My first day on the no-more-fast-food diet was derailed first thing in the morning. I woke up on a strange land with no smoothie maker in sight.

• Could I have pulled into Albertsons and purchased some fruit, yes?
• Could I have waited until I got to work and had a protein bar from my desk, yes?

But I didn’t… because I am weak. Damn you McDonald’s and your cheery golden arches and delicious sausage burritos. Damn your convenient drive-throughs and error-proof numbered menus. Breakfast = FAIL.

I ended up going out to lunch with my boyfriend which hadn’t been the plan at the beginning of the day. I avoided the customary suggestion of chicken sandwich Mondays at Burger King despite the $3 cost and close proximity to our work and ended up at Rubios where I meant to get a salad. Stepped one foot in the door and forgot all about that, and ordered two fish tacos. Lunch = FAIL.

I did, however stop at the grocery store for some rotisserie chicken with green beans and some sliced mango for dessert. At least dinner wasn’t a bust… now to get my fat ass down to the gym for some elliptical and some lap swimming.

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I’m on a quest to become a grown-up (Q2BaG-U). To part ways with my childish self. After 33 years of eating fast food, buying cheaply-made clothes, and putting off any kind of exercise wherever and whenever I can… I’m saying, “enough is enough.”

• No more giving in to every impulse my body has.
• No more vaping out in front of the TV.
• If it has a drive-through, I no longer eat there.
• If the sum of the two numbers in its name is 18, I will drive right past.

Last month alone I spent $300+ at fast food restaurants… and I say I don’t have the money for a Core Power Yoga membership. I beg to differ, Rachelle. I think you do.

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On May 14, 2010 I had my first major surgical event… a micro-lumbar discectomy. I had two herniated discs in the lumbar region of my back. One between L3 and L4 (the one my neural surgeon claimed was doing the most damage) and another between L4 and L5. I also have discovered that I have degenerative disc disease.

In late March I noticed that my sciatic nerve was tight and causing a bit of stabbing pain in my right buttock. I would stretch after playing volleyball and try to loosen it up a bit but nothing really seemed to help. After my drive to Utah it got steadily worse. 24 hours total inside a cramped vehicle + playing volleyball right upon my return did me in. My legs started to buckle while I played and I lost the ability to raise my right foot.

To make a long story short, it took 2 months before I finally had the surgery despite my emotional pleading with my former doctor to please do something other than give me pain meds. I was immediately better when I woke up in the emergency room. No more stabbing pain… thank God!

I’m still trying to get back into the swing of things activity-wise. I have difficulty moving my leg at any rate of speed and I’ve tacked on a quick 10 pounds (after losing 13 while I was in the throws of all of it). My metabolism is out of whack and my body hates me. But at least I’m not laid out in bed anymore… phew!

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A couple of weekends ago we kicked off the CBVA season by traveling up north for an A tournament. Normally, my partner is Ali Justin, however, I didn’t play with Ali this time. Instead, because neither of us had talked about playing, Karey Gregerson asked me if I’d join her. She was going up anyway and REALLY wanted to play instead of just being a spectator. I checked with Ali to see if she’d be cool with that, and on her glowing approval, I registered Karey and myself online.

We both headed into the tourney with no rating and just hoped to do well. We were okay with losing if it had to happen. Hell, we’d only played together for a couple of pick-up games so we had no idea how well we’d do as a team. We ended up taking 3rd place along with another one of the San Diego teams who traveled up with us (I guess we tie because we never actually got to play each other). All-in-all it was a solid performance and each of the two games we lost (to the 1st and 2nd place teams) were very close. It was a great time and because we made it to 3rd place in a 15-team tourney… we earned our A rating as well. God damn, I love me some volleyball!

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I figure since I mention on my “About” page that I’m such a nut for Halloween that I should probably post my latest creation for 2009. Yes it’s a little late but better late than… oh, you know.

I really wanted to do something in the realm of current events but was having a really hard time coming up with anything that would work for me (my body type is, well, one-of-a-kind). I dabbled in some of Lady Gaga’s questionable ensembles and toyed with the notion of another pick-up line. In the middle of one such brainstorming session, I decided that I would do a flying pig. I set out to get some wings but found I was going to struggle with finding a pink leotard that is exactly what I wanted. Then, while searching on Google for inspiration for flying pigs, I realized that a lot of people were using them to visually represent Swine Flu. That was it… a path was found, both creative and an up-in-our-face current event! I still struggled with what to wear, even visited a fabric store because I was determined to sew my own hospital gown. In the end, I found the perfect pair of pajamas, slippers, and a robe (complete with a friggin’ flying pig on it). Bought a gnarly pig nose, glued it to my face and the rest is history…

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So, the day has finally arrived… after 3 long weeks of waiting, Taylor’s customized Converse shoes arrived in the mail. They are designed in CKT colors - green, purple, and orange. They ended up being a little big (go figure with Converse having its own sizing method - ugh). Anywho, I’m pleased… and I better be for what we paid for them :\

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NBC invited the Roosevelt Cheerleaders to their station to help promote the North Park Toyland Parade this Saturday. Taylor was pretty upset because the flyer in her stunt group jumped the gun and bit and it caused them not to execute their “elevator” on time. I think she’s over it now, though. It was so cute to watch. This truly is one of the best things about being a parent. *proud grin*

Update: Unfortunately, her stunt group has now been cut all to pieces because two of them couldn’t keep their grades up. The other day I picked Taylor up from school and she had a big ol’ fat lip because her new flyer kicked her in the face on a toe-touch. I still think it’s cute. Maybe I’m a little demonic. Hey, I’ve come to grips with the fact that she’s a cheerleader. I just hope that the competitive sports bug bites her really hard soon.

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I find myself conflicted this morning … There I was last night, rejoicing in the fact that America elected the first African American president in our history. How wonderful for all the people who thought that would never happen. I’m ecstatic that the children of our country (my daughter included) now know that ANYTHING truly is possible.

How can I hold on to the notion that we as a nation are leaving discrimination behind us when Obama is elected president and a proposition like 8 is passed on the same night? Why can’t we just wash our hands of discrimination and move forward. We always have to do it in small chunks. Okay, we’ll let an African American man be president but gays still need to put in their time of suffering. It disgusts me.

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That’s right … I voted this year for the first time. Trust me, the fact that I’m 31 and voting for the first time is not something I’m proud of but I almost let it slide past me again. I was faced with deadlines at work that made it impossible to vote in the morning and I’d just been dreading fitting it in all day. Plus, not knowing how it all works when I got there was making me nervous (you know I don’t like to be embarrassed).

Anyway, it all worked out. I didn’t let the fact that I hadn’t received my mail-in ballot or the fact that I didn’t know what to expect stop me from doing it. Now I can do it with ease next time. This is ramping up to be the year of firsts for me. First jury duty, now this. Who knows … maybe next I’ll join the friggin’ PTA.

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So it happened, I finally finished my costume and headed out. I know that by the looks of it isn’t much of anything but the process of getting to this stage was painful and long. First, I couldn’t come up with any good ideas. Then, I finally came up with the idea of a bad pick-up line (Angel who fell from heaven). The sign was meant to prompt people to ask me, “What hurt?” and I could respond, “When I fell from heaven.” It didn’t really work out that way but I’m okay with it anyway.

Once I had the idea I bought a white halo and white wings and set out to find some kind of angel outfit. Yeah, that was difficult. I can’t really pull of slutty costumes and hate huge stuff that lays on me like a tent … seemed like when I was looking those were my only two options. I finally ordered what appeared to be a decent robe-like gown online, paid extra to get it to me on time and then sat back and felt happy that I was done looking. I didn’t mention that I spent an entire day shopping around the town for some kind of white outfit I could make myself that would look angelic. Guess what you’re not supposed to wear after Labor Day? That’s right, white. I was in a sea of fall colors with no white in sight.

Anyway, so after I got the costume and realized that it was of the tent variety I mentioned above, I was upset and ready to call Halloween off entirely. Then I was shopping in Burlington Coat Factory for my second idea (thanks to Krista) of going as the wrong holiday so I was looking for Christmas stuff to decorate myself with. I stumbled across the top I’m wearing in this picture and really liked it. So I thought, what the hell, why not go as a dark angel (since I am falling from heaven anyway) and paint the stupid white stuff I’d purchased black. This is the result. I’m happy considering all the horror I went through to pull it off. Next year will be better planned. I just waited too long to come up with anything. Now I’ve got about 50 different costume ideas that I’m keeping a list of to work on throughout the year so this never happens again.

Hope everyone else’s Halloween was everything they wanted it to be … now back to real life.

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