Month: January 2008

Back to the Gym

I used to have a very good gym habit.  At one point, I was going as many as five times per week.  Of course, I also lived around the corner from my gym.

After an illness, and moving, I’ve just fallen out of the habit.   So even though I haven’t made any resolutions about such things, I do realize that I would like to get back into the routine.  Even if I only go half as much as I was going when it was practically in my kitchen, that wouldn’t be half bad.   Especially since I’m contemplating walking the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in July.

I went this evening, and I did 20 minutes on the elliptical at half the level that I used to do for 40 minutes.   That was a little bit of an ego blow, but Rome wasn’t built in a day, right?    I probably could have pushed through and done another 10 minutes, but I figured it would be better to start out slow, even slower than I thought I needed.

So, I burned 200 calories.   Yay me!  Now I’m sitting here with a ThermaCare heat wrap on my bum knee.  Arthritis sucks.  This is part of the reason why I’m not sure about doing the 39.2 mile breast cancer walk.    However, if I keep going to the gym, and build up my knee, I may be just fine.

So here’s what I’m taking away from this: I just need to keep going, I need to pick up more of these wraps, and damn my new iPod is really that cool.

Juno

Juno Movie Poster

I saw Juno on Friday night, and I really enjoyed it. It was full of witty one liners, and fellow movie-goers and myself laughed our way through the film.

If you’ve had your head under a rock, the movie is the story about a 16 year old girl, Juno, who finds herself pregnant. She first makes herself an appointment to “procure a hasty abortion” but backs out once she arrives at the clinic. (The feminist in me is biting her tongue, sparing you the diatribe about so many female characters in TV/movies deciding to have their babies, mostly without even considering an abortion. It’s an angle that’s been covered by better writers than me.) Juno decides to give up her baby for adoption to a couple she finds in the Penny Saver.

There were two things that I liked most about the movie, aside from the fact that it’s freaking riotously funny. First, I really liked what they did with the character of the adoptive mother, played by Jennifer Garner. At the beginning of the film, you’re not really meant to like her. She’s that stereotype of the humorless, kill-joy woman such as in Knocked Up, a controlling, obsessive-compulsive, shrew-like yuppie who is utterly condescending towards her husband. But in the end, they turn that whole awful opinion you have on her on its ear. She ends up being a character that you really do care about, in the end, and a heroine.

The other thing that I really liked about the movie is how they didn’t have that didn’t portray Juno as a victim. She’s not a poor hapless teenager. She’s not in a ridiculous relationship that she’s trying to force to work. She’s got the “cheese to [her] macaroni”. Juno isn’t walking about moping about the baby within that she won’t be raising. She’s walking about moping about a boy, and she wants to get the band back together. She’s not solely defined by the fact that she accidentally got pregnant.

So go see it. You’ll laugh. J4 teared up when the baby was born. (aaawwwww)

Weekend

I had a pretty lame weekend. I have had some weird stomach issues. It’s like I feel as if I’m on the verge of getting sick, I can feel my heart beating in my gut and it feels like my stomach has risen into my chest. Then nothing happens. It got in the way of some major plans.

On Friday night, I got a glimpse of some gruesome Oakland wildlife. The grossest, nastiest, biggest possum I’ve ever seen just strolling across Telegraph.

Please tell me that any one had a more exciting weekend.

Just sayin’.

Winter Skin

I’m seeing a lot of searches for “winter skin” and hits to my old post from two years ago in my blog stats. I want to give a little bit of a run down of what I’ve been experiencing this year, as I know that many people have this issue, and hopefully my experience can help someone else. This has been the worst winter for my skin in memory.

I have had the patches of eczema popping up all over my bod since just before Christmas. It started with a large patch on my neck. I have also had patches on my face, scalp, and torso. The worst has been my scalp and under arms.

It has gotten so bad at points, that I have holed up for days at a time, and not left the house. I refused to go to a party last weekend, because I felt like such a mutant.

However, I have to say that I feel it’s getting better. I did some searching on the Internet to try to find solutions, and came across a recommendation of not using soap when bathing, except for arm pits and groins. I have been using this method. Actually, I’ve gone one further, I have only been bathing every other day. I did sponge bath my more high maintenance areas – pits, feet, groin, etc. Also, when I’ve showered, I’ve kept the water at a luke warm temperature.

Additionally, I’m going through a lot of lotion at the moment. I have been moisturizing with Lubriderm for Sensitive Skin every morning and night. At night, I have been applying good ol’ Ponds Cold Cream to my face; I leave it on for a short time, and then wipe away with a tissue. I do not rinse or wash my face at night. In the mornings, I rinse it off, without soap. I have also switched to Avalon Organics Lavender shampoo and conditioner, which is free of sulfates and parabens. I found this shampoo at Trader Joe’s grocery store. I wash my hair only every third or fourth day, but wet it daily. I don’t know if the shampoo is making a difference yet with my scalp. I am not wearing any foundation makeup today, as I found a new patch on my nose last night.

Like I said, it’s gotten better in the last few days. I’m not sure if it’s because of the things I’ve switched or the things I’ve been doing. Perhaps it’s just that the rain we’ve been having is humidifying the air. I know it probably won’t get totally better before spring, and I’ll be an itchy weirdo until then.

Just sayin’.

Lazy Blogstress

I’ve been pretty lax in my posting so far in this new year. It’s pretty lame, I must admit. I had actually wanted to make sure I wrote more this year. I wouldn’t go so far as to say that it was a resolution, as I don’t do that, but it is something I feel needs more of my attention. And not just writing the blog, but writing in general. But mostly, I really do just want to break another record with my page views.

I think there are two basic reasons, other than laziness, why I’m not blogging too much right now. Reason #1: I’ve been reading a lot of blogs. There’s so much going on in the world, so much to read, so little time to write. Seriously, check out some of the blogs on my blog roll. They’re awesome, and I’ve been engrossed.

Reason #2: I’m becoming more comfortable in my apartment. It’s starting to feel more like my space, and I’m also adjusting to being on my own again. As I feel more at home in the apartment, I feel like my stuff actually belongs there, so I take it out of the boxes. I’m down to three large boxes and two small. Some people try to tell me that I would feel at home if I would just unpack everything and put it away immediately, but that doesn’t work for me. I would feel awkward with all my books on shelves in a place that wasn’t mine.

So, as I’m adapting, I’m really enjoying the independence and freedom. I feel the old me coming out more. I like spending more time with myself. I come home, make myself something to eat, get into the lounge-wear, pop in a DVD, or turn on Project Runway. (Side note: They should have totally kicked out Ricky this week, not Kevin!) I’m going through my Netflix queue so much faster now. I got “3:10 to Yuma” this afternoon, and watched it right away. Love, love, love Christian Bale.

The down side to all of this is, once I have some independence, I only want more. I am totally slipping into a hermit routine that is just fine by me. I can watch all the Jane Austin movies I want! I got Pride & Prejudice, the good one with Colin Firth, on DVD for Christmas. Why on Earth would I want to leave the house?

But I will. You will see me again. I will venture out of these walls. I promise. No timetable on when it’s going to happen exactly, but yes, I will go out again. There are bands to be seen, after all. I may, however, be intolerably independent, though.

Just sayin’.