Aug 28th 2008 01:51:14 pm

I am definitely a member of the choir in this case, but I am loving the Democratic convention! The speeches have been fabulous. Bill and Hillary were amazing! I also really liked the fun & tough speech on Tuesday from Montana’s governor, Brian Schweitzer. I am really looking forward to Barack’s speech tonight. Travis, Crusher & I are having a party! (Crusher is a huge Obama supporter.)

I want Barack Obama to be our next president. I like him as an individual, as a politician, and as the figure head of our nation. I am ready for diversity, equality, inspiration, opportunity, diplomacy, intelligence, and prosperity. I am ready for change.

7 Comments » Categories: politics

Aug 20th 2008 06:46:45 pm

I read an essay (ok, essay is a bit too fancy a word for a blog post) today about how women who choose to have just one child are criticized by their multi-child peers. I am not so concerned (yet) with the number of children I end up having, but the author brought up one of my biggest turn-offs when it comes to having children at all: The Mommy Martyr Brigade. The blogger explains it this way:

“Which brings me to the Mommy Martyr Brigade, the women with three and four kids who complain and complain about how much they have on their plates. About how complicated it is. About how they have no time for anything and everything is a burden.” (via Burbia, via kirtsy)

I don’t want to choose any life path for myself that will (apparently) make me miserable. But the self-made martyr is certainly not limited to moms. The really scary part is that I have only recently realized that I am one of them! Argh. It took Oprah’s “What I Know For Sure” column in the most recent O magazine to spark one of her trademarked “Ah-ha” moments in my own brain about how I always take on too much and then end up complaining about it all. (No, I don’t subscribe to O. I bought this issue in a weak moment of PMS-induced melancholy.) In her column Oprah is describing how overwhelmed she is with all of the things she has to do – you know, running her school in Africa, trying to find a new CEO for her second television network, reviewing the press copy of her mag, and oh ya, taping her insanely popular television show. As Oprah went on and on about how incredibly BUSY she is all the time all I could think was ‘My God, woman. You don’t have to say yes to everything.’ If one of the richest, most powerful, most successful woman in the world can’t just take time to chill out, what is the point of it all? She, and all of us, have a choice. We don’t have to be constantly competing to be the smartest, coolest, most successful, most beautiful, most busy woman in the world. We can actually choose to focus our energy on only our favorite things, and get this: maybe enjoy our lives a little. Woah. It is sad that that was actually an epiphany for me.

I am not competitive in sports (because I suck at them), but by golly, in life I am going to be the best! Turns out there is no such thing as “best” and even if there was, you don’t get a prize. You just get to be miserable every day wondering whether someone else is doing a better job than you. I think it is time that I drop out of the “all-around competition”. (Did I mention that we have been watching a lot of the Olympics?)

5 Comments » Categories: Magazines, Thinking

Aug 19th 2008 01:09:03 pm

J.Crew just came out with the absolute perfect, slouchy, menswear-inspired t-shirt for fall: the Ringspun V-neck painter tee. I am in love. The fabric weight, the drapey-ness, and the moderately low cut v-neck are all perfect. If you have the cash-money, I suggest buying four: a white, light gray, black, and a yellow. Yellow? Trust me. Wear them with an unbuttoned cardigan, nice jeans, and a headful of gold necklaces and you will be channeling Mary-Kate Olsen’s Katie Holmes’s Amanda Peet’s comfy, casual, hip, laid-back style.

No Comments » Categories: Clothes, Fashion

Aug 16th 2008 01:18:52 pm

I finally went to the doctor and had my blood work done to check for cholesterol problems. (I am high risk in that area due to a strong family history of heart disease.) The results are in and I am NORMAL in all areas! Sweet! Because I am high risk I still want to raise my HDL count (it is currently 56) and lower my LDL count (currently 121). I would like to get my LDL below 100 which is recommended for high risk peeps, but I heard (from an unreliable source) that diet and exercise can only affect your cholesterol count by about 30%. Any doctors (or doctors-in-training) out there know what it would take to really get my LDL count down and HDL up? I already take fish oil supplements, use olive oil, eat red meat less than twice a month, eat only non-fat dairy products (except cheese), and eat high fiber, whole grain breakfast cereal almost every day. I am a moderate exerciser, but could always improve. The big problem is that I sit all day at work… but check this: I have stopped buying sugary coffee drinks! I make coffee at home and use soy milk as creamer. That is a huge change for me, but I have been keeping it up for over a month. What other changes should I attempt?

5 Comments » Categories: Food, Health

Aug 15th 2008 09:24:26 pm

Things have seemed completely out of my control lately. In a desperate attempt to feel like I am in charge, I went on a crazy, lunch-time shopping spree at my favorite local shop. I bought a turquoise Latico bag (not the one pictured above, but close), a Paddywax Raw Honey candle that smells like sugar and summer and deliciousness, and a glass bottle that looks like a plastic bottle. The things did make me feel better, but sadly, did not solve my “issues.” The good news: I have found the motivation to create the life I want. No one else is going to create it for me, right?

I really don’t want to become one of those people (really, almost everyone) who thinks their stresses and/or problems are the absolute most important thing in the world, so I am trying to chill out and stay calm. It is not working. Chilling is not on the itinerary. Eugene is super-hot right now and without air conditioning our house is a sweaty mess. Oh well. At least we have the Olympics. Michael Phelps can save us!

btw: Crusher is loving the Olympics. His favorite sport is synchro (that’s short for synchronized diving for those of you who have not been watching five hours of Olympic coverage each night).

2 Comments » Categories: Accessories, Crusher, Lovely Things, Television

Aug 2nd 2008 07:20:51 pm

Well, maybe not 911, but we did take a trip to the puppy ER today. Sweet, little Crusher got stung by a bee in our backyard and then proceeded to have a nasty allergic reaction. His little muzzle and eyes got all swollen. I was so worried! (I cried a little.) He was also acting really sick and shaking, so we decided to take him to the 24-hour veterinary hospital. The photo above was taken after he got his medicine shots (hence the green bandage) and the swelling had gone down a bit, but you can still see it around his eye and lip. Poor guy! He is resting and doing much better now. Whew!

7 Comments » Categories: Misc