After being inspired by Trader Joe's marketing campaign to eat healthy (which I already do) and try something new, I am going to now include that as a modification of my project number one. While watching less TV I will be trying new things.
Today my new thing is wearing no makeup to work. If you would have told me even one week ago that I would be doing this, I would have first passed out from the audacity of that suggestion, and then I would have laughed in your face and said "No way! Me not wear makeup before stepping out of the house? Never!" Much to my mother's chagrin, I started wearing makeup the second I turned fourteen and I haven't stopped since. I know I "don't need to wear makeup" (blah, blah, blah) but I like to! I like the whole artistic process of it.
However, for the past several days, I have developed a terrible allergic reaction to something -- perhaps the massive amounts of dust and pollen that have been swirled into the dry air lately -- and it has a rash of some kind around my eyes. It's not pink-eye, because my eye ball isn't red. It's just the skin around my eyes, mostly my right eye. It was red, itchy, and swollen all weekend, and today it's just red. The swelling has gone down and it's not as itchy. But I still can't wear makeup! I tried when I went to a party on Saturday night, and it just made the itchiness and swelling worse. Not only am I bare-faced, but the redness around my eyes makes me look absolutely terrifying!
I was absolutely dying of embarrassment at the thought of going to work in this condition, so I found a pair of "fashion glasses," which are just fake spectacles with pink rims, and am wearing them to somewhat disguise my poor allergy-ridden eyes. Everyone thinks I wear glasses now, and one friend thought I was going to a 70's theme party. I'm just playing it off as a bold new fashion statement. In all reality, I think I could probably do without wearing makeup so much, just without the red puffy eyes, please.
Monday, January 24, 2011
Trader Joe's Inspiration
January is almost over and my projects, or resolutions, for 2011 have yet to even begin! Mostly I've been focusing on the watch less TV resolution which is proving to be ridiculously difficult! I hate to admit it, but I love TV! I also love reading and doing other things, and I believe the whole point of making these projects for myself this year was to stop wasting my time watching stupid television shows and get into action! I'm resigning to my "old age" too soon. I didn't watch TV all through high school or college. Why? Because I was the social butterfly (I hate that term, but I don't know what else to use at this moment) and I was ALWAYS out and about, socializing, having fun, doing things with other people! During graduate school I didn't watch much TV either. I didn't have time between working full-time and studying every other second of the day I wasn't working (and even some while I was working.) But ever since then, since getting real jobs in the real world that require me to actually work hard for 8-10 hours a day, all I want to do during my freetime now is nothing. Or, in other words, be a couch potato and watch TV.
My daily routine was this: Wake up. Work, work, work, all day. Get home around 6:30. Make food and sit in front of TV until 10:00. Go to bed.
I was getting nothing done during the week! I was in a daze each night, and felt stressed out during the day because of all the errands and other stuff that needed to be done that I was simply ignoring each night. I felt like TV was starting to rule my life. I wanted to actually read and write in my journals again. I wanted to do something productive! Therefore "Michele's Project 2011" was born. Mission: get off my lazy, TV-addicted butt and DO SOMETHING.
It's been harder than I thought. Granted, my husband and I enjoyed making some awesome dinners that first week. We both were reading some great books, and it was nice to not be depressed and terrorized by the nightly news before going to bed. Then... it just started going down hill. I don't know why or how, it just did. He got sick of reading, we both got sick of cleaning up the major disasters we made in the kitchen after our gourmet meals, and we both kinda just wanted to watch a new favorite show we're catching up with on Netflix instant play! Besides, it still gets dark early, and it gets super freezing cold in our house, so all I want to do is cuddle up in a blanket anyway!
Last week I was starting to feel so irritated with this "rule" I had made for myself about TV! I was starting to get rebellious and angry with the restriction. And that, I decided, was not healthy and not the purpose of my resolution.
At Trader Joe's I gained new inspiration. At the checkout, I saw a poster they had on their window with three resolutions they have for the new year. It's one of those marketing ploys to get customers to come back to their store, of course, but it struck me as something I should follow in my own life and stop trying to deprive myself. Number 1 was the classic, all important "Eat healthy." Of course it was! It's Trader Joe's after all! I can't remember what number 2 was, but it was probably something about exercising or something Trader Joesish. Number 3 was what hit me and made me rethink my own resolution number one. "Try something new." There it was, so simple yet so profound. Instead of thinking of my resolution to watch less TV as restrictive and wanting to rebel against my own rule so badly it was making me be a miserable person, I should think of it as an opportunity to TRY SOMETHING NEW! Wasn't this the exact reason I made the "rule" in the first place? Some of my other projects for this year actually already fit into the category of trying something new... such as camping. Sorry, but that won't be happening until it gets a little warmer. However, this is now the time to pull out my dusty sewing machine, and crack open the covers of those French books or even brush up on my very rusty Spanish.
It just seems so painfully obvious, but thank you Trader Joe's for reminding me and pointing out that watching less TV is all about trying new things.
(One of which might be joining a bowling league, but that's for another discussion.)
My daily routine was this: Wake up. Work, work, work, all day. Get home around 6:30. Make food and sit in front of TV until 10:00. Go to bed.
I was getting nothing done during the week! I was in a daze each night, and felt stressed out during the day because of all the errands and other stuff that needed to be done that I was simply ignoring each night. I felt like TV was starting to rule my life. I wanted to actually read and write in my journals again. I wanted to do something productive! Therefore "Michele's Project 2011" was born. Mission: get off my lazy, TV-addicted butt and DO SOMETHING.
It's been harder than I thought. Granted, my husband and I enjoyed making some awesome dinners that first week. We both were reading some great books, and it was nice to not be depressed and terrorized by the nightly news before going to bed. Then... it just started going down hill. I don't know why or how, it just did. He got sick of reading, we both got sick of cleaning up the major disasters we made in the kitchen after our gourmet meals, and we both kinda just wanted to watch a new favorite show we're catching up with on Netflix instant play! Besides, it still gets dark early, and it gets super freezing cold in our house, so all I want to do is cuddle up in a blanket anyway!
Last week I was starting to feel so irritated with this "rule" I had made for myself about TV! I was starting to get rebellious and angry with the restriction. And that, I decided, was not healthy and not the purpose of my resolution.
At Trader Joe's I gained new inspiration. At the checkout, I saw a poster they had on their window with three resolutions they have for the new year. It's one of those marketing ploys to get customers to come back to their store, of course, but it struck me as something I should follow in my own life and stop trying to deprive myself. Number 1 was the classic, all important "Eat healthy." Of course it was! It's Trader Joe's after all! I can't remember what number 2 was, but it was probably something about exercising or something Trader Joesish. Number 3 was what hit me and made me rethink my own resolution number one. "Try something new." There it was, so simple yet so profound. Instead of thinking of my resolution to watch less TV as restrictive and wanting to rebel against my own rule so badly it was making me be a miserable person, I should think of it as an opportunity to TRY SOMETHING NEW! Wasn't this the exact reason I made the "rule" in the first place? Some of my other projects for this year actually already fit into the category of trying something new... such as camping. Sorry, but that won't be happening until it gets a little warmer. However, this is now the time to pull out my dusty sewing machine, and crack open the covers of those French books or even brush up on my very rusty Spanish.
It just seems so painfully obvious, but thank you Trader Joe's for reminding me and pointing out that watching less TV is all about trying new things.
(One of which might be joining a bowling league, but that's for another discussion.)
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
I need food
Wow, I have definitely learned a lesson this week: raw food diets are not for me.
You see, I had mentioned something on here about doing the Whole Living Magazine's 28 day challenge, and I started it on Sunday. The first week you are supposed to completely detox and cleanse your system by going completely raw. As in, eating only raw fruits and veggies. They don't even allow nuts, but I thought that was crazy, so I got a bunch of raw nuts and dried fruit for snacking purposes.
I did something like this last summer and lasted for four days. This time I made it only two. Last night, after the second day of nothing but carrots, celery, cauliflower and pepper I started developing a massive headache. I knew this came with the territory and thought I could fight through it. I actually had made some rather tasty raw food dishes like a kind of cabbage slaw that we put on huge leaves of romaine lettuce and ate like lettuce wraps.
However, I went to bed feeling dizzy and headachy. I thought I could sleep it off and be good to go in the morning. Not so. This morning, after a restless night I was still dizzy and my head was still throbbing. W demanded I go eat some FOOD and"screw the diet, you're too skinny!" I called in sick and wobbled to the kitchen, amidst spinning walls, and promptly made some hot oatmeal. In the mean time I managed to put some ingredients in the bread maker so I could have some hearty whole grain bread by lunch.
After some healthy nourishment of whole grain carbohydrates I finally started to feel better.
This is just another example of a resolution gone bad. Sometimes I don't know what I'm thinking. It's not like I'm super unhealthy and eat junk food all the time. I think that's what these kind of diets are for. I, on the other hand, am already thin and in good shape and don't eat unhealthy at all! I promise! Me eating junk food is having two M+M's at Christmas time. My husband makes fun of me all the time because when I go to the kitchen to get a snack, I come back with carrots and celery sticks or half of a pomegranate. I am already a health-food freak, so why did I decided I all of a sudden needed to go on this extreme diet?
I've come up with some crazy notions lately.
So for now, I'm going back to my normal healthy diet. But since I have $100 worth of fruits of veggies and fruit in my fridge, I'm going to have to get creative this week...
Speaking of food and being creative with it, check out my other blog Eat Your Veggies
You see, I had mentioned something on here about doing the Whole Living Magazine's 28 day challenge, and I started it on Sunday. The first week you are supposed to completely detox and cleanse your system by going completely raw. As in, eating only raw fruits and veggies. They don't even allow nuts, but I thought that was crazy, so I got a bunch of raw nuts and dried fruit for snacking purposes.
I did something like this last summer and lasted for four days. This time I made it only two. Last night, after the second day of nothing but carrots, celery, cauliflower and pepper I started developing a massive headache. I knew this came with the territory and thought I could fight through it. I actually had made some rather tasty raw food dishes like a kind of cabbage slaw that we put on huge leaves of romaine lettuce and ate like lettuce wraps.
However, I went to bed feeling dizzy and headachy. I thought I could sleep it off and be good to go in the morning. Not so. This morning, after a restless night I was still dizzy and my head was still throbbing. W demanded I go eat some FOOD and"screw the diet, you're too skinny!" I called in sick and wobbled to the kitchen, amidst spinning walls, and promptly made some hot oatmeal. In the mean time I managed to put some ingredients in the bread maker so I could have some hearty whole grain bread by lunch.
After some healthy nourishment of whole grain carbohydrates I finally started to feel better.
This is just another example of a resolution gone bad. Sometimes I don't know what I'm thinking. It's not like I'm super unhealthy and eat junk food all the time. I think that's what these kind of diets are for. I, on the other hand, am already thin and in good shape and don't eat unhealthy at all! I promise! Me eating junk food is having two M+M's at Christmas time. My husband makes fun of me all the time because when I go to the kitchen to get a snack, I come back with carrots and celery sticks or half of a pomegranate. I am already a health-food freak, so why did I decided I all of a sudden needed to go on this extreme diet?
I've come up with some crazy notions lately.
So for now, I'm going back to my normal healthy diet. But since I have $100 worth of fruits of veggies and fruit in my fridge, I'm going to have to get creative this week...
Speaking of food and being creative with it, check out my other blog Eat Your Veggies
Monday, January 17, 2011
Resolutions...
Here's the thing with me and resolutions; I love dreaming them up and setting forth on accomplishing them. Always around my birthday and the new year I do it. I have really good intentions to start afresh or something like that, and I believe it's good for me to make goals. But then I get overwhelmed and feel pressured and I just don't want to do it anymore! It's kinda like being forced to do something when you really don't want to, so it makes you hate it even more.
That is why I have to just realize that I'm doing my best and to not beat myself up if I watch the news in the morning, because sometimes it's important to watch the news. It's all about moderation right? I actually feel very good about my resolution of less TV. Maybe I shouldn't be so strict with myself and actually be okay with watching the news and stuff like that.
I think I'm just feeling really unmotivated right now, and I just don't want to do anything, so my resolutions are just feeling like a huge burden for some reason.
I'll be better tomorrow.
That is why I have to just realize that I'm doing my best and to not beat myself up if I watch the news in the morning, because sometimes it's important to watch the news. It's all about moderation right? I actually feel very good about my resolution of less TV. Maybe I shouldn't be so strict with myself and actually be okay with watching the news and stuff like that.
I think I'm just feeling really unmotivated right now, and I just don't want to do anything, so my resolutions are just feeling like a huge burden for some reason.
I'll be better tomorrow.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Do you know why I'm pulling you over Ma'am?
I'm feeling very bummed out on the eleventh day of 2011. After almost six years of a perfect driving record, I just got a speeding ticket today. Boo hoo. I am so sad. This definitely does not fit into my projects for 2011! Although, now I can add a new one which is "Do not get any more speeding tickets!"
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Number 3: Pack Lighter
This week I start traveling again. It's only a one night trip, so it should be pretty easy to try out my new resolution to pack lighter. Then again... I've been know to pack like this on even a one nighter:
Yes, that's all my stuff. You see, I need to pack several different outfits -- all with different shoe options -- for at least six different climates. Because with this crazy ozone layer thing, you can never really know what the weather is going to be like. Even if it's January in New England, it would be my luck that it's 70 degrees the one day I'm there.
Friday, January 7, 2011
An old friend is good for the soul
Number 10 of Project 2011 was put into place yesterday. My boarding school and college roommate called during work yesterday and said she's coming into town and wanted to meet me for dinner. Hooray! We went to dinner with another friend and commented that we've known each other since we were 16! The other friend said that we've known each other for literally half of our lives. When you put it that way, it's kinda crazy! First of all, since when did we become old enough for 16 to be half of our age, and two, for a kid who moved around so much growing up, it's amazing I've known someone for that long and can still hang out with her and have a great time! Conveniently she also lives on one of my travel routes so I get to see her more often than I have in the past.
Even though I got home really late last night, I realized it's more important to spend time with old friends once in awhile. I went to her wedding a year ago, and she came to mine just three months ago. We compared stories of married life and honeymoons and all sorts of girlie stuff like that. Our conversations have come a long way since the high school nonsense we stayed up late at night to whisper about in the dark. But our old girliness still comes out when we're together and it's almost like we're 16 again... despite the under-eye wrinkles we kept pointing out on our faces.
Even though I got home really late last night, I realized it's more important to spend time with old friends once in awhile. I went to her wedding a year ago, and she came to mine just three months ago. We compared stories of married life and honeymoons and all sorts of girlie stuff like that. Our conversations have come a long way since the high school nonsense we stayed up late at night to whisper about in the dark. But our old girliness still comes out when we're together and it's almost like we're 16 again... despite the under-eye wrinkles we kept pointing out on our faces.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Day 2 of No TV
This is how it went down last night -- day two of our no TV project (proving to be more challenging than we thought.)
W: "So what Netflix movie came?"
Me: "Last of the Mohicans."
W: "We can watch that! It's historical!"
Me: "I was thinking the same thing, but we're staying strong!"
Thirty minutes later I was blogging and he was watching a snowboard video on his computer.
Me: "Okay, this is defeating the whole point."
W: "So we might as well just watch Last of the Mohicans."
Me: "Ah, but we're doing so good! And besides, it's already 8:30. I'm going to start getting ready for bed in half an hour."
W: "But it's not TV -- it's a historical movie. It has the British. It has Pilgrims. It has Indians... and it has the British."
Me: "Oh I don't know... and you said British twice."
W: "What if we just watch thirty minutes of it? We'll make it a three-part series."
Me: "Okay. Yes. Put it on."
Exactly thirty minutes later at 9:15 we turned it off and started getting ready for bed. W jumped into bed first and said:
W: "Look, it's your dream come true."
He was propped up on a his pillows reading a book.
Me: "I know, I literally can not even believe what I'm seeing right now."
Me: "You know, I stole that book from your childhood bedroom at your parents house."
W: "Yes, my high school's initials are stamped all over it."
I blissfully crawled into bed with my own book. Day two -- a success!
W: "So what Netflix movie came?"
Me: "Last of the Mohicans."
W: "We can watch that! It's historical!"
Me: "I was thinking the same thing, but we're staying strong!"
Thirty minutes later I was blogging and he was watching a snowboard video on his computer.
Me: "Okay, this is defeating the whole point."
W: "So we might as well just watch Last of the Mohicans."
Me: "Ah, but we're doing so good! And besides, it's already 8:30. I'm going to start getting ready for bed in half an hour."
W: "But it's not TV -- it's a historical movie. It has the British. It has Pilgrims. It has Indians... and it has the British."
Me: "Oh I don't know... and you said British twice."
W: "What if we just watch thirty minutes of it? We'll make it a three-part series."
Me: "Okay. Yes. Put it on."
Exactly thirty minutes later at 9:15 we turned it off and started getting ready for bed. W jumped into bed first and said:
W: "Look, it's your dream come true."
He was propped up on a his pillows reading a book.
Me: "I know, I literally can not even believe what I'm seeing right now."
Me: "You know, I stole that book from your childhood bedroom at your parents house."
W: "Yes, my high school's initials are stamped all over it."
I blissfully crawled into bed with my own book. Day two -- a success!
Monday, January 3, 2011
First Night of No TV
Today the rest of the country went back to work after the Holidays. I took today off to spend with my little brother who lives in Guam and is visiting for a friends wedding. Needless to say I was very tempted to watch TV tonight since it technically is still my vacation and the "real world" hasn't started again. Last night I started watching my recording of Desperate Housewives, but only got 8 minutes into it when my brother arrived. After he left this evening, I thought I would just simply finish watching the episode and for the no-TV-during-the-week.... I'll "start tomorrow." Haven't we all said something like that?
However, I stood strong. I decided to make some vegan recipes I had selected for my lunches this week. W was also standing strong in the No TV area, but was instead planting himself in front of his computer. Um, no. That is not how this works. And I told him so. I said I would love for him to come talk to me while I cook in the kitchen. Halfway through my recipe he made an appearance and gratefully tasted my tofu delicacies (see my other blog www.veggiegoodness.com)
As he gained momentum in the idea of cooking with me, I assigned him the task of roasting the raw cashews and then pulsing them in the food processor.
"We're using a food processor! We're cooking! I'd totally do this everynight instead of watching TV!" He said with sincerity. Melt my heart why don't you!
But then he had a realization.
"If we cook like this every night we're going to spend so much more money than stupid cable."
However, I stood strong. I decided to make some vegan recipes I had selected for my lunches this week. W was also standing strong in the No TV area, but was instead planting himself in front of his computer. Um, no. That is not how this works. And I told him so. I said I would love for him to come talk to me while I cook in the kitchen. Halfway through my recipe he made an appearance and gratefully tasted my tofu delicacies (see my other blog www.veggiegoodness.com)
As he gained momentum in the idea of cooking with me, I assigned him the task of roasting the raw cashews and then pulsing them in the food processor.
"We're using a food processor! We're cooking! I'd totally do this everynight instead of watching TV!" He said with sincerity. Melt my heart why don't you!
But then he had a realization.
"If we cook like this every night we're going to spend so much more money than stupid cable."
Sunday, January 2, 2011
They will always be my "Friends."
Before I say a fond farewell to Friends I decided I couldn't let them go without watching my favorite season one last time -- Season 4. This is Rachel, Joey, Phoebe, Chandler, Monica and Ross at their very best. This is the season when Ross and Rachel are almost on again but he fails to read her 17 page letter (front and back) and doesn't know to what he's agreeing. This is the one where Chandler spends Thanksgiving in a box to prove how much Joey means to him. In season 4 Monica and Rachel lose their apartment to Chandler and Joey when they loe a bet because Rachel thinks Chandler's job is a "transpondster." Phoebe agrees to have her brother's baby, which turns out to be triplets and Ross meets Emily and then says Rachel's name instead of Emily's at their wedding!
And this is why I am putting my Friend's DVD's away for awhile.
And this is why I am putting my Friend's DVD's away for awhile.
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Happy New Year!
It is the first day of the new year as well as my new blog! Since it's a holiday, not to mention a weekend, Project 2011 has yet to commence. Come on, I'm still on Vacation!
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