Kinda grateful for a chilly day today - we've had up to 80 degree F weather this March and are thinking summer rather than spring. Gotta get back in sync some way.
My challenge for the week is to ease back into exercise after a week with a pulled muscle in my leg. It's easier to keep snacking in check when I'm active. I'm a wimp when I have a minor injury, tending to go sit on the couch until it's all better. I greatly admire those of you who just charge forth with physical stuff all the time. Suspect that the reason that men don't have TOM is that we'd expect meals served in bed for a week awaiting recovery.
It is a little cool here this morning, but it won't last...
DSS has finally admitted that he doesn't do his work because he doesn't want to do it, doesn't have to do it, and we don't have any choice in if he does it or not at school. We've told him that is true, but we have all the choices about what happens to him at home. So we are now on a 'no work at school, no fun at home' plan. As a result, I went to the Family Fun Day at his elementary school that I've been on the planning committee of for the last six weeks, and DH & DSS stayed home. Broke me heart to leave him there, but it was the right thing to do.
I'm working to get back in the swing today after an off plan day yesterday. The rest of the weekend was alright. I can recover.
Yesterday they said there was a possibility of rain. Humph. It was a beautiful morning, very few clouds, no wind, warm and nice. Went to see the 1 PM show of The Hunger Games and when we came out there were huge dark clouds and the wind was horrible (and it was cold). We ran out to the in-laws to batten down the hatches on their RV before going back home to fix dinner. Today it's cool but it looks like a beautiful day. I don't think we got any rain here.
Good morning everyone. I had a great time in the nNaples area doing bird photography and then attending a photo conference where I went on a flied trip with one of the foremost bird photography gurus. Back at the condo now. My DW returns today from babysitting our new twin granddaughters.
Dagmar- congrats to your DH!! book those vacation tickets now!!
Allison- sorry to hear your DD did not get into the grad school she wanted, and hope your DMIL is better!!
Bill- hope that muscle pull heals quickly!!
So true Bill. I'm surprised that you as a man will admit your wimpiness (is that a word?!). I know my dh never would. Hope your muscle heals quickly.
Steve-- congrats on those twin grandbabies. I am looking forward to being a grandma (in the future!).
Allison-- did you like Hunger Games? I can't wait to see it. Both of my dd's have seen it so I'll either have to drag one of them again or find some adults to go with!
Shannon-- dss's attitude sure sounds ominous. If he is saying things like that at his age, I'm afraid you may be in for years of hard times. I'm glad that you all stuck to his punishment though. You'll need to be firm and consistent so that he knows you mean business.
Dh returned from Asia on Saturday. He was quite jetlagged Saturday but we managed to go out for lunch and dinner! I went to the gym twice on Saturday to offset the food and I think I did just enough exercise! Dh went with me to Bikram Yoga yesterday. He's been a few times, and every time his back hurts terribly two days later. I'm crossing my fingers that it won't happen this time or he will probably quit going with me!
Last edited by traveling michele; 03-26-2012 at 10:41 AM.
Reason: typo
Allison-- did you like Hunger Games? I can't wait to see it. Both of my dd's have seen it so I'll either have to drag one of them again or find some adults to go with!
Oh, yes, very much. They did an incredible job. We remarked that the only thing that we can be sure they omitted was Katniss' relationship with the red haired dresser (can't remember her name, but she was mute). She had a part, but very, very small. It's been a year since I read the book, so I can't remember it all, but the movie followed the book so well. DH and FIL just finished reading it and they agreed. MIL didn't read the book, so she had no idea what to expect and she liked it a lot. DS saw it Friday night and then again with us Sunday!
I am so sore from my bench-pressing and pushups yesterday that I wince every time I have to lift my arms. Getting a coffee mug -- just a little mug, dating back to the 1970s -- not even one of those big honkin' cups that fit into an SUV's cupholder -- from an upper kitchen cupboard was a painful experience this morning.
I'm still absorbing the good news on the apartment renovations from last week. Yes, it's good news, but I've learned to be wary. Remember how the contractor laid off his workers and stopped work for three weeks because he hadn't been paid since Dec. 22? And then resumed work after being paid on March 8th? Well, our co-op board wanted to avoid that happening again, so it went out to get a loan from a different bank than our usual one -- or rather, a secured line of credit -- to use for the building work. The board plans to use the slower-arriving funds to repay this money. Our co-op shareholders all voted on whether this should be done, and 83% voted "yes." The contractor is now satisfied he'll be paid regularly and is stepping up work.
But I talked with him on the phone, and he still says work will take, at minimum, six to eight weeks.
In the meantime, I've got a low chest in the Lancaster, PA area, I've got a Victorian chair in Alabama and a high chest of drawers in North Carolina that all need to be accounted for. I can pick up the low chest. The chair in Alabama, they'll bring as far as Pennsylvania, but we need to arrange a rendezvous. The chest of drawers in North Carolina, they can bring right to my co-op -- but the place may not be done yet by the time they head out on their delivery trip north.
Life would be so much easier if I did all my shopping at the IKEA in New Jersey.
And it's sunny, bright, windy and cold here, with the green grass rippling. It's Easter egg hunt weather. It's completely seasonable again. The dogwood trees in the village are all snowing down on the grass. And I fear for the tightly furled, pointy fuchsia buds of my mother's magnolia, just underneath my bedroom window.
I'll be heading downstate this coming weekend for an overnighter. I'll drop off a can of paint for my master bedroom and some antique architectural elements to be incorporated in the apartment. And Patrick will cut my hair and put my first highlights of the year in, as he always does for me just before Easter.
All I need are a pair of patent leather Mary Janes and white cotton gloves and I'll be ready for Easter. (That's a joke, but I tell you, if I were ever to buy either item, this is the time of year when I'd do it.)
I'm home. I had a good time at the sit - the dogs are young but well behaved due to my Cesar Millan training of them when they were tiny pups. And the cat is a hoot - he's a big fat boy who just wants to be loved.
I will catch up with everything in the next couple of days.
And did I see April in this week's thread headline?
Good morning everyone!! Not much new here. i have an eating problem I have never had before- I need to eat more to maintain my weight!1 Typically when i lost weight before - I went back to my old ways and eventually put the weight back on- no this time so far. I will not add more meat or starch or desserts ect. I have added in some nuts and more yogurt. But I need to add a little more- any suggestions?
Saef it seems you must enjoy shopping all over for furniture for your apartment- IKEA would be easier but obviously not the thing for you!!
Have a great day everyone!!
DSS had a terrible day at school yesterday. I'm hoping today is better, otherwise we are going into spring break with hard core punishment going on. Which might just have to happen.
I am back from my long weekend in NYC. I had a great time! There was a lot of walking in addition to a lot of eating, so I'm only up 2lbs which is probably mostly water. Flushing with green tea and clean eating today.
Quick review of my trip, for those who are interested:
- NY Botanical garden; cherries, magnolias, daffodils blooming, plus a beautiful orchid show (Saef, if you like that kind of thing, you might check it out next time you're downstate)
- Priscilla: Queen of the Desert musical, which was awesome. I admit I wasn't sure how it was going to work out, given that in the movie the main characters are lip synching to women's voices, but they did a mix of having the guys sing their own songs and having them lip synch while women singing were suspended from the ceiling on some kind of swing/platform. If Amanda is reading this she will probably think I'm nuts, but I enjoyed it way more than Wicked, which was the last musical I saw.
- Natural History Museum, where we spent a decent amount of time admiring the taxidermied bird dioramas
- The whole reason I went to NY in the first place: L'Arc~en~Ciel concert! (Insert fannish squee here.) My favorite band of all time, and the first Japanese band to headline Madison Square Garden. They were amazing. I hope they come back to the US soon . . . and maybe play in Chicago, which would be a shorter trip for me. If you're interested you can read about the concert in the NY Times here.
Saef, have you been to Lancaster PA before? That's where I grew up.
Steve, I envy your new eating problem! Sounds like you are on the right track, though. I'd try things that are indulgent but good for you - like I love avocados, or going with full fat versions of things like cheeses. Although admittedly I often use full fat cheeses anyway, because they melt so much nicer...this may be part of my problem
Shannon, sorry to hear your DSS is continuing to struggle. I hope he'll pull it together so you can all have a more pleasant spring break.
Jessica, sounds like a great trip to NYC! I love the natural history museum. Have never been to the botanical garden, though. I should check it out next time I can get there.
Steve-- it is a weird problem to have, huh?! I haven't had it in awhile, but for awhile there-- if I kept to program 100% I kept losing, if I deviated at all, I gained, so it was a tricky tightrope I was walking. Most days now I feel more confident, but not always.
I'm contemplating a change that I'm trying to wrap my head around. This week I dropped a yahoo weightwatchers group I was in for about 3 years. Jay got me to thinking-- I was receiving tons of emails daily-- I rarely had time to read them, and I posted even less often. So, I dropped it.... no biggie....
I also work part-time for Weight Watchers. When I first started almost 4 years ago I had 5 meetings that I worked-- now I'm down to 2 (if "numbers" aren't there, meetings get cancelled). Because I work full-time, I've never picked up more meetings and I've been fine with that. I work Sunday morning and I've recently contemplated giving that up because it really doesn't make sense financially-- by the time I drive there, get my Starbucks (I "treat" myself on my WW working days), and work-- I barely break even-- plus I have to get up early every Sunday and it is a pain to find a sub if I'm out of town. I also work Tuesday evening closer to home so I thought I would keep that meeting and the leader and I have become close friends. Last night she told me she is really considering quitting WW. If she quits, I don't think I want to work without her. I talked to dh and he would be pretty happy if I quit-- financially I don't make enough to matter and it can often be more hassle than it's worth. However..... I'm worried that if I quit, I will somehow let my weight loss efforts slack off-- I have to weigh monthly to work for WW and it keeps me honest. I also know the members have developed a close bond with me and I feel guilty about leaving them. I think if I do quit I'll go back to my meetings as a member to keep myself accountable. Just trying to wrap my head around it this morning....
In other news, dd got accepted to grad school. There wasn't really a doubt, but it is good to hear (it is the same school where she has been doing her undergrad). She also got asked point blank if she is going to apply for a graduate assistant position by the professor that she works for (in a side tutoring business). She said yes, so hopefully she can be that professor's GA. I am traveling to see her next week to go with her to a specialist in Seattle. Looking forward to seeing her, but there is always so much to do before traveling.....
Maintainers Weekly Chat March 26 - April 1
I'd tend to agree!
If you're interested you can read about the concert in the NY Times 
