Where to start?

Dr. M? The last two days at work?

Work first. So, Wednesday I sent out the email informing the cost center managers the company is doing this true up. Got a few questions. Today I sent out the email to people who have bought the software. Within an hour of sending, over 900 people had answered the survey and I had almost 100 emails and voice mails with questions.

Yikes.

I realized part way into it that we didn't differentiate between Project and Visio, so we had to go change the survey part way through. Didn't see that for all our planning, or lack thereof. We're going to have to change the communications going out, based on the responses we get.

I gave my manager access to the software licensing admin box, so she can take a look at it this weekend. Monday I'll start looking at the questions and putting them in general categories so we can answer them on the FAQ. We may have to put the FAQ in the email to prevent more of these questions.

Next week will be interesting, that's for sure.
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The headache I had on Wednesday continues. Not sure what Dr. M did Tuesday night, but the muscles in my neck and upper back have been cranky since then. I dug out my microwavable heat pack and have been using that to both keep warm and keep the headache to a minimum.

Dr. M worked me over again tonight. Worked on my headache first by working on my left big toe joint, oww. Then he got T8-10 to let go. Worked on my shoulders and wrists to get them loosened up. Good news is, I get a massage tomorrow. I so need it, too.
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Lots to do tomorrow. Sunday I have a Photoreading refresher class I'm taking. I need to find a book I have that I haven't read yet, along with 4-5 other books related to the one I haven't read. Good luck with that one in my library.

Perhaps the project management stuff? Gerber's Vibrational Medicine might be a good choice, I know I didn't get that far into it when I did try to read it, and I don't remember it. I'll find something.

Head aches

Been a long time since I've had a headache at work. Hmm, last August perhaps?

I had one today. Felt like someone was taking a baseball bat to my head, then trying to balance an anvil on top of my skull. What's causing the headache?

Let's see... Europe pulled the plug entirely on the project. They don't think they can meet our deadlines, they don't think we've thought this through far enough for end game consequences.

In some ways, they are right, we haven't thought this all the way through. Had I known my boss better in December, I would have sat her down and tried to get some of this done. Here we are, the end of January, and we're just now planning this puppy out?

Part of it is issues no one anticipated, which is part of the problem. We just had a meeting yesterday that should have taken place weeks ago with purchasing and the company that gets us our licenses. What we really need is a software asset management tool. The software provider has one, for a cost, that can do some of what we need.

Got out of that meeting with a note to track down two others that are working on the Infra project. They happened to be standing in the hall next to my cube when we got there, so we had a chat with them about what the current needs are and where Infra is at. Infra can do all the things we need it to do - in phase 2 which is 15-18 months away.

So what do we do in the mean time? Manually manage this project? Talk to the Infra people again about what database they will be using so when the time comes we can easily slip this into the existing structure? There needs to be a body managing this. What about Asia Pacific, where a lot of their software is bought locally, outside of our current procurement methods?

I'm also scrambling to get communications out. The email to the cost center managers went out this afternoon, so now they are aware of what is happening and why. Got some feedback from a couple of them thinking we need to go to the Citrix boxes and mass licenses, like we talked about previously.

My boss is going to re-arrange her schedule, again, so we can take her task list, my mind map, and put the two together so we can get a timeline and task schedule set up. We need to meet with a few more groups to nail some things down to go forward.

Now do you see what caused me to have a headache? Got to the point I had to take the hair clip out and let my hair hang, cause my scalp hurt as well. Still does.

See where this thing takes us. Get the process and procedure documented, get the project done and see if they want to go forward with more.
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Had a bit of an aha yesterday morning, about Raini. Metaphors.

Usually Raini comes and meditates with me in the morning. Some mornings she paws at the comforter so I lift it up and let her snuggle under the covers with me. She'll put up with it for so long, then sneak out. Sometimes she will sit on the back of the recliner, other times she'll lay down in my lap, then she'll hop down and go eat or sleep somewhere else.

I've lost the connection between the metaphor and what I was thinking yesterday. If you see the connection, let me know.

aargh

As opposed to AARGH, which would indicate a major pain in the backside, this is a minor pain. Or two.

I've got Comcast for my cable. Lately the picture has gotten more and more pixelated, with bigger and bigger blocks and even the sound being delayed. Got irritating enough last night that I called about it. The rep ran the box through several routines she could do from the office, no joy. OK fine, I'll haul the box and remote in.

Tried to leave early enough to get to the retail outlet, traffic was not cooperating. Hauled the box in, hooked it up. The picture and sound were fine, now, but I couldn't get all my channels. So I called and waited, and waited. Finally got someone to get me back my channels.

Good news it, after the box sat in my truck in subzero weather most of the day, the picture is fine and the sound is behaving. Go figure.

I'm still recovering from the weekend. Donated platelets on Saturday, slept through most of the evening, went to bed and still slept until 6 am. Sunday made yogurt, washed clothes and dishes, not much else doing.

That was in part because Dr. M worked me over Friday night. He was in a strange mood - happy, smiling, cracking jokes. I asked the receptionist who put a quarter in him, because in the 5-6 years I've been seeing him, I don't remember him being like that. I hurt when I went in, and I didn't feel much better coming out.

Work. Oy. Trying to do the global thing can be interesting. We catch Europe at the end of their day at the beginning of ours. We catch Australia and International East at the end of our day, beginning of theirs. We've at least connected with them, we're working through the communications issues, what to say to whom when, and going from there.

Europe is a bright royal pain to work with. All their communication has to be funneled through one person, they have a completely different way of doing things. Hello, one company here, just because you're on a different continent doesn't mean you get to do things differently.

International East is easy to deal with. They believe if the install is illegal, take it off and let them bitch or pay up. Gotta love the Aussie point of view.

I just want to get this show on the road. I expect the RS email box will be loaded over the weekend, as the first communication will go out Friday. See what happens.

As for the felines... Raini has really slowed down on her eating. I suspect we're getting close. Shadow has become a klingon, wanting to curl up in my lap whenever she can.

For a while last night, we had peaceful co-existance. Both cats were on my lap sleeping. That hasn't happened in a long time. Don't know when, or if, it will again.

I'm tired enough to go to bed now. Wait until the mattress pad kicks on, heats up the bed a bit, then go crawl in.

Even being overly warm this morning, my basal temp was 97.2. I've ranged between 95.7 to 97.5 when I wake up. Time will tell.

Taez is home!

Yes, I have MY truck back, whiney power steering and all. Egads, didn't realize how attached I am to my Taez until I had to drive that other POS for four days.

Taez and Chael are part of my family. Granted, inanimate, still, part of the family. Both have their quirks and things that make them unique individuals, even though there are thousands or millions of cousins on the road.

One thing I'm not so happy about - when the shop cleaned him up, they put Armor All on the seat and steering wheel. I damn near slid off the seat getting in, and there's just something funky about the steering wheel that's part sticky, part slimy with that stuff. Saturday I'll have to get out there and buff off the shiny.

Yes, I need to get a pix of him as an icon. If I get my butt moving fast enough tomorrow, I'll get one of him then, if I can find the camera.
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Oy, this little licensing true-up issue has just become a full grown monster and is threatening to get bigger. I have spent most of the day in meetings trying to figure out the communications piece, how Europe differs from the US differs from Asia Pacific. EEEKKK!

My boss and I sat in a conference room for three hours pulling things together. We got a hold of the AP IT contact in Australia, it was 9 am his time at 4 pm ours, so we got him up to speed and scheduled meetings with him. Got our morning meetings scheduled for Europe and the rest of the team. Got a meeting scheduled with the SAP team to figure out how much they should be involved.

Tomorrow is mostly going to be working meetings, me and my boss going over the communications, pulling numbers for her boss, really getting a handle on what is the scope of this project and what the real scope of this thing should be.

She's giving me access to her calendar, so when we need to schedule meetings, I can do that while she's off attending to the rest of her duties. She's also giving me her old laptop, so when we get together in meetings I can be working on the fly.

Best of all, she knows about mind maps. She has no problem with me installing FreeMind so I can map this sucker out, especially since FreeMind is a freeware. I need to have a better handle on this thing, and I think a mind map would allow everyone else to get a better visual on it, without needing Project.

Interesting results

Today I met with the people from Muve to do the baseline biometric screening. We did fasting bloodwork to determine total cholesterol, blood sugar, etc. I'm happy to say that my numbers are still as good as they were a couple years ago, with high HDL, low LDL and triglycerides and normal blood sugar. The only things I got dinged on were my weight/BMI, a slightly elevated blood pressure and that I'm not up to date on my cancer screenings.

They were impressed with my numbers. Not many people my size have normal to low cholesterol and blood sugar.

We also did body fat percentage. No surprise for me, I'm half fat. My bones, muscles and organs make up half my weight, the other half is fat. So, to my surprise, given that number, my original goal weight would leave me little room for any fat on my body, which isn't a good thing. I may have to adjust that number a bit, so that everything functions properly.

I've also been doing a bit of research on hypothyroidism. I have been very cold this winter, above and beyond the cold work place and home. Sometimes it seems I can't get warm until I crawl into bed with the electric mattress pad on. Lots of other symptoms add up as well. Add in family history...

Back in high school or college, I remember doing a basal temp test, where I tracked for a month what my temp was when I woke up. It averaged 94-96 degrees. I think it's time to do that again, so I can have some proof to run under Dr. M's nose. I've been on the l-tyrosine since August, I think it would have made a difference by now. If Dr. M won't budge, time to find someone who does homeopathy. Actually, I do know someone who does homeopathy and coaching - it's a drive up to Milaca to see her, might be worth it. I'll email her when I get done with this.

Busy day

So, I waited until today to get stuff done. Get stuff done I did.

Had the laundry in the washer by 7:30, fed myself, pulled stuff together for my road trip today. Took a shower, got the mail, got the tax document envelope going, along with an envelope for the cash rent contract for my renter. Folded clothes, hit the road. Dropped Taez off at the repair place picked up my rental.

What did they give me? A f@#$%!! Ford Flex. Those that know me well know my deep dislike, bordering on outright hatred of the Ford family of vehicles. Made the mistake of owning one once, never again. I can deal with Dodges, I prefer GM's stable any day.
No, I am not impressed with the Flex. It reminds me of several other vehicles of this shape that just strike me as automotively wrong. It sit low enough that I had to wash the windshield at least a dozen times in the 60 some miles I put on it today. Add to that bad wiper blades, and I can not wait to get my Taez back.

As it was, the shop called me a little after 4 and asked me to come take a look at things. They were able to pop out the dent no problem. However, there is a lot of rust at the bottom of the door. All four doors are pretty bad. I'm not surprised, given he's 11 years old, been driven in MN all his life. Unless you keep on it, take care of it as soon as you see it, it's gonna spread like cancer in someone who's scared to death of cancer.

The shop will fix the door as best they can and let it go at that. With a little luck I might have him back Wednesday night, Thursday at the latest. YEAH!

Where was I? After I picked up the P.O.S.F. I headed for Whole Foods. Two cases of chicken cat food for Raini, raw honey and some other goodies for me, a new book, $130 later I was out the door. While in the area I went to First Tech to see if there was any salvaging of my laptop. No joy, the video board is part of the motherboard, and they can't find them for sale anymore. Crap.

Stopped and paid a bill, hit Office Depot for a business tablet to track things in, Half Price Books for some copywriting books in their non-existant business section. Poo. PetSmart for cat litter and home.

My idea for soup turned out really good. An entire loaf of Velveeta cheese went into it's making, along with veggies and 2 pounds of diced ham. There's actual flavor to this soup, and enough for two weeks of meals. I will be making this again.

Now I need to set the DVR to record all of tomorrow's events. I can watch the actual inauguration from my desk at work, but I'll miss the rest of it. If I have it recorded, I can watch it later and burn it to DVD.

Three day weekend

Yes, I have a three day weekend, due to the company I'm temping at being closed for MLK day.

So what to do? Well, the usual weekend stuff of wash dishes and clothes, haul garbage and recycling, get groceries, cook for next week. I need to start a tax document envelope that's got a sticker on it for my accountant, so as things like W-2's and the like come in, they automatically go in that envelope.

Cleaning the kitchen would be a good idea. Clean out the cabinets that have all my plastic containers for lunches and stuff. Determine what I need to keep, what can be recycled and find a place to recycle that stuff.

It also gives me more time with Raini. She didn't meet me at the door last night, cause I didn't get home until after 8. I went to see Dr. M, then got a massage after that. I found her in my office with her tail stuck straight out. I also found several red spots on the carpet, like she'd been trying to pee and it was more blood than urine.

What to do? Do I ease her passing with energy work as much as I can, or do I spend the money I really don't have to take her in and put her to sleep, then spend more bucks to get her cremated? That would wipe out the gains I made with the insurance check I just got. Wait and let the decision be made for me.

Taez goes in Monday to be fixed. I will drag a mechanic out with me for a test ride so they can hear and feel what happens when he hits 40 mph and up and how bad he shakes. That wasn't there before the accident, so insurance better cover it.

At least it's back above zero. My unit has warmed up again to comfortable levels. Maybe I'll try to bleed the system, see if that's the issue.

Back to the nut house.

Brrr take 2

It's supposed to hit zero sometime tomorrow, and I will be very grateful when it does. I'm tired of being cold both at work and at home.

Yes, it's in the 50's in here again. I don't understand what's going on, why it's so bloomin' cold in here. The rest of the building is warm. Pulled out the space heater and put that in the bathroom so I could take a shower in relative warmth tonight. It could possibly hit -30 in the suburbs tonight, so I'm tempted to run the space heater all night, just to keep some warmth in here.
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Did get some good news today. I told you last week about the Gruve from Muve Inc, and how the company is doing a 50 person pilot study. I got into the pilot study!
We do baseline screenings next week, get the Gruves in February after they are programmed, and go from there.

This will be interesting to see how much of a motivation it is for me. I'm already trying to incorporate some of their ideas about moving more in the day. I need to put back on my calendar going for a walk at 10 and 3. I may not get outside, but I can take a lap or two around the outside perimeter of my floor. I wouldn't be at all surprised to find out the building I'm in now is bigger than the building and parking lot at my previous job. The desk height can be raised so you can stand up and work, which I might start doing for a half hour or so a day, maybe work up to more than that, or however much my back can take.
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Things are about to get interesting at work. Got the mailbox set up for me, so people can reply to the box. I'll send from my personal email, they won't have a choice but to reply to the licensing admin box, keeping my personal box clean.

Got the Europeans involved today. Good thing we did, because they objected to the global communication that was supposed to go out, because some of it doesn't apply to them. So we need to get Asia Pacific involved as well. My boss was going to call them tonight to give them a heads up.

Finally got a full inventory list I can work with. Took me most of the day to clean it up, sort it out, add some columns so everything can be documented. Sent a copy off to Europe so they can plug in cost centers and get things lined up that way.

I mentioned to my boss after the Europe meeting this morning that she may have to extend my contract. She replied, I think your right, is that OK with you. Perfectly fine with me, I'll keep working on this until they either make it a permanent position or find a place to put it within the organization.
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Taez goes in Monday to get fixed. The company is closed for MLK day, so I've got a 3 day weekend. Get started on my taxes, do some more cleaning, work on my copywriting and graphic design classes.

Brrr, January style

Freakin' 18 degrees below zero this morning when I backed Taez out of the garage. The high was 1 below. I'm very grateful Taez and Chael have a garage to share so Taez will actually start in the morning.

I do have to say, when we did share the garage with the old man upstairs, there were several mornings this cold, and he did start with no problems. Just took forever to warm up.

At least the roads weren't near as icy as last night. Took me almost 2 hours to get home from Roseville where I picked up my check. Given how many vehicles I saw in the ditch and the one or two stops that activated Taez's ABS, and I'm just glad we made it home in one piece.
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Emailed my boss today about the email account. She agrees that we can't have the licensing stuff go into my personal email box, cause what happens when I leave? So we need to figure out something before the first email goes out next week.

Tomorrow we sit down with the guy who pulls the lists of who has actually bought licenses. He's been really inconsistent about the reports he pulls - the data column heads never match up. I have to spend an hour or more sorting through to match the original report. I've made a list of the things I think we need. We'll talk tomorrow and once we agree on what we need, we'll have him re-pull everything. Then it will be clean and consistent going forward.
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Saw Dr. M tonight. Somehow he got both my right hip and my mid-back to release at the same time, one of those that leaves you gasping and moving very slowly. I was approved for 10 weekly massages (10!), so the first one is Friday night after I see Dr. M.

I don't think I've been touched that much since I was in massage therapy school 14 years ago. Or while I was doing energy shares.
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It seems between Thursday and today that I have picked up a urinary tract infection. One of the rare times I break out the adult toys and I pay for what little satisfaction I got by getting an infection. I really need to have a conversation with my sub and unconscious minds about this.

If there's going to be a man in my life and all the pleasures he can bring me, I can't be popping up right afterward and running for the bathroom to pee out any foreign invaders.

Then again, if my body were in a more alkaline state of being, I probably wouldn't have gotten the infection in the first place. Time to be consistent with the lemon juice in my drinking water, a cup of hot water with raw apple cider vinegar and raw honey after supper and see what happens. And unsweetened cranberry juice for now.

And if that's TMI for you, wait until he's actually in my life...

Interesting

So, I met with the other person's insurance claims adjuster today about the bodily harm stuff. Turns out in MN you have to have $4k in just doctor visits, not including diagnostics, etc, before the bodily harm clause kicks in. This insurance company actually sits down with you and says hey, we want to make this right for you, here's a check for your inconvenience and pain. In exchange for taking this check, you agree not to sue the person that hit you.

Read over the paperwork, standard hold harmless clause that I go after the insurance company and not the people. Cool with me. If I do have long standing issues, they will take care of it.

What was even better? Me walking out with a check for $750 for my time and inconvenience. On top of that, they are covering my deductible and the 20% of a rental my insurance doesn't cover. Sweet.

So, with this check that basically came out of the ether, I am now about caught up on my bills. The $750 covers the two months of back association dues I owe, which will keep me out of trouble with them.

OK, this is a really bass ackwards way of taking care of things. The Universe doesn't always do things in a straightforward manner, especially when it comes to me. I could have easily gotten the money in a much easier on me and everyone else manner.

Just makes me laugh. And it's a metaphor for my life: gotta go through some pain to get the gain, and it may not be from the direction you expected.

Body-wise, I'm doing OK. The right hip did ping a bit on the 10+ minute walk from the parking garage to the south building where I'm working at. BFE to BFE, opposite ends of the campus. The walk does me good.

Things are going to get interesting in the next couple weeks at work. My personal email is going to be the account used for all the emails going in and out about the licensing. I suspect I'm going to be getting a ton of email about this, as people panic and try to figure out what is going on. I've got from now until April to figure it all out.

Hmm

Ok, so I didn't update last night. Too busy watching the series finale of SG Atlantis, twice, and the season finale of Sanctuary, twice. Which meant I was up until after midnight.

Due to technology incompatibility issues between Dr. M's fax machine and the temp agency's fax system, I didn't get to work until 10:30 yesterday morning. Temp company wanted a medical release saying I was OK to work and wouldn't let me go to work until they had it.

Worked right straight through lunch because I had a meeting at 1, then worked until 4:30. Taez and I headed for the collision center to get an estimate of how much to fix him - $1600 to re-skin his door, match the paint, not including any hidden damage.

Talked to the other gal's insurance company. They admit she was at fault, so they are sending me a check to cover my $500 deductible. I'm also meeting with them on Monday about bodily harm claims under MN law that may be in effect as well.

Physically I'm doing OK. After a hot shower and some gentle stretching Thursday night things seemed to calm down. I'll notice a ping here or there in my neck, shoulder, back and hip, nothing that has me reaching for pain killers.

Kinda got smacked with the gratitude thing. I haven't been doing my gratitude writing at night since before Christmas, so I was trying to come up with what I was grateful for. I'm grateful that Taez and I weren't hurt worse, that we're both up and running despite the ding. The insurance companies are both doing the right thing and actually taking care of me. (that comes as a surprise to me who is used to not being taken care of) Time to dig out another tablet and pen and start up the things I'm grateful for nightly.

Other than dealing with the accident, not much doing. Raini is being a whine because she doesn't like her food. I'm making a chicken risotto with veggies and yogurt tomorrow, along with the usual wash dishes, wash clothes.

I'm enjoying the peace and quiet.

Confounded, rotten...

I didn't sleep well last night. Had a few thoughts stuck in my head so I couldn't get to sleep, then I kept waking up. Then Raini threw up on the bed at 1:30. Then I was back to tossing and turning until 4:30 this morning when I got up to meditate.

On the way in to work, actually about ready to pull into the parking garage, Taez and I get hit. The 2 lane road leading to the parking garage splits into a roundabout, where the left lane where I was can either go through the roundabout or continue right and head into the garage. I continued to go right, and the car to our right drifted into us and hit Taez in the front passenger door. We pull into the garage to get out of traffic. I get out to see how badly Taez is dinged up - nice big dent in the passenger door. Didn't check the window to see if it still works. The door hinges squeak, which they didn't do the last time I opened the door. Went to look at her vehicle. Her driver's side front quarter panel is scratched and torn.

So, after looking at things, we went to park and found each other inside to exchange information. It was her second day in the day care center, and you know I've been there on and off for months. The day care desk was kind enough to make copies of drivers license and insurance for both of us, and I went on my merry way up to 6th floor in the south building.

Soon as I get to my desk I noticed my neck and shoulder were starting to go into guarding, trying to keep things stable. So first I call the insurance company to start the claim, go back and forth with them. Emailed my temp agency to let them know I'd be short hours this week. Call my chiropractor to see when I can get in, be there at 11:30. On my way out the door, talked to the gals at the employee entrance desk, I need to file a report with company security and the Mounds View PD, do that when I come back.

Drive almost 40 miles over to see Dr. M, as usual wait for him. Yes, my neck, shoulder and back muscles are injured, cause I was looking at the car when it hit. Jammed my wrists because I was hanging on to the steering wheel so tight.

Get back to work after 2, talk to security. File an accident report with the PD, they say, get us a copy. While I was out I had a voice mail from the temp company and the insurance company, call them back. Temp company gets back to me saying I should not have gone back to work until I get a note from Dr. M clearing me to work. Insurance company gets a recorded statement about the accident, makes arrangements to get Taez fixed.

To say this day has been a major clusterF@#$ is an understatement. I have to wonder, on one hand, what caused me to attract this into my life. On the other hand, accidents are just that, accidents, a part of the whole life experience I purposefully came back to have.

I went through something similar after I had an accident five years ago on January 26th, right before my graduation from the Meta Institute where I got my therapeutic coaching certificate. That's when I got Taez, because I pretty throughly trashed my K5 Blazer running into a bridge after hitting a patch of ice. No ice this time, just someone not paying attention or thinking I was going to go through the roundabout.

It was one of those, you both see it as it's happening and get an overhead view of it at the same time. The overhead view was superimposed over the rest, like I was flying about 20 feet above.

So... Taez is driveable. I did notice a vibration that wasn't there this morning when I went to see Dr. M and on the way home. I'll have the body shop look everything over when I take him in tomorrow night. See about arranging for a rental while he gets fixed.

Right side, male issues. My power got dinged, dented. It's fixable, but what hidden damage exists that needs to be exposed?

Wonder how much this had to do with me letting go of the family curse? My dad's side has, shall we say, issues that go way back. Seems to be a bit of an issue with the women of every other generation even being in relationships, let alone getting married. My dad's sister's were all married, but their aunt, to my awareness, didn't leave the family. I have suspicions of incest, but no proof and have no need to go digging, either.

However, both the one female cousin born into the family and I haven't had a relationship in years. For me, February 21 will mark 21 years without any intimate male companionship in my life. The closest I got was when I had my last accident, I was in a friendship that was budding into a possible romance, only to have it shot down because of extenuating circumstances.

Time will tell.

Now, I need to get some supper. I missed lunch being at Dr. M's, so I'm hungry. Updates tomorrow.

I'm here

Been a bit quiet lately, cause frankly there ain't been much to tell you about.

Today's been a long day. Raini scared me this morning because she wouldn't even look at her food. It was in the back of my head most of the day that I would be coming home to find her gone. I was happily surprised to see her waiting at the patio door for me.

I know the day is coming, just a matter of when. If it's possible, she's lost more muscle mass, as I can feel the notches on her vertebra. Reminds me of how Mom felt so frail the last time I saw her before she died.

Suppose it's time to start looking up pet cremation and how much that will cost me. I might even call the crematorium at Echo and see if they do pets, might be cheaper to run out there and do it. One thing at a time.

Then there are the options of things to do with the ashes. There's the LifeGem, which takes the ashes and turns them into a fake diamond. Spendy, out of my budget at the moment. Then there's Memory Glass, which is another way to encapsulate the ashes. A bit more affordable, just not yet.

For now, just cherish the fact she's still here and breathing.
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New year means the start of a new series of meditation CD's. A change in levels surfaces new things to work through. Lots of the past coming up. Dreaming of my parents in situations that would not have happened in 'real life' - nothing bad happening, just them very much out of character. Working in Mounds View and taking Central up, I pass twice a day by a restaurant where a former friend and I had lunch one of the last times while we were still talking. I wonder if he's grown up, now that he's officially in his 30's, or if his Gemini ways are still tearing him apart.

Loss seems to be a current theme. Have I let go of too much, or do I have that much and more to still let go of? My own duality in question.
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I fell off the exercise routine when I started cleaning house, haven't gotten back on now that I'm back at work.

With that in mind, at work there was a presentation today by Muve Inc. They are doing a pilot study of 50 people with the company for a year to see how well the Gruve Solution works for getting people moving more.

Most of the room signed up for the study, and we were the first building to have a meeting. The chances of me being chosen are slim. However, they are making the program available to those not chosen for $290. You get the tracking device that is programmed specifically to you, the coaching and daily feedback, etc.

It's a year long commitment to helping me help myself. The device gives you instant feedback as to where you are at in reaching your daily movement goals. There's a website that helps you track what's going on. I'm thinking, either way, I'm doing this.

The answer to the meaning of life is 42, according to the computer at the end of the universe. Guess what, I turn 42 this year. Make this the turn around point.

Thoughts on the new year

I, for one, do not make new year's resolutions. What would cause me to want to set myself up for failure purpose fully? I set myself up for failure just fine the way it is, thank you very much. So, no resolutions for me.

However, I am noticing that the Universe does take notice when I declare something, like when I said I was ready to go back to work after cleaning for a month straight. Got to contemplating that as I was drifting off to sleep. So, here are my declarations:
*I am ready to quickly, easily and ecologically let go of the emotional issues that are hindering me in reaching my goal weight of 143 pounds.
*I am ready to let a boyfriend/male companion/partner into my life.
*I am ready to be financially abundant.
*I am ready to quickly learn and put into practice my copywriting skills.
*I am ready to step into my best life.

Now you know, as well as the Universe does.
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Meanwhile, back at the ranch, a bit of weirdness in my home this evening. Got home, opened the patio door and was met with the strange smell combination of spray paint and Drakar Noir cologne. I searched the place, no one was in here but me and the cats. The cats were acting normal, which they would not have been if someone had been in here. I checked all the usual suspected places like garbage cans and the like, nada. I've continued to catch whiffs of Drakar on and off all night.

If it's a ghost or other non-physical entity, it's not setting off my danger sense, or lighting up my back. When I was younger and the ghosts were roaming the house I grew up in, I could clearly feel them on my back. I've still got that sense, it's been tripped other places and other times, but not in my home.

Call in archangels Michael, Gabriel, Uriel, Raphael, Ariel, Haniel and a few others to protect me tonight. Re-set my personal and house shields while I'm at it.

And if you think this is weird, you don't know the half of it.
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Life at work goes on. I did get the lists from Northridge on Wednesday before I left, so today was sorting through the list, getting it down to just Project and Visio, and going through the biggest one. I finished the first run through about 5:05 tonight, so I'll tackle the smaller lists on Monday.

It's been nice, not having a whole mess of people around the last two weeks. Got stuff done, didn't have to worry about anyone else, got decent parking spots. That all changes come Monday when they all come back to work. Three weeks down, 17 to go.

I scream, you scream

We all scream for ice cream. My first batch turned out very well indeed. I made it based on a recipe from the cook book I got with my stand mixer. The original recipe calls for 3 cups of half and half, 2/3 cup sugar and a tablespoon of vanilla. Mix together, chill well, put in ice cream freezer and let that run for 20-30 minutes.

My variation was to put a cup of sugar into the quart container of half and half, along with the tablespoon and a half of vanilla, shake well, let it sit in the fridge overnight, then freeze it today. Let's just say putting the sugar in the carton doesn't work so well. Next time I'll use the more than quart measuring cup I got at Ikea to mix this up and chill in.

The good news is, that quart, plus a bit of 1% milk to get the sugar out of the bottom of the carton, turned into two quarts of very yummy vanilla ice cream. It's in the freezer right now hardening. In another couple hours I can tap into the first container. If it turns out to taste as good hardened as it did when it was just out of the mixer, forget about buying ice cream again, I'll make my own. Ice cream, sorbet, maybe I'll give my yogurt a whirl as well.

As for flavorings... One thing I might try is flavored liquid stevia. If you've seen the Truvia commercials, stevia has been around for a long time as a sweetener. Only recently have the big brands noticed it and started playing with it. It's the original no calorie, truly natural sweetener, until other things out there that are chemically manufactured. Something to play with in a future batch.
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Other than making ice cream and washing dishes while it was processing, I finished the edging on the lap robe. Started that last night as something to do while I was watching Knight Rider (I still say that should have been a Camaro or Vette and not a f@#$%%^ Mustang).

One good thing - it's a Mythbusters marathon today - until 10 pm tonight. Yes!

Tomorrow is payday, so time to get caught up on the phone and cable bills, put gas in Taez, get a few groceries and that check is gone. Good thing temp work pays weekly.
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BTW, happy new year. May the best of 2008 be the worst you experience in 2009.