There’s nothing quite like the disappointment of feeling like it’s Friday only to remember that, actually, you still have another entire day to go before the weekend. Repeat every 2-3 hours and you have my day yesterday. But now, finally, it really is Friday. Hurrah! How about some letters?
Dear godson. So, you’re a big 5 years old already! Glad you liked your present (I gave you a marble run because I secretly want one for myself).
Dear weather. Umm, you know it’s supposed to be late summer, right? You’ll have plenty of time for your cold and wind and rain over the next few months so could you at least try to let us down gently please?
Dear rainbow I saw last night. You were beautiful – the biggest (width-wise) and brightest I have ever seen. It’s just a shame you had already disappeared by the time I ran inside and grabbed my camera.
Dear Christmas cross stitch. (Yes, I used the C-word. In September.). I really need to get a move on if I’m going to get all my cards finished in time! It’s less than three months until my sister’s wedding, and I’m hoping to take all the family cards with me when I go to England for that…
Dear scales. Well, at least the number you’re showing my now is back to my previous highest-ever weight from before the holiday completely threw everything out the window. You seem to have stalled again now though. Let’s see some downward movement next week, okay?
That’s all folks. Much love to all who are reading. Have a great weekend.
Okay, I confess, I didn’t exactly bother with healthy eating while I was on holiday. When faced with all the foods I love that are unavailable here, I don’t have much self-control. There were fish and chips, cream teas, Cornish pasties and crumpets. But there were also days we skipped lunch because by the time we had finished whatever thing we were doing it made more sense to go straight to tea (uh, that’s dinner to most of you). And there was walking along beaches and around botanical gardens for miles. Plus we went hiking three times in the Lake District. That’s three four-hour hikes, up and down mountains, clambering over rocks, squelching through bogs… so why do my scales tell me I’ve not only put on all the weight I had lost (which admittedly was only just over a kilogram), but also put on an extra kilogram on top of that? It just goes to show what I already suspected… when it comes to weight loss, exercise is of no use to me. The only way for me to get those scales to be my friend is to cut calories. And with a mere three months to go until I need to fit in a bridesmaid dress, it is a matter of some urgency! So no more crisps, chocolate, cakes and bacon for me… except as a special treat. Healthy eating starts now.
This scone with clotted cream and jam was worth every calorie!
Hooray for Friday! I have been so, so tired all week so now I’m looking forward to just chilling for a while But first I have a whole day of work ahead of me. Aaah.
Here are some letters.
Dear BBC Entertainment. It is very annoying that you neither show up in the TV Guide nor have any information available when I press the “Info” button. I never know when anything is on you, so I just have to keep flicking over to make sure I’m not missing something good. (Currently loving “The Coroner” but I keep forgetting what time it starts and missing the beginning. Grrr.)
Dear sunflower. We did not plant you, but somehow you have grown in one of our pots. Luckily I like sunflowers, so you were an unexpected treat.
Dear ice cream. Whyyy must you be so tasty? Luckily it’s also been too hot to cook recently so I’ve been balancing you out with salad. It seems to be working – the number on the scales is only fluctuating slightly (but refusing to go down any further, ever. Which is totally your fault, ice cream). Speaking of which…
Dear scales. I was entirely unimpressed with the number you showed me this morning. I ate fruit for breakfast yesterday. Fruit! Surely that should result in instant weight loss? 😉
Dear bookshelves. You appear to be overflowing again. I’m really not sure how that could have happened… 😉
Well, that’s all from me for today. Have a great weekend everyone!
The fact that it is Friday is so confusing to me this week! I had three more holiday days from last year that needed to be used before the end of the month and this week was Fasnacht (Basel carnival), so it seemed like a good time to take them, with the result that I went back to work yesterday and now it’s already Friday! While a two day working week is quite relaxing, it is apparently too much for my brain to take in… yesterday I spent 3 or 4 hours totally convinced it was Monday. Hmm. Oh well, on with the letters.
Dear Fasnacht. So, you’re over for another year. As fun as you were, I must admit I will be glad to be able to go into town without being confetti bombed! (And to no longer constantly be hoovering said confetti up from my floor!)
Dear body. I do not understand how it took you a month to shed 1.5 kg and a mere three days to put every single gram of that back on. Fasnacht has a lot to answer for!
Dear Jillian Michaels DVD. I have big plans to get you out and start doing your workouts again. Unfortunately so far the project seems to have stopped at the planning stage 😉
Dear self. I know Goodreads is tempting, but you really do not need to be adding any more books to your wish list. Read the ones you’ve got on your shelves first!
Dear OU. It’s been a long time since I last tried one of your short courses. I hope I’m still disciplined enough to do the work! At least this is one I can do at my own pace – and I have a whole 6 months so that should be doable…
I know I keep saying this, but where is this year going?! We’re more than half way through June already! Unbelievable. At this rate it’s going to be December and I’m going to realise I’ve achieved nothing all year!
But enough about that… letters!
Dear weather. You have a week to improve ready for me to show my visitors around Basel!
Dear mam/brother. Speaking of which… one week til I see you! I’m looking forward to it 🙂
Dear new wardrobe. Can’t wait for you to finally arrive next week!
Dear scales. I’m still not impressed with the number you’re showing me, but at least now it’s moving in the right direction!
Dear cheese. Somebody posted an article on Facebook recently claiming you had been proven to be addictive. Not sure how scientific said article was but I can well believe it!
That’s it for today. I’m off to the shops to find something for tea. Happy Friday, everyone!
I don’t usually do this kind of post, but this is supposed to be a place for me to gather my thoughts and what I’m thinking about right now is goals for the month 😉 Also, our internet has been flaky since we got home, which has kind of thrown a spanner in the works of the Vienna posts. It’s difficult to upload photos when the browser keeps telling you it’s unable to connect!
Complete the 30 Day Squat Challenge! I had to restart because I didn’t do any squats in Austria. I’m now back to day 4 and this time I actually want to finish it.
Be more careful with my money. I did waaaay too much online shopping last month (mostly buying books and summer clothes), and when I checked my bank balance just before we went to Austria I nearly had a heart attack. Of course, it didn’t help that the TV licence people took their money, which doesn’t happen every month. In July, I need to budget better and actually have some money left when my brother comes to visit!
Lose 2 kg before my brother comes. That will put me 2 kg above what I weighed after I had my wisdom teeth out. I can’t believe I’ve actually put on 4 kg since then (almost back up to my original weight!) so I’m determined to get at least halfway back to that weight!
Complete the summer reading challenge. I should be able to read 2.5 books by the end of the month, right?
Eat fruit! I’m terrible at it because whenever I buy fruit it goes mouldy before I can consume any so I end up not bothering to buy any more. But this month I want to buy some and actually do something with it before it’s too late!
That’s all. Five things sounds like it should be doable. Especially since some of them I’ve already started anyway… I just need to actually stick with them this time!
Oh, hi! Sorry for the lack of posts over the last few days. Work has been craaazy. To the extent that I was up at 5:30 a.m. today and yesterday so I could go in early and get stuff done. It’s only half an hour earlier than I usually get up, but my “normal” time of 6 a.m., but somehow it just kills me. As I’m sure you can imagine, the weekend is very welcome this week!
Dear boyfriend. Now that your paper deadline has passed, I hope that you’ll be able to spend at least a little less time working so I can spend some time with you!
Dear Newcastle United. I know Yohan Cabaye has been sold, but please don’t panic and forget how to play. The last thing we want is another derby day loss! (Especially considering how far below us the Scum *ahem* Sunderland are in the table).
Dear scales. Your number has been slowly creeping up for a couple of weeks now, but today was the highest weight you’ve shown me since August! I would like to believe you’re lying to me, but in reality I know exactly how much cake, chocolate and clotted cream I’ve been eating recently…
Dear unhealthy food. Why must you be so tasty? Cream, butter and bacon just make meals taste So. Much. Better. Is it any wonder my weight (and waist line) have taken a turn for the worse recently?
Dear godson. The videos that your mother posted on facebook are very cute, but you’re growing up far too fast! What’s with all this walking and saying actual words? I wish I could see you more often…
Dear February. Welcome! I’m hoping you’ll be a more exciting month than your brother, January.
That’s all from me for today. I hope next week I’ll have both the time and the inspiration to keep up with my blog better. Happy weekend, everyone!
Over the past few weeks, I’ve been letting the fact that I could eat normally again go to my head. Pizza, chips, jaffa cakes, chocolate Digestives and Walkers crisps have all disappeared down my throat like it was the last time I was ever going to be fed. The result? I’ve now put back on half of the weight I had lost thanks to my wisdom tooth operation. Ooops! It’s time for this to stop, and healthy eating to recommence. That’s not to say I won’t be eating any junk food. After all, I do have a sweetie hamper that it would be a shame to let go to waste! And they say a little of what you fancy does you good. But muffins and pizza in the same day? Half a packet of Rolos followed by a bag of crisps and a handful of Liqurice Allsorts? Slightly excessive, don’t you think? It’s got to stop! So, from today, I shall be cooking nice healthy meals again. And no snacking in between! That’s the plan anyway. We’ll see how well I stick to it…
And obviously Irish pub days don’t count… I need my fix of chips with salt and vinegar at least once a month!
*This is the post I had actually planned to write today… the one from this morning was just an added bonus, hence the two posts in a day thing*
The observant among you have probably noticed that I don’t live in the same town where I work. Every day, I get up at 6 a.m. so I can take the (stupidly early) train to work. At first, I bought monthly tickets, but that got annoying after a while so as soon as I passed my probation period, I ordered the BahnCard 100 from Deutsche Bahn.
The BahnCard 100 (Photo: Wikipedia)
There are three versions of the BahnCard – BahnCard 25 gets you 25% off train tickets, BahnCard 50 gets you 50% and the BahnCrad 100… well, can you guess what that one does? Correct! It allows me to travel on any train within Germany for no extra charge. The card itself costs a small fortune, of course, but it comes with CityPlus, which allows me to use opublic transport within any town that participate in the scheme. As both Karlsruhe and the town I work in have CityPlus, with my BahnCard I’m covered for the trams as well. After working out that buying three monthly tickets (for the train and both tram networks) I would only be spending €15 less than the monthly price of the BahnCard 100, my choice was clear.
The other thing that comes with BahnCard 100 is a bonus scheme. It used to be automatic, but recently they’ve changed it so you have to opt in. Non-BahnCard holders can join the scheme as well – they just have to order a separate bonus card. Basically every euro you spend (either purchasing a BahnCard itself or travel tickets) equates to one point for the bonus system. And once you get enough points, you can go to the Bahn website and exchange them for things. There are various “prizes” (for want of a better word) available – everything from train tickets and reservations to wine gift sets and iPads.
Mmm, wine! (Photo: Wikipedia)
A few weeks ago, I received a letter telling me some of my points were about to expire, so I decided it was time to claim a prize. I went on the Bahn website, looked through all the options, and eventually decided to order myself a set of scales – the kind that promise to analyse your body as well as weighing you. They duly arrived on Saturday (when I was not home!) and the neighbour who had taken them for me brought them round on Monday night. Being a man, and therefore a sucker for anything with buttons, Jan wanted to set them up for me immediately. So into the scales went my age, height and the amount of exercise I do, and onto the scales I stepped.
(Photo: SalFalko)
My weight was pretty much what I’d been expecting (and no, I’m not telling you what it is!), so no surprises there, although I would like to get it down a bit. Then came the fat analysis part. Body fat proportion: 30%, said the scales. jan, who was holding the little booklet looked that up. “It says you’re normal,” he reported. “20% to 32% is the normal range for women in your age group.” I went and had a look. He was right… 30% is normal… but the upper end of normal. I’m only 2% away from the “Overwieght” category… just like my waist to height ratio puts me at only 0.02 away from being overweight. Eeep!
I’ve said it before, I know, but this time I really do need to get serious about shifting some belly fat! So far, I still look pretty good in most of my clothes, but seeing that I’m only 2% away from an unhealthly proportion of body fat actually kind of scared me, so I want to put a stop to the weight gain before I actually am fat! I’ve been doing quite well on the exercise front recently, so now all I need to do is ditch the junk food (would now be a good time to admit that I treated myself to a Magnum after work two days in a row? What can I say… I was hot!), pay closer attention to my portion sizes and make a real effort to cook nice, healthy meals containing actual vegetables!
Coincidentally, while I was planning this post, The Pink Rachael introduced her new weekly series,Weigh-in Wednesdays, so from now on I shall be linking up with that. I’m hoping to get at least a centimetre or two shifted before I go to England and have to appear at a christening in – gasp – a pretty frock!
Confuzzledom 