I’ve become a big fan of memes these days. I’ve copied and shared numerous ones – especially about coffee and sleep! – on different social medias and with different friends, as appropriate. When I came across this one, it spoke to me loudly and clearly, and I determined that it needs to be shared here as well. It reads:
It’s said that we are all our own worst enemies. I don’t know if that’s true for everyone, but it certainly is accurate for me. I’ve written before about how I hold myself to a higher standard than I hold others, how I feel guilty at even the possibility that I might let someone down and other similar topics. I also know that when I do something nice for others, it makes me feel good, and I subconsciously add that to the “done good” column. But when I’m feeling fragilely depleted, as I am these days, and realize that I have nothing good to give unless I put on that fateful mask and pretend everything is okay, I’m at a crossroads.
I’m good at being chatty and cheeky. It’s a natural and oft seen part of me. I rationalize to myself that this is what people have come to expect from me, and that my silliness and positivity give them a moment to smile. I’m happy I can do that. But when I can’t do it naturally, an internal fight goes on inside my head. I like making people smile. I like creating a moment or two in another’s day that makes them chuckle or relax. But when it’s not something that’s coming naturally, I either tend to hide myself away because I don’t have it to give, or I ‘pretend’ at being that chatty, cheeky person. Neither is the right answer.
The mask frightens me. I wore it for so many years that it became a way of life and it often came close to destroying me pretending to be someone who wasn’t genuine and real. It took me a long time to release the glue that held that mask in place – and a painful time releasing it as well – so I shudder about the idea of putting it on and having to start that process all over again. The alternative is also frightening. I’m not a social butterfly by any means, so my life is generally secluded. My socialization occurs in places and with people who, with the exception of my bestie and my brother, have only ever seen that positive side of me. Plus, in this world full of problems, I’m not likely to lay my own on people whose problems seem so much worse than mine.
I’ve gotten off-track a bit. Thinking back to the meme, I might need to print it out and put a copy in several places where I’m bound to see it. Maybe if I learn to concentrate on the good vibes of the good things I do instead of keeping such a growing list of all of the ways I haven’t done good, I’ll be able to be more ‘okay‘ with myself and more willing to reclaim the funny, sarcastic part of me that people like seeing. It can’t hurt, can it?
Yes, I am, even if it’s not good enough for anyone else!
I stated in an email to my bestie recently that I was feeling apathetic. I decided to look up the word to make sure I’d used it correctly.
“Apathy indicates a state of fatigue and idleness accompanied by an indifference or an absence of emotion and desires. The apathetic patient doesn’t feel emotions, is indifferent to everything, and doesn’t feel like doing anything.”
For someone who is a strong empath and who also suffers from depressive moods now and again, I find myself at odds with the fact that this is exactly how I’m feeling! My bestie and I call it “meh” – describing “meh” as “I just don’t care either way.”
I’ve already discussed the need to become NUMB to the news these days, news which is either political (not in a good way) or about COVID-19 are at the top of every news show these days. I’ve figured out that every idea of both is filled with truth or lies, depending upon one’s own perception. People snarl and fight about having to wear a mask, while others wouldn’t be caught anywhere without one. People snarl, fight and make idiotic remarks about both of the candidates running to be President of the US of A in the November elections. Hydroxychloroquine either does or doesn’t help with coronavirus, depending on which ‘experts’ you choose to believe. Climate change either is or is not something to be worried about, again, depending upon which ‘experts’ you choose to believe.
I think another definition of apathy should include the words wishy-washy. We are a country that simply has become so feeble in stature in our need to be “right” that the need to be right becomes the only thing that matters. I guess my question is, how is it possible to not feel apathy these days? I am certainly not qualified to know which of the opposing ‘experts’ is correct or wrong in any of these things. To be honest, none of us are qualified. It comes down to a gut instinct, and that’s such an individual reaction that it’s almost no wonder why we are divided!
Meanwhile, I can’t help put struggle with what becoming apathetic means to me – it’s nice to have the break from always being highly emotional about anything and everything – my own or someone else’s anything and everything. It’s nice to have a break from the roller-coaster ride of emotions. But, I have to admit, it’s also boring as hell!
The monthly calendar has turned to August. My year-to-date, though my years aren’t always abuzz with activity, has been the most boring time I can recall. I’m joining on the bandwagon of understanding that the coronavirus not only brings physical issues, but mental issues as well. I know I’m bored because I’ve resorted to online window shopping and I LOATHE shopping! Worse, I know I’m bored because I’ve dug out my dance-ersize DVDs and have them ready to load up and play, and I HATE exercising more than I LOATHE shopping! (Light-bulb moment: I don’t hate exercising, I merely HATE feeling sweaty – which I can do on my own without exercise!)
Seriously – the “highlight” of 2020 has been dislocating my shoulder and having to deal with the pain, the strengthening movements, the cupping therapy, the Graston therapy and the ongoing issues. It’s given me something to focus on!
For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, summer is the time when we seem to use a lot of ice cubes to keep our drinks cool in the sweltering heat. For me, at any time of the year, I like my drinks to be ice cold, so while I go through more ice cubes in the summer, there are always ice cubes available in my freezer any day of the year!
For people who like to make smoothies or for those who live for ‘frozen’ alcoholic drinks, ice cubes on hand are also a major concern! Provided you’re proactive like I am about making certain to always have plenty on hand (my dream is an ice and water on the door fridge!), there are other ways to use ice cubes.
If you have hanging plants that require you to reach for the step-stool in order to water them, the next time you water them, add a few ice cubes around the plant as well. The ice cubes will melt slowly, providing a small but consistent amount of water to reach down to the roots over a period of time and without concern of causing a downpour from over-watering the plant. Ice cubes are an excellent way to water your live Christmas tree as well, for the same reason. In both cases, you won’t have to climb up on the step-stool or shimmy on your belly under the tree nearly as often!
If you’ve ever rearranged furniture, you know that heavy pieces tend to leave dents in the carpet where they’ve been sitting. An easy rehab? Place an ice cube directly on the dented area. Let the cube completely melt, and then brush (fingertips work fine) the nap in all different directions and it will snap back up!
Have a DIY caulking project? You know how difficult it can be to try and get a perfectly smooth line with your fingertips. Grab a piece of ice instead! Using a piece of ice will insure a nice even bead, and the caulking won’t stick to the ice like it does to your fingers!
No matter what flavor your local pharmacist offers in children’s medicines, kids often still turn up their noses at the taste. Give your child an ice cube to suck on before administering the medicine. This numbs the taste buds and allows the medicine to go down – and all without a spoonful of sugar!
An ice cube can also numb the area where a splinter has seated itself, making it easier to “dig” it out.
For a less expensive alternative to popsicles, make a flavored drink your children like and pour it into ice cube trays. When frozen enough, add a popsicle stick to each cube. Pop when completely frozen and let them enjoy! (Extra hint: to protect from dripping, slit and slide a cupcake paper up on the stick – it will catch any drips!)
Does your leftover rice dry out when you reheat it in the microwave? Put an ice cube in the center of the pile of rice before covering to reheat. The ice cube will melt as the rice reheats, giving the rice a much needed drink of moisture to return to its original texture.
If you like to make gravy from the drippings of roasted meat, you know that there is always fat in the broth you’ve made while roasting. Pour the broth into a bowl and add one or two ice cubes. The fat will quickly adhere to the ice cubes. Make sure you scoop the cubes out before they are completely melted, and you may have to do this step an additional time. Worth the effort though, over seeing your gravy boat start to cool with the gravy in it and the grease rising to the top!
If you have a garbage disposal, drop a handful of ice cubes into it now and again and turn it on. Any grease on the blades from use will cling to the cubes as they are ground up, making your disposal clean and grease free!
Which of my loyal readers knows how many times I’ve mentioned in blog posts that I am electronically technology illiterate? I’ve never pretended to be otherwise!
Well, now I’m officially in over my head!
I’ve recently been watching an online streamer play a game called Sims 4. She’s been building and decorating a house there, and I have had so much fun suggesting ideas for decor and furniture placement, and she has taken many of my suggestions. With my usual inability to sit still for long periods of time, I have been mentally invested in this fun for over 2 hours at a time without realizing that over 2 hours has actually passed!
This sweet young lady, who knows I’ve never played a video game and tend to get bored watching, saw how much enjoyment I was having, and graciously provided me with her information so that I could download the game on my PC and play it on my own! So I downloaded what she sent me.
However, I’m frightened by it already! It may be on my computer now, but I still know literally nothing on what to do with it now! Because it’s under her name, I have great anxiety about doing something with it and having it affect her game! So, I suspect that it will do nothing more than take up some space on my hard drive.
On top of that, I’ve been invited to take part in a Zoom get-together. Now, I think I safely assume that I need a microphone to be able to talk to the other people in real time. Okay, I suspect that a camera would enhance my being there, but I’m more than okay with not showing my face. To be honest, I don’t really like my voice so I’ve been happy with being able to type in chat what it is I want to say. However, I don’t think that’s an option, so the microphone is necessary. Which microphone? Where do I plug it in? How do I use it?
I’m not against learning new things. It’s just that I’ve always learned best when being taught by a hands-on approach. I even watched a YouTube video on Zoom and was overwhelmed in under 5 minutes! I need someone sitting beside me who knows all of the ins and outs, telling me how to do things and watching me while I try them. Even then, I’d need to make notes because I’d quickly forget much of it without some reference the next time.
I usually detest people who tend to play ostrich and stick their heads in the sand rather than confront something. But that’s exactly what I feel like doing! At the foundation of it all is the fact that I’m afraid I’ll do something to “break” my laptop and end up having to buy a new one. This one has lasted me longer than most – almost 2 years! – and that’s a record for me. During these economic times, I’d prefer not to have to spend money to purchase yet another laptop that I’ll eventually break!
It’s been many months now since COVID-19 came to completely change our lives. For some, the sheltering-in-place was a good time to clean out closets, do small household repairs, tackle bigger household projects, etc., etc., etc. Of course, we found time to whine and complain about the barriers of the pandemic as well!
As someone who routinely cleans out closets, who rents so she never has household repairs or projects to do, the days haven’t been any different for me than they would otherwise be. I’d see the occasional thing that needed to be done, but they were all insignificant things. Like sewing on a button to a winter top that will be months until I’m ready to wear it again. Like regluing loose pinecones on the pinecone wreath I made and hung two years ago. I’ve managed to keep up with the routine household chores in the way I’ve always done, limited, of course, to what I can do with my shoulder/arm at any given time.
I’ve returned to reading more and watching stuff on Amazon Prime to pass the time this past few weeks. I looked at those ‘projects’ but gave no thought to actually putting action into them.
Today, I finally did. I had a project that I’d been wanting to do which required me to dig out my hot glue gun, and since I also needed to take care of those loose pinecones, it seemed like the right time. Mission accomplished!
Well, that felt good – to have that one inconsequential thing taken care of! Finishing my project on the same day I started it was a major accomplishment, and I only considered once about letting it go to finish in the near future. Little bits of tidying up – like organizing my junk drawer, for example, are things I’ve started to do a few of daily. My two BIG projects still loom – finishing scanning photos into my computer and then transferring them to a disc drive so I can empty the boxes of unorganized pictures and going through three large totes and four shelves of crafting pieces and projects and making decisions about what might actually get done and what needs to be given away. Both of these projects require massive amounts of time, and both of them must occur in my spare bedroom, which is not air conditioned and gets warm even with a fan blowing over me.
Meanwhile, what time I can tolerate in this room has also been productive. I’ve cleaned out so many files on my computer, for starters. I’ve also done some research into recipes, like how to make risotto which I’ve never had but would like to try. I’ve spent time on Amazon comparing prices for grocery items I can purchase (and have delivered to my door!) versus what the same items cost in the grocery store (which I have to lug to my car and then lug into my house!)
I’ve been slowly looking at and starting to purchase Christmas gifts. Two years ago, I would have been 99% or more done with the shopping part, but last year I learned that I shopped too early and then found something I liked better as a gift after I’d bought something else.
Is any of this astounding? Nope! But I’m often very skilled at procrastination, so no matter how insignificant and menial these tasks may be, a feeling of accomplishment is a feeling of accomplishment after all! It’s not like anyone but me knows anything is different – for example, how my junk drawer looks now compared to what it looked like before I organized it. No one else would have even noticed the loose pinecones on my wreath. No one else knows how many and of what files I had on my computer to know that it’s been cleaned out.
But I know! I get to pat myself on my own back in acknowledgement of success and finishing a project that is important to no one but me. It’s kind of like darning a whole in the heel of your sock – no one knows the hole was ever there so no one knows you repaired it. But you can feel it when you wear that sock!
We all deserve to feel accomplished! Sometimes it’s as simple as putting fresh sheets on the bed! Congratulate yourself!
The majority of books I’ve read or that are still on my looming ‘to-be-read’ pile are purchases from thrift stores, library book sales and book-swapping sites. It is extremely rare for me to purchase a newly published book; that is largely why I never do any kind of book review. However, my dear friend, Prin (aka Marnette), recently recommended a book to me in a responsive comment to my blog post “Lost and Found”. Prin is an avid reader, and her word alone was enough reason to make that kind of purchase. Thus, The Authenticity Project by Clare Pooley recently entered my home.
I tended to have a preset idea that this book, while fiction, would be deeply psychological in nature. And, at the conclusion of reading it, I did take a few minutes to look more deeply at the characters from a psychological perspective, but didn’t dwell on the story from that view.
The story itself is charming. The author does a great job at introducing each new character to the story and with ‘fleshing out’ each character as the story progresses. The reader is given the ability to know something deep and dark about each character as the story unfolds, and, while each character is genuine in act and word, the reader quickly discovers that each is also hiding an even more authentic part of their persona. The hiding part is always brought about by fear of judgement and unacceptance.
I don’t want to tell too much of the story because I don’t want to give out any spoilers. It is an enjoyable read.
Although it was a lovely read, I was able to pull from it what I think Prin intended on a personal level. Knowing each character’s hidden authenticity did not distract me from liking each of them for who they were. None of the character’s fears about what they didn’t want being found out changed my perception of any of them; it made them even more human to me and, ironically, allowed me to like them more.
As these hidden secrets were revealed, the other characters responded with the typical emotions – anger, mistrust, fear. Sitting on the sidelines of the story, I could imagine myself reacting that same way. I admit, it made me trepid, though, about how people would react to ME when I revealed my own hidden secrets. I did feel validated that my own fear – in real life – was practical.
I would easily rate this book a 4.8 out of 5 stars. There was a small point – probably less than 20 pages – where the story began to lag for me, and that’s the only reason I didn’t give it a perfect 5 star review. Otherwise, it was an enjoyable read. And men, who might be looking for more insight into themselves, would also benefit from this book.
Thank you, Prin, for this excellent recommendation. I appreciated the story for the story’s sake itself, and I appreciate the glimpses I got of myself through others’ (even fictional characters!) eyes. In a way, reading it made me feel more ‘okay’ about myself, and I suspect that was your intention! Well played!
Did you realize that 99% of the meat packages you buy at your local grocery store come on Styrofoam trays with shrink-wrapped plastic? The Styrofoam tray is used to cushion the meat so that packages can be set upon each other without compromise to the appearance to the meat in each package. And, of course, we appreciate that and don’t give it much thought. And think about all of the take-out/to-go containers you get that are also made from Styrofoam!
Did you also know that Styrofoam is non-biodegradable? So that means that when you open the package to use the meat product and toss the tray in your trash, it is going to end up in a landfill where scientists believe it will remain in solid form for at least 500 years!! The very building block of expanded polystyrene foam (the name Styrofoam was trademarked by the Dow Company) plastic is petroleum, which is neither renewable nor sustainable.
So, why not find some creative ways to recycle/reuse this product? Sure, it’s most likely still going to end up in a landfill (people have burned it in campfires and the like, but it releases several toxic emissions when burned and shouldn’t be handled that way), but if we can get several uses from it before tossing it, we’re at least not creating additional landfill matter from using something else where Styrofoam can be reused.
The trays are easy to wash, usually fairly clean except for raw meat having touched it – nothing that hot, soapy water can’t erase. And there are so many ways in which the trays can be reused!
Having an outdoor picnic? We all know how flimsy paper plates can be, so why not offer your guests an appropriately-sized foam tray to use instead? They’ll surely appreciate the extra sturdiness while filling their plates. The larger trays also make good food platters for what you’re serving. Afterwards, if you don’t want to wash and reuse (and that’s the purpose of paper plates anyhow), you’ve gotten at least one extra use from them before they hit the landfill.
Have budding artists at home who like to paint? Foam trays make an excellent palette for dabs of the various paint colors they want to use, again, being much more sturdy.
Foam trays are also useful when you’re working on a project that requires separate colors of small beads. Using a hot glue gun on a metal stand? Put a piece of foam tray under the nozzle when the gun is in resting position and it will catch any small drops of melted glue from the nozzle between uses. Teaching a child to sew? Punch holes in a foam tray and fill a large-eyed blunt needle with yarn or multiple strands of embroidery floss and have them learn in an easier, more visual way! Draw and cut out patterns from your cookie cutters and let the kids decorate them for tree ornaments! And I’m sure many crafters could think of ways to use these items for their projects.
For the gardener, foam trays are great as disposable knee pads! Sure, they aren’t as cushiony as the pillowy-type knee pads you buy, but they do provide an extra layer of comfort and save your knees/pants from any mud or dirt. Use the trays to line the inside of your wooden garden walls, providing an extra layer of insulation for the garden.
Going on vacation and need an easy way to pack the jewelry you want to take with you? Use a piece of foam with holes for your pierced earrings and place the entire thing in a zippered plastic bag. They will stay secure in single pieces without becoming a tangled mess and you’ll be able to see right away each pair you have to choose from.
Foam trays are great for putting under planters that have drainage holes in the bottom. They will hold any excess water from watering the plant, as well as allowing that water to be pulled back in when the roots get dry.
If your feet get tired easily, grab clean foam trays and cut insoles for inside your shoes or boots. You’ll get an extra layer of cushioning for free!
Props for Halloween or party games can easily be cut from foam and then painted or decorated as needed.
This was written by my brother in tribute to our maternal grandmother. It is an accurately true and vivid description of the angel on earth that she was!
(NOTE: I’ve had this post written for a while, just waiting for the right time to publish it. I saw a new ad on social media today for yet another ‘weight loss patch’ and decided I really needed to get this out to my readers who are as gullible as I have been about the alleged easy cure to being overweight.)
I’ve been thin once in my life. I remember it clearly. I was in 7th grade – my first year in junior high school. We all experience that one growth spurt, where we add several inches in height in a relatively short span of time, and when mine happened, I looked very thin. My 7th grade school photo actually shows it (as well as the cat-eye glasses that were popular at the time!).
Of course, that was only temporary. When I look at photos from my earlier childhood, I wasn’t terribly chubby, but I wasn’t scraggly either. And honestly, for many years into my adulthood, I carried a bit of weight on my bones, but it wasn’t enough to qualify me as “fat”. I got bullied more for wearing glasses and for wearing clothing that my mother picked out, which belonged on her generation and weren’t trendy for mine. During high school, dress codes had started to relax but I still owned more dresses than anything else. Jeans were definitely out of the question – although I did have one or two pantsuits for more casual occasions. I was so proud of myself when, in college, I bought myself the first pair of jeans!
Anyhow, over the years, I didn’t regard anything about food other than did it taste good? We weren’t rich by any means, so starches like bread, potatoes and noodles were a part of every meal. Portion control was never considered – we simply ate until we were full (and sometimes overfull). My mom didn’t like leftovers taking up fridge space, so, subconsciously I think, we all ate until whatever was served was gone.
And the pounds packed on. I was already destined to have weight issues based on my maternal side’s genetics. I learned early on that I didn’t like raw vegetables, so salads were always bypassed. While I still didn’t consider myself fat, I would admit to being chunky. I’d never really worn tight or form-fitting clothes, so my clothing masked a lot of it. The gain was slow, unlike that vertical growth spurt, so I didn’t pay a lot of attention to it.
I’ve known, in my brain, that the biggest keys for weight management were portion control and healthy choices. I’ve seen the many ads for weight-loss plans like Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, etc. and the portions they sell to you as an entire meal are equivalent to what we eat as the two sides to our meals. Many programs stress going lean and green – high protein and healthy (raw, if possible) veggies. Yea, sell that to someone who would rather scrub the floor than eat a salad! Don’t get me wrong – I like and eat a lot of chicken – but plain chicken is boring! Things like cayenne pepper are good seasonings, assuming you like hot, spicy food (I don’t!).
When all of the ‘magic’ weight loss pills hit the market, I admit the idea appealed to me. What if there really was a way to lose weight that didn’t demand exercise and/or being careful about what you ate and how much of it? I watched dozens of videos and ads about different products. There were two major reasons I didn’t jump on that bandwagon. First and foremost was that I didn’t know anything about the ingredients or what their side effects might be, especially with the medications I was taking for other health issues. Second was the cost. Somehow, $79.98 for a month’s supply seemed outrageous to me! I still watched, and read the miraculous reviews from alleged users, and dreamed of it being that easy.
Then, about a year or so ago, a new fad was brought to the market – one involving placing pads on your stomach that would ‘naturally’ shrink belly weight! Woah, hold up a sec! You mean all I have to do is put this patch on, leave it in place for the prescribed amount of time for maximal shrinkage? No worry about side effects? Well, sign me up!!!!!!!
The first product I tried was called The Wonder Patch. It seemed simple enough and I liked the idea of it covering the whole tummy area, hitting all of my trouble spots.
I was excited when it arrived and read through the instructions carefully. The cut-out for the navel made it very easy to place in position. Removed as instructed and reapplied a new one the next day. Taking off that one seemed a little more inconvenient, as it seemed to be adhered enough to cause a little bit of effort and tug on my skin as I did so. Days three and four were similar to day two, though by the removal of the patch on day four, I could see pink areas on my skin from irritating it while removing the patch. Undaunted, I decided a little bit of skin irritation was worth it to shrink my belly fat. I even tried moving the placement of the patch a little to the right or left each day so the same skin wouldn’t get irritated. By day eight, my skin that was raw started to tear. I’d also developed ultra-dry skin beneath the entire patch, which flaked off by simply touching it. Wanting to believe nonetheless, I stepped on the scale. I couldn’t really see any changes but maybe…. You guessed it – no change. I mean, the good news is that I hadn’t gained any weight, but neither did I lose a single ounce. So the pain was not worth the gain – or lack of loss in this instance.
A few months later, I saw a new ad for a different kind of patch. This one was adhered only to one’s navel, and made the same promises to help shrink belly fat.
Okay, this didn’t seem so bad. I admit that I wondered how it could possibly work, since I’m an ‘innie’ but I was willing to give it a chance. I didn’t have any reactions on my skin from it, so I continued to use it – for 28 days. The supply was provided for 30 days, so certainly, at 28 days, I could expect to have some result. Again, I couldn’t visually see any change, but the scale would tell me whether it was working. Again, zero weight loss – actually, I’d gained almost a half-pound. Discouraging!
One more product ad came out and I was gullible enough to believe that “the third time’s the charm” – or else it was going to be “three strikes and you’re out”.
This product was a bit different than the other two. You could use as many patches as you wanted to and place them in the areas that you wanted specifically targeted. This product didn’t cause any skin irritation, but peeling the adhesive guard off in order to use them was difficult and offered its own irritation. As I’m sure you can suspect by now, the results were zero, zilch, nada. (On the bright side, I hadn’t gained anything!)
Logically, I wasn’t 100% surprised to have found myself tossing money away in the search for the easy way out for something that has no easy way out. I mean, I’ve watched dozens of episodes of My 600-pound Life (on TLC) and know that even weight loss surgery requires a change in eating habits. And again, it comes back to portion control and healthy food choices. I’ve actually toyed with the idea of hypnosis that would make me like – even crave – salads and raw veggies. I have no problem liking high protein foods, and I like a lot of cooked vegetables. But I also like pasta and rice and potatoes in any form. I like a lot of fresh fruits, too, but have to limit them because, even though it’s natural, fruits have a lot of sugar.
I’ve pretty much accepted that there is no magical and easy way out for dealing with my weight. I do know that my portion sizes have changed quite a bit. Where going to a buffet used to have appeal, I recognize that it would now be a waste of money because I get full so quickly. I’ve even not finished an side order of French fries because I was full (French fries are my favorite food!). I toss at least half of a hamburger bun away and honestly, prefer to have my burger without a bun. This is also true for hot dogs.
The purpose of this post is to hopefully alert people who have tried any kind of assisted weight loss. That is true for things like Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, the Atkins plan, etc. It’s not easy, but you can learn to limit your portion control on your own and without the cost of purchasing pre-made food. You are in control of the food that comes into your household, so avoid the snacks and sweets at the supermarket and they won’t be in your house to tempt you! One of the biggest things I have learned, which helped me slowly drop 30 pounds which will NEVER come back, is to learn the actual feeling of being hungry and to stop eating the moment you no longer feel hungry. If you eat until you feel full, you’ve eaten too much. And yes, I occasionally over-indulge and eat too much, but certainly not like I used to!
Don’t be like me and waste your money on gimmicks that promise to do for you what it already in your own power and control to do for yourself. Accept that there IS no easy way out and decide if you want to lose weight badly enough to make the changes necessary. Start with small steps, by cutting back your portions by just a little bit. Get in tune with your body’s signals for food and eat only enough to answer the “I feel hungry” command. Don’t graze mindlessly – sit down and focus on eating and consciously savor and enjoy each bite for taste and texture. Don’t eat because everyone else around you is eating – if gathering at a family function centered around a meal, put one or two bites of the things you like on your plate and focus on the people instead of the food.
It’s work, people, and it’s a slow process, but again, remember, it all starts with you!
Slow and steady wins the race!
You didn’t gain it all in one day – don’t try to lose it that way!
Make weight loss a habit by working on it every day!
In the past 4 days, I have written and trashed 4 posts. My life seems touched with only little tidbits of things right now and there is nothing to flesh out of any of them.
Last week was the anniversary of the day I was born and it was as quiet as I expected and said I wanted it to be. Ever since a ‘surprise’ birthday party 14 years ago which was just short of sheer torture for me, I’ve insisted that my birthday celebrations be no muss, no fuss. I’m at the age now where shared experiences and memories have far more value than tangible gifts. The pandemic has stopped in their tracks any ideas of experiences, so my wish has been granted. When asked what I want for my birthday or Christmas, my mind draws a blank.
Although I did mention to my chiropractor about his fierce political conversations with patients in my presence, there was another one recently. I found it largely hilarious, though. He and another patient were in agreement that the entire COVID-19 pandemic was initiated by the Democrats in order to discredit Trump from being reelected and that, in their minds, the end of the pandemic would happen in mere days after the November elections. How could I not laugh? The mere audacity to think that one political party in the United States has so much power that it could create a virus that is infecting, and killing, people all over the world is preposterous! Seriously? Seriously???
I am, nonetheless, not happy that Joe Biden is waiting so long to pick his running mate. I don’t know that I think it’s fair to his party or his supporters to not know whom that will be this close to the elections. To be honest, it was 100% Sarah Palin who kept me from even considering John McCain for the position. I couldn’t get past worrying that, should something happen to McCain, she would be left “in charge”.
The heat and humidity upon us here right now also has me in a fit. I suffer in humidity, regardless of the temperature, and when it’s already 80F by 7 AM, I know it’s going to be a scorcher. I miss having central air conditioning! I have window units in my living room and bedroom, but, even with open passageways, that cool air doesn’t ever reach the back of my apartment, where my spare bedroom/office, bathroom and kitchen are. That explains why I haven’t done much cooking – even just using the toaster oven instead of the full oven makes the space warm. When I do cook, which is maybe once or twice a week now, I make enough to have several days of leftovers which can be warmed in the microwave. I made a big serving of a fresh fruit salad last week, gave the bigger half to my bestie and her family and have managed to eat my way through the smaller half in a matter of days. Lunchmeat and cheese with crackers has also become a popular meal for me.
The worst part for me right now is that I’m bored and simultaneously antsy. Lack of energy and boredom do not go well together. The news, as well as TV shows in general, are the same old, same old these days. Add in a still recovering shoulder/arm and lack of central air and I get why I’m a hot (and literally, as well as figuratively, in this instance!) mess!
I have things I should get done, and I have things that would give me a great sense of accomplishment if I’d get them done…. and a voice in my head reminds me that, once I do those things, I won’t have anything left to do and then I’ll be twice as bored. I’m still reading, but not finding it easy to get as caught up in a story line as I usually do, so I read in bits and pieces. I flit between the recliner and couch in the living room and my bed so that I’m always somewhere with cooler air. Time spent on my computer has dropped significantly. Online streams bore me quickly, even the music ones I usually adore.
My mind keeps envisioning the people I thought were “old” back in the days when I didn’t qualify for the word, and how mindless and numbing their days must be. I was right! I’m ready for the cooler days of late September and October where I can at least get out without feeling like a wet rag within moments. And, maybe by September or October, we’ll have a better handle on the coronavirus and be able to enjoy more and more activities without concern for safety.
On the bright side, though – I got a manicure/pedicure and a haircut, and I got a slice plus one bite of good pizza as a birthday treat. I got to keep my appointment to donate blood to the American Red Cross. I do have books to try and read. I’m doing a lot of ‘window shopping’ on Amazon to try and come up with ideas to both give and get for Christmas.
Ramblings and Ruminations 