Monday, July 25, 2011
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
As the stomach churns
The latest:
There is an "issue" with the title to the new house. Nothing major - it's the way the name of the trustee that owns the house is written (some legal technicality type thing.) No big deal, except that the owner has been slow to repsond and has kept inssting it's fine. Well, since the title company won't insure the title as is, and no insurance means no mortgage, no, it's not okay. Which is what I lawyer called and told them. They seem to be moving, but very slowly. Will I have a house next Monday? Who knows????
The latest:
There is an "issue" with the title to the new house. Nothing major - it's the way the name of the trustee that owns the house is written (some legal technicality type thing.) No big deal, except that the owner has been slow to repsond and has kept inssting it's fine. Well, since the title company won't insure the title as is, and no insurance means no mortgage, no, it's not okay. Which is what I lawyer called and told them. They seem to be moving, but very slowly. Will I have a house next Monday? Who knows????
Wednesday, July 06, 2011
The crazies
My mortgage loan officer said to me the other day “If you haven’t bought a house in the past 2 years, you haven’t bought a house.” Meaning that the entire experience has changed dramatically – and it’s really not all about the bank! It’s more about what sellers are expecting, what banks are requiring, disclosures due to changes in laws, etc. The end result is a lot more paperwork going back and forth, and a lot more leg work for the buyer (at least in my experience). It’s been crazy. My to do list is insane – it’s color coded and I force myself to do 5 things per day off the moving list and 3 per day off the work list. And then I go to my mom’s. Hoo boy!
Also, I don’t think this is particular to my family, trying to organize anything is akin to launching the D-Day invasion. We’re juggling getting 5 dogs, 3 people, and 3 vehicles to Florida, getting my step brother to come down and help us paint the new house, hopefully come up and help my mom with a few things on her house, and squeeze in the fact that at some as-yet-to-be-determined time in the very near future, my ex stepdad is buying a new houseboat (he has a buyer for his who wants to take possession in 2 weeks). The wrinkle to my plans is the fact that he will need both the boy and my step brother to crew the boat from Florida to Wilmington. Last time they did this (when he bought the boat he has now) it took a week to get to Wilmington from Coccoa Beach. Schools starts pretty soon and the boy needs to be back home for that!
So things are pretty hectic. Also, I promised to paint an entire wall of aboriginal dot art on one wall in the boy’s bedroom – he was seriously in love with the tiki bar I made a couple of years back. But that won’t be done immediately.
I’ve picked colors for the 2 bathrooms, and I know I want a pale grey in the main living areas – when we get down there I am going to buy a few samples and paint swatches to see how they look.
I have to get our stuff re-packed and ready for the move down.
Gah.
My mortgage loan officer said to me the other day “If you haven’t bought a house in the past 2 years, you haven’t bought a house.” Meaning that the entire experience has changed dramatically – and it’s really not all about the bank! It’s more about what sellers are expecting, what banks are requiring, disclosures due to changes in laws, etc. The end result is a lot more paperwork going back and forth, and a lot more leg work for the buyer (at least in my experience). It’s been crazy. My to do list is insane – it’s color coded and I force myself to do 5 things per day off the moving list and 3 per day off the work list. And then I go to my mom’s. Hoo boy!
Also, I don’t think this is particular to my family, trying to organize anything is akin to launching the D-Day invasion. We’re juggling getting 5 dogs, 3 people, and 3 vehicles to Florida, getting my step brother to come down and help us paint the new house, hopefully come up and help my mom with a few things on her house, and squeeze in the fact that at some as-yet-to-be-determined time in the very near future, my ex stepdad is buying a new houseboat (he has a buyer for his who wants to take possession in 2 weeks). The wrinkle to my plans is the fact that he will need both the boy and my step brother to crew the boat from Florida to Wilmington. Last time they did this (when he bought the boat he has now) it took a week to get to Wilmington from Coccoa Beach. Schools starts pretty soon and the boy needs to be back home for that!
So things are pretty hectic. Also, I promised to paint an entire wall of aboriginal dot art on one wall in the boy’s bedroom – he was seriously in love with the tiki bar I made a couple of years back. But that won’t be done immediately.
I’ve picked colors for the 2 bathrooms, and I know I want a pale grey in the main living areas – when we get down there I am going to buy a few samples and paint swatches to see how they look.
I have to get our stuff re-packed and ready for the move down.
Gah.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
In southern, savory oats = grits
Several folks I know have been talking up the savory oats - adding vegetables, cheese, etc. Now, I'm not a big oats fan. I never ate them as a child. Steel cut oats are okay, and I can stomach regular oats from time to time, but they'll never be a favorite meal or anything.
But this thing of savory oats is kinda funny to me because southerners have been adding things like cheese, shrimp, tomaotes, red eye gravy - you name it, to grits for breakfast forever.
Things are okay - kind of a busy and stressful week. I'm hanging in there.
Several folks I know have been talking up the savory oats - adding vegetables, cheese, etc. Now, I'm not a big oats fan. I never ate them as a child. Steel cut oats are okay, and I can stomach regular oats from time to time, but they'll never be a favorite meal or anything.
But this thing of savory oats is kinda funny to me because southerners have been adding things like cheese, shrimp, tomaotes, red eye gravy - you name it, to grits for breakfast forever.
Things are okay - kind of a busy and stressful week. I'm hanging in there.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Stuff is moving along with our house purchase and getting my mom's ready to put up for sale. We had a wonderful visit in Georgia with my great aunt, but I really have to stop buying vintage lamps!
Change of subject but what I really wanted to tell you about. One of my all time favorite albums is "Ho'oluana" by the Makaha Sons of Ni'ihau - mom and I were listening to it on the way home from Georgia this past weekend. It's one of those albums that makes you weep with the sheer beauty of some of the songs.
What I didn't realize for many years was that the (former) lead singer Israel Kaʻanoʻi Kamakawiwoʻole (Bruddah Iz) released several solo albums after leaving the group. At the beginning of this year he was topping the European charts with his version of "Over the rainbow/What a Wonderful World", which has been used in many movies and tv shows and commericials. There is a very funny clip on his web site that shows several Belgian djs trying to pronounce his name which segues into a video of the song: https://www.izhawaii.com/belgium-radio-djs-make-attempt-at-saying-izs-name/#
It's a truly amazing song, but if I had to pick one favorite song from his solo career it would be "Hawai'i 78" from the album "Facing Future" - get over to grooveshark or youtube and listen to it sometime. It's not nearly as upbeat - it's beautiful, but it's really (IMO) a lament for the erosion of the Hawaiian culture and loss of country.
Anyway, I realize this isn't everyone's cup of musical tea, but his voice is just so amazing that I wanted to share it with you.
Change of subject but what I really wanted to tell you about. One of my all time favorite albums is "Ho'oluana" by the Makaha Sons of Ni'ihau - mom and I were listening to it on the way home from Georgia this past weekend. It's one of those albums that makes you weep with the sheer beauty of some of the songs.
What I didn't realize for many years was that the (former) lead singer Israel Kaʻanoʻi Kamakawiwoʻole (Bruddah Iz) released several solo albums after leaving the group. At the beginning of this year he was topping the European charts with his version of "Over the rainbow/What a Wonderful World", which has been used in many movies and tv shows and commericials. There is a very funny clip on his web site that shows several Belgian djs trying to pronounce his name which segues into a video of the song: https://www.izhawaii.com/belgium-radio-djs-make-attempt-at-saying-izs-name/#
It's a truly amazing song, but if I had to pick one favorite song from his solo career it would be "Hawai'i 78" from the album "Facing Future" - get over to grooveshark or youtube and listen to it sometime. It's not nearly as upbeat - it's beautiful, but it's really (IMO) a lament for the erosion of the Hawaiian culture and loss of country.
Anyway, I realize this isn't everyone's cup of musical tea, but his voice is just so amazing that I wanted to share it with you.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Day 3 - random thoughts
I've been doing Allan's Phase 6 diet for 3 days now. I went to check his blog today and it looks like he may quit blogging. That makes me sad, but I understand that most people don't blog for more than a couple of years. Whatever he does, I will continue to do this on my own, although I will certainly miss the support of doing it as part of a group.
The purpose of the first part is to get you accustomed to smaller portions. If you've been eating too often and frequently too much when you eat, this is HARD. My stomach is singing Ave Maria and I am couting down the minutes until lunch time (22 to go). All I can say is that this sucks, but I've reached a point where I'm 50 pounds overweight, and that sucks more.
Lots of folks who blog about weight loss talk about how they've been overweight all (or most) of their lives. I wasn't. I was never overweight until I needed to lose the baby weight after my son was born, and I haven't been overweight all those years since. But the seeds were sown in my childhood I think.
For one, food was very much equated with love. I can remember my great grandmother weighing me every day when I went to visit. She was literally trying to "fatten me up". Given the hardships she endured, raising 3 children between the world wars in Germany, fear of lack of food remained very real for her her whole life. Feeding her family was the single most important thing she could do. And on my mom's side you have all these awesome southern cooks who grow food and are proud to prepare and serve it.
In my teen years food became a form of rebellion. I was a hearty eater and my dad and his wife used to criticize my portions, telling me I'd gain weight if I kept eating like that. I was maybe 12 or 13 and maybe weighed 100 pounds. I ate because it pissed them off.
In the Army food became even more of a comfort - it was one of the few pleasures you could enjoy in basic training or while out in the field for extended periods of time. You're cold, hot, wet, tired, dirty - living in a tent, doing physically difficult things. Food becomes a real "treat".
I've gotten overweight 3 times since the boy was born - all were a result of my using food as a comfort or to stuff down emotions. I've lost the weight twice - now it's time to do it again.
There's no point in beating myself up for re-gaining weight. I can't change the past. I can control my choices in the here and now while trying to modify the underlying causes of turning to food - looking for substitutes if not solutions.
I've been doing Allan's Phase 6 diet for 3 days now. I went to check his blog today and it looks like he may quit blogging. That makes me sad, but I understand that most people don't blog for more than a couple of years. Whatever he does, I will continue to do this on my own, although I will certainly miss the support of doing it as part of a group.
The purpose of the first part is to get you accustomed to smaller portions. If you've been eating too often and frequently too much when you eat, this is HARD. My stomach is singing Ave Maria and I am couting down the minutes until lunch time (22 to go). All I can say is that this sucks, but I've reached a point where I'm 50 pounds overweight, and that sucks more.
Lots of folks who blog about weight loss talk about how they've been overweight all (or most) of their lives. I wasn't. I was never overweight until I needed to lose the baby weight after my son was born, and I haven't been overweight all those years since. But the seeds were sown in my childhood I think.
For one, food was very much equated with love. I can remember my great grandmother weighing me every day when I went to visit. She was literally trying to "fatten me up". Given the hardships she endured, raising 3 children between the world wars in Germany, fear of lack of food remained very real for her her whole life. Feeding her family was the single most important thing she could do. And on my mom's side you have all these awesome southern cooks who grow food and are proud to prepare and serve it.
In my teen years food became a form of rebellion. I was a hearty eater and my dad and his wife used to criticize my portions, telling me I'd gain weight if I kept eating like that. I was maybe 12 or 13 and maybe weighed 100 pounds. I ate because it pissed them off.
In the Army food became even more of a comfort - it was one of the few pleasures you could enjoy in basic training or while out in the field for extended periods of time. You're cold, hot, wet, tired, dirty - living in a tent, doing physically difficult things. Food becomes a real "treat".
I've gotten overweight 3 times since the boy was born - all were a result of my using food as a comfort or to stuff down emotions. I've lost the weight twice - now it's time to do it again.
There's no point in beating myself up for re-gaining weight. I can't change the past. I can control my choices in the here and now while trying to modify the underlying causes of turning to food - looking for substitutes if not solutions.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Thoughts I've read today I want to hold on to:
"We don't help cocaine addicts by teaching them about the metabolism of serotonin-norepinephrine-dopamine re-uptake inhibitors or the hormonal implications of cocaine use, yet we try and help people lose weight by teaching them about hormones, metabolic pathways and glucose chemistry." - Brad Pilon
'Here are some ridiculous questions someone asked me the other day when I told her that I had lost 50lbs in the first three months of my weightloss diet. She asked "Was that safe?" Are you kidding me? I told her, "Do you think weighing 250lbs was safe? Which do you think is worse?"' - Tracy Reifkind
"We don't help cocaine addicts by teaching them about the metabolism of serotonin-norepinephrine-dopamine re-uptake inhibitors or the hormonal implications of cocaine use, yet we try and help people lose weight by teaching them about hormones, metabolic pathways and glucose chemistry." - Brad Pilon
'Here are some ridiculous questions someone asked me the other day when I told her that I had lost 50lbs in the first three months of my weightloss diet. She asked "Was that safe?" Are you kidding me? I told her, "Do you think weighing 250lbs was safe? Which do you think is worse?"' - Tracy Reifkind
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
The 13th Warrior (okay, not really!)
I just thought of that because there are 13 people in Allan's challenge. The others have been doing it for 6 weeks and today is my Day 1, so it isn't really a comparison.
I stopped by the grocery last night on my way back to the hotel and picked up everything I needed. Days 1-3 are the same and are only liquids. I am hungry! But this part is 3 days. Heck, I was in basic training to 8 weeks, I can do anything for 3 days!
Right now, with so many things in my life beyond my control, it feels nice to take control of this one very important aspect of my life: my physical well being.
I just thought of that because there are 13 people in Allan's challenge. The others have been doing it for 6 weeks and today is my Day 1, so it isn't really a comparison.
I stopped by the grocery last night on my way back to the hotel and picked up everything I needed. Days 1-3 are the same and are only liquids. I am hungry! But this part is 3 days. Heck, I was in basic training to 8 weeks, I can do anything for 3 days!
Right now, with so many things in my life beyond my control, it feels nice to take control of this one very important aspect of my life: my physical well being.
Updates, I got em
I was down 0.4 pounds this morning.
The room above ours in the hotel has apparently been rented to a herd of nocturnal elephants. They woke us up the night before, and they were re-arranging furniture and banging on the floor for over an hour in the middle of the night last night. I'm so thankful we won't be moving to an apartment.
I was down 0.4 pounds this morning.
The room above ours in the hotel has apparently been rented to a herd of nocturnal elephants. They woke us up the night before, and they were re-arranging furniture and banging on the floor for over an hour in the middle of the night last night. I'm so thankful we won't be moving to an apartment.
Butch picked a fight with Jordan last night. Hub went and got the 2 little ones and brought them over to the hotel, but I don't know what we're going to do long term.
Monday, June 20, 2011
So, I got the plan from Allan. I'm not going to post my food since it's his "diet" - it's not my place to share it, if that makes sense.
Tough but doable. I'm going to start as soon as I hit the grocery, but I'll do day one tomorrow.
After lunch I met LB (lunch buddy) downstairs in the gym for stretching and yoga. Going back after work to either walk on the treadmill or the elliptical.
Tough but doable. I'm going to start as soon as I hit the grocery, but I'll do day one tomorrow.
After lunch I met LB (lunch buddy) downstairs in the gym for stretching and yoga. Going back after work to either walk on the treadmill or the elliptical.
Hope you had a nice weekend. Ours was good. I wanted to go see "X-Men" with hub last night, but I found myself just really tired. Unfortunately I didn't sleep great and woke up with a sinus headache. Took a Zyrtec and I'm feeling better.
Waiting to hear the particulars from Allan on Phase 6. Given all the craziness going on right now, having a set plan which requires no thinking is right up my alley!
Nop word yet on the appraisal - just some bs note from the loan processor about how long it takes. Well, it would've taken 1 week less if you had returned my phone calls is all I can say. grr.
Hub's knee continues to improve. The big dogs are feeling left out b/c some nights we take the little dogs to the hotel, but they can't go b/c the hotel doesn't allow pets over 50 pounds.
It's going to be hot as heck here this week. We are headed to Georgia this weekend to visit my great aunt. I've also booked us a cabin there over Thanksgiving.
Have a good day!
Waiting to hear the particulars from Allan on Phase 6. Given all the craziness going on right now, having a set plan which requires no thinking is right up my alley!
Nop word yet on the appraisal - just some bs note from the loan processor about how long it takes. Well, it would've taken 1 week less if you had returned my phone calls is all I can say. grr.
Hub's knee continues to improve. The big dogs are feeling left out b/c some nights we take the little dogs to the hotel, but they can't go b/c the hotel doesn't allow pets over 50 pounds.
It's going to be hot as heck here this week. We are headed to Georgia this weekend to visit my great aunt. I've also booked us a cabin there over Thanksgiving.
Have a good day!
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