Insanity hits the burbs!

Today, in a lovely suburb of large metropolitan area, in a small shopping center, in 90 degree weather...Christmas lights were being hung in the trees with care.

SOOOOOOOO not ready for the fat man in a suit just yet. Let me have fall first please!

Even yuckier Saturday

I wanted to go to a craft show today and buy shoes at Macy's. Like retail therapy will help with sadness...right? Maybe I will still try.

Today marks the 5 year anniversary of my brother's passing. It kind of snuck up on me. No anniversary has hit me like this before.

To make matters worse, we lost a beloved choir member this week, and I will have to sing at her Memorial...exactly 5 years to the date (Tuesday the 30th) since my brother's service. If she weren't a choir member, I would have to pass. But, I know C would have been there for me, and she also sang at my brother's service. It's the right thing to do.

Yuck Friday

I've probably never mentioned this on the blog, but about a month ago a corporate giant fitness company bought out our small home town, family-oriented gym. I have been a member there since Drama was a baby. The staff there was caring and the programs and atmosphere were geared towards a family environment (i.e. no showing your belly in the gym, it must be covered).

So they came in and stole our gym, said we would have to move over to Lifetime (the corp. giant), then hiked our rates more tan $70 a month. Our rate went from $42 to $108 a month. Naturally, over 300 members left and went other places. The gym was also a place for rehab patients that were covered by Medicare. MC paid their dues...Lifetime is not a partner in that program. Where will those seniors go? Then they made the employees "try out" to keep their job. I know of 3 instructors that will go with us to Lifetime, but the others are gone. And those going with us have had their schedules cut way back, AND I can't take class with any of them because they teach at times not convenient to my schedule.

We went ahead and made the switch though. LT is the closest facility to us that does not mak you pay per workout for childcare. The second nearest decent club is LA Fitness. I tried driving to all 3 of them in the area and all took around 20 minutes in traffic. I know I wouldn't use it if I was busy and waffling on whether or not to go. So, we followed the masses...which is what LT wanted everyone to do (eliminate the competition...get more members....make more money).

Today was the last day that formal classes will be taught at HAC. I went to lift weights, but took time to walk through the halls. I won't be able to work out here anymore since the childcare center is being closed. The walls were bare, the pool stripped of all it's toys, the cycles being wheeled out and loaded onto a big truck, the office windows darkened. All the signs of my family health club...gone. It was so sad to walk through and see the staff, maybe for the last time. What a shame that corporate greed has led to this. I realize the owner of HAC agreed to sell, so it's not all LT's fault, and I know I will grow to love my new club (they make a great smoothie and I already have a friend to work out with on T/Th)...but it will take time to get used to it. Ugh....I hate change!

Sad but true

I am appalled at the immaturity of seemingly normal educated people during this election.
This is something a middle schooler would do:

TV anchor who resembles Palin gets 'hate mail'

Seriously??? Why don't you guys spend your time learning about the huge financial mess that is going on instead. Maybe you would learn something important, like who is actually responsible for the crisis.

And another absurd headline today:

Palin Syrah: Wine Drinkers Balk at a Chilean Wine With Hints of Alaska

Come on people. Over wine? Really??? What if they had switched the label. Would it have hint of moose in it then? I think not. For Pete's sake grow up!

Barf!!!

Ok, I'm really trying to make this new eating plan work for me. My trainer recommended protein (with low fat and no sugar) at bedtime. She prefers a can of tuna. Have you ever eaten a can of tune without anything on it? Ugh. At bed time? That's just fishy gross.

My favorite health/fitness magazine, Oxygen, calls cottage cheese the "perfect" bedtime snack because the high protein and slow to digest curds feed your muscles through the night. So I tried it last night. I even added Stevia (a natural no calorie sweetener), then some vanilla extract, and I still could not stomach it. I got halfway through it. The taste isn't really that bad, it's the curds that make me gag. Ya know, the things that make it so valuable to your training diet.

You can check out Oxygen fitness magazine here! I do NOT endorse all the ads for fat burners and other dangerous supplements, but hey, you've got to pay for a magazine some way....right? The women on the front are GORGEOUS. Not model skinny, but not huge body builders either. Sleek, muscular, and shapely. They are an inspiration to me!

The good, the ok, and the smelly

Well we've been on this "eating clean" plan now for a few weeks. I like to think of it as more of a clean lifestyle really (except my house...eww). I have bought SLS-free shampoo for myself and the girls. The boys are much more resistant, but we'll get there. I also have SLS-free body wash for us girls (lavender and vanilla-almond just don't really inspire those guys). We eat more veggies and fruits than ever, and I am proud to say my husband and I have both dramatically reduced our soda intake...well the bad kind anyway. The Duke has replaced DP with Hansen's and Jones colas sweetened with pure cane sugar instead of HFCS. We are still looking for a filtered shower head, though, and I have to admit that we ate at Chik-Fil-A this weekend. (Shhhhhhh) It's a work in progress.

So what's it like?

For the most part, I love it. Here is the low-down on our experience going organic:

The Good-
Jason's Deli (offers a lot of organic choices on the menu now....and they are YUMMO! My favorite is the Cibatta Bing sandwich)
Maria's Safe Salsa- The best salsa I have EVER had!!!! http://www.mariasfreshfoods.com/
You can buy this at Sprouts!
Ezekiel Breads- Sprouted whole grain bread that is a complete protein
Avocados- Who knew healthy fats could be so yummy on nearly everything?
Burt's Bees Papaya face scrub- Reduced the size of my pores within the first two uses. I LOVE this stuff.

The OK-
JASON- SLS free shampoo (doesn't do much for my hair, but I don't hate it
Kefir- Much stronger than plain yogurt flavor, but generally not bad
Stevia- The natural sweetener...um...no so sweet, but then again it's not a chemical and it's calorie free.

And the smelly-
OK, I HATE aluminum-free deodorant. I guess I can pass it off as the weather gets cooler, but I will be reaching for my Degree anti-perspirant. Yowza! I have only tried one brand (ABBA enzyme deodorant). Anyone out there use the Crystal????

Wow...

Just spent some time catching up on other's blogs. It seems I am going to need a break from reading blogs until after the election. I am absolutely sick ...stopping now. Why do people attack the individuals that run? The only reasonable discussion I have had about this election was with a friend who listens to both sides instead of looking at the party affiliations. We both want a non-partisan candidate. Not just a dem or rep dressed in "libertarian" clothing.

She says the candidates try to mold themselves into the D or R groups "platforms" so they can win the party nomination. I could't agree more. Then they back-peddle everything they have said to win the "swing states" to the point where no one stands for what they really believe in...just what they think people want to hear. And who knows what anyone stands for with all these stupid ads? The back-stabbing, mud slinging....make it stop. Just say what you stand for! I say F*** partisan politics.


But while we are all shopping...why not??? My new bumper stickers and T-shirt, inspired by Obama's new tax plan, and Biden's comment "Paying taxes is patriotic". No, it's a duty. Flying the American flag, being proud to be an American no matter what, and praying to God to hold your country in his hands during these tough times is patriotic. You lost me there big guy.

Wild boys

What is it with boys (and grown up boys fall into this category as well) that they can sit and watch 2 spiders (or 2 of anything really) fighting for hours. And be mesmerized...

I'm getting a play by play from a 9 yo and his buddy. It's like fight club for arachnids here. Here's hoping the girls wake up and want to play dolls. Much more my speed!

Ladies and gentlemen...my son (part 2)

This morning Drama demanded that he take his lunch. He couldn't be bothered to endure the horror of corn dogs in the cafeteria. All I have at home is "clean eating stuff" which he also refuses. I made him a peanut butter sandwich on whole wheat (which he refused to eat because of the 'seeds' in the bread), gave him a couple cookies and told him to buy the rest when we went to the gas station. I gave him $5 while I put gas in the car.
Wanna know what is in his lunch???
A Sunkist (drink, not a real orange)
the sandwich
the cookies
a baggie of goldfish
and drum roll....

a brown sugar pop tart!

I think my child is going to turn into an 85 pound bag of sugar. We'll just call him carb from now on. Yes it is my fault for allowing it. In my defense...I didn't argue with him since I had already forced him to wear an itchy shirt and gel in his hair for picture day.

Toxic friends

I've been wrestling with some things over the past month, and the only person I've had to share them with is the Duke. He is a dude, so he can't make much sense of my feelings. Also, he could do without the rest oft he world and be just fine. He would be happy with our happy family of 5 living on a small tropical island...as long as it had access to FIOS TV! I tend to be more social, but I am trending away from that. Here is why. Maybe one of you all can help me make sense of these awful ugly feelings. I have to be really careful too, since most of my friends read this blog. These feelings aren't directed at any person in particular, just a general feeling of waterloo on the friendship battleground.

Let's go back to grade school. I didn't have any girl friends at my school. Any kids that lived on my block went to public school. I was at a private school up through 8th grade. I would chat with friends at recess, but no one would come over and play, or spend the night the way girls do. I skipped 4th grade and was moved into a 5/6 grade combination LEAP class...which was extremely intimidating!!! I didn't have friends again for a short time, then connected with a girl I danced with. We'll call her A. A and I danced together 4-5 times a week for most of our childhood years. She was the most popular girl in school. Rich, pretty, smart...she had it all. We had so much fun together...sleepovers, carpooling to ballet, parties. Then she stayed at private school for high school and I went to public. She dropped me like a hot potato. That sucked.

My best friend in high school was a boy. We'll call him S. S and I were in most classes together, but really had the most fun in Drama. We were bff's for all 4 years. Though every time I had a boyfriend, or he had a girlfriend...things would get weird for awhile with our other peeps. We were an odd pair. He was the witty dark Thespian, I was struggling for an image at all. A cheerleader, choir member, swim team, drama person....I had many friends. But none were as close as S. Until my senior year where I got close to T and R. (They were girls). T and S and I were in Jazz Choir together. R was a cheerleader with me. Quickly me, R and T became a threesome of bffs. But we would often argue as hormonal girls do, and generally R and T were closer. S remained constant....always there. The last week of school S told me he had been in love with me since our freshman year. WOAH! From that moment I questioned the validity of our friendship. Was it because of that? Or were were actually friends? To this day, we have not spoken since graduation. How sad is that? (I am still in touch with T and R, and visit them often when I am in town, but they are still closer to each other just like in high school).

Thus started my 3-somes of friends. In college my bffs were D and D2. We were all bffs. But they lived together, were in the same sorority (not mine). We are still friends, and they are both Godparents to my children, but they are still closer...they always have been.

I told B when I met him that I have a lot of friends, but not a single close girlfriend. The gf that you call everyday to ask what she is doing. The one who you can call at 4 am. The one you always get a call back from. He was happy to take on that role. And now I am proud to say, that my husband is my tried and true BFF!!! Since we have been married we have found couple friends that we become close to at times, but then things get crazy and we go months without hanging out at all.

I do long for a close girl friend. I always have. Why do I seem to always have boys for bffs? Can I relate to them better? Am I lacking in estrogen? Do I smell? Is it my small boobs? Do I not listen well enough? Am I mean hearted? Shallow? I really am looking for answers here.

Here is what I have wrestled with:

1. In my life I have been in 7 weddings, but have never been the maid of honor.
2. We have 10 people in our lives that we felt strong enough about to be God parents to our children. Yet no friend has ever asked that of us. (I am Godmother to my brother's children, but he lived with me...he knew how awesome I would be to my God babies!) Do we look irresponsible? Is our relationship with God seemingly not strong? Who knows. Should I care?

This all came on strong this weekend when I invited a bunch of girls to go see Mamma Mia. I invited everyone. I bought the tickets. I had a pre-party. I was so busy making sure everyone had food and drink, that I missed the call-outs on cars. Not that it was a big deal, but everyone went in other cars except my mom. She wanted to ride with me. But no one seemed to. And I know it wasn't an attack on me, but after struggling with all of this baggage, that didn't help my case. Mom and I eventually rode with my friends D and D and had a great time.

This book I am reading talks about eliminating toxic friends from your lives. The ones who stress you out, or leave you angry, depressed, irritated. How do you know which are just the daily ups and downs of a normal friendship, and which are really just a bad relationship? Especially when most of my bffs have been boys? Am I out of touch with the ladies? Is there a course for that? Somebody help me out here.

Pastics information anyone?????

After reading my post last week a friend sent an email about plastics leaching poisons into the beverages we drink. She then said "Don't even get me started on what those little triangles mean".

Does anyone have any more info about this??? I'm intrigued...and worried.

Why I heart Sarah Palin

I didn't vote in the last presidential campaign. I couldn't stand either person running. Watching them both made me want to stab a pencil in my eye. They say if you want change....then vote. Don't complain if you don't vote. I said....give me something I can work with.

I never get true, honest, un-biased opinions in my arena. My family (husband, parents, in-laws, everyone I am related to) are staunch conservative Republicans. All of my friends are liberal Democrats. What's a middle-of-the-road girl supposed to do? I can't ask someone to help me make sense of the issues, because they are all speaking with conviction for their cause. What about my cause?

Fast forward to this year. I watched the primaries go by just watching the candidates make their cause. I actually thought I would vote for Hillary. What an empowerment to have a woman in office! But thank goodness she didn't win, my husband would have left me on the spot. LOL! There's a reason those voting booths are private! I really enjoyed some talks by Huckabee because he talked about something that is a HUGE issue for the Duke and I. The Duke owns his own small business. And, I aspire to own my own very soon. We are the little people. Raising taxes for government programs puts small businesses out of business. But Huckabee was quickly defeated by a man I wouldn't even give the time of day. Why? I saw McCain as "the establishment" and I don't want any part of that.

Then there was Obama. Hmmm. I thought, well he is a great speaker. People seem to love him. I could vote for him. But the more I watched him, and the more I heard "Hope, hope, change, change" and "let me generalize that subject" I grew tired of that cause and decided to just not vote. (Though I do like Joe Biden).

My husband MADE me watch Giuliani's speech the other night, which was pretty funny. He's a funny guy. Then Sarah walks in looking sweet and innocent. Then she started talking. WHOA she is feisty....like me (my husband refers to it as bitchy). What a cool lady!!!!! She has a great name ;) and a good head on her shoulders. She is (sort of) from my generation at only 44 years of age. I loved her accent, and her lipstick joke. She also mentioned lowering taxes so small businesses can survive. She is a pro-lifer...like myself, but more importantly...she is a mother. I respect any mom who can look that good after 5 children, who can pull herself together to go to work defeating "the establishment" because she knew it could be better. She is a woman who was just like me at on point....a soccer mom who signed up for the PTA.



I think this is cute:







Granted, I don't much about Palin or her background and people may call me shallow for just going with the woman, because is a woman. But hey....I'm voting! How much do we ever really know about candidates? You can't believe what they say...because they say what you want to hear. You can't believe what the media says because they have an obvious agenda. I jut like her personality, spunk, and positive attitude. I would feel so much better having a God-fearing mom in the White House who has my interests at heart: education and family values. I am finally excited about this election. I went from not voting, to wanting to be the first in line at my precinct. (Now if I could just find out where that is LOL).

*disclaimer*
This post isn't intended to piss anyone off. After all, all of my friends are Dems...my family Reps. I don't care who they all vote for...that's what makes our country great. We have a choice! Amen. God Bless America!