Heart-y congratulations to me. Not.

This morning is good news/bad news about my health and weight-loss efforts.

My pleasant little bathroom scale at home, at 5:49 am, told me, "Congratulations, el-e-e! You are whipping your butt into shape one little baby step at a time. Down a half-pound! Good on you! Now get out there and face your day. You're doing it the right way."

I like that scale. He's friendly.

Then I came to the office, where Concentra Medical Services is conducting Health Screenings today so that we can tell the insurance people that we're aware we ... have health. Or something. The screenings have nothing to do with much of anything, but we get a pre-determined dollar amount "knocked off our premium" if we fill in these numbers: height, weight, blood pressure, and cholesterol.

I should have made up numbers. The ones I got were not friendly.

I usually skate by in the cholesterol department with a 175-ish total score. Not today.

You know what? I am going to tell you my numbers. I am going to be brave.

My LDL.... 125 (should be under 100!)
My HDL.... 38 (should be at least 50, ideally greater than 60!)
My total cholesterol... 196 (under 200 is okay)
My triglycerides... 196 (should be 50 to 150!)
My BP... somewhat high today at 124/82

GOOD G*DAMN.

I'm sorry but that is the ONLY word that comes to mind. I *NEVER* have high blood pressure. In fact, doctors are usually amazed at how GOOD my BP is. What. Thehell. I am wondering how much of this is fluke-y and how much is real. Oh, who am I kidding, it's likely all real. Some of it might be genes -- my little 92-pound grandmother had cholesterol over 200, I think -- but a lot of it is BUTTER. And CHEDDAR. And WHITE BREAD and BACON.

So. Let me just say again... Damn.

Jillian Michaels, here I come.
New supportive shoes, here I come.
5:15 am, here I effing come.
Mister Quaker Oatmeal guy, here I come.
V-8 low-sodium (gag), here I come.
Pickles and water, here I come. (little joke with my Mom)
WeightWatchers vegetable soup, here I come.
Skinny latte (tall), here I come. Once in a blue moon as a much-needed treat.

Goodbye, 1 piece of chocolate after dinner. (Okay, 2.)
Goodbye, ice cream.
Goodbye, cheddar cheese.
Goodbye, sour cream (lite).
Goodbye, Squeeze Parkay convenience.
Goodbye, cookies.
Goodbye, regular pasta.
Goodbye, loaded potato soup.
Goodbye, white rice all the time because it's economical -- too bad!

Should be loads of fun. I can't wait to get down to business. <--- (sarcasm.)

Quelque fois (Sometimes)

Jess asked yesterday, "What goes through your head sometimes?"

And I thought, The House on Southwestern.

No one will understand that but my Mom and my Sis, but I'll explain for you.

When I was about 11, my parents were considering a big move from our small town in Texas to someplace larger. It might have been Dallas -- my grandparents lived there. It ended up being Florida, but in the meantime we casually drooled over walked through a couple of houses in University Park*, right near Grandmother and Granddaddy's. There was one, on Southwestern Boulevard, that I LOVED. I guess I'd never looked at an empty, brand-new house before, with any kind of idea that I might move into it. This one had a pretty staircase in the foyer -- something our house, a ranch-style, didn't have. It had a big "multi-purpose" room upstairs, and a cedar linen closet. It had a tiny backyard, but a bright kitchen with white cabinets. I remember how the light felt in that kitchen, that day. We might have walked through it twice. I think it had just been built and therefore wasn't locked, but I may be wrong about that. I don't remember any realtor taking us there.

Anyway, images of being in this house pop into my mind all the time lately, and have done so, as long as I can remember since then. Just the tiniest, fleeting thoughts, while I'm bathing the kids, or driving to work. I don't dwell on them; I just think, "Oh, the house on Southwestern," and continue doing whatever I'm doing. It's not like I am really sad that we didn't get to move there -- I'm not. It really wasn't even a significant possibility, I don't think -- we mostly looked at houses in Dallas for fun, I think. (I remember The House on Colgate, too.) But I wonder why being in that house made such an indelible impression on my mind? What about it has caused it to stay with me all these years?

*Mom, Sis, and anyone -- have you played with Google Maps lately? Check out Street View! You can actually WALK down the street that you search. I found my own house, Grandmother's old house right there in Dallas, DH parents' house...I tried to find the actual House on S'western, but didn't see one that looked familiar. Just search any address. Super fun. Not every address has a "street view" yet, but I'm sure they're working on it!

Quelque choses (Some things)

I haven't had a good blog-thought in ages. Thank goodness for the Tuesday recipes thing and for my little job thing or I'd have been a blank page for 2 weeks straight. ENTER: The Six Random Things Meme. Woo hoo! Everybody's doing it, most recently Mandy, who tagged you, me and everyone.

I am supposed to share 6 random things about myself that I have never shared before, which is funny because I've done variations of this meme about eleventy times already. Never mind... Here you are:


1. I do that thing where I twist my body around both ways to crack my spine at least once a day, if not more. I especially like it when they tell me to do this in yoga cool-down sessions, because it makes me feel like it won't actually cause arthritis. Like it may even be GOOD for me. I also crack my toes.

2. Every "month" I get one zit. Usually a prominent place on my forehead or face. It's just delightful. This week, for some other, unknown reason, I have three. GAWD. (You're welcome!)

3. I'm definitely a design snob, having been in the design/print industry this many years. My favorite fonts are sans-serif ones like Helvetica Condensed, Arial Narrow, Gil Sans Light, Tahoma. I really dislike serif fonts. Especially on blogs. (Except on yours... On yours they're pretty.)

4. We had tuna casserole for dinner last night. Mmmm. One of my favorites.

5. Yesterday at work, I was supposed to make a phone call to someone my coworkers and I would like to meet/work with. This person is sort-of a rock star in his field (at least I think of him as one -- entrepreneur, very smart, finger on the pulse, etc.). I emailed him first, then waited and waited before I placed the call... because I was hoping my manager would leave for the day and NOT HEAR ME make the call. We all share this office space and I don't know, I just didn't want him listening in.

6. I am the "stereotypical male" in our household; I often leave my nightshirt/underwear on the floor of the bathroom after I shower and get dressed. Isn't that HORRIBLE? I was reading a blog the other day wherein the wife wrote a letter to her husband saying "COULD YOU PLEASE just pick up your underwear? Is that so hard??" ...and I was mortified. Sorry, DH. I can't BELIEVE I've done this for so long. I'll try to do better.

Tuesday Trade: more from Pancho (or someone similarly named)

I have been loving Maryb's "Pancho's Chicken." I've made it twice now. Yum! Last night I gorged myself. All within my daily calorie limit, I think, but MAN, was I full afterwards. I guess I ate slowly enough to really feel the Full.

Here's my recipe for today, and it's for the crock pot. It's from this cook book, for which I refuse to type the title here on my (perfect) blog, because it is grammatically incorrect. (FEWER!!) Also, it's not a classic "throw everything in and turn it on" crock-pot recipe. You have to use the stove. I know! THE HORRIBLE STOVE! But it's not too hard.

Tamale Casserole

1 lb. lean ground beef (sorry, Sis!)
1 c. chopped onion
1 can (14.5 oz) chunky tomatoes, drained
1 can (4 oz) diced/chopped green chiles
8 (6-inch) soft corn tortillas
2 cups (8 oz) Cheddar cheese, shredded

Brown ground beef and onion. Drain. Add tomatoes and green chiles and heat through.

Tear 4 of the tortillas into bite-size pieces and place in a sprayed slow cooker. Add half of the meat mixture; then sprinkle with half the cheese. Repeat, ending with cheese. Cover and cook on LOW 2 to 2.5 hours. Makes 4 generous servings. Garnish with salsa and serve* with some sort of vegetable/salad. Seriously, you need your vegetables, people.


*I made a note in the margin: Add salt.

So, looking straight ahead

The meeting was not, as I'd feared, about my performance or about any sort of layoff. Whew. Thanks for your votes of confidence. It was about shifting my responsibilities (again) within the company, which is never really a *bad* thing, just a *different* thing. It's going to mean, in the short-term (I'm covering an additional position that Corporate won't let us fill in These Uncertain Economic Times), that I won't get to work from home anymore. Sigh. This is a bummer. Thankfully it's not a deal-breaker, since the kids are both in daycare 5 days a week already. Those 2 days at home have been a real convenience and blessing to me, allowing me to actually DO laundry or take a 15 minute vacuuming break, but they aren't critical to our family operations or bottom line. Helpful, yes. Green, yes. (Hello, company, I'll be pumping 2 more days' worth of junk into the area's smog, thanks.) Critical? I guess not. My manager says it's a temporary thing. I'm not sure I believe him on that.

I'm still ironing out a few details of how it's all going to work, and honestly, additional responsibility makes me more marketable for the next time they might call an unexpected meeting, the outcome of which might not be so good. Blah blah glass half full. We never know in this job market, and it's best to be prepared. I have mixed feelings overall, but am glad to still have a paycheck. Perhaps with this extra stuff I can more easily lobby to increase said paycheck at my next review.

Don't look down

I've been concentrating an awful lot on our floors lately, since I seem to spend a lot of time down there. It's the easiest place to go when AJ wants to play something, usually "Alien Creation Chamber," and KT wants to practice her army crawl. I pour out some soft blocks on one side of me and some alien parts on the other side, and let the kids go to work.

Safe to say I will never be like someone I know who amazes me by vacuuming every day, or at least every other day. But I would LIKE to have floors that clean, seeing as how we roll around on them so much. I just vacuumed but it won't last long.

*****WE INTERRUPT THIS BROADCAST to announce... my manager just asked me to meet with him tomorrow morning 30 minutes before our regular weekly staff meeting. He "has something he wants to discuss with me." Panic panic panic WHAT COULD IT BE?? Am I in trouble? Will I be extremely nervous and worry about this all day? Will I lose my job less than 24 hours from now? Will I be privy to some top-secret work-related information? What could take 30 minutes to discuss? Will I be given a very substantial and unexpected raise and promotion?? Tune in tomorrow... cue the foreboding and dread*****

Giving the economy a caboost

Nobody's sick at my house, whew. My DH jokingly accused me of wishing sickness upon us in that last post. Not so... I'm just feeling nervous/stressy about a lot of things and Baby catching a dread disease was one of them, yesterday.

Retail therapy helps. I found some BARGAINS at The Children's Place today, and went ahead and did my civic duty, injecting forty-one whole dollars into our economy. You're welcome. Got this cute dress:
... and this one,
both for less than $7.00 which feels extremely good to me. Also found some other small things like long-sleeve t-shirts and one shirt for AJ. (He's plenty clothed, as you know, with hand-me-downs from cousin Grant, who has impeccable taste and an eye for fashion.)

Also did $75-worth of destressing at Snapfish's gift shop. Boosted the economy AND got some Christmas gifts taken care of... double win!

The library was equally fun. I think I made a good suggestion for Book Club -- something different from our normal fare -- and I'm jazzed about libraries in general again. I've got to get AJ over there with me at some point. Maybe when we take these back -- I got him a few new picture books, too, of course. I think his class goes on a field trip there sometime during the school year, but I want him to go there with Mama and hold my hand while he discovers the treasures of so many (free) books. We have really enjoyed some new books my Mom sent this week, especially a Halloween I Spy picture book. It's given us 2 half-hour sessions of focused, fun family time, and we're only 2/3 finished with it! LOVE.

I don't have anything profound to share. I feel like I should. I also feel like I should be watching the news all the time, when I'm not wringing my hands about the news. That's why it was nice to watch Project Runway last night, and why I'd like to watch Pirates of the Caribbean this weekend (can you believe I still haven't seen all of #2, or any of #3?). Something completely unrelated to the election or the economy, and completely frivolous.

Refreshingly...

...politics free today. (Like Swistle!)

I will say this, as my only report on last night's debate: I fell asleep.

-----------

Tomorrow I'm planning to go to the library to pick up Madeleine L'Engle's The Small Rain for Book Club. I'm not buying it. Books have come off the "essential purchase" list, and even the "it's okay, books are small" justification list. Fourteen dollars is more money than it used to be, at least when it's still inside my wallet.

I am excited - I haven't been to a library in a long time.

-----------

The pediatrician's office is falling in love with us because we give them 25 dollars two, maybe three times a week these days. Just for fun! Last week it was for the privilege of sitting in their exam room for 45 minutes so the doctor could come in right before 5:00 to declare KT baby ear-infection-free. He breezed in and out of there so fast I barely saw his face. At that point she WAS still coughing and had a very runny nose -- I wanted to ask him a few questions -- but he disappeared before I could. I took him at his word and left with my fingers crossed. (I think she's getting better. I think.)

Who knew I'd be back there 4 days later for darling AJ's adventure of the week: sticking something in his ear "just to see what would happen." He saw what happened, alright. A nice metal forceps AND a warm earwash later, and I don't think he'll be sticking paper OR crumbs anywhere but his pockets from now on (he'd better not)! Poor kid screamed his little head off during the ear wash. I couldn't blame him -- when I go swimming and my ear fills with water accidentally, I jump around and shake my head and jiggle my BRAIN until that water drips back out. I HATE having water in my ears.

But he deserved it.

Today there's a sign on the Infant 2 door saying "A case of hand-foot-mouth disease has been reported in this classroom," so I'm expecting to see my darling pediatrician again real soon despite wiping KT baby down every time I get a chance. I know they'll swoon when I walk in the door. Easy money, baby.

Not saying anything one way or the other

I keep searching online, wanting to know what people thought about the VP debate. I've read a few articles, blog posts. Probably what I really want to determine, though, is what *I* thought about the debate. It was historic for me, but only because I managed to watch the entire thing and not fall asleep (for longer than 5 minutes during the Sudan/Afghanistan part). Ha. Mostly I thought it was the same old typical political schlock, with a bit of "I'll charm 'em" talk thrown in from Palin, which is her deal. I didn't think either one of them said anything we hadn't heard before, and both of them likely spoke some untruths.

I found it funny the couple of times they "agreed" on something -- the gay marriage issue, when Ifill said "Good, you agree." and the sworn-to-silence audience couldn't help laughing. And then that they "both love Israel." Heh. And I liked when Biden said "I love him," referring to McCain. I, myself, loved Palin's suit and the highlights in her hair. And I hope no one will take that as me bashing her OR being a dumb-ass who is voting for or against gender alone. Because I'm not, I'm just observing.

(Here's stating the obvious:) If we could have Tivo'd it, watched about 10 minutes, and then rewound to start over, we would have made it a drinking game. Anytime Palin said the word, "Maverick..." or mispronounced "Nu-cue-lar..."

DRINK!

(What is it with that word, by the way?!? NUCLEAR. New-Clear. How hard is it? Aaaghggh.)

Anytime Biden started his answer with the word "Look," or added a superfluous "fundamental..."

DRINK!

It could go on and on and we'd all have been completely wasted by the end.

I thought the NBC commentator got it just right, though, that both of them exceeded expectations. Palin spoke to the people, as one of the (lowly) people, and that was what she needed to do, not let herself get ruffled as she has by the bright lights and fast-talking, hard-pressing media. And I actually think Biden did well on that front, too, aligning himself with regular people who've had hardship in their lives. I thought he was well spoken and I think others have said this, HE might appeal to more people as the Presidential nominee than smooth-talker Barack. (And I'm sorry, yes, he's a GOOD speaker, but he's also Reeeeel Smmoooth. Trained in speaking is what I mean.)

Anyway, I'm pretty much your classic swing-voter according to this, and although my mom and dad will cringe to hear it, I'm still not absolutely sure whom to vote for. I'm pretty sure, but not absolutely. I'm not convinced my vote will even matter in Georgia, although this year we might have a more interesting electorate than we usually do.

I don't know. I never know about politics. Moving on.

Since it's October, we finally opened the Halloween CD my Mom brought a couple of weeks ago, and AJ's taken it to school 2 days in a row (they listen to music while eating breakfast and at the end of the day). He LOVES the songs "Ghostbusters," and "I Want Candy," which are, of course, fun for us grownups too. And he LIKES, but gets SCARED, listening to the "Spooky Sounds" portion of the CD. It has tracks like "Evening in the Dark Forest," "Midnight at a Cemetery," and "Dr. Frankenstein's Laboratory," complete with creaky door effects, hooting owls, and faraway bell-tolling. Spooooooky. He wants me to play those tracks, but then 30 seconds into them, he says, "Turn it off, Mommy! I'm scared!" Hee hee hee. I think he really LIKES getting scared like that, you know, the thrill we all have about non-threatening scary things. :)


(Someone's going to see that last sentence as a subtle reference, since everyone's referring to either Palin or Obama as "scary" in the political rhetoric going around. But it was just coincidence that I wrote about both those things today... really.)

Scent of a woman

I pulled out the remainder of my Bath and Body Works "Sensual Amber" lotion a few weeks ago, because it's a "fall" scent in my mind. And I slathered it on this morning, because boy, have my arms and elbows been dry.

So I smell nice today. Of course, KT zinged me right before we left the house, so every once in a while, I get a little whiff of eau de baby spit-up from my right shoulder.

Excellent mix.

Trader Tuesdays: Healthy Chocolate Candy Bites

My Mom and Dad showed up 2 weekends ago with a little Ziploc baggie of these awesome chocolate bites. My TOTAL DIET WEAKNESS is wanting just a bite (or 4) of something sweet after a meal. These make me feel better because they have cholesterol-lowering Cheerios, anti-oxidants-rich dark chocolate, and protein-filled walnuts! And fruit! They're like, the perfect food!


Healthy Chocolate Candy Bites

15 oz dark chocolate for baking/candy-making (NOT semi-sweet choc chips, I tried them and they're not as good. Go for Ghiardelli or something similar)

1.5 C. Cheerios

1/2 C. chopped walnuts

1 C. dried cherries


Melt chocolate over low heat, or in a double-boiler. Add other ingredients and stir to coat. Drop by small spoonfuls onto wax paper and let cool. Store in airtight container -- in the fridge works best. Can also freeze them to save for later.

Thanks, Mom! Hope you don't mind I shared!

Walk in the forest

Sundays are good days for walking, and so yesterday afternoon, we did. We gathered up nothing but ourselves -- the baby had just been fed and changed, and AJ was raring to go so I didn't even think to get sunscreen, water bottles, or any other superfluous thing that we millenial moms always pack up when we leave the house. I just grabbed my phone in case we got lost or hurt, my camera, and the stroller. We took DH's car because (AJ wanted to, for some reason, and) it's the most fuel-efficient. Since DH had spent both Saturday and Sunday mornings in line for gas before dawn, this was important. Freaking gas shortage. Crazy.

Anyway, all free-wheedlin' and sans accoutrements, we drove the 3 miles to the trail, and then we walked! Once again I was reminded: We live less than 3 miles from a National Park! How cool is that? I was thinking we'd only be out 20 minutes or so, but we ended up doing nearly the whole loop, I think - closer to an hour. Sometimes AJ ran ahead, sometimes he fell behind and shouted, "Hey guys, wait up!" He fell once and lamented that he probably wouldn't be able to play his Hulk Smash board game now, with this owwie (a tiny scrape in the middle of his palm). KT endured the roots and rocks and sand without so much as a whimper -- such a bumpy path would have made me grouchy, I think, if I'd been riding. But she's more agreeable than I. We even took a picture or two.





It was warmer than I'd hoped, but I am so, so glad we did that. There's nothing quite like the companionable "silence" of tall trees, grassy fields, and a chatty preschooler to make you feel contented.

Stream of Consciousness

KT baby may not have this year's most up-do-date baby clothes, I guess, but between hand-me-downs and gifts, she's got a lot of nice things to wear. Will soon need more shoes as it gets cool, and hadn't realized that little girls need more than 2 pairs, unlike little boys. Good news: Saw a bunch at Marshall's for cheap. Also Need: long-sleeve dresses. All I have is summer dresses. People didn't count out the months when they gave us these 9-month sizes.

Marshall's. Shopped last Tuesday in desperate attempt to put something in *my* closet that I like. Paid with cash to alleviate my poor, overused debit card. Came away with three nice tops, and have a little more I can spend. Not sure where.

I owe my neighbor some banana bread. Borrowed 1 egg from them last week, in order to make Loaf #1. Promised to bring them some, but then.... we ate it all. Heh. Went to store, got own eggs, made Loaf #2. Now should really share that. I am not really good at being "neighborly." They're always bringing us some of what they bake. I have to say, their kids are being taught very well how to share with friends. They always say, "Kelsey wanted AJ to have some brownies." So nice.

DH did a great job grocery shopping for me last week. Only bad thing is I forgot to tell him to get milk, and cheese (cheddar, mozz). How can I stretch groceries for 2 weeks without milk and cheese? Esp cheese: no lasagna, no pizza, no enchiladas, quesadillas -- all my go-to meals. Funny; I didn't realize that. Maybe I need some new go-to meals. ("Yes," says my diet.) Maybe black bean chili. Oh, fajitas don't require cheese. We've already baked and grilled chicken breasts twice this week, that always works... will continue to ponder. AJ not eating dinner again. So frustrating. Need to remember to ask his teacher if he really eats his lunch, drinks his milk, at school.

We took kids to Waffle House Monday morning for breakfast, before my parents left to go back home. I loved it. Breakfast out is such a treat. We rarely do it, but SHOULD. (We do donuts, but it's not the same as 2 eggs, grits, bacon and coffee for $4.99!) There used to be a little girl in AJ's class who had b'fast with her daddy every Wednesday, at Waffle House. I think that's really cool. Think it would be a good way to give each kid some individual time with Mommy or Daddy, maybe once a month. Too bad there's not a bagel place up here in the 'burbs, though. Too much W.H. not good for the waistline!

I am blessed with shelter, food, clothing, a little savings (not much, but a little), beautiful kids, kind, funny and handsome husband, family in all corners of the world who love us, a job... so many things. I've been reminding myself of all these, all week.

Thinking a lot about economy, though. Wonder if our kids will have the habits that older generations sometimes have, like saving/reusing things, because our grandparents grew up in Depression era, you know? Will our kids say, "We didn't have much, growing up, but we had everything we needed." Not a bad thing to have to say, really, but I wonder if they'll be aware of it -- if they'll gain "character" because of it (ha). I wonder how long it will all last?

Work's been a combo of some mindless things, and some hard things this week. I guess that's good. Am trying to be proactive and good, and not put things off. Difficult when everyone I need to talk with is out of town at annual conference.

Holy cow, are you still reading this? I don't think I could BE more boring.

We have to enjoy the gorgeous weather this weekend (sorry, MB). No sitting around inside the house all day! We should find a new park/playground. I'm kinda done with the regular one and it's always so crowded. Maybe dinner al fresco (even at our own house would be fun).

For Jess and Torsten

Love does not consist of gazing at each other, but in looking
together in the same direction.
~Antoine de Saint-Exupery

I wish you a magnificent wedding, plenty of laughter, the faith to keep going even when it's tiring, and above all, lots and lots of happiness. To Jess Loolu and her groom-to-be!

Limitations and the pity thereof

I'm chatting with my sister in Facebook right now, as I type this. Isn't chat so fun? I LURVH it. I chat on AIM/iChat, Facebook, and gChat. I remember telnet-ing back in the olden days of 1995, though, on a blue screen and all. I used it to talk with Maryb, and she talked to her future husband, so far away was he, at the Citadel. I even think the three of us chatted together sometimes. Hee hee!! MEMMMM-REES.

So my week has been an EPIC FAIL in the area of healthy eating. EPIC. I can't say that enough. EP.IC. FAIL. I ate Fairy Tale Brownies, MB's Apple Cake via my neighbors who visited an apple farm, banana bread (I had to make it so as not to waste the bananas, dontchaknow), and what else? Chips and salsa. And, oh right, we went out for Mexican last Sunday and I practically licked the cheese enchilada platter clean. I hate myself for doing that kind of crap, and sabotaging any efforts at weight loss thus far (I've gained back 2.5 pounds of the six I had lost since having KT baby), but I swear. I feel like especially in lean economic times it's so MEAN to ourselves to limit everything damn thing. Limit spending. Limit fat. Limit sugar. Limit white bread products. Limit REAL COCA-COLA. I hate it! I would like to just live normally, please. (What's that? Broccoli is normal? NOT IN MY BOOK.) It's so hard to resist the easy, yummiest foods.

And yet I have done Jillian Michaels' workout #1 twice this week, which kicks my bootie in a good way and makes me kinda want to do it again, and more. (Totally jumped on the bandwagon there, as everyone -- well, Sundry -- was talking about J.M. I'm a follower ... of good suggestions.) I guess I'm breaking even health-wise, although it doesn't feel that way. It feels like I'm not doing it well at all.

Working out makes my knees really hurt. I don't know if I'm just old and need to continue working to build up my thigh muscles to protect the knees, or if I need to buy some shoe inserts, or if I really should go see a doctor. My knees hurt when I try to run in place, for example. Jumping jacks? Fine. Running? OW.

And my FEET hurt. Holy cowsicles, when I wake up in the morning it's as if I've had them bound all night. They work themselves out after a time, but I walk like concrete at 5:45 am. I realized the other day that I'm very bad to stand on the sides of my feet, especially the right foot, instead of distributing weight evenly in the middle. That's a habit that I think started during childhood. So I've been trying to be aware of that and fix it. I've also been avoiding high heels for 2 weeks to see if that helps, but come on. LIMIT PRETTY SHOES, TOO?

A meditative (?) $115

Thoughts during a haircut & color, Sept. 16, 2008:

Ahh, the Aveda store. Love this place. Love that they do my color in a more quiet area of the salon, so I can read. READING MY BOOK NOW! WOO! When do I ever get to read my book? Never, that's when! I am going to read it the entire time they slop bleachy-smelling stuff on my head.

Wow, that really smells bleachy. Ick. I do feel sort-of like a turkey being basted. Boy, it's hard to concentrate on this book. But isn't this a nice way to spend an hour? Hope Hubby's doing okay with the 2 kids. Hope AJ's eating his dinner. Surely he is. Pizza. Surely he'll eat pizza. Hope KT baby isn't really sick. It has to be teething, right? Her scratchy little voice has been so sad! Okay, okay... back to my book.

Glad I found a color I like. Too bad I don't love the stylist, but she's alright... I do wish they'd be quiet, though -- I've read this paragraph about 4 times... "I was so horrified by the whale's deliberate charge that I could not move. Then my own name flew up from below like a spear: "Una!" Giles' voice broke my trance, and I scrambled down the rigging. No sooner did my foot touch the deck than there was such a lurch that I fell to my face. I heard and felt the boards break below the waterline, the copper sheathing nothing but decorative foil..." wait. What? "I heard and felt the boards break below the waterline, the copper sheathing nothing but decorative foil..." I wish THAT one with the dark hair was my stylist. She seems sweeter than K. And she isn't so full of herself.... Mmmm, they're talking about Cold Stone Creamery. Should I add something, participate in the conversation? Does it make me seem weird that I'd rather read? "I heard and felt the boards break below the waterline, the copper sheathing nothing but decorative foil..." Oh, that stylist's getting married in December. Then taking 2 weeks off. Lucky duck! Wish I had 2 weeks off. "...nothing but decorative foil..." This part is boring. When will she get off this boat and go back to her family??... Ooh, a Vertical Horizon song! Been ages since I heard this one...

oh, okay, here they come to rinse me. Yay, I love the rinse process. Yes, cover me up with that lovely, heavy velvet blanket, thank you! Divine. Water temp... perfect. Aveda shampoo? Smells good. Okay self, ennnjooyyy this moment alone... close your eyes, feeeeeel the soft blanke... Whoa! OW! Apprentice dude, not so ROUGH. Damn! ...You have a little more to learn, I guess! And quit talking, I'm trying to relax.... okay. Relax. I don't do this very often, and I deserrrrrrve this. Oh, yeah, massage time. I have a crick in my... OW! Dammit! That's entirely too hard. But of course I'm not going to say anything. Meek little el-e-e. I should tell him to ease up. He needs to learn. But no. I'll take it and keep quiet. Just hurry up to the warm towel wrap.... *eyebrows raised* Make that a HOT towel. Gees, ow! Okay, now go away for a minute.

Isn't it wonderful to enjoy this little tiny bit of pampering? ....We totally can't afford this pampering... shut up, self, enjoy it already; you work, you can pay for this... shouldn't be paying for this, isn't that what Clairol is for?... I definitely won't put it on the debit card. Credit. So glad we've paid some of our cards all the way off. I should cut them up. Wonder if credit will cease to exist due to this economic crisis we're in? Hmm. That could be bad.... don't want to think about that....

Time for my haircut. I guess I have to put down my book and talk to the stylist... Or, listen to HER talk.... "Mmm-hmmm." "Yeah, I totally agree..." "Oh, noooo, that's terrible..." (I care less and less about this conversation...) Okay shut up about your divorce, I GET IT. You can't afford your house now because you bought it on 2 incomes. I UNDERSTAND.... be kind, self, be a good listener... Sigh... somehow I think she's trying to get me to tip her real big because she KEEPS talking about how little money she makes. Way to be subtle, lady.... of course I never know what's the appropriate tip amount anyway... awkward! Does she remember what I tipped last time? Was it a lot, I don't remember. If so, did that set a precedent and now I have to tip her a lot every time? Hate this issue. Makes me uncomfortable.

And now this lady in front of me won't hurry up at the cash register. I'll just go over here and scope out the products some more... Did she just add a $30 tip?? She did. Well, great. I was going to tip $20. Is that too little? Does it depend on my total? I will NOT tip $30. That's too much. I appreciate your service, but it's your job. I refuse. ...No way, did I hear that right? ...$115 total? YIPES. I was only expecting about $80. Sigh. Forking over the card. "Would you like to add anything to this, ma'am?" ...."$25.00" Super.

Trader Tuesdays: Pasta with Lemon Juice

1 box pasta - bowtie or rotini work well
juice of 4 fresh lemons
about 12 oz fresh shredded Parmesan cheese
3-4 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
salt & pepper to taste
5-6 (or to taste) leaves fresh basil, torn or julienned

Grilled chicken (optional)
2-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
garlic salt
lemon pepper

******

Cook pasta as directed on box. While pasta cooks, make sauce in the bottom of a large serving bowl: juice lemons, add 8 oz. cheese, olive oil, salt and pepper, and stir with a whisk. (Save some cheese for garnish.) If using chicken, grill it while pasta cooks (we use the George Foreman grill).

Drain pasta and fold into the sauce. (Add chicken, sliced up pretty.) Garnish with extra cheese and basil leaves.

Supper is served!


This is one of my go-to recipes, and it's satisfying with or without the chicken. I've substituted the heck out of it over the years, too -- don't have shredded cheese? Grated (from the can) is fine. Don't have fresh lemons? You can get by with Real Lemon. Out of fresh basil? Dried will work (but not as yummy).

Bribery, Hairdressery

Sunday School was great, if a little messy. And by that I don't necessarily mean the sandbox of buried Treasures of the Earth; I mean the poor little girl who couldn't stop crying, whose Daddy had to stay with her the whole time. They sat in the back and tried not to be distracting for the rest of the class. By the veeeeery end, she came up front with everyone and was smiling and talking about what stuffed animal she'd bring next week, for the "God Gives us Plants and Animals" chapter. Poor thing. I really sympathized with that Dad.

I'm enjoying the "teacher" aspect of this project. It reminds me of being a kid, playing school. No kidding! I have some techniques I need to improve, like saying, "Guys! Guys!" instead of a more polite, "Boys and Girls." I have to watch myself from looking at the other teacher when one kid -- 5-year-olds, you understand -- stands up to ramble about something completely off-topic and/or weird; my gut reaction is a knowing smile and raised eyebrows, as if to say, "Are you believing this?!" That's probably not protocol. But it's pretty fun to stand up in front like I know something. To call on the kids when it's their turn. It's easy to get 5yos to like you, but... I think they like us/me. And that feels good.

AJ did well in his class, too. I peeked in on him toward the end of the hour, and his teacher was showing them the Sign of the Cross. Their lesson was "Our Hands." So cute. Our hand are for eating. Playing. Clapping. Praying. (Hmmmm. Perhaps we need to be doing a little more praying with OUR students, heh, whoops.) Anyway, he said he'll totally go again, especially if I buy him another prize of a Ben 10 alien action figure. Yes, "another." I bribed him.

Here's one other thing I did this weekend, and I'm sorry in advance for the puddle of "awwww" you're about to become, and also for bragging about how cute my kid is, but believe me. Introducing.... barrettes:


After one time, I couldn't stop. I put one in her hair for Saturday Mass. For sitting around our house Sunday afternoon. For dinner last night. I chose yellow this morning and I'm nearly certain it will be missing after a day in the Infant 2 room, but truly: HOW COULD I NOT??

And then I'll draw on the chalkboard for 47 minutes

This Sunday, we'll be learning about Land, Water, Earth and Sky in the St. Joseph's Kindergarten classroom. I'm excited because I think it's going to be a fun-filled hour. Now that we're getting to know the kidlets, and they us, there's less fumbling around and we can do more actual learning. Thankfully, we also have great BOOKS to spoon-feed us ideas, since we are volunteers, after all, and not trained in education. However, I think I have some decent ideas for my portion of the lesson:

- Our weekly read-aloud story (which I read ahead of time!) has the word "rain" about seventeen times, so I'm going to have the kids make a "rain" sign/motion every time they hear it. I wanted to bring a rain stick, too, but alas, I don't have one. Also, I hate rain sticks.

- OBVS we're going to be singing You Are My Sunshine and Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. Anyone know a good "Moon" song? .... me, either. I'm also predicting that songs are going to be my default activity. Get used to it, kids. ;)

- We're doing a "buried treasure" thing for the land/earth portion. A plastic bin, a bag of sand, and "treasures" of rocks, sticks, and shells. Heh Heh. "Here, kids! Have some yard detritus!" I think they're going to go bananas over it. I'll be toting my dustbuster.

Oh, and P.S., I'll also be toting my kid. He promised me that he'd try Sunday School one more time, after flat refusing to attend last weekend. It's going to somewhat tick me off if he decides he doesn't like it. But since the diocese doesn't require it for his age, I'm not requiring it, either. If he doesn't like it after this week, I'll let it go. Too bad I signed up to do this for together-time, church-focused, WITH HIM. Sigh. Oh well. I am sure I'm benefiting, anyway.

At Least this Fresca is Yummy (Black Cherry)

I am in a bit of a work-induced MOOD today, so how about a bulleted list of items of intrigue? HOW 'BOUT.

1. Does anyone actually BUY the pizza-flavored Goldfish? I ask rhetorically but also, seriously... do you buy them? ...would I like them? I'm kind-of embarrassed to admit that I'm curious. Of course I've already tried the pretzel ones, and they are beyond dry. They're so dry, "I'd have to pry myself to SPIT." (hattip: Texas, the musical).

2. JUST when I feel like I'm all synced up, work is clicking, I have just the right number of extra-curricular activities that I feel fulfilled but not busy, and calm enough that I start contemplating Having People Over for Dinner -- not planning, just thinking, "Hey, we're in a good rhythm, I bet we could manage it one weekend soon..." BLAM. That freelance project I thought was dead in the water resurfaces, the Archdiocesan Choir sends out next season's rehearsal schedule (do I want to participate or don't I?), and I see Halloween candy in the front of Publix. HALLOWEEN, Y'ALL. We have to start preparing for THAT again.

3. Project Runway is definitely a good show. Even when it's pretty pathetic, LIKE THIS SEASON, it's still good. But last night was just pure schlock. Bringing back the Auf'd contestants? LAME. The badly lit planetarium where we, the viewers, couldn't even SEE the garments? LAME-O. Terry's and Keith's cat-fighting? SO LAME. I'll tell you, she has had some great confessional one-liners, but last night I couldn't believe her attitude. Grow up, girl. Ditto Kenely.

Well, this has quickly devolved into a bitch-fest of my own. I thought doing yoga a little while ago had cleared my whine, but apparently not.