My last post was on Christmas Eve- that pinnacle of hope and anticipation of the coming dawn, when children wake at 4AM to peek in wonderment at the pile of wrapped shiny and pointy distraction, when parents are nestled all snug in their beds with images of missing and extra parts of bikes and trykes in their heads.  A few moments of unbalance, when the scale tips deeply toward happiness without responsibility or regret.

But then, like the piles of wrapping paper scattered where plastic tokens of conspicuous consumption, rapt consumerism, and economic stimulus once sat, tension builds as self-assessment of the past 360-some-odd days bubbles into view and I wonder where the hell the year has gone and what the hell have I accomplished.

I’ve come to take self-assessment very seriously and the past year has been important.  It’s been a time during which I’ve focused on not only losing weight but maintaining its’ loss.  It’s been a time of enjoying the benefits of a healthier lifestyle and regaining abilities I was sure were gone from my life.  I was a period during which I had an unobstructed view of all regions South of my navel and a time when little things I didn’t realize I missed became a much bigger deal.

Now here I am, another year has rocketed into the past and I sit contemplating what’s next for little ol’ me; what IS 2009 going to be about and how do I make it better than 2008?  I’m pondering, I’m plotting, I’m planning.  I’m not ignoring that I’ve gained five (5) pounds since my last weigh-in.

That’s right, five pounds.  Am I shocked, surprised, or taken back by it?  Discouraged?  Oh, hell no!  I’m not proud of it either.  What I am is friggin’ determined. The thing is that I’ve been lighter than I am right now, recently, so I know how to lose the weight.  More importantly, I know how I put it on and therefore what behavior I need to change. Now all there is (once the knowing part is done) is the doing- and a lot of it.

In my mind it is “crunch time”; that period when I know that a deadline is coming up fast.  Mine is my next birthday.   The goal I set (on my last birthday) is to lose another forty (40) pounds by then.  It’s getting real.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Dig a Little Deeper
• The Hidden Secret In Think and Grow Rich
• How to Slash Through Your Problems Like a Samurai
• Dont Give up
• The Tao of Cats and Dogs

Tweet This

December 31st, 2008 | Tags: Persistence | Category: attitude | Comments (3)

Let me start by saying that I’m not really into the holidays.  Year-end is kind of a stressful time for me and I spend a little of it steaming and venting- probably more than I should.  I’m at a slow-simmer today.

As I sit here racking my brain for gift idea for my wife (procrastinate much, Steve?) my thoughts are muddied with Christmas music.  Not the reverent babe-in-a-manger stuff, but the quirky tunes that get stuck in my noggin and force my little mental trolley right off the tracks.

Now playing in Steve’s brain: “All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth“

If it’s now stuck in your head, Merry Christmas with a heapin’ helping of my apologies.

Here’s the thing (also known as “note to self”)- the holidays are an awesome time of family togetherness and with that, all the food, drink, and dysfunction a guy can stomach.  The key is moderation.  The theme is giving with gratitude.  The sentiment is joy.  If I can do one thing, it certainly will not be stuffing my face with carbs, but instead cramming my heart with good feelings while packing my memories with happiness.  And that can only come from being with family and friends.

Then I’m gonna puke it right back up on all the people that mean the most to me.  Hurling happiness like jungle juice from a co-ed at a frat party.  The happy chunder will be deafening.  Happy holidays!

Rock on.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Society for the Advancement of Despair Presents: A Glummy Christmas

Tweet This

December 24th, 2008 | Category: Uncategorized | Comments (3)

The gym was closed again this morning due to travel safety issues or some such thing. It seems a little puny to be slave to a foot or so of snow. The roads around Portland do get a little treacherous mainly because, out where I am, it’s kind of hilly and the streets meander like plate of spaghetti. I don’t want to get started on the whole street planning issue around here but I think it’s weird that the main street outside our little cul de sac curves around like Forrest Gump’s juvenile spine and changes names three times from head to tail- and it isn’t a very long street.

This has been kind of a freak storm and sharing the road with a bunch of folks who may not be all that familiar  with winter driving really squelches any desire to unbury the car.  Normally I’d be out riding my bike or walking Karma but most often I find myself venturing outside only to replenish the fireplace wood.  Yesterday though, my wife coaxed me into a hike out to several friends’ homes- about three miles of trudging through the snow and around the daftly arranged streets I mentioned previously.

Well, it was cold and snowy and a long hike…  and I could not have possibly had a better time.

Being together with my family in activities I would most definitely have passed on previously due to my being an obese malcontent has become nothing short of wonderful.  I can’t believe I had let myself go so far and denied myself these simple, joyful experiences.

Bring on the snow!  I’ll take whatever comes my way- motivated to make myself healthier so that I can do more silly little things and have more activities with my family.

Tweet This

December 23rd, 2008 | Tags: Family, reasons to live, snow | Category: Family | Comments (2)

It was a cold day in a string of cold days and  really looking a lot like Christmas. I was filling my iPod in advance of my jaunt to the gym tomorrow and came across a little clip from Saturday Night Live and more specifically Steve Martin. He has a few things on his list that I kind of like…

Tweet This

December 21st, 2008 | Tags: what do you want for yourself | Category: wdywfy | Leave a comment

Like this- but she's skinny and a lot younger, I'm not, and there was snow.

My wife and I trudged hand-in-hand to the gym this morning.  Why the hand-holding? Partly because of endearment to one another, partly to share warmth, and partly to steady each other on snowy/icy streets.  It was an incredibly slick walk this morning.

Bonus- it was just damn cute.

We also had the gym entirely to ourselves which was a lot of fun. Not only did we each go through a decently strenuous workout together, it was a playful workout- poking fun at each other and making faces, goofy flexing, and just stuff I wouldn’t do with anyone else in the room. Good times.

You know what?   That’s the way everything should be at one time or another. Maybe not silly-goofy fun but just a genuine enjoyable time during which you accomplish something.

Pushing weights doesn’t have to be this herculean grunt-fest of testosterone laced sweat during which I’m poised contorted in a Marquis De Sade contraption, grimacing a toothy grin more apropos a fiber-deficient diet or childbirth- pushing, pushing, pushing through the burn and strain until the sweet release of that last rep washes away all the angst and disgust resulting from a day chained to a desk belonging to a soul-less corporation in a cube farm tended by a heartless self-loathing miscreant whose credo is “Suck up to the Man” and focuses all his efforts on stealing your talent.  (Whew!  Where did that come from?)  No, NAY!  It should be fun.  Exercise can/should be enjoyable, playful even.

I think I’ll schedule more play dates with my wife at the gym.  It’s a good time for a good workout.

Tweet This

December 19th, 2008 | Tags: Buddy-up, exercise together, gym | Category: Buddy-up, exercise | Comments (1)