The Gut has got it good

Monday night and it's time to Dance with the Stars LIIIIIIVVEEEE!

Up so far:

Marlee Matlin with the jive. It's impressive how good she is. Personally I think she's got an advantage not being able to hear since the music can't screw her up.

The Gut did the tango. The man tango. His best dance so far. A 21 from the judges.

Loved today's Disapproving Rabbit. You should check them out.

Back up a pound today on the weight loss front, although I have a feeling that the scale will show a drop if I weigh again tomorrow morning. Just in case, though, I administered an emergency infusion of pizza and wings. Proven to help you lose weight. So long as you're me.

Cristian of the girly name pronunciation is jiving tonight. Ooh, he's pissing off Cheryl. Yay! They're at Sea World!!!!!! With Clyde the sea lion! I love Sea World!!!

Yes, there is something wrong with me.

$20 says he pulled a groin muscle in his first move. Okay, fabulous arms, the man has fabulous arms. But he looks like such a geek doing this dance. Plus the song sucks. And he nailed a stage light with his feet. I predict he'll get a 19, 20 at the most. A 25? Huh?

On The Boy front, I sent an email this weekend as I said. And..... nothing. Nada, zip, zero, zilch. (Mr. Dovalina, Mr. Bob Dovalina) So, I'm done. I think what I need is someone I refer to as The Man, not The Boy. Or maybe The Guy, since calling anyone The Man makes me sound like a bit player in Undercover Brother. But a bit player in white vinyl go-go boots.

Mario is dancing the tango to the weirdest version of Roxanne I've ever heard. It's like when I break into song except that it's Elmer Fudd sings David Bowie ("put on your wed shoes and dance the bwues") or James Earl Jones sings Rod Stewart ("if you want my body, and you think.... I'm sexy"). I have a strong suspicion that Mario is Chris Rock's son. Looks so much like him, especially when he smiles. Hmm, they gave Mario the scores they should've given to Cristian the girly man.

Well, Monday is finally over. Long day on little sleep with a raging headache. Not sure if I'll manage to tolerate all of DwtS. I'm not finding this season's celebrities all that enjoyable.

Tomorrow is April 1st, April Fool's Day for those living under a rock. For me, it is the deadline to file exemption and special assessment applications. I feel like I've been running the office singlehandedly of late (technically I kind of was) yet not getting the benefits in trade off. All day long today I felt the need to explore our office bar. We have a large one. We are lawyers, after all.

Tonight is the night for bizarre songs. A much too slow version of Adam Ant's Goody Two Shoes. Consequently, Shannon Elizabeth's jive ain't all that. And is it just me, or can you not watch Shannon Elizabeth in anything without picturing her famous scene in American Pie? Just me? Okay.

Once Tuesday is over, the rest of the week should be relatively quiet, playing catch up from everything else I've ignored for the past ten days while prepping for tomorrow's deadline. And once April is over, it's May and time to start prepping for the big Washington deadline on July 1. Which reminds me, I need to make a note on my calendar to remember to get drugs for Ginger before July 4th. It's that or teach her how to drink until she passes out. Oh, the dilemmas ;)

And Sunday I'm going to the zooooooooo!!! Maybe I'll find some hot guy between now and then to go with me. 'Cause a guy who likes the zoo too, yum!

Adam Carolla is on next so I think I'm done for tonight. Otter smiles and seal dreams to you!

Sayonara,
the Cilley Girl

Jumping out of my skin

I'm all atwitter. I'm bouncing in my chair. I'm so excited I can't stand it! There is a prime CilleyGirl event occurring this weekend and I'm going to go.



I just learned this morning that the Oregon Zoo's Gone Wild for Spring Break.

Can't head to the tropics for spring break? Come to the Oregon Zoo for a
tropical party! Get crazy with crocodiles and party with polar bears during the
fifth annual Oregon Zoo's Gone Wild Celebration March 24-April 6, 2008.

I have missed most of the activities, but check out this weekend:

Pirate Day Saturday March 29 & Saturday April 5

10:00 Meerkat Mateys: Meerkats play with a pirate ship and
explore a mermaid picture board

11:00 Dead Man’s Cove: Tide pool keeper talk

11:30 Trunkful o’ Treasure: Elephant keeper talk and elephants
receive tropical fruit treats

1:00 Pirate Pig-Out: Cougars receive a pirate feast with
papier-mâché pigs, piñatas and tropical fruit

2:30 Party With the Penguins: Penguins Play with ice
floats

2:45 Plundering Penguins: Penguin keeper talk while the birds receive
frozen ice balls


Pirate Day Sunday March 30 & Sunday April 6

10:00 Treasure Island: Polar bears play on a snowy Treasure
Island with palm trees, a pirate ship and a treasure chest stuffed with
pineapple pieces of eight

11:30 Arrrrrrrg! Tropical Trunk Show: Rama the elephant
demonstrates tropical-themed painting

1:00 Lorikeet Luau: Lorikeets receive edible fruits and
flowers

1:30 Ocelots Ahoy! Ocelot keeper talk

2:30 Bootylicious: Elephants play pirates and receive a
cardboard pirate ship filled with treats

2:45 Plundering Penguins: Penguin keeper talk while the birds
play with ice balls

I am SOOOO tempted to play hookey on Friday just so I can see the sea otters lay siege to a plastic pirate ship and feast on a booty of shrimp. I have this thing about sea animals (well, except for sharks but that's another blog entry). I LOVE them. If I could get married at Sea World, with seals and walruses (walrii?) walking me down the aisle, I would. I can watch the otters at the zoo for hours.

Is the weekend here yet??

Now if I can remember where I parked it...

Weirdest horoscope for me today. Check this out:

You may need to keep your spaceship idle today and perform a safety
check for you and your crew, dear Scorpio. Make sure everyone on board is
completely informed of their destination. It could be that you just picked
them off the street without really telling them where they would end up. It
is important that you don't drag people into your world unwittingly. If they
voluntarily give up the controls to you, however, that is a different horoscope.

Okey dokey.

I have no idea what it means, but maybe it has to do with The Boy, plus another little thing I've been thinking about doing. On The Boy, I sent him an e-mail last night, saying I guessed that one of two things had happened. Either (1) he didn't get my last e-mail and he's wondering why he hasn't heard from me in a week, or (2) he did get my last e-mail and he's thinking about how to respond. There could be a (3), that he did get my last e-mail and I'll never hear from him again, but I've known him since I was 16 and he's really not that type of guy.

Of course, it is important that I don't drag people into my world unwittingly. I'm thinking of adopting this as a new motto. Or maybe a guideline. I conferred with Merriam-Webster and a motto is "a short expression of a guiding principle." Motto it is. I think this one will be right up there with "I'm never cruel to small children or animals." (Large children are fair game.)

I'll have to think on whether I have any other mottos.* I had planned on doing a post soon on all my dating rules. I think I have three. Mottos could be a follow-up post. As we are all about amusement here at CilleyGirl.

Well, it's a dreary, wet and cold day in Portland. Luckily I picked yesterday to get out and do my errands. I was in REI during the huge hailstorm. They have a metal roof, did you know? Sounds pretty cool during a huge hailstorm.

Checking on the CilleyGirl forecast, today as I mentioned sucks, so build a fire if you've got a fireplace, otherwise light candles and hold down the couch 'cause it's currently 35 degrees. Monday's not going to suck as much, with a high of 50 predicted and occasional sunbreaks in an otherwise cloudy day. Tuesday through Thursday may actually be decent, getting all the way up near 60 by Thursday, but this is Portland so don't count on it. By Friday we'll have occasional showers and a high of 57, meaning that Friday will be cooler but beautiful but the weekend will really suck. That's your forecast, I'm the CilleyGirl, stay good and stay dry.

The animals have already assumed their positions for the day:

Sammi will sleep on the back of the sofa. Here, though, she was just blinking from the flash going off.

Maggie will be out like a light next to me. Right now, she came back up to the den and is staring at her reflection in the china hutch. She's very cute, but not all that bright.

Ginger will want to stay outside in the cold and damp all day. It's the fur, you see.

--CG



*For the Dan Quayle folks, it's "mottoes". Merriam -Webster says both are correct. So neener.

Rick 'em, rack 'em, rick 'em, ruck 'em

Get that ball and really fight!

I just love Robin Williams, don't you? I'm looking forward to his guest turn on Law & Order. Which one, I can't remember. One of them.

Friday is finally over. What a long week. It's supposed to snow again tomorrow. I'm looking forward to lazing around. Got the latest Midsomer Murders from Netflix. Got a new book waiting to be picked up at the library. Got about 30 episodes of Passport to Europe DVR'd. I'm set.

I felt like such a girl today. I finally decided to go for a spin on the Bare Minerals bandwagon. Bought a starter kit at Sephora the other day, and tried it out this morning. It's not bad. Doesn't feel much like wearing makeup at all. Maybe I could get back into the habit again.

I haven't worn makeup all that often for years. I started wearing makeup really, really early, back when I was about ten or so. I don't know what my mother was thinking. Although after a few years of wearing it, I gradually tapered off until I only wear it when I go out to a party. Which is practically never. So maybe mom had a plan, I don't know.

Part of the reason I don't wear it now is that I work with only three other people, and we rarely have clients or other visitors at the office. I'd rather sleep in 15 extra minutes than put on makeup nobody ever sees. Plus I don't have a problem with how I look unenhanced, unlike some people who can't take out the trash without lipstick and mascara.

Another part of the reason is once you've got foundation, powder, and blush, you have to do the eyes. That stuff started to irritate my contacts; eventually I stopped wearing contacts. I've never been fond about wearing eye makeup with glasses, you can barely see it so again why bother? I'm going to try contacts again in a few weeks, but I won't risk the health of my eyes so that they look really pretty for the same three people every day who don't really matter in that arena anyway.

I've also never liked lipstick. Most of it feels weird, and it gets all over everything. And I like the natural color of my lips.

Lastly, makeup is a pain to take off. I feel like I have to do it the minute I get home (right after the bra comes off -- the girls need to be free!), only to have to wash my face a second time before I go to bed.

Being a girl is a lot of work.

But maybe I'll give it a serious effort again for a while.

Ciao,
the CilleyGirlyGirl

Two whole posts in one day!

Of course, it's all subject to being able to tolerate this PITA laptop keyboard. We'll see.

Good to know that my horoscope is telling me that I should be feeling run down. It's nice to have validation.

My Cougs lost to North Carolina today. We were up to 4th in the eastern regional; NC was 1st. Since I don't follow basketball, I have no idea what that means for WSU now, although it looks like we won't be going to the Final Four. Oh well, maybe they'll be in again next year and play in Portland. I might actually go see them in that case.

MSN is telling me that it'll be rainy this weekend, but KGW is telling me it'll be sunny. At least on Sunday. Why do all weathermen feel the need to make the weather sound so optimistic? Wouldn't it be great to have a depressed weatherman instead? "It's Portland. It's March. It's going to rain. Then it will rain some more. Other stations will tease you, tell you it will be sunny in just ten more days. They're lying. It's Portland. It's March. It's going to rain. Deal with it." Yep, that would be my kind of weatherman.

If is going to be dry (at least, sorta), then I'll take the pups out hiking. I walked them over to PCC tonight after work and the trilliums are blooming. The grass is still one big mud sponge, but the dogs had a blast rolling in it. Maggie took one roll in the grass, then a roll in the leaves, then a second roll in the grass. Repeat as necessary. It was great to watch them play while soaking up the last bit of the afternoon sun.

I'm thinking I'll go to Tryon Creek since trillium is now in bloom. Maybe even if it's snowing. Which apparently is now the forecast for tomorrow.

I just hope the weather clears up for the weekend after next. It's the Amity Daffodil festival and my friend Sunshine and I are going to go check it out. There's wine tasting involved. And daffodils.

I wish the ice cream fairy would show up.

CG

Still only Thursday? Are you sure?

It's been a slow but productive week here in CilleyGirl land. I had the place pretty much to myself for two days. Got lots done and got to wear jeans while doing it. Granted, I could probably wear jeans to work all week long if I wanted to, but so far I've resisted the temptation. Now that I think about it, I could've worn sweats earlier in the week (I was doing full-contact filing those two days -- don't ask), except that I don't have any that fit right now. Up to 20 lbs gone, and still going. Yay me.

What I'm Reading:

Not much since I worked through three lunches this week. Just finished Creation in Death by J.D. Robb. Not as much sex as per the usual. It was actually a nice change. Nobody orgasms that much in real life. Do they? I'm suddenly feeling like I've been dating all the wrong men.

I've started Elaine Viets' latest Murder with Reservations and am actually taking a real lunch break today, although I'm spending it on the computer.

Cilley Stuff:

Speaking of dating, I was reading some earlier posts by a blogger I started reading a few weeks ago who was talking about getting back into the pool. The dating pool, that is. That's been on my mind a lot lately. [side note -- it's starting to snow again!] I had originally intended to avoid all dating possibilities until this summer after the reunion. But karma's messing with me again.

The Boy I've mentioned previously is someone I went to high school with, then freshman year of college. He got in touch with me a few weeks ago, and we've been swapping e-mails and flirting ever since. Recently we'd reached the point where it was either time to get together in person or let the e-mails dwindle down to "hey, how's it going?".

For anyone who knows me really well (I think there's two of you these days, how are those club meetings? Plenty of refreshments to go around?), they know that I'm gun shy when it comes to dating, particularly potentially serious dating. Because I've had three serious relationships in my life, and in all three the guy has gone on to meet, marry, and impregnate (not necessarily in that order) the very next woman he gets involved with after we have broken up. And we're not talking years later, here. Months later. Weeks later. I'm thinking of incorporating and offering it as a professional service, a training ground for men to try out and then realize that yes, they are ready to settle down. With her, over there.

Don't get me wrong, there aren't any hard feelings about this. It's just really, really weird. My last boyfriend and I split up in large part because he never wanted to get married again and he did not want to have children. This was a different point of view for him from when we began dating. I'm on the fence about the kids, but haven't foreclosed on the marriage issue so we broke up. There was other stuff in there too, but even if we worked out all of that the other stuff was a deal-breaker. We parted fairly amicably, we shared custody of his dog, yadda yadda yadda.

Break up was in February. Fast forward to late October. I get an e-mail saying that he and his new girlfriend were quite surprised to find out they'll be parents and consequently they're getting married. I'm thinking, wow, awfully fast, especially since he said he'd found out she was pregnant in August and at that time they'd been together for about six months. Yes, do the math. He later said he misspoke; I'll let that one slide. No matter what the timeline, next woman up: impregnate and marry.

Granted, given his history, I know he was serious when he said he didn't want to marry or ever have kids. Kid was an accident (although, when you don't want children USE LOTS OF BIRTH CONTROL, MORON). They got married, 'cause for him that's what you do. Even if I had been stupid enough to get pregnant, I wouldn't have married him for that reason. In all honesty, not for any reason.

Anyhow, I'm very cautious about getting involved with someone. I'd say more, but some day the examples in question might read this and we're still friends. But I have really, really good reasons for being cautious.

Cause even before I set the hard and fast Dating Rule No. 1, I was growing up enough to realize that you can't make anyone love you, or really even like you. No one is really going to change, no matter how much you want them to. Your feelings are what they are, so speak up and there will be no hard feelings.

There will be hard feelings if you don't speak up, however. Said guy wanted out of the relationship for at least two or three months, but didn't say so. I finally ended it. That's when Dating Rule No. 1 was codified: If you do not want to date me, for whatever reason, tell me. I will do the same. We've save time and pain. I'll think of you fondly. Note that Dating Rule No. 1 applies before the relationship even begins. Don't like me? Don't find me attractive? I'm not your type? That's cool. Just do me the courtesy of telling me. Don't never call again. That's just childish.

Back to the Boy and the Pool:

Okay, so I've mentioned Dating Rule No. 1 to the Boy. Sunday night I added a serious part to the rest of my flirty reply to his latest e-mail. To wit: it sounds like we are both interested in getting together and seeing if we still have this chemistry in person. I added that before we did that, I would need to know if he was thinking just a fling -- a nice little interlude that might continue through a few random weekends when we both had the time and the money -- or if he was entertaining the outside possibility that maybe it could turn into something more. Because if it was the latter, he had to know at the start that my professional is so specialized that the chances of my being able to relocate back up to Seattle (where I'm from) are pretty much nil. If things worked out, he'd have to be willing to move to Portland.

Today's Thursday and I haven't heard a peep.

I'm thinking that he either (1) didn't get my e-mail and he's waiting for me to write to him, since it was my turn, or (2) he's giving serious thought to my question. There could be a (3), in that I freaked him out and I'll never hear from him again, which could be a possibility if we had met online and never in person, but I've known the Boy since I was 16. He's just not that type. So, it's probably (2).

I guess that makes me feel better. Should I check my e-mail again? Yes? No? Maybe?

Dating sucks.

Stay silly,
the CilleyGirl

Shake shake shake, shake your tushie

Tonight I'm watching the premiere of Dancing with the Stars. The men are on tonight. So far...

Penn Jillette: Cha cha cha. Very big guy, very small partner. I thought he was going to pull her leg off in the first move. Overall, great enthusiasm, lighter on his feet than I thought he would be, but not much content.

Oh, and Teller is in the audience. Haven't seen his lips moving yet.

Jason Taylor: Foxtrot. Very hot big guy. He's fairly graceful, more than you would expect, but a little stiff overall. Definitely counting in his head, though; he needs to let go more. Heh, Len thinks he's hot too. But he agrees with me -- good form, but needs more oomph in his dance. I'm interested to see how he does with the Latin next week. Hmm, scores seem a bit high to me. I would've leaned more towards straight 6s.

They changed the initial round this year, where each gets to dance both a latin and a ballroom dance before the first elimination. I think that'll work well, because it has always seemed that the first couple to be eliminated each season has been the one doing the ballroom dance.

Commercial break. So, Monday weigh-in today. 181 on the nose. Or the ass, depending how you look at it. Makes the total weight lost so far 17.4 lbs. That's 8.77% of my total body weight. Good to know the pizza and wings splurge last week didn't do too much damage. Flo shows next week so I'll probably have a slower time of it then.

Up next -- Cristian de la Fuente. I'm thinking he'll be able to shake it. And he's doing a latin dance, cha cha cha. Ah, they're portraying him as a goof off who can't move his hips. Like I believe that. Or maybe I do. Hmm, too flat footed, needs to be on his toes more. Not very sexy? Maybe he needs to be naked to do this well. 'Cause Ian was looser than this. I'm forseeing 5s and 6s on this one. Comments are with me.... Scores after the break.

Anyhow, I was talking about channeling your inner Goldilocks when it comes to weight loss. Another thing they say is how to determine how many calories you need each day. The majority say that you should determine how many calories you need daily to maintain your current weight, then subtract 500 calories in order to lose a pound a week. I'm sure this works for a lot of people. Not for me, though. For starters, I would think you would have to constantly recalculate your maintenance calories. Then, if you weren't losing weight you might think that you miscalculated your maintenance calories so you'd deduct more. In that event, you might end up eating less than you need, which sends you into starvation mode and you still lose nothing while you're also eating nothing. [wow, Cristian got all 7s] You might have had the cals correct, but not have been losing for another reason -- too much fat in your diet, on your period, whatever.

Adam Carolla. Blech. He's like Gilbert Gottfried (but way more annoying) if you shoved an air hose up his ass and overinflated him. Okay, feet were OK but stiff has a new definition. Apparently they shoved a stick up there along with the air hose. That was bad. I bet he gets decent scores anyway. [nope, 5s all across]

So, the other way to go is to determine the calories for your goal weight. You have to be realistic about your goal weight, first, though. There's a good method to determine your goal weight; of course now I can't find it. It was a magazine quiz that was about ten questions or so. But try http://www.healthstatus.com/calculate/iwc for now. The quiz I'm remembering had me at 145. This website calculator has me at 147.

Mario is up next. He's good. Needs to be on his toes more, maybe a smidge more hip action when moving across the floor, but he's really good. He's got my votes so far. And he's got the judges.

Once you calculate your goal weight, then determine the calories you need to maintain that weight. In other words, start eating like you're already there. One advantage to this is that you start out with how you'll be eating from now until forever. You can figure out everything you can eat once you're skinny -- all the treats, everything. It takes a couple of weeks at least to get used to -- you'll definitely be feeling a few hunger pains, but you can outlast them. Like I said, last week I ate pizza and wings three times. Three times. Didn't work out at all since last Sunday the 9th. And still I lost more than two pounds. Granted, I had added four-tenths of a pound the week before, but that was when I ate really great and worked out four times. On average, I've lost two pounds a week using my target weight calories.

Mr. Guttenberg is the last man of the evening. I'm hoping he does well.

Remember too that when determining your calories to make any updates you might need with regard to your activity level. I started out with low activity levels, but now I'm mostly up to moderate activity. If you don't adjust as you up your activity level, you'll be starving all the time and really tempted to cheat and/or binge. Likewise, if you are eating as if you are more active but you're not expending that energy, you won't lose -- and then you'll be depressed and really tempted to cheat and/or binge.

Steve is stiff. Posture not so great, he keeps tipping forward. Nice personality though. Maybe he'll be the George Hamilton of the show. I think Penn already has the Jerry Springer spot nailed. Yes, Carrie found him charming, but with no musicality.

There are lots of online calculators to calculate calories needed. My target has been between 1500 and 1600 calories. I ran a new calculation and it says roughly 2000 calories are needed for my target weight. For my current weight, it says roughly 2340. So from where I am now weight-wise and what I've been eating, I'm running a calorie deficit of about 5180 calories which translates into about a pound and a half of weight loss each week. That's just to basically breathe each day; any physical activity will bump that up. Again, you have to remember to adjust for physical activity. Right now, I've eaten about 1650 calories today, but I feel just a bit more hungry then I can comfortably ignore. So, after Steve's scores [6s across the board, about what I thought] I'm going to treat myself to a 100-calorie cupcake pack, watch the ten o'clock news, and then go to bed.

Sweet dreams!
the CilleyGirl

One day at a time

If I knew how to cue up music here I'd add that song in. But I don't, so you'll have to imagine it. And if you're not old enough to know what the heck I'm talking about, :P

Anchors Aweigh:

I'm coming off a really blah kind of a week. It seems like I've been going through those a lot lately, and I couldn't figure out why. Then I read today that it is common to feel that way when you're losing weight as your body is getting rid of all the toxins stored up in the fat. It's an explanation I can go with.

I overdid the pizza and wings this week. Three times I made the trip to Dominos. The first two times weren't so bad, kept the calories under control, but the third time I had the extra cheese and the extra chicken side with the ranch dipping sauce. No more of that. Sad thing is, I can taste the pizza again right now and want to order it again.

Like an alcoholic, I have to take it one day at a time. Losing weight is easy to do, but hard to keep on doing.

I've been thinking a lot about why it's working this time. I think my weight loss strategy is that what works for me is what works for me. Sounds stupid, yes? I'll explain.

Dozens of magazines are full of tips for dieting. For some, that's their sole reason for existing. Many have common themes. But what works for one person, or even a lot of people, may not work for you. And that's okay. The trick is to be willing to figure out what does work and then to stick to it. In the process, you will do a lot of things that don't work, which either translates into no weight loss at all or even gaining weight. That's okay. Cross that one off your list, and move on to the next thing. When you find one that works, stick to it. If you can't stick to it for more than a day or a meal or even an hour, that's okay too. Start again the next day, the next meal, or the next hour.

One common theme is that you should eat breakfast. This one I agree with. But even within the simple statement "eat breakfast" there are many ways which this may be different for you.

For example, many magazines say to get up a half hour or an hour early to have breakfast. Does that work for you? Maybe. Does it work for me? Nope. I am not hungry when I first get up. In fact, the idea of food first thing in the morning makes me nauseous. I've told my grandmother this for years, and still the first thing she asks as I stumble by her in the morning? "Do you want cereal? Milk? A banana? We left it all out for you." My answer? "Give me a bit to drink this diet coke and then I'll have breakfast. I can get out my own stuff, thanks." Although at 37, she may finally be understanding my habits. Or else my mom has been telling her for the hour before I got up that I'm not going to want to eat anything right away.

What works for me is to have breakfast at my desk. By that time, I've been up for about an hour. Now I'm hungry. Now I'll eat.

They also say you should always have carbs with protein for breakfast. Pairing carbs with protein keeps you feeling fuller longer. I agree with that, but only to a certain extent. Weekdays, I have oatmeal, yogurt or cottage cheese, and a banana for breakfast. I have the oatmeal first thing. Two hours or so later, I have a banana. I save the yogurt to have with my lunch -- BUT if I feel the need to have the yogurt, I can. Weekends are a different matter. Then, I do need both or I'll be hungry way before lunch, particularly if I'm going to be hiking or working on the treadmill.

Well, the movie I somehow ended up watching is nearly over so I'll sign off for now and go through more of this later. Stay cilley!!

CG

Today's random thoughts

First and foremost, I do not like using laptop keyboards. I've got natural keyboards at home and at work, so on the laptop I'm always hitting the Alt or Ctrl key and the cursor moves elsewhere. Really screws up the flow.

What I'm reading:

Just finished The Witch Is Dead, the latest Abby and Ophelia mystery by Shirley Damsgaard. Next I'll be reading Victoria Laurie's latest, Demons Are a Ghoul's Best Friend.

I went through the Abby and Ophelia series in about a week and a half or so. There is a lot of reference to crystals and their properties, so now I want to read up on the topic and try it out. Usually when I get on a topic like this, I buy some books, intending to become versed in aromatherapy or herbs or whatever. Then the book arrives and I never really manage to devote much time to it. Luckily I got smart this time and checked to see if the library had anything. They do, so this weekend I'll make a trip and pick a few books up. If it does catch my interest, then I can think about buying (maybe at Powell's -- if I'm going to sink some money into crystals I should try to save on the books).

Other things:

I told my friend Sunshine about the Boy this weekend, and now I'm wondering if I didn't jinx it. I'm pretty certain I didn't (knock on wood), I think this is being driven by the case of the blues brought on on Saturday night by the beer I had. No more for me when I'm on my own. I know it's just life as to why I haven't heard back yet. But even if it's not, my concern right now is me. Everything else will take care of itself and be what it is.

Back track?:

The blues weren't helped this morning by the Monday morning weigh-in. Four-tenths of a pound back since last week's weigh-in. I figure it is one of a couple things.

1. I worked too hard last week and didn't take in enough calories.

2. I underestimated how many calories I took in last week, particularly the evenings of pizza and wings. Oh, and the beer.

3. I'm taking in too many calories in general.

4. I'm not taking in enough calories in general.

I'll see how it goes this week, and stick to 1,600 as best I can. If there is still no progress by Monday, I'll recalculate my calories and start again. I just wish that I didn't have to wait a whole week at a time to really judge if I'm doing the right thing. As a last resort, I'll go see my doctor and see what she says.

Let's hope for strength. It's the best chance we've got.