Surviving the Hurricane, and the drive home

At #1 daughter's we got A LOT of rain on Sunday.  There was some flooding, but her abode stayed dried.  A few streets started flooding and were getting worse when we decided to return to her apartment.  Then hubby and I started looking at flood/hurricane damage for our route home.  The NYS thruway was closed in several places, due to flooding.  Okay, so we were waiting until Monday to leave, anyway.  Monday morning, there was "just a 40 mile section" on I90 that was still closed. Silly us, we decided to head out THAT DIRECTION, because, how bad could it be?  Miserable?  It took 2 1/2 hours to go 3 miles on the highway before we even exited.  Then it took another 3 hours to take the "detour".  After we got home, a total of 9 1/2 hours after we left (it's normally a 3 1/2 hour drive), we noticed that instead of diverting all the traffic onto 2 lane roads that wind through towns, they have now closed the thruway and diverted traffic onto OTHER INTERSTATES!  Hind sight being what it is, we should have taken another route, but when we passed the exit before the closure, there wasn't any traffic!  Yeah, because it was all stuck in the mess to get off.

Anyway, once we got back on the thruway, after the closed section, there wasn't any more trouble.  We got off before it was closed again (one exit past ours, but it is 15 miles away, so our exit wasn't impacted).  But we did make a note of how long the traffic going west was snarled, before getting off at their closure point.  Traffic was snarled for at least 6 miles.  No wonder they finally realized that taking all of I90's traffic through these little towns wasn't working.

Last night was definitely a "wine" evening.  Not so good for the program, but definitely good for the attitude.

So, we're back home.  I'm trying to rally myself to go to the gym.  I know I'll feel better about my joints and whatnot if I go, but right now, I don't have the energy.  Maybe in a bit.  I'm just wondering when things will ever get back into a "normal" mode?

earthquakes and hurricanes, oh my!

We are sitting at daughter #1's apartment, waiting for Hurricane Irene to get here (actually home) and blow through.  It's going to be a dangerous storm because the ground has been saturated with record amounts of rain this month.  Hopefully, we won't lose power, and will be able to make the trip from Rome (NY) back home on Monday with little or no "issues".

Last week wasn't a good week.  We ate out, a lot, went to 2 Renegade's games and then came upstate to go to the State Fair with daughter #1.  And we're going to wait out the hurricane here, so that means another night of eating out.  Hopefully, we can get back to normal next week.  Cook at home, and stop eating (and drinking) everything that doesn't move.

Daughter #2 is at school, and they have been warned not to travel south or east -- into the storm's path.  I will be grateful when this is all over.  Oh yeah, there was an earthquake last week, centered in Virginia, which some people in our area felt.  I did not, but Hubby did.  Okay, what else is going to happen before the end of Augusst??

Quiet time

It's really quiet here today.  J is at college, and there is no one here to watch upteen hours of inane cartoons or silly reality shows.  It's a little lonely, but mostly, it's just quiet.  I talked to her this morning, and she's doing okay, although, I could hear the tears starting as I was saying good-bye.  Her classes start on Wednesday, and hopefully she won't be as homesick when she gets into her routine.

I finished another book, went to the gym, and have basically done nothing with myself the rest of the day.  I'm having dinner with an old friend tonight. (The friendship is old, not the friend!)  And then plan this coming weekend with the other daughter.

Changes, and adjustments.  It's been that type of year so far.

J's last day before college

J, #2 daughter is leaving for college tomorrow.  Both of us are fighting the tears.  She's sad, because she doesn't want to grow up.  I'm sad, mainly because my "buddy" is leaving.  We would drag one or the other for walks after school.  To Dunkin Donuts, to Dairy Queen to the coffee shop, or just around the block.  And now, she's going to college, and I will get to spend my afternoons without her.  I know, it's part of growing up, but I never realized how much this would hurt.  Yes, it hurt when the oldest daughter left for college that first time, but she had been such a pain for the weeks leading up to her going, that it didn't hit me until she had been gone for a week or so.  And I also had J to keep me company.  But that will all change in the next 24 hours.  Soon, it will be hubby and me, just the two of us, 8 months out of the year.   We haven't been alone for any extended period of time since before they were born.  It's going to take some getting used to!

On another note, weigh in was last night.  I lost 2.2 pounds, so I guess perseverance does pay off.  And my normal leader wasn't there.  Sure the woman who filled in was okay, but doesn't have the personality that the regular leader has.  And once we get the kid settled in (and drive the 3 hours home), I have to get back into planning and cooking dinners and make sure I have what I need in the house.  AND NO JUNK FOOD!

The next two weeks will be challenging, then school starts, and I'll be able to get back to work.  Next weekend, we're going to #1 daughter's and go to the NY State fair.  The following weekend is Labor Day weekend, and we've got tickets to a couple Renegades games.  Then, it's our anniversary.  This year, our anniversary is 9/10/11.  Like I planned that 28 years ago!  So, while the daily routine may get back to normal, the weekends are still fairly booked.  And I thought I'd be able to get something done around the house.  Yeah, right!

Thursday, Thursday

We're supposed to go to the Renegades game tonight, but it doesn't look promising.  The Renegades are the local minor league baseball team.  They are in the short season rookie league, so while the baseball is fun to watch, it's the other things that go on at the stadium that are even more fun.  The last 2 games we've tried to see have been rained out, so I'm hopeful that this one will go, even though thunderstorms are promised for tonight.

It's been a so-so type of week.  We were at the amusement park for Saturday, drove home on Sunday, and the weekdays have been spent getting the kid ready to move into her dorm on Sunday.  Yep, next week, hubby and I will be "empty nesters".  In one way, I'm looking forward to it, but in another, it's going to seem so strange.  We've had kids in the house for 22+ years now, and it's going to be very quiet.  Not to mention no marathon TV sessions of America's Next Top Model or Bridezillas!

After our anniversary weekend -- it's 9/10/11 (how cool is that?) I want to start getting rid of some of the old, broken, worn out things the girls have "stored" over the years.  Yeah, easier said than done.

For our anniversary, we're going to go to Lake George, all by ourselves.  Something new and exciting. We haven't taken a weekend to ourselves since the kids were born.  Now, it's going to be time to rediscover each other.  And maybe spend some time on myself, instead of everyone else.

Weigh in is tomorrow. Let's see how I did this week.

Rainy Sunday

Okay, so last week, we were going to go to Knoebels on Sunday and come home Tuesday.  Then, the weather decided to get lousy, so we changed plans and left on Friday and came home today.  For those who don't know what "Knoebels" is, it's an amusement park, in the middle of Nowhere, PA, which still charges a "pay-as-you-ride" fee.  During the week, you can get a wristband to ride all day, but you can still get the tickets to pay for individual rides.  And since, I'm a middle-aged lady, whose knees don't always want to get into various ride cars, this makes it nice, because I don't have to pay $40+ to sit and watch my kids ride the rides.  We got there about noon on Friday, after being stuck on I80 for at least a half an hour in one of PennDOTs lane closures. *We've lived in NYS for 28 years, and being from Ohio, we have traveled on I80 for just about every one of those 28 years.  And I80 has been under construction at some point or other EVERY single one of those 28 years.  And because there is a LOT of traffic on I80, a lane closure backs up traffic FOR MILES!*  We purchased a wristband for #2 daughter, (#1 daughter was working and didn't join us) and bought a $20 booklet of tickets for hubby and me.  We were at the park for about 7 hours.  I think I did really well ~ food wise.  I didn't get anything that was fried, but I did have an ice cream cone.  Saturday, we went back to the park, but spent the first hour or so in their Crystal Pool.  The pool is fed by a spring, and is a bit chilly.  #2 daughter road a few rides.  By 3 PM, we were tired, and the skies were getting ready to open up.  We went shopping in Shamokin Dam, PA, had dinner, then returned to the motel.  #2 and I went swimming in the motel's pool, and the hot tub was just the ticket for my sore knees.

The trip home was uneventful, but we were trying to get home before a big line of thunderstorms made driving miserable.  Which we did.  Now, to get back to journaling and staying on program for the rest of this week.  I ran to weigh in on Thursday, before we left, and was UP another 0.8 lb.  Yeah, it's getting really discouraging.  So, while I wasn't watching everything while we were gone, I was trying to make good choices, except for my ice cream cone (in a pretzel cone -- excellent, try one if you get a chance).  It's back to reality this week.

#2 daughter leaves for college next Sunday, so this week will be a whirlwind of packing, making sure she has everything and getting everything into the car. I plan to go to the gym in the morning (it really does help my knees feel more "normal") and then weigh in on Friday.  The following weekend, we're going to visit #1 daughter and go to the NYS fair.  Oh goodie!  more fair food!  We've got tickets for several more Renegades' games, so it's going to be a concentrated effort to stay on program.

Hopefully, September will bring some sort of normality.  Yeah, right!

Tuesday

I can't believe how fast August is speeding past.  It's already the 9th, and I'm thinking "how did that happen?"  Seems like this summer is blowing by faster than I can keep up with it.  Today, the weather can't decide if it's going to be sunny or cloudy.  Right  now, the sun is winning, but I don't know if that's going to last.

Anyhow, I've made it to the gym for the past 2 days.  While not a "record" it's certainly a start.  Do I feel better after spending a half hour on an exercise bike?  I think that I do.  I'm not as stiff and my knees aren't quite so achy.  Does this mean that I'm going to make this a habit and go more days than not?  I'd like to think so, but who knows what my motivation may be in a month.  School starts in about a month, and while I no longer have children in the public school system, I still work for them.  I'd like to think that my motivation will stay strong once school reopens and I'm working most days, but I can't promise that, because I know in the past, it takes some time getting back into the getting up at 5:00 AM, working on day with "lovely" teenagers, then trying to find the energy to go exercise.  We'll see.  It's still a month away.