March is Monday

Guess I gotta get back on that bandwagon of working out.  I would much rather continue to surf youtube and pandora for songs that I would like to work out to...  But it is time to get the workouts back into the mix.
Monday & Tuesday I will be at the Hampton Inn in Canton GA
It is NOT the hotel I was thinking of.  The one I was thinking of had an indoor pool.  I have a very distinct memory of the pool.  I was there in December 2004 and there was a running email commentary about swimming in the pool in winter and how that was a far cry from swimming in the ocean the summer before.
This hotel's pool is outside so it must be a different hotel.  Well I like the Hampton beds so I wont complain about not having a pool.
I will pack the sneaks to hit the treadmill.  I can do that Sunday, Monday & Tuesday.
Wednesday I will try to hit Terri's spin class - which will probably kill me.
Thursday not too sure.
Friday and Saturday it is BACK in the water.  I will not think of sharks and killer whales while I swim...  :)

As for myself and the month of February

Let's just call it like it is...  I have taken the entire month off from doing any sort of exercise.  Not really my intention but somehow that happened between the vet visits and the snow.  As of this morning I will be getting the routines back on my calendar.  Which will be needed as my work calendar has started to team up with travel...  Whoo Hoo - Misssissippi here I come!

Ten Things Tuesday

I have tried to follow this little theme before.  My problem has been inspiration for 10 things and then actually finding 10 things.  Sometimes I find too many other times not enough.  Like the time I was going to do the 10 traffic lights on my way to work... only to be grossly surprised that the number of traffic lights had multiplied exponentially...  I can only imagine how many there are now..
So I dont think I will be getting back on the TTT bandwagon.  Same as I probably wont be getting on the HNT bandwagon either.  I supposed I could highlight the various muscles I am trying to workout in the training for the nex triathlon but maybe not...
I thought maybe over the course of Lent - I would make Tuesdays - Twofer Tuesday - and try to focus on 2 things I am thankful for.  I suppose on some days that will be difficult but I am going to give that a try today..
I am going to start with the basics....
This month has been consumed with a sick little dog.  And as of last night and another $70 we have confirmed he is on the mend.  His right ear looks ~ok~ and his left ear still has some way to go.  So we will continue with his ear drops on a daily basis until they run out and then once a week indefinitely.  He may not like that but hopefully it will keep him well.  During all this I have been reminded how important he is in my life.
The other would be my mom and her spirit.  This month started with her trying to get to Orlando.  Kudos to her for making the trip with all the crazy weather etc.  And this week's highlights for her - she went to EPCOT on Sunday all by herself and took in the sights.  Lucky....

Monday Music Musings - Tara

Through the bizarreness of facebook I have reconnected with an old friend.  Tara and I went to high school together.  I beleive we met in lab chemistry where both of us struggled with our lab partners and ended up working with one another on the side to get the lab work done.  Go figure.
I would say one of our strongest common bonds was a love of music.  I remember in that day I had a little Sears radio on my desk in my bedroom and would spend hours turning the dial through the stations to find good music.  Amazing how that technology has changed over the past 25 years.
Music is still pretty darned relevant to me today.  I would rather listen to a good group of songs any day than get sucked in watching the tele. 
There is music to drive to, work to, cook to, clean to, relax to.  All sorts of music.  Right now it is a "Peter Davison radio" on Pandora.  Meditational.  Other days it is more rocking or dancing.  It all just depends.
And one of my newest highlights in music is Tara's blog.
http://www.gorgeousbear.com/
On an almost daily basis she posts a "sacred song".  And let me tell you she has pulled out some really great hits from back in my memory banks.  I can say over the past few weeks... there have been days that I dirnk my morning coffee with a smile on my face just because of one of the songs. 
So hopefully that will get me back on track with my music musings.  I have found some great things recently to listen to and I just need to get around to sharing it.
Especially since my gym time seems to be lagging....

MMM - The Police - revisited

I have been going back and tagging or should I say labeling posts with th "Monday Music Musings".  I found this one from March 9th of last year.  I think it an odd day for me to rant about PBS and The Police.  I must have been feeling emotional that day... lol
I am trying to get back into my MMM and ironically The Police are back at the top of my ramblings.  More out of courtesy to an idol of a lifetime than anything else.  I will write of the distraction and why I feel almost guilty to The Police at another time...
So I was looking on Netflix for some videos of the other band (to remain anonymous at the moment) when I remembered "Around the World with The Police".  Great little documentary done during the heyday of Zenyatta Mondatta.  Unfortunately it was not an option on Netflix.  But I did find 2 other documentaries on The Police and ordered them.  The one arrived the other night.  It seemed to highlight Regatta de Blanc (my favourite of The Police albums) although it had a copyright date of 2006.  It was an OK doc.  Looked like it wasn't with the buy in of The Police.  But good none the less.  It reminded me of all the musical skill behind the music.  I always think of Sting and his musical talent and how it has morphed over the years.  But this reminded me of Stewart.  Listen to the intricacy in some of those songs.  It is just amazing.  So out of the CD player in the car came Damien Rice and Kylie Minoque and in went The Police (the other 3 slots remain for the unmentioned band).  And again I amjust awed by the music.  Plus it always sounds better in the car.
And to my satisfaction - although I don't know that I will follow through with it - Around the World is on youtube in 9 separate segments.

AND NOW THE OLDER POST....  PROBABLY SHOULD SEE IF I CAN FIND THIS FOOTAGE TOO...
OK for about a week now I have seen that The POlice are to be on PBS. And twice now I have verified they will be on the local PBS. And twice now the tv listings are WRONG!!! I remember this from when I was younger as well. PBS cannot get their scheduling right. No, I am not talking about how the Watergate trials always pre-empted my days of Sesame Street. I am talking about NOVA specials and the such.
And worse yet, tonight I watched Iron Man to kill time before the program - OH and it was good. But when I turned PBS on - Christ Botti was going off. THAT wasn't even listed on the schedule. Errrr.... The only saving grace for both shows - well I have seen The Police live twice this last concert tour. AND I bought a ticket to see Chris Botti when he comes through town next month.
I just wanted to watch both from the comfort of my living room....
It is crazy warm outside I suppose I could go jog some of my frustrations out.
NAH - instead I will go read some of my book

No Corporate Cup for me...

I took an easy way out and decided to help a friend.  KP needed a babysitter for the boys so she could run.  And since she has been doing all this training for a half marathon....  I volunteered to watch the boys so she could run.  Really I am taking one for the team.  I still have to be up early.  But instead of drudging through the cold streets of Charlotte... Instead I get lounge on the couch at her house while the boys most likely sleep in.  And when they wake I will feel obligated to make some sort of unhealthy breakfast.  What a sacrifice.  Sure am glad I can be there for my friend :)

let's just say...

february has been a bust in the workout category
it started to snow every friday which left me feeling stranded most weekends
rush home on friday nights - dont want to go to the gym and come out to a blizzard and interfer with my attempts to get home
most of those evenings i was low on food as well - perfect timing for a light dinner friday night after a swim and saturday morning before a swim - but not enough to cover the possibility of being home bound
and then when satursdays rolled around - getting out of the house in the afternoon was not always possible
and by sunday forget it
so...  this month has been a bust with the workout
i hear you - i know - i have all those workout videos, not to mention the video streaming...
and it has been OK to get out there and walk around; walk around in the snow and get the fresh air in my lungs
but let's just face it, it didn't happen..
so this week is my week to get my head back on straight and try to get a good schedule back in line for the next few weeks...

not something that i discuss on this blog - but my attempts at weight loss have worked out well - i am down about 7 to 8 pounds from my crazy heaviest weight around the holidays...  another 13 to go...

Adding 2 small works in my day

I know it's not much but I am trying to add some small bursts of activity to the day.  There is some other motivation to this.  The small walks will be a morning and an evening walk around the little block (of townhouses).  It only takes somewhere between 8 and 10 minutes to get around the block but it is just something to get the day going.  Truly, it is an attempt to get a little walk in the little guy's world.  Last night's walk went well.  He was excited and that seemed to push him.  This morning I did end up carrying him towards the end of the walk.  I suspect that will be more the case than not but I think it will be good for him and I.  I hope with the morning walk it will motivate me to add some other activity into my morning routine in the line of a workout.  Say a yoga routine, abdominal routine, small cardio...  not sure just yet.
Ask me again tomorrow if I am being successful with this goal.

Worked from home

I had brought a bunch of work home with me on Friday.  Kind of with the anticipation of doing some work over the weekend - that always sounds appealing on Fridays.  And then what if the snow was really bad.  I never suspected that the dog would be sick and I'd need to stay close to home to get him to/from the vet and observe his behavior. 
The good news of working from home - I feel like I got a lot more done.  I also feel like I ate a whole lot less.  Probably because when I did get up from the desk it was for important reasons - like going to get the dog etc.  I wasn't getting up out of boredom.  I don't know why the same exact work seems boring when I sit at my desk versus getting the same things done when I am at home.
That being said - the bad news - I didn't move much.  I feel kind of sore from just sitting for so long.  Or maybe that's from sleeping on the couch to keep an eye on the dog last night.  Tonight I think his crate will come upstairs with me.  And I will lug it back downstairs tomorrow.  His meds may give him an upset stomache at some point and we don't need that all around the house.
I suppose carrying the crate could be considered exercise.
He is feeling a little and we have been rolling on the floor ad playing.
Hmmm - how to find a way to make dog play exercise... maybe stretching with the puppy...
Puppy yoga...