Upside down and inside out with a crazy person

New Year's resolutions make me gain weight...

by Leslie Radford on 01/09/12

So every New Year, we say we're going to do things differently. We're going to get back in shape, quit smoking, save money, pay off debt, take better care of our health, etc. We do great those first few weeks and then we start to go back to our old habits. Right? Right.

I know every year I said I was going to lose weight. In fact, quite the opposite would happen. Five-hundred pounds later, I give up on making resolutions. If the opposite is going to take effect, I'm just not going to do it.

This probably sounds like you, too.

Well, this year, The Suburbia News is going to help you kick your bad habits. That's right. We've got this little contest-thingy going on. Aaaaannnnndddd, we're going to make it super easy.

All you have to do is go online to our website and send an email to news@suburbianews.com or go to Facebook or Twitter, like or follow us, tell us your New Year's Resolution and we will automatically enter your name in a drawing to win one of many cool prizes.

We are working on getting the prizes lined up, so check out next week's paper to see everything you could win. Winners will be announced Feb. 2 in the paper. Details will be in this week's paper.

In the meantime, USA.gov has listed the most popular New Year's resolutions. So check it out. Click on the goals you want to accomplish and they'll give ya some resources,

Obviously, some are easier than others. Last year I said I was going to be more active in the community. I've kinda made the Seagoville Animal Shelter my charity to help and this year, I'm adding the Chamber. Easy.

Last year, I said I was going to save more money, so I opened a saving account. Needless to say, it's empty, but it's a start. Hard.

I go through phases about being really into working out and eating right. But this year, I hope to join the gym (I have an appointment Friday to talk to the people at Git Fit in Seagoville -- keep your fingers crossed!) Harder...

I did quit smoking a few years ago, although I didn't make it a resolution, so maybe that's why it was so easy to quit cold turkey???

All I know is you just have to make an effort. Start small; Take baby steps so you don't get frustrated and give up.

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Nothing lasts forever

by Leslie Radford on 01/09/12

Boy! November has been a super busy month here at The Suburbia News. I feel like I’ve been turned upside down and inside out time and time again! December is guaranteed to be even busier. I decided to start a blog to kind of let you guys in on a personal front. It doesn’t necessarily reflect the views of the newspaper, so if I tick somebody off, please don’t let it affect how you feel about The Suburbia News. This is a fabulous paper with extraordinary owners whom I don’t care to get fired from! So, don’t read this blog with all the seriousness of the world on your mind. I’m just writing down a thought or two to share with you.

If you know me, you know how well my title suits me: Upside Down and Inside Out with a Crazy Person! It’s just a little something I wanted to share with everyone on general topics with a positive, and sometimes, goofy message.

I really did want this to begin at the beginning of November, but like I said, it’s been busy!

I guess that’s just how it is though: people get extra busy preparing for holidays around October and it doesn’t stop until well past the beginning of the New Year as we all set our resolutions, some attainable, some not. And, in accordance with the holidays and New Year’s resolutions, we all get busy working on being a better person (hopefully). We also want our family and guests to feel welcome as we invite them into our homes for the holidays. So we get to cleaning on our houses and buying new stuff for everyone, making sure everything is perfect in our lives. We try to lose weight to increase our energy and confidence. We do this, and that, and the other trying to achieve something anyway we can and I think many of us lose sight of what we should be doing instead: being thankful for what we have while we have it.

Isn’t that the spirit of the holidays?

I mean, it’s not a new idea. It’s just something I think Americans, you know, being free and all, forget while trying to keep up with the Jones’s.

I spent Thanksgiving at the deer lease this year with my man, my dog Dallas, and a couple of our hunting buddies. We had turkey and ham and all the fixings, even cooked it on the smoker and ate outside – a true Thanksgiving if you ask me! All the while I’m thinking how my Thanksgivings used to be with my entire family, extended family, and friends and occasionally a co-worker or random person who couldn’t make it home for the holidays or didn’t have anywhere to go. Our gatherings were huge and we had food left over for a week!

Thanksgiving was the best at my house. We took time to celebrate fall birthdays at this time too. Two uncles and I have a birthday the week of Thanksgiving and my mom’s birthday was not too long after that. We always had a friend or two that also had birthdays at this time, so it was just one big party – good times, good friends; something to be truly thankful for.

I miss my family and friends who are spread all over the globe, but I was thankful to have what I had last week: a few friends and some good food (and the men did all the cooking and cleaning! Woohoo!)

Both of my parents died young; I have two brothers, a few aunts and uncles and cousins left in the family, so we haven’t had a huge family get-together in years. We all go about our own business doing what we can to survive. We have all struggled immensely. We’ve leaned on each other during the tough times, cried together during the sad times, and even laughed through the impossible times (because what else can you do?) We’ve been kicked in the dirt. We’ve been lifted up.

Point is, I am most thankful for my family and friends, even though I rarely get to see them these days. I can’t imagine having survived without one single person who has come into my life – because everyone we meet is there for a reason, you know... Take the time to learn their lesson, because they won’t be there forever. The good times don’t last forever. But neither do the bad.

And I’m definitely thankful for that!

So, as we head into December, no matter your religious affiliation, be aware of your blessings, remember the good, but also be thankful for all the unfortunate things that have happened to you (like losing loved ones, dealing with debt/poverty, ill health, etc.) because those are the things of which our character is made. I ask you to give and love with all your heart, all the time. Heck, make it one of your New Year’s resolutions! All the things we have and do and react to make us who we are.

And also because of this some people need an attitude adjustment! Do you REALLY want to be a crabby chain-smoking-beer-guzzling-bug-up-the-butt old fart all your life? Of course not!

Life is too short to be bitter. This is a lesson I’ve learned all too recently. It’s amazing how if you change your way of thinking, all the good that comes from it!

All I ask is you be the best person you can be and do the best with what you have while you have it. Because, as I will remind you: Nothing Lasts Forever. Be Thankful For What You Have While You Have It. There Is Always Someone Else Far Worse Off Than You. (OK, now I just sound like my mother!)

I pulled this quote off the internet: “No one is entitled to anything. We must appreciate every opportunity we get in life. Being humble and thankful goes a long way.”

Yes it does.

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