Debbie Downer Kind of Day

Okay, so the elliptical has been staring at me and taunting me for the past week and half because I've been sick again.  And I have been staring back at it with a "fuck off" kind of look.  At least it hasn't become a clothes rack, right?

I'm so sick of being sick.  I finally made myself go for a walk tonight.  Only 1.5 miles in 30 minutes, but at least I did something...even if I did come home pissed off because I didn't push myself any farther.  Whatever, I just have to keep arguing with myself that I did SOMETHING. 

Anyway, after my walk I came home and took a delicious chocolate cherry liquor bubble bath.  The only thing about that was that I lit candles and turned on some sappy radio station (thanks Delilah!)...boy did I feel like I was in some bad Jennifer Aniston movie! 

Eh, maybe tomorrow will be better...at least it's the last day of work for the week.  Thank God for four day weekends!!!!!!!!!!!!

Who's That Lady???

The kid thinks that stupid Swiffer mop commercial is so funny when they sing, "Who's that lady? Sexy lady." And she goes around the house singing it and changing the lyrics accordingly. So this morning she sings, "Who's that mommy? Sexy mommy." And I say to her, "Do you know what sexy means?" "Yeah mom, it means "hot." " So I egg her on and say, "So you have a hot mom?" And she goes, "Ewwww, that's disgusting. Mom's are NOT hot they CANNOT be hot! They are pretty. You're a pretty mama!"

So Seriously....Does that mean I have the sex appeal of a mop?????

I'm just sayin', my life according to a 7 year old...someone hand me a kleenex box or two...

Easily Amused

I made Pasta Primavera tonight...and let me just ask, just how cool (or dorky) is it to love getting to go into my own herb garden and pick fresh basil, parsly and chives to cook with????

Just My Luck

So I go to dad's church today since we were up visiting him...whatever, make the man happy for an hour, right?  (I'm not feeling church anymore, really!).  Anyway, you have to shake hands and say good morning and this hot guy turns around and shakes my hand and I'm thinking, "ummmm, possibilities..."  (YES!  I know, I WAS in church!!!) 

30 second later his smokin' hot size 2 wife comes in...just my luck.

Seven Wonders of the World

So I'm going to go see the Mayan Ruins in Mexico.  I'm so excited.  I was doing a little research on the trip cuz I'm anal like that and come to find out that it is one of the seven wonders of the world (from the new list they recently formed)...which means after I go there, I will have officially seen two (Machu Picchu being the first).  I started googling the seven wonders and this is what I've come up with.

Soooo, I've seen lots of the seven wonders of the world that no one can agree on.  Pretty awesome!  I LOVE TRAVELING!!!!

The Seven Wonders of the Medieval Mind - seen one
Stonehenge - was there in 2000
The Colosseum
The Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa
The Great Wall of China
The Porcelain Tower of Nanjing
The Hagia Sophia
The Leaning Tower of Pisa

The Seven Underwater Wonders of the World - seen none
Palau
The Belize Barrier Reef
The Galapagos Islands
The Northern Red Sea
Lake Baikal
The Great Barrier Reef
The Deep Sea Vents

The Seven Wonders of the Modern World - seen three
The Empire State Building - was there in 2009
The Itaipú Dam
The CN Tower - there in 1988
The Panama Canal
The Channel Tunnel - was there and in it in 1996
The North Sea Protection Works
The Golden Gate Bridge

The Seven Forgotten Natural Wonders of the World - seen one
Angel Falls
The Bay of Fundy
Iguaçú Falls
Krakatoa Island
Mount Fuji
Mount Kilimanjaro
Niagara Falls - was there in 1988

The Seven Forgotten Modern Wonders of the World - seen three, working on four
The Clock Tower (Big Ben)  - was there in 1996 & 2000
Eiffel Tower - was there in 1996
The Gateway Arch - was there in 1988 & 2001
The Aswan High Dam
Hoover Dam
Mount Rushmore National Memorial - planning a trip there next year
The Petronas Towers

The Seven Forgotten Wonders of the Medeival Mind  - seen none
Abu Simbel Temple
Angkor Wat
Taj Mahal
Mont Saint-Michel
The Moai Statues
The Parthenon
The Shwedagon Pagoda

The Forgotten Wonders - seen two, going to add another this year
The Aztec Temple
The Banaue Rice Terraces
The Borobudur Temple
The Inca City - was there in 1998
The Statue of Liberty - was there in 2009
The Mayan Temples - going to see it soon!!
The Temple of the Inscriptions
The Throne Hall of Persepolis
Petra
The Suez Canal
The Sydney Opera House
The Red Fort in India

The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World - seen none.

The Great Pyramid of Giza
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus
The Statue of Zeus at Olympia
The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus
The Colossus of Rhodes
The Pharos of Alexandria

So I Totally Lied

So I totally lied, I just did a 5 mile 1 1/2 hour walk.  I'm still staying away from the elliptical, that thing is scaring me today!!!!

Party, Party!

So I pulled it off and I had a good turn out.  18 people.  I feel like an adult now that I've officially hosted my first party.  LOL.  You'd have thought having a kid, buying a house, being married would make me feel grown.  Nope, I have to be the odd one out and wait to host a party.  I remember though as a kid the parties my mother would host and how grown up and glamourous it all was when she'd make fancy desserts and get dressed up.  Okay, so my party wasn't full of fancy desserts, but I did do my hair and make-up.  I mean even the hot rollers came out...and that's sayin' somethin'.

It was fun though and all the kids had a blast.  I made sherbert punch for the kids and the kid woke up this morning and told me she wanted a party just like "last night" for her birthday party.  The punch, brownies and eclairs were a hit with the kids.  : )  The rest of the items were a big hit too, no leftovers!  My menu was meatballs, antipasti salad and also a tomato, basil & mozz. ball salad, cheese tray, meat tray w/artichoke salad, olives and pepperonicci, bruschetta, bread w/olive oil and parmesan cheese.  Then I made a giant fruit salad with a cool whip dip, brownies, eclairs and a vanilla almond tart.  I decided to go Italian because it was the easiest to do with the most options for cold food.  I didn't want to be cooking and standing by the oven during the party.

Besides that, I am not getting on the scale today or anytime within the next 5 days.  With the wine I drank last night and the food I've eaten, I'm not even about to torture myself and beat myself up because it will all go to pot then.  I just have to get back on track and get on that elliptical tomorrow.  This weekend I haven't done it at all and have no plans on doing it today considering I still haven't gone to bed from last night!  I'm thinking 8 o'clock bedtime tonight might be looking really good!

Finally, because I'm totally cheesy, I had to take pictures of the spread.  And then forgot to take pictures of the acutal party.  Silly me.

All in all, I had a great time talking all night and a great time cooking w/the kid the night before.  I just might be tempted to have another party sometime in the near future.

Wow!

Not to toot my own horn or anything, but I'm really proud of how well I've been doing this week.  I've stuck to it longer than one day!  Monday, Tuesday I did the elliptical, Wednesday I did the 3 mile walk, yesterday I mowed the lawn (and that in itself for me is probably a better workout than the elliptical!) and today during lunch I did the elliptical again.  That's 5 days of exercise...5 days more than I was doing before!  I've been eating smaller portions, with the exception of a minor binge last night (the three remaining cookies from my boss and ONE glass of wine). 

Just got on the scale after my workout before the shower and I'm down 5.2 lbs!

Cancun It Is!

The air conditioner broke AGAIN!  They are coming to fix it AGAIN tomorrow.  They were just out here on May 27th...nice.  Wonder if their work is warrantied???

Anyway, I was not crazy enough to do the elliptical when it was 90 degrees (no joke) inside my house when I got home tonight.  I dropped the kid off at 7 and came home and decided to take a walk.  Hey?  I'm doing good...exercise and good eating for the past 3 days.  A record for me.  Anyway, I did 3 miles in 45 minutes.  I felt really good, except for my cracked toe...but Mexico, Mexico, Mexico was enough to keep going.

Got on the scale this morning and am down 3.6 lbs, which is probably just water weight but WHO CARES!!!! The number went down!  Gotta keep going!!!!

It's All About Perspective

I was geting in to the shower tonight after working on the elliptical and the kid walks into pee (we only have one bathroom).  She exclaims, "Wow mom!  That machine really works.  Your butt got smaller tonight!!!"  It must have all been in the angle...

If only it were true!!!!!!!!!

Pickles and Stamps

The kid decided to be extra helpful during lunch this weekend and not only put the pickles on the table, but open them.  She ended up opening them all over the kitchen table, tablecloth, floor, chairs and chair pads.  I could not imagine having the permanent smell of dill pickles in my house (chair pads) so I had this genious idea to recover them.  Wayyyy tooooo much work!  But I did it.  Never again.  I can't believe people make a profession out of that...that's one job I can check off my list of never wanting. 


Got a postcard from Finland today with an awesome stamp on it.  I know, I'm amused by the stupidest things.  The kid went crazy about the stamp though too because it's this broccoli with silly eyes and a mouth.  Why can't we have cool international stamps like that?  We just have the boring mountains.  Blah.   

I thought I'd be getting on the elliptical in the mornings before work, but after attempting to get back up an hour earlier (after a night of NO sleep), I can see that is not going to happen.  Now or in the future.  Lately I've been getting a second wind though around 7.  Tonight I did a half an hour, 1 3/4 mile and burned 485 calories.  Hey whatever works.  Jamaica, Mexico, St. Thomas???  Whatever, wherever, I'll be there soon!!!  And I'm hoping no one reports a beached whale.

Alright already, could I have a more boring blog?  Well anyway, peace for tonight.  I'm walking into hell tomorrow.  *sob*

My Life Is Over...

Well, why not begin with My Life is Over as a title, after all I reign as the drama queen!!!  Tomorrow I head back to work after 6 glorious weeks of working from home.  I LOVE working from home.  We get to sleep in an hour later, I can work in my pajamas if I want to, I can cook for lunch (if I want to), I get an extra hour at night or so to spend with the kid and it's so, so, so peaceful (except for the damn birds in the nest right outside the window).  I don't have to go into the drama and cattiness of working with 5 crazy women.  Alright, so they are alright most of the time, but you know, anti-social me hasn't had to be social for 6 weeks.  Peace!  Right?

Anyway, I'm having a very, very, very hard time with this.  I've gotten so used to being at home with the kid, spending more time with her, enjoying the afternoons and not having to rush so much before school/camp or after work.  It hasn't been, get home, hurry up, cook, clean up, homework and bed.  It's been more like cook, take a bike ride, play a game, snuggle a bit and watch TV and then bed.  I've been a much, much better parent.  Less crabby - especially in the morning and now I'm afraid it's all going to end.  I'm terribly greedy about wanting to spend time with the kid.  She's growing way too fast.  Another year and she'll be embarrassed to have me around!  And yes, since I am the drama queen, almighty reigning, I might as well admit that I feel almost as bad as when I took the kid to the day care for the first time after my maternity leave.

The kid's gotten used to the fun times we've been having together too.  Her comment about me going into the office tomorrow was, "Mom, I don't really mean this, but I wish you'd break your other foot just so you could still be at home."  How can that not break your heart???  I need to win the lottery - damn it.  I need to start playing it first - double damn it.

Anyway, I didn't sleep at all last night knowing that today is my last day home.  I guess it's true, all good things come to an end.  I'm so depressed...if I were three I'd be lying on the floor sobbing and stomping my feet right now.

Another Shot At Church

So I gave it another shot today - I went to church and afterward they had a picnic.  Ho-hum....okay, well, I really don't know where to go from here.

Let's start with what I like.  I like that it's not too far from home.  I like the church itself.  I like the pastor, I think his sermons are interesting, well thought out, informative and funny.  I feel comfortable sitting in the church.  I like that it's a small church, not overwhelming like one of the mega churches.  I like that there is a choice of a 9am or a 10:30am service.  I like that the kid enjoys herself there and the kids are nice to her.  I like that she is interested in it and wants to go (none of that Catholic-forced church stuff happenin' here).  I like that she is happy about what she did in "class" when I pick her up after service.

Here's what I don't like.  People don't talk to me.  I'm very uncomfortable hanging out there by myself while everyone else knows someone to talk to.  For example, today, at the picnic, I sat with the kids.  Big surprise there.  The only person to come talk to me was the pastor to ask me how my foot was and how I broke it.  A whole 3 minute conversation and then I was on my own again.  No one came over to introduce themselves.  A lady sat down at the table, opposite me, with a friend, said their names and then went on talking amongst themselves.  I finally had enough of feeling stupid and got the kid and left. 

Okay, so I know it's not entirely "everyone else's" fault because I should probably make an effort to talk to someone.  But, um, well, just how do you interrupt a couple?  "Oh hi, I'm socially awkward, but can you be my friend?"  I'm not 8!!!  Oh, how about this one, "Hi, I'm here by myself, can I be your third wheel?" 

Anyway, I don't know what to do at this point.  I have serious issues introducing myself to people and striking up a conversation.  I'm painfully shy and I know I lack a lot of self-confidence.  And maybe, I guess, my expectation was too high of what to expect at church or with "church" people.  I thought they'd see a new person and come talk...hmph.

One more note.  I signed my card for the second time today saying I would be interested in "serving."  I can start by making a small effort.  But will it go unnoticed/ignored again???

I'm torn.  I like the church, but I don't like being the awkward one out.  I want to be a part of something and fit in somewhere. 

What to do?  What to do???  And P.S. why am I such a reject????

Not A Doubt In My Mind

I may have had cancer, may have lupus...but there are two things I'm sure never to get:

1.  Anorexia
2.  Bulemia.

I love to eat...

Chinese

Am I the only person in the world that gets Chinese take out but always has to eat the Crab Rangoon in the car?  I have no self control!!!

Such a Baby

I'm totally such a baby.  I have been working from home for 6 weeks now because of my broken foot and have loved every minute of it.  The kid gets to sleep an extra hour in the morning, the rush-rush, hurry up to get out the door in the morning disappeared, as did the hour drive home from work to pick the kid up.  I've loved it, the kid has loved it.  We've easily adapted, it's making me sick knowing I have to go back in to the office next week.  Literally, I've been sick to my stomach since Sunday and haven't been able to sleep.  I know, I'm a total big baby.

Anyway, my boss called me this morning about work and we were joking around (kind of) about coming in next week and I told her (kind of jokingly) that I was so depressed about having to come in...and what happens?  I get all choked up and she knew I was going to cry.  So, she's pretty cool and asks me what's going on.  And I tell her that it's going to be really hard for me because working from home has been so good for me and the kid.  What happens?  I delay coming into the office one extra day (haha) and possibly am now working on working from home two days a week instead of just one!!!!  Normally, everyone on the team gets to work from home one day a week, now I'm working on two.  It may take a few weeks to go through, but she knows my feelings and is going to work something out.  Wooo hooooo, okay, so I'm a baby, but sometimes being totally emotional obviously plays to my advantage!!!
_____
On to other news...when I moved into the house the people who lived here before had a dog and obviously NEVER cleaned the vents or the blinds.  I took the blinds down in the living room because they seriously smell like dog and are filthy, despite attempting to clean them.  Now my problem is that the window is over 120 inches and faces directly west so all the sun comes in in the afternoon.  Now, I love the sun, but I do not love the heat it produces in my living room.

I've been searching for some curtains, but apparently they don't make them that long.  I bought some really pretty shears, but they are (duh) too see through by the afternoon when the sun comes in and I end up having to squint to see my computer screen.  Not cool.  Tonight I ordered some tab top curtains.  It sucks though because they won't arrive in time for my party next week.  The living room looks pretty lame right now.  In the meantime I hung some room darkening curtains up along the window that are "just" long enough.  They block out the afternoon light/heat, but I was hoping the house would look pretty enough for the party.  What I might do is hand the shears for that night (and take them back afterward) so that it looks pretty.  I love the shears, but you can't see in the room once the sun hits in the afternoon.

I know it's totally lame to be obsessed with this, but I'm anal like that.
______
So the kid's been out of school two days and I haven't had the chance to use my elliptical...totally feeling the guilt.  Tomorrow, I swear, I will be on it - come hell or high water!!!!  Gotta keep telling myself - Mexico!  Mexico!  Mexico!!!!!

514.9 calories on the elliptical in 30 minutes

'nuf said. 

Stalker, Stalker On the Wall

Who's the creepiest of them all???

Update:  One day trying to date and I have a stalker.  Certifiable stalker.  So the dude emailed me yesterday and we exchanged numbers to talk.  Okay, I thought, some people prefer phones...I know that from my job.  So I spoke with him last night and he said he'd phone me today.  Well, um, ok...I wasn't sure how this dating stuff works now.  This morning I wake up and have 4 emails from him and then he called me.  I started to get creeped out.  I spoke with him and when I got back home had 2 more emails.  When I spoke with him earlier he said he was going to call me tonight.  Uh, I don't think so.  What is there to talk about?  I don't even know him?!?!?  Needless to say, not only did he call me "later," he called me three times.  Twice from his number and then once from a relative's house. 

That kind of crap doesn't fly with me.  6 emails in one day and 3 phone calls?  STALKER!!!! I blocked my email account, my dating account and all the phone numbers on my phone.  Creepy!!!!

Am I sure I'm ready for this dating stuff???  I'm not too sure.  At least I have some good friends to keep me sane and let me bounce my craziness off of them. 

I gotta remember to take my freak magnet off.  Geez!

Let's Be Honest

BLOG N' BITCH....Okay, so let's be honest here.  I'm ready to date or to find someone special...but (whine) I really don't want to deal with the bullshit?!?!?!  Isn't there just one normal non-bullshit suburban soccer-dad type kind of guy out there?  See, I have a problem, I tell it how it is.  Even my boss at work knows not to sugar coat with me.  She knows I tell people how it is and I even tell her how it is.  So, I'm not exactly PC at work, right?  Like for example, I like my boss, she's been good to me, but others don't find her as accomodating.  I told her.  I walked up to her one day and said, "you know, people find you unapproachable because you make no effort to talk to us in the morning and you never smile."  There you go, it's out.  Right?  That's what I want.  Someone to just be how you be.  Why do I have to get all fake and giggle or whatever?  I am who I am and I'm too old for games.  I've reached a point in my life where I am who I am and I'm not going to change.  Accept me or move on. 

So I have totally gone off track, I mean I haven't been rejected yet.  But seriously?  I am getting these emails like, "hey, are you interested in a hookup?"  or "let me spoil you."  Blah, blah, blah.  My life now is not wine and dine (don't get me wrong, that would be nice) but I go to soccer games, and play chauffer and spend the evenings in the pool watching after a kid.  I have responsibilities and what I am looking for is someone equally responsible.  I don't have time to play games and don't want to waste my time on someone, who cannot even financially support himself or just wants a roll in the hay or has nothing in common with me or says things that they think will impress me.  I don't know, maybe that turns me into Super Bitch, but this time round I'm not settling. I got more than myself to look out for and I don't deserve to settle for less. I've come a long way.

Obviously, I am going to have a very difficult time with this dating thing.  I think I'm going to make a way better friend than a date.  Shit!

13 Again

OMG!  I didn't really think I'd talk to someone this fast.  A guy is going to call me to talk.  Holy crap!  Good thing I chose to forego that glass (or two) or wine tonight while I watched the movie I rented.

OMG!  What am I, 13 again????  Maybe I'm not ready for this afterall! 

How is this supposed to work again?  I need Hitch.  Put him on speed dial!!!!  Anyone know Will Smith's number????

What a flippin' week!

Whew!  What a week!  Last Saturday night I told my BFF he no longer had a BFF after he crept into my room at 2:30 in the morning and tried to put the moves on me - DESPITE TELLING HIM OVER 100 TIMES HE WOULD NEVER GET THERE WITH ME!!!!!  Okay, so you see, we were up playing boardgames (yes, we are total dorks) late and opened a bottle of wine, so by the time I was ready to go to bed he wasn't ready to drive.  I told him to hang out on the couch until he was ready to go and then leave.  I wake up at 2:30am with him in my room.  Don't think so, isn't going to fly.  I told him to get the heck out of the house, though not in that nice of words or tone and not to come back.  I'm done.  Tell me, how many times do you have to tell someone they are like a brother to you?  I thought that was a guy's worst nightmare...hello?  I think maybe he was just born plain stupid.  So no more BFF is amounting to a week full of peace for me!!!!

Thursday I decided to not only go shopping in flip flops (and yes, part of my foot is still broken, but I've had it), but go shopping quite a few miles up the road in another city.  My car starts smoking under the passenger tire.  WTF????  So what do I do when I have car problems?  Pull over into a parking lot and cry, of course.  Then what do I do?  Call my dad, who's 400 miles away somewhere in Minnesota/Northern Wisconsin!  Well, thank goodness I had AAA  (that's Triple A, not Alcoholic's Anonymous...although the way my week has gone...).  They towed me free and then I had someone meet me at the car place.  I thought I was going to have an $800 or so repair, but it only turned out to be $353!!!  Woo hoo.  Not that I'm thrilled to be shelling out $353 either, but it was still a relief.  Turns out the compartment that holds the thermostat in at the radiator blew off...but I was lucky.  No hoses busted, the engine or radiator didn't even get affected.  Yay! 

Today I went to see Sex and the City 2.  It was meh.  To be honest, I didn't even like the first Sex and the City movie, but this one looked fun.  Okay, so I'm a sucker.  I will see nearly any movie that is filmed in a foreign country - I can't get rid of my travel bug.  Oh, and it did have John Corbett in it...let's not forget, I'd bed him in 10 seconds flat!!! (No "you're like my brother" syndrome with that one!)

BIG NEWS!!!!  Lately I've been thinking about possibly trying to date (even before the BFF incident).  I finally decided (hm, maybe seeing John Corbett today helped pushed that decision along as I was wiping up drool) to join a dating site.  I don't know how else to meet people.  I have been here 10 years and have a whole 2 friends...so.  I guess we'll see how it goes.  I'm not counting on anything and am totally wondering who would date me anyway?  I know, it's that whole self-confidence thing I get lectured about, but it's kind of a bit scary to put yourself out there again.  Wasn't I supposed to meet my "man" in college and be done with it? 

Finally, I got on the elliptical today.  I put that m*f* together by myself after I hauled the 300 lb parts in from the garage.  UPS wouldn't haul it in the house for me.  Bastards!  At least it came in pieces - except for the elliptical wheel part thingy that I think weighed at least 200 lbs.  It was not a pretty site.  Correction.  I was not a pretty site.  Anyway, I did a program on it today and burned 454 calories...which I put back on when I ordered Thai food tonight.  Can I somehow turn this around into a win-win situation????

Bloomin'!

My hibiscus is blooming for the second year in a row...so much for having a black thumb! I'm rockin' the whole plant thing!!!!

They Think I'm Crazy...

So I'm a little, okay, a lot crazy. I started singing in Spanish at the top of my lungs to the kid tonight some made up song about how she needed to brush her teeth and get to bed. Only when I was half way through it did I remember my windows were wide open and my neighbors were outside. Oh well, it's not like they exactly talk to me anyway...of course, they are probably whispering, "there goes that crazy lady again...."

Soooo....

I got the elliptical I ordered today in the mail. I think I got a week's worth of workouts just putting the thing together. Good thing the kid was at school, else she might have a whole new language!!!