I Gave Up

I'm still fairly out of sorts from being overwhelmed lately. And life doesn't seem to be easing up! Over the weekend I ended up in urgent care after experiencing terrible pain; I was prescribed antibiotics and am feeling a bit better. After pushing through the Sunday Dash, I woke up this morning, made it through the Morning Madness and was walking out the door, only to discover that the car keys were nowhere to be found. You might recall that we carpool. Hubby had left for work really early to make a morning meeting. He took the bus, and left his car for me, but he took one set of keys with him. (The spare, I suspect, he has too although he denies it.) The nanny had already left with my car to take the girls to school, so I was all dressed up, late - after tearing the house apart looking for the keys, and stuck. Feeling the meltdown coming on, I took a deep breath and...gave up.

Changed into my jeans and sweater, logged on to tell the office I would be working from home, and parked it on the couch.

Now I know it's not a huge deal and you're probably thinking "get it together, woman." But it just seems like it one thing after another. What scares me is my reaction to the little mishaps; these days I constantly feel like I am going to fall apart. It's so not like me at all. What's wrong with me?

My 30-Day Shred: Day 1

Ok, so I {think} that I've finally had enough. I'm tired of being unhappy with my weight. I know you've heard it all before, so instead of talking about it, I'm gonna be about it. Today was the first day of my 30-Day Shred. Gotta love that Jillian Michaels. My arms are like jelly and my abs are already tight. I'm really gonna try to stick this one out. Not only is Spring Break coming up at the end of this month, but so is my good friend's wedding - for which I ordered a bridesmaids dress one size smaller than normal! I'm not expecting to ever look like Jillian, but I can definitely do better than I look now. So root for me...

Along with fitting in exercise EVERY DAY, the food is what I anticipate struggling with. I like to eat. I like the way food tastes. And I hate sacrificing. Not a good combination. I carefully planned out my meals and snack for this week as I went grocery shopping yesterday. I was doing great until about 11:30am (sheesh) when Hubby called and asked if I would meet him for lunch. I immediately got nervous because I just knew that I would have better luck staying in my office and eating the spinach salad that I brought into work with me. But, my willpower SUCKS and I met him. I ordered the butternut squash soup which was delicious and quickly Googled the potential calories when I got back to my desk. 300 or so. Not bad. Phew.

And then.

I had a meeting after work and didn't get home until after 7pm. Hubby brought the kids to pick me up at the Metro and decided that we should all go out to eat for dinner. Nooooooooo!!!!!!! And so we ended up at BW3 {that's what the cool kids call it} and I ended up with a iced tea and chicken quesadilla. I ate about half and my stomach hurt. It was probably mental. So anyway, tomorrow is a new day. Here's hoping that I stick to my guns.

Speaking of guns, has anyone else tried the 30-Day Shred?

Heart disease is real! We're wearing RED to support the cause.

I hope you’re wearing RED today in support of increased awareness of heart disease among women – I am! As Fergie mentioned yesterday, last year we participated in the Go Red For Women campaign, along with our awesome friend, Joshilyn over at Faster Than Kudzu, and we had a blast. We were all faced with the stark reality that heart disease is real and very possible and also extremely preventable. We all took small steps to change our lifestyles during the 12-week period and after and we encourage you to get to know your numbers, make small changes in your eating habits and get active – if even for 10 minutes!

Do you know:

• Cardiovascular disease kills approximately 450,000 women each year, about one every minute.

• While 1 in 30 American women die of breast cancer, about 1 in 3 die from cardiovascular disease.

• More women die of cardiovascular disease than the next five causes of death combined, including all forms of cancer.

• Ninety percent of women have one or more risk factors for developing heart disease.

• Only 1 in 5 women believe that heart disease is her greatest health threat.

• Heart disease is largely preventable. In fact, 80 percent of cardiac events in women may be prevented if women make the right choices for their hearts, involving diet, exercise and abstinence from smoking.

Check out the GRFW site for more info and get in the know.

(P.S. I was inclined to write this entire post in red, because red is my favorite color AND I had a worthwhile reason to do so, but I figured you would hate me for it!)

Paint the Town RED

In case you didn't know, February is American Heart Month. Another little-known fact is that heart disease is the leading cause of death for women and men in the United States. Jonesie, Ny and I learned a lot about heart disease last year as participants in the Go Red for Women: Better U program with the American Heart Association.

During the 12-week program we learned to make better food choices, become more active, and research our family histories to determine whether we were at higher risk for heart disease. {You can see our individual stories here}. The thing about heart disease is that it is largely preventable and the smallest changes to your daily routine can make a big impact in the long run.

This Friday, February 5, women across the country are going to wear red to help raise awareness about heart disease. So decide to wear red on Friday and make health your best accessory! For more information on how you can reduce your risk of heart disease, visit the CDC's site or the American Heart Association's Go Red for Women site. You can even sign up for a free Go Red for Women pin! I'll be wearing mine at Blissdom.


*Image courtesy of Unique Vintage, a vintage-inspired clothing and accessories boutique that is supporting the American Heart Association's Go Red for Women movement throughout the month of February by donating 25% of sales from select RED items to the AHA.

Better Tuesdays: Exercise routines

I’ve been waiting for this validation my entire adult life “Like Their Lives, Women's Exercise Passes Through Phases”. Better U kept it real when they posted this link on Facebook yesterday!!! The article discussed a study that found that for many women their ability to keep an exercise routine changes with various phases in their lives - young motherhood, retirement, menopause etc. Hello....haven't we been saying that for ages?

If you remember my post last week, I was (and still am) really discouraged about the fact that I’ve only lost 5 pounds since starting Better U and was ready to quit. I got a lot of encouraging words from readers (thanks everyone) and then I saw this article that gave me a quick pick-me-up.

I am stressed right now with planning Blogalicious; dealing with my 4 year old who won’t listen and is just becoming more and more of a handful; thinking about downgrading my car to save some money when my lifeplan included an upgrade at this time; handling the disappointment that I'm not where I want to be in my career; wondering why I’m 4 weeks late and I’m not pregnant (been to the doctor); and all the other the other day to day stresses that come along with my role.

So I think I understand why I’m not seeing the weight loss that I expected. I’m just too stressed to lose weight! Once I get through this stage, the weight will drop off like magic!

Remember to check out Joshilyn's blog for more on Better U.

Better Tuesdays: Stick a fork in it

As much as I have tried, I think I must pause my journey to becoming a Better Me at this time. This is not the encouraging news that you are looking for on this Better Tuesday, but I just can't figure out how to continue. I've tried over the past couple months to change my diet, eating habits and exercise regime, and as you know, I haven't experienced the weight loss that I expected; especially in comparison to the effort expended. Now, I'm pretty much at a cross roads and I feel too confused and too discouraged to move.

Despite being about 2 weeks behind the program schedule, I trekked along because I felt that I could catch up. Now, I'm 3 weeks behind, only about 5 pounds lighter, it's over 100 degrees in DC and I just can't find the time to devote to myself. I say myself, because I really didn't care too much about keeping up with the program, but I'm also being realistic and the next few weeks are only going to get busier.

This past week I thought not about Better U - I ate whatever, whenever and there was no exercise in sight. I was tired when I got home and what little exercise I was getting (by walking in the afternoon) I could no longer get because it was too hot. Tell me, when/where am I going to find the time? Where am I going to find the motivation?

I hope that I'm just moody or stressed because I can't give up. But that's where I'm at right now...

The highs and the lows

By the time I get this post up it’ll officially be Wednesday and no longer Better Tuesday - but better late than never, right? It’s 3 weeks before we return to Dallas for our health assessments and I’m officially three weeks behind on the program. I don’t know how I got here other than to say … life; and that’s the real life of a mama, wife, attorney, conference planner, blogger, friend and all the other roles that I play. I’ve found it increasingly difficult to login AND do the course work AND try to exercise AND try to eat right – so as with all other things, something had to give.

Because I was so ashamed, I made a concerted effort today to try to catch up a little to the rest of the ladies on Better U. I logged in and there I was at Week 7 while everyone else should be at Week 10 – yikes! I managed to finish up 2 weeks of course work today and I’m proud of myself. Mind you, hubby was working out while I sat on the laptop, but that’s okay. In fact, it’s great.

On a side note, I am so proud of hubby for starting to take his health a bit more seriously. He, like many of us, has put on some weight in the last few years, but of greater concern is the fact that his blood pressure and cholesterol have sky-rocketed as well. His doctor gave him medication and he hasn’t taken them. So, now he’s really trying to eat healthier and exercise as much as he can. I’m not sure whether I had anything to do with his shift in priorities, but I’m happy about it. Ironically, the issues that he face are the program’s focus for Weeks 7 and 8 - cholesterol and high blood pressure (so hopefully he reads my post – yeah, right - who am I kidding, but then again do I even want him on our blog - I think not?)


We know that heart disease doesn’t manifest in the same way in women as it does men, so we have to pay attention to some of the warning signs and get a regular heart health checkup because some of those warning signs are pretty silent too. A couple of those signs are high blood pressure and high cholesterol and there are things that we can do to lower our risks of these two conditions – starting with getting more information. Luckily I don’t have an issue with my blood pressure which was 120/68 when last measured in April. Although it’s probably higher now because my stress levels have shot through the roof with Blogalicious planning! I do, however, have a bit of a problem with my cholesterol. I am in the “Borderline High” category at 207 and I need to bring that number down to 200 or below. I am exercising now (when I can) and I am eating better, so hopefully I’ve succeeded in that category because God only knows that the weight is the same. All I could (realistically) do at this point is keep on keeping on.

I found these tips and fats facts very helpful in better understanding these conditions and I hope you do too!

· High cholesterol has no symptoms. So it's important to have your blood cholesterol levels checked.
· Fat and Cholesterol Recommendation
Saturated Fat =<7% of calories = Choose lean meats, fish (at least twice per week) and fat-free or low-fat dairy products.
Trans Fat = <1 % of calories = Minimize "partially hydrogenated" fats. Choose liquid vegetable oils and soft margarine in place of hard margarine or shortening.
Cholesterol = <300 mg per day = Choose vegetable alternatives to meat, poultry and seafood. Vegetables and whole grains have no cholesterol and are high in fiber, which has been shown to lower blood cholesterol. An average goal is to eat about 25 grams of fiber every day.
· Many women believe that they either have diabetes, or they don’t, but they could have prediabetes (a condition where blood sugar levels are higher than normal, but not yet diabetic) which may cause no symptoms. You can be developing high blood sugar without yet having the diagnosis of diabetes.
· Ways to control stress include: Keep moving! Fuel your body with healthy foods and drink plenty of water; Get plenty of sleep on a regular basis; Practice deep breathing and relaxation exercises; Take small stretching breaks throughout the day; Keep a journal or appointment book to help you identify those tasks and daily demands that are sources of stress; Unplug and take a break from technology Practice personal stress management skills regularly.

Hope you're having a Better Tuesday/Wednesday.

Keeping it Real

We've got about one month left before our follow-up health assessment at the Cooper Institute in Dallas for the GRFW Better U program. I'm not at all excited! In fact, I'm dreading it! I fell way off the program within the last 3 weeks or so and I keep promising myself to get back on and I just can't seem to motivate myself to do it. I have lost a total of 5 pounds - yep, that's it!!! I think that's pretty disappointing and I can't get out of that low. I have been eating better, and I'm exercising. I'm walking about 1.3 miles 4-5 times a week and sometimes I even come home and hit the treadmill. So, why have I only lost 5 pounds? It isn't making much sense to me at all.

I had small triumph this week when I finally measured my waist and I was pleasantly surprised that I've lost 1.5 inches - this is good news because I am back under the 35 inch threshold for concern about heart disease (ladies, you should be concerned about increasing the risks of heart disease when your waist is greater than 35).

To be honest, I would like to see more weight loss and more size lost and that's probably the anchor on my ankle. It's so easy to say just exercise more, but really, when in the world will I find the time. I leave at 8 in the morning and return at 7 at night. When I get home I'm exhausted and then I have to take care of home (and then I'm planning Blogalicious) so where am I supposed to find any more time in my day. Whatever free time I've been able to carve out I'm exercising so what's left? Once again, I'll hope that things can pick up soon.

Go on over to our Better U partner's site for her tips.

Better Tuesdays: The Home Stretch

Holy crap. When did it get to be almost August? it seems like it was just the other day when we embarked on our BetterU journey. I started off so strong: exercising 3 to 5 times a week; eating well; etc. But somewhere around the beginning of July (ok I know exactly when) my heart-healthy habits took a backseat to...life. It's true what they say - being healthy is a lifestyle and the diet choices and workout routines have to be integrated into your every day.

This is hard for me because I tend to abandon the healthy routine when something unusual comes along. This time it was our beach vacation to the Outer Banks that threw me off. Then it was going away to Chicago for BlogHer. It's so hard for me to stick to my diet while away from home. I think it's because I feel like I'm not enjoying myself if I'm not eating what I want to eat and then I'm not really on vacation then, am I? This mentality is killing me! How do I get over it?

I also heard someone talking about how "taking the weekend off" of her diet sabotaged all her progress. I am totally guilty of that. Monday thru Friday I am great. I plan my snacks, my meals, enter my WW points, exercise - but come Saturday I kind of give myself a break for the weekend...and wipe out all of my hard work from the previous week in the process.

So, my BetterU goals for this week are:

Resume my exercise routine. This one is hard because really my only time is in the evening and between getting home from work, making dinner, getting the kids ready for bed and planning Blogalicious, I barely make it to bed before midnight as it is.

Stick it out through the weekend. It's all about maintaining.

Lose at least one pound. I put on 4 of the 8lbs I lost already and it's so upsetting. I'm a yo-yo dieter. I feel like Oprah.

Only poorer.

And without Bob Greene.

Or Art Smith.

Dammit, I'm not like Oprah at all, am I?

Better Tuesdays: Summer Vacation Sabotage

Last week we went on vacation to the beach. And I intentionally suspended my food diet because, well, it's not a real vacation for me if I can't enjoy my food! And eat I did. Hey, I'm just keeping it real. So while I didn't go crazy, I definitely didn't stay within my daily WW points. I had ice cream and North Carolina BBQ ribs and snow crab with butter and ice cream and pancakes and beach fries and ice cream and Italian sausage and ice cream and more snow crab legs with butter and fish tacos and fried mahi mahi and stone crab claws and did I say ice cream?

BUT! I did go for a jog twice once and "hiked" up the tallest active sand dune in the Eastern United States. So that must count for something.

Suffice it to say, I gained back 3lbs last week - eeek! So I am back on the grind. Yesterday I woke up at walk/jogged a mile at 6:30am, had a low fat sushi lunch and a small portion of ziti for dinner (hey, I gotta ease back into it). So pray for me this week. I'm back to eating to live instead of living to eat!

Heart Healthy gym bag winners are ...

And the winners of the Heart Healthy gym bag giveaway are (drumroll please):

LaTonya Richardson, Julie ZS, Nancy from Peter & Nancy

Ladies....please leave a comment with your email addresses.

Finding out where you're at

I can hardly believe that this week is almost over - happy but a little surprised too.

Last week I mentioned that I had plateaued in my healthy me efforts - to be honest, I was really fed up and tired of trying. I haven't lost any weight and my body is still fat. So I decided to stop and repeat Week 5 of the Better U program. I'll end up being a week behind the Justices ... but that's okay because I really need to do this.

So, this week I have 2 handy-dandy tools for you.

1. The BMI Calculator which you can find here.

2. The Calorie Calculator - The best little tool that I have ever found - this will help you figure out how to calculate how many calories you should be in-taking based on your current weight. And the magic is finding out how much is standard for your current weight and then reducing those calories so you can lose weight. Click here for a PDF version of the tool AND all the instructions courtesy of the American Heart Association.

Hopefully I'll have good news for my 6-week check in. I'm hopeful but I'm also realistic!

Backsliding

We're half way through the Better U program and I'm in the same position that I was in a couple weeks ago - stuck!!! I've lost about 5 pounds since I started paying attention to my health, which was the beginning of May (in all honesty, I've lost about 3 pounds since starting Better U).

But, I've reached a plateau. I intend on checking my measurements soon (I can't find a tape measure so add that to my to do/buy list) but the scale has not been good to me.

I will also confess that I haven't been as good as I should be - I've had my birthday, hubby's birthday, hosted a bbq, gone to a few bbqs, had a couple dinners with my out-of-country guest, and had wine (lots of it). So, I'm very much responsible for the plateau.

I have to kick start my regime again - walk every day, take the stairs all the time, get a real workout in at least twice a week. Also, I'm going to repeat week 5 of the program. I could simply go through the program at my current pace, but I think I'll be doing myself a great injustice. So, I am repeating week 5 - luckily, the program is flexible enough to allow you to repeat.

I'm hoping that the next six weeks are better than the first!

Comfort Food

Lately it seems as though devastation is all around me and the most I've been able to do is provide minimal comfort in the form of food.

It all started about 3 weeks ago when one of my close friends was admitted to the hospital for pneumonia. As if that isn't bad enough, she was 8 months pregnant at the time and so the doctors admitted her to the ICU so that they could monitor the baby's health as well as my friend's. She was in the hospital for 9 days, while her husband and 2 young boys were at home. To make matters worse, she wasn't even able to see her kids during her time in the hospital since ICU rules prohibit children on the floor. Her husband was understandably stressed out - and had just started a new job - and I offered to bring him a few dinners to help get him and the boys through the week. It was the least I could do to help out in a teeny tiny way. Thank goodness she's home now and both she and the baby are well.

Then the next week I learned that another one of my friends had to undergo surgery for oral cancer. She is my age and just had her third child about 3 months ago, and so this all came as a terrible surprise to me. I offered to bring her dinner and was so sad to find out that they had to remove a part of her tongue and 37 lymph nodes from her neck to ensure that the cancer was gone. Fortunately, her prognosis is great and her kids are all fine. But wait - there's more. Her husband was deployed to Iraq yesterday, leaving her to recover while caring for a preschooler, toddler and a newborn. So she packed up the family and is moving to Florida to stay with her in-laws for the next 6 months until her hubby returns home.

Just when I thought I had had enough heartbreak to last me awhile, 2 weeks ago - just a week after I had brought them a lasagna dinner to celebrate their new baby's arrival, we found out that our neighbor's baby had liver failure and had to have surgery. Did I mention that the baby is only 8 weeks old? It turns out that she doesn't have a gall bladder and had to undergo a complicated surgery to connect certain organs. Then she contracted an infection as a result of the surgery. She's still in the NICU and can hopefully return home soon.

Add in the news of the DC Metro tragedy (on my train line), Michael Jackson's sudden death and Farrah Fawcett's heartbreaking demise and it's been like there is a gray cloud hanging overheard these days.

So imagine my dismay when another friend of mine just called to say that it looks like she is going to become embroiled in a custody battle over her 4 year-old-daughter. While I am definitely counting my blessings, this is all getting to be more than my bleeding heart, and my love-filled kitchen, can handle.

Better Tuesdays: A little something to get you started

Today is Better Tuesday (better late than never, right) and we’re taking another angle because we’ve got something for you! Something that we hope will get you on your way to Becoming a Better U. We've been urging you to join us on our 12-week journey to becoming more heart-healthy and now we're coaxing you into it. Well, not really, but kinda!

Compliments of the AHA, we’ve got three Better U, Better Me kits just for you! We all received our own kits last week and because we’re trying to get you involved too, we want to share a kit with you.

Each kits includes:

Super-cute tote bag for the gym
BPA-free water bottle
Go Red Grocery Guide to help you make heart-healthy choices at the store
Go Red yoga mat
Our signature red dress pin
Heart-healthy snack, Craisins

The BetterU, BetterMe Kit has a retail value of more than $50.

To enter you must (1) become a follower of our blog; and (2) leave us a comment with your heart healthy tip – could be your recipe or could be a change in behavior. For double entries, join the Better U program (click here) and let us know (you can become a "friend" in the Better U community).

A winner will be chosen at 9:00 a.m. on Monday, July 13.

Better Tuesdays: Hangin' In There

WEEK 4
We are officially 1/3 of the way through the BetterU program and I am pleased to say that I am plugging along as well as can be expected. I have definitely been incorporationg all of the advice and tips provided to us and, slowly but surely, I am seeing results. My exercise regiment (I never had one of those before!) has really started to stick and I notice that I don't feel right if I skip a workout. I also lost another 1lb last week, which is great, but what isn't great is that I know that I probably could have lost another 1lb had I exercised the recommended 5x. I ended up skipping 2 days for reasons that seemed important at the time, but that I now can't even remember.


SETBACK
So that's it. Nothing monumental to report. Just watching my diet, entering my WW points and exercising. I did slide over the weekend during my girls' getaway and ate rich foods high in fat and calories (crab quesadillas, martinis, french fries, hot chocolate, a bacon omelet) because I am WEAK. Or maybe just human. It was like learning to walk. The first bite of the quesadilla was terrible and I felt AWFUL about it. Like I could feel the fat being absorbed by my body. (dramatic?) The second bite was easier and by the end I even threw in a chicken wing. Just goes to show what a slippery slope eating is! Hopefully it didn't set me back too much. I just need to get back on the bandwagon and stay on.


LOVE IN A CUP
Find of the Week: Yoplait Light Fat Free Yogurt. With flavors like Boston Cream Pie, Apple Turnover and Pineapple Upside Down Cake, I can have my dessert and eat it too. Good job Yoplait - I am impressed.


Here's to another solid week!

Better Tuesdays: Progress Report

Hello Week 3!

Gosh time flies when you're not eating carbs.

THE GOOD: I am pleased to report that, since starting the BetterU program, I have been exercising at least 5 times each week. And that my friends, is major considering that I really was not into working out before. My exercise of choice has been the walk-jog regiment, but I have also been incorporating step aerobics and other cardio workouts on FitTV. When it comes to my diet, I've been doing a good job of packing my lunch and snacks for the day and sticking to it. I've also tried to add some form of protein to my breakfast which, just as Dr. Mieres promised, has helped me to feel less hungry throughout the day. Remaining diligent about entering my WW points has been working and I lost 1.8 lbs last week! A small victory, but if I can keep up this pace, I will be over halfway to my goal by the end of this program.

THE BAD: Dinner is still a challenge for me. I crave the comfort foods late in the day. So far, I've been able to hang tough and stick tothe protein and veggies but I did have 2 slip ups: I loooove my spaghetti. I really do. My sauce is off the hook. And so, I caved last week and had some. I was careful to have more sauce than noodles (I measured out 1 cup of noodles), and at least the noodles were whole wheat. I skipped the cheese too. Over the weekend I had thin crust pizza with pepperoni. I caved again, I did. But I had water instead of the root beer that I wanted and added in some mushrooms for posterity's sake. So those are my naughty food confessions for last week. Hopefully I'll have less to report next Tuesday. The other bad thing about this week is that I am definitely conscious of feeling fat. I'm not sure what changed, but I want to get rid of this extra weight and now. Maybe that's a good thing.

FAB FIND: Have you tried The Skinny Cow's Vanilla Caramel Ice Cream Cone???? Divine, i tell you! Dee-viine. With 150 calories and 3g of fat, this is a guiltless treat that tasts like the real thing.


Leave me a comment to let me know how you're doing on your BetterU journey. Along with a visit to Joshilyn's site, hop on over to A Shorter Story where A Shorter Mama is on her way to becoming a BetterHer starting with a fly new 'do!

Basket Case

Please take a look at our bread basket.

The first thing you will probably notice is that it is not actually a basket, but a platter. This is because our bread "needs" have long outgrown our cute, normal-people-sized bread box. Please note that 99% of the items in this bread platter are Hubby's. Let's take an inventory and hear his explanations, shall we?

1. Raisin Bread: For breakfast on occasion.
2. Texas Toast: For French toast.
3. Potato Bread: In case I want a sandwich.
4. Bagels: Again, for breakfast.
5. Dinner Rolls: Snack food.
6. Croissants: For my breakfast egg sandwiches.
7. Whole Wheat Bread (that's actually my sister's)
8. Whole Grain Wraps (those are mine!)

So this is what I have to walk past on a daily basis when I enter the kitchen. Hubby can afford to eat like everyday is his last day on Earth because he is super active and plays basketball for like 9 hours each week. I, however, am an entirely different story. Can someone please fax him the memo?

Bus chronicles

I've been taking public transportation since I started work because I no longer have free parking at my workplace (sucks!). And if you've been following me on twitter you would know how much it sucks. I've started the "Bus Chronicles" because there is ALWAYS something to write about when you're on the bus. The bus is always late, the schedule makes no sense and the people are crazy - crazy yet funny in so many ways. I'm quite often horrified at the things I hear and see. One day I'm going to write a book about these stories - I promise.

Anyway, I really dislike the bus so I decided to start walking to my car whenever possible. It goes in line with Dr. Mieres' advice of finding a way to work in physical activity into your routine - but really, for me, it gets me off the bus!

Good news: I walked on Monday and Tuesday from my office to my car which is parked 1.3 miles or 17 blocks away. It took me about 30 minutes and it sure felt much further than 1.3 miles - but I did it.

Bad news (at least for the Metro system): On Monday, I made it about 9 blocks away and the bus still hadn't come.

Worse news: Yesterday, I made it the entire way in the rain - all 17 blocks and got into my car and crossed the intersection - and not a single bus.

Moral of the story: Look around because there may be things that irk you that you might be able to translate into something to become a better u - disliking the bus has got me off my laurels and walking!