Saccharine Thoughts

You guys! Can you believe the year is halfway over already?! Well, 7/12 over, to be more accurate. 2010 has kept me oh-so-busy, but it has treated me oh-so-well. Let’s be honest: 2009? It kind of sucked. I dreaded going in to work at HomeAway each morning, as my job there had become utterly mind-numbing. I stumbled through two fickle, overdramatic attempts at dating. Throw in a roommate who bailed on a 14-month lease and a fourth knee surgery, and you can see why I was pretty ready to see the year come to an end. 2010 started off with a bang… and a clangor… and a crash, as I resolutely ended the second of ‘09s wavering relationships, and left my reasonably-well-paying employment... and benefits... and 4 weeks of vacation for the great unknown. During a recession. Whee! As it turns out, the Universe had much bigger things in store for me—I was unexpectedly reunited with a year-old crush over a game of pool which, nigh 6 months later, has blossomed into a fulfilling friendship and ...

Today marks 6 months since my third ACL reconstruction . So close to recovery, I can almost breathe in the barefoot-and-chalk smell of the climbing gym. Gross, but awesome. While I admittedly haven't worked it as hard as I should, my knee is way stronger than it was even before this last blowout. The size difference between my right and left legs is laughable. There's at least an inch difference in the circumference of my thighs, but that's the result of 8 years of overcompensation for a faulty ligament and something that time and weights will eventually remedy. I've noticed better control, more power and way less pain in going up and down the stairs to my 3rd-floor apartment. I don't remember having used stairs without struggling since I was 16, so this little daily luxury is actually pretty monumental. I guess the surgeon can make all the difference in the world, and Dr. Brotzman apparently did a killer job in there as well as in keeping me on a steady track to r...

In the month or two that I've been so carelessly absent here, my living situation has been decidedly... undecided. The roommate with whom I signed a 14-month lease expressed interest in moving out back in May (lease ends October 19) and followed through on her whim to bail in June, leaving me with our ideal 2/2 apartment and double rent. Coincidentally, a friend fresh out of A&M thought he might take the spare room but has yet to find a job, so that fell through. I had plans of subletting a friend's apartment when he leaves for school in September and thought I would just tough out the double rent until then. That plan went ka-put as well, and probably for the better. I made the solid decision last week to re-sign the lease on my own. Yes, that is just how much I love this apartment, the location, the people... Vaulted ceilings, spacious layout, washer/dryer connections, colorful accent walls painted by yours truly, all this tucked away in Austin's Greenbelt with a bea...

Here we go again! It's already a new month, time to start new things! There seems to be a lot that I didn't get done in May but really, all those things I didn't complete were replaced by other neat projects like costume making and the doll shoot. Got my computer; have yet to edit headshots and promo pics... Finished From Russia with Love and am nearly done with A Clockwork Orange. Resolved roommate issue and made a commitment to future housing plans. Kept patio flowers alive. Sort of. Released second newsletter at work. Payed off a major credit card! Made tilapia-mango tacos for Chloe and Christin :) Completed Jon's costume for Guilds of Steel, and mine for the Ren Faire. Started counseling. I am well on my way to that magnificent something. June brings us to the 6-month mark, so it's time I take a look at what I thought I wanted for myself back in January , see what projects I need to wrap up and which ones I need to reprioritize or delete completely. This ...

I know I have played hooky from the online world for a week or so; what can I say, we all need a vacation every once in a while. Unfortunately mine has not been from the real world. I've been busting my tail at work to crank out our second newsletter which is coming out this Thursday. May 8-11 was spent in dear old Mineral Wells for my kid sister's 16th birthday. Watch out world, the kid has reached the driving age and will inevitably wreak havoc on that tiny town. At least, I hope so :) Friday was spent in the Texas summer sun, volunteering with a small team from HomeAway to renovate a NE Austin school yard. I specialized in inverted hopscotch design. We spent Sunday putting into play the long-awaited Dolled Up photo shoot, details and photos to come ASAP. The roommate situation (ie: my roommate wanting to bail on our lease 6 months early and my scramble to find a trustworthy sublet) is cured for now. She's sticking it out, and we're now tentatively planning to pay a ...

One credit card completely paid and canceled. Take that Bank of America.

Today marks 2 months since my ACL reconstructive surgery, and I'm really feeling pretty good. I checked in with my physical therapist yesterday after he let me loose in the gym for the past two weeks. My balance is still lacking pretty badly, but my strength is getting better and things are looking good overall. The knee is sore, but it's a totally different sore than after the other surgeries; more of a been-working-out-making-progress-building-muscles sore than a oh-god-something-is-way-out-of-whack sore. I also wore heels yesterday for the first time in over 2 months, and it's SO good to feel sexy again. I didn't hit my weight loss goal of 126 lbs, I am still fluctuating between 129 and 131. Geez, it sucks to admit failure and it's no one's fault but my own - I'm only making it to the gym 3 times a week max, and my eating habits haven't been the best... I've given in to sweets here and there and have been drinking too much beer to expect to lose m...

Backtrack to April 1 - how far did I make it on my to-do list? Made cookies for people who helped me out last month. Took Jon's headshots and am shooting promo shots for him and Kacey tonight. Currently awaiting the completion and arrival of a new computer for the editing process. Stuck to the gym routine Made Rice Krispie Easter eggs I did reorganize and scrubbed the hell out of my kitchen. I've since come to learn that I'm losing a roommate, hunting for a new one for the summer and will probably be moving out in late September, so on second though I won't be putting toooo much energy into gussying up my kitchen. Instead I'll be saving for furniture! Finished Nightwatch and am almost done with From Russia With Love Practiced drawing caricatures - practiced a lot of artistic things and remembered how much I loved it! I am currently very proud of myself for my drawn works as well as the written ones I've posted here. Plan ted jasmine on my patio Now for May, w...

Today marks 1 month since my surgery. I am released from wearing my brace. Wait, let's hear that again... I am released from wearing my brace! Yeah. Kickass. I'm back to spending a couple of hours in the gym every other day and instead of lifting like crazy, I have found serious success in working out like a girl. Imagine that. Light weight, lots of reps, lots of isolation and ergometric exercises and biking like crazy. My hips and love handles have noticeably shrunk, my tummy is flattening out and I have officially lost 7 pounds since the day of my surgery, bringing me to 5'2", 131lbs. I am on a roll... and if I can keep it rolling, I want to be down to 126 by May 1. I feel like that is a completely realistic goal, not something that will require major changes or overexertion on my part. I know if I continue to take care of myself, keep focusing on the rehabilitation of my knee and all involved, my body will continue to respond the way it has been so far. It i...

Not such a big deal for anyone else, but for me this is kind of a milestone. My first newsletter was sent out to our entire customer base today!

Things I want to do in the month of April: Make cookies and brownies for people who helped me out last month, while I was all laid-up with the post-surgery gimps. Take, upload and edit Jon's headshots Continue going to the gym Make Rice Krispie Easter eggs Hostess a dinner Make tilapia tacos for Chloe again Finish my tattoo design Get glass cut and painted for my desktop Paint the blank canvas hanging over my bookcase Pretty-up my kitchen. It's blah, and I need to put the shelf liners in and reorganize everything. Finish 3 logo designs for Megan Finish reading Nightwatch and Ultimate Gift, read From Russia With Love Practice drawing caricatures Go to the Farmer's Market Plant jasmine on my patio Smile. A lot. Ready, set, go!

I spent the weekend doing things I thought would be healing. Lots of time in the gym, a bubble bath, much-needed manicure and pedicure. Made a dent in reading Nightwatch which is getting better as I go, as any good novel should. I even got myself out of the apartment for most of Sunday to take Carmen to the dog park and have a very nice afternoon lunch with Asaf, and dinner with the ladies tonight rounded things out on a positive note. I think things are looking better, I surely want them to. The gym is definitely doing me some good, and it's slowly becoming a routine. Therapy went well today; my balance is better, I have noticeably more control over my quad muscles and complete full range of motion. I am so close to being out of this brace, it's all I can do not to get my hopes up for this week. My straight-leg extensions only lag 4 °, so my brain says sure, surely you can pull those last 4 ° this week and get out of this cage you've been dragging around. My quad says eh....

Had my stitches taken out on Monday, and the doctor was extremely pleased with my progress thus far - full extension and flexion at 132 ° and walking pretty well without crutches. I still can't quite master my quad, and until I can pull off a straight leg lift without my foot lagging at all, I will be trapped in my scrap metal brace. Despite all the positive reinforcement and the reassurance that I am so far ahead of schedule from my PT, my confidence is starting to wane. Dragging this leg around is sucking that along with my energy more and more, and I am far more sore today than I have been for the past week. I am extremely sleepy, and am finding that I am having to really talk myself into doing anything more than sitting on my bed, especially at the end of the work day. I have made a commitment to go to the DataPop party tonight with a new friend (+1 right?) so even though it is the last thing I really feel up for doing, I am going. I'm just holding out hope that the party...

Progress indeed. I have reached my full extension goal already - James doesn't want me to push it any further than 0° even though my left leg hyperextends almost 15°, it will probably come naturally after a few months. I reached 128 ° flexion today, now focusing on quad control and balance. I am walking pretty well with just my brace now, only using my crutches for stairs which are a daily challenge with my third-floor apartment. I am still setting aside an hour each morning and some time at night to do all my exercises, and crunches too - I am up to 300 each morning and it's starting to show, I think... hooray for resolutions kept! I am also very grateful for neat friends - I have had a different ride to and from work and therapy every day, and had an absolutely wonderful Wednesday consisting of a red couch, a ridiculous movie and leftovers; really, what more could a girl ask for? So it seems that I am moving right along ahead of schedule, just keeping my fingers crossed that...

Surgery went well yesterday; long (over two hours!) but good. Luckily, I was able to exchange gross amounts of narcotics for an ephemeral nerve block, meaning I was alert enough after recovery yesterday to navigate my mother around Austin and make it up the 3 flights of stairs to my apartment. All hail the anesthesiologist at NASC. If you're interested in the details, this site gives a decent description of the procedure. My ACL was in two pieces, lateral meniscus severed again and one of my old screws had to be drilled out of my tibia to make room for a new one. Seeing as how I didn't have any tendons left to harvest to replace my own and mine are pretty useless anyway (they're akin to those rubberbands that have been stretched and stretched until they're white in some places, and you're just waiting for to snap) so an allograph was used. I had my first session of physical therapy this morning at 9AM, which I think went well. I feel vindicated; it looks li...

This week was a damn fun one! I have been getting up earlier every single morning to do my exercises and crunches, +11 (what, one point for every day right?) I spent lots quality time with old and new friends, +4 I went dress shopping and for the first time ever felt great about it, +1 Got in some practice time with my camera, +1 And realized I’m much better with my film than my digital SLR Minolta, probably due to lack of practice with the latter. On Saturday I had one of the best and most memorable Valentine’s Days that I’ve ever had, and the first one ever to be spent single. As for other goals, I really can’t claim any solid progress, so it’s time I start living by to-do lists. This week’s list is focused here: catching up with all the entries I’ve saved and not published and uploading and editing all the photos from the past 2 months to add to my new Flickr account. Also focusing on the newsletter at work, which is just starting to take form and will hopefully open some doors for ...

Things have changed considerably since I mapped out my game plan here. My course has suddenly shifted like the walls of a labyrinth and the obstacles are not things I will be able to push out of the way, so my goals must change accordingly. Lucky for me one of my favorite blogs started the iCing Transformation Challenge on Sunday, and I am actively taking part. Time redefine these goals and reroute my path to get to them. So much for dance lessons, and for strengthening my climbing ability. For the next month I’ll be focusing on strengthening this leg in preparation for reconstructive surgery on March 5, in hopes that fortifying it now will help in rehab and lessen the inevitable effects of atrophy later. Stretching, leg lifts and other ergonomic exercises every morning and why not crunches while I’m at it, since I won’t be too capable of doing much along the lines of cardio for another 3 months. I’d still like to do my best to lose about 10 pounds, so cleaning up my eating habits is...

What good is a destination without a path to get there? None what-so-ever, so it's time I set myself on a road that leads somewhere, even if I'm not completely sure where. 6 Months will put us in July 2009 Continue blog with 4 posts per week Paint 3 small pieces for living room, 2 large for bedroom, refinish desk and paint glass top! Work on tattoo design, to be done in April? Lose 10-12 lbs Pay off UT debt by April Apply for new MC and transfer balance Apply bonus and tax return to pay off Visa Save $ for summer classes Keep up with newsletter at work; look for opportunities inside & outside of HomeAway. Take NTR 311 ( Spring Summer, online Eng upper-division class (Summer I, in-res) Eng upper-division class (Summer II, in-res) Look into taking final class/Sr Seminar, hopefully abroad Revise research papers on News from Nowhere and Man vs Moreau, flesh out short story responses. Practice Spanish, reread Spanis...