Day 11 – Sunday, Nov. 11
Write about your favorite thing that is not health-related but likely improves your life.
COFFEE
New friends.
Good beer.
My extreme nerdiness… (click to see my fangirl pinterest board)
Fun makeup! (click for my style dreams pinboard)
Anything and everything about Rome. (click for my Italy pinboard)
Friends’ Posts:
I clearly have Doctor Who on the brain after watching this season’s opener. Love that show.
So… about that cleanse.
I spent the evening bouncing back and forth between believing it was the right decision to stop the cleanse and feeling like a failure for choosing to give up.
In the end, I think I made the right decision for two specific reasons. #1 – I didn’t just feel off or funky or weird, I felt downright ill. I felt flu-like and weak, and I can’t get my head around how that could be a good/healthy thing, when it seems like everything in my body was telling me there was a problem. #2 – (and this was the big reason) it occurred to me suddenly that there was NO WAY I’d be able to get through tomorrow morning’s run on this kind of fuel. No way. Tomorrow morning begins week 8 of C25K, and there is not a chance that I’m going to risk not completing that run.
So I’m done with the cleanse for sure, but in even the short amount of time I did it I came away with a few lessons.
I will be adding a lot more produce into my diet, and just sticking with my overall plan to clean up my food with simpler ingredients and less processing. In the end, even a one week switch to less processed, more simply made, shorter ingredient list foods is what finally knocked me out of a plateau that’s been going strong for months.
Have you ever done a cleanse? Did it work for you?
Happy Esther Day! In lieu of a whiny post I intended, and even in place of a quick C25K recap (it’s going fine, thanks) I have something much more important to say today.
August 3rd is Esther Day
What is Esther Day?
“Esther Day is the day where we think ‘who do i love who i have trouble saying I love you to’. Not some romantic interest, that’s just using Esther Day as an excuse to tell someone you love them, that you already want to tell them… no. I mean family, or platonic friends, which for me is even harder than family.” – John Green (source)
And so, I have love to share.
Coworkers: I don’t think you guys read the blog, but you keep me sane every single day. Thanks, and rock out.
Blog readers & lurkers: I know you’re out there, and I am so grateful for each of you. You support me, you encourage me, you give me advice, you make me smile. You’re awesome. You’re inspiring. You’re incredible.
Facebook & Twitter friends: We’re not as close I guess, but each of you is an endless source of support, surprise, and incredible spirit. Thanks for being the sort of people who reach out to stranger, who help just because they can, who always offer an eShoulder to lean on.
IRL friends & family: I’d be nowhere without you, huh? In some cases that’s literal (hi Mom!) but each of you, no matter how infrequently we talk or see each other, is necessary to me. So necessary. Each one of you can claim a little part of me, a little piece that’s just ours.
Aaron, Aodin, & Evi: (alternate title: I will not cry at work) You define me. You keep me going when nothing else will. You fill my heart with love and my head with wonder. You are an endless source of unending joy. You’re frustrating, fascinating, and everything I’ve ever wanted. You’re my safe places, my quiet harbors, my sweet moments, and my most genuine smiles.
And finally, to the ladies at my gym… the other crazy people who get up at the crack of dawn. Not one of them reads this blog or likely ever will, but I want to thank them too. Knowing they’ll be there every morning, that they’re cheering on my Warrior Dash obsession and fitness efforts, that they offer advice… every bit of it pulls me out of bed when I really don’t want to get up. So thanks, crazy gym ladies. You all rock.
I have a lot of disjointed thoughts today, so you get random paragraphs.
I finished the The Hunger Games
Honestly? I didn’t love it as much as I wanted to. I bought it because we had a coupon and a lot of my friends had raved about it. I started reading it during my 10-15min bike warmups at the gym, and for the first while I was just not drawn in. Up until the last chapter or so, I only read it for that ten minute stretch every day and not at all on the weekends because I just felt like I could easily take it or leave it. Once I got to the last chapter or two, I was definitely more into it. I did like it, I just wasn’t as captivated by it as I’d hoped to be. It must not have been too bad though, since one of the first things I did this morning was get on Amazon and buy the next two books in the series.
Catching Fire
I finished Catching Fire today, less than two days after I started it. It started off much better than Hunger Games for me, and I was intrigued throughout. As predicted by friends, I was frustrated with the ending, but I’m picking up Mockingjay this afternoon and reading it this week.
I was relatively excited about starting Mockingjay
So yeah, there’s that… Now I’ve picked up The Adrian Mole Diaries
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I also read Zoot’s post this morning, which got me thinking about the power of negativity. We all do it. We make fun of people, comment on their outfits or hair or speech. We gripe about our coworkers, kvetch about our spouses, and complain about our friends. I honestly believe that, to some degree, complaining is a necessary form of stress relief. If I didn’t spend some time venting about work frustrations to Aaron at night, I’d be a lot more unsettled after bad days. That being said, there are still some things I need to work on when it comes to negative thinking.
I can definitely see a difference in how I think of myself when I stop the negative talk about others, which is always the most powerful thing for me. When I stop talking about her hair or his pants or that woman’s shoes, I stop viewing myself as harshly. I want Evi to grow up in the most positive light she can, so I’m trying to call it quits when it comes to pointless judgements and poking fun. It’s just not worth it and it effects me in negative ways.
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Gluten Free (source: http://gfiowa.us)
My belly issues aren’t really getting better. The probiotics are helping, definitely, and I’ll continue taking them until the pills are gone, but I’m still having more issues than I’m comfortable with. My plan all along was to finish out the probiotic supplements, and then consider elimination diets once they were gone if I was still having issues.
After talking to several people about it, I’m seriously considering getting a Celiac panel done at the doctor’s office, and the results may be that I go gluten free at least for a while. I’m super skeptical about it, honestly, as I’m a big believer in the idea of everything in moderation and I’ve never been much for the idea of cutting out a whole category of foods. That being said… I’m exercising, trying to eat well, counting my calories, and I’m not seeing changes. I’m not losing weight. My belly issues aren’t improving enough that I’d classify myself as comfortable. Something has to give.
Other elimination options: caffeine (pls kill me), high fiber foods, high fat foods, dairy.
Zoot & Me
Begin to create a plan for “My friends day out 2012″ – tell us what you envision. (WEverb11)
You know, I unexpectedly had a super awesome “friends day out” this year when I got to go to the Starkid concert with Kim. I’m (not so) secretly hoping that my 2012 friend day will involve exactly the same thing! Starkid hasn’t announced any plans for another tour, but it was so successful that I can’t imagine them not doing it again, and I just want to be in a place where I can financially swing going again.
I’d also really like to spend more time with some of my other amazing friends, a lot of whom I don’t see nearly as often as I’d like to.
What did you celebrate in 2011? Are you looking forward to any celebrations in 2012? (WEverb11)
Celebrations are easy. We had nice birthday for me in March, Evi’s amazing zoo birthday in May, and a wonderful Christmas with family. Those same celebrations will be something to look forward to in the new year too!
Share a favorite photo from the past year. What was happening behind the scenes? What were you thinking or feeling? What could you smell, taste, see, hear at that moment? (WEverb11)
The Starkid concert I went to with Kim was such an awesome experience that I couldn’t help picking a picture from that night. It was loud and late and crowded and tiring and AMAZING. We were surrounded by screaming, shoving, insane kids… but it was AWESOME. I loved meeting Kim, I loved singing along to the songs. I loved the experience in every way.
Where did your money go this year? Where do you want it to go in 2012? (WEverb11)
Bills. Bills, bills, bills. We’ve been so broke all year. Next year, I just want enough expendable cash to relax a little, to travel a little, to spend some on just ourselves.
source: inspirinquotes.tumblr.com/
Listen: What song did you listen to in 2011 to completely change your mood? Think about ways you can you add more music to your life in 2012. (WEverb11)
I sincerely doubt I could pick a single song or even a single artist. I love all sorts of music from all over the place. But… if I HAD to pick… I’d have to choose the Warblers album. I know it’s geeky. I know I’m a fangirl. I also know it’s got catchy songs and good harmonies and it makes me smile.
Learn: What lesson did you learn in 2011 from “The School of Life” rather than a classroom? (WEverb11)
What did I learn this year? I learned that I’m a strong person, a capable mom, a cranky morning person, and not particularly crafty. I learned that there are ways to really stretch money when you need to, and sometimes those things are a lot of fun. I’ve learned that hard times will bring out the true nature of friends, leaving you having to weed a few out and learning to cherish some whose worth you’d missed.
