ready to be totally jealous?
Agenda:
1) Get out of work early tomorrow, after eating FREE pizza at work for lunch. (The sad part about this is Charli, one of our two accounts, and one of the two people I work most closely with, is leaving after tomorrow. She had a bebe, which she's going home to take care of, among other things, like school. Happy for her, sad for me!)
2) Go get my hair cut -- FO FREE! -- after work. (This is all Nate's doing. He helped a stylist from the salon, Seven, which is next door to Express while he was working today. So she gave him two free cut coupons. Sweet deal!)
3) Have to whole weekend with my booboo! Which includes: going to an awesome New Year's Eve Masquerade party at a club within walking distance of the apartment, for only a $15 cover.
The only downside to this is I can't be at the Yahtzee EXTRAVAGANZA of a wedding in Florida on New Year's Day. I was weepy about this, but I (partially) made the decision to spend money on other things (mostly -- gifts for Christmas and food,) so I cannot be too upset. I really wanted to go, but it isn't like I'm never going to see them again, and a plane ticket any other time of year is way less expensive. I just have to keep telling myself these things. Le sigh.
-C
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
i wanna see what it feels like
I knew I forgot something when I was going through my stocking from Nate! He also got me this adorable hat:
Took this photo on the way to work, when I wore my new hat, because it's nearly freezing outside and my ears get cold. Plus...it's just awesome. (As is my giraffe phone cover, and my two-tone hobo gloves from Target. Whee!)
-C
Took this photo on the way to work, when I wore my new hat, because it's nearly freezing outside and my ears get cold. Plus...it's just awesome. (As is my giraffe phone cover, and my two-tone hobo gloves from Target. Whee!)
-C
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
a night to get away
I abhor coming up with titles for blog posts, so they are usually song lyrics. Song lyrics that may or may not have anything to do with the post. Or the song I'm listening to at the moment. Or...anything at all? So just bear with me.
I'm making a New Year's pact (not a resolution...I never follow, let alone remember my resolutions) to write more often. I have such a horrible memory for things, especially every day things, and I feel like keeping a log of events will help me remember. I wish I had done moreso when I was younger. I'm envious of my friends who remember specific moments in high school, because I remember very few. I get a general, overall feeling when I think of high school. Or anything that happened before last week. It's frustrating, and I'd like to actually remember my life in more than just passing blurs and colors. It's why I keep old journals and diaries for as long as I do. I need a chronicle...something outlining what I did. Because I just don't remember.
In any case, the end of the year is fast approaching, so I've been trying to decide how I want next year to go. About things I want to accomplish, and how I want to change how I've been living. Here's what I've come up with:
1. Stop being lazy.
I've had issues with being lazy my entire life. I don't like to work at things, because a lot of things have just happened for me. Or come easily, without much effort. So I'm lazy. I need to stop it. Seriously.
2. Learn to cook better.
Nate loves my cooking, which is good. Also bad, because it means I don't really experiment with flavors or new foods. I stay with what works: pasta, cheese, meat. Usually accompanying or included vegetable. Time for some new recipes. Ones that don't involve copious amounts of cheese. Or pasta. Though I do love both cheese and pasta. Mmmmm. Which brings me to my next point...
3. Eat better.
Get a steamer and fresh veggies. Quit only making dinners that are ready in as little time as possible. Quit buying snacks that are all carbs and sugar. Put less crap in my coffee (ie put only enough crap to make it palatable to drink.) I'm also contemplating a low-carb (or at least less carb) diet. Not gluten free, but more rice. More quinoa (something I've never cooked, I feel so fancy!) More wheat pasta, even though it doesn't taste as good as the regular kind. Less rolls, white bread, white potatoes (more sweet potatoes?) More squash, cauliflower and spinach. Noms.
4. Equal amounts computer and real life.
I mostly mean this in terms of being a real, active person and participating in life. It's hard when you feel super sleep deprived, and I am not going to resolve to give up Facebook games because, let's face it, it isn't going to happen. But if I sit on my ass for 4 of the 6 hours Nate is at work, playing on the computer and watching TV, I will get up after those four hours and at least play Wii Fit games for an hour. Even better, if it isn't raining, I will go outside...to the library or something. Or to Pike Place Market. Or I will go visit Jess, who now probably lives as close to me as she did when we were little kids, in Tallahassee. Or something. Anything. I will get off the couch. Really.
5. Don't give into temptation.
There is no reason to bring cookies, a little debbie Christmas Tree snack AND those two mini Reese for dessert. Just like there is no reason to bring them to work for lunch. Or to eat three helpings of dinner before my stomach realizes it's full because it tastes SO good. They will all still be there tomorrow. Spread the love.
6. Keep in touch with friends/family.
This is going to be hard for me, because (newsflash) I hate the phone. I hate calling people. I feel awkward talking on the phone, even to my family. So friends isn't any better. But I'm going to call people. And talk to them. And I will email! And not just rely on facebook and text messages as my means of communication with people I love. So there.
7. Let go.
I remember being fearless, at some points in my life. Now I've gone back to being scared, whiny, unsure and listless. I'm contemplating the effect the wintertime and lack of sunshine here in Seattle is having on my psyche, and contemplating buying a sunlamp/sunrise alarm clock. Because sunshine is a good thing, and there aren't many days of it here. And there probably won't be until at least April. I must take matters into my own hands.
In other news, I want a kitty. Or a puppy. Something small and soft and furry and ADORABLE. Want.
That's all.
-C
I'm making a New Year's pact (not a resolution...I never follow, let alone remember my resolutions) to write more often. I have such a horrible memory for things, especially every day things, and I feel like keeping a log of events will help me remember. I wish I had done moreso when I was younger. I'm envious of my friends who remember specific moments in high school, because I remember very few. I get a general, overall feeling when I think of high school. Or anything that happened before last week. It's frustrating, and I'd like to actually remember my life in more than just passing blurs and colors. It's why I keep old journals and diaries for as long as I do. I need a chronicle...something outlining what I did. Because I just don't remember.
In any case, the end of the year is fast approaching, so I've been trying to decide how I want next year to go. About things I want to accomplish, and how I want to change how I've been living. Here's what I've come up with:
1. Stop being lazy.
I've had issues with being lazy my entire life. I don't like to work at things, because a lot of things have just happened for me. Or come easily, without much effort. So I'm lazy. I need to stop it. Seriously.
2. Learn to cook better.
Nate loves my cooking, which is good. Also bad, because it means I don't really experiment with flavors or new foods. I stay with what works: pasta, cheese, meat. Usually accompanying or included vegetable. Time for some new recipes. Ones that don't involve copious amounts of cheese. Or pasta. Though I do love both cheese and pasta. Mmmmm. Which brings me to my next point...
3. Eat better.
Get a steamer and fresh veggies. Quit only making dinners that are ready in as little time as possible. Quit buying snacks that are all carbs and sugar. Put less crap in my coffee (ie put only enough crap to make it palatable to drink.) I'm also contemplating a low-carb (or at least less carb) diet. Not gluten free, but more rice. More quinoa (something I've never cooked, I feel so fancy!) More wheat pasta, even though it doesn't taste as good as the regular kind. Less rolls, white bread, white potatoes (more sweet potatoes?) More squash, cauliflower and spinach. Noms.
4. Equal amounts computer and real life.
I mostly mean this in terms of being a real, active person and participating in life. It's hard when you feel super sleep deprived, and I am not going to resolve to give up Facebook games because, let's face it, it isn't going to happen. But if I sit on my ass for 4 of the 6 hours Nate is at work, playing on the computer and watching TV, I will get up after those four hours and at least play Wii Fit games for an hour. Even better, if it isn't raining, I will go outside...to the library or something. Or to Pike Place Market. Or I will go visit Jess, who now probably lives as close to me as she did when we were little kids, in Tallahassee. Or something. Anything. I will get off the couch. Really.
5. Don't give into temptation.
There is no reason to bring cookies, a little debbie Christmas Tree snack AND those two mini Reese for dessert. Just like there is no reason to bring them to work for lunch. Or to eat three helpings of dinner before my stomach realizes it's full because it tastes SO good. They will all still be there tomorrow. Spread the love.
6. Keep in touch with friends/family.
This is going to be hard for me, because (newsflash) I hate the phone. I hate calling people. I feel awkward talking on the phone, even to my family. So friends isn't any better. But I'm going to call people. And talk to them. And I will email! And not just rely on facebook and text messages as my means of communication with people I love. So there.
7. Let go.
I remember being fearless, at some points in my life. Now I've gone back to being scared, whiny, unsure and listless. I'm contemplating the effect the wintertime and lack of sunshine here in Seattle is having on my psyche, and contemplating buying a sunlamp/sunrise alarm clock. Because sunshine is a good thing, and there aren't many days of it here. And there probably won't be until at least April. I must take matters into my own hands.
In other news, I want a kitty. Or a puppy. Something small and soft and furry and ADORABLE. Want.
That's all.
-C
Monday, December 27, 2010
We're One in the Same
So Christmas has come and gone. I managed to get a list to my family early enough that I actually got things I wanted (!) this year, and not just some random things or money. It was kind of exciting, and I think I will try to continue making a list earlier than the week before Christmas.
I got:
-Handheld Sewing Machine (in Yellow) from Sister
-Fujifilm Instax 7s Camera from Dad & Grandma
-Kyocera Mandolin w/ Ceramic Blade from Dad's Girlfriend (she also got me Bean Soup Mix from the Women's Project)
-Lalicious Sugar Kiss Body Butter & Scrub from Grandma
-Purple Flannel Botas (Toms) from Mom
-ModCloth Giftcard from Aunt & Uncle (Dad's Side)
-Amazon/Target Giftcards from Aunt (Mom's Side) as well as candy(!) and a snowflake wine-bottle stopper
-Nabaztag Rabbit from Dad (I think this is what he's getting me...it hasn't arrived yet.) He also sent us a Wine Country Gift Basket. Noms.
-Cranberry Colored Bathrobe from Nate's Parents
And from the boy, I got the following items in my stocking (we only did stockings -- but we had a pretty high cap:)
-Lavender Sachet (for the closet...eventually for the dresser, if we ever get one =P)
-Lavender Incense
-Chai Tea (Black)
-Aquolina Pink Sugar Gift Set (Perfume Spray, Lotion & Shower Gel)
-Black/White/Sparkly Circle Scarf (from Express)
-Brown Knit Hat with BEAR ears. (I'm a two year old, it's ok.)
-Dino Sandwich Box (for packing my sandwiches for lunch in)
-Andes Mints & Ferrero Roche
And this:
It's Helenite, created from the last eruption of Mount St. Helens in the 80s. I love it. It feels so Elven.
Nate's Parents also got us stockings, mainly because they were sending us our stockings, and his mother couldn't resist filling them. Mine included: Pure Linen Candle (whee!), 500 Piece Puzzle, Chicken Soup for the Woman's Soul, Dunkin Donuts French Vanilla Ground Coffee (yum!) and probably something else that I'm forgetting. Because I am forgetful.
All in all, it was an excellent Christmas. Nate had to work both Christmas Eve and the 26th, but we slept in on the 25th, opened presents, had some breakfast, watched TV, saw Harry Potter, and were just all around relaxed all day. Sunday, after he got off from work, we went to Target and did some shopping. We got Nate Cholula (I was going to put it in his stocking, but it was raining Christmas Eve and I am a lazy bum, so we just bought it at Target. It's also ok, because he was going to get me these:
but didn't have time, so we bought those at Target, too. They were on sale for, like, 80 cents! I love the holidays.)
Today it's back to work. Almost everyone who still has vacation time is off, so the office is really quiet. We have Friday as a holiday, but I'm hoping it will snow, like they keep threatening, on Wednesday evening, so that maybe we can have Thursday off, too.
Keep your fingers crossed!
Here's to a restful and Happy New Year =)
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
tonight i'm not takin' no calls...
h-o-leeeeeeee moocows, batman. i have spent the past week or so at work:
-signing 400+ company christmas cards for FOUR people who were not in the office to sign them
-putting address, return address and stamps on 400+ envelopes for said company cards
-stuffing 400+ company cards into 400+ labeled and stamped envelopes
-sealing 400+ company cards
-mailing 400+ company cards
OMG. so many cards. it took me two days of basically nonstop signing to get all the signatures on the cards, because my hand kept cramping up. i haven't written like that since we had to handwrite essays in high school. in cursive. uphill and backwards? no...that doesn't make sense.
aside from that, Nate and I did some shopping this weekend, and now we have a SPECTACULAR memory foam mattress topper for our crappy, back-hurting mattress...which really just makes me never want to get out of bed ever again. this means I've been slightly later than normal to work this week...but it's also a lazy, 3-day week, so I'm not too worried about it. most of the office is out, some of them for the rest of the year (since this week is short and next week is short.)
We got our printer from Nate's parents, so I've been looking online for easy holiday decoration ideas, since we have both photo and regular paper (both at home and at work) for me to craft with. I was thinking of making some heart garland out of some of our photos of the trip, to hang over our bed until we get some kind of frame/headboard going on (but seriously, who knows when that will be,) but I will probably not do it until this weekend, after I have finished my stocking stuffer shopping for Nate (we're only doing "stockings," no big gifts, so no big wrapping projects,) while he's at work, so it be a sort-of surprise. i do, however need some brads -- or some way to attach the string (which I also need) to the pictures once I print them out, besides the scotch tape we have. This requires finding a craft shop near the apartment, which may or may not be an easy task.
In any case, our stockings are hung, and I bought a small (fake) Christmas tree and some silver and white star ornaments from Borders, because everything was 50% off, plus a Christmas-tree smelling candle, so the house is looking more and more festive! We were contemplating working serving Christmas dinner on Christmas day, but we'll probably just hang out at the house, or take my co-worker up on her offer to hang out at her house with her, husband, baby and some extended family to play Kinect and eat entirely too much.
I've been getting really into decorating the apartment (besides for Christmas,) which, as I was telling Nate, I think is because this is the first place we've lived together that we chose together. Our apartment in MA, he chose and moved into about the time we started dating, so I didn't move into it until about three months after. It was mostly his furniture and his housewares, with the things which were important to me (from my first apartment in Boston,) mixed in. The second place we lived was with his parents, so no decorating there, and the third place we lived was in our car. It's nice to have a place that is a fresh start, for both of us, so we can decide on furniture, both pieces and arrangements, and decor together. We found this awesome bar table and chair set at Bed, Bath and Beyond when we were there looking for our mattress topper (which was our big Christmas gift to ourselves,) which will fit perfectly in the little hallway space next to the kitchen, for less than the one we were looking at on Target.com. Plus we have a 20% off coupon, so that will be the next big furniture purchase. And then we can put up pictures and artwork, and it will be like we actually live somewhere, and aren't just vagabonds. Terribly exciting!
-C
-signing 400+ company christmas cards for FOUR people who were not in the office to sign them
-putting address, return address and stamps on 400+ envelopes for said company cards
-stuffing 400+ company cards into 400+ labeled and stamped envelopes
-sealing 400+ company cards
-mailing 400+ company cards
OMG. so many cards. it took me two days of basically nonstop signing to get all the signatures on the cards, because my hand kept cramping up. i haven't written like that since we had to handwrite essays in high school. in cursive. uphill and backwards? no...that doesn't make sense.
aside from that, Nate and I did some shopping this weekend, and now we have a SPECTACULAR memory foam mattress topper for our crappy, back-hurting mattress...which really just makes me never want to get out of bed ever again. this means I've been slightly later than normal to work this week...but it's also a lazy, 3-day week, so I'm not too worried about it. most of the office is out, some of them for the rest of the year (since this week is short and next week is short.)
We got our printer from Nate's parents, so I've been looking online for easy holiday decoration ideas, since we have both photo and regular paper (both at home and at work) for me to craft with. I was thinking of making some heart garland out of some of our photos of the trip, to hang over our bed until we get some kind of frame/headboard going on (but seriously, who knows when that will be,) but I will probably not do it until this weekend, after I have finished my stocking stuffer shopping for Nate (we're only doing "stockings," no big gifts, so no big wrapping projects,) while he's at work, so it be a sort-of surprise. i do, however need some brads -- or some way to attach the string (which I also need) to the pictures once I print them out, besides the scotch tape we have. This requires finding a craft shop near the apartment, which may or may not be an easy task.
In any case, our stockings are hung, and I bought a small (fake) Christmas tree and some silver and white star ornaments from Borders, because everything was 50% off, plus a Christmas-tree smelling candle, so the house is looking more and more festive! We were contemplating working serving Christmas dinner on Christmas day, but we'll probably just hang out at the house, or take my co-worker up on her offer to hang out at her house with her, husband, baby and some extended family to play Kinect and eat entirely too much.
I've been getting really into decorating the apartment (besides for Christmas,) which, as I was telling Nate, I think is because this is the first place we've lived together that we chose together. Our apartment in MA, he chose and moved into about the time we started dating, so I didn't move into it until about three months after. It was mostly his furniture and his housewares, with the things which were important to me (from my first apartment in Boston,) mixed in. The second place we lived was with his parents, so no decorating there, and the third place we lived was in our car. It's nice to have a place that is a fresh start, for both of us, so we can decide on furniture, both pieces and arrangements, and decor together. We found this awesome bar table and chair set at Bed, Bath and Beyond when we were there looking for our mattress topper (which was our big Christmas gift to ourselves,) which will fit perfectly in the little hallway space next to the kitchen, for less than the one we were looking at on Target.com. Plus we have a 20% off coupon, so that will be the next big furniture purchase. And then we can put up pictures and artwork, and it will be like we actually live somewhere, and aren't just vagabonds. Terribly exciting!
-C
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
i want you on my team
So, I realized that it's hard to measure out real food when you don't have the correct tools.
I'm sure I busted my calorie intake yesterday for dinner, but we also spent an hour afterward moving the rest of our stuff from our old apartment. We're officially moved out. Nate keeps talking about "moving back" to the other apartment when they're done fixing the windows, but I am really against that proposition. I hate moving. And it's already going to feel like too soon to move if we decide to find a new building at the end of our lease at the current one.
Today is going well, so far. I had a toaster strudel for breakfast. They're only 180 calories (with the icing,) and we bought a bunch of boxes at Target last weekend because they were on super-sale (four boxes/ie: 16 strudels for $6.) I know they aren't terribly healthy, but I'm so bad about eating breakfast that I figure eating something to get my metabolism started in the morning (besides my coffee) is better than nothing at all. My morning routine is entirely too hurried for cooking of any sort, and the breakfast "burritos" I see are either not very appetizing looking, horribly full of salt or tiny and expensive. I supposed I could make them the night before, but re-heated eggs are never very appetizing.
I actually measured the sugar/creamer for my coffe this morning. It's a little more bitter than I'm used to so far, but I'm planning on weaning my tastesbuds off the ice cream taste by the end of the week, so I have to start somewhere. Totally drinkable, though more bitter when paired with delicious toaster strudel.
Mostly everyone is out of the office this week at a show in Atlanta, so it's been quiet. With Payroll in and the MS Report basically done, there's not too much to do. So, I plan what to eat. Dinner tonight will be chicken breast, probably with Garlic Butter (read: Margarine) Brussel Sprouts with Cooked Onions. But I'm out of Light Ranch, so I'll have to find something else to marinade the chicken in. I need to go back to buying Catalina dressing, it's soooo tasty. Noms.
Anywho, veggie, meat and either pasta, rice or potato. It's always a great debate: I am a pasta-holic, but sometimes you need a change of pace. I love potatoes, too, but I usually don't feel like washing them off and chopping them up to either roast or mash. And I always feel like rice is going to take too long, and then act surprised when it's done the same time as everything else. It's kind of silly. I think it'll probably be a rice night, but we'll see by the time I get home, if I still feel like it.
I had all these plans for decorating the old apartment, but the new apartment layout is completely different, so some of those plans have gone out the window. Most of it was just curtains, but I'm glad we didn't buy curtains for the other apartment, because there are more windows in the new one, and they are a different size. Smaller, so we might be able to get away with one curtain on each window, instead of definitely needing two. This is mostly for the bedroom, where they will be to block out light, and less for the living room, where I'd like two sheer(er) panels on each window. But sheer costs less than big, thick and heavy, so I think this will be good.
I think it's time to be done with the coffee and move on to water. It's a wonder my lips aren't more chapped, considering I sit here drinking my caffeinated beverage with my space heater on full blast. I'm just glad I'm not on the East Coast right now, where the tempatures are frigid and everyone's heaters seem to be malfunctioning. Including my mother's.
It's nice outside for the time being. It was raining when I had to walk to work, and it will probably be raining when I have to walk home. Just my luck.
I'm sure I busted my calorie intake yesterday for dinner, but we also spent an hour afterward moving the rest of our stuff from our old apartment. We're officially moved out. Nate keeps talking about "moving back" to the other apartment when they're done fixing the windows, but I am really against that proposition. I hate moving. And it's already going to feel like too soon to move if we decide to find a new building at the end of our lease at the current one.
Today is going well, so far. I had a toaster strudel for breakfast. They're only 180 calories (with the icing,) and we bought a bunch of boxes at Target last weekend because they were on super-sale (four boxes/ie: 16 strudels for $6.) I know they aren't terribly healthy, but I'm so bad about eating breakfast that I figure eating something to get my metabolism started in the morning (besides my coffee) is better than nothing at all. My morning routine is entirely too hurried for cooking of any sort, and the breakfast "burritos" I see are either not very appetizing looking, horribly full of salt or tiny and expensive. I supposed I could make them the night before, but re-heated eggs are never very appetizing.
I actually measured the sugar/creamer for my coffe this morning. It's a little more bitter than I'm used to so far, but I'm planning on weaning my tastesbuds off the ice cream taste by the end of the week, so I have to start somewhere. Totally drinkable, though more bitter when paired with delicious toaster strudel.
Mostly everyone is out of the office this week at a show in Atlanta, so it's been quiet. With Payroll in and the MS Report basically done, there's not too much to do. So, I plan what to eat. Dinner tonight will be chicken breast, probably with Garlic Butter (read: Margarine) Brussel Sprouts with Cooked Onions. But I'm out of Light Ranch, so I'll have to find something else to marinade the chicken in. I need to go back to buying Catalina dressing, it's soooo tasty. Noms.
Anywho, veggie, meat and either pasta, rice or potato. It's always a great debate: I am a pasta-holic, but sometimes you need a change of pace. I love potatoes, too, but I usually don't feel like washing them off and chopping them up to either roast or mash. And I always feel like rice is going to take too long, and then act surprised when it's done the same time as everything else. It's kind of silly. I think it'll probably be a rice night, but we'll see by the time I get home, if I still feel like it.
I had all these plans for decorating the old apartment, but the new apartment layout is completely different, so some of those plans have gone out the window. Most of it was just curtains, but I'm glad we didn't buy curtains for the other apartment, because there are more windows in the new one, and they are a different size. Smaller, so we might be able to get away with one curtain on each window, instead of definitely needing two. This is mostly for the bedroom, where they will be to block out light, and less for the living room, where I'd like two sheer(er) panels on each window. But sheer costs less than big, thick and heavy, so I think this will be good.
I think it's time to be done with the coffee and move on to water. It's a wonder my lips aren't more chapped, considering I sit here drinking my caffeinated beverage with my space heater on full blast. I'm just glad I'm not on the East Coast right now, where the tempatures are frigid and everyone's heaters seem to be malfunctioning. Including my mother's.
It's nice outside for the time being. It was raining when I had to walk to work, and it will probably be raining when I have to walk home. Just my luck.
Monday, December 13, 2010
when i was younger i would say...
Other things I forgot in this morning's post:
1) i need to drink more water. in general. less coffe/juice/soda...more water. unfortunately, the water at home tastes gross (and i am not one to judge tap water,) so hopefully we'll be able to get a filter for the tap soon. we have a filtered water machine at work, and it is delish =)
2) all of these facts will make me hungry for the next week or so (and consequently, angry.) so...hangry.
i slowly gained weight between junior year of college and the beginning of this year.
-graduated high school at 120
-stayed that weight first two years of college
-gained 10lbs while working at a breakfast restaurant (and battling depression, which i was in denial of at the time)
-basically lost those 10lbs taking swimming as a class for the last couple semesters of college. kept them off for the remainder of college until I moved to Boston
-survived winter in Boston, but gained back about 10lbs.
-hung out around 130lbs until the next Winter
-gained another 10lbs during the Winter
-freaked out at the beginning of 2010 and started doing Wii Fit
-stopped doing Wii Fit b/c we were selling everything so we could drive across the country and move to Hawaii
-somewhere between then and the end of April gained another 10lbs.
-freaked out while staying at Nate's parents, started counting calories and exercising regularly by walking or playing Badminton
-managed to lose 10lbs between then and getting to Seattle. partially this was the calorie counting in the beginning and partially I think this was basically not allowing ourselves to snack constantly while we were in the car. oh yeah, and the massive amounts of dehydration that happened in the desert in the summer with no AC. I'm pretty sure I sweat off a lot of it.
Here I am today: 140lbs. I was sick for about a week and a half, during which time I dropped about 5lbs, simply because I wasn't eating. I gained it all right back, though, when I started eating. So I'm back at 140lbs. The scale likes it there. Imma neeeeeed to convince it otherwise.
The end!
1) i need to drink more water. in general. less coffe/juice/soda...more water. unfortunately, the water at home tastes gross (and i am not one to judge tap water,) so hopefully we'll be able to get a filter for the tap soon. we have a filtered water machine at work, and it is delish =)
2) all of these facts will make me hungry for the next week or so (and consequently, angry.) so...hangry.
i slowly gained weight between junior year of college and the beginning of this year.
-graduated high school at 120
-stayed that weight first two years of college
-gained 10lbs while working at a breakfast restaurant (and battling depression, which i was in denial of at the time)
-basically lost those 10lbs taking swimming as a class for the last couple semesters of college. kept them off for the remainder of college until I moved to Boston
-survived winter in Boston, but gained back about 10lbs.
-hung out around 130lbs until the next Winter
-gained another 10lbs during the Winter
-freaked out at the beginning of 2010 and started doing Wii Fit
-stopped doing Wii Fit b/c we were selling everything so we could drive across the country and move to Hawaii
-somewhere between then and the end of April gained another 10lbs.
-freaked out while staying at Nate's parents, started counting calories and exercising regularly by walking or playing Badminton
-managed to lose 10lbs between then and getting to Seattle. partially this was the calorie counting in the beginning and partially I think this was basically not allowing ourselves to snack constantly while we were in the car. oh yeah, and the massive amounts of dehydration that happened in the desert in the summer with no AC. I'm pretty sure I sweat off a lot of it.
Here I am today: 140lbs. I was sick for about a week and a half, during which time I dropped about 5lbs, simply because I wasn't eating. I gained it all right back, though, when I started eating. So I'm back at 140lbs. The scale likes it there. Imma neeeeeed to convince it otherwise.
The end!
i'm into something good
So this is it.
Old attitude out, new attitude in.
I feel like I am resting. On my laurels. More like on my butt. I took a five month hiatus from working (save making targets for my father -- not real work, mostly watching TV while waiting for spray adhesive to dry) and took a road trip. We went from Boston, to Florida, to Louisiana, to Minnesota, to Colorado, to Southern California, to Seattle (see --> http://www.adventuresunday.com/.) I spent a lot of time sitting and thinking in the car. Or sitting and singing. Or sitting and wishing the air conditioning worked.
Now that we're settled in Seattle, I find myself complaining, more often than not. Inside my head, but complaining, none the less. Every little thing annoys me: Getting up in the morning. Not having money to spend on the things I want. Not having a larger work wardrobe (completely my own fault, by the way. To be fair, I've never had a job that required business-wear, so I've ignored that part of the clothing world for as long as possible.) The ten-straight days of rain on the Weather forecast (it's, of course, currently sunny and beautiful outside.)
Really, I have very little to complain about. I have this awesome job, where the recruiter contacted ME to come in for an interview. I love the people I work with. Our apartment is in a prime location, and it takes me less than twenty minutes to walk to work (and the only reason it takes that long is the HUGE hill that our building sits on top of makes it hard to walk quickly up or down for first/last five minutes.) We are not completely broke. We can afford food, rent and some extra things to make our life comfortable.
And the one thing I do have to complain about, our landlord is fixing, and making it as difficult as possible to actually have any complaints. We discovered, after the last couple weeks of constant rain and snow and general dampness, the five windows in our little corner apartment are completely covered in black mold. Like, they're fuzzy, and the one in the kitchen even has mold gel growing near the lock in the middle. Ewwwww. Luckily, there's an apartment on the third floor in our building that was recently vacated. It's larger, but our rent will stay the same for as long as we want to live in that apartment. The hardest thing we had to do was move all of our stuff down two floors and call the cable rep to come switch where our cable is coming to. Our landlord is even switching our electricity for us. They're going to replace the windows upstairs, and then we can either stay in the new apartment, or move back to our old one.
It's fortunate and unfortunate in some ways, and I wish we could combine my favorite features of the two apartments, but we'll probably wind up staying in the new apartment simply so we don't have to move again. We've been in Seattle for a little over two months, and considering all the bitching and moaning we were doing while we were carting things downstairs yesterday, we won't want to move again.
Old Apartment Pros/Cons:
+ hallway closet at the entrance for coats/shoes/outdoor things.
- small living space (we had a hard time fitting two oversized chairs in the space so that we could walk and see the tv)
+ awesome enormous pass-through to the kitchen w/ large breakfast bar that we could get cool barstools for
- bathroom exited directly into living area
+ double sink in the kitchen, plus it has a built-in cutting board.
- less than ample cabinet space...and the one large one we did have was strangely shaped)
+ long shelf w/ bar installed in the closet
- (free) bed (from craigslist) too large for the bedroom, so with the closet doors open, you couldn't walk on that side of the bed. (also means no nightstands, but we had space-saving ideas for such a problem we just hadn't gotten around to yet...)
+ cable/internet ready in both living and bedroom
New Apartment Pros/Cons:
+ larger square footage in general, both in the living room and bedroom
- smaller pass through, w/ smaller breakfast bar. it feels more like a drive-through window. and the bar is right next to the front door, so any stools we could get to eat there would have to fit under the bar
+ larger closet for shoes/coats/outdoor things
- closet is in the back of the apartment, so you have to take your shoes off and carry them there. or risk tracking whatever is on them through the whole apartment.
+ larger closet in the bedroom
- there are no studs in the closet in the bedroom to hold our awesome shelf w/ bar that we brought down from our other apartment, so it keeps ripping out of the wall. we're having the landlord look at it, b/c the closetmaid shelving that was in there just isn't gonna cut it
+ bathroom exits into a small hallway that leads, first past the kitchen and then into the living space. i think this is awesome. Nate didn't seem so impressed, but this is my list, not his.
- kitchen is smaller. like a hallway, with stuff on either side. i think there might be less counter space than in the other apartment, however...
+ kitchen has WAY more cabinet space. for some reason, they like to make the top shelves super high, to the point where you can't use them. but there's only one cabinet like this in the new kitchen, whereas ALL the cabinet were like this in the old apartment. so now we only lose 2 shelves out of 17, instead of 4 out of 11. A much better ratio.
- there is one cable hookup. next to the door, in a horrid spot in the living room. nothing in the bedroom. I believe Nate is trying to make the cable rep drill a hole through to the bedroom for another cable as we speak.
+ bigger bedroom = more space around the bed. and the closet doors don't open out anymore, they slide to the side, so there is ample walking space on either side of the bed. we might even get nightstands in the not too distant future. exciting!
- the guy who lived there painted the walls orange. and the blinds...and the baseboards, and some of the tile on the breakfast bar. he did a lousy job, so there are orange splatters in various places. stupid. orange is stupid.
+ FREE COUCH. the guy who was living there just left it. so...awesome.
I personally think the new apartment is the winner, but I will miss the awesome pass-through and breakfast bar from the old apartment.
In any case, the purpose of this blog is to keep my whining in check. Hopefully someone besides me will read it, and tell me to quit my bitching and moaning. If I start to ramble on about how bad things are, just smack me. Well, virtually, anyhow.
The other thing I'm going to track is my weight. We're getting Wii Fit Plus this weekend (one of our Christmas gifts to ourselves, since our original Wii Fit seems to have disappeared in the move,) plus I'm going to actually start keeping track of my weight (and weigh myself in the morning, when I get up, before I stuff my face for the day, and count my calories consumed/expended with my awesome Lose It app for my iPhone. I am by no means fat, but I don't like the way I look. And unfortunately, this means I've been having a really awful time letting Nate like the way I look, so I'd like to remedy that. Also unfortunately, I put a heaping amount of sugar in my coffee this morning (which has just got to stop -- it's no wonder I crash by lunchtime,) on top of the sweetened creamer I add. I'm just gonna have to get used to my coffee not tasting like ice cream. Sad day.
Fortunately, I am down about 10-12lbs from where I was when we "started" our trip (ie: stayed with Nate's parents in New Hampshire for five weeks while the seized engine in our car was replaced,) just by counting calories and measuring out portions, so I feel like another 10lbs is very achievable in the next couples months. I am blessed with a fast metabolism, but since I stopped dancing/working out basically every day, the amount/type of food that I like to eat has caught up with me. Mostly losing weight means the following things:
1) one coffee or one half-sized coke a day. not both. not a giant coke from the vending machine at work. not a coffee from starbucks when Brian/Charli offers. (and less sugar/creamer in the coffe i do drink)
2) knowing my calorie count for the day and measuring out snacks apparopriately.
3) not drinking multiple nights after work. i need my beauty sleep, anyway.
4) measuring DINNER portions. this is a big one, b/c this is where I tend to eat the most food.
5) not thinking that going over my calorie count is by just a "little bit" is ok.
6) working off what i do go over.
I love that the Lose It app has so many activities included in its "exercise" category. Like typing. Or "household" walking (which is mostly what i do around the office.) I need to also just start walking around the office more. But my personal heater at my desk is so nice and toasty, and it's so cold everywhere else. Le sigh.
-C
Old attitude out, new attitude in.
I feel like I am resting. On my laurels. More like on my butt. I took a five month hiatus from working (save making targets for my father -- not real work, mostly watching TV while waiting for spray adhesive to dry) and took a road trip. We went from Boston, to Florida, to Louisiana, to Minnesota, to Colorado, to Southern California, to Seattle (see --> http://www.adventuresunday.com/.) I spent a lot of time sitting and thinking in the car. Or sitting and singing. Or sitting and wishing the air conditioning worked.
Now that we're settled in Seattle, I find myself complaining, more often than not. Inside my head, but complaining, none the less. Every little thing annoys me: Getting up in the morning. Not having money to spend on the things I want. Not having a larger work wardrobe (completely my own fault, by the way. To be fair, I've never had a job that required business-wear, so I've ignored that part of the clothing world for as long as possible.) The ten-straight days of rain on the Weather forecast (it's, of course, currently sunny and beautiful outside.)
Really, I have very little to complain about. I have this awesome job, where the recruiter contacted ME to come in for an interview. I love the people I work with. Our apartment is in a prime location, and it takes me less than twenty minutes to walk to work (and the only reason it takes that long is the HUGE hill that our building sits on top of makes it hard to walk quickly up or down for first/last five minutes.) We are not completely broke. We can afford food, rent and some extra things to make our life comfortable.
And the one thing I do have to complain about, our landlord is fixing, and making it as difficult as possible to actually have any complaints. We discovered, after the last couple weeks of constant rain and snow and general dampness, the five windows in our little corner apartment are completely covered in black mold. Like, they're fuzzy, and the one in the kitchen even has mold gel growing near the lock in the middle. Ewwwww. Luckily, there's an apartment on the third floor in our building that was recently vacated. It's larger, but our rent will stay the same for as long as we want to live in that apartment. The hardest thing we had to do was move all of our stuff down two floors and call the cable rep to come switch where our cable is coming to. Our landlord is even switching our electricity for us. They're going to replace the windows upstairs, and then we can either stay in the new apartment, or move back to our old one.
It's fortunate and unfortunate in some ways, and I wish we could combine my favorite features of the two apartments, but we'll probably wind up staying in the new apartment simply so we don't have to move again. We've been in Seattle for a little over two months, and considering all the bitching and moaning we were doing while we were carting things downstairs yesterday, we won't want to move again.
Old Apartment Pros/Cons:
+ hallway closet at the entrance for coats/shoes/outdoor things.
- small living space (we had a hard time fitting two oversized chairs in the space so that we could walk and see the tv)
+ awesome enormous pass-through to the kitchen w/ large breakfast bar that we could get cool barstools for
- bathroom exited directly into living area
+ double sink in the kitchen, plus it has a built-in cutting board.
- less than ample cabinet space...and the one large one we did have was strangely shaped)
+ long shelf w/ bar installed in the closet
- (free) bed (from craigslist) too large for the bedroom, so with the closet doors open, you couldn't walk on that side of the bed. (also means no nightstands, but we had space-saving ideas for such a problem we just hadn't gotten around to yet...)
+ cable/internet ready in both living and bedroom
New Apartment Pros/Cons:
+ larger square footage in general, both in the living room and bedroom
- smaller pass through, w/ smaller breakfast bar. it feels more like a drive-through window. and the bar is right next to the front door, so any stools we could get to eat there would have to fit under the bar
+ larger closet for shoes/coats/outdoor things
- closet is in the back of the apartment, so you have to take your shoes off and carry them there. or risk tracking whatever is on them through the whole apartment.
+ larger closet in the bedroom
- there are no studs in the closet in the bedroom to hold our awesome shelf w/ bar that we brought down from our other apartment, so it keeps ripping out of the wall. we're having the landlord look at it, b/c the closetmaid shelving that was in there just isn't gonna cut it
+ bathroom exits into a small hallway that leads, first past the kitchen and then into the living space. i think this is awesome. Nate didn't seem so impressed, but this is my list, not his.
- kitchen is smaller. like a hallway, with stuff on either side. i think there might be less counter space than in the other apartment, however...
+ kitchen has WAY more cabinet space. for some reason, they like to make the top shelves super high, to the point where you can't use them. but there's only one cabinet like this in the new kitchen, whereas ALL the cabinet were like this in the old apartment. so now we only lose 2 shelves out of 17, instead of 4 out of 11. A much better ratio.
- there is one cable hookup. next to the door, in a horrid spot in the living room. nothing in the bedroom. I believe Nate is trying to make the cable rep drill a hole through to the bedroom for another cable as we speak.
+ bigger bedroom = more space around the bed. and the closet doors don't open out anymore, they slide to the side, so there is ample walking space on either side of the bed. we might even get nightstands in the not too distant future. exciting!
- the guy who lived there painted the walls orange. and the blinds...and the baseboards, and some of the tile on the breakfast bar. he did a lousy job, so there are orange splatters in various places. stupid. orange is stupid.
+ FREE COUCH. the guy who was living there just left it. so...awesome.
I personally think the new apartment is the winner, but I will miss the awesome pass-through and breakfast bar from the old apartment.
In any case, the purpose of this blog is to keep my whining in check. Hopefully someone besides me will read it, and tell me to quit my bitching and moaning. If I start to ramble on about how bad things are, just smack me. Well, virtually, anyhow.
The other thing I'm going to track is my weight. We're getting Wii Fit Plus this weekend (one of our Christmas gifts to ourselves, since our original Wii Fit seems to have disappeared in the move,) plus I'm going to actually start keeping track of my weight (and weigh myself in the morning, when I get up, before I stuff my face for the day, and count my calories consumed/expended with my awesome Lose It app for my iPhone. I am by no means fat, but I don't like the way I look. And unfortunately, this means I've been having a really awful time letting Nate like the way I look, so I'd like to remedy that. Also unfortunately, I put a heaping amount of sugar in my coffee this morning (which has just got to stop -- it's no wonder I crash by lunchtime,) on top of the sweetened creamer I add. I'm just gonna have to get used to my coffee not tasting like ice cream. Sad day.
Fortunately, I am down about 10-12lbs from where I was when we "started" our trip (ie: stayed with Nate's parents in New Hampshire for five weeks while the seized engine in our car was replaced,) just by counting calories and measuring out portions, so I feel like another 10lbs is very achievable in the next couples months. I am blessed with a fast metabolism, but since I stopped dancing/working out basically every day, the amount/type of food that I like to eat has caught up with me. Mostly losing weight means the following things:
1) one coffee or one half-sized coke a day. not both. not a giant coke from the vending machine at work. not a coffee from starbucks when Brian/Charli offers. (and less sugar/creamer in the coffe i do drink)
2) knowing my calorie count for the day and measuring out snacks apparopriately.
3) not drinking multiple nights after work. i need my beauty sleep, anyway.
4) measuring DINNER portions. this is a big one, b/c this is where I tend to eat the most food.
5) not thinking that going over my calorie count is by just a "little bit" is ok.
6) working off what i do go over.
I love that the Lose It app has so many activities included in its "exercise" category. Like typing. Or "household" walking (which is mostly what i do around the office.) I need to also just start walking around the office more. But my personal heater at my desk is so nice and toasty, and it's so cold everywhere else. Le sigh.
-C
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