M Is For Me

Improving Ms. Bean: One Step At A Time

/ Ally Bean / 21 Comments

And now for something different…

I’VE NEVER been one to talk about medical issues on my blog, and I’m not about to change that policy now.  But today, by bending my own personal blogging rules just a bit, I’m going to share with you, my gentle readers, that I am overweight.  Not much, actually.  But enough for me to decide that it is time for me to change some of my evil less-than-healthy ways.

TO WIT, and finally getting to the point of this post, I bought a fitbit.  I chose the Zip one, which is a small pedometer that you attach to yourself each day.  Then it does all the work for you by keeping track of your steps.  All you have to do is walk.  A lot.  And have a desktop computer or a smart phone that you use to see all of your stats.

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IF I were a cynical woman, at this point in my post I’d tell you that this little gadget has confirmed that I do move.  Most days.  More than I can believe.  Yet I am plump.  Which I kind of like, but that’s the sort of statement that could get my Woman Card revoked, so I won’t focus on the body image topic today.  Nor will I be cynical, because I am a paragon of good health and positive thinking.

I’M ENJOYING my Zip.  It’s a groovy fuchsia color, and has this cute little [mostly] smiley face on it.  Sometimes the smiley face sticks its tongue out at me when I’ve been sedentary for too long.  I like that.  Technology with a bit of motivational attitude is exactly the sort of thing to get me stepping more.  And maybe, just maybe, weighing a few pounds less.

I’ll let you know. 

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[A message to the FTC: I didn’t receive any compensation of any kind for my opinion here about this device.  I know that you worry about such things, so you can rest assured that, as usual, there is nothing here for you to see.]

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4 Grouchy Reasons Why April Is My Least Favorite Month

/ Ally Bean / 28 Comments

•  I’m allergic to April.  The pollen from the trees makes me itch & sneeze.  The mold spores, that magically appear after the snow melts, make me itch & sneeze.  And the dust mites?  Don’t even get me started.  They’re everywhere I want to be outside, like on the porch furniture and terra-cotta pots and the mailbox.  Everywhere I tell you.

•  I’m not a fan of Easter because the stupid holiday moves around the calendar and as much as I try to be a good sport about it, this behavior seems rude to me.  Easter, just pick a Sunday and stick with it.  That way I’d have a clue about when to buy a ham and some asparagus– maybe a pineapple, too.  But as it now stands Easter’s laissez-faire attitude thwarts me, and I rarely manage to make a special holiday dinner.

•  I’m not thrilled with the whole “pay your taxes” part of April.  While I’m happy to be an American citizen and understand why I’m paying taxes, doing so does tend to make me a bit grouchy.  I think that it does for everyone, but maybe not.  Perhaps there’s some whack-a-doodle who enjoys giving money to the government.  Probably has her own reality TV show, too.

•  And my final reason for not liking April is that I have to acknowledge that my pasty white legs, which are getting chubbier every year, look more and more like uncooked bratwursts.  During the fall and winter I can hide my legs, but every April when I put on my first pair of shorts for the year I discover that my legs look awful– and it comes as a shock to me every single time.  *humph*

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Grouches of the world unite!
Stand up for your grouchly rights!
Don’t let the sunshine spoil your rain
Just stand up and complain.

Let this be the grouches’ cause:
Point out everybody’s flaws!
Something is wrong with everything
Except the way I sing!

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QOTD: What’s On Your Superpowers List?

/ Ally Bean / 21 Comments

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Remember back a few weeks ago when I was reading Darcy Eikenberg’s Bring Your Superpowers To Work and how it bugged me that I couldn’t figure out what my superpowers were?  

I mean, I’ve always been told that it’s more important to know WHO you are than to know WHERE you’re going.  Yet there I was on a bleak February day not knowing myself OR my path.   

So I decided to dig in and determine what superpowers I had.  Then I created this list.  Perhaps it’s a bit lighter in tone than what Darcy has in mind, but it is who I am.  Which I do believe is the whole point of this exercise.

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I am…

  • able to confirm that the color you painted your walls is not the right color.
  • able to laugh, more often than not, at the absurdities of life.
  • able to say thank you so many times in a day that it may sound insincere, but it’s not.
  • able to bring ideas and experiences together in novel ways.
  • able to determine within minutes of meeting someone if said person is a problem solver or a problem keeper.
  • able to sit on the curb and clap enthusiastically as the parade goes by.
  • able to find a way to avoid ironing anything, preferring to delegate that task to anyone with the patience necessary to get rid of wrinkles.
  • able to remember minutiae/information that doesn’t matter any more.
  • able to remember to write down minutiae/information that matters now, often remembering where said minutiae/information is after being written down.
  • able to pick myself up, brush myself off, curse about life’s inequities– and then start all over again.

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Now, I’ve shared my list. What about you, gentle readers? What are your superpowers? I’d love to know.