check-in thread for those of us who are still here

Still here and still working on it. I hope there are still some us out there.

Anyone still here?

Happy Independence Day week, everyone! Have fun, be safe, and don't forget to exercise!

Happy Sparkiversary a few weeks late!

Happy New Year to you as well, Laura. Here's hoping (I should say "planning) to get back on track and make this year the most successful yet.

Happy New Year! I hope 2015 treats all of you well. :)

That's good news, Laura.. I always liked to work close to home too - and live east of work so I didn't have the sun in my eyes for the morning & evening drives!

I need to get back in shape. Started on the recumbent bike again but slowly. The knees don't hurt anymore but the back & stamina are shot. I think I'm scared to step on the scale!

Hi everyone!

I have had a wild summer of job interviews! I had one offer that would have had me moving across the state. I was all ready to go for it when a job opened up ten miles from my house!

So, now I am scrambling to pull things together before the first day of school. I gave up my coaching job (middle school track) when I thought I was moving, so now I am going to try to get it back!

I've lost about 20 pounds since April, although I've not been on the scale for about a week. All the stress has led to several ice cream binges. I haven't been able to run because of an achilles injury, but am hoping to get back at it in a few days.

One way or another, I plan to undo any damage I may have done to my weight loss over the next few weeks!

Hi everyone!

I just spent the last month going to so many job interviews that it's starting to feel like a full-time job (without any pay). No luck yet, but I'm hoping one will go my way soon. I've got three so far next week!

Despite the crazy driving all over the state, I did manage to work out most days and am down almost 20 pounds since the beginning of April.

I just got home from a nice family visit for the holiday. My sisters and I built a parade float for our youngest sister's theater education company, so we were pretty busy. It was a lot of fun, though, and I got to spend time with my niece and nephew. My nephew dressed as the cowardly lion for the parade (my sister's company is doing the Wizard of Oz this summer). He's 17 months old and he was definitely the star of our parade unit. The crowd kept trying to get him to Roar, and he was doing it pretty well by the end!

I hope you all are doing well and enjoying the summer!

Those diet "bets" can really help. My sister and I are doing spark people together. We are each setting 3 goals that are doable with a little "wiggle room" to make it liveable. If I decide to go off and mess up my goals, then I have to pay her $5. That bit of "ouch" will really make me more motivated to stay on the plan.

I'm not sure there are many of us here, but it's sure nice to see some familiar names popping up on this thread.

I'm not super active here these days, but I am trying to track my food and exercise. Plus, I'm a leader on the wisconsin team, so I have to check in there just about every day. It keeps me busy and focused!

I'm doing a six-month dietbet right now, that should keep me on track. I only have to lose 19 pounds by October to win, so it shouldn't be so hard.

I'm glad to see posts again too! The group was such a help when I started - was it really three years ago? I've been active on the hip/knee replacement group as I had to have both knees replaced last year and I love the games some of my other groups play like 'last letter starts a new word' or 'change one letter in 4 to make a new word'. They make me think & hopefully keep me sharp. {g}

Didn't think the group was still going. Been up and down and finally back to having some accountability with Spark People. Active with some other groups, but glad to see our group is still alive and kicking.

School was a lot different back in the 50s & 60s. Shop class for boys, cooking & sewing for girls. Dress codes for both students & teachers. Things have changed for the better as we now have women in fields like medicine, law, engineering, etc. We're no longer limited to being a teacher, nurse, secretary, waitress or homemaker, the usual career paths for someone graduating in 1961. I was the first in my family to go to college. My grandparents only had 8th grade educations (but, boy, were they smart!), Mom & Dad graduated from high school, I got my BA, my daughters both have Master's degrees and I have a grand-daughter that I can easily see getting her doctorate. She's just starting 9th grade but has been taking high school classes or independent study for the past year.

I still love learning new things - since retirement, I've been teaching a knit & crochet class at the Senior Center, learned HTML to code my blog & genealogy site & delved into finding my ancestors; plus I love to read!! I just finished book #60 for this year and am deep into #61.

Way to go fighting to get that class! I am so glad I went to school in a time when I could study whatever I wanted. The only time I've encountered that sort of problem was in a factory job where only men were allowed to run the machines. I applied for the job anyway and they made up a ridiculous excuse for why they wouldn't give me the job. Several of the line operators stuck up for me when the boss said I didn't know enough about computers to do the job, considering that I knew more than most of the men doing it. I didn't get the job anyway, but they offered me a different promotion with much less pay. I didn't stay there very long.

Back in the 66-67 school year I subbed because they were trying to draft my then husband & I didn't want to be stuck in a contract. I loved subbing (well, maybe not the day I was assigned to the boys' shop class) as it gave me a lot of flexibility. One subbing job lasted for three months as the art teacher I was filling in for had serious problems after surgery. That led, in a time when jobs were scarce, to the district calling me and asking me to apply for a full time position the following year. By then the ex had been declared 4F because he was blind without his glasses so I took the job & wound up teaching 7th grade geography when the last time I'd been near a geography book was when I was in 7th grade. Left teaching when I had my first daughter & found a far better suited to me career in computer programming, drafting (the class I had to fight to take back in 1959 because I was a girl and it was a class for boys) and printed circuit design. Worked in those fields until retirement.

Edited by: PLAINJANELLEN at: 6/5/2014 (12:51)

Happy June!

Today is my first day of "summer", although I am actively looking for a summer job. I've got lots of interviews for teaching jobs, so I am hopeful that I will find something full-time for the fall. I am ready to have my own classroom and stop subbing!

My sister had her second baby last week, so now I've got an adorable niece to spoil!

Still working hard at the weight loss. I was really stuck for a while but, after a recent blood pressure scare and trip to the ER, I've gotten on a new medication and am losing again. I wonder if the blood pressure issue was making it harder for me to lose?

Anyhow, I'm feeling optimistic this month. We'll see how it goes!

I'm still here - haven't been tracking much lately but I've been active on some of my team boards. Really like the ones with games that make you think. They help me convince myself that I'm not "losing it".. I had both knees replaced last year & have spent the last couple month helping my DH to recover from a fractured ankle. He's finally able to get around with a boot & one crutch. This getting old is not for sissies!!

I just finished my second season as a PAID track coach at our local middle school. Now, it's time to hit it hard applying for teaching jobs for the fall. I'm still subbing, but would really like to find my own classroom somewhere!

I'm mostly starting over with my weight loss after gaining it all back last year. I've lost 10 pounds so far and am hoping to get back to my 2010 success weight by the end of the year!

Hi all. I started this thread so that those of us still here can check in from time to time. It'd be nice to keep in touch with everyone who is left. Who knows...maybe some others will come back and check in eventually!