I call a Mulligan on today!

I make oatmeal for breakfast every day.  1 cup of skim milk and a half a cup of quick oats cooked on the stove.

I actually forgot the oats today.

I had to add them, and it took forever.

Causing me to forget that I have class and I need to wear contacts.

I remembered my dance clothes, and not my contacts.  This I realized at 11.

can I go home and go back to bed and restart today?  Please?

Seriously, this absent minded professor shit has got to go!

Little scale victories

After switched from the Wii to a real scale... I've made a realization.

Weight Watchers was right.  The numbers on the Wii were off.

But I've accepted that and moved on.  And today hit a milestone:

(Ignore the gained 2 pounds since September 5th thing).  As you can see, the numbers weren't as impressive as they were on the Wii, but it proves that I am making progress.  I know I've been not making the best of choices of late.  I'm going to strive to make healthier lunch choices this week, and make sure there isn't as much in the house to snack on.

But at 13.4 pounds lost, I'm back to where I was before this whole gaining and losing the same pounds ride began.

Can it be not Monday now?

This weekend was rather low key.  I had a migraine on Saturday, and Sunday was spent cooking.  And by cooking, I mean that I had the crockpot working, and the sink was full.

I will admit, I was a lazy ass all weekend.  Saturday I was sidelined with a migraine.  I only managed to make it to Target.  I was out of coffee, which, in my opinion, is a tragedy.  For $6.99 I have Pumpkin Spice coffee!  And it's good!


Sunday, was grocery shopping.  While at the store, I got a bright idea:  Mexican Lasagna.  I got the ingredients to make my wonderful Crock Pot Margarita Shredded Chicken, and got to work on it when I got home.  Thawing the frozen chicken and making it took all day.  Needless to say it was leftover pizza for dinner.

So the kitchen is a mess, I've been lazy and snacky all day.  This means many, many other things never got done, including laundry and my dance homework.

I slacked.  I know.  I was bad.

So today I'm paying for it.  I was supposed to go out with the ladies tonight.  I had to cancel.  Homework, and extremely necessary laundry (not to mention dishes) are getting in the way.

I slacked.  Not I'm paying for it.

My house smells like a Mexican Cantina!!

I got a brilliant idea today! I was going to make Mexican Lasagna, starring my crock pot margarita chicken.

Then pizza appeared for lunch. More than enough for lunch and dinner. So the plans changed. I'll make the chicken today and the lasagna tomorrow.

Then I realized that tomorrow both the Spousal Equivalent and I will be out tomorrow.

Another new plan: I'll build the lasagna tomorrow when I get home, and bake it Tuesday.

But in the making of the margarita chicken, I emptied the tequila bottle.

The changes in plans aside, it's been a rather relaxed weekend. I have a super- busy week coming up, so today is a nice break.

Falling well short of my goal

My step goal for the day, for everyday, is 10,000 steps. I was at 2000 when the migraine hit. I've been on the couch for a few hours, and since my meds won't touch the headache, I'll probably be here for a few more hours.

It's frustrating, but since I can't stand without my head spinning, it's my reality today.

I just have to take today and take care of myself. Tomorrow I can get my steps.

The return of the GleeCap!

I can't believe I missed this last week.

So last week, it's the beginning of school, and the Glee kids are popular!

And with popularity comes the meanness.  The season opened with the veteran kids being rather mean to the new kids.  (Like many typical high school popular kids are).  The new kids being:  Unique/Wade (owns the heels like no woman can) and Marley (daughter of the lunch lady).

It made me uncomfortable.  It looked like it made them uncomfortable too.

The veteran kids finally told off the popular bunch.  Watch the popularity of the Glee kids sink.

Yesterday Brittany hit rock bottom... while singing Brittany Spears... It was odd.... I get that the kids want Brit to feel good.. but man.  Lipsyncing?

So.. here's what we have:

• Rachel- having a HARD time of it in NY.  
• Kurt- Left Ohio to join Rachel.  Everyone agreed that he was too fabulous for Ohio
• Blaine- Going it alone, for now
• Brittany- Actually is going to try to graduate
• Tina- Broke up with Mike.... they need to write the girl some personality
• Wade/Unique- I'm SHOCKED he ins't slushied more.  But good for him/her!
• The Puckerman Bunch- Yes.. buck's dad sired a bunch of kids.  Are we surprised?
• Cassandra July-  She was such a bitch during the first episode... until the Spousal Equivalent figured it out.  She's a little resentful of the kids doing what she couldn't.  She's also preparing them for the harsh reality of Broadway 

I'm curious about Finn..... hows's he handling the army?

New toys!

So my fitbit and scale came yesterday.  The scale was a bitch to set up, but we succeeded.

So I declared today as my day of starting over.  I have electronic activity motivation, and an accurate scale.

So I weighed myself this morning....

And this is what happened...

A little discouraging.

But I know I have the tools to make those numbers do down.  I just need to do it!

How did I start?  I took the stairs this morning.  I have errands to run this afternoon. And I need to walk to get my lunch.

I also need to be extremely mindful of the snacks in the house.

But anyways... The tracker was set up and on my by noon yesterday.  For a half day, yesterday's stats weren't bad:



But I can do better.

The Chicago Teacher Strike

People call teaching an easy job.  You make a lot of money.  You get summers off. All you do is play all day.

I want everyone that even has a second of entertaining these thoughts to spend a day in a middle school.  Seriously.  Go volunteer.  And then talk to the teachers there.

So teachers in Chicago are striking.  Good for them!

For everyone that thinks that they are asking for too much, this is what they are asking for:

1. The school day will be extended.  They want to be compensated for that.
2. Test scores are factoring HEAVILY into teacher evaluations.  This could lead to hundreds of jobs lost and schools closed.  We all know that most standardized testing is bullshit... so this is a whole lot of BS too.

And that's it... They'd like a cost of living increase... and maybe air conditioning.. but the above are the two biggest sticking points.  As Jezebel.com said:  "Other things the teachers want: air conditioning in the classrooms, teacher evaluations that don't depend too much on student test scores. They're not asking for yachts."

I understand that as salaried employees the extra hour doesn't factor into an hourly wage... 

but come on!  Teachers already work 80-100 hours a week for 9 months.  Giving them more work for the same money is an insult.

And as for standardized testing.  We all know that a multiple choice test isn't the best measure of learning.  We also know that to pass these things, teachers rely on rote memorization.  No one learns what they need for life by memorizing facts.  But the writing on that is on the wall.  In Texas, Republicans want to discourage critical thinking.  And that's a scary thought.

If we value this future of this country we really need to look hard on how we're preparing young people for life.  Life's not a multiple choice test.

Comparison Shopping and a bit of bragging...

First the bit of bragging:

Yes!  I'm going to go see the Dalai Lama!  And most of y'all don't know how HUGE this is.  I have issues with crowds, and going places alone.  Well, this is going to be a HUGE crowd and I'm going to be going alone.

I'm actually really excited!






And now, a bit of comparison shopping!  First, 3 things about me: 1.) I am cheap, mainly because money is tight around here.  2.) I usually buy a store brand where I can.  and 3.) I prefer Target to Wal Mart.

I'm nearly out of both my face wash and my facial moisturizer.  So I decided to take my iPhone and do some comparison shopping.  I already knew that I was going to have to buy some of my purchases at Wal Mart.  Target doesn't carry Physician's Formula (the brand of mineral make up that I like), so I decided to see how the other prices stacked up:

1.) Acne Wash  (I took pictures of them all.... but they won't post the right way!)- both 6 oz.
Target:  $4.19
Wal Mart:  $3.67

2.) Refreshing AM Cleanser (both 8 oz.)
Target: $3.14
Wal Mart: $3.47

3.) Anti-Acne Moisturizer (no sunscreen, and 4oz for both)

Target: $3.74
Wal Mart: $3.47

4.) Aveeno style Moisturizer (4oz. and SPF 15)

Target: $10.49
Wal Mart: $9.47

With 1 exception the products are cheaper at Wal Mart.  I have a week (there abouts) to decide the level of anti-acne, sunscreen and refreshment that I need so I can plan accordingly.

But seriously... shopping with a smart phone.  Genius!!

More riots in the Middle East

I missed most of the news this morning, but caught the tail end of a report about an Ambassador in Libya being killed in rioting.  By the time I came in, fingers were being pointed, and I was confused.

But this is what I understand to have happened:

1. Some Americans made an awful, distasteful, hateful movie (which kinda is their right... 1st amendment and all....).  Should they have made it?  Hell no. From what I'm reading, there's NO way it wouldn't piss off a large portion of the population.
2. There's rioting in Cairo and Libya.  Embassies were stormed.  A rocket attack in Libya killed people.  Was this response a bit much?  Oh hell yes.  The government didn't make this crappy movie.  
3. I've heard rumblings that people are pissed that the military hasn't moved in and turned the cities to rubble.  Wow... Now sending in troops to secure the building, sure... Leveling the country?  Wow, a bit much.

Things like this just sadden me.  Wrongs were done on both sides.  Things were blown out of proportion.  It's just not good.

But from this, and from conversations with experts, I've learned a few things:

• Islam isn't evil.  For everyone that is now saying this this whole mess is Islam's fault. 
• Fundamentalist Religions (Christian AND Islam) are more alike than different.  If they'd stop putting blinders on and actually looked at the other side, they'd see this.
• These problems are caused by people that REFUSE to follow the Golden Rule.  It's there in Islam as well as Christianity.

Dance Dance

I'm not the world's best dancer.  I'm short, ridiculously non-flexible, overweight and I have no upper body strength.  I'm working on fixing a great many of those problems, but at 37, it's an uphill battle.

My favorite show is So You Think You Can Dance.  I know I'll never be like Allison Holker or Eliana Girard.  I have no delusions there.  But I don't want to be.  Those two women are, in my opinion, two of the best female dancers there are.

Why am I beating up my body weekly in this dance class?  Because I love it.  I love to dance.  I'm not the best, or more beautiful, but dancing makes my soul feel lighter.  It makes me happy.

Also, there is little chance there will be photographic evidence of any kind that I have ever danced.  But here's some dances that I love:


Eliana (with Alex) - Contemporary


Chehon (with Allison) - Contemporary

ALEX WONG & ALLISON - HALLELUJAH

Chehon (with Kathryn) - Contemporary

11 years ago...

I was woken by this simple sentence.  "A plane hit a building."

My first thought?  In San Diego?  Well, that doesn't surprise me.  If you've flown into San Diego... you know what I'm talking about.

Then I found the truth.  We watched the TV in stunned silence.  I found out that my dad was supposed to be in Building 4 for a meeting.  He missed his plane.  A friend of mine used to go to work via the WTC Subway stop.  He was ok.

After 48 hours I was desperate for something other than the news.  I was numb to the news.  Desensitized.  I remember hearing that Blockbuster had a record number of rentals that week.

That was also the week that the country went crazy.  Sikh men were harassed in record numbers, all because people are dumb that assume that turban equals Islam.  The message from millions of Americans was clear:  Islam is evil.

Which we all know is crazy.

If we are to judge the many on the acts of a few... you'd have to judge the whole of Christianity on the acts of the Waynesboro Baptist Church.

There still is way too much hate around.

What am I going to do to mark the day?  I'm going to run errands at work.  I'm going to pick up my Dalai Lama tickets.  The Spousal Equivalent'scar died, so I'm going to wait for him to pick me up.  I'm going to go to dance class.

Monday Monday (la la.... la la)

Today was one of those hit the ground running kind of days.  In the space of an hour I:

• Managed to get 7 lunch orders sorted out, typed up and faxed out
• I scheduled the department rooms for 6 meetings
• I realized that sometimes I'm a bit blunt... and felt LOTS of guilt for that
• Stressed about offending people
• realized my school ID was missing
• Freaked out that I couldn't get in touch with the people about lunch
• Freaked out in general

Yeah, when I felt like I was having a heart attack, I took pause.  Because I knew it wasn't a heart attack.  This has happened before.  It's a panic attack.

SO I took some breaths.  I watched some SYTYCD routines on YouTube, and chilled out.

Lets hope my day gets better.

I have a new Shiny book!

I ordered an Arc customizable notebook from Staples.  Mainly because I wanted a Levenger Circa notebook, but refused to pay the price.

Why did I want this?  Well...

1. I love paper agendas, but wasn't a fan of a bulky binder
2. It looks more professional that what I had
3. The hole puncher, while a tad expensive is easier to use than punching holes by hand.  And I think things lay more securely in the book
4. I make my own planner pages (as seen at the right)

I ordered a pink, junior sized book with a hole punch.  I then punched new holes in my planner pages that I made, and the month tabs that I had purchased previously, The result is slimmer than my other binder, and fits in my purse easier.

Plus... it's pretty

And with the hole punch already purchased, I can go back and buy a letter sized notebook someday if I wanted.

I totally recommend this!  Especially to people like me, who make their own planner pages!!

Can it be 5pm already? Please?

Thanks to some very severe itchy eyes I took benedryl last night.  I'm paying for it now.

But let me back up!

Yesterday was my dance class.  Oh, I was hurting after.  At choir practice, I realized that I had over-strained my chest muscles (the ones you need to breathe) and singing was painful.

I got home, it was late.  The dog was whiny, and I thought it was because she wanted us t go to bed!  Well, we did.  I took benedryl for my insanely itchy eyes and settled in.

After laying around for a while, a thought accrued to me.

Me: Honey?
Spousal Equivalent: *sleepy*  huh?
Me:  Did you feed the pets Sneaky Snack?  (my name for the pets 8pm snack... that lets the humans sleep past 3am)
SE:  that's your job...

Upon hearing the words "sneaky snack," Misty created a sonic boom as she broke many land speed records getting to the bedroom door.  I had forgotten the snack!

So, with drugs in me, I slept like a log.

And woke like a zombie.

Benedryl is great!  But man, it kicks me ass all over town!

I don't suck as much as I thought I did!

I got on the scale today and it said I had gained some weight... again.  (It's not THAT much... but the numbers were going in the wrong direction)

So I told myself... Self, you can do this!  You need to drink more water (I've been seriously slacking on that).  You need to track meals before you eat them, to see if you have room for a small dessert (Some days I actually have the points left for a low calorie sweet treat!).  You need to make sure you have salad fixings to munch on when you're hungry and making dinner.

Then I did some math.

Even with the gain, I'm down an overall 15.2 pounds.

That's nothing to sniff at.  That was a hard won 15 pounds.

My goal now is to lose a half pound between now and next week at this time.  The above advice will help.

As will my dance class today.

Let's play a game...

Things I will never buy!!

Oh, I loves me some online window shopping.  Thankfully, I rarely buy anything.  My bank account is very pleased by this.

My vice?  For most women it's shoes.  Me?  Purses!

My current love?  The Chocolate New York line from Target.

Seriously!  They have some killer work totes!

A cool work tote

A Navy Satchel, I like this for work

A grey Tote for work

I like this for a weekend bag

Will I buy any of these?  Probably not.

I'm not the only shopper in the family.  The Spousal Equivalent was at pet smart and found these costumes for Misty:

A Wiley E. Coyote style rock

or

The land shark

Which one would you get?

Ahh, a day off

It's been a little over a week since my decision to quit Weight Watchers.  I'm still exercising.  I'm still eating on plan (mostly).  We had a weekend where we were mostly at home, plus we had an extra day there.. so I snacked a bit.

It didn't help that I tweaked this recipe and made a no bake cheese cake.  It's good, and rather light on the calories.  Though the added Oreos won't help with the calorie count...

I also picked up a case of Mike's Hard Margarita.  Or whatever it's called.  It's rahter good.  But me being me... I decided that if I drink half, and top off the glass with diet lemon-lime beverage.. it'll be even better!  (and half the calories)

I'll have the other half tomorrow... after my dance class.  I'm JUST recovering from class on Thursday!  I hope I can make it through this one!

Ah, Labor Day weekend! What am I doing?

Working! Well, working around the house. The laundry is piling up, and things are getting cluttered enough to drive me nuts. Thankfully I have at least 1 day this week where I don't have to do all of the housekeeping after 5pm.

Today, sorting laundry and actually putting away the clean stuff. I mean it this time! (it's a huge bad habit of mine)

But right now, chick flicks and a nap!

Dance Class thoughts on a slow morning

When I was in college (as I do now) I wore glasses.  I didn't have contacts, though.  So when I took class, I simply danced without.  My vision wasn't terrible enough that I was helpless without the glasses.  Everything was just blurry.  I got out of the habit of looking at myself in the mirror.  (Dancers use the mirror not for vanity, but to make sure their technique is good, and check body alignment.

I remember looking at myself in the mirror in college and thinking of fat I was.

Fast forward 15 years.  I'm now 40 pounds heavier (it was 50.. I'm getting there!).  I'm shocked that I ever thought that about myself way back then.  In college the thoughts abut my weight were vanity.  Now it's all about health.

So Thursday I sat in class, looking at all these thin young things.  It made me feel about 80, especially given the fact that I'm still sore.  I know, time and practice will cure that.

I'm a work in progress.  I'm getting healthier and stronger.  And now, hopefully, more graceful.

But today, I'm going to clean my kitchen, clean the bathroom, then take a nice bubble bath and work out some of this soreness.

I'm also window shopping for Hello Kitty items on Hot Topic: Belts, socks, and A sweater I MUST own!