My Crazy Brain

a couple of days ago i had a dream where i encountered my friend micah’s mom while walking along Boylston Street. we chatted briefly; she was in such great spirits and was thoroughly pleased to see me. and that’s about all i remember from the dream.

now, most of my dreams are extremely mundane, so a dream where i’m just walking down Boylston and happen upon someone i know wouldn’t normally be something of which i’d take notice. but it’s not that i think of micah’s mom all that often. in fact i’d say it’s safe to say i rarely think of her. and what’s a little eerie is today is the one-year anniversary of her passing. so somewhere in my subconscious i guess i remembered that and got to say hello to her in my dream.

what’s interesting is that this is not the first time i’ve had encounters with dead people in dreams. it’s only happened a handful of times but it’s always seemed the deceased person is trying to relay well-wishes or trying to let me know they’re doing okay. for instance, a number of years ago i had a dream where my grandmother took me shopping. we didn’t live in the same state, so for her to be visiting me and taking me shopping in CT was definitely a special occasion. she brought me home and while in the car she gave me a big hug, said goodbye and told me that she loved me.  when i awoke, my mother came to tell me my grandmother had passed away during the night.

i’m not normally one that believes in ghosts or paranormal activity.  or i should say, i don’t really know what i believe.  because i do think somehow my grandmother came to say goodbye to me that night.  at the same time, it could all be one big coincidence i guess.  and same with this most recent dream with micah’s mom.  it could be that somehow i was subconsciously thinking of the anniversary of her death and created this dream as a result.  what makes it more interesting is that micah sent me a message today through facebook and i can’t even recall the last time i received word from him.  it’s been at least 6 months if not longer.  so, two days ago i dreamt of his mom where she was in a wonderful mood and smiling and genuinely seemed at peace.  today marks the one year anniversary of her passing and micah thought to contact me as well.  i told him of my dream and he was very happy to hear she’s smiling wherever she may be.

again, this could all be chalked up to coincidence.  but i find it interesting and like thinking that some people maybe do try and stay in touch even after dying.

You Are Jealous

I’m going to my sister’s for the weekend. Very excited. And I get to see the ever-so-famous Lola!

ANTM night

Last night I enjoyed dinner at Joanne’s place. She made her version of chili which I LOVE. Spicy enough to make my nose run. Made with fake meat too! Delicioso. What was the occasion you ask? Why, the two-hour season premiere of America’s Next Top Model. Which we watched while sipping wine. And thank god for the wine. Otherwise I don’t think we would’ve endured the show. For those that did not watch, let me explain a little. They decided to set the first hour in this quasi-futuristic model laboratory where they supposedly churn out all these amazing models. All the while wearing these silvery, plastic jackets, horribly fitting pants and makeup that wouldn’t have looked futuristic even 30 years ago. It was just strange.

Feeling a little funny in the head, either from the wine or the show, I hopped on the 86 bus and headed home. Now, I had my headphones on (rather loudly) and stepped onto the bus and placed my “charlie card” on the reader thingy to pay my fare but for some reason the stupid thing wouldn’t work. I didn’t realize the malfunction until after I sat down and noticed the bus still sitting at the stop and that everyone on the bus was looking at me somewhat angrily. Including the bus driver. He was actually starting to raise his voice so I quickly took my wallet and headed back to the front of the bus. I placed my card on the card reader again and got an error saying the card couldn’t be read. Even though the thing worked a mere 4 hours prior. And it wasn’t a matter of not having enough money on the card to pay for the fare because I made sure to do that earlier in the evening.

Eventually, after several tries, the thing worked. All the while we stayed idling at the bus stop. So at this point the passengers are annoyed as is the bus driver. Which only caused for aggressive driving, speeding and herky-jerky starts and stops. I ended up writing (sloppily due to wine intake and herky-jerky bus ride) in my journal about the experience and how the only thing keeping me calm was listening to “Sailing” by Christopher Cross. I listened to it 5 times in a row. Yikes.

OH! Almost forgot about the lady that got on at the stop after mine. She either had a cold-cut combo sub hidden in her purse or she, herself, smelled of cured meats. And the odor was strong! It permeated throughout the whole bus. So, not only did I endure an awful ride, that was only assuaged by Christopher Cross’ smooth, clarinet-y singing style, but my olfactory nerves were assaulted by the smell of salami and roast beef.

A night to remember!

I’m Sick. –WAAAHHH–

A slight fever, along with a very sore throat, has settled itself into my body.  I’m officially sick.  WAAAHHHH

I am under a favorite chennile blanket which helps.  Along with wearing soft, fleecy socks and a tattered sweatshirt for extra comfort.  Massive quantities of water and tea will be consumed.  As will ibuprofen and/or Nyquil.  Although, I don’t really need much help in getting my “Zzzz’s.”  All week I’ve felt rundown and have had no trouble sleeping.

Today will hopefully be the day this sicky-time gets evicted — kicked to the curb!  I’ve got a wedding to go to on Friday night!

I’m Tired

This past weekend was really great. First off, I spent Friday evening with my friend Eve. We enjoyed mexican food, margaritas and good conversation. Didn’t stay out too late because Brian and I were to be getting up extremely early Saturday morn for a trip to NH.

Well, thankfully we didn’t end up leaving until after 8AM sometime. That gave us time to have some coffee and wake up a little. Anyway, Carm and Mike came and picked us up along with Beau/Buddy/Boo Boo — their adorable dog — and away we headed for the White Mountains. Ultimately we would be staying in Littleton but the party was in Bethlehem. All in all, the trip is about 150 miles one way. We made a couple stops along the way and arrived at our motel sometime after 11AM. Although, check-in wasn’t until 2PM. So we had some time to kill. We headed out to the site of the partay and checked in with the host, dropped off some pasta salad, said some “hellos” and headed back into Littleton for lunch. After which I made sure to stop into Chutters for some candy!

At this point, it’s after two and we head back to the Motel to check in and rest up for the evening’s activities. I ate some candy and experienced some crazed sugar rushes which caused much laughter. Brian and I watched the garbage that was the Red Sox game that afternoon and did some napping as well! Around 7PM or so we headed back out to Asa’s barn bash. The sun was just leaving for the night, so there was this beautiful glow all along the horizon. And the weather was perfect sweatshirt wearing weather. OH…we all made sure to douse ourselves in some deet as well. The ’skeeters up there are pretty brutal.

There was live music and lots of people and a number of puppies and it was just a great time. Brian and I enjoyed ourselves looking through the massive collection of records. Did you know William “the Refrigerator” Perry did a single with The Fat Boys? It’s truth. We also drank quite a bit of beer…which then required several trips to the port-o-john…which is an interesting time when it’s pitch dark outside. But the sky at night in the mountains is really unbelievable. The stars take over and are everywhere. Plus there were no clouds. Just a covering of stars. Gorgeous.

Headed back to the motel around 12:30 or so. Proceeded to stay up with Carm and Mike until sometime after 3AM. ? Could’ve been later. Really have no clue. All I know is when it came time to wake up Sunday morning to check out of the motel, I was NOT happy. My head throbbed and my body could’ve stood for another several hours of sleep. But we were up and out around 11AM. Headed back to Asa’s place for a jaunt down to the river and so Carm could say goodbyes. After the 10 minute or so hike bike uphill from the river to the barn, I ended up having an allergy induced asthma attack. And had forgotten the bug spray so I managed to get 7 bites in just a short while. It was also very hot out. So, being hungover, bug-bitten and not being able to breathe in nearing 90 degree heat, I was more than ready to head home!

The trip home was interesting given I was in such a horrible state. And everyone was SO helpful and made sure I was drinking plenty of water and iced tea to keep cool and hydrated. We set aside some time for a stop at Bill and Bob’s Famous Roast Beef. I still wasn’t feeling 100% but managed to consume some fries and a chicken finger (saved the roast beef sandwich for home). Eating certainly helped a LOT! Oh, because we didn’t end up eating dinner at all the night before either. I think that helped along the hangover quite a bit.

After the stop at Bill and Bob’s the rest of the trip home was rather uneventful. I managed to close my eyes for most of it and rest. I don’t think I ever actually fell asleep, but definitely zoned out and felt much better by the time we made it home. Then as the evening progressed I noticed my throat was killing me and a cold had settled in. I went to bed/passed out around 9:30 and woke up this morning with the cold and sore throat still there. I’m back at work today, but am hoping to leave a bit early to head home, load up on vitamin C and get some more rest!

I’m Starting Over

Okay, so this whole blogging thing hasn’t worked so well. I have decided this space will not solely be about dieting and exercise. Because, that just pigeonholed things a bit too much. And if I got disappointed about not eating so well or lack of exercising, then I’d get down on myself and wouldn’t post anything. So…let’s start over shall we? This will no longer be just a food/exercise blog. I’m'a try and make this a place where y’all can come and check in and see how I’m doing with life in general. How’s that sound?

As some of you may know, I started a new job recently. I’m now employed by the prestigious institution known as MIT . More specifically, I’m working at the Broad (pronounced Brode) Institute which is a research center comprised of professors and doctors from MIT, Harvard, MassGeneral, Brigham and Women’s and many other reputable places of such ilk. I am doing basic admin. support for Stacey Gabriel and will also start managing her research grants. It’s a lot more work than my previous job at Emerson, but I’m happy with the change.

After only being in the new job for 2.5 weeks, I decided it was time for a vacation! HA! Okay, so it didn’t really go down quite like that. More like, I had a vacation planned prior to my starting the new job and made sure I got to take it. So, I hopped on a plane (do not get me started on the terror that was trying to fly out of NY that day…) and headed to visit my good friends Becca and Patrick in the lovely land of Silver Springs, MD. And let me tell you, it was such a great time! They are both wonderful hosts and it felt so good to take a trip. The weather was gorgeous and the company even more so! We visited Brookside Gardens, went to Politics and Prose (book store where Becca works and where an old friend of mine used to work as well), ate some very delicious homemade guacamole as well as the best carrot cake I’ve ever had in my life (remind me to get that recipe, Becca!), met some incredibly cool people as well as taking a trip to Camden Yaaahhhds. Where the Red Sox won! Anywhoooodles, it was a fantastic trip. Thanks again to my wonderful hosts.

Came back to the Boston area on Tuesday and still had Wednesday as vacation day. That way I had a full day to recover from the horrors of flying. Started back at work yesterday only to have my boss turn around and leave for HER vacation today. Things have quieted down considerably.

This weekend, the bri-guy and I will be heading way up into NH for some barn partyin’ and bands and BBQ and other such good stuff. Next weekend it’s RI for his friend’s wedding. Then the following it’s CT for moi (and Brian if he doesn’t have other stuff to do) to help celebrate my sister and Tom’s engagement!

Busy busy.

That’s all for now!

-k

p.s. – here is a picture of my kitten just cuz.

time flies

i am a terrible blogger.  anyway….i need to try and update this a bit.  but that’s not going to happen tonight. soon, i promise.  things may be revamped a bit as well.  meaning, this may become a more permanent blog as opposed to just focusing on diet stuff.  hope you don’t mind.  thoughts?

Trying to be Good!

Last night was beautiful outside.  I took a long bike ride.  I was out for about 15 minutes longer than I’ve gone before.  And managed to go up two hills.  One of which was fairly steep towards the top.  I really thought I might fall off!  But I did it!

Got home and was worn out.  Hungry…but not too hungry.  Had a bowl of cereal for dinner.   Had some pretzels and low fat chips as a snack later (handful of each).  And that was that.

This morning I was really craving an everything bagel.  Got one with salmon cream cheese but only used about 1/2 of the little tub provided.  Also had a coffee with skim milk.  The Dunkin’ Donuts was CRAZY busy this morning due to the Celtics victory parade.  The Dunkin’ I go to is right on the corner where the parade turns to go up Boylston St.  It was PACKED in there this morning.  Mostly due to all the police officers getting coffee.

For lunch I have a healthy choice soup, carrot sticks then a fat free yogurt and/or 100 calorie granola bar for later.  I’m definitely not going outside today….way too many people out there that started their drunken festivities early.  It’s insanity.  Better off to stay inside.

Feeling a Little Better

Last night i had the two slices of cheeseless pizza.  I also made myself some popcorn.  I make it the old-fashioned way on the stove…none of that microwave stuff!  I also do not put on it any butter at all.  However, I did salt it a bit too much.  I’ve really cut back on my sodium intake of late and sprinkling a bit too much salt on the popcorn was really noticeable! I also had a glass of diet coke and two glasses of lite, pink lemonade.  which is really yummy.  I don’t tend to drink too much water at home during the week.  Only because I normally drink almost 2 liters a day while at work.  That should be plenty, right?!

Today I had yogurt for breakfast along with a coffee, light with skim milk.  For lunch I’m having a 6″ whole-wheat sub with turkey, mustard, lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers.  Also enjoying some baked lays with my sub.

The weather is gorgeous today.  So hoping to get a walk and/or bike ride in at some point as well.

Apparently I Suck at Blogging

So it’s been a  long while since I last wrote.  And I’ve not been so good about the whole diet-thing.  Maybe it’s PMS?  But I’ve really craved all kinds of bad-for-me foods.  And have been giving in to those cravings of late. 

I’ve still been really good about bringing my breakfast and lunch to work Monday through Friday (consisting of soup, yogurt, a piece of fruit and some carrots).  But have been eating a lot of pasta for dinner.  We don’t have much money, and pasta is just affordable.  So, that’s been somewhat bumming me out.

Also, I haven’t been so good about the bike riding for the past week.  I did go on a couple rides last week that were decent.  But I’m just not getting around to doing it the 3+ times a week like I’d hoped.

So here I am in mid June and I’ve probably gained weight since starting this blog.  But I don’t really know for sure, because I haven’t gotten a scale (like Tyler told me to do….).  And don’t really have the money to buy a scale anyway.

I do have 2 salmon burgers in the freezer still.  So tonight I will have a salmon burger, done on my Foreman grill with no bun.  And probably have some broccoli or peas to go with.  Or, I have two slices of cheese-less pizza to reheat.  Those options are pretty good.  Hopefully I won’t be hungry a couple hours after eating, though.  Because that’s when I tend to get into trouble.  With wanting to snack.  We don’t usually keep too many snacks in the house.  But occasionally have things like pretzels, peanuts or graham crackers.  And I’ll begin to munch on those.

It also doesn’t help that I’ve been somewhat in a bummed mood of late.  I feel that I’m at a point in my life where I’m maybe becoming distant from many friends and it’s been extremely disappointing.  To the point where I’m letting it effect my well-being.  Which is stupid, I know.  But I feel I can’t help it.  And begin to feel sorry for myself and then it becomes this vicious loop.  Also, I’ve been dealing with financial stress and job stress (and trying to find a new job and the stress that comes with that…).  All of which, when piled together, seem detrimental.

As usual, any advice that you may have would be much appreciated!