I did it. My cleanse is complete. Ok....it's done two days early but that is because I had a bad day at work and it's Friday and since I can't drink I am left only with sugar and darn it, I'm going to have it. 3 weeks with no sugar. Now let me say that I don't know if there is research that says this or if it is an old wives tale, but that mumbo jumbo about if you don't have "it" (insert your vice here) for awhile, it gets easier and you don't want it as much after more time has passed. Bullshit. After three weeks you would assume that I would not think about sugar in my free time and if I saw something sugary sweet or listened to my husband talk about the delicious doughnuts he ate that day I could just listen without a physical reaction. Nonsense. I want sugar just as much as I did when I started this cleanse. However there were a few good things that came out of this experience. I have a much clearer picture of how I mindlessly eat if I let myself. I also have been feeling pretty good, not having lots of gluten and dairy, and I do feel good about the avoiding of any processed foods. Overall, I recommend a cleanse or two a year just as kind of a reset and a time for contemplating eating habits.
And now in approximately twenty minutes, an ultimate veggie hoagie, greek salad, and peanut butter/chocolate granola bar will arrive at my door. Happy sigh......Welcome back.
Friday, January 20, 2012
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Circle + Rectangle/Squiggle
My principal has been on this kick about having all of us (staff) find out what kind of personality type-when it comes to work-we have and if we are right or left brained. It is to help us understand that we work with lots of different types of people and maybe this will help us deal with individuals differently or at least understand where they are coming from. Well I love this kind of stuff so of course I had to bring it home to Brian so I could see where he is at. Here are the two websites I used if you are interested it taking the tests yourself....
http://frank.mtsu.edu/~studskl/hd/hemispheric_dominance.html (right/left brain test)
http://www.psychometricshapes.co.uk/index.php (shape personality test)
So it turns out that I am very slightly right brained but it's pretty close to being an equal split. Brian comes out at just a bit more right brained than me. I disagree....he is super right brained I think....but what do I know.
Then the coolest part was the shape test. I came out as a pure circle. Social, friendly, disorganized-stuff like that. Brian came out as rectange/squiggle combo-artsy, individual, honest, creative. As I was reading our profiles, this was the last sentence in his profile...."You are likely to live alone unless you find that perfect "Circle" person who will put up with your eccentric behavior." Ummmmm yeah. It was one of those things that was just so spot on that it was really weird. I guess this just confirms the results of my Fear Factor compatibilty test as well.
http://frank.mtsu.edu/~studskl/hd/hemispheric_dominance.html (right/left brain test)
http://www.psychometricshapes.co.uk/index.php (shape personality test)
So it turns out that I am very slightly right brained but it's pretty close to being an equal split. Brian comes out at just a bit more right brained than me. I disagree....he is super right brained I think....but what do I know.
Then the coolest part was the shape test. I came out as a pure circle. Social, friendly, disorganized-stuff like that. Brian came out as rectange/squiggle combo-artsy, individual, honest, creative. As I was reading our profiles, this was the last sentence in his profile...."You are likely to live alone unless you find that perfect "Circle" person who will put up with your eccentric behavior." Ummmmm yeah. It was one of those things that was just so spot on that it was really weird. I guess this just confirms the results of my Fear Factor compatibilty test as well.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Fear Factor as a Compatibility Test
Brian and I have somehow become sucked into watching Fear Factor on Monday nights. As we were watching last night, it dawned on me that if two people in a relationship watch Fear Factor together, they may find out how compatible (or not) they are. For example, the first "test" was that one person on the team had to be locked in a cage that was slowly lowered underwater while the other person was underwater trying to cut through the ropes that held their partner and then undo the lock. Brian says, "No way. My head would explode." Me, "I'd drown." Would we do it for $50K, nope. Next "test", each team had to eat a tray full of cockroaches or grasshoppers, rat hair tortillas, and drink maggots in blood to make it to the next round. I started feeling sick to my stomach and professed that no amount of money is worth that. My husband, "Me neither, wouldn't even try." The third "test" was one person had to drive a car behind a bus and the other one had to jump from the bus onto the moving car, grab a flag, and then jump back onto the bus 13 times. Both in agreement that we would do it and decided I would drive and he would jump. Something about my short legs.....
So as you can see (through a very scientific process) we are very compatible. Try it and find out. Would you really do that stuff for $50K?
So as you can see (through a very scientific process) we are very compatible. Try it and find out. Would you really do that stuff for $50K?
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Cleanse
Thanks to my friend Racheal, I am back to the blog. She is what I consider a blogging professional and insanely good at keeping everyone up-to-date on her and her family's move to Hawaii for a year. After chatting with her yesterday, she gave me the idea to talk about my cleanse.
Last year I HAD to do a cleanse/elimination diet as yet another way to try to figure out what was wrong with my stomach. I bought a book called "Clean" which details a very specific elimination diet to help people determine underlying causes of various physical ailments. I won't even go into all the things you can and can't eat for three weeks but if you are really interested you can look up Clean by Dr. Junger. Anyway, it turned out that food sensitivity was not my problem, and despite how frustrating and annoying the cleanse was, there were parts of it I liked.
So after a Christmas of shoving my face full of sugar and caffeine and processed foods, I decided that a cleanse would be a good way to start the year. I was inspired by a 21-day cleanse I found in Whole Living magazine. This cleanse seemed MUCH more reasonable than my previous cleanse with some simple instructions. First of all you have to avoid the following for three weeks: sugar, caffeine, gluten, dairy, alcohol, and processed foods. Well I can't drink alcohol anyway, and my impetus for this whole thing was caffeine and sugar, so really the only painful part would be the gluten and dairy. During week one you are supposed to eat only fruit, veggies, and nuts (sparingly). Then week two you can add in lean protein like fish, beans, and soy, and then week three you can add in non-gluten grains and eggs. After that you are free to do what you want.
I am starting week two today. Week one really wasn't so bad, however in full disclosure, I have been adding a few tablespoons of greek yogurt to my smoothies in the morning and I have been eating some beans. I was a little nervous about not having any protein for a week, so I added those in. I haven't really missed sugar as much as I thought I would. However, I did have an epiphany the first day I started. I was sitting in a meeting at school, and there was a candy dish on the table. I reached over, grabbed a piece, popped it in my mouth, and then had this sudden realization that I wasn't supposed to do that. MINDLESS I tell you, mindless eating of sugar! That was the icing on the cake (excuse the pun) that really told me I needed to cut out sugar for awhile. That plus the peppermint pillows that are in my desk that I apparently also mindlessly put in my mouth on a regular basis throughout the day.....
I've been using some of the recipes the magazine suggests and some of my own. I made split pea soup and a squash and kale soup this weekend to eat this week, and I think I'll make a spaghetti squash and top it with my canned (homemade) stewed tomatoes. That should cover me for most of the week. I think I may add rice back in a little early cause ratatouille sounds good too. And one side note...I asked my life partner to be a part of this cleanse with me to which he originally said yes. However, week one is done and now it's "I'll start next week..." and in addition to not doing it, as I've been making these cleanse-friendly foods I have had to deal with him saying things like, "I think I'll have some soup with bread and cheese, want some? It won't hurt to have it just once," or "I'm going to order onion rings you can have one." Which again in full disclosure...sigh...I did. But just one. And damn, it was good.
Last year I HAD to do a cleanse/elimination diet as yet another way to try to figure out what was wrong with my stomach. I bought a book called "Clean" which details a very specific elimination diet to help people determine underlying causes of various physical ailments. I won't even go into all the things you can and can't eat for three weeks but if you are really interested you can look up Clean by Dr. Junger. Anyway, it turned out that food sensitivity was not my problem, and despite how frustrating and annoying the cleanse was, there were parts of it I liked.
So after a Christmas of shoving my face full of sugar and caffeine and processed foods, I decided that a cleanse would be a good way to start the year. I was inspired by a 21-day cleanse I found in Whole Living magazine. This cleanse seemed MUCH more reasonable than my previous cleanse with some simple instructions. First of all you have to avoid the following for three weeks: sugar, caffeine, gluten, dairy, alcohol, and processed foods. Well I can't drink alcohol anyway, and my impetus for this whole thing was caffeine and sugar, so really the only painful part would be the gluten and dairy. During week one you are supposed to eat only fruit, veggies, and nuts (sparingly). Then week two you can add in lean protein like fish, beans, and soy, and then week three you can add in non-gluten grains and eggs. After that you are free to do what you want.
I am starting week two today. Week one really wasn't so bad, however in full disclosure, I have been adding a few tablespoons of greek yogurt to my smoothies in the morning and I have been eating some beans. I was a little nervous about not having any protein for a week, so I added those in. I haven't really missed sugar as much as I thought I would. However, I did have an epiphany the first day I started. I was sitting in a meeting at school, and there was a candy dish on the table. I reached over, grabbed a piece, popped it in my mouth, and then had this sudden realization that I wasn't supposed to do that. MINDLESS I tell you, mindless eating of sugar! That was the icing on the cake (excuse the pun) that really told me I needed to cut out sugar for awhile. That plus the peppermint pillows that are in my desk that I apparently also mindlessly put in my mouth on a regular basis throughout the day.....
I've been using some of the recipes the magazine suggests and some of my own. I made split pea soup and a squash and kale soup this weekend to eat this week, and I think I'll make a spaghetti squash and top it with my canned (homemade) stewed tomatoes. That should cover me for most of the week. I think I may add rice back in a little early cause ratatouille sounds good too. And one side note...I asked my life partner to be a part of this cleanse with me to which he originally said yes. However, week one is done and now it's "I'll start next week..." and in addition to not doing it, as I've been making these cleanse-friendly foods I have had to deal with him saying things like, "I think I'll have some soup with bread and cheese, want some? It won't hurt to have it just once," or "I'm going to order onion rings you can have one." Which again in full disclosure...sigh...I did. But just one. And damn, it was good.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
I Forgot I Have a Blog
I admit it. I temporarily forgot I have a blog. It has been a month since my last post. Pretty sad. But I'm back to do some catch up and will try to be better with more regular posts.
At work the past week, one of my major tasks has been to call some of our families and ask if they would like help purchasing gifts for their kids for Christmas. Each year our school does a fundraiser with all proceeds going to buy gifts for some of our kids and kids that are in our local homeless and crisis shelters. As I've been calling parents, I've been humbled by the thanks and blessings being given to me and our school. So many families are in such tough spots right now and it has really brought my attention to just how fragile life as I know it is. So to catch up on the past month, I think I'll focus on what I am grateful for.
My brother and his partner came up for Thanksgiving this year. It was so great to have them here. I haven't celebrated Thanksgiving with them for a very long time. We had tons of great food (and there was even some meat on the table for my mom, Ben and Alan) and loads of laughs. We went Christmas tree hunting with some friends and found a lovely one which is now up and decorated and giving me immense pleasure. Much to my mother's dismay I have the tradition now of decorating the tree in old glass ornaments and multi-colored (non-LED) lights and a homemade metal snowflake tree topper. It is very old-fashioned looking and nothing like what I grew up with. No homemade, crafty, or memorabilia type of ornaments on this tree. I'll put a picture on when I can get around to it. Something else I am very grateful for is that Alan put the lights on my tree because I can't even touch the thing without breaking out and feeling like my hands are on fire and itching like crazy. He did a beautiful job and saved all of us from my whining and complaining.
I have been a cookie making machine as of late as well. I've made 6 kinds of cookies (in one weekend!) and have been a good girl and put them in tins and on my porch so that they will actually make it down to Illinois for Christmas instead of ending up in my tummy. My boys (who named me Bubbles) and I decorated sugar cookies and had a messy good time. We were all pretty sugared up after that adventure, with sprinkles and frosting literally everywhere. And I even went to my first "Cookie Party" where each person bakes a dozen cookies per person attending (aka I made 120 truffles) and then you come home with a dozen different cookies from each person (aka I came home with 100 cookies). Let me say that this is a good idea in theory, but when you are coming home with bags (like grocery bags) full of cookies, you start to rethink the merits of this type of party. Let's just say I gave away a lot to friends and had Brian take a bunch to work.
My Christmas shopping is done and just a few more gifts need to be wrapped and then we are ready for our annual drive to Dwight. I'm so excited to see all my family and hopefully some friends as well. My favorite family quote of the season so far is from my cousin Charlotte, who after emailing us her Christmas list ended it with "P.S. I'm not little anymore". Our itinerary is to visit my brother for a few days and then on to Dwight for a few more days and then head home.
And to end with one more thing I'm grateful for.....this afternoon I looked at my phone and there was a text from Brian. The text said, "Didn't walk Foxy, but I made dinner. Just put it in the oven and it's ready." Now if that isn't magical, I don't know what is.
At work the past week, one of my major tasks has been to call some of our families and ask if they would like help purchasing gifts for their kids for Christmas. Each year our school does a fundraiser with all proceeds going to buy gifts for some of our kids and kids that are in our local homeless and crisis shelters. As I've been calling parents, I've been humbled by the thanks and blessings being given to me and our school. So many families are in such tough spots right now and it has really brought my attention to just how fragile life as I know it is. So to catch up on the past month, I think I'll focus on what I am grateful for.
My brother and his partner came up for Thanksgiving this year. It was so great to have them here. I haven't celebrated Thanksgiving with them for a very long time. We had tons of great food (and there was even some meat on the table for my mom, Ben and Alan) and loads of laughs. We went Christmas tree hunting with some friends and found a lovely one which is now up and decorated and giving me immense pleasure. Much to my mother's dismay I have the tradition now of decorating the tree in old glass ornaments and multi-colored (non-LED) lights and a homemade metal snowflake tree topper. It is very old-fashioned looking and nothing like what I grew up with. No homemade, crafty, or memorabilia type of ornaments on this tree. I'll put a picture on when I can get around to it. Something else I am very grateful for is that Alan put the lights on my tree because I can't even touch the thing without breaking out and feeling like my hands are on fire and itching like crazy. He did a beautiful job and saved all of us from my whining and complaining.
I have been a cookie making machine as of late as well. I've made 6 kinds of cookies (in one weekend!) and have been a good girl and put them in tins and on my porch so that they will actually make it down to Illinois for Christmas instead of ending up in my tummy. My boys (who named me Bubbles) and I decorated sugar cookies and had a messy good time. We were all pretty sugared up after that adventure, with sprinkles and frosting literally everywhere. And I even went to my first "Cookie Party" where each person bakes a dozen cookies per person attending (aka I made 120 truffles) and then you come home with a dozen different cookies from each person (aka I came home with 100 cookies). Let me say that this is a good idea in theory, but when you are coming home with bags (like grocery bags) full of cookies, you start to rethink the merits of this type of party. Let's just say I gave away a lot to friends and had Brian take a bunch to work.
My Christmas shopping is done and just a few more gifts need to be wrapped and then we are ready for our annual drive to Dwight. I'm so excited to see all my family and hopefully some friends as well. My favorite family quote of the season so far is from my cousin Charlotte, who after emailing us her Christmas list ended it with "P.S. I'm not little anymore". Our itinerary is to visit my brother for a few days and then on to Dwight for a few more days and then head home.
And to end with one more thing I'm grateful for.....this afternoon I looked at my phone and there was a text from Brian. The text said, "Didn't walk Foxy, but I made dinner. Just put it in the oven and it's ready." Now if that isn't magical, I don't know what is.
Monday, November 14, 2011
Proud Owners
As Brian and I have been talking about our land and the upcoming building project, we've been talking about the best ideas for a living arrangement during the process. Our dear friends have offered us their "retreat" on the river which we are unbelievably thankful for, however it is a prime location and it may sell by the time we need it. In that case, we need a back-up plan. Brian thinks we should just be in a tent while we build for 4 months. You might think he was joking while he said it, but no....he was serious. I think we all know my answer to that. However, being on-site does seem like a good idea so we settled on the possibility of purchasing a cheap camper of some sort to leave on the land and "live in" while we build. I'm putting live in in quotes because I can be real enough to say that I will also be staying at various people's houses and using the YMCA for more than just their cardio equipment.
Anyway, we've been looking on Craig's list and have had my dad keeping his eyes open for trailers for sale. We went to look at one a few weeks ago (a truck/trailer all in one kind of deal) for $500 and it was in major disrepair. We told the guy that it would be fine if we had the time/money to fix it up but we needed a camper that was ready to live in cause we'd be building our house. He told us that it was good to take breaks from building your house. He then added that that's what he did.....and oh yeah, he's been divorced twice.
But then came our big break. This past Sunday I met Dad in Ashland and we went out to look at another possibility. And there she was.....a 23 foot 1971 Coachman travel trailer. Totally vintage (and I don't mean it was junky trashed, just looked like it was from 1971) and everything works in it. The guy took it to Sturgis this year so I know that it can be moved safely. And best of all, I got it for $500! Sweet. Brian is going to pick it up and take it to Hayward for the winter (since we don't have a driveway in yet, we can't put it on the land) and that way Dad can putz with it too. I'll put some pictures on when we get it situated at Dad's. So there you have it. We are the proud owners of a camper/temporary home. One more step in the right direction.
Anyway, we've been looking on Craig's list and have had my dad keeping his eyes open for trailers for sale. We went to look at one a few weeks ago (a truck/trailer all in one kind of deal) for $500 and it was in major disrepair. We told the guy that it would be fine if we had the time/money to fix it up but we needed a camper that was ready to live in cause we'd be building our house. He told us that it was good to take breaks from building your house. He then added that that's what he did.....and oh yeah, he's been divorced twice.
But then came our big break. This past Sunday I met Dad in Ashland and we went out to look at another possibility. And there she was.....a 23 foot 1971 Coachman travel trailer. Totally vintage (and I don't mean it was junky trashed, just looked like it was from 1971) and everything works in it. The guy took it to Sturgis this year so I know that it can be moved safely. And best of all, I got it for $500! Sweet. Brian is going to pick it up and take it to Hayward for the winter (since we don't have a driveway in yet, we can't put it on the land) and that way Dad can putz with it too. I'll put some pictures on when we get it situated at Dad's. So there you have it. We are the proud owners of a camper/temporary home. One more step in the right direction.
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Porcupine Mountains Trip
Last weekend Brian and I (and Foxy) went to the Porcupine Mountains State Wilderness in Michigan to do some "luxury" camping. By luxury I mean that we got to forgo the tent and rented a rustic cabin for two nights. The cabins are basically just shelters that have some bunk beds, a table and chairs, a woodstove, and some pots and pans. Considering that it was in the 30's at night and rained one of the nights, it was definitely a luxury staying dry and warm in those cabins. For light, we had our headlamps and a lantern and yes, you did have to go outside to use the outhouse. It is a beautiful area and we only saw one other family there the entire three days we were in the park.
The first night we stayed at Speakers Cabin which is right on Lake Superior. It was awesome. It did some sprinkling/hailing as we walked in (oh yeah, you have to backpack your stuff in a mile to the cabins) but when we arrived at the cabin the clouds were starting to break and there was an amazing sunset to see. The cabin was super cute and stocked with wood. Quite cozy. The only complaints were that the mattresses were only a smidge better than sleeping on the ground and there were a ton of flies that had been caught by various strips of hanging fly paper. This wasn't a big deal until we made a fire in the stove and as the cabin heated up, the flies started to come back to life. Like really....as the temp went up, you heard more buzzing and saw little stuck flies starting to wiggle where they were silent and lifeless before. Creepy. I put those strips outside and in the morning there were no flies left, so I'm guessing some little critter got a midnight snack.
The second night we stayed at Greenstone Falls Cabin. This was a nice cabin on the river, however there was a very big problem. There was NO WOOD. And let me just say if it were just me on this adventure I would have left. But my strapping lumberjack husband went out and hauled in wet wood and used a sucky axe that they provide at the cabin to basically beat the wood into pieces so we could stay warm for the night. What a man. My hero. Even more so because at this point in the trip, my cold that I had started getting our first night had taken over my whole head and throat by the second night and there was no way I could even help with the wood bludgeoning.
We could have stayed a third night but I was feeling like crap so we went to Hayward on Saturday afternoon to be pampered by my Dad (aka he made us lots of good food and we watched a movie). Then Sunday we finished harvesting the last of the veggies - kale, chard, lettuce, and parsnips - and changed the oil on my car and headed back home. A really great mini-vacation. I highly recommend staying in those cabins. Really relaxing and cozy, especially when it is chilly outside.
The first night we stayed at Speakers Cabin which is right on Lake Superior. It was awesome. It did some sprinkling/hailing as we walked in (oh yeah, you have to backpack your stuff in a mile to the cabins) but when we arrived at the cabin the clouds were starting to break and there was an amazing sunset to see. The cabin was super cute and stocked with wood. Quite cozy. The only complaints were that the mattresses were only a smidge better than sleeping on the ground and there were a ton of flies that had been caught by various strips of hanging fly paper. This wasn't a big deal until we made a fire in the stove and as the cabin heated up, the flies started to come back to life. Like really....as the temp went up, you heard more buzzing and saw little stuck flies starting to wiggle where they were silent and lifeless before. Creepy. I put those strips outside and in the morning there were no flies left, so I'm guessing some little critter got a midnight snack.
The second night we stayed at Greenstone Falls Cabin. This was a nice cabin on the river, however there was a very big problem. There was NO WOOD. And let me just say if it were just me on this adventure I would have left. But my strapping lumberjack husband went out and hauled in wet wood and used a sucky axe that they provide at the cabin to basically beat the wood into pieces so we could stay warm for the night. What a man. My hero. Even more so because at this point in the trip, my cold that I had started getting our first night had taken over my whole head and throat by the second night and there was no way I could even help with the wood bludgeoning.
We could have stayed a third night but I was feeling like crap so we went to Hayward on Saturday afternoon to be pampered by my Dad (aka he made us lots of good food and we watched a movie). Then Sunday we finished harvesting the last of the veggies - kale, chard, lettuce, and parsnips - and changed the oil on my car and headed back home. A really great mini-vacation. I highly recommend staying in those cabins. Really relaxing and cozy, especially when it is chilly outside.
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