Sugar Hangover

That was me this morning.

After a long day - I caved and stopped at the drive through at McD's and got a small eggnog shake. I remember them from when I used to work there, and I REALLY wanted one.

And I woke up at 4 this morning, feeling as though I had drank too much alcohol. Yep, the dreaded sugar hangover.

So why was it such a long day????

1. Slept on the hide-a-bed Monday night. Mom was in the guest room. Grandma was in our bed. Eric was on the couch downstairs...
2. Eric had to plow snow at 5am. Which meant that he had to get up at 4am. Since he was sleeping on the couch downstairs, I set my phone alarm for 4am, to make sure he was up.
3. Mom and grandma were at the house because my aunt was having surgery on Tuesday. She was having her gall bladder removed, and they had found a mass on one of her kidneys that they were not sure if it was cancerous or not, so they operated to remove the mass from the kidney at the same time (one anesthesia, one incision, all of that)
4. Sat at the hospital for the majority of the day. I left as my aunt was going into recovery, after the doctor gave us an update that the mass was benign, around 5pm. I needed to drive my grandma home, and she lives about a hour and a half away.
5. Drive through rush hour, got grandma delivered home, and headed back. About 8pm, I decided to run through the McD's drive thru. They forgot to give me a straw, but I managed.

Today:
Detox.

~a

Morning

It's amazing how you feel after going for a run in the morning.

I kind of had to talk myself out of bed... but it is a little easier when you are alone in a hotel bed, rather than at home snuggled up with the hubby.

Kind of proud of myself - got up and ran 3 miles this morning on the hotel's treadmill. It's to counteract the 6 hours of driving yesterday. I thought I was looking pretty good in my workout clothes, and headed to the exercise room, where I was able to snag the only treadmill. There was another guy there on the elliptical. And when I was done and leaving he told me: "good job!"

It will keep me going for the rest of the day.

~a

December, already?

Hmmmm. Okay, just a random dump of things:

Thanksgiving was good. Went to my sister's house in Oklahoma. The drive sucked, but what can you do. We drove part way on Tuesday, and stayed with a friend in Kansas City. We went for a run on Wednesday morning, which was good - although she said she was slow. Yeah. Like she runs 9 minute miles slow.... me, I can relax and do 11 minute miles. Got to my sister's at about 12:30 on Wednesday. Drank wine, ate some deserts, but did pretty well sticking to South Beach foods. Good news is: I didn't gain any weight.

We got a new cat. White, male, about 5 months old. Name is Ashland. We are calling him Ash. Eric's mother had him - she rescued him from someone who thought he was too rambunctious, and was going to do something dire. Edie also thought he was a bit too "frisky" so we took him home. Need to train him not to sleep on Eric's head at night. But he's very friendly, mellow, and cute!

Shower. Wasn't done when I took a shower this morning. Eric said he was going to finish it today, but I will believe it when I see it.

My stepson decided on a different career path... he's joining the Army. I guess his sister and brother-in-law talked him into it when they were here at the beginning of November. I think it will do him good, and give him more of a direction. At this point, he's going into avionics repair.

I ran a 5K. I kind of had it in the back of my head that I wanted to run a PR(Personal Record), but after not really doing any training since the half marathon... I didn't. I didn't do too badly either - I ran it in about 30 minutes. 9 1/2 minute miles or thereabouts. My best time is about 30 seconds faster than that.

I signed up to be busier next year. I am going to be on the board of the Jaycees again. Well, as a non-voting member - I'm going to be the secretary. I decided I wanted to be more active, and I thought if I was on the board, it would make me be more involved. It's also that I want to help and support my friend that is going to be president next year.

And that's about all I can think of. Other than I'm still doing pretty well at the South Beach thing. The pants I have been wearing are all too big. But I have a bit more to go before I'm in the smaller sizes that I already own. And I don't want to buy anything that I won't be wearing for that long.

~a

still no shower

but I have a functioning tub. Thank god I can still bathe.

I could do the rest myself... but then Eric would get all cranky on me, that I wasn't doing it properly. I'll give him until the weekend. Then it's my turn.

Went to a Yoga and Cooking retreat last weekend.

First time I've done yoga. Not completely sold on it, but I don't know that it was exactly "intro" level. Everyone else seemed to know what they were doing. I felt clumsy, and felt like the instructor was singling me out that I was "doing it wrong". Yeah. Didn't make me want to do it again with that instructor...

And the cooking. Holy carb fest. Yes. I broke. And ate ice cream with home-made hot fudge sauce, chocolate crepes, and carmalized bananas. Topped with candied walnuts. And I had a second helping with a glass of wine.

But my friend and I got up and went for a run on Sunday morning. Well, a run/walk. We went out intending to do the 6 mile loop, but she got a massive charlie horse in her calf at about 2 miles in, so we turned around and walked back. But at least we got out there! I gotta get my rear in gear if I want to do a 5K in a couple of weeks, but it's still crazy at work. I know, excuses...

On that note, I'm off. I'm meeting someone at 7am, and it will take me about an hour to drive there in the morning. The excitement never ends.

~a

Remodelling.

My parents came and stayed for a week.

They only live an hour and a half away, but I asked if my dad could come and (help) fix the hole in our shower wall.

So they came. Dad also brought the power washer, and washed my window trim on the house to get rid of all of the loose and peeling paint. While he worked in the bathroom (taking down tile and drywall, working on some plumbing, putting up new drywall, insulating, glueing up a shower surround) I workd on getting the windows primed and sealed, cooked all sorts of South Beach food and meals with my mother, visited about 12 grocery stores, and made several trips to the hardware store.

It was a busy week.

And yes, I did say South Beach. I'm into my 4th week, and as of Monday, I was down 11 pounds, which puts me into the 170's. My pants fit. I wore a pair of size 12 pants to dinner last night even...

And even though I keep obsessing about food - can I eat this? Ooooh, that looks good, wait, it's not on the "approved" list... it's actually going very well. I'm not having insane cravings.

We will see how it goes when I start logging miles on the work vehicle next week. Driving definately sucks.

On that note, I need to see if the shower surround is ready to be caulked. I want to take a shower!

~a

Vacation

I'm sitting in yet another hotel room.

But I'm on vacation..... and I needed to let my husband nap for a bit before we go out to meet some folks for dinner.

We are in Kentucky, because Eric had a Muskies Inc. meeting here, and I decided I wanted to go with him and hang out. So we flew in to Lexington on Friday, and drove around, in the rain. Stopped at the Daniel Boone National Forrest Visitor center, in the rain. Found our hotel room, in the rain. Went to meet up at the hospitality area, in the rain. And went and got some dinner, again, in the rain. It rained on Friday!

Saturday, I dropped Eric at his meeting, and headed back to the hotel to see what they had for their continental breakfast. Um, donuts, Sunny Delight and Coffee just were not what I was looking for. So I went back to our room, and managed to fall asleep again. When I got up, I was up and out to find one of the hiking trails in the National Park. I hiked for about 3 1/4 hours, and covered about 9 miles. And yes, I was tired...

After that, I noticed that I had missed a call from Eric saying he was done, so I drove straight there, then we went back to the hotel so I could shower. We then went for a drive through more of the National Forrest, then out to dinner and then I was back to the hotel for sleep.

Today, we went out fishing with one of the local Muskies Inc members. And caught nothing. But it was a beautiful sunny, blue skies day out on the water.

Tomorrow, we go home. I hear it's snowing. Yippee.
~a

It's never easy letting go

We had to put Alex (my 15-year old cat) to sleep on Saturday morning.

After I crawled into bed Friday night, I heard her making a very strange noise, and she was laid out on the floor, whezing and unresponsive.

And she never got up. The whezing went away, finally, but she had one pupil much larger than the other, and was just limp. She was breathing, and her heart was beating, but was completely limp and unresponsive. It was about 11:00 at night

I put he into bed with me, and cuddled with her all night, and we took her to the vet in the morning, where they said that it looked like she had had a stroke. And that the best option was to put her down, which was pretty much what we expected.

But it was hard letting go. And as I wander around the house this weekend, I just start thinking about her and crying at odd moments.

Rest peacefully, my kitten. I love you.
~a

Success.

I finished.

8 minutes faster that my PR. (Personal Record) And that is just completely amazing.

Two hours and twenty five minutes.

I had a hard time not crying at the finish line. I owned that race. If you do the math, I averaged 11:01 minute miles. Next time, I will do sub 11-minute miles.

It was a beautiful day for a run. One of those nice crisp, coolish fall days, with sun peeking through the trees on the trail, which were decked out in amazing fall colors. I vascillated on what to wear, but ended up wearing a running skirt, and my Moving Soles T-shirt, and it was perfect.

I'm a little sore today, since I didn't take enough time to stretch after - I jumped into the car pretty much right after the race to drive home - in time to hurry and get ready to go to a wedding reception. People there were amazed and astounded that I had run a race that morning and I was still there.

That's what training will do for you.

On some associated news, I've decided to try South Beach. Yep. Drinkin' the Kool-Aid I am. Bought a book at Target, and will be reading up on it today. I started the morning with an egg white omlette with garlic scapes, tomato, and fat free feta. Very tasty. I'll need to make up a list and start some planning today.

~a

Nerves

In 36 hours, I will be milling around the starting line.

I'm not sure if I am nervous or not.

I know I can do it. I know I can make it the 13.1 miles. And I don't feel all that nervous right now.... I have been training for 12 weeks. Okay, there was some slacking in there... but I honestly feel like this is the most prepared I have been for a longer race. I've done two 10-mile races, and two half marathons. I have in my mind, a goal to PR this race. Which means I should finish in under 2 hours and 33 minutes, which is slow for most running the race, but that would be fabulous for me!

I think the thing I am most nervous about is the starting chute, and knowing how much I tend to panic in crowds. At least I will have the support of friends to protect my back from being jostled. Yep, irrational phobia girl here.

On another note, Eric took the cat to the vet today, because she has been losing more weight, and is getting kind of bony. The vet thinks she has an overactive thyroid, so hopefully we can get her on some meds to get her to a healthier weight, and so she has some energy! She is 15 years old, so she will never be kittenish, but I would settle for her actually moving around the house and not sleeping all the time.

I need to check the weather forecast, and pack for all running contingencies...
~a

body image

My running group ususally goes for coffee after our runs on Saturday. Not everyone goes every week, like me, but it's one of the reasons I love running with the group. You get to share war stories, and share your successes, and comiserate when things are not going so well.

I had one of my best runs ever yesterday. As I told the coach - "I think I've finally found my running legs!" I ended up doing just over 6.5 miles, instead of 8, but that's life. I started out slower (about 12 minute miles) but was just feeling so good, that at the end I was doing somewhere around 10 to 10 1/2 minute miles. And I felt just great when I was done.

There's a lady who has been running with the group for about 6 months now. She is going with the group of us running one of the races in Ashland next weekend, and is planning on running her first 10K. She's feeling frustrated with herself because she is comparing herself to some of the other runners in the group, not just in running ability, but body shape. She said that she thought that if she started running, she would start looking like some of the very thin, trim runners in the group, and since she started running, she has not lost any weight - and it sucks. I agree, it's tough. But there is really no getting around genetics sometimes, and sometimes you just have to come to grips with that, and accept it for what it is. Nobody is ever completely satisfied with how they look.

Then there's me: I know I'm somewhat using it as an excuse, that I can't lose weight when I training for a long race, but to some extent it's true. After next weekend, I am going to quit using that as an excuse, and work on dropping the 30 pounds I have regained. I just have to, if I want to keep doing the longer races. It's not bad - but I can tell that the weeks with longer milage are starting to hurt my knee again, and I want/need to keep running.

It's a fine balancing act. And I just need to figure out where to put the fulcrom.

~a

marathon weekend

That's because this is the weekend of the Twin Cities Marathon, not that I have lots going on this weekend. In fact, I think I have more scheduled "down time" than I have in a while.

Not to say there are not things going on. There are.... Eric and I will be leaving shortly to go to the marathon expo, so he can pick up his necessary stuff, and then go with the group to do a final walk-through of the finish area. He runs the clock at the finish line. I will be doing some browsing of running paraphenelia. Because, you know, you can never have enough paraphnelia!

Tomorrow morning, I will be running 8 miles with my running group. Easy peasy.... I did an 8-mile run on Wednesday in.... wait for it.... one hour and 37 minutes. I was doing sub 11-minute miles. For 8 miles in a row. I've never done that before.

Saturday afternoon/evening, I will be doing some socializing. The plan is to do Renaissance Recovery at the Fest grounds at 5pm, then when I feel like leaving, I'm gonna go wish a friend happy birthday at her party.

Sunday, I have not decided what I want to do yet. I might go volunteer with the marathon. I had fun one year making sure only registered runners went into the starting chute (I wear the "Security" T-shirt for pajamas now, since it's a 2XL!). Or I might join some folks with my running group to to cheer on the runners. Or I might just stay home and get stuff done around the house.

On that note, I need a snack to keep me going.
~a

On a cloudy afternoon...

Went for a run today after work.

And it didn't suck.

In fact, it was pretty awesome. 5 miles. In 54:23. And I feel like a million bucks!

That, and Eric is making a healthy dinner for me right now.

Does it get any better than that?
~a

Hey dad, can I borrow the car?

I borrowed my dad's Mustang convertible for the weekend.

Friday was great, I took off early from work, and drove around doing errands with the top down, enjoying probably the last warm day we will have. Unfortunately the weather Saturday and Sunday did not cooperate as well. It's still fun to drive, even if you don't have the top down.

Things are still coasting along here - went for my last long run before my half marathon in two weeks.... 12 miles on Saturday. It made me tired, but I did it! Saturday afternoon/evening we went to a friend's wedding, and left the reception at 9pm, because I am old, and was tired.

Sunday was the last day at Fest. It's both a relief and sad, all at the same time. It's a lot of time involvement, but it's also people you only see during that time. Hard to believe that it was my 11th year working out there. Once I download the pictures off the camera, I will post up a picture of the new outfit I made this year. I will need to replace more pieces next year, but that will have to wait until other stuff gets finished!

Yesterday, I took the day off, and spent some time lazing around the house. I had good intentions of getting some house cleaning done, but was just able to organize some of my sewing stuff, and change the sheets on the bed and vacuum the rug in the bedroom. Other than that, I laid in bed and watched me some TV. I think I needed it.

I hate that it is dark so late in the morning now... but since it is cooler in the afternoons, perhaps afternoon runs won't suck as much. Need to keep in the game if I want to PR my half marathon!

On that note, I gotta go get ready for work. At least I'm in town all week.

~a

Out of sync

that's what my week felt like - out of sync.

Monday, because of various things, I didn't go for a run in the morning. No big deal, I ran in the early evening, since it was just 3 miles. Easy peasy. Exept I ran somewhere that I had not gone before. And there was a mother of a hill. And I think it kicked my ass. Big time.

Tuesday, I had a meeting that went until about 2:30, then I had to drive to Thief River Falls. Got in after 8pm.

Wednesday, morning, after I slept like crud - I really hate poolside rooms - I knew I would probably have time in the afternoon, so I decided to do my run then. 7 miles. I had to talk myself into it, but I did it. Then went back to work to do some observations with the supervisor. And I don't think I got enough fuel back into my body.

Thursday morning, had serious low blood sugar issues. And I was tired. And had to drive back home.

Today - the alarm went off, and I didn't want to get up. And I felt just off for most of the day, so I came home to nap. And to get more refueled with some good carbs, protein and fat so I can do my 6 miles tomorrow. IN THE MORNING. Since that is what works best for me.

Tomorrow will be back in sync. Lesson learned: run in the morning, because that is what the body likes.

For some other news....
My house is a mess. I have like two million projects going on. I'm going in too many different directions, and trying to get in some decent training runs.

It is, however the crazy season.:
* Weddings (two in the next four weeks, had one in August) and I like to give crocheted afgahns as gifts. I don't know that they will be done in time for the next two. They will understand, right?
* Seems like I am always training for a big race that is at the end of fall. Which means that I spend a lot of time running, or doing other things related to that, like stretching etc.
* Renaissance Festival. I work there with the Shakopee Jaycees, as a beer wench. So the weekends are pretty much all taken up with that. And I like to make my own outfits... am working on one right now, that just might not get done this season, and I'm kind of disappointed in that. Hmmmm maybe it will be done for the last day, right?
* Life in general - with trying to spend some quality time with my husband between all of the stuff I am doing, and with all of his fishing tournaments that fall in September. And trying to find time to celebrate our wedding anniversary. (We will have been married 7 years on the 22nd!)
* Work - next month we start putting together safety committee plans for 2009, and there is a lot of groundwork that needs to be laid out.

Is it any wonder I am feeling the need for a vacation?

Demando cat

That's what Eric calls my cat, Alex.

She's still limping around. Yep, she's definately getting old. I think she probably has some nerve or something pinched in her back. She doesn't seem to be in any pain, but she has a hard time getting up on anything, and an even harder time getting down.

Like on the bed. When she first started to (is "fail" the right word?), she would still try to jump up on the bed from the floor. And she would miss a lot of the time, and fall to the floor. So I put a laundry basket with a towel over it by the corner of the bed. And she would jump over it.

Now, it has turned to a paper box turned over with a fabric pad over it. And she uses it all the time. Jump on the box. Jump on the cedar chest at the foot of the bed. Then on to the bed. And in reverse on the way down. Of course that was after she went ass over teakettle a number of times trying to jump off the bed witout taking the steps.

The other day, I saw her walk into the bathroom, and look at the counter top, like she wanted to jump up and see what was up there. She lifed up one paw. Then set it down, and looked disgusted. Like "man, it's hell to get old!"

She still does a lot of the same things though - the one I think is the funniest is that she pushes open the door to the bathroom when you are sitting down, does a bump to the left shin, circles around, does a bump to the right, and walks out the door again. She's been doing that one for years!

Another thing she does is tell you that the food dish is not full enough. She'll go find you, wherever you are, and start meowing. Until you follow her to the dish and add a little bit. She does prefer that you keep her company when she eats - for all of the three bites she takes!

And she loves to be on your lap when you are at the computer. She hears the typing on the keyboard, and comes in the room and demands that you pick her up and put her on your lap. She used to jump, now she just looks at you with this cute pitiful look until you pick her up.

And she's a left shoulder cat. When you pick her up, she always goes to put her paws on your left shoulder.

I've been giving her half a baby asprin every other day, and I think it helps some, but I just know in my heart she's getting old. I got her as a kitten in the spring of 1993, so she's 15 1/2 years old.

she's my 'Lex.

~a

Long Time

It's been busy here.

Okay. Excuses, I know.

I kind of took last week off. I only ran twice - and three miles each time. I think I needed the time off. I ran this morning - a bit over 5 miles. And I was running less than 11-minute miles. And I don't feel completely exhausted. Success....

Had a good birthday on Friday. It's a little hard to believe I'm now 38... Eric was out of town, and with the insanity of the Fair and other things, we decided to go out for a celebration dinner on Monday, since a friend had given me tickets to a concert on Monday night. Billy McLauglin.

It was an interesting evening. It started out with us scampering around the house and looking in cars, in the boat, in the laundry down the chute for Eric's wallet. Nowhere to be found... so we went without it. We were a bit late for our reservation, but since it was a Monday night, it wasn't that busy. After dinner, we walked over towards the Ordway, and it looked a little dark and un-busy for a concert... so I pull out the tickets. Doh! it was at the Guthrie!

So we hop in the car and cruize from St. Paul to Minneapolis. Less than 10 minutes late.

And for a small break... It was the oddest thing. When there was a break, and the usher was leading us through the doors to seat us, I got this whiff of the theater. Gaffer's tape. And wow, did it bring back memories of working in the theater in college. You ever have a smell do that to you?

So there were two artists that played before Billy. The concert started at 7:30, and he didn't start until well after 9. It was good, but man.... after an hour and a half of acoustic guitar music, I was pretty mellowed out and tired. Of course it might be that I'm old, and want to go to bed at 9:30. Yeah, so at intermission, when we knew it was going to be longer than what we had on the meter we knew that we had to plug the meter. But all of the change we had had already gone into the meter.

There was a happy circumstance though - we ran into a friend, and borrowed some quarters. Like I said, an interesting evening.

Okay, now that I've rambled on about not much of anything... I'm going to go help my husband make some dinner.

~a

Exhaustion

Lordy am I tired.

Although I was more tired yesterday. I think I am burning the candle at both ends this week. Tuesday, even though I had Monday off, felt like it should be Thursday.

I was out of the house Tuesday am before 6. Drove 2.5 hours to my destination to find that the supervisor I was supposed to meet there, was not there - he had something come up, and didn't remember to tell me... so I talked with the folks that were there, and did some inspections, went to the yard office, caught up on some e-mail, then drove back to my meeting with my vendor in Eden Prairie. The meeting went well, then we went to dinner. We had an Ahi tuna appetizer, and since I wasn't that hungry after that, I had two side dishes for my dinner - roasted root vegetables and rosemary mushrooms. Can we say yum? Okay, so I had a few beverages. And some cheesecake too.

Wedensday, because I skipped my scheduled run on Tuesday, I got up at 4:30am to get in 6 miles before my meeting at 7am. Then it was out doing some inspections and audits in the yard, and working on an emergency response plan with one of the supervisors. About 2:30pm, I could barely keep my eyes open. So I went home and crawled into bed with Eric, and napped for a bit. After he left for work, I started gathering stuff together for the upcoming camping trip, and discovered that my stepson had not returned the tent that he had borrowed a couple of weeks before. You kind of need a tent when you go camping. So I trekked over to his house, and then made a trip to the grocery store for supplies.

This morning, I folded and put away 3 loads of laundry, and emptied the dishwasher before heading to the office.

And this evening, because I need to drive to Superior in the morning to be there for a 9am meeting, I thought I should get in Friday's run tonight.

5 miles. felt like I was running through sludge. There is a reason I run in the morning - because in the afternoon/evening, I feel like I just tank. The scary thing is, I did it in under an hour. About 6 weeks ago, I was doing good to cover that distance in that time. Perspective!

But I'm just drained. Feel like I have no energy. I suppose it does not help that I'm hungry, but I just don't feel like eating. Nothing sounds good. Gazpacho I just made? Nah. Tabouli made with fresh tomatos from my garden? Nah. Ice cream? Nah. Granola bars? Nah. Pizza? nah. It just kind of sucks - I don't know what's up with me.

Anyway, gotta pack up for camping!

~a

The game

today it was: figure out what we can get on Anneke's shirt.

We have:

Blood. from a lovely blemish on my chest that was just cranky...
Buffalo sauce. from a dropped piece of chicken dipped in said sauce
Water and napkin crumbles. from trying to remove the buffalo sauce
Beer. because I couldn't not spill my beer. Got my shoe on that one too.
More water. My water bottle top was not on tight, so it leaked. Go figure.
Greasy crumbs from cheese curds. Luckily, they didn't leave spots
Milk. Because there was just not enough there already.

I took the day off of work today, and I spent the day at the State Fair with my parents. We wandered around the grandstand booths, went to listen to some polka, watched a program celebrating minnesota's 150 years of statehood, saw the big pumpkin, watched the parade, and wandered on machinery hill.

It was fun. I ate too much, but what the hell, right? It's the state fair. And I had to see what else I could potentially spill on my shirt, right? I guess it is counter balanced a tiny bit with all of the walking we did. And the 3 miles I ran this morning (in 31 minutes, thankyouverymuch!).

Yesterday (Sunday), I played domestic goddess - I changed the sheets on the bed, picked up and straightened the guest bedroom (because my parents were coming to stay the night). Cleaned the bathroom. Decrapped the dining room table and put on the tablecloth my mother just made me. Sorted and did a few loads of laundry. Cleaned the kitchen. When mom got to my house, we prepped and canned some tomatos, made some picinic lunch, and headed out to a dedication ceremony then a "family picinic". We left the house for the two last activities at a little after 12 noon. I think I was motivated!

Tomorrow will be coming way too early, and will be filled to the brim. I am meeting with one of our supervisors and his crew out near Glenwood. They start at 6am. will NOT be there then, but I know I will be leaving the house at the butt crack of pre-dawn. Then I have a meeting with a vendor in the afternoon, which will then include dinner. Last time we did this I got home at 8:30pm... The rest of the week will be spent catching up on things at home, because I am going camping with some friends to Madeline Island over Labor Day weekend. Just don't want to hang around for the RNC all that much, being that we LIVE in St. Paul....

Lots of excitement.

~a

Swimming

After my run this morning, I felt like I had been swimming.

Yuk and double yuk to the heat and the humidity.

But, slow and easy does the trick. 5 miles down this morning. Wasn't sure if I was going to be able to run the whole thing, but I did. I was just slow... about 57 minutes.

Today, I spent most of the day in the office. It felt odd... like I hadn't been there in a while. Oh wait, that's right, I haven't.

Tonight, it's off to the grocery store to get a bunch of stuff. Like cheese. And vinegar. I don't think I have gotten any groceries for about three weeks - with all of the food in the freezer, and the stuff we have been getting from our farm share, and with me traveling and not eating said food, I just haven't gone. I think Eric might be suffering for it, but he's not complaining, much. His request was fruit: Nectarines, plums, etc.

My friend is getting married on Saturday. I kind of had it in my mind, back in February, that I would lose enough weight to wear my hot red dress to the wedding. Just not gonna happen. It's that whole treading water thing. Weight wise. I don't know why I can't be bothered to make an effort. I start out well in the morning, with my pep talks to myself during my runs... and then I just chuck it out the window. Not sure what needs to change.

But life goes on. Not like it's the end of the world - and I'm healthy. Do I really need more than that?

~a

Relaxed running

Well, I guess I did push myself a bit this morning, but after I was done, I was so energized and relaxed all at the same time.

3 miles. 32 minutes 23 seconds. I know, in the whole scheme of things, that's slow. But I broke the 11 minute mile barrier. I think that made me happier than anything.

Today, I drove to Glenwood for a meeting. They had nicely moved it from 9am to 11am, so I didn't have to leave at the butt crack of dawn. I even had enough time this morning to make coffee and eat some breakfast before I left. And the other success: I didn't break down and get DQ on the way home after not getting anything resembling lunch until well after 3 (hard to eat when you are on a locomotive, waiting for a signal to change...) but instead, went to Subway and got a Turkey sub and some Flat Earth chips. I don't know - I just have no desire whatsoever to do the whole weigh/measure/limit thing. If I'm hungry, I eat. And I am trying to stick to the healthier choices and just leave it at that.

And with the running, I'm feeling much better, stronger, healthier - and my pants seem to be fitting a little bit better.

And on another note, the job interview has been moved to the Thursday after Labor Day. I could have done it on the Friday, but that's my birthday.

Not much else going on, except the State Fair starts on Thursday, and I won't really see my hubby for those 12 days of insanity. Since he works from 5pm to 8am. The only thing that's nice about that is all of the overtime he makes.

Tomorrow, I have a 5 mile run on the schedule. Hopefully it won't be as warm as it was this morning.

~a

Weekend whirlwind

It was a full weekend.

Saturday, I got up early and drove to where my running group was meeting. I was there early so I could get in my long run and try and finish when the others did. 10 miles. And I ran the whole thing (well, jogged...) in under 2 hours. My Garmin told me that I burned over 1500 calories. I actually felt really good about the whole thing, and my knees were not hurting at all, which was a definate plus!

Then it was home to finish a garter for my friend... her shower was in the afternoon, and I made some gazpacho, and packed up clothes for the pool, and an overnight stay and my Renassance gear.

The shower was a pool party. It was really nice to relax and float in the pool. I even fell asleep on one of the loungers by the side of the pool. It was a fun time, and much food was eaten and adult beverages drank. There was even a break in the action to see the relay team with Michael Phelps win the gold. You wouldn't think of a bunch of women yelling and cheering at the television - but there we were!

Sunday it was up and out to the Renaissance Festival. Where it was stinkin' hot. Almost to the point of being unbearable. It was great seeing all of the folks I haven't seen since last year, and to do some catching up.

We had one customer that was just hilarious - without him even trying... he walked up to our beer booth, and I could see that he had been drinking/eating some sort of blue raspberry concoction. I told him to stick out his tounge - which was completely blue. I asked "How was smurfette?" which got a bit of a laugh. Because he looked youngish, we carded him. He hands my friend an ID, and we are looking at it... and I ask "you're under 21?" because over the picture, it says UNDER 21, and he starts getting all flustered and sputtering "I'm older than 21!" and my friend then asks "and you're a girl?"

He had given us his girlfreind's ID.

He was pretty embarassed over the whole thing, but took it very well.

We all laughed over that for the next hour.

Since it was really dead, we ended up leaving at about 5:30, so it was nice to get home earlier than expected. I ended up working on the "damn afgahn" that I am planning on giving to my friend for her wedding next Saturday (different friend than we had the party for this weekend), and I managed to get it to the point that all is left is the border. Thank God it is almost done. It has been a really slow pattern - I don't think I will ever make this one again - thus the damn afgahn! The plan is to get it finished tonight, then to work on a new Renaissance outfit.

On another note - I have a job interview on Tuesday the 26th. The posting said it was up to 50% travel, with maybe half involving overnight stays. To my accounting, that would be about 25% travel... 'cause if you say that out of the office is travel, I travel at least 75% of the time. And this job would be travel within the state only. I can live with that!

Anyhoo - it's off to think about making some dinner. Exciting stuff, since I probably haven't done that for two weeks because I have been traveling for work. (See how that works?) Home for dinner. Nothing better.

~a

Hills

I seriously thought about crawling back into bed when the alarm went off at 4:50 this morning. No that is not a typo.

But, I got dressed in my workout clothes, putzed a little, and headed out the door at 5:15. Hills were on the menu today. About a mile warmup, then I ran up the long hill by the water resevoir by my house. Definately killer - it's about 1/4 mile long and steep... and did 4 repeats.

4.3 miles in all today. And I feel strong and motivated now.

Yesterday, was a day off of working out, but I did manage to vacuum, brush the cat (who has been trying to hack up hairballs), clean up all sorts of cat barf, clean the litter, did all the laundry, and worked on my renaissance costume. And I prepped food for the grill that Eric then put on the grill for dinner: Burgers and corn. Yum.

And with that, I am off for the shower, get ready for meetings at work this morning, then I amd driving to Fargo. For three nights. Somehow, the stars aligned, and three of my S&H committees are having meetings this week in the Fargo area - one on Tuesday, one on Wednesday, and on Thursday.

I'm bringing exercise clothes, and the afgahn I need to finish, so that's what I will be doing in my free time. Along with watching some olympics. I was going to try and hold out, I hate how I get sucked into watching all that TV.... but what the heck, it doesn't happen all that often, and what else is there to do in Fargo?

Ta
~a

Closed due to vandalism

That was the sign on the bathroom in the park I ran through this morning.

It just makes me sad when things like that happen. It's a nice park, with a playground, and a fishing dock, and a nice trail around the lake - yet a few people have to screw it up for everyone.

And yes, I was out the door, and running at 5:30 this morning. 5 miles. 57 minutes. And all is well with the world.

Of course I was not feeling that last night when I finally got home at 9:30pm. I was so mentally and physically tired. And feeling a lot of self-hate, since I ate breakfast and lunch at McDonald's and for dinner, I had a small blizzard from Dairy Queen. Ah, the wonders of eating and driving. I know I could have made healthier choices, but I just had a "screw it" attitude yesterday.

I got rejection notices from both jobs I interviewed for a couple of weeks ago. So I have applied more places. I just don't want to travel (driving) as much anymore, because all I do is eat crap.

And that's about all I have to say - have to get to work to get prepped for a meeting.

ta
~a

Riding the runner's high

That's where I was at 5:30am on Wednesday morning.

Tuesday was not the best. I figured out that pretty much everyone (but one) was not going to be able to make book club that evening. I guess these things happen for a reason... it was actually not that bad of a thing, since I had really done nothing to prepare (other than cleaning, which really needed to be done anyway) but it was still kind of depressing. I came home after work and did a little bit of pouting, in my own way (which consisted of drinking a couple of beers at 3 in the afternoon.)

After that, I got off my duff, and made a nice dinner for Eric and I, then I started packing for my trip to Alexandria, (MN) for meetings and team building golf.

And I hated the way that everything I put on made me look.

I have been slacking in the food department lately. I had been writing things down, and trying to be conscious of what I was eating... and the scale went down a couple of pounds, but then I just started to not care again.

I now care again. But DAMN! I hate watching what I eat.

So I got up at 4:45 on Wednesday, and ran 4 miles. And at the end, when the endorphins were kicking in, I pushed it, and rode my runner's high as long as I could. It felt great. I shall be repeating it tomorrow morning.

(I didn't go out this morning, because after a 4 mile run, a 2.5 hour drive, a meeting, a round of golf, 4 light beers, a dinner in the park, and finally being able to check into my hotel room around 8:30pm, I couldn't see my way to drag my arse out of bed. I know. Excuses will get you no where.)

On another note - I got something interesting in the mail today. I couldn't figure out who was sending me a package that felt like a catalog... so I open it up, and there is a memory card from a funeral. The gentleman we bought our house from (well, actually his kids moved him out and sold the house) passed away on June 15th. There was also a catalog and a note in the package. It read:

Dear Anneke
A while ago you kindly sent an important letter on to my father. He was happy to receive it as this information had somehow been misplaced. He had asked me to send you some steaks as a thank-you.
Sadly, Dad was in poor health this year and passed away on Father's Day. I am eclosing a gift certificate so you can make your own choices... and maybe think of Dad when you are out grilling on the patio he built.
Thank you for your kind actions.

And enclosed in the note was a gift certificate for $200.

All this for doing something I thought was no big deal, and something that was what should have been done. I forwarded on information on a life insurance policy. I guess it just goes to show you, what goes around, comes around.

On that note, it's off to bed, so I can get up and get another high in the morning!
~a

A word to describe my run this morning

that would be:

Awesome

I feel just great. 7.03 miles. I walked for a little bit, twice, to drink some water, but I averaged about 5 miles per hour. And when I was done, I felt like I could run more. I even gave it a good kick at the end.

This is why I run. Because it makes me feel strong, healthy, and that I can leap tall buildings. Nothing is impossible!

Yeah, Anneke's in a good mood today.

Eric's out fishing, and I have a ton of laundry to tackle today. I'll get that sorted and started, then I have some projects I want to work on: Pillows for the benches outside, look for the fabric and pattern for a new Renaissance outfit, and work on an afgahn.

And I think I might know why my fountain keeps losing water - more to come on that!

~a

hi

I feel like I have nothing to say as of late.

Things are things. And that's that.

Yeah, I know - criptic much?

I am signed up to run a half marathon in October. I have not been running as much as I should - but I'm still feeling the woes of the hip pull. I definately feel it when I run, and it hurts, but not that bad. And after I get some distance under my shoes, it feels better.

Then the next day, I am stiff and sore. I feel old. I sit for a bit, then when I get up, I walk hunched over until my back straightens out. It really sucks.

I did go for a pretty good run on Saturday. Went around Harriet and Calhoun. My garmin said it was 6.85 miles. Which is further than I have run since last summer, when the knee injury in August wrote an end to my marathon training. Sunday, my friend Quinn and I went kayaking from Calhoun to Lake of the Isles, to Cedar Lake, to Beaver Lake and back. It was a beautiful and gorgeous day, and I can see why people like to kayak so much.

I have been home all week (not traveling), and have worked on getting the fountain next to the patio shaped up and running. I cleaned, and etched, and plugged, and dry-locked the basin. Tonight I put water in it, and hooked up the pump. It looks like it still loses water though. I don't know what else I can do to fix it. I guess I just keep putting more water in it when it is running, so I don't ruin the pump. I am very excited to have people over for book club next Tuesday to have someone other than myself enjoy it!

Today was a really long day, mentally. I did get a nice sushi lunch out of it though - if there is one silver lining to it. Yeah, I got deposed this afternoon, for something at work, which I really can't discuss, because that is the way it goes. But, our council told me that I did a good job. I listened to the questions, and just answered the question that was asked. He said that he does not give praise lightly, and that I deserved it. It was still exhausting.

Oh yeah, and I had a couple of job interviews last week.

Heard from one that "my qualifications did not match their needs as closely as other candidates". Which I think is okay, since it is headquarted on the other side of town, and has up to 50% travel.

Still waiting to hear back from the other, which was a phone interview. I really want that job. I know I would do a good job there. Keep your fingers crossed, and sent me some good vibes that they call me in for a face-to-face interview, where I can convince them to hire me.

I suppose. Off to get some rest, so I can run in the morning... since the best of intentions to exercise after work just don't seem to pan out. Too many other distractions!

~a

What do you mean I can't run?

Well, I kind of thought that yesterday.

I got up again at 5 to do 4 miles. My hip was a bit sore, but I thought it was because I was just a little sore from running.

It hurt pretty much all day. I would get up from my desk and limp around the office.

Then I went to the chiropractor (had the appointment made already) and told him I thought I had pulled a muscle in my hip.

And then some. He said I had pulled the hip, the gluteal and some of the erector abdominals. Asked if I had been running hills. My answer? Well there are hills on my run, but nothing unusual - it's my usual route. He wasn't sure how I had managed to do what I had done... but thinking on it, it's the same hip I fell on Saturday, when I tipped over on my bike. I probably did something then, then aggrivated it by running.

So, no running for a bit. He did say I could bike. So that is what I will be doing. Good thing I like doing that too!

It is now day 3 of journaling, and staying within my points. We went to my MIL's house last night to visit, and she served us desert - a huge slice of angel food cake with strawberries and whipped cream. I ate the strawberries. And gave the rest to my husband.

As of this morning, the scale showed me down to 188. Sunday, it said I was 194.

I'm gonna try to be "good" this weekend, and not throw random alcohol and crap into my system. I will be going with journal in hand, with plans to ride my bike every day.

No coasting.
~a

4 slow ones

Miles that is.

I averaged about 4.7 mph this morning on my run. And it was good. Glad I got out of bed at 5am. Glad I didn't crawl back in bed. Glad that I still can do it. Baby steps. I could have run faster, but I didn't want to. And I ran the whole way. All 51 minutes.

I had quite the mental chat with myself this morning too. I headed out the door sans mp3 player, and enjoyed the surroundings. And I gave myself a pep talk that I have been needing. One of the reasons I wanted to lose weight in the previous round, was so that I could run, and do active things, and not feel like I was killing myself. Nothing good comes to you without challenges. I kept thinking of this quote: "It's supposed to be hard. If it wasn't hard, everyone would do it. The hard is what makes it great."

So the new motto? No coasting.

As in - get off your ass and do something about it. Quit whining, and do what you know needs to be done. And quit feeling sorry for yourself.

Yeah, I gave myself a much needed kick in the ass. At this point it is working, I just need to get into the habit again. I have a plan. And that's how it begins.

Oh yeah, and a goal of wearing this really hot red velvet spagetti strap gown to my friend's wedding in August. 'Cause I can be a hot babe if I work at it. I want my husband to tell me I look "dangerous" again.

~a

Whistle stop

I swam laps for 1/2 an hour yesterday, which was good.

then I drank 4 calorie-laden beverages... yes. Beer. Then I fell asleep on a floatie in the pool, and sunburned the front of my thighs. Good times.

Today - I started again. I have a little notebook that I carry around with me, all set to track points, and hold myself accountable. I usually make it a day or two before I start slacking again. Baby steps. I started counting points again today, and wrote some of my thoughts down too:

"I'm done. Being fat, that is. My pants don't fit. I feel suggish, and like a turtle that can't move. My back is stiff when I sit for any period of time. And I hate feeling fat, bloated and self-conscious, like people ar looking at me and judging me."

How do I really feel. I'll take pity party for one, please.

I weighed this much when I got married.

I gained .6 pounds at the weigh in yesterday. And the first weigh in was right after I got back from vacation in Mexico. And I knew I was going to gain, but the reality slap in the face about made me cry.

My running coach e-mailed the group photo from this weekend, and my face is the roundest one there.

How did I find my way back here? I said I wouln't go back. Yet, again, here I am. Feeling sorry for myself, and hating how I feel.

So, I signed up to run a half marathon in the fall. The Whistle Stop, which is the second weekend in October in Ashland, WI.

And so it begins. Again.

~a

Wipeout

It was a crazy, mixed up, filled up day yesterday.

The plan was to get out my bicycle, and ride down to Harriet Island in St. Paul to cheer on people from my running group that were doing the Time to Fly 5K and 10K.

Downstairs to get my bicycle tires all aired up and ready to go... and the rear tire would not hold any air. Crap. Gotta change the tube. I knew I had a tube somewhere... found it in the garage. Now what? I have never changed a tire tube before. I seemed to recall watching a friend of mine do it with some funky tool... so I grab something from the coffee table downstairs that looked similar to what I remembered his tool looking like. What did I grab? That would be a crochet hook. I did it. I changed it all by myself. I didn't let the obstacle in my path keep me from my plans.

I got to Harriet Island in fine time - most of the 7 miles are downhill, after all. And had a fine line of sight to see the Excel Energy smokestack be imploded and taken down. It was cool. But also a little unsettling, as this last week I had been in classes for emergency response, and a lot of the stuff we talked about was things that have happened - like the OK city bombing, and 9/11, and watching the stack fall was kind of cool and creepy at the same time.

But, all of my friends had a great time running the race. I suppose I could have run, but I have decided I will be saving up for a half marathon in the fall, instead of paying for races throughout the summer. Heaven knows I don't need more T-shirts. And interesingly enough, as we were cheering for the women in our group, Lucas runs by... the same lady I saw in the airport in Tulsa... So I went over and congratulated her. She did really awesome too.

After that, it was back on the bicycle for the ride home. Just as I was coming up to the Wabasha bridge, I was just a little too indecisive about being on the road, or getting on the sidewalk, so I managed to hit the curb with the side of my front tire, and fall over onto the sidewalk. Pretty much in front of the cop who was manning a baracade for the race. Damn toe clips. Yeah, I was fine after I got myself untangled a bit, but my hip and wrist are a little sore this morning. I've had worse. It's still embarassing though.

Today, I am on my way to my friend's pool, hopefully to swim some laps. On the way there, I will be stopping in for the final weigh-in for this contest I entered. yeah, to see who can be the biggest loser. I can tell you right now, it won't be me. I'll probably be the biggest gainer, since I think I am up 5 pounds from where we started 4 months ago. I need to get my ass in gear, and start walking the talk. I have been so half-assed and ambivalent about my diet/exercise, and my pants don't fit. I was feeling like a "fat american" in Calgary all this week, and I hate it. Yet, I don't seem to be doing much about it. What gives?

I'm thinking about going back to a WW meeting, as that is what has worked before. Who knows what the future will bring.

on that note, I'm off to ofically become the big gainer (loser) of this contest.
~a

Why I like to run in the morning

1. It starts the day out, and gives me much energy
2. When I run in the afternoon I start out too quickly, and tank
3. It's much cooler in the morning
4. I'm not always awake, so I don't always notice the first mile, which is the hardest part


Why I didn't run this morning:
1. I woke up at 4am worried about my cat, got up and read some, then crawled back into bed at 4:30 after turning off the 5am alarm.
2. I could have gone at 4:30... but honestly I was scared to go out in the dark after what happened this weekend.

What happened this weekend? Well, it was a doozy.

I was at my friend's house, and I stayed there because I had enough to drink that I didn't want to drive. (not as much as another person there... but that's another story). I called my husband the next day (Sunday) and he told me that I had missed the fireworks at home.

"Fireworks? Really?" thinking that some kids had been shooting off bottle rockets in the wee hours.

But no. Gunfire. Right outside the house.

Like Eric called the Police in the morning after it started getting light because he thought they might like to pick up the shell casings that were in the street in front of our garage. They missed one or two, so Eric brought one in yesterday afternoon. It's from a .45. I'm just a tad freaked out.

So I went running this afternoon, and it kind of sucked. I'm sure it has nothing to do with the fact that I haven't run since Saturday the 31st. Or that I gave blood last week. Or that I now weigh about 20 pounds more than I did last year at this time...

Yeah.

I just need to suck it up, and do what I need to do.
~a

180

I was completely stressed out and overwhelmed last night.

I thought, hey, I'd go through the practice questions they give you for the exam in the application materials, and have a low-key evening, to bed early so I would be fresh in the morning for my certification exam.

The questions were hard.

And I couln't figure out what they were looking for, or what direction to go in. And I still got the answers wrong when I looked at the solutions (ok cheating) in the back. 55% was my score on the practice exam.

I just wanted to cry.

So up this morning, make some coffee, eat some breakfast, get ready to go... then I thought I should have some documentation for the test which I couldn't find for a bit... then I had 40 minutes to get to West Bloomington by 8am. I knew I was in trouble when the freeway sign said it was 17 minutes to get to my exit, and it was 7:47am...

I was a terrible rush hour driver. Swearing, yelling, cadjoling the traffic to move a bit faster, and almost ending up in tears again. Following my directions after the exit, in the parking ramp, went out the wrong door... then ended up RUNNING through the parking ramp to get to the testing location. Yeah. If you are more than 15 minutes late, they won't let you take the test, and you forfeit your $310 registration fee. 8:12am, I walked through the door.

Whew.

5 1/2 hours later, 1 potty break, with the timer on the test telling me I had 50 seconds left, I clicked the "submit exam" button on the screen. It told me:

Result: PASS

Again, I almost cried. With relief. With joy and happiness. With a huge grin on my face. I now get to put letters behind my name: CSP. Certified Safety Professional.

Called my husband, he was very happy. Called my parents. Mom said she was proud of me. I'm just so happy/relieved right now. So glad it's over. So glad I passed. So glad I don't have to do it again.

The only question is:

What next?

~a

Back in the Game

a week later, I go for another run.

And again, it feels great to get out in the morning and accomplish something. I was going to go last night, but I had a meeting at work that lasted, it seemed, forever, and by the time it was done, all I wanted to do was eat some dinner and get some studying done.

Yep. Studying. I haven't said a lot about it, but I am taking a certification exam on Friday. So I can officially put some letters behind my name. Cross your fingers and wish me luck, will you?

The weekend was fun. My sister was really suprised, and a little freaked out by me showing up - I walked in the front door, and found her on the patio out back with my parents. When she saw me she jumped up and gave me a big hug, and asked me what I was doing there... it was fun.

So we helped her get all ready for the party, and I spent a lot of time in the kitchen, making sure there were drinks available for all of the people. I did break down, and have a little bit of wine, even though it's not June yet, but I just had one glass. And lots and lots of water.

On the way home, sitting in the airport waiting for the flight to be called, I looked around... and saw someone I knew. It's so weird when that happens. Sitting there, wating to get on the same flight was Lucas, someone I know through the blogger network. She has family that lives in the Tulsa area too... not something that we knew about each other, so it was kind of a shock.

Anyway, I need to hop in the shower and get off to work. More meetings....
~a

Blek

I'm getting sick.

and it sucks. Coughing and congestion. Fun and excitement.

I talked to my boss today about career planning. And the direction that I want to go in - and he seemed amenable, and he would look into how I could go in that direction.

I know, it seems cryptic. But I don't know what will happen. I'm still leaving my options open, because it would still mean travel, but it would be less driving.

And eating today kind of sucked. Not that I ate lots of crap, I just ate too much food in general. And I didn't go running, because of this damn cough.

Boy aren't I the cheerful one today?

~a

A wild hair

I somehow got one...

Reading my e-mails, I got one for last minute travel deals, so I thought - hmmmm wonder what it would be to go to my sister's for the weekend.

So $402 later, and a flight and a rental car all paid for, I am going for the weekend. My sister is having a party for the family celebrating "99 years of life". My sister was planning a suprise birthday party for my BIL's 40th birthday, which was in September of last year, but with his horrific accident and recovery, he was lucky to get out of the inpatient rehab to have dinner out with his family on his 40th. So after my sister's 40th, and to celebrate that John is recovering (he's back at work and everything) and my two nieces are 8 and 11, they are celebrating a total of 99 years.

But she doesn't know I'm coming. My parents, who will be there, know I am coming, but I am just going to show up on her dorstep on Friday evening.

We're that kind of family. For my mom's retirement, I suprised her with my sister. For my bridal shower I was suprised by my sister being there. So I will suprise her in Oklahoma.

And on the exercise eating front. It's actually been a pretty good week. I am feeling a lot better about myself. My mother is calling it "mindful eating" and making healthy choices and being happy about it. Like today - I met my co-worker for breakfast at his hotel. And I had oatmeal. At the meeting where they had decadent pastries, I had mixed fruit. For lunch, I had a turkey sandwich, and avoided the potato chips and the cookie, and for dinner, when we went out, I had a salad with grilled chicken, and stopped when I was full. And I am feeling strong and in control.

And I like it.

May it continue. Tomorrow, I shall run again. And it will be GREAT!

~a

0530

Yes, that was the time I went out my front door to run.

3 easy miles. And I ran the whole way. Not fast. I am not working on fast right now - I just want to get in some milage, and work on my target heart range.

It was a beautiful morning, I had great music in my ears, and it was nice to get out and clear my head. I couln't sleep last night with all of the stuff running through my head, so that makes it doubly good that I got my rear out of bed and out the door to run.

I believe I am going to sign up to do a duathalon in September. 2 mi run/22 mi bike/2 mi run. At some point I think I would like to try a triathalon, but right now I don't have a good place to swim on a regular basis. Yes, I have a friend with a pool, but it's kind of short for laps, and it's a good 20 minute drive to get there.

This week has all sorts of meetings, so eating will be a challenge. Not that it's never a challenge, but you know - it's harder when you have no say in the food selection. Add into it the donuts and rolls they seem to always put out. Note to self: bring own fiber bars and fruit.

that will be all.
~a

Green?

My mother and I went to the Green Expo at the State Fair grounds on Saturday, and sat through a talk on freezing and canning vegetables. It was interesting, but geared towards the folks that had never done anything of the sort before. My mother who has had a garden and has canned food since before I even remember doing it, was having a small conversation with the lady sitting next to her - answering the questions she was asking about canning.

But, we both learned at least one thing, so it was worth it.

After the workshop, we did a little walking around the exhibits, but there were way too many people there, so we left.

It was a good thing there was another day, because I wanted to see some more of the booths. I had looked through the program and there were some things that I wanted to look at yet. So I talked Eric into going the next morning, getting there earlier (before there was too many people there).

And I got it. One thing that will make my life easier/better: the BagEwash

I took it for a test run in the dishwasher, and it worked like a charm. Now I can get rid of the pile of bags on my kitchen counter, waiting for me to handwash them.

Yeah. I'm weird. I get excited over odd things.

Now I just need to green up my diet.

~a

shiny new toy

Last night, after making lemon cookies and coconut bars for my husband*, I put the cadence/speed monitor on my bicycle... but it was late at that point, so I didn't try it out with the Garmin.

But tonight, after my outing to get Mother's day cards, and a plant for my grandmother, and some items at Target (brought my own bags again! I am trying to see how long I can go without getting another bag at a store) I got on my cycling clothes, and headed to the basement to watch Grey's anatomy and ride my bike with the new toy. I couldn't get it to read on the watch, so I had to find the Garmin user's manual to see how to set the darn thing.

And then it started working! Yay me! I biked 46 minutes, burned 799 calories, and went over 12 miles. Not bad.

Tomorrow, after work, I am going to St. Cloud to pick up my mother, and she will be staying here so we can go to the Green Expo on Saturday morning. My dad has a meeting Saturday morning, then he will be coming to the 'Cities, and we are having a family-type get together in the afernoon at my aunt's house. My other aunt, who lives in Ohio will be in town for work, and we are going to visit and catch up. I'm bringing a caesar salad. I have the romaine and the parmesan, and I am going to try my hand at caesar dressing made from scratch. Should be interesting.

I seem to be getting into the whole unprocessed, prepare from scratch food lately. I REALLY want to get myself a yogurt maker. Part of it is because I am cheap. Part of it is because it's healthier. And part of it is because you can't recycle the yogurt containers you get from the store. I think I'm going a little nutty with the "green" thing, but hey, what can I say. We read the book The World Without Us, by Alan Weisman for book club in April, and even if some of it is exaggerated, there's got to be some truth in in it. And every little bit helps, right?

Anyhoo, Eric wants the computer, so I'm off.

~a

*So when I was putting away the leftover stroganoff last night, I asked Erid if he would be eating it for lunch the next day. His answer - no, because we are having a cookout and a potluck, and I need to bring something to share... To be fair, I did volunteer to make him something because I knew I would be home, and I like baking, but still - some warning would have been nice. And it was better than the typical male offering of a bag of chips

so many things

running through my head.

and I don't know how I want to organize them all...

Hmmm, let's see - weightloss. Nada. I guess that is what happens when you just quit trying, and decide that you just need to eat whatever whenever. I keep cruizing through the kitchen, opening the door of the fridge, and seeing what I can eat. Do I take the apple or the mandarin oranges? No. I take the white cheddar cranberry cheese and a handful of TJ's everything crackers. A bit later - some Ice cream. And a bit later, some cookies...

I started writing things down on Monday at work, but I forgot my little notebook on my desk. I had a fabulous day on Monday anyway. But since I was out of the office on Tuesday, without my accountability notebook... I decided to get the Rachel sandwich with fries for lunch.

Feast or famine. That seems to be my thing. Not sure how to get over it.

Exercise. Well, now that you asked, I did get up this morning, and did a easy 30 minutes on the NordicTrack, without the arms. And a little ab work. So when was the last time I did actual exercise? Well that would be a week and a half ago. My back has been hurting me, and I have been icing and seeing the chiropractor, but geez, I really need to get off my arse. I guess the CRAPTASTIC weather (Snow? Seriously, on April 26th???) has been getting me down too.

But, on a positive note, I have been trying to do my part in saving the environment. The last two times I have gone to the grocery store, I have brought my canvas reusable bags, and some of the plastic bags we already have, and have not gotten any new bags at all. And I went shopping at Dick's Sporting goods, and brought my own bag for my purchases. The clerk thought I was a bit odd, but I felt good about it.

There is also a Green Expo this weekend, that I am hoping that I can convince my husband to take me to - I would like to go to a couple of seminars, on vegetable gardeining, and home freezing and canning. And I want to wander through the exibits.

Oooh, I got a couple of new incentive toys... a foot pod and a cadence/distance (bicycle) for my Garmin 305... I got them off of Amazon with some gift certificates I earned, and ended up paying just $17 for both, including the shipping! I need to get them all set up so I can start logging my indoor workouts on the computer. I think I need to start working on keeping my heart rate in a better zone. I tend to exercise too hard, and that is probably something that is holding me back... well, from losing weight that is.

And, at a meeting today, there was some discussion on doing a Weight Watchers at Work program. Not sure how I feel about that.

I'm also considering joinin a gym again. I kind of liked going in this winter when I had the free trial to do weigtlifting, and if I join a certan local chain, I could potentially meet up with some of my friends to exercise. We'll see - the whole reason I quit last time was that I didn't go in the summertime. Too many other options out there, and it's a bit of a hassle to go early, when I could just as easily do cardio at home in the morning when I like working out.

I have also been sending out my resume for jobs in the metro area. I want to do somehing different, that doesn't have all of the travel. I have not gone anywhere overnight for the past two weeks, and it is so nice to be able to go home, relax, cook some dinner, and be in my house with my husband. We actually sat down and ate dinner together on Monday.

I told you things were rambling around in my brain...

Cat - she seems like she is doing okay, but after many unsuccessful attempts of jumping onto the bed in the bedroom, she has stopped doing it. Which means she has not been cuddling with me at night or in the morning. I can't decide if I should take her back to the vet for him to tell me to give her more drugs that she will hate me for... maybe if we put up the cheater step again she will deign to use it again.

Alcohol - haven't had a drink since Easter when I thought it would be a good idea to drink the equivalent of about two bottles of wine. I'm holding out for June, at the earliest... but I have been thinking about having a nice glass of wine quite a bit lately. I kind of feel like I should apologize to my SIL for the Easter debacle (she's a recovering alcoholic, and I was drinking my face off in front of her) or to just let it lie. I also have a friend who recently admitted herself to an in-patient treatment program for alcohol addiction, so I have been thinking about her a lot lately too, with my self imposed "dry-out" period.

I suppose that's enough for now. Eric is home now, and I am going to put together some dinner. Beef Stroganoff in the crock pot that has been simmering all day. MMMMMMM.

~a

Reflections

I think I need to institute a no eating rule in my car.

I drive. And I eat.

I have been reading some things, and I think that the reason I do it is because I hate driving so much. Okay, I'll clarify. I hate all of the driving I do for work. It really hit home today, with hitting the crappy weather here in Minnesota on the way home. And I think I am eating because I want to make myself feel different. So I snack on things while I drive to distract myself from the driving.

And I seem to be in a really good mood on most Fridays, knowing I don't have to go anywhere for a couple of days.

I really hate when people ask me if I like traveling for work, thinking it is glamorous, and that you get to go to all of these interesting places. You might get to go to interesting places, but you rarely get to do anything other than go to meetings, try to find somewhere to get something decent to eat, and spend way too much time on a computer trying to get caught up after being out of touch for most of the day.

How do I really feel?

I like what I do, but I hate the driving. Something has to give.

~a

Hi, My name is Anneke

And I seem to have no self control.

So, packing up to go to Green Bay for the weekend, I felt a twinge in my back. The 5 hours in the car did not help any. When we would stop (dinner, fuel, bathroom...) Eric and I would get out of the car and hobble around for a bit until we started walking like normal Homo Sapiens.

Yeah. Shooting pain in my back did not make me happy. Did not allow me to exercise like I had planned. (They had an endless pool at the hotel I REALLY wanted to try.) Didn't find a nice park/green area in Green Bay in which to go for a run. Ate way too much food, and watched too much TV.

I think I have a pinched nerve. The back of my left heel is numb. And on and off, a couple of toes on my left foot.

And I don't seem to be able to regulate my food intake. I seem to NEED to munch on something while driving. Not sure why.

What does this add up to? Okay... Weight gain.

Life sucks sometimes.

And even though my back is not hurting, the heel is still numb, and I'm scared to exercise.

Did I mention that life sucks sometimes?

Oh yeah, and I'm in Fargo. The hits just keep on coming.

~a

My cat hates me

I think it's the pills I have been stuffing down her throat.

She appears to feel better after I do it, but it does not make the task any more pleasant. She has taken to hiding from me in the morning and the evening, when she knows it is time for the deed.

Mashing the pills and mixing them in wet food and tuna only worked for so long. When you get it every day, it's no longer a treat. Which is why I started doing the whole pills.

Yeah. And that does not work so well. She's on a heart medication, a thyroid medication, and half a baby asprin every other day. The latest manover has been to crush the pills, mix them with a little water, and squirt them in her mouth. I'm sure it tastes horrible, but it's done and over with pretty quickly.

I was a little worried this morning when I could not find her. But she came out from hiding before I had to leave to meet my running group. I'm scared that someday, she's just going to crawl into a corner and give up the ghost. So Eric and I have spent quite a bit of time this evening being nice to her, and giving her love and attention.

I'm wondering if it's worth it to continue with the pills, if all they do is make her hate me, and not want to be "my cat" any more. The eternal question: Quantity of life vs. Quality of life. I would say I want to go for the quality of life. But it's hard.

That's all
~a

Welcome, Friday

As I got into bed last night, I told Eric that he had to kick me out of bed in the morning when the alarm went off.

So at about 5:30 this morning, I was on the NordicTrack. 45 minutes of pretty medium intensity workout. I went about 4.1 miles. At least, that's what my electronic doohickey told me.

This week started out very poorly.

I was so hungover on Monday, that it leaked into Tuesday. And it made my workout on Wednesday just suck the big one.

I don't know why I drank all of the wine on Easter at my MIL's house, other than the fact that it was there. And we were playing Mexican Train, and I kind of lost track of what I was doing. I kind of feel like I need to call my MIL and apologize for my stupiditiy, but I just want to move on.

Yeah, so I have decided there will be no drinking of alcohol until at least June. Why June? Because it is over two months away. And I have zero desire to have any alcohol for at least two months, if it takes me three days to recover. I must be getting old.

On another note - today was pretty nice. After the 45 minutes of working out this morning, I got into work early, and got a lot accomplished. Eric took the day off, so he showed up to take me out to lunch - half a veggie hoagie at Davanni's, then we drove over to Mounds Park where we went for a short walk. He called a little later to inform me that we have reservations at 6:30 tonight. Where, I don't know - but it will be part 2 of the "date". (The first part being lunch).

I have a full weekend coming up, and I am looking forward to it, especially to meet my running group tomorrow morning to shake off the bad week. Nothing like getting outside and going for a run!

~a

Jogging in place

Well, maybe forwards and backwards.... but the end result is the same.

I had a couple of crappy eating weeks. Like, I know I shouldn't, but I just don't care at this time. Like two forays to the "Pizza Ranch" in just as many weeks. I love pizza, and should just know better. I leave hurting.

Food, not so good.
Exercise, not much better. I'm sure it's because of the crap I have been shoving through my system.

Today, it was better. Got up and worked out on my bicycle in the basement. Drank water. Ate healthy food. And I still have points left, and I'm not that hungry. Perhaps some fruit later.

And work today was just interesting. Trying to get folks to do what is their job, having someone tell me that they don't have the time, so I spent about 4 hours this afternoon doing someone else's job.

And fielding about 1800 phone calls, it seems like. Cell phone ringing when I'm on the house phone, after the 3rd cell call from the same number I get off the house phone, to have it ring again...

So the cell phone call this time: Some employee complaining he has to pay the tax on an eye exam. So many things wrong with this picture... 1. I am in the Safety department. Not the benefits/HR department. Eye exam is part of your health care benefits. How many times do I need to explain this to people (and the HR department who hears "safety glasses" and sends people my direction without listening to the whole story...). 2. The tax was $1.53. Seriously..... SERIOUSLY? Pay the stinking $1.53. Would you like me to give you the $2 so you don't waste any more of my time?

And the second call on my home phone? Yeah. That would be my sister. They are stranded in Dallas. They were on the way to Florida for Spring break, and flew to Dallas from Tulsa. Only to get delayed because of weather. And since they were not in their departing city, they couldn't re-book for some odd mysterious reason. Then the airline was nice and relented. So they are going to fly out of Dallas on Thursday, to continue their trip. Yes. Today is Tuesday. Their flight has basically been delayed for two days. I know the airline cannot control the weather. But seriously - two days????? At least I found them a hotel room, with a free shuttle to/from the airport, with an indoor pool, for $60 a night. Last I heard they were trying to have someone find their luggage, since, of course, it was checked through to Florida, and was in the secured area.

At least it's not me.

I'm just fielding all of the phone calls.

~a

Gallup along

I finally answered the phone when the Gallup pollID showed up.

Some kind of interesing questions... but when they asked how many times I had exercised in the past week for 30 minutes or more, I was able to say: 4 times. And how many days in the last week, how many have I eaten 5 or more fruits or vegetables? That would be 5, thank you. I know it should probably be more... but it is most likely more than most people.

Although I wasn't that thrilled about the height and weight questions. I know I am overweight, and I don't really have a problem telling folks how much I weigh, but they are usually looking at me - and I weigh a lot more than I look like.

That, and a lot of health and "are you content with your lifestyle" questions.

Yep, pretty stinkin' healthy, and happy with my life.

On another topic, I went for a run after work today. It went pretty well, and I'm pretty excited about that. I started out doing about 12 minute miles (the first mile is always tough) and the last mile I was doing about 10 minute miles. Gettin into my grove, and feeling strong and healthy.

And after a nice bubble bath, I have been a mad woman in the kitchen. Stuff needed to get used up that was in the refrigerator, so I made my husband some lovely food which is now neatly labeled and in the freezer: Wild rice soup, and meatloaf.

Tomorrow I am gone out west for work, and Eric will have to fend for himself. I am thankful we figured out a way to give the cat her midictions with a minimum of fuss, because I don't know that my lovely husband would have been able to do it.

And otherwise, it's a quiet evening.

~a

1 week

I have gone a week. Journaling. I went over in points, but at least I accounted for everything. That counts, right?

I'm not as hungry this week as I was last week. I really think cutting out a lot of the refined sugar has something to do with it too.

I'm considering going to see a nutritionist. We had a guest speaker at our running club group, who talked about some research that has been done on women athletes. One of the things you need tobe careful of is not to go into a "negative energy balance" by not providing your body the building blocks it needs to support the exercise. It's kind of a catch 22 when you are trying to lose weight - you need to walk a fine balance.

On another news front, my cat seems to be doing better. The lady I ran with on Saturday said that when she had to give her cat pills, she crushed them and mixed them with tuna. So we got a can of wet cat food and have been mixing the pills with about half a teaspoon of cat food, and she eats it all up with no fuss. So we won't have to torture the cat by stuffing pills down it's throat.

She is, however, stubborn, and not willing to admit she has limitations... she is still trying to jump up on things, and missing and falling. Not much I can do about that.

~a

A large loser

Holy cats (okay, not in reference to the previous post), another post? In the same day?

I have taken the challenge.

One of the Jaycee chapters is having a weightloss challenge. And I joined in. I thought I might need the push to get things in gear, because other things just don't seem to be working.

I started on Sunday. I have been journaling, and drinking water, and staying within my points (okay, so I used up all of my flex points on Tuesday at book club, after Kitty trauma on Monday), and I am still going.

Yeah. I weighed in at 195 pounds. Two days post-vacation, but still...

I will take the bull by the horns, and try and win the contest. If nothing else, I will win by virtue of losing the weight.

~a

Kitty woes

Alex is getting old.

Well, she is almost 15 years old. And I have had her as a pet for about that long. My roommate (at the time) and I picked her up through a newspaper ad that was "free to a good home" in 1993.

So Monday night, I got home from work and she looked like she was in a pretty good funk, head hanging, that sort of thing. I was thinking it might be because she needed some food... I think she might be slowing down on the hard food somewhat, because it is getting more difficult to eat... just my thoughts. So she ate some, then laid down in the living room. I went for a run then, and when I came back, she was in the same spot.

She was walking funny, kind of uncoordinated, falling over, and he back all hunched up. We have not gotten a new vet since we moved (I know, bad kitty mom - but they don't really go outside...) so I called a place that is close. They were closing in 1/2 an hour and would not have time, so they told us to go to the emergency vet.

$600 some dollars later (x-rays, blood work, ultrasound, medication...) we went home. She has some small kidney stones, a bladder stone, racing heartbeat, perhaps something odd with her spine (hazy spot on the x-ray) that the vet there thought might be a tumor. And the start of a bladder infection. So we get pain medication and antibiotics.

Yeah. The cat hates the medications.

So I follow up as told with the "regular" vet who does not seem to think that there is anything wrong with her spine. But, she still has a really fast heartrate. Thinks that might be an overactive thyroid, and perhaps it caused her to throw a small clot which is affecting her legs. He did say that if she was a person, the equivalent heart rate would cause a medical provider to call an ambulance, and they would be admitted into the hospital until it was under control

More bloodwork, and she does have a slightly elevated thyroid level. But, there are no indications of cancer.

Yay. MORE medications.

But, she does seem to be moving around better now. She did miss and fall off of the bed on Sunday night, and that might be what is going on, to some extent.

But for now, she has been extra cuddly, even if I am "torturing" her twice a day to squirt medications down her throat, and now to stuff pills down her throat. I just wonder what is going to happen when I have to travel for work, and Eric has to take care of it...

She's my cat though, and when she was limping around on Tuesday, with me thinking she might have a tumor, I cried. I know things happens, but it is just so sad.

It's kind of taken up my whole week...

~a

Fuzz head

No, not because of a hangover, but I somehow managed to avoid that last week, somehow...

I took out the braids in my hair. And I am a big fuzz ball. I know, tourist thing to do, but I like getting my hair braided when I am on vacation in warmer climates.

And really, it had a purpose, because it kept my hair tamed when I was snorkling in the ocean.

It kind of sucks being back from vacation, but in other ways it is really nice. My own bed, which is queen sized rather than double. Seeing the cats. Not having to slather on sunscreen lest I burn my hide off (yes, very white girl here!)

But it was great to get away.

So the scoop:

Got up Friday the 15th - at 3am. It was -12 according to bank in downtown St. Paul. Get to the airport, on the plane. Slept some, read, etc. My friend (the one that arranged the trip for our group) cried when we landed because she was so happy to be on vacation. Customs, ride to hotel... rooms are not going to be ready for a couple of hours. So we went to the bar and had some beverages - because, of course, it was an all-inclusive resort! Met some people at the bar that we ended up hanging out with and doing stuff with all week...

So the seven of us got rooms all next to each other, which was great, even if they were on the 2nd floor. Dinner that evening in the Mexican restaurant, then off to bed.

Saturday - a day by the pool/ocean. It was funny watching one of the staff trying to recruit folks to go "stretch by the pool." My friend Kathy told him - "There is absolutely nothing that you can say or do to get me out of this lounge chair.... I am on vacation, and you might as well just walk away now." We had dinner at the Cuban resturant that night

Sunday - we decided to rent a Jeep, and explore some of the island when there were no cruize ships there. Looked at the San Gervais ruins. Tasted some Tequilla. Looked at the ocean on the Carribean side of the island. Had a couple of drinks at bars along the way. Got back 6-ish and then got ready to have dinner in town.

Monday - out again in the Jeep, since it was a 24-hour rental. A bit more traffic, and I'm glad that I got some practice driving the day before, since it was a little scarier. After we turned in the Jeep, we did some shopping in town. This is the day I got my hair braided. I got a really cool calla lilly vase. We got my dad a belt buckle as a present, but Eric really annoyed me because he would not let me bargain for it.... No kidding - he slapped me in the rear when I tried to make a counter offer. I was so relieved to have the Jeep dropped off, and a little irked because of the shopping, so when we got back I had a few too many beverages. I guess I poured myself into bed at about 7. I guess the phone rang to see if we wanted to go to dinner, but I don't remember it... I woke up around 3am, brushed my teeth, drank a bottle of water, and crawled back into bed. Suprisingly, I was not hung over in the morning.

Tuesday - three of us went to Chakkunab, which is a national park. A day of relaxing on the beach and snorkeling along the reefs there. Some really cool fish there. We had dinner in the Italian restaurant that night.

Wednesday - I went horseback riding in the morning with Betsy. Eric, Betsy and I caught the ferry to Playa del Carmen in the afternoon, where we did some more shopping. And when the same thing started to happen with the barganing, I took Eric aside and told him to quit it. Okay, so I yelled at him in front of the salesperson.... then we stepped aside to talk. When I told him that he was supposed to bargain, he said "Well, then I don't want to shop". Betsy had a bit of a chat with him, told him it was a game for the salespeople, and that if he liked something, he was supposed to hand it to me, and walk away. It worked! We got back around 8pm, had some dinner in the buffet, and watched the lunar eclipse.

Thursday - One of the folks we had met on Friday, had won a boat ride so we all piled onto this fabulous boat for a cruise up the coast up the island with a stop for snorkeling at an off-shore reef. REALLY cool fish there! Relaxing by the pool in the afternoon, and dinner again in the Mexican restaurant. Complaining about how we had to leave the next day.

Friday - *sniff* packing, and meeting in the lobby at 9:30 am to take a taxi to the airport. We upgraded to first class, so it was a little more bearable to go home, but still kind of sad.

It was fun, and relaxing, and gluttonous.... I bit the bullet and stepped on the scale this morning and was up about 10 pounds.

So, *thud* welcome back to reality.

Exercize and diet will commence...... tomorrow.

~a

The never ending week

I swear today was supposed to be Friday.

Spent the day in the office with a co-worker. It was kind of painful. He's trying to master pivot tables. Or something like that.

We have to run reports with huge batches of data, and do interpretation, etc. I started playing with the excel program probably a year ago, and now am trying to tell him how to sort things. He is not computer literate. He was having problems with cutting and pasting from one document to another. And with worksheets. Argh. I don't know how many times I have told him the same thing. And it does not seem to sink in.

Therefore, I didn't get a whole lot done today, after being out of the office for a couple of days. I suppose that's how the cookie crumbles, right?

That, and the exercise is just sucking this week. I was thinking I would go for a run yesterday after I got home.... When I stopped for gas in Alexandria, the weather was about perfect. But of course, it was another 2.5 hours before I got home, and by then the mood had left.

I set out clothes to work out this morning, but then I just could not drag my arse out of bed. So I packed clothes to go to the gym after work. And after all of the frustrations of the day, when it would have been perfect to go hit the treadmill, I just came home.

In one week, I will be on vacation, doing some last-minute packing for the trip to Mexico. I don't think it will ever get here.

Thank goodness tomorrow is Friday.
~a

Is is wrong?

Yeah, we leave for Mexico on the 15th.

I had it in the back of my mind that I wanted to lose some weight so I would look "better" in my swimsuits. Notice I didn't say "good"?

So anyway, I have been doing a crappy job of not eating all sorts of crap. I guess my heart is just not in it, and I have been taking the path of least resistance. Traveling, snackig, eating the "eh" food they provide at meetings (I work for a railroad. Men ordering food = meat, fat, starch and beer)

I thought to myself the other day that it wouldn't be that bad, since I will still be the smallest girl in the group. Lovely thought. I think any photos taken might be mistaken for diet incentives. Not to say that the folks I am traveling with are not lovely people, but we all struggle with our weight. Well, the women anyway. Is it wrong to think this way?

I know when we get there, we will have a blast, and I will not let anything keep me from going out and enjoying myself, but I am a little stressed/obsessed with it right now.

It didn't help that I overslept on Tuesday, so I didn't exercise, and this morning the treadmill in the hotel was out of order - but I still got on the stairstepper for 30 minutes. And then destroyed my good intentions by eating a large carmel roll.

I gotta give up this "screw it" attitude I have about food.

That will be all.
~a

An interesting turn of events...

Today has been weird.

Got up early this morning, because my work truck was at the office, and Eric had to drop me off this morning. It was there, because it would not start on Thursday when I got home from the mother of all road trips. (yeah, we were in Minot, ND when it was -24. Without the windchill. Seriously.) So I had to have a new battery put in it on Friday - but I had already driven to work, so I had a vehicle there.

So in the office, I'm about the first one there. Getting geared up for my three Monday conference calls, coffee, e-mail, etc. Someone walks by my cube and says "I see you won some money!" My reply: "Really?!?!" We had a pool at the office - put your name on a spot, pay $5, then they draw numbers. The guy that was running the pool told me on Friday that the numbers were up. I said okay. He wondered if I wanted to look at what I had. I told him why bother - it's not like I could do anything about them.... okay, so he thought I was weird. But - I had the correct numbers for the half and the third quarter, so I won $60.

After my calls, I got on my bank website, to see that I have a pending charge from Zappos"dot"com. For $241 and change. Um, I didn't order anything.... so I call them up to ask about it. They were actually really nice about it - great customer service for a person who was not purchasing anything. They cancelled the order (it was placed late at night on Sunday) and told me to call my bank to tell them my card number had been compromised.

So I called my bank to get a new check card number. And there's paperwork I will need to fill out - but I just checked and the charge has been removed. I'm wondering if they had just entered in the card number wrong, but better safe than sorry, right?

Then it was home to grab my suitcase, and head out again to North Dakota. I seem to be here way too much lately.

I stopped on the way to pick up something to munch on, because the soy nuts and carrots were not quite doing it for me. I did pretty well though - I avoided the cheddar puffcorn I like so much, and got sugar snap peas, some flat earth chips, Diet green tea, some 80% cacao dark chocolate squares, light string cheese, and gum. No I didn't eat/drink all of it, but I was content, had the salt and sweet and crunch I wanted, and was pretty healthy about it.

And the best part of the evening: I didn't slide into the ditch. Between Fargo and Valley City, it was kind of scary - I fishtailed across both lanes of the freeway for about 150 feet, where I could see the tow truck and the other car in the ditch.... but I kept turning the steering wheel, and I didn't hit the brakes, and kept trying to steer in the right direction.

Yikes.

Nothing like sliding on the freeway to get the blood pumping.

So I drove 45 - 50 mph the rest of the way. And I got here in one piece.

Hopefully tomorrow will be less eventful.

~a

Activity

let's see...

this week, I did 10 min on the treadmill and lifted weights on Monday. Tuesday morning I biked for 30 minutes. Took the day off on Wednesday. Thursday I did 35 min on the bike in the mornng, then ran 15 minutes and lifted weights in the afternoon. Friday I went rock climbing.
Saturday, I ran 5.3 miles in an hour, and today I cross-country skiied for about 45 minutes.

So why am I up 5 pounds?

Oh yeah... perhaps it is all the freaking crap I have been eating.

Sigh. I don't know if I will ever get it all together. I like being active.... I really did well with the run on Saturday. I have not run more than 4 miles since August. And my knee has not hurt since then either.

I just know I'm not going to be able to log the miles I need to if I want to run that marathon in the fall... if I don't take some weight off. There's a reason most marathoners are not heavy. It's really hard on the joints.

In a bit of an aside - cross country skiing today was lots of fun. It was a beautiful day for it. Although there were a few things that were a bit of a bother - such as Kare 11 was doing an event in conjunction with the Winter Carnival, where all of the activities at Como were free, so everybody showed up with their kids to partake of the free downhill skiing and snowboarding, and the rental are was a complete zoo. That and rental equipment sucks. The ski boot I had on had been worn through at the heel, and the plastic part that keeps the back stiff, rubbed a goodly portion of skin off of my heel, and the point of that piece dug in too. Let's just hope it won't rub too badly in my running shoe.

Next week is going to be a joy of traveling. Not. Let's see, I will not be driving all of it, but the "tour" will be by car. We will hit Alexandria, MN on Monday, then drive to TRFalls to stay the night there. Meeting in the morning, then a drive to Minot. Meeting in Minot in the morning then we drive to Jamestown, ND, for a meeting Thrusday in Valley City. Then home. Not really looking forward to it, because I know the food choices will be pretty miserable. And I don't know how much exercising I will be able to do.

Anyway, this afternoon is laundry, and getting packed and ready for the week.

~a