Christmas is Coming!

Posted on December 13, 2010 by Coco

My daughter got home from college on Friday, and she is leading the way in getting ready for Christmas. We did a shop-until-you-drop trip to the mall on Saturday, and she managed to find something for almost everyone on her list. The rest we took care of on Amazon and Zappos yesterday.

While I was out running more mundane errands (Target, Giant) yesterday, she and my husband put up our tree:

As much as I enjoy decorating the tree, it was nice to come home to most of the work being done–they left me a few of my special ornaments to put on and I may spend a few days assessing and rearranging and deciding if we need a few more.

While I attended to baking cupcakes for my husband’s birthday, my daughter continued her Santa work by wrapping all of the presents. Mine are still stashed in various closets, drawers and other nooks around the house!

My daughter and I went through some rough times during her early high school years, and back then it would have been hard to imagine spending time together like we did this weekend. Now we can bake together, shop together, and just chat. We still step on each other’s toes and push each other’s buttons once in a while, but we are able to step back, let go, and move on. I was really looking forward to her coming home, because I knew she would drag us all out of our ruts and get us into the Christmas spirit, and I am enjoying–and drawing on–her energy as we count down to Christmas Eve.

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Harried Holiday

Posted on December 10, 2010 by Coco

Two weeks from tonight is Christmas Eve, but it isn’t the holiday that has me stressed. With a few shopping trips and a few more clicks on Amazon, I know that there will be presents under our white pre-lit Christmas tree and in the stockings that we will hang with care over the gas fireplace. I was able to host Thanksgiving dinner without much advance preparation (we were out of town the weekend before), and I’m sure I can pull it off again at Christmas. It helps that my kids are older and don’t have any impossible-to-find items on their wish lists. As long as we have ham and crescent rolls for dinner and apple pie and ice cream (for my daughter) and whipped cream (for my son) for dessert, they will be happy.

(I am reminding myself of all this so I don’t get too stressed.)

No, this year it is work that has me pulling my hair out and wondering how I am going to get everything done before the holiday. I don’t know what is going on, but I feel like the items in my in-box are multiplying like the Star Trek Tribbles. If I get caught up, it’s only because my assistant has fallen behind on processing the items in her in-box. Some days we pass files back and forth like we are playing “hot potato.”

I am trying to prioritize, focus on one thing at a time, and delegate. I think I can get caught up on my big items next week and then maybe I’ll even have time the next week to get organized. I hope my optimism isn’t shattered by a forgotten project or new crisis.

This week I sacrificed most of my personal time to work. I did keep up with my o’dark-thirty workouts, but those were driven as much by stress than any notion of taking care of myself. I had one fun dinner with some women who have blurred the lines between work and friendship, but the other evenings were spent working or at work functions (’tis the season for those too). Next week I will feel more pressure to leave work on time because my daughter just got home from college, but it’s more important that I get my work done before the holiday so I can relax and enjoy a few days off. 

At a different time of year, I might spend Saturday or Sunday working to get caught up, but I have too much to do to get ready for Christmas and I refuse to give up the whole holiday season for work. My priorities for this weekend including seeing my son’s wrestling match, going Christmas shopping with my daughter, decorating our Christmas tree and celebrating my husband’s birthday.  I also need to find time for laundry, grocery shopping and a bit of housework.

‘Tis the season!

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Dark Chocolate Taste Test

Posted on December 4, 2010 by Coco

I am a firm believer in the principle that dark chocolate is a health food–antioxidants and all, you know.  It is also a satisfying treat that doesn’t have that many calories.

When I travel, I like to have some dark chocolate on hand so I can fight off the urge to polish off the cheesecake or seven-layer chocolate cake that seem to be standard fare for conference meals. On my most recent trip, I forgot to pack some in my bag, but was craving *a little something* after a long day.  I went foraging in the hotel gift shop, and the best I could find was a Hershey’s Special Dark bar:

I broke off a row of squares and tried to savor it, but it just wasn’t that good. It felt grittier and more sugary than the chocolates I am used to. And no wonder–it only has a 45% cocoa content, while I usually opt for 70% or higher.

The next morning when I was getting my breakfast at Starbucks, I noticed that they have a new dark chocolate bar:

I added it to my order and stashed it in my hotel room so I wouldn’t be tempted to nibble on it throughout my day of conference sessions. I made it through a business dinner, got a glass of wine from the hotel bar to enjoy in my room (an easy way to avoid the outrageous mini bar charges!), and settled in for my taste test.

I have to say, it was really good. I didn’t really notice the Via (instant coffee) bits, although I’m sure they added some flavor.  The chocolate was much darker and much more satisfying than the Special Dark, and it took some willpower to stick to a 1/2 bar (about 1/2 ounce) serving.

I can’t find information on the cocoa content, but apparently it is made by Santander Chocolates which produces single origin Colombian chocolate–no shortcuts there!

Starbucks already has the lock on my preferred on-the-go breakfast (Low-Fat Turkey Bacon & Egg Sandwich or Perfect Oatmeal) and is a reliable place to pick up a normal-sized sandwich for lunch or dinner (if I’m working late). Now I’ll have to add it to my list of convenient places to pick up some excellent dark chocolate. 😀

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Waiting for Weights (Hotel Gym Day 2)

Posted on December 1, 2010 by Coco

The hotel gym was much busier this morning than it was yesterday, even though I was still there by 5:30. Today was my “weight training” day, and I decided to warm up with 30 min on the elliptical.  Even though there were several people there already, there were plenty of machines to choose from, as you might guess from the picture I took yesterday when the gym was empty:

The ellipticals were a fancy LifeFitness model, similar to the treadmill that I used yesterday:

I chose the forward/reverse interval program for 30 minutes at level 3.  I don’t know if the machine I picked had a programming bug, or if I just didn’t understand the program, but it was not what I expected.  The first forward interval was at zero incline, and then the first reverse incline was at max incline.  I seriously could barely make the pedals move! The next forward interval was back to zero, and then back to maximum in reverse again. I tried adjusting the level, but that didn’t seem to have any effect on the resistance.  After 20 minutes I gave up and switched over to the “manual” program, which was responsive to level changes. I wanted to take a picture of the incline screen, but it vanished too quickly at the end. Just imagine an alternating series of 0’s and 10’s. 😉

I refilled my water bottle and headed over to the weights area.  Again, a picture from yesterday when I had the gym to myself:

There also were a bunch of Cybex machines between this area and the cardio machines.

Since I use free weights at home, I stick with free weights at the gym. For my usual routine, I use 10 lb, 15 lb, and 20 lb weights.  Although the gym had a full set of plate-type weights, I find those awkward for some moves–I’m sure I’d conk myself in the head if I tried to use them for French presses! There were a few “regular” dumbbells, so I used those for French press ( 2o lbs) and lateral raises (8 lbs), and used the others for lunges, squats, bicep curls and military presses.

All in all, my whole routine takes about 25 minutes (I do supersets for maximum efficiency). The whole time some guy had a towel draped over the one and only bench, even when he wasn’t using it. Now, maybe I am spoiled from working out at home where I have all of the equipment to myself, and maybe I am too self-conscious about gym etiquette that I just can’t fathom being so selfish, but it really bugged me! I may or may not have wanted to do chest flies or tricep dips, but his towel kept me from even considering them. There were 3-4 other people using the weights, and I’m sure they were impacted by his territorial grab too.

Anyway, I got a solid workout in (including push-ups and ab work on a fitball) and rounded out my workout with a walk to Starbucks for coffee and fruit to start my day.

* * * * *

What are you views on gym etiquette?

Do you stake a claim to equipment that you aren’t using constantly so you will be able to cycle through your routine?

Are the rules different at a hotel gym when most people have the same window to workout (before/after conference sessions), or is being considerate just as important at regular gyms when people are squeezing in workouts before/after work or school or while the daycare/babysitter clock is ticking?

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Opening Up The Hotel Gym

Posted on November 30, 2010 by Coco

When I travel, I look forward to working out in the hotel gym. Since I workout alone in my basement at home, having a bright room with (hopefully) state-of-the art equipment and (sometimes) an attendant or trainer is a nice change of pace.

I’ve learned the hard way that it can be important to get to the gym early (I don’t want to be stuck with the exercise bike or stepper as the only cardio options!) so I keep my alarm set for 5:00 and try to be the one to “open” the gym. I also like to check out the gym the day before, so I know what to expect. If it’s disappointing, I can prepare myself for a “make the most of it” workout. If it’s really nice, I will make sure to get there with plenty of time to “play.”

The hotel I’m at this week has a “24 hour” gym, which is nice when I have meetings that start at 8:00 am. I didn’t have a chance to check it out yesterday, so I didn’t know what I was in for today. I got a bit worried as I walked down the hallway and had to go down a few sets of stairs and more corridors, but I was pleasantly surprised.

Since I was the first person there, I took some pictures.

But someone else came before I could get a picture of the pool area.

I hopped on a treadmill and chose a 45 minute “rolling hills” workout at a relatively low incline so I could push the pace up a bit. I love the LifeFitness treadmills with the built-in TV screen.

After I cooled down and stretched, I used my Starbucks app to find the closest Starbucks. I figured out that 0.2 miles is barely 2 blocks, although I did pass 2 Dunkin Donuts before I got there.

After my grande Christmas Blend and Perfect Oatmeal (with a bit of brown sugar and nuts) I was ready to face my day of meetings.

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