BEASTMODE!, budgets, and togetherness...

Happy Monday everyone!

Just a few observations from the weekend…. 

• This is a special observation for all the geeks who grew up in the 80’s out there.  Am I the only one that laughs when they hear all of the twenty-somethings in the gym decide to push more weight than they really should and then keep saying to themselves “BEAST MODE!” while staring at themselves in the mirror???  I swear I caught one trying to take a selfie while using every ounce of strength (and no common sense whatsoever) to hold up a dumbbell that was bigger than his head.  Here’s my problem with this.  Every time I hear it, I think of the Transformers from the 80’s and expect the twerp to turn into Grimlock the dinobot.
• My home budget is getting interesting.  On the one hand, between the nearly complete lack of fast food in our world (captain D’s doesn’t count- they make a decent baked salmon that’s good for when dinner is too much work) and a significant reduction in our grocery bills (65% so far) we’re saving a ton of money.  Unfortunately, those savings are being spent and then some.  We find that we do still go out to eat, but now to much nicer restaurants.  We’ve developed a sushi/sashimi habit that’s becoming a de-facto date for us.  I swear that sashimi is very nearly the perfect protein. We also go out and do more because I’m not a lazy bum.  It’s funny, we’re just as broke as we ever were, but now we’re happier for it.
• On a related note, we’re spending way more time together. It’s funny because I didn't realize how much I was working, how little I was home, and how little of my life I was giving to us as a couple.  The surgery has helped a lot here.  It wasn’t the reason for the surgery, nor was it at all intended.  It actually just dawned on me this weekend that I’ve spent more time home with her, talking and hanging out, than I have in years.  The surgery forced me to put everything on hold for just a couple of weeks and truly focus on just me.  I became hyper aware of how I felt, how I responded to stimuli, and how others responded to me.   I began to notice how absent I’ve been.  The weight loss has been great, and I feel better and stronger nearly every day, but the relationship with my wife is the real win here I think.  The slap in the face of surgery  helped me re-evaluate my priorities and take more time for me and for us.  There will always be more work than there ever will be time, but there won’t always be an us so I need to make the best of the time we have.  

So here’s the bonus screw up for today.  Here I sit with a belt buckle shaped welt on my forehead.  Why?  Simple really.  When I shower at the gym I hang my pants over the outer curtain.  As some of you may know, when you’re a big person it’s hard to get a belt on while wearing the pants, so I habitually put the belt on the pants before actually putting the pants on. Today for some reason rather than lifting the pants off the curtain, I grabbed them and pulled down.  The belt caught on the curtain rod, swung over the top, and nailed me square in the face very nearly knocking my naked confused butt into the locker room.

I’m chalking that one up to a Monday experience and will sit here quietly sipping my protein shake until my forehead quits throbbing. Or I may claim work comp and call it a career. 

Michael you are one accident prone dude. Yeah I hear you on the gym rats. I took a class in college where you just had to work out three times a week and you got an A. There were two guys in there that would chant "I must, I must increase my bust" as they did chest exercises. It was quite comical.

Your posts just truly make me

And now I know why my hubby is always shouting

BEAST MODE to my boys in any of their sports practices...

My hubby and I were sleeved 6 weeks apart and I say this with out any exaggerations...

this surgery saved our marriage, I also didn't realize how dialed OUT we were as a couple..

ignoring each other or constantly arguing do to ( which I know know, but was oblivious to then)

peaks and valleys in our sugar from our type 2....

We enjoy each other now..we laugh..when we snip ant each other now,it quickly dies out

not escalate to a major blow out..

.it's amazing what weight loss, hindsight and deep introspection has done for us...

I love reading your posts!!!

You are a great husband...your wife is so lucky!  Not as great as my husband but you are definitely up there lol!

Ouch to the head!

Everyone keeps commenting what a cheap date I am when we go out to eat.  I went out with the girls last week and the three of them had spent close to $100 between drinks and dinner.  I ate a few shrimp and a bite of beef off somebodies plate and called it a day lol.  We then went to the casino...it all evens out in the end lol.