The Ground Is Harder When You Hit It At Full Speed...

Vince Lombardi said "It's not whether you get knocked down, it's whether you get up."

It was bound to happen sooner or later.  Something was going to tempt me at the wrong time, in the wrong place, and I was going to fall face-first off of the wagon.

Well, after ten weeks of staying the course, I finally tripped.  I consumed around 7500 calories on Saturday.  I won't bore you with all the details, but there was a buffet brunch, a road trip, and a Christmas party involved.  It was an all-out binge.

When I got home late Saturday night, I made the decision to fast on Sunday.  Please do not reply with comments about how I didn't eat enough calories on Sunday.  I firmly believe that occasional fasting is good for the mind, body, and soul.  I am in no danger of being malnourished because I fasted for one day.

That being said, the fast worked.  It was like detox.  I feel like I'm back on track even after a terrible day of excess.  It was fairly easy to right the ship this time.  I hope it will be a while before that happens again.

* * *

I made another unfortunate trip to the Friend Zone last week.

A few weeks ago, I ran into a girl that I worked with in the past.  When I say that we worked together, I mean it in the loosest sense of the word.  We worked for the same company in different departments and we never interacted with each other.  While we did know each other, we didn't hang out together.  We were basically just acquaintances who had the same employer.

I ran into her at a charity event a few weeks ago and we exchanged phone numbers.  I wanted to ask her out, but I didn't want to be ambiguous about it.

In the past, I have made the same mistake over and over by saying something like "I've been invited to this awesome event, would you like to be my date?" or "I have tickets to this awesome concert, do you want to go with me?"

I knew what I was doing.  I was being non-threatening and friendly (and trying to avoid instant rejection).  I was hoping that they would go with me (which they almost always did) and maybe they would fall for me when they saw how great I was (which they never did).

Not this time.  This time I was determined to be clear about my intentions.  This time I gathered up my courage, picked up the phone, and said the words "I want to take you out on a date."  I know that I said it right because I wrote it down on a note card before I called.

"I want to take you out on a date."

...AND she said yes!  What?  Did that really happen?  Awesome!

No... not so fast...

Unfortunately, the date idea was to go to an awesome event with a very exclusive guest list.  Maybe that's why she misunderstood me.   Five minutes into what I was certain was a 'real' date, she made an offhand remark about the guy she's been seeing.

I think you could actually hear my ego deflating at that moment.

I know one thing for certain about dating.  If she is talking to you about another guy, you are not on a date.  You are 'just friends' and (in my case) you're going to stay 'just friends' because she'll never see you any other way.

Needless to say, I 'm disappointed.  I was so sure I had been more transparent with my intentions.  In the end, I'm just too 'friendly' for my own good.

I am trying to focus on the quote from the top of this entry.  "It's not whether you get knocked down, it's whether you get up."  It's a little harder to do when it comes to romance, but my only other choice is to stay on the ground.

I don't like it on the ground.

* * *

Last week I averaged about 2800 calories per day, and I only walked 24,000 steps.  Nonetheless, I lost 1.6 pounds.

I have lost 27.8 pounds total (in 70 days).

By the way, THIS is what a bad day looks like when you count your calories...