Terra Incognita

As a kid, I had blonde hair.  As a matter of fact, it was naturally light blonde until I was in my mid-20s, when it started to turn a shade of muddy blonde.  I used to get highlights a couple of times a year, and loved the way my hair looked.  However, once I decided that I wanted my hair to be short, it seemed like kind of a waste.  A lot of the highlights would be chopped off the same day they were applied, and after about two more haircuts, they were just plain gone.

So for a while, I lived with my muddy blonde shade.  Then I started to get gray hairs.  Which would be fine, except that I'd only get a few, not enough to make my hair look gray.  So it all looked even sadder.

A couple of years ago, a stylist talked me into coloring my hair.  Since she had given me the most kick-ass haircut ever, I trusted her.  She got my hair to the loveliest light auburn shade, I LOVED it!  And it really didn't need to be redone that often, because the roots growing in were not really that different in color.  Sadly, after about a year and a half, that stylist "retired" after giving birth to her second kid.  I'd tried some of the other stylists at that salon, but was not really impressed.  Since then, I've gone from place to place, not really finding anyone who clicked.  The latest place I've gone is OK, but the colorist there insists that my hair should be light red, and though everyone tells me that they think it looks great (a co-worker even said to me, "So you decided to go back to your natural color" !!), it needs more constant maintenance and touching up.  What it boils down to is that I don't have enough gray hair still to just let it do its thing, and salon color is really expensive, and I'm trying to curtail my spending.

Which leads me to my current idea, which is that I should try to use one of the at-home color kits to do my own hair.  A lot of friends and family do it, and most of them have hair that looks just fine.  But what kind to use?  Are some brands better than others?  Can anyone truly do their own hair color with success?  I want to talk to some people before I just dive right in.  And in theory, I'd like to do it sooner rather than later, since I have a haircut appt coming up in a couple of weeks.

I do realize that all of this falls into the category of things that one of my sister calls White People's Problems.  However, since I will be looking at my hair every single day, I want to get it right - or at least as close to right as possible ...

I'll keep you posted.

Keeping Up with Myself

We are now a whole week into February, and a lot of the country is either covered by a snowstorm, or about to be.  Not Philadelphia, though.  We are getting rain, will maybe get 2 inches of snow according to the local weather people.  Unlike most people, I love snow, and am totally sick of these wimpy winters.

But I digress.

Remember back in January, I mentioned that I was hoping to lose 2 pounds a month to get back to a healthier weight?  Well, I accomplished that and then some, but not due to any conscientious efforts on my part.  Nope, it was from being sick.  When you don't feel like eating for a week, you tend to lose weight.  Anyway, my appetite is still not great, but that's OK, it's not like I'm in a contest or anything.

So for February, I am hoping to lose another 2 pounds, and that I will get enough of my energy back to return to the gym.  I'm also hoping that I can get some more things organized as well.  Granted, I could spend the rest of my life cleaning closets, the basement, etc., but as with my weight loss, I'm hoping to accomplish things via baby steps.  First up will be my closet.  Since before Christmas, I've just been stuffing things in there for a lack of anyplace else to put them.  It's gotten pretty bad, so that will be my first organizing project.

Also, I owe people thank-you notes for Christmas gifts, and I don't want to get any later sending them than I already am.  So that's another February goal.

And hopefully, getting sick won't be part of the February experience.

:-)

Laura Mercier 'Faux Lash' Mascara Review

Well, January really sucked for me, since I was sick for more than half of it.  And really sick, like the kind where you can't even drag yourself out of bed.  I'm on the road to recovery, and hopefully my energy levels will kick in soon.

In the meantime, I had a review I wanted to write about a mascara I tried, but I didn't even feel good enough to do that until now.  But better late than never, right?

Last fall, I read reviews on some other blogs about a new product, Laura Mercier "Faux Lash" Mascara.  They were pretty favorable, and I love mascara, so I thought it might be worth a try.  I don't use a lot of Laura Mercier products, but have generally been happy with any I have tried.  So I plunked down the $24.00 at a local Nordstrom to give it a try.

I will admit to being a little bit picky when it comes to mascara.  In general, I don't like the waterproof type.  I like it to go on easily, so that I don't have to keep reapplying to get decent coverage.  I like the ones that do not smear.  Not really drastic expectations, in my opinion, but I've tried quite a few that have disappointed me.

I would say for the first month, this mascara was lovely.  It not only was easy to use, but a little bit went a long way, and it did make my lashes look nice and full, without looking like I had put fuzzy spiders over my eyes.  I was pretty pleased.  But as time went on, it kept getting thicker in the tube, and when I'd pull the applicator out of the tube, the brush would have clumps  on it.  Big ones.  And they were hard to get rid of, before or after I'd put on the mascara.  I am a conscientious consumer with my makeup, always being sure to close caps securely, etc., so it wasn't a case of it changing texture and formula due to my carelessness.

I had such high hopes and after about six weeks, just gave up.  I am willing to accept that at the end of a life span (~3 months for mascara), a product might be different, since it's been used so frequently, and you may be near the end of the tube.  But for the price, I thought this product was not worth it.

I may consider trying it again sometime, in case they fool with the formula, but I can guarantee it won't be anytime soon.  As much as I wanted to like this, I have to give it a big thumbs down.

Ugh. Sick.

Exactly one week ago, late in the afternoon, a colleague asked if she could borrow my office to have a private conversation with a person she supervises.  They were in there for approximately 1/2 hour, and when I came back in, the cigarette aroma was overwhelming (the person being "talked to" had just returned from a smoking break).  My throat immediately closed up, and it was difficult to breathe.  Fortunately, it was time to get my stuff and go home.  That evening, I kept feeling worse as time went on.

My usual routine on a work day is to get up, feed the starving cats, and take Dug for his walk before showering, dressing, and eating breakfast.  About 2 minutes into my walk with Dug, I realized when we got home, I would feed him, and then make a cup of tea and sit for a while before going further.  Which then made me realize I just had to call out sick.  I did so, and went back to bed.  Got up around 10 am and sent an e-mail to my doctor's office, and went back to bed.

Thursday and Friday were a kinda blur; I was exhausted, but would only be able to sleep for an hour or so, due to coughing, blowing my nose, and trying to breathe.  The meds the doctor gave me were making absolutely no difference, which didn't surprise me, because they never seem to.  But he always prescribes them first.

On the weekend, I called the doctor's office, and got the person on call, who was sympathetic, but suggested only adding some OTC things to the mix.

Yesterday, I was still miserable, and fearful that I had pneumonia, so I called the doctor's office again, and asked if I could please come in and have someone listen to my lungs.  Fortunately, one of the nurse practitioners had an opening, and as it was my husband's day off, he took me over.

What a difference.  She listened to my lungs, and said no pneumonia (Thank God!), rather I was having a severe asthma attack exacerbated by a bad cold, and then asked about the meds I had been prescribed.  I told her the long story, and mentioned that if I could have some cough syrup with codeine, I thought I could get a decent night's sleep, which would make me start feeling better far more than taking a longer course of pills, etc.  She prescribed that and a rescue inhaler.  I started as soon as I got home.

And guess what?  Last night I slept ALL NIGHT.  And today, I do feel better.  The nurse practitioner told me to stay put until Monday, so though I am not happy to be using sick days at work right off the bat, I feel like I'm moving towards being better.

I realize that codeine is a controlled substance.  But for me, it is *always* the only thing that works to allow me to sleep all night, rather than cough all night.  Every time, that has been the case.  But my doctor always waits until a week or more has gone by to prescribe it.  Which is so frustrating.

Although I still don't feel great, I do feel more rested, and like I'm on my way to feeling better.  Onward!

Motivation

I know I've already talked about my activity plans and ideas here, but I just posted on my other blog about ways that I think you can try to keep yourself motivated until fitness becomes a habit.

So feel free to give it a read!

A Couple of Intentions

You may recall that I mentioned a couple of posts ago that last year, I toyed with the idea of "intentions" rather than resolutions for New Year's.  I've been sick since the day before New Year's Eve, so I haven't spent a lot of time on thinking about it, but there are a some of things I already know I want to try.

First, I was reading a blog the other day (God forbid I remember which one), where the blogger said that she was in fact making resolutions, but only a month at a time, and her January resolution was to lose weight, and declutter her closet.  That got me to thinking, and I recalled that when I first started this blog, I vowed to take baby steps to reach my health and fitness goals, so that - theoretically at least - they would be more manageable.  It all worked pretty well, so I want to try that.  So one of my intentions for this year is to try and lose 2 pounds a month - and preferably, not the same 2 pounds each time!  This strikes me as a reasonable, doable, intention.

Then today, I was thinking that when I feel better (oh please let it be soon!), I should try to plan ahead with meals a little bit better.  I eat the same thing for breakfast every morning - oatmeal with raisins, cinnamon, and sometimes slivered almonds, along with a side of fruit if at all possible in the cold months; cold cereal with a side of fruit the rest of the year - so breakfast is not really an issue.  Cooking dinner is something I share with my husband (he cooks one night, I cook the next), so I want to try and fix one dish at least twice a month ahead for the next week during January.

Then there is lunch.  I usually take my lunch, since a) I don't want to go broke, and 2) deciding what I want can take the better part of my lunch hour.  But as much as I wish it were, it's usually not anything I think too far ahead about.  PB&J is a favorite, but sometimes I just want something different.  So my other intention for January is to plan my lunches, and where possible, fix the ingredients ahead of time.  Even if it's just a list that says something like:  Monday - PB&J.  Tuesday - cheese and crackers.  Wednesday - soup.  You get the picture.

This seems as if it could actually work.  But at least if it becomes undoable/a failure/whatever, I can re-think things for February.

I'll keep you posted.  :-)

Happy New Year!

The object of a new year is not a that we should have a new year.

It is that we should have a new soul

-- G.K. Chesterton