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Coffee Talk

coffee talk

What a wild and crazy winter it’s been! We got about a foot of snow here this week, to add to the 4-6 inches we already had on the ground. And supposedly more is on the way.

I’m still not complaining. It’s beautiful. And thankfully the power stayed on this time. So YAY!

So yeah, the cookbook project is limping along. Quite frankly, I’m tired of baking. I have never really loved cooking, anyway, and I’ve put on a few pounds in all the wrong places due to the amount of carbs we have laying around the house these days, and that’s making me cranky. I’m going to try to wrap up the carb-heavy chapters and then start on the egg-based ones, so maybe that will help. Suffice it to say, I’ll be happy when this project is off my plate . . . literally. Ha!

As for my foot, you didn’t ask, but I will tell you that so far I’m doing pretty well. I haven’t had a return of the plantar fasciitis symptoms I was experiencing before the cortisone shot (and for the last 2 years!!) Even so, I find myself wincing every time I get up from my desk and very gingerly placing my foot on the floor, expecting it to be stiff and painful, but it’s not. Old habits die hard, I guess.

Not that I’m getting my hopes up yet. It has a way of teasing me, this stupid foot.

I’m not back to running, and the one day that I did spend a lot of time on my feet, the right foot was sore. So I know something is still off. That, and I get some tingly sensations in it at times, and sometimes it throbs a bit. So yeah, I dunno. It’s not doing the old PF thing, but it’s not right either.

I fear that the second I try to run, the plantar fasciitis symptoms are going to return with a vengeance. I’m trying to keep up with my stretching and my back exercises since they seem to help, and basically I’m trying to allow it plenty of time to heal. Over the next few weeks, I hope to start back to running verrrrry slowly and methodically and see how it goes.

Meanwhile I’m trying to embrace yoga. I ordered a mat, and quite a nice one, evidently. When I asked for recommendations on my Facebook page, I was given a few options and all were in the $60-75 range. I assumed that is what one must pay for a yoga mat, and I ordered this a Manduka PROlite Yoga Mat. (Note the pantone color of the year. Oh, yes I did!) The girls at class had quite a chortle when I told them what I’d ordered. Evidently one does NOT need to spend upwards of $50 on a yoga mat.

Manduka PROlite Yoga Mat

Oh well. It finally came this week, and I gave it a quick test drive in my living room. It works great. It’s nice and thick and sticky so your hands and feet don’t budge when you’re trying to contort your body into ridiculous positions. And it helps that it’s pretty. Pretty does matter, you know!! Even with yoga mats. So I’m looking forward to my next yoga class on Monday night so I can try it out for realz.

We’re totally into the Olympics, but I keep falling asleep when I’m trying to catch up. We have them all DVRed and my OCD won’t let me skip ahead so I keep trying to avoid the media so I don’t find out who wins before I get to watch. Maybe this weekend I’ll catch up.

In other TV-related news, American Idol is back and this season is shaping up to be the best one in years. The judges panel is fantastic, and there are some really promising contestants. They’re finally down to the top 30. I can’t wait to see them perform next week. Is anyone else watching? I used to post recaps. Anyone remember that!?? LOL! I don’t have the energy for that these days. I prefer to enjoy watching without having to come up with pithy remarks for each performance. But if I do have anything of interest to share, I will probably shoot it out on Twitter with the #idol hashtag. Are you following me? I’m @JoLynneS.

And then there’s Downton, of course. I haven’t been thrilled with the subject matter this season, but I can’t seem to stop watching. My children, however, are no longer allowed to join us, much to their chagrin. Well, it was only my 14-year-old son who was watching it. I think he’s more bummed about being relegated to his room at 9pm than missing the show. I’m sure some of the topics would be good to discuss, but I’d rather discuss them in concept at this age, rather than expose him to the emotion surrounding them. Or maybe I’m just too sensitive (or so I’ve been told.) Who knows. Parenting, it is hard, yo.

So that’s basically what’s going on here. Last night we had a quiet Valentine’s Day night in. I made steaks, we had cupcakes from our favorite local bakery, and then we settled in to watch the Olympics until I started dozing off . . . which is how our TV viewing usually ends these days. Do you have any fun Valentine’s plans this weekend??

Today I’d like to get my 50% turned in (of the cookbook, that is) and then maybe take the kids to the Lego Movie this afternoon. Have you seen it? I hear great things. Whatever you do, I hope you have a fun and relaxing weekend!

Join The Conversation

15 Responses

  1. I’m glad to hear your PF is on the mend! My doc said that I caused PF on my right foot when I injured it a few weeks ago, but now it is finally going away and I am walking with no pain! Thank goodness! As for yoga, stick with it! Yoga is one of my favorite things and totally changed my life 🙂 a good mat helps too! I got a new one for Christmas from Auraurae Yoga and it was just $30 on sale. It is fabulous and totally needed since my old one was literally falling apart in pieces!

  2. Hello!
    Have you ever tried a boot for your PF? I got PF after having my second son and the boot is the only thing that helped. I wore it for 6 hot weeks in the summer but I haven’t had problems since. I also did PT and had a Cortisone shot prior to the boot.

  3. Sorry to hear that your foot is giving you trouble. I can’t believe how much snow you all have had. Here in Southern California we are having summer temperatures. Not that I am complaining, but we really need some rain to avoid droughts. The climate has just been going crazy! Anyhow, wishing you lots of sunshine in the upcoming week!

    I have switched to a new (self-hosted) blog Notably Wonderful and could use some bloglovin – please come and visit http://www.EnzieShahmiri.com/blog

    Enzie

    Enzie

  4. I hope that your foot and back (and nose) keep getting better and better and that you are able to get back to running again soon.

    We took the kids to see The Lego Movie last night. My in-laws went with us and we were all 6 laughing out loud the whole way through. We will definitely be purchasing once it hits DVD. 🙂

  5. Hey Jo-Lynne – – Keep an eye on Jillian Jensen – – she is the daughter of Ali’s vocal teacher. We are rooting for her.

  6. Yoga and I do not mix. Tried it a couple of times with P90X and ended up laughing because my body just doesn’t go in those positions! I do have a mat, but right now it is a dust collector. I really do need to get back to doing some sort of exercise!

  7. Hi Jolynne,
    I am glad your foot is on the mend. I have never been much of a runner, but I love lifting weights. As we get older, I am 43 weight bearing exercises help maintain muscle mass and bone density, as I am sure you know. It can be addicting to complete a lift that was previously elusive. Some of my favorite blogs are, girlsgonestrong.com, eatlifltandbehappy.com check them out

    1. Yes, I do lift weights! I love it, always have. I work with a trainer one day a week but I KNOW I need more than that. The idea was to also do a strength training class at the Y. Now I’m hoping the yoga will offset the weight lifting b/c our yoga class really focuses on strength. I will check out those blogs, thank you!

  8. Hey wow snow…….. In the land of Oz not very much of that around … ever 🙂 but sad to hear about the foot trouble 🙁 really looking forward to the cookbook got on to your site while searching for a mojito recipe which made a refreshing cocktail on xmas day last year thanks for the great site cheers

  9. My friend wore boots on both legs just for sleeping and she felt that they made a huge difference in her PF (which she had in both feet!) She really doesn’t have problems with it now and when it flares up, she just goes back to sleeping in the boots for a while.

  10. I’m a yogi and I can’t say enough good things about the Manduka. I went through a couple of cheaper (Gaiam from Target) mats before I invested in my beloved Manduka. The cheaper mats are much flimsier and my nails made several divets and scratches. My Manduka still looks brand new after almost 2 years of 4-5 days a week of use. I think you’ll be happy with your mat.

    I occasionally spray and wipe down with a homemade yoga mat cleaner (from the Oh She Glows blog).

    All that to say thumbs up to your mat purchase. 🙂

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