But there’s also been a significant Girl Scout cookie and junk food and just lack of moderation component, which I am much less fine with And I suspect is not unrelated to [waves around at…everything]

I had an "Oh no!" reaction when I saw the Girl Scout table out at 9th and Irving.

I have eaten healthy today (so far): half mug of oat bran with strawberries and blueberries, small bowl of greek yogurt with more berries. And since I was feeling a little sneezy, I decided to head it off at the pass with my Cold Killer Soup (which is a chicken soup with lemon, Persian Lime Curry, garlic, ginger and hot sauce. No noodles so I just put in a bunch of chopped up frozen cauliflower and broccoli. Added some sliced up broiled Bratwurst to have it protein forward.)

I had kept the weight off successfully for several years but all the travel associated with the Clinical Study and the subsequent grief has had me add about 35 pounds back and it's really aggravating my sciatica.

I'm to the point where I'm going to do Ozempic/semiglutide route.

That said, I did run this morning and ate well.

Honestly, I don't have too much trouble staying on the food part of the diet, it's the cocktails that sneak up on me. Because a lot of my socializing at this point is going out and having drinks with people.

ION, I took out the little Amethyst earring studs that I've had in since my birthday. One had gotten a little embedded and I had to fight to get it out (which caused a little bleeding). Anyway, I had bought some vintage earrings to try on and when I tried to put them in my fumbly old fingers couldn't get the little tiny itty bitty backings on the earrings! I need those special old person backings.

Ultimately, I went with some dangly earrings I could get in which feel very pirate-y. Or possibly Golden Girls.

Hec, I just want to tell you that you are a positive inspiration to me when I think about expanding my notions of healthy gender presentation. Too few men of my acquaintance are comfortable in earrings.

Thank you, my friend. You make my world a healthier and more loving place.

Hec, I just want to tell you that you are a positive inspiration to me when I think about expanding my notions of healthy gender presentation. Too few men of my acquaintance are comfortable in earrings.

Thank you, my friend. You make my world a healthier and more loving place.

So, sweet, Karl! I'm actually about to go get a manicure with some obvious nail polish.

Just pushing that non-binary agenda in the everyday ways.

Aw, you guys...although I wouldn't really have ever expected to be part of this sort of conversation. Proving I'm really a woman and not a giant six-year-old has proven to be enough of a personal challenge. Although I'm embarrassed now how much of an issue being occasionally called "sir" after first going with the O'Connell cut in college was for me. Even if I was wearing pink at the time and wondered if I really had to whip the girls out to get points for having them(At least, I'm over it now. But I am, more or less.)

Cereal: Also, Hec, if Spike did it, how girly is that?

I'm giving up DoorDash for Lent, which should help me eat better as a bonus. I'm planning to donate half of what I usually spend on delivery each week to my church's fund that pays for grocery store gift cards for people who show up at the office and ask for help and put the other half in my "oh God what if Dylan doesn't find a new job in the next few months and/or what if the funding cuts get bad enough to take out my job" fund. (Since I work in one of the central offices for university-wide research administration I'm not at the same risk I'd be if I were, say, the grants manager for a group of PIs, but I'm a hell of a lot less confident than I was a few months ago that I can stay in my current department till I retire if I want to.)

I need to both find my expired passports and my birth certificate if I'm going to do anything about Real ID before the May deadline. So Project Organize Papers is underway.

It wouldn't surprise me if I put all three in A Safe Place Which I Have Forgotten.

sigh

Safe Places are overrated because they too often become Safe From Me places

My BIL is a menace to diets. He looked in the fridge and decided the mashed potatoes were too old and made lefse instead. After I’d eaten his second attempt at perfecting his ginger loaf with cream cheese frosting for breakfast

Safe Places are overrated because they too often become Safe From Me places

Yup yup yup.

Family venting time:

Aaaand right on cue, my SIL’s family in Russia are calling her and crying about “why are Geoff’s relatives being so anti-Russia” And how hurt they all are. And by anti-Russia they mean, “put up a stand with Ukraine frame” on Facebook.

What is kind of funny how I learned of all this. in the car with my sister yesterday and she’s furiously typing a text message.

“Fucking Geoff”, she says.

Me: why, what’s up?

H: I don’t even wanna tell you.

Me: [Thinks for a moment] Is this about Ukraine?

H: slow nod

Me: [beat] is this about my fucking Facebook frame?

He wants me to take it down because SIL and her family are so hurt and all. Which, fuck that. What am I calling all my friends and relations all over the world who are reacting to what’s happening in the US and crying and asking them not to be so mean? No, I’m furiously, nodding and agreeing, and hoping for eventual forgiveness.

That frame is set to expire in a few days and they can suck it until then. [Unless I extend it for pure spite.] I just can’t even believe after all this time. Gives an idea what the tone of things is in Russia I guess.

There is a lot to unpack there but I’m gonna just say go spite, choose spite