Wednesday October 14, 2020

I hate when OH refreshes and wipes out what I typed!

But I love Cape May NJ! We walked for miles yesterday and Justice had a wonderful run on the beach. I want to come back in the summer and stay at one of the Victorian B&Bs. This is a place where you park the car and walk to essentially everything. Pictures of one inn and the view from dinner below.

I had some sad moments last night though when I heard from one of my support group friends that her DH had passed away. He went as quickly at the end as my DH. A blessing but still hard for the family.

In 30 minutes we leave to take the ferry to Rehoboth Beach. It is supposed to be sunny and in the low 70s today. Hopefully the temperature stays in that range or higher for the remainder of the trip so we can start wearing shorts vs. jeans.

Have a safe, healthy and social day!

You never hear nice things about NJ, this is beautiful!

Weight down a bit. According to my weight tracking app, I'm on track to hit my goal on October 07, 2027. Let's see if I can do better than that! I weigh about what I weighed (plus .2lbs) when I joined WW at the end of December after gaining on my trip to NZ and Aus. There were many ups and downs since as I lost 20 pounds on WW and gained it all back, but at least I feel like I'm in familiar territory. I also hit this weight twice in May. No wonder the app thinks this is going to take me 7 years to sort out!

I was thinking about WW. I did well on it. But I wasn't happy on the plan. I felt like I was fighting with it and like I was being punished. I don't do well when I feel feelings of punishment around food. Too many childhood associations of "deprivation" as it relates to what I wanted to eat versus what I was allowed to eat. I think I do better mentally navigating on my own and tracking with MFP, which feels neutral on the judgment front.

Cleaning: In my bathroom, there is a makeup "desk" thing between the two closets. It's been a repository for a random pile of goodness knows what for years as I don't put on makeup there (the lighting is inadequate for my aging eyes). And true to form, I stopped seeing the pile. I cleaned it off yesterday! Such an improvement. I also tidied one of my clothes closets in the bathroom that the Google Fiber guys will need to access to install my new Internet service Saturday. It actually wasn't a mess, so that was quick.

Not sure what I'll tackle today. The house is pretty clean, but the cleaning people come tomorrow, so I can't make too much of a mess.

I always chuckle when those of you with cleaning services clean before the cleaners come- But, I totally understand. The desire to tidy for company is a deep one- no matter who the company is.

Mostly, it's just getting things off the floor, counters, and tabletops so they can clean without all my junk in the way. I don't vacuum for them or do any actual cleaning!

I do the same

You are a clutter cleaning machine these days!

I'm trying! I just sold 4 puzzles on NextDoor for $20 this morning!

Speaking of cleaning....we're all ready to receive some company today- my formerly recluse sister's children along with one grandchild. Barbie is having her floors done and they will be here a week. My sister is doing the floors. I haven't seen her (her choice, not mine) in over 25 years- long story. So, that's how long it's been since I've seen Barbie and Willy.

My biggest concern is introducing Swann to a 3 year old (Barb says he's hyper- what 3 y/o isn't?) and Willy who is autistic and comes with eccentricity and touch issues. Swann interprets excitement and quick movement and any type of attention as "play with me energetically " time. Negative reinforcements ( saying No or knee down for example) do not work as ANY interaction is attention. What works 100 percent of the time is breaking all eye contact and ceasing any interaction and ignoring him. We shall see ...... schooling for both dog and humans.

Cecily, I have a vision of you just sweeping your arm across the makeup table and sending all over the edge into the garbage lock stock and barrel. Quick and painless!

Oh I wi**** was that easy! Most involved putting stuff away or finding it a home. There was some satisfying trashing though!

Good luck with Swann. Sometimes dogs pick up on cues we wouldn't expect them too. Maybe it'll be a doggie miracle...

Liz, so glad you are enjoying your time in NJ. You should love Rohoboth Beach. It's a destination, for sure! I didn't realize you were taking a vacation trip on your way down to Florida. The Jersey Shore is a side trip considering how far off 95 it is. Fun that you and Mike (or can I say, SO or BF yet???) are making the drive a fun one!

I would enjoy having a cleaning person for the big jobs, I think. I have to wash walls and cupboards frequently because of the dogs, so I would love someone to do that. Those are my chores. Ron does more of the laundry and lighter housework. I get the fun stuff! LOL! But having a small house and a pack of dogs, it's just better that we do it ourselves. Besides, I spend too much money on self help crap (NUT, Shrink, trainer...) to afford a house cleaner.

I talked with my trainer and asked if she thought it was possible I am putting on some muscle weight and mass. She thinks it is highly likely. That makes me feel a little better about my weight because my clothes haven't changed in fit, but I keep bouncing in the same four pound range and lately have been on the high end of it.

I reminded myself today that I am able to deal with life's challenges and meet challenges with strength.

My "medical" appointment yesterday, followed by a training session whi*****luded mirror workouts (not my favorite, but occasionally necessary) had me jonesing for a magic pill solution. I am glad that I am able to recognize that emotional reaction, name it, and understand its origins and desire. That awareness sure does help me keep things in perspective and not spiral into a depressive state like I used to.

The "Return to Learn" movement has started in my district. UGH... The move to get kids back in the classroom is heightening and my district, which in August espoused they wanted to take the slow road to reopening, giving the district time to observe other district's challenges and learn from those, has now decided that getting the TK and Kindergarten kids back in the building must be done ASAP. I disagree with that because our fall weather hasn't even kicked in yet. Our cold a flu season is later here in CA than in many other parts of the country. In the areas that are experiencing fall weather, the second wave of Covid19 has started its uptick. I've read some schools are already thinking about closing back down until spring 2021. Reopening should be about what is best for students. Knee jerk response is never good. Adults aren't thinking through the effects of reopening on kids. Everyone needs to know that it won't be business as usual. Some kids will be shipped off to new teachers, of ifs, ands, or buts - whether they opt to stay in distance learning or come back to school. That is a lose, lose in my opinion. Oh, well.... I am only a pawn in this game of chess and will have to do what I am told when it comes down to it.

Lunch time is coming to a close, so I am off to collaborate with my partner. We are going to meet in person, outside, blah, blah, blah, but it will be so nice to spend time with her in real life! I'm looking forward to it.