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Journaling

Personal , Random • Feb 8, 2014

I don’t know why i find journaling so chalenging. Not challenging as in I cant do it – it’s just i’m never motivated to do it. Is that lame? lol.

When my grandmother (dads mother) passed a couple of years ago the only thing that I truly wanted of hers was her journals. I always had the understand that she kept those journals (and she truly did journal daily) for the majority of her life. Although I haven’t truly taken the time yet to read through all of them it was awesome to read the things that I did.

On the flip side though I think that at times what your reading can be a bit sad. She felt different at times about various situations that she never shared with anybody. You can’t go back and change those situations but it’s good insight for future events.

So that leads me to keeping my own journal. I’ve debated over the years on if I should keep a paper journal or digital journal. Over the last few years i’ve really tried to keep both. The digital journal is easier, you don’t have to worry about where it’s at, and of course it’s passcode protected.

But .. at the same time it’s kind of nice to sit and write in a paper journal. Something a bit relaxing about it i guess. I was diagnosed with the onset of carpel tunnel last year so thats one thing to think about as well. It’s a bit painful to write at times so the digital option can somewhat remain easier.

I’ve also been using the Day One app for sometime now. It syncs between my ipad, computer and my iPad which is awesome. I really don’t have a reason to not journal because of truly how easy it is.

I guess that brings me back to my original point though – if it’s so easy for me to have access to journal then why the hell don’t i do it? Does anyone out there keep a journal? If you keep a journal then how often do you take the time to actual write in it and update it.

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99 Questions No One Asks

Random • Jan 26, 2014

So i’ve had this list for a little while. I got it from Leander @ Blog On The DList. I thought it was different than a lot of the random surveys. I also found a 2013 one I might consider. Enjoy! And don’t judge, haha.

1. Do you sleep with your closet doors open or closed?

The room that we sleep in I believe generally has the closet doors open but my room (where my clothes are) the door is generally closed.

2. Do you take the shampoos and conditioner bottles from hotel?

OMG, sometimes! My partner generally gets pretty upset but I feel like i’m paying for all of this free crap!

3. Do you sleep with your sheets tucked in or out?

Tucked in i guess, lol. I mean they are tucked in each day but then you have to sleep in them!

4. Have you ever stolen a street sign before?

Actually YES! Growing up we had some random street close to us. A friend of a friend had that last name!

(more…)

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Nashville – Planning

Fanlistings , Holidays , Personal , Travel • Sep 21, 2013

I’m coming to the realization that the worst part of vacation is the planning. I’m a very type A personality so I think that this should be something that I would like to do. I enjoy list making, some planning, etc, but it’s not easy doing it all alone. My OCD keeps me from making key decisions on my own, lol.

It was somewhat of a last minute decision to go to Nashville. Initially the plans were for Hawaii, and then do to cost we changed to Disney. Got quotes for the trip and everything! But.. once again the price just didn’t make sense. It’s so much money and although we can afford it we just didn’t want to pay out that kind of cash. We have a friend getting married in October so the decision was made to just spend a week in the city!

We spent an entire afternoon last week planning the sites that we wanted to see while relaxing with some coffee at Barnes & Noble. There are tons of great sites to see but it’s a challenge trying to plan in an area that you’ve never been in. Each travel book is so completely different that it’s a challenge putting it all together.

Just browsing through it all though it seems like there are a ton of things to do while in the city. I’m probably most excited to shoot over to Memphis and see Graceland. It is a place that i’ve wanted to see probably my entire life. The funny part is that i’m not even really an Elvis fan. I think it’s just the point of going and seeing a piece of the country that houses such a huge part of history. Music history!

On a side note the fanlistings are on their way to back up and running! The forum is open to old members and it’s exciting to begin to get back involved again.

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Weight Watchers – A Journey

Health , Personal , Weight Watchers • Mar 22, 2013

252267_10151180755280958_1378249406_nWeight loss has been a struggle for me my entire life. I remember deciding that I wanted to do my first diet on summer break between my Sophomore and Junior year of high school. I remember for the first time in my life thinking that I was FAT. The diet was nothing special. I don’t remember the amount of I lost but I remember the feeling after that first journey.

7 years ago, at age 19, I was again faced with the same issues I dealt with in high school. Alone, working retail in a mall, going to school full time, I let myself get to a record high of 325 POUNDS. No, i’m not kidding. 325 pounds was, and still thankfully is, my max weight. Wearing an XL DRESS SHIRT with buttons about to burst I knew that it was again time to make a huge change and I had to do it fast.

One of the ladies that I worked with had this great idea to try WEIGHT WATCHERS. She said that we could buy the books to do the program offline and read about how to do the program online as well. As crazy as it sounds that is exactly what we did.

I feel that the program is pretty straight forward. You are allotted a specific amount of ‘points’ per day based on you sex, age, activity level, and current weight. The goal is to eat within those specific points each day and the end result is that you lose weight. Well.. it works!

I’ve tried NutriSystem, The South Beach Diet, Slim Fast, The Master Cleanse, and many other random diets (just google diets and the crap that appears will blow your mind). This was the first diet where I could eat whatever I wanted and not have to feel any guilt. If I wanted to go out and get a quadruple cheeseburger I could. I learned that there were consequences to what I was eating though. If I ate that burger than there was nothing else that I was going to be able to eat that day.

7 Years ago I went from 325 pounds down to 225 pounds. It all took less than a year to do it as well. I have spent the last few years (and attempted a few of those crazy fad diets as well) fluctuating between 200 and 225. I was a big fan of NutriSystem but the cost was way to expensive. I used Slim Fast to get down to around 180. I still struggled back and forth with different diets.

When February began I had another co-worker who had the bright idea to do Weight Watchers and wanted someone to do it with. I stepped up at around 175 pounds and decided it was time, once and for all, to finish my weight loss journey and get exactly where I need to be.

Now, almost 2 months into the program, I am down another 15 pounds and am around 160. The sad part about this journey, and also the most shocking to me, is that my co-worker has fallen off of the band wagon and i’m still going strong! We head to VEGAS next week so i’m hoping that I can stay on the diet with no issues.

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Death

Personal , Random • Jan 22, 2013

DEATH. We all know that at some point its coming. At a certain point in life as well we know that it’s going to begin to surround us It’s always a shock and it’s never the type of surprise any of us look forward to. The circumstances are always unexpected and its always unfortunate.

This morning at 2:30 AM my grandfather MERLE SMITH passed away. It was everything listed above. As an older man I knew his time was coming. I knew that every minute I had with him could some day be my last. I took that for granted and unfortunately I didn’t spend as many moments with him as I should have. A REGRET IS A MISTAKE THAT YOU HAVEN’T LEARNED FROM. I learned therefore I have no regrets. I look back and smile only on the happy memories I still have.

Grandpa was admitted to the hospital on Sunday for pneumonia. At the time everything was normal. Being elderly the admittance was simply just a precaution. Monday evening things went sour when an aneurism in his brain burst. A few short hours later he passed to his home in heaven. He will have great company with fellow family members that have gone before him. 

Today is the first time ever that i’ve called off work for a death in the family (don’t judge me). I feel that its more benefiting to be at work keeping my mind off of the pain instead of sitting at home and sulking about it. This situation is different. This man meant everything to me. My dad passed when I was young and this man stepped in quickly to fill the voice. This he continued to do up until the day that he passed. I will never forget the beautiful memories that I am left with.

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