fail...and other things

i feel somewhat like a failure. not because i actually failed, but because i got sick again. this time i picked up strep throat somewhere. so, outside of going to the doctor's office and the pharmacy i've essentially been under house arrest since friday evening due to my contagiousness, and have been mostly resigned to feeling like absolute junk.

i won't go into details about all of my symptoms and ailments because i don't want to relive them, and i don't even want you to have to hear about them.

i'm simply hoping that the rest of the year does not take a cue from january. every time i've gotten close to getting into a routine thus far in 2010, i've become sick. it's just not a good trend, especially with our hawaii trip a mere two and a half weeks away. mainly because i don't want to get sick while we're in hawaii, but also because my exercise routine needs to be firmly in place from now until then. it's kind of sad how ridiculously excited i am to get to wear a two piece again.

due to my job i have to wear a one piece for most of the summer, and frankly, my stomach misses the sun. it may sound silly, but being outside in the sunshine (regardless of the temperature) has a way of lifting my spirits. when i worked a more typical office/desk job i would go to the starbucks across the street for my lunch break on fridays. i would sit outside with a magazine, have some coffee or a frappuccino and just bask in the sun. that was generally one of the best parts of my week.

makes me eager to use our deck more. to bundle up in the winter and go for a walk. to build fires in the outdoor fire pit in the fall. to grill in the summer. to read (on said deck) for hours with my feet propped up in the spring.

the thing is - i love being outside. in fact that was my biggest requirement for our hawaii trip. i'd like to do a lot of things when we're there, many of which i've never tried before, but mostly i just want to be OUTSIDE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. and while i love exercising outside i fail to just be outside much even though i relish that thought. i always feel like i have to be doing something active, so just being outside doesn't always work with that part of me.

granted, it's also disgustingly hot down here much of the year, but i think i'd get used to it if i just spent more time out there, regardless of the temperature.

i must say i was disappointed this weekend that i couldn't go outside. we got our first (and probably only) real snow of the year. it barely stuck around until today, but the road crews, etc. down here are so unprepared for snow that there were quite a few schools that were still closed, closed, today even though it hasn't snowed since friday. AND it was only a few inches. granted the roads iced over, but still. it's pretty shocking for someone who grew up in a place where this snow "storm" wouldn't have even merited a 2 hour delay the day it actually snowed much less a 2 day closing 3 days after the initial snow...

anyway, i'm done venting.

one last thing before i wrap up this rambling for today. i have discovered that one thing that helps soothe a sore throat - even one which makes you grimace every time you need to swallow - is hot water with honey and lemon juice. you have to play with it a little bit to get the proportions of honey and lemon right, but it was the one thing that i actually wanted to have when all i really wanted to do was cut my throat out of my body and insert a new one.

hope february brought

health and vitality

to you and yours!