Well, I'm on a Roll for a Monday

Well, I got up before six and met Hippy at the gym today. I'm glad we'd prearranged this yesterday or I certainly don't think I'd have gotten out of bed. The CrackBerry woke me up at 5:30.

Then I went to see what wondermousness was available at the local WalMart. I can't remember the last time I actually went and bought a bunch of groceries. I bought some salmon burgers. What is that really? I'll be sure to alert y'all, because I feel as if that's something that needs to get out there. Actually, I was wanting salmon and that's what I found. The fish market deal wasn't open yet. I thought it was interesting enough to try. I also stocked up on healthier things as well as some interesting peanut butter, or should it be peanut better? It has ground flax seeds, flax oil, and is sweetened with cane sugar and honey. I got out for less than $100. BONUS!

Yesterday my sister went to our local Lowe's. She was getting a storage cabinet. (Sidebar: She was first cussed (no, not cursed) for taking a parking space. The guy had no blinker on nor any other indication of his intention of pulling in the space. She got out and then APOLOGIZED. The guy told her, "Shut the f*#$ up." Did I mention that she had just come from church? Did I mention this dude was also in his Sunday finery?!? What WOULD Jesus do? I don't think he'd tell people to shut the f*#$ up. I don't mean to step out or anything, but I feel pretty safe in saying that.) Well anyway, she survived that lovely guy and went in, found her item of choice, bought it, and then took it to her car. Realizing it was going to be too big to fit in the car in the way it was boxed, she opened it up and part of it was broken. Well, as you might imagine, she loaded it back up in the box and took it back in. Since it wasn't her fault, she suggested that they go get another one for her or give her back her money. The cashier guy looked at her and just processed her refund! Not I'm sorry, not let me call somebody, NOTHING. Well, I'm sure this one transaction isn't going to bring down Lowe's or anything, but for crying out loud! What a loser. She then went to K-Mart and purchased two items for even less. Wonder why the economy is bad? Maybe one of the reasons is that people working at retail don't give a rat's a$$ about anything. I'm glad that a person of this ilk is at the cashier stand at Lowe's and not at a hospital or something, but come on!

How about I'm going to the school today and tomorrow to try and get things in order for the new semester? I'm secretly very excited. My classes, unless something has changed, will be calculus, Algebra II, and trig. That's the best schedule I think I've ever had. I'm geeked out and very fortunate. I have planning at third block, so three out of four weeks of the month, I get an additional thirty minutes a day because it's the lunch period. Did I say I'm geeked out?

Well, I probably will go drop in on Snoopy after doing a little work.

Happy Monday!

Edit: 8:41 p.m. The Lowe's thing is apparently policy. For Lowe's to get credit for the bad piece of shiz, they have to run it as a refund. Too bad the person couldn't be more forward-thinking and said, "I'll process the refund, it's our policy. Then I'll call Joe and see if he can go get you another one." Am I crazy? Well, customer service being what it is, I guess I. My sister had the opportunity to talk to a former Lowe's employee to get the low-down.

Merry Christmas!

This is what excitement looks like. The Child is running to see what Santa brought him. Santa did not disappoint.

I am thankful for such a good day! We have enjoyed a lovely day. The Child got his three gifts. Supermom said that if three gifts were sufficient for Jesus, then they're good for The Child. Of course three gifts with all of the accouterments probably was actually ninety-nine items.

We have managed to eat a HUGE lunch of oven chicken and rice, broccoli, baked sweet potatoes, ham, field peas, crescent rolls, deviled eggs, cranberry sauce (complete with ribs from the can), and a delicious chocolate delight. Talk about full as a tick.

I also managed to get a pretty slow, but good run in before lunch. It was a balmy seventy degrees here in Georgia with 100% humidity, since it had just rained. It was a good run, but the humidity was kind of breath-taking, since it hasn't been as humid, especially inside!

We then had to take The Child to meet up with his dad's people. I rode in the backseat with The Child on the way and since they needed the car seat (score), I got to lie down and nap on the way home. My sister declared that I was a horrible traveling buddy and she's 100% correct.

It was weird going through town and everything being closed. EVERYTHING. It happens once a year, and I'm waiting for it to not be the case anymore. It's kind of refreshing, actually.

Well, there's some baking about to occur, so I think I'm going to go get in on that. Happy Christmas to all.

It Really Is A Wonderful Life

Well, I realized last night that I didn't have everything that I needed. I got up this morning around six and made my way to town. WalMart was totally kickin' when I got there to get some rechargeable AA batteries, hair gel, and a new overnight bag. I inadvertently stole a bag someone had put in the overnight bag. I thought, "Wow, I got a bonus bag. Cool!" Then I realized, "Not cool. This has an SKU on it. It wasn't a bonus." I haven't taken it back yet, but I will. The tote bag has wheels, so I did self check-out and rolled it out, I guess under the radar.

Then I went back to Belk. I found my sister THE BEST necklace. It's silver and very dainty. There are tiny colored stones stationed all around it. She'll be able to wear it with almost anything. I also got Mrs. C. a mug and gift card from Starbuck's. They put the cable-knit sweater looking mugs on sale. They are so pretty. I bought one for me, too! I know I'm going to enjoy my evening hot tea in it.

The Child put out reindeer food for, duh, the reindeer. He is about to BURST with excitement. There have been random shouts throughout the day, "Santa's Claus is coming!" That alternates with a "Mer-ray Chris-mus!"

Well, as Santa is on his way and I'm watching Clarence show George that his life really has made a difference, I'm singing off and wishing a merry Christmas to one and all.

My Favorite Things

Here are some of my favorite things. The good news is there are no $900 pashminas. More good news is that most are readily available in my relatively small town.

This is the BEST body wash. It's cheap. It's not harsh. My sister told me that the guy on The Doctors said not to use bar soaps on your body. Let me introduce you to Johnson's.

These two books are really good. They not only entertain you, but they make you think.
The amazing Nine West bag. It's on sale at the local Belk. If you're lucky, you can find one like it! They also come in an unusual corally-red and a lovely green.
This is one of those recycling bags. I got it at World Market in the SAV. It was a whopping $1.99. I've gotten lots of compliments on it. It's very sturdy for what it is. I like it.
These Clark's shoes were on sale. They are perfect kicks for teachers. So soft and comfy.
This smells so fresh and so clean.
This sideways (I wish I knew why it did that!) picture is what I received from Fiona for my birthday. I actually didn't think I'd like it, but I SO do.
I'm new to these, but I actually feel very Al Gore for using this. I actually am using a boom box in my car, since the radio is dead and it's a Saab deal that I have to have a Saab replacement for. Boo on that. Regardless, I have to use eight batteries in the aforementioned boom box, so I've been trying to use these. I bought another one on Saturday so that I can charge the two groups of four simultaneously. With two of these going, is that really helping the environment or is the net against it? Oh well, I like it.
These are MY FAVORITE favorites. Burt's Bees Radiance Day Creme, Burt's Bees Radiance Night Creme, and Burt's Bees Radiance Eye Creme. I actually got them in a trial pack of some Burt's products. THEY ARE THE BUZZING BOMB (and I mean this in a good way). I really like them. My skin is oily, but these just make my skin feel nourished, but not greasy.
I like the Burt's Bees Blemish Stick also. It's a roll-on and it seems to be VERY harsh if you have sensitive skin, BUT it does the job for me and any renegade zits that come my way.

What are YOUR favorite things?

The Diner I LOVE

Okay, you've noticed, if you've visited on weekends, that I frequent a local diner. It is in a shopping center. It's actually a former Subway location. But it's OH, so much better.

This is an Egg Beater omelette with veggies. It includes broccoli, mushrooms, zucchini, and onions. Also, I have been enjoying grits without anything but salt. The corn taste really comes through.

The folks at the place are SUPER friendly. The only complaint that I have is that the coffee could be better. It's good, but I'm totally addicted to the Burger King coffee. I enjoy what I call the "fo' realz" coffee, but the BK is really good for a fast food establishment and more affordable.

I have appointed my room with a new comforter. I also went to Big Lots and got some fluffy pillows to go with my new stuff. New 300 thread-count sheets were also purchased. The textile-engineer part of me was completely geeking out. Oh well.

I get a haircut tomorrow. Then a brunch. Then lunch with other friends. Then check by school to get some textbook counting done. It's going to be a long, but enjoyable day.

Night.

Fun and Frolic

Welcome to my friends' lovely garage. They didn't know if it was going to be warm (It was.) or cold. So they took the party in their garage. The spread was like this:

My friend Fiona crafted a LOVELY Rice Krispies Treats wreath. I was a bit concerned when she kept pouring in the green food coloring, but it didn't have weird food-coloring taste at all. As a matter of fact, it was DELICIOUS.
THIS was my favorite dish. You can see I was not alone in my liking of this. It was enjoyed by all, since this picture is from the beginning of the party and it had already been replenished. OMG, it is SO tasty. It's the fabulous Buffalo chicken dip. It's so hot it burnt my lip, but then again, anything is hot to my delicate palate. (Actually, I don't usually eat hot stuff.) It was GOOD. Nice chicken, Buffalo sauce, and cream cheese. How can you go wrong with that? Talk about some GERD.
I also got a lovely smelling candle in the Dirty Santa trade, but only one person took something from somebody else. Nobody dared take my candle from me. It smells REALLY good, but I think that Borat would use it for "sexy times."
Well, I'm off to the local diner for my veggie omelette. I'm taking one of my new Malcolm Gladwell books with me. I'll post more about it later, if I feel like it!

I'm Awarding Myself

I am giving this to myself. Here. Thank myself. What is it for, you ask? Why, it's for getting all the shopping done that I need to get done prior to Christmas. All gifts were tasteful, but not too much. Unfortunately, I chose two sweatshirts for my diddy, so he may never get to wear them. While (or whilst, which I actually prefer) the North is completely snowed under with no signs of relief, I'm sweating my *insert body part you like to use in this expression* off. We actually switched to AC earlier today. But I scooted out at 7 a.m. and did all my shopping locally, but mostly with chains. Regardless, I'm through. I'm quite relieved because I was a little worried if I'd get the "right" stuff. I just got stuff I thought they'd like that was relatively low-priced. I decided on about a $30 limit for family members. $20ish for friends.

I'm off to a "Night Before Christmas" themed party tonight. We're supposed to wear our pajamas. I'm going to sweat my *same as above* off. I have really cute flannel pajamas. I'm gonna wear them anyway. I'll just wear a t-shirt with them. My friends hosting the party are TOO excited. I'm actually excited too. There will be sugar cookies and spinach dip. I wouldn't recommend mixing these two items, but I'm looking forward to each in its own merit. Yum-o. Wait, can I revoke that? I am boycotting Rachel Ray. Talk about overkill. Replace the yum-o with "wowsers!"

I am looking forward to a hair cut on Monday and dinner with this chica. There are quite a few REALLY good restaurants that have come to our area. We are planning on patronizing one of them. There's one that has an AMAZING mushroom ravioli with a pesto cream sauce. That is what my gluttonous tum-tum is thinking of.

Well, I've got to get ready to go to PJ Mania 2008. I'll let you know how awesome it was. And it WILL be awesome.

Hugs and finished shopping celebrations!

Miscellaneous Saturday Stuff

1) Hero/Heroine (Tom Lord-Alge Remix) - Boys Like Girls
2) Burnin' Up - Jonas Brothers (I realize that liking this is a character flaw, but I don't care! JB RULE!)
3) 100% Pure Love - Crystal Waters
4) Love Runs Deeper - Lindsey Buckingham
5) Dear Maria, Count Me In - All Time Low
6) Glamorous - Fergie
7) Temperature - Sean Paul
8) Let It Rock (Radio Edit) - Kevin Rudolph & Lil Wayne (Lil Wayne creeps me out, but the beat is good.)
9) What You Got (Main) - Colby O'Donis & Akon
10) Check Yes Juliet - We the Kings
11) Release - Timbaland featuring Justin Timberlake
12) Get Up - Ciara featuring Chamillionaire
13) She Loves Everybody - Chester French (The words are a little oogey, but the beat is good.)
14) Just Dance - Lady Gaga (Completely and totally infectious!)
15) My Love - Justin Timberlake

This was the list that my i-pod chose for me during my run this evening with a couple that I overruled. It was a chilly/brisk evening at around 48 degrees. (I realize this is pretty hilarious to anybody north of Tennessee.) It was a good run.

I have basically vegged today. Weighed in at a +0.8 lbs. Boo. I just can't get all my pots on the stove cooking like I like it. We went to our regular Saturday breakfast spot. In an effort to be more awesome in food selection I chose a veggie omelette. And I had my recent discovery that is unbuttered grits. They are SO tasty. I realize I could not be more boring. But I'm very happy with my stone ground corn!

Then we went to the local Big Lots store to pick up some bargains. I got some books for Toys for Tots. I know that books aren't technically toys, but I am buying them for a colleague. We do a gift exchange in which you are to buy something "for" someone, but wind up giving it to Toys for Tots. It's entertaining and a win-win all the way around!

Upon returning home, I found it necessary to get online for several hours, take a nap, then run. I really have had a good day.

I hope that all of you are having a good day as well!

Just Another Manic Monday!

Lesson plans were late (actually still not done), kids were crazy (think school is ALREADY finished for the year), and it seemed as if it was dark BEFORE I knew it! I did get the fundraiser sent off (whew).

I just got back from the routine of my nephew. He was asking his mom for something, so I told him he needed to use the magic word. He happily proclaimed, "Meeska, mooseka, Mickey Mouse!" I thought I would roll. This, for those of you not having contact with a preschooler, is what Mickey says to make the clubhouse appear on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. I then went into a description of what the magic word actually is.

I'm having to give a state-mandated test tomorrow, so the day should go relatively quickly. I'm very excited about getting it done so we can start preparing for the next test!

I'm signing off to go to the gym. I hope my favorite treadmill is empty!

I Ran the Bridge!

This is a picture of the Talmadge Bridge. I got it from here. We left the Savannah International Trade & Convention Center at around 8:30. The picture came from here. There was a little distance to go from the convention center to the start. They had good music and the running crowd is always a good one. People were dressed in Christmas regalia. (Snoopy, Fiona, nor I did.) I wore the trusty thick sweatshirt, yoga pants, a t-shirt, and the run's shirt tied around my waist. Oh yeah, THAT was a good look. My shoes were amazing! We finished up the run at the Savannah Civic Center.



Well, I ran the 5K in 45:48. I don't think it's my best, but it was WAY fun. I can't wait to do it again next year.

We've slated the Shamrock Run, which is an evening run on March 6. Click here if you're interested. And, I am ECSTATIC to report we will be participating in the Susan G. Komen Run for the Cure in Savannah. It'll be on April 18th, which is a Saturday. I'm going to try to get some others to run/walk as well. Consider this your invitation to participate with us on any of these with us. At least Snoopy, Fiona, and I will be participating. Supermom may be doing the Komen also.

This past week was crazy. The only day I didn't have a mania was Wednesday and I got outta school late, so it was a handle anyway. This week should (operative word being should) be much less hectic. THEN, the last week of the semester! I'll really miss SOME of my students. Others, I will be happy NOT to see anymore.

Have you been to World Market lately? We went yesterday after the run and after a luxurious breakfast at Burger King. It was tasty. World Market has CRAZY good ornaments and gift wrap, bags, and gift card holders for 50% off. Maybe that ended today, not sure. Regardless, I got one of my BEST friends, whom I'll call PeeWee Herman, two GORGEOUS ornaments. I found some for gifts for a brunch I'll attend and a gift for the hostess. After World Market, we went to Best Buy where I got The Child a Thomas the Tank Engine DVD. I got myself new earbuds and Smokey and the Bandit, parts 1, 2, and 3. Then we came back and I went to the school gym and worked in the concession stand from about 2:30 to 9:30. Needless to say, since I sat down on the way to and from to Savannah, and that's all for the entire day, my feet were TIRED. Fortunately, I wore my running shoes to do the concession stand duty. This made my dogs bark a little less loudly.

Well, I'm looking forward to fun this week, although I don't know what it'll be. I do know that Fiona will be cooking dinner for Snoopy, her husband, and me on Wednesday, so that'll be fun.

I wish each of you a week that is full of getting things accomplished and less stress than last week!

This Week Has Been Quick

Wow, I've come up for air and it's Wednesday. It's been good, but it's been fast.

Tomorrow and then the Bridge Run on Saturday. Due to lack of training, I'm not sure if it'll be a run or a walk. Either way it'll be fun.

I'll put more in this weekend . . . she claimed.

Nice Day!

This is one of those days that I'm just going to run down the excitement I've enjoyed today.

1. Get up.
2. Shower.
3. Get ready.
4. Go to Weight Watchers. (0.4 pound loss)
5. Go to restaurant where we're regulars. Enjoy Philly Steak Omelette.
6. Go to Starbucks. Enjoy Thanksgiving blend coffee. (It's very bitter, in a good coffee way!)
7. Go to department store. Purchase Clarks slides.
8. Come home.
9. Watch Georgia Tech put a whuppin' on Georgia. (I pull for Tech as default UNLESS Georgia is in for some national accolades or SEC championship{This makes me a traitor to both sides. I'm all about my state or an opportunist; you decide!} -- no and no this year. Triple option, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways!)
10. Go to the gym. Yes, they were shocked. So was my body. Gotta get ready for the bridge run NEXT SATURDAY. I've been grossly neglectful in getting the old bod ready. Ugh. Stretched like I haven't stretched in a L-O-N-G time. I'm trying to avert soreness. Yeah, I know. Good luck with that!
11. Get home. Shower again.
12. Go to restaurant with Mrs. C. The grilled meatloaf was magically delicious. I halved the meal. Hello lunch for Monday!
13. Put up clothes. (Ugh, I hate this.) At least they ARE clean!
14. Flip back and forth between USC/Notre Dame and Oklahoma/Oklahoma State. Would LOVE to see Charlie Weiss get a win tonight. OK and OK State? Don't really care, no offense.
15. Go to sleep.

I love days like this where I just do what I want. I've really enjoyed these days off. I'm looking forward to finishing up this semester so I can have an even longer break!

TTFN!

If you didn't see the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, check out this link. The bomb twenty years ago AND now!

11.

My Shopping (Virtually)

A lovely turquoise tunic

A nice yellow-y dress shirt

I bought these two shirts. They were both on sale. Obviously, Thanksgiving has blessed me with brevity of sentences. Anyway, I also shopped for a pair of brown corduroy cargo pants and two more shirts. I'm pretty stoked. I found them, they were all on sale, and I didn't even have to get dressed, shower, or deal with others. How awesome is that? Pretty awesome.

My Thanksgiving was really good. It was very low-key. It was just the immediate fam, with my sister-in-law, who is now considered immediate fam. She's wonderful. She just doesn't care. Whatever is fine with her.

We had the big spread. Momma outdid herself. We had turkey breast, dressing, sausage muffin thingies, baked sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce (the kind with rings on the side--delicious), broccoli casserole, deviled eggs, giblet gravy (I try to get pure gravy. Giblets totally creep me out.) We just talked and hung out. It was nice. Nothing too much. Then the tryptophan kicked in and I was asleep (Yes, asleep no adult beverages for me! Actually no adult beverages in the 'rents' house.) on the den floor. I woke up really snotty and gross. It must've been a bad pillow, because I'm fine now. Weird.

I drove back over here at around 8. I just went to bed. In bed and slept until around 9 this morning. That's when I did my awesome shopping.

I found out that my mom and my sister did some shopping for me this morning. This should be interesting. Our tastes don't necessarily run in the same realm.

Have I mentioned here that I'm doing the Intermittent Fasting thing? It's just a little trial to see what happens. I like what I've read about this. Here's some information about it. This guy seems to be pretty reliable. When I told my parents about it yesterday, they weren't even surprised. My mom's brother used this method to lose 50+ pounds and get to his goal weight and has always struggled with being too heavy. He said that it was pretty easy and virtually thoughtless. Instead of obsessing about food, you can ignore it for long stretches, and when you do eat, it's whatever you want, but according to the information I've read, you really want something that is good and good for you. They stress that you should go for whole foods. I am on board with that. Let's see if that's the ticket for me, at least through the eating season that is the holidays!

I Hope This Is True

I'm not sure whether this is true or not, but it makes me feel WAY less overwhelmed. I was telling Hippy Chick about this during my hair-shedding this morning so I thought I'd link to it here.

Basically the person says that we should be working out no more than 45-60 minutes. Eating is the majority of the way to lose weight. I don't know about this, but I'm going to try and see what effect doing this has. It costs virtually nothing to try, so I'm going to do it.

I ate a HUGE breakfast with Dude this morning. There's a cute place near Big Lots here that is a delicious little diner-type place.

I am also on fire for a Blackberry. I have found the one that I want. I have conferred with knowledgeable people including Mrs. C., Dude, Hippy, and CNET. I am pretty happy with the choice and soon it will be mine, MINE!

I am listening to President-Elect Obama. I am TRYING to decipher what he's saying. He's definitely not a smooth-talker in a press conference. He's not said "strategery" yet, so I suppose that's a good sign. I'm really trying to be hopeful, but it was as if he were speaking in Chinese which, incidentally, I don't understand. Millionaire farmers? Wow, I know a lot of farmers and NONE of them are millionaires. Maybe all of them live somewhere in Iowa? Not sure.

I'm sorry this has been SO random, but I'm having a BIG-TIME ADD day. More later? I don't know.

Five Things I Love

Because of this post, another one from me.

1. My nephew's laughter When he's watching one of his movies or when we play tickle monster, he has this laughter that comes from WAAAAAY down deep inside his belly. So hysterically funny.

2. My job I am miserable a lot of the time, but as when a student (whom I dearly loved BEFORE she asked me the question) asked me, "Can I ask you what I need to do to be a math teacher?" TOTAL bliss. It makes up for every ornery-tail I deal with. There are enough moments for me like this that it outweighs the bad.

3. A family that accepts me I am over forty. I am not married. I am not particularly hepped up on the idea or pursuing any behavior that will help me move in the married direction. My family doesn't seem to care. They let me be me.

4. AWESOME friends I have a group of friends that is small, but GREAT. They are nothing but supportive. Like my family, there is very little judgment, but there is the occasional, when it is needed, "Hey, do you hear yourself? You're talking crazy. Get down out of the bell-tower."

5. This week off from school I plan on working on my running for the Bridge Run 5k, sleeping a lot, and spending time with my family and friends.

I Agree with Barack Obama on at Least One Thing

Well, I voted for John McCain. I am quite conservative on some issues that I believe are most important. This being said, there is at least one thing I agree with Barack Obama on. We should have a playoff in BCS/NCAA football so that we can crown a definitive champion on the field of play. As it is now, depending on who beats whom, it may come down to conjecture. With last night's drubbing of Texas Tech by Oklahoma, more questions were presented than answers.

Actually, Alabama is still unbeaten. They still have the SEC championship looming in their future. They may beat Florida, who is expected to beat Florida State in their last game. If they do, they'll have made it unscathed through the not-as-brutal-as-usual SEC. But, with the way Florida has played so passionately lately, who knows what should happen. (I am one of those people who usually thinks that the SEC is the highest level of play, but admittedly this year has definitely been a down one.)

Even today, who will be higher in the BCS? Oklahoma or Texas? Texas beat Oklahoma in a head-to-head, but Texas was beaten by Texas Tech, who was DESTROYED by Oklahoma yesterday. Good luck sorting that out.

I'm a proponent of the top seven in the BCS poll getting into a play-off. Then eight and nine competing in a play-in game. I'm not sure why I like the idea of a play-in, but I do.

I think that college football is SO good, that a play-off system wouldn't be harmful to it. I would at least like an opportunity to see if it is the case.

Okay, I'm stepping down off my soap-box. I hope everyone has a really good week!

The Child Has a Birthday Party

Today, The Child had a birthday party. It was WAY fun for him. There were about 5 adults for every child.

This is my brother's (and Rx-in-Law's) son, a.k.a. the Roaming Gnome, who is very cute and excellent at cheesing it up for a camera. I meant this to be the last picture, but I am techno-goofy with this blog picture uploading deal.


This is the cake AFTER. Being the official picture taker is difficult. I was distracted and didn't get a picture of the cake before. Incidentally, it had one of The Child's favorites, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, on it. The cake was pretty tasty.

Here, The Child is getting his koala, George, who happens to be sporting quite a dandy Batman shirt, out of the box. He chose all the components at the Build-a-Bear Store. He wanted to name the koala "Snake" but that was nixed by his dad. The Child also chose "Snake" as his Indian name for Thanksgiving at school.

More opening of gifts. . .

Here is Supermom, The Child, and a friend from school. She was SO precious. She was assistant present opener. There were so many gifts that The Child didn't seem to mind.

Snoopy and Mrs. C. attended the birthday antics. I'm hoping they had a good time.

This week has been a little crazy. You've seen above what today was centered around. Friday was a little crazy, because the day prior to a holiday always is. We did test-prep in all classes because, for some reason, it's easier to focus on that than some new topic. (I chose not to test all day yesterday because everybody else was and we'd done testing last week.)

We also finished up our fundraiser for the seniors this week too. We sold Joe Corbi items. They have regional distributors, but the people we deal with have been great. The cookie dough and frozen pizzas are really good. (Incidentally, they have a breakfast pizza that is divine, but deadly. It's an alfredo-like sauce. You put that on a crust, then top with real bacon and cheese. Really divine.) It's actually a really good value, as far as fund-raising goes. I'm not sure about the percentage, but it's pretty favorable. It beats the pants off of selling Reese Cups and candy bars.

After school, I went to Snoopy's and there was a PARTY. I don't usually drink, so it's ALWAYS an adventure. I was really tired when the last partiers left at 1:15 this morning. It was then that I took to the sofa and rocked it out, getting to sleep as soon as my head hit the pillow. I woke up at 10:15 and today's craziness started.

Wednesday, I took off from school to take the 'rents so my mom could get some testing done. It should have been a few-hour situation, but wound up being all day. It's taxing to sit in a hospital waiting room. Forunately, all was fine. And, I should be thankful that the doctor was super-cautious. It was nice to see them in the middle of the week.

Tuesday, we had training on differentiation during planning, so I couldn't start the plans done until after school. It was one of those things that it seemed as if the harder I tried to do it, the longer it took me. I had a really good sub, so all of that went well.

Monday wasn't bad, but I was exhausted. I really have to reel in my eating. I am mostly exhausted from no exercise and from eating poorly.

Saturday Run-down

1. Get up really early for Saturday School.
2. Go to Burger King and get breakfast.
3. Eat breakfast on the way to school.
4. Conduct Saturday School (roughly 8:00 to 12:00) and clean out office in my classroom.
5. Lunch with Snoopy.
6. Decide where amassed paperwork, notes, and other associated items should be put. (Yes, I do realize that I should be doing this routinely, but I am a big-time clutter bug.)
7. Get AWESOME new quotes to put up on bulletin board. (I hate doing bulletin boards, so I keep quotes up ALL the time. You elementary teachers with your elaborate bulletin boards and word-walls, etc. , my hat is off to you.)
8. Make notes on simplegtd.com listing.
9. Return home.
10. Play with nephew. Annoy sister. (This is totally a two-fer.)
11. Go to Walgreen's to redeem my $5 gift certificate I got for getting their newsletter online. Purchase more Burt's Bees products.
12. Decide that I do want to eat something horrible for me. Instead, opt for some Chick-fil-A chicken nuggets, the best of the worst.
13. Surf a little.
14. Change my picture on my blog to a tree that is WAY more lovely than the picture I took with my phone shows. This tree has got to be over a century old. Just looking up through the branches totally Zens me out.
15. Type this list of what I've done today.
16. Go get ready for bed.
17. Sleep as long as I can.

What a great day!

Hello, I'm Back.

I've started several posts, but have been unable to finish any of them. I'm even distracted somewhat now by an ADT commercial. My ADD is horrific. I'm worse than the students I teach.

Well, last week I went to the Georgia Educational Technology Conference. It was FANTASTIC. I knocked myself off of all working out and exercise in general by going. I was honored to sit under the genius that is Patrick Crispen. He was basically teaching/telling about Google, technology, and how students best learn. It was amazing. There were other speakers, some of whom were good. But Crispen was AMAZING. The knowledge he was dropping was serious. His website is www.netsquirrel.com.

Also, we got to hear (and see) the one and only Ron Clark. He is a wonder. I love teaching and think it's what I was born to do. Seeing Ron and his passion for educating is unbelievable. Here is some video of his students who took a life-changing trip. The quality isn't that good, but it was so fantastic that I found it necessary to share it with all of my classes. His Ron Clark Academy is in Atlanta. One of my colleagues won a trip to his school to see how he (and the other members of the faculty) works with the students.

This week has been very tiring. I think I'm recovering from the high point of last week. I can't seem to get enough sleep, so I'm going to go to bed now.

Today Has Been Interesting

Greetings. I've had quite an interesting day. I woke up and began watching an O-L-D movie about Andrew Jackson. It had Joan Crawford in it. She's quite captivating.

I then got "awake" and went to shop at my arch-nemesis, WalMart. Wow, it was nice to get in there at about 7:30 and out around 8:30. I hate it. I was trying to get all the stuff I need, supply-wise AND stuff for my trip to the conference in Atlanta. It's really quite a pain. We're leaving Tuesday afternoon after school, so everything I need done has to be done essentially tomorrow afternoon since we get no planning block to speak of on Tuesday. Being absent is really a pain if you want to do your job as a teacher.

Then I began the cooking process. I improved the whole-wheat pasta dish I made last week. I also made a switch in the chiliesque soup business I made last week. They both seem better-tasting. That was good.

I joined up on this GTD website. I really like the idea of it being accessible online. You can also print out your lists. It's simple and makes sense. It's working for me so far today!?!

Supermom went and got Chinese for us. I think my taster is broken. The sesame chicken had a very odd taste to me. I wonder if it's the meds I'm taking. I'm on the loogey-ridding medicine Mucinex. I hate the commercials, but that stuff really does work. It's not cheap either, but it does work.

I've got to fold some clothes and get my work together for my students, so I'll sign out.

It may be Wednesday or Thursday before I get back to y'all, so have a good week!

The Crud Has Gotten Me

My mileage has suffered due to the creeping crud that has infested me. I have managed to teach school for the past three days. I haven't felt bad, just been voiceless. I warned my students to keep their distance and have encouraged them to sanitize and have done so myself. I'm going to the tech conference in Atlanta next week for three days, so I just couldn't afford to be out this week.



It was so good to go to bed early last night. Lights out was before 10 p..m.



Thought I'd show you the gains of my shopping trip. Mrs. C. bought me the CUTE bag (a birthday gift!), which is actually closer to a butterscotch color. The shoes are a pair of the Softspots mules. The top part is embroidered and the "gathered" part around the outside is suede-y. They are comfortable. Not EVEN on sale, but they are so comfortable!

I'm going out with Snoopy and her friend Library Lady to a way-out-of-the-way restaurant. It should be fun.

Not Much Going On . . .

I went to vote. Early voting cost me 45 minutes, which I gladly gave. I was in front of a delightful 5-year-old who was amazingly well behaved. (She wasn't voting; her mom was!) I found out she is the niece of a co-worker. It's trite because it's true, but the world really is small!

I still have the picture of Susan B. Anthony in my mind ready to kick my butt if I have any negative ideas or even think about complaining about anything to do with voting.

I did my 3.5 miles today. It was slow. I was running against the wind. Wow, and dodging UPS trucks. It was actually enjoyable and fun. It really feels good getting the Monday exercise in. It's easy to fall between the cracks.

I'm tired, so it's time for bed. I'm sure there's a rant in me nearer the end of the week.

I Am Alive

I was a little frightened after my max mileage that I'd be really sore and tired today. Well, I'm happy to report the only casualties of my run yesterday were my calves. Oh, how they hurt!

I got up this morning and went to WalMart. And filled up the car. Less than $2.50 a gallon?!? So nice. At WalMart, people seem to stand in places for no apparent reason. I wanted to check out the pre-packaged snacks, but there was a lady standing there on the phone. I have a real problem with this. She was just standing there cackling at her friend's obviously hysterical conversation. She didn't even seem to be looking for anything. She also seemed to be hard of hearing or very intent on letting everyone know how much she was enjoying her conversation. How is it that several years ago, heart surgeons had beepers and that would suffice? Now we all need a phone. I plead guilty to this. Regardless, when I'm in public, I go outside of the business to conduct my business. Or, I will text people. It's far less intrusive in others' lives. Regardless, if this is my biggest problem, my life is AWESOME.

And it is. I just made a chili-esque soup. I put a little ground beef, tomato paste, petite diced tomatoes, beef broth, black beans, navy beans, white corn, and a ton of chili powder, cayenne pepper, and onion powder in to simmer. I can't wait. It's gonna be deilicious and, along with a pasta casserole, the bulk of my meals this week! Yum!

Well, since I slept with some of my cooler season clothes on my bed last night, I'd better go put some of these up.

Have a great day!

I Am So Excited!

Okay, if you'd told me last year, I'd have had difficulty believing you. TODAY I RAN 6 (SIX) MILES! It took almost an hour and a half, but I did it! I decided that I could run a little more than my max, and since it was Saturday, and since I gained 0.4 pounds this week! Ugh! (Darn my friend Brian's mac and cheese! Not only did I eat it for dinner Thursday, but they made me a to-go plate for lunch Friday, and I would not say NO.) So, instead of balling up and getting sad, I decided I would do something proactive. Get myself into the right mode of eating and do some excellent workout work. And I did.

This running thing is so addicting. My friend Snoopy signed Fiona and me up for the 5K bridge run in December. Fiona declared that she will walk it. Snoopy is going to do the 10K. I'm very excited about this. The bridge has a 5.5% grade, so I'll be practicing at Mrs. C.'s on the treadmill with the incline cranked!

I think I'm going to pile up and go to bed. Running 6 miles is tiring!

Art and Old Music

Check this out. It's macabre, but it's actually very pretty: http://shapeandcolour.wordpress.com/2008/10/10/david-maisel-library-of-dust/.



Also, I hopped in the way-back machine today. I put this in my CD player on the way to work:



Oh yes, I remember when I was in about the second grade. My parents had this album. It was one of the first albums I remember. I listened to "Back Home Again," "On the Road," the AWESOME "Grandma's Feather Bed," and "Thank God I'm a Country Boy." I LOVED it. I sang at the top of my lungs. I got in the car to come home and repeated. If it's good enough for lather, rinse, it's certainly good enough for John Denver!



Incidentally, the other albums my parents had at this time:

I must admit "His Latest Flame" is one of my favorites from this one.

I remember listening to "Scarborough Fair" and thinking, "How can they be singing something I had to sing in music class?" Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme? Really? Anyway, "The Boxer," "America," and "Homeward Bound" are all songs that can make me cry.


There's not a bad song on this one. Maybe there are some that are SAPPY, but I like them all.
Goodbye to Love, Superstar

I really like this one. "Southern Nights" and "Country Boy" are the two besides the title song that make me really happy. "Country Boy" is really good. Rhinestone Cowboy

Thanks for indulging my walk down pop music lane.

Rant Alert

Flipping through the channels on the satellite, there is a channel that is running a commercial of a guy made of chocolate that has women biting his butt, tearing off his arm, and dipping strawberries in his navel (or somewhere). REGARDLESS, this is very disturbing. It's for Axe "Dark Temptation." The commercial is running over and over and over and over. You can text to win prizes and play some kind of game. This is disturbing and gross. I realize I'm obviously not the target of this marketing campaign, but who is? The female Hannibal Lecters out there? Help, oh sweet sanity, where have you gone?

Thinking. . .

I like this blogger's posts. She's very good. This post was particularly interesting to me. I like to read people's work that makes me think from a different perspective. Here is the post: http://thegreatfitnessexperiment.blogspot.com/2008/10/classic-eating-disorder-tips-make.html.



I never have thought of myself as having an eating disorder, but I guess by being obese, I do. I don't think it's as extreme as anorexia or bulimia, but it's still an attack on my body and wielding power over food.


I am trying to work through some issues. It's a constant struggle. It's weird though, because I don't feel as if I'm in that bad of a way. I've often said that I have reverse anorexia because I don't mentally realize how big I really am. It's kind of like when you've had long hair and get your hair cut and see yourself in the mirror. You keep thinking, "Hey who's that in my bathroom mirror? Oh wait, that's me with my short hair." I'm still around a size 12 or 14 in my mind. It's weird, I suppose. I guess we all have our deals to work out. That, in a nutshell is PART of mine!

Blessed Bloggers

Well, I had an exceedingly good day today. It's kind of funny because my the bloggers I tend to read seem to have had the same experience this weekend!

Today I got up around 8:30. It was nice and nippy outside. I decided to snuggle in my bed a little longer. I actually got up around 9:00 and got to the laundry. I put up WAY too much that had been laying around my bedroom. I then had a nice brunch.

After finishing up my laundry, I took a small nap, watched some football, and decided to go run. It was a glorious day for a run. I went 4.8 miles. That's quite a bit for me. What's funny, and more than a little gross, is that my back was KILLING me. Well, then I engaged my core, as Ellen from my yoga/Pilates video is always telling me to do and voila! My back stopped hurting. I was telling this to my running mentor and she said that since I've lost weight around my midsction, my back is having to redefine my center of gravity or something like that. And you know what? I believe it. It makes sense.

Since I'd not had lunch, I was ravenous from the run and met the mentor (aka Snoopy) at the Mexican restaurant in the town where my school is. Wow, was it good! I had a plate of beef and bean nachos without one iota of guilt. Then I went to school and got a good bit of school work done. We have an open house tomorrow, OH JOY! I'm SO excited. I don't know about elsewhere, but here, only the kids whose parents you DON'T need to see attend these things.

Oh well, you do what you can.

I hope all of y'all in blogland have a most enjoyable week to go along with a nice weekend!

A Wedding Day

The Child with one of his dad's sisters in the background

There is a nice winery near here. They aren't common in the area, but it's quite nice. The Child's daddy was married there today. It was very small, but nice. The crowd was really a good group. I'm not big on talking to people I don't know, since I hate people. Well, not really, but in a group of people I don't know I'm not a social butterfly. It was very nice. The ceremony itself was pretty good: short, sweet, and to the point. The bride and groom left to the Beach Boys song, "Wouldn't It Be Nice."

There was lunch, since the wedding was at 11:00. Grilled bone-in chicken, hash brown casserole, green beans, and broccoli salad. Yum!

The Child was ring bearer and walked in his grandmother. He kept dropping the pillow, but it was very cute.

Since it was a blustery day, I came home and piled up in bed and slept. It's been a great day.

Oh, and at weigh-in I'd lost 2.4. I was slightly ill, because I thought I'd done a little better. But I'm proud of the work I did! Now, a tiny supper.

Days Off Are Over

Hey, I have been really enjoying all of this time off. It was only two days, but it's been nice. I went and saw the other nephew yesterday. He's grown so much. He's shed that little baby look. He's still got quite a mean widow's peak, so he's ready for halloween. Did I mention that he loves to play the act-as-if-you're-tossing-the-baby-in-the-air game? It's a good thing I do too!

I did the Crunch yoga/Pilates video again and ran 3.05 miles. It was really a nice day out.

I'm trying to reach a milestone on Saturday at weigh-in. 20 pounds. I really would like to do this during this week. I've done the working out and the eating has been pretty good. I've got to go get my lunch ready for tomorrow. It's called lunchroom duty and I have it and I hate it. It could be worse, but it's just a pain.

Now, I'm off to fix lunch, watch the rest of Eli Stone, and get my things ready for tomorrow.

Teacher Person Makes Good Use of Time

Well, how did I do this? It was easy. I used the DVD

This is a great one. I don't know how this would be for anyone who is super-fit, but for me, it's great. It is difficult, but not too much so. Are you a person who hates way-too-perky teachers/demonstraters? Ellen Barrett is GREAT! I really like the way she describes each motion. It's not difficult nor dancy. She is encouraging without seeming as if she's ingested 18 venti lattes. I met Mrs. C. at her "gym" and we did this at 6 a.m. It was refreshing and relaxing. It's 42 minutes (or thereabout) and very good. I know I'll feel it, because I've done it before.

I just had a heavy breakfast. A boiled egg, a homemade mocha (chocolate milk + coffee), and oatmeal with Smart Balance and brown sugar. I'm testing a theory/study from, I think, FitSugar. The study showed that if you eat a really big breakfast, as the day goes on, you won't have as many cravings and you'll eat fewer calories. I'm considering myself a test case. I'm going to try to not eat anything after 7 p.m. either. Watch me go! I really need a good week at Weight Watchers on Saturday, so my goal is to do stuff that will make that possible.

Have an enjoyable day!

Sunday and a Little Shopping

I bought a shoe that looks like this. It's not only cute, but it's got a super-pillowy footbed. Perfect for a teacher. I'd been avoiding my black pants, skirts, and dresses simply because I didn't have a go-to pair of black shoes. The flower on mine is about half the size and there is some black-patent trim. I had even resorted to wearing some tennis shoes/sneakers with my black pants. I hope that I have now purchased a pair that I will look forward to wearing. And, they were on sale!

I went and worked out at Mrs. C.'s gym yesterday. I'm still getting acclimated to the treadmill. I walked for an hour with a tad of running in it. It's weird that outside that I can run pretty easily, but on the treadmill, not so much.

Well, since we have two days off this week, I think I'm going to visit my other nephew. I can't wait to see how big he is. He lives about two hours away and I'll get to see the 'rents too.

Later.

Homecoming

Hi! Sorry I haven't blogged in a few days, but anyway, here I am! It's been an exciting few days. Yesterday was homecoming for my school. It's one of the high points for teaching high school. The kids were really excited. They were really good. We had a court which was ALL really nice girls. In years past, we've had some that I really would have rather not won, but this year, all were okay.

I drove a tiny Solstice in the parade with two senior representatives up doing the pageant waving. I told them that the last time that I drove, one of the girls in my car had won. Well, there's magic in my driving, because again, the queen was in my car! She is a really nice girl who's not only very cute, but very conscientious in her studies and just an all-around good representative of our school. Her boyfriend, who graduated last year, asked me to drive carefully with her in the car. I assured him that we'd go no faster than about 8 mph, so she'd be pretty safe!

Our football team WON! We've won more this year than any year I've been at the school with the exception of my 1st year during which I had NO idea what was going on.

I haven't run since Sunday. I've gotta get back out there. Ugh, I don't really want to. It's yucky outside. I think I'll power nap first.

Oh, How We Laughed!

Well, in the class that I had my unfortunate outburst in, we had a hearty laugh today. I apologized again for going a little nuts. They were very good and seemed to understand. "Miss (used to refer to all but men, so much so that I use it to refer to other teachers), I never saw you that mad before. You almost poked a hole in your Smartboard!" I laughed. They were talking about how weird it was that I got so mad yesterday, but that I was laughing about it today. I told them that everybody acts like an idiot from time to time and if you can't laugh at it, well, you're missing out on a good laugh!

To me, I'm teaching trig, but more importantly, I'm trying to equip these kids for life. And that's what's REALLY important.

The Child has been going through this whine-mania thing. He will just commence to whining when he doesn't get his way. Oh, awesome it is!

Gonna run a little later . . . maybe?

Today I Had a Nervous Breakdown in Class (Essentially)

Apathy is what I'm used to. People not studying, absolutely. But today a student told me that he had never seen or heard the term cube root. He became somewhat belligerent about it and I became somewhat belligerent about it. I tried to give him an out, "I know that you may not remember, but that doesn't mean that you didn't see it in Algebra I or II." He declared that he'd NEVER seen it. I then explained for about the fifth time what it meant. I had others who told me later that they didn't remember, but that after the examples they were on board (perhaps on "bored" would be more accurate, no?). Wow, I hate it when I get like that. Kids are supposed to be like that, but I just lost it.

On a good note, I went to Mrs. C.'s exercise room to do my workout today. She has a Health Rider. I did a little reading on line and it's not the best workout either, but since I've got quite a way to go, it will work for now. It is also a good thing to do on non-running days.

Tired and the lady who does grades wants them sooner and sooner and sooner. I love her, but the teacher work day is Friday and she wants the grades tomorrow. Good luck with that. I don't do it to be a pill, I'm just not through yet.

Yes, I am a big ball of complaints. I do realize that I really, in the great scheme of things REALLY have it good, so I'll shut my yap.

I Am a Marinating Fool

I've got three different meats marinating in the fridge right now. Salmon in tequila-lime, pork chops in mesquite, and chicken in garlic-tomato-basil. I also was suckered in and bought one of those cheapish Reynolds air-sucker-outers. I have a friend who has the big, ornate atomic sucker outer that requires special plastic, etc., but I don't require that big of a deal. I thought that $10 was a pretty fair price to pay for seeing if it'd work. I smacked the chicken around a little with the meat-hammer, as I am fond of calling it. The other meat seemed okay without it.

It's about time to start cooking, so I'll holla back when I'm done. Later, tater!

Edit: 6:26 p.m. I have George-Foreman grilled myself into a frenzy. Verdict: The mesquite on the pork chops is just pretty much added salt and smoke flavor. Won't do that again. The garlic-tomato-basil is pretty garlicky, so it's not my favorite. It's still pretty good. I didn't try any of the salmon. I'm going to surprise myself with that tomorrow at school. All of these marinades started out in powder form. I chose them because all the pre-made ones have high fructose corn syrup as the first ingredient?!? This has driven me to the conclusion that I need to buy some spices at the local gourmet shop and make my own marinade. This will be a project for next week, since my meat situation for the week is settled!


A REALLY GOOD WAY TO WASTE VALUABLE TIME Okay, I'm not sure how I navigated to this page, but this listing of the top 100 of the past 50 years by Billboard Magazine is mesmerizing. Stevie B. really is a good singer. I hadn't thought of him in years. Also, John Lennon's "Starting Over" is pure genius. I remember hating it every time it came on the radio, but then again, I was around 11 at the time. Look through the list in descending order. I started at #1 and actually enjoyed the latter ones more than the top ones. There are some CrAzY ones in the list, but my sister and I took a walk down memory lane with it. Some of the ones that don't have a YouTube link actually are on YouTube, if you're interested.


Going to go finish my day. I've got to go work out. Mrs. C. has furnished a gym at her house that is open 24/7, so it's convenient for me . . . and cheaper than my current one.


May you all have an excellent week.

Shalom!

Edit: 9:43 p.m. It seems as if it's about 1 a.m. I still haven't done my lesson plans. I have been foraging like a bear going into hibernation. I've tried tea, water, and chocolate and "I still haven't found what I'm looking for." (Apologies to Bono and the boys. Incidentally, why does he wear windshield-style sunglasses? I don't understand this.) Ugh, I hate it when I'm in this mood/mode. I'm gonna wash some delicates and see if that helps.

'Night again.

Turpentine

Well, I was in the Turpentine Festival Run, the inaugural edition this morning. It was a very nice course. A little hilly in places (This is hilly for south Georgia, which pretty much means not flat.) , but not too bad. I had a personal best! After not running all week, I managed to finish just under 45 minutes. I finished second in my age. Did I say there were two of us? I also got some turpentine and some rosin! Yay for me. (Call Charlie Daniels and tell him I'm ready to help him rosin up his bow!) I'm going to do another run in a couple of weeks, so I've gotta make sure to do my running in the next couple of weeks.


We have a work day next Friday, since it's homecoming and the end of the nine weeks. Since I have perfect attendance, I can leave at 12:30. Hooray, only I have to stick around to drive some of the homecoming court gals in the parade. And go to the game. Oh well, it was a nice offer.


I finally got the car tire situation under control today. The alignment was done today on the FOUR new tires. Ow, that really hurt. But I have a sporty car and it takes money to keep up the appearance, you know. Well, now if I can just get the short in the radio taken care of, I'll have it under control.


Okay, just so you know, I dropped the car off at the tire place and hopped a ride with Snoopy. We went to the run. She ran in about 30, which was slow for her. I know, right? We then got our prizes. We then hopped in the car, picked up my car, and hopped over to IHOP. I had an EGG-CELENT omelette filled with Swiss cheese, spinach, and mushrooms. Yummy. And, of course, pancakes. There was a short trip to WalMart and then I came home. A little Game Day, a little lunch, and then a BIG nap.


I've had a great day to be capped with washing of clothes and grading of papers. AWESOME!

A Tire and Some Perfume

Wow, what an interesting day I've had today. I hadn't even heard of this today, but now it is mine. I LOVE it. Well, maybe love is a little strong, but wowsers, it smells good.

Prior to finding this lovely smell, I got a new tire mounted on my wheel thingie to take back to put on my car. Well, at least I intended to do this. Snoopy came and got me and we went to dinner and WalMart. Wow, does she know everybody. We went in around 8 and left close to 9:30. I'm tired, but I smell prositute-y because I tried LAMB (the Gwen Stefani fragrance) and something else which smelled old ladyish on me.

Oh My!

This picture was not me, unfortunately. I did assume this position when I went to the parking lot and found the happy little convertible only 3/4 tired. I had the initial reaction of wanting to throw all my stuff down and have a tantrum. I resisted this, since the middle school football team was practicing within sight. I thought to myself, "Hey, I can do this. People do this every day. There is no reason why I can't do this." So I proceeded to the task at hand.

First, I took stuff out of my trunk. I then made myself aware of the process by reading the instructions. I then made sure that the jack would work. It didn't look as if it would, but it did. Anyway, as I was toiling, one of my "besties" (best friends in high school speak), Fiona, came out and provided moral support. . . and comic relief. We had trouble with the nuts, but eventually we triumphed. Then I put the spare on. I lowered the jack. THE SPARE WAS FLAT!!! AWESOME!

Well, fortunately, Fiona was willing to meet Supermom halfway, so I got a ride back. I also got dinner at Chili's and a trip to Mrs. C.'s to get the trusty Jeep. Thanks to Mrs. C. and her Mr. C.!

So, the tire, wheel, etc. is in my sister's trunk. I'm going to attempt to take it to a tire place tomorrow and replace it on my car. I need to take it in to the tire shop anyway, so I guess it's pretty cool that the tire went flat in the parking lot and NOT on the highway on the way to school at 6:15 this morning. I am so blessed!

Sunday Has Been Pretty Good So Far

Today, I got up and ran. Yesterday I ran the furthest I've ever run and I did it at around 6:30 or so last evening. I knew I needed to do some mileage. I decided that the regular 3.5 was appropriate. I went out and did it. I wound up walking the last 1/2 to 3/4 mile. I was kind of sore and out of breath. I think I'll probably do Nordic Track tomorrow.

I think probably 3.5 Tuesday and Wednesday will be appropriate. Then rest Thursday and Friday? I'm not sure. The last 5K I was in I couldn't even run the whole thing.

I've got to go, since I have a TON of papers to grade.

Good luck and Godspeed, y'all!

The Moral of the Story

The moral of the story is if you run enough, you can eat pretty much what you want (within reason) and lose weight. Granted, I'm not rolling up to Mickey D.'s to have the Big Mac Extra Value Meal, but I've been less than stringent this week. I thought I could've gained about pounds, but I lost 1.2. Yep, not just one, but one point two. EXCELLENT. I am loving the running thing. It has also become my personal mission to tell people who run that "Green Light" by John Legend with or featuring Andre 3000 is a GREAT song to run to.

Secondarily, I spent a second Saturday with Mrs. C. at Starbucks. My sister joined us this time. Loving the Starbucks oatmeal. I know it's a little pricey, but it's nice to have something while sipping on a latte that will stick with you throughout the day.

School has been good. Friday was a senior-proclaimed senior skip day. So incredibly stupid. You're failing trig and midterms are coming up. I know what'd be great; let's not go to class on Friday! But it's my fault they're not passing! Have I mentioned that some people STILL haven't memorized the information on the unit circle which was introduced week 2 of class? That was almost 7 weeks ago. Wowsers, is high school annoying sometimes?!?

Next Saturday is a 5K for me!! The first since I've actually been able to run the whole thing, so barring some unforseen trauma, I'll absolutely have a personal best. I'll keep you posted. There's also one on the 18th, so I'm totally geeked out.

Have a lovely day! It's beautiful here, so I think I'll go outside for a run. Training!

Edit: 9:07 p.m.

I went out and ran. I had an epiphany. I left a jogger, came back a runner. I sped up to maybe do a few intervals. I was running to the extended dance remix-y thing for "Umbrella." I kicked it up into a higher gear and guess what. Yep, I was running in a way that I could actually get away from somebody! It was amazing. When I got home, I wasn't even tired. I did 4.8 miles in 69 minutes!!! How awesome is that?!? For me it was nothing short of amazing.

Great day!

Happy, Healthy Me!

Okay, I was able to drive with the top down today, which was very nice. I taught The Child the expression "not a cloud in the sky" today, too. Score on both. He can not only push the buttons, but he is very good at helping me latch the top back on. I'm sure he's a raging genius.

I ran outside yesterday and today. 3.5 miles on both days, running all but the first five minutes and the end bit. I feel as if I'm conquering the world. Love it!

I am going to stop here, since I'd like to go to bed. Planning on around 3 miles tomorrow. We'll see if they materialize. I may walk, just to give a little relief.

Hello Again!

This past week has been excessively busy, since I had to stay at school late two days and stayed with Snoopy on Thursday. I had a gain of 0.6 at Weight Watchers this morning. I'm down 10.4 overall, though.

Today was a BEAUTIFUL day and very cool, so I went to the local university outdoor track to run. I RAN 4.02 MILES. This is WITHOUT stopping. I did a total of 4.69 miles. Did I mention I ran 4.02 miles? I'm totally geeked out about this because that's (obviously) more than a 5K. Losing weight makes it easier to run and running faster and more makes it easier to go run. I love this kind of vicious circle! I really didn't keep my meals as strict as I should have or I'd have lost this week.

I am still enjoying my car. It's so fun.

I've done nothing but laundry today, so at least I've been productive to some degree, I suppose.

Knowshawn Moreno is awesome. He's an awesome Georgia Bulldog. His style is very reminiscent of that ultimate bulldog, Herschel Walker. He was 34; Knowshawn is 24. I'm not the biggest dawg fan, but watching Knowshawn makes me SO happy. A. J. Green isn't too shabby either!

Thought I'd add my playlist from my run this morning:

Just Dance - Lady Gaga
Love Runs Deeper - Lindsey Buckingham
Fight for Your Right to Party (Yes, it's the same song.) - Big & Rich
Get Up - Ciara f. Chamillionaire
In the Ayer - Flo Rida f. Will.i.am
Mr. Blue Sky - Electric Light Orchestra (Maybe my favorite running song ever!)
Damaged - Danity Kane (I know, it's insipid.)
Green Light - John Legend f. Andre 3000
State Your Peace (live) - Hootie & the Blowfish
American Boy - Estelle f. Kanye West
Mercy - Duffy
Whatever You Like - T. I. (Good for recovery, but it will eat your brain. I'm still singing it.)
Umbrella (Workout Remix) - Rhianna (or a sound-alike)
Closer - NeYo
Get It Shawty - Lloyd
Champion - Kanye West
Dear Maria, Count Me In - All Time Low
Run-Around - Blues Traveler

Tuesday

I am still on my workout regimen. I've had two really good days. Yesterday I ran 4.1 and today 2.96. It's very addicting. I'm liking the old endorphin kick. And, I KNOW there are people running it to death. My friend Snoopy runs ten miles in a clip routinely. Wowsers and props to her. But for me, a proverbial infant in the running world, I am liking what I'm doing.


The car is still AWESOME. And the gas mileage . . . INSANE! Over 30 mpg!!! Can it get any better?!?


Dude, who left and went to France, is back! I'm going to have a lovely dinner with him tomorrow. I can't wait to hear all about his escapades on the continent.


I am rambling. I am tired, but for some strange reason, I'm not getting up to go to bed.

Peace out!

Excuse Me While I Completely Geek Out

Okay, Saturday I went with my friend, Mrs. C. and her husband up to Atlanta. Why would you do such a thing, pray tell? Well, TO GET A NEW-TO-ME CONVERTIBLE!!!!!

Yes, I never knew I was a convertible person, but guess what. I SO AM!!! It is such a zen-out to have the top down and drive the awesome 20ish miles to work. And back. I was ready to leave school earlier today just because I wanted to drive my car. It's silver with a nice very-navy top. Oh boy!!!

The picture above isn't exactly it, but it's very close. School is good; working out is good. But the main thing going on now is driving the car! The Child said, "I can see the sky," when he looked up with the top down. I thought he was going to freak out when I took the top down. He was even more amazed when he was able to put the top back on the car.

Too cute!

Get Off Gov. Palin!

Okay, it's official. This is even more ridiculous than I thought it would be. Mrs. Palin is an inept mother because her daughter has become pregnant? Really? It happened to my mother. She instilled the "correct" ideals to us. My nephew is the result of this. No reflection on my mother. It was someone else's choice.

And, having seen the US magazine covers last week and this week. Glory for Mr. Obama. Scorn for Mrs. Palin. I think she'll give an awesome speech. I'm DVRing it.

I was actually lukewarm about McCain until he selected Mrs. Palin. I think it was a stroke of genius. I'm looking forward to voting for the McCain/Palin ticket.

Sorry this sounds disjointed. I'm tired.