I'm Alive, and I'm It

I have been swamped at work for about the past week, but I have been incredibly proud of myself sticking to my routine. The lack of posts does not mean lack of gym ... I've gotten in some good lifting sessions and even a night at the pool since last Thursday, plus some boring treadmill time and whatnot.

I don't know that I've mentioned I'm also staying away from sugar lately. It's partly a Lent thing, partly a health thing. I don't think anyone can comprehend my sweet tooth. I'm not exaggerating when I say I've eaten an entire pan of brownies in less than 10 minutes by myself on multiple occasions, and I didn't even barf. Needless to say, giving up sweets is about the hardest thing I could ever do.

I think I was secretly hoping I wouldn't notice a difference with sugar gone from my life, but I must say, I've never felt better. I'm not groggy as often, I don't feel as hungry, and I definitely feel cleaner in general...if that makes any sense. I can't imagine I'll ever get to a point where I don't need/want/crave sugar. But, after Lent is over, I think I'll stick to my plan with maybe a couple exceptions. One dessert a week? I have to have room for an ice cream cone here and there, especially once summer starts!

For more random information on my life, keep reading. I've been tagged by IronMin! I've come across her blog fairly recently, but I love it for two reasons: a) she's a seriously tougher athlete than I am, which makes for fantastic motivation when I'm debating mid-afternoon whether to travel to the gym, and b) she's from Mad-town. I live in MN now, but my homeland is Wisconsin and I have particular fondness for Madison, so it's fun to read. Check her out - she's training for Ironman and she rode in the Weinermobile, which I'm totally jealous of.

So, 7 random things about me:

1. I know Barry Manilow's "I Can't Smile Without You" in sign language. In fourth grade, we had to do a routine for two retiring teachers, and our class chose to learn sign language.

2. I received free (I stress FREE; as if I'd pay for these) tickets to the Barry Manilow concert in January. Yes, I signed along to that song with glee. No, I'm not a Fanilow.

3. I like cookie dough, cake batter, bread dough, pie dough, etc. far better than I like the desserts themselves. Back to the brownie reference, I also have eaten entire bowls of brownie batter in one sitting many times. Love the gooey mess; could easily do without the final, baked product.

4. Oddly, I don't get sick from the raw eggs in these batters, but I get violently ill if I eat cooked eggs. Not cooked in things, but fried or scrambled, as in breakfast-type eggs. I also can eat hard-boiled eggs, no problem. I have no idea why this is.

5. I have had to prohibit myself from using WebMD ever again to look up things like, "why do I get sick from eggs?" One thing about WebMD: the answer is always cancer. No matter what you type in, cancer will be a possible diagnosis.

6. I am closer in age to my aunts and uncles than I am to many of my cousins (dad's family has 12 kids, of which I'm the 2nd grandkid; mom's family has 6 kids and I'm #3 grandkid). My youngest aunt is 35. I love it. My family rocks.

Not that many people are reading my sporadic blog these days, so rather than tagging anyone in particular, assume that if you're reading this, you're it!