Authentic in Just 12 Weeks!

Posted on December 29, 2016 by tosabarbell

newyear

It’s official! I’ve seen my first “HAVE THE BODY YOU’VE ALWAYS WANTED IN JUST 12 WEEKS!” commercial. Ok, I want a body like Ingrid Marcum. Here’s my money but I better be snatching in the 80’s while sitting around 75kg by my March meet or I want my money back. FoReals.

But we all know that this isn’t how it works. At this point, the commercials and promises by fitness studios and globo-gyms are speaking to the 80% of Americans who don’t know that this isn’t how it works. Oh sure, it’s never worked before but that’s not their fault. Right?! It would work if you were more dedicated or self-controlled or whatever else they tell people why they’ve failed. It’s never the fault of the gym or “personal trainer” (by the way, don’t ever call me a personal trainer. It’s insulting. Also, don’t ever call a personal trainer a “strength coach.” It’s insulting. We saw a post recently by one personal trainer dressing up like a strength coach that said her lifter just hit a 300# PR on his squat. Uhhhhhhh, so his squat was 0 and then he came in that day and hit 300 pounds? JHMFC, if you’re going to pretend to be a strength coach, at least understand how that works.)

Anyways.

A new body in 12 weeks isn’t “typical.” Oh sure, a few out of one hundred may hit their goal by the end of March and maybe out of those 3-5, one will be able to keep the changes they’ve worked for. One. Because we all know that drastic changes don’t last. Not only do they not last for three months, they probably won’t last 3 days. You may find drastic dieters last three weeks but that’s about the time where their 5-7 pounds a week weight loss have completely stalled out with their 750 calorie a day diet and they feel like death. So just a burger here and a piece of pie there and within a week, they’re back to being a fat. No worries, at least the person who prescribed the diet has their money.

At the end of the day, that’s all that matters. That you pay your money and are handed your cookie cutter program and diet and whether or not it works will be up to you. What is the slogan? It only works as well as you work it. Hmmmmm. FYI, drastic never works. Never. Oh sure, you can fake it for a while but that’s all you’re doing. Faking it.

How about a program that promises something different? LEARN TO BE AUTHENTIC IN 12 WEEKS OR LESS!! Careful, there will be the not so fine print in the corner that will state, must be able to take truth and tough love. Shoot, I just lost all potential customers. Again.

Quite honestly, I cannot imagine the personal prison people live in who fail to live an authentic life. Who go through their days faking it. Now, I’m not talking about the “fake it ’til you make it” mask we all sometimes put on when we’re in nervous situations. If you’ve ever been in a warm-up room, you’ll understand that. I’m talking about the chronic fear of either hiding who you really are or just the overall ability to not care that you’re a different person in front of different people. Both suck. Both are untrustworthy. Both are to be distanced from real people.

I once knew a young man who would adopt personalities of whomever his current boss was. Weird. I’d see it a lot too when I was doing certs/seminars with Rip’s crew. Young men would instantly try to adopt Rip’s persona, especially new coaching staff. It was complete barf. In fact, it just occurs to me right now that the few people I stay in contact with from those days are the ones that own their personalities. That believe in the systems but do it in their own ways. I like that. I’m awfully proud of them. Winnipeg in winter has nothing on that Texas crew environment, especially once they turn on you. Anyways.

I remember a powerlifting meet a few years ago where I had to get stern with a lifter. Like, fucking stern. Her squat warm-ups were a mess. Every rep was high and she had a deer in the headlights look about her. I couldn’t reach her. She snapped at me constantly that she was hitting depth, in spite of the red lights on her first and second attempts. And then I snapped, “Look, you can argue with me but you’re about to fucking bomb out of this meet because you refuse to be coached. Now get out there and fucking sink your squat.” Only I yelled it. In front of everyone around us. And guess what, she sank her squat and salvaged the meet. (In general, I hate talking to people like that in competition. If it’s what you need in order to perform, I’m probably not the best coach for you. I prefer quiet confidence. Cues. Do them and succeed. If I need to bring Harsh Juli to the meet, we shouldn’t hang.)

Afterwards, while she was chilling out with a group who came to cheer her on, we “laughed” about having to yell and swear at her to perform. One of her clients (she’s a fitness instructor) said, “Wow, that sounds familiar” and I quizzically looked at her. She mentioned that she may channel “her Juli” when coaching these days. Uhhhhhh, that was hint one that this girl was a bit unhinged. Why do you have to channel me? Just be yourself, isn’t that why people come to you?

Yes, I know. Being “yourself” is tough some days. People won’t understand why you’re this or that or not walking the earth to please others. You may believe that friends won’t accept you and ya know what? You may be right. But then they’re not really friends, are they? If you’re actually a malicious, self-absorbed piece of shit and you’re able to fake it to certain people, just know this; you won’t be able to fake it to everyone. And those you fool will find that out someday. HEY! I KNOW! How about just be a decent person? I’ve actually had people, who have behaved incredibly poorly, say that they care about how other people view them and want to change. Awwww, you go girl! But then they don’t. In fact, they behave even worse and offend an entire new group of people. Uhhhhh, you go girl. Good luck with that.

At the end of the day, all I can think of is what a complete crap way to walk through life. How exhausting it must be to be so fake. To live in constant fear that those around you will figure out that you’re not who you say you are. It must be horrible and I can actually have a lot of empathy for you. But ya know what? It doesn’t have to be this way. Cuz I have a program where, in just 12 weeks, you can be an authentic person living an authentic life. Even better? You don’t even have to pay me. Just do this…

…tell the truth. Nothing drastic, just tell one truth where you’re usually telling the lie. Be honest where you usually aren’t. I tell ya what, my life changed when I started to say, “I don’t know.” I was in my 20’s and a single mother of baby twins, living on $220 per week and oh by the way, daycare got half of that. There were many times I’d have to say, “I don’t know.” And guess what, I was ALWAYS rewarded in some way for asking for help and admitting I didn’t know how to do something. WIC; the food shelf; emergency utilities help, I quickly learned to humble myself and say, “I don’t know how to do this.” Now, I WAS determined to keep working and move my way up in a very successful technology company and I’m awfully proud of that but there were many days where I didn’t have time to be fake. I needed help and I needed it fast and bullshitting my way through this thing wasn’t going to work. I tell you what, being asked, “what do you need” goes a long way to someone struggling and will enable you to forget about the bullshit way YOU go through life. Authentically.

It’s freeing. It’s not easy, but you can look yourself in the mirror night after night; day after day and give yourself a little ‘atta girl’ for another day well done. Doesn’t that sound nice? A whole day of not hiding from who you really are? And you don’t have to go to fake gyms (truthful disclosure here, I go to a fake gym to get my cardio and sauna on. But come on, SAUNA!) to achieve these results. You just wake up and start being honest, if only a little at a time while you gain comfort with it. And suddenly it will be March and you’ll realize that you’re leading an authentic life.

It’ll change your world. If you have the courage to do it. I hope for you that you do. As for me? I’m over here realizing that an Ingrid Marcum body with an 80kg snatch isn’t up for sale so I’m gonna have to work to hitting 90kg in weight with a 70kg (plus, hopefully) snatch before that March meet. Oh well, not everything is able to be bought I guess. Such is life.

Heroes are never perfect, but they’re brave, they’re authentic, they’re courageous, determined, discreet, and they’ve got grit.

Wade Davis

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So Long ’16

Posted on December 28, 2016 by tosabarbell
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If the remains of your beer tent stay doesn’t look like this, you’re doing it wrong. Victoria, Canadia…you were grand.

I keep hearing it; I keep reading it, and it still confuses me. Why all the 2016 hate?

I’ve talked to a few people and here’s the consensus:

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If this picture instills rage; hate; fear, or any other weird negative emotion, please tell me how your life has changed since Trump has won the Presidential election. Just one major, devastating way your life has been turned upside down just because Trump won the election. You can waste energy hating him, but he’s the President-elect non-the-less. Although I DO understand the disappointment since I’ve lived with it for the last 8 years, my life was what I made of it in spite of political turmoil caused by the current President and his regime. Being a poor “loser” is a fine way to go through life, you have lots of company on the Facebook. But geez, what a crappy way to spend your energy and your days. But that’s only my opinion. Had Clinton won, I would have been severely disappointed and feared even more for the state of America. I get it. But I love you anyway, even though I know for a fact that I have lost what I had considered “friends” over my support of Trump. That makes me “SMH” as the kids say. I have very dear friends or at the least, acquaintances I have a high amount of respect for that have extremely different political views that I do and I’m very thankful that we can remain friends in spite of it. I tip my hat to all of you who coexist, you are becoming a rarity.

 

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People have died in 2016. For some reason, we’re all taking it very personal that people we’ve never known but have appreciated their talents have died. I will be the first to admit, Prince’s sudden death gave me a twinge. Mostly, because I’m a Minneapolis girl and there were enough of times we’d be at First Avenue/7th Street Entry or Fine Line Cafe where there would be a murmur among the crowd that Prince may be in the building and he may jam a bit. I was lucky enough to have those rumors be true a couple of times and got to see and hear some of the most amazing music I’ve ever heard. Since I was 19, I’ve known the special musician he was. I’ve always been annoyed when people defined his music by “Little Red Corvette” which is actually a fine song, but his talent went to a genius level that Casey Kasem’s top 40 didn’t really cover on Sunday mornings. People die. Every year. Every day and oh by the way, if you live in Chicago your chances go up by about 1000%. I was far more affected by Dean Bennett’s death last January than Carrie Fisher’s today. You did’t know Dean Bennett? That’s okay, I don’t expect that you did. But you didn’t know Carrie Fisher either. Dean’s impacts and talents and caring touched so many and every time we have another run-in with Fucknutt Frances next door, the first person I want to tell is Dean. He always had funny suggestions on how to deal with F.F. and I miss them. But even I didn’t know Dean well enough to have his death affect my days. I can believe his son and his wife, going through their first Christmas without him, may be less affected by David Bowie’s death but I’m only guessing. Look, while giving props to people who’s talents have been enjoyed, please don’t take it as personal as you appear to do on the social media. You look like sheep in Chicken-little suits.

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Dean Bennett

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2016 was the year I set lofty goals in regards to competition; worked as best as I could with the Bigg help of my husband and Mike Westerling and the support of so many others, and Nike’d that shit. While I didn’t take gold in Germany, the entire trip was a spectacular success. And oh, hey? Silver doesn’t suck.

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The connections I’ve made through competition are priceless. Absolutely priceless. Both in throwing and weighlifting, I have met so many amazing women who refuse to let age slow them down and I’m so proud of each and every one. I had the honor to compete with so many of the best; learn from them; laugh with them, and call many of them friend. I cherish that. I could say 2016 sucked because I didn’t do as well as I wanted to on the field. I guess that’s the crux of all of this 2016 bitching and moaning, we could all bitch about something or other. But don’t. It’s pussy. Don’t be a pussy in 2016. There are people who have lost their parents; their children; their health; their jobs or homes, or are fighting for their lives. While I’m not a huge fan of comparing struggles, if your struggle is that Princess Leia died, well…shut up. Go connect with real people so that if/when THEY die, you are truly affected. (Yes, I do know that I’m simplifying this a bit. It’s okay. You still didn’t know her. You still are choosing to be sad about something that doesn’t affect you.)

At the end of the day, folks who are healthy and have enough wealth to be sitting in front of their computer bitching and moaning on how 2016 has been such a horrible year because it didn’t go your way or people died that you are pretending to have some kind of connection  to is boring. Barf. Knock it off. Stop listening to the media telling you how you should feel so shittily about the year or the state of America. There are too many, IMO, “news” outlets who hate America and want you to also. Fuck that. Stand on your own. We can be unhappy with certain outcomes and still stand together as Americans. Come on. Think of that sappy, hippy Coke commercial with folks holding hands across America. We can do that. We need to look each other in the eyes and decide that holding hands across our differences is more rewarding than fighting on the motherfucking Facebook.

So long ’16. You weren’t horrible. You weren’t perfect. You didn’t make life easy at times (uh oh, maybe I did that myself;) At the end of Saturday night, you were just a year. 2017 will most likely see much of the same and if I’m very, very fortunate I will be saying goodbye to it a year from now just as healthy and strong and happy as I am right now with my kids and others I love just a little more successful than today.

There are people who are unhappy with everything.

Prince

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Gilmore Girls

Posted on December 13, 2016 by tosabarbell

gilmore

I’ve been on the fence about writing on this topic. I know that the anticipation of more episodes, bringing us current to the life of Rory and Lorelai, was on the epic scale and I was right there with ya on making sure my daughter and I watched on Black Friday.

But then I started watching it. And I came to the horrible conclusion that either A. this show actually sucks and why did I waste my time for so many years watching it and/or 2. I’ve outgrown this stupid show and how could I waste my time for so many years watching it? Neither option was fun but I stuck it out and finished watching the supersized, four episodes. Until the very end which means that even if I’ve outgrown the show, I’m still ‘all in’ on wasting my time by watching it.

Though I never watched it on whatever night it originally aired, it would play at 4:00pm on week days which is right around the time that the kids would get home from school. After snacks were served and evening activities were confirmed, Zandra and I would sit down and watch it together. This was our time. Now, I feel very fortunate that Zandra is a Mommy’s girl. Has it always been easy? Nope. We’re very alike and that has caused eruptions here and there but at the end of the day, she’s my girl. I didn’t have that with my mom. My sister did and while I watched as an outsider on how they clicked, I didn’t get it. Even though there is so much I do today around the house or with other people that are reflections of my mom, we rarely were on the same page.

I believe one of the reasons Zandra and I loved watching the Gilmore Girls was because of the strong bond of mother and daughter. I’m fortunate that we both valued and wanted that. Yeah us. But as Zandra, and the Gilmore’s, got older I started noticing a disturbing trend. Lorelai is actually kind of fucked up. Like, still cute and an awesome dresser, fucked up nontheless.

First off, she kept secrets. Constantly. And seemed to pass that little gem of a habit down to Rory. There were always excuses as to why important things weren’t told but it all comes down to this, people who keep secrets or fail to communicate even the basic of details are just shitty communicators. Oh sure, I’ve heard, “Well, this is why I didn’t want to tell you, because I knew you’d be upset” too many times to count but what I really hear is, “I was afraid of saying something so I kept it from you and now you’re mad because I’m behaving like a three year old who is scared of their mommy.” It annoys the ever lovin’ out of me. Secrets were fun in grade school when I had a crush on Dale something-or-other and then my friend told him. Bitch. Heh.

But the Gilmore crew take secrets to Level a Billion. At some point, I didn’t like it. At some point, I had to look at my daughter and ask myself, what is she learning here? But we’re just getting started.

Lorelai was a horrible girlfriend and showed a complete lack of loyalty when it came to the men in her life. Have a fight with the fiance? Go sleep with the ex boyfriend. Cuz, as women, that’s what we do. Ummmm, no. We don’t. My gawds. She bails on one wedding to, in my opinion, the only man who had some worth on that show besides Edward Herrmann which is fine. We’ve all cancelled weddings before. (Wait, whut? You haven’t? Ok, just me and Lorelai I guess) However, we’ve cancelled them in a way that is, oh I dunno-FUCKING ADULT?!??? As in, you call these people to cancel and I’ll call these people and this sucks and we’re sad but, ya know, see you at work Monday. Sounds fun doesn’t it?

But the Gilmore way is to avoid unpleasantness altogether and take off in the middle of the night and just not wedding. Ummmmkay. Her on-again/off-again relationship with Luke was like watching first cousins try and make a go of it. More than a little uncomfortable and just plain boring. But then she passed all that crap down to Rory and by then, I just couldn’t. I’d look over to my little girl and think, ‘uh no baby girl, you’re not running through life thinking this is all  okay.’ The show lost some luster for me but we’d watch it here and there as more of a habit I guess than anything else.

Fast forward however many years it’s been since the last episode where Rory turns down Logan’s marriage proposal and Luke and Lor kiss and make up without having an actual conversation as to what broke down their relationship in the first place. Side note: no one in this show has real conversations. Sure, witty and quippy is entertaining as fok, but if you’re going to work in the world you’re going to need to know how to have a real conversation. Sorry not sorry.

So we wake up to 8 years later and Rory is now sleeping with Logan who is engaged to another woman while pretending to have some boyfriend she keeps forgetting about, including his name, and has a one night stand with a furry (did I dream that one? It’s so unbelievably fucking lame that I have to have dreamt that one) and still can’t make a decision as to what she wants to do with her life. OH! And now she’s pregnant and the baby daddy could be one of 3 or 4 guys.

Congratulations Lorelai, you’ve managed to raise someone even more fucked up than you and that’s quite an accomplishment considering what a self-absorbed fucked up mess you are.

And that, my friends, is the crux of my issues with Gilmore Girls. No one got better or smarter with time. No one learned anything and, in my opinion again, they actually got more stupid and self-absorbed through the years. See, here’s my belief: that as parents, we want our kids to be just a little bit better and smarter than us. And, in my life, they are. My kids are so much better than I could ever be. They are resilient; hard working; tough but kind; responsible; bold, and 40 other adjectives I’m not thinking of right now. Oscar has, and has had, more character than half the grown men I know. Zac has completely turned his life around in a few short months and is driven to succeed for not only him but his girlfriend and her daughter. Zandra continues to work hard to find her path and is realizing, as Mommy to Moose the German Shepard, that Mommying isn’t as easy as she thought it was.

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Gratuitous picture of Za and Moose.

But they’re so much better than I was at their ages and I know that I did better than what my birth mother could do. I expect their children (or in Za’s case, 20 dogs) will be better than them and hopefully the cycle will continue.

So when the Gilmore Girls come out and are even MORE fucked up then 8 years ago? Well, no thanks. The two of you continue to treat those around you like shit and act like they’re going to be there forever to be kicked around. At least the boyfriend who’s name Rory could never remember broke up with her finally.

Side note #2: things that are unbelievable and prove that you don’t give two shits about your viewers on a televisions show:

1. Write in that one of the lead characters, a Yale graduate, can’t remember her boyfriend’s name.

2. In one episode, it is winter with heavy coats and hats and people bustling about in the cold and in the very next episode which is supposed to represent a week later, the main characters are wearing sun dresses and the grass is green. Dudes, we can see that ya know. Many of us who have lived in a winter to summer region know that’s not how it works. That’s not even remotely how it works.

There’s more but those were my two biggest annoyances. On the plus side, the storyline of matriarch Emily Gilmore, was comforting. As real as it could be on a show written so poorly. She lost her husband and grieved. And, as we knew Emily would do picked herself back up. And a tirade along with a string of “Bullshit”s by Kelly Bishop was pretty priceless. So there’s that.

Overall, F. What does Henry David Thoreau say? Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.

So the Gilmore Girls dreamed of living aimlessly and in bubbles that include only their wants and fuck those around them who need them to live in the world. Got it. OH, honorable mention, Luke and Lorelai who still have zero romance in their lives and just seem to go day by day as if their need for each other is equal to our basic need of toilet paper. No thanks.

I want more. I want my kids to have more and work for more. And I especially want my daughter to be more, which luckily for me, she already is. So long Gilmore Girls, thanks for reminding me what I don’t want in life for anyone I love.

Tacky, horrid people.

Emily Gilmore

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Monday Bacon: Mirror Mirror

Posted on December 5, 2016 by tosabarbell

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It’s that time again (I wrote that in a Starbux drive-thru barista’s sing song voice.) The time of  year we take a look back on the last 12 months and decide whether it was all as wonderful as it seemed or as big of a nightmare that it felt like. If you’re normal, it was probably a bit of both. Some of us are going into the Holiday festivities with happy anticipation and some of us are forced into a season of “firsts” without a loved one. Others have moved into the dull ache of another Christmas without their someone special and at the end of the day, we just need to know that hugs are extra special around this time of year.

And for me, it’s time to look in the mirror and take inventory. If I had to sum it all up, I’d label 2016 as “win some, lose some.” On all fronts.

I have stated repeatedly that I’m not much of a movie/tv watcher (other than sports.) I’ve even tried to be a little better so I can actually join a conversation here and there about movies. I’ve ventured off the beaten path on the Netflix and have found some gems and some that, in a small but significant way, have affected me.

Spotlight

Spotlight is a film about the Boston Globe crew that brought to light the widespread abuse of not only Catholic priests; but the Catholic church itself in covering up and failing to protect it’s children from further abuse. It spoke to me and helped me realize something that brought out, possibly anyway, a slightly more fierce Jules than we’re even used to. There is a line in the movie that goes something like this, ‘a lot of these people just want acknowledgement that something happened.’ See, there was abuse in our home that I grew up in. That’s real uncomfortable for a lot of people. I’m sorry about that, I really am. Mostly I’m sorry we can’t just talk about it openly and admit that things were handled poorly. That was my realization after watching Spotlight. That while I’ve forgiven the situation, I was still angry that no one acknowledged it and even more importantly, that no one stood up for the little girl that was me. That if my parent’s said that no one can know, then we all just pretend it didn’t happen and no one stepped in and said, “Fuck that Pastor, this little girl needs someone to have her back and since no one in that house does, I will and we’re going to the cops.” And I’ve been angry about that. For, I guess, a really long time. That Aunt’s and Uncle’s and co-Pastor’s and their wives never stepped in and helped me. Not one. And because of it, I was always the problem child. Me. The victim. Since I finally talked in a way that could not be ignored, I broke the happy little family we were. And that has been my role in the family since. And I’m angry. Or at least I was. Now I’m just a little sad but so thankful that I’m not confined to that prison. But ya, right now, looking in that mirror and seeing 10 year old Jules looking back at me-so confused and sad and scared, I’m a bit sad.

See, when I mentioned in an earlier post that I hate drama, especially stupid girl high school drama, I meant it. So in a couple of situations where gossipy; grimy; troublemaking girls brought drama into my life I snapped. I was dealing with shit and had no time or energy for stupid issues that just showed their insecurities and for some reason they wanted me to be a part of it. It affected how I feel about Highland Games and the main reason that we’ve already severely cut our participation in them. Because we’ve found our tribe in them. The people that DO have your back (understandably a big issue for me) and help you grow as a person and share so much joy by just being with them, well, we’ve decided it’s just more important to spend money seeing them instead of going to a Highland Games where some stupid girls actually need to be followed around by the AD their behavior is so bad. (FYI, this is why being a Master’s athlete is complete bomb. We don’t have these problems and why 2017 will be the year of the Master’s games. Yeah old people!)

And now it’s time to lay to rest that I just am not going to get that acknowledgement. I don’t even get a $20,000 settlement like some of the abuse victims in Boston (where’s Eric MacLeish when you need him?) But I DO know that I’m surrounded by people who have my back and that’s all that matters.

The Big Short

I adore this movie and when I’m cleaning or doing other things around the house and want a break from the radio, I’ll put it on to listen to while I get shit done. Steve Carell is brilliant and a line his (still hot) wife played by Marisa Tomei says grabbed me. Something along the lines of you need to perfect every perceived wrong around you. Uhhh, hi me, met me much? The above plays a large part in this but it explained a lot. Why do I care? If people are shitty people and bully others but not me, why should I care? Here’s why. Because, for some reason, when I’m around people harness their shitty behavior and when I’m not or if I’m on the other side of, say, a field they bring it out on someone they know won’t fight back. I don’t like it. Often times it’s not even my business, but I don’t like it. I’ve got your back. My friends know that and I hope they trust it. I think they do. But it also means that I’ve been unable to step back and say, “I love you but you’ve got to figure this one out. If this person thinks you’re an easy target then you need to stand up and make sure they know they’re mistaken.” I need to do that more. As much as I don’t like walls, I need to make sure mine is up more than I do. I need to be a better judge of who I’m allowing through the gates. Not where it comes to my good friends, but the circle just out from there. My life these last couple of months has been so much better after I realized this and stepped back. So, 2017, more please.

The last little bit is recent, as in, last week. I started watching an A&E series with Leah Remini opening up some controlling and abusive situations revolved around the Church of Scientology. Not surprising, I like her. She’s very “come at me Bro with everything you got and be prepared for the fight I’ll bring” and well, many of you have met me so understand why I like that. A small line she said that got blown by pretty quick was something like this, This is so wrong and I’m so angry but I can’t do anything about it.

Ya. That’s the crux of it all. There’s so much shit in the world that we can’t do anything about that when people want to pretend that little things are tragedy, well, I.Just.Can’t. Trump being President is not tragedy. Veterans suffering from mental illness and being ignored is fucking tragedy. A new apartment building going up in your neighborhood is not tragedy. Having a school across the street with hundreds of kids where many are going home to unsafe environments (by statistical probability) is tragedy. Fucking perspective. Gain some.

OH! Honorable mention to the movies on relationships. We don’t watch many of them and I’ve already written about it laughing at relationships has been good for us. Like, really good. Matt and I went through a lot this year and leaving 2016 stronger and happier than we’ve ever been is an absolute gift. The best. For someone going through most of life without anyone having their back and suddenly having one of the world’s biggest and strongest shielding you from shit? Well, as the credit card people say, Priceless.

So while some of the mirror watching has been tough; a little sad; has forced some self reflection on how I need to adjust, it’s also been helpful to see how absolutely gifted my life is.

So I’ll say a very sincere thank you 2016. You’ve been hard at times, but grand overall. And I’ll cross my fingers and say a little prayer that 2017 is good to those I love, and a little less combative for those I don’t. Heh.

I’ll also vow not to eat a whole pan of Pumpkin Bars. At least until next Thanksgiving.

Christmas is a season not only of rejoicing but of reflection.

Winston Churchill 

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