A New Attitude
It's been a while since I've been around these parts, but I'm happy to report that a lot of positive changes have occurred over the past 6 months. First, I accepted a position with the City of Madison and am delighted to be working once again with an old friend. Fortunately, for us, our work ethics are quite similar, and our individual talents complement each other nicely. Half-way through my probation period, I'm receiving much positive feedback and review.
Leaving Isthmus Publishing after nearly 8 years has been bittersweet. Many of the folks there feel more like family to me than co-workers. I know that we'll continue our friendships well into the future.
McBeth & I made a commitment in February to establish a regular gym schedule, with the hopes of being each other's biggest supporter (and motivator). This is working well! I stepped onto the scale the first of this month and am happy to report that I've lost a solid 10 lbs.! So far, we have met our "3x/week" goal.. and have begun to see improvement in both strength and endurance. I must admit, I had my doubts about working out in the evenings (having previously been one of those VERY early morning gym rats), but, my friend, Liz, reminded me that a good dose of change is always a fine way to shake things up. She is SO right!
Unexpected GREAT news!
Two months ago I embarked on a new approach to being healthy. During this time I have tried to create new habits that will, in time, reset my inner metabolism, while ridding myself of some old "bad" habits that, frankly, just haven't worked for me.
One of the measurements of my progress is to weigh myself just once a month (preferably on the 1st, as that's easy to remember.. or, so I thought, as I totally forgot to do so on Aug. 1st!) Yesterday, Sept. 1st, Beth & I went on a nice long bike ride around the lake (long for us.. 12+ miles, as we took one wrong turn and paid dearly for it by biking up the steepest hill I've ever biked!) As we approached the last couple of miles, my butt was so sore that we pulled over and took a short 'off the saddle' break. Beth suggested we might reward ourselves later by going over to the gym and sitting in their whirlpool. Well, one thing led to another (okay, so we got sucked into watching 'Jerry McGuire' on cable while we were eating dinner)..and by the time we got our acts together to hit the gym, it was after 11 pm!
The nice thing about going to the gym at such an odd hour is that it's virtually deserted. Perfect! We started off in the moist eucalyptus sauna, followed that with a couple of laps in the cooler pool, and then ended up in the whirlpool for close to 45 minutes. Ahhhhhh...
While I was waiting for Beth to dry her hair in the locker room, I spied the digital weighing scale at the other end of the room. It suddenly occured to me that it was the 1st of the month.. and I had NOT weighed myself. Then I realized I had not weighed myself for the past two months. D'oh! I nervously walked over and stepped up on the scale
I'll have to write a book someday...
Concerts on the Square has turned into my own private networking event! I've met more interesting folks at this particular weekly summer event than any other. Many of these folks have become good friends over the years. Last night's event (Weds, July 25, 2007) was no exception.
Just before the start of the concert, a couple was standing by the Big Tree (our usual blanket spot) looking for a place to sit. I noticed they had no chairs or blankets and assumed this was their first Concert on the Square event. Turns out I was right! Erna & Arvid Myking were visiting from Bergen, Norway. Their trip took them first to St. Paul, and then through a couple other cities before coming to Madison (for 3 days). They are heading off today to Decorah, Iowa, for the annual Nordic Fest (www.nordicfest.com).
Arvid's father traveled from Norway to Rockford, IL, back in 1924 to find work. He worked there for 6 years before having to return to Norway (his mother became seriously ill). While back in Norway, his dad met a woman who eventually became Arvid's mother.. and never returned to the U.S. Arvid & Erna spent part of their time here in Madison researching what Arvid's father did while he was here.. where he lived and where he worked.
Since I usually have more than one blanket set out (and since some of our "regulars" didn't show up), I invited them to join us. They were thrilled.. and we hit it off immediately. They both knew some basic English, and we had fun trying to explain certain words to them (like Isthmus, for example!) We quickly became friends.. and have been invited to visit them in Bergen, Norway anytime!
By the end of the evening, they had a copy of Isthmus to take home with them as a souvenir (they even circled my name in the masthead) and we exchanged emails to keep in touch.
Here is a picture of them just after they joined our blanket:
And, here is a picture at the end of the evening: Erna, Barney, Goldy & Arvid:
Another fun addition to our concert crowd was Liz's daughter, Carrie, who was here visiting from Austin, TX. I've heard about Carrie over the years from her (proud) mom, and it was a delight to finally meet her in person this past week. They are truly two peas from the same pod! Here's a picture of them from concert:
And, here's a more TYPICAL pose of these two:
What a delightful night it turned out to be!
For more pics of the evening, go to www.Flickr.com/photos/DrStarbuck
Labels: Concerts on the Square
Camping & Other Adventures
McBeth & I embarked on our first camping trip together over the past weekend (July 13-15) at Kettle Moraine State Park (http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/land/parks/specific/kms). What a beautiful place for our first camping adventure! See pics at www.Flickr.com/photos/DrStarbuck and www.Flickr.com/photos/McBeth. Fun fun fun! It was the perfect weekend weather-wise.. temps in the 60's at night and 80's by day.
I've been keeping in touch daily with my special point person, KB, with regard to my walking and biking (30 mins. of movement) reports. Yesterday (7/16/07) I dragged my tired, stiff body out the door after finally arriving home (stiff from sleeping on the ground for 2 nights).. and managed to get in a neighborhood walk. What follows are some pics from that walk:
Online lakeside (complete with duck family)
Neighborhood bistro?
Older house with fun artsy decor.
Same house with more designs.
Hmmm.. planning to store the car inside the POD?
Have kayaks, will travel!
Plaque on State Street at Brearly.
Close-up #1
Close-up #2
Close-up #3 showing cool octagon-shaped mansion.
Lucky 7
Day 7 .. I rode my bike to work in the steamy morning and back again in the steamy afternoon. Will the humidity ever break? Everything I own is damp! (no air-conditioning in my old.. very old.. apartment) The good news is that I also walked for 20 minutes around the Square before heading home. Yeah!
My Dad and his partner, Melinda, tied the knot on 07/07/07. At 7:07 pm, no less! The entire family (with the exception of yours truly) was there to witness the event. I just couldn't find a way to swing the trip on such short notice (he told us about 3 weeks ago). My assistant at work was already scheduled for a vacation and it's first come, first served at our small newspaper. There was just no one else to cover.. plus, it was a holiday week. Bad timing for me, excellent (and hopefully lucky) timing for Dad & Melinda. My sister took and sent me cell phone photos during the ceremony. So, I really was there in spirit!
McBeth & I watched Because I Said So starring Diane Keaton last night. Funny & light-hearted, it was the perfect end to a good day.
Days 5 & 6
What a heatwave of a weekend! Temps in the 90's, humidity through the roof and just not enough breeze to make staying in my apartment without air-conditioning an option. I spent the weekend with McBeth, in her cool condo. We managed to get out for a walk in her neighborhood (about 37 minutes in the high 80 temps).. with sweat dripping down our faces barely half way through the exercise.
We spent the afternoon and early evening in Verona, playing Texas Hold'em with friends. I didn't win, but certainly played better after playing some free internet games for practice. We'll see!
Labels: exercise, heatwave, poker
4 + 4
Yesterday was the 4th of July and for the first time in a VERY long time, I actually had a Real Holiday off from work! This, in itself, is great cause for celebration. I have been working hard to find ways to cut hours (in an attempt to reduce overtime in our department), and this was a chance to put our ideas about early deadlines to the test. It worked! Previously, in my 7-year tenure at the paper, Thursday deadlines were simply not taken seriously.. not only by staff in other departments, but also by regular event contributors, who just ignored the posted holiday deadlines every single time. It was basically assumed that we would accommodate all their needs. While this may have had the appearance of working out in the past, in reality it did not. It meant I gave up a holiday or a weekend in order to complete all that late work. Since times have become leaner in the print media business, we have also had to tighten up our work belts. Overtime has also become a thing of the past. And, as far as late contributors or staff requests go, I'm learning to just say no.
Instead of walking yesterday (Day 3), I rode my bike twice to the Capitol and back home again. I also hefted 3 blankets and two lawn chairs from our office building to the other side of the Square and back again.. working up quite a sweat each time. It was a good movement day.
At one point we had 12 people on my blankets at Concerts on the Square! It was a rousing fun evening, with a 50's-style vocal group, Five by Design, joining the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra for the majority of the program. Their boppity-bop tunes had the crowd tapping and bobbing their heads. Even folks walking down the sidewalk were getting their jive on! The WCO performed their traditional Independence Day version of the 1812 Overture, complete with live canons firing atop the Isthmus building. Every year they warn the crowd that it's coming, and every year the crowd all jumps in unison as the first round of canon shots are fired. Way too much fun to watch!
Today, Day 4, was back to work. First it felt like a Monday, and then the day just got progressively more confusing (as our email server became clogged by a newer sales rep, who didn't realize you can't send out massive amounts of data all at once without bringing our server to a screeching halt!) OUCH. So, I worked for 8 hours with virtually no incoming email today (which only constitutes about 95% of my job!) Needless to say, it never did feel like a Thursday to me.. but, on a positive note, I was able to clean out all existing event submissions for the upcoming issue and can start tomorrow (whatever day THAT is!) on a fresh note.
On this Day 4, I rode my bike to and from work.. and squeezed in an additional 20-minute walk after returning home from my Sweetheart's house, where I enjoyed a lovely low-key evening. She grilled steaks for the two of us and we oohed and ahhed over how great the seasonal fruit tasted. We pulled our portable folding camp chairs out of my car and sat in her front yard as the sun went down and the temps finally started to taper off. Beth watered her garden as we chatted.. and neighbor kids kept us entertained with their antics. Even the ice-cream truck, blaring its obnoxiously loud music as it did its neighborhood rounds, seemed a fitting end to the hot summer day.
Day 2
Second day of my New Plan and I'm off to a good start. Walked to and from work today, a total of 36 minutes. Yeah!
It was a weird day. Early deadlines at work (today was "Wednesday" in the weekly newspaper business.. my head kept thinking it was Friday) and we went to press a day early. Thankfully, we had enforced the early deadline last week and for the first time in a VERY long time, I get an entire DAY OFF on the actual holiday! Double YEAH!
Labels: early deadlines, holiday work schedule, walking
New Beginning
Today marks the first day of my new life. I'm reading a book by doctors Mehmet Oz & Michael Roizen called You on a Diet. The best part of this book is that it's not really about a diet. It's about You, or rather Me.. and why We are not able to lose weight and keep it off. For the first time in my life, I think I finally get it. I am no longer blaming myself for lack of willpower or believing that if/when I fall off the wagon, I am weak. It's so much more about the chemistry of foods we eat and what We (I) have done to screw up our body's thermostat. The best part is that our bodies are forgiving. We can reset the thermostat so it begins working properly again.. the innate ability of our body to know what it needs and how to heal itself. This is wonderful news for those of us who are/were lifetime yoyo dieters.
Today begins Chapter 1. Today I took my first step toward a healthier body (and attitude). I made a commitment to myself to start walking a minimum of 30 minutes each day. Not power-walking, not jogging, no pushing my cardio limits just yet. Just plain walking. Movement. I also asked a good friend, KB, if she'd be my Point Person.. the one I proudly call (or email) on a daily basis to proclaim that Yes, I did indeed honor the commitment I made to myself.. and walked XX number of minutes today. Thank you, KB, for not only agreeing to accept my calls/emails each day, but for also offering your unconditional support over the years. You inspire and motivate me on a daily basis and for you I am truly thankful.
Labels: diet, health, metabolism
