Hi everyone. How was your weekend? Beautiful sunshine here, although DH and I were both under the weather on Saturday and not able to take advantage. We rebounded on Sunday and got lots done around the house.

My weight finally appears to be going in the right direction. I got a long, difficult run in yesterday and succeeded in curbing my eating. Hope to continue the trend; it feels good.

Picked up a nice pair of shorts and a cute pleated jean skirt on Friday. There are some wicked summer sales on, and I have to remember to stay away from the stores because I seem unable to resist buying. I have many items in my closet that still have price tags attached so I guess I should start wearing what I have.

How was Vancouver lala? Hope your stress level has eased Melissa. Domina - did you go shopping yesterday as planned? Happy vacation Pam!

It's rainy here today as it was most of the weekend. It was great for shopping! Yes, Susan, I went shopping, but found nothing at the outlet stores I frequent. So, I went to a mall that was having fabulous sales. I bought a darling black/white asymmetrical skirt to wear to a "Black and White" party next week. I also bought a gorgeous turquoise gown to wear in one of my stage shows ($17!!) It was on the marked down marked down rack.

I did not get to golf this weekend--wah! I will be golfing this weekend.

I took the LBD to the tailor. It will cost some bucks to alter it because it's lined, but I honestly have searched and couldn't find anything like it.

I have WI tonight. I'm not thrilled. Although I've been watching my intake, I ate two desserts this weekend (one WW and one not). I got on my own scale and there was no real improvement. Ugh!

Hi, Melissa, lala (I think Pam is on vacation).

Hi everyone,

Susan, I'm glad to see that the weight is going down. I'm not sure about mine. The best thing I can say for the weekend and healthy living was it was a .5 mile walk to the car and I did work out each morning before the festival. Other than that, oat chocolate bars are evil.

Vancouver was fun, the festival is the most amazing park and Vancouver is soo beautiful. I am not a big folk music fan, but DP likes to go, so I indulge her. I did enjoy Odetta, Bruce Cockburn, Martyn Joseph and Nancy White from CBC's tribute to my favorite singer of all time --Leonard Cohen. Wow, all these really interesting renditions of Leonard's songs. He turns 70 this year, I can't believe it.

I really wanted to stop at the Roots Store as they had very cute pullovers for the Canadian Olympic Team, but alas, it was too late. Susan, is there the winners chain in Dartmouth? I have heard really great things, but it was closed when we went by. I am going to try and do a shopping trip, combined with chance to see the Robert Davidson exhibit at the Museum of Man. We love his stuff and are lucky to have one or two prints.

Domina -- Sorry you didn't get to golf. Sounds like you cleaned up too while shopping. I hope the tailor does your LBD justice. Post a picture, will ya?

Okay, must go, must work, must convert all those cds to mp3s.....

lala

The weekend was pretty dreary--cloudy on Saturday and rainy most of the day on Sunday so it was a good time to get caught up with stuff around the house. I managed to get clothes put away that I've been leaving out and got laundry done. It was a good feeling!

I walked in the relay and it went well--I can tell I need a different pair of sneakers for any distance walking. I really liked my old crosstrainers and I'm thinking that I need to go out and buy another pair.

Domina: Don'tcha just love a good sale! Here's hoping you have a good WI tonight. You can't always go by what your home scale indicates (at least I can't with mine) and know that you did good this past week. 2 desserts is not bad.

Susan: Glad to hear your weight is going in the right direction, keep up the good work! Our weather has been wet, wet, wet so there wasn't a lot to be done outside. It certainly doesn't feel like summer!

I hit the stores this weekend as well and found a cute pair of jean shorts--I was happy. I tried on a cute pair of capris only to find that someone had put back a "defective" item--the zipper was broke and of course it was the only one there. *sigh* I guess that's a good thing.

We're finishing up our last orientation session and it's clear sailing the rest of the week. I have a mailing to get out and some things to wrap up but for the most part things should be nice and quiet. I'm working tonight and tomorrow night at WW so the evenings will be busy. I had a great OP day yesterday and Saturday wasn't too bad.

Hi to Lala!

lala, it sounds like you had fun. What's a Roots store? Mmmm, oatmeal and chocolate--a good combination. Then again, most things with chocolate are good. Are you still playing golf? You haven't mentioned it. Don't give up. I'll try to post a picture when I figure that out. I have a digital camera, not sure how to attach one here.

Melissa, I hear you about the rain; there just isn't much to do when it's like that, but a good day to iron and putz around the house (or shop). Yes, your shoes are so important when involved in a walk (how far did you go?)

Domina --

No golf yet. Need to get started again.

Roots is a canadian clothing store. They have some pretty nice stuff.

Okay, doing pretty well today on the eating front. We are now the owners of a 18 lb. white king salmon, so its salmon fileting night chez lala. Yum.

However, we're having turkey burgers and grilled veggies for dinner. Its hot here.

Question for you all -- Am I an idiot to continue to say yes to out of town guests. A new crop arrives tonight and I'm not sure my cat is up to a dog in our house that is not hers...

argh.

lala

More rain this morning but I hear it's supposed to clear. What a weird summer.

lala: Yes, we have three Winners stores in Halifax-Dartmouth, but I think the one in Dartmouth is the best. That's pretty much the only place I shop now. I think it's comparable to TJ Max in the States. Was the folk festival in Stanley Park? I haven't been to Vancouver in a few years other than a brief stop on the way to Hawaii a few years ago. I like Leonard Cohen too.

Melissa: Good for you for getting out to the relay. Shoes are so important, especially where long distances are concerned. Mine are relatively new (2 months) but they don't fit properly and I'm having all kinds of problems as a result. I need to get out this weekend and get new ones, as much as it pains me (no pun intended). Does WW attendance decrease at your centre in summer?

Domina: I thought I got some good deals but you win best shopper award for the $17 gown!!

I'm heading out of town this afternoon for a meeting, so won't check in again until Thursday. I'm actually looking forward to it since it's in a town at the western end of the province that I don't get to visit very often.

More rain in the forecast here as well...it's supposed to heat up and along with it the humidity is rising. Ugh! Today's high is supposed to hit 80 but tomorrow I'm seeing 86...definitely not my kind of weather. The weekend is looking good (70's & sunny) but that can change.

Domina: I didn't wear my pedometer so I don't know how many miles/steps I got in but I was moving for 3 hours on the track other than a couple of bathroom breaks.

Lala: Mmm, salmon! I never used to eat it but now it's a regular for me. I love it grilled with sea salt & butter spray. I had a good eating day as well for a change. Hmmm, you sound like my friend with the constant flow of guests in the house. I told her it's a compliment because they must be comfortable there. I, on the other hand, go crazy when I have guests. But then I don't have any extra room to put people.

Susan: My sneakers are only about a month or so old but they're definitely not good for any long distance walking. I need to get out and get my crosstrainers--they worked really well for me and gave me the support/padding that I need for walking. Yes, the attendance definitely drops in the summer, especially this time of year. The meeting that I worked last night was down (64 people) compared to what they were at the beginning of the summer (81). July is a vacation month. Next month we'll see members coming back once school starts up again and things settle down.

We're all done with orientation and I'm working on getting stuff out for the fall program--once that's done I'm home free for a bit. I'm looking forward to being off next week. No major plans for the weekend at the moment.

It's cloudy here again today. Our climate here has definitely changed since I moved here 19 years ago. We used to get an afternoon shower and then it would clear up. Now we have days of cloudiness and on and off rain all day. That's strange.

Went to WI and was slightly pleased. I was down 1#, but I expected more. I know, I'm greedy. Our attendance is definitely down in the summer, but the snow birds all go back up north.

lala, if I'm ever in Canada, I'll check out Roots. I agree with Melissa. You must be good hostesses if people keep coming back. I don't get that many visitors which is probably a good thing. My mother used to get tons of them, especially relatives who hardly saw her when she lived in our hometown in Ohio. When she moved to Florida, look out.

Lisa

Hi everyone,

I think it is a compliment that these folks are so comfortable, but honestly, it was easier when it was just him coming up for two weeks at a time to work. He would go to the gym each morning to work out and shower and only have coffee at our house. His kids live in town (he worked with us for years), so he's never at home. Now, its him, his girlfriend and dog. They are much more high maintainence in a low maintenance way, which is better than thinking your low maintenance and are really high...

I just got new running shoes and they are okay. I haven't been doing much running, so maybe about 3 miles of walking a day. They seem to be holding up. I replace them every few months.

Oy, its soo hot here already with highs for the end of the week forecast for 92. Yikes.

We're having cedar planked salmon, green peas, yukon gold smashed potatoes, lettuce from our garden and grilled zukes from our garden for dinner tonight. Yum. If I can get my friend to pick me some blackberries at lunch, I see cobbler for dessert. Super yum, not that I would eat any.

I hope Pam is having a marvellous vacation.

Susan -- enjoy your business trip. I wish I had one that didn't require a stop in boston, dallas or chicago.

lala

Hi there everyone,

Was it something I said?

Starting off the day on the wrong foot. Must readjust attitude.

BBL.

lala

Hi, lala. Maybe everyone feels like I do today. I'm so tired. I think it's a new prescription I'm taking. I really don't like to take medicines, but I'm having a bad time with GERD. Oh well, I'll drink some java.

I have rehearsal tonight, not much else going on. Lots of golf this weekend and a pot luck lunch with some people from work. I may get some shopping in. Nordstrom is having their anniversary sale.

Lisa

Hi everyone! It was a busy morning here and I'm feeling good about where I'm at in terms of things on my desk.

Lala: How did your salmon turn out last night? My dinner wasn't as good as yours--I had Mrs. T's pierogies and a MSF chicken patty. I can't complain though because I ate a late dinner. I understand the frustration about the house guests--I can't imagine bringing my dog to someone else's house. Hope it goes well for you.

Lisa: I've actually been energized the past few days and have gotten things done; it's kind of weird because usually just before TOM arrives I'm sooo tired.

Hi to Susan! Hope the business trip is going well.

Pam: Hope you're having a great vacation!

We're finishing wrapping things up here and getting ready for the start of the fall semester--we go from one thing to another. Only 32 days until the kids come back. I'm looking forward to the week off and am hoping to get things done around the house as well as take some time to relax.

The WW meeting topics the past few weeks have been good about the stages of weight loss/management. Mine has been "the thrill is gone" and this past week I was in "renewed resolve" and it's paid off for me. I posted a 2# loss this week! I noticed I was getting in a rut with my eating and needed to revamp my whole outlook. Now to keep it going!

Melissa, wow! congrats on the loss. That is great. I wish I could get motivated; I'd like to lose about 3 pounds.

great loss melissa...

Lisa -- what is the GERD?

Cruddy day here. I had to close my office door to have a small breakdown. I really hate my job somedays....

That and the potato chips I ate for lunch and a snack. What gives?

Salmon was amazing. Cedar planked. Everything else was great, but it would be really nice if houseguests would consider clearing table and cleaning up instead of going downstairs to meditate.

grr..

Tonight I am going to my sick friend's house to prune and clean. I guess I should be grateful that I am healthy.

lala