SkiBlue - Daily Battle Log

[SkiBlue]

Monday, 2/1

Meal 1
bulletproof tea

Meal 2
tacos w/ bell pepper shells, salsa, & avocado

Meal 3
steak w/ S&S & seasonings
green beans /w ghee, S&P
Jap. sweet potatoes w/ ghee & salt

Capoeira Practice
30x ginga
Meia lua - meia lua into armada
Cocorinha - cocorinha into negative & explosive up

It’s amazing how much my mood improves when I actually DO STUFF at work. >.< I’ve felt pretty complacent with this new job; I’ve spent most of the year just trying to learn the position and all. So I’ve been taking a bit too much liberty with my down time; instead of taking the opportunity to learn more and increase my skill set, I’ve just been *sigh* lazy. Now that there’s always stuff to do within a certain time frame, I’ve felt much more productive and valuable. I realize that comes with the territory of actually doing something, but it’s been helping my attitude toward the job. While my last job was certainly hella fun, this one can be too, in its own right, I just have to step up to the plate.

I skipped class and opted for practice at home because we needed to go to the grocery store. Having a stash of Good Food is kind of a priority, since it’s too soon after a W30 for me to feel confident winging it. I’ve got stuff to make dinner with, and there’s supplies to make lunches and such, I just need to spend some time on Tuesday cooking.

I got some practice in while the husband contacted his contract agency to say “get me a new job or I will.†He’s been super bogged down by tasks at work that he has no time to do the “extra†stuff that he’s been asked to do (and they won’t let him charge over-time), so he’s paranoid that he’s going to lose his job before his contract is up, even though he wants a new job anyway. I really wish that he would actively look and apply himself (like he used to bug me about all the time two years ago), but instead, he’s passively letting his contract agency find something for him and posting his resume in places. He HATES this job because it’s not a full-time employment gig; he’s a contract worker. I’m sure that if he really tried, he’d find something worth it. But alas, can’t make him do anything that he’s not willing to do. I might have to start looking for positions that he might be interested in/qualified for. I mean, that’s how I found my jobs. Sure, the openings were quite random and lucky, but I tried my hardest when I applied for them.

Anyway, the catalytic converter on my car is busted and still won’t start, so I’m driving the Protege5. Thankfully, it’s warm again, so I’m not freezing without the heat. We’re ordering a replacement and gonna stop by the husband’s parents’ house over the weekend, where his dad can cut out the old one and weld in the new one. I also got all my tax paperwork, so that’ll probably happen this weekend as well. I’d like to get it done ASAP and while I still have money in my checking, in case I owe money.

 

I also updated some progress measurements in the beginning. Yay progress!

[SkiBlue]

Tuesday, 2/2

Out of Bed @ 5AM

Meal 1 @ 5:30AM
bulletproof tea

Training @ 6AM
Bodyweight Circuit

• 2 Rounds
• 20x cocorinha
• 10x negative push-ups
• 20x lunges
• 10x bodyweight rows (w/ straps @ 3)
• 15sec. “plankâ€
• 15 jumping jacks
• 15 gingas

Capoeira Practice

• Meia lua - meia lua into armada
• Cocorinha - cocorinha into negativa & explosive up

Stretching

• Hip flexors x2
• Quad x2
• Frog x2

Meal 2 @ 8AM
2x egg & cheese biscuits

Meal 3 @ 12PM
2x bell pepper tacos w/ salsa

Snack @ 4PM
corn ships & salsa
(unfortunately) 2x cookies

Meal 4 @ 7:30PM
burrito w/ queso, pico de gallo, avocado, rice, & fajita chicken & peppers

In Bed @ 10PM

The morning was great. Training session went well and even remembered to play some capoeira songs during it. Decided to nip my southern biscuit craving in the bud and continue on my merry way for the rest of the day.

Work was intense; there was a lot to do before lunch. After lunch, the Advanced Lab students got introduced to their new experiments, so I literally spent 2.5 hours running around the building, trying to get every request they had. But I loved it. With the way Tim teaches the Advanced Lab, it’s gotta be my absolute favorite course in the Physics Dept. He literally just gives the students “investigate this phenomenon with these supplies†and that’s it. With the running around, lunch wasn’t enough, so I found myself munching on seminar snacks. Ugh. They hurt my stomach.

When I got home, everything just fell apart. Not only did I get home at about 6:45pm, the husband was also working late, so I had no f*ing partner support for dinner. I dragged my feet out to the Mexican restaurant to get take-out around 7:30pm. There wasn’t enough protein in my food to satiate me completely; should’ve gotten the cheaper quesadillas instead. My stomach and head were paying the price of all the sugar and carbs, and this just made my shark brain activation issue WORSE. I was skittering on the edge of falling into PMS pit of despair (I get a combo of cranky and depressed), but last night threw me in and pushed me further than its bottom threshold.

The real icing on the cake was my taxes; I got them started and through the infinite wisdom of the system, I owe over $800 in Fed taxes. WTF. HOW IS THAT SUPPOSED TO BE AFFORDABLE HEALTHCARE?!? Even though I WANTED to get them done after having gotten paid recently to avoid this possible problem, I didn’t know it would be that close to HALF MY PAYCHECK. This was compounded by the fact that my car STILL ISN’T STARTING PROPERLY and needs a catalytic converter replacement (which would’ve been around a $600 fix, but with the husband’s dad being able to fix it himself, it’ll only cost me $100).

I brewed some herbal tea and colored for a half hour before passing out. Because I was so upset and stressed, I was exhausted. From everything.

I really need to go to class today.

[tourennatrix]

Awww *hugs* girl

[SkiBlue]

Awww *hugs* girl

 

[SkiBlue]

Wednesday, 2/3

Out of Bed @ 5:30AM

Meal 1 @ 6AM
bulletproof tea w/ double protein powder

Meal 2 @ 12:30PM
3x bell pepper tacos w/ salsa

Meal 3 @ 6PM
12x chicken nuggets
waffle fries
chocolate chip cookie

I felt slightly better today. Sleep is the great equalizer for me. Adjusting my budget on YNAB to account for this ridiculous tax situation helped soothe come nerves, and I’ve decided to spread out the payment between January’s paycheck (the one I just got) and February’s paycheck (that’ll come at the end of Feb). I won’t be able to do any EXTRA spending or anything this month and next, but at least it’ll work.

I had a double shot of protein powder in my tea to help satiate while I attempted to fast before lunch. Work was pretty sweet today. Dan checked in with me on my 3D printer research, to which I finally found my beast mode and walked around campus to find the Makerspace. It was totally worth it, even if they have stinky Makerbots. Granted, the guy in charge (Brian) hasn’t had the issues with them like I thought. But HE HAD SO MANY TOYS! I can easily see myself getting lost there for an hour (or more) every work day. >.< I think I can finally accept that this year, especially during classes, I’ll be okay with continuing to learn the ropes and be not-as-productive-as-I’d-like, because once the summer hits, I’ll have the time and freedom to do the things I’d really like (expand my skill set, become familiar with the machine shop, start fixing/working on projects, clean and organize my office/the demo room, get involved in the professional club scene like PIRA and AAPT, make myself more useful and valuable… you get the idea).

I *FINALLY* got to go to class. Only three of us, me included; Steven and Troy (formerly known as Andrew; I got his name wrong). I might’ve been slow, but I got through the entire warm-up (though the arch in my left foot felt like it split in the beginning, so I was limping half the time). I almost made it through all the jumping jack variations without having to stop so my calves could extinguish themselves. With such a small class, we got to practice the first and third sequences. Then he taught us a move combo; esquiva lateral into rolê into aú in the opposite direction. That was hard for me, since I rely too heavily on momentum. Need to practice aú from static parallel or something. We combined that with a partner practice where you dodged the compasso with it. The third wheel got to practice either the pandeiro or atabaque during those sessions (the third wheel got to practice bridges on the wall during the sequence practice).

Before the roda, the three of us got a song pop quiz; we all had to clap but one of us would sing a lead song that we knew. I nearly freaked out inside; clapping while singing is something I desperately need to practice. I did okay; I blanked on the song that I really wanted to sing, so I settled for an easy song where the chorus and verses are the same. The roda itself felt like it went well for me; O’Brian had to sit out and play the atabaque, but I did get to game with another advanced student who was very nice about helping out us beginners. I think I read my partners pretty well and was complimented on how my movements are improving. We even learned how to tag into the game properly. >.<

I don’t know what I was thinking this past weekend. I don’t think I was. I’m sorely under-prepared for this week food-wise, which has lead to the slow re-emergence of poor eating habits. The food has not been kind to me; migraines, stomach aches, unhappy gut issues, and probably making worse an already fluctuating mental fortitude and emotional stability due to shark week. It’s making feel more stressed out than normal and quite over-burdened, since I have no help. And I have no time until Saturday to get back on my feet with preparedness. I don’t want to continue to spiral, but I’m not sure what else to do. I kind of hope there’s no Pathfinder game tonight, so I have the time to recharge my Ranger energy with either an extra capoeira class (Angola on Thursdays!!!) or some Sims time (now that I’ve been feeling the Sims itch again).

This must be what moms feel like. ._. And I REALLY WANT MY NEW PHONE! 

[SkiBlue]

Okay, I'm done whining. It's not gonna get me anywhere and sounds horrendous. It's high time I started journaling again to avoid that.

[SkiBlue]

Thursday, 2/4

I’ve decided to take it easier on myself right now. The fact that I’m worrying so much about spiraling back into old habits means that I’m not really going to. I just have to get through this unprepared stress block in the road.

And I kinda don’t want to talk about what I ate. >.<

Still struggling with recovery from late evening capoeira classes. Slept through both alarms in the morning, grabbed an on-the-run breakfast and discovered that my soup had finally gone bad so no lunch. It’s bad when your dairy-free soup smells rancid.

Pathfinder didn’t happen last night, now that I properly recall what happened. But friends still came over, so we played some more Red Dragon Inn (I’ve won that game every time we’ve played so far, I do not know how). I missed any and all capoeira training because of sleep and socializing. Bleh. Do not like.

I’ve actually been trying to read a book on capoeira, in a kind of preparation for that speech thingy at the batizado and just because I’m interested. It’s kind of hard; I find fiction books really… boring. Not because of the content, but just because of the way they’re usually written. But I’ve only got two weeks left (sudden terror), so I kinda need to kick it into gear.

Practice before Sims tonight!

[SkiBlue]

Friday, 2/5

Was still tired this morning. The husband had to push me out of bed when HIS alarm went off. Not good.

I had coffee this morning, as an addition to my on-the-run breakfast (I only had time to pack lunch OR make breakfast, so I opted for the former). Not to combat the tired, more to combat the sudden COLD (dammit, bipolar NC weather), since I’ve been having to drive the car that doesn’t have a functioning heater. Umm, yeah. And I thought I was hyper without caffeine. I’m now curious to see how bulletproofing would work with it, as I have a serious issue with its base flavor. Doesn’t help that I have a free Keurig sitting in my house…

ANYWAY. 3D printer at work seems quite plausible. All the faculty that I’ve talked to so far about it think it would be a fantastic idea and already want to use it for one thing or another. I’m so excited. I just hope that after all my research, the best option they think would be the TAZ 5, which I think is the best option anyway, but it’s not really up to me (or maybe it is, since I’m their resident “expertâ€). Doing this research and checking out Studio M has given me that extra bounce to really engage in my work again. Like I said already, riding out the rest of the semester to learn the basics, then focusing on other projects over the summer is probably my best option, and I’m okay with that.

Took the time waiting for the husband to get done work to finally update and play some Sims. Man, I miss that goofiness. Trying out the Scientist career on Sims 4; I’ve had that expansion for a while, I just haven’t gotten around to trying it out. I’m torn between playing 3 and 4 regularly. Sims 4 is fun; the emotion mechanic is pretty sweet, the building tools are really freaggin’ nice, and the graphics are really damn nice. But Sims 3 still has EVERYTHING; more career options, more aspiration and personality options, more customization options, life stage events, seasons, pets… you get the idea. But it’s not the latest game… I dunno. I’m enjoying 4, so I’ll hang with that for a while and maybe I’ll go back to 3 when the shiny-ness of 4 wears off.

Saturday, 2/6

The husband had to put in overtime today, so I did some capoeira practice and bodyweight training in the gymarage. However, there’s not enough room in there for me to practice my aús and aú-rolê combo. I did manage some kick combo practice (meia lua-armada-queixada-compasso) and second sequence practice. Sequence practice is proving a bit difficult to do on my own, as I have to remember what I need to be doing at the same time the opponent does so I know which side I’m supposed to be moving/using. Bleh.

Picked up the replacement catalytic converter for my car and then spent some more time in the Sims inventing machines, tinkering, forming a Makerspace and club, traveling to another planet, and having an alien come back and live with my Sim. Testingcheats isn’t as powerful as it used to be; in 3, you could use it to COMPLETELY edit a Sim, but it seems in 4, you can’t really edit much. Poop. Oh well. Guess I’ll have to deal with a lazy alien.

Sunday, 2/7

Had a brunch date with the husband before grocery shopping. We thought we were being smart and hitting up the store AFTER everyone else, since it was Super Bowl Sunday, but we were very wrong. It took a while, but I got the majority of my meal prep done before dinner. I didn’t finish shredding my chicken for Buffalo Chicken Salad, make any cauliflower rice or make any of the sauces (Awesome Sauce, Buffalo Chicken Salad dressing, and hollandaise sauce), but the meals are done, at the very least. I dunno how Noel does it, but she ALWAYS manages to post a new recipe based on the food I’m currently craving and researching how to make at home. I hope the Thai curry tastes good.

[tourennatrix]

I like that you have a decent space to practice (even if it's not *quiiiite* big enough for some things). I thought I was making a good space to exercise months ago, and i did... it's great for yoga and push ups and stuff, but immediately after getting my space set up, I started class and realized my space wasn't big enough to move around in we now have really tentative plans to insulate the garage come summertime, but we've got so much else planned for summer I'm not sure it'll make the list. Ah well, that's what the real gym is for

[SkiBlue]

I like that you have a decent space to practice (even if it's not *quiiiite* big enough for some things). I thought I was making a good space to exercise months ago, and i did... it's great for yoga and push ups and stuff, but immediately after getting my space set up, I started class and realized my space wasn't big enough to move around in we now have really tentative plans to insulate the garage come summertime, but we've got so much else planned for summer I'm not sure it'll make the list. Ah well, that's what the real gym is for

 

Ours isn't insulated, but it's the only space we got, so we kinda cleared it out/kept it cleaned so that we can use it as such. The husband REALLY doesn't like the idea of working out at a public gym. It's big enough for me to do standing ginga/move practice, but that's about it. It'd be big enough to do the rest if I could move out the husband's lifting supplies, but I don't think that would go over very well...

[tourennatrix]

Ours isn't insulated, but it's the only space we got, so we kinda cleared it out/kept it cleaned so that we can use it as such. The husband REALLY doesn't like the idea of working out at a public gym. It's big enough for me to do standing ginga/move practice, but that's about it. It'd be big enough to do the rest if I could move out the husband's lifting supplies, but I don't think that would go over very well...

 

Hah, yeah probably not! I tried converting our garage into a space to do exercises last year but turns out doing cardio in a 20* garage is not the best for my lungs

In my indoor pace, I can probably get a good wide/deep ginga in if I managed to keep the place clean, and maybe do an esquiva, but any kicks and I'm going to hit the wall or a desk or something.

 

For some reason, Girafa and Astro don't see this as a valid excuse to not practice at home...

 

[SkiBlue]

Hah, yeah probably not! I tried converting our garage into a space to do exercises last year but turns out doing cardio in a 20* garage is not the best for my lungs

In my indoor pace, I can probably get a good wide/deep ginga in if I managed to keep the place clean, and maybe do an esquiva, but any kicks and I'm going to hit the wall or a desk or something.

 

For some reason, Girafa and Astro don't see this as a valid excuse to not practice at home...

 

 

I totally understand. I tried biking in cold air two years ago and ended up with a cough for two weeks. For some reason, the gymarage doesn't get THAT bad during the winter. But as cool as it would be, I don't think kicking and breaking your deck or computer would be a good idea. 

 

They probably see it as a chance to practice control in your movements, since you would need it in such a confined space, but they're also probably a bit crazy. I can't do it; I tried doing moves in the living room without moving anything and got as far as "I'm too afraid I'm gonna hit something, let's not and say we did." >.<

[SkiBlue]

Monday, 2/8

Meal 1
attempt at bulletproof coffee

Meal 2
Thai curry w/ chicken & veggies
banana

Meal 3
2.5 bell pepper tacos w/ salsa & avocado

I’m getting very bad at remembering to log my stuff! >.< I can’t remember when I woke up or when I ate. Though, I guess that’s not as important as what I ate. Which, I hate to admit it, but I’m struggling with returning to W30ish. It kinda sucks. Last week, I’d been unprepared. This week, the food that I prepped isn’t as tasty as hoped, so I’m substituting the missing calories for candy from a co-worker’s office. I know that it’s only the beginning of the year, but I’d really like to reach 30% BF by the end of the year, which requires some serious dietary discipline. Blegh.

My new phone finally showed up, though I had to wait until after capoeira class in order to activate it. I no longer have a dumb phone.

Class was intense. Zumbi took us through a good deal of conditioning practice. Gingas into armada turns and back (where you turn for the armada, but don’t kick). Gingas into compasso and back (same thing, just with compasso). These parallel handstand kick thingies; you go down and kick with one leg up, then switch legs, then land. If you can do one leg switch, then next time attempt two with one hold (and so on). Then the aú drills; hands don’t leave the ground, start with two (alternating directions), then progressively go up to ten. UGH WISH I HAD THE CORE & UPPER BODY STRENGTH FOR THAT. Then we did kick drills. Two walks (long ways down of the school) of each: bênçao, meia lua, martelo, armada, compasso. Then more instrument and singing practice! This time, two of the three got an instrument (atabaque or pandeiro), and the third wheel got to lead the song. Still can’t get started on my own, but I’m definitely getting the hang of playing instruments and singing (sort of). Then we moved to just clapping and singing. I think I did well in the roda, though I started losing my focus at the end when I was partnered with Stephen (because that’s how you spell his name); we didn’t mean to fake each other out, it was a matter of we decided to move at the same time, so we’d hesitate to finish our moves for fear of hitting the other. Zumbi made fun of us for it; he doesn’t remember teaching half kicks, but he reminded us to focus on the basics. We’ll need good ginga and good kicks for Saturday (holy crap, TWO WEEKS LEFT?!?!).

Stephen and Troy are interested in getting together to practice sequences outside of class. Stephen has several spaces that we can utilize, so I think I’m gonna be exchanging numbers with these guys so we can do this. It would be great help for me, since trying to remember what the chair is supposed to be doing while I’m moving is kinda hard. >.<

Not enough time in the day for playing Sims.

[SkiBlue]

Tuesday, 2/9

Meal 1
bulletproof tea

Meal 2
half buffalo chicken salad
half butternut squash soup

Meal 3
steak
green beans w/ butter

Training
2 Rounds:
20 squats
12 knee push-ups
20 lunges
10 inverted rows
20s. plank
30(ish) gingas

Practice:
Meia lua
Armada
Queixada
Martelo
Bênçao
(some) Compasso
Wall bridge

Recovery is causing me to miss real breakfast. I do much better with real food in the morning, but dammit sleep…

Chris was supposed to help me cut a piece of acrylic sheet for some Adv. Lab students (at work), but instead just cut it for them. I guess he was just busy, but GRRR I wanna learn the machines in the shop!

Came home a bit late, as I picked up zoo food (food for huskamute and treats for the noodle cats ferrets) and some extra grocery supplies (read: hot chocolate to add to my coffee and more coconut milk and butter). Kinda miffed that, even if I get home at 6pm, the husband waits until THEN to come downstairs and help clean up/get dinner started. I get it if he had to work late again, but it didn’t sound like it. If he doesn’t have to work late, and I’m running late, I would just like SOME help so that I’m not training at 8:30pm on non-class days. I swear, he yelled at me for doing the same thing two years ago…

Training at home went well. Still can only do knee push-ups, but I’ll work on bumping those up to 20 reps then move on to trying out regular push-ups. Subbing the squats for cocorinhas and lunges for esquivas makes them a bit harder, but I like to build up the muscle memory for those moves, like remembering to put my arm completely over my head and looking forward instead of down. I practiced singing and clapping while stretching for cool-down, so that counts for my music practice. I’ve been making it a point to practicing the clapping and singing in the car during my commute, and that’s definitely been helping too. And after my stretching, I tried my wall bridge, and I definitely got lower than last time at class. WOOT!

I’m finally starting to get the hang of this stuff.

[SkiBlue]

Wednesday, 2/10

Meal 1
bulletproof coffee (tasted much better this time)

Meal 2
remains of buffalo chicken salad

Meal 3
chicken pot pie bake (no crust) with ¼ cup rice

Meal 4
12x chicken nuggets
waffle fries
cookie

Apparently, I didn’t fall in the PMS pit of despair, I just fell into a pit of despair with multiple levels that made me think that I was out when I really wasn’t. Literally everything got to me in some form or another. And when I tried to talk and sort it out to the husband, I just kept sobbing. Told him that I felt overwhelmed with doing everything, even though he’s been working his ass off too, so he goes to help with dishes and laundry. I sob because I just want him to stop and listen to me, because I just want someone to talk to and confide in. He listens and hugs me, but offers me not much in the way of comfort or advice, so I just keep sobbing, because he doesn’t look all that… sympathetic or caring. Instead, he just looks and acts like it’s not that big of a concern to him. I’m still sobbing, struggling to find out what it is that’s bothering me, outside of the husband’s reaction.

I need to start meditating. I need to journal again. This sh*t is ridiculous. Even IF I see a professional about these emotional swings, they need some sort of data to work through.

I almost didn’t go to class. This pit is… the pits (pun intended). Zumbi has caught a stomach bug, so Reba subbed instructing the class. She’s cool. She was a bit easier on us, but that also might’ve been due to the new guy who showed up (WHERE IS BETHANY?! Am I the only chick in beginner’s now?!). Zach showed up to, so there were five of us this time, though Zumbi expects attendance to jump after the Night in Rio event on Friday. She took us through some kick drills; armada, martelo, and bençao, then taught us two new kicks: chapa and gancho. Ow, gancho hurts my hamstrings. Definitely going to need to practice those. We also did some esquiva-armada partner practice and handstand holds (for the odd-man out). She did a lot of aú and handstand stuff; she wanted us to start getting more comfortable with being upside down (her words). She even had us try walking as much as possible on our hands down the floor once. I actually got a few walks, even though they were more brought on by momentum than skill. Stephen was able to go the whole way. It was cool.

I was completely off in the roda. I could not keep my focus, nor read my partner very well at all. It sucked. Stephen and I also had more of the “we’re doing something at the same time, but we’re both too polite to keep going, so we both try to let the other finish†issue. But I can finally clap and sing! It’s only one song, but it’s progress! On to another one for practice. I will admit though, I definitely like wearing the white pants to class.

Got some Chick-Fil-A on the way home, as I was STARVING and everything I made at home doesn’t taste good. Again. How do I keep screwing that up?

[tourennatrix]

I need to start meditating. I need to journal again. This sh*t is ridiculous. Even IF I see a professional about these emotional swings, they need some sort of data to work through.

 

 

Oh girl, this is exactly what professionals are even *for*. A lot of people go to therapists and say "I want to be happy" or "I want to stop being sad/anxious/numb/etc" BUT... When I went in for my first appointment it became clear that, for me, it mostly boils down to "I want to understand." Clarity. Getting to know why I react the way I do to certain things, and going from there to see about how to 'retrain' the reaction. That's why a lot (a LOT) of the time when I'm talking about stuff over on my thread that has to do with depression or anxiety, the big key word is awareness. BUT... I didn't get there alone, and I certainly didn't have a clue what I was doing the first time I went in for an appointment. 

 

*HUGS* PM me if you ever want to talk

[SkiBlue]

Oh girl, this is exactly what professionals are even *for*. A lot of people go to therapists and say "I want to be happy" or "I want to stop being sad/anxious/numb/etc" BUT... When I went in for my first appointment it became clear that, for me, it mostly boils down to "I want to understand." Clarity. Getting to know why I react the way I do to certain things, and going from there to see about how to 'retrain' the reaction. That's why a lot (a LOT) of the time when I'm talking about stuff over on my thread that has to do with depression or anxiety, the big key word is awareness. BUT... I didn't get there alone, and I certainly didn't have a clue what I was doing the first time I went in for an appointment.

*HUGS* PM me if you ever want to talk

I talked to the husband today, and he thinks my swings are from my fluctuating food habits. According to his memory, every time I fall in the pit, it coincides with when I eat Bad Food consistently. *sigh* I'd like to see a professional, but I switched healthcare plans, so I've gotta wait until there's enough funds in my HSA before I can. Bleh.

I might take you up on that though, so I apologize in advance for rambling. I should probably stop rambling on this thread anyway. >.<

Sent from new smartphone - Please excuse any fat finger typos

[SkiBlue]

Thursday, 2/11

Umm, yeah. Straight up forgot to train at all. I was so caught up in talking to the husband when I came home from work (a bit late) that there was really no time. Then he didn’t feel like eating anything in the house but was craving pot stickers, so we committed a horrible sin and got some frozen Asian food from the grocery store (which took forever, there were so many people at checkout).

On the plus side, I feel a bit better today. I’m on the brink of a mentality breakthrough (thanks to an email from Mel Joulwan), so I’m going to try to spend some time today reflecting on that for a bit. I have a good feeling about this.

[QuietRiotGrrrl]

Just take it as a break day.  Mental health recovery time.  And potstickers are happiness.

[tourennatrix]

I, too, completely forgot my challenge yesterday. But it's ok for both of us because mental health days are love

[SkiBlue]

Just take it as a break day.  Mental health recovery time.  And potstickers are happiness.

I, too, completely forgot my challenge yesterday. But it's ok for both of us because mental health days are love

 

Mental health days were one of the things I'm super grateful that my mother let me have during school. Just wish I could take one from work sometimes (new job: still racking up the sick/vacation days).  

[SkiBlue]

Um, the weekend had its ups and downs. Saturday was spent at the in-laws; the husband and his father worked on fixing the catalytic converter in my car. At first, they were only going to replace just the cat, but where it was located would've made it a pain in the rear. We decided to return the cat and get the entire exhaust system replacement instead (which I still haven't seen the transaction for, so O'Reilly's might be getting a visit from me again this week). However, despite it being advertised as "direct fit," it obviously didn't, and it took them all afternoon to get it in and functioning. It works, but the Check Engine light is still on, and you can hear air whooshing when you're on the throttle, so there's a pipe seal not very sealed still. And a bolt broke. And it's at an odd angle, so the downpipe looks like it's hanging down too low. While they were working, I spent time playing with the granddaughter/"my niece," who seems to be out of the "stranger danger" phase. 

 

Sunday started very nice, with super snuggles and a happy husband, until grocery shopping had to be done. I get that chores suck and all, but the husband is making it hella worse on himself by letting them get him so annoyed and upset whenever they occur. He even lets what I have to do get to him (like my prep cooking). The optimistic in me is like "UGH LIGHTEN UP NOW."

 

This sums up the husband:

 

 

Monday involved being hungry and not having enough time for proper food, so breakfast and after-class food where had from Big Fast Food. Rangered dinner though; made due with what was available.

 

Class was fun. Reba taught again, so more drills. Kicks, aú and rolê. It's definitely making me feel more confident in my basic moves. Zumbi usually moves too fast for me, but with Reba having us drill down the floor, we can go at our own paces. We got some sequence practice in at the end; Troy and I got to work on first and second sequence. I feel kinda bad; he goes to classes all week, yet struggles with remembering the sequences. I only go to class Monday and Wednesday, but I can rattle off every move in each sequence. I also found out that the test is WEDNESDAY, not Saturday. We find out if we pass on Saturday. For this serious test taker, this is crazy. I have no idea how it's going to be structured. At least with lifeguard and CPR training, you know the format for the physical test. Reba only gave me "if you've been coming to class and know your basic moves, you'll be fine." Zumbi said something about a speech about what capoeira is to you, so I'm running around like a chicken without its head (on the inside) because I have no idea what's gonna happen. 

 

I'm also having some serious issues trying to iron out my next challenge. I'm in full-on Rangerbrain mode and keep wanting to do every. single. thing. that comes to mind, but I know that I should focus on a few things at a time to really get into the swing of things. I also keep forgetting what was on my roadmap for this year because I keep coming up with new things to add and focus on. Ugh. Rangerbrain; it is both a blessing and a curse.

[SkiBlue]

Tuesday is a blur in my memory. I remember practicing kicks at work, getting Chinese for lunch, going with the husband to get his hair cut, and finally recording a video to share at 9:45pm. We also hardly have any food in the house, so we’re not making very good food choices lately.

Wednesday, I did more practice at work to prepare for the belt test. I’ve also been feeling excessively exhausted recently. Not entirely sure what it’s from, but I’m willing to bet it’s a combination of Poor Food and not getting to bed on time.

Class included some decent, albeit crazy (you know Zumbi’s back), practice before the test. We did some double kicks; double meia lua, double martelo, and double bênção (without touching the floor in between). I got all kinds of screwed up while doing it though. He had us kick meia lua from parallel and not ginga, which I don’t usually do, so I was all sorts of leg twisted. Of course, when I finally got used to that, we stopped, so it took me a while to get back into the ginga rhythm. UGH.

Then he had us do some aú combos, which were also crazy. You start with meia lua, don’t touch the ground with the kicking foot, then keep swinging it as you aú, then step into parallel for armada afterward. This was pretty hard for me. I had to take it really slow and still tap my toes on the floor, just so I wouldn’t screw it up. He also insisted on some handstand practice, which I think I’ll need to start doing more at home with a “safety,†since that school floor scares me.

The end-of-class roda went well for me, I think. I’m definitely getting better at responding and reading my partner, but stringing together moves definitely needs work. Granted, what do you expect after only 1.5 months? I got to play with two intermediate students (and Reba!) though, which was a great learning experience for me. I usually only play with Stephen, Zach, Troy, and other beginners, so watching and learning the other students was pretty cool.

[tourennatrix]

I've been meaning to practice meia-lua to au recently (I want to include at least an attempt on my progress vid) but every time I try doing it I almost faceplant XD Watching other people play is also loads of fun now too, as I can feel the gears turning as I'm trying to watch and grok what they're doing at every step (as long as I'm not too tired and my eyes glaze over)

[SkiBlue]

I've been meaning to practice meia-lua to au recently (I want to include at least an attempt on my progress vid) but every time I try doing it I almost faceplant XD Watching other people play is also loads of fun now too, as I can feel the gears turning as I'm trying to watch and grok what they're doing at every step (as long as I'm not too tired and my eyes glaze over)

 

I'm terrified of that floor at the school. My aú and bananeira practice is always a bit limited mentality because I do not want to fall on that floor the wrong way. I wish I had more space at home to practice, because I could really use it. Most of the time, I still watch the floor during my aú instead of looking back where my opponent would be, like "I see you, floor, please don't punch my face."

 

I love watching and absorbing others when they move. Unfortunately, I'm still so new and under-trained that it takes me a bit longer to replicate their movements. Every time we drill in the mirror during class, I have to slow down the movement that Zumbi demonstrates and do it at that speed two to three times, so I can get the hang of it before trying it at real speed. I don't mind doing it during the beginner's class, but at the workshop, it was really hard, since there were over two dozen of us in the room, all in sync. I didn't wanna ruin the flow. ._.