Forging Ahead

"You can’t believe how hard it is to be yourself."

I've decided it's time to stop counting days. I started Nutrisystem on January 4, 2019 and I remain committed to the program. I reached my goal weight on July 23, 2021. After taking a break from exercise to focus on work I gained a bit of weight back. On December 28, 2021 I started working on getting back to my goal weight. The next milestone in this paragraph will be the day I get back to 150 or less pounds. I've also started a new blog since I feel like the journey I started back in 2019 is over and I'm transitioning to my new life. As the quote goes, it is hard to be yourself. I'm finding that out more and more every day.

For the next little bit my blog will focus on happy things ... namely my vacation to Disneyworld !! I'm only going to write about one day at a time, so you'll have to keep reading ! I should mention that I haven't been to Disney since 1996 so it was pretty much a brand new place for me. I think with some research and careful planning on MY part, my next trip there (if there is one) will likely be even more fun. Long lines and high prices are par for the course at any theme park but ironically I see there are shareholders calling for the head of the current CEO over this and other grievances. Don't get me wrong - I had an amazing time but I felt so unprepared. I didn't feel like I overpacked, but I did. I didn't think about the temperature after dark - big mistake considering it's February. I had zero clue about what attractions were available at each park - big mistake. I did no research on dining (or anything) and that has changed drastically. No more dining plans ! You pretty much have to fight to get a reservation at a sit down restaurant and they're fully booked weeks or months in advance. You have to take what you can get. Many of the changes are due to COVID and the shortage of available employees to man these facilities, so to some degree they're doing the best they can. The employees that are showing up every day did a fantastic job yet every day I witnessed people being rude to them. I don't understand why people have to be so mean. I could have made my own experience even better if I had taken the time to do some research but I was tagging along on someone else's carefully planned vacation so I was just grateful for the opportunity. Well, "going along for the ride" doesn't mean you shouldn't put some effort into the experience. That's on me. I didn't realize how crucial your smart phone, magic band and the WDW app would be. I don't have a power pack for my phone but I won't go back to Disney without one. A backpack is a must to carry things and I purchased one the second day I was there. The only smart thing I did was bring my VISA, which turns out to be the preferred card at Disney ! They did not want any cash so I tap - tap - tapped my way through this vacation. Thankfully my travel companion is a pro and was the saving grace of the entire trip. If I get the chance to go back I look forward to putting in some effort, not repeating my mistakes and enjoying a smoother experience. I (very naively) thought that since I was going into this blind everything would be new and exciting and it wouldn't matter what I did or didn't do. Well, it didn't turn out that way and that's on me too. I picked up the park guide every day but never opened one of them. If I had, I might have checked out some of the suggested venues and special 50th anniversary experiences and found some of the magic I felt was missing. I look at them now and see all that I missed ! My only concern was not ruining the experience for someone else but there is a lot I could have done to enhance the experience for myself. The silver lining is I learned a lot about myself and if I do go back there is still a lot left to explore and enjoy.

So my first full day in Florida was spent at Epcot. I enjoyed the trip through themed countries and took on a few rides. One was the newest "Remy's Ratatouille Adventure" and it was definitely worth the long wait ! "Soarin' Around The World" was probably my favorite. You felt like you were hang gliding and it was amazing ! "Frozen Ever After" was a lot of fun too ! I also went on "Living With The Land" and "Spaceship Earth" rides. Educational, entertaining and relaxing ! Epcot doesn't have a ton of rides but I was ok with that because it's more about the culture of each country and I enjoyed that. The Arts Festival was also underway so there was a lot of original artwork to view. I thoroughly enjoyed all of the gift shops but I'm not going to lie, I was disappointed in the food choices throughout my time there. It's clear that COVID has drastically altered the theme park experience as many venues remain closed and options are limited. Lack of available workers could be part of that and I don't know how they'll overcome that in the short term. All in all, after the hellish first day, my 2nd day of vacation was amazing. The best food of the day came from .. where else .. Italy ! The frozen Italian margarita was to die for, as were the mushroom ravioli and the arancini. You basically eat your way through Epcot so there was no formal dinner that day. Early in the day I had a delicious sweet and sour chicken stir fry that was actually overloaded with huge chunks of chicken. I didn't chew one piece enough and nearly choked to death on my first day of vacation ! I bought my first pair of "ears" in a shop in the England section and struggled with that obsession for the remainder of the trip ! I can see why people collect them but I kept telling myself I'd only wear them at Disney and managed to keep my "collection" to two. At dusk there was an amazing themed fireworks show and the Beacons of Light show on the Spaceship Earth globe. I thoroughly enjoyed both ! I logged over 20,000 steps so I had no trouble sleeping that night ! Next up: Magic Kingdom !

Work was crazy busy today and although I got a few things done there was a whole lot more that I wanted to accomplish ! I found myself jumping around from issue to issue and wasn't getting anything done, so I had to take a deep breath, reset my mind and focus on one thing at a time. Until I did that I was basically spinning my wheels. I didn't exercise at lunch because I needed to roast veggies and I'm working on getting my post-vacation house in order before the weekend. That means finishing unpacking, putting things away and doing laundry ! That task took up my evening as well. I'm glad tomorrow is Friday as I'm looking forward to my Saturday casino outing with my mom ! New York has lifted the mask mandate so we won't have to wear the darn things all day ! On that note I'm headed for a shower and bed !