Sick of seeing ads begging for money for kids in other countries. Isn't it the parents' responsibility to provide food, education, and clothing for their children? And why should this country be expected to foot the bill when we have enough poverty right here at home? If you can't afford children, don't have them!

Scales aren’t always accurate, but measuring tapes are. Down to a 35” waist. I suppose that’s not too bad for 48 years old, but it’s certainly not ideal either; something like 24” or even up to 28” would be better. Guess what, though? Yup, you got it. It’s the weekend, and I’m treating myself, which means 35” is as good as it gets. :) I think I’ll bake a small batch of chocolate chip cookies and split them with Tom this time around. And the rats, of course.

Went for a midnight test run, and OMG was it cold! My shins and face felt like ice, even though I had long pants on. I dug out the ski jacket I used to wear in Oregon from the closet, thinking I wouldn’t even be able to get into it with how heavy I am now, but believe it or not, I did manage to zip it up. Barely, but I did. I also found my knit gloves in their pockets too. Didn’t realize I still had these. Instead of going for a long-distance run like down to the front gate, I just circled the block to see what it was like at night, and I could see plenty well enough. Between the street lights and the way so many people light up their houses at night, it’ll probably be easier to see any cars backing out at night than in the daytime, not that I expect people to be leaving at midnight here. Morning, noon, midnight—it's the only way to prevent the inches from going from 35 to 40, 45, 50, 55…

Poor Tom. Just one more day off, then it’s back to work. I think another reason he’s not so eager to socialize much outside of work is not only due to the lack of free time but also after dealing with tons of people for 8-10 hours a day, half of whom are idiots, that’s all the more reason to value his solitude. He's still looking forward to the company bowling party.