This three-day weekend couldn't come at a better time. This past week was ROUGH. Thank God I made it through, but wow.. talk about exhaustion. Being drained. Stressed. Frustrated. Disappointed. All of it.

That being said, things were resolved by the end of the week. I love the weekends, but I don't think I've had a weekend where I just stay in the house all day. I would love that. Somehow, there's always something to do.

Anyway, this weekend was full of much needed shopping (now I don't look like I'm wearing hand me downs lol), rest, and getting to know new people. The only sad part about this weekend is that it's about to end. In fact, it has ended (given that it's officially Tuesday).

This might be my last insanely busy week at work until next season. Thank You, Jesus.

Don't know why I'm still up. Well, partly because of all the dark chocolate I ate in the last 48 hours. I've been in and out of sleep.

Just a brief update: this has been a long week, and I'm feeling like it may be a longer weekend. Work is kicking my butt, but I've been productive, so I guess it's okay. I can't wait for this season to be over, though. In a few weeks. I just wish I could take another vacation to Savannah or something. Oh, that would be absolutely glorious. I'd want to go by myself again, but I want the safety of friends (although I would much rather prefer the peace of solitude). That bed and breakfast place had me spoiled. For now, I guess I'll live on a mental vacation.

Speaking of vacays, I was in Houston last weekend. It was HOT! I forgot how it could get out there. I was able to see some friends whom I haven't seen in years, which was nice. Houston seems to be coming up, too. A lot of places that were under construction while I was living there are now finished products. It's nice... but I don't know.

I wouldn't mind moving back to Houston (if I *had* to--like for school), but it kinda irks me that there's no true "downtown" that's people friendly. It irks me that there are decent universities in the city, except Rice.* It kinda irks me that the "finished products" I was just talking about is geared towards upper/middle class folks. That, along with the fact that Houston is immensely spread out, it's almost as though there is no chance to meet new people when you are just out chillin.

If any Texas city, I might be more inclined to go to Austin or Dallas (although Dallas doesn't have a huge university system, either). My last trip to Austin really changed my mind (in a positive way) about that city.

I really love Atlanta, though. Festivals, non-extreme weather (most of the time), a downtown where people actually congregate, good schools (well, universities--unfortunately the public school system leaves much to be desired), great cost of living.

Ok, so that was a tangent. I don't have much going on, though. Work. Work. I decided to remove Albert from all my social media venues, cell phone, other communications. I had a lot of anger about the situation which was tied up in how I felt he perceived me...which is not in line with how I perceive myself (i.e., I deserve better than a half-hearted "friendship" and I certainly deserved more during our relationship--all of which he was very capable of resolving). He seems to be resolving these issues with his new girlfriend (I think), which is good for him, but the nagging question for me is: why couldn't he put forth such effort with me? So, there was some resentment about that. But that's fading away because I'm trying to resist letting it become a stronghold over me. Besides, why go crazy over a question I can never accurately answer (and even if I do get an answer, it won't be satisfactory to me anyway lol)?

In other news, I'm hoping this hurricane doesn't cause as much destruction as people anticipate. But I do hope that people are prepared nevertheless.

I guess I better go to bed.



*University of Texas at Houston actually has a great doctoral program in public health, though. I'd seriously consider it, especially if I end up wanting to be involved in school health.

I had a lovely birthday today. I truly appreciate the friends I have and the ones I've made recently. I'm feeling special today.

Today Yesterday was my friend's bday, and we had a small celebration with her at Bible Study this evening. I bought the cupcakes. The kicker is: I didn't eat even one!

Huge leap. I thought that after the 11 week challenge, I'd have to find a way to motivate myself NOT to eat sweets and the like. I think that now, I just determine whether it's worth it. If it was some super gourmet-type cupcakes, I might've tasted it. But this was grocery store brand. I can pass.

Besides, I have dark chocolate at home.. and that is legal. :)

Within a 12 hour period, I...

-ran a 5K,
-went whitewater rafting, and
-drove through 3 states (including the state I currently live in).

Possibly about two years ago, there would have been absolutely NO WAY I would've contemplated doing either one of the first two activities. And today (well, yesterday), I did both in one day? Who am I becoming? Whoever it is, I'm kinda liking it.

I'm really proud of the 5K, though. I did the same one I did last year. This time, I was able to run the entire route--first time I have ever run more than 1.7 miles continuously. Since I hadn't actually trained for this, I was actually shocked. Thanks, bootcamp!

Whitewater rafting--I actually never dreamed I would ever do that, but it's actually fun! The exact thing I feared (treacherous water) was the most fun part. This made me realize that I actually need to work on my swimming, particularly if I'm going to do the triathlon in August. I still have time...just need a swim cap.

So, off topic.... as girly as I think I am, Kill Bill (both volumes) is such an AWESOME movie despite the extreme violence. I realize that I really like action movies.

Last night, I attended a social event. I realized it was the first time I dressed up and went out in a long time. Dressing up alone cheered me up. Was in a funk these last few weeks. The event was cool, didn't meet too many people, but the people I met were cool.

Ok, time for bed!

Lots on my mind. Some good, some sad. But I will say that I'm generally in a good place right now. I think it also helped that I spent my afternoon resting on my couch. That's unusual these days, so I'm savoring the moment.

I have about 3 entries I'd want to write about, but very little motivation.

The 11-week nutritional challenge is going well. My cheat days are getting more extensive, so I need to chill a bit. I'm definitely learning about self-control through this exercise, so I'm happy about that. I just hope that that part sustains itself because I really don't need to be eating everything I see/want. The "one cheat day a week" aspect has been really good, because it allows me to appreciate the cheats.

I had a raisin bagel, egg, cheese, and bacon for breakfast on my cheat day. I don't even eat bagels like that, but that was sooo good. And I had cookie dough ice cream with hot fudge. Also very delightful. It was more than I needed (even though it was one scoop), but delightful. Randomness, the men at the ice cream parlor were from Sudan.

Anyway, what's going on in my life? Same old, I guess. But I'd say that I'm truly in a place of peace. Definitely thanking God for that. I'm also at a place spiritually where I need to make some serious decisions about my obedience to God. I made the decision recently (or rather, I took up the challenge) to read the Bible in its entirety. I anticipate that it will be life-altering; I've already seen/experienced some great things from reading directly from the Word of God. No lie. I'm definitely looking forward to this.

Seriously.... this is ridiculous. And yet I still watch. :o\

I am so sore. My legs. And I had the nerve to actually go running on the treadmill this afternoon. Sadly, I think my glaring weakness is my lack of endurance for running... and it's affecting my ability to do other stuff at bootcamp. Plus, I have to start preparing to run.

Coconut milk. It's about to be my life. I hope I like it.

Week 3, and I don't think I could look at eggs anymore. I am TIRED of eggs. And I'm not in the mood for sausage, either. I could do yogurt, though. And grapefruit. Anyway, that's it.

One thing I forgot to mention. In my adventures with trying out this new lifestyle, I have to avoid soy (and soy products), since it's a legume. But seriously? Soy is in EVERYTHING!! EVERYTHING.

Not that this was the first time I heard about it, but this is the first time I actually looked to see that it was indeed true. Looked on my can of tuna fish. It said "contains tuna fish and soy." Looked on some dark chocolate I wanted to buy. Every brand said that it had traces of soy and/or peanuts. Looked at my bag of frozen steak fries (ok, so I had a little more than just Oreo cheesecake--but in my defense, potatoes actually are allowed in very minimal amounts). Contains potato, vegetable oil (which is a no-no--soybean oil, safflower oil, etc etc), and soy.

Yes, soy farmers get subsidized to grow soy..or something like that. But I'm wondering why it has to be an ingredient in everything? Hmmm.

Next time you go grocery shopping, look to see how many products soy is in.

Either way, I haven't heard of any adverse effects from eating soy.. just putting it out there.

My left lung doesn't seem to like me right now. :( I hope it's just a "today" thing.

I'm hungry, but bed calls.

So, I don't know why I'm up this late. Honestly, for no daggone reason.

Either way, I think it's time for either a staycation or another trip down to Savannah. I just want to be somewhere peaceful (read: not easily accessible) where I am forced to....contemplate. Not just think, but contemplate, meditate, pray, write...etc.

Problem is Savannah in the Springtime might be detrimental to my lungs. I'll see what I can do about that.

So, I somehow lost the motivation to do any form of movement. Any form of movement, I say. This does not bode well for my interest in a healthy lifestyle (or physical therapy). Hopefully the feeling is just a phase. In the same breath, I dare say that I'm going to focus a lot more on toning my legs. And running (yuck!). We shall see about that. So, tomorrow, I'm going to take a kickboxing class. That ought to be interesting.

So, I'm going to go to bed because I have to. Don't understand why I'm not tired.