Yoga

My yoga instructor is hilarious. I know that's not how you would normally describe yoga instructors. They're supposed to be spiritual, calming, zen-like. Not her. She's funny. She even refers to herself as a goofball. It cracks me up when she says "Be careful on this move. A lot of people break their nose on this one." On other moves, its arms or legs that get broken. If she asks how we're doing and no one answers, she threatens us with push-ups, so we all answer then. The thing is--she's a great instructor. Everyone loves her class and it's an awesome workout. I've been trying to fight off a late summer cold. I just got home from class and I feel better than I have for days. This centuries-old practice has a little twist in her class (no pun intended.) It's beneficial, it's fun, and I can't wait for the next class.

horoscope

My horoscope in today's paper reads as follows: "The problem with being as conscientious as you are is that there are times when your head spins with so many responsibilities and possibilities that you don't know what to do. Empty it all onto paper." That totally sums up how I feel about my life right now, and why I decided to start blogging. Sometimes I am completely overwhelmed in looking for a job. I am so bored by not being able to spend money or do things I like. I miss going to the movies, and buying crap at Target! And the news is very depressing--unemployment went UP again last month in California. A local hospital is opening a new medical center nearby. They have 900 openings for which they received 100,000 applications! I feel sorry for the HR people who have to process all of those resumes. A restaurant opened and had 100 positions available. They received nearly 1500 applications--for minimum wage restaurant jobs! My friends tell me to stop reading the paper, but I can't --I'm a news freak. I have to know what is going on in the world! I guess I'll heed my horoscope and keep blogging.

travel and tennis

I just got home from a long weekend in Ohio. If you've read my blog, you are aware of my bad luck with airline travel. Naturally, I thought I'd have a good story to tell everyone after this trip. NOTHING went wrong! Nada! Zilch! No delays, no cancellations. No drunks being kicked off during boarding, no INS officers storming the plane on arrival, no sheriffs waiting to arrest people for joining the mile high club. Not even a single screaming baby! There was a little issue with the landing nose gear in Columbus, but they fixed it quickly and we made up the time in the air so all four legs of my flights were on time, even a little early. I even got to stow my roller bag in the overhead instead of under the seat in front of me. I had leg room! Best of all, there was a rain delay at the US Open. Instead of being on a plane, I was sitting at a friends house watching the final two sets as Nadal beat Djokovic. I got to see tennis history, live, not taped. A perfect travel experience for Maggie Gallagher??? It was like a miracle! Maybe my luck is changing. I can only hope.

Scrabble

When I was in 5th Grade our teacher, Mrs Buck, would play Scrabble with my friend Sharon and me almost every day. It was a great way to teach us spelling and keep us from being bored in study hall or during recess when it was raining outside. It also made me love Scrabble. I used to play with my Mom all the time, too. I could never get enough of it. So, last week when my golf buddy Karen said, "Let's golf then you guys can come over for steak on the grill and a few games of Scrabble", I was all over it! What a great way to spend a day. Golfing buddy Judy told me "Karen is really good at Scrabble." I thought, Hell, so am I! No big deal. Good God! She's freakin' professional! She claims her sister, who is coming to visit in October, is even better. Did you know there are 101 2-letter words in the English language? We printed out the list--very helpful in a game of Scrabble. Qi. Don't know what it means but it got Karen 46 points in Scrabble. Judy and I are scheduling Scrabble practice sessions. We don't care which of us wins--we just want to beat Karen!

Zumba Class

I finally caved in to the hype and took my first Zumba class at the gym tonight. What took me so long? It was a great class! Loved it. The hour went by so fast--and I was drenched in sweat. I must have dropped a few pounds! Everyone else seemed to be enjoying it too. How often does everyone smile through a workout? Very cool. It was non-stop and had fun music, too. Usually I think the music at the classes is way too loud, but I was OK with it tonight. And the steps are easy to follow. I've been to some other classes where I get so turned around with the steps that I'm too frustrated to get any good out of it. And I think I'm pretty coordinated! Zumba suits my style a lot better. I'll be going back on Wednesday. Note to self: take LARGE water bottle next time!!

Too Busy

It's been 11 days since I last blogged. I can't believe it's been that long. I guess I've been way too busy to write lately. The question is--what the heck have I been doing? I can't recall anything that has been very productive, just life getting in the way! I've gone for runs, golfed, played tennis and done yoga. Had lunch a few times with friends. A couple birthdays which included pedicures, parties and dinners. I even went to the orthopedic surgeon, again, for my skiing-injured shoulder, and got a cortisone shot. I thought cortisone was supposed to be this miracle thing and I'd be better. Wrong. The doc said it would kick in after 48hours. It's been 96 and there is only minimal improvement. My favorite yoga position is reverse namaste--and I still can't do it. Twisting my left arm behind my back is excruciating! I'm considering acupuncture. I will be very unhappy if I can't ever do reverse namaste again! Anyhow, those are my excuses for not blogging. Pretty lame. I wish I had a better excuse like I got a job or won the lottery. Maybe that'll happen this week and I'll write about it!

Cars

Cars. Unfortunately, we can't live without them here in Southern California.

Whenever I think I'm going to get ahead and have some extra money to blow on important stuff, like shoes, something happens to my car. Something expensive! A few months after I got laid off, I had to take the car in for this horrid high-pitched squealing noise it made. Do you know what an Ignition Coil is? I'll tell you--it's a pricey, tiny, little thing that, when it goes bad, makes a horrid high-pitched squealing noise. A really embarrassing noise especially when you are driving a luxury car out of a high-end golf course. Thank God for dark sunglasses! Of course, they also discover that my brakes and rotors are bad. They cost even more than an ignition coil! I call my friends and try not to cry. Then I fork over the MasterCard and move on with life.

So a few months pass. I'm thinking about buying shoes again. I'm hanging out this week with a couple friends at the beach, who think there is a burning smell when we exit my car. So I make a visit to Robert and Adam--my 'first-name-basis-buddies', also known as my mechanics. I walk in the door to "Hi Maggie. How's it going?" Like we're long-lost friends. This time it's the radiator. Shockingly even more expensive than ignition coils, brakes and rotors! I think I'm going to buy shoes anyhow.