My friends & family know that I don't generally make too much of a fuss about my physical appearance. I'm not into the latest fashion trends and don't wear make-up. I'm pretty low maintenance. However, I have one complaint- my weight.
Now, what woman doesn't worry or struggle with her weight? Pretty much every lady I know has fought this battle. Some of have succeeded and some have not. I fall into the have not category. In college, I was at a personally satisfying weight. I was also more active then than I am now which helped keep it under control. I'm not obese, but I am overweight according to my doctor (and my mirror when I step out of the shower).
I love food and I'm lazy. Not a good combination when you struggle with your weight. Hubby and I both need to lose several pounds and are trying to get motivated. I may have found some motivation- Weight Watchers.
When I lived in Flo-Town, a co-worker shared a "bootleg" copy of the Weight Watchers point system with me. Her sister was on the WW program and shared the information with her. So she shared it with several of us. I must say that I was never so conscientious of what I ate as I was when I knew I needed to make every point count. I made a few small changes back then that have stayed with me even now. But like so many other things, I dropped the ball and got wrapped up in life.
Now, I need to make some changes and need to be held accountable. So I've been researching Weight Watchers. I'm seriously thinking about breaking out the checkbook and going to a meeting this week. I've found a location close to home that meets at a convenient time. I'm wondering if a support group will help motivate me. I figure that it won't hurt.
Anyone have any WW experiences to share? I'd love to hear what you think. Now, here's to losing a few pounds!
August 1, 2010
July 17, 2010
The Lifetimers
People have often made fun of my Facebook addiction. I'll admit- sometimes I do spend too much time on there playing games and following friends' exploits. But what a wonderful tool for reconnection it has become for me.
Just recently, I received a friend request from a dear college friend that I hadn't heard from in a decade. I'd been trying to find him since discovering Facebook, but none of our mutual friends were in contact with him anymore. Benji was my little brother in our fraternity/sorority world and also one of my closest confidants. I could talk to him about anything, and he'd listen and offer an unbiased (read honest!) opinion when I needed it. He made me laugh at myself and others. I could always count on him, and for a while, we were inseparable. However, life took control after college ended and we lost touch.
So, low & behold when I got that friend request, I couldn't hit accept fast enough! And you know what- no matter how many years have passed and all that has transpired in each of our lives, we have picked up right where we left off. He still listens and lets me ramble while being a voice of reason when I need it. We've caught each other up on the details of our lives and are moving forward as older, wiser friends.
I'm often reminded of the "Reason, Season, Lifetime" poem when I reflect upon the people that have come & gone from my life. Sometimes, you think someone was a just Season because you've lost touch and time has passed. Then you get the opportunity to reconnect and realize that person is one of the Lifetimers- and always will be. And that's all I need to know when it comes to a friend.
Just recently, I received a friend request from a dear college friend that I hadn't heard from in a decade. I'd been trying to find him since discovering Facebook, but none of our mutual friends were in contact with him anymore. Benji was my little brother in our fraternity/sorority world and also one of my closest confidants. I could talk to him about anything, and he'd listen and offer an unbiased (read honest!) opinion when I needed it. He made me laugh at myself and others. I could always count on him, and for a while, we were inseparable. However, life took control after college ended and we lost touch.
So, low & behold when I got that friend request, I couldn't hit accept fast enough! And you know what- no matter how many years have passed and all that has transpired in each of our lives, we have picked up right where we left off. He still listens and lets me ramble while being a voice of reason when I need it. We've caught each other up on the details of our lives and are moving forward as older, wiser friends.
I'm often reminded of the "Reason, Season, Lifetime" poem when I reflect upon the people that have come & gone from my life. Sometimes, you think someone was a just Season because you've lost touch and time has passed. Then you get the opportunity to reconnect and realize that person is one of the Lifetimers- and always will be. And that's all I need to know when it comes to a friend.
July 7, 2010
Happy Belated Birthday, America!
America is great because America is good, and if America ever cease to be good, America will cease to be great.
~ Alexis de Tocqueville,1833
Three days ago we celebrated the birth of America- the greatest nation on Earth. The fourth of July has always been a special holiday in my family. Not only does it mark the middle of summer between school semesters, but it is a time to honor the many freedoms we enjoy based solely on the land in which we live. Freedom of religion, speech, the right to bear arms, ability to come and go as we please, shop where we want, do what we want (within the limits of the law), and all sorts of other freedoms. But these freedoms don't come free. Someone has to pay the price. Since 1776, men and women have sacrificed, fought and died so that we can remain free.
My uncle Larry lost his life in Vietnam in 1969. He was a PFC in the US Marine Corps and only 18 years old. He gave his life saving a fellow Marine. I never knew him and have only seen pictures of him. I've found his name on the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, DC twice. Seeing it and touching it always gets me choked up. To some, he and the 58,266 other soldiers are just names carved in granite. To me, he is someone I'll only know as a picture in the hall outside my bedroom door and the younger brother my dad will never forget. He's one of my heroes because of his service to our country.
My brother is currently serving his second tour overseas. He missed the births of his two children due to deployments in addition to countless holidays & birthdays. It's bittersweet not celebrating our Nation's birthday with him, but I know he was celebrating in a different way. He's over there so I can remain free over here.
The many men and women in our Armed Forces have a more important job than I will ever have. I'll never save someone's life or defend their freedom by giving my own life. I'll never stand before a hostile enemy and pray that I see my family again. I'll never take off a pair of combat boots and shake desert sand out of them, but many others will do that every day so that I can do my job and enjoy the many freedoms I experience here.
God bless America and our soldiers!
~ Alexis de Tocqueville,1833
Three days ago we celebrated the birth of America- the greatest nation on Earth. The fourth of July has always been a special holiday in my family. Not only does it mark the middle of summer between school semesters, but it is a time to honor the many freedoms we enjoy based solely on the land in which we live. Freedom of religion, speech, the right to bear arms, ability to come and go as we please, shop where we want, do what we want (within the limits of the law), and all sorts of other freedoms. But these freedoms don't come free. Someone has to pay the price. Since 1776, men and women have sacrificed, fought and died so that we can remain free.
My uncle Larry lost his life in Vietnam in 1969. He was a PFC in the US Marine Corps and only 18 years old. He gave his life saving a fellow Marine. I never knew him and have only seen pictures of him. I've found his name on the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, DC twice. Seeing it and touching it always gets me choked up. To some, he and the 58,266 other soldiers are just names carved in granite. To me, he is someone I'll only know as a picture in the hall outside my bedroom door and the younger brother my dad will never forget. He's one of my heroes because of his service to our country.
My brother is currently serving his second tour overseas. He missed the births of his two children due to deployments in addition to countless holidays & birthdays. It's bittersweet not celebrating our Nation's birthday with him, but I know he was celebrating in a different way. He's over there so I can remain free over here.
The many men and women in our Armed Forces have a more important job than I will ever have. I'll never save someone's life or defend their freedom by giving my own life. I'll never stand before a hostile enemy and pray that I see my family again. I'll never take off a pair of combat boots and shake desert sand out of them, but many others will do that every day so that I can do my job and enjoy the many freedoms I experience here.
God bless America and our soldiers!
June 30, 2010
Go Gamecocks!!
I'm a proud University of South Carolina fan and alum today. Our baseball team won the College World Series and brought a National Championship trophy home today. It's an amazing day to be a Gamecock!
June 21, 2010
Proud to Be.....
I consider myself many things that I am proud to be:
Wife
Daughter/Granddaughter/Niece
Sister
Aunt
Mommy to Kira & Sophie
Friend
Christian
Sister of Beta Sigma Phi & Tau Beta Sigma
Professional Woman
Avid Book Lover
Movie Line Connoisseur
Gamecock Fan
But I found a shirt that says what I'm truly most proud to be:
Yep- I am pretty awesome if I do say so myself!
Hope everyone had a happy Monday and an even better week!
Wife
Daughter/Granddaughter/Niece
Sister
Aunt
Mommy to Kira & Sophie
Friend
Christian
Sister of Beta Sigma Phi & Tau Beta Sigma
Professional Woman
Avid Book Lover
Movie Line Connoisseur
Gamecock Fan
But I found a shirt that says what I'm truly most proud to be:
Yep- I am pretty awesome if I do say so myself!Hope everyone had a happy Monday and an even better week!
June 15, 2010
Lights! Camera! Favorite Movies!
Hello friends! I've been crazy busy with the new job duties and am sorry to have neglected my blog. I mentioned in my inaugural post that I love movies. Hubby and I used to go to the movies every week for the first 2 years we dated, but we don't do that as frequently as we once did. However, Blockbuster Online and our personal DVD collection are enough to keep us entertained. I recently counted, and we have almost 300 DVDs in our collection. I guess you could say that books aren't the only thing that I like to buy.
I'd like to take this blog to share a few of my all-time favorite movies and what they mean to me:
American Beauty- Kevin Spacey exploded on the screen as a married father in the throws of a mid-life crisis. I remember going to see this one in the theater and wondering if I should really be laughing at poor Mr. Spacey's character and his life. This movie is a black comedy in every sense of the word. Excellent acting by Kevin Spacey, Annette Benning, and Thora Birch! We were also introduced to some classic movie lines (and I do LOVE a good movie line!). "That's my wife, Carolyn. See the way the handle on her pruning shears matches her gardening clogs? That's not an accident. "
The Goonies- My childhood would not have been complete without this movie. I remember getting it on VHS when I was a kid and being over the moon excited. I would watch it almost every day. I think it was the sense of adventure it provoked within kids that made it so great. I remember thinking the group of misfits on the screen were people that I'd have given anything to hang out with and have an amazing Goonie adventure. This movie allowed kids to dream and launched the career of some famous actors: Corey Feldman, Josh Brolin, Sean Astin and Martha Plimpton. I had heart palpitations when I recently read there will be an anniversary edition coming out on DVD in November. That DVD will so be in our ever-growing collection! "BABY RUTH!"
Coming to America- My absolute favorite Eddie Murphy movie EVER! How many crazy characters can Eddie play in one movie and make me LMAO?! A whole lot!!! "Give a hand to my band, Sexual Chocolate. They play so beautiful, don't you agree?"
Sixteen Candles- What child of the 80s doesn't adore a Molly Ringwald movie?! This one is classic. It was pretty much any teenager's nightmare to realize that your family forgot your birthday. That would be a nightmare for me now. And who can forget the cast of characters that Molly encounters in this one: The Geek, Long Duk Dong and the outrageous grandparents. "Dong. Where is my automobile?" "Oto-mo-biiile?"
Airplane- This is the movie that started the spoof genre in my humble opinion. Future spoofs disappoint compared to this one (with the possible exception of the Wayans' Brothers infamous spoof movies). Airplane is just plain hilarious without being gross or vulgar. It contains witty humor and non-stop laughs. It also provides me with MANY beloved movie quotes that I've been known to use religiously.
Reporter: What kind of plane is it?
Johnny: Oh, it's a big pretty white plane with red stripes, curtains in the windows and wheels and it looks like a big Tylenol.
"Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit drinking. (smoking, sniffing glue, amphetamines)"
Alas, I could go on and on, but I won't- maybe in another post. These are just a few movie classics that I'll always count among my favorites and would want with me if I were stranded on a deserted island with a DVD player & TV. Like that would ever happen!
I'd like to take this blog to share a few of my all-time favorite movies and what they mean to me:
American Beauty- Kevin Spacey exploded on the screen as a married father in the throws of a mid-life crisis. I remember going to see this one in the theater and wondering if I should really be laughing at poor Mr. Spacey's character and his life. This movie is a black comedy in every sense of the word. Excellent acting by Kevin Spacey, Annette Benning, and Thora Birch! We were also introduced to some classic movie lines (and I do LOVE a good movie line!). "That's my wife, Carolyn. See the way the handle on her pruning shears matches her gardening clogs? That's not an accident. "
The Goonies- My childhood would not have been complete without this movie. I remember getting it on VHS when I was a kid and being over the moon excited. I would watch it almost every day. I think it was the sense of adventure it provoked within kids that made it so great. I remember thinking the group of misfits on the screen were people that I'd have given anything to hang out with and have an amazing Goonie adventure. This movie allowed kids to dream and launched the career of some famous actors: Corey Feldman, Josh Brolin, Sean Astin and Martha Plimpton. I had heart palpitations when I recently read there will be an anniversary edition coming out on DVD in November. That DVD will so be in our ever-growing collection! "BABY RUTH!"
Coming to America- My absolute favorite Eddie Murphy movie EVER! How many crazy characters can Eddie play in one movie and make me LMAO?! A whole lot!!! "Give a hand to my band, Sexual Chocolate. They play so beautiful, don't you agree?"
Sixteen Candles- What child of the 80s doesn't adore a Molly Ringwald movie?! This one is classic. It was pretty much any teenager's nightmare to realize that your family forgot your birthday. That would be a nightmare for me now. And who can forget the cast of characters that Molly encounters in this one: The Geek, Long Duk Dong and the outrageous grandparents. "Dong. Where is my automobile?" "Oto-mo-biiile?"
Airplane- This is the movie that started the spoof genre in my humble opinion. Future spoofs disappoint compared to this one (with the possible exception of the Wayans' Brothers infamous spoof movies). Airplane is just plain hilarious without being gross or vulgar. It contains witty humor and non-stop laughs. It also provides me with MANY beloved movie quotes that I've been known to use religiously.
Reporter: What kind of plane is it?
Johnny: Oh, it's a big pretty white plane with red stripes, curtains in the windows and wheels and it looks like a big Tylenol.
"Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit drinking. (smoking, sniffing glue, amphetamines)"
Alas, I could go on and on, but I won't- maybe in another post. These are just a few movie classics that I'll always count among my favorites and would want with me if I were stranded on a deserted island with a DVD player & TV. Like that would ever happen!
June 3, 2010
A Week of Randomness
Another week has almost ended (thank heavens!) and I'm ready for the weekend. It's been a busy yet good week. Enjoyed a lovely day off on Monday while Hubby had to work. Boo hiss! I did find time to stimulate our nation's economy (Yes- Barnes & Noble was visited and books were purchased. It is still cheaper than crack!) and I got my FREE Spicy Chick-Fil-A Chicken Sandwich. It was decent but a little more spice than I like. Sophie the Pug begged for a bite but had to settle for pieces of waffle fries instead. Don't want to even THINK what such spicy goodness would have done to her tummy.
Started my new job on Wednesday. Two days in and I feel like my brain has reached it's threshold of memory capacity. That or I just don't have a damn clue. I'm leaning toward the second option. One positive is that my work days fly by now. When you have trouble remembering that you needed to visit the bathroom an hour ago, that is a whole lot of busy. But the people I'm working with and advocating for have been very supportive and encouraging. It is making it all worth while.
All the stormy mess we've been experiencing this week left us a mess. HUGE limb fell out a tree last night and we had to clean it up. And Hubby tried to tell me that crash last night was something on the TV. Bet he'll listen to me next time! Hubby with a chainsaw is sort of like Texas Chainsaw Massacre without all the gore and wearing of a human skin mask. I just stayed out of his way until the limb was chopped up. If I'd been manning the chainsaw, limbs (the human kind) would have been lost- so thanks to Hubby for his chainsaw prowess. I forgot how rewarding yard work can be after a long day at work. It's a great way to de-stress.
Heading to the 'Burg on Saturday for some doggone fun at Bark in the Park. Sophie the Pug is super excited! She loves seeing other dogs and acting all superior to them. Pugs have that kind of attitude and you just have to deal with it. She thinks she is superior to us, too.
Hope everyone is having a great week and has plans for a lovely weekend.
Started my new job on Wednesday. Two days in and I feel like my brain has reached it's threshold of memory capacity. That or I just don't have a damn clue. I'm leaning toward the second option. One positive is that my work days fly by now. When you have trouble remembering that you needed to visit the bathroom an hour ago, that is a whole lot of busy. But the people I'm working with and advocating for have been very supportive and encouraging. It is making it all worth while.
All the stormy mess we've been experiencing this week left us a mess. HUGE limb fell out a tree last night and we had to clean it up. And Hubby tried to tell me that crash last night was something on the TV. Bet he'll listen to me next time! Hubby with a chainsaw is sort of like Texas Chainsaw Massacre without all the gore and wearing of a human skin mask. I just stayed out of his way until the limb was chopped up. If I'd been manning the chainsaw, limbs (the human kind) would have been lost- so thanks to Hubby for his chainsaw prowess. I forgot how rewarding yard work can be after a long day at work. It's a great way to de-stress.
Heading to the 'Burg on Saturday for some doggone fun at Bark in the Park. Sophie the Pug is super excited! She loves seeing other dogs and acting all superior to them. Pugs have that kind of attitude and you just have to deal with it. She thinks she is superior to us, too.
Hope everyone is having a great week and has plans for a lovely weekend.
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