Apple Picking

10 Weeks and 7 pounds into Weight Watchers, I went to the Self magazine website for a splash of inspiration. It is loaded with playlist suggestions for a workout, from Beethoven to Beyonce. And with one quick key stroke you can purchase them all iTunes. Grrrrr.

It should also be said that while I am open to lots of new music, when I'm exercising I don't want any surprises. So I took a stab at a mix of music that I like in varying rhythms to accommodate for a speed and resistance-combined elliptical workout. It has been fun to find out that I can actually get moving to something other than club re-mixes.

400 calories in 35 minutes (i.e. 4 activity points in WW language)!!!!! Here's my choices, love 'em, hate 'em. Whatever. They're workin' for me:

Sailin' Shoes - Hey Hey Julia - Sneakin' Sally - Robert Palmer
Son of a Preacher Man - Joan Osbourne
Dark Hollow - Jeb Loy Nichols
She's Got Her Ticket - Tracy Chapman
Bring Me Some Water - Melissa Ethridge & Joan Osbourne (live)
Like The Way I Do - Melissa Etheridge
Steal My Kisses - Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals

I may pop in Chemical Party by Gavin DeGraw as a warm up.
Cecelia, by Simon & Garfunkel is on there too, but I haven't lasted that long yet.

Confused??? Let me explain.
Sailin' Shoes is over nine minutes long and by the time you get to "...tryin to talk double talk, get-myself-in-trouble-talk, catchin' myself in lies..." that you are panting and sweating. Next, crank up the resistance to S of PM and so goes the mix. This is definitely not a running/walking mix b/c it's all over the place. Anyway, have fun!

Things that bear repeating

I was looking at this picture on my desk when I read this. I can barely type through the tears.

One Pound

At the gym this morning, I retreated into the sauna for a few peaceful moments after riding the bike for nearly an hour. The locker room was full of women having just come from a class together. Their mean age was, generously, 75. They were happy and chatty and I thought how lucky they all were to have each other.

Then I heard one woman say, " I read an article this weekend that said that if you have sex 65 times you'll lose a pound" They erupted in laughter and frankly, so did I. When things cooled, one woman queried, "Did they say how active you had to be? I'd think how active you are has a lot to do with things." Another woman added, "No, I don't think you can lie back and think about England and get your 1 pound."

Did you hear that?!

What is that screaming?

No, no, not screaming exactly.

But a bit maniacal.

Maybe a laugh in there?

That may have been a whoop.

Have no fear. It was just me in surreal glee, having left the twins at school for 2 1/2 hours, after having put #1 son on the bus to kindergarten.

Driving back from grocery shopping and the gym with a steaming hot cup of coffee, I realized that I still had Sirius KidStuff on the radio.

Hold Me Closer, Tony Danza

Noah: Mommy, this song is about Princess Fiona & Shrek
Mommy: (confused silence)

background music: Peter Gabriel's In Your Eyes

Noah: Hear it, Mommy? They say (insert deep voice), "Fee - Ona"

Enough is Enough

I met my friend Amber the other day. Her kids are toddlers, mine are pre-schoolers. Hers are still in car seats. Mine fell out and spun into motion like I was driving a clown car. Hers need diapers; mine have only recently stopped dropping their drawers and peeing wherever and whenever the mood strikes them. Instead, we now have to brave the public bathrooms, where they like to touch everything.

So Amber says to me, "Your bag is so small", as she straps on the saddle bags required to take twins anywhere. I say, "yea, you'll get there someday too." I meant that she won't always have a pending crisis caused by the missing critical item. Today, I realized that that is only because I don't really prepare. I have convinced myself that I have only a very very short list of things that must be with me. On our way out of the house today, I gave that a second thought. And this is how it went: "I'll bring snacks - nah they'll be fine till we get home. Ooooo, juice. Two boxs - check. What if they need band aids? What?? We aren't going spelunking!" I rattled down through:

• snacks,
  
• wipes,
  
• clean clothes,
  
• a plastic bag for whatever caused me to need spare clothes,
  
• band-aids,
  
• antibacterial ointment, (if it requires a band-aid, it'll be dirty)
  
• children's tylenol, (if it requires a band-aid, it's going to hurt)
  
• my check book,
  
• a Body Shop catalog, (always prepared)
• my datebook, (somebody might want to book a GNO)
• business cards, (ibid)
  
• camera, (they might be cute)
  
• a tampon, (nice girls look out for each other and mom's always forget stuff for themselves)
• eyedrops (in case I get something in my contacts)

All of these things have a purpose and probably could have seen some use on this outing or the next. They all got nixed. Instead, I went with lip gloss, cell phone and two juice boxes. I did throw in animal crackers at the last minute but only because I want back in for my traveler of coffee.

An Inspiration To Us All

The world lost a truly phenomenal woman yesterday. Anita Roddick pioneered recycling before it was mandatory, created fair trade programs before they were heard of, screamed in outrage over domestic abuse and animal testing before, during and after it was the cause celebre, put her money, energy and loud, articulate voice behind causes for justice, while celebrating women and growing a family and happy marriage.

I was fortunate enough to meet Anita in an intimate group of 20 other women last fall. It was not actually the first time I met her. I actually rode the escalator with her at national conference. She rode the elevator and chatted, just like the non-billionaires around her. She was just a regular person using the power of her gifts to leave a mark in this world. She was brave enough to challenge norms. In fact, her first book is called "Business as Unusual". She was strong enough to keep The Body Shop retail shops out of China, the biggest market on the planet, in protest of violations against human rights.

I feel blessed to have met her. I am proud to be part of the company that started her meteoric rise as a global change agent. I have always believed in social responsibility, business with a soul, fairness and justice. As I prepare to start another business, it is with Anita's inspiration that I build in eco-sensitive methods to as many aspects as possible.

I pray that Anita's messages, activism and glory live much longer than her brief 64 years. On a day that remembers an assault against world peace, let us all remember the tireless activist among us. May anyone who reads this find their voice too and make a difference!

Peace, Anita.