Chipped Polish & Wornout Jeans

I'm sitting here, and it's raining again, which means that I can't go put the locks and window motor in my blazer. That sort of thing can't get wet. I hate this weather because it can't decide whether its going to rain or not, and every five minutes or so the rain either starts or stops. Maybe this afternoon when my dad gets home I will be able to work on my ride; I hate trying to work on it without him anyway because while I can do a lot of things to it, I just feel more comfortable when he's around. So since I can't work on the blazer, I figured I would write a little bit about my latest plan. I know, not exactly the most exciting thing to blog about, but hey, I don't think many people are reading this thing anyway. What is this plan? Well I'm hoping that if I get started on my fitness quest before I start law school in the next two weeks, I will be less likely to give up as time goes on and things get more difficult. Starting Saturday I will be working very hard to achieve my goal.

So the goal is to become a thinner lighter Nic, one who is much healthier and happier with who she is and what she looks like. Now, don't get me wrong, I am happy with my appearance, but I know that I could do with some weight loss and some toning up. My face is round and slightly pudgy, which is something I've always hated about my appearance; my hips, thighs, butt, and tummy need some serious work, and I'm willing to admit that. I'm also willing to admit that it's going to be a long road because I'm in serious need of work in order to get fit and I have some seriously bad eating and exercising and health habits that will be hard to break. But my friend Meg has inspired me, though I don't have the courage to make an entire blog about it. However, you can expect updates on my progress. I'm actually fairly excited about this little plan.

Obstacles I will face

1. I'm addicted to caffeine and chocolate, two things that aren't exactly healthy. Along those same lines, I have a serious sweet tooth, and one of my favorite things is to bake and create sweet treats because it allows me to be creative.
2. I have a bad snacking habit; I snack while I work on papers and stuff and while I read, and I'm really bad about getting the munchies, especially during a certain week. I'm working to improve this by drinking more water and eating healthier snacks like apples, raw almonds, and popcorn that I pop myself with no butter and just a very little salt.
3. I don't sleep as well as I should; I'm really bad about not sleeping when I should or getting enough sleep. I know that sleep is important because it helps your body recharge and repair. I'm not sure what to do about the sleep issue because it's a matter of not being able to convince myself to shut down.
4. I tend to get stressed and irritated, and when I do I get distracted. This is a problem because I let my stress and frustration distract me from my work out, for example I get too mad to run or lift weights or whatever. So to combat this little hitch, I'm going to turn my frustration and irritation into work out fuel.
5. I tend to get too busy and too tired to work out. I will become so mired down in work and other life stresses, and it flat wears me out. I lack the energy to do the work out I know I should be doing. I'm not sure how I will combat this problem cause, to be honest, I've never been able to do it in the past.
6. I'm not patient, and so when I don't start seeing results soon enough, I find it hard to keep it up. I know that it takes time to start seeing weight loss and a change in the way my clothes fit, but I've never been a very patient person. I think this problem that arises from growing up in a family of drag racers.

I'm determined to make this work, and I will succeed this time, even though I have not before now. Now is the time for me; if not now then when? I keep putting it off and waiting, but I can't do that any more. If I keep doing that I will never do it; I know that. I have never been super thin or really fit, but once upon a time I was not as fat as I am now. My hope is that by next summer, when I go to PCB with Jacob because I promised him I would go, that I will be fit and pretty and swimsuit ready. I want to be all toned and gorgeous and everything, and I will be. I know that underneath my chunk is pretty, and I am determined to find it.

So right now I'm guaranteed a seat at Brandeis, and I will have a home, though it may not be the apartment I thought I was going to get. Calling the apartment complex office is on my list of things to do because apparently if I call and ask politely about my lease I might be able to bump my way up the waiting list, which I've been told is really short. I'm definitely not wanting to live in traditional housing, with a roommate and no kitchen, because I don't play nice with others. OK, so maybe that's taking it a bit too far, but I'm not really good with living with strangers, partially because I am strange myself. I keep weird hours and have strange mannerisms, plus I don't want to be living with a person I don't know who might have stranger habits than mine, plus my luck I would have a roommate with a boyfriend who lives in state and would over a lot, which is not cool. Single apartment is a much better environment for the Nic.

Things I need to do before the move:

1. Check up on the apartment and lease, hopefully get myself bumped up to the top of the list and get it.
2. Finish handling all the student loan paperwork and make sure all the money gets where it belongs.
3. Find out what the contracts assignment is going to be for orientation.
4. Arrange for a hotel room for the week of orientation since unless I've get into traditional housing, which I do not want, I can't move in until the 15th.
5. Decide what goes to KY with me and what stays behind, since even if I get the apartment it will be small.
6. Finish up all the shopping for the necessities; I still need stuff for the apartment, even though Nanny bought me pots, utensils, and a few other things.
7. Drive up to the campus to make sure that I know where places are.

Meanwhile, here in the Boro I am attempting make the best of my last few weeks of freedom before I take off for law school and make sure that I take care of all my Boro business, like check ups, tags, and a hair appointment. How am I making the most of these weeks? Well thus far, Jake and I have gone out a bunch, even went to the zoo in Nash-Vegas, and I've been relaxing and catching up on my reading, which is something I never get to do during classes. Speaking of classes, I read on Meg's blog that MTSU classes should start at the end of August, while mine will start on the 17th, which means that I am envious of all my undergrad friends who get at least an extra week reprieve. While I'm already hitting the books and hard, everyone else will be moseying their way back to classes for an easy first couple of days. I'm hoping that if I have my own apartment I might be able to invite Jake up for dinner and stuff, just during that week before he starts classes. I'm going to miss him.

Happy 4th of July American readers; it's a rainy one here in the mid-state. Yesterday, I got my lease agreement from the apartment complex on campus in the mail, which means that provided I get my stuff back in time, including my deposit, I will have a place to live come August when I move to law school. They are super nice apartments, and I have a one bedroom, one bathroom, single apartment that comes furnished with utilities included in my rent. It's got phone with caller id, cable, and Internet, so I don't have to be worried about those things. The complex has a pool, stand up tanning bed, lounge, volleyball court, fitness center, and a cornhole (whatever that is); so I suppose it's worth my rent, which is not, I repeat, not, cheap. I'm looking forward to move in day, except for that whole not being in the same state as Jake and the mockers and all. But first there will be shopping because I'm going to need a lot of stuff. Mama and Nanny are really getting into this whole supply Nic with the necessities like plates, bowls, glasses, and the like thing. I'm not looking forward to the shopping.

I'm going to need sheets for the bed, which is really too small but that's life, towels, a small bookcase, the cooking stuff, and some things for storage and what not. So many things to get, and there is the moving in to be done. I will pack up the blazer, and maybe someone else's car, though mostly the blazer, and head to KY, where once unpacked and stuff I will stay, except on some weekends, like in November when MTSU has the invitational and I come judge, and when I feel like visiting my family and Jake, and of course holidays. I'm not going to lie; I will probably miss home a lot. I'm taking Belle and Athena and Nike, the frogs, several of my books, my satin pillow, my mushroom chair, and my pictures, which will help it seem more like home, but last time I was in Louisville the waiter at the restaurant where I was having dinner couldn't bring me sweet tea, which means I will be a little far from home. Yes, I belong in a place where the tea is sweet, the barbecue is pulled from the grill and falls off the bone, and when the sun sets the only lights you see come from the fireflies and the porch lights. I'm that Southern, with a capital S thank you very much.

I am making a list and deciding what moves to Louisville and what stays in TN, and it is not an easy list to make. Things I would like to take with me but can't include: my bookshelf that Granddaddy made for me when I was a little girl, Little Bit the rottie who has adopted me, my big bed, and Jake who must remain in TN to finish college. I'm taking my jewelry, most of my shoes, a lot of my clothes (the apartment has on site laundry facilities), my laptop of course, my Tokyo sign for the M*A*S*H show, and various things to make the place home. I'm going to miss my family, my mockers, a few non-mockers, Jake, and Little Bit, but I will be taking things that remind me of most of them, and besides I'm always accessible via email and Facebook. Moving in is a little over a month away, and I'm trying hard to be ready.