battle of the bulge: the beginning

Ok, so like many Americans these days, I need to lose some weight, I’d say about 15 or 20 pounds, though I’d be happy with 10 to start. I’ve been kinda sorta half-heartedly “dieting” for a few months now, surprisingly with little success. That’s a joke. I know I haven’t been committed to the effort, so I’ve really only maintained my current weight, which isn’t a bad thing, just not what I was going for. Now with our beach vacation coming up at the end of June, I realize it’s time to get serious if I’m going to take my shirt off in front of people other than my wife (I can’t do anything about my albino-like skin tone, but if I can look more like a slightly flubby vampire instead of a bloated nightmare creature from the deep, I’ll be happy). Don’t get me wrong – I’m not obese by any means, but like many men my age, I have an ever-growing problem in the gut area.

I’ve always relied on Weight Watchers (not the meetings, etc., just the tools and methodology) for my dieting phases (my typical modus operandi is lose the weight then do ok on my own until I realize that the previously shed pounds have insidiously crept back onto my torso, rinse and repeat). What I realized from this past “effort” (I use that term in the loosest possible way – I’m not trying to kid myself) is that dieting alone, which worked well for me in the past (towards the end of college I lost 25 pounds doing WW with no real exercise) no longer holds up against the ever-increasing inefficiency of my body (i.e. I’m getting old). So now I have to diet and get serious about exercising on a regular basis as well, which I know I need to do anyway, which I am, you don’t have to tell me, so get off my back!

Sorry. Anyway, I will be posting my progress (no pics though, I will spare you that much at least) as we go. Again, my bottom-rung goal is to lose 10 pounds, which should be feasible in a month (I honestly don’t know what the potential weight-loss cap during a month is, but I can tell you that I won’t be wearing one of those shiny sweat suits or sleeping in a sauna, so 10 pounds sounds ok). If I can lose more than that without going to extreme measures, that’s cool. Hopefully knowing that I will be posting the info here will keep my focused, though I can tell you that I can already feel that I am truly determined this time. Of course, my wife will say “that’s what you said last time” which is true, but I mean it this time, just like I did last time. But it really is for real this time. But I said that last time too, so you’ll just have to take my word for it I guess. Either way, I’m gonna do it, so look for the Battle of the Bulge update next week!

general updates and other stuff

Well, I finally sorted out my side of the closet, meaning I went through all of my clothes and created a Goodwill pile; stored all of the winter stuff and took out the summer clothes; reorganized a couple of shelves that were out of control, and generally straightened the area up a bit. It’s looking pretty decent in there now, though we still need to get a new hamper, and figure out a new place to put it if possible.

We got pretty close to actually going into the attic last weekend, but it never happened, and now probably won’t happen for another few weeks due to my wife traveling, etc. Unless I did it myself, but I’m not sure I’m to be trusted with such a task on my own – there’s no telling if I’ll go overboard or not, unless there are explicit written instructions, and even then it’s a toss up.

My grass is fairing well, though since I have to wait to cut the new grass, the rest of the yard is getting pretty “full” so to speak. I guess I could trim it up with the weed-eater, but I like to think I’m giving the grass a chance to choke out the weeds. I’ll probably be able to cut it next week sometime.

What else? Well, I’ve got the ole gears turning regarding possibly starting to really write again, and maybe even trying to publish and sell some of my poems and short stories through lulu.com. It definitely couldn’t hurt, and I think the idea of making even a few dollars would help my drive and motivation a bit. I’ll keep you posted on that front as it progresses.

Everything’s good in general. Toni (my wife) is still pretty nauseated most of the day, everyday, so we’re hoping that goes away sometime soon. I hate that she feels so miserable, and there’s not much I can do for her, though I do make myself readily available to her for whatever she may happen to need. I’ve also become convinced that we’re going to have a girl – I don’t really know why, but there it is. And I believe Toni’s now convinced it’s a boy, so how’s that for a flip? Either way, it’s gonna be great! Well, till next time…take care!

update: dogs and yard

As an update to the two posts prior to the baby announcement (I know you’ve been dying to know), I wanted to pass along that our dogs are doing very well out in the house by themselves. So well in fact that we are discussing the permanent removal of their large crate that has taken up a nice piece of corner real estate in our bedroom for over three years. I’m quite proud of both of them for not destroying the house, though let's face it, Kinsley was the only real threat. Little Bit just likes to curl up on something soft and snooze.

My quest to subdue the backyard is moving along nicely as well. The dominant weeds have been reasonably quelled and my grass seed is starting to sprout, so things are looking good. I also took it upon myself to finally, after at least a year (I’m telling myself that it hasn’t been three years, but I’m not really sure), remove the numerous dirt-filled plant containers that have been sitting along the side of the yard. Two of these actually had what appeared to be small trees growing happily in their snug confines. Fare thee well, weed-trees, your days in the sun have come to an end! As far as our other quests involving the attic or closet are concerned, we are still holding out for the right time to really dig in. This weekend is a possibility. Yeah, we’ll see…

we're having a baby!

That’s right – as some of you already know, my wife and I are expecting our first child! She’s a little over 2 months along now, and we couldn’t be more excited! We saw it for the first time the other day, and were able to hear the heartbeat. Absolutely AMAZING. We already feel so much love for this tiny thing growing in her abdomen, and it’s crazy to think that it will be a little person by the end of the year!! Of course, we’ve both been battling the common sensations of not feeling prepared to be responsible for another human life like this, but I think that comes with the territory, and we’ll learn and adapt as we go along, just like every other set of parents with their first child. It's probably no surprise that I’m hoping for a boy, but I really don’t care either way. The idea of a boy is nice just for the sake of a little balance (to give you some perspective, in our house it’s me with my wife and our two female dogs, and my sister-in-law’s family of three girls who live about 10 minutes away), and I know that my brother-in-law Scott would appreciate having another guy around as well, plus just the thought of those father/son things is nice, though I am aware that I am somewhat ill-equipped to provide some of the “man lessons” (home improvement, car, etc.) that will be needed. But I guess that’s what Grandpa’s are for. Then the other side of me loves the thought of a little girl, who I know will have me wrapped around her pinky instantly. Of course my wife is all for a girl to do all those wonderful girl things with, which I appreciate. Like I said, either is a blessing to us, and I simply can’t wait to shower our child with all of the love I have to give.