How I lost at least 50 lbs last weekend...and the plan to keep shrinking!

Think this is about getting skinny? Well it is! Just a different kind of skinny than you probably assumed, but I guarantee the health benefits are just as important.

Over the next month or so I'm de-cluttering my life. I've hired my friend Diana (by payment in wine and laughs). The woman is AMAZING! Sometime near the end of 2009, we all had a slumber party at her house. I went into full-on house envy the moment I walked in the door. This has happened in pretty much every apartment she's lived in that I visited, but I was more than just in awe. I wanted to feel the way I felt in her home. I wanted to feel like everything had a place. And life, at least in those rooms, was in order. I went home after our little shindig and sat in the apartment I love. I quickly noticed that I felt the weight of the entire space..and it was suffocating. I immediately sent her an email, asked for help, and said "I'll follow anything you say and pay whatever you like, just HELP please!"

Last weekend we finally got our schedules to synch up and made a date to attack my apartment. I will openly tell you that I'm not a domestically organized person. You could just stop at, I'm not domestic. My house is usually picked up (unless my life is in shambles) and I feel my home is inviting, but behind closed doors...I am just an "organized mess".  I'm learning that all the STUFF I have is a representation of how I feel in general. Life swinging out of control = shoes EVERYWHERE. Waking up late, not working out, drama in full effect? I'd be in shock if my laundry was not coming out of my ears. So I took a long hard look at all my clutter this weekend. If this is the representation of my life...it's not pretty.

I threw away 4 bags of useless products and junk. Don't even get me started on the money that represents. Two bags and 3 boxes went to half price or consignment stores for a little cash, 2 bags and a crate went to my mom and one bag went to donate at goodwill. That's 50+ pounds of CRAP from just a closet and my bathroom....GONE. It felt incredible.

Hanging on to everything was just a lazy, indecisive mode I'd snuggled up against. I didn't know how to get rid of the things making me unhappy, so I didn't. I accepted being comfortable rather than making something better, even though I knew there was no longer any benefit. Pretty much like a bad relationship. The what ifs and the crap we deal with just to avoid change are astounding. Well not here! Not any more. We built all the starter systems and organization around what works in my routine. What is normal and functional in my life. We're going to flip my closet, sell some bulky furniture items, create systems that I can actually keep up with, and get some crap out of my life.

I've just started and there is a lot more to go, but I get it now. I understand how good it feels to have a plan and to set aside the time to make your home clutter free. It allows you to see a result and feel lighter with every box and bag that leaves your home. It allows you to LET GO. Not to mention the money it will save in the long run (yanno, like not owning FIFTEEN bottles of sunscreen because you don't realize you keep buying them).

So if you've been looking to de-clutter. If you're holding onto a bunch of stuff and/or looking for a few tips to make life a little simpler, stay tuned. I'm gonna provide pictures and tips and lots of cracks about some of the stupid choices I've made in my life (i.e. I'm pretty sure there was NEVER a time it was okay for me to wear a half top). And feel free to apply this as a metaphor to anything you need to get rid of in your life...I always do!

What do you need to de-clutter in your life?

Beers and bourbon

Last night I went to a bar by myself for a little while. It was one of those days and I didn't feel like drinking at home. Over a couple of hours I realized how much you can learn about your life over a shot of bourbon and a couple beers. If I'm home, I dwell in my own thoughts. Wrong night for that choice.

I'll rant about all the useless stuff in the world on this blog, but I don't complain about the real stuff on here. Actual problems and whatnot. I don't find anything wrong with doing that, it's just not me. Hell, half the people I genuinely consider friends don't know about my "problems". I'll lean on people, trust me. But there aren't many people I choose to lean on and I'm a fixer, not a bitch for no reason kind of girl. So without any details, let's just say...it was a rough day. All kinds of grown-up crap. Which leaves me at a bar, dealing with it the way I do. Think through it. Feel a little sorry for yourself for a few minutes. Move on.

A few years ago I had A LOT of these days. More sad moments than happy ones. More bar time than snuggie time. And back then, it was crippling. I let the rough days take over my life by putting on a happy face and powering through. That helped a whole lotta nothing because REAL emotion? Always catches up with you. This is truly the first time I've had to deal with anything real (personally) in a while. And I'll admit, I was more than a little nervous to see how I would handle the rough days if/when they came around again. So I drank a little. I thought about the day and what it meant. Situations where there aren't black and white answers. And you know what, I was okay. I was as honest with myself as I beg people to be with me. And it worked! I had a little bit of poor me time. I sat at that bar with the eff off look I've mastered when I'd just like a little solitude. And other than the dude that offered to give me a ride to a lesbian bar and promised to bring me back later (I wish that crap still shocked me), it was a great night.

The best part of the night was learning that the little life I've built really is as solid as I like to think it is. Most (especially the stupid) crap from my past is just that, the past. I'm finally the person I've always wanted to be. I have incredible friends that are there for me when the real stuff comes around. AND, I know without a doubt that anything I'm faced with today or in the future...I'll get through. Even if sometimes it takes a couple beers and a little bourbon.

I find it humorous that we still call it happy "hour"

I have this AMAZING blog in my head, but everything I've tried to write today has turned to mush. So I'm sticking with what I'm good at...showing up and drinking!!

Taking a page from (or flat out copying) the DC bloggers handbook...imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, yes? Come join us next Wednesday to meet a few crazy bloggers from the big D. Since we have to drive across the metroplex to meet-up, I doubt we compete with the DC debauchery (aka:greatness). But with this group, I can guarantee we don't leave without a lot of laughs.


When:  Wednesday, February 10, 2010 @ 7:30 pm
Where:  Sherlock’s @ Park and 75
Who’s Coming: Shine, Gofahne, Graygrrrl, Natalie, Mary, and Carissa (and you?)
Email me at: gofahne@gmail.com with any questions

A Week in Review…random and useless is in the eye of the beholder

Since my blog reading has now reached an unhealthy level of addiction, I've noticed that key to this whole writing/blogging thing is finding what works for you and consistency. Unfortunately for me, consistency is not something I find abundant in my life. So this is me working on it. The more you write, the more chance you have of writing something that really makes you proud or even better…makes a difference. This is not that post. It is however a written memory of my week and a few of the highlights that happened down my little road of life. It's a random ride and it won't change the world (today), but my life is nothing if not entertaining.

• I learned that when Ft Worth, TX says Stock Show and Rodeo, they mean that literally. It's not just a venue to hold a concert (which was the point of me going). There WILL be cows and weird things happening to goat's necks as you make your way back to a covered tent in 27 degree weather. And if you think it's a wise decision to leave your coat in the car…you and your "clearly from Dallas" friends will be very easy to spot.
• I learned that if you post stupid things you do on facebook, you will receive the most comments of anything you ever post.
• Not everyone wants or needs my advice every second of every day. It is okay to just listen and I plan to do a lot more of it. It's amazing what you can learn if you stop thinking YOU know what's best for everyone else.
• I'm probably going to jail over Jersey Shore. Since I can't STAND that show or hearing about it constantly and have pledged to cut the next person that talks to me about it, I'm going to start putting aside a little money for bail…just in case.
• I had a moment of complete and total happiness this week. I walked outside after work one day to the "after the rain smell" that I love. I was going to meet my friends for fun times + alcohol and cheese. And in that moment I realized, I don't know how it happened, but I'm having a bit of a love affair with my life. Then I laughed when I expected that I was one red slipper step away from a house falling on me. I'm a hopeless realist, what can I say.
• Finding the DVR remote I thought I lost months ago makes for a very, very happy Sunday. It's the little things people.

Finally I'd like to leave you with the gems I found across the internet this week. It's schmoopy soggy blog love for the people that made me laugh or made me a little better this week. This could also save you all from having to hear me say endlessly, "I totally agree! I was reading this blog and it will change your life…here's the link." So basically, I'm doing this for you. Try not to love me.

• Once The Pain Is Gone « Sam Dot Com - truth will get you everywhere
• Finding-your-e-voice-and-maybe-just-maybe-the-zack-to-your-slater << LivItLuvIt – LiLu can find a way to tie Save By the Bell references and polygamy together and still make an amazing point
• The-time-i-was-almost-on-a-reality-show-and-the-most-i-will-ever-share-on-my-blog-probably << CarissaJaded – An accomplishment and the kind of honesty I'd always like to have
• Whitecollarredneck.com – new (to me) blog I found this week by way of Shine (how I find every blog), it doesn't matter which one you read…they are ALL hilarious

Well that's it kiddos. My week in a nut shell. Time to look Monday square in the face and probably get a round house kick in the rear because of all the positive in this post.