I’m Laaaaaaate!

Because of a poor night of sleep I slept late this morning, which means that I got out of bed at 7am. Combine that with the wreck(s) that clogged The Connector northbound and I’m running (ha!) late.

Today’s Daily Challenge
Spend a few moments thinking about a time when you believed in yourself even though others didn’t.

All of us feel pressure from others at different points in our lives, and it can be hard to shut out the voices that tell us to do (or not do) something. Recalling a time when you maintained your belief in yourself can motivate you to stay strong in the face of doubters in situations both large and small.

Why don’t you ask me about the time I thought I was the sexiest man alive?
Silliness.

Lavanderia
Last night I returned to an old lavanderia haunt — the one next to Lee’s Bakery. “I’ve got this comforter I need to wash. Do you know where to take it?” asked my boss.

And that’s how my boss and I did laundry together.

Following doing wash we picked up a couple of Bhan Mi sandwiches and some spring rolls from Lee’s Bakery and headed to his place to eat; he lives nearly literally around the corner from Lee’s.

As an aside I don’t think that there is a single “good” way to drive from Perimeter Mall into town any longer. I swear it took me about fifty minutes to get from work to the lavanderia.

ITP Flickr Pic
“MacBook Glare”

Here it is.
I lurve it.

Oh, Kroger…
Today is a office “socialunch” in which one person makes food for a smallish group. You know, I’ve mentioned this before.

Because I’ve been in the cooking mode lately I stepped up to the plate (see what I did there?) again. While eating dinner at my boss’ house I stumbled upon a crockpot recipe for Italian Beef sandwiches.

Some history, perhaps the only Italian Beef sandwich that I’ve eaten in my life was in a neighborhood bar in Chicago. Fuck that was a good sandwich.

I stopped into Sage Hill Kroger with four things to buy:

1. a 3-lb boneless rump roast of beef
2. beef broth
3. a packet of Italian salad seasoning
4. rolls

(I had the bay leaf and black pepper required for the recipe).

Problem #1: This Kroger had nothing that resembled a 3-lb boneless rump roast of beef.
Problem #2: The beef that this Kroger had was really damn expensive.

So I called an audible and bought a 3.5-lb pork shoulder and the spices needed for “barbecued” pulled pork. Sure, this is my default crockpot offering, but I was in a bind.

The pork has been cooking on low since midnight (including while driving to work because I have a DC/AC transformer and plugged it in while in traffic) so it should be nice and tender by lunch. At least I hope so.

Today’s Personal Project
Oh man, so much to do tonight — like write out Christmas cards so they’ll get delivered prior to Christmas.

Stats & Goals
Daily
Current Mood – harried, wishing I could have made the Italian Beef
Current Music – listening to Christmas music. Hopefully this will inspire me to write out my Christmas cards tonight.
Website Of The Day – A scorned Delicio.us user, I’ve finally come around to accepting the need for Pinboard for storing bookmarks in the “cloud.”
Mode Of Transportation To Work – my car
Exercise (b)Log – nothing
Morning Weigh-In – ??? pounds (December 9)

Monthly
Foot Mileage – ~0.0 miles
Wheel Mileage – 0.0 miles
Gym Visits – 0 (0 cardio)

Days Of Bed-Making – 0

Vegetarian Meals – 12
Carnivorous Meals – 18

Marta Rides To Work – 0
Bike Rides To Work – 0

December Goals
– clean my basement to the point where I could have people over
– hire a plumber, and a painter to work on the ITP Estate
– dissolve Sharpened Stone, LLC?
– follow up on some critical life details
– walk no fewer than 75 miles

2013 Goals: Measurable
– Get my weight down to 190 pounds so that I can wear a 36″ waist pants comfortably
– Completely read ten books, audio books permissible
– Dissolve Sharpened Stone
– Save $500 for the sole purpose of donating to charitable organizations of my choice
– Completely run at least one 10k
– Fix all (or at least most) of the things which are wrong with the ITP Estate

2013 Goals: Unmeasurable
– Simplify, simplify, simplify
– Continue backing up all data, including the off-site storage
– Do not create a solution for something which is not a problem
– Eat smaller portions
– Start, and continue, to make my own bread using my bread machine as well as using the technique outlined in Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking
– Read and discard magazines during the month in which they arrive (even digitally)
– Take two real vacations, perhaps one abroad
– Take a more proactive approach to meeting women (read “stop being such a pussy”)

Books I’ve Read/Heard In 2013

1. Pages 1.7 for iPad (Timestompers Guide) — by Sean Wells
2. 60 Mountain Lion Tips — by David Sparks and Brett Terpstra
3. The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business — by Charles Duhigg
4. The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy — by Douglas Adams
5. Amazing Things Will Happen: A Real-World Guide on Achieving Success and Happiness — by CC Chapman
6. So Good They Can’t Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love — by Cal Newport
7. Born Standing Up: A Comic’s Life — by Steve Martin
8. Who Am I: A Memoir — by Pete Townshend
9. Still Foolin’ ‘Em: Where I’ve Been, Where I’m Going, and Where the Hell Are My Keys? — by Billy Crystal
10. Unstuff Your Life!: Kick the Clutter Habit and Completely Organize Your Life for Good — Andrew J. Mellen

Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]