What's UP With The Groundhog Anyway??

I'm trying something new this week.  TOLT - Thinking Out Loud Thursdays.  

Catchy isn't it?!

First of all, this meme ROCKS my socks off.  If you haven't watched Game Of Thrones, your missing out.  

BUT..... 

What's UP with the groundhog anyway? 

Apparently, our trusty Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow today.  Really?!?!  And, who can even pronounce Pun-xsu-taw-ney??  What even does it even mean to see his shadow?  Let me break it down for you.  If the groundhog comes out of his hole and sees his shadow, we see 6 more weeks of winter.  If he doesn't see his shadow, we get an early spring.  

Hey Phil!  Does that apply to Minnesota?  It's gross here today.  The temperature -1.   Couldn't you just lie and say for all Minnesotans there will be an early Spring?   We could all use a little good news lately and you didn't deliver today.  Shame on you. 

In addition, 

Whats UP with the t-shirt Not Running Sucks?! 

I had already resigned myself to the treadmill this morning due to the windchill.  I just couldn't get up the strength to meet my running friends for a frigid run in the blustery negative temps.  My treadmill had even piled up some boxes the last few weeks from different projects, so my husband made a special effort to get it cleaned off for my morning run.  

Newsflash:  My alarm rang and I turned it OFF.  I slept until 6:30 and it felt magnificent.  Amazing. Stupendous.  Now I feel guilty.  Very guilty.  So, not running sucks - or it doesn't?  Bleh - that's the mood of the day.  

What's UP with waiting for a parking spot? 

OMG!  This is absolutely crazy to me.  Today on the radio, the hosts were talking about the statistic that the average American spends 4 days of the year waiting for parking spots?   Really?? I actually gasped out loud when I heard this.  Of course,  I'm not sure of the validity of this statement... but are you kidding me? 

Seriously, I've seen people wait for a closer parking spot literally 3 spots away from an open one?  You have two legs. For most people they work just fine.  USE THEM.  Get off your butt and walk.  Not to mention, you'll be walking around the store you're going into, so the few extra steps won't kill you.  

Maybe this is just the runner talking?  Yes, I'd be lying if I said I've never waited for a closer parking spot... but it's been ages since I've done that.  Tip:  park farther away; less likelihood of your car getting dinged and you'll burn a few more calories! 

What's UP with the millions of small toys my children have? 

I have to admit, my husband and I keep a pretty clean house.  At any time, it's likely to be pretty picked up.  No, it's not perfect and my kids make huge messes.  However, we both make an effort to clean up regularly.  

Anyhoo, lets talk about the millions of small toys my boys have!  Holy crap - where do they come from?  We are not buying them, yet they pile up like ants on breadcrumbs.  They are everywhere!  We have an entire drawer in our kitchen devoted to the small crap they bring home.  I spend countless minutes cleaning up the small stuff.  And, god for bid, I try to throw any of it out?  WOW!   Hell hath no fury like a 7-year old without his random bouncy ball.   

And, on that note.....

What's UP with the POUNDS of scrap paper my kids bring home? 

This is NO JOKE.  Every single day, my kids bring home at least 5 papers each.  Most days, it's more.  99% of it goes into the recycling.  I can't help but think, how wasteful?  My husband is an environmentalist so we try very hard to be conscious of our uses.  Why do they use so much paper?  Coloring pages half done, cut up sheets of paper, homework, scraps of I-don't-know-whats. 

I do believe that the school has them using scrap paper so kudos to them, but it does seem wasteful.  But again,  I can't tell you how many times my kids have gone back into the recycling to pull out that 'I-don't-know-what' and plead to me about it's importance.  I begrudgingly let them keep it until they are not looking and I throw it away again.   #mommyisintrouble

What's UP with healthy eating being so hard? 

Oh Dori, you get me! 

If you've been reading my blog for a while now, you know that marathon training starts on Monday.  EEK!  One thing I'm trying to work on is my nutrition.  I truly am horrible with my eating habits.  But why is it so hard?  How can I get over the urge to not want to shove my face with all-things-bad?  It's a struggle and I fight it daily.  I may have this working out thing down,  but the healthy eating is out in left field and I'm scrambling to catch the ball.  

Wow! That felt very therapeutic.  I did feel like I was bitching a bit so thanks for listening. 

Today, I'm linking up with Amanda for the first time for her TOLT link up!   Thanks Amanda!