Stephany Writes

Categories: Recurring Series

TGIF (v. 61)

The high of my week was my weekly HIIT class! My mom and I started going to a Wednesday evening HIIT class three weeks ago. The first time we went was a shock to our system because it was so tough, but we also loved how hard it was and we really, really loved the instructor. He’s funny and helpful and helps us find ways to modify some of the exercises because we definitely need some of them scaled down a bit for our fitness level. There are 8 stations and you run through the exercises at each station three times with a break in between each round. My goal for Wednesday’s class was to get through the first round without stopping, which I was able to do! This is a massive win for me, as some of those exercises are brutal (especially anything involving cardio, oof). It’ll be fun to see our progress as our fitness levels increase and we can do more of the circuits without needing modifications!

The low of my week was my terrible night of sleep due to my sleep study. I am planning on writing a post about the at-home sleep study I did this week (if you have any questions for me about it, let me know!), but let me tell you, I’m a little worried that they won’t have enough sleep data and I’ll have to do it again because I slept terribly. (I had to wear a nasal cannula, a sensor strapped around my chest, and a pulse ox on my finger, which obviously made sleeping really awkward.) I don’t even know if I logged 6 proper hours of sleep (which is the minimum amount of sleep needed for the data).

One nagging task I marked off my to-do list was filling in the first section of the “I’m Dead, Now What?” workbook. It was an easy section – just filling out personal information like my name, where I was born, my family, etc. However, I realized two things after filling it out: 1) I have no idea where my social security card is and 2) I need to create a living will. What else will I learn I need to do to get my affairs in order as I go through this workbook? Stay tuned!

I’m currently reading two books. I’m reading The Comeback by Lily Chu and loving it. It’s so cute! And on audio, I’m listening to The Longest Race by Kara Goucher, which is also excellent. It’s been a good week of reading, for sure.

A blog post I loved was Day in the Life on Kyria’s blog. She’s currently on a massive adventure—she quit her job, sold her home, and is currently biking around the U.S. and Canada! So she took us along on one of those days in her life, and it was fascinating!

The best money I spent was $2.50 on a bottle of water at the gym after leaving my water bottle at home. I was halfway to the gym when I realized I was hydration-less. I’m really glad they have cold water (and sports drinks) available for purchase at my gym—you just grab a drink and then they scan your gym card to pay for it, which is nice! I was there to do a hot yoga class, so I really needed water!

My plans this weekend include an art festival with my mom on Saturday afternoon and dinner with some friends on Saturday night. And that’s the extent of my plans, which I am very happy about. I can have a low-key Friday night in, a busy Saturday, and then a productive Sunday at home. Perfect!

What was the high of your week?

Categories: Recurring Series

Five for Friday (v. 101)

1) Chiropractor appointment

I had two chiropractor appointments this week, on Monday and Wednesday. I am really happy with the chiro I found—I swear, I always find A+ doctors on ZocDoc. Our first appointment was just a consultation for her to learn about the pain I was experiencing and take some X-rays. On Wednesday, she went through my X-rays with me, talked about a treatment plan, and then gave me my first treatment. The X-rays were so interesting! Here’s what’s going on:

  • The bottom of my jaw is misaligned, with the left side lower than my right side
  • My neck does not have the right curvature, rather it is fully straight, which causes my head to tilt forward (probably from all the time I spend on my phone? ack)
  • My left-side clavicle is a touch higher than my right side
  • The left side of my pelvis is higher than my right side and causing the bottom half of my spine to shift out of alignment to accommodate.
  • A few of my vertebrae are showing signs of arthritis

All in all, it was not a great result but my chiro was very confident that she can help realign my spine and help stop any further arthritis degeneration from happening. The plan is to go for adjustments three times a week for two weeks, then twice a week for a month, and then once a week for a month. From there, we can do monthly or bimonthly appointments to make sure everything stays in alignment. So this will be a journey for me, but I’m excited about it and to start feeling better.

I had my first adjustment during this Wednesday appointment and she used a tool (she called it a gun) to pinpoint different spots around my neck and back (and bum!) to shoot into and adjust. As someone who asks for the lightest pressure please during massages, the pressure didn’t feel great (almost felt like someone pushing a thumb hard into my skin), but it was doable and the pain didn’t last very long. I’ll be sure to continue to update you guys on this experience and my progress!

2) Closet

After showing off my new closet organizational scheme a few weeks ago, Anne wanted to know more about where my clothes go. And so let’s talk about that! I keep my clothes in two separate locations: my dresser and my closet. (Shocking, I know.)

Here’s the dresser:

When I moved into this apartment, I wanted to find a dresser that could also function as a nightstand, and that’s what this does. I don’t need a ton of space for my clothes, although it’s getting crammed in some of the drawers so it’s probably a good idea to do a clean-out of the space soon. I’d also like to invest in some drawer organization dividers or bins to make things a bit tidier. But that’s a project for another month.

And here’s the closet:

This is the right side of my closet. The left side also has wire shelving that I could use to hang clothes, but hanging clothes from the top rod would cause me to lose some shelf space and hanging clothes from the bottom rod would put them too low to the ground for my liking. Plus, I don’t really need that much closet space! I try to keep things minimal when it comes to my clothes. It helps that I do not live in a climate where I need a totally separate winter wardrobe. I can get by just fine with a handful of long-sleeved shirts, some sweaters, and a jacket or two.

Here are my shirts/dresses (way in the back of the closet, there’s a black scarf holder for my scarfs, but I don’t have a ton of them):

And here’s the “winter” side of my closet (I also keep a few holiday-specific tees in this section):

I’m also ruthless when it comes to culling my clothing. I have a very specific system for what I wear—while the shirts are separated by category (sleeveless tops vs t-shirts vs lounge tops), I always have to use the shirt that is furthest on the right in its category. So, if I want to wear a sleeveless shirt, I’ll go to that section of my closet and pull out the first shirt on the right. (Obviously, if I’m in the mood to wear something specific, I allow myself to do that.) I try to follow this system so I understand that if I keep passing by a shirt, there’s a reason. I probably need to donate it because I don’t love how I feel in it.

3) Air conditioner

My AC broke this weekend! Ugh. Thankfully, it wasn’t super-duper hot outside so it wasn’t unbearable, but I like to keep my apartment icebox cold, so I was very unhappy when the temperature inside my apartment kept creeping higher. (And by higher, I mean 74 degrees, which I know is DOWNRIGHT FRIGID to some of you!) So I called our apartment’s emergency line, even though broken ACs only qualify as emergencies when the weather is 80 degrees. It was in the upper 70s, so I figured we were close enough. Turns out, part of my AC system had iced completely over, causing the issue. The maintenance guy defrosted my system and then did some repairs (I don’t know what they were; I just heard a lot of banging), and voila, it was fixed! I’ve never been happier to be freezing in my apartment.

4) Stitch Fix?

You guys, I am contemplating restarting Stitch Fix. I did it for a little over a year from 2021-2022 and then stopped because I felt like I had gotten what I wanted out of the service and was feeling happy with my closet. But I am once again feeling uninspired by my closet and want to refresh it with some new tops and maybe a summery dress or two. But, ugh, Stitch Fix is so expensive! And it’s so annoying that their styles seem to repeat over and over again. I’m still on the fence about it, but I do miss getting that little box of joy every few months and playing fashion show for you guys!

5) Weekend plans

It’s going to be quite the weekend around here! Today is Lucy’s birthday and we’re celebrating with doggy ice cream and a shopping spree. Yay! Tomorrow, I have my fun book club candle-making and lunch adventure. And Sunday is Easter! I’m writing with Mikaela in the morning and then going out to brunch with my mom and stepdad.

What are your weekend plans? Have you ever been to a chiropractor?

Categories: Recurring Series

Currently in March

Loving… my new gym! After many years of being without a gym home, I finally decided to join one after getting my bloodwork results back and realizing I need to kick my workout routine to another gear. These lazy 15-minute walks outside aren’t going to cut it anymore if I want to lower my cholesterol and diabetes risk. My mom has wanted me to join Crunch Fitness with her for a few months now, and so that’s what we did on Friday! Yesterday, I took my first in-person spin class in years and it was awful in the best possible way. It was hard and the seat felt uncomfortable and I just wanted it to be done… but I was also happy to be back on the bike and felt like I could do anything when I finished my workout. My plan is to go twice a week (starting small!) and increase my attendance from there.

Loathing… sciatica. I haven’t had to deal with sciatica in so long—it just went dormant for a few years, but now it’s back with a vengeance. I have tried heat therapy, stretches, and even a massage, but nothing was helping it. I went to a friend’s pediatric cancer event on Saturday and was so nervous about how my body would hold up to a one mile walk, which is just ridiculous. By the end of the walk, my back was so tight and I was in so much pain that I couldn’t do much more than stand around and try to take deep breaths. On Monday, I had my first appointment with a chiropractor and I am feeling hopeful that she will be able to help me. She did a ton of assessments and took X-rays, and this morning, I have a follow-up appointment to learn more about what’s going on and her treatment plan.

Reading… two books. I am a little more than halfway through Black Girls Must Die Exhausted by Jayne Allen on audiobook. I am very annoyed at the dating choices these women are making! And in print, I’m reading Come and Get It by Kiley Reid. I have read 250 pages and I still could not succinctly tell you what this book is about.

Watching… Mr. and Mrs. Smith! A TV show, finally! I have only watched two episodes so far (okay, full disclosure: I did set it aside to watch The Trust on Netflix, which is a reality show) but I am really enjoying it. I mean, episode two was wildly uncomfortable in spots, but I am still intrigued enough to keep going.

Listening to… the Corporate Gossip podcast. I finally got through their entire archive and now I am (im)patiently awaiting season 4. This podcast is hosted by a brother and sister team who detail all sorts of stories about corporate malfeasance. They tackle both companies (like Disney, Boeing, Peloton, etc.) that have engaged in some interesting practices to say the least, as well as CEOs and their downfall (think: Ted Turner, The Murdochs, the Koch family, etc). They have such a fun tone to their podcast, even when talking about really ridiculous topics, and I have really loved learning more about the crazy, super nefarious world of corporations and business bros.

Anticipating… book club on Saturday! This was my month to plan something, and I suggested candle making. There’s a cute spot downtown where we can make candles (maybe with some book-related scents, like old paper or coffee? Hmm) and I’m excited to have a fun Saturday out with my girls! We’ll probably get lunch afterward since we have to wait two hours for our candles to set after we make them.

Excited… to announce that I got a promotion! It was entirely unexpected, as I thought I would have to wait for the next promotion cycle in a few months but our organization is going through a reorg, which entailed restructuring the way some of our teams function. Because of that, it was crucial to give me a promotion during the Q1 cycle, which is really exciting! I have a senior management title now, which just boggles my mind. Who is this girl?!

Buying… an Apple watch! I feel like I am so late to the Apple watch game, but when I learned I could use my wellness stipend for an Apple watch, it was a no-brainer. A free Apple watch? Sign me up! I got it last week and have had such a fun time playing around with it, and finding new ways for it to enhance my life.

Grateful for… winning a raffle! I’ve never won anything like this, but I bought some raffle tickets at the pediatric cancer walk I went to on Saturday and won the raffle I entered! I’m getting a $50 gift certificate to Aveda, which is really exciting because the last time I was at my salon, I saw that they have a line of products specifically designed to help oily scalps and I am here for that. I’m interested in trying this exfoliating scalp treatment, but a 5 oz bottle is $53! (I can’t remember if they had the travel size in the salon, which is $14 for .85 oz.) But with a gift certificate, I can give the full-size bottle a try without breaking the bank. Hooray for that!

Any tips, tricks, or app ideas for my Apple watch? What is something you’re loving right now?

Categories: Recurring Series

Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow

Yesterday, I…

  • Got to tell two of my direct reports about their promotions! It almost felt as good as getting a promotion myself! They both got new titles and a nice little salary adjustment, so they were really happy. I love sharing good news like that!
  • Listened to my mom’s episode of our podcast. This month, Bri and I sat down with our mothers to talk about their personalities, what it was like to raise us, and what our relationship is like today, and it was such a delight. My mom’s episode released yesterday and I couldn’t listen to it fast enough.
  • Had lunch with my mom. We went to a deli that’s a quick drive from my apartment that’s our favorite weekday lunch spot. It was a nice break in my busy day.
  • Booked tickets for New Orleans! My mom and I have been lightly contemplating a trip to New Orleans to see one of our favorite comedians, Nate Bargatze. (We missed him when he was in Florida last year!) I’ve never been to New Orleans and this was our pandemic trip—we planned to go in April 2020 and had to cancel it for obvious reasons. So now we’re going in May! Yay!

Today, I…

  • Need to call my doctor’s office! I was supposed to do an in-lab sleep study tonight but on Monday, they called me to tell me that insurance wouldn’t cover the sleep study. However, insurance will cover an at-home sleep study, so I need to follow up with my doctor’s office to get that scheduled/figure out how to get the equipment and such.
  • Don’t have too many meetings, thankfully. Yesterday, I had meetings from 11am-4pm! Thankfully, there was an hour-long break in between those meetings so I could eat lunch, but whew. It was a lot for me, and I don’t know how those of you with meeting-packed days every day do it.
  • Need to stop by the library to pick up a few books—I’ve been very bad about picking up my library books before they get sent back to their respective branches, so I can’t let that happen again!
  • Have dinner scheduled with my dear cousin Rachel. She’s the cousin who lost her father last year, and she just announced that she’s pregnant, so this will be a celebratory dinner! The timing of her pregnancy is so special because she found out in January, mere weeks after her dad passed away. While it’s devastating that he won’t be around for this little one, there’s something about death and new life and all of that.

Tomorrow, I…

  • Start my weekend! I scheduled tomorrow and Friday off from work because I just felt like having a long weekend (love having flexible time off!) I don’t have any major plans with this time off, although I would like to complete a project or two around my apartment. Maybe.
  • Have an appointment to get my eyebrows tinted. I have blonde eyebrows that are so light, it almost looks as if I don’t have eyebrows unless I fill them in with an eyebrow pencil. It’s an annoying task I do almost daily and I’m hoping that eyebrow tinting (along with a quick wax) will give my eyebrows a bit more definition.
  • Have a massage scheduled. My sciatica has been really bad for the past week or so—even just a quick walk around the block causes it to ache. I’m trying to do sessions with my heating pad and sciatica stretches to help alleviate the pain, and I hope a massage will help even more.
  • Plan on working on some March goals that need to be completed, like working through one section of the “I’m Dead, Now What?” book and reorganizing my blog tags/categories. Fun times!

What is something you did yesterday, did/are doing today, and want to do tomorrow?

Categories: Recurring Series

One Picture Per Hour | Saturday, March 16, 2024

7:37 a.m.: I’m snuggled up in bed with the girls, trying to summon the energy to get up. The girls never pester me about breakfast – they’ll give me some meows from time to time, but they’re very patient with me. I appreciate it!

8:41 a.m.: On my way to my writing date with Mikaela! You can see the album I’m listening to for the month of March in this picture!

9:21 a.m.: I’m at Starbucks with Mikaela and working on my podcast outlines for later today. I like to write out full paragraphs of what I’m going to say while Bri just uses our original short, bullet-point outlines. Another way we’re different!

10:51 a.m.: At the end of our writing date, I requested a photo with Mikaela. She wanted to pose with her drink container like this. Heh. We had a good writing date! I was able to get my podcast outlines done and Mikaela wrote a good amount of words in her memoir. She read a few pages to me at the end of our time together and they were so good, like all her pages are.

11:30 a.m.: It’s podcasting time! Bri and I have a quick catch-up and then we get down to business. Tessie, Bri’s adorable greyhound, snoozes next to us the whole time.

12:24 p.m.: First episode down! We take a quick break before we record the second episode and I use the time to take a selfie. Our second episode was a really fun one to record and I’m excited for you guys to hear it next month!

No photo for the 1:00 hour – completely forgot! We finished recording our second episode of the day and then broke down our recording “studio.” And then we scheduled some lady dates/recording dates for April and May!

2:31 p.m.: A quick snack break before heading over to my mom’s house for the rest of the day. Typically, the snack I would pick up would be chocolate + a soda—delicious? yes. filling? not so much. So I tried to find something that would have a bit more protein, like these pepperoni-wrapped cheese sticks. And I got seltzer water instead of a soda. Would it have been okay if I had gotten a Dr. Pepper and M&Ms? Absolutely. I’m allowed to eat whatever I want! But I chose something different this time to boost my blood sugar, and it definitely hit the spot.

3:05 p.m.: Chippy! Today is Chip’s 6th birthday so I wanted to spend some time with him today to celebrate. I shared some videos of puppy Chip on Instagram Stories on Saturday. He was such a cute puppy, but omg, he had so much energy! He never settled down unless he was in his crate. He’s mellowed out a LOT since then! I got to have some snuggle time with him on Saturday, which was very fun.

4:26 p.m.: My mom and I went on a little shopping spree at PetSmart and Target to find some fun birthday presents for Chip. He is remarkably hard to buy gifts for because he derives joy not in having toys but in destroying them. Even toys designed for “monster chewers” can be destroyed by him. So we searched far and wide for toys that will maybe last more than 5 minutes with him! He was very happy to get some fun toys to destroy.

5:41 p.m.: You can see in this picture that Chip has already almost torn one of the fins off the fish, so I call BS on how tough this toy supposedly is. But I always buy toys for Chip knowing he’s going to destroy them, and that’s what he loves. So I’m not too bothered by it. I spend the next hour or so just sitting on the couch, playing games on my phone. It’s been a busy day and I need some disassociating activities.

6:33 p.m.: It’s game night, baby! My brother and younger nephew come over for a good night of games and pizza. I win the first game we played, which is called Blank Slate. It’s the first time we’ve played with Dominic who just turned 9, and he managed to score some points but it was definitely harder for him than us. (Premise of the game is that there are a deck of cards and mini dry erase boards for each participant. One person draws a card that has a blank and then a common word, like “____ wash” or “prime ____ .” Everyone writes down what should go in that blank and you’re trying to match other people. If you match with one other person, you get three points. If you match with more than one person, you get one point. If you don’t match with anyone, you don’t get any points.)

7:18 p.m.: We took a pizza break after playing Blank Slate and now we’re onto our second game of the night: Five Second Rule. The premise of this game is that you have 5 seconds to name three things in any random category. If you can’t name them, then the person next to you gets a chance to name them but you cannot include anything already named. For example, if the category is “name 3 reindeer” and one person says Rudolph and Blitzen… the person who is trying to steal can say any reindeer except for Rudolph and Blitzen. It’s a game where you have to think on your toes! Funny story in this one is that I confidently named 3 types of insurances as: homeowner’s, car, and auto… until my mom said car and auto were the same thing. Dangit!

8:28 p.m.: We’re still playing Five Second Rule! In case you think this evening is going perfectly, there was a bit of attitude over using a phone and not paying attention to the game. I’ll let you deduce who was involved in that.

9:51 p.m.: Finally snuggled in bed! I got home a little after 9 pm, gave the girls some attention (and treats, as Lila demanded), and then took a relaxing bubble bath. At that point, I should have done my skincare routine, tidied up the apartment, unpacked all my stuff from earlier today… but instead, I put on my pajamas and got right into bed. I was tuckered out! (And I wasn’t feeling great, either. My sciatica has been really bad the past few days and my back was hurting a lot, and I was dealing with some odd pelvic pain, so all I wanted to do was lay down.)

 

10:46 p.m.: I’m cheating a little with two photos at the 10:00 hour. I was reading my book and the cats were snuggled up on either side of me: Lila on my left and Eloise on my right. Whenever all of us are on the bed together, I exclaim, “We’re having family time!” I love this little family of mine. <3 I went to sleep a little after I took these photos, and I was apparently very tired because I slept until 11:30 a.m. the next day! I can’t remember a time when I’ve slept so late!

What’s something you did on Saturday?