There were other things bad in 2008. Lots of personal stuff with DAPGF (not between us, just her own personal issues), the ending of my Santa Ana work assignment (that wasn't conducive to blogging and poker, but was great for exercise), and the commencement of an assignment in Riverside County that forced me to drive my gas pig Jeep 140 miles round trip 3 to 4 times per week. I got reimbursed for mileage, and despite the horrific gas prices (at the peak, $4.79/gal for 87 octane...it cost me around $90 per tank) I actually came out ahead on that aspect of things. Mileage cap on my lease was another story, though, and I wound up buying a piece of crap commuter box that ate up way too much money to minimize the impact on the Jeep. The absolutely worst thing about 2008, though was very personal. Ginger, the nicest Doberman on the face of the earth and all around best doggie anywhere, lost her battle with cancer just before Thanksgiving.
She's up in heaven, chasing the bunnies and such, but DAPGF and I hadn't really realized just how much our lives were structured around her until she wasn't there. I had no reason to bundle up and go for an hour long walk at 11 pm, and there was no stubby wagging tail greeting us when we'd come home. Very sad, and had the additional effect of eliminating an opportunity to exercise. We looked into getting a 7 month old puppy from a breeder, but it had behavioral issues that would likely require a several month stay at a Cesar Milan Dog Whisperer boot camp, so that was a no go. We are now waiting for a litter to be born in March, so we can get one in June, after the shots and such are all taken care of. So for the interim, no doggie.But I'm not giving up, dammit! I'm going to fight my way out of this morass that was 2008, and I'm going to have a multi-pronged approach. Some of these mirror what was proffered a year ago, but the loss of Ginger has kind of given me an energy and opportunity to kick my ass in gear.
1. Exercise. Since I no longer have to wake up to walk and feed the dog, I've got a solid half-hour or so of free time. I'm going to go for a run in the morning...approximately a mile or so, depending on how I'm handling it. I used to do this when I lived in Orange County (pre-DAPGF), and I was a good 30 to 40 pounds lighter back then. I'm also going to get back into the gym rhythm. When DAPGF teaches, my first shot after work is to the gym. After that, then I'll go home and relax (or go to the store, Home Depot, whatever). I will also get back into the habit of logging my exercise onto MyFitnessPal.com.
2. Diet. Now that I'm back to a driving assignment, it is way too easy to swing past a drive-thru or a 7-11 for some munchies. I'm going to get back into counting up my calories for the day and logging everything I eat into MyFitnessPal.com. I need to have some accountability, and publishing my heinousness in a daily web format should accomplish that. Plus, the tracking tools for calories consumed, calories burned, weight gain/loss, etc. are very comprehensive.
3. Weight loss. As I age and my metabolism slows down that much more (groan, sigh), I need to be a little more realistic. Based on my exercise and diet goals, I'm setting a weight-loss goal of 1.5 lbs per week, measured Friday to Friday. Why then? A couple of reasons. First, the weekends are always a little screwy from a timing perspective, and I think I can be more consistent on a Friday morning. DAPGF is scheduled to teach Thursday nights, so that will help me out on the day before the weigh-in. Sometimes the weekends include much more rich and filling dining experiences. And January 2 is on Friday. Why not January 1 as a start? DAPGF and I are attending the New Year's Day champagne brunch at the Hotel Del Coronado, which is expected to be non-diet-friendly. Ultimately, I'd like to hit 240 pounds, which is approximately 45 pounds lighter than my current weight today. At an average of 1.5 lbs per week, that puts me in the middle of July. Sooner would be better, but I think 1.5 lbs is attainable so that's what I'm going to run with.
4. Personal responsibility. This is a generalized category that covers a multitude of personal characteristics. Set aside time to pay bills. Set aside time to clean out and purge my financial files. Likewise magazines. Make sure that any needs/chores from DAPGF get prioritized ahead of my playtime. Granted, I'm not going to eliminate my fun times. In fact, I'm resolving to actually blog more than I did in 2008 (shouldn't be too difficult), as well as play poker more consistently (both quantity and quality). I'm just trying to make sure that I've got my priorities properly ordered.
So there we go. 2008 can GTFO, as far as I'm concerned. Bring on 2009. So what if it means my 20 year high school reunion? I know I'm getting old, dammit! Now get off my lawn!
