oh my brain....

i watched "liz & dick" last night.  horrible movie.  i was going to blog about it, but i don't want to spend any more time thinking about it.

instead, enjoy my google search images.  (the real liz & dick were wild!)

happy turkey day!

jake chessum (the photographer i want to be)

stupid blog templates!

i can't decide on a template & color scheme i like.  i go through this every few months on the blog.  i wish i could draw it how i want it to look, then pay someone to build it.

of course i should be able to do this myself... but a magic wand would be so much easier!

another ramble...

thinking back on the last year.  i joined a gym and am still going.  i lost 25 pounds, my uterus, my job.  them i found a new job.  

the first 6 months of the year were all about learning to exercise and eat right.  losing those 25 pounds.

the next 6 months were all about dealing with health problems (stupid tumor), having major surgery, and focusing on healing and not gaining weight.  maintaining.

i'm still sometimes sore from the surgery.  i can't wear jeans without being in pain.  it's only been 3 months and this is normal.  i also get tired and can't work out as much.  so again, maintaining.

it's been 3 weeks at the new job.  i really love it.  but it's going to get hard.  now i'm testing things, having to ask a ton of questions, trying to understand a complicated SDLC process.  also trying to invent some new & (hopefully) awesome way to make QA work at this company.  i can do it.  it's a little scary and some pressure, but i like that.  

here's a link to the pics from this week's "office olympics".  what a blast!

so now, i feel like i'm at a crossroads.  i've been half-assing it at the gym and with my eating.  after surgery i needed to do that.  and i did maintain my weight.  but now it's just lame and i need to get back to losing more weight and getting healthier.  

my goal was to lose 50 pounds this year.  i won't hit that goal (due to surgery).  so my new goal is to just get under 220.  i've been at that weight for months now.  i can do this.

another goal is to see my friends and be more social.  i'm such a homebody.  i LOVE being home with dan and the dogs.  but i miss my old work friends, and my old high school friends.  i'd also like to get out for walks in the woods with dan & the dogs.  we could also use the fresh air and exercise.

ok, i need to stop rambling and get ready for work.

work...

beautiful downtown skies 

my little cubicle 

creepy parking garage 

 neon sign outside the tiny little diner

xmas tree going up outside starbucks 

parking garage friend showing off her obama coat 

old boots left outside the diner for days 

so i'm loving the new job.  i really REALLY lucked out in landing at such an amazing company.  the people are just incredibly nice.  and not in a boring way.  they're funny & bright, and kind.  they go out of their way to introduce themselves, shake my hand, and even a few hugs.  they truly embrace the "work hard, play hard" motto.

a most welcoming environment.  and here's part of the company's core values:

• Embrace Positive Change 
• Be adventurous, creative and open-minded 
• Strive for continuous improvement
• Pursue growth and learning

so yeah, a really amazing place.

i love being back downtown, and right by the starbucks i used to go to back in my E&Y days.  i'm also getting a kick out of having my own desk, a phone, and business cards.  after years of being a contractor and sitting in closets, it's a welcome change.

next week should be fun.  the sales people will be in town, there's a potluck and "office olympics".  events include:

• Waste Can Basketball  
• Paper Coffee Cup Stack 'Em 
• Post-It Note Fencing 
• Paper Airplane Flying 
• Coffee Mug Power Walk 
• Stare Down Your Coworker 
• Dry Erase Darts 

the people are great, i have a desk, but most importantly, it's a job i love.  i get to figure out how to bring QA to the process.  i'm the first!  and they're giving me all kinds of leeway to do things in a new way.  or an old way.  whatever makes sense and works.  that kind of freedom is what makes me excited to go to work these last 2 weeks.

the developers are following agile, specifically scrum with a kanban board and everything.  i know, it's geek talk, but exciting to me.  it's just great to start a job with a healthy amount of pressure, knowing it's going to be hard, but that i can totally handle it.  

ok, enough jabbering, time to go enjoy the weekend!

ramble on...

i wonder if anyone reads this blog besides my mom.  i've got the insomnia so i'm going to make my blog look really... different.

it's 3am.  i made a sardine & avocado sandwich.  but the sardines were too strong & fishy.  i gave the dogs each a little sardine and i think it blew their minds.

i'll go swim at 5am.  deep water running, then the sauna.  then to eat-n-park for my egg white omelet with turkey sausage.  then starbucks for a vent quad skinny cinnamon dolce latte with 2 splenda.

i'm trying to eat all the "super foods" and healthy stuff.  sardines, avocado, dark chocolate (tiny amounts), kale, eggbeaters, swiss chard, yams, beets, kombucha, green tea, apple cider vinegar, produce that's in season and produced locally, berries, chia seeds, red wine (too much), raw pumpkin seeds, tofu, all the brightly colored fruits & veggies.

i also have bacon once a week.  i had sushi for lunch one day and fat free bologna with mustard the next day.  i just try and live in the moment, make good choices, and find a balance in being mostly healthy.  90% super foods and 10% happy meals, pork rinds, and various junk.

i think the trick is to really pick the 10% carefully, and then enjoy the hell out of it.

ok, now for some random weird pics!