Updating

I went out for drinks tonight with a friend and it was just what I needed. I haven't gone out like that in a really long time. It was so easy, relaxing and enjoyable. Just two drinks (really, I couldn't believe it either) but that was all I needed. I was home before 9 and ready for bed. (Well, not before eating two apples with peanut butter in addition to a piece of toast...yea. Remind me of that on TUESDAY. GAH!)

It was awesome though- - the perfect Thursday pick me up.

I taught jazz tonight and stayed for the second class but my body was *so* tired. I couldn't make my poor legs work anymore. I'm hoping that tomorrow I wake up and feel motivated for a nice long run again. I've gotta put all of that PB to use somehow...)

Stories that are coming:

My Stalker
The Swing
Deer
Twi...
Playlist Recommendations
Farm/Audubon
Black out Texts
Notbook Ponderings/Harriet the Spy

WW Update

This week I was -2.6lbs at WW. (Thank god.) I tried really hard last week and I was hoping for a good week. This week though? Isn't off to a great start. For some reason today my appetite has been insatiable. It's killing me. I am already in the negative points wise and it's 1:30pm. Not good. I still have WAP but I've been trying not to use those in hopes that it keeps the weight coming OFF instead of going ON. We'll see...

I did get out for a 9mile run yesterday which felt awesome. I'm not even sore today. I have jazz tonight will run (hopefully) tomorrow, jazz Saturday and I'm running in a 5k Sunday morning.

I've just got to get these hungry horrors OUT of me. :)

And I need a good night's sleep. I haven't been able to fall asleep before 10:30pm which, as you know, is LATE for me and this morning I woke up at 4:45am and couldn't fall back asleep. There's nothing more frustrating than that.

Addicted

I'll have to show you guys the playlist I'm currently addicted to, but right now my favorite song on the list is She Just Wants to Dance by Asher Roth (of I Love College fame). It's awesome.

Favorite line? (This could be off, but this is what it sounds like)

We bouncin', we movin', we two-step, we groovin'.

Awesome.

New Product

Hi, my name is Meg and I love peanuts. ((Everyone)) Hiiiiii, Meg!

It's true, I think I may even be addicted. I love peanuts, mixed nuts, pine nuts, tree nuts, peanut butter, almond butter... the list goes on and on. Which, normally wouldn't be a problem as peanuts have lots of healthy fats and are, in fact, pretty nutritious. However, when following the WW plan, they are *extremely* points-heavy. Sometimes I treat myself and factor in some peanut butter, or a handful of mixed nuts but it's tough to do.

In comes Seapoint Farms.

Dry Roasted Edamame. While these aren't peanuts they do (sort of) offer the same satisfaction. They're snackable, salty, and delicious. I buy them in bulk at Costco and put them in snackpacks for work. And? They're WAY healthy.

I had a really great week WW wise (I feel) but today was a bit of a disaster... we'll see how tomorrow's weigh-in goes!

Nike+

Let me start by saying that I am a *huge* fan of everything Nike+. I love it when products work together to make things fun and easy for consumers. I was one of the first people I know to have the whole kit and caboodle (shoes, nano, + system). I got it as a gift over 2 years ago, and still, to this day, use it. What I love about it is that it is user-friendly, keeps track of distance, and personal bests (distance, time, etc), and is upload-able to the Nike+ website where you can track your progress and really SEE what's going on.

However, I think I need a new chip for my shoe because the last couple of times I tried to use it my ipod couldn't find the sensor. In place of the Nike+, I've been using my Polar heart rate monitor and mapmyrun.com to figure distance, calolies burnt, etc. I'm not sure that one is better than the other and I'm all for using more than one tool at a time when it comes to personal health. (I use the WW website AND thedailyplate.com to track my food- - it makes me doubly aware and allows me to view things differently.)

The great thing about Nike+ is that once it's set up- - you're good to go. You can just head right out on a run, come home, plug in into your computer and BAM. You're done. Using mapmyrun.com is awesome, but slightly more work. (And a LOT more clicking.) :)

If you're a regular walker or runner I highly recommend one or all of these tools to help you become aware of what you're doing!

Remember that Friend I told you About?

The one who is so funny and NEEDS to get her own blog?!?!?! Well, she's heading home this weekend for some celebratory birthday fun and she sent an invitation on Facebook letting everyone know about the party.

Reading this- - you would think she was a Jam-master, DJ from the 'hood. I assure you, she is not.

OK YA'LL... it's that time again-if you a fly gal getcha nails done, get a pedicure, getcha hair did... we're steppin out for my two favorite peeps bdays which they have on the same flippin night. unBUHleevaBULL.

Miss Bombshell herself, LAM and Mistah Man SS. nuff said. we're gettin down at WP-gettin our goose, patron shots, dancin and naughty behavior on. come one come ALL. getcha birthday kisses (on the cheek) and wishes in for the FAb pair.

*thE dJ will be spinnin the ill ish and no cover if you ask for the birfday girl at the door.. need we say more?

see you there, bias.

FINALLY PICS!!!! Time for Lyme

A group shot of (most of) us with LDP!
Full Group Shot
LD
P~
Gorgeous Ball Room
Centerpieces


I'm still compiling shots to show you how I have the same pose... in every single picture. I don't usually show pics of myself though- - so we'll see how this goes. :)

New (to me) Website I am Obsessed With

www.mapmyrun.com . It's awesome- - you can zero right in on where you've run and it tells you exactly how far it is. It also let's you input how long it takes you, your heart-rate information, etc. AND it can be linked to your Nike plus system (you know I *love* the Nike plus stuff) or your Garmin. SO COOL.

AND?!?! The BEST part is?!? It's FREE!

Weigh-in Tuesday

I went to WW tonight and was down 1.2lbs. Not quite as significant as I was hoping, but it's certainly better than staying the same or gaining like I have been. Here's to another great week!

And just so I remember, I'm watching the Biggest Loser right now and Jillian just gave a work out- - (hopefully I got this right) using a deck of cards:

spades= lunges
diamonds=pushups
hearts= sit ups
clubs= reverse sit ups
Aces= a one minute break

Pick one card at a time and go until you finish a deck. I can't wait to try this!

Funny Link

Check this link out: izismile

I am totally guilty of this too. I would post pics to reference but I STILL CANNOT. AHHH.

Facebook Status and Commenting

Sometimes there are just awesome trails of conversations that get started via people's status on Facebook. Yesterday was one of those days. A friend of my sister's changed his status to:

Friend- Some people call me the Space Cowboy
I commented- Some people call ME the gangster of love
Another HS friend- Some people call me Maurice
My youngest sister- (to M) some people also call you an unconquerable fortress.

Nothing like getting called out on someone else's facebook wall.

Pics!

For some reason I STILL cannot upload pics! THIS IS KILLING ME!

Time for Lyme

We attended the Time for Lyme dream Gala last night and had the night of our lives. It was so much fun! Of course, every great night isn't without a few mishaps (of which we had a couple) but overall it was just incredible. There was a silent auction, a live auction, dinner, dancing, performances...it was awesome.

Lou Diamond Philips was the recipient of the 2009 Time for Lyme Humanitarian award and let me tell you, Lou? Is one of the best performers I have ever seen. His speeches were funny, he was personable, approachable and took over the mic for the best rendition of La Bamba I have ever seen/heard.

I found a dress to wear Friday afternoon and I was *so* excited about it! It was absolutely beautiful and looked great on and it wasn't really something that I would normally pick so I was excited to step out of my fashion comfort zone a little. I actually felt like a rock-star walking in, I was escorted by my sister's boyfriend's best guy friends from high school so I walked in (looking fabulous if I do say so myself) with four handsome guys and STRAIGHT into a woman who had on the same dress as me. I'm not even kidding. And she was well over 50 years old. I could have died. I think I did die momentarily. My sister offered to go home and change with me but I really loved my dress and at that point it was a little too late. So? I had to spend the rest of the evening avoiding her. It was really hard work.

Other than that and a slight meal-misunderstanding the night was so fun. I got to meet LDP, got some awesome photos and danced so much that I have blisters on my feet today. I also stayed until the end to catch a ride home with my sister's boyfriend's mom and, being on the board, she got some leftover prizes so I came home with a crystal bowl (not exactly sure what I'll do with it, but HEY! PRIZE!), 7 dvds of various genres, guest napkins, a mini Longchamp bag (!!!!!!!!), and a gorgeous bracelet.

There are a couple of other stories from the night but they are totally deserving of their own post and blogger won't let me upload any pictures so those are coming too!

It's time for Desperate Housewives (a NEW one FINALLY!) but there is so much other good tv tonight that I'm really torn. I wanted to watch the Natalee Halloway story and wanted to try to catch In Plain Sight too... ahhh... decisions.

What (not) to Wear

My sister is coming down for the weekend to see her boyfriend and she texted me yesterday that they are attending a benefit Saturday night for a non-profit that her boyfriend's mom is on the board of. Her boyfriend "bought" a table (or however that works) so they invited me to join them for the evening which, don't get me wrong, I'm psyched about! However, I need to find something fabulous to wear in 24 hours. It's black-tie optional. Do you think I should go long or short with the dress? I have a black dress that would be somewhat appropriate but back is so boring...

My sister's boyfriend's mom is wearing a silk skirt-suit and he and his dad are wearing suits. She's arriving around 5pm today and I'm guessing first on our to-do list will be to find dresses...

Regardless of the outfit- - I am SO excited for tomorrow night. The first line of the invitiation reads, "Put on your dancing shoes..." Put them on? I was BORN with them on. Woohoo!

You've Gotta Be Kidding Me

up 3lbs this week. This would be funny. If it didn't make me want to cry.

Tomorrow's a new week. I'm going to get a good night's sleep and wake up ready to tackle this gain.

Friday Night Shenanigans

Tomorrow is weigh-in day and I pretty much didn't count any points while I was home and found myself eating a large Nectar's gravy-fry at 2am after a Friday night out...then a grilled cheese when I got home. We'll see how this goes. If I've gained weight at least I'll know why.

God help me.

Happy Holidays are Over

I headed home for the long weekend which was, in a word, awesome. When I'm at home there's no dog to walk and dishes to unload and it's just so much fun being around my family. Almost all of my cousins were home too which is always fun. My mom's brother has three girls who are all the same ages as the four of us so needless to say, we're really close. We had happy hour with the big group Friday evening, Saturday Easter dinner with the 11 of us and Sunday brunch with the whole family. It was a total whirlwind but also totally and wonderfully enjoyable.

We also celebrated my third sister's 19th (!!!!) birthday over the weekend. It's not officially until Friday but we were all home so we took advantage of the time together.

What made the weekend even better was that one of my best friend's from home, who now lives/works in NYC, went home for the weekend too so he rode with me both ways and we got to hang out all weekend. We spent a lot of time together in the fall but then he moved to a new apartment in January and I've been so busy this semester with school that we haven't really had time to catch up. I know I've talked about him before but I can't ever remember and I'm always too lazy to go back through the archives and find out, so he and I have another best friend from home who still lives there. He has a new girlfriend, we met her for the first time over Thanksgiving, and they've since gotten pretty serious... (serious enough that our friend is planning on asking her to marry him before the end of the year) Yea, serious.

We wanted to go out with the two of them while we were home but they're sort of at that stage where they just kind of like to hang out with each other and be boring so it took a lot of convincing to get them to just meet us out for drinks. So, to set the scene, the NYC friend and I get to the restaurant before them and order drinks and my friend gets wings because he was hungry. He wondered if we should wait for them to arrive but they said that they had been out to dinner so I said, no- - just order. The two of them show up and order drinks and (apparently they WEREN'T at dinner) a plate of nachos. So... about 4 drinks and two appetizers later we decide that it's time to call it a night. The bill arrives and NYC friend, myself and home friend throw our cards out.

This type of situation has happened before so NYC friend says to the waitress, please put 1/2 the bill on HOME FRIEND's card and split the other half on the other two (NYC friend and me) cards. Are you with me so far? So Home Friend then says, "Well, why don't we just split it three ways?" And the waitress (who was busy) is like... "what do you want me to do." NYC friend reiterates the situation and says, "put 1/2 on this card, and split the other 1/2 on the other two cards" only THIS time, he's flustered from Home Friend pressuring for the 3-way split that he says to put 1/2 on MY card.

As the waitress walks away I was like, "You just put 1/2 on MY card!" He felt terrible but at that point, it was getting late and I was like...whatever. I excused myself to go to the restroom and NYC friend says to Home Friend, "Well, I'm going to give Meg some money because she just paid 1/2 the bill and only had 4 drinks. She didn't even eat anything." And Home Friend? Doesn't say ONE WORD. He just sat there.

I came back from the restroom and NYC friend was like totally ready to go, which was fine but once we got in the car he was FUMING. As was I... are we totally out of line, or is it ridiculously RUDE of our friend to expect us to split a bill three ways when his girlfriend is eating/drinking too. She's not our girlfriend- - I don't think it's really reasonable to expect us to split a bill to cover her drinks/food. In the grand scheme of things, it was probably only a different of $10 or $15 but it's the principle. If he wants to pay for his GF, that's fine, but not at our expense, right?!?

And to top it off- - after he paid for 1/4 of the bill that was 1/2 his he says, "Well, looks like it'll be hotdogs and beans for the rest of the week."

Really. I have *no* tolerance for that.

No change is good change...

I guess. I stayed exactly the same as last week weight-wise. I've gotta break through this plateau I seem to be at.

I do have lots of interesting things to say but grad school is kind of taking over at the moment. :)

The Dreaded Tuesday Night

weigh in. So far I've lost 9.8lbs then gained back 1.4 then 3lbs last week. Which means I've only lost 4.4lbs. Not impressive. I'm having anxiety over this. It's totally depressing.

A Proud Moment

Most of my out-of-state friends say that they've never met people with more state pride than Vermonters. Today, it's safe to say I'm pretty proud of my state. Regardless of where you lie on the political spectrum, everyone deserves love.

Check it out.

Teaching Social Studies

I'm taking a course now, Teaching Social Studies, and one of it's requirements is that you have some sort of stock of social knowledge. (Yea, I didn't see that coming either.) We all know that I am Jeopardy-obsessed and love trivia but as far as comprehending the overall scheme of social studies... well... I lack. Slightly. We have the test tonight- - supposedly a very broad, general, social studies knowledge test that I will either,

Pass with Distinction
Pass with Honor
Pass
or Fail

So... just so all of you can improve upon your (stellar, I'm sure) social studies knowledge right along with me here is a sampling of the questions that will be on the test. I'm not providing answers because you should just *know* this stuff (and you can certainly google it), but it will be fun and interesting just to see what you know!

1. If you are sailing from Africa to South America what ocean will you cross?
2. What line cuts through the center of the earth?
3. Which Amendment stated that slavery was abolished?
4. Who said, "The only thing to fear is fear itself."?
5. Which president authorized the Atomic bomb?
6. Australia is/was also called __________?
7. Which line cuts through the earth the OTHER way?
8. Which continent doesn't have a desert?
9. Which continent doesn't have a rain forest?
10. What is the capital of New York?
11. What are the 5 Great Lakes?
12. What country is northernmost in South America?
13. What country is bordered by Jordan, Syria, and Saudi Arabia?
14. What is the capital of Afgahnastan?
15. Where was George Washington's home?
16. Who was the Pilgrim's best friend?
17. What were the dates of George Washington's presidency?
18. What country wasn't part of the Axis of Power of WWII?

How did you do?!?!