Tidbits
I think
this seems like a bad idea. I have no real reason why, other than I'm not sure that companies from ANY country should control our ports.
I do not like the color purple.
I like the number 6.
Not going to lie.
This perplexes me. It's like my brain just can't comprehend it.
I have had too much caffiene today.
I enjoy the term "whoop ass".
I really like Nutella.
Lenting
Lent starts soon. Oh, what to give up?
WOW WHAT A GREAT DAY
So there's a bunch of leftover candy from Valentine's Day in my office and can I tell you? I AM EATING ALL OF IT. I'm typing in ALL CAPS BECAUSE THAT ACCURATELY REPRESENTS MY SUGAR LEVEL RIGHT NOW.
Don't touch my candy, man. It's all mine.
Too Busy to Post
Sorry folks, I may go MIA periodically. Work is hectic as hell, and come to think of it, home isn't much different.
Hopefully, tomorrow will be a calmer day. Stay tuned.
Hamstring
I didn't go to Pilates last night. I was all pumped to go on the treadmill this morning, but then thought better of it and did the bike instead. My leg still isn't feeling 100% and I'd rather not push it. I might attempt the treadmill tonight. I'm not sure what the proper balance during recovery of a minor injury.
In other news, 'ritas at Ruby Tuesdays rock!
Chant
Do NOT take my "Brokeback" boys
names in vain. I will so cut you.
Quail
Okay, okay, I know it's not funny. But the Vice President of the United States shot someone. I don't even necessarily have a problem with that. But the Vice President shot him because he thought he was a bird. I mean, it is almost hard to think that's not funny.
A bird. He thought a man was a bird. How does that happen?
V-Day
Happy stupid-holiday-that-I-don't-care-about!
I think the last time I enjoyed Valentine's Day was grade school, possibly high school, which is exactly who it's geared towards. And it's not about not having a Valentine. I wasn't one of those bitter women--I had a boyfriend for most Valentine's Days. But the holiday always seemed so obvious, so overdone, so tacky.
Ron staunchly rebuffs V-day. He feels strongly that the greeting card industry should not be able to dictate what day he says he loves me. That being said, I'm not expecting flowers or a present today. I can't be too greedy, since I have a piece of jewelry on my hand worth what most people pay for a car.
We are, however, going out to dinner tonight. Guess where? Ruby Tuesday's. Isn't that great? Just as tacky as the holiday. Plus their special Valentine's Day menu is a whopping $30 for two people. Bring on the nachos and chicken alfredo!
If you're celebrating today, I hope you have a good time. You won't have as much fun as we will, at Ruby Tuesday's. But I hope it's fun nonetheless.
Bum Leg
I've managed to pull a hamstring. It feels like the back of my thigh is in a vice grip. I must have done it in yoga Saturday morning, but I didn't start to feel it until Saturday night. Sunday morning, I thought it was just stiff so I stretched and ran a few miles. Not the brightest move. I'm still learning the difference between the good hurt and the bad hurt. I most definitely have the bad hurt now.
It's not really all that bad though. I am however giving myself a day off from the gym, which I'm SUPER excited about because it's a day off that I don't need to feel guilty about. I
have to take the day off. I am INJURED and I need to RECOVER. I'm hoping to be a-okay by tomorrow night for my pilates class. Trying my hand at the Monday night cardio kickboxing class, sadly, will have to wait another week.
In other news, my 5 pounds are back and they brought 2 of their friends with them.
Snow Day
I just trekked to the gym through about 12 inches of snow. Do you realize my dedication, people?
Anyway, I want to go sledding. When I was little, my dad would take my brother and I to a golf course to sled. I'm not sure why the golf course allowed that when it snowed, but everybody did it. Entire families went sledding there. I'm not sure how high those hills were in reality, but as a kid, they seemed huge.
I used my mom's sled from the 1950s. It was a wooden sled with iron blades, all Radio Flyer like, kind of like
this one. It was beautiful and really sturdy AND you could steer it to the right and left. Of course, the iron blades spelled trouble for anyone you crashed into. But we were careful. My brother had some crappy plastic sled, but I was in love with my old-fashioned one.
I think I did some half-hearted sledding in college on cafeteria trays, but really I haven't been sledding since I was a kid. On a day like today, I wish I had my old sled and a golf course.
I think that sled is still in my parents' garage. I wonder if they would let me have it.
Madge
I'm glad someone is talking about
Madonna. Because seriously, she's not looking good. I mean I hope I have arms like that someday (well, maybe not quite that defined), but she's beginning to look like a stroke victim. Or Ethel Merman.
Unsatisfactory Situation
My obsession with
Brokeback Mountain continues. I read the short story, "
Brokeback Mountain" by Annie Proulx. I liked it immensely, better than the movie. Or perhaps I like it as a complement to the movie, even though the story came first. Regardless, Annie Proulx's telling of the tale of Jack and Ennis has a different vibe than the movie adaptation. Her use of language is wonderful and I found myself repeating some of the dialogue in the story outloud just to hear how it would sound.
From the story, I got a better sense of the bond and the love between Jack and Ennis. The movie is fairly true to the story, although some things occur in different sequences and there are many more details filled in for the movie.
I'm not sure why, but Jack and Ennis have stayed with me.
Where'd That Go?
People, I've lost nearly 5 pounds. At least, that's what my scale said this morning. It may be totally different by now, as my weight loves to vary considerably. I know I posted recently about maybe wanting to lose a couple of pounds. Well, 6 specifically. But I haven't actually been trying to lose weight. I'm not dieting. I've even cut down the amount of cardio I'm doing daily. Where'd those 5 pounds go? I'm not all that concerned because I have a feeling that by tomorrow, they'll be back.
For those concerned, I don't look skinny, like rail-thin, bobble-head skinny. But I've never, well not since prepubescence, been skinny. I've got broad shoulders and a wide ribcage. Isn't that weird? Who has a wide ribcage? Around my upper torso measures exactly the same as my hips. Good that I'm proportioned and all, but I'm not exactly narrow. And let's not forget about my boobs. When you add all this up, not skinny. Thin, fit, but curvy. I'd have to something drastic to get to skinny bobble-head status. And let me to clear, that's not what I'm after.
In fact, as it relates to fitness, I'm all about balance. That's why I'm combining cardio with strength training with eating (relatively) healthy. Hell, I've even thrown yoga in there. I've started taking a daily multi-vitamin.
There's another reason why I'm trying to be at the best level of fitness for me. One day,
maybe, I'll have a baby. Being mentally ready for a baby is one thing--obviously you have to be there. But I've seen what being pregnant can do to a woman's body. I'm not 22 years old anymore. My body's not just going to bounce back from that. So I'm trying to be physically ready for pregnancy. I've seen some women gain 50-60 pounds when pregnant. That's just not right. The baby and all that goes along with it only weighs maybe 15 on the high end--then you're stuck with the rest of that weight after the baby is born. You're not
literally supposed to eat for two while pregnant. I'm not going to be one of those if I can help it. Which is why I think maintaining a balanced healthy lifestyle now is so important. My philosophy is that baby can't be happy if mommy is totally unhappy with herself. And if I was carrying around an extra 40 pounds you can be sure I'd be pretty fucking unhappy.
Anyway, I didn't go to the gym this morning because it was pouring, most likely am not going tonight and am definitely not going tomorrow. So it looks like two whole days off for me!
Bay Ridge
About two weeks ago, my parents moved the last of my grandmother's belongings out of the 3rd floor walk-up apartment where she lived for more than 35 years. Before that, she grew up and lived in an apartment just 5 doors down the street.
My family, at least on my mother's side, has lived in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn for generations, probably well over 100 years. My dad's family lived in Brooklyn too, but they moved there from New Hampshire to find work during the Depression. Everyone, eventually, and really starting with my grandmother's sisters, started moving out of Brooklyn. People wanted to own homes with grass and trees. My parents grew up in Brooklyn but eventually they too followed suit and moved to the suburbs. My grandmother was the sole relative left in Brooklyn and now she too has moved. Although she doesn't realize that yet.
I went to see Nana about two weeks ago and the good news is that she remembered me. Knew who I was right away. The bad news was that she thought it was 1921. When we got to the rehab center we found her at the nurses station trying to "check out" of the hotel. I find it endlessly fascinating that her mind has chosen to believe that she's on vacation. She thinks she's at a resort, and since a few weeks have now passed, she's beginning to get bored. Everyone at the center loves her, because she has such a pleasant personality and always has a smile for everyone. But she's beginning to "sundown" as they say and she gets testier at night. It's then that she wants to go home and see her cat. She asks constantly whether anyone has seen her mother, father and husband and where they might be. She's convinced that her cat is on the 25th floor of what is, in reality, a 1 story building. One day she couldn't figure out how to shut the TV in her room off before bed so she flipped it so it was face-down. Sometimes it's funny. Sometimes it's not.
My mom says that over the last week, Nana's asked to her mother and father less and less and overall seems to be more "with it". I think my mom is terrified that she might start to remember too much and ask too many questions. Really, how do you explain to someone that they're no longer fit to live on their own and are confined to a nursing home?
The people that work at the rehab facility seem really nice. The place is really clean. They label all the patients' belonging with name tags which is endearing and heartbreaking at the same time. They're trying new medication on my grandmother to see if it'll help. They sit her on the toilet every two hours in an effort to potty train her. They play bingo, have birthday parties and watch "Wheel of Fortune."
And Bay Ridge is no more.
