Tag: half hour

Writing Books

On By Michel McDonaldIn Books2 Comments

I started writing my autobiography again on my netbook using SoopBook.  I was using just a regular word processor before but it seems easier using SoopBook since it uses the WordPress blogging platform that I use to write my blog with.  It’s easier to do it when I’m using something that I am familiar with.

I have 3 1/2 chapters written down so far.  It has been a little taxing on my emotions having to go through each and every memory.  What is even more difficult is having to remember when each memory happened.  So many things happened and it was so many years ago that sometimes the memories just bleed into each other and I can’t remember which event happened first and second and even in which month or year.  I am doing my best to remember but these things take a lot of time to write.

I have sort of veered off to another book that I wanted to write.  I figured that if I’m going to have an autobiography, I should probably be known as a writer first.  So I am writing a short story about an Indigo Child named Henry who has a premonition about something that will greatly impact his life and he has to stop it from happening before he loses everyone he loves.  It’s not going to be a huge novel, think of it as a half hour episode of the Twilight Zone.

I wrote the first chapter today and I have many more ideas for the second chapter in my head but I will have to get to it tomorrow.  It’s really a heart breaking story and every time I think about what I’m going to write I start to cry because I know how it will end lol.

I don’t even know where this story came from, it just popped into my head out of nowhere.  I was trying to read a book and I just couldn’t focus on what I was reading because I had this big story churning in my brain and I was just thinking, how can I be reading this book when I need to be writing this amazing story about this amazing little Indigo Child?

It’s going to be a Halloween story so I hope to be finished with it before or on October 1st 2011.  It will be my first ever story that I have ever thought of so be easy on me when you criticize me because I’ve never written a story before.  Of course when I have it published I will link the ebook in my blog so all 5 of my readers can get first dibs lol.

I’m hoping that this little short story will get bigger and end up being a novel instead of a short story but we will have to see how many twists and turns my brain can think of.  I am giving it a title that will be open to a second book, maybe even more, who knows.  We will see.

Gossip Queens on Logo

On By Michel McDonaldIn Gay, TVLeave a comment

Tonight was the series premiere of The Gossip Queens on Logo. I heard about this from Loni Love on Chelsea Lately and luckily we have the Logo channel so I was able to watch it.

They have 4 panelists which is semi similar to Chelsea Lately. They aren’t sitting at a table with bar stools but rather in chairs. The first segment it’s just the 4 panelists talking about whatever they’re gonna talk about then the 2nd, 3rd and 4th segment they have a different guest to gossip about the stars who sits in the middle of the 4 panelists.

The difference between the Gossip Queens and Chelsea Lately is that the Gossip Queens go through the topics very quickly, they don’t hover on one or a few topics for an entire segment as they sometimes do on Chelsea Lately. No disrespect to her show but the queens are quicker about it.

Since tonight was the very first episode, I’m not quite sure if the panelists will be different every night, although I’m sure they will be with the exception of Loni herself but I guess we’ll see now won’t we?

The show is on week nights at 7pm on Logo. I was afraid that I’d miss it most week nights because I have shows on the SyFy channel at 7pm a couple of nights per week but fortunately it repeats at 1pm the next day. It also repeats at 3am but I don’t think I want to stay up until 3am to watch a half hour show lol.

If you missed the first episode or you don’t have the Logo channel, don’t worry because you can also watch full episodes on the website The Gossip Queens on Logo.

Discouraging

On By Michel McDonaldIn Cycling, Diet, ExerciseLeave a comment

I bought my new bike wheel on April 13th, I think.  My first ride was on April 14th so I’m going to assume it’s the 13th when I got the wheel.  I have 2 weeks worth of riding in my log which technically is only 3 days per week.  But in those 2 weeks I haven’t lost 1lb.  It’s a bit discouraging when you ride so far and get no results from it.

I guess in all fairness I wouldn’t lose the weight so easily with only 3 days per week but I’ve just stared exercising again so it’s not going to be easy on my legs to just get back into the routine again.  I mean, when I first started riding last year I only rode for half a mile before my legs were just killing me because I hadn’t ridden in so many years.  And it took me 2 weeks just to get to the point where I was riding for 6 miles a day.  Then I went up to 10 miles a day then next thing you know I was able to ride 18 miles.  That of course was only 2 days that I did that.  I knew it was too much so I went back to 10 miles per day.

My point is that I’ve started up again going 10 miles a day instead of easing myself into it.  So it’s a bit discouraging that 30 miles a week gives me no results.

That first week that I was riding Darrin got his check on that Friday so he wanted to go to Hometown Buffet on Sunday for dinner when he got off work.  Then the very next day was his day off and he took me to China Town Buffet.  Oh and plus we went to Taco Bell.  I knew I wasn’t going to lose weight that first week but come on, the buffets and Taco Bell were a bit much for someone who is working so hard to lose weight.

The 2nd week I wasn’t even trying hard enough to eat right.  I’d have a bowl of cereal for breakfast or some days just toast then go ride and eat a Tiger’s Milk bar when I got to the half hour mark when I took my break to give me the strength and energy to get back home.  But then I’d come home and I was so hungry that I’d end up eating 2 sandwiches.  Some days I’d eat a whole box of Macaroni and Cheese (cooked of course duh lol).  That’s definitely not good for trying to lose some weight.

I’ve taken the last 2 days off.  The day before yesterday I took off because I had ridden 2 days in a row and my legs just needed a break.  Then that day I couldn’t breathe through my nose so I took yesterday off thinking I was coming down with a cold but I was fine.  I’m still a little stuffed up.  But I’m taking today off too because it’s Chips day off.  Plus our dog doesn’t seem to be doing too well for some reason.  I don’t know whats wrong with her.  She might be constipated or she might be sick.  We can’t take her to the vet so we’re watching her.

This week I have to really focus on what I eat and I have to try hard to get motivated to ride because I don’t want to be discouraged.  I need to lose this weight.  We’re talkin 90lbs here that I have to lose.  I have to try so hard to eat less to shrink my stomach so that I get full faster so I don’t overeat.  I’m going to try the best that I can.  I don’t have any money until Friday though so I have to eat what we got in the house.  I’m going to buy a head of lettuce though to try to eat some salad for lunch today and maybe for dinner too.  That should help start getting my stomach smaller.

I think one of the things that is stopping me is the stress from thinking about it too hard.  They say that stress raises your Cortisol levels which makes it harder to lose the weight.  I’ve been documenting my every move (my rides that is) so maybe that is causing more stress than anything.  Plus the stress every time I weigh myself.  UGH!

I think the new plan should be to write down all the info from the bike computer but not think too much about it.  Try my best to start eating salads and maybe even sliced cucumbers and carrots etc.  Just eat veggies as much as possible to help with my hunger pangs.  And maybe put the scale in the back of the car so Darrin takes it to work with him so I don’t have any way of weighing myself every day.  Just do my weekly weigh in.  Or maybe a month weigh in.  That should help if I only weigh in once a month.

Oh that reminds me.  (I’m sorry, this post is getting too long.)  A few years ago I think I was 212lbs and so I started eating salads.  I wasn’t restricting myself on what I put in it.  I put sliced olives, hard-boiled egg or tuna, cucumbers, carrot and I used the salad mix (not head of lettuce) and I used ranch dressing.  I didn’t weigh myself at all for 3 months and I got down to 170lbs.  All of a sudden I weighed myself and that was the end of the weight loss.  Weighing myself put stress on me to keep losing weight so I was constantly weighing myself and the weight started coming back on.  Maybe I should just act like I’m not trying to lose weight and eat the salads again but not weigh myself ever again lol.

Dentist Today

On By Michel McDonaldIn Doctor, HealthLeave a comment

I went to the Dentist (Western Dental) on Saturday last week because the pain in my tooth was so unbearable and they wouldn’t see me without a medical release.  So I had to wait until Monday, got it, they saw me, did a partial root canal (they didn’t have to do a full one because he got the decay and it wasn’t near the soft tissue so no need to finish) and filled the tooth and I made an appointment for Tuesday.

Yesterday I go in and he fills in my broken tooth on the bottom but same side of the mouth as Monday.  No problem, made an appointment for today.

Today comes, I go in and I wait for 30 min in the waiting room and Nurse Ratchet calls Mr. McDonald.  Normally they just say my first name.  So I go in, she doesn’t let me sit down yet, she asks why I’m here, I tell her root canal and I point at my top left tooth.  She says there is no authorization for a root canal.  She looks at my papers and says we don’t even have your doctors authorization.  I said look some more.  She looks and finds it.

She pushes the button on the chair to lower it so I can sit down and she says Mr. McDonald you were here at 10am, can I ask why you were here so early?  And I said uh, that’s my appointment time.  She says well the doctor isn’t even scheduled to be here until 11am.  What the hell does she expect me to do?  I don’t know their dentists schedules.  They didn’t email me with his full schedule lol.

Then the white devil, yes, that’s what she is, the white devil, starts setting everything up being her bitchy cheerful self.  She tells me well he won’t be here for another half hour what would you like to do?  What the hell is she asking me?  They normally sit you in the chair and keep you waiting for an hour anyway so uh hello?  Just leave me here and go run over some puppies, I don’t give a crap.  Do what you normally do.  She continues setting me up and she goes to put the paper on my chest, the bib if you will.  But instead of clipping that chain with roach clips (yes, I said roach clips) she tucks it into my shirt at which point 1 eyebrow raises and I look from side to side and she starts giggling from my facial expression.  She informs me they don’t have any clips.

So 11 comes and the dentist comes in and he’s arguing with her about what I’m here for today and he comes to me and tells me he is out of gloves and that I can either wait until 3pm or come back this evening because he doesn’t know when they are coming in.  Excuse me?  3pm?  I’m not going to sit there with Ms. Sunshine for 4 more hours.  No, I’ll reschedule.

So I go back on Friday.

Bidding For Bike Light

On By Michel McDonaldIn CyclingLeave a comment

I’m bidding on a Bicycle Generated Light System for my bike.  It’s starting bid is only $4.99 and my max bid is $10 so I hope I win.  It’s basically the same as the other one I talked about yesterday but just a different person is selling it and it’s probably a different brand.  It looks brand new because it looks like the packaging is still in tact.  This is what it looks like…

Update:  I won this item for $6.74, shipping is free.  It was $4.99 but in the last half hour of the auction someone made it go up to $6.74, my highest bid was $10 which is why I won.  But I have a feeling that this seller created a 2nd screen name on eBay to raise the price for shipping purposes.  Which is fine, I don’t care.  It says on the page that shipping is free and it says local pick up so I have a feeling it’s free if you are in the same city but if you ask him about it then he raises the bidding amount to cover the cost.  I did ask him about it (or her, I don’t know) but got no response.  I sure do hope I get a response.  If it doesn’t show up in the next week then I can give negative feedback but I have a feeling I will get it because this person has 100% positive feedback.  He/she wouldn’t do anything to ruin that.

Great Minds Think Alike

On By Michel McDonaldIn Daily BlogLeave a comment

Darrin and I have been together for 14 years.  We are psychically linked to each other for some reason.  Mostly I will be thinking something and he will just blurt it out and there has only been 1 time when I said something that he was thinking.  It’s usually him reading my mind.

Like for example a half hour ago I was going to change all the music on my playlist on MySpace and I knew I wanted Gavin DeGraw’s Chariot album so I grabbed my Dell DJ Mp3 player to look up that album so I can put all the songs in my playlist and he asked what I was doing so I told him and he said Gavin DeGraw.  OMG HELLO!  How did he know I was going to put Gavin DeGraw on there?

I tell you it is so spooky that he says what I’m thinking all the time.  The one time I said what he was thinking was a couple of weeks ago when I was sick.  I handed him my debit card and said call Pizza Hut, I don’t feel like cooking anything and he said OMG I was just thinking that.  LOL.  It’s like that all the time here.