Category Archives: Wrist to Forehead Sunday

Run then Rationalize

As soon as I started my run today, my legs were not happy with me.  I had been up and had coffee but nothing to eat.  Well, if I would have eaten something, I would have wanted to wait a little while for it to digest, and then it might have been to warm and I’d have had plenty of time to talk myself out of it.  I told myself I did not have to run as long as I ran yesterday.  After all, last weekend I ran 67 minutes Saturday and only 45 Sunday.  I had upped my time by the recommended ten percent to 74 minutes yesterday.  It might be a good idea to ran the same today, but I do not always follow the idea course in my running.

I wasn’t going to run any hills, either.  I had made up my mind to that, although I confess I was not as comfortable with that decision. There are a lot of hills on the Boilermaker (that is the 15K road race in Utica, NY, I am signed up to run on July 9, for anybody just tuning in).  I don’t have to run hills EVERY day, I argued.  A little voice in my head said, “Oh, just start running, you’ll talk yourself into it as you go.” As soon as I started running, my legs informed me that we were NOT going to run any hills and we certainly were not going to run for an hour and fourteen minutes.

Cutting right to the chase, I’ll tell you:  I did not run any hills but I did run for an hour and fourteen minutes.  I crossed State Street and ran on a bunch of streets I don’t usually run on, so it was a very interesting run.  I’ll have to walk it sometime with my Tablet and take pictures to share.  I probably won’t be doing that today, though.  It’s not that my legs would object (they LOVE to walk), but it is supposed to be close to 90 degrees and sunny today.  I’m kind of a vampire.  I admire a sunny day, but it doesn’t pay me to get too close.

As I was running, I was narrating in my head.  It seemed pretty interesting at the time, but now I’m not so sure.  Then again, it is Wrist to Forehead Sunday.   I think this brief description of my run will suffice.  Now you have time to read other blogs.  Isn’t that generous of me?  Yes, yes, I know, that is only a rationalization, but rationalization is not always a bad thing.  To prove this I will end with a quote from the movie The Big Chill:

Jeff Goldblum character:  Don’t knock rationalization, where would we be without it?  I don’t know anybody who can get through the day without two or three juicy rationalizations; they’re more important than sex.

Tom Berenger character: Nothing’s more important than sex.

Jeff Goldblum character:  Oh yeah?  Ever go a week without a rationalization?

If I do not have the lines exactly right, sorry.  I don’t have a rationalization for that, but I hope you will forgive me.

 

No Matter on Wrist to Forehead Sunday

I ran this morning, thinking I would go ahead and make two Running Commentary posts in a row.  Then I thought a common or garden Wrist to Forehead Sunday would be OK.  Now I am sitting here at the laptop, typing nonsense, and watching the clock creep closer to when my friend Kim comes over and my husband Steven gets off work and we head to the Little Falls Cheese Festival Fundraiser at the Overlook Mansion.  There will be wine and craft beer samples there.  If I wait and make my post later, I fear I will drink and type.  Of course I have done that before, but it is not ideal.

Then again, it may be better than what I have so far.  Perhaps I should compose two posts today, one now and one later, publish both and let the readers decide.  Ah, but what to write about NOW?

This morning’s run was pretty good.  I ran down to the canal trail, starting by Mohawk Valley Ambulance Corp, running for as long as I ran yesterday.  Yay me.  Back home, I made a macaroni salad for my lunches this week, also chopping vegetables for snacks.  Yay me again, although it might be better if I did not eat all kinds of other crap besides the vegetables.  However, I can’t worry about that now.

My real wrist to forehead situation today is what to wear to the fundraiser.  I have a color coordinated outfit on now but I’m not in love with it.  I think I look like an overweight middle-aged lady.  Oh wait, that’s what I am.  I suppose I will look like that no matter what.  Ah, and what’s in the middle of that last sentence?  “No matter.”  That is what I often say to myself, and it is what I say now.  I don’t like my outfit.  I don’t like this blog post.  No matter.  I’m going to have fun at the fundraiser.  I wonder if I can get anything else useful done before I go.

 

Happy Mother’s Day from Me and Joan

A very Happy Mother’s Day to all mothers everywhere, most especially to my own very wonderful Mom.  I also send prayers and good thoughts out to all who are celebrating Mother’s Day without their mother.   I send love and respect to those who through choice or circumstance are not mothers. I am feeling tired and melancholy this afternoon, but one must make a blog post every day when one is me.  When other people are feeling down, I never can find the right words of wisdom and comfort.  All I can manage is to make stupid jokes in hopes that a little humor will take their minds off their troubles.  With that in mind, I submit the following picture I have used before.

In my defense, I do like candy.

Yes, it is Mommy, Dearest herself, Joan Crawford.  The picture is from a fine chunk of cheddar (that is, a cheesy horror movie) from William Castle, Straitjacket.  In the movie, Crawford plays a mother who also does not the set best example of maternity.  More than that I won’t say, though, in case you  have not seen the movie.  Perhaps it is one to screen in honor of the day.  It would also make this a Severed Head Sunday, one of my favorite kinds of Sunday.

So this is my short, silly post.  We’ll call it a Wrist to Forehead Sunday and hit publish.  I shall publish a post again tomorrow, and I hope it will not be Melancholy Monday.

 

 

Running with a Salad

As I was running this morning, I thought, “I’m going to have a Let Myself Off the Hook Day.”  I was headed towards the hill to Herkimer College and I did not feel like running up it.  Well, as it happened, I not only ran up it but continued uphill towards the buildings. I did not run all the way across campus but I ran further up than I have run previously this year.  So then I thought I would let myself off the hook by making two Running Commentary posts in a row.

And then I didn’t make a Running Commentary post.  I still could, I suppose, but I really prefer to make those sooner after the run, when it’s all still fresh in my mind.  Instead I waited while not doing much of anything else, which makes this a pretty typical Sunday for me.  The kind of Sunday I like, if you really want to know (and it is the kind of Sunday I like even if you do not want to know) (but really, I don’t see how the “kind of Sunday I like” rates a TMI).

In other words, here I am, making a Wrist to Forehead Sunday post.  It is not that I feel like whining today.  It is just that I feel too tired to do anything else.  I suppose I am feeling my age and need to lead a healthier lifestyle.  Running this morning was a good — wait for it — first step.  I shall go out to the kitchen and fix myself a salad for the upcoming week’s lunches.  Then I shall go back to sitting on the couch, crocheting and watching Snapped.  First I must think of a headline for this little bit of nonsense and hit Publish.  Happy Sunday, everyone.

 

Sue Me on Sunday

I was going to write about last night’s theatrical triumph at the murder mystery Who Shot JS?.  I even had a title picked out, “We Killed Off Jack.”  Oh well, maybe not the best title, and perhaps I would have come up with something better.  If I would have written that post.  Logging on to WordPress, I thought perhaps I should look forward not back, and write about the audition I just had for The Tempest for LiFT Theatre Company of Little Falls.  I didn’t do very well but feel I may get a part anyways.  Additionally, I ran this morning, so a Sunday Running Commentary is well within the scope of possibility.

But here I sit, typing in a common or garden Wrist to Forehead Sunday post.

I just can’t help it: I am hard-wired to take Sundays off.  I am not exactly programmed to work as hard as I ought the rest of the days, either, but let’s take our week 1/7th at a time, as God intended (I use that expression a lot, “as God intended,” although I do not really purport to understand the mental workings of the Almighty).

The nice thing is, for the rest of the week, I have no place I have to be until Friday.  Go to work, come home.  Run.  Do laundry.  Clean the house.  Make blog posts.  Simple, right?  Well, I still feel I need to take it a little easy on myself on Sunday.  Sue me.  In the meantime, I am over 200 words.  I am in the bra off, pajama bottoms on, wine sipping, crocheting, TV watching portion of the day.  Time to stop typing and get on with the crocheting and TV watching.  Happy Sunday, everyone.

 

Groovin’ on a Sunday Afternoon

I always thought it was “Cruisin’ on a Sunday Afternoon,” but earlier today,  I sang it with “Groovin’,” because that is what we are doing.  As I sat here groping for a blog post, Steven suggested “Groovin’ on a Sunday Afternoon.”  I looked it up on YouTube and, sure enough, it is “groovin'”.  That is good, because Steven is not in the mood to go cruisin’, even though the freezing rain we were warned about has not materialized.  Just saying.

So here I am on Wrist to Forehead Sunday, about to pause in my blogging (tee hee, “blogging” as a verb always amuses me) to check on the soup I started earlier.  It isn’t really soup yet; I’m still at the cooking onion and garlic in oil stage (regular readers will know that is how most of my recipes start).

The onions and garlic had started to get dark brown (not black yet, but), so I added the chicken broth.  Yes, I am using chicken broth out of a box and it’s store brand at that.  Hey, I never said this was a cooking blog; I didn’t even say this was a cooking post.  The package said do NOT add water to the broth, but I added a little, putting it in the empty box and swirling it around.  Why would I not add water when I expect the stuff to boil or at least cook down a little?  By the way, I am cooking with wine.

In case anybody is interested, I intend to add spinach, cheese tortellini and a carrot to the soup.  The spinach and tortellini are frozen; the carrot is fresh.  I chopped some for my lunches this week and one to put in the soup.  I don’t care for cooked carrots, but Steven likes them, and they add flavor to the soup.  Also they are good for you.  I don’t say I lead a healthy lifestyle, but I try to sneak in a little nutrition now and then.

Speaking of healthy lifestyle, I went running again today.  I think I will be just fine for the Boilermaker 15K.  I discovered today there is a 5K in Herkimer in June I may like to do.  I’ll let you know about that.

 

Stirring the Blog

Why do I persist in thinking I am going to get anything done on a Sunday? I am clearly not, and then I just feel bad about myself. Can’t I just embrace the uselessness and enjoy the day?

I interrupt my Sunday festivities to make my usual Wrist to Forehead Sunday post, and I lead off with my Facebook post from earlier.  I did not quite embrace my uselessness, unfortunately, but I am striving to enjoy the day.

Regarding usefulness, I did one load of laundry, the dishes (there were not that many, for which I was grateful), grocery shopped, chopped vegetables and made a salad for the upcoming week’s lunches, and I am in the midst of cooking what promises to be a delicious dinner (if I do say so myself).  I am cooking with wine, by the way, and have not put any in the food.

As a matter of fact, I need to go out to the kitchen, stir and add other ingredients, so I’d better blog quickly. I must confess, I do enjoy these off the cuff posts.  It is fun to sit here, typing away, and know that I will probably amuse somebody somewhere (OK, I suppose sometimes it is only myself; you don’t have to disillusion me) (you know who you are).   It doesn’t always work, you know.  Sometimes I start typing, then I erase it, then I say to hell with it, I’ll blog later (I think “blog” is a funny verb, don’t you?) (oh, YOU probably never have) (once again, you know who you are).

OK, what do we have here so far?  Some silliness, a couple of parenthetical comments, over 200 words.  I’d say that’s about par for the course for me.  I’m going to hit publish and call it a day.  For one reason, Steven just stirred dinner and it is time to add more ingredients. Happy Sunday, everyone.

 

To Boil or Not to Boil?

I thought I would take this week’s Wrist to Forehead Sunday post to spend a little time dithering on the computer screen about the latest decision I am angsting over (I know, angsting is not a word, but I just can’t think of the word I want): Should I or should I not run the Boilermaker 15K?

I have looked at the calendar and I have enough time to build up my run time to where I like it to be.  In fact, I even have some wiggle room if I utilize my maxim of, “If you can run for one hour, you can run for two; just don’t stop.”  I want to start running again. It is a good idea to have a goal to work towards.  I can get a lot of good blog posts out of it.  It is a great Mohawk Valley thing to do. The Boilermaker falls right in the middle of my employer’s two week shut-down in July.

Those are the pros.

There are a hell of a lot of people running the Boilermaker.  I hate crowds.  Getting my runner’s packet is another fairly intimidating crowd scene for me.  I cannot be as lazy and irresponsible about taking car of myself on my vacation. (Oh, I know, that last one is probably a good thing, especially at my age.  As if YOU always do the right thing for your body!)  Transportation to and from the race is often a problem.

Those are a few of the cons.  I could probably think of more, but do I want to talk myself into this or out of it?

I asked the Magic 8 Ball I gave my husband Steven for his birthday, and it said I should. Of course that is not a quote. I asked multiple times, and although a couple of times it told me to ask later or said the answer was unclear, it never directly said not to.  No, I am not relying on a novelty toy for my answer.  I wasn’t even doing the thing of, “It’ll tell you what you really think, because you will be elated or disappointed by the answer.”  I just thought it would be fun.  You know how I like to get silly.

So now I shall open the floor to my lovely readers.  What do you think?

One other question:  When you saw the headline, did you think I was talking about hot dogs?  Hmmm… I could go for a hot dog.  Fried or grilled, though, not boiled.  Happy Sunday, folks.

 

I Think I’m Rubbed Out

Nobody thought I would not have a Wrist to Forehead Sunday today, least of all me.  I’m TIRED!  We had a wonderful show last night.  The audience loved us!  And we loved the audience!

I am speaking, of course, of Rubbed Out at Ruby’s, the interactive murder mystery presented by LiFT Theatre Company at the Overlook Mansion in Little Falls.  They served hors d’oeuvres catered by That Little Place on Main, and they were, you should pardon the expression, to die for.  Of course, I did not eat a lot.  I was busy acting.

Now I must gear up for a bear of a week, that is, production week for Steel Magolias at Ilion Little Theatre.  Opening night is March 3.  Yikes!  I don’t think I even have all my costumes together, but I am working on it.   Additionally, I must finish writing, cast and begin rehearsals for not one but two murder mystery dinner theatres.  If anybody says, “Well, you’d better get writing,” I’ll scream.

In the meantime, it is Oscar night, traditionally a big night in our humble household.  My dear husband, Steven, has watched them every year since 1965.  In previous years we have had better luck in catching more of the nominated pictures.  Additionally, in previous years I have not been in the habit of going to bed as early as a much older woman or a little kid.  I do not apologize for my nocturnal habits but merely note them.

Well, one can’t do everything after all.  I write, I participate in community theatre, I work full time, and I get what sleep I can.  Additionally, I intend to start running again.  I do not have time to go to movies that tend not to play around here in the first place.  Clean my house?  Who brought that up?  And what are you implying?

I say never mind all that.  Sunday is traditionally a day Steven and I spend time together.  I am going to hit Publish and get back to him.  As a closing note, here is the final cast picture of the marvelous actors of Rubbed Out at Ruby’s.  Happy Sunday, everyone.

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What a crew!

Wrist to Ruby’s and Beyond

It is a later than usual Wrist to Forehead Sunday post, and I really do face a dilemma as I contemplate the upcoming week.  That is, should this blog become All Steel Magnolias All The Time for the next two weeks, or should I first indulge in a week of All Rubbed Out at Ruby’s All The Time or do a weird hybrid such as All Steel Ruby All The Time?

We just got home from another rehearsal for Rubbed Out at Ruby’s, the interactive murder mystery to be presented by LiFT Theatre Company at the Overlook Mansion in Little Falls, NY.  I can report that it is looking good, especially considering the costumes people wore or brought.   I think it will be a great deal of fun.  I only hope I can remember everything.  It’s not my lines I’m worried about.  I don’t have that many lines; it’s mostly improvised.  But I don’t want to forget a prop or costume piece.  I’m so scatterbrained these days!

I have not thought much about Steel Magnolias today; that is, the next production at Ilion Little Theatre, to be presented the first two weekends in March.  This means I must do some serious looking at lines tomorrow.  I hope I don’t forget to bring my script to work with me (see earlier line about being scatterbrained these days).

And what about the other murder mysteries I’m working on?  Well, I’ll bring my notebook to work with me, too.  Write, study lines, I can do it all, why not?  And if the stress gets to me, I guess I’ll just have a Wrist to Forehead Monday, too.  I hope everybody is having a nice end of their weekend.