All posts by hannahviolin

I am a violinist. I also enjoy running, working out, reading, and hanging with my friends and cat.

Sometimes it’s really hard to think of a title—in a nutshell, I was really sweaty, watched Downton Abbey, and Men are Different, as I always say.

It must be July already or something, because this weather is out of control.  We’re talking about 90 degrees, at the beginning of May!  Yesterday we played an outdoor wedding at the Botanical Gardens.  I wore my summer wedding black dress (had to dig that out of storage) and I believe within five minutes I had completely sweated through it.  It was like working out but without the working out part, just the sweating part.  Or like Bikram Yoga without the poses, and instead of yoga then you had to play the violin.

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Actually this is a really good picture of Chris.  Maybe I should make him stop smiling for photos and just make that smoldering look at the camera instead.

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Upon closer inspection, it might just be a look of disgust towards me taking a picture.  Oh and apparently some of the guys are growing out beards for the Indy 500 on Memorial Day.  Every time I think I start to understand men I hear something like that…and just think:  Men are different. (original post here)

This morning I went to a spin class with Vanessa.  This was HUGE because I haven’t worked out since getting sick, and honestly, before that with the shoulder problems…let’s just say it’s been awhile.  I thought a spin class would be perfect since if I were getting overwhelmed or having shoulder issues it would be easy enough to sand bag.  It was AWESOME.  I made Vanessa take a picture of me afterwards, but that didn’t work so well.  This is actually the best one.

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My eyes may be shut but I think you can appreciate how tired and sweaty I look, right?  You might ask, why would you post this picture?  Well, it’s the best I’ve got, and if I don’t post a picture of myself in workout clothes, how will you know I worked out? 

Anyway, the class was great.  I am halfway tempted to push my luck and go for a run as well today…but I’ll probably just finish up this blog post and watch Downton Abbey instead.  (Oh yes, I started on Thursday, watched all of Season 1 and two episodes of Season 2…and then a bunch more last night, and now I’m ready to finish Season 2.  SO GOOD WHY DID I RESIST WATCHING THIS BEFORE????)

I recently started using Instagram on my phone.  I presume it is just to put up pictures of my cat?  Does anybody think it’s weird when you have a friend and then after being friends for awhile you learn they have a pet…and you didn’t know.  What I’m asking is:  What is truly the purpose of social media and camera phones if NOT to take and post pictures of your pets online at all times?  Or what I’m really asking: Do I talk about the fatness too much?

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That’s the fatness, instagrammed.  Doesn’t she look more old-timey and authentic now?

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She is on my legs as I’m stretched out on the couch watching Downton Abbey…love it.  Also I think my legs went numb.

If you think I talk about my cat or post too many pictures of her, please don’t tell me.  I won’t change my behavior, and then I’ll just be awkward around you.

And I’m being a good blogger today.  A variety of pictures, one from Instagram, check!  Self-portrait to prove I worked out, check!  References to popular culture, check!  And links to old blog posts, check!

Self fist bump for the win!

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(If you don’t follow me on twitter, you should.  If you don’t have a twitter, you really should!)

It’s a mad, mad, (oatmeal) world

Okay, I know you’ve all been missing my oatmeal reports. (Original posts here and here.)  I’m going to be brutally honest, readers.  While I’ve been eating my oatmeal like a good little girl every morning, I haven’t been photographing it as much.  That should change, as now I’m going to be out of oatmeal pictures and I’ll need more (MORE, MOOOOOORE) for this occasional feature.  I am going to get back into the habit of photographing my oatmeal, for YOU.  That’s how much you all mean to me.  *wipes tear from eyes*

Since I got a new phone (it’s an iPhone, you’re welcome, now I’m cooler than most people), I’ve been using my pink camera less, and I hadn’t actually uploaded pictures from it in a couple weeks.  I’d forgotten how many photos I had on it!  (And I need to use it more, because it’s better than my phone camera, I do believe.)

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For instance, this gem of a conversation between my friend Sarah and I.  Since then she’s ALSO gotten an iPhone, and would you believe that means the conversation bubbles are now blue?  These are things that I’ve learned in the last few weeks…I am now part of the cool kids club and I couldn’t be happier about it.  Well, I couldn’t be happier about the fact that my phone actually WORKS properly now and doesn’t freeze up all the time.

But I digress.  So what have I been trying with my morning oatmeal?  Well, nothing new.  Except one day I took oatmeal TO GO because I met a friend for breakfast and didn’t get my oatmeal fix.  Also I needed to pack a lunch and didn’t have much on hand.  It worked.

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Oatmeal in the car!  It was an AWESOME lunch.  The blackberries were ripe and plump, the oatmeal so…oaty.  I believe that’s some peanut butter, and I put the whole thing together with some protein powder and water.

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You can tell this one is yogurt based.  I love the ones with yogurt best but I try to mix it up.

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Yummy to that large amount of peanut butter.  And this is obviously steel ground oats.  They are growing on me.

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I am drooling looking at that delicious blackberry juice…yummy!

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Last but not least.  Or maybe least.  I hate to judge.

So, any suggestions, readers?  How can I make my oatmeal even better and take it to the next level?  I’ll confess that sometimes I add peanut butter, other times I add a touch of dark chocolate dreams, white chocolate wonderful, or cookie butter, none of which are QUITE as healthy, but I try not to do that every day, and I limit it to a little bit.  The blackberries have been on sale lately but I’d love to start eating more blueberries again…that would be a lovely change.

I’m also going to make a small confession.  The other night I was just too tired to put together my overnight oats.  TOO TIRED.  In fact this has happened more than once.  One time I made regular hot oatmeal (on the stove, I’ve mentioned the whole “no microwave” thing) and the other time I made “30 minutes oats” where I soaked the oats in water for about 30 minutes.  It didn’t taste quite as good as the “overnight” versus (had enough of the “quotations” yet?) but was absolutely edible.

Sick Days

Ugh.  I detest being sick.  It’s just a bad cold, nothing serious (why yes, I am a doctor) but it doesn’t feel good right now.  It’s made worse by the fact that the weather is awesome outside, really nice and warm, even hot.  Also by the fact that Saturday is the recital for my students at the school and I don’t want to cancel them, so I’ve been cancelling everything except the recital students, basically, and trying to soldier through.  Today is going to be very tough, but I think if I can drive there, I can teach.

One of the things I’ve been doing with my sick time, other than lying on the couch watching loads of television, is thinking about what I’m going to do when I get better.  I’m under the assumption that I’ll be better by the weekend so I’ve been making plans with friends to go out to dinner, go to concerts, go to spin classes, that sort of thing.  But then I started dreaming bigger—what about running the Chicago Rock and Roll Half Marathon on July 22?  I could combine it with a visit to Karen, or Chris had mentioned wanting to visit some friends in Chicago as well.  Then again, who runs a race in Chicago in July, it could be awful…but the race starts at 6:30 am so it’ll be cooler…but there’s a 6:30 in the am too??  This is all random thoughts from a woman who hasn’t run in over a week, can’t remember the last time.  But that will change as soon as I’m over this cold.  It would mean I’d have something to train for right away and get me out the door.  What do you think, Chris and Karen (Karen, another person I owe a phone call to…it’s hard to talk on the phone when you can’t breathe)?

Good news:  my shoulder is definitely feeling better.  I think it also helps being sick because I’m using it less AND because I have to sleep on my back for breathing purposes so I’m not sleeping on it as I had been.  It’s not 100 percent, no, but it has improved so much in the past few days.  I’m feeling really good about it.  I’m going to keep resting it and not do any practicing until I have to, and take at least another week off before trying anything, but I’m feeling much more optimistic about it.

We are also moving in July, and possibly visiting Boulder/Aspen, Colorado, so I don’t know how much we can fit in.  It will depend on where we are moving to (in town, not far, just something bigger, and we had a good lead but it might not work out after all so we need to keep looking) and when exactly. 

Yeah, super interesting I know.  Just some random sick day thoughts.  Like I said, I’d rather just stay on the couch all day but I’m heading out to teach a few kids to get them ready for the recital and then cutting out early to hit the couch again.  Not sure about tomorrow yet…I’m tempted to just cancel everything right now but it’s possible I’ll make a turn for the better by evening (please, please, please)…

Oh, and it’s been four months since our wedding.  Happy "four month anniversary" Chris :)  I looked on the internets and we have now beaten Renee Zellweger and Kenny Chesnee.

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Right after we got married…I just noticed that Chris’s foot is more off the ground while walking than mine are RUNNING in most race photos!

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Last month on the second Chris got annoyed when I mentioned it was our three month anniversary so I didn’t mention it in person today 😉

Everybody needs a fat cat

Chris and our cat. 

Oh, and you should watch this video of a panda trying to go up a slide.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/sayomg/baby-panda-slide-fail-tah

It’s so sad.  I guess pandas really do need our help.

Yes, I’m bored.  I’m home sick…I feel pretty lousy, I’m working hard on clearing out the tivo queue…and I’m going in later today to teach some kids who are playing on a recital this weekend.  Hopefully I can manage that :/

Here’s a blog entry from a guy who really over thought his trip to Taco Bell.

Oh, and I had a heated argument last night on twitter with a friend.  Hard boiled egg yolks:  amazing or disgusting?  It got heated and things were said that cannot be unsaid.

My trainer won this race the other weekend.  He asked last week if I blogged about it, and I told him of course not because that would be creepy.  He told me that he never meant that he thought I was creepy.  (Likely story).  Also, because honestly, why bother if he isn’t going to read it?  I told him if he got me pictures I’d be happy to write up a short blurb for him.  But honestly, I was the one who saw the race and told him he should run—it was a run/obstacle course and exactly the sort of thing he seems to live for.

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Unfortunately this isn’t a picture of him winning.  I’m still waiting for that.

Oh, and don’t forget it’s May, which means it’s really time to get ready for the 80’s 5k on May 19!

Jen and I will be there—come run with us!

Hmm, what else.  This is a totally random Wednesday blog post. 

So, readers, entertain me!  Let’s see your funny pictures, your funny videos, and just general craziness on the internets that you can share. 

Trattoria Marcella

Always a good idea.  Trattoria Marcella is one of our favorite restaurants in St Louis.  It’s just delicious Italian food.

I went the other night with my friends Vanessa and Carrie.  We split some appetizers.

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Mushrooms with Polenta Fries…so wonderful!

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Toasted Ravioli.  This is a St Louis specialty, like Gooey Butter Cake or Budweiser. 

Then I had the Brussels Sprouts Salad and a delicious Macaroni special that had carbonara sauce.  It contains egg so it’s very healthy.

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I needed some time alone with the food.  Luckily I didn’t eat it all, but still…there’s the real answer as to why I’ve gained a couple pounds this month.  Well, one of the reasons.

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Vanessa got the lasagna.  It’s a small portion…

It was a fantastic meal! 

Last night Chris and I went out for dinner.  We originally wanted to go to Frazer’s, but didn’t realize that it was closed.  We were planning to meet friends at 33 afterwards (which ended up being closed…I guess we’ve forgotten that stuff is closed on Sundays?) so we went to Square One.  Chris had been there a week or so ago and had some beer cocktail that he had become obsessed with—and then went again and the bartender had no knowledge of it and he was really disappointed.  Last night he was able to get it again.

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I told him to look as happy as he felt, but it took awhile to coax this much out of him.

Oh, and here’s another reason I’m fat.

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Shrimp and Grits.  SO GOOD.

I need to start writing my food down again.  But I’m having a lot of fun at least!  I just need to remember that I can have fun going out with friends and still manage to eat relatively healthily.  I can I can!

Oh, and I still feel really awful.  Worse than this morning, probably.  The headache is still present, the sore throat too, but now I’m starting to have some pretty bad congestion.  Progress, I think!  My eyes are puffy and swollen and I’m exhausted.  I’ve caught up on a fair amount of television though :)  And look at me, two blog posts in one day!  Page views will skyrocket!!

Willpower and Self Control

Guess what happens when you go from working out 6 to 9 hours a week to working out 1 to 3 hours a week, and instead of compensating by eating less or BETTER, you eat a little more and WORSE.  Yup.  Up 3 pounds in three weeks. 

This can be remedied.  I do have willpower and self control. I have just been giving myself permission to eat junk rather than eating healthy.  I’ve been telling myself that I’m having a rough month, I deserve it.  As Mike once said, we aren’t dogs.  We don’t need to reward ourselves with food. 

And honestly, gaining a few pounds certainly isn’t helping me feel any better.  I already feel bad enough that I can’t practice, that I can’t work out the way I want to, and what I really want is to LOSE pounds, not gain them.  So it’s adding insult to injury.  It might just be a scale blip though.  This can go away quickly—I ate out too much the past few days and I’m sure it’s mainly just from that.  A few days of good clean eating will make it go away.

I do have willpower and self control.  I would just rather be working out 6 to 9 hours a week.  Makes it easier.

And now I am also sick.  I had a sore throat last night and slept terribly because it hurt so much.  It’s a little better today but is now accompanied by a (sinus) headache.  Ugh.  I am going to teach a few classes and then coming home to lie on the couch and watch television the rest of the day. 

Every day is a new day, with new decisions and choices.  Then again…the cold medicine is making me blurry…I’ll probably end up getting Pho for dinner 🙂