A bit of Thursday potpourri

First, the Rocky movie was good. Not great, not fantastic, not I-can't-wait-to-see-it-again. But also not definitely-wait-for-the-DVD.

The plot – 60-year-old former champ meets the current heavyweight champ in an exhibition match – is implausible, so you have to get past that. Some of the dialogue is brilliant, while some is so lame you wonder if Sly had a little help. He must have, right? [Not according to IMDb.]

I love boxing, so the fight itself was the best part of the film. I had hoped for more of the training regimen, as in the first Rocky, but all of that was kind of glossed over. I guess they figure if you've seen it once, you don't need to see it again in quite so much detail. Or you can rent/buy the first one. [I think I will.]

Eggs, anyone?

Am I inspired? You bet. It'll take whatever it takes, but I'm getting in shape. No ifs, ands or buts about it.

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I want to add a possible candidate to Lori's list of inspirational songs. My son and daughter-in-law are big Buffett fans, and introduced me to Jimmy Buffett's "Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On," from his "Take the Weather With You" CD. It's not a song to work out to – it has that lazy island beat going on. But the words are lovely and uplifting.

He wrote the song after Hurricane Katrina; one line in the second verse reminds me of one of my favorite quotes: "That which doesn't kill you makes you stronger." You can read all the lyrics here.

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I had a fun day yesterday, taking myself to the movies with nothing else on the agenda. I stopped to browse at a bookstore and found a copy of Sugar Blues, by William Dufty, a book I've been wanting to re-read and which Mr. Shrinking Knitter admitted he'd tossed in one of our recent Great Book Purges. This is the book I read when I went sugar-free many years ago.

I'm one week sugar-free today. I haven't been indulging on a daily [or hourly] basis, as I had been all those years ago, so the withdrawal isn't so dramatic. Or maybe I'm just in a better emotional place than I was then. I remember three weeks of crazy mood swings, mostly, while this time I've been on a pretty even keel. Of course, I'm not around too many people, so there's really no one to fight with.

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I bought a pair of Reeboks that were on sale for $25. When I tried them on, they felt like they were custom-made for me. I probably should have bought two or three pairs, but I do want to road-test them before I make that kind of commitment. My old shoes were Reeboks; the toe box seems to fit me better than the Nikes. Maybe when I lose more weight the Nikes will fit better. Do your toes get thinner, as well as your neck, arms and thighs?

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Did you read Greta's comment yesterday? [Every time I type "Greta" I type "Great" the first time and have to go back and correct it. Yes, I'm that compulsive.] Go read it again! Setting a realistic, achievable, maintainable goal – what a concept! My son has done this, as well. He knows where the weight charts say he should be, and he's been there, but it was far too much work for him to stay there.

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Only five more days until the college bowl games begin in earnest! Who cares about Christmas? Are you ready for some football?

Heh.