Before and After

Dear blogger community,

I am doing a little experiment about before and after shots, to see how good the general public is at evaluating weight loss based on photos. Please note that this photo set has nothing to do with my recent venture into the world of Jillian Michael workouts, so don't try to figure out how long I've been on the program to help you out. This is not related!

All you need to do is take a peek at the before and after photos below and comment with your best guess at how many pounds were lost. This is not the most dramatic set you'll ever see; I may post later a model with an even greater change. Just give you best guess! Like I said this is an experiment to see how good everyone is at estimating weight from photos. If you want to take a guess at the model's weight, either before or after, you are welcome to but that is not the most important part.

Without further ado, here we have a before shot:

and an after shot:

Do your best, good luck! I will write a personal poem for the closest guess.

SCREEEEEEeeeeeeeeeeeEEEEECH

Pretty sure the world stopped turning. I'm subbing for my mom at her office job and nothing has happened for two hours. Haven't heard my boss so much as roll his swivel chair across the floor. No telephone calls. No one coming in. It is so. Quiet. I do believe the world has ceased to spin.

On the positive side, I lost two pounds! I'm also so sore in my legs I walk with a limp. Haha.

I'm off to Wal-Mar or Big 5 to get a heart rate monitor and resistance bands that go over a door, so I can be super awesome and to celebrate my loss. Which sounds funny but whatever.


This is a shout out to my 20sb's that have been keeping me company... y'all are awesome. I are heart you.

Ever-Elusive: Fitness

I'm fed up with the weight I've gained since I was at my slimmest, 18 months ago. Since then I've gained 35 lbs. Yes, in a year and a half! A combination of bad food, low exercise levels, high stress levels, poor sleeping habits, and side effects of anti-depressants all worked together to put me at my current heaviest weight. I still think I'm attractive and beautiful. But I would much rather be considerably healthier, and three sizes smaller.

With the help of my new fitness plan, I want to be at my target weight and size by graduation. I have 20 solid weeks to get there. I've never really stuck to a fitness program before; I've done a couple of diets [not very many] and I try to get out for walks or bike rides or do a little yoga. But I really want to know what I could achieve if I really really tried. You know? And then, once I'm at my target, I can choose whether or not it's worth it to keep it up. But I need to know what I could be, and do.


20 Weeks!

Numa Numa!

To counter the potential negative vibes of this post, I would like to start with the following awesome video.



If you haven't watched it, stop reading and go watch it.

If you didn't smile you may be dead.


Alright. My life is semi-crazy right now, yet at the same time I'm frustrated because not enough is happening. Figure that one out... I guess maybe I'm tired of the craziness of this particular phase of life and want to move on to the next, supposedly calmer phase? Right now I'm trying to get (a) job(s). Substitute teaching will be one, but it's possible that I won't have that licensure until another three months! So in the mean time, I need lots of something. Called like twelve classy restaurants, applied to half a dozen places online. Scored an interview for an occasional babysitting job and one for a housekeeping job.  Between the two, maybe... $75/mo? :-P Ideally I'd like to move out soon, so I'm going to need a bit more than that.

So, the other thing I've been doing is checking out potential housing. Seems fairly cheap, until you add utilities. And take out taxes from your paycheck. And my friend tells me you should get renter's insurance? Oh and several hundred $$$ to take the dogs with me. And a deposit! So. Yeah. If any of you rent, how easy or difficult have you found it to be, to make ends meet?


I'm  having drama problems with the guy I've been dating. :( His ex talked to someone that talked to an adult friend of mine who I'm very close to, and basically these people weren't very fond of him. Well, we all know his ex not very reliable. I personally would not want any of my guy friends involved with her. So, I don't trust her word. Plus she's his ex!! However, I guess these were concerns raised during the actual relationship, and they were anger related. Coming from a home where that has sometimes been an issue, I'm freaked out about possibly getting into a bad relationship. Once you're in, it's harder to see what's really going on, and it's hard to get back out. Do I think he'd hurt me? No. Do I think it could be an unhealthy relationship? ... I don't know? The things I've seen don't indicate that. But the two things I have to go off of are my own observations over like three weeks, and the word of his scoundrel of an ex, passed through two more people. Yet, the sorts of things they said.. if I knew they were true, I wouldn't even consider this relationship. So I feel super conflicted. Don't know what to think, you know?

I like a lot of things about him and we click really well. So.... for now I think my plan is to get to know him better, keep it pretty casual, let time work its magic.


I hate gossip.