Ang's Journal

I didn't formally set a New Year's resolution this year (whatever that would mean), but informally I have a goal of doing 200 Phoenix 30-Minute Full Body Workouts this year. Coach Melissa offers a Workout every morning from Monday to Friday starting at 8:00 AM Mountain Time. They are the starting gun for my workdays & my most important source of recovery fellowship. Last year, I did 167 workouts with Melissa & our Phoenix tribe.

So far this year, I did 18 workouts in January out of 23 weekdays. In February, I only did 12 workouts in 21 weekdays, but I was traveling for a big chunk of the month. That's a total of 30 There are 262 weekdays in 2024 & (21+23 =) 44 of them have elapsed.

30 workouts * (262/44) = 178. So I'm not on pace to hit my goal, but I am on pace to beat last year's total.

218 weekdays left in 2024. Can I make 170 workouts? It could be tough, considering that I do have some travel still upcoming.

Two of Alan's older brothers (Jim & Kevin) & their wives (Stephane & Olivia).
La chica, & I honestly can't believe it took this long for her to get it, considering her job.
Doctor Nick & his family.
Our neighbors across the street: Justin & Annie, & their kids, Carver, Willow, & Ava.
Aunt Nancy & Uncle Paul, & possibly cousin Calvin & some of his kids.

So far, everyone is doing all right, but Uncle Paul was in very bad shape for a while due to severe underlying conditions. It's a mix of vaccinated, boosted, & unvaccinated people.

I felt sick earlier this week & took a Abbott BinaxNOW home test, which came out negative. I was almost - almost - disappointed. Omicron isn't anything to covet, but compared to Delta, it does seem like the kinder, gentler COVID. And it feels nearly inevitable that everyone will catch some variant, sooner or later. Why not get a mild one & then have the super-immunity granted by Moderna/Moderna/Moderna/infection?

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Who do I know who has either tested positive for COVID-19 or is presumed positive? Effrontery (aka Snuffleupajoyce, my long-time friend from Philadelphia, lives in rural PA), Doctor Dave (cousin's ex-boyfriend, lives in Jersey City, works in Manhattan), Marilyn D. (older woman, friend from AA here in Denver) & her husband Dick (who was hospitalized), Rob R. (friend from AA, visited daughter in NYC & got sick there), TMcD & his wife & their daughter (live in Brooklyn), Mer-Mer (lives here in Denver, presumed positive but couldn't get tested).

It's possible my younger brother had it WAY early, like late November. He spends all his free time skiing & the resorts worldwide have been giant international petri dishes, leading to outbreak hotspots. He had a hard, hacking cough that lasted for weeks, & in December he was diagnosed with walking pneumonia. Obviously at that time there was no testing for COVID-19, so we may never know for sure.

I've become increasingly dismayed at the scientific illiteracy - & especially the innumeracy - of the American public & many of our political leaders. People do not understand how dangerous this disease is. They do not understand what a fatality rate of 0.1% would mean if we were not trying to control the spread. But worse, they do not want to understand. Understanding just gets in the way of their rage, it seems. They want to go on thinking this is "just a flu", despite Every. Single. Infectious Disease Expert. specifically saying this is NOT like the flu at all.

I wonder if there will be any long-term effects of this pandemic. Perhaps settlement patterns will disperse somewhat - now that it has been demonstrated that teleworking can be done for many, many jobs, why pay high prices to live in the city? I wonder if people will start to prioritize genuine relationships with other people. I wonder if certain jobs - grocery workers, delivery workers, others who have generally been looked down upon - will be recognized & recompensed at levels appropriate to "essential workers". I wonder if states will continue to ignore the Federal government & work on public health initiatives on their own.

I wonder if the American electorate will hold the Republican President, governors, Senators, & House members responsible for this country's abysmally slow & uncoordinated response accountable on November 3rd. Like a Twitter wise-ass said, Maybe you can't cure stupid, & apparently you can't quarantine it either - but you can vote it out. Here's hoping.

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Sleep: Last night, I took a long, hot shower before bed & applied a ton of Biofreeze to my shoulders & triceps. SH says I went to sleep at 10:20 PM, Facebook Messenger says 10:26 PM, all agree I woke up at 6:00 AM. Call it 7½ hours of sleep. Deep sleep. I woke up feeling rested & my arms weren’t hurting.

Program: Kneeling prayer this morning, meditation this afternoon. I’ve now meditated three days in a row, which (lately) is a big deal. My longest streak ever was 17 days in a row. I should try to beat that. I called my sponsor this evening – got voice mail. Sigh.

Work: Another decent day. I got to the office early & then my BioWatch client called me & we scheduled a meeting at EPA HQ for 1 PM. Held the meeting then worked from home the rest of the day.

Food: I had early coffee w/cream, then ate standard breakfast (casserole, keto biscuit) around 10:30 AM. Celery & almond butter snack around 5 PM. Wasn’t hungry for dinner, but finally ate a freezer meal (pork tenderloin/kale/squash) just before 9 PM. I’ve been thirsty all day.

Exercise: I followed yesterday’s plan this morning: I did the pre-hab exercises & Day 1 of Core Play. I’m only doing about half of it – any exercise that calls for 10 repetitions, I’m generally doing 5. I’m not going to finish this program in 4 weeks – it will be more like 8 weeks. That’s fine. The wrist-stretching exercises both feel good & thoroughly demonstrate how messed up my left wrist is. Moves like plank & lunge show how weak my left triceps is. I have an appointment with Dr. Spallone for tomorrow to see if an adjustment helps.

Mood: I’ve been in a good mood today. Is it the fish? The sleep? The exercise? Getting back on lithium orotate? All of the above? I did have a bit of a Sad over the fact that I decorated my apartment for Christmas, alone. But alas. The life of a single person.

Grats: 1. Six days in a row I’ve worked out. I’ve identified a problem (left arm weakness) but I’m working on a solution (chiropractor appointment tomorrow). 2. Got through the EPA client meeting today & now have some firm deadlines. 3. A* thinks I'm beautiful.

Sleep: SH reports 11:00 PM - 7:00 AM. That seems about right.

Program: I texted lots & lots of people today. I've focused on being of service today - helping prepare food, cleaning up, etc. My dad offered me a glass of wine *sigh*

Food: Heh. A small bowl of Rice Chex & tea before the 5k, & a yogurt after. Salami & cheese. Then THE MAIN EVENT: TurkeyStuffingMashedPotatoesGreenBeanCasseroleCranberryJellyYamsRolls OMG. Then, two slices of Bobo's apple pie with cheddar cheese melted on top. YUM.

Exercise: Bobo & I did a Turkey Trot 5k this morning. I finished... last (37:39). I am really, really, REALLY out of shape. 8,287 steps / 67 minutes active.

Mood: I'm doing OK, but I'm getting to the end of my patience with Mom. Oh dear, I have 2 1/2 more days to go.

Grats: 1. I was at least able to finish the 5k. That's... something, I guess. 2. All the delicious food! 3. Time spent with my Bobo.

Today was messy.

For the second time in about two weeks, I was assailed with extremely horrible nausea, like food poisoning. I stopped for lunch on the way home around 1 PM & by 1:15 PM, I had to pull over & vomit violently all over the street in a lovely Denver neighborhood. After I had completely purged my stomach, I thought the worst was over, so I drove to a cell phone repair shop I had been heading to so I could make arrangements to have my phone repaired (New phone, broke the screen already. My life.). That took about 15 minutes, & as I was heading back to my truck, I got hit by another wave of nausea, much stronger. I was doubled over along the side of this shitty little strip mall near Mile High Stadium, retching uncontrollably, with tears & snot running down my face.

And this guy walks over to me from the nearby bus stop with two bottles of water. "Hey, are you OK?" I mumbled something. He cracked open one bottle of water & handed it to me, saying, "Little sips, remember to breathe." I sipped some water & promptly threw it back up. He patted my shoulder & said, "Let's wash your face off. I'll pour, you wash." He poured a very small stream of water onto my shaking hands & I feebly swiped at my face. "Wipe your nose, chica. There you go. Get your hair, there." After I was at least a little bit cleaner, he said, "Now - where are you going?"

I explained that my truck was parked right there & that I was going to try to drive home. He asked me if there was anyone there to take care of me & looked dubious when I said there wasn't (hotpantsgalore & weedweasel went skiing at Vail today). But he walked me back to my truck & said, "I hope you feel better soon." I thanked him, semi-conherently, & drove home. It was close - I threw up again in my front yard & then slept (passed out?) in the backyard for some amount of time. I have since eaten a little bit of soup & even that's not feeling so great. I also managed to shower. Right now, I'm sucking on crushed ice & cuddling with Shadeaux. Dog cuddles are helping as much as anything else.

There are good people in the world. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.
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I'm a little concerned that I have had two MAJOR bouts of vomiting in two weeks. I have a couple of thoughts as to what might be causing it. My crew washed my truck today - inside & out - & the last time I got sick was the first day I had the truck, & I know they washed it before I got it. I wonder if something in their cleaning supplies is making me sick. Another possibility is the container of mixed nuts I bought & put in my office for snacking. I was munching on them this morning, & I think I've only broken into them one other day. But I'm not sure if that other day was the last time I got nauseated.

Sleep: luxuriant. I took an extra-long, hot shower before bed & did my full pre-bedtime routine. I slept for at least eight hours & I feel deeply refreshed.

Breakfast: S&SBC, the last of the strawberries, half an avocado, black Scottish breakfast tea.
Stopped by Safeway while out running errands, picked up an apple & some scallions to use in chicken salad.

Snack: kombucha.

Lunch: whipped up a batch of Nom Nom’s Madras Chicken Salad, using meat picked off the rotisserie chicken. Bones put in the freezer for a later batch of bone broth. Had chicken salad & a green salad (red butter lettuce, cucumbers, celery, bell peppers, Tessamae balsamic dressing) for lunch.

Pre-WO: tuna cake.

Went to SQUID practice.

Post-WO: the rest of the chicken salad.

Dinner: Philippine chicken adobo with smashed sweet potatoes & cauli-rice sauteed in bone broth.

I ate a lot today, but I did a lot today.

Sleep: again not good. I'm stressed about my job & it's starting to eat at me at all hours.

Breakfast: S&SBC, grapefruit, Bloodless coffee.

Snack: tuna cake & coconut cream Larabar. I'm just gonna finish off the evil things & then not buy them again until I have a genuine need for them.

2:00 PM snack: All right, I'm eating emotionally, I'm wallowing in a deep Bad Mood, so today is the day to reintroduce dairy. A BIG OLE MUG of sugary, milky Scottish breakfast tea & A WHOLE FREAKIN' 2.5-OZ. BAR of Mast Brothers cow milk chocolate. You want to know something?? I would've thought that, after 42 days (SIX WEEKS) without a proper cuppa OR a nibble of chocolate, that the two of these things together would've transported me directly to Heaven. Not so. The tea is good. The chocolate was nice. But they weren't nearly as good as I thought they'd be. Even 60% cacao chocolate tastes weirdly sweet, & I didn't really like the sugar in the tea, either. Now, this may be because I'm in an unredeemable Bad Mood today, but it might be that my taste buds have adjusted to a no-sweetener palate.

I also ate the last two apple pie Larabars at some point in the afternoon. Now my house is Larabar-free. It should stay that way.

5:00 PM: I have a mild case of heartburn. I never have heartburn. I also had a brief sensation of light-headedness with a racing heart earlier this afternoon. But that might've been the sugar, or the 76 mg of caffeine from the chocolate plus the 40-50 mg of caffeine from the breakfast tea. I've not been consuming much caffeine, so that was probably a bit of a rev for the heart.

Went out to the GOT Premiere last night, so dinner was an Epic lamb bar.

Sleep: good. About 7.5 hours, so a little shorter than some other nights, but Skyrim needs love too.

Breakfast: "Bloodless" coffee (that's my Kvothe joke for the day), S&SBC, kim-chi, strawberries.

I went to Palm Sunday services, then went to Sprouts & Marczyk's for some groceries. I bought one yogurt & one milk chocolate bar for Wednesday (dairy reintroduction). That's the first reintro I'm really looking forward to! Legumes? Sure, I'll take 'em but I haven't been craving them. Corn tortilla chips & Crispix? I don't think I *CAN* eat them in a sane fashion. But dairy? I'd like a little dairy in my life.

Snack: cup of decaf coffee at church after services, Epic turkey bar.

Lunch: monkey salad & kombucha. I wasn't in the mood for a hot meal, nor for a green salad.

I baked a 9x13 dish of S&SBC, so I'm ready to go for breakfasts this week. I wonder if I could freeze half of it, then make the sweet potato quiche & freeze half of THAT, & then alternate between the two for extra variable breakfast variety. Hmmm, sounds like a lot of work.

Dinner: grilled salmon with avocado salsa, actually cooked on the grill, with asparagus. I ate it like I was imitating a tornado ripping through Kansas. Holy cow, so delicious. Apple pie Larabar for dessert.



Snack: coconut cream Larabar.

Sleep: GORGEOUS. I kept my promise to myself & made sleep a top priority last night. No TV, lights all low in the house, started my pre-bedtime routine at about 9 PM. I was in bed by 9:40 PM & asleep by 10 PM. I slept all the way through to 7 AM & I feel one thousand times better. YAY.

Breakfast: bulletproof-ish coffee (less ghee & coconut oil, stronger brew), S&SBC, fresh strawberries, kim-chi.

Lunch: corn tortilla chips, quick guacamole (half an avocado plus a spoonful of El Fenix salsa), salad (red butter lettuce, carrots, tomato, celery, Bragg's dressing). #surprisenosuprise: tortilla chips are DEFINITELY a FWOB for me - I will eat a bag of them until they are gone, & then shake the chip dust from the bottom of the bag into my mouth, & then look for another bag.

Snack: kombucha.

Snack: Crispix cereal, made of corn & rice. I meant to eat a handful or two but WHOOAAH! Another massive FWOB! I ate three-quarters of a box, mindlessly munching along. I was so full I didn't eat dinner.

I think that the most unhealthy thing about grains may be that they displace healthier foods from my diet. I ate Crixpix today instead of the tuna cake, steamed greens, & squash I had planned to have for dinner. Even if I'm not sensitive to non-gluten grains, that was a bad tradeoff.