Projects, projects, projects

Over the last week I have focused on taking care of projects I have neglected. The couple I rent from are returning home tomorrow and I wanted to finish quite a few projects I have put off most of the summer. I was able to clean & organize the downstairs, clean up the garage, dump some trash from the garage at various dumpsters, jump start the Person’s cargo & drive it multiple times to make sure it works, and start putting together a folding weight bench.

I am excited by how much I have accomplished over the last couple days. It makes me want to take on more projects or create goals and pursue them! I sound like a kid that is all hyped because he just figured out how to open the refrigerator and eat ice cream & cake that was not his to eat.

I am sure most people discovered how to finish projects between ages 18 - 21. I am sure most people who discovered this ability have been implementing it in practical ways throughout most of their lives. Not me, I suck at doing projects! In certain times in my life I have been great at starting them but never finish them. At other points in my life I have been great at finishing them but rarely start them. To put it all together is an accomplishment for me.

My interesting diet

After visiting my relatives in Iowa who grow many of their vegetables & eat very healthy I have been looking for ways I can incorporate more green vegetables into my diet. A week ago I bought a vegetable I have NEVER bought or cooked before - Brussels Sprouts. I figured I would start by buying a new vegetable and learn how to cook it. I am glad I bought a large bag that lasted a week as it took me a week to figure out how to stop burning them! By the end of the week I was able to cook them in two different ways.

I know anyone reading this post will think a few things like, "Good job learning a new skill" or "You are smart for making healthy choices" or "That is great, way to go!" or maybe "Only idiots burn mini cabbages!", while some of those may apply please don't think I am consistently making great choices about my eating habits. Today my dinner consisted of a smattering of leftovers that don't mix. I had kim chee, steamed broccoli, leftover chili, and a couple cheese brats. I will most likely have lots of gas tomorrow. Just be glad you don't share an office with me come Monday morning!!

If I receive a random package containing beano I will know some comedian sent it to me after reading my blog! Considering I work in an office full of women...send me a case of beano...for the sake of my coworkers.

Project day

Usually I rest on Saturdays but today I spent most of it running errands and taking care of projects I have neglected. I was able to clean & organize my room, get my shopping for the week done, jump start the Person’s car, explore a couple shopping marts, and start putting together a folding weight bench. In between all of this there was a nap or two and some mindless time doing a Sudoku puzzle & some fantasy football updates. All in all it was a productive project day!

Good clean fun

The other night I was walking along the 16th street mall downtown near a newer clothing store with giant windows. As I was walking by and looking in I noticed two girls standing very still by window. They were acting like they were mannequins. As I caught one girls eye I smiled and so did she. Good clean fun...good clean fun!

No peace for me

I was enjoying a quiet day to myself at the place I was house sitting. I had a leisurely morning cooking breakfast & checking out movie times. I had decided to go see a movie and was checking out some stuff online when a car drives by the front windows honking erratically. It was the couple I had been house sitting for, they returned home three days early. It was a huge surprise and for a few moments I debated going on about my day and returning home to hang out with them. I then they both can carry on and on and on in an annoying unable to stop talking manner and since I wanted to enjoy some quiet time I decided to pack and leave early.

When I got home later that night I was surprised again to find the parents of the guy I rent from in my living room & watching TV. They were in town and ended up staying at my place as my buddy had other in town guests staying at his place. So much for peace and quiet.

I was not sure how to take all the interruptions. I was upset and my sense of peace & control was completely disrupted. Isn’t that what life is about? If I get married or start seeing someone I will have even less me time and will be forced to be deal wiht people coming & going all the time.

I can always carry something on me to make other people leave me like a squirt gun or monkey that likes to climb on other people. I wonder how much monkey's cost? Better yet, I could have a pet skunk! Then I would have to wear a rubber suit all the time and I probably would have a faint odor at times...maybe on second thought I will just get use to life interrupting my plans for peace & quiet.

Dexter-esque?

The couple I rent from had the carpet replaced with wood flooring. The guy who did the job left all the carpet in the garage with instructions to leave it out with the garbage so the trash men can pick it up. He recommended leaving a little out each week and by doing so all of it could be disposed off by the local garbage pick up with in a months.

It sounds like a good idea but at the time I was house sitting far away from home so I could not set the trash out each week. Since the couple I rent from return soon and I have not been able to set out the carpet it is still sitting in their garage. Which is a problem as there is not much space in the garage and they seem to need all the space they can get when they unpack after returning home from a trip. So now I have only a couple weeks to get rid of a huge pile of carpet pieces.

If you have ever watched the TV show Dexter, you are familiar with Dexter's routine of disposing the bodies of his victims by dumping them into the sea from his boat late at night. He has found a neat & tidy way of getting rid of evidence. I decided to be like Dex and start dumping the carpet in various garbage bins late at night. It is an odd feeling to drive up to a large garbage bin, pop my trunk and hustle to lug a couple loads of carpet into a dumpster with in a minute or so while wondering if anyone is watching me or if it is illegal and what type of consequences I could face for dumping waste into a public or private dumpster.

I am sure what I'm doing would be more thrilling if it there were more to it than getting rid of shredded carpet. There is no way to glamorize dumping waste in a dumpster which is probably a petty offense no one cares about. Since that is all I am doing and I am blogging about it I realize I am not very adventurous & I have no life. None what so ever!

I am like my dad

Growing up I use to watch my dad eat apples and think it was odd as I didn't like apples and couldn't stand the idea of eating them every day. My dad would eat bananas & apples every day, usually for lunch or as a snack. He was healthy and never pressured me to eat them but he liked them and was always excited to eat them. I use to think I will never eat apples every day.

Famous last words. I discovered apples are the perfect serving size for a snack and they are not expensive. I can get a bag of apples at the store on sale without spending much. That bag of apples will last for days maybe a week or so. I like to take them with me to work to have at lunch time or as an afternoon snack. Twenty years ago I wouldn't touch apples. Currently I can't imagine a week going by without eating a few apples.

My first con

I hate to admit what I am about to admit. I did not plan to do this as it was spontaneous. I won't give any excuses but I will be honest about my opinions. I did not handle this situation well and it amuses me to a degree so I want to share with others.

I was at a bar hoping to meet a friend of mine who was not working that night. I ended up getting into a poker game and chatting with a couple people. One girl was initially fun to talk with but got weird and annoying after a while. We started off talking about things we had in common which we did have a few but she would not stop going on and on about how similar we are and almost like twins. I tried to point out some differences but she wasn't going to hear it and kept insisting we hang out and enjoy some of the things we have in common.

At this point I am annoyed as she isn't listening and her personality is annoying me so I am trying to politely find a way to get away from her and nothing is working. She keeps following me around and when I would talk with other people she would get in the conversation but wouldn't talk with other people as she focused on speaking with me. By now it has been a couple hours in the bar and I want to leave but I am feeling trapped by my new found stalker. That is when my devious plan came to action.

We both had started tabs and had not closed them out. The bartender saw us together most of the night and we were sitting together so I figured it would be an easy assumption to make it seem like we were together. I waited until my stalker friend went to the bathroom and then I explained to the bartender to add my orders to my friend's tab. She was in the bathroom but when she comes out and we would settle up. I had been tipping the bartender all night so I think it helped establish a good image as the bartender agreed to my request. All of this happened before she returned from the restroom.

I then was able to grab my jacket in a sneaky way and slip back towards the men's restroom where there was an exit near by and I was out before she came out and found me. I quickly ran to my car and left in a hurry. I had just successfully pawned my tab off on to the girl who would not leave me alone. I have never done anything like that in my life. It felt odd, freeing, and hilarious at the same time. That girl got on my nerves and would not leave me alone so I felt like getting one over on her and I did. Hopefully she won't be so friendly to strangers in the future.

I use too..

I use to like hanging out in cemetaries because they are quiet. I would go there to read, or walk & relax, and sometimes just to have a quiet place to reflect on my thoughts. It was fun for a while until it started to feel spooky. I would eventually start to imagine zombies coming up from the graves or running through the cemetary (I have a very active imagination). After a few times where my imagination started getting away from me I noticed I was not focusing on reading or resting or reflecting as I was looking around for zombies (You would do the same thing if you thought they were near or have an overactive imagination!!). Eventually I stopped going to cemetaries to hang out.

I have recently discovered a surprising place that is quiet, it is the morning light rail headed into downtown. Even though it is packed with people it is usually very quiet. My theory about why people don't talk to each other is the business types are dreading going to work or enjoying the ride into work and the students are thinking about school so everyone is preoccupied with something else and enjoys the silence. I always try to take the light rail into work when I am near one which is usually when I am house sitting. I can sit and read or reflect without any distractions on the lightrail. The other cool thing about the light rail is I don't imagine any zombies which makes riding the light rail stress & worry free.

I train for nothing...again

This morning I bailed on the 10K. It was below freezing at race time and I was not prepared to run in weather this cold. Most weather reports from earlier this week had this weekend's tempature in the low 50's. A cold front came in so temperatures under 30 were reported over the last couple days. While laying in my warm bed this morning I realized I wanted to sleep in and snuggle more than anything, so I did.

I was not able to run in the Boulder Boulder earlier this year so missing this race bums me out to a degree as I really wanted to run a 10k race this year. Next weekend there is a 5k I can run. Maybe I will run it twice and that will redeem me? I just hope it is warmer than 30 degrees next weekend!

10k update

I ran five and half miles last weekend! This weekend is the race and I am excited! I can't wait and I am thinking about running a 5k race the following weekend!!