Rainy Day Dressing

Felt a little blue this morning with the cold and the rain, but cheered up when I realised I could wear my Tokidki rain boots for the walk to work!

Teamed up with new Levante tights! woo!

And, of course, a colourful umbrella, beanie and scarf! :)

Packing (aka German weather in Spring looks like Newcastle in June)

Okay. Here is my itinerary in yahoo weather widgets. Towards the end my packing dilemma will be revealed.

First stop, Vienna. Fly into Frankfurt Saturday with Malaysian Airlines, then hop straight onto an Air Berlin flight to Vienna. Were supposed to be meeting friends there, but they’ve pulled out… plans to date: apple strudel (for Rish), music, horses. For all locations, suggestions welcome. We probably won’t stay in Vienna the whole time we’re in Austria, likely to venture out a little :)
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Morning Coffee

Struggled this morning, got out of bed, showered, and decided on purple tights

Thought they would help me with the sprngy feeling.

Made it to Uni, am now the only person at Degree cafe, have eaten my raisin toast, and am now working my way through the coffee. They don’t charge extra for soy here. Awesome.

I think I had enough dairy for the week, has youghurt a few days, cheese last night. And I think that’s all I can have now until my insides reset themselves for the new week. *beep* Another week, I hope where I will be pleased with my gym efforts, reading, and stickingability to trying to eat healthy (I just need to avoid Summer Rolls… too much sugar and the chocolate is so not my friend)

Purple Work Shoes

I can’t help but love our fairly relaxed work dress standards. So long as we’re neat, it’s all good. This is why I love my Keds, and more lately, by purple “I heart Billy” purple flats I got in St Kilda for $10 :)

As you see, purple shoes, and black jeans. Teamed with a red (work-logo embroidered) polo shirt, hair in a messy bun and dangly purple earrings. My only worry with the earrings in having one ripped out by the kids. Though they tend not to get too aggressive towards me. I always have the fun sensory toys – like koosh balls and other feely things!

The kookaburra hot air balloon followed me to work yesterday morning :) I was hoping it would land on the oval, but it didn’t. Oh well! :)

Not the City 2 Surf

Got back to trying to improve my 5km time today. I’ve had a couple of treadmill sessions since coming back, but both were more interval training pace and fitness rather than trying to get my distance going.

I was meant to do the run outside, around Lake Burley Griffin, but with reports of snow this morning (before I got up, alas!) and the sleety drizzle while I was leaving, there was no way I was going out there.

So treadmill it was. I managed it in 33:50, which is 2 minutes slower than the best outdoor time I’m done, but I was pacing myself, started off at 8km/h picking it up gradually, with the “sprint” at 11 at the end to make sure I came in under 34 minutes! :)

All in aid of getting back on track, and of course looking hotter in my bikini this summer than I did in Greece last month.

Speaking of summer – it’s scary walking around in the Canberra Centre with it sleeting outside to browse the lacey girly spring fashions (seems either girly or a little bit country – think flanno print cotton blouses. help me.) and the swimwear on display at David Jones. I just couldn’t motivate myself to take clothes off to try that stuff on!

Though I did try some clothes at Target. And came to the conclusion that I need to get back into a Target size 10 (Target seems to be middle of the range as far as sizing. They don’t seem to undersize or oversize that much) in order to be in proportion. I used to fit nicely into a ten there. My top half swims in the 12s, and I can wear the 12s there in pants, but the cute dresses I wanted, no such luck. At 26, I know that my beasts won’t grow of their own accord unless I do something rediculous like having a baby (but then I wouldn’t be a 10 or 12 in normal clothes, anyway, right?), so it’s to focus on trimming the fat ;)

And buying cute Hello Kitty underwear to tide me over:

*grins*

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Lace me in

Had a disasterous afternoon shopping with Rish yesterday. Hating everything I tried on, hating sizings, hating that I can’t be a more common bra size, wishing I was just looking for shoes… but it has all motivated me today. So what, I couldn’t fit nicely into the size twelves I was trying on in dresses – I have a few cm to lose, I just need to work harder. Yes, I know a 14A is not the most easy to find bra size. There a two options there – stick with the Bonds bras that fit me well, while woring towards being a 12 again. I can do that.

I know I haven’t been the most motivated the past week or so – 4 days straight of PD is an “excuse” … but a pretty poor one. I didn’t have to eat the snacks and junk sitting on the table. I could have squeezed in an extra gym session if I’d gotten myself out of bed, but throwing in a few late nights, while I should have probably been asleep in my own bed, not that good for an early gym start.

But I went yesterday and pedalled on a bike. Not much of a sweat, given that I was all snotty with this stupid cold, it wasn’t too bad. And today I went back, jogged a little, and will hit the jogging properly again tomorrow. But I did well on the elliptical.

Different motivators? Being able to fit a sexy corset that fits me. Yes, there were some held back tears when I realised that the size 12 Pleasure State corset I was trying on was going to slowly kill me if I stayed in it. But I will get there, and there are a few events to aim for. :) I have a thing for hot lingerie, so want to be able to wear the pieces I want!

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Let’s Play Pretend

Do you ever find role-playing to be a good learning tool? (in the non-sexual sense. role playing can teach alot, particularly if I play the role of ‘teacher’ Miss Fiona with cane in hand…) I remember having to do it through uni – ‘Okay Amanda, now you pretend to be a stuttering client, and Fiona will teacher you prolonged speech’… and rememebr feeling like it was just acting rather than teaching… but after awhile you get practised at it, even if it’s just for pretend, and it’s easer to say the right things at the right time when you’re with the client/patient/colleague/examiner… and after awhile you feel like you actually do know what you’re talking about and aren’t some acting fraud.

Work’s still like that at times, feeling like soemtimes I have to say things a few more times until I feel like I really know what I’m talking about, not ust using someone else’s knowledge and words. Making them my own, putting my own opinions into them. Sometimes I feel like my personal and professional development can be slow at times, but seeing small changes.

This weekend I’m off to Melbourne for a branch presidents meeting. Feeling like I’ll learn more than I can contribute at this stage, but liking the opportunity to put myself out there and try something new. Plus I’m getting flown there, put up at the Oaks and being wined and dined at a place called the Curry Vault which looks rather sweet ;) Plan is I’ll get there in the morning so I can do some Melbourne clothes shopping. Hopefully I won’t come back with much, but I might find something I like that I couldn’t get here in Canberra :) I also have a new Marie Claire that came today to read on the plane to inspire…