You mean I have to actually do it?

I've become very lazy. A little too lazy in fact. I was working out hard before the wedding, was going to see my therapist regularly, and seemed to have things in order and the sun was starting to shine in my day, but then all of that fibroid hub-bub happened and I just slide into a state of whatever. I sort of dealt with depression before, by sort of I mean I admitted I was experiencing something, started a little meditation practice but that was about as far as that got. Well guess what? It doesn't just magically go away.

To boot, I have been prone to back, neck and general joint pain for much of my life, and when you hurt for a long time, you just sort of become passive about it except when it flares up (I suppose emotional stuff is the same). While I was sitting on my butt recovering, I slouched a lot. I had a hard time finding positions to sit and lay down in with the incisions, so I wasn't very kind to my spine and it told me about it. Even with seeing a massage therapist every other week, my back and neck continue to tell me all about it.

I used to see a chiropractor for many years, but found that my pain was never really getting better, and I was only gaining short term relief. Yes, yes he'd asked me how much exercising I was doing and if I had reduced my stress, and my usual answer was 'not much' and 'no'. I casually tossed his advice aside because I was young and my body would recover (and I was dumb).

Well, Eric is getting tired of my complaints and me not doing anything about my pain, so I FINALLY saw a doctor and asked for a referral to Physical Therapy, and after a long wait my appointment came around this week. (ok, so spousal nagging is needed sometimes!)

Surprise! He said that although I'm very flexible for my age (which I didn't agree with, but whatever, I still think I'm a 10 year old gymnast) that the muscles around my spine and neck are very weak. That the most effective and important thing for me to do is to strengthen them. He gave me a number of ball exercises, I'm to do all the yoga I want (since that seems to help), AND I have to do cardio at least 3 times a week. He said the rock climbing sounds like an excellent activity to build core strength as well, but I have to be aware that I'm not arching my back (I guess I do that more easily then keeping it straight which is how he thinks I tweaked the muscles in my back).

Even though I was all bummed about gaining weight since my surgery, and I'm planning on starting a pact with a friend to no junk eating for at least 30 days, I'm having a tougher time processing that I need to fit in time to work out. But if I want to get in shape, loose weight, and not be in pain anymore, I guess I actually have to get off my duff and work out too. I mean, that is why I joined the gym right? (and no I haven't gone since that first day, but I've been sick - cough cough) Plus, exercise had been the key to keeping depression at bay in the past, so hopefully it'll do the trick again this time. (grumble grumble)

I suppose I should go find that ball now.



Oh and the new template? I was trying out the "easy" changing of the template feature in Blogger, and I forgot to save my old template so I guess I am stuck with this one until I have time to muck around with the code. As a warning to any other Blogger user who wants to play with their template... there is a bug right now that errors if you try to edit the template via the "Edit Template" section. So the only changes you can make are with the widgets and applying the stock templates. Weee!

Looking for sparkles in white

Oh my, I forgot to mention in my last post that I got to go Wedding Dress shopping last weekend!

My very good friend, Amy, is getting married in September, and she asked me to join her and her best friend from college to go look at the 2 dresses she narrowed down to after her shopping trips with her mom over Christmas. We didn't find one of the dresses, but no bother because the other one was PERFECT! Amy was a great sport and also tried on other dresses we pulled for her, even though in her heart she already knew. They say you know it when you see it, and she did.

It brought back memories of my planning this past year, but Amy is far more organized and knew exactly what she was looking for. It was a great little afternoon of giggles and ideas and sharing stories.

I wish I could post some of the pictures I took... but Amy occasionally shares my blog with her fiancé and we can't have him see a hint!

Congratulations Amy, you are gorgeous and we can't wait to see you and your love joined together.

Last week of 2007 update

Huh? What do you mean I didn't post anything about Christmas? What? I haven't posted anything for a week? You've barely heard anything from me this month?

Well we can't have that, now can we?

So I guess we're in for another quick update-a-roo!

Christmas
This is our first Christmas where we didn't go anywhere, and hence our first Christmas tree, and OUR first Christmas with my parents. Well I think so anyway. Most of the last 7 Christmases, Eric and I have either been apart, or on the East Coast with his family for Christmas, and one year we went to Canada to visit my brother and sister-in-law. I have been craving to build our own Christmas Traditions, but Eric really just wants to be with his family. Neither of us put much effort into this holiday to make it special though, so I can't expect miracles.

We agreed to no gifts with the siblings and between ourselves, and only to give to the kids in the family. My brother still had a DVD shipped to us, but I'm not sure if the coding will work in our player as its from the UK (anyone know?). My mom gave us a box of See's chocolate which I have been promptly making disappear, usually around breakfast time the craving hits me.

On Christmas day I cooked dinner and my parents came over to eat. I made Prime Rib for my father, a lovely salad for Eric which was also supposed to be special for my mom, but I failed to remember to put in the freshly roasted beets which she loves (and they are still sitting at the back of the fridge where I put them to cool). I also made Yorkshire pudding which was a first for all of us. If you've never had it, Eric came up with a great description, Meat Doughnuts. Mmmm batter fried in beef fat! I roasted up some Broccoli and Garlicky Potatoes (separate dishes), and finished off with a rather un-traditional Christmas dessert of Strawberry Shortcake. My father only cares for 2 desserts, Lemon Custard Pie and Strawberry Shortcake, and since some lovely Florida strawberries were in the store, shortcake it was. Unfortunately, I forgot my mom can't have strawberries due to her diverticulitis, so she got seedless Strawberry Jam on her's.

Most meals with my parents are a little stressful, at least I find them to be. But who knows, maybe it's just me being super sensitive to any tension in the air when they are concerned and I just can't relax. Hell, I probably put that tension in the air. The bickering was at a minimum this particular meal though. I'm pretty sure my mom caught my pleading stare when my father started going on about his cough and how he stopped taking his Blood Pressure medication because it gives him the cough which keeps him from singing, or sleeping and therefore he can't enjoy life. This complaint comes up just about every time he has us as a captive audience, and every time I ask him to call his doctor who will adjust his medication, but nooooo he has now just decided to stop taking the medication instead. Usually my mom voices her frustration about this continuing complaint, and then things get uncomfortable, and bickering proceeds. But this time, she made a few little comments and didn't push and the subject was able to be changed. So thank you mom!

I'm hoping after we have kids, that this time of year will become the magical time I remember it being. But I guess if I want it to be special, I have to get off my duff and do something about it. Maybe next year.


New Hobby!
Eric and I have been talking about checking out a climbing gym, and this weekend we finally did it. We knew they would get a rush of new people starting in the new year, so since we said we'd do it this year, we went this weekend.
It was a blast! I suck at it, but I still had a good time. Eric has strong arms due to his work, and he has climbed in gyms and outdoors before so he was able to scamper up those walls pretty easily. He kept wanting to push himself so he kept choosing harder and harder routes, which gave me some practice in belaying and catching him when he would fall. I simply couldn't get it through my head that if I fell it was ok because the rope and Eric would catch me, so I played it really safe and stayed on the easy routes. I discovered I am afraid of heights though and would consistently freak out at the same height on the walls. Only once did I make it past that point and on to the top, and that was sure will because I was totally freaking out. I'm also grossly out of shape, and my upper body strength is even worse then I thought. I'm a tad sore today, but Eric is even more sore.. tee hee!
As we always do when we get excited about something, we jump in head first and usually that means we jump in with our wallets. After one single go, we joined the gym, bought shoes, harnesses and the whole get up. We did this with snowboarding too, and we haven't been boarding for years (we say its because of the expense, but somehow we can throw money at other things instead). At least this time, this is an activity where you have to have a partner to belay you, and even though Eric's skill far surpasses mine, the gym offers difficulties that can challenge both of us. No more getting left alone on the mountain. Plus, a month at this gym equals a single day lift ticket, so it seems a little more reasonable.


Umm... let's see, what else?
Tomorrow I have a big goal for myself (us). A day of purging and cleaning out closets. Clothing, crap, stuff, and junk closets. Just like we did when we were kids, we have, on more then one occasion, just shoved stuff in a closet or two when company was coming over. Do that a few times and you loose the floor, and then you loose stuff, and then you start re-buying stuff you thought you lost, and then you loose the floors in a different closet. So as not to overwhelm myself, I'm going to start with my clothing closet as I haven't seen the floor in there for at least 6 months.

I'd also like to put together a list of goals for the year. Not so much resolutions, but just some things I'd like to do. We'll see if that happens, but I'm not setting my sights too high, because I do indeed hate failure.


Phew... only 2 more minutes until we hit midnight, so I'll wrap up this babbling update and I'd like to wish you all a very Happy New Year!

Christmas MeMe

I was tagged by J at Thinking About for this MeMe about my favorite Christmas things quite a while ago, and since I haven't been really bloggy active this month, now is an excellent night to do this one.

Please share 12 of your favorite Christmas things: they can be memories, traditions, songs, presents, beliefs, whatever it is about this season that you love

So here goes:

1. Baking! My mom used to bake cut out butter cookies at this time of year and us kids got to decorate them with colored egg whites and sprinkles and such. We'd box them up and give them out to the family friends. I have continued this tradition with my own little twist and have added quite a few new varieties to the mix, but I still use the same butter cookie recipe my mom used (Joy of Cooking 1975 edition - Rich Roll Cookies). This year the cookies and candies were made a little too late to ship, and I worked to much to hand deliver, so my co-workers got the brunt of the butter and sugar extravaganza. Don't worry, some will still get shipped out after the big day.
   
2. Annual Newsletters - Not as many people put the annual newsletters in their holiday cards as they used to a few years back, but just so those that do still do them know... I love them! I understand that a lot of people find them impersonal or tacky, but whatever! Ours lives have gotten very busy and hectic and I'm that type of person that lets relationships slide, so I enjoy seeing some of the year's choice pictures and reading up on the events of my friend's families. Not everyone chooses to be so public as a blog.
3. Holiday Music - I LOVE the music of the season. Be it Mariah Carey, Nat King Cole, or Mr. Hanky. I love it all. Beware though... I love to sing it all as well. And don't be surprised if you see me skipping and hmming my way through a busy retail establishment this season. I may be out in the hussle and bussle but the music is everywhere and I can't help but to move when it moves me.
4. Seeing Friends and Family from afar - As is now common in this day and age, we have family and friends far from where we call home. So this time of year is a extra special because we usually get to see some of those people we don't get to see throughout the year. Most years we travel to see my brother or Eric's family, but this year we didn't go anywhere so we got to see some of my good friends who just happened to traveled home.
5. Trees - As I got a little older, my parents kinda stopped doing the whole Christmas tree and decorations thing. This time of year is the busiest for my mom with all of her doings at church and her piano student's recital, she just got to the point where the decorations lost priority. So when I was about 15 I started getting the tree with my boyfriend or my brother, and would make sure it was decorated. So when I moved out, I made sure I had a tree as soon as trees were available. However, after Eric and I started dating, we always traveled at this time of year, so we didn't bother with a tree... until this year. YAY! And being the kind of guy Eric is, he wanted to get a live tree we could use year after year. The idea is to root prune it to keep its growth stunted. We'll see how it works out.
6. Lights - Someday I want to put up one of those synchronized light shows you see on YouTube and the news. I've read all about the technology and will watch the videos over and over again online. There are even some in our neighborhood, but for some reason we haven't made it out to go see them... guess we're lazy (so I'm sure I'll never get around to actually designing one myself). As a kid we'd drive around and check out all of the displays, of course back then I was mostly amazed by those plastic light up figures. My favorites being a house down the street that put up a light up nativity scene on their roof. I'd make my mom drive me by their house over and over again as soon as they would put it up, and I'd cry the night we'd drive by and it was gone.
7. Fudge - Why is fudge only made at this time of year? Huh? Why? I even buy fudge at madly expensive prices at those amusement park candy shops, and even once in an airport. I loves me the fudge! Which is funny because I'm not a huge fan of chocolate (well unless it's See's).
8. Gift Wrapping - I love to wrap gifts and adding ribbons and pretties. This year we didn't do much in the way of gifting, but I was still adding bells and ribbons to the bags of cookies (which are still sitting on the kitchen table because the pull of the afternoon nap was great).
9. EATING - Every year I over indulge on the eating pretty much through the month of December and I give myself complete permission to eat whatever I want without guilt or exercise. Ok, not completely without guilt, I am still a girl with the same stupid image issues after all.
   
10. My love - It was back in 2000, just a few days before Christmas when Eric and I first started hanging out. He and I had been co-workers for a few months and he had asked me out a few times, but I kindly kept declining as I'm naive that way and had no idea he was actually asking me out. I thought he was just being kind and suggesting that this suburban girl should go to a club and get out into the city more, but the biggest part of my naiveté was that I also thought he was gay. He claims that I finally asked him out, when really I only said, "Are you going to so-in-so's Christmas party? You guys should totally go!", to him and his boss standing at the front desk. His boss bailed, and he caught a ride with me and a few people. It got late, really late, and he walked with me back to my car in the financial district, where we talked and talked for the hour it took to walk I don't know how far. I drove him to his place to thank him, and he said, oh so lovingly, "I've got a couch if you're tired!". So romantic! I said I was fine to drive home, and we had an awkward good-night moment somewhere between a kiss and a hug, and I slowly caught on that not all really nice guys who listen to Techno music, and enjoy dancing are gay!
11. Snuggling - I'm not one for the cold, and thankfully it doesn't get too cold here in these parts but it does get cold enough for fuzzy socks, fluffy down comforters and lots of snuggling with my love. He also makes for a great bed warmer, so this time of year his overly zealous metabolism doesn't go to waste!
12. The New Year - Although this season is full of cheer and love and all of those warm fuzzies, it is also the gateway to the new year. Of course a year is just a measurement of time, I still see it as a point to start over, or to set goals. This next year is hopefully going to hold a lot of exciting memories and travels. Already I'm hoping to go on our honeymoon to Hawaii, I'm planning a hiking/ferry/car trip with my brother through British Columbia to Alaska, a ton of challenges are in store at work, Eric's business is really picking up, we're hoping to move closer to my work (Housing market hear our prayers!) and maybe, just maybe my doctor will clear us to start trying to start our family.

Phew! Well if that wasn't a mouthful! So there you have it, my top 12 Christmas "Things". With that, I want to wish you and your loved ones a VERY MERRY Chri...uhh... HOLIDAY SEASON!


P.S. If the cookies don't get shipped out, and my waste line doubles - please know that those two events are mutually exclusive.

Way Random!

I have been rather busy lately and have not had much time to read any blogs as well as write anything for my own. So here is just a quick update and some quick thoughts for today:

Osteo Update
Eric saw an Endocrinologist and that system is in check so it is not the cause of the low bone density. The doctor had some thoughts that the test might have been inaccurate since the scores for his lower lumbar were so dramatically lower then any other area, so he's going to check on that. Another possibility is that since he has been a runner since he was a kid, that it's possible that his legs got more bone when he was growing and his spine is weaker because of the activities he was involved in while he was developing. And... then there is the heredity thing. He has the frame for osteoporosis, and it runs in his family, so he has upped his supplement taking and dark green leafy veggie eating, which doesn't hurt anyway!


Baking Marathon 2007...
has begun (2006 found here), but way later then planned, and it's not looking likely that these goods are going to be shipped before Christmas this year. Well they might be, but they won't make it by next Tuesday. Some new recipes (well, new to me) were made yesterday, as well as a 2nd go at my Sister-in-Law's favorite cookie, Amarettis. I've decided that the recipe is faulty and not me, because 2 times the same recipe resulted in the same flat, way too chewy cookies. Ok, maybe it is me, but I'm going to look for a few recipe or I'm just gonna buy some for her at the local Italian deli.
Tonight I will turn my attentions to rolling, cutting, and icing (if I have time) some gingerbread bites. I was going to move onto some fudge and toffee making, but my co-workers have requested the gingerbread. Here's a picture from last year.




Update on the bed decision...
of dropping down to a queen, or trying to squeeze a king up the stairs -- We're going to optimistically wait until we move because we'd like to stay in a King bed, and it seems silly to buy a Queen to fit up the stairs of a place we will hopefully not be living in, in a years time. HOPEFULLY! Thankfully I'll be starting Physical Therapy for my back and neck in the new year, so that may help with my pained sleeping situation.


Update on the Persimmons
I think I'm going to leave the persimmon pulp to Eric as he didn't even peel them before pureeing them (he was tired and cranky by this point), but I will ask that after 6 months if they are still in there that he toss them. That is some precious freezer space! The fruit leather he made turned out great (in a persimmony sort of way). The dried fruit when totally dry weren't too astringent, but still a little. So even though the office was taken up for about a week with all of the drying, I'd say it was a successful project (even though I didn't help much!).


Random Thought
After devouring a bag of chips at lunch today I casually flipped over the bag to read the nutrition information and I'd like to understand why do they say that the # of servings in this snack size bag of chips is 2. Do they think people will actually split this with someone? Or perhaps eat the noted 1oz serving size and then have the rest the next day? Why even bother? Or is 1oz of chips a standard serving (which I'm sure the answer)? Perhaps it's a marketing mind game so I think I'm only eating 150 calories but really its 300 because I can't have just one!



BTW - I wrote this post yesterday (Monday), kinda throughout the day whenever I had a few spare moments or needed a break, but like the first half of this month has gone, I got busy and never got back to post it.
I'm working through the holidays, so in case I don't get around to posting the few posts I've already written, or don't write any new ones, or heaven forbid I don't get a chance to stop by your place to catch up and leave a comment or two....

I hope everyone has a Very Happy Holiday and a Wonderful New Years!

Persimmon Explosion

This past weekend, my lovely husband went to work with a volunteer group that goes to people's houses to pick the fruit they can't consume (or give away). He has worked with them for a few years, but this month they were working at a house in our city. And at this time of year, that means Persimmons.

This tree was HUGE (as he describes it) and they worked for 5 hours with 4 guys to pick all of the fruit. 1.5 pickup truck beds full of persimmons later, Eric came home with a load of boxes to go to our county food bank (the other guys took a load to their local food bank). Eric wanted to sort the persimmons as the overripe ones wouldn't transport well, so that left us with the cull to deal with.
Eric says he loves persimmons, but he tends to prefer Fuyu's (crisp round ones) over the type he had picked, Hachiya (squishy, astringent, drop shaped ones). He had read that dried persimmons aren't astringent and are just yummy sweet. We've tried dried ones before from a friend and they were great! So Eric set to it...except we don't have a food dehydrator.

So our office has turned into a giant dehydrator room (and in my opinion it stinks! really!). He has a fan and stacked wire racks with slices and trays of persimmon mush spread out over half of our desk which lines 3 of the walls (the rest of the desk if covered in his design work - so I'm avoiding that space right now).

Last night, Eric apparently decided to also try out the juicer we got as a wedding gift and although it worked at first, it later started spewing mush everywhere and leaking. Then I suggested he use the blender or the food processor as the juicer isn't meant to deal with that amount of mushy fruit (I did this without stepping in to the kitchen because I have issues seeing it a mess when I haven't been the mess maker). Around 11pm things got really quiet in the kitchen and I stepped in to see if I could help ....

I need not go into the details of the next 2.5 hours, but I have reclaimed the kitchen and the cookie baking prep will begin tonight!

Anyone have any ideas of what to do with a couple gallons of persimmon pulp?


Photo by elroy

TAKE THEM!

A few years ago, my husband's family was going through some stressful times and his mom came out to stay with us for a few months. We got her to come out pretty abruptly so she didn't pack much and a lot of shopping was done out here. When all was clear, or as clear as it was going to get, she went home and she handed me the remainder of the bottle of Calcium suppliments she had bought out here and said, "Make sure Eric takes these".

So, being the good future-daughter-in-law that I was, I asked Eric to take them. He poo-poo'd the idea of a 20-something year old guy should be taking any suppliments let alone Calcium. Calcium is for old women. Since that initial poo-pooing I have continued to ask him to take vitamins. I'd even set up his little pill caddy with them and that is the only time he'll take them. When its easy he'd take them because bending down to pull out the bottle under the cabinet is too much effort.

(You're probably already catching on to what the moral of this story is... but I'm going to make you wait anyway....)

Last year or so, Eric was playing kickball and threw a ball to throw someone out and when he did that he must have pulled some ligaments because he was in a lot of pain for about 2 months after that. He had thought he had broken a rib but the urgent care doctor thought it might be possible, but unlikely. Especially since he was only playing kickball and it started to hurt badly after throwing a ball. No big impact and at this point he was only 31 so he couldn't have broken a rib!

(Psssst - go take your calcium pills!!!)

This past summer he was working on a client job (landscape designer), and he was working with a crowbar or something and he felt something give in his chest, followed by lots and lots of pain. He showed me his chest when he got home (bow chica bow bow -- ok not really), and there was this bump sticking up just under his sternum. I had seen this before with a previous boyfriend (I used to get around alright!), who had broken a rib and a kite boarder friend of mine said that most kite boarders break a rib and end up with that bump. Months went by and Eric finally saw a doctor for a general physical and he showed him the bump... and again the doctor didn't think he could have broken a rib although it looked like it.

(Did you go take your calcium yet?)

Reluctantly, Eric's doctor scheduled a bone scan because Eric was asking for one but he's only 32 and a man, so they wont' find anything, but since he's insisting....

(Go have a big glass of milk too... and maybe some cheese!)

If you haven't guessed yet, we got a letter from Eric's doctor this weekend which said he has osteoporosis of the lower lumbar. He'll go in to see the doctor this week and we hear there is some miracle pill men can take but women can't, so hopefully that'll fix him up good because Eric has a life goal to live until he's 100 and to go out healthy and spry, so this news has been a bit of a blow to his indestructible self view.

So the lesson of this story is 2 fold.

1. If you suspect something is up and your doctor is sorta ho-hum about running tests... push!
2. LISTEN TO YOUR MOTHER!

Worlds Collide

As a general rule of thumb, I don't talk much about work her on my little space on the Internets. We all know why so I don't need to elaborate. I have broken this rule from time to time to mention the perks of this company and maybe a little event or two. However I am now going to break this rule again to welcome a new reader.

Earlier this week I was being silly, because that is how things get around the office at 9pm and it's been a long stressful day/week/month, so I walked up behind my co-worker who was happily reading through his rss feeds via Google Reader while wearing headphones and I stared over his shoulder to see if he'd notice. He wasn't noticing and I was getting bored so my eyes glanced over his screen and I couldn't help but notice that he has subscribed to MY BLOG!

I, of course, gasped which brought attention to my too close proximity to his self, and I backed away.

So this post is for Ryan.... HELLO RYAN!

I don't yet know how I feel about these two parts of my world coming together at this point in my life/career, but I suppose I'll just roll with it for now. I mean, what else can I do? I'm the one who mentioned I have a blog, multiple times. It was bound to happen. Perhaps I wanted it to happen. Perhaps I was having another one of those lapses in judgment from ingesting too much sugar, kinda like when I asked one of the managers to 'Dance like a Monkey' after having a hot chocolate late in the afternoon.

My best friends have come out of work, but I haven't quite crossed that socializing outside of the office line for a number of years. We'll see if this turn of events will change what I write.

If there are any other lurkers out there, let yourself be known, so I can welcome you too!

To Be Queen? or King?

The decision to purchase a new bed has been made, but now for the next big step.... King or Queen??

Luckily we are pretty sure what mattress set we will get, as we recently stayed at a Hilton Hotel and we LOVED the bed there, and it turns out you can purchase some of the items made specifically for Hilton. Eric and I very rarely agree on mattresses so the fact that we both happily slept on a bed for multiple nights with no complaints is really big.

But the size is still up for discussion. We currently have a Cal-King which is big and luxurious but as mentioned, it's big and takes up a lot of the bedroom. It also damaged the ceiling when we were trying to get it up the stairs in our little townhouse so something a little smaller would be easier to get into the space. We are looking to move in a year and likely to an older neighborhood with older houses which have little bedrooms, plus a smaller bed would show the master bedroom better when we do get this place on the market. But alas, the cats really do take up a lot of room, so it is nice to be able to sleep 2 to the bed plus have ample room for the fur babies. AND... we would have to purchase new linens (although we still have a set from the wedding we haven't opened yet -Thanks Liz! - so we should be able to do a trade on those).

What a quandary!

NaBloPoMo 2007 Ends!

And now it's time
To say goodbye
To all our Family!

N-A-B
Because it's OVER!
L-O-P
Pee 'cuz I gotta go!
O-M-O -Zero - Seven!

This has been a fun month of writing some well thought out posts and a whole lot of crap ones! Hopefully next year my November won't be quite as crazy as this one was, as I'd like to be able to see a marked improvement in my writing by the end of the month! I'd also like to be able to spend more time reading and commenting and finding some new blog buddies. There's nothing like feeling a sense of community in the vastness of the Internets!

Here's a shout out to all those who took on the bigger challenge of NaNoWriMo!

30-20-10

I know lots of people have done this one, and I've been meaning to do it at some point during this NaBloPoMo thing. Since tomorrow is the last day, today seems as good a day as any.

30 years ago
I was all of 3 years old. I was already asking my brother's swim coach when I could join the team, and she'd tell me when I could swim the length of the pool she'd let me join. I worked really hard with the neighbor's daughters who were all lifeguards and was on that team the following summer.
I was following my brother everywhere he went. He was my idol, my everything. Being 4 years older I'm sure he got tired of me from time to time, but mostly he let me toddle after him. He taught me to build mud cities, bridges and tunnels for his hot wheel cars, but I remember I wasn't allowed to play with his Star Wars figures!


20 years ago
I was barely a teenager and all awkward and nerdy. I was very actively competing in Ice Skating and had just recently quit gymnastics, community theater and dance, because my mom said I had to choose, but was still allowed to swim on the community summer team.

I was in my final year of Middle School (grades 6-8). I was FINALLY 1st chair 1st flute in band, which was sooo big and I was in the District Honor Band. I adored science and hated history. I had been moved from advanced English to regular English because advanced was full and I had tested just below the cut-off, and even though I had always been in Advanced they were pulling me out. This pretty much was the turn of my reading abilities from slightly advanced to CRAP! I was never challenged in writing and reading in school after that and I lost interest.

I had a crush on Rob Sirwell but he said his parents were getting a divorce and was not in the right place for a relationship (relationship? who said anything about a relationship? I just wanted to hold hands and talk on the phone, maybe go to the mall, get some pizza!).

My best friend was a cheerleader and I REALLY REALLY wanted to be one too. I loved the dance and gymnastics elements of it, but mostly, I loved that freakin' skirt. I WANTED THAT SKIRT! I wasn't too keen on the image though. Yea, sure, they were popular which part of me wanted to be too (don't most kids at some point?), but at the same time I didn't. I went to the try out clinic for Jr. High, but never tried out. I told everyone that I didn't want to become snobby, but really.... I didn't want to be rejected. I later got that skirt in high school, but not for cheer. BTW - I still wish I had gone out for cheer.

Oh and a very outstanding thought on my mind during this time... When the hell are my boobs going to grow? Boob envy big time! Ok really, the body issues started about this time in general. I gained 15 pounds over the summer and went over 100 pounds after cutting back to just Ice Skating plus puberty was in full swing (minus the boob part DAMN IT!) and I recall being completely devastated. I HAD HIPS! No boobs AND I could no longer fit into the skinny Guess Jeans!


10 years ago
Around this time I had started down a career path I had not really planned on. I was on my 5th year of being enrolled in a Jr. College working on what I wanted to do when I grew up. I had gone from a Biology Major to a Computer Science Major back to Biology and then to Business. I was still not really working on my GE requirements to transfer and was continuing to take classes that simply interested me.

I had been working at a big company for a few years which started off as a 2 week temp assignment doing clerical work while I waited for an accounts payable position to open up at my friend's mom's office. This job was where I met some of the best friends a girl could ever ask for, and I switched over from a business direction and into high tech.

Along with my friends from this company, I was very much into country music and was off dancing 2-4 nights a week at a local country bar. I even competed a few times in couples, and I learned every line dance there was to learn back then. Yee Haw!

I moved out of my first apartment and into a rented house shared with my brother, his girlfriend and a high school friend (who was the lead singer in a bar band and had a different girl keeping me awake every weekend - good times!). The house was dubbed 'The Blue Room Yacht Club', as it had an in-law suite behind the house which was painted blue and decked out in a Nautical motif. The stereo and TV were out there, so most of the noise was out there too, which allowed the house to be relatively quiet. It was quite the party house.

Soon after I moved into the house, I adopted my two fur babies at 6 weeks old. I only had the intention to bring one home, but as I was walking out of the garage where they were kept, with one tiny grey kitten in my arms, the runt of the litter just looked so sad and helpless that I had to take him home too. They were small enough to both fit in my hands which is hard to believe now at 14 pounds each. I wouldn't name them until I got to know their personalities so we had a white board up in the house for people to leave suggestions. After each party we had quite a few to choose from. In the meantime, they were nicknamed Mousy and Ballsy, as that was their personalities. On the day of their first vet appointment I just couldn't put Ballsy on the record, so I called for a vote of the names on the board. He was a little crazy acting, so Cosmo it was (as in Kramer). Mousy stuck, even though he's far from the mousy one now.

A few weeks after the fur adoption, I began dating the guy I thought I was going to marry but a few months and a new mortgage later, I realized I couldn't stand living with him. So I suddenly found myself living on my own for the first time, with 2 adolescent cats who kept me up every night.



30-20-10 years ago I was a pretty different person from who I see in the mirror today. I'm certainly no longer drinking a lot of beer and doing Jägermeister shots in the parking lot of the country bar (I know at least one of you reading this remembers that!). I've gotten over gaining those pounds that put me over 100 on the scale, but I'm still waiting for the boobs. It is good to look back and see a few constants though, like my friends, my love of science, my cats, and I'm still working on what I want to be when I grow up. Oh and I still idolize my brother too!

PIF (Pay It Forward) Exchange

I saw this over at Donnaz Chaos and I think it's a totally cute idea.

PIF Pledge:

I will send a handmade gift to the first 3 people who leave a comment on my blog requesting to join this PIF exchange. I don’t know what that gift will be yet and you may not receive it tomorrow or next week, but you will receive it within 365 days. That is my promise. The only thing you have to do in return is pay it forward by making the same promise on your blog.


The ideas of what to make are all a swirly distraction in my head. I could knit something, or pull out the glue gun, or maybe the sewing machine (oh wait, my sewing machine died, so needle and thread?), or maybe some butter and sugar with a little flour to keep it together....

But you already know that I'm not down with the crap gifts, so hopefully it'll be something you will like and will use (or eat!).

You don't have to be crafty to join in. Come on along!

Happy Birthday Mom and Papa!

DOH!
Last Tuesday was my Mom's 75th Birthday, and even though she doesn't read this blog I shoulda mentioned it...you know, just in case!

Happy Birthday Mom!

And today, today is my Father's birthday. I think he's 71. He doesn't get on the computer unless my mom is showing him something, so there is little chance he'll see this. But just in case...

Happy Birthday Papa!

I think it's amusing that my parent's birthdays are 4 years and 8 days apart, and my brother's and my birthday are 4 years and 8 days apart. Hmmmm..... November to August is how many months?

Hug Me Pillow

It's called the Hug Me Pillow. I found it while looking for some decorative throw pillows on a shopping website and I must say... It kinda creeps me out. Plus how will it fit in that perfectly arranged pillow ensemble on the bed? But then I noticed that it got a lot of great reviews, and only one in the bunch was slightly negative.

Here is a sampling:

I've slept on this pillow every night since I got it. I bought it to give my husband the "cold shoulder" for some long forgotten misdeed. However, was I surprised to find that this is the most comfortable pillow I've ever owned.

If you're bothered by a girlfriend whose body temperature rises dramatically when she falls asleep, but they still want you to constantly hold them, this is a fantastic purchase. By placing the Hug Me Pillow in between you and her, you'll keep her happy, without suffering through another boiling, sleepless night.

I bought this pillow to keep my company on nights when my husband, a correspondent for the Trans-Alaskan News Network, was out of town. The pillow exceeded even my wildest expectations. I'm told the pillow was modeled after Brad Pitt, and I believe it! When I first nestled against the soft, but firm chest of my new "husband" I slept better than I ever had before. Now I don't mind when my husband goes out of town!

There were a few reviews which I couldn't tell if they were real or a joke so I passed on sharing those, but it sounds like there are a number of satisfied customers that feel a little more safe and warm in the night.

From a List of Movies to this....

Glinda over at TeenyMalono just posted her Top Ten Family Christmas Movies, and I must say that I was not prepared for this.

Christmas Movies? Already?

I mean, I realize that there are already a few in the theaters, we've already survived Black Friday, and I'm even thinking about getting the lights up today, but I'm not ready to start thinking about the movies yet. I'm just barely ready for 'It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown', and I don't think I'd even think that would hold my attention long enough.

To me Christmas movies means Winter Break from school and wasting time in front of the boob-tube watching whatever was on. They aren't quite nostalgic for me yet, except maybe those oddly animated Christmas Classics of Rodolph and Jack Frost. I never really cared for 'A Christmas Story', however I am still a fan of 'A Christmas Carol'. I did enjoy 'Elf' when we finally saw it last year, but most of those other ones I could pretty much pass on this year.

Perhaps it's because I'm still kidless and I'm in this in-between mode of what this time of year means to me. Perhaps it's because these last few months have been sort of crazy between the wedding, and the surgery and then me diving head first into work, that I haven't slowed down enough to realize I need to slow down to reflect on this season. Perhaps it's because I want this Christmas to just sorta slide on by since we aren't going to visit either my brother or Eric's sister this year. I thought I really wanted us to spend our first Christmas with just us (and my parents because they'll be involved I'm sure), but maybe I'll have to rethink that.

Who knew Glinda's post about movies would trigger so much introspection. Thank you oh mighty Good Glinda, for you may have saved Christmas!

Let There Be HEAT!

Last night we turned on the heater for the first time this season. What can I say, I had a moment of weakness and even though we were going to go to bed in an hour, I was cold and it was 59 degrees in the house, and I didn't want to go put on another layer even though we would end up roasting in bed the the down and the fuzzy blankets plus two warm kitties snuggled up somewhere in there (plus Eric is my own personal bed heater).

I flipped the switch over to heat, all ready for that dusty hot smell that comes from the vents when the heater is used for the first time in a while. I stared at the thermostat checking the numbers to make sure the heater program I had set last year was still adequate for this night. The heater wasn't coming on though. I looked at the furnace sniffing for gas, afraid it was going to blow up in my face. I went back and forth between the thermostat and the furnace a few times and then decided to just wait.

15 minutes went by and still no heat. Something was wrong and I asked Eric to look at it for fear of blowing up our house and the neighbors along with it. He did the same thing... looked at the thermostat, sniffed the furnace.... still no heat. I started thinking about repairman bills and that we'd have to wait a little longer for our kitchen remodel and then Eric started pushing buttons on the thermostat and the heat started blasting.

Apparently we've been in A/C mode too long because neither one of us saw that the thermostat was set lower then the temp in the house, I mean that's how it works for the A/C! I guess it wasn't THAT cold, but if we were in an area of the world where we HAD to have some heat, we may be frozen by now. Thermostats... who knew they were so complicated!

All Man!

While playing a fun game of Yahtzee between Eric, my mom and myself, my father brought in a plate of freshly broiled chicken thighs which he had been marinating in soy sauce and lemon juice and then brushed with BBQ sauce. It's so good, and very distinctively my dad's chicken. We gobbled up the chicken and continued on with our fun game. On the way home Eric, being the country boy that he is, belched a big one.

Him: Mmmmmm

Me: GROSS!

Him: Smells like CHICKEN!

Me: Please roll down your window!

Him: If you didn't know that was a burp, you'd say, 'Mmmm smells like chicken!' too!

Me: That may be true, except that I do know.

Him: Mmm Tastes good!

Earlier in the evening Eric was taking care of some personal grooming. I walk into the bathroom to find the sink littered with plucked out NOSE HAIRS!

Me: EWWWWW!

Him: What?

Me: THAT! (pointing to the sink)

Him: Oh yea (as he reaches for some toilet paper to wipe up his mess). Man, my nose feels lighter!

My husband, he may have no shame in letting a tear fall or talking about his feelings, but he's ALL MAN! I think I may even go as far as to get him a 'personal grooming tool' for Christmas. I've been talking about getting him one for years but it just seemed so cliche... but that's it, he's totally getting one!

Kenya

My co-worker pointed me to this little diddy a while ago and it cracks me up every time I watch it. I love how the lion slides down the giraffe's leg (just watch it, you'll think its cute too... really). I am embedding the video from YouTube, but its originally from here.




Apparently other people liked it too, because here's a live remake of it.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

I've been busy in the kitchen preparing a somewhat non-traditional Thanksgiving meal. Later this evening my parents are coming over for a meal full of awkward silences and some idle chit chat between my mom, Eric and myself as my dad doesn't really say much and will be busy eating. I need to make sure there is plenty of food on the table to keep us all busy.

Since it's a beautiful day today and my dad thinks that all turkey is dry turkey, I am grilling up some ribeye steaks. Hopefully the propane tank won't run out and I won't char or overcook them (I tend to do that when I get nervous). Funny how I can cook in a restaurant kitchen in the middle of a dinner rush without the nerves, but as soon as I get home and am cooking for a few friends and family, I forget where my head is. I put way too much pressure on myself to impress and to express that whole food = love thing (yes I reference that a lot in this blog, but hey it's the phrase of my life).

I'm also making some dinner rolls, pumpkin pies, roasted delecata squash, sauteed mushrooms garlic and shallots for the steaks and a household favorite of brussel sprouts. Eric has also requested a salad so I'll figure that out at some point in the next hour. My mom is bringing a dish of scalloped potatoes to make sure we have enough starch and cream in the meal, because it was looking a little too healthy to be a proper Thanksgiving meal!

I hope everyone is enjoying a special time with their families today (even if you aren't celebrating the US Holiday), it's still important to be thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving all!

Thankful for Kitties

Today my kitties went in for a teeth cleaning. Some people may think that having a cat's teeth cleaned sounds silly, but I'm one of those pet owners that take their care pretty seriously. Sadly I didn't take their dental health seriously enough because my little baby Mousie (that's one of the boy's name), had to have 2 teeth DRILLED out today. He had some pretty bad cavities and since he was already sedated for the deep cleaning, the vet extracted the two teeth with the cavities.

If you're wondering why they were drilled out, its because a cat's mandible is weak at the point where those two teeth are (right behind the canines), so our vet chooses to essentially break the tooth instead of risking breaking their jaw. Umm.. OWWW!

I was dreading this appointment because I knew Mousie is prone to bad tartar build-up and I was pretty concerned about the sedation. I'm currently pretty hyper sensitive to the thought of death right now, so the vet was really kind and took the time to call me as they were coming out of sedation to give me the low down on how things went. I must say I LOVE our vet because he never rushes a fur parent and will tell you as much or as little information as you want, I want it all so we chat a long time and he never makes me feel like I'm taking too much of his time.

So now I have 2 kitties at home, both a little not themselves. Mousie (the one that had the 2 teeth extracted) is a little high on pain drugs, staring off into space with his tongue sticking out because the pain drug is absorbed locally AND makes him high. Cosmo is still just a little scared and jumpy while being really sleepy, but mostly that's just how he is.

This holiday weekend I will get to spend some good cuddling time with my boys trying to make up this day to them and some fun wrestling time with them to get them to take their antibiotics and pain meds, and introducing the wonderful world of CAT TOOTHBRUSHING!! Good times! We'll see how it all goes. At least the cuddling will be nice.

I figured since lots of folks write about their kids, I wouldn't feel at all silly writing about mine....even though they are covered in fur and poop in a box of sand. Don't you wish your kids did that?

Oh... and apparently the fact that I've been feeding them bits of ham is effecting them. Cosmo's cholesterol levels were elevated at 244. I guess he needs to eat more oatmeal and veggies and no more tasty meat treats!