& that's the way life goes

I am part of the trend now and that’s ok

I know you guys who tagged me probably thought I forgot about you but no worries I didn’t   Better late than never, right?  (right!)

Melissa tagged me with a picture meme (I still can’t say this word).  Here are the rules:

1. Go to the 4th picture folder on your computer.
2. Post the 4th picture in that folder.
3. Explain the picture.
4. Tag 4 more people.

Every year we raise money and walk at the Detroit Zoo Kidney Walk in May.  The tiger’s are usually lazy but this year this fellow was playing with his “ball”.  It was so cute!

I’m not going to tag anyone but if you decide to do this let me know! 

Next…

reederscorner tagged me, holy crap, a month ago already for this book meme:

The Rules:

Pass it on to five other bloggers, and tell them to open the nearest book to page 56. Write out the fifth sentence on that page, and also the next two to five sentences…The CLOSEST BOOK, NOT YOUR FAVORITE, OR MOST INTELLECTUAL!!

Ok so don’t judge me.  I love picking up books at Border’s from the bargain bins and tables.  This one was $3.99 and it peaked my interest.  Secret Societies and How They Affect Our Lives Today, by (wait for it…) Sylvia Browne.

The following oath may deviate somewhat, depending on the lodge location:

I most solemnly and sincerely promise and swear that I will always hail, ever conceal, and never reveal, any of the arts, parts, or points of the hidden mysteries of ancient Freemasonry.  All this I most solemnly, sincerely promise and swear, with a firm and steadfast resolution to perform the same, without any mental reervation or secret evasion of mine whatever binding myself under no less a penalty than that of having my throat cut across, my tongue torn out by its roots, and buried in the rough sand of the sea at low-water mark where the tide ebbs and flows twice in 24 hours, should I ever knowingly or willingly violate my solemn oath and obligation as Entered Apprentice Mason.  So help me, God.

If you are a reader or have a book close by join in.  Maybe I’ll find something else to read.  Don’t forget to let me know if you do this

Lastly…

Ms. Firefly tagged me for 6 quirky things.

Here are the rules:
Link to the person who tagged you.
Mention the rules.
Tell six quirky yet boring, unspectacular details about yourself.
Tag six other bloggers by linking to them.
Go to each person’s blog and leave a comment that lets them know they’ve been tagged.

I’m ridiculously clumsy.  You would think tae kwon do would help and to a point it does, I’m better balanced but I’m always bruised and running into things.

I am constantly yelling at my dogs for doing things they shouldn’t be doing. And as I’m yelling at them I’m hysterically giggling in my mind because I can’t imagine having kids.

I drink at least a liter of water a day.

I can multi-task like no other but I don’t think I take in as much information as I should.

I’m pretty good at a round kick, spinning hook kick combination.  I’m just sayin’.

I have a hard time taking criticism from my dad (when it’s not about tae kwon do since he is my teacher) and C.  Like I want to punch them in the face (only sometimes, there are times it’s useful.  Maybe twice   ).

I love my office.  We watched the inauguration in the conference room streaming CNN on our 42 inch plasma tv (it’s plasma right guys?)

I was inspired by Obama’s speech.  This about says it all:

taken from: http://finallyseeing.tumblr.com/post/71842852

and

Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek. Barack Obama (via littlemiss)

The thing about moving is that you have to go through stuff to put it away.   Mainly for me this means old pictures and things I’ve saved.  The other night I found pictures of me from 2003-2005.  The feelings I felt were indescribable.  I vaguely remember that girl.  She had so much in her life but had also been through a lot of trauma.  And even though she had a great boyfriend and was finishing college there was a part of her that was miserable.

I don’t talk about weight much here.  It’s kind of a sensitive subject for me.  I don’t need people telling me that ‘oh it’s ok’ and judging me for what I say.  I don’t need you to tell me I looked fine or that you gain weight as you age and all that blah blah blah.  Plain and simple, in 2003 I was grossly unhealthy.  The number on the scale doesn’t mean shit.  It’s how you feel and listening to what your body is telling you.  Or for me what my doctor was telling me.

My mom was diabetic, her dad was diabetic and his sisters were diabetic.  She also had hypertension and then kidney failure.  There are not such good genes on that side of the family.  I’ve had high cholesterol since I was a child, but I was active so the doctors weren’t that worried.  As soon as I started ballooning in weight, their comments came.

I was full of excuses.  My mom died in 2003, this is just the weight I was supposed to be, I didn’t eat that bad, I exercised at Bally’s and on and on.  But C and I could finish off a large pizza, we were drinking tons of Gatorade and pop and I didn’t bat an eyelash at eating a whole candy bar after polishing off that pizza.

I hated the way my clothes were tight around my arms and stomach.  I was once a size 3 and was now wearing between a 9 and 11.  I didn’t look at myself in the mirror and there are hardly any pictures of me (the camera whore).  Blah, blah, blah.  This is nothing you haven’t heard before.

Bottom line you don’t know how bad it was until you start getting healthy.  Until you start toning up and 2 months later people you barely know say things like “wow you are really losing weight”.  I lost 20 pounds in 2 years.  This is not a lot at one time.

I still eat junk, I have candy every day (they are fun size).  I don’t deprive myself from Mrs. Field’s cookies or cake or brownies when they present themselves once in awhile.  I don’t diet.

I do eat in moderation.  I do monitor what goes in my mouth.  I do make sure I exercise at least 3 times a week.  Exercise is a funny thing.  It is like going to work.  You HAVE TO get up to go to work to live and make money.  Well I HAVE TO exercise so I can maintain my healthy weight. I HAVE TO  set aside the time, just like I schedule the time I’m going to be at my job.  There are days that I hate it and curse it but I get my ass to Tae Kwon Do or go for that run.

I don’t want to be a model.  I just want to be healthy.  And I haven’t felt this strong, this balanced, this toned in all of my life.  When I was a size 3 in high school I still wasn’t this healthy (and no, I’m not a size 3 again).

To sum it up: THE NUMBERS ON THE SCALE MEAN SHIT, IT’S THE WAY YOU FEEL THAT MATTERS.

2004: My shorts barely fit (don't judge me because of my socks and ugly shoes we were hiking lol)

2008: Florida

Last Sunday we picked up a washer and dryer set we found on Craigs List.  I75 is under construction so we took a detour through Mexican Town.

And while we are at it, here are some from my backyard that day: