Here I Go Again

No, I'm not going out of town or running another half-marathon - at least not yet. Today I joined Weight Watchers - for the third time. The first two times were very successful for me. Why did I stop? Because I had lost significant amounts of weight, and I thought I was cured (never mind the fact that I had started to gain a little, and decided to quit while I was ahead).

I had really wanted to avoid joining up again. I kept thinking I could lose weight on my own. But finally last night, I came to grips with reality. The scales were changing alright, but in the wrong direction. I clearly needed help and I knew what worked for me, so it was just going to get it.

The hardest part was to admit that I can't lose weight on my own. I hate asking for help, especially when it seems for something that should be so simple - just quit eating the wrong stuff. But my personal plan just wasn't working. So today I went to the meeting and signed up again.

As soon as the meeting started, I knew I was in the right place. I need this camaraderie and encouragement. I need the accountability and information. I need the enthusiasm and sense of belonging. I need this group to keep me focused and moving in the direction I want.

All I had to do was admit that I needed help. No matter how much weight I need to lose, admitting and asking for help was the hardest part. Now that I've done that, I can do the rest.

Being the Sprinkler System's Assistant

We have a sprinkler system for our yard and flower beds. It was put in before some of our current landscaping was done, so everything doesn't always get watered like I want. This means that I have to get out the hose and water some of the flowers myself, if I really want them to bloom. Today I was not so happy about it. I mean, the sprinkler system is supposed to do all the work for me, isn't it? Why should I have to do extra work?

Then it hit me - the fact that the sprinkler system IS doing most of the work. It does the yards and probably 95% of the landscaping. All I have to do is the little extra that I chose to add. It may take about 15 minutes, and then we're done.

I find this dilemma a lot in life. Sometimes I think if somebody or something is going take care of a task, then it should be done and I should have no responsibility. But it doesn't always work that way. Sometimes if I think there's a piece that needs to be completed, I get frustrated when it doesn't get done. If I would just quietly and willingly do my part and move on to the next thing, then the job would be done to my satisfaction. Everyone would benefit, especially me.

I guess it's time to recognize that helping and doing your part isn't a burden when you want something to have wonderful results. After all, we are all in this together. Today, it was the flowers, the sprinkler system, and me.

Paying for Vacation

Actually, Marilyn and I made a pact that when they put the final bill under our door on Sunday morning, we wouldn't look at it - we would just take care of it when we have to. But that's just one way of paying for a vacation.

You pay when you have to get back to work, whether you enjoy your job or not. You have to get back into that work and everyday routine and schedule. If you stayed at a hotel, you have to pay by cleaning up your own room. In our case, we have to turn down our own beds and make our own towel animals (or just hope the one hanging in the bathroom is clean). If you were like us on the "eat all you want all the time" food plan, now you pay by planning, buying and preparing not only your own food, but those who depend on you for their meals. Finally,you pay with all the time spent catching up on all the work and daily duties that went on in your absence and need your immediate attention.

There are many ways you pay for your vacation, but if you're lucky you realize how little you actually paid for the irreplaceable memories that you created. Those are the memories that will soothe you when the Visa bill comes, or the boss acts like an idiot, or you get mired down in the everydayness of life. After all, credit card bills come and go, but vacation memories last forever.

Tricky Mondays

With Mondays, you just never know what you're going to get. It might be that you're returning to work after vacation, or it's the first day of a week full of things to do. On the other hand, it might be the first day you've decided to make some changes in your life, or it's your birthday, or your anniversary, or another day to celebrate.

Today was a tricky one for me. First of all, when I was leaving the cruise terminal on Sunday, I grabbed the wrong bag. Who would have thought that someone else would be using the exact same bag I had to pack their dirties in, and it be in the same Chip and Dale section, very close to mine? Did I bother to check the tag? No, because I thought my bag was so unique. Not so. When I got back to Nashville, I had an email from my travel agent saying DCL was calling to say they had my bag, which I thought was odd, until I opened said bag to take out the dirties. Upon realizing that I had not packed my clothes in plastic bags, I checked the name tag and saw a different name than mine. So today was spent on the phone arranging for my bag to be shipped to me, and I had the bag I kidnapped sent to Washington.

I also have the mother of all colds, and spent most of the day taking various cold remedies and applying hot and cold packs hoping to find relief, and attempting to sleep. I haven't felt this lousy in a while.

One might be inclined to think that this would not be a great way to spend a Monday. But the DCL people were very nice and I eventually found the right combination of drugs to unstop my face, so these issues were minor.

More importantly, I was finally able to load my vacation pictures, I enjoyed a belated birthday dinner for Molly with the family, we saw "Sex and the City", and I was able to enjoy being with those I love. All in all, a spectacular Monday.

Home Again

Unfortunately, Marilyn and I both got off the boat with a cold, so the 4-hour plane ride was not fun. Not bad, but not fun. Anyhow, I am back home and medicated with cold medicine. I was planning to share my vacation pictures, but Shutterfly has decided to be mean, so it will have to wait.

Instead, tonight I will go to bed without a chocolate or towel animal on my bed. Guess I'd better start planning next year's cruise!