Well, almost all!

Got test results back today.  My liver enzymes had been escalating, but my last test was SO MUCH BETTER!  (Amazing what a 25-pound weight loss can accomplish!)

Liver Enzymes:

• AST was 28 (normal is 10-35) down from 179

• ALT was 45 (normal is 6-40) down from 202

My Triglycerides went down from 320 to 166 (still high)

Cholesterol went up slightly (including HDL which is a good thing), and is understandable as I was taken off the cholesterol medication because of my high liver enzymes.

Everything else is normal   Even my glucose.  My next A1c should be good, too

I don't want to take any chances with my liver enzymes going back up though, so I'm going to still refrain from any alcoholic beverages whatsoever, as well as anything containing Acetaminophen (Tylenol).

I have very fine hair, which, because of my age, is beginning to thin out some.  I found a great solution that I thought I would share.  I have tried wigs, but they just seem fake and are never big enough for my ginormous head - so are always uncomfortable. 

Here is my first solution - works for dressy or casual - a clip-on ponytail:

And my second solution, which I suppose could work for dressy or casual.  An elastic bun:

Now I don't leave the house without one of them.  Everyone thinks it's my hair.  At a party last weekend I was wearing the clip on ponytail and someone said "Wow, your hair has really grown since the last time I saw you!" and realistically, my ponytail would have been just as long, but not nearly as thick (about the width of a pencil is more like it!)

I bought this Judith Leiber purse on ebay several years ago and used it once.  I think I'll put it back on ebay.

I joined Weight Watchers a couple years ago - right after they started the Points Plus programs.  This program with its all you can eat fruits didn't work for me as a diabetic. I really need to count carbs, not points.  I sold the whole set of these books at my garage sale I think.

This is Roger signing for our dinner at the Bavarian Inn in Frankenmuth.

Picked up these pictures at the Renaissance Festival last summer.

This is me recording a training video for work.

I sold my spinet piano in the garage sale and bought this electronic piano

I'm taking guitar lessons and because of my limited range of motion in my right shoulder, I needed a narrower guitar, so I bought this CF Martin guitar.  One of the things I like about it is the matte finish so I don't have to keep wiping off the fingerprints.

A fellow Xangan made this "J" art for me.  I took it to a framing place to have it framed in a shadow-box style frame.  It should be ready Monday. 

And finally, a plug.  I am a red strider.  I will be walking in September in support of finding a cure for diabetes.  If you'd like to donate to this worthy cause, I'll be forever grateful! You can donate here: My Stepping Out Page

One of my dear friends posted a blog showing the shoes she wore to dinner with her "Rocker Babe" dress.  It inspired me to write about shoes (one of my favorite things to buy and wear)

Several years ago I fell twice while wearing platform shoes. I decided my 'high heel' wearing days were over.  I limited myself to 1.5-2" heels.

Then I saw these - I added them to my wish list when they were $79.  I never thought I would actually buy them.  A couple weeks ago they were $35 so I bought them (haven't worn them yet):

My sister Debbie talked me into buying an orange sequined tank with an orange overshirt because she said orange was going to be the hot color this summer.  So I bought these shoes to wear with my white jeans and orange tops.  I wore them and found them to be quite comfortable.  Not surprisingly, they just didn't have any bend/give in the arch like I'm used to:

The other day Roger and I were at Kohl's and they had these shoes on sale (except in light brown) so I bought them - I wore them and found them about the same as the orange ones regarding comfort and fit:

I love these shoes, and even picked them up once to try on, but changed my mind.  The heels are just too spiky:

I WISH I could wear these, but I'm not going to chance it.  They have 5 3/4" heels and even with the 1 3/4" platform, 4" is still way too high!

And just for comfort I bought these.  I already had a multi-color pair and a blue pair.  They are the most comfortable shoes I've ever owned.  I can wear these shopping all day when I used to have to wear my athletic shoes.  I'm wearing my multi-colored pair now

All of these shoes came from Kohl's except the top pair, which I ordered online from Naturalizer.

A couple years ago I wrote a blog entry about one of my oldest and dearest friends. (On my Kallioph account.)

Later, I wrote an entry here about her marriage and the lack of respect her husband gave her.

She finally had enough and left him.  Theirs was one of the rockiest marriages I have ever seen.  But one thing I knew for sure, he was a narcissist.  His entire world revolved around himself.  He would only engage in conversation if he and his greatness was the subject being discussed.  He had no respect for others, seeing himself as superior.  Therefore, he had no respect for his wife.

Here are the latest examples:

In April, Sheri and I were involved in a chorus competition.  We took first place in our division.  When we walked off the stage, Roger was there waiting for me, but Sheri's husband was off somewhere talking on the phone to someone he worked with many years ago discussing the building they were in and how he was the designer of the walls (he works in architecture.)  He spent 45 minutes on the phone, and didn't even come out to the lobby to look for his wife.  Needless to say, she was pissed off and hurt.  She saw how Roger grabbed me, hugged me and congratulated us on our win.  He was proud of us.  I think that is something she has never experienced from her husband - pride in any of her accomplishments.

Last fall, we took a trip together to Chicago.  He is not supposed to be drinking for many different reasons.  He bought a half gallon bottle of scotch and spent most of the weekend in a drunken stupor.  He almost got into a fight with someone on the street, and tried befriending some of the homeless that walk the streets late at night.  The last night we were there, the concierge called her room and told her that her husband was found by police passed out on the sidewalk and they had him in an ambulance.  She went down to get him - totally embarrassed and devastated by his behavior.  He was missing a gold bracelet.  He was still drunk at 9am when we went to leave the hotel to drive home.  He was loud and obnoxious in the hotel hallway.

More recently, Sheri had to retire because of a disability.  The company threw a retirement banquet for all the people who were retiring this year.  David went with her, but because she was one of the guests of honor, he was bored, and spent most of the time sulking because he wanted to be somewhere (anywhere) else.

So when she told me she had left him, I wasn't surprised.  In fact, I was almost relieved.

I'm not going to offer her any advice (unless she asks for it.)  But I am here for her. 

This is a size chart from a pretty well known young women's store.

Look at size 0.  That was me in the when I was 25.  I wore a size 7!!!  I measured 32-24-34 in this picture.

No wonder our society is getting more and more obese!  What used to be a size 18 is now a size 12. So when they say Marilyn Monroe was a size 14, I'd say by today's standards, that means she was a size 6 - because those are the measurements I had when I wore a size 14 in college (after gaining the freshman 10 - well for me it was 20).

BTW - I've posted this picture more than once and for anyone wondering, yes, it's Photoshopped.  I didn't touch me at all.  I Photoshopped out the refrigerator in the background that I was standing near and made the whole background the color of the wall I was standing against.  The wall was supposed to be "white" but was nicotine brown.  So glad I gave up that nasty habit!  I just couldn't photoshop out the blurriness - this was taken with a cheap 110 camera.

Roger, my sister Deb and I went to the cemetery yesterday to put flowers on my sister Melanie's grave.  It would have been her 54th birthday.  While we were there we also put flowers on my mom and dad's graves (the white vase in the background with the red flowers) and my brother Rick's grave (to the right but not visible in this picture).  That is half my family.  Deb tied a card to the purple balloon that said "Happy Birthday Mel, Miss you so much!" and we let it go.  We watched it until it was no longer visible in the sky.

Next weekend I am having a garage sale.  I decided all of my big clothes are going.  No saving them "just in case" I gain the weight back.  Gaining it back is not an option.  Especially considering I still have 30-40 more pounds to go. 

I'll admit, I'm a fence sitter.  I also prefer to have my head buried in the sand. In my universe, all things are fair, everyone gets along, and there is no need for lawyers, police, or politicians.

For instance...

Sports

When I lived in Chicago, people asked me, "Are you a Cubs fan, or a Sox fan?"  I'd just answer "Yes."  Of course, they would expect me to make a choice.  My thought was they both were Chicago teams, they played in different leagues, so why not be a fan of both?  That train of thought is almost sacrilegious.  You HAVE to pick one.  I just preferred to sit on the fence.  Or now that I've moved back to Michigan, I don't have to sit any more since Michigan has only one baseball team.  So now I am back to being a Tigers fan.

But then, I get asked, "Are you a Michigan fan or a State fan?"  I just answer "Yes."  Of course, they want me to make a choice.  So I choose to root for whichever team scores when I watch the game (whether it be football, basketball, or whatever) - they are both Michigan teams and I am always happy to see either team do well.  But when they play each other, I am told I HAVE to come down off the fence.  Since I refuse, I am usually asked politely to leave the room until the game is over.

Politics - normally I won't blog about politics.  I'm not a democrat, nor am I a republican.  I'm somewhat a libertarian, but in their view, I am not a libertarian, either.  So here is my view.  I want a strong military to protect our borders.  I don't necessarily want to protect anyone else's borders, but I would like to prevent our enemies from getting too big.  (like back in the cold war when we would fight someone to prevent the spread of communism)  although now I don't really care, as long as they leave us alone.  I also don't want the government to tell me what I can do in my own home, as long as I am not hurting anyone.  I'm not talking about running a meth lab.  I'm not really even sure what I'm talking about here.  I don't do any recreational drugs, but I guess if I wanted to smoke a joint in my own house, as long as I was not hurting anyone, I should be able to.  (Smoking anything around children hurts them, so that would be where the government would be protecting someone from their enemies.)  I also want the state to provide police and fire protection - and regulated.  I don't like the amount of power-hungry police antics I read about in the paper on a daily basis.  Hmmm.... I want to be able to make the choice as to whether or not I want an abortion, if it came down to it.  (I am past the age of child-bearing, but I would likely NOT opt for an abortion - but I would want that to be MY choice.)  I want to be responsible for my own retirement.  I want the government to stop taxing me 15% of my wages (my share and my employers share - all my share if I'm self-employed) for an insurance policy that may or may not be available when I decide to retire.  I set up a 401(k) and I could be putting that 15% there instead of in the government's incapable hands.  I also give to charities.  Charities who do more for poor people than the government ever should. 

Charity - another place where I'm on the fence.  I give.  A lot.  I also support "charity begins at home" by making sure my immediate family members don't need charity.  For instance, my sister gave the home she couldn't afford on her salary to her daughter and moved in with me, rent-free, while she is going to school and learning a new trade, to hopefully find a decent-paying job.  It helps both of us.  She has a place to stay while saving money and I'm not porting money into her bank account to help her pay her bills anymore.  If everyone took care of their own, as much as they could, there would probably be much less need for government welfare programs.  I know there are some people who absolutely need it.  And that's where I stray from being both libertarian or republican, because I can see having temporary programs for those in need.  But even my sister, who died from pancreatic cancer, got more help from charities than she ever got from the government.  That shows that if one does enough research, they can find help without expecting the government to provide for them. 

I believe in life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.  I don't believe in entitlement.  Just because I am a US citizen, that does not mean I'm entitled to a house, car, job and medical care.  I AM entitled to pursue those things, though.  I can choose my own line of work.  And throughout my life I've chosen MANY lines of work.  I don't drive a Ferrari because I can't afford it.  Hell, I don't drive a Dodge Charger because I am more on a Dodge Avenger type of budget (had to throw that in there because Roger works for Chrysler lol).  I don't think I am OWED a car.  I live in a pretty nice house, because I worked hard all my life and finally can afford it.  I don't have a pool, though, because I can't afford it.  I am only "entitled" to this house because  I worked for it and can afford it, not because the government owes me a place to live.

Enough about politics.

Religion.  Here I am not on the fence at all, really.  To each their own.  Don't try to convert me and I won't try to convert you.  I am athiest. I don't believe there is anything more than what we have already.  I think religion was man-made to provide a reason for living (and ultimately dying.)  But there are people out there with a very strong faith that something else out there exists, and I respect their beliefs.  I will not try to convince them otherwise, even though many time they try to convince me!  However, something I think I have in common with those who have religion is my system of morals and values.  Sort of.  I believe in treating everyone with respect.  I trust everyone until they betray that trust, then it will be very difficult for them to gain it back.  I treat people with dignity.  I do not get nasty with people in the service industry.  You will never see me yell at or belittle a waiter or waitress, or a store clerk, cashier, etc.  If I don't like the service I have gotten, I will take my business elsewhere in the future.  I may write them a letter explaining why I am unhappy.  I guess I try to live by the golden rule, which I think is the basis for pretty much every religion (it's in the details where they go separate ways).  Really, there is not much difference in my beliefs and a Judeao-Christian's beliefs.  I just believe in one less god than they do.

This should be my one and only post about politic and religion

Roger and I are going to see Chickenfoot tomorrow night in Chicago.  This will be my second time seeing Sammy Hagar and I've never been a fan.  But the Chickenfoot CD I got Roger for Christmas has some pretty good off-genre stuff on it. 

For example - I've heard a country song called "I like this bar" done several times at karoake (I don't listen to country, so that is the only way I'd ever hear it.) and Sammy did it on this CD.  There are a few country type songs here.  It's a pretty good cd. (Here is a link to the song on youtube: http://youtu.be/dzR3P9OWL3E)

So, I AM looking forward to this concert.  The last time I saw him was a double-headliner - Aerosmith was also there. 

I guess going to two concerts would have to make me a fan.

Yesterday I had my annual mammogram.  While the technician was taking the pictures she asked me to hold my breath.  Not for very long, just a few seconds.  But twice I felt myself on the brink of passing out.  Kind of scary.  Then tonight at chorus practice, I felt faint several times. 

I wonder if you can get a home oxygen saturation test kit.  With my allergies, my sinuses have been draining into my lungs at night and I can feel them filling up with fluid, but when I was at the doctor's office Tuesday she listened to my lungs and they sounded clear.

Oh well, in the meantime, I'm just not going to hold my breath, sing or anything that will make me feel light headed.  I took a Mucinex this morning.  I'm hoping that will help.