look I'm legal!

I haven't had health insurance -- except for two weeks -- since April 1998. It's pretty useless insurance, but I'm legal.

january report card / february goals

I did not meet most of my January goals. I only met one. However, I made progress towards them, so it wasn't a total washout.

1. Walk more. Whine less.  80%. I think I did well with this. I did walk more, even if it wasn't far. But I cannot gauge my whining until I've gone over the top. You tell me. Am I whining less?
February goal: to do even better. With the Iditawalk and the Winter Challenge, that should be no problem. Maybe I'll even have something to write about.

2. Spend less. Save more.  80%. I haven't impulsed bought at all, but I have eaten out. One day I brought dinner home. Three or four times I ate lunch out.
     This also means I cannot enter races, events, workshops or clinics. The event fees are high and the best ones involve hotels and long drives. (They also make the best blog posts.) But I am trying to rebuild my safety net and pay for health care so I cannot be tempted. To this end, I've removed my name from many event lists, but my fitness friends on FB post events. This one has my name on it. I will not enter. I will not enter.  
February goal: If I get a clean month of not eating out, then I think I'll try a once a week scenario. I must continue to resist the call of the race.

3. Closing the Gayle Savings and Loan.  0%. Totally failed at this. Calling me crying and hyperventilating will get me every time. My savings account is another $2K down. 
February goal: No more. Don't call me. Don't text me. I have no money to give you.

4. Buy new sneakers.  0%. I didn't even get near the sneaker store. It's on the to-do list. I did try not wearing the flats I bought and it does make a difference. I don't understand why. My preference is to go barefoot. Shouldn't flats be the same? Apparently not.
February goal: Buy sneakers. Maybe I should try the ones Bonnie gets with the built-in orthodics.

5. Eat better.  75%. I think I did okay with this one. I am eating less. I am eating better. But I am not eating clean. I still drink soda. And if the roomie has candy I will eat it. All. I clearly can not have just one. I have not eliminated night time eating, but I have curtailed it a lot. I am trying not to say anything to the roomie, so it makes it twice as difficult.
     My poor friend Angel probably hates that she said yes to this adventure. She's doing way more than I asked. She's counting my calories. and sending me totals every day.
     It took me a whole month to lose 6 pounds. I am 227. More exercise should bring that down.
February goal: Eat better. Goal for February 219.

6. Buy Health Insurance and make doctors appointment.  100%.  Now if they would just send me a card.

7. Blog everyday in February. Now that one is going to be tough. That will force me to get my fat fanny moving!

goal 6 achieved!

Today it snowed all day. Walking in the snow was wonderful. You can tell it's January. The Liberty Tax Lady Liberty mascots were out. There were two. One saw me snap the pixfrom across the five points. "Hey, xxxx, she's taking ur picture!" I am very happy that I don't need to do that to make a living.

Have you gotten your W2s yet? I think it's a little early to be doing taxes.

Yesterday I took two small walks. I barely reached 7K steps. But I did get 25 floors.

Today I did walk. In the snow. Ultimately I went to Ahart's and CVS. I mostly stayed off the hills because of the snow, so I only reached 17 floors.

Doing well with goal 6. Made a doctors appointment. He will yell at me because of my weight.  I did not expect to get an appointment Friday. I wanted the other female doctor. She's booked till mid-March. The guy I got is old. May have to work my way thru the practice to find one I like.

Also bought healthcare. I am now officially poor. I apparently make 3K too much to get any assistance.  My policy is $400/month, with a $4K deductible and $60 doctor co-pays. Pretty much I'm going to be paying twice what I paid before. Unless something horrible happens, I will never make the deductible. And now I won't qualify for the cash price. I'm screwed. However, it will make goal 2 easier to follow. At least the spend less part. Will need to see where I can cut more corners.

Goal 3 is a lot harder. Especially for a "people pleaser" and "enabler". (I learned these terms in Al Anon meetings when my sister was in rehab.) This morning someone called hysterical and hyper-ventilating. The car was repo'd. I caved. However, now that $400/month is a reality, I have no more money to cave with. Maybe it will be easier.

goals for january

I'm not really into making New Year's resolutions, I don't keep them. Instead I've decided to work toward a couple of long range personal goals. Some will be new. Some will reoccur. Most will be a work in progress. I'm hoping for no total drop-outs.

1. Walk more. Whine less. I bet y'all will appreciate that one. I've just learned about Nordic walking. I'd like to try that. If I can find a group somewhere. I'd also like to take a race walking clinic. Not that I want to race walk. I just want to try it.

2. Spend less. Save more. With my crazy schedule I eat out way too often. I also buy on impulse. Both must stop. For January I want to try no eating out at all. Not even a candy bar. Which I shouldn't eat anyway. This will be especially difficult when school starts next week.

I'm also going to stop spending. If it is a want, rather then a need, it's a no. That includes races. And fonts. And stock images. It's going to be a long month.

3. Close the Gayle Savings and Loan Bank permanently. Please do not approach me with a sad story about hard luck. The bank is closed. I'm tired of supporting up to five people. I really need a new kitchen. I won't get one if I keep giving my money away. Live within your means people. If people call you cheap, like they call me cheap, wear it as a badge of honor.

4. Buy new sneakers. I think my sudden onset of knee and hip pain is not solely because of genetic arthritis. Both pair are worn out. Perhaps it's effecting the way I walk. This fall I bought all new shoes. Some were flats. Perhaps this was a bad idea?

5. Eat better. I fell off the nutrition wagon in late spring. I don't know what the road block was, but it happened. My clothes are getting small. It must stop. Now. I do best when I keep a food diary. But without someone ... other than me ... looking at it. I can look and say this is a crappy day, but I won't do anything about it. I need to be kept accountable.

My friend Angel is a bit of a fanatic about nutrition. She is skinny as a rail and watches every thing she eats. Then goes crazy occasionally. She works out almost every day and has a bunch of phone aps to keep track. So I asked her if she'd be my nutrition conscious. She set up a myfitnesspal.com account for me that I have no access to. She'll give me reports once a week. I already found out that my breakfast smoothie isn't nutritionally sound. Actually it's a slightly better milkshake. Bummer. It's an easy morning meal.

It's day one and it already has had an impact. I knew it would. Since I have to write it down and show it to someone, I think before I shove something into my pie hole.

She has made an aggressive goal for me. 45 pounds. Yikes. In May that would have been 15. I've gained nearly 30 back. 4 years of work down the tubes.

6. Buy Health Insurance and make doctors appointment. Okay ACA coverage is a must-do, not a goal. But maybe if I write it down I'll do it.  (My bank book says no, no, no.) So pretty much is the doctors appointment.  I run out of meds in a month.

That is enough for one month.

 

From my Monday, Jan. 5 "Today Is Going To Be A Great Day" email calendar.