questions -- for a higher state income tax rate on annual income over $1 million; new rules for dental insurance (I wasn't sure, but it seemed like a good idea); and to keep the new state law giving driver's licenses to otherwise-qualified drivers regardless of immigration status.

Unsurprisingly, I voted for all the Democratic candidates, including a couple of incumbents with no opposing candidates. One of those is my state senator, who I actively like; we were in his district in Belmont as well.

Things I found mildly surprising: there are five candidates for state auditor, more than for any other office, including a Workers' Party candidate; and there are two candidates for state treasurer, but neither is a Republican.

wrist brace

I tried sleeping without the brace on my right wrist last night, and I think it worked: my wrist didn't hurt when I woke up, and hasn't been noticeably tender during the day today.

The occupational therapist has been saying that getting me out of the brace is a goal. For me, that's secondary to being able to use the wrist (and hand, and arm) without pain, and to lift heavier things, like tall juice glasses, comfortably. If they go together, as they seem to, that's good, but the brace isn't the problem.

On the other hand, if I don't have braces on both wrists, I'll be less likely to overheat when I'm going to sleep: the wrist braces are like fingerless gloves. I've been sleeping with one on my left wrist for years, to avoid a recurrence of tennis elbow; I hadn't noticed it keeping me warm until I had them on both wrists at the same time.

I'm going to do this for a few more days and, if it continues to go well, try increasing the weight for one of the strengthening exercises.

ETA Friday morning: I woke up around 6 a.m. with my wrist hurting slightly, went to the bathroom, came back to bed, and put on both wrist braces. I may wear both braces tonight.