60:00

Phooey.

I thought I could do it. I thought I could magically ease up on the workouts and my body would not be the wiser. Wrong-O. 

There are people who can get away with exercising for only 30 minutes a day. I am not one of them. I need that full hour to keep everything working like a well-oiled machine. And while I have known this all along, apparently it wasn't enough helpful information to keep me motivated. So for about ten months I have taken the easy path - just floating along through various half hour workouts. Each month that passed has brought with it discomfort and disappointment. Granted, 30 minutes is better than zero minutes and it does keep me healthy - but still is not quite enough to keep me happy. And while I continue to eat "clean" during the week and have treats on the weekend, that is only half the battle. The other half is what I consider, the hard part.

So I decided that today would be the day. I was all fired up last night just thinking about it. I woke up very early and was on the treadmill by 6:30. When the display read 60:00 I felt fantastic. For me, getting over the hump of 35 minutes is the hardest. It's not fatigue, it's boredom. Thank goodness for the ipod. I pretty much DJ my way through life and make no exceptions when exercising. Music always keeps me going. It doesn't have to be powerful and upbeat all the time - it just has to keep my mind enchanted and distracted. 

I feel so much better just knowing that I am back on the right track - the ONLY track I should be taking. The benefits are endless and it just takes a week to see results. It isn't all about losing weight, it's more about being comfortable and mentally satisfied. I can tell you from personal experience that if you are feeling unhappy, miserable, blah and in a funk - exercise will always help. When you start treating yourself better - you reap all sorts of benefits. Those little endorphins are no joke...

sweet treat ...

Summer is SO on it's way out but it still has a little heatwave left in it. I found this recipe in a magazine and tried it out over the weekend. It's a much lighter take on Frozen Hot Chocolate. This version has only 150 calories and virtually no fat. 

 

- 1/2 cup chocolate syrup

- 1 cup fat-free evaporated milk

- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

- 3 cups ice cubes

- Garnish with reduced-fat whipped topping and/or dark chocolate sprinkles or shavings

1. Combine chocolate syrup, evaporated milk, vanilla and ice in a blender until smooth. 

2. Pour into glasses and garnish as you wish. 

Variations: 

Mexican Hot Chocolate: Add 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

Peppermint Hot Chocolate: Substitute 1/4 tsp mint extract for the vanilla extract.

Drizzle

I am so completely in love with a rainy day. When I saw the forecast on Friday predicting a sloppy Sunday I was beyond excited. I have been saying for weeks that I've been dying for a nice, rainy day. Well I can die no more. Yesterday was glorious. I was finally able to shut off my central air and open every window and door in the house. My curtains were waving in the breeze with thanks. For an added seasonal twist I lit a pumpkin spice candle. I may be rushing the start of Fall just a bit but the cool, damp air would have had anyone fooled. I actually had to put on fleece pants and long sleeves midday. This wonderful treat-day started off with me in the kitchen prepping a big, fat crock pot full of spicy Turkey Chili. (Spicy is putting it mildly - pun intended).

It is so great when you don't have any plans for the day and are able to just unplug and unwind doing whatever you want. Gregg and I chose the same to-do list: breakfast sandwiches, a workout, watching a movie and playing some PS3. We ended the day with fire-mouth chili and cool-down bowls of ice cream. Heaven.

Heading to bed, we both compared the bedroom to different memories we separately held. The breezy dampness reminded me of a beach house while he thought of his old camping trips. The sheets were so cold and everything felt bizarre. It was perfect sleeping weather. In fact, I had to get up at 5 am and shut the ceiling fan off - the screened windows were giving me all the chill that I needed.

When I pulled up the shades this morning I was more than pleased to find yesterday's puddles being fertilized by today's heavy drizzle. The sky remained a gloomy blend of white and gray. It energized me. Much like the vitamin D that a sunny day has to offer. I again lit my Autumn scented candle and pried my windows open further. Still clad in my fleece, I decided to make a pot of cinnamon infused coffee. I was going the distance.

This day has been lovely but doesn't compare to days that I can spend at home with my soul mate of a husband. While I enjoyed catching up on some of my DVR'd shows and magazines, journal entries, essay writing and even a little Tiger Woods (man, I really need to improve my short game) ... I would have rather spent this "me time" with Gregg. I am thankful for the weather just the same. As far as I am concerned gray is just as good as blue. And clouds are just as welcome as the sunshine. So don't leave on my account, low pressure. You're always a friend of mine.

my morningmares...

Planes falling out of the sky in pieces- flames everywhere... cars by the hundreds just diving off the highway as the roads crumble beneath them... petrified, sprinting citizens screaming and flailing with terror as they make their way down abandoned roads in a maddening crowd- dodging pieces of debris... how'd you like to wake up to that??

I hate the morningmare. I do get nightmares but more often it's around 5 am that I am stricken with fear and forced awake by my own racing heart. I look around the room, check the clock, shift positions and slow my pulse - sometimes I walk around the house to break the possibility of heading right back into that dream. I have more night/morningmares than I do regular "oddball" dreams. It's rarely a unicorn dancing through a field of wildflowers while Ozzy Osbourne sings Mr. Crowley off in the distance. I tend to dredge up murderers, tornadoes, tidal waves and the ever popular driving off a bridge or cliff into the ocean - which - just so you know - is absolutely terrifying. I have had the 'pleasure' of remembering an average of 5 dreams per week for as long as I can recall. My brother will attest to my annoying 'dream-telling' even back when I was 7 or 8 yrs old. And that was vampires in a supermarket. I sort of remember it still.

This plane-raining dream was hands down one of the most frightening ones to date. I was with my mother and grandmother - location, unclear - when we began to notice shiny objects rapidly falling from the sky. We saw people gathering and quickly making the decision to run for their lives. The three of us did our best to outrun massive pieces that had broken apart from what seemed like hundreds of 747s. The location at that point was Airport Road - a long stretch of road appropriately named for its proximity to the airport. With my 88 year old grandmother in tow - we ran as hard as we could to avoid the flaming obstacle. Horror. Next scene, my mom and I are in a huge building - possibly an airport, very modern and cold with large concrete beams and pillars, tons of escalators and stairwells. I lost track of my grandmother and sadly, we feared the worst. Things seemed calmer now. We made our way to a military escort outside, hopped in the vehicle and started driving. Almost immediately we were met with hundreds of cars coming from all directions - much like arrows aimed at a target the size of the Grand Canyon. There was no where to go. We ran from the vehicle trying to hold hands so as not to lose each other- screaming and crying in a cloud of complete chaos. It was the end of the world. I woke up shaking with my heart racing so fast I practically had to have a yoga session right there in my bed. I calmed down by reaching over to see if Brody was on the bed. Surprisingly, I was comforted by his familiar fur and the horror faded. 

There really is no point to this story - just a simply narrated dream. It is not the way I choose to start my day - let that be known. 

I have read that "It is perfectly normal for a person to dream 4 or 5 times a night. When you sleep you go through cycles of sleep. Each cycle lasting on avg. 90 minutes. At the end of each cycle you would have a dream. Your first dream being your shortest 5 to 20 min, and your last being the longest, about 60 min." But who really knows why certain people always remember their dreams and others never do. Either way, I find dreams to be fascinating and at the same time horrifying. I think I'm due for a happy, floating on a cloud, sunshiny, lollipop filled, rainbow dancing dream any day now.

if it makes you happy ...

... after I thought about some of my favorite things I was inspired to create some "just for fun" art... 

take a peek - hope you like it!

 ... i think the "starry night, rainy day and the sea" is my favorite :o)

i LOVE...  

my HUSBAND, my FAMILY, our TROOPS, handsome BRODY, good FRIENDS, lazy MORNINGS, thunderstorms, 70's MUSIC, cold BEER, sarcasm, long DRIVES, scenic HIKES, a good CAMERA, jack NICHOLSON, high HEELS, italian FOOD, poetry, the OCEAN, horror FILMS, my MEMORIES, dwight SHRUTE, clearance RACKS, home DECOR, the FALL, clark GRISWOLD, cartoons, old PHOTOS, small TOWNS, hearts, winter WEEKENDS, arrest-a-PEST, us WEEKLY, belcourt CASTLE, rainy DAYS, the SHINING, lunch DATES, hello KITTY, guess BAGS, buffalo FINGERS, mystic VILLAGE, vacation DAYS, stephen KING, dream INTERPRETATION, backyard FIRES, cheesy 80's, ghost HUNTERS, creative MINDS, the YANKEES, military PLANES, acoustic GUITAR, delicious COCONUT, soleil moon FRYE, christmas SPECIALS, estate JEWELRY, a clean HOME, cooking DINNER, historic BUILDINGS, jeans and HOODIES, cemetary WALKS, brenton POINT, pearl JAM, privacy, the CAROLINAS, starry NIGHTS, a good sense of HUMOR, courtesy, antique & VINTAGE, pixar, real SIMPLE, aunt CARRIES, michael MYERS, polo BLACK, childhood INNOCENCE, documentaries, the TITANIC, river PHOENIX, strawberries, back PORCHES, kind WORDS...