yoga44's Journal

Not the only one

Nov 10 2009 09:58

Very interesting reading other people's journal entries... I'm not the only one that has put on a couple of pounds recently. I swear that our bodies know better than we do and they think, "Ah, winter. Need more insulation."

Good and bad happening around here. I spent the weekend hawking my wares at a Historic Homes tour. I say hawking with a grimace, as I am just about the worst salesperson you could ask for. I hate talking to strangers about how wonderful my jewelry is and how they should buy it. Ug. Didn't sell much - surprise surprise. I sold more than the lovely lady that organizes the Artists Boutique tho. She makes beautiful silk scarves, hand painted, but this year decided to make them into little pillows instead. Who needs a little silk pillow?! What do you do with it?! She sold one. I took two in trade for some earrings. Think I will put them in the boxes for seniors that we are putting together, instead of the suggested stuffed animal. I'm sure most seniors need neither.

I'm enjoying collecting other things for the boxes... It's rather difficult when you don't know anything about who is going to be getting it. I've collected popcorn, instant coffee, herbal tea assortments, altoids, english toffees, and nice soap (lavendar bars for women, liquid soap for men). The kids are going to decorate the boxes, and we've got some fleece fabric we're going to make into scarves and lap blankets. Suggestions?

Daughter had late practice yesterday, so I took her down, did some last minute shopping (hosting soup group tonight), and then went to the track. I actually ran 2 laps (without my athletic bra - LOL). It felt really good and today the only reminder is the achilles tendon that flares up now and then. An hour of walking/running - yay me.

The job that was supposed to start last week is slow to get going. Nothing last week, and now only a half-hour phone call scheduled so far. That's OK... I'm enjoying my last days of freedom. It's nice to know you have a job but not yet be doing it.

Gave away another chicken this weekend - our other Ameraucana. Somebody was willing to take her (it's the blue egg thing) in spite of her shortcomings. I hope she behaves herself. So now I have 2, which have to be kept apart as they are the very top and bottom of the original pecking order. The poor one at the bottom has almost no feathers, so she is staying inside until she grows feathers back and then we'll give them one last try to live together in harmony. She seems to like solitary... she's started laying again.

Zinc believer

Nov 02 2009 10:39

I actually beat a cold. I had a horribly sore throat on Thursday, so I started sucking on some zinc & echinacea drops. Friday it was still sore but Saturday was better. Yesterday occasionally I would suddenly think, "Oh no... my throat feels funny," but then I would remember that it should be much worse.

My weight is up this morning, 168. It's been about 165 for months now. Going into the holiday season, I'm sure it will be a struggle not to gain more. I have been walking, but nothing too strenuous. The knees are actually doing quite well.

No news yet on a start date for my job. I filled in all the paperwork on Friday and put it in the mail. So I'm guessing tomorrow or Wed. I just want the weather to change, so I don't miss being outside while I'm working.

I had a table at the elementary school Harvest Festival this weekend with my jewelry. Sold a few things, but of course never as many as I would like.

Halloween was fun... the kids decided to stay in the mountains, and each had a nice group of friends to wander around with. Husband would go out in the car occasionally and move them from the bottom of one road to the top of another. A couple of my favorite Moms sat at our kitchen table and drank wine with me. We met the parent (single Dad) of a new friend, which is always nice, esp when they get into high school with so much potential for bad decisions/friends/situations. A neighbor allowed her 16 year old daughter to have a big party... drunk and smoking kids hanging out... so hard to know what to do/say when you like the person but hate their parenting style.

Employed

Oct 24 2009 10:06

If I were an indicator, the economy is now officially back on the mend. Will start a 6 month contract sometime in the next week or two. I have such mixed feelings about it. It's 30 hours/week, which is more than ideal, but I can work from home some of the time and they will pay my usual rate. It's through someone I know from a previous job. By the time you've been in a field 20 years, some of your co-workers from years ago have moved up the food chain - didn't even have a phone interview, just an exchange of emails over availability, hours, etc. So I am mourning my loss of freedom, even though I know this will be good for me.

Daughter has officially made the Varsity basketball team. She's the only Freshman, and is having a bit of trouble understanding why some of the Sophomores are giving her the cold shoulder. Duh! Son will start training for the X-Country Junior Olympics next week. He's not sure he actually wants to compete, but he enjoys the workouts. His classmate happens to be the winner from last year, and the classmate's mom is the coach.

Still sitting on my butt most days, except the occasional walk or brush hauling. Can't find my groove.

A little of everything

Oct 19 2009 12:21

It's raining today, but I'm not complaining a bit. I spent the entire weekend outdoors, in lovely weather, and tomorrow is supposed to be warm and sunny again. Yesterday I spent several hours removing a huge, old and mostly dead ceanothus as part of my ongoing fire clearance. I had cleared around it, but hadn't had the energy to tackle it. My trusty electric chainsaw and I eventually won, but it didn't go down without a fight. They are surprisingly prickly, and I have a nice scratch on my face as a result. Of course I can't SEE the nice open space, as there are piles of dead branches everywhere that still need hauling to the chipping pile *sigh* I can at least SEE the orange survey tape that I tied to the trees at the 100 ft. mark. Someday... Meanwhile the manzanita that was cut a few months ago is growing again...

Daughter is going to her first formal dance this Saturday, and came back from the Mall with a dress that needs some adjustments. She has such faith in my sewing abilities. Ug. I've at least unstitched the straps and am ready for her to try it on. I'm going to make her some earrings to go with it.

My mood has been swinging a lot. Some days are awful, some good. I have a lead on a job, but am not holding my breath. There have been lots of near misses these past few months. DH just received a raise, a bonus and some stock, so I am definitely counting our blessings in that department and am very glad not to be under pressure to get a job to make the mortgage pmt.

Big Storm

Oct 13 2009 12:26

We still have power, which is amazing given how hard the wind is blowing. We have two windows downstairs that leak when it rains and blows, and they're doing their thing, plus a new leak in the roof in the kitchen. Not a bad one - hopefully it won't stain the sheetrock. After 10 years in this house, I'm a bit more mellow about leaks. Imagine driving your house down the freeway in the rain. Yours would probably leak too. One way off the mountain is closed due to power lines down so I'm going to have to leave early to do the pickup this afternoon. I went out in my slicker earlier to check all the culverts - what a mess. Yay for the end of fire season!

Saturday

Oct 10 2009 09:48

I've started several entries this week but haven't finished any of them. Sounds like my life at the moment. I still feel like I am living in limbo, not really getting involved in anything in case a job lands in my lap.

I continue to clear brush, but a mild case of poison oak tool the thrill out of that for awhile. I did spend several hours down there yesterday pulling out all the stuff I had previously cut. It helps to wait awhile after it's cut as I have to throw it over the fence and it's a lot lighter after a week of sitting! A tree company came by yesterday to clear the road edges along our drive, and they chipped our huge pile for free. It was a bit disheartening to see them do their work tho. What takes me a week was done in an hour. There's a big storm headed our way and I want to get all the cut stuff pulled up to the now-regrowing pile before then. Not sure why, probably just a sense of tidying up. Sheesh, even my brush piles need to be tidy.

I've been battling all week, up and down, not directly correlated with anything that I can discern. The busier everyone else gets, the more useless I seem to feel. We went and saw Julie & Julia last night, which was nice. I feel a bit like Julia (without the accent), looking for something to inspire me.

And then there were four...

Sep 27 2009 09:50

chickens, that is. Something got one of them yesterday. I have been letting them out all week, trying to break the feather picking cycle. I just hope it wasn't the one that lays those really beautiful dark brown eggs. Probably was... So now they're back inside the run because you know that whatever it was, it will be back for dessert.

Had a nice time at the Stanford vs Washington football game last night. I hadn't been in the new stadium before - very nice. Unfortunately DH and I did not sleep well last night (too much kettle corn?) so I'm very groggy. He got up early for an organized bike ride event with Son. I get to worry about him until this afternoon. Then my parents arrive for dinner and I need to be cheerful.

It's still hot - it's not the extreme temps (not getting over 90) but the relentlessness of it when it doesn't cool down at night and you never get a break from it unless you're inside. Looking forward to next weekend when we'll be in Port Townsend, WA for the kinetic sculpture race. Gotta be cooler there !

Hot Friday

Sep 25 2009 12:24

Still hot here. Up on the mountain, we've got a temp inversion going so it doesn't cool down at night. Wears you down after a few days.

Actually went out in the heat Wed and ran stadium stairs. Yes, the knees are aching, but it felt really good and the feeling has carried me through two days. SO NICE to feel happy for a change! Trying to psyche myself into cutting more brush in the heat today. The scale says 194ish. So, not too much damage, just staying in that same 5 pound range that I've been in for the past 6 months or so. I did receive my medical records as I'm changing doctors, and noticed the weight from last year's check-up. I really did lose some - a small consolation to have kept at least 10 lbs off through all the crap this year. On days like today I feel that maybe I can lose some more eventually. Maybe.

A bit better

Sep 22 2009 15:35

I decided that if I'm not working, I need to accomplish something other than just keeping the house/kids/myself going. So yesterday I put shelves in the closets of both kids. The first set turned out a bit wonky, but the second set went in straight. I need those small accomplishments. I woke up late this morning, and rushed out the door to attend my son's academic performance award ceremony.. got there late but in time to see him get his award (they do this each quarter, which is nice recognition for the kids). Had coffee with two good friends after and talked talked talked about our teenage girls which are all at the same HS (plus we all have middle schoolers in the same grade). It's so helpful to hear about other people struggling too and how they solve issues. Am now posting from Starbucks, nursing my coffee and keeping out of the heat. I'm getting my eyes checked later this afternoon (even tho I passed at the DMV) since I'm taking my son in anyway.

My eating has been out of control these past couple of weeks. Lots of anxiety and depression don't make it easy to control what goes in my mouth. Better today. Not a coincidence that I walked last night. Haven't been on the scale in a couple of weeks but the roll over the shorts tells its own story

One day at a time... still

Sep 17 2009 14:04

This past week has not been good. I've been quite down, and having weepy fits again. They are awkward and tend to arise when I have strong feelings about anything, good or bad. Yesterday it was my son running in his first X-country meet of the season. He did quite well, 13th overall for his grade out of about 8 schools participating. He was mad because his best friend beat him in the sprint to the finish. Not a big deal, but I was happy to be wearing sunglasses and standing with a friend who knows about my struggles. Ug.

So I did some walking yesterday at the HS track, which is one of the nice springy rubbery types. Slept well for a change last night. MUST keep walking, even when it heats up this weekend... maybe late night with DH? Looking into ways to do some weight training... I'm willing to spend some money to get myself started, but don't just want a gym membership. I think I need some one-on-one attention to get me started. Just can't get going.

Chicken update: Down to 5. The really noisy one went walk-about. The other gold colored one has had almost all her feathers pulled. She only has wings and neck feathers left. Ug. Some online reading says giving them free range will help. So... do I let them take their chances with the hawks, or keep them bored and featherless but safe???