Request

"Hey, do me a solid and get me a Beggin' Strip. I'm so hungry I can hardly hold up my head. These brown eyes are only going to get sadder the longer I have to wait."

In A Pinch

Things I did today that sucked:
Got a flu shot
Rolled my ankle in my cute new Mary Janes
Had a fitness assessment wherein my body fat was measured with tong-like device.

Things I did today that did not suck:
Lots of progress on work project
More sit-ups and push-ups than I thought possible during aforementioned fitness test
Made a delicious dinner of tenderloin, couscous/spinach/feta/pine nut stuffed tomatoes, roasted new potatoes.
Watched "Glee"

I guess it's not a horrible day if the "did not suck" list is longer than the "suck" list.

The fitness assessment was interesting because I thought I would rock the cardio part and then be shameful at the strength test. I was wrong. Apparently I am rather strong when compared to other girls my age. (Sidebar: I still think of myself as a girl. I originally typed "other women my age" rather that "girls" but I just giggled and erased it as it just made me sound old and I'm young and vivacious, damnit.) Anywho, I did well on strength and flexibility; however, my cardio was not as fantabulous as I thought it would be. And the body fat measurements? OH. DEAR. LORD. I knew it would be a little embarrassing because the trainer said I'd have to be shirtless (but in a sports bra as I am no gym floozy). I'm not the girl at the gym who runs around in her sports bra; I try to keep the girls covered up so having them covered with only a layer of lycra/spandex blend was daunting. So there I stood in my yoga pants and my sports bra, wishing I had managed to keep a little bit of summer tan but realizing that sadly, I had not, and just looked white and squishy. The trainer grabs the back of my arm and begins to measure. And it's not just a little squeeze but a full-on pinch. I yelped a little and she apologized saying that it might "get a little uncomfortable". Yeah, because I wasn't uncomfortable standing under unforgiving fluorescent lighting in my sports bra while you stand there with your fit, trim body taking notes on all the ways my body is neither fit nor trim. Go ahead and add injury to insult and grab my thigh with those forsaken pliers. And then squeeze really hard. And then maybe you could spit in my eye just to round out the hurt and humiliation. After that was the treadmill test where they see how quickly you can walk 1 mile. Speed walking is not my bag, baby. If my legs are going that fast, let's just get our run on, shall we? Trainer put the kibosh on running. Just walk as fast as you can do 1 mile. So I did. And my legs were killing me because I ran yesterday. And I ran hard yesterday. So though walking 1 mile doesn't sound that difficult, it wasn't a whole lot of fun and I didn't do all that well. Cue the shame. Who can't walk 1 mile quickly? I can run a mile, no problem. But walk it as fast as possible without your heart leaping out of your chest? Sucktastic.*sigh* After that I had to do the flexibility test which I did really well at and regained a tiny shred of self-respect. The last part was what I was dreading the most - strength test. Push-ups and crunches. And I couldn't believe it but I did quite a few of each. So the trainer took all of the info and put it into some computer and came back with a 7 page breakdown which basically said that I have great flexibility and strength and not-so-great aerobic fitness and body composition. So basically I'm strong and bendy...and also fluffy and out of breath. Swell. I take the same test again in three months and I guarantee the results will improve. If I'm going to have my flesh violently pinched again there is for-effing-sure going to be less of it.

Thank the good lord that my dinner was so yummy (and rather healthy) and "Glee" was so glorious. Nearly made me forget about the welts all over my fluff-tastic body.

You Can Go Ahead and Have My Picture Removed from the Back of the Milk Carton

So my goal to start writing more sort of...um...failed miserably. I've got a lot to say but just haven't been able to sit down and write. I've been feeling out of sorts lately because the insomnia hit again. Actually, it bitch-slapped me, kicked me in the shins, squirted lemon juice in my eyes and gave me four hojillion paper cuts...under my finger nails. I have to say that I wouldn't wish insomnia on anyone. Not on that girl who in 7th grade said I was the "ugliest girl in the school and a total dork". Not on the annoying guy at my Starbucks who rolls his R's when he serves me my grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrande chai latte. And not even on Diane Kruger who spends her nights snuggled up next to MY Josh Jackson. (Gimme a second to poke that image out of my minds eye.) So I'm working on the problem but in the meantime it sucks. I bought a new bed over the weekend and slept in it last night and slept for 7 hours. SEVEN WHOLE HOURS. In one night. There have been several days when I haven't gotten a total of seven hours of sleep so to get them in one night was a little slice of heaven. I'm hoping it continues tonight. Keep your fingers crossed, won't you?

Then there was also the little matter of trying to do some work on a couple of very important relationships in my life. And while I'm not ready to go into all of that just yet, I will say that it's been exhausting. I mean that in a good way because things are a lot better now but getting to the better place has been a long journey.

So to recap:
Insomnia = sucky.
Personal growth = ass-kicking, pride-swallowing and yet totally necessary experience.

How I Spent My Summer Vacation: A Photo Essay

(Alternative title: A Picture's Worth a Thousand Words...and I'm Tired as Hell. So please, enjoy some pictures and know that I had a fantastic time and could never share all of the awesome stories.)

(Ok so one quick story...I wanted to take this little burro home as he was so cute. And I was going to name him...wait for it...Burrito! Can you imagine how much fun I am on a 5 day road trip?!)

TATANKA!

Mini TATANKA!

Wild Turkeys

Awkward Pharmaceutical Moments

So I ran into Walgreens today to pick up a few things including Emergen-C. I've been so paranoid about getting sick before vacation that I thought I'd get some and load up. I wandered the aisles looking but couldn't find it anywhere. After five minutes of searching, I walked back to the pharmacy to ask if they stocked it.

"Oh yes, we carry it," the pharmacist whispered. "I'll just need your driver's licence."

A bit confused I just stood there for a moment and then fished around my purse to retrieve my licence. I concluded that Emergen-C must have an ingredient that was critical in meth formulas and so like many cold medicines it had been moved behind the counter and purchases were tracked via driver's license. (Sidebar: If anyone ever had concerns that I would try to run a meth lab I'm quite certain that last line squelched any worries.) Anyway, I as I looked up with my license in hand I saw the pharmacist holding this...

I laughed a little and repeated the word "Emergen-C" again. The pharmacist realized her mistake and with a look of total horror on her face began to apologize for the misunderstanding.

"That's ok. But the only thing I really need to prevent right now is a cold."

I giggled the whole way home.

33

I've been meaning to write about my birthday for oh, nearly a month, but I haven't had much time to sit down and go on and on about how fantastic it was. The last few birthdays have been a bit lackluster, to say the least. So I decided that this year would be big. Quite a few of my friends hadn't seen the new house yet so I threw a housewarming/birthday extravaganza.

Keeley, KC, Marla

Steve

Steve, Keeley and Marla relaxing in the backyard at 2am.

Shawnie, Rosie, Liz

Amber and me


John, Chris, Cooper, Karen & Amber

Steve and Rashaad

Sarah and Aaryn

So the birthday was awesome and though I'm only a month in, 33 really seems like it's going to be a great year. I always make a New Year's Resolution on my birthday and this year is was to write more. So far I'm failing miserably but I've got 11 more months to make it up. In the meantime, I'm just going to keep on living the good life.

As of Late

I went to Chicago for vacation and went sailing. It was as fantastic as I thought it would be and I will be going again. Not sure when as there aren't many regatta galas here in the greater Denver metro area, but I'll figure it out.

I've been working on the new house. Still. *sigh*

But I still love it more than just about anything else. Except for the brown dog. I still heart him above all others. He's doing quite well, too. Thanks for asking! He's just been playing some ball and enjoying summer.

I turn 33 next week and two of the best people I know are coming in for my party this weekend. I'm having a housewarming/birthday extravaganza this coming weekend and while trying to plan the menu I've also been wondering how the hell I became 33. Because in my head, I'm still like, 25. Don't get me wrong, my thirties haven't been bad, it's just so odd to think that I'm going to be 33. Thirty-three. Whew, I need to lie down for a minute.

In other news, I cannot get enough sugar snap peas or bing cherries lately. I sit on my porch swing and eat one or the other almost every night.

Life is pretty good.