Year 3000

Is anyone else disappointed that we're not living it up Jetson style? I am. I have been waiting years for my car that flies and for my robotic television that tells me what outfit will look good for every occasion.

I do kind of wish that there were technologies that would diminish our need for money... you know, like tele-porters, so that we wouldn't have to spend money on gas and transportation, we could just teleport from place to place.

Then again, maybe some of our more conveniences are more of a hindrance than a help. Me and my friend Kelley were having a discussion one day about the movie Wall.E and how it pretty accurately depicts the future that we as a nation are headed to. Relying on technology to make all the right choices for us is very scary.

I personally would LOVE to have a robot maid, but I would be afraid that it would teach me that it's okay to be lazy and to rely on technology to teach me discipline.

After finding out I had pre-diabetes, I made a conscious choice to make changes to my diet, to my lifestyle and my habits to promote a healthier body, so that I wouldn't have to live with diabetes. And it's going great!

But it also makes me think about other things I've been so negligent about. Like taking care of the environment. And maybe it's just because of living in such a green city as Seattle, but I find myself being more environmentally aware. I'm not saying that I'm this super massive uber "greeny" or a major tree hugger, but I'm learning to do little things here and there to help save a world that my nieces will grow up in. :D

I used to tease my friend Stacey because she was reading this book about "going green" and some of the things just seemed so extreme. But she challenged me to do just 3 things, and be consistent with them. So I am.

1. I use the public transportation system
2. I recycle
3. When I go shopping, I use cloth bags and not plastic.

It doesn't kill me, but it helps me be more aware of things. Now that I am eating more healthy, and taking better care of myself, and losing weight, I feel a greater confidence, and when I do things that I know make a difference in such a simple way, it feels great! So I am challenging you to do 3 things...consistently...to help the environment. They don't have to be huge. Just do something to help better yourself and the environment. Because when the year 3000 rolls around, I don't want my nieces to be floating around in chairs, weighing 300 pounds, lazying about just going through the motions. I want them to care as well, and be able to go on walks and give back to their community.



for ideas: http://www.earthshare.org/green-tips.html

a tale of three fingers...

So today's free clinic experience was quite interesting! So I woke up early to take the bus to Lake City (just a smidge north of Northgate where I live) and I walked to the free clinic. What I didn't know is that the free clinic is part of the Northwest Community Center, which is also where the Northwest Food Bank is. So I finally work my way around the lines for the food bank to get to the free clinic, which is only open on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. So I get there, and there's a big sign on the door that says GOVERNMENT ISSUED ID AND PROOF OF RESIDENCY REQUIRED. Of all of the things I brought with me...the only thing I DIDN'T bring was proof of residency. :(

...did I mention that when I called, they said nothing about bringing proof of residency? just thought i'd mention that..

So I take the bus back home, to go get the proof of residency...and then I take the bus back. I'm seen by the nurse who is super sweet and friendly and I go through the rundown with her. So then she takes my blood pressure and she says it's a little high. Then she goes to give me the blood sugar test...you know...the one where they stick your finger with a needle and put blood on the test strip? yeah..did i mention i HATE needles and I almost always cry...even though I'm 26? yeah.

So she pricks my finger, does the test strip thing, and the machine won't read the results and gives an error message.

So then she gets a different machine, and pricks the same finger to get the result.

And the machine doesn't work.

So then she brings the doctor in, and he asks what she did, and walks her through some things...

And pricks me again on a different finger. And they get the error message and decide to call the pharmacy to get new test strips because they think there's something wrong with the test strips.

So they send me 2 blocks down the road to pick up some new test strips and a coding device for the machine at Bartell's Drugstore. And I get back...and they have to prick me again. ugh... needles...i hate 'em.

So they finally get test results and it's good news: I DON'T HAVE FULL ON DIABETES- I JUST HAVE PRE-DIABETES!! Which, I can BEAT! And the nurse really gave me some good tips and explained a lot of stuff to me and really was so encouraging! It was great! So I'm going to be slowly changing up my meal habits and starting next week, I'm going to be going to get a gym membership. Along with the membership, I'm setting up a workout plan on Gyminee (thanks for always posting your awesome story/results, Brian S.!) and working hard to lose weight and keep it off! :)

I'm so excited that I have FAIR WARNING and can do something about it! PTL!