tired of being sick

maybe it was going over the border. maybe it was freezing in the cold for 40 minutes while we waited for the doors to open. or maybe it was just our germy offices finally catching up to us.

the husband and i spent wednesday and thursday at home sick. he was smart: he slept all day wednesday, then watched tv on thursday. i was a stupid martyr and answered email, took conference calls, wrote copy and played peacekeeper. needless to say, my illness is lingering when his is gone.

my symptoms started out as scratchy throat and chest congestion then became chills/fever, sore throat, cough and runny nose. went to work on friday -- seemed to be ok -- then spent the whole weekend lounging around the house.

at this point i am just stuffy. but i'm sick of blowing my nose. my nose is tired of being blown too -- it is red, chapped and sore. too bad i can't just climb under my desk and have a little nap.

motor city mellow

let's try this again. for some reason, i just lost everything i wrote....

last week was, well, a week.

so i was pretty happy to have today off. the husband and i hopped in the car and went off to detroit to visit friends and go to a concert put on by his favourite band incognito (i surprised him with the tickets by buying them while he was in italy). i'm always game for travel of any kind, especially if there's shopping involved. and when you go to the states, there's always shopping.

we left pretty early on sunday am from the inlaws house. the bulldog was very happy she got to sleepover at grandma and grandpa's house. we were not gone long enough for her to gain weight but i'm sure she ate everything in sight.

got to detroit around 1 pm so you know we left early. we stayed with a friend at her new house and she took us turbo shopping at target and trader joes so i could stock up on american stuff that we can't get here. then we met 24 of the husband's friends at a mexican restaurant, where unfortunately for me, i had the worst mexican meal of my life. and that even includes the "meal" i had at south of the border when i was a kid. how can you screw up chips and margaritas? well, they did.

the show was awesome but pretty late for the demographic. incognito didn't leave the stage until after midnight so tons of their fans left around 11:30, probably to take babysitters home or get to bed for work today. i liked the opening band liquid soul but i think it was too experimental and hip-hoppy for most of the folks.

the show was great for detroit people watching...

we left detroit pretty early this am but it's been nice chilling out at home. i'm relaxed which is great considering who knows what fresh hell awaits tomorrow....

running around

between the gym, work and making healthy food i feel like i've been constantly on the go lately.

work's been crazy busy. in addition to my usual writing at work, i've been working on a pitch, attending a ton of meetings, and had a lot of managerial tasks that i've had to deal with. i don't mind them but it's difficult to make the time to do the tasks well when i'm so busy. and i don't feel like i'm writing as well as usual or being the best creative partner lately. i'm just being pulled in too many directions.

the gym's been the only fun thing i've been doing lately. it's getting more fun as i've been getting more fit. my running is getting much better -- i can run faster for longer -- and i'm lifting more weight, doing more pushups, dips, squats, and all those other fun exercises. henry isn't laughing at me so much either. going to the gym's been making me feel happier a lot and less stressed.

last night i was talking to my boss about all the stuff i've been doing to get healthier. she is amazed i can find the time. i told her it's just a matter of being organzed, making lunch and breakfast ahead, cutting up veggies and planning dinners.

already today, i have cleaned veggies, made a week's worth of stone cut oats and roasted beets and it's only 10:15 am. we'll go and run at 11 and then come back, shower and get on with the rest of the day. it's better than getting up at 5:30 and going straight to the gym! i'm going to work some this afternoon on managerial stuff after we run around an do a few errands.

the husband's taking me out on a date tonight too. we're going to a restaurant that we used to go to pretty frequently when we lived near it. i hope it's still as good as it was. they used to have great oysters and California wines that were hard to get elsewhere in Ontario.

but we can't stay out too late. tomorrow (sunday) i'm speaking at mohawk college for an advertising seminar for first year students. i need to get all my stuff ready for it today. i'm mostly prepared, but i want to make sure to run through my presentation and get my personal portfolio stuff ready for it. i've spoken at mohawk before and the students really seem to enjoy having people from the industry come to visit them. should be fun.

of course, with valentine's day on tuesday, i'm going to do a little bit of baking tomorrow also. i'll save the decorating for monday night after work but i find that if i break up the baking and the decorating, it is more relaxing.

so yes, it's going to be another very busy couple of days...no rest for the wicked, i guess.

becoming an early bird

so i'm now down 10 pounds. i can see big changes in my body.
(i guess at 5'2"-ish, losing 10 pounds makes a huge difference.)

i feel stronger. healthier. less stressed. happier. prettier. more alive.

my clothes are fitting better and looser. i don't feel like i'm trying to camoflage any rolls and bumps any more. i'm wondering if i could fit into this pair of wool pants i haven't worn yet this winter. they were just too snug and uncomfortable. maybe i'll try them later today.

i've kept up going to the gym and eating right even when it's been crazy at work -- henry's been working us hard, but he didn't show up on wednesday. our friend who works out with henry before us wasn't happy about it, but the husband and i were sore from monday's workout so we were actually ok with it, even though we were a little disappointed.

i've purposely tried to make healthier choices and ate less when i was in restaurants last week and i did it. i didn't give in to my crazy pms cravings as much -- but i also didn't feel as bloated, crampy and gross. so i have definite proof of how important working out is for my well being.

i've gone back to drinking milk. for two weeks i've been using lactose-free milk and i seem to be fine. i guess i'll see if it helps me to lose weight -- according to the dairy boards worldwide it does help, but i am more concerned about my bones to be honest. i know i probably don't get enough calcium and that's why i take suppliments.

i've been trying hard to be more balanced. last week i had one day when i had a wicked headache. it didn't go away when i went home so i went to bed at 8:30. i actually went out and picked up lunch twice with a colleague. and i went out to dinner with four friends and left at around 9:30 so i could get up for my personal training. i feel like i worked hard but i had a fairly normal life and didn't spend every night working.

today is going to be a busy day.

i'm going to work a bunch -- i need to get a review done, brainstorm some ideas, start working on copy for camp ooch. but i also have a bunch of personal things to do too -- run, pay bills, make lentil soup, make turkey chili for dinner, write my valentines, get organized for next week in terms of meals and stuff.

i've been finding that meal preparation and lunch making takes up a fair amount of time up front, but frees me up to focus more on work when i know what i'm having for lunch and that it's in the fridge. so each night after dinner i try to make lunches for the next day. oh and breakfasts too because i've been bringing my oatmeal to work since the morning is such a rush.

but by putting my workouts first in the morning, i can check that off my to do list right away. i feel like i've had a successful day no matter what happens. so i guess i'm evolving into a morning person.