Monday, March 31, 2008

Sunday, March 30, 2008

Why Sundays suck

I'll update tomorrow on what I did this weekend but i just wanted to post something about how mad I am... at today...

It seems as though every time I run on a Sunday, the entire run is crap.. most likely it is purely psychological and not the fact that it is Sunday, but I can't help but wonder WTF?

Tonight after I got home I attempted to run.. now originally I planned Sundays as my long run days so I could get up to an hour - needless to say this did not happen today. What did happen was I got an ENORMOUS stitch in my side, for the entire 20 minutes (I know, I know.. it was only 20 minutes) of my run (plus 5 minutes warm up)... but it was AWFUL... I felt like I was going to keel over at any moment. Plus my pants were falling off.. and no I was not at the gym... I was in a basement so it was ok. But seriously, I have not lost a significant amount of weight or inches since buying these pants 3 weeks ago but I was holding them up, holding my side, holding my iPod, the entire run! As Maya would say, the whole situation was just Pants! If that wasn't enough, since Friday my thighs were screaming pain as well, and I have no idea why, but I did strech A LOT and I am now going to slather them in muscle cream

Conclusion from all of this : Sundays should now be reserved for my long walks and saturday is now long run day....

Saturday, March 29, 2008

Post Workout High

As I mentioned earlier I am, or rather was feeling quite sick this morning. Not really lay in bed and feel like death sick, but a really crappy cold sick... especially my sinuses. Most people know that I usually do not take a sick day, especially as these days I am taking time off left, right and centre to get all my military stuff taken care of before I take off.

Anyways the point of this post is mainly to tell you all that tonight after a monstrous day at the office, I went dress shopping with my Mom at Chinook. I tried on a few dresses at Zara and Bellisima - the other stores were pretty awful but I was feeling quite happy with what I did find. Sadly my favourite dress (2 sizes smaller than normal!) was $250 and I can't really justify that, so I'll be heading to Winners to see what I can find for a better price. I did see something at Zara, but it was knee length and I think I want floor length as the wedding is at the Palliser and I feel like I should step it up notch in the fashion department. During our shopping escapades we stopped by the food court, my Mom had a snack, I opted to wait until I was home as food court fare normally doe snot jive with my nutrition plan... so as we sat I almost fell asleep out of sheer exhaustion, notice I said almost. We finished up the shopping and set out for home. When I got home I decided that I felt much much better (probably due to the energy drink I had, and the lovely cold drugs that Eleni gave me) and thought I should make sure to hit the gym before bed.. so I went. Probably not the smartest thing to do seeing how I was sick, but I did feel up to it so off I went.

Tonight's workout was lower body plus abs (as always) and a run, longer and faster (as always) than before. The great thing is that I managed to get it all done, and I felt great, and I still feel great... those endorphins are wicked! I think I'll do my sets of push ups and jump into bed though because I have CPR all weekend long at Tecumseh - yeah!

Alright, enough of the update, I've got to go to sleep, or Eleni will scold me... YIKES!

Friday, March 28, 2008

Book of the Week

I almost forgot to post this again.. oops!

Anyways, today, because I am sick and miserable, I thought we could read a book about a plague-town in England. The premise of the book is mainly about one women's struggles to get through one specific year in which a good portion of the towns folk fall victim to the Plague. If I'm not very coherent here I apologize as my brain is muddled with sickness...


In any case, it's a good read, very inspiring although somewhat sad.


This is what the editors have to say:


When an infected bolt of cloth carries plague from London to an isolated village, a housemaid named Anna Frith emerges as an unlikely heroine and healer. Through Anna''s eyes we follow the story of the fateful year of 1666, as she and her fellow villagers confront the spread of disease and superstition. As death reaches into every household and villagers turn from prayers to murderous witch-hunting, Anna must find the strength to confront the disintegration of her community and the lure of illicit love. As she struggles to survive and grow, a year of catastrophe becomes instead annus mirabilis, a "year of wonders."
Inspired by the true story of Eyam, a village in the rugged hill country of England, Year of Wonders is a richly detailed evocation of a singular moment in history. Written with stunning emotional intelligence and introducing "an inspiring heroine" (The Wall Street Journal), Books blends love and learning, loss and renewal into a spellbinding and unforgettable read.
In other news I found out this morning that I have a pinched nerve in my right foot.. hence why my foot goes numb when I run... which is always fun... yeah!

Thursday, March 27, 2008

What, so SOON????

Yikes!! it looks as though I am leaving rather quickly (28 days, 23 hours, 42 minutes and 3 seconds ). I just got a message about my room being rented to someone starting the 24th of April... so I guess I'll be outta there on the 23rd. Not like I wasn't expecting this but it is all very sudden it seems and I can't believe I will be saying goodbye to Kensington Palace so soon. I really do love my apartment, it is so pretty and I love living there, but I do not love the winters with frozen hardwood and ridiculously expensive heating bills.... but my kitchen is soooo pretty and I love my arched doorways... and my southern exposed living room, and my fake fireplace, and my perfect location, and oh.... I am sad now.. :(

I was also thinking that I should really take that last week off of work so I can a) pack and b) get all my ducks in a row paperwork / banking wise. So, wow, I have 3 weeks of work left... scary stuff...

On a more positive note, I am feeling more and more confident about the whole making it through basic business. Each time I spend my Wednesday night with the crew at the ship I get more insight as to exactly what will go on, and I feel like this will be in fact like Summer Camp but with Guns! Fitness wise, I did not make it to the gym tonight cause I was dead tired, but tomorrow I shall do a good run, Saturday will be reserved for an 8 km fast walk and Sunday for a long run... I can't hardly wait!!

Now with that I should get back to work and clean up this desk of mine so I won't feel so guilty taking off for 3 months...

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Weights first

Last Wednesday I went to a presentation by one of the fitness coordinators of the Canadian Forces and one of the key points that I took away from the whole thing was that you need to cross the Anaerobic Threshold to get to the Aerobic Threshold - and this takes about 20 minutes. So in theory I should be doing my weights first for about 20 minutes and then switch to my cardio which is of course an aerobic exercise. The reason she gave us as to why she cites this method is the plain fact that the first 10-15 minutes of the run are usually crap-tastic and make me want to die, therefore do some activity first to help you get closer to that threshold - hence the weights.

So I've tested the theory 3 times now and it does help, or maybe it's just that I think it helps. In any case my runs have been both longer and faster than before and I like it.

This morning for example, I got up, got to the gym at 6, did upper body weight stuff plus abs then switched over to my running. This to me is monumental as my morning runs are usually awful and I can't push through that "wall" very well - but this morning I did go faster than ever and for 3 minutes longer than normal so an improvement in both areas! The last 5 minutes were awful, but I took that as a sign that I was doing well and at an appropriate level to progress more. When I got home I did have a thought though about the entire workout regime that U have gone through since January - why is it that my bra size has gone down a cup, but my ass seems to be the same size - even after I kick boxed and ran my way through 3 months of hell??? Is that fair??? WTF???

Whatevs - as long as I can get through IAP / BOTC I am happy. Yeah for running!!!!

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

It's been awhile

I guess I am all out of ideas for Book of the Week and therefore forgot to post on Friday - or any day of the weekend... wow, that sucks.

I suppose I should go through what I've been up to the last few days so we can all be caught up with my boring life.

Friday - tried on Lanster's pixie sized dresses for Snoop's upcoming wedding.. and no they did not fit so we went for brunch to cheer ourselves up. Got home, went for a long long run - 6 miles, not all at once mind you, but in total. Then I got dressed up and had drinks with friends at Limericks until 1:30 in the morning... fun times!

Saturday - drove to Olds with Amy, Anthony and Brian - decided not to pay $150 for a box of paintballs, drove to Shooting range to play with real guns, the boys got tired of waiting so they went to play pool and I went home - and stayed home... a rarity for me these days.. I even watched a movie in bed! It was called "Across the Universe" and I had heard the soundtrack a billion times at Job #2 so I was attune to the whole 60s vibe that was going on. It turned out to be pretty decent and I even got to sleep early - another rarity for me these days.

Sunday - had to work at Job #2 - and it sucked... I am getting rather tired of it and am very happy that I only have 3 weeks left. After dealing with customers I got home and attempted anther run - it was a dismal failure and I ended up walking half the way but came home to do push ups instead.

Monday - back at Job #1, no Easter Monday holiday for me! Talked to some lenders, chatted with the co-workers.. pretended to be hard at work - no just joking, I actually got a lot accomplished... said goodbye to a co-worker (it was his last day... we are laying off again I guess... thanks to the crappy American economy) then it was home to run again. This time it was awesome, I mean it sucked, I am not a happy runner, but I went hard and fast so I was pleased with myself - plus I did my leg workout first so I was extra proud of myself. Now all hard work deserves a reward so I honed in on the dinner party going on at the Bowman's house (I was running on their treadmill) and ate delicious yummy dinner and had some fun conversation... great times!

Tuesday - still at my desk - doing my best to clean up the stuff in my drawers so my replacement can have an easier go of it... For a company that is more than likely laying me off when I come back from basic I'm far too nice. Tonight is a real treat though, I get to go back to Job #2 and smile to all the silly customers... yeah!

Wednesday - More Tecumseh stuff.. should be fun, I do always enjoy my Wednesday nights - however stressful they are.

Thursday - Back to Tecumseh to help plan the skit they need to do for the Mess Dinner, which I am missing for Snoop's Wedding...

Friday - Podiatrist appointment, followed by Doctor's Appointment.. followed by a long run...

Sat and Sun - CPR qualifications at Tecumseh - I can't seem to get away from that place!

Ok, I'm out of ideas to share. I'll post again soon. Adios!

Thursday, March 20, 2008

A Cute Email

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE KIDS WHO WERE BORN IN THE
1920s, 30s 40s, 50s, 60s and 70's !! (I would like to add that even though I grew up in the 80s - this applies to me too!)

First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and drank while
they carried us and lived in houses made of asbestos.



They took aspirin, ate blue cheese, tuna from a can, and didn't get
tested for diabetes or cervical cancer.



Then after that trauma, our baby cribs were covered with bright
colored lead-based paints.



We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets

and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets or shoes,

not to mention the risks we took hitchhiking.



As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags.



We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle.



Take away food was limited to fish and chips - no pizza shops,
McDonalds, KFC,or Subway.

Even though all the shops closed at5.30pm and didn't open on the
weekends, somehow we didn't starve to death!

We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and NO ONE
actually died from this.


We ate cupcakes, white bread and real butter and drank soft drinks
with sugar in it, but we weren't overweight because......

WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE-PLAYING!!


We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we
were back when the streetlights came on.



No one was able to reach us all day. And we were O.K.



We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride
down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. We built tree
houses and cubby houses and played in ditches with matchbox cars.



We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's, X-boxes, no video games at
all, no 99 channels on cable, no video tape movies, no surround sound,
no mobile phones, no personal computers, no Internet or Internet chat rooms.

WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!



We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no
Lawsuits from these accidents.


Only girls had pierced ears!


We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live
in us forever.



We were given airguns and sling shots for our 10th birthdays,


We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or
rang the bell, or just yelled for them!


Mum didn't have to go to work to help dad make ends meet!


Footy had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't had
to learn to deal with disappointment.

Imagine that!!


Our teachers used to belt us with big sticks and leather staps and
bullies ruled the playground at school.


The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard
of.They actually sided with the law!


Our parents got married before they had children and didn't invent
stupid names for their kids like 'Kiora' and 'Blade'

This generation has produced some of the best risk-takers, problem
solvers and inventors ever!



The past 70 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.



We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned
HOW TO DEAL WITH IT ALL!

Catch Up

That is what I feel like I've been playing all week. Catch up on security forms, catch up on house cleaning, catch up on fitness, catch up at work. And after all of the I am thoroughly exhausted.

I have however, been given the information with which to decide my activities for the fall. As it turns out there is no chance of training in the fall for my given trade.... great! Funny thing is though that this was the perfect time for me to go away for a year and do some training - plus I would have been promoted faster, gained more marketable skills, had fun in Quebec City etc etc... Needless to say I am not pleased... and when I asked to be put into my chosen trade (IE: the one I really want to do and not the one that was open when I applied) they told me that I could maybe, but it would take a year and then of course I still wouldn't be able to go training in the fall. The part that is even better in all of this drama is the fact that I will effectively be laid off once I return to Calgary.. yeah for my garbage company!!!! They don't seem to have any sort of respect for those serving in the Canadian Forces and are therefore in my bad books... yah, I've had a great week!

But.... I did have some fun this week...

Monday - St Patty's Day - did some navy stuff with my MBF Jamie, ended up chatting until wel after midnight...

Tuesday - Worked at Job #2, gave notice that I was going away for training

Wednesday - Went for a run, felt pretty good about it, spent 2 hours at the ASU learning about Anaerobic and Aerobic Activity... lesson learned: do weights for 20 minutes before running so you are already in the Aerobic zone... also I (and by I, I mean the public in general) must be doing an hour of activity 5-7 times PER WEEK! I do anyways, but it's crap that that it is now spelled out for me... After the ASU stuff we got back to the Unit with 15 minutes left in the evening and were asked to play a communication game - which we rocked at... we figured out the puzzle in 5 minutes flat - a record thus far! The balance of the evening was spent in the wardroom chatting about life and mostly what Jamie and I will have to do at basic, which apparently is fun so we feel much much better!

Now I'm at my desk.. trying to get everything done so whomever steals my job away from me can be in a good position... yeah.. I'm such a sucker! Tonight though is my awards banquet for my kickboxing course... and I am praying that my before and after picture is NOT flashed up on the screen.... no, seriously - that would be AWFUL, but the way the week is going I bet that is exactly what is going to happen...

Monday, March 17, 2008

Book of the Week / Top O The Morning to Ya!

Oops, I seem to have forgotten to post a Book of the Week so without further ado, I give you:

A History Of The World In Six Glasses

From the Publisher:

Whatever your favourite tipple, when you pour yourself a drink, you have the past in a glass.

You can likely find them all in your own kitchen — beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea, cola. Line them up on the counter, and there you have it: thousands of years of human history in six drinks.

Tom Standage opens a window onto the past in this tour of six beverages that remain essentials today. En route he makes fascinating forays into the byways of western culture: Why were ancient Egyptians buried with beer? Why was wine considered a “classier” drink than beer by the Romans? How did rum grog help the British navy defeat Napoleon? What is the relationship between coffee and revolution? And how did Coca-Cola become the number one poster-product for globalization decades before the term was even coined?



I was going to try to do something James Joyce -esque, but really... This sums of the spirit of St. Paddy's Day as historically this is the busiest day of the year for the pubs!



Cheers!

Saturday, March 15, 2008

Final Evaluation

Ok Boys and Girls. Today, apart from being Ronnalie's Birthday... HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!

It also happens to be final evaluation day for the UBC course... all in all I improved in every area. Stretching was not as good as I wanted, but that's okay - Weight was down another 5 lbs.. not bad... waist was down as well - but the area I am most proud of is the pus ups / sit ups part. This time I did 57 push ups and 58 sit ups in a minute (each one). I felt a lot better than my military fitness test on Wednesday, although I did feel slimmer then. I guess it doesn't really matter in the end because no matter what I am getting stronger and I am starting to think that I'll actually make it through Basic.

Now I'm off to celebrate with the UBC crew at Schanks and then off to celebrate the Birthday of the Fabulous Mrs Inglis!

I think I'll treat myself with some M&Ms... I deserve it !

Thursday, March 13, 2008

Well, thank you!

I am currently playing hooky from Job #2 - although in true Spencer fashion its because I feel like complete garbage. I can handle pain, lots of pain, but when my stomach hurts I turn into a complete baby - hence why Job #2 sent me home. Instead of working I am chillin' with my good cat friend Buddy (I started House-sitting tonight) and trying to unpack 3 weeks of supplies.

In the news department I had another night at Tecumseh. This time I was given an actual tour, complete with my very own helper to explain everything to me - and by everything I mean we went through ranks, security forms, shoe shining, ironing, training schedules, saluting, etc etc etc. It was quite refreshing to actually have someone telling me what was going on and what I need to do next - unlike the recruiting process.... I did however get in trouble for chillin' in the NCM's mess, but in my defense I was invited so it wasn't technically my fault. One guess who got mad at me... yes it was my recruiter - he's so pleasant! The remainder of the evening was spent hanging in my proper mess, aka the Wardroom with my other fellow Junior Officers. It was so nice to socialize and meet the rest of the group who weren't there last week. During the socializing we did however get assigned some homework - yeah! But at least this should be fun, in theory! It turns out we must do a 10-12 minute power-point presentation on whatever country we feel passionately about. 2 guesses which country I think I'll pick...

Oh, I guess I should also give a run down about yesterday morning. I was scheduled for my Expres Test (read Fitness Evaluation) so that meant a 20m shuttle run (aka HELL) which I did pass, in fact I more than passed I made it to the incentive level so I'm good there. Then we did the hand grip test - I did well, I think though I was a bit weaker than I was in January but who cares... I passed. Then it was onto push ups. As the fitness evaluator is lovingly referred to as the Push Ups Nazi and she did her name justice! I made the limit, barely but she did not count several of what was in my opinion fully acceptable push ups! Oh well, it's done and I am glad for it. Sit ups were next, and as I am the sit ups queen I was in my element! I beat everyone there - even with the Nazi counting a few (she is such a stickler for exact technique), but sadly did not make it to my record - I guess that's what Saturday is for!

Expres Test aside and finished I was off to the Clothing Store for my dress uniform fitting. Lucky for me I had a chorus of construction workers there to help me decide which size was the most appropriate, but it all turned out well. In fact during the fitting for my tunic I was trying t find one that fit my arms, but still fit my torso (I didn't want to look like a large box, but rather still keep my figure, somewhat) anyways I asked for a smaller torso size and tried the one given but it was a wee bit tight. My fitter even dared to say "Well, your rather busty so I think we should get a larger size" to which I replied " True enough, but I am wearing a sports bra, so when I wear a normal bra it will be far too small" He smiled and grabbed a different jacket - it was a good size.

After my stop to get my dress uniform I zipped over to the MPs office for my Military ID. Chatted with the guys there for a while, was informed that I should be in Intel and not Logistics and promised to get me in contact with someone who could help me transfer.

All in all, it was quite the productive afternoon. I had to take the day off to get everything accomplished, but it did the trick.

Alright, I am going to bed - maybe if I can muster up enough energy I'll stop by the gym for a run in the morning. Wish me luck!

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Small Party Tasking

Last night was my first real experience with the Naval Reserve Unit. In preperation for my upcoming IAP / BOTP course we did a practice Small Party Tasking where we set up, planned and executed a search and recovery of "water and rations" that had been supposedly attacked en route to our location. It was a lot of standing around and wondering WTF, but then once we got going, despite the unorganized nature of who used to be my recruiting officer, the plan went off without a hitch. Regardless of how new I was I thought I kept up pretty well, and I think that in April when we do another practice run it will be even better.

After the tasking my new NBF and I went for drinks at Moxies and chatted until late into the night. The great thing was that her and I get along so well and I am so thankful that she is coming on course with me. It makes it much easier to think about knowing that I have a friend there already. We swapped stories about why we joined, what we think about current situations and what we are doing to get ready for "BASIC". In any case it was a great evening and tomorrow night should be fun as well (I hope).

Oh, one more quick thing - tomorrow I have yet another fitness test - shuttle run, push ups, sit ups and hand grip. I know I will pass but I get nervous at the thought of not doing well so make sure you all think strong thought for me at 10 am (Calgary time) tomorrow! After that I get to have a fun uniform fitting and after that a military ID appointment - good times for sure!

Alright, I'm off to my massage - hasta mañana!

Sunday, March 9, 2008

Sobering Thoughts for a Sunday Afternoon

I promised a recap of Wednesday Evening's events and here it is, but I am tired and can't seem to get a grasp on the ability to formulate proper sentences, so it's in list form.
  1. Came home from CIBC Spring Focus Meeting (very boring)
  2. Did resistance exercises toute seule as I was skipping out on class due to the ceremony
  3. Curled hair, re-did makeup, changed into appropriate swearing in outfit
  4. Ate dinner
  5. Spoke to Rachel on phone cause she was stuck at work and couldn't come to ceremony
  6. Left for Ceremony
  7. Arrived early (as per usual) felt really silly being all dolled up for a military ceremony, met up with Amy, Mom and Anthony - laughed a lot (as per usual)
  8. Met up with Ronnalie, took pictures
  9. Walked into Tecumseh, signed in, felt really silly with an entourage
  10. Met up with MS Morgan (my recruiting officer)
  11. Sat and waited for an hour while the aforementioned MS took his time arranging stuff, also filled in countless forms, the Bowmans also arrived in this hour
  12. Moved into Ward Room, waited for Commanding Officer to arrive
  13. *** FUN PART*** Stood nervously and listened to Lt Commander Shirely speak about the importance of what I was doing, how happy and honoured I should be, how happy he was that I had people there to witness what I was doing (felt better about my posse), and then I repeated my vow to "bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and all her lawful heirs and successors, so help me God"
  14. Breathed a huge sigh of relief as it was a done deal and I was in
  15. Shook hands with Commanding Officer, smiled a lot, thanked him a lot
  16. Took many pictures with posse
  17. Said bye bye to entourage
  18. Was paraded up and down halls meeting people whose names I have no recollection of, smiled a lot again, filled out more paperwork
  19. Met my new NBF (naval best friend), found out that I will be away for much longer than anticipated - going into August now... yikes! as well as learning my Monday nights are much busier, as well as weekends - including Snoops Wedding Weekend....
  20. Had drinks with the rest of the Junior Officers in Ward room until 11:45
  21. Drove home, made chili for the next day's lunch and collapsed into bed
So there we go... the evening's wrap up in a nice tidy list... it was nerve racking, stressful, fun, meaningful and quite the proud moment in this Naval Cadet's career.

Now onto the "Sobering Thoughts" part of my title.
  • I have less than 7 weeks left.
  • I am away for over 3 months,
  • I may not have a job when I come back - so I may elect to take my occupation training directly after my other 3 courses so I won't have to do it next summer... my new NBF is doing it this way....
  • I went to the gym this morning, ran, did some upper body stuff and stretched - didn't feel that my cardio or strength has improved much in the last 9 weeks... especially the push ups!
  • Came home and opened email from Ronnalie, with pictures of the previously recounted evening, decided that my pictures do not reflect my hard work since January - boo-urns! reinforces sad feelings from gym performance
  • Resolved to run tomorrow morning
  • Realized that I have another scary military fitness test Wednesday morning...and then a fun uniform fitting..
  • Realized that I also have another fitness course evaluation on Saturday morning...
  • Realized that I have to go to Tecumseh (Job #3)twice this week... and Job # 2 twice... and I housesit for 3 1/2 weeks starting Thursday
  • Realized that I have no f-ing clue how I will make it through until august... but I will I promise!
K, I gotta clean the house and go to work... and do some pushups...

Swearing allegiance to my favourite Monarch by taking my oath, and yes that is the Bible I am holding.
Ronnalie and I after the Ceremony
With part of my Entourage... doesn't my Mom look happy?

Friday, March 7, 2008

Book of the Week

Oops... I kind of forgot to post this as my day has been pretty hectic. I also promise to post, with pictures, about my Wednesday evening ceremony.

Without further ado, and because I am going places, I thought this week's entry should be a classic... Oh The Place You'll Go, by our beloved Dr. Seuss


From the Publisher:
"Don''t be fooled by the title of this seriocomic ode to success; it''s not ''Climb Every Mountain,'' kid version. All journeys face perils, whether from indecision, from loneliness, or worst of all, from too much waiting. Seuss'' familiar pajama-clad hero is up to the challenge, and his odyssey is captured vividly in busy two-page spreads evoking both the good times (grinning purple elephants, floating golden castles) and the bad (deep blue wells of confusion). Seuss'' message is simple but never sappy: life may be a ''Great Balancing Act,'' but through it all ''There''s fun to be done.''"
Balancing act indeed. I just found out that I have one more course to do this summer, so I'll be away until August. Plus I need to do a lot more paperwork and fitness tests and security clearances and uniform fittings and military ID appointments, and training days (including Mondays and Saturdays, and yes it is the same day that Snoop has her wedding.. darn it!), and CPR courses before I go, which PS is in less than 50 days as the course starts the 27 th April so I need to be there a day or two early... yikes!
I am exhausted just thinking about it..... no worries though, I'll make it through!
Happy Weekend!

Thursday, March 6, 2008

In the Navy

As sung to me this morning by my favourite little sister....

In the NAVY - The Village People

you have it all wrong
Can't you see we need a hand
In the navy
Come on, protect the motherland
In the navy
Come on and join your fellow man
In the navy
Come on people, and make a stand
In the navy, in the navy, in the navy (in the navy)

They want you, they want you
They want you as a new recruit

If you like adventure
Don't you wait to enter
The recruiting office fast
Don't you hesitate
There is no need to wait
They're signing up new seamen fast
Maybe you are too young
To join up today
But don't you worry 'bout a thing
For I'm sure there will be
Always a good navy
Protecting the land and sea

In the navy
Yes, you can sail the seven seas
In the navy
Yes, you can put your mind at ease
In the navy
Come on now people, make a stand
In the navy, in the navy
Can't you see we need a hand
In the navy
Come on, protect the motherland
In the navy
Come on and join your fellow man
In the navy
Come on people, and make a stand
In the navy, in the navy, in the navy (in the navy)

They want you, they want you
They want you as a new recruit

Who me?

They want you, they want you
They want you as a new recruit

But, but, but I'm afraid of water.
Hey, hey look
Man, I get seasick even watchin' it on TV!

They want you, they want you in the navy

Oh my goodness.
What am I gonna do in a submarine?

They want you, they want you in the navy

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

WTF

I have no clue what is going on with me these days - I think I may be training too much...

For example: yesterday afternoon I was ridiculously tired to the point where I wanted to lay my head down on my desk and sleep. I somehow made it through the afternoon, then decided to zip over to the gym and run for a bit. Instead of running I actually had to use the elliptical as all of the treadmills were occupied, but I got past that and managed 3 miles before my feet went numb (not sure why... as my shoes were loose). After that I stretched and stretched and stretched (I need to be more flexible) and set on my way to go home.

That drive home however was the worst thing I have been made to live through. I was fighting so hard to stay awake the entire ride, it was awful! I made it home, stumbled into my house, decided that I needed to take a small nap, laid down, slept. The fact that I actually took a nap is crazy, but how long I slept was the most bizarre part... it ended up being 5 hours! Yep, woke up at 11:15! It was very very dark in my house and I was still wearing gym gear, hadn't eaten dinner, hadn't made lunch for today... nothing... so I quickly got up, showered, made lunch for today, drank some milk, and went back to bed and slept the entire night - didn't even wake up to go to the gym this morning. Oops... I guess I should be a bit more relaxed in the future.

Today should be more exciting and therefore less tiring as yesterday - I get to skip off to a meeting this afternoon and basically day dream for 3 hours and then I'm off to be inducted into the military.... my last few hours as a civilian.. good times!

Monday, March 3, 2008

Monday Blues

and by blues I am referring to the hue of my fingers as I type this... My office is very chilly this morning, I've got a sweater and my jacket on and I am still cold, as is the rest of my co-workers so I'm not losing it.

Anyways, onto the weekend update. Friday night was Denise's Birthday party, with a special Jack FM cake. There was a lot of laughing and fun.. as per usual...

Saturday, worked, then went out for another birthday party. This time it was at Schanks and we played Mini Olympics... it was fun, we cheated a lot on the scoring, but the birthday girl was on my team so we were allowed.

Sunday was eat what you want Sunday and I did it up well! First was brunch - bacon and more bacon, plus waffles and a nanaimo bar, then later on I ate some peanut butter oreos and some tea.. plus it was movie day - the rest of the Band of Brothers Ron Livingston Video Diaries and So I Married an Axe Murderer, both were great, of course... After that I had to go to work - again - and had a hamburger (yes with more bacon) for dinner... it was nice, but I was not pleased about working both weekend days. I did some grocery shopping last night after work, then cleaned up the house and packed my stuff up to move back home.

That was my weekend... jam packed as usual.. and now I off to training tonight and hopefully a run after that.. we'll see how tired I am I guess.

Other than that my life is quite monotonous... run, eat, work, eat, work, eat, train, eat, prepare more food for the next day... yeah for me!

PS - DON'T FORGET TO VOTE!!!!

Saturday, March 1, 2008

Nicely Done

I don't know if it was because yesterday was a magical day, or what but I felt quite good last night with my lower body resistance, and then this morning although I nearly slept in, my crescent kicks were pretty decent. I even surprised myself with my jab, cross burnout combination.... needless to say right now I am EXHAUSTED, but content.

On the other hand it could have been the JACK FM Matt and Eric Cake that we had for dessert last night for Denise's 8th Birthday... a small piece, but delicious nonetheless!

I am not looking forward to today's stint at Job #2, I am sure I will be moving in slow motion the entire time, but meh - nothing could spoil my mood today!