Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Hiatus

Life is getting kind of hectic with the school year finishing up, recreation baseball ending, and All Star baseball starting. I'm going to take a break for a while from blogging. I'll continue to check on blogs I enjoy reading.

I plan to be back when time is once again on my side.

Enjoy your life!

Friday, April 24, 2009

More dieting blah, blah, blah

What is so difficult about dieting/exercising is you have to continue to make the same good choices day after day.

Boy, would I just like a break from it all! Of course, having a break from it all (a long break) is what got me to this point to begin with.

Arghhh!!!!

This afternoon we drove up to the lake and my son spent some time fishing. My husband met us there and on the way home I decided to pick up dinner. My husband had a big lunch, so he planned on eating a bowl of cereal at home. Perfect time for my son and I to eat somewhere my husband normally doesn't like.

Bojangles.

I pulled into the drive thru and took some time to look over the menu. Now if I had planned this out, I would have been better off. My Weight Watchers Dining Out book shows the points for food at Bojangles and I hadn't eaten much today. But it was a spur of the moment decision to go to Bojangles and the menu board in front of me seemed loaded with land mines.

I got fried chicken for my son and headed to McDonald's for a salad. I have had the salad many times and knew exactly how many points I would be consuming.

So I never run out of opportunities to make a better choice, nor do I run out of ways to really take a wrong turn in diet world.

What I love about Weight Watchers is that I can have what I want. I just have to make allowances for it. It is the only program I have ever been on that has made me understand the concept of portion control.

I seem to be really motivated right now with the diet and exercise thing. I just have to stick with it and keep making those good decisions.

And every day is another day of facing those choices.

I think I'm going to have to join Weight Watchers officially and start going to the meetings. Having the accountability of the weigh in would be very helpful and a weekly reminder that the choice of whether or not to be successful is really up to me.

Monday, April 20, 2009

Chick -fil-A

When you are dieting, Chick-fil-A is one of the best fast food places to visit. Sure, these days every fast food restaurant has some type of "healthy" option, but Chick-fil-A's healthier versions taste like there was some actual thought put into them.

The problem is Chick-fil-A is pricey! My son and I stopped by for lunch today and it was over $13! He got the number one meal (Chick-fil-A sandwich with waffle fries and a drink). I got a spicy chicken Cool Wrap and small carrot raisin salad and a medium drink. Spending $13 for two people to eat lunch is crazy!

But it's a treat out. We don't do it every day or even every week, so it's okay. Still I'm always a little surprised when I hear the total.

Here's a little video for all of us who have a fondness for Chick-fil-A!


Friday, April 17, 2009

Yep, I'm old

I have a niece and nephew who are both attending my old alma mater, Concord College, except now it's called Concord University.

That's not why I think I'm old, though.

I was talking to my niece, Sam, who lives on campus. I asked her what my old stomping grounds were like now. I asked if they still showed movies once a month at the Student Union.

That was a big deal back in my Concord Days. It was always a recent movie and people would pile into chairs and couches to catch the movie. How great was that? Watching a good movie you didn't have to drive several miles for (or in my case catch a ride with someone who had a car!). Plus you didn't have to pay to see it!

Sam told me they didn't show movies like that anymore, but they do have an XBox and a Playstation in that area now.

What a shame, I was thinking when she told me that. Those poor kids don't get to experience the thrill of gathering together to see a movie!

Then I remembered it's 2009 and every college student has a laptop they can use to play DVDs. And I'm sure most of the kids have DVD players in their rooms.

The cable television at Concord --- which used to have about 13 channels when my husband and I were living there --- has also greatly improved. They have tons of channels now! Those spoiled kids get everything!

They don't have to wait once a month to see a movie. They don't have to become friends with the only person on their floor that has a VCR so they can rent a movie to watch. They don't have to run from class to their room to make a phone call, because they're all walking around with CELL PHONES!

By the way, Sam and Chris, I didn't have a car on campus. Is the Deli Mart still there? That's where I used to WALK to get some chips and pop to keep in my room as I watched ABC's movie of the week.

Hope you guys are having a great semester!

Here's a little music from back in the day, specifically for my hubby! Hey, honey! You're old too, but it's Friday, so smile!

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Should I have tipped her?

We use a mobile groomer for our little pug, Smokey. She does a good job with the dog and she's been coming to our house about every few months or so for the last couple of years.

The price is pretty good. She charges $45 for each visit. She bathes him, brushes out all the "underfur", trims his fur if it needs it, clips his nails, and cleans out his ears. She does everything in her van and I love the convenience of it.

I've thought about cutting out this expense, because we end up bathing him at home too. But cutting his nails is a pain and the bath I give him is nothing like the one she gives him. I figure I'm actually paying about $15 a month for her service, sometimes maybe a little more and that seems like a good deal to me.

I've been a bit of a neglectful dog owner lately. We got the dog groomed in late December and I think I have given him a bath once since then! Smokey was a mess! And I told her that. I felt bad that the job she normally does for us was going to be a little bit harder than normal.

Here's the question: Should I have tipped her?

I thought about it, but ended up just writing the check for the usual amount. I remember reading in some article long ago that you shouldn't tip the business owner. Also, I thought, why tip her for bathing my dog, which is what I'm PAYING her to do? And, oh yeah, I'm kind of cheap.

Sure, he was a little messier than he normally is. Maybe a little smellier. But he's an indoor dog. It's not like he's out digging in the dirt or swimming in a pond.

So, I decided no tip, but was that the right thing to do?

Monday, April 13, 2009

I can't face the book

A girl (okay, now a woman!) I went to church/school with years ago looked me up the old fashioned way recently. She called my parents and got my phone number.

She called a couple of weeks ago and we caught up on the last 10 years or so. It's been that long since we have spoken! I hate to think I am old enough to go without talking to someone for 10 years!

Anyway, she asked if I was on Facebook. I told her no and she told me I should join up.

Should I really?

I know several bloggers I read are on Facebook. I am mildly interested, but here are the reasons I have not joined Facebook:


1. I already spend too much time on the computer.

2. I don't like the fact that I have to give my last name. I'm paranoid like that.

3. I already have two blogs that I ignore. I don't need something else screaming for my attention.

4. I'm afraid it might just be a gateway to something worse --- like Twitter. (My apologies to those who currently Twitter.)


So, those are my thoughts. I'm saying no to Facebook, but I would be interested to hear from Facebook users. What's so great about it?

Monday, April 6, 2009

A lovely week off!

We're spring breaking this week and it's starting in a less than stellar way.

Our fuse is out on our dryer, so I'm taking a couple of loads to the laundry mat to dry this afternoon. We lived the first 5 years of our marriage without a washer/dryer (including the first 5 months of my son's life!). I do not enjoy laundry mats. I've looked for the joy there and it does not exist!

Hopefully, the part for the dryer will be here tomorrow and my lovely dryer will be fixed tomorrow night!

Also, the weather is crazy! It's only supposed to be in the 40s today and tomorrow and we have a slight chance of snow flurries overnight, with freezing temps. I'm sure it won't accumulate, but even these cold temps with a chance of snow this time of year for us is very unusual!

It's going to be a hot cocoa night for sure! We're going to make the most of it! Temps should be back in the 60s by Wednesday!

Maybe these late cold temperatures will lessen the mosquito population this summer!

Gotta look on the bright side!