What to Say...

I don't have much to blog about today, but I feel I need to put something out here since it has been a while and I don't want Kim to call me out about not blogging again.

Things are actually going fairly well. I'm waiting on some news so that I can officially announce some news and make a change that I feel will be both good and bad for me....Cryptic enough for you? I'm sure most of you can probably figure it out, but I don't want to jinx it yet, so....

The puppies at the Castle have accepted me as part of the pack. I think the fact that I've fed them a couple of times, given them water, released them from their cage, and accept lots and lots of cuddles and kisses from them has probably helped quite a bit in this acceptance.

My worldly belongings are supposed to be arriving on Sunday, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they will actually show up as planned. Saturday (tomorrow) I'm getting up early for a weekend and going to see my nephew in his swim meet then go with my sister to pick up my niece and take her to a band contest. I'm so happy to be back in Texas so I can participate in all of this stuff again.

My mom asked me last Sunday when I was chatting with her if I missed living in San Francisco and if I was sorry that I left and not within walking distance of restaurants and cultural activities. I told her "Mom, in all honesty, I'm doing the exact same thing that I'd be doing there...curled up in a chair reading....except here its quiet, no motorcycles roaring past, no ice cream carts being unloaded to bombard the neighborhood, no sirens from police or fire department...." I enjoyed my time in San Francisco and will be back there to visit, but I'm really, really happy to be back in Texas!!

This week I've started going out and walking around the neighborhood when I get home from work and before the King serves dinner. Wednesday evening I stopped in the park and "played" on the swings for a little while until a little girl showed up and I decided that I'd leave...not that the little kid scared me out of the park....

So, we are settling into a routine at the abode and at the office. I finally got my other computer on the network at home and will hopefully post some of my pictures from my Yosemite trip and drive down the Extraterrestrial Highway.

Bad Start to the Day

The bad start actually began last night as I was walking from one bedroom to another without the lights on. I thought I was headed in the correct direction, but I was off by about a foot and almost tumbled down the stairs....Guess I'm gonna have to start wandering around the castle wearing my headlamp so that I don't get lost....

This morning I slowly get myself around and head off to the office. About halfway to the office, I start wondering if I closed the garage door. So, I decide, rather than call the King and disturb him that I would just drive back to the castle and check...fully prepared to see the garage wide open and God knows what sort of hoodlum inside the house wrecking havoc on the poor puppies, the King can pretty much fend for himself. Mind you the location of the Castle is nowhere near where hoodlums may be lurking around waiting to sneak into an open garage, but it was early and my mind was running wild. As I pull into the driveway, I see that the garage is shut tight as a drum and I really had nothing to worry about.

I finally make it to the office and get in the building and realize that I don't have my phone with me. It is still out in the car. I stop and turn around and consider going out to the car to get my phone, but since it is raining I decide against it....if it is that important then people can leave a message....maybe I'll go get my phone at lunch.

I get to my desk and get all of my stuff up and running and ready to go and have to call the Service Desk to get help setting up my computer to print....I won't even go into that conversation because that would lead me down the "I'm frustrated" path.... Needless to say, it really throws them for a loop when I try to explain that I'm on an account asset working on the company network trying to print to a company printer.....it makes my head hurt just thinking on it.

Now, I've vented and feel better. I had a pretty interesting horoscope this morning, so with any luck the day is really going to go better than the way my morning started....

Frustration...

I'm very frustrated lately. I'm not sleeping, and that is getting frustrating. There are a number of reasons why I'm not sleeping. First among them is that I still don't have my worldly belongings. My movers called me yesterday and told me that it is all still in New Mexico and they are trying to get it on a truck with somebody else's worldly belongings but it won't fit and I can just picture things being loaded and unloaded and the likelihood of something getting lost or broken increases each day. They told me when I hired them that by law they had 30 days to deliver my stuff after pick up and the tentative delivery date will put them at 25 days... We'll see how this goes.

My second big frustration is work. I've been talking to one person about a new position that is being created, but the company moves slowly to get anything approved and in the right direction. However, in the meantime, my current boss wants to meet with me to find out 'how the job search is going' and I learn in our team meeting that somebody else on the team has already been assigned my duties...nothing like finding I've pretty much been replaced in a public setting. I know that she has been given the directive to off shore two of her positions and that we had talked about the fact that mine be a likely candidate when/if I found another position...but I haven't found that yet.

Along those lines I'm frustrated that there just aren't a whole lot of jobs out there and those that are I'm completely unqualified for.

Sorry for the pity party, just needed to vent. Hopefully, I'll find sleep soon and the frustration will ease up.

The Pounds SHOULD Be Dropping Off

Well, it has been a whole week of very healthy eating. While at the castle there has only been one meal that has been eaten out and that was because the Queen and I were strolling down college memory lane prior to going to Midnight Yell Practice on Friday night. Some of the items that the King has prepared are:

Grilled Chicken with brown rice and grilled vegetables and a salad with Granny Smith apples, craisins, and a champagne vinaigrette dressing
Steak with potatoes and grilled vegetables and a salad (with more champagne vinaigrette dressing)
Roasted Chicken with rice and vegetables (lots of broccoli and asparagus)
Chicken stir-fry with all sorts of scrumptious veggies that I didn't think I would eat but because I didn't want to hurt the King's feelings I tried and turned out I actually like them.
Sauteed chicken and veggies in a wine reduction sauce with garlic and thyme in the rice

All the yummy foods are sorta running together as there is always enough for leftovers the next day. The times that the King hasn't cooked for me, the Queen has actually shown some talent in the kitchen and makes a really tasty Grilled Cheese Sandwich.

Every night as we wander off to bed the King sets out my cereal bowl and glass for the next morning, so I'm having breakfast each morning before I leave the house. I also take an apple with me for my mid afternoon snack.

On top of this, I started using the Castle's on site work out facilities and have to climb up stairs to get to my room. PLUS, I've been doing a lot of wandering around the campus for work.

We're keeping our fingers crossed that with the good food and the exercise that I'll be able to get my body on track towards a healthy second half.