Halloween, Part 1

It has come to my attention that I have been woefully slow in posting a new blog. People ask, "What's new?" and quite frankly, I don't think life is that exciting, I get up, I go to work, I come home, I do errands, yadda yadda yadda. That being said, there has been some fun stuff going on.

A couple of friends had a great Halloween party at their house last weekend. Since I didn't feel all that great, I went in my own clothes and told everyone I was the HBIC (if you don't know what that means, perhaps it's better that way) :) Here a couple photos:


Me, Gabe, and Alicia (before her costume exploded)


Michelle and I after Jed and I won a flawless victory in the silly-string necklace challenge!

Because it isn't a party until you tie your oldest friends and your boyfriend up.

For kicks and GIGGLES

I thought I would share a few clips with you that make me laugh. Some are funnier at 1am with a group of really tired people, and others are just FUNNY! Enjoy!!!

I must have a thing....

Can someone please explain why I have all these pictures with giant animals? These are only a couple of them....




and, per Shaine, this one also qualifies as a picture with an animal...

Acting the fool

So, if you know me AT ALL, you know that I love dancing. So much so, that at this very moment, I am at work with my iPod listening to...wait for it...Britney Spears...and dancing in my chair. Good thing my boss can't see around the wall because I probably look like an idiot. But that's okay...I am getting my work done and having a great time.

And now for something more serious...

I got a call yesterday from the doctor's office telling me that my bloodwork came back positive for Celiac's disease. My initial reaction was depression: I can no longer eat regular pizza, Oreos, sourdough bread, even regular soy sauce... However, I am pleased to report that I can still eat popcorn, most chocolate, and diet soda.

On the positive side, having this diagnosis explains a lot of the other chronic problems that have plagued me: the headaches, anemia, joint pain, etc. If I can take care of this one medical issue, a lot of the other symptoms I am experiencing may ease up. And, of course, I thought that you, friends, might be interested in periodic progress reports on how my new diet is affecting me, and reviews of some of the fun (and not so fun) foods that I am now incorporating into my diet.

So, here it is, the first FULL day of me eliminating gluten from my diet. Me and fresh fruits and vegetables are going to become very good friends really fast. Nectarines, bananas, carrots, strawberries, etc. are all healthy snacks that will be replacing unhealthy snacks in my diet. Again, this is good news; eating healthier is just, well, healthier! Also, I suppose I should be grateful that I have Celiac's and not cancer. A cancer patient can't get rid of cancerous cells and symptoms merely by changing what they eat.

I started the day with gluten-free cinnamon raisin bread with a little butter on it, which was surprisingly good . The sandwich bread, on the other hand, was highly disturbing, thus prompting me to call my mother immediately after lunch to ask if she would be willing to give me the bread maker for an extended period of time. Yes, I think anything I make will taste better than the $7.50/loaf cardboard that Glutino is trying to pass off as bread. I will eat the whole loaf, however, again, because it cost so much.

I can't wait to try cooking with gluten-free products, of which there are plenty. Just about everything available with gluten is available without, including pancake mix, pasta, cereal (including one which is named Leapin' Lemurs Chocolate and Peanut Butter Puffs), and of course, bread. I will keep you informed of successes, failures, and amusing incidents in the days and weeks ahead.

Truckers

I've heard that back in the '50s, truckers were the "knights of the road." Now, I don't want to make any sweeping generalizations, because I am sure that there are a lot of truckers out there who are great, but there are a lot who aren't as well. It really irks me when I see some chain-smoking, texting-while-driving, beer-belly trucker who is driving his rig like it's a Geo Metro. I don't hold a class A license, but even I know that it's a recipe for disaster when these truckers are following 20 feet behind you in commute traffic with a Marlboro in their left hand and a CB in their right. Hello! You aren't driving a Smart car! You are driving a multi-ton tractor with a trailer attached! You have at least 16 wheels! Look - some of your tire tread is about to fly off, come through my windshield and maim me for life!

I'm just saying to pay more attention and think about what you are doing when you are behind the wheel. The same applies to drivers of all types of vehicles, but at least when the driver of the Geo Metro loses control or rear-ends me, it will be HIS car that gets jacked more than mine.

Naps - grownups need them

Part of being a child is that you get to take naps. Babies get naps, and they still get to sleep a lot of the night (if their parents are lucky). Preschoolers have nap time, kindergartners only go to school half a day and a lot of them take naps. Heck, when I was in high school, I would come home after school and take a 2 hour nap and then still go to bed around 10:30. I was so well rested. Now, I am grown up and have an 8:30 - 5 job and there is no TIME for naps. It's very disappointing because I feel more tired now, but don't necessarily want to go to bed at 10pm just to get my FULL 8 hours in. I will force myself to be in bed by 11, despite the great desire I have to stay up because I know if I don't get close to 8 hours, I will be a slobbering mess the next day. Nope - I just cannot function well.

I think employers should allow their employees an hour to an hour and a half for a nap in the middle of the day. However, I realize that I am American, and we tend to overwork ourselves, so this is probably not going to happen. Just imagine how productive we could be though if we were all well rested both physically and mentally. It would be amazing. Sadly, I think my dream of a national nap hour is not to come to pass, so in the meantime, you can all do what I did today: eat your lunch at your desk and then use your lunch hour to take a nap in the back of your car.