Fitbit mania!

This year, health has been a watch word of sorts for me – financial, mental, physical, etc.

On the physical front, my Fitbit has been a godsend of sorts. My love affair with Fitbit is such that if I go walking and forget my fitbit, I feel an acute sense of loss. Needless to say, it goes almost everywhere I go now.ร‚ย I’ve become part of some Challenges on Fitbit and those have spurred me on to greater heights. The past 7 days, I’ve averaged ~ 15, 000 steps daily with just a little effort.

To cut this story short, here’s the take away: if you’re struggling with motivation to be consistently active, become best buds with your Fitbit and you’ll thank me later when you develop toned legs. ๐Ÿ™‚

 

A “review” of Always Infinity sanitary pads

I’m taking a break from talking about my mundane life matters to talk about this very important subject: feminine hygiene products. Specifically, the Always Infinity pads. You see, I was immediately ensnared by the funny ads that Procter & Gamble released to herald these pads with the ‘revolutionary’ Infinicel technology. The tag line for this new product was along the lines of ‘now you see it, now you don’t’, etc. Well, having stocked up a pack of a different set of Always towels, I didn’t bother with giving the Infinity line a try. Fast forward to sometime in June when my time arrived and rather unexpectedly, too.

An emergency trip to an Ingles store was made and as these unexpected emergencies go, the prices at said Ingles store caused me to temporarily consider the good old wash-and-wear-a-cloth-towel, but I thought better. Then, I had a brain fart: I’d heard so much (via commercials) about the Always Infinity Pads and decided that I might as well ‘splurge’. For 18 pads, the price was a little more than I’d spend for a pack of the same quantity. Still, I was in an experimental mood so I pulled the trigger.

First impressions:

  1. It’s thin. It definitely feels like you’re wearing a pantiliner versus a thick pad.
  2. The pad ‘pulls’ the absorbed blood into the layer below so that you’re not really seeing the full picture of how heavily you’re bleeding. Looking at the underside of the Always infinity pad will give a more accurate picture of the quantity. I like this feature because I felt cleaner; I felt the pad wasn’t just passively absorbing the flow, but actively keeping the area ‘unclogged’. You just have to try it to experience the moisture-wicking thing.
  3. It comes with an extra-sticky back and longer wings than I’m used to. I’m firmly on the A-Sticky-Back-On-A-Pad-Is-Always-Better side. Longer wings are also good because it means there’s a reduced chances that you’ll ‘dislodge’ your pad. Don’t ask. ๐Ÿ™‚

Criticisms:

  1. Truthfully, I have never complained about my pads being too thick because I don’t wear skimpy or tight things when I’m on my period. Period. ๐Ÿ™‚ (Sorry, I couldn’t resist). Between the pain and icky-ness of it all, I definitely don’t feel my sexiest during this time. My point is: a subset of women like myself are of the opinion that making pads thinner should not jack up the price so much. To me, a thinner pad seems to be the crowning achievement of the Always Infinity pad. Not enough to make me want to purchase an Infinity pad for the next go-around.

Alright, back to your regularly scheduled programming. ๐Ÿ˜›

Enhanced by Zemanta

2009 so far

Where do I begin? This year started on a so-and-so note. Personal reasons mostly and unrelated to marriage (so you can stop worrying, Mom. lol), but I was both hopeful and yet down. However, several things have happened to turn that frown upside down. In not particular order, here’s what’s happened:

  1. The biggest change that happened this year was that Matt and I have become more spiritual. By no means am I a bible thumper nor can I recite bible verses longer than 2 lines, BUT I’ve found a church that appeals to my core and I can’t wait to become a full member of this church. I’m SO looking forward to nourishing my soul with the Word of the Lord tomorrow (God willing).
  2. nailI got an award at work for being so helpful during the use of the facilities at work by a government agency. Hopefully, little things like this will translate to a pay raise although this recession pretty much guarantees that I’ll be at my current pay grade for a year or two. It’s not too big of a deal, but it was nice to be recognized for my hard work.
  3. Sometime in June, I quit biting my nails. I backslid twice, but never back to ground zero (i.e. as bad as it used to be) so I was always able to bounce back and I recently posted pictures of my hard-fought battle on Facebook which is what you see in this post. That picture signifies the personal, figurative and literal growth that is my life. I wish you the same.
  4. Back in June, I submitted my application to the USCIS to remove restrictions placed on my permanent residency because Matt & I were married for less than two years. I can appreciate the reasons this limit was instituted, but for couples together for genuine reasons, it can be a nerve-wracking time. We filed the application without the aid of a lawyer because they charged over $1,000 for their use. In an amazing turn of events, our application got approved in less than 4 months and as I write, I am in possession of my 10-year permanent resident card, more commonly called the green card! This is awesome news and what this means for me in practical terms is that Matt & I will have the freedom to plot our travels. ๐Ÿ™‚ Continue reading 2009 so far

Being bold and beautiful

I got back home from work with a heavy heart, despairing of ever getting my work done and done right. Then, I watched the movies (Rocky III and Rocky IV) and spoke to my husband. My world stopping spinning crazily and now, I’ve mapped out a strategy for conquering the work place chaos. As it has been written in the Good Book, if God is for me, who can be against me? (Romans 8:31). Speaking of the Good Book, Windows users are in luck because I found this program (The Sword Project by the CrossWire Bible Society) that installs the entire bible on your PC and gives you the options of installing a myriad of alternative bibles (English Standard Version, King James’ Version, Authorized King James’ Version, International Standard Version, et cetera). Check it out and you won’t regret it. I don’t and I intend on making use of it. I’m rejuvenated and ready to do my J.O.B. ๐Ÿ™‚ What can I say? Life? It’s looking pretty good right now. Not because I’m making any “special” moves. Life is simply … good. I’m healthier than I have been in a long while. I am in love with the dearest man I know. I am surrounded by positive people and I am just thankful.

Last week, my theme song was Eminem’s “The Way I Am” andร‚ย it fit my black mood because for some reason, I felt really angry. If you read the lyrics to that song, you’ll sense his mounting anger and at times, I felt like belting those same words out loud whenever I would encounter the source of my anger. Here are some choice snippets: “If you tip me, my tank is on empty. […] I’m tired of arguing – I don’t mean to mean but it’s all I can be, It’s just me […]” et cetera. Just to be clear, my angst was not directed at a person. Let’s say I was having some existential discussions with myself. lol. In any case, this week, I’m allร‚ย daffodils and butterflies. I have caught myself humming Christmas melodies and I’mร‚ย mulling on the purchase of a Christmas greatest hits CD. lmao.ร‚ย I can just hear Matt cringing already.

Well, gotta run. Happy Friday, y’all!

An unknown allergy, missed connections and Google maps

lol. Forgive my hype-ness. My laptop is here! Well, not in my hands because someone *cough* Matt *cough* decided to take a leak/swim/poop/run after I told him to expect the Fedex delivery of the precious cargo. lol. Now, he’s going to have to do the scut work of going to the Fedex facility to pick up my baby. I’ve got to give the laptop a name. I’m taking any suggestions so feel free to leave comments about a laptop name, preferably female because I’m into the whole strong black female thing. ๐Ÿ˜€

In other news, I was struck with an unknown ailment last night. It wasn’t serious, but it was the weirdest thing ever. I had an allergic reaction to some unknown item. I had just finished cooking some rice with vegetables and I liberally doused the meal with curry powder. M initially thought I might have been allergic to curry, but I didn’t think so. I was itching like crazy and I felt like scratching my skin off! It felt very much like I had taken some chloroquine and was witnessing a side effect of taking that anti-malarial drug i.e. itching. I definitely needed some calamine lotion and after this incident, I will be on the lookout for calamine lotion because last night was awful. *shivers*

In other news, I just discovered that Google Maps has a feature where you can chart your course by walking! It’s really cool and I will be testing it out as soon as the heat dies down. lol. Check the screenshot of the fteature out. I don’t think this is available to everyone. I like to think I’m special. ๐Ÿ™‚ It’s pretty cool, but I can’t attest to how ‘true’ it really is. I’ll have to wait until the heat dies down a little bit which may take a while. In the meantime, I’ll have to content myself with bumming rides off my husband. lol. Not that he minds although he’d have you believe otherwise. Things are getting rather busier and I’m getting a glimpse of what my life will be like once school starts. I’m excited and looking forward to the busy-ness. Yes, that’s a word and I’m sticking to it. I’ve got to run. Got lots of places to go, things to see and people to kill. Haha! That was a line from Hercules albeit a mangled and substantially altered line.

An advancement in science and my home

Have you heard about the guy who got an infusion of his T cells and put his advanced melanoma into remission for 2 years? It’s funny that I’ve been getting lots of information about immunology the past 2 weeks. It coincides nicely with the aforementioned big fish. In any case, our power bill was actually lower than last month’s bill! Yes, we spent approximately $1.19 per day compared to $1.18 per day for the last bill which was ~ $35.42 for a 30-day cycle. This bill was for 29 days, but still I’m impressed. ๐Ÿ™‚ We still haven’t had to turn on the air because we keep our ceiling fan going and the windows shut during the day. At night, we open our windows and turn the air on also to keep things fresh at home. I’m happy because I know our low bills haven’t been some freak occurrence of nature.

In biking news, I think I have to make huge adjustments to the way I eat. Apparently, eating like a regular person while kicking ass on the trail = muscle/weight loss because that nutrition is not tailored to the “athlete” (I’m far from an athlete, but I am an amateur sports enthusiast). Seriously, you know something’s off when after eating like a horse during the day, you go for a ride and come back ravenous – You eat and go to bed only to wake up starving. I’ve been increasing the length and intensity of my rides and I am learning that the human body is simply resilient. I’m learning more about nutrition and how to nourish my body so that it has an appropriate response to challenges.

We went grocery shopping and got a bunch of awesomely healthy items! For the longest time, M & I haven’t had bagels so I decided to get Thomas’ 100% whole wheat bagels. At 240 calories a bagel, they definitely beat my favorite snack (99 cent Baked Lay’s chips) which is a hefty 210 calories when you consider that the bagel has more “bang” (nutritionally speaking) for the buck. Pairing that with whipped cream cheese, 2 boiled eggs and a banana, you have my delicious breakfast for this morning. What do you do when you don’t have a toaster? You use your oven so I flipped the nozzle to 300F and toasted my hearty whole grain bagel. That same temperature will nicely toast bread too. Then, M & I are going to head for the trails when he wakes up. I’ve been getting up at 5am the past 3 days (for no good reason!) so I’m really looking forward to sleeping in someday. The simple pleasures. ๐Ÿ˜€ Another of my favorite breakfast combos before going into work is oatmeal mixed with a serving of Soy Powder and a fruit. On days I’m pressed, I only have time for the oatmeal and the soy powder combo. The fruit is a to-go item usually. Among our purchases was balsamic vinegar and some extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) which we will use to roll our homemade salad vinaigrette dressing. I’ve got the spices and I’ve got the dressing maker courtesy of Mrs. J so it’ll be interesting to see how it turns out. M’s always less than thrilled with my salad dressing choices so this should cool his tongue for the moment. lol. Love you still, M. ๐Ÿ™‚

Here’s our haul: Continue reading An advancement in science and my home

My baking experiment

Y’all, I don’t know what I was thinking. I tried making oatmeal cookies without shortening or extract. I pulled a recipe off the internet and unsurprisingly, I made an oatmeal/flour goop that was sorta tasty. Just not oatmeal cookies. ๐Ÿ™ Still, bless his heart, M praised my abilities. That man rocks. He complimented my toes not too long ago and my immediate family knows what those crusty appendages look like. ๐Ÿ™‚ I’m slightly bummed out, but not giving up. On our next trip to Wally world, I’ll be investing in some vanilla extract and vegetable shortening. In short, baking stuff. However, I won’t be doing too much of baking because if it goes wrong, a lot of ingredients would have been wasted. Speaking of cooking, M introduced another vegetable in our cooking vocabulary: cabbage. I tried my hand at cooking it and adding it into whole wheat spaghetti. It was a success and I intend on using it some more.

In other news, We’ve made some small strides toward debt reduction. Technically, we’re in the black although by less than three figures. It’s small, but encouraging. Also, I recently made a video for my father-in-law on how to zip files. It was a fun little project made possible by Camtasia (version 3) which is horribly expensive, but there’s a free alternative at CamStudio. They are both basically screen recording utilities and Camtasia is obviously more powerful. I didn’t really do any voice editing (no take two’s largely because I didn’t know how to go back and forth to erase sections where I mumbled and such), but I tried adding arrows and things to visually help out the user. I hope this helps anyone out there! And try not to make too much fun of how redundant certain things might seem, but for a user who is not very familiar with the workings of Windows, it will be of certain benefit. M floated the idea of making a series of training videos about things mostly based on questions I’ve had from my father-in-law about certain tasks. I’d love to do them so I’ll be brainstorming on some fun tasks I can come up with. Enjoy!!