Was Really Active Last Night

I was on backup for the night shift so I had to stay home after 7pm. I was supposed to go to the store but the tree cutting people had my driveway blocked all day and almost until seven. So I went for an hour walk with the dog and hubby around five.

I had to send my hubby to the store for a few things and when he left I used my aerobic step for a half an hour. Then before bed I played Kinect Adventures with Ryan. I was on a roll but now I have to work all day and then go to my moms.

I am sure it will be fun visiting with family but I have to leave early because I have to work 7 am to 7 pm tomorrow. I have to be in bed at a decent hour if I want to be friendly. I am looking forward to Sunday to relax and not answer any phone calls. I like my job a lot so I am not complaining I am just not used to so many long shifts anymore.

Well happy New Year Everyone

Plans for the Day Ruined

Well I am going to go out there and kill the tree people...okay not literally. I was however wishing that the giant tree they cut down would fall on their equipment and they would give up. It probably would not have helped me though as they are still out there. I am sure since they are working for the city the would have cleaned up the mess and come back with new equipment.

They are noisy and they have me blocked in my driveway. They have about 5 houses on each side of their work blocked in with the trees pieces and their equipment. I was supposed to have a meeting with my supervisor today but I can't get out. I am hoping they will finish this week. If not I will have to part a vehicle further down the street so I can get to a rescheduled meeting next week. I really wish I would have thought of that last night then I would not have had to call and cancel this morning. At least I will be prepared next time even if I have to walk a block to get to my car.

On that note I am thinking about what my plans for the new year will be. I am trying to get a better handle on how to organize my life. I am going to think of different areas of my life and set goals accordingly. I am going to strive for a healthier life in all aspects not just diet and exercise. I want to be good at everything I do and I want to decide what to focus on. I tend to have too many things going at once and never devote enough time to any one thing to be good at it.


I also have a lot of hobbies and I think I am going to have to spend less time watching television and movies and more time on reading and sewing. Reading because my popular blog is all about the books I read, well that and the anime posts are popular. I love to read a good book, in fact I just finished a fantastic one this morning.

I have decided to start sewing again because I like the things that I make much better than the things I find in the stores. Now that I sew I also find that I see things in the stores and say that would be cute if.......and picture how I could make it better. I like to sew I quit because I was frustrated with my machine and if I am totally honest because I was also frustrated with my weight. I will probably wait until spring to start sewing any clothes again. Most of my patterns are for warmer weather and I have a lot of light weight cotton material that I can use in my sewing machine. It won't take the heavier stuff the presser-foot doesn't work right it clamps down too tight. I might save for a new machine but if I do that I want something much fancier than what I have. Mine does the job and does it well when I use the right fabric.

So I need to loose some weight before I start sewing again and I am determined to do it. Well I need to loose sizes I am not going to get all obsessed over weight because I know the best way for me to slim down is to start building some muscle and add some cardio. I am not going get all crazy and try to loose 40 pounds in three months but I would like to be down a few sizes by spring. Making strict goals in this area is bad for me. It makes me feel like a failure when I am not on target and I usually give up completely . So I am saying that I need to measure myself when I get a chance work from those measurements with a goal of change (smaller numbers) every two weeks or so.

After the New Year I need to cut out junk food. I am not going on a diet I hate diets but I am going to look for healthy snacks and cut out things like potato chips and candy. I am not even going to say I will cut out all sweets. I do like to snack on lightly sweetened dry cereal when I am working and can't get up to eat a real meal. I am just going to have to plan a little better for my meals.

Need More Sleep....

Well I found this image when I typed in "need coffee."
I imagine that resembles me today. I worked from 6:45 PM Tuesday until 7:15 this morning.

That is not the bad part I would normally get to sleep around 8 and be fine to get up around 2 or 3. Not today thought. I fall asleep and the humidifier starts up with the crazy noise it makes when it is out of water. Again that was not long after I went to bed so I would have still been fine if that was it.

So I do fall asleep for about an hour and then someone is  knocking on the door. I assumed a solicitor but they keep knocking so I put some pajamas that cover me on and ran downstairs only to find the guy running across the street. I go back to bed and our house must be dry because the humidifier starts up again. Once I lay back down it becomes clear that the guy outside was here to tell me the city would be cutting the trees down across from my house today. They have been cutting and chipping the rest of the day. My dog is terrified and she decides laying next to me on the bed is not good enough so she lays on me. She is a small German Shepherd but 60 some pounds still a bit heavy for sleeping on your chest.

So I just really need a gallon of coffee or better yet maybe someone could set me up an I-V or something. I really need to wake up and try to get about my day. I have to go into work for a meeting tomorrow and then I have to work 8 hours on Friday and 12 on Saturday all during the day.

Kinect Game Kicks My Butt

We just have the game that comes with the Kinect and I would like another game for working out. My hubby makes me play Kinect Adventures with him. That really kicks my rear end. I am fine with most of the challenges but there are some that have you going through an obstacle course and jumping and ducking and I have a lot of trouble keeping up. I know I am really out of shape and I also have trouble with all the jumping it hurts me where I have a bunch of hardware in my leg.

It is really the only work out I am getting right now but it would be nicer if we could skip the ones that require so much jumping or at least get some kind of padding for the wood floor. I have been complaining about having to play because he chooses times like after I have been awake for 15 hours and I can barely keep my eyes open or right after I take a shower. I suppose instead of complaining I could say something like "I am going to get in the shower soon if you want to play Kinect lets do it before because I don't want to take two showers today."

I was hoping for a work out game we could do together that was more like a class you would take at the gym. The problem is I still can't figure out which ones will let you play the game at the same time. I think The Biggest Looser game would be cool but I am sure that only takes one player. Then there is Your Shape Fitness and  EA Sports Active 2 that might allow two payers but as far as I could tell players take turns but I could be wrong.

I think regardless some of these games will help me get back on my track with my fitness goals. I was not impressed with the Wii fitness games I had but I heard they made improvements to that too. I am thinking I might spend a little to try one of these games. If nothing else maybe I can loose a few pounds and gain a little muscle.

Answered Phones All Day

Today was 10 hours of answering phones a long and very busy day. I am usually busy during my day shift hours but today was very busy. Don't get me wrong I love the job but I am glad to be done for the evening.

My ear actually hurts from having the phone up to it for so long. I have also have to stay up late tonight so I can sleep in for my overnight shift tomorrow. That will be 12.5 hours most of the time I don't have a lot of calls to answer at night just the first few hours and the last hour. The day shift went faster so I think I like that a little better. It didn't feel like ten hours.

Like I said before I really like this job now if I could just balance the rest of my life around it. I have such unpredictable hours and it makes it hard to schedule things. I can say no to the day time hours so it isn't like I can't schedule important things. I think what is bothering me the most is I want to get back to working out and I am having trouble being motivated to do so after a long shift like today. On the other hand I don't want to turn down too much work we could use the money to save for a new home.

Well life is just that life at least I don't dread working anymore I just don't like to get up early to work. Okay to be honest I don't ever like to get up early. I will just have to practice some more self discipline. Well hope everyone had a great Christmas and has a Happy New Year.

The Joys of Working From Home

Well I am not real excited about this next week. I have over 40 scheduled hours. It is not the work that has me less than excited it is the lack of sleep. Most of my hours are daytime hours this week and but I do still have my 12.5 hour overnight shift.

I have what should be a really good book to read, Magic Bleeds (Kate Daniels, Book 4) since the first three books are on my favorites list. I have been doing well the last few weeks staying awake but I have a ten hour day shift the day before this time. I am usually too busy to read during my day shifts so I am not so worried about staying awake for those shifts at all. I don't imagine it will be slow right after the holidays with all the people with bills that are coming due or past due because they wanted to buy their kids something for Christmas. I may even have more callers on the night shift. While I love reading nothing keeps me awake better than actually having work to do.

The great thing about this job I can sleep until about an hour before I have to start work. I would not have taken all these shifts if I had to get up and get ready for work. I only need to brush my teeth, wash up a little, eat and start a pot of coffee before I log onto my work station. I can wear pajamas or just something super comfy and I don't have to put on any make up. It takes away the half hour or more of travel each day and it takes away the extra hour I would need to get ready.

The only thing I don't like about this job is the work schedule. I love the night shift as much as I like the day shift but I don't love doing both . I am hoping I will get used to it because I like the stability of having one night shift a week every week. The rest of my hours are on an as needed basis so there is no stability there. If nothing else I will just have to limit my day shift hours to a certain time of day or something. Like nothing before nine or ten in the morning or something like that. I will see how things work out this week and evaluate from there. I know I can do both but I am really crabby right now so I am going to have to figure out some sort of balance.

Merry Christmas

Today is Christmas Eve and I am going to my moms tonight for dinner. Tomorrow we go to my sister-in-laws and my husbands grandparents. Great times with family are what Christmas is all about.

After the this weekend I have a very long work week...well at least for someone who is not working any overtime in a long time.  I have close to 44 hours scheduled. Working at home is great I only have to leave for one meeting. I only work 4 shifts so a few them are pretty long.

I am also determined to get back on an exercise program as soon as the holidays are over. I am also going to learn to eat better. For next week I got microwave meals for my dinners but on Sunday I am going to look for some recipes that will heat well and make my own microwave meals. I answer calls for my job so I don't really have the time to cook, especially on shifts that I am the only one answering phones. If you have any ideas on meals that heat up well please send then my way.

I want to say have a great holiday season to everyone out there! Have fun and stay safe.

Working Out To Stay Awake Tonight

Tonight after my hubby leaves for work I am going to get the treadmill out and walk on it for at least an hour. I am going to walk about the pace we walk when we walk the dog. I fell the last time we went for a walk and the ice is still out there so I must do something if I am not going to do my usual evening walk. I have to be up and working tomorrow evening for 12.5 hours with my shift ending at 7:15 am. That means I have to stay up as late as I can tonight so it is not so hard tomorrow.

I was supposed to work on Christmas Eve for a few hours but that got canceled and now another of my days is up in the air for the next week. I don't really care about it because I have plenty of hours next week with or without that shift. I just want to know for sure if I am supposed to work or not because I don't want to get fired from my new job that I love because of a miss-communication.

So I once my hours even out and I am back to a semi-regular schedule I would like to get on a regular work out schedule. I am thinking that should be something I can do. I have some long overnight shifts and I have thought about doing some easy exercises just to stay awake. Like calf raises or squats but not a whole work out routine. It has to be better than nothing.

I am determined to remember sometime this week to get a call in for the elliptical repair. I just keep forgetting to get my hubby to call with me in the short time the place is open after my husband gets out of bed. He works overnight too and he gets up well after 4pm. I am not sure what time zone the place is located in but they are open until 8 their time so we should be able to make the call.

Well hope you are all ready to enjoy the holiday season. I know I am!

Christmas Is Coming

I am all done with my Christmas shopping and I have most of the gifts wrapped. My husband and I decided not to buy for each other this year but just get ourselves a few things we wanted. Normally I would have a problem with that but not this year. I have not had the time to think up a good list and I also don't have the time to guess for my hubby. If I don't guess exactly right he takes it back. Like if he wants two video games a lot and I pick one he takes it back to get the other one.

I can't win unless there are a lot of things on his wish list that he wants equally. I am usually happy when he gets me something off my list or something he knows I have been dying to get but haven't because I am trying to save money.

We have things for everyone but my hubby's grandparents and he is on his own for that. I am feeling more stressed out over the need to take food to peoples houses. I don't cook much for events. At home I try to cook meals that all go in one pan like a stir-fry or grilled meat and veggies or potatoes. I don't ever make the kinds of food that people take to family functions. I hate doing it and I am usually asking what I can bring that comes in a box or a bag and can be dumped on a plate for the event.

I have a light work week only working a few hours on Christmas eve and Tuesday into Wednesday. I kind of need the break anyway before spending all that time with family and then a 40+hour work week the next week. It will give me time to get the elliptical fixed or at least a date for fixing and a work out schedule in place for the next week. I might even get one of the Kinect games for the Xbox 360 to work out with except I am not sure which one I  want.

Last but not least I am loving Super Scribblenauts! My hubby bought it last week and brought it home for me to try. I ran the battery out in his DS and he left the charger at work. If you can spell at all this game is a lot of fun.

Working at Home is Awesome

I really love working at home. I love the job but the part that lets me pull my Lazyboy chair up to the computer and answer phones is the best. I can also work in my pajamas if I want. When I am really busy I am still comfortable.

I am still adjusting to schedule changes and trying to find healthy things I can eat in-between phone calls on my longer shifts. I have a coffee pot set up just feet from my work space. I am really happy about the job and I will work out the kinks in my schedule soon.

This is one of my dreams realized. I wanted to make money from home as one of my least favorite parts of working is the part where I have to get up and get ready and leave the house for work. I now realize that working is not what I hate it is the leaving the house part. I am not a hermit or anything but I do like to leave the house when I feel like it not at the crack of dawn every morning.

I only wish there were more opportunities like this one for others. This really is the perfect job for me. It has also helped me decide that when we build our new home that I need a proper office. I need a place where I can close the doors and lock out the dog or my hubby. It will be after the holidays that we pursue building a home again but it will happen. We have a few things we need to do before we decide for sure on a house plan. I am thinking we really need to make things the way we want them if we are going to build a house because we will have to live their until we die.

Loving Life

Well life is really good right now. Once I get used to flip-flopping my schedule so much I will get some sort of routine going. I have a few things on my mind and I am glad to be able to be back to blogging about them.

One I am so messed up on my working out. I do go for walks with the hubby and dog at least a few times a week but I am having trouble actually making a schedule. I am feeling weak and I really need to do something. I am not sure I want to walk with all the ice and snow considering that two years ago I broke my hip. I fell on the ice tonight and I was more scared that I could break a bone again than I have ever been. I am sure it is an irrational fear stemming form past experience but it is there and I am having trouble overcoming it.

On that same not my elliptical is still not fixed because I can't seem to remember to call the repair line when my hubby is up and can help me follow their instructions on how to possibly repair it. So that is on my list for tomorrow if I remember when I am done here I am going to write a note and affix it to my coffee pot and one to the refrigerator door.

The other thing on my mind is work. I absolutely love my new job. I get to work at home answering phones for a local non-profit. I just refer people to needed resources. One night I work roughly 7pm to 7am and then I work a bunch of day shift hours to cover for people who call of or have meetings or on days they plan to be busy. It looks like this week will be light and so will next week but the next week I am working over 40 hours. I like it this way sometimes I can work a lot and then if I am feeling a bit burnt out I can just work a few extra shifts. I only have the one night that I always have to work.

I really love that I get to work at home so an 8 hour shift is exactly that. I don't have to get up and get ready for work and then drive to work and drive home from work. I eliminate travel time and the time I would take to blow dry my hair and put makeup on. I actually don't feel the need to wear make up except when I go out with the hubby now so not only does this job save on gas money it saves on clothing and cosmetics.

The last thing on my mind is that even though life is great right now I am really crabby and moody. I know it is going to take me some time to get adjusted but I just feel like crap a lot. I know why and I am trying really hard not to take it out on my hubby. I am not always good at that and I am going to have to humble myself and talk to him about it. I will be fine once I get back to eating right and sleeping more regular. I get crabby when my schedule gets messed up and doing one overnight shift  and then switching back to a day shift with only one day to recover is rough.

I hope to post here more and I have been able to read on my overnight shifts so my Dark Novels blog will be updated more often. I am hoping to read a book a week but I can't say all my night shifts will be slow.

Training This Week

Well I just have to say I am going to LOVE my new job. I have announced that fact on my facebook account for the last few days. I am going to be what they call an I&R (Information and Referral) Specialist. I have a late night shift and I will be a day time floater. I will fill in for a few hours up to a full shift for a day time worker. The best part is that I get to help people find the resources they need from my own home as a teleworker.

I started training on Monday and I will continue training until Friday. Then they will come help me set up my home office next Monday. I am really excited about the job it even looks like I will generally get enough hours to replace or exceed my old job. The fact that I won't have to buy any new clothes and I won't have to spend gas money going to work all that often means that I am saving more money on work related expenses.

This is a perfect fit for me. I am so thankful for the great opportunity.