Things to do when you are a sick girl

Yesterday I woke up late and decided it was a good day to stay in bed and try to get over this cold. I forced fluids and did Zicam and EmergenCee and even hot chicken soup. I strategically placed my wastebin within range and practiced wet tissue rim shots most of the day.

After Oprah at nine, I turned off the TV and downloaded about 40 cds onto my laptop and then transferred the music to my mp3 player. While I was doing that, I read all my fave blogs and updated my sidebar, adding a new button from that hilarious must-read Crazy Aunt Purl.

As I did that it occurred to me that I could have a button too! I dinked around with some of my images and made this button:

and the next one and the next one.
I copied the html from my other downloaded buttons and had a space all prepared to insert it and got the dreaded box with an x in it.
I don't know what I am doing wrong and have the feeling it has something to do with the size of the image, pixel wise. I saved it as both a gif and a jpeg and still NO GOTS.
Perhaps it is my mucus-filled brain, or the vagaries of html (similar, but not the same) that have prevented me from getting this to work. I did however get the x box to link to my blog, but like what good is that?
I know you tech-smarties out there have the SIMPLE answer and can bring me around to success.
Please email me privately with your fabulous solutions.

Now, why do I want a button? It's strictly an ego thing. I have a big one. Or haven't you noticed?
Plus these gals that I have buttons for have one so why can't I have one? I mean, rilly?

Part B: Things to do when you are a sick girl
Dave is not what you'd call a great nurse. He had forgotten our little talk from way long ago last year when I was sick before. I recovered and told him he was a rather inattentive nurse while I was hacking up my lungs, never once asking me if I would like a wee cuppa. He vowed to do better in the future.
So here I am spewing germs and he remains downstairs at his computer ignoring me. But I have a plan. I will not get outta bed for meals and eventually it will dawn on him that I am not feeding him. Ha! It worked. At 2 he opened the door and said he was thinking about going for a spin, and getting some crunchy bread.

A sign.

I swooped in for the kill.
"Do you wanna cook that pot roast in the refrigerator before it starts turning green?"
"Me?"
"Yes. Remember we were watching that guy Dave Lieberman on Food TV make those short ribs for his friends? He browned them and added onion and garlic and beef broth and put it all in the oven for a couple of hours, and it was glorious. You could do that."
"You mean braise it?"
"Yes." I snorted, coughed and blew.
In a few minutes he came back and asked if I meant he should keep the meat whole or cut it up to brown it? Since he is a master meatcutter (32 miserable years) I said, he could make stew the same way, so he cut it up. He grayed it and brought it in to show me, and I sent it back to so he could brown it more.
Eventually I could smell it cooking and it was HEAVENLY. I was so impressed I clambered outta bed and had a look see. He had even sliced a whole onion and added it to the stew. He LOATHES onions, but understood their import in a stew. There were even two bay leaves. I was even more impressed! I punged in a fork and the meat melted apart and tasted divine!
I left him alone while he made mashed potatoes and then I got up and tossed some greens in a bowl for salad and we ate a lovely meal.
I gently asked him what his next masterpiece would be and he chose a roast pork dinner.

Sometimes it pays to stand back and not be so almighty efficient.