When does a year begin?

There's January 1. Gregorian calendar, I believe.

There's the academic year, August or September.

There's the Chinese New Year.  (2012 - Year of the Dragon, y'all.)

I feel like I also have the Museum Exhibition New Year... Blockbusters have been scheduled November - January, so there's not really a focus on newness when the calendar year changes.  Once this Rembrandt exhibition is over, then the New Exhibition Year begins.

Which corresponds to the Chinese New Year, too, so maybe I'm celebrating that.


Aaanyway, 30 pound challenge weigh-in last night.  Nice round number, easy to keep track of. 

January's goal - MAINTAIN.  What with all the craziness of work, I will be focusing on taking care of myself rather than actively trying to drop pounds.  Healthy mindset of watching what I eat, getting plenty of sleep, and exercising when possible.

January's Goal

Take care of yourself.

Success?

Last night's to do list:
1) do back exercises
2) pluck eyebrows

What I did instead:
1) ate chocolate raspberry cupcake
2) stared at eyebrows in mirror

Every one counts...

Every pound I lose now is a pound I don't have to lose in 2012.

Stomach flu...

Nothing like a stomach flu to jump start your weight loss in the most terrible way possible.  I don't think I have ever been as sick as I was last Sunday night.  And the rest of the week as well.  Yikes.

I think my stomach shrunk with the lack of eating, so it's kind of a good thing, I suppose.  Not that I'd EVER want to go through that again.

Just a number...

I need to lose weight but I'm trying not to place a number on it.  I don't have a scale but I have plenty of clothes with which to gauge my progress.  Again not trying to put a number on myself, as my clothes really run the gamut of sizing no matter how I'm feeling, fat or skinny.

I'm trying to eat healthier and exercise more often.  So far, so good.  Lent should help.  My goal for lent is to get some sort of exercise every day.  Not giving anything up food-wise as so much has been cut out of my diet due to health issues.  Bah!

I got back in touch with my middle school best friend, and it made me remember how unhappy with my weight I was then.  And I was thin and strong.  I wish I had appreciated it more.  Now it's harder to lose weight and get healthy but I think my resolve is stronger too.

ABCs of CEM

In the spirit of getting back into the swing of things, here's an ABC...

A.   Age: 28

B.    Bed size: KING!  This was an easy decision to make after the Boyfriend and I shared a full-size bed with lots of kicking.

C.   Chore you hate: Taking out the trash.  Garbage smell makes me sick!

D.   Drink: Wine.  I just finished a bottle of Chocolate Box Shiraz, and it was delicious.

E.    Essential start to your day:  Putting on my rings and watch.  My whole day is ruined if I don't do this.

F.  Favorite color: Pink, unless we're talking clothes.  Then black.

G.  Gold or silver: Silver (or white gold...or platinum!)

H.  Height: 5’6 1/2"  I fear losing that 1/2" and becoming just 5'6"

I.   Internet obsession: pretending to spend money on luxury items I don't need / can't afford.

J.   Job title: Museum Concierge

K.  Kids: Maybe one day.

L.  Live: Raleigh, NC.

M. Mom’s name: Kathy.

N.  Nicknames:  Crisp Bean (or Bean or Beaner), Chri (friends in Italy), "delicate, accident-prone flower" (thanks, Boyfriend.)

O.  Overnight hospital stays: Not since I was born!

P.  Pet peeve: People who say things that aren't true about me.

Q.  Quote from a movie: "Tina, get your HAM!"

R.  Righty or Lefty: Righty.

S.   Siblings: Two older brothers, Michael and David.

T.   Time you wake up: 7:25 is when my alarm goes off.  I'm not "up" until long after...

U.   Underwear: Cotton!

V.    Vegetables you dislike:   Brussel sprouts.  They taste like feet.

W.   What makes you run late: Waiting until the last minute to do everything, mostly due to laziness.  Oh, and waking up on time.  This also counts for afternoon/evening events.

X.    X-rays you’ve had:  Hmm... a lot?  I just had a CT scan of my abdomen and get x-rays of my teeth done on a regular basis.

Y.    Yummy food you make:  Zucchini and tomatoes with goat cheese.  It's like crack.  Also, white wine chicken.  Plate-lickin' good!

Z.     Zoo animal favorite: Koalas.  They just want a hug!