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Want To Join Our Book Club?

I think I’ve mentioned before that I’m in a book club with a few of my friends. There are three of us that founded it over three years ago, and we’ve had members come and go but currently there are five. I like the small group because it allows for good discussion and flexibility, but we’re always open to new members. This book club is something I’m extremely proud of and it makes me very happy.

We meet approximately once a month. At each meeting we usually have a meal, catch up about life, chat about the book, then pick a new book for the next month and set a meeting date. It’s great.

I would like to extend the conversation to you all out there. After each meeting I have in real life, I’ll post some thoughts about the book, possibly pose some questions, and let you know what the book is for next month. You can read along with me and post your thoughts in the comments.

If you’re curious about what kinds of books we read, be my friend on Goodreads and view my category “bookclub”. I have them all listed. In general, it’s mostly historical and contemporary fiction along with some classics.

Is anyone interested in this kind of thing? Obviously, you won’t have to read every book if you don’t have time. There might be some months when no one reads along with me, and I’ll be okay with that. I just want to share the love. Our next meeting is next Tuesday and we’ll be discussing the book America America by Ethan Canin. It’s a good one, so if you think you can finish it in a week, go for it. :)

Please, please, please let me know your thoughts, and share this with anyone you think might be interested!

July 29, 2009
Just Enjoying Life, Is All

This picture makes me happy. I took it this afternoon.

I’ve been enjoying the time I’ve created for myself since I last wrote. For example, I finished the book I was reading for book club, read a short story, and got through a couple of chapters of another book I’m working on. I cooked dinner for David and my parents, and it was good. While my mom and I walked the dogs, the men did some maintenance on my car. That was good too. I went to my cousin’s son’s first birthday party, watched a little TV with David, saw Harry Potter, cleaned the house. Worked some long and tough hours, then ate a huge brownie. Not all in one day.

I haven’t exercised much, but that’s okay.

I feel obligated to mention the goals I’ve completed lately as well. The meal I cooked for my parents was the fourth meal in four weeks, goal #2. It was enchilada casserole. I’ll put up the recipe sometime. I wear a pedometer at work now, goal #11. Apparently I walk between 3-4 miles while there. And part of the above mentioned maintenance on my car was new windshield wipers, goal #98.

I was going to run errands today, but I don’t feel up to it anymore. Instead I think I’ll cuddle up next to Cleo and read. Then when the sun starts to go down I’ll put on my running shoes and go for a jog. Shower, sleep. Wake up for another beautiful summer day tomorrow.

Life is good, you know?

July 28, 2009
Priorities, Time Saving, Organization

Did you know that in soccer you can get a yellow card for time wasting? It’s true; my brother specialized in it. But wait, did you know that a yellow card, in soccer, is like a warning? And if you get two of them you get a red card, which ejects you from the game, and also the following game? Some people think of their cards as badges of honor, but time wasting? It’s kind of a stupid reason to get a card.

I hate wasting time. On my days off, I feel really disappointed in myself if I’m not extremely productive. It’s kind of ridiculous, because I know I need to just rest sometimes, but in general that’s how it is. Lately I’ve felt my life drifting into disorganization. A few days ago I realized that I’ve been spending time on too many things that I don’t care that much about, and not enough time on things that are important to me. I wanted to make some changes, but first I had to evaluate my priorities.

Work takes up most of my time now, of course. Apart from that there is time with David, occasionally time with family and friends, church stuff, and household chores/tasks. Those are all necessary, although the chores could be a bit more organized in their execution. There are two things that are important to me that I’m currently not making enough time for: reading for pleasure and Bible study. I do both, but not as much as I’d like to. So I’m determined to make the time, and here is my plan:

1. Change my alarm clock sound. I’m hoping this will keep me from pressing snooze so many times, giving me more time in the morning.

2. Every morning, over my bowl of cereal, do some Bible study. Lately I’ve gotten in the habit of checking my email during this time. I won’t let myself open my computer in the morning anymore.

3. On the bus to work use my phone to check my email and Twitter. I’d love to also use this time (which is about an hour) to read, but who am I kidding? I’d fall asleep in two seconds. Best not to fight it.

4. If I have any downtime at work, check Google Reader.

5. As far as blog reading goes, I realized that I’m following way too many blogs about things I don’t really care about. I want to read blogs written by people I am interested in personally, have a personal connection to, or that are well written. So I’ve gone through and purged my GR of those that I don’t think I’ll miss.

6. Read on my lunch break.

7. Read on the bus ride home (until I fall asleep).

8. I spent some time researching different “To Do” iPhone apps, and after much thought I downloaded one called Things for $9.99. This one is set up closest to the way I actually think, and it has some features that are important to me that aren’t available on free apps. It’s really helping me keep my thoughts clear so I don’t have to worry about forgetting something. I also downloaded a free app called Lists which is where I keep track of things I need to buy, grocery lists, wish lists, etc. I like to have this separate from my to do list. This app is simple and clean, and works just like I need it to.

9. Usually for my days off I write down a ton of things I want to get accomplished. Sometimes it’s overwhelming and I don’t know where to start. When that happens I ask myself the question, “What are the things that I’ll be mad at myself about tomorrow if I don’t do today?” I’ll make sure to do those things first, and if I don’t get to the rest I’ll feel comfortable putting them off until the next day, or whenever I have time again.

10. I don’t watch a ton of TV, but it’s something that’s easy to get sucked into. I have a couple shows that I like to follow, but I’m not going to let myself start a new show. I’ll still let myself watch Law & Order SVU reruns with David though, because it’s time spent with him. :)

I’m hoping that streamlining my life like this will free up some extra time that I can use to read, spend time with David, and learn how to rest without wasting time. Anyone else have any tips?

July 23, 2009
Triathlon: Delayed, A Little

I’ve had to make the difficult decision to postpone my triathlon aspirations for a little bit. There are a few reasons that have built up to lead me to this, and here they are:

First, my training buddy cracked a rib and won’t be able to do much exercising for awhile. We haven’t actually been working out together, but we have been encouraging and motivating each other, checking in often, keeping each other accountable, and of course it was a huge help to know that someone would be doing the race with me, considering it will be both of our first triathlon. I had pepped myself up and was prepared to brave the race myself though…

Then on Saturday, during my soccer game, I hurt my toe. If you follow my Twitter or Facebook updates you might have seen the picture, but if not then click here. I’m not going to post it because I don’t feel like having a picture of my nasty toenail up here. What happened is that my toenails are apparently naturally prone to bruising, my cleats are quite old and don’t provide any support, and I forgot to trim the nails before the game. Something happened, some kind of pivot or something, where my toes got mashed in the end of my shoes and right then searing pain went up through my leg. I had to stop and limp for a bit. I don’t know how, but I played until the next break at which point I asked to come out because I really felt like I had torn the toenail right off.

When I took my socks off, my toenail was still there and because it was painted I couldn’t see how bad it was. So I taped it up and played the rest of the game. Then all weekend I was walking around in flip-flops, and although it hurt somewhat I thought it would be OK. That is, until I decided to take the polish off. Not only is it completely black, it is swollen and separated from the rest of my toe underneath. I can move it around. So actually, I DID rip it off during the game.

I had to put my closed-toed shoes back on for work, and let me tell you, it throbs to walk in them. I was going to try to run tonight to see how it goes, but it’s just too painful. I know by the time the triathlon rolls around the pain probably will be dealt with, but in the meantime I can’t train effectively. Which I’m really bummed about, because I had finally gotten into the groove of running regularly and feeling good.

So even after all of that, I was STILL going to sign up for the race (the Austin Triathlon on Labor Day). But then I realized that I hadn’t filled out my schedule for next month at work, and when I went to do so I noticed that another nurse from my shift has already requested those days off, and we’re not supposed to double like that. If I were to request off also, that would only leave my unit with 3 nurses, not enough to staff the floor.

Because of all this, I’ve decided to skip the Austin Triathlon. I’m still really excited about doing one, so I’ve already started researching what races I can do in the future. I’m hoping that only a couple of months is all I’ll need to be really ready.

The race that I am shooting for now is one called Try Andy’s Tri on October 18 in Sugar Land, TX. That’s just southwest of Houston, which is a bonus because it’s so close. Also, the land should be pretty flat, which is what I’m used to, as opposed to Austin which is quite hilly. I can do hills with running, but not so sure about biking. The distances are swim 300 m, bike 10 miles, run 3 miles. This is perfect for me because it’s a super short swim, which is what I have the least experience in, so it’d be a good introduction. I’m also excited to do a small race for my first one, so hopefully I won’t be so overwhelmed.

In the meantime, while my toe heals, I’m going to try to keep swimming, and maybe attempt to cycle on the indoor bike. As soon as I can run I’ll be back out there. I hope it doesn’t take too long; I don’t want to lose all the stamina I’ve built up so far!

July 21, 2009
sleepover

On Saturday night David and I invited our pastor’s kids Isaiah, 5, and Samuel, 3, to spend the night at our house. We obviously don’t have kids yet, but we love them and Isaiah and Sam are two of our favorites. After their parents Bryan and Misti dropped them off and we consumed some Chick-fil-a chicken nuggets, snack packs, and chocolate milk, we got right down to the business of having fun.

We started with a rousing game of Spiderman Sorry, which Isaiah “won”:

Then it was time to play hide and seek. My best hiding place was an empty box turned on its side which I curled up in and pushed up near the wall. It was a big box. But the most fun was hiding with the boys. Isaiah and I were huddled up in the hall closet waiting for David to finish counting, when I hear him whisper, “How long does it take to count to 40?”

“Forty seconds,” I replied.

“Wow, that’s a long time!” Isaiah responded.

We had promised the boys a “camp-in,” so after hide and seek we got busy putting up the tent and then made s’mores. In the fireplace, of course, using real tree branches from the backyard to roast the marshmallows on!

After that we attempted to calm them down enough to watch a movie. We settled on “Hotel For Dogs”. David, Lauren (who came over for the fun), and I were cracking up when Don Cheadle was on screen and Isaiah pointed and said, “Look, the president is in the movie!”

After the movie it was seriously time for bed, because this girl was about to collapse. David asked Isaiah how he usually goes to bed. Does his mommy or daddy tuck him in? Isaiah’s answer was, “We usually eat sweets until we fall asleep.” Yeah, right!

We ended up moving the boys’ tent into our room, but they were only in it for a couple minutes before climbing into bed with us. About 2:30 a.m., though, Isaiah woke up and decided to move back into the tent. I think he wanted to be a tough guy. :)

My spot was right there in the middle, cuddling with a couple of cute boys! One of them I get to keep. :)

In the morning David got us donuts for breakfast!

Then I let the boys play with the camera a little bit, which is why I have a bunch of pictures that look like this:

But I did manage to get one good one with them:

It was interesting carting them to church in my little truck with two tiny jump seats in the back, and Samuel did manage to bump his head twice, but he also said to me only a few minutes after we’d left, “Kafleen? I miss David and the dogs.” So sweet! I’m not sure who had more fun, them or us. :)

July 20, 2009