GOSSIP FROM THE GIRLFRIEND GATHERINGS

Learning from YOU to empower ME !

NaBloPoMo #10 – Morning Person or Night Owl? I Am A…….

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NaBloPoMo November 2013Women Having Coffee

When I hear the sounds of birds chirping and see the dawning day creeping around the edge of the blinds in my bedroom all I want to do is snuggle down in my bed and get a couple more hours of sleep.   That early morning sleep is the best kind but the reality is I have an 8am – 5pm day job.

I have all kinds of alarm clock schemes to wake up early to go to the day job.   I set the clock 1 hour ahead so when it does alarm at 6am I breathe a sigh of relief because I know it is really 5am when I hit the snooze button.   Then I play tag with the snooze button every 10 minutes until the clock reads 7:30am which is an acceptable hour to wake for my mental state even though I know the clock is 1 hour ahead and it is really 6:30am.    I play this game every week, Monday thru Friday.   These are not the actions of a morning person.

Now, in the early evening, I arrive home from the day job and have my dinner.   At this time, I enter into my “writing life” state of mind.  During the weekday evenings, I am working on my novel project, composing a blog post, reading my latest Writers’ Digest or The Writer magazine or continuing with an online monthly writing class.   Writing is my passion and the “work I love” so it gives me a burst of energy whenever I am engaged in it.   Therefore, I am usually working on my writing projects until after midnight and on the weekends I can stay up until 2am – 3am.   Since I don’t have to wake early on the weekends, I can sleep until my body is ready to wake up.   There is no need to play the alarm clock game.    So, I am a person who revels and produce in the nighttime hours – – – definitely the actions of a night owl.

NaBloPoMo #9 – My Favorite Hour of the Day Is…….

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NaBloPoMo November 2013Women Having Coffee

I really don’t have a favorite hour of the day but I do have a favorite timeframe of the day.      The time period 2 to 5 hours after I wake in the morning is the best timeframe of the day for me.   If I am following my healthy routine, I have more energy and clarity during this period of my day.

The most important step of my healthy routine is to get at least 7 hours of sleep the night before.    I am a person that requires an adequate amount of sleep.   I understand from my mother that as a child she never had to tell me to take a nap because I would just climb in the bed whenever I felt tired.   This is still my process now to listen to my body’s needs.

After waking from a good night’s sleep, I like to do a 30-50 minute cardio exercise workout before breakfast.    This usually includes a combination of working out in my home gym on my treadmill, stationary bike, elliptical and Leslie Sansone’s Walk-at-Home DVDs.  Normally, I break the workout up into three to five 10 minute segments on different exercise equipment because I get really bored doing the entire workout on one machine.   I use a Polar Heart Rate monitor to make sure that I am working out in the fat-burning zone and don’t over-exert myself.  (Also, I want every one of those exercise minutes to count!)  After the workout, I take a hot shower, prepare and eat my breakfast with my favorite flavored decaf coffee.

Now, I have entered the best timeframe of my day.

NaBloPoMo #8 – Five Items in My Refrigerator That Make Me Feel…….

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NaBloPoMo November 2013Women Having Coffee

This topic made me take a close look at the items inside of my refrigerator to determine which ones generated any feelings within me.    I was surprised to realize that I did have feelings about some of the items and the top five are listed as follows:

  1.  Sweet Leaf Natural Stevie Sweetener – I have apprehension about this item.   I am addicted to sugar and I am trying to transition to a healthy alternative to use as a sweetener.   I know there is Equal, Splenda, and Truvia but even those impact the glycemic index.   Sweet Leaf does not.     Even though Sweet Leaf is tasteful my palette leans more toward Splenda.   However, I am determined to transition to Sweet Leaf and have set a date as to when I will no longer purchase Splenda.   I keep Sweet Leaf in the refrigerator because it must be stored in a cool place.
  1. Blue Diamond Almond Breeze Original Unsweetened Almondmilk – I am excited about this item.   Recently, I discovered I have food allergies/sensitivities.  So I am trying to reduce/eliminate dairy, gluten, soy and corn from my diet.   Using this product as a substitute for dairy milk has proven to be a very tasty change.
  1. Organic Cage Free Brown Eggs with Omega 3 – I am excited about this item.   I switched to using these eggs because the chickens are fed a vegetarian diet and no hormones.    This is another healthy food choice that I have made to address my food allergies/sensitivities and to implement my eating management plan.
  1. Van de Walle Farms All Natural Picante Sauce – I am excited about this item.   I am a Texan and picante sauce/salsa is a staple in my refrigerator for eggs, burgers, chips, hotdogs, etc.    We, Texans, are loyal to our home grown Pace Picante Sauce but I discovered this brand which is also made in San Antonio.   It offers me a healthier version of picante sauce that is gluten-free and all natural.
  1. Nicolas Hermen Rheinhessen 2010 Germany Sweet Red Wine – I am sentimental about this item.    Every Saturday night, when I am home, I have a glass of red wine as a memorial to the joy, laughter, and love I shared with a special man.   I always keep a bottle chilling in the refrigerator.

Now that I have taken this impromptu tour of my refrigerator I realize the items in it fit my style – eclectic.

 

 

NaBloPoMo #7 If I Had To Be Trapped In A Movie for 5 Days, I Would Choose…….

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NaBloPoMo November 2013Women Having Coffee

Ok.  This is an easy one.   All of my friends have heard me lament over and over again in the past that I wish I could have a job on the bridge of the starship U.S.S. Enterprise (NCC 1701-D).   So, if I had to be trapped in a movie for 5 days, it would be in any of the movies/episodes of Star Trek-Next Generation with Captain Jean-Luc Picard.

I actually like all of the Star Trek series (Original, Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise) but my favorite captain is Jean-Luc Picard.    His personality and leadership capabilities are suited to my personality and this is important for a job that could cost me my life!   Also, I am fascinated with the android Lieutenant Commander Data – a walking/talking database.  I admire the way Captain Picard always refer to him for relevant information and analysis before making those harrowing, life or death decisions.

The time period, earth’s governments, and the motivations of mankind is better suited for me in the 24th century which is the setting of Star Trek – Next Generation because I have always felt I was born before my time.  The thought of traveling faster than the speed of light to different worlds and meeting different beings is appealing to me because in my life now I travel nationally and internationally, work/communicate daily with a global community of co-workers, and have a multi-cultural group of great friends.

It would be an adventure and my delight to be trapped in a Star Trek – Next Generation movie and to go where no man has gone before.   My only regret is that it would only be for five days.     Energize!

H-Town Happenings – Houston Ballet Guild Nutcracker Market

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On this past Saturday, I was able to mark “Done” on my H-Town bucket list next to the entry about attending the annual Houston Ballet Guild Nutcracker Market.     Since 1981, the Nutcracker Market has raised money for the academy and scholarship programs of the Houston Ballet Foundation.   As a native Houstonian, I had been a subscriber of the Houston Ballet and attended the performance of the Nutcracker several times as a Christmas tradition but I had never attended the Nutcracker Market.   So, I called up a few girlfriends and we decided to have a field trip.

The venue for the Nutcracker Market is the Reliant Center which is on the same complex as Reliant Stadium – home of the Houston Texans football team.   As usual, there was adequate parking and a shuttle service to/from the Reliant Center.   We arrived early, a few minutes after the opening for the day, and there were already a considerable amount of shoppers in the booths.   I was expecting handmade beautiful Christmas decorations and merchandise for sale but there were all sorts of other merchandise from jewelry to furniture to back massagers and even cowgirl boots  ( I guess the latter should not have been a surprise in Texas!)   There were approximately 300 national and international merchants.

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My girlfriend and I were not interested in jewelry so we focused on the non-jewelry booths.    The booths with Christmas decorations were wonderful and the most amazing to me was the “Linda Jeanes Original Santas, L.L.C” booth with beautifully detailed Santas of all sizes.   The designer is Linda Jeanes at http://www.lindajdesigns.com.   There were many other booths with Christmas decorations and here are some of the pictures.

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Another booth that caught my eye was one that had elaborate handmade birdcages and the prices were just as high as they stood.

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We traveled up and down the aisles tasting some of the culinary fare from cherry salsa to toffee to rum cake (that would have made me drunk had I eaten an entire slice!).   We had only planned to peruse the market with no intent to shop but I succumbed to the test drive of the back massager by Casada.   Every person that sat in that massage chair did not want to leave it.   It is a wonderful item in that I can put it on any chair and even use it in my car.    My girlfriend succumbed to the call of the Old Gringo booth and ended the day by buying two pairs of beautiful cowgirl boots.

Overall, we enjoyed our visit to the Nutcracker Market.   It was very well-attended and I now understand how the Nutcracker Market has contributed $22 million to Houston Ballet Foundation since 1981.  If you are a jewelry lover, you could attend all three days and not visit every booth but, for everything else, a one-day visit should suffice.