Friday 11th October
Where has the time gone. We are nearly halfway through October and I haven't written anything.
Actually, if truth be told, I was going to remove this and not bother any more but a few people have commented on how they enjoyed reading it and, I must admit, I do enjoy writing it. I just feel pressure to update sometimes when I just don't feel like saying anything or work, family and life don't leave much time for anything else. My problem - not yours!
So what's been happening in this cat's life.
Nothing terribly exciting, actually! Work continues. I'm still not sure where I will end up but I have approached the oncology day centre to see if there are some shifts available there ('normal' hours - yay!) and I am also considering sussing out palliative care in the community. In the meantime I'll just trundle along.
String Bean is rapidly approaching his final week of school and then *gulp* exams. I hope he does well enough to get into the course of his choice.
The Drummer is up and down. He worries me but at least we can talk about how he feels. He also has developed swollen glands in his neck so another trip to the doctor looks in order. Maybe it is glandular fever this time. That would explain a lot!
The Kid is seeing the surgeon on Monday for yet another ingrown toenail. This has to be the last. We're running out of toenails!
Himself plods along. He has gout - we have finally got a definitive diagnosis so now we start treatment and prevention. He has realised that he has put a lot of weight on lately and is gently doing something about it. The rotten bastard can lose weight so easily without really changing anything major.
I have tried to eat sensibly and have cut way back on the old grog and the scales have gone up and up and up and my clothes don't fit at all. I am majorly pissed off!!!!!! Looks as if I shall bite the bullet (how many points in a bullet - not the chocolate coated licorice ones!) and get back on the old WW wagon. Lordy, lordy, lordy I wonder if I will ever learn my lesson. I now weigh what I did when I joined WW way back in 2000. I have gained back every bloody kilo of the ten that I lost (many times over, I must admit!) and I am soooooo fed up. Who can I blame? Me! Noone else. Who can help me? Me again! Who has the answers? Me and WW. DUH!!!!!
OK. I'm back into it. And I am now going to eat my yoghurt (I've had a bowl of sultana bran with Rev - hate skim, a tuna and cucomber and lettuce sandwich, and the yoghurt is a heavy pointer cos it's not artificially sweetened but I prefer the flavours. There is a yummy latte one. Still 2.5 is better than the 18 or so I would have had in the crap I've been eating.) Whilst I eat that I shall have a squizz around the net then back to painting The Drummer's bedroom. He was born 20 years too late. Loves the 70's and all the things about them. His walls are now pale blue with very dark blue lava lamp effects with lighter blue blobs in the dark ones. And they are a complete bugger to paint! But the effect will be fantastic. I'll post a photo when it's finished.
Have a great weekend everyone. And thanks for reading my rambles!
Tuesday 15th October
No piccie today. They are giving me the irrits and it takes me more time to do them than to do the actual entry!!
I worked over the weekend at we had two very pleasant shifts. Too many young people though. Look after your health, guys, and get yourself checked out sooner rather than later if anything seems odd.
On Saturday I took The Kid to the doctor to get the referral to the surgeon for the ingrown toenail. He goes in on Friday and will have both toes worked on. When I got home The Drummer had surfaced with neck glands more swollen. Back to the doctor we went! He is now on antibiotics but his neck is not getting any better so we are going back again in an hour. He has a job interview for a summer job this evening. I hope he feels better but he insists on going.
String Bean ...... well, he's 18 .... need I say more?!
Himself .... he's off to the doctor this afternoon to have an irritating chronic cough investigated. I hope it's nothing sinister but after smoking for over 40 years it could be anything. He gave up when I did. Fingers crossed, please.
Me? .... I have recommitted to WW after my moment of blah on Friday. Several people at work are losing weight and we had a good old natter about various things on Saturday evening. It is easier if more than one do this sort of thing. Specially in our ward where patients are always giving us chocolates!! Three days into it and I'm feeling in control. I'm still deciding whether to go back to meetings. I have 7 meetings prepaid and am hoping to get my we love you where are you letter from WW in the next week or so. I find meetings and shift work a bugger though. Maybe I should consider doing it from home. That is the least of my worries, though. I just need to shift this weight and WW is the way to do it.... wherever I do it.
A friend from work rang on Sunday night in a bit of a state. Unrequited lurve. She came and stayed the night and after I had taken The Kid to the surgeon yesterday we hit Southland and had a wonderful girly time. I bought a suitcase for my Tassie trip. (Hey Kazzi, anything you need from the mainland???!!!) It is big enough to take clothes for both of us and now I just need to make sure that the clothes that go into it will fit!!! I know I've left things a bit late but I should be able to shift a bit of weight in 5 weeks. And, of course, there is plenty of room for chocolate .... for The Kid - not me!!
There were lots of yummy clothes in the shops yesterday and they weren't too expensive. I would love to be able to buy one new outfit before we go. We are only going to be in Tassie for 4 days but it is a special trip for him and me and I want it to be perfect and if I feel better about myself I will enjoy it more. Regardless, though, I will ensure that he has the best time.
I'm waffling!!
Housework beckons - not that I will necessarily respond but I'd better hang out The Drummer's pants so they are dry by this evening! Damp cords are not a good look!!
Cheers all .....
Wednesday 16th October
And at her suggestion, this ... 
. Our lives WILL go on. We are Australians and I hope that we react to this sadness in an Australian way and don't follow others' agendas like sheep. Nuff said.
On the home front....
The Drummer is getting better thanks to extra strength anti-biotics. He is still unwell and is sleeping a lot but at last his temperature has dropped below 38. He went for his job interview last evening and, in his words, stuffed it! He hasn't had a group interview before and he wasn't his usual bright sparkling self anyway. There were a group of girls who took over proceedings! It is an indication of how sick he is that he didn't rant and rave for hours about how badly he felt he had done.
I know I'm not supposed to hop on the scales every day but I have been and I have lost a kilo and I want to lose more!!!! My 'official' weigh in day will be Saturday so I have three more days to go. I have been tracking everything and I know that my sugar points will be over this week thanks to my overindulgence (read piss-up) on Sunday night. I guess my frustration is knowing that I won't be much smaller by the time I go to Tassie. I need to get over this mindset of wanting to be perfect for specific occasions. Three (at the moment) potentials for overeating in the next 5 weeks. Himself's birthday this weekend. I should be able to handle that one. Dinner with a girlfriend in a fortnight or so. Watch the grog and the food should take care of itself. My father's birthday. Mother has arranged for "gourmet" sandwiches. I shall eat before and after. (My mother reminds me so much of Hyacinth Bucket - she, of course, cannot see the resemblance and would be mortified if she knew her offspring saw her that way. We constantly stifle the temptation to suggest candlelit suppers!!)
Working this afternoon. I am taking a Lean Cuisine salmon pasta (7 points ... a bit high but I'd bought them before I checked the points) with a salad. Did I tell you about the Lean Cuisine Spring Vegetable Risotto with a small can of tuna mixed in to make something similar to a kedgeree? Only 4 points the lot and so easy and yummy. That will be tomorrow's lunch at work. Off to make the family's lasagne.
If I don't get back before the weekend, have a great one.
And it's so good to see you back, Trish.
Monday 22nd October
Just a quick update. Housework beckons and the out-laws are coming around this evening so I need to get the dust off the furniture, cat hair off the couch and stains off the floor. Alternatively I could go out for the evening!!
The Kid had both his toes done on Friday and he is still somewhat tender .... and bored out of his little brain.
It was himself's birthday on Saturday and we had a lovely weekend.
I lost 2.2 kilos. I know this is mainly fluid but the graph on the fridge looks good and I bought myself some cute stickers to stick everywhere. The graph on the fridge, the suitcase in the lounge (although it's in the bedroom cos of the outlaws coming and I don't think mother -out-law would understand my rationale for leaving a suitcase in the lounge), constant thoughts of Tassie and my rewards (haircut and change of colour after 4 kilos off, facial after 8 and maybeeeeeee artificial nails after 12. I loved my acrylic nails but stopped wearing them when I started nursing and they are really a no-no but many nurses where them and if you look after them I can't see them being an infection risk.) ... where was I? Oh yes all those things keep me going when the temptations get strong. I really must stop going off on tangents. It must make it awfully hard to keep up with what I'm saying. But if you knew me, you'd know that's me!!!
String Bean has two more days of school and HE ISN'T STUDYING ENOUGH (that's his mother's point of view and she is entitled to it cos it's her job to nag and make him miserable!!!) I know they say VCE is stressful but I thought they were talking about the kids. He is cruising .... his parents are gibbering wrecks.
Floors, here I come. We bought a steamer cleaner thingy on the weekend (well himself did with some money my generous parents sent him). Himself wanted it for his precious car but it does wonders on windows, showers, floors, ovens, carpets ...... now I just have to get enthused about cleaning. Actually, I enjoy cleaning cos I love the results .... it's the constant picking up and putting away before I can START cleaning that gets up my nose.
Off to pick up .......
Back later ....
Tuesday 22nd October
Blah, blah, and blah again. Major stress out last evening which resulted in my usual coping of alcohol and crap food. I don't know why I was so stressed. The prospect of the out-laws was certainly a factor. The Drummer was practising ... very loudly and that always stresses me. The telly was up a bit loud and himself kept muttering about not being able to watch the news because the kids were watching a DVD. So I have totally gone over my points. On Friday and Saturday evenings I stopped counting but still made good choices. And it was planned. Last night ...... well .......
So ...... back on the wagon today, old cat. So I may not show another good loss on Saturday but a bit of damage control and the graph should continue to slope down. And this is a long term thing. Yes, I'd love to be a certain weight by certain dates but if I'm not, well, shit happens!!!! Life goes on. By my 50th (*erk*) in 4 years time I want to be slim and healthy and well and truly living the life.
A thought ..... why do so many of us beat our selves up and obsess about occasions where we stuff up but seem incapable about doing the same on occasions where we do really well (and they DO outnumber the stuff ups!) Today's task ..... focus on the good days I've had, not yesterday. And while I'm at it, I'll focus on the good things about me and not the bad. And maybe even expand that to life the universe and everything!!!
Cheers ....
Wednesday 23rd October
Well, I ended up 1 point over, yesterday, and I'm happy with that. I would have done really well except for the chocolate cake (baked for us by a patient's caterer daughter) that was sitting right next to me during a ward meeting. I only had a tiny bit, though, and counted it as 5 points. Today I'm back on track and enthusiastic. The scales show I'm back to where I was on Saturday so with any luck, I should still show a loss this week. The Kid is still home from school as his toes aren't healing as well as they should. String Bean has his last day at school today (*sniff* ... me, not him!!). I can remember his first day of primary school. I swear it was only a couple of months ago. Himself has an appointment with an ENT chap tomorrow to investigate a really nasty cough he can't shake and a feeling of something in his throat. Needless to say we are a tad worried, especially with his past smoking history. When he gets anxious (read terrified) he becomes very difficult to live with and becomes very controlling. Almost as if by controlling the family he can control his own life. I try to explain it to the kids but when I'm on a late I'm not here to deflect some of the arguments and I come home to a less than happy family. Oh well.....
It's piddling down (love that spring rain), I'm still in my nightie and I'm doing a late/early so I'm going to make a cuppa and finish my book. Then take The Kid to get some more DVDs and might spring for Nando's for lunch. Pricey, I know, but better than KFC or Ready Rooter or Maccas. 2 points for a yummy chicken salad ....gotta love that. Tonight I'll take the Lean Cuisine Spring Vege risotto and a can of tuna. That is sooooo good. And the Tasmanian salmon and pasta is a really good meal with a salad ... 7 points but worth every one.
Hang in there, everyone ....
