Michele's Mix on hiatus

I have really enjoyed writing this blog and interacting with other bloggers over the last year or so. As of today, I am taking a break to pursue another business opportunity. I may or may not be back, so consider adding Michele's Mix to your reader so you'll know when something is posted.

Thanks for reading.





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Finally, some good economic news

Amid months of ever-worsening news, I've been on the lookout for something good. I've been operating under the assumption that at some point, things have to improve and I've been keeping my eye out for good news. Today I found it here. The president of the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank expects the economy to begin recovering in late 2009, and that unemployment will not reach double digits.

Let's hope he's right, or better yet he's pessimistic!





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The Animal Rescue site - help animals for free

Photo from http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/seattle911/library/dog_at_shelter_-_460.jpg

The unfortunate effects of our sagging economy on pets is heartbreaking. Huge numbers of animals are being surrendered to shelters because the owners can no longer afford them or have to move to housing where the animals aren't welcome.

The Animal Rescue Site gives financial help to animals in need every time you visit and click. That's it. According to their website, they give the equivalent of .6 bowls of food for every click. Try it now, and see if it can be a daily habit.




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Supermarket samples

You know how supermarkets give out samples sometimes? I've seen them both manned, where a person is giving them out and unmanned where they are just in a bowl for the taking. In the past, I've enjoyed those samples. It's a great chance to try a new product, and I also like it when it's a treat item and I can just have a small amount rather than buy a whole package.

Well, my days of enjoying samples are gone. In this case, ignorance really is bliss. I was in the market yesterday and they had a bowl of cheese cubes out for samples. I saw a woman take the serving tongs, put a cheese cube in her mouth and put the tongs back! I was dumbfounded. Of course I immediately told a staff person who grabbed the bowl before anyone else ate from it.

Seriously, what is wrong with people? Is it that big of a deal to put the cheese in your hand before putting it in your mouth? How about a millisecond of thinking about the other people who might want cheese but not a stranger's saliva? As a vegan, I wouldn't have eaten cheese anyway, but she spoiled samples for me forever.

This is one of my biggest complaints about some people - complete lack of understanding that other people share this planet. There are so many small ways where a tiny amount of consideration for others would make such a difference and yet it seems beyond some people. I can't change inconsiderate people, but I hope by being considerate myself that I can maybe make some small changes in the world. No matter what, I'm done with samples!





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Fitting fitness in

In time for new year's resolutions, I wanted to talk about fitting fitness into my schedule. I, like most people I know, am super busy and it seems really easy to rob fitness time for other purposes. As with sleep, this isn't a sustainable practice, nor is it one that supports my health.

The base of my fitness routine is a daily 1+ hour dog walk. I have two active, young dogs and an hour is the minimum of walk time they need in the morning (they get another short walk in the evening). This is an easy one to work in - I couldn't look at those bright eyes and wagging tails and disappoint my fur kids because of my own needs. The walk is great, and it does provide me with a good minimum of activity every day, but I find it is not enough. What do I mean by not enough? It's not enough activity to maintain my weight, and the walk doesn't include other critical components of fitness namely strength training and stretching. I would like, at some point, to include more high-intensity cardio since the dog walk doesn't elevate my heart rate much.

To fill in the gaps, I do a weekly yoga class and 1-2 gym workouts. My challenges in getting to the gym are a bit different than a lot of people. I actually like going to the gym and yoga. I enjoy the exertion and a bit of soreness the next day. I'm pretty knowledgeable about weight training and have done it for years, so my workouts are varied and adapted to how I feel that day so boredom or intimidation isn't a problem for me.

So what is the challenge in getting my workouts in? There are two. The first is that it feels very vain and self-indulgent to spend that much time exercising. Yes, I know logically this doesn't make sense, but I am talking about how it feels. Even as I was writing this post, I was thinking that it sounds like I must spend so much time on body-improvement pursuits. This was a barrier for a long time for me. Now that I am into my 40's though, I have come to view the gym as necessary preventative medicine. I certainly don't think it's vain to eat salad, wear sunscreen or drink water and the gym for me is in the same category. Of course I like the effect it has on my body's appearance, but much more critical is that it staves off backaches, bad posture and the dreaded buddha belly from weak stomach muscles. It also prevents injuries. I do a lot of the work on our fixer-upper house, and I love being able to lift heavy things, bend, climb ladders, crawl through the attic and generally do heavy manual work without getting injured. I find I have very few aches and pains from all this work when I am hitting the gym regularly. I recently lifted my 75-pound dog into an elevated bath tub, and was pleased that I was able to do it without a problem. I want to be active and strong into my old age, and this is the foundation for that. I like that even at my age, I can comfortably sit on the floor and pop right up to standing. All this is due to they gym.

Another benefit of the gym for me is mental. The obvious part about feeling good about how I look is one thing, but that is minor compared to the other mental effects. I feel much more competent, confident, positive, friendly, tolerant and happy with regular gym workouts. Without them, I start to feel negative, irritable and unable to solve problems. When I've missed a few workouts, I leave thinking "I needed that" and "why did I do that to myself?" (i.e skip workouts). So part of fitting fitness into my schedule has been changing the way I view it. I no longer see it as a vanity thing, it's a health and quality of life thing.

My other challenge in getting to the gym has been coming to terms with the fact that the gym is the best use of those few hours every week. Like most people, I have a loooooong to-do list that I am perpetually behind on. As fast as I can finish things more come in. It's a never ending treadmill of trying to stay current. On top of this, I have a fixer-upper house, which after 3 years is still very rough and in a lot of ways uncomfortable. We have no real window treaments or permanent flooring. I am embarrassed by the bare dirt in our front yard. The walls are a patchwork of paint, spackle, drywall mud and holes. We still have many boxes in the garage simply because the spot where the contents need to go within the house isn't done yet. Given this, I was finding it hard to justify spending time at the gym that could be spent moving the house forward. But again, after looking at the contrast between how I feel with and without, it's clear I need to go. It's also been an acceptance that no matter how much I give up in personal life, the house will be in this state for an indefinite, but long period. I cannot sacrifice my health to shave a little time off the process.

Once I came to view the gym as non-negotiable in my schedule, it became easier to fit it in. My gym appointments with myself get sheduled first and everything else fits in or falls off afterwards. I wouldn't blow off a dentist appointment because I needed to work on the house, and now I treat my gym workouts the same way.

Best of luck with your fitness goals in the New Year!






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Help a charity at no out-of-pocket cost to you

I saw this great tip on the Fly Lady mailing list (www.flylady.net). A woman wrote in saying that her grocery store was giving away a free turkey, and invited shoppers to fill in a ticket for the drawing at the cash register. Instead of her own name, she filled in the name of a charity that helps needy families. What a great idea! One of my grocery stores lets you enter a drawing for a gift certificate if you bring your own bags. I can't wait to fill in the name of our local food bank! Be sure to have the contact information for whatever organization you want to help.




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Need last minute gifts?

Here's a great last minute gift you can give from your computer! It's clutter-free, sweatshop-free, and very valuable. Sponsor an animal at Best Friends Animal Society for $25. You get to choose which animal you sponsor, and it was fun (and sad) to look through all the stories. Your greeting, along with the animal's bio is delivered to the recipient via email (printable if you need it too).

Happy giving!

Sponsor an animal at Best Friends Animal Society








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