Random thoughts

Sick Days

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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 😉

Random thoughts

Everybody needs a fat cat

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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. 

Food

Trattoria Marcella

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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!!

Food, Hope, Weight

Willpower and Self Control

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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 🙂

Weddings

Happy Anniversary Will and Kate

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A friend reminded me that today is Will and Kate’s wedding anniversary.  Happy Anniversary to them!  I only mention this as an excuse to post these pictures again…

First, Kate.

Now…

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In the second picture, we did not want to deal with buttoning the back up all the way.  Plus the replica dress itched—perhaps the material was not quite as nice as that which Kate’s was made of?

Since I’m looking in my wedding dress album on my computer, let’s stroll down memory lane, shall we?  (I am not waiting for you to agree.) I have especially fond memories of my ridiculous tan lines (this was July) which I worked so hard to get rid of…and have already somewhat returned after running outside just a few times.  I tan too easily.  But I never showed you the pictures of me trying MY dress on in the store!

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Here’s me trying it on for the first time.  I remember I was looking in the mirror thinking, hmm…this could be it.  I’m not generally an over the top, bursting into tears sort of person.  But I remember I was, perhaps for the first time, picturing Chris seeing me walking down the aisle, and I felt my cold black heart starting to melt…

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We tried it with the veil just to see.  Until that point I hadn’t even THOUGHT about a veil—

Anyway, then we tried on some other dresses.  And then we came back to it, but thought, oh let’s put my hair up.

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And with the hair flower that comes with the dress.  That smile is me kind of loving it.

I wanted to buy the dress right away (When I see something I want, I don’t like to wait—I wanted to buy it and be DONE shopping) but we had an appointment at another salon so we figured we’d try on more dresses, then I could decide.  I tried on some nice dresses but nothing I loved—I got home, called Clarice’s, ordered the dress, and never looked back.  I’m kind of an impulse shopper who doesn’t have regrets in that sense—when I decide what I want, I want it right away, and I rarely regret my decision. 

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I think I made the right choice!

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(Because my wedding wasn’t JUST about me and my dress.  Oh, and I ate the rest of the wedding cake last night.  I realized all that was left was icing.  I didn’t feel very good after that, because it really needed cake to balance it out, but I was in a dessert mood and dammit, that was our cake!)

Deep Thoughts

If at first you don’t succeed…

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My sister sent me this the other week.  Oh, and sorry, Leslie, I realized this week has gone by and I haven’t called you back.  Maybe today!

But really, we’re talking life and death, and you try ONE time to get out of the freezing water, Mr. DiCaprio?  When I was younger, my cousins and I used to spend many an afternoon playing in my grandparent’s pond.  They had this large intertube, and we spent HOURS trying to get four of us (Nathan, Nick, said sister Leslie, and myself) all in the one intertube without flipping.  It was a delicate procedure, involving lining up just right and precise timing.  Nonetheless, when I watched Titanic the other week with Leslie, we realized that getting on that door was something that we had trained for our entire childhood.

That and the Amazing Race, which we should still totally do someday.  Between my iron stomach and our impressive physical stamina (plus, as super hot sisters we’d totally be fan favorites) we would be unstoppable.  We also are excellent with directions, making fools of ourself, and are really good at having horrific fights and then four minutes later acting like absolutely nothing has happened.  You know, typical sibling stuff, right?

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Remnants of the wedding cake…iPhone photo.  You can see the design still!  (I can see your house from up here!)

Oh, and yesterday afternoon I got retweeted by “Talk of the Nation.”  It was one of the highlights of my day!

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If I recall, Neal was talking about baseball and just seemed really…EAGER.  I was delighted.

(That and an amazing dinner at Trattoria Marcella that I may blog about later, I LOVE that restaurant.  If it weren’t for dinner last night I totally would have had an excellent low carb diet day and might not have gained five pounds overnight.  Oh well.) Edited to correct the tenses since I wrote the post Thursday night for publishing on Friday.  I’m so tired.

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We miss you @duckierose!  Hope your trip is going well.  Get back to the states soon to entertain us with your highly inappropriate jokes, tweets, blog entries, emails, you name it!

Concert tonight:  Friday, 8 pm, Tavern of Fine Arts.  It’s a repeat of the other week’s Chamber Project St Louis concert, so if you missed it, you should come see it tonight!  I think I’m going to wear the polka dot dress again—I wanted to wear it the other week but it was too cold.

I leave you with this as part of my “Kids say the darnedest things feature”:

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(Yes, Vanessa is Canadian, why do you ask?)

thoughts about violin, teaching, running, life.