Happy New Year !

 

Here we go ! It's a new year. Time to get back on track with diet and exercise. The goal is 100 pounds by 12-31-25. Can I do it ? Well, I won't know unless I try. I will be starting Nutrisystem again on Saturday 01-04-25. My original Day 1 blog can be found here.

Well, so much for retiring the "hot mess express" graphic. I left my phone at Kim & Joe's last night and didn't realize it until I was pulling into the driveway at home. I wasn't looking for the phone, I just suddenly remembered that I left it behind. There was no way I was driving back to Cicero since it was well after 1 am. I had no way to call or text anyone, as I didn't have that ability set up on my tablet. I emailed Lauren and DM'd her on Instagram to have her tell Kim I'd pick it up this morning.

So anyways, how was my New Year's Eve ? It was FUN ! We had plenty of food and we played Yachtzee and Dominoes, 2 of my favorite games. Easy to play with a crown and doesn't require too much brain function ! I lost my shirt on Yachtzee but won a game of Dominoes, so that was nice ! I didn't get to sleep until around 3 am because I was mad at myself for forgetting my phone. Whenever stupid things like this happen I worry that it's a sign of dementia or Alzheimer's. I think I'm fine, just careless at times. After all, I did remember I left my phone ! I left my phone at home on Christmas Eve and was maybe 10 minutes away from home when I came to that realization. I didn't bother to go back and get it.

Needless to say, first order of business this morning was going to get my phone. It was about 8:35 am when I left and I was home by 10:15. I went to Kim's first. She was the only one up and still in her robe, which was fine because I didn't plan on staying. Since I was out, I went to Delta Sonic and got gas. I was just under a half tank and if I go to rock & roll bingo tonight I would be low on gas - which is not good when we have a winter storm warning from 1 pm today through 6 pm on Sunday ! So maybe this happened for a reason ? I've been thinking about cream filled donuts lately, so I went to Top's in Mexico to see if they had any. They didn't, but I bought a dozen of things I like anyway. When I got home I made a cup of coffee and scarfed down 3 donuts. They were so good ! I got a couple headlights, so I got a bit of white cream to satisfy that craving. It was $13 for 12 donuts ! Wow, I am glad that's not something I buy often ! I haven't bought a dozen donuts in years and probably won't buy another dozen anytime soon.

So, despite the bumpy start to the new year, I still think it's going to be better than 2024 ! Last night I talked some with my siblings about my plans to not pursue a new job and just be retired. They think that's a good idea since I can easily afford it. I don't know how many years I have left on this earth and I want to enjoy it. My standard of living doesn't have to change but I do need to be smart with my spending. I might have a big balance in my IRA but it rises and falls with the market. I checked today and I've lost money. My balance was up to $409k on 12-7 but now it's $393k. Still more than I started with, but that's a big drop. I'm hoping the market rises and thrives when Trump takes over ! 19 days to go !

It's a gray rainy day but the rain is supposed to turn to snow at some point. I'm planning on going to rock & roll bingo unless it's snowing when 4:30 rolls around ! I don't mind driving in snow as long as I can see the road, and we're not expecting whiteout conditions today. Temps are expected to be above freezing until tomorrow night, so I think I'll be fine to go out. My only concern is being tired since I was awake at 7:30 today. That means I got less than 5 hours sleep. I could take a nap for a couple hours but I'm not really a napper. Oh well !

As soon as I got home today I set up text messaging on my tablet. I had tried to do that last night but you had to complete authentication on your phone, which I obviously didn't have. Should I ever forget my phone again I should be able to at least text someone. I had thought about waiting until this evening to get my phone, but with snow predicted I couldn't take a chance on being stuck at home with no phone. As I said earlier in this blog, it worked out since I now have my phone, a full gas tank and a box of donuts .. lol !

Well. In the spirit of things happen for a reason, I'm going to remain positive and thankful !! Kim texted me at 3:48 pm to say they're skipping bingo tonight due to the weather and because everyone is tired from the late night and the holidays in general. I guess snow is starting down their way, while here it's mostly rain right now. I am SO glad I went and got my phone this morning AND that I filled my gas tank ! I had taken a shower and done my makeup and just finished putting my jewelry on when she texted me. Oh well, I guess I'll look nice for the evening and my skin feels great. I don't regret the shower and skincare, but the makeup was a waste. I can wash it off later if I want. In truth, I am tired and didn't really want to brave the elements either, so I'm not sad to be staying home. The weather doesn't look bad here right now (it's 4 pm), but that can change at any time anywhere along my route between now and 9:30-10 pm when I'd be driving home. So I'm good with staying in. I'm going to throw a pizza in the oven and play Cookie Jam while watching YouTube.

This first day of 2025 didn't exactly turn out the way I expected, but it was fine. I am glad I got gas and I'm happy to have the donuts for a treat. In a pinch I can get gas right here in Mexico but they're at least 50 cents a gallon higher than Delta Sonic ! It made sense to fill up today since I wasn't that far away.

The wind has picked up and that can make visibility a lot worse when it's snowing. I still don't think I'm going to see any significant amount of snow before Friday. We'll see if I'm right ! One thing I (finally!) realized today is I was reading the thermometer in the kitchen window wrong during those couple of days in the single digits. I was reading the Celsius temps, which is why the temp on my phone and the temp on the thermometer were so far off. The thermometer is fine and not broken. My silly brain is broken ! I don't know if I ever documented it, but that day the cold water in the kitchen froze, it was unfrozen later that day. I left the cabinet doors open so heat could get in there and that may have done the trick. Going forward, when the temps are going to be extremely low I will do that. Now that I cleaned all the junk out of there I don't mind leaving it open. I will likely put some stuff back in there once winter is over and the threat of frozen pipes is gone. I'm not going to put everything in there, as it's so much easier to grab stuff from a shelf in the pantry instead of rummaging around under the sink. I'm also hoping nothing in there will discourage mice from visiting. There is nothing for them to eat, so there's no reason for them to be in there.

It's only 6:37 but it feels like 11 pm ! It feels like its been a long day since I didn't get much sleep and I'm tired. I did doze a little this afternoon but I don't think I'll have any trouble sleeping tonight ! I had my delicious pizza for dinner, followed by 2 donuts. The two I ate are glazed so they would have been a sticky mess by tomorrow. I'm not proud to admit I ate 7 donuts today, but I sure did enjoy them ! They were my morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack and evening snack ! I have a couple of peanut donut and a couple of cinnamon twists left and those will probably disappear tomorrow ! Restarting Nutrisystem on Saturday is going to be a shock to my body for sure !

It's windy and rainy outside still. I'm not seeing any signs of snow and the temp isn't going to drop below freezing until tomorrow night. This is why I don't think I'll see any snow until Friday. Since it is so windy I lit a candle in case the power goes out. It's great ambiance and I love the scent. I have a lot of candles so I should burn them more often. When I had so many cats and dogs I couldn't light them because of the risk of them being knocked over by frisky dogs or worse, having a curious cat stick their nose or paw into the flame ! Even though a candle did not cause the fire in 2017 I also think about the fire risk, as I have occasionally forgotten to extinguish a candle when I went to bed.

I'm spending my evening watching the deer pantry on YouTube and playing Cookie Jam. I'm working on the challenge that awards 50 coins every time you complete 12 levels within a 3 hour period. I can rack up a lot of coins over the next 2 days ! Right now I'm on level 8997 and I need to surpass 10,640 to move up a notch in my team. I'm 14 of 50 now !

Although I stuffed myself with donuts today, I am still fully committed to restarting Nutrisystem on Saturday. I am also STILL excited about that ! I really feel hopeful and being mentally prepared is just as important as being physically prepared. One item I'm missing is lettuce for salad, but I should be able to get to the grocery store Saturday or Sunday. I may also buy some cabbage and carrots as I found a recipe for cabbage soup that sounds easy and delicious. My next Nutrisystem order is processing and will likely be delivered early next week, so everything is falling into place nicely ! I'm going to wipe the treadmill down before Saturday as it's likely accumulated a little dust. I also have to charge my tablet and make sure the iFit app is updated. Easy quick tasks !

I'm going to end this blog here, as the rest of the day will be spent on the couch with my blankie and tablet. This day didn't turn out as expected ... though I can't say what I expected ... but it has been a relaxing and enjoyable day. Doesn't matter that I started the year off leaving my phone behind because I just know this is going to be a great year !

(note for January 4 - ticker shown below as reminder/placeholder, need to update starting weight)