hiya

Yes, I'm in Education... this is my 30th year as a teacher although I no longer work in the classroom (am in the school division office/coordinate special ed & other student services). Because I am still on teacher contract, I get summers off despite being where I am.

Good luck with your studies!!!!

Hi all - just checking in!

Another day another bike ride - whew I am out of shape again! The awesome thing is that it will get better every day, and soon I'll be fit and riding will be a breeze. Also, next week (when classes actually start) I will be able to go over to the student gym and use their treadmills to ONCE AGAIN get going on c25k - I really loved running outside in the spring, but when the summer hot weather came I was way too willing to chuck it in favor of staying cool. Maybe a treadmill habit will be easier for me to sustain, now that I have ready access to one (for the next 5 years).

Did well on journalling yesterday. Not on the eating, I'll be honest - but at least I wrote it all down. Actually, I didn't do too badly until evening jitters had me stopping at the drive-thru. Hmmm... thats not gonna be able to happen often if I want to get back in gear.

Today I am doing some preliminary (very boring) review for my class next week. I need to make it to page 50 before I let myself go home, and right now I'm at pg 37. Its boring me to tears. I want a nap!!!! Only yesterday I took a nap and then couldn't sleep last night so I need to break the nap habit. Ah well, I think I'm starting to ramble - check y'all later.

Oh, and Tera! I hope your online course goes well - I've never tried one, but I have to admit I just can't imagine not going to actual physical classes - thats the best part IMO.

Mof4 - where are you????? I finally get back on line and you are awol

Toodles everyone.

Yeah, Momof4, where are you?

Amarie:I so admire the bike riding. Way to go. If you keep that up and go to the gym, geesh, you'll be fit in no time. I also envy you for being in school. I think I've missed my chance this semester.

Sassy: Doing anything on your days off?

Twilit: have classes started yet?

Judo: Summer has flown by, but I have to say I love fall so I don't mind

Buddly: Are you back yet?

Heather:

Today was a little trying at work. The other full time girls I work with don't really get along. I didn't care before, I mean I just have to show up and make the money that barely pays my bills. But today I can see that the spats are eventually gonna effect me. After the fight they had today, one of them left and so I worked alone with no help. Also if it causes her to quit, none of us will get a weekend off ever. We are all adults, at least I thought.

I'm going to visit my mom over the weekend since I'm oddly enough off. Her b-day is in Sept so I'm going to take her her gifts. I'm getting her an outside storage bench to put her patio furniture cushions in and stand up outdoor storage closet for brooms and miscellaneous stuff that's on her carport. She's been wanting something similar for a while.

Better get to bed. Hi to everybody else that I missed.

I'm around, girls -

Just nothing to say... tired though. *yawn*

Heather

I'm Ba-ack!

Amarie: I would prefer the traditional classroom, but I worry about reinjuring myself... online classes are better than none. I was able to do really well when I took Pre-College math online. I'm hoping this class works as well as that and not like with my second online class. I think a lot depends on the participation of the other classmates and the organizational skills of the professor. My own self-motivation is a factor as well, especially when it's self-paced.

Good luck on breaking that "wait til I'm starving and then grab whatever" habit. That's a problem of mine, in fact.

Hope: My first class was Monday night Music Appreciation and it was a real hoot. I made two new friends of my classmates, and everyone in the class had so much fun together that our professor, who wasn't planning on remaining our professor at the start of the evening, changed her mind by the end and switched classes with the adjunct who was supposed to take over.

Tuesdays and Thursdays I have American Govt. II, with the same professor I had for AG I, so I knew pretty much what to expect. He did not disappoint. The first few classes are review to those of us who had him last semester, for the benefit of those who didn't.

Sorry to hear about your work situation. What type of work is it? Do you think you might be able to reach some kind of truce with her? If she quits, would you be able to get a replacement for her?

Sassy Chick: I know you know this, but part of the point of posting here is to share our burdens so that we don't have to carry them alone. I bring mine here and so do so many others when they need to. It's "only fair" that you get to share yours too. Where is your post? I've tried searching under your username but I'm not having any luck.

Everybody:

Amarie - sounds great! Bike riding is an awesome form of exercise and can feel very liberating.

Hope - Sorry about those girls at work, they should try and be civil for other peoples sake! Hope that situation eases for you.

Sassy - big to ya

Tera - I dont think I've spoken to you before, so hello!

Today I made a big decision. I have good days and bad days, and my anxiety is much the same. But I'm sick of it ruling my life, I've gotten so used to feeling uncomfortable outside that I wear these stupid long coats and cardigans to hide myself away. Over the summer I stopped wearing them and it felt pretty great. Not half as scary as I thought, no worries that I wouldnt be accepted. My ultimate fear is going back to college in a class environment and being stuck there without my comfort blanket (cardigan) but today I realized I'm sick of fear, its stupid, little and its not going to rule me anymore. I'll still have good and bad days, but I'm going to have the courage to go into those classrooms and show people who I am and ALLOW myself to be accepted for me - even though the difficult times.

(I just had to share that)

Hey all!

First off - Lauren that was a wonderful post! Your cardigan is such a great metaphor for all the stuff that keeps us from living our lives to the fullest - Fear stinks! WTG saying enough is enough.

Tera - ya, you hit the nail on the head. Its definately "wait until I'm starving then grab whatever" that I struggle with. I'm sory you struggle with it too, but its kinda nice to know we're in it together!

Sassy - You are never a burden. You are a very important part of our little cyber-family, and if you're hurting we want to help. We may not always know how, but we are here for you. Did you delete your post?

Hopey - oh yeah, infighting at work. Sad that no matter where you go it always crops up. Ugh.

Heather - Hi! Can I just say that I'm super impressed with your wl progress of late? You've lost 11 pounds since I last remember noting your ticker! WTG!

I had a great food day yesterday. Well, actually it was under-calorie, but it was progress, and will balance out the day before nicely. I was sitting around in the evening being bored and antsy and kept going to the kitchen, looking in the fridge, and then going back to the living room without any food. Part of the problem was that the sink was full of dirty dishes that needed to be cleaned, and I was avoiding it. So, I stopped avoiding it. I washed the dishes, made a salad, ate some grapes and a nectarine and went off to pack for my agility trial this weekend. And this morning when I woke up the dishes were clean and dry and I put them away and felt really good about life.

OK, gotta run. Its almost lunch time!

Hi, Lauren! I've seen your posts, but I don't think we've ever addressed each other directly, so Hi back!

I'm very excited about this new direction you're taking! Congratulations on facing that fear and leaving the cardigan behind!

Just remember, there are only two kinds of people - those who like you and those who can go to ****. (I can say **** here, right?)

Hi girls

Tera, unfortunatley it's not up to me to call a truce. It's the two girls I work with who are bickering. I do my best to get along with everybody b/c it just makes life easier. I would hope they would try to replace her but I think before I was hired they were short for a long time. I think one of them said that they hadn't gotten a weekend off that they didn't ask for in two years.

Spoz: I've had several different forms of security blankets over time: long shirts, jackets, black pants, etc. Each one has been tough to break.

OK Sassy, just spill it.

Amarie: Isn't it weird how a clean house makes you feel on top of everything?

Heather: I'm struggling with nothing to say too, at least about myself.

Well, I'm gonna hit the hay. Good night.

Hi Everyone,

I'm absolutely thrilled with this 6weekbodymakeover plan! It's based on body type and then the foods you should be eating to maximize your metabolism. It's very very close to the old WW program of the lated 1970's which I used and the weight FELL off at that time. For my body type, it's also limited carbs which I knew already, but carbs are my comfort food.

Anyway, I am over the top about it. It was an adjustment moving portions from 2-3 meals a day to 3 small meals and 3 snacks. You have to eat every 2 1/2 - 3 hours. It requires a lot of prep, but I do that over two evenings spread out over the week & freeze my pre-portioned foods into small zip baggies and then a big freezer bag labelled with what's in it. Lots and lots of white chicken and fish... and turkey breast.. I'm not much of a fish eater, so it's mostly c & t for me. All I do in the morning is make my smoothies, grab my frozen portions out of the freezer, take 2 salad containers & dressings (my dressing is made and in a big jar in the fridge) and I'm off to work.

I've experimented with a lot of recipes i've found for my body type at the BMO site and I am incredibly impressed with this all. Hub's watching me in amazement too LOL.

Sassy.. couple thoughts ... I WOULD write or phone in a complaint to the manager of that store where you and your DH were treated so badly. If you don't complain, the store will never know and others may be treated that way also. More importantly, that clerk had NO right to be so condescending. He obviously has no clue what it is like to find decent fitting clothing. *Grrrrrr.. people like that make me so angry (insert my best Marvin the Martian impression here).

As far as clothing for yourself, I've found that the independent clothings stores are the best for finding clothes that FIT! I avoid chains... except for Cotton Ginny (their pants fit me best.. I have a hard time.. my waist is a size smaller than my hips)... and a Canadian chain (I don't know if it's in the states.. at least I think it's Canadian) called Alia. The rest of the stores, I am convinced, are for TOOTHPICK GIRLS... at least, that's what my daughter and I call them

Another place is the online store called Coldwater Creek. It's pricey but the clothes last FOREVER. You can also get a catalogue. In fact, I think if you google Coldwater Creek and go to the site, you can order the catalogue right online and it's no charge. I don't buy from there often, but they are fantastic, take things back.. orders are fast and accurate. I believe it's based out of Idaho.

Anyway, Chickies! Have a wonderful long weekend! I belong to a medieval re-creation group and I'm off to an event with hub first thing in the morning tomorrow.

Sounds like you've had quite the roller-coaster ride! I'm glad that you're starting to feel better.

Well, the only person you *might* owe an apology to is really yourself, for dismissing your own feelings instead of considering them important enough to share.

OTOH, I do understand about venting personal stuff publicly. We just want you to know that you are important enough to get the support you need from us. (Or at least, I want you to know that.)

a. what makes you think they're not complaining? I'm pretty sure a number of them are complaining, just not where we can hear it. One veteran I met said that he couldn't tell us how he felt about the war in Iraq because he'd be in a lot of trouble if he did.

b. As my therapist told me, (which he heard from a holocaust survivor) nobody's pain is better or worse than anybody elses. Pain is pain and your pain is as valid as anybody's, whatever the source. You will likely never know what it feels like to be in a combat zone, but you do know what it's like to be you. If it gets painful, that pain is as real as anybody's. Don't dismiss it.

Yay! My fingers are crossed for you both! (Makes typing a little difficult, actually)

That sounds like an excellent idea! If I were in your shoes I'd send two brief emails, one to each store. I'd make sure that the store with the bad service knew how much I spent at the other store! I'd send a thank you to the store with the good service. I noticed you work in a call center, so you probably know how good a "thank you" can make a person feel. It'll make you feel good as a sender too!

I've been the same way. I would pass by retail clothing stores and just sigh deeply and keep walking. The stores with the cute outfits never carried anything in my size. The stores with my size carried stuff that looked like it was made for conservative old biddies. If I ever HAD to go shopping because I couldn't go through a whole week without washing something, I'd be in tears by the end of it because nothing I found looked or felt right. *sigh*

Then I discovered Avenue. Not only did they have really cute stuff in my size but the sizes on their tags ran a bit larger than the average, so what would have been a size 26 at any other store was a size 24 there. I was instantly in love. Now my wardrobe sucks not because I can't find stuff I like that works on me, but because I've gone drastically through sizes in just a couple of years and don't have enough money for the wardrobe I need now and the wardrobe I'm going to need in six months. If you don't have an Avenue nearby, you could try shopping online at www.avenue.com. If you do have one close by, I highly recommend getting on their email list. They send me fresh coupons about every week, so any time I plan to go shopping, I just look for the most recent email from them and print up a coupon first. Oh and Mom says that Lane Bryant has really udated their selections also, so you might try them.

Have you thought of asking your coworker where she gets her outfits?

One last note on this topic, the most important one, I think. Everyone has a right to feel good about themselves. Everyone has a right to feel good about what they put on. You are no exception. Period. You deserve to feel pretty. I bet DH would agree with me on that, but keep in mind that he doesn't have to approve of everything you wear, if what you wear makes you feel good. /

(Anyway, men aren't always the best judge of what looks good on a woman, I've noticed. If I ask Bruce's opinion on an outfit, it's usually to break a tie between two things I love equally, but can't afford. Come to think of it, men aren't always the best judges of what looks good on men, either.)

Again, I'm glad you're feeling better, happy about the new kitties (I also live in service to a kitty - just ask him) and wish you lots and lots of love and a happy adventure at the outlet store!

Tera

Good morning everyone!
Got back home last night, boy is it nice to be home, it may not be much, but its ours (and the banks of course)
We had a nice break. The one day we while the girls were at their convention hubby and I went down to Steveston, it was a little seaside community with a fish cannnery, but now its "historic" and is very touristy and the cannery is like a museum. Anyway it was a beautiful day and we walked along the docks and got real fish and chips from a little place. Then after we got the girls we went to the Vancouver airport, sat in a field and watched the planes. The next day hubby and I went to the museum of anthropology at UBC. That was rather interesting, lots of totem poles. We just stayed at my dad's on the sunday as it was raining cats and dogs. But just down the street from my dad's they film a lot of Star gate episodes. Well DdC is a huge fan, so hubby and the girls went down there and lo and behold part of the star gate was set up and the control panel thingy. Oh boy was DdC in seventh heaven! She wanted to go back on the monday to see if she could see more while they were filming, but we had to leave to go to the Okanagan and visit hubby's family. The weather held for us there and we were able to walk and enjoy walking by the lake. Not to mention have a very nice visit with family.
Now its back to the ol grind with school starting on Sept 3 for DdC. I'm not sure when DdA goes back to university. I go back to work on the 1st as well, but its only 5 hours a day, three days a week, so not to bad. We woke up to it being only 4*C (39*F) this morning and raining! It is to early for that kind of nonsense. And of course I refuse to turn the heat on as its August!! But boy is it damp and cold in here. I think I want to go back to the okanagan, it was so much warmer there!

Sassy I hope things work out with hubby and his job.

Hope I sure hope things work with your co-workers. Nothing worse than having to work with a lot of tension. Enjoy the break and visit with your mom.

Tera welcome, I look forward to getting to know you. As you already know this is a great little corner and wonderful ladies in here.

amarie, congrats on getting settled and all the bike riding. You'll be back in shape in no time. And once you get settled in your classes I'm sure you'll meet some great people that you can go out with, it just takes time, plus you have your pups to act as an ice breaker.

spoz congrats on taking a stand! I hate the fear the most, it holds me back from so much.

And a Hello and a big to everyone!

Take care and boy is it good to be back, sure missed you all,
K

Oo! Judomom! Have fun at your event! I've done things with the SCA and it was a blast! <- closest thing we have to a medeival smiley

My mom's in your corner about Coldwater Creek. She loves them. Oh, and I just remembered another company she orders from called Serengeti (sp?).

Ok... back to homework for me.