Three Hundred Twenty-Seventh Entry

I'm sick. I've got the swine cold...

Another lengthy pause between blogs. That just makes them all that more special!!

Biggest development since last blog is that I've quit smoking. I just decided that last Monday, April 27th, was it. I did it cold turkey. The first three days were the worst. I had always guessed that smoking curbs the appetite, but this was proof positive. I would get the cravings for a cigarette and eat instead. And not just eat a small snack like an apple or something. I was eating full meals! In the first few days I must have eaten at least 15 full meals! And I wasn't chewing normally either. I would chew each bite as if I was mad at the food and try to kill it with each bite. My jaw got really sore after each "murder"...

I figured I would gain some weight with this, so the same day I quit, I started to use the treadmill that has sat idle in my house for about two years. I gained six or seven pounds in those first few days, but in the last week or so, I've seen it steadily burned off. I'm almost back where I started. What's interesting about the working out too is that I wake up in the morning wanting to walk on the treadmill. I think it has somewhat become my replacement for smoking. I guess that's good! But we'll see how long it lasts.

The nicotine cravings are decreasing daily, and so is my appetite. I'm hoping it sticks this time. Smoking was fun, I really enjoyed it. But it really is time to give it up. It's much too expensive, almost nobody else I know smokes, and, well, it's bad for you.

Still no news on the job front. I'm still hoping for an invite to return to my old job once the merger dust settles, but with each passing day the chance of that diminishes. There is also a small chance I could get back in at Lea & Braze, but that all depends on if this supposed economic recovery continues. I'm not putting too much into that option though; they don't owe me any favors...I left them, not the other way around.

There are not too many job postings out there either. Most of the jobs are for transportation engineers, but I have mini-experience in that line of work. I would basically have to start over and make what I started making at the County (minor ducats). Wish me luck!!

Earlier this week, Monday to be exact, my mother and I ventured out to Alameda and lunched with my brother. We had the Mountain Mike's lunch pizza buffet. It was good, except for the salad bar. I guess in Alameda, salad is made with cabbage instead of lettuce. It was...interesting...

Yesterday I spent most of the day with Amy. It was her day off! I brought lunch to her house. Togo's sandwiches and salads. Very, very good. Then we made sugar cookies for her mom's birthday. Matt and Teresa went into the city to see Wicked, so we had a lot of time to make and decorate the cookies. It's funny because ever since Teresa got out of the hospital the last time, every time I saw her, she would mention how she wanted "sugar cookies with pink frosting and sprinkles on top". Well, yesterday, she got her wish. She totally loved those cookies. They were hella good. For dinner, we all went to Manor Grill, at the request of the birthday girl. I had the catfish. It was alright. Afterwards, Amy and I ditched her mom and came to my house and watched "Lost". Next weeks season finale is going to be the best Lost ever! I can't believe the show is ending next year. Amy and I stayed up a little longer and watched "Pitchmen". That show is pretty funny. It is a relief to see that Billy Mays does actually have an indoor voice. I thought he was deformed or something.

I had lunch today with Roxana and JR. Roxy bought me lunch! I enjoy going out to lunch with them. They are fun people and I miss working with them. A usual lunch with Roxy and JR consists of us making fun of each others eating habits and trying to make each other laugh when we have a mouth full of food. We had Sushi at Naked Fish in Hayward. It's over there in the shopping center at the corner of Jackson and Amador, wedged in between Zorba's and a laundromat. It was hella good! We had: tempura shrimp and veg appetizer, dragon roll, baked scallop roll, cherry blossom roll, spider roll and some other roll. Then we went to Starbucks and I had a tall mocha. Mmmmm....caffeine!!

That's it. Today I'm sick, and not liking it.