Holiday List - February 2014

February 2014

1 - GI Joe Day

2 - World Play Your Ukulele Day

3 - The Day the Music Died

4 - Liberace Day

5 - World Nutella Day

6 - Canadian Maple Syrup Day

7 - Wave All Your Fingers at Your Neighbors Day

8 - Laugh and Get Rich Day

9 - Read in the Bathtub Day

10 - Clean Out Your Computer Day

11 - Extraterrestrial Visitor Day

12 - Safety Pup Day

13 - Get a Different Name Day

14 - Ferris Wheel Day

15 - National Gumdrop Day

16 - National Almond Day

17 - Random Acts of Kindness Day

18 - Pluto Day

19 - Single Tasking Day

20 - Hoodie Hoo Day

21 - International Mother Language Day

22 - National Margarita Day

23 - Diesel Engine Day

24 - National Cupcake Day

25 - Quiet Day

26 - For Pete's Sake Day

27 - National Chili Day

28 - National Tooth Fairy Day

Fitness Friday - Back at It

Last Friday, I was all excited about what a big deal it is to go to the gym. Then, I didn't go back until yesterday. Yep, almost a week. And, you know what? That dadgum Lycra is STILL making my jeans too tight!

I really didn't go to the gym for a whole week, because some crazy kettle bell swings hurt my back. )Yes, I blame the kettle bell swings, and not my bad form. Don't you worry, I glare at those kettle bells every time I see them.) So, after I noticed back pain, I did not stay home and rest. I kept pushing until my back really hurt and I couldn't go to the gym. For three days, I iced it and took the ibuprofen, and now I'm better, and I'm back at the gym. Two days in a row even!

As I mentioned before, I've been going to the gym for a little more than a year now. I'm not one of those people who checks-in every time I show up in the parking lot (mainly because I'm afraid I'll click the wrong location and accidentally check-in at Chen's Chinese Buffet next door), but if that's what keeps you going, well hey, go for it. Ok, really, I didn't talk about the gym in the social media, or the literal media, or even in most conversations because I was afraid of it. I was afraid that I would say something about going to the gym, and someone would say, "Really? You go to the gym? Oh." Because, my progress is SO slow, I was a little embarrassed about it. Maybe a lot embarrassed about it.

I'm taking a new approach on this idea, though. I'm thinking if I talk about it a little (not too much, I don't want y'all to get all oh-my-goodness-not-another-post-about-how-much-she-hates-burpees tired of it), I will make better decisions about what I eat and how I work out, so that when I say I go to the gym, someone will say, "And you look great!" Now, I know it's not only about how I look, but nobody ever says, "You look like your heart is healthy!" or "I'll bet your cholesterol is super low."

So, Happy Fitness Friday!  If you're making changes about living a healthier life, share them in the comments below.

Much love and many blessings to you,
~ME:)

Oh yeah, if you see I've checked-in at Chen's, just assume I'm at the gym!

Welcome back, Collarbones!

I have a confession to make. I've been working out. At the gym. I know, I know...I haven't been checking in on Facebook every time I go, so you probably don't believe me. But seriously, I really have been going to the gym. I have witnesses. And work-out buddies. And collarbones! Yep, my clavicles have returned from the great white underworld.

You may be asking yourself right now, "Why in the world is she all excited about a clavicle? Because it's progress, people...progress! I haven't noticed those definite lines between my shoulders in so long I can't remember. You can see them in the picture. Barely, but you can. I saw my collarbones this morning, and boy was I excited. I was almost as happy to see them as I was when I noticed that my rear end is about two inches higher than it used to be. (Yeah, when I noticed my booty was looking better, that was a great day.)

You see, my plan for getting healthy and lean (read 'skinny') is going much slower than I anticipated. Sweet Hubby Ryan and I started going to the gym just over a year ago. He's lost a boatload of pounds and is down to sizes he hasn't worn in years. Oh, and he looks fantastic. No, really, he is hot! I, on the other hand, have only lost ten pounds and my jeans still fit the same. Some of my other clothes fit better, but those jeans are driving me crazy! It's that doggone Lycra. I put the jeans on, wear 'em all day and stretch 'em out. Then, they go back in the laundry and that stretchy crap shrinks up in the dryer, and they get a little smaller every time. So, I'm taking my victories where I can find them. Collarbones. Not-so-saggy buttocks. Arms that don't jiggle when I brush my teeth. It's the little things. (Or, the things that are becoming little, anyway.)

Which brings me to the real topic. In the Boot Camp class that I go to on Mondays and Wednesdays, there is a little lady in her seventies who joins us. She's in her seventies...that's a big deal.  She gets up early, gets ready and drives to the gym to be there at 5:30am and does almost all the exercises that we do for the day. They are hard, too. Trust me on this. Still, Ms. Sue is at the gym and taking good care of her body. And we all make a big deal out of it, because she's seventy something. And it is a big deal.

But you know what? It's a BIG DEAL that every other person is in that class with me.  Every single one of them, including our Boot Camp instructor, Tracy. Some of the ladies are about my age (you know, 25 or so). There are a few ladies who are younger and a few ladies who are older. There's even one guy!  The point is, each one of us gets up and gets ready and drives to the gym to be there at 5:30 IN THE MORNING to work out for an hour. Each one of us works hard. Each one of us sweats and struggles and (sometimes) swears our way through exercises that we never dreamed of doing. Sometimes we go slower than the next person, and sometimes we whine about it, but we do it. We are there. And it's a BIG DEAL.

If you are going to the gym today, tomorrow or this week, I salute you.  Whether you've struggled with a weight problem all your life and you've finally made the decision to take charge of your health, or you've been fit all your life and you work to stay that way, I'm proud of you. You are taking steps to improve your heart health and reduce your risk of cancer. Keep up the good work. It's a big deal to me.  If you are thinking about changing your eating and workout habits, do it.  If you are planning a new you, get on it.  It will be a big deal.

I know that sooner or later I will lose the pounds that I want to lose and those jeans with the stupid Lycra will eventually be too big. I'm going to keep working on it. Even into my seventies, when it will be a really big deal.

Much love and many blessings to you,
~ME:)

What are you doing to get/stay healthy?

Holiday List - January 2014

JANUARY 2014

1 - Happy New Year!

2 - Mew Year for Cats Day

3 - Drinking Straw Day

4 - Trivia Day

5 - Bean Day

6 - National Weigh-In Day

7 - Harlem Globetrotter's Day

8 - Bubble Bath Day

9 - National Static Electricity Day

10 - National Cut Your Energy Costs Day

11 - Learn Your Name in Morse Code Day

12 - Secret Pal Day

13 - Rubber Duckie Day

14 - Dress Up Your Pet Day

15 - Humanitarian Day

16 - Appreciate a Dragon Day

17 - Women in Blue Jeans Day

18 - Thesaurus Day

19 - Popcorn Day

20 - National Disc Jockey Day / Penguin Awareness Day

21 - National Hugging Day / Squirrel Appreciation Day

22 - Answer Your Cats Questions Day

23 - National Handwriting Day

24 - Belly Laugh Day / Beer Can Day / National Compliment Day

25 - National Irish Coffee Day

26 - Toad Hollow Day of Encouragement

27 - Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day

28 - National Kazoo Day

29 - National Puzzle Day

30 - Inane Answering Machine Message Day

31 - Fun at Work Day

Very Superstitious...

I'm not really very superstitious at all.  I meet Friday the 13th head on.  I don't freak out about broken mirrors.  I'm not a scaredy cat when it comes to black cats.  Now, I don't walk under ladders, but that's because it's just not safe.  I don't particularly believe in luck - I believe in blessings.  I don't count on wishes - I count on prayers.  (Birthday candles and shooting stars are exceptions, however.)  I don't believe in magic, but I do believe in miracles.  

I do, however, have some superstitious feelings about the going out of the old year, and the coming in of the new year.  There's just something special and magical and lucky and wishful about a new year.  The old year is just..well, just so last year.  

So that I don't bring any dirty laundry into 2014 with me, the last load of laundry is in the dryer now.  I don't need any dirt from my past cluttering up my future, so the floors have been swept.  I'm over all that garbage, so the trash cans have been emptied.  On New Year's Day, we will do no laundry, do no sweeping and will not take out the trash.  Those acts could interrupt the space/time continuum and alter the course of the whole year.  We could unwittingly wash someone important out of our lives, sweep our good luck right out the door and trash our hopes and dreams.  I just don't need that kind of nonsense following me around for a 365 days.  

For good luck and prosperity, we'll have black-eyed peas and cabbage for lunch on New Year's Day.  I'll kiss my Sweet Hubby Ryan at midnight to ensure warm affection for the coming year.  I'll keep my thoughts positive and my words encouraging, so that the year will be filled with accomplishments for my family and friends, as well as myself. 

Yes, I make resolutions.  Every year.  It's part of the superstition, I guess.  I need to write down my intentions, in order for them to stick.  I always start out with great intentions, too, just like everyone else.  I can't find my list from last year, but I know it included going to the gym (I've been pretty steady at going two to three times a week!), making a point to perform at least one random act of kindness per week (that one has been pretty easy), writing in my journal and reading the Bible every day (those haven't held up as well).  There were some other things, but I sure can't remember what they were.  I'd like to say whatever they were, they have become so much a part of my life that they're now just habit.  I'm pretty sure if I did say that, it would be a big fat lie.  I'm certain I just forgot about them after a week or so.

This year, I resolve to a) commit to going to the gym at least four days a week, b) cut at least 85% of processed foods from my diet (cake will not leave the diet for good) and c) read one non-fiction book for every fiction book I read.  I have a few more, but they are for me only. After all, these are MY resolutions.  

In just a few hours, this year will be over.  Looking back, I'd say it was a pretty good year. Last year's black-eyed peas worked.  I'm one lucky girl.  

Much love, many blessings, good luck and Happy New Year!

~ME:)

What are your New Year's Eve and New Year's Day traditions / superstitions?

Holiday List - December 2013

Most of you got to these stories through Facebook, so most of you already know that every day is a holiday. It has come to my attention that some people like to know about holidays in advance of the actual date, so they can celebrate accordingly, of course. I see their point. I mean, how can you properly celebrate National Donut Day, if you passed all the donut stores on your way to work and THEN found out it was National Donut Day. I don't know why I didn't think of this before. Oh yeah...I didn't really keep up with the blog very well before. Well, now that I am doing better, I can give you a head's up (or is it heads up - or heads' up?...I don't know for sure, but you know what I mean).  

So, here is the list for December. Aaaand, here is the disclaimer. As I've said before, I do not make up these holidays. These are all real holidays, celebrated somewhere in the world (mostly the US, and when at all possible, Texas - I like to keep it local). Some days have more than one holiday - I am aware of this, and I have chosen the one I like best. It was my idea to post the holidays for you, so I get to pick. Mainly though, because, which would you rather celebrate, World Choral Day or Pretend to Be a Time Traveler Day (Dec 8)? Sure, about three of you said World Choral Day because you have really nice singing voices and like to sing in public (sorry). The rest of us will be acting like we just showed up from the future and are looking for a flux capacitor. What I mean to say is, if you don't like the holiday, just wait until the next day - I'm sure it will be better suited for you.  

OK, really...here is the list.

 1 - Day with Art Day

 2 - National Mutt Day

 3 - Giving Tuesday

 4 - National Cookie Day

 5 - Annual Day of the Ninja

 6 - Mitten Tree Day

 7 - National Cotton Candy Day

 8 - Pretend to be a Time Traveler Day

 9 - Roller Skate Day

10 - Dewey Decimal System Day

11 - International Mountain Day

12 - Poinsettia Day

13 - National Cocoa Day

14 - Monkey Day

15 - Cat Herders Day

16 - National Chocolate Covered Anything Day

17 - National Maple Syrup Day

18 - Wear a Plunger on Your Head Day

19 - Oatmeal Muffin Day

20 - Games Day

21 - Crossword Puzzle Day

22 - Thermometer Day

23 - Festivus

24 - National Egg Nog Day

25 - Christmas

26 - National Whiners' Day

27 - Visit the Zoo Day

28 - Card Playing Day

29 - Pepper Pot Day

30 - Bacon Day

31 - Make Up Your Mind Day

That's the list. We will eat, drink and be merry all this month - maybe even with a plunger on our heads! 

Happy Holidays and much love to you,
~ME:)

Oh yeah...have you actually subscribed to the blog? If you do, you'll get the low-down way before the Facebookers. Where do I sign up? you ask...up there in the right hand corner...right under where it says, "follow ME by email." Just type your email address in there and hit submit. You'll get an email asking you to confirm your email address (that's so 'they' know that you've really signed up and I'm not just forcing you to get my emails). Be sure and complete the confirmation process. Then, just like that, you'll get stories from ME!

I Had a Dream

I dream a lot, and I remember a lot of my dreams. The dreams are usually in color and are very vivid. Sometimes they're pretty fantastical, sometimes scary, sometimes really weird. But, every now and again, I have a dream that's just about normal stuff. That happened just the other night.  

In my dream, I was in the hallway of Martin Weiss Elementary, where I went to school from Kindergarten through 6th grade. (Some of you just smiled at that, because you remember that school. A couple of you probably grimaced, because I point it out every single time we go across that overpass from I-20 onto I-35.) Anyway, there I was, in the hallway near the stairwell that went up to the 4-6 grades, only I was me from now.  

As I walked toward that stairwell, I saw someone I know. In real life, this person is not someone who is in my circle of friends. In my dream she wasn't either. I'm reluctant to say I don't like her, because that just sounds mean. So, I'll say, she's not on my list of favorites. In my dream, she was crying. I didn't think about the fact that she's not my favorite, I only thought to make an attempt at some sort of comfort for her. So, I hugged her. Not just a pat on the back hug, but a real, honest-to-goodness, squeeze-you-tight, warm hug. And she hugged me back. She hugged me with the embrace of someone who really needed that hug. And she sobbed. We held that hug for a while.

After a moment, we released the embrace, she wiped her face and she thanked me. Then she said, "You give really great hugs. You really like hugging people, don't you?"  

I said to her, "Of course I do. It makes people feel better. It also makes me feel better. I get as much, maybe even more, from hugs as the person I'm hugging."

In my dream, I hugged her again. She wiped her tears and went on her way, and I went up the stairs and down the hall to a familiar classroom. And then, I woke up.  

I didn't think about the dream at all, until we were in church. During a children's moment, our pastor asked the kiddos what they could give someone, besides money, that could help someone. The kids came up with a few ideas, until they all agreed on one. They could give someone a hug. That would help someone and doesn't require anything. They even went out into the sanctury and hugged the congregation. That's when I remembered my dream. It all came flooding back to the front of my mind. Filling my thoughts with a memory of something that hadn't actually happened.    

As it turned out, the sermon was on Luke 6:38, "Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."  

That's exactly what I said in my dream! When I give a hug, I get a hug in return. Sometimes, if I have my hands full, or there's a lot going on, I'll give a side hug. You guessed it...side hug in return. When it's a real hug, though, I get a real hug, often a pat on the back, and sometimes even a kiss on the cheek. A good measure, indeed!

A hug (noun) is a tight clasp with the arms; an embrace. To hug (verb) is to clasp tightly in the arms, especially with affection; to embrace; to cling firmly or fondly to - cherish; to keep close to; to cling together. Oh, but a hug is so much more! A hug is a greeting - hello, how are you, I'm happy to see you. A hug is a parting - goodbye, I'll see you later, I'm going to miss you. A hug is a celebration - you did it, we made it, I'm proud of you. A hug is a consolation - you did your best, I'm here, don't be afraid. A hug is a comfort - I understand, I'm sorry, I wish I could make it better.  

Now, I could cite some research about how hugs are really beneficial and reduce stress and lower blood pressure and boost the immune system, but I'm not sure I'm qualified for all that. Instead, I suggest that you go hug someone. I know it will make them feel better. I know it will make you feel better. Maybe that someone will be me. I give good hugs - in my dreams.  

Much love and hugs to you!
~ME:) 

Oh yeah...two nights later, I dreamed I had two belly buttons.