Comments (21)

By kilax, December 19, 2008 5:26 am

If you could receive one non-tangible item for the holidays, what would you choose?

I would like my train to be on time, every night.

No more “mechanical problems,” “signal problems,” “accidents not related to this train” (yeah, that was an excuse for one of the delays on Tuesday), no more leaving the station late, no more sitting on the train not moving, with no explanation…

Yeah, I know that is too much to ask for. I think my train is on time in the evenings 20% or less of the time when I take it. I think if it is ALWAYS going to be late, they should just adjust the schedule to accommodate the later time. Then I wouldn’t get as upset, because I would expect it to arrive at that later time.

This may seem like a dumb answer to this question, but it takes me a long time to calm down from the anger the late train causes. Steven can attest to that! It’s silly to let something like that upset me, but it does. I have limited time in my evenings, and I want to make the most of them. So, I would love to get rid of that anger, and anxiety, of wondering when I will EVER get home.

I love riding the train, I really do. But I hate feeling like my evening is out of my control when I get stuck on it. (I hate feeling like anything is out of my control…)

Comments (11)

By kilax, December 14, 2008 9:26 am

I don’t know if you’ve been paying attention to my little weight-loss tracker on my sidebar… but it has gone up! As in, I’ve gained some weight.

It all started when my family was out here baking cookies, and I ingested 12 pounds of cookie dough/baked goods. Then Thanksgiving came. I tried to eat healthy, but that didn’t last the whole day. Then, with the stress of changing jobs…

See how wonderful I am at making excuses for myself?

It’s amazing that I can be so hard on myself when I make what I perceive as one little mistake (like eating an extra cookie or something) but so easy on myself when I have been just eating away, piling on the pounds, not really taking care of myself, or caring.

What is that about? Really? Where does this mentality come from? “Oh, it’s okay if I pack on a little weight around the holidays! Everyone does, and it will come right off!”

No, it is NOT okay. Because once I start down that track, it is hard to get off of it. I recognize that right now is not the most sensible time to be losing weight, but I do need to stay on track and only allow myself a few indulgences (except Christmas Day – no restrictions then).

The sad thing is, I recognize the triggers that make me overeat – boredom, stress, frustration, guilt, restriction – but I’ve just been ignoring my inner voice. Well, it’s time for that to stop.

I don’t know HOW, but it is time for that to stop. Or at least, for me to stop making excuses for myself.

In other “health” related news, Steven and I have discussed our plan of attack to train for a half marathon (13.1 miles). We are following two  guides from Runner’s World – an 8-week program that takes you from 3 miles to 6 miles, then another 8-week program that takes you from 6 miles to 12 miles. We’ll start the program tomorrow.

There are two half marathons in Illinois in April, but I don’t think we will be ready for them if we follow this training, but I am going to search for a target race for us. I am excited about it! I think this will be a fun adventure to embark on together.

Comments (23)

By kilax, October 24, 2008 5:40 am

Do you plan on handing out treats to trick-or-treaters for Halloween this year? What kind of treats will you hand out?

Our town is kind of goofy. It seems they always have the trick-or-treating on the Sunday before Halloween, which means it will be this Sunday, October 26th. Seems kind of early.

We handed out candy last year, and it was such a bust. It was almost like we had to do the work to get the trick-or-treaters to come to us. I was disappointed. It was my first year handing out treats in “my own” home.

I haven’t asked Steven if he wants to hand out treats this year, and I am guessing he will say no. But, if we do decide, for some reason, I would like to hand out those little packs of animal crackers. They’re only 60 calories each, and would make a good “snack” for me if we had leftovers!

Comments (18)

By kilax, October 23, 2008 7:53 am

Even though it is an entire month away, I am already getting really excited for a trip my parents and sister are planning to Chicago for the weekend before Thanksgiving.

When I was back home last weekend, my mom said, “You know what would be fun? If all of us girls got together at Grandma’s house and baked a bunch of cookies like we did that one year*!”

Of course, I had to be selfish and say, “Why don’t you all come out to Chicago? We can spend one day ‘window shopping’ downtown, and the next day baking the treats!”

My sister is going to be in Chicago for a one-day trip the Friday before Thanksgiving, so it works out perfectly for her to just stay here and ride home with my parents! Yay!

And Steven is really excited that they are visiting, because it means free slave labor he’ll have some help (my dad) working on his “project car” – a 1978 Datsun 280Z.

Now… we just need to figure out who we are going to give all these cookies to!

* In December 2001, when I was a senior in high school, my mother, grandmother, and a friend of mine decided to make tons of cookies for all of our friends, family, and teachers at school. We baked them all at my Grandmother’s (now she lives in a different town that my parents). I have always loved to bake! I am excited we are going to be doing this again!

All of the trays of cookies.

Small plates of cookies to hand out!

Me, looking like the goober I really am.

Comments (5)

By kilax, December 26, 2007 8:14 am

I think I saw heart-shaped Valentine’s Day balloons in a Walgreens this morning.

Barf.

And did anyone else notice the “Didn’t get what you want for Christmas? Come to our After-Christmas sale!” and “Time to take off that holiday weight!” ads on the television yesterday?

Hi. While I am opening my presents, I don’t want to see an ad about “not getting what I want.” And I definitely don’t want to see an ad about “losing weight” while I am working on my third piece of pumpkin pie.

It just seems like every year, advertising gets pushed forward. Soon enough, we will be seeing Christmas decorations in the stores in July!

When will we get a break?

Comments (8)

By kilax, December 25, 2007 9:34 am

Happy Holidays from me and the boys…

… who will probably remain in this position all day long.

We plan to spend the day eating fettucine alfredo, rolls, stuffing, pumpkin pie, and sugar cookies (jealous of our amazing menu?) while watching movies on our new 50″ plasma. It should be a nice, relaxing day.

Happy Holidays to everyone! I hope your day is filled with fun and laughter!

Comments (6)

By kilax, November 25, 2007 5:59 pm

This is a photo of the street I work on downtown. Even though the photo is poorly composed and blurry (hey, we can’t all be bobbi, can we?), I hope you can still make out the trees in the background – beautifully decorated in white holiday lights.

I am no grinch. I love the holidays. I love spending time with friends and family. I love holiday music and movies. I love baking too much food and eating too much food. I love exchanging gift, playing games, staying up too late and laughing too hard.

But this year I haven’t gotten into it. Thanksgiving didn’t feel like Thanksgiving (even though I had a blast). Christmas doesn’t feel like it is a month away. I have made holiday gift lists and purchased holiday cards to send… but I feel like I am going through all the actions without the emotion.

Luckily, I get to see the beautiful holiday lights in downtown Chicago five days a week. Even when I am leaving work at what feels like a too late hour, they still bring a smile to my face.