Saturday 25 January 2014

Happy Robbie Burns Day

I had plans for a full post today but it's my first day without any cough syrup since Wednesday and coherent thought is proving somewhat challenging. Instead, I'll wish you all a Happy Robbie Burns Day and just leave this here for your viewing and listening pleasure:



Tuesday 21 January 2014

One of Those Weeks

I know it's only Tuesday, but I'm already done with this week.

Midway through Monday, I started to feel achy and flu-y again. I had never really shook whatever it was I had after New Years but it wasn't bad enough that I felt the need to do anything about it. Perhaps I should have.

At any rate, after 10 years of thinking 'I should buy a thermometer', I bought a thermometer on my way home. Correction, I bought a defective thermometer. No matter how much I shook it, ran it under cold water or yelled obscenities at it, it refused to budge from 108F. As I moved to package it up so I could return it, the bloody thing slipped from my hand into the bathroom sink and shattered.

I feel ya, buddy!

Remember how excited I was that I'm not involved in a certain work project? Well, it was because I was already allocated to two major projects this year and I just straight up didn't have time for another one. I got the preliminary changes for one of the projects yesterday.

So long, social life. You were fun while you lasted!

I guess that's what I get for dancing around the office, laughing at everyone else.

Then, just to top off this week of joy, I decided to be a mature adult and not go to Emerald City Comicon this year. The time of the Con combined with financial plans I want to achieve this year just made it really difficult to justify going. It was a really difficult choice to make because there are a lot celebrities there this year I would give my left kidney to see. I was priding myself on being mature about my decision when I saw the announcement today that Karen Gillian is going to be there.

*sigh*

Way to rub salt into the wound.


Saturday 18 January 2014

Sometimes You Need To Hear It From Someone Else

I started the year with the downer of getting sick. My reason for not really feeling like going out for New Years and struggling to make it to a hockey game on January 1st suddenly became apparent when I woke up with a fever and achy throat on the 2nd. I wasn't able to reach my manager at work so I left a message. She played it back to me once I returned to work... I couldn't even understand what I was saying and I left the message.

Obviously, 2014 was off to a rousing start!

Because my 37 hours of sleep followed by my fever breaking just before midnight so completely wrecked my sleeping pattern - I'm still having issues sleeping through the night, it's like I'm six months old or something - the first week and a half of 2014 were pretty much a write off and I was getting down on my big plans on getting to the gym. When I did get to the gym, I was frustrated by what I couldn't do and what I hadn't improved on. Despite the month not even being halfway over, I started to think I would end this year the same size I started it. Those thoughts were depressing.

Not going to lie. I have been known to eat my feelings.

Then the winners of my gym's December active challenge were announced and I had won a free hour-long training session with our trainer. I had won because I pushed myself to my limits every time I came to the gym and I was taking the initiative to be active outside the gym (hello, lunch time runs!). Maybe I can't do as many jab-cross combos as that girl or bicep curl as much weight as that girl, but I've been fairly consistent in my attendance and I always give the best that I can give at that moment. I needed that little external pat-on-the-back to remind myself that I am doing good.


And that is how you turn a not-so-great start to the new year into an awesome new year.

Question: How about you? What do you deserve a high five for right now?

Friday 17 January 2014

Not a Real Post... Again

I wanted to post a real post tonight but the internet's been up and down more times than a white flag in the French army. Solution: write a small filler post, yell at the internet connection a few more times, write something offline later this evening, and then hopefully successfully post it tomorrow morning.

If there's not something here tomorrow morning, please have bail money ready. I will most likely be calling you at some point.

Anyway, on with the filler post. I got an email today for a new project at work showing the Project Resource Allocation Hours and my name was nowhere in the email. Every single person in my department is on this project but me.

I screamed with joy and rubbed it in the face of every single coworker.


I'm not joking. I did my Kermit Flail impression during our afternoon meeting today.

I love my job. I love learning new things, I love assisting in directing the changes that occur in our company, and I love teaching people knew skills and ideas. But I have been involved in all but one project that's come through our department in the last two years in some way. In many cases, it hasn't been to the same degree as my coworkers but I still have to learn the same policies and rules that they do to contribute my smaller amount of hours. I'm already committed 100% to another project which is why I'm not on this one, but now I have an emailed excuse for why I get to do diddly. I'll take it!


This, my friends, deserves a glass of wine tonight.

Wednesday 1 January 2014

Making Plans

Welcome to the future! Isn't it glorious?!?

I'm a little sad that the future doesn't actually look like this,
I had a rousing evening of staying home and watching movies. It seemed that all my options for the night involved large crowds and loud noises, and I just wasn't feeling it. So after a viewing of Dinner for One (it's tradition), I snuggled in with my kitties and a couple of movies: The Social Network and Michael Collins. I'd never seen The Social Network which seemed odd given the amount of time I spend on Facebook. I saw Michael Collins on a date 17 years ago - yes, I'm that old - but a recent discussion about it prompted the repeat viewing. While it's a decent enough movie (historically accurate bio-pics are hard to get right), a better option to learn and understand that time in Irish history is The Wind That Shakes the Barley. Great film. Check it out.


At any rate, I'm just going to assume everyone had a more exciting evening than I did. On to the 2014 resolutions!

1. Go to kickboxing/bootcamp at least 11 times a month.
In an ideal world, I'd be making a commitment of going to every class, every week (that's four classes a week) but this is not an ideal world. Attending class is a huge time commitment as I go straight from work and don't get home until 7:30 or 8:00pm. Some weeks, doing that four nights in a row is just not going to be feasible. So while I want to aim for attending every class, my minimum is going to be 11. And maybe, for added incentive, I should say something silly like "if I don't make the 11 classes, I will do [insert number] burpees".


 Because if there is one thing that will make sure I get my ass to class at least 11 times a month, it's the threat of more burpees than I'd get in class.

2. Run two 10Ks
I will be running the TC10K in April because that's what you do when you live in Victoria and like to pretend you're a runner... or you're high on running endorphins and you agree with some Twitter friends that it sounds like a great idea to form a team. Same thing, really. But I want to aim to run another one in the Fall, something to keep me going once the TC is finished. If I get really hardcore, I'll do the Gunnar Shaw but I don't know if I'm ready for that level of trail race in the cold.

And just to be very clear, when I say 'run a 10K' I mean 'jog a 10K with plenty of walking breaks'. Let's not fool anyone here with thoughts of speedy races.

This totally counts as running, right?
3. Start the process of becoming certified in Instructional Design.
I'm a technical writer. To move forward in my field, Instructional Design is where it is at. Don't worry, I don't expect you to understand any of that. The plan is to enroll in a few classes, probably starting in September because they're through schools that start in September. Someone should probably remind me of this in June.

4. Improve my German.
A few years ago, I gave myself an ultimatum: either that was going to be the year that I worked on my German or I would drop it and just accept that das Schiff had sailed. I did nothing that year and so I let my half-hearted attempts to improve my German stop. 


Then I went back to Germany and Switzerland this past year and had to use my rusty German. Surprisingly, my German was much better than I anticipated and I gained a lot of confidence in my ability to use it. Not surprisingly, it reignited the desire to improve my German. I've been working on it casually for the past few months and I'm going to continue doing so in 2014. I'm still trying to determine how I plan to 'measure' my improvement. Hmm, a Christmas trip to Germany/Switzerland where I speak only German for the entire two weeks? Anyone want to fund that?

And that, my friends, concludes my resolutions for 2014. Nothing crazy, but building on what I've already started.

Wish me luck!

Question: How about you? Any resolutions? Or are you not a resolution person?