Back to the blog...almost a year since I've posted. Perhaps a trend here? Anywho...a quick update on life. Duane and I got married. It was truly one of the best and worst days of my life. Honeymoon was a blasty blast, then I came back to work. I think that is where I lost my way. I came back to work and really had nothing to look forward to besides my 26th (ugh) birthday. I didn't feel like hitting the gym for 2+ hours daily, nor did I feel like eating at Subway on a daily basis. I had just spent the past year planning my wedding (every detail--I have the official large and in charge "Wedding Binder" as proof) and losing a lot of weight. My life was almost militaristic in discipline and rote.
Coming back from the honeymoon into real life felt as if I had been rocketed from earth at ridiculous speed this whole past year of planning and working out, and then was set afloat aimlessly in the atmosphere. I lacked direction, but I was fine with that for a while. It was nice to be able to relax. It was great, if not disorienting, to not have several appointments over the weekend. We could relax. We could sleep in. We could eat!
My 26th birthday in September came and went. I hated work. Well, I was consistently hating work for over a year, but it was PAYING for the wedding. I kept my head down and just moved forward. Then came October 28th, when I was shockingly laid off amongst a dozen or so people. In the past 2+ years of employment by the new housing industry, it was I who had been laid off. I had survived by now what it seemed like a few dozen lay offs, but it was truly my time.
After it happened I had a bizarre mix of sadness, shock, and happiness. I had numerous discussions in the previous months with Duane about how I could quit my job and go back to school full-time. However, with the economy the way it was/is, I was waiting for a "better" time to pursue my plans. Looks like my dreams had come true, eh? But they hadn't come to fruition on my terms. But then I thought...if they were truly on "my terms," would I really have made it happen? Would I have really gone through with it? Doubtful.
ANYWHO...so here I am. 2 months post-layoff with a few weeks before school starts in the spring. I took advantage of my paid severance and did some job shadowing and intense research as to what I would pursue. Right now the plan is to take nursing school prerequisites so I can apply for nursing school in November. We'll see where that takes me.
I'm planning to also travel to Chicago in '09 to take a week improv immersion at Second City. Depending on the summer semester schedule, I'd love to go either in the spring or summer.
Back to the Gym
This week also marks the beginning of the last leg of my weight loss goal. I have lost over 100 pounds since January of 2007, but I need to finish what I started. My final goal by the end of April is to lose 30-40 pounds. It isn't a matter of having difficulty knowing how to lose the weight (G-d knows I know it inside and out), but actually DOING it. I've been on this path for so long now... just a matter of a few months before it is finished. Duane is also going to be dropping the LB's with me over the next 4 months, which helps. When we're not both on the same page, we seem to be each other's enablers. So here we go.