Yesterday I was finally able to resume exercise after getting so sick in mid April. It took me over a month to get back to my former state of energy. Don’t get me wrong, I love doing athletic and outdoorsy stuff, but I am by no means an exercise fan. Disguise it as fun and games and you don’t realize you are getting exercise and it is great. Just jogging, not so much. I have to force myself to go. You know, gotta keep that bad cholesterol down and that joint pain and fatigue at bay.
One place I love to go is the huge urban park a few miles away. When you are amongst all the trees you kind of forget you are in a huge city and how terribly hot and humid it is. They have a 3 mile jogging loop which is excellent for people watching. It is so amusing to see the different categories of people out there.
Marathon Trainers – Don’t get in their way, they’ll knock you over as they weave their way in and out of the jogging loop while utilizing nearly the entire acreage of the park.
The Lean, Fit runners – These folks loop past us 3 times as we unfit joggers struggle to make our way around once.
The Consummate Businessman-They are busy hashing out a business deal on their “crackberry” as they run while not getting out of breath. (How on earth do they do that?) Seriously, unhook for 30 minutes and relax.
The Stroller Brigade – I applaud these moms (and dads) for getting out and finding some time to jog.
The Beauty Queen – These chicks are out there in full make-up, perfect hair, and color coordinated outfit; they are definitely out there only to exercise. It makes me feel like I’m in college again. They are easy to notice in passing as you choke on their cloud of perfume. Also look for the itty-bitty jogging shorts pulled down to a precarious level.
Dog Walkers/Joggers – I get my dog fix as I admire the different cute dogs as they walk/jog by. Yesterday I spotted a beautiful chocolate lab mix running ahead of it’s master. The dog was definitely frolicking happily while looking back at master as if to say: “This is fun, boy I’m glad we came, come on, you can do it, faster, faster, run faster, wow, this is fun!” I have also seen a woman on a leisurely stroll with her toy-sized dog of some flavor in a specially crafted doggie stroller.
Leisurely Strollers – These people come in regular clothes for a nice stroll through the trails. (Probably to people watch) +10 for the ladies out in their high heels. (on gravel paths, ouch!)
Can You Hear Me Now? – Same case as the businessman, only they are on personal calls. Again, unhook for 30 minutes and relax, do you really want the world to know in full detail how drunk you got last weekend?
And by far the largest group:
Regular Joe/Jane – These folks don’t care what they look like as they work up a sweat and proud of it.
At least all of this makes the horrid task of jogging a little bit more entertaining.
This dog seriously cracked me up. Bryan and Lindi have the sweetest dog, she positively smiles when you go out to give her some attention. Before heading off to Bryan’s graduation we decided to put out the sprinkler to entertain Collin. For some reason he wasn’t having any of it, but at least Macy had a blast.
Yes, we are nerds. My husband has been wanting one since he heard about them. Then after playing a friend’s wii last fall he just had to have one. I would have liked to purchase one for him for Christmas but alas, I was too busy with work, wedding preparations, graduation parties, and shopping to be that vigilant. I settled on a car radio instead since his stopped working, so I’m not that bad of a wife. We received some Christmas money and decided we would use some of it for the wii. Fast forward to this Friday night, Brandon decided to start asking around at the local electronics stores. He found luck with one saying they would have a fairly large shipment in on March 9. He decided to ask another store within walking distance and they said they would have some in 36 hours and all he had to do was get there at 7am and wait for a voucher and then come back before noon to pick it up. So he did just that, while I stayed cozy in bed for another hour or so he got up to stand in line. He ended up being 4th in line and didn’t receive the voucher until around 9am. So on our way to church this morning we picked it up and finally had our wii. We think Nintendo does all of this on purpose, they keep the hype going and it keeps people interested. As we were standing in line waiting to pick it up a guy came up and wanted to know where we got the voucher from and Brandon explained what he went through. The guy just shook his head, said he had been trying to get one for a while. Later on we went to purchase games and accessories with a gift card he had received for Christmas. In keeping with our Financial Peace University plan, all we spent was $18 of our own money to purchase everything. Yes, we are such nerds.
After mentioning to Brandon yesterday that I was feeling really sluggish he suggested we take a short road trip to the beach. Today also happens to mark 11 years of togetherness for us. After starting out the day slow, we packed light and just took off. Since getting my new camera I have been trying to make it a habit to bring it with me where ever I go to get as much practice as I can. So it figures what we found when we got there. As we got closer to the beach we noticed some strange clouds on the horizon. It almost looked like a mountain range, the clouds were an odd reddish color. As we made it to the island we realized it was a thick fog. It felt like we were in a Stephen King movie, the day had been clear other than the fog so the sun was still trying to make its way through with no success. It was such a creepy, claustrophobic feeling. We got down to the beach and stood watching the waves and the surfers for quite a while and were able to watch the fog just roll out and the clear sky come back. We spent some time just walking before going back home. We decided to do something fun and easy for dinner so we made our own pizza which turned out well. It was nice to be able to have a lazy day especially when it seems we are always busy on the weekends.
The joys of having a Siamese, they get into everything! But they are a good photography subject when you can catch them in action. (They have an odd tendency to move quickly, imagine that.)
Happy Birthday to the love of my life!! I’m blessed beyond words to be a part of your life. I have spent 10 years of birthdays with you and I love you more today then I did when we started. That’s the great thing about you, you get better with age. I love your laugh, your smile, your optimism, your love of life. I love how you always try to help others and have a ready smile for everyone. Most of all I love that you picked me to spend your time with. I love you with all my heart.
Yesterday was my last day at the place I have worked for the last 4 and 1/2 years. For most of that time I was pretty miserable, but obligations and duty called. This summer I paid off my student loans in 5 years instead of the scheduled 10, (YEA!!!!!!!!!!!) this gave me the opportunity I desperately needed to leave my job. I have had a rough year emotionally, physically, spiritually, and mentally. I felt completely trapped in my job, like I couldn’t get out. Yes, I could look for work elsewhere but I also discovered I was in the wrong field and had no clue where I should look. Because I have a loving, supportive husband, because we have been financially responsible, because the Lord has looked upon us with favor, I have the rare opportunity to just spend time in rest and explore what life has to offer. While the unknown can sometimes be scary, it can also be exciting. My challenge is to break down the walls I have used to rule my life. Instead I need to replace my idiotic rules with, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your mind.” (Matthew 22:37) Everything else will follow in time. I am truly free.
Is it possible for one’s brain to become so overwhelmed that it just stops working? Am I losing my marbles? (They’re coming to take me away ha-ha.) I have become entirely too over-worked at my current job. (Hence one of the reasons I’m leaving) A co-worker came by and asked me a simple question today and I gave him a vacant stare. It took me several seconds to even process what he was saying, it was like he was speaking to me in a foreign language. I’ve also become very distracted and forgetful, like I’m trading places with Brandon. And don’t forget about the part where I am making up words or combining two words to make new and exciting words. It’s very disturbing really.
So for stress relief I have been doing this:
This is part 1 of 3 for Jeff Dunham and Peanut. Funny, funny stuff
My younger brother is getting married this weekend. Yesterday he was in a car accident. As he was merging around a freeway connector the person next to him changed lanes into him knocking him into an 18-wheeler. That made his truck start to fish-tail and he ended up sliding down the embankment onto the feeder road. He hit a pole on the way which stopped his truck from rolling. Neither the car nor the 18-wheeler stopped. He was totally unhurt and his truck is still fully functional albeit a little smashed in back. God was definitely watching out for him.This sounds all too familiar. The weekend before our wedding Brandon was in an accident. It was raining that day and he hydroplaned into the median wall. He got out to check the damage and then returned to the truck, put on his seat belt and made a call to his BIL who was somewhere ahead of him on the freeway. As he was talking a girl who wasn’t paying attention slammed full force into the back of his truck, picking his truck and spinning it 180 degrees so he was facing oncoming traffic. His truck was totaled but he was completely unhurt. God was watching out for him as well.I’m beginning to notice a pattern. One might say the signs were pointing to not getting married. I say it’s all a matter of perspective. I believe that Satan is very much against marriage, it goes against everything he stands for and he would do anything to break up a union that God put together. In these situations God was saying, “Oh no, you don’t! I have plans for my children and you aren’t going to keep them apart.” He put angels there to look out for them.On a side note after talking to my brother and inquiring whether he was alright he told me the ride down was kind of fun, “like Nascar.” WHAT?!?!?!?! Are you high?!?!?!Men!!
It makes me feel like I’m in college again. They are easy to notice in passing as you choke on their cloud of perfume. Also look for the itty-bitty jogging shorts pulled down to a precarious level.
After mentioning to Brandon yesterday that I was feeling really sluggish he suggested we take a short road trip to the beach. Today also happens to mark 11 years of togetherness for us. After starting out the day slow, we packed light and just took off. Since getting my new camera I have been trying to make it a habit to bring it with me where ever I go to get as much practice as I can. So it figures what we found when we got there. As we got closer to the beach we noticed some strange clouds on the horizon. It almost looked like a mountain range, the clouds were an odd reddish color. As we made it to the island we realized it was a thick fog. It felt like we were in a Stephen King movie, the day had been clear other than the fog so the sun was still trying to make its way through with no success. It was such a creepy, claustrophobic feeling. We got down to the beach and stood watching the waves and the surfers for quite a while and were able to watch the fog just roll out and the clear sky come back. We spent some time just walking before going back home. We decided to do something fun and easy for dinner so we made our own pizza which turned out well. It was nice to be able to have a lazy day especially when it seems we are always busy on the weekends.
And don’t forget about the part where I am making up words or combining two words to make new and exciting words. It’s very disturbing really.