This and That

I finished out February with a bad case of bronchitis coupled with a wicked sore throat. It made work (and home) a tad agonizing, but that seemed to have passed - until this morning, when I woke up with Version 2.0. Lucky me :)

Naw, I think it's just a sniffle . . I hope.

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Lisa's Dad is in the VA hospital for a knee replacement. That left Lisa's step-mother, who has MS and is prone to falling, without a caregiver. She moved on to her daughter's house but after a wicked fall it became apparent that her daughter's schedule, which left her alone most of the day, wasn't going to work. Lisa then volunteered to host her and her assistance dog.

Last night was her first night here. She's a good conversationalist and the kids adore having a dog here, so all is well so far. With Lisa and the kids at dance we watched Golden Girls (which we DVR here, as I have a long standing and disturbing crush on Betty White) and Oklahoma!. [The latter was a mistake, as I've annoyed everyone by frequently yelling "O O O Oh klahoma" around the house.]

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Happy 34th Birthday to my sister Katie yesterday!

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Last week I wrote about how a predicted snowstorm resulted in no snow at all. The other night the reverse was true. The weather forecast was for occasional flurries. I woke up 13 inches of snow blanketing my world. It took hours to shovel it all out (which is probably where the sniffle is from).

Again, screw meteorologists. Charlatans, one and all.

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I think I may change Lump's name to Ginger. Out of nowhere in the known gene pool she's developed beautiful red hair. Oddly enough my facial hair turns the same color if I let it grow out, so I'm thinking this is short lived. Still, it's neat to see with her pale skin and bright blue eyes.

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Smiley the other day, in protest: 'No I big boy ma-ma' A five word sentence! Hot Dog!

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For Lent I gave up the following:

1. Any and all food items from a gas station or dollar store - man, this one hurts. But I've been 100% sucessful so far.

2. No eating anything at all after 10 pm - harder than it sounds. I sometimes don't return from work until well after ten, and I'm always up until midnight or later. I've failed twice in seven days.

I've also tried to change two eating habits of mine. The first: my tendency when I'm hungry to have a food, say fettuccine Alfredo, pop into my head. I'll then go and seek that out like a bloodhound on a trail. Now I'm trying to recognize that it's hunger talking and that just about anything, from a healthy salad to a somewhat less awful burger, will fill the need.

Second, if I went to a place like, oh, Ned's Pizza, I'd go hog wild. Not because it was so great (even if it was) or I was hungry (even if I was) but because I always had this weird notion in my head that this might be the last opportunity I'd have to enjoy this food/restaurant/whatever.

I'd say that ties into my anxiety problem, but I could be wrong. At any rate I'm now resigning myself to the idea that a) I will have that food again and b) even if I don't, it won't be 'the' regret I'll fret about in the afterlife. The result? I've been able to scale back on the eating without feeling the pinch.