falling off the proverbial wagon

It happens to all of us now and then.   We have our healthy habits, we're conscious of why those habits are important and then WHAM, you find yourself picking up a McDonald's cheeseburger and some fries and wondering what the heck happened! 

Yup, that about represents the last 2 weeks for me.  McDonald's (and yes, I deeply, DEEPLY regretted it about a half hour after eating it), more dinners out, skipping breakfast and/or lunch, picking up the chocolate bar for a quick sugar hit in the afternoon...  and I know exactly why I sit here with a dull, pounding headache.  

So how exactly do we find ourselves in this situation from time to time?   For me, it's busy at work, busy with studying, busy teaching and I forget to take the chicken out of the freezer.  We get home from work, I haven't thought about dinner and boom "let's go to Chuckles Jack or Bistro 54"!  Next thing you know, I've chowed down on deep fried dill pickles and butter chicken (maybe a piece of chocolate cake too...) at Chuckles Jack or Caesar salad, pasta carbonara and homemade gelato at Bistro 54.  Oh, and don't forget the wine...   I don't even want to think about how many calories I've consumed!!!  (Seriously though, if you're ever in the area, these are 2 of my fav restaurants - awesome people and even better food!) 

But here comes my question - is it really all that bad?  That is in part a rhetorical question of course.  Here's my take: while these foods are not going to contribute to a slimmer waistline, they're also not going to kill me IF (BIG IF!)  these food choices are not my norm (and I assure you, they are not).  To me, it's all about balance - that McDonald's cheeseburger served significant value - reminded me why I eat them oh so rarely!  But it, along with the myriad other less than healthy things I've consumed over the last couple of weeks remind me to pay attention - to what I eat, what I don't eat (as in, skipping meals), that I stay active and make time for myself.  

So, why the long-winded post about my slip up?   Because it happens to everyone, because I think it's normal and because it's a learning moment.   Take the slip ups for what they are, don't dwell since you can't change it and move onward and upward, learning to make better choices.  

Back onto the wagon I get (though I will still enjoy the occasional piece of chocolate cake)!   

giving thanks

Our Canadian Thanksgiving weekend is coming to close, and as I slow down before getting ready for my week ahead, I'm taking a few moments to acknowledge how truly fortunate I am.

This weekend was full to the brim with family, great friends and much too much food!  Friday brought family from out of town, dinner at mom and dad's with them and late night chatting; Saturday some work around the house followed by an awesome evening with friends and family, some of the best local cheese around along with some fine Canadian Scotch, Glen Breton and some lovely Porto; Sunday, my mom's awesome as always turkey dinner, again with family and friends; and holiday Monday brought a great workout then off to fly for an hour with friends (who knew you could rent a plane for an hour and head out?!)

More than anything, it's the time spent with family and friends that is most welcomed and most appreciated.  It is a reminder of what is truly important and of value in my life. The hours of Trivial Pursuit Sunday was a refreshing tradition that we had at some point given up - why, I'll never know!  I mean what's better than a game of trivia, a bit of friendly competition, girls against the guys, ESPECIALLY where the girls win - and on a golf question, no less :-)   Sitting around at a friend's place Saturday evening just relaxing and catching up was a welcome escape from the distracting busy-ness I sometimes find myself in the midst of.  It is sometimes the perceived mundane aspects of our lives that actually have the most to offer - something I commit to reminding myself of when I start to carried away.

So, on this absolutely gorgeous and cool fall evening, before setting out for the work week, I thank all of you for an absolutely awesome Thanksgiving long weekend and for the subtle reminders of everything I have to be thankful for!

busy, busy, busy

The last 6 weeks have been chaotic.  And I mean chaotic in the best of ways - filled with good things, great people and new ideas.

The newest of new ideas is the creation of a recreation association in our community.  I'm volunteering my time with a group of other health and wellness oriented people to create The Hub, a recreation association that will provide access to fitness, activities and recreation for all members of our community and to those of surrounding communities.

The history goes a little something like this - formerly a provincial hospital, a massive 800,000 square foot facility on 350 acres is closed, left vacant in 2008.  Said facility has a pool, gymnasium, auditorium, classrooms - but is closed, no longer available for use and has a massive for sale sign on the front lawn.  Prospects are grim; not only has this facility closed, so have a couple of others, resulting in hundreds of job losses in a town of 9,000.    Not good (and did I mention I had just moved here!?)

Fast forward to 2011.   In general, the town's prospects are looking better - slowly (we are the turtle, not the hare).  While searching the world for someone to buy up this huge facility, the town inadvertently misses a local solution.  The sale of the facility is announced and as it turns out, a local family in the construction business has purchased it - welcome now to The Gallipeau Centre!  The idea is to build a community within a community - residential dwellings, commercial ventures, medical facilities and the list goes on.

Fast forward again to 2012, when a local businesswoman (and my mentor) Darlene Maclachlan brings a bunch of us together to talk about the possibilities.  It wasn't long before we had a laundry list of ideas, volunteers, people to talk to, presentations to do and most importantly - plans to make!

We've come a long way in a couple of months and I'm proud to be able to say I get to work alongside some amazing people (including my Dad!) to figure out how to make this a reality.   It's a little bit daunting some days, but oh so rewarding!  The possibilities are endless and the benefits immeasurable, which is why I continue to believe this will become a reality.  

If you're reading this and have the opportunity, check out our idea here - it's a competition that provides funding to community oriented ideas.  For us, this will be seed money to get the pool fixed and re-opened.   If you have a moment and can sign up and vote for us, that would be awesome!  More than anything, we're working to create awareness of the benefits this will provide to all members of our community and if you can help us with that, we'd be oh so grateful.

cheers,
A