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Thursday, July 22, 2010

Swapping Problems

So what happens when you try to be a good girl and not go shopping every weekend?  Your pants get tighter.

Wait.  What?

I've talked about it before but it is seriously affecting my life right now.  Addiction transfer.  It was something I was hyper aware of before gastric bypass.  I knew that food was no longer going to be my friend so I had to be very careful about shopping or drinking alcohol (or doing drugs, or having sex, or pick any number of things we can become addicted to).  And shopping definitely became my new drug of choice.  I have often likened a shopping binge to a drug binge -- waking up from a weekend of whirlwind shopping with receipts clutched in my sweaty little hand instead of a needle in my arm.  I could easily throw down thousands of dollars in a weekend.  On crap.  Nothing I ever needed.  Most things I didn't even want after I had them.  Then I'd feel guilty.  Guilt makes me feel bad, which just made me want to shop more. 

Rob and I got together almost a year ago.  We just moved in together and, although we don't share a checking account, we pretty much consider all of our finances to be joint.  So, I have been really good about not going shopping -- not spending OUR money.  Other than a couple of small items, I haven't bought myself anything in quite awhile!  So, now that explains why I'm getting fat.  Clearly I've just re-transferred my addiction back over to food!!  You don't have to eat an entire cake or visit McDonalds three times a day to have a food addiction.  It can be very sneaky.  And I consider myself food obsessed, so thinking all day about dieting and watching my calorie intake really just makes me want to eat more food. 

I'm four days into this candida cleanse.  I had to alter it a bit to make sure I'm getting the nutrients I need post-gastric bypass.  And I've had a bit of a headache, but I feel like I'm doing pretty well on it.  Today was my first slip up.  I had part of a donut.  I bought them for my boss for his birthday.  And I smelled them for two glorious hours.  Then I gave in.  But at least I didn't eat the entire box, right?

This week has been great.  I've come to realize some things.  First was realizing that my hip pain is most likely being caused by scar tissue (and I've been feeling better lately since Keith started working on breaking that up)....who knew scar tissue could do that?!  (Although I do have an MRI scheduled for tomorrow to confirm this.)  Second was realizing that my pants getting tighter had much to do with my old demon rearing its ugly head again.  Third was realizing that toxic people are a waste of time and should be removed from my life (although the extraction process might cause some issues and I'm still working on that).  None are earth shattering but the combination should make my life somewhat more comfortable very soon. 

Now what do I do with this information?  Just because I'm aware of a problem doesn't mean its automatically fixed.  On the contrary, sometimes being aware of a problem almost makes it worse for me. 

My short term goal is to continue with the candida cleanse for a month (I have an appointment with a nutritionist next week to confirm I'm doing it the right way) and get back to the gym with my early morning friends (Rob and I have determined that we aren't on the same sleep or workout schedules, so P90X is out for me...I need social interaction to have feel motivated at the gym).  That's all I can do for now.  And for now, that has to be enough.

If anyone has any suggestions, I'd love to hear them. 

Friday, July 16, 2010

I guess you can't make everyone happy all the time

So Creepy Tree got a write up on Claycord yesterday!!  Claycord is a local blog/news source that basically covers the Walnut Creek/Clayton (plus some) area.  It was really exciting at first.  But now I'm reminded of what I hate about the internet.

It is SO easy to sit anonymously behind your computer and write mean shit about other people.  Strangely, within the last day or so, people were whining on Claycord's Facebook page about how there haven't been any positive stories lately.  So the guy posts about a story about a tree and now all the assholes come out to talk about how stupid it is!  I don't know...maybe they just caught me on a bad day, but they're all lucky that Claycord hasn't posted their addresses so I can go vandalize their properties (little bit of an inside Claycord joke...I don't really want to ruin anyone's property).

Anyway, at the end of the day, all of the haters can cry and hate all over themselves.  I would rather have a Facebook fan page about a tree than be checking out child porn.  Yes, maybe a fan page for a tree is stupid but its all in good, CLEAN fun.  And to the girl who calls herself Twat, you are aptly named.  I have no children and taking a photo or two of a tree isn't taking away from the rest of my life whatsoever. 

I don't want to dwell on the negative.  On the positive side, Creepy Tree's fan page gained about 100 new fans overnight.  So, I thank Mr. Mayor of Claycord.com for posting a positive story about a beautiful tree that I still love even though some of the people on his website think I am stupid for doing so.  I guess I should be used to it since I know some of my own "friends" have been talking behind my back because of Twirly Girls.  I'm trying to just hold my head high and not let those kinds of people waste my time, but clearly I need thicker skin (or some Pamprin). 

Claycord.com website comments:

The “creepy tree” in Clayton, on Seeno’s property on the hill

by Mr. Mayor on July 15, 2010 · 27 comments
This “creepy tree” is in Clayton, but the cool story about this tree is that some CLAYCORDIAN has set up a facebook fan page for it, and they take pictures of it (almost) daily.
Here’s what the creator of the “creepy tree” facebook fan page had to say….
Every day when I leave the house, I pass the Seeno property. It’s this gigantic house perched on top of a hill. And it’s surrounded by trees and animals. On one side of the hill, there is a lone tree, which I dubbed Creepy Tree. I started taking a picture of him every day and posting them on Facebook. I was (and still am) amazed at how many people loved Creepy Tree too!!
Anyway, I now take photos of Creepy Tree daily. He speaks to me — kinda. It just puts me in a good mood to take my daily photo and think about what Creepy Tree might want to say to his fans on Facebook that day. I try to put forth positive messages, to start each day on the right foot. I love hearing that people look forward to the photos of him every day.
This is awesome, we love the “creepy tree”, too!
To visit the tree’s fanpage, and view other pictures of it, please click HERE.
Disturbing (13) Useful (7) Informative (6)
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{ 29 comments… read them below or add one }
1 Anonymous July 15, 2010 at 4:04 PM
that was creepylicious
2 Love that tree July 15, 2010 at 4:07 PM
Really love that tree :)
3 Lori Myers July 15, 2010 at 4:09 PM
Creepy Tree does rock!! Thanks for talking about him! I hope he gains many more fans on Facebook! I have moved from Clayton and can now only post occasional photos. So if others in the area wanted to help pick up the slack, it would be greatly appreciated!!
4 La Grinch July 15, 2010 at 4:15 PM
Very cool! Anything that can help the rest of us stop for a moment and appreciate the nature that is all around us (especially the nature that doesn’t move around) is a good thing. Take a breath – and thank that Creepy Tree and his kin for the oxygen!
5 Anonymous July 15, 2010 at 4:15 PM
I love that tree. It’s historic.
6 Anonymous July 15, 2010 at 4:34 PM
Thats pretty funny. I love neat old trees :)
7 funnnnn July 15, 2010 at 4:38 PM
me and my friends used to play in that tree when we were kids 30+ years ago. we used to move all the salt licks for the cattle around the tree. the good old days of Clayton.
8 Anonymous July 15, 2010 at 4:40 PM
Being that it’s on Seeno property, I’m surprised it hasn’t been plowed under for 2-by-4s already.
9 Anonymous July 15, 2010 at 5:14 PM
When I went to Clayton Valley in the 80′s that tree was a great place to hang out. Long before all the hills became houses. We ran from a few mad cows up in those hills!
10 Radar July 15, 2010 at 5:23 PM
Beautiful pic, keep on taking them!
11 Anonymous July 15, 2010 at 5:25 PM
Beautiful!
12 lorrielovesparties July 15, 2010 at 5:32 PM
Makes me look forward to Fall! Yeah, Yeah, Yeah Yeah!
13 Ck July 15, 2010 at 5:41 PM
That tree is beautiful.
14 Amanda Borenstadt July 15, 2010 at 6:19 PM
That is too cool! We have a special tree we can see from our house that lives up on Lime Ridge that we visit regularly.
15 Anonymous July 15, 2010 at 7:14 PM
Love the tree! It’s an oak, right?
16 shygurl July 15, 2010 at 7:30 PM
The tree is cool as shit! I love it! Thanks mr mayor for including it!
17 Shasta Daisy July 15, 2010 at 7:45 PM
I love photos like this…..so peaceful. Thank you for sharing.
18 Annie July 15, 2010 at 9:00 PM
Creepy tree is really quite insightful, also.
19 Me July 15, 2010 at 9:02 PM
I’m really confused. … I grew up in Clayton from 1982 and just moved to concord this year. There are literally 100 trees like that between downtown Clayton and Seeenos hill. What’s the big deal no offense? Don’t get me wrong I love big oaks. My buddy has an a two story deck in his bavkyardbuilt around an oak in Clayton. Someone just tell me what’s special about this one? Doesn’t look anymore different or creepy then the ones in the creek. I have a great pic of an oak with a fall blue dusk night sky in the background that is bad azz
20 Shadowgirl July 15, 2010 at 9:12 PM
I like the Creepy Tree. I can picture a big full moon behind it and a little fog. Perfect for Halloween!
21 Chainsaw Lover July 15, 2010 at 9:44 PM
I’m planning on cutting Creepy Tree down. Take pictures while you can, it won’t be long now.
22 Lori M. July 15, 2010 at 10:01 PM
Me — There is no big deal. I lived next to this tree and started taking photos of it and “Creepy Tree” gained a fan base on Facebook. You don’t have to get it. I only started taking photos for me anyway. :-) Shadowgirl — There are some pretty cool photos on the Facebook page. I think that’s why it became a big deal to me. How many photos could I take of the same tree that look so different? :-)
23 Anonymous July 15, 2010 at 10:10 PM
Lame
24 Jason Wheeler July 15, 2010 at 10:53 PM
We used to have a tree on a hill like that in pleasant hill. Used to call it hangmans.
25 EdiBirsan July 15, 2010 at 11:13 PM
A Tree with a Face Book Page, got to make you laugh/ reminds of a story about a “live web camera” web site of fermenting wheels of cheese somewhere in Wales or England.
26 Anonymous July 15, 2010 at 11:49 PM
Really it a tree a tree people what a lame story
27 TwitTwat July 16, 2010 at 12:07 AM
There is already so much crap on the internet, especially on Facebook, why the hell are we wasting fanbook pages on a tree now? Are people that desperate for anything to do on the internet that they have to “fan” a tree? I think people need to spend less time on the computer, their iPhone, the Wii, Xbox, PS3, and their iPod and more time with their families, especially their kids. Be a “fan” of your spouse and your children and get off the damn internet for a few hours you idiotic fools!!! Love your family and leave the tree hugging to someone single!
28 Lori July 16, 2010 at 9:13 AM
Your comment is awaiting moderation.
Talking about a tree is nicer than the economy or state of the world these days. It’s not a 24 hour job. Maybe you shouldn’t have taken the five minutes away from your kids to write this message, Twat.
29 Lori July 16, 2010 at 9:37 AM
Your comment is awaiting moderation.
Twat, I don’t have kids so I guess its ok for me to be a tree hugger. I guess if I was on the internet looking at child porn, you’d be happy I was using the internet appropriately. ------- Facebook comments:
17 hours ago via twitterfeed · · · Share this
Lori Myers
Lori Myers
Thank you!! I'm glad you share my love for Creepy Tree! :-)
17 hours ago ·
Beth Kopec Twilegar
Beth Kopec Twilegar
We used to call that the Hanging tree growing up in Kirkwood!
17 hours ago ·
Sharon D Capps
Sharon D Capps
Love that tree
17 hours ago ·
Lori Myers
Lori Myers
Please join the Fan Page and help me take photos! :-)
17 hours ago ·
Gerri Baker
Gerri Baker
I love that tree. It's historic... so don't let the city of Concord take it down.
17 hours ago ·
Lori Myers
Lori Myers
They're trying to take him down?!
17 hours ago
Rita Pearson
Rita Pearson
You need creepy tree!
17 hours ago 
CLAYCORD.com
CLAYCORD.com
I don't think anybody's trying to take him down.
16 hours ago ·
Lori Myers
Lori Myers
I figured he was safe. He's not in Concord anyway.
15 hours ago
Gerri Baker
Gerri Baker
I know. It was in jest to the city taking down the smokestack.
11 hours ago ·
Gerri Baker
Gerri Baker
I see Concord and Clayton politically connected.
11 hours ago ·
Lori Myers
Lori Myers
I'm sorry they took your smoke stack down. :-(
10 hours ago
Sylvia Snell Lundy
about an hour ago
Lori Myers
Lori Myers
He is Creepy Tree. :-D