12/29/2020, Tuesday

Okay... I have to reverse direction on this run away train. I am at an all time post VSG high. Some of my eating to cope behaviors are trying to reemerge as acceptable options. Totally unacceptable to me. To address this:

• Resume MFP logging
• Resume journaling minimum of 4X per week
• 8,000+ step goal daily
• Check in here daily

I haven't weighed in a week Diane. And I have eaten all the foods as well as having wine most nights. I need to get on that wagon with you but I don't think my head is ready yet.

I took Justice to the vet yesterday. He had an ear infection and needs his teeth cleaned. I guess most chihuahuas have problems with their teeth. Because of timing I will have to find a vet to do it in Florida. He has an antibiotic "pack" in his ear which seems to really be disturbing him. I believe it is because it reduces his hearing in that ear temporarily. Chihuahuas normally have such acute hearing that I think it is scaring him. He was shaking a lot and sleeping under a soft blanket most of the afternoon yesterday. Though he livened up when I took him for a walk he also jumped out of his skin everytime a car passed us and jumped in the wrong direction. He seems better today, maybe because he is a bit more used to it.

Six more days to Florida and Mike is calling to get details on what to buy at the food store. Hmmm... I want to drive from my place to his a couple of days after I arrive so I hope he doesn't think he is coming my way. I figure I can make that clear when I detail my travel plans.

Have a safe, healthy, and warm day!

You can do it, Diane!

Weight down today. 198. 10 pounds left to pre-Covid, post NZ, WW low. I could work harder to include veggies and fruits. I seem to do best when I eat the same stuff over and over, but the foods I gravitate toward aren't really nutrient dense. The easier it is to track in MFP, the less healthy it seems to be (ie packaged with nutrition labels).

The landscapers are starting today, so I am up early. It's all of 43 this morning after rain, wind, lightning, hail etc. yesterday. So nice! We haven't had rain since last spring and this storm pulled out all the stops. We needed it!

Otherwise, I've got nothing going on today. I deChristmified yesterday which felt really good. I might sift through some more piles today for donatable things.

Wishing you all healthy, on-wagon days!

Covid Quarantine plus Christmas treats equals tough news from the scale. I'm proud of all of us that we keep showing up to the maintenance battles. Cecily, you are doing awesome!

Liz, sounds like you are setting up a plan where you can still enjoy Mike's company, while having the space you need.

My family does not want to take down the Christmas decorations until Epiphany (January 6). The lights are cheerful during these long dark days.

Yesterday I organized the vanity in our bathroom. I found some interesting things way in the back. Like an old set of electric rollers I forgot even existed and a Fischer Price toy. All nonsensical items tossed. It's just one small spot but it feels good to have the actual items I use easily accessible. I'll try to get at another corner of my house today.

Hmmm.... Lots to consider this morning on our thread! But as Diamond Di said, we all show up and continue the battle. There is a lot to be said for doing that!

I have not weighed for10 days. I seriously contemplated weighing today, but noticed I liked what I saw in the mirror and went with that instead. I felt a bit trimmer and that seemed more important than the number on the scale. Maybe that is the lesson I am trying to learn???? It's all a flippin' mystery some days!

Waiting for the closet installers. I hope and pray this is the end of the ordeal. I want to be done with this company. My experience has been a lesson in patience. I have used a lot of my teaching practices in dealing with people to get this situation resolved. One person dropping the ball is understandable - especially since the person is no longer with the company. A second person dropping the ball after promising resolution is beyond the pale. Third person seems to be the charm. Fingers crossed!

Ron picked up something over Christmas. I was a bit peeved with him because my judgmental ass went straight to, "You weren't being careful!" (He still forgets to wash his hands and still habitually touches his nose.) I let go of my unfair judgment and played nursemaid. I also had him get a Covid test. He was greatly relieved when it came back negative. So was I. He's much better this morning. And since he was Covid negative and is feeling pretty close to 100%, I didn't have to cancel the installers!

I was going through the whole quarantine process in my mind, should Ron have been covid positive. I would not have been allowed in the school building until January 12th, which would have meant a week working strictly from home without my "stuff". That would have been tricky! But now it's a moot point.

I can't remember if I mentioned that I bought a Monthly/Weekly planner to work on my eating life/food organization. I am finding the older I get, I do better with meeting goals, task completion, etc... when I write things down rather than leaving them in a mental file. The old steel trap seems to have sprung a few leaks over the years.

I would also like to do a little winter purging! But it is hard to do with Christmas decorations out and the boxes strewn about the garage. Also, Ron, like Diamond Di's family, insists on keeping Christmas going until Epiphany. I always liked using New Year's Day as my "Put Christmas Away Day", but have learned to live with the extra week of Christmas. I have two bathroom drawers I can further reduce (did them this past summer).

As usual I could keep yakking, but I must get on my broomstick for the day. Cheers!

So proud of you for sticking to the no weighing! I'm a twice a dayer. I've made it work for me, but I love what you said about feeling good about how you look and not wanting the weighing to impact that. I can't count the number of times I felt I looked good only to have the scale tell me something different.

And I hear you on the closet trouble. Projects running smoothly is more the exception than the rule. But I always expect "smoothly" and am disappointed when it's inevitably not smooth.

Oh Lord, this landscaping stuff is triggering my anxiety like crazy!! 12 guys are here and ripped out in an hour what it would have taken me months to dig out. There was no discussion of what plants would go where when they bid it, so there are 72, 5 gallon plants needing homes and the bidding guys are not one of the 12.

So I'm having to explain what gets sun where and why I don't think succulents should go in certain shady spots while the guy asks me what to put where. And then plants I thought would stay he suggested I take out so everything is new since the old ones would stand out as old. Argh. Probably the right decision.

Loads of deep breathing!! And I finally said to the foreman that I am a total control freak who likes to plan things down to the tiniest detail before I start anything and this is really hard for me. Somehow admitting the source of my anxiety out loud made me feel a little calmer. They all went to lunch, so I have a little quiet for the moment to breathe.

Well, I hear you on the expectation of things running smoothly. However, this project has gone beyond the pale. I am done with a capital D! Not only does this company pass the buck from one person to the other, they don't document. Needless to say, I am still without a finished closet.

I have been dealing with their brilliant incompetence since September 10th. For Heaven's sake, it's a closet organizer, not rocket science. They have until 3 pm to make it right. If it's not resolved to my satisfaction by 3 pm, I am asking for a complete refund and will hire a new company to finish the project.

I even used cuss words. I felt sorry for the installers for having to get the brunt of my wrath, but WTF!!!!!

Ugh, maybe I should be happy that DH does all our home fixes, repairs, additions... it happens slowly, but it's done well, and generally the way I want it. If it's not, it's usually because my great idea defies the laws of physics. (Except for the fact that every wall I suggest moving is a load bearing wall, how is this possible?) I never have to use bad words.

DH started a week long vacation today, and asked me if I had any ideas for something fun. I remembered reading about a handful of restaurants that are trying to keep their patios open, so we tried one out for lunch. What fun! The overhead industrial heaters were installed this fall. My chair was warm when I sat down. Was it as warm as indoors, no, but that's the point, you are outside with air blowing around, dispersing the covid (hopefully). Restaurant indoor seating was closed in November, and won't open until at least Janauary 11, so it's a patio or take out. (And we won't eat indoors until we're vaccinated, we are too old for that particular risk). But anyhow, we enjoyed it, were sufficiently comfortable, and will meet some friends there on Friday.

Tomorrow we are going to go over to Mall of America when it opens. (We're about 15 minutes away). We figure it's as safe as any store if we wear our masks. If it's the least bit crowded we'll leave, but I don't think it will be. So I guess we can find some entertainment, even in Covid.