Day Fifty Five

What was Cary Grant's last movie? A little comedy with Jim Hutton and Samantha Eggar called "Walk, Don't Run." He decided to retire after this because he was "too old" to be the romantic lead anymore. So he took his toys and went home. But luckily, he finished this role before. It's some amazing eye candy between the three of them!

Image found through Wikipedia

After a full two months of this I have realized a better way to track my mileage. I started using a free app on my phone called MapMyRun. It's a nice app and never fails to log my walks and send me a detailed data report. Unfortunately the Charity Miles app kept crashing and losing my data so I will not be able to reliably complete that goal. Sad face.

But! The tracking of walk will continue. Things will change in the Fall when school starts as I will not be walking to work and back every few days. I will have to make a bigger effort to get out and walk (which I know a certain beagle will happily help with.) However, I will also be taking advantage of my "free" gym membership through school. Free is not quite the word as an athletic fee is charged to my tuition whether I like it or not, and it was not cheap ($300 some)

So, without further adieu, my progress for July 2013:

15 workouts

16 routes

17.8 total dist. (miles)

7.2 hours

I definitely need to work on my mileage or I'll never make it to Mordor! In two months I've covered two days of hobbit travel — yikes!

Current Total Miles: 36.4
Current Location: Still in the Shire! On Stock Road (just after hiding from the Black Rider)

Day Sixteen

This week, although quite early, is a healthy one. I spent an afternoon at the pool with a friend which we had not done for three years. It was such a blast. We did more chatting in the grass than swimming but I came out feeling amazing. The walk to the pool is about a mile and a half so buy the time I got there I was ready for cold water. But, one does not simply swim in the deep end. We had to perform a swim test to be there. (My friend is a lifeguard over the summer and still had to do it.) It wasn't too rough, just four laps with two different strokes and some treading water time. Since it was the first time this year it tuckered me out but in a good way. Plus, we witnessed a grown man throw a fit about having to pass the test. He did two laps and then started yelling at the teenage lifeguard who was just doing his job and proceeded to complain to the kid's boss (who I'm sure is also under 21.) The thing about city public pools is that there is security and this is why, adults who act like idiots. Those guards have cuffs and guns, dude, they do not mess around. (Another change from when I was at a city pool every day for a summer¹; I don't remember the security being loaded.) My friend suggested we make a regular habit of pool days and since I'm off MWF this year it seems like a great idea. We both live within walking/biking distance of two city pools. One has lap lanes and no grassy area and the other the opposite. Our plan is to bike to the first pool, do some laps and be healthy like, then back on the bikes to the other pool for some relaxation time. It sounds like a lot of exercise but I think it's perfect. And, it will force me to get Dad's bike from the basement and riding around. Viva Fitness! I walked back from the pool (another 1.5 miles) and realized how good I felt. I was tired but not exhausted and I didn't want to slouch and drink a bunch of wine and smoke a bunch of cigarettes. I wanted to eat a healthy dinner and walk the dog and feel good inside and out. Not bad for $2 pool expense.

Getting fit is such a huge part of this whole project. Yes, I'd like to wear a smaller clothes size and I definitely would like higher self-esteem but my life is also important to me. I'm almost 30 and I don't want to take any part of it for granted, time goes by so fast and I don't want to be sitting in the corner depressed and missing out. I'd like to avoid any unnecessary health woes while I'm at, why ask Diabetes to come over y'know?

I tracked all of my food and exercise as well and drank 7 of the 8 cups of water. Thanks to my new marked water bottle I can stay on top of it.

On the Walk to Mordor front I clocked another 3.2 miles (1.7 to and 1.5 return; I took different routes, obvs.)

I'm still determining my "Fitness Goal by Day 365" but I have some good ideas.

---

1 For awhile when I was 18 I dated a lifeguard and spent every off day at the pool swimming and doing crosswords. I lost a ton of weight and got really strong. I'd love to be ready for a regular exercise at the TU gym come Fall. ^↩

Day Twelve

My walking is not nearly where it should be and I really need to kick it into gear. Lucky for me I have a beagle who would selflessly help me out with it. This afternoon I'm going to take her for a good one and not spend the day on the couch watching "Frasier" -- which I've gotten all the way to the tenth season already.

I finally caught my first lightning bug of the year. James is somewhere in the G range but I'm still far back. (I sometimes wonder if he's just trying to show me up, ha) Usually A is for Agatha but I went with Antigone this time.

Also, we finally got the grill James has been promising for the last five summers! We're one step closer to a BBQ party this way. Now we just need to get a splash pool and some kind of seating. I'm thinking a picnic table would be ideal. They are a bit pricier than I'd like for a new one but we don't have any way of transporting an already built one from Craigslist.

A friend gave me some free tomato plants and I'm  excited to have some fresh, tasty tomatoes growing on the back deck. We can't plant in the backyard proper because of the beagle and her, there is no delicate way to put this, attempt at fertilizer. 

Day Six

Thursday was the first day that I didn't drink all the water I was supposed to, which explains a lot of my headache the next morning -- and the empties as well. I chugged through yesterday (and a little extra since it was warm outside.) One of James' co-workers hosted a BBQ at his home and I spent a lovely afternoon surrounded by teachers, all of whom are amazing and I'm really excited I get to hang out with them by extension. It sometimes makes me wish I'd stuck to teaching but I know I'm on the right path with SLP.

Speaking of SLP, I finally received my acceptance letter yesterday! My name is, of course, spelled incorrectly but I'm used to that. I tried to sign up for my fall classes but I need permission, which is to say I have to "confirm" my acceptance and then enroll. Sigh. Oh, and I need to get all of my shots like a good pup.

Day Three

Yesterday was a good day for walking. I walk to work (as I normally do) and instead of going straight home I went to the library to pick up a book I had on hold. I also grabbed a collection of Beginner/Intermediate level French Audio CD/Workbook collection. I took French for five years (although the  first year was in middle school and doesn't really count) so I have a good background but I haven't used it ten years¹ so this should be a good way to flex my language muscles. I almost bought a copy of One Hundred Years of Solitude in Spanish at  the bookstore the other day, thinking of going through it line by line to learn to learn Spanish. However, methinks its best to master what I already know partially.

After the library I walked home, clocking a little over another mile. I even turned down a ride home for my husband because it's not that long of a walk why waste the energy? In total I walked 3.6 miles yesterday which is helpful because I don't think I'll be doing much today with the looming rain clouds and plans to have lunch with my mother and grandmother.

I'm not huge Office fan (at least American Office) but
this is exactly how I work -- who needs a bully
when I can create my own personal hell?

But I'm spending the morning thinking about my fitness goals. Specifically I am pondering the attitude I want to have about them. Of course my first instinct was "flat stomach, rock hard abs, etc" but I want it to be a rounder, wholesome, life change not solely a physical change. I'm in a discussion group with some wonderful lady friends and this came up today. All of use (womankind, not calling out my friends) have issues with our body. And although this occurs to men, I'm not pretending it doesn't, I do no believe it occurs with the same voracity or universality as it does with women. This is, of course, completely ridiculous but being aware of it consciously does not solve it completely.

When I think of inspiration for getting healthy it's never photographs of other women., I tried that in high school and all it did was make me depressed. Comparing myself to others is the road to hell. Plain and simple. Again, though, this is how I work -- I'm not going to tell other people to play by my rules. Now, do i think women shaming is a healthy attitude? Hell no, but I'm not your mom, either. Anyway, I'm working on a Pinterest board of inspiration for in the way I need it. I'm not usually a quote person but here and there I find them effective. I'm trying to avoid things that say "8 moves to a sexy you" because I am sexy now. I just want to be healthier. I need motivation to feel better inside. As I mentioned to my fabulous lady friends, when  I was thinner I still thought I was a cow. What the heck kind of thinking is that? Cruel and unnecessary. It didn't motivate me, it just made me resistant to maintain anything or anything healthy. Why should I? I mean, even if I was thin I hated myself, what's the reward there? So I need to stop that thinking somehow. I don't know how yet, but I want to try. Getting into TU and much more so, the SPPA program, has made me feel really good about myself. This is the time to work on my opinion of myself. I am worth it. [Insert Stuart Smalley reference here]




¹ Mother jumper! I can't believe I graduated high school ten years ago. Scary!

Day One

Short of breaking a bottle of champagne on the side I am prepared to begin, full speed ahead. I didn't particularly complete one of my goals today but I kept them in the back of my mind (which is something?)

I actually completely went against one of my Books & Education goals by buying three books — four if you can't the one I got for James. I went to Ukazoo on a trip with my mom and couldn't help myself. I needed those three Gabriel Garcia Marquez titles, don't you understand?

I also received word that my acceptance into the SPPA program at college is on it's way to me, so I can place that one in italics as soon as I get my letter in my paws. Why wait until the letter arrives and not do it today? I honestly cannot say, i just prefer it that way.

But the important things is that as I went through my day I thought about these things and wondered if there was something I should do to enrich the list or myself. And I need that kind of thinking or else I get lost in a sea of anxiety. If I had a crest the motto would be "If I'm not worried, I'm dead" which is laugh and all but probably a really good way to have an embolism by forty. I don't want to spend the entirety of my life worried about little stuff. I want to worry about making myself happy and fulfilled — does that make sense to anyone else?

I'm still determine what my Fitness Goals for Day 350 & Day 700 are going to be; I don't want to be unrealistic and find myself publicly shamed and discover too late that I was both unsound and unsafe. I may or may not reveal when I determine them, some things are just "for me."

All About (the) Eve

Tomorrow is the day I start back up with this project. From tomorrow's date (10 June) this should run until 07 March 2016. I have gone through and re-read all of my goals, organized them into categories and feel really good about them. I will admit, I only wrote the last 15 today. I remember it seeming easier last time; perhaps one year of happy marriage and a better career path will do that.

For a lark, I decided to see what I accomplished from the last time I tried this. Some of the uncompleted tasks I have added to Round 2. Any notes for are in brown:

1. Buy flowers for the house every week for a month
2. Get my hands on a card catalog or old medicine cabinet
3. Organize pay stubs and maintain it
4. Buy or build a sideboard/bar for the dining room The Jon Hamm bar was found for free!
5. Grow/maintain a kitchen herb garden
6. Redecorate well enough to submit a photo
7. Set up an efficient laundry system in the basement
8. Decorate the foyer
9. Get Lola on healthier food from Howl
10. Make the bed every day for one week¹-² I still struggle with this one!
11. Implement a cleaning routine for two weeks I keep our house clean in furies, which is silly
12. Set up a Gift Wrapping Station/Card Centre in my office
13. Construct a Mail Centre in the Living Room
14. Organize clothes; get rid of/donate everything I don’t wear ³ This has proven to be quite the endeavour! Who knew we kept so much?!
15. Create a pantry in the backroom
16. Invent a better way to read while showering!
17. Lower my WiiFit age
18. Start running thrice weekly Ah, charming naïveté
19. Stick to a meal plan for two weeks solid
20. Get my broken tooth fixed :/
21. Blow dry my hair every time I wash it for a month
22. Wear makeup every day for a week ² I seem to max out at three days
23. Grow my hair back past my shoulder blades
24. Buy five COMPLETE pairs of earrings (0/5)
25. Take a multivitamin every day for a month ²
26. Have my hair dyed professionally
27. Get my nose pierced
28. Learn how to do Victory Rolls (well)
29. Make James lunch three times a week at least for one month (1/4)
30. Make sushi at home (no poisson poisining)
31. Make and print my own stationary
32. Start my earworm/repetune project
33. Host a wine and cheese party
34. Design my tattoo Now I just have to get it
35. Host a kabob party in the backyard
36. Start a photo project
37. Make myself Bento lunches every school day for a month
38. Make a cake with fondant
39. Make infused vodka
40. Make ten recipes from Mastering the Art of French Cooking(0/10)
41. Learn to make Indian food
42. Cook a three course meal
43. Have dinner at Andy's restaurant
44. Eat at Petit Louis (without fainting at the bill)
45. Knit Christmas stockings for James, Lola and I
46. Get Adobe CS4 - somehow I have CS2 for free and I'm happy
47. Get Flock Tee shirts designed and sold
48. Start sketching three times a week, minimum
49. See the Orioles at an away game twice (0/2)
50. Got to a Caps game
51. Go apple picking in the autumn
52. Plan a trip to Europe
53. Learn to play Poker
54. Join a duckpin bowling league (with cheesy name and shirts)
55. Sing at Open Mic with Andrew
56. Confirm the venue for James' 30th birthday party Life happens
57. Go to Salem with Alison and David
58. Wear a ball gown and pearls somewhere
59. Play some DnD
60. Get a photo with the Oriole Bird - with a smile
61. Watch the entirety of BSG ¹
62. Lord of the Rings movie Marathon
63. Put my library into Dewey  I opted for Library of Congress
64. Get the hell out of CCBC! 
65. Get my driver's license
66. Read the Bible and Qaran in entirety (including banned texts)
67. Take a real Yoga class
68. Take a dance class and go out dancing
69. Start writing a Tolkien criticism - just for fun
70. Collect Tolkien in 5 different languages (0/5)
71. Take a course at CCBC with Ami and/or Louis
72. Take a French class (credit or audit) I dropped it when Dad got sick
73. Get CPR certified
74. Join a Book Club (online?)
75. Buy the OED
76. Read a french book en française
77. Get a reader card form the Library Of Congress
78. Read the Top 6 Books from the National Book Awards Fiction 2009 (1/6)
79. Learn to use a sewing machine (safely)
80. First Aid Certification
81. Subscribe to the New York Times
82. Subscribe to the New Yorker
83. Donate blood ten times (1/10) I did it more than once but goodness knows how many it really was
84. Be an Apheresis donor thrice (0/3)
85. Raise $200 for the Polar Bear Plunge
86. Do a Cancer walk/run
87. Get someone else to do Polar Bear Plunge
88. Sign 5 petitions (2/5) I re-joined Amnesty and I sign more than 5 on a regular basis
89. Go to the BMA/Walters three times a year (0/8)
90. Go to the opera with James ¹
91. Leave 5 books in different coffee shops with a note (0/5) ³ I did give away a book in the bar once because I loved it so much and felt a stranger should have it.
92. Send/Receive stranger's postcards ³
93. Go to the Hindu temple with Mom
94. Get a new passport
95. Celebrate five years with James
96. Sell three things on eBay (0/3)
97. Go on a Romantic weekend holiday
98. Follow John Wilkes Booth's escape tour
99. Buy a new computer + external hard drive for backup
100. Go camping
101. Blog 75 of these things! (1/75) ¹²³