As You Wish. . .

Little did I know that my last blog entry would send C on a quest, and that he would not stop until he had accomplished his desired goal. I now present you with the fruits of his labors:


What an amazing guy!!! Of course, I had to try it out right away, so I jammed out to the Biggest Loser version of Kung-Fu Fighting while studying Assembly, AND burning calories to boot! It's the best book rack ever!

This morning I woke up early and it was snowing. I woke up a little later and it was still snowing. I pulled up the weather on my iPhone and it was still snowing. I pulled up Weather.com and it was snowing until 8 PM! C was kind enough to take the day off with me. What do we do on a day off? While C shoveled the driveway, I packed up my YuDu and returned it to the store, we both got haircuts, C dropped a check off at the Boy Scout office for the Bishopric, we purchased bathroom and kitchen faucets, and we ate lunch at the Olive Garden where I saw this really cute lady:

I tried to be subtle, but C didn't help matters much by stating the obvious, "Right, a flash. She won't notice THAT!" I played it off like I was trying to take a photograph of the wine cabinet. She is so lovely. Don't you agree? I just hope she didn't order spaghetti with marinara . . .

What else? I finally found my hair glue! It's the only de-frizzing, pomade-like hair product that I can use without burning my skin like acid. And speaking of burning myself with acid, I did that, too. CLR to be exact. Once we arrived home, I tore into the kitchen sink while C secretly constructed my bike rack. In an attempt to clean off some of the calcium build-up, I employed CLR, and the next thing I knew, there it was, on my arm. CLR is not a recommended skin agent, I assure you.

C proudly showed up in the kitchen while I was in the middle of constructing the faucet, and invited me downstairs to see his masterpiece. I admit, I was pleasantly surprised, and very impressed with his ingenuity and inventing skills! After making my day with that little surprise, he even climbed under the sink to help me finish installing the faucet. How did I find such a great guy, you ask? Well, that is another story for another day.

Did I mention the doughnuts? Ah, yes, there were many, MANY doughnuts; anywhere there was a pristine parking lot . . . Sorry, no pictures of the incriminating evidence. Instead, let me leave you with this:

The Rock and the Jellie Roll

C works out at the gym ALMOST every night. He is the guy pounding the treadmill so hard that you think it will shake to pieces. He's never hard to spot. He is not the guy you sidle up to and wonder who will last longer or who will run faster. When he finishes his workout, you look at him and wonder if he took a quick dip in the pool when you weren't looking. He's all man, and he's all mine :).
I, on the other hand, am all about efficiency. If I can get away with doing two things at once, by golly, I will do it! The new bike is book-rack-less. This is problematic, however, it IS possible to balance a book between the handle bars with some finesse.

The elliptical is easy money when it comes to reading. It comes with a nice rack (no pun intended there) and the display is so narrow, a headband works nicely as a page holder.

With all of this multi-tasking, I must sound pretty spectacular! Not really.

Case in point:

Jillian Michael's No More Trouble Zones video. I have only ever done Jillian workouts via a book, which is abusive enough, but the videos show you how each exercise SHOULD be done. When you are doing those circuits correctly, well, let's just say the next day EVERYTHING hurts. Last night I abused my body once again by doing a Jillian, during which C asked me a question. My loving response? "You are not allowed to speak to me during a Jillian."

And there you have it. So much for multi-tasking.

I Personally Believe . . .

I personally believe. . . that we don't give our bodies the credit they deserve. We often perceive its communications like we would a tiny little devil on our shoulder: Go eat that candy bar!

Bodies get a whole lot of blame, and backlash from our own failings. We crave things that are bad for us, therefore, our bodies are the enemy. We seem to gain weight merely by looking at food, therefore, we must beat our bodies into submission. With all of this abuse, it is a wonder that our bodies don't rebel entirely through dereliction of duty.

I tend to take the position that our bodies are sending the correct message, but our minds interpret this differently. As one who fancies herself a linguist, I shall now attempt to translate some of these messages:

Body: You need some B vitamins. These are readily available in whole grain breads.

Brain: Doughnuts! Must eat doughnuts!

Body: You are a little low on iron. Try red meat or salmon, or even some beans or spinach.

Brain: Ah! There's McDonalds! You need a Big Mac NOW!

Body: Your bones need more calcium. Eat some dairy products.

Brain: I think I am having an ice cream craving. Two scoops of chocolate delight should do the trick!

Body: I know you think this fat free thing is great, but your brain really needs some healthy fats. Some pistachios or a bit of olive oil might help.

Brain: That can of frosting over there sounds really good!

Body: You need some vitamin C to help with that cold. Try some oranges, broccoli, or potatoes.

Brain: FRENCH FRIES!

Body: You feel shaky and nervous. You need more sleep and to reduce stress levels.

Brain: A little caffeine should fix that.

So, as you can see, the body is doing everything it is supposed to, except we more commonly fail to capture the real message being sent. Well, this is just my personal philosophy, although I can't quite decipher the message my body is sending when I crave Pizza Puffs. Maybe the salt to spike my low blood pressure. Zing!

The title? Well, just to prove that our brains really do get a little carried away, I suppose. Poor girl. Maybe pageant girls should be required to read the Economist . . .

While we were wandering around Walmart tonight, I passed by the doughnut cabinet. I hate doughnuts. They don't even tempt me -- not even when I am starving. Oh, except that ONE doughnut. French Crullers are my doughnut Achilles heel. Twix and Jr. Mints are my candy Achilles heels. No other candy bars even sound good to me. So I asked C, "What are your Achilles heels?" The answer: Apple Fritters, PB Cups, and Peanut M&Ms. So I tried an old trick I once saw on TV.

Let's say you ate an apple fritter and you found a big old worm inside and it made you sick. Would you still want to eat apple fritters?

"Sure. I'd just assume I got a bad one. It wouldn't slow me down at all." So much for my mental image. At any rate, I figure if I know what my food Achilles heels are, I can try to avoid them. As it turned out, when we arrived home, there on the front porch was a box of chocolates. Inside? PB Cups. We have learned from experience that throwing a box of candy in the garbage is ineffective, because if it isn't touching other garbage, it is still considered pristine. Therefore, we took drastic measures.

So, what is your food Achilles heel? How do you avoid it?

Does this mean we are boring?

Okay, I know you are dying to know... Yeppers! There she is! Let's just be really clear here -- C will use it as much, if not more than me. Note the sturdy frame and replaceable pedals. Once upon a time, C attended spinning class. Stand up, sit down, fight, fight, fight. . . and the next time he stood up, his foot hit the floor. The pedal opted for vacation time under the bike.

I bought C constitutional documents. No, really! He wanted them! The Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, and the Constitution. Beautiful vellum in matching frames. Now we just have to locate a copy of the state constitution. . .

After our delightful Christmas holiday, we took advantage of the extra time to de-clutter (6 big bags full of linens, shoes, clothing, electronics, and a few extra items.) Plantar Fasciitis stinks. All of my cute heels will daintily grace another closet. That's okay, I'd rather be able to exercise than have pretty feet at work.

Kawi came along when we drove the items to charity. He kept getting distracted by the flapping bags, which impacted his performance, but due to popular demand from my nephew, here you go!

I later snuggled up in a banana chair in front of the fireplace to program in Assembly language. Really? This is how you relax at night? Maybe this would explain why my visiting teachers bought me lavender pillows to help me relax.

Ice, Ice, Baby

It's amazing what you can do with a little water and cold air . . .

Peace on Earth

We often are asked why we like to come up here. We have a beautiful, comfortable home, why get away? It's hard to explain. You wake up and all around are little cries for your time: laundry, untidy rooms, unswept floors, bills peeking out from the caddy . . . but here is what we find instead:



And then we are asked, what do you DO up there? We really don't do anything. Sometimes we go snowmobiling, but the last couple of years we haven't. We just spend time together. We watch a movie, cuddle in front of the fireplace, and act like a happy married couple should.

While I woke up early to catch some sun on snow, C enjoyed the last traces of his evening NyQuil, delivered via room-service.

Yesterday I watched the Nativity while working out to help get into the Christmas spirit. It being Christmas morning, let me share a little bit of it with you!