Go Figure

I have started drawing again. I've not done much since college and for some reason I thought it would be something that I would like to try again. My skills are a little rusty but I am pretty sure that in time I will improve. I was not that good even when I was in practice, but I was also not too bad either.

My goal is to do at least one drawing a day. So for the past three evenings I have spent at least 30 minutes on at least one drawing. I have three completed drawings and a few sketches that did not go anywhere.

I did decide to do a subject matter that I never explored even in college; figure drawing. I thought at least this way it would keep me interested in continuing and so far I think this is a pretty good idea. There is certainly a lot of material to choose from.

I may see about scanning and posting later, but for now I just needed to find a hobby that I like and something that takes me away from the day to day.

Phase Two

Time to move on. The past several months have been very difficult physically and emotionally and I am tired of all this stress messing up the progress I have made in the past two years on both fronts. So I am refocusing my energy on starting a new phase. In looking back, this is probably phase two attempt 15. But who is counting?

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Simple Eating Failure

Well, I am off to a really bad start with my Simple Eating commitment. I had started with high hopes that were ultimately dashed before they ever stood a chance by a little thing called work. Or rather work related stress.

I highlighted this just a few days ago, but when I get stressed, I tend to make poor decisions in regards to food. I think this is pretty natural, but it does a lot to undermine my efforts. And while I am discouraged, I am trying to not let it impact me too much. I have plenty of other things piling up to discourage me.

Stress

Stress does a lot of strange things to people. For me, it is weight gain and a lack of sleep and I am fighting both right now. I know exactly what the cause of my stress is (work), and I know logically that I should not be stressed about all of what is happening because it is beyond my control. I know that I am doing what I can to fulfill my part of the job, but for some reason, my subconscious or some other physiological force is not listening to my brain and it is beginning to get to me.

I have a few things I like to do when I am stressed and have been cycling through them in hopes of some relief. I have taken up running recently and so I have been trying to run when it gets overwhelming. Some days this works very well. I do not typically run multiple days back-to-back, but I may start soon just to keep a grip on things.

Oddly enough, I also like to clean my house. The sad part is that when I am stressed, I tend to put off cleaning, so I not doing an action that actually would make me feel better. How is that for logic?

Reading also helps, but this is a tricky one, especially depending on the book or article. I have had some instances where the story I was reading stressed me out more because events were too similar to what I was facing at the time.

Cooking is another stress reliever that I have to be careful with since there is the distinct possibility that I will cook and eat something I would normally avoid when not on edge.

So here I am, a bundle of nerves and stress. I know what the problem is and some solutions, but I cannot find a good fix right now that will get me past this period. My best bet it is to keep doing what I can and be very conscious of what this time is doing to me.

Simple Eating

Food is one of those things that a lot people have a complicated relationship with. This is especially true in the United States and even more noticeable in the Southeast where I live. I certainly have a storied past with my eating habits and it is something I have to continually keep an eye on. Some days I have a good and healthy relationship and other days I am abused but keep returning because of the way it makes me feel.

Recently I have been trying to come up with a way to keep my eating habits in check. However, this cannot be some sort of passing fad, but a lifestyle change that I can maintain indefinitely. I have made this transition already to a great extent and while I have not stopped, I have had to take a new look at what my goals are because there was certainly room for improvement. It is still too easy for me to fall into old habits; eating things high in sugar; getting a quick fix from a fast-food chain or simply just eating until I am full to bursting.

My curiosity about my relationship to food has led me to read books like The Omnivore's Dilema and In Defense of Food, and my opinion has been influence greatly by them. The conclusion of Michael Pollan in these books rings true to me logically, but then again so do some of the ideas put forth by the Paleo enthusiasts and even the Atkins crowd (sort of, I think low-carb and higher protein is correct, but so many completely forget the plants) and recently I have been looking at the Slow-Carb option (which I think is a much better approach to the Atkins concept) and I see lots of potential there. So that just makes this relationship with a daily necessity just that much more complicated.

So, what I am I going to do with all of this conflicting advice? Easy... I am going to make it more complicated.

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Consumer

I am still in two minds over a purchase I just made a few days ago. For quite some time, I have tried to be very conscious about my consumer habits. I am not anti-consumerism, but it is very close to that at times, so I was kind of torn when I started to think about buying another large box item.

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Getting Started

Once again I have decided to give this blog thing a go. I am working on a custom theme for the site, but due to some time constraints and a lack of inspiration, I am going to start things off with a pre made.

I am not sure if I have any goals for this site yet. I just wanted to go ahead and get something out here and at least include a basic "hello world" entry.

See you soon.