It’s All About The Mo

It there’s any force of nature that can work either strongly in your favor or horribly against it, it’s momentum.

I ought to know. Last August 6, the day my mother fell and permanently broke her humerus, the mo started moving against me. I knew that day that I was about to lose 6 or 8 months of my life, since she would likely spend that much time in hospitals and nursing homes over this injury.

Once the mo starts to go, what can you do? I’ll tell you what I did: I ran straight over to the Russell Stover’s Outlet Store and participated in their Biggest Blow-out Sale Ever! I got enough sugar-free chocolate to fill my freezer, all for about $20. Not that I needed to obsess about available freezer space, you understand.

Who needs long-term storage when you’ve got a rear end?

The bad, bad mo took me down, folks. Yesterday, I looked back over my (very sketchy) record of my weight ups-and-downs, and saw that I’ve gained SIXTEEN POUNDS since August. People, I’m only 5’2”. I can’t afford to gain sixteen pounds over the course of my entire adult life, much less in ten months. I virtually inhaled sugar-free chocolate for most of those months.

Actually, I gave it up for Lent and that broke its hold over my mind, but sadly, not over my butt. It’s not Lent’s fault, of course. Never confuse Lent with Dr. Atkins. Two entirely different deals.

Anyway, the hardest thing about momentum, since it moves so forcefully and steadily, is change. Momentum, I’ve found, makes change nigh unto impossible.

Nigh unto. But not completely and hopelessly impossible. No, indeed.

The mo began to reverse when a dear buddy of mine told me she and her fam would be in KC for a few days starting July 5, and could they stay with us? Of course! That’s what I said, but then I panicked. Our poor house had seen better days, and all of those days occurred before Mom’s accident. The place was a freakin’ disaster.

So Doug and I set to work. I bragged to my friend that the upstairs would be their bed-and-breakfast—two bedrooms and a full bath, with loft area for reading and coffee drinking. In reality, the upstairs was a burial ground for dead furniture and a gallery of atrocious art. It would take a miracle for my words to become truth, but we dug our heels in and started to make it happen.

When we’d finished one bedroom and the bath, to the point that I swear the rooms could be featured in a Pottery Barn catalog, my friend emailed. They can’t come! Doug and I laughed our heads off and took the first break from working on the house that we’d had in a month. Since then, we’ve painted his office and started on our bedroom, thinning out all the superfluous possessions that have tied us down.

The mo had changed directions, thanks to my bud. And when the mo changes, you can make that change apply to as many areas of your life as you wish. The next arena? The old caboose.

Seven pounds down now, in just under two weeks. I feel great! The nice thing about this change is the clear-headedness that goes with eliminating junk foods. And with clarity comes….you guessed it, more change.

The Starbucks thing? Gone. I’ve lost track of the days. Fifteen? Sixteen? It doesn’t matter. They’re not getting my money anymore, and they will no longer have the privilege of contributing to my other “bottom line,” either.

Piling up money for Kevin’s final year of college? Oh, yeah. It starts with foregoing the Fourbucks, but it doesn’t stop there. Suddenly, we see all the frivilous ways we’ve wasted money, and it’s amazing how much we’re enjoying cutting back. Now, if we do decide (after really thinking about it…) we want to spend $13 at the Twilight Hour to see Mission Impossible, it’s so much more fun. These days, thankfully, they don’t even look at you funny when you bring in your own drinks and snacks. Yes, people, we are that cheap.

The best part of all about the flow of the mo is that I’m actually working on my novel. It’s essentially done, you know. Except for some not-too-major revisions, it’s ready to send out. But when the mo’s not working with you, you just can’t see how to make it happen.

All in all, the past six weeks or so have brought some much-needed change to our lives. Actually, it began when we went to the Old Country. That’s when I realized that my mother didn’t need me nearly as much as I’d imagined, evidenced by the fact that she got along so well without me. And a realization like that can really shake a girl to her core.

If your mo’s going to heck in a handbasket, don’t give up. It’s not the end of the world. In my case, Jesus was right there with me, patiently waiting until I was ready to embrace His gift of a change in direction.

I made up a motto once, one I’ve used off and on through my life. It first came out of my mouth when Doug would race down the road on auto-pilot, always late for wherever he was bound. Half the time, he’d turn to me and ask, “Where is it we’re going again?”

And I’d say, “You’ll never make up for with speed what you lack in direction.”

Pretty good motto, huh? Remember, you heard it here first.

Posted by Katy on 06/27/06 at 09:29 AM

Fallible Comments...

Great post, Katy. Hmm. Just to keep you working on the old house, maybe I should plan a visit to your place in the fall. That bed and breakfast sounds pretty nice to me.

Robin
Posted by Robin Lee Hatcher on 06/27/06 at 10:32 AM
P.S. Forgot to tell you. I gave up coffee, both at home and of the Starbucks variety, last fall. At home, I drank it with Coffeemate flavored creamer, made with all the awful bad stuff that hardens your arteries and adds bunches of calories. I figured it was surely going to kill me. Now, I treat myself on Sundays to a non-fat Chai Tea latte, small, at my church's coffee bar, Holy Grounds. Costs $1.50. And I feel better these days, too.

Robin, who is down 7 lbs since January and should get serious about losing another 9.
Posted by Robin Lee Hatcher on 06/27/06 at 10:39 AM
Robin--My upstairs makes a cozy, wifi-enabled retreat (when it's in its glory). I have thought of opening it up (selectively) to writer friends. Seriously. (Hey, it was Lisa S. and her fam who planned to come!) There's a good chance that my daughter will be moving home July 31, at least for the short term. With her seven-years accumulation! But after she finds an apartment, THEN I might just be open for business.

Congrats on giving up the stuff! And losing weight, too. If my church had a coffee bar called "Holy Grounds," I would HAVE to reward them by spending my money there. That's like something out of a Jan Karon novel!
Posted by Katy on 06/27/06 at 10:58 AM
Who needs long-term storage when you’ve got a rear end?

Oh, MY! ROFLOL! This has become my new favorite quote! And put me on the waiting list for that B&B!

Wonderful post, Katy! I'm still laughing!
Posted by Deb Raney on 06/27/06 at 03:30 PM
Deb--I am thrilled to have entertained your tiny little self! :) And when the Writers B&B opens, I'll make sure you're at the top of the list!
Posted by Katy on 06/27/06 at 05:15 PM
Sent here by Jennifer at Open Book, and glad for it!

Maybe I should move. Here we call it "fivebucks".

I've got mother-care issues, memories of Ireland and a daughter in college. I've found lots to relate to here. Oh, and a similar *storage* problem.
Posted by AC on 06/29/06 at 10:43 AM
You go girl cuz you are on a roll. I have felt depressed and know it has been brought on by the horribly hot weather. Your post was an inspiration and I plan to get up, moving, and finish putting up the new curtains.
Posted by Maria on 06/29/06 at 03:00 PM
AC--So glad you popped in! Five bucks is just TOO MUCH! So is four. I had an old lady friend of our family. She died at age 100, around ten years ago. She was a self-made millionnaire and the first female pharmacist in the state of Missouri. A fascinating woman. But the day coffee stopped costing a dime in a restaurant, she stopped ordering it. She said 15 cents was WAY more than a cuppa should cost. She felt the very same way about pie, too! I'm going to go read about your issues now!

Maria--I don't get on productive rolls too often, I'm afraid. I definitely have to go with it when it happens and ride it to the end. Did you get your curtains hung? We got new curtains for the bedroom we finished redecorating, and the rest of the curtains are getting washed and rehung as the rooms get painted. It's starting to look spiffy around here! I hate the heat, too, Maria--cannot tolerate it. I work in fits and starts, and take breaks.
Posted by Katy on 06/30/06 at 09:08 AM
Oh my gosh. My issues are at their worst right now although these are MIL/SIL issues. It is not pretty. I hate that to be your intro to me...really, I am a fun girl. Really.
Posted by AC on 06/30/06 at 04:02 PM
Katy, I'm still laughing and SO encouraged by your post today. Talk about needing a little mo' "mo"...hehe...I DO!

Love your way with words. Way to go on the novel, too. I'll be first in line. Oh! But I never did care for Starbucks, per se, but Caribou? That place had me addicted for years, or maybe it was those mega death-by-chocolate muffins that taste so good with coffee. No more. Trying to shrink my bottom, too. Only 6 pounds so far. Thanks for the motivation, girlfriend.

hugs,
Vicki
Posted by Vicki on 07/01/06 at 01:54 PM
AC--My experience (and I have a lot of it....) is that VERY fun girls can get derailed (at least temporarily) by oh, so icky circumstances. I let it all hang out here, too, and sometimes think I've stopped being (and having) fun in my life, but then things make a bit of a turn, and enjoyment returns. It will happen with you, too, Fun Girl!

Vicki--Now I wish I knew what Caribou is! (No, please. Don't tempt me!) Hey, six pounds is a lot of bottom to drop! Be proud, my friend! Yes, the mo is still working for us over here. We've got another bedroom half painted (it'll be done by the time we have company on Tuesday). We're reading the Bible together every day. I'm sticking with my eating plan, we're on a spending diet, the whole ball of very messy wax. It feels really good to put our house (actual house, financial house, physical house, spiritual house) in order! Thanks, Vicki!
Posted by Katy on 07/02/06 at 04:08 PM
loved this . Glad the mo's changed ...
Posted by Lorna on 07/05/06 at 01:54 PM
Lorna--I actually am a bit mystified by all of this. I know that Ireland and Scotland did me a world of good. I had just enough time for reflection to come to some conclusions about the way I was doing my life, and to decide upon some changes. I just didn't know there would be so many!
Posted by Katy on 07/06/06 at 01:41 PM

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Personal blog of christian writer & fallible mom Katy McKenna Raymond in Kansas City, Missouri Katy is represented by Greg Johnson at WordServe Literary Read more Katy at LateBoomer.net Follow Katy on Twitter Follow Katy on Facebook 123 Recent Posts Try Becoming Brenda Starr Off Beat Scattered That’s It So I’ve Finally Signed With An Agent. Now What? The Spoon Sciatica Sweetheart A Woman’s Train of Thought Has No Caboose However much we own, we are all still living on borrowed time After all, when restaurants shrink portions, they don’t shrink prices. As with everything in life, balance is key. Slow down, you move too fast… Yeah, I know. I have issues. Search Advanced Search Syndicate Login E me at katy @ ngenius.com	It’s All About The Mo It there’s any force of nature that can work either strongly in your favor or horribly against it, it’s momentum. I ought to know. Last August 6, the day my mother fell and permanently broke her humerus, the mo started moving against me. I knew that day that I was about to lose 6 or 8 months of my life, since she would likely spend that much time in hospitals and nursing homes over this injury. Once the mo starts to go, what can you do? I’ll tell you what I did: I ran straight over to the Russell Stover’s Outlet Store and participated in their Biggest Blow-out Sale Ever! I got enough sugar-free chocolate to fill my freezer, all for about $20. Not that I needed to obsess about available freezer space, you understand. Who needs long-term storage when you’ve got a rear end? The bad, bad mo took me down, folks. Yesterday, I looked back over my (very sketchy) record of my weight ups-and-downs, and saw that I’ve gained SIXTEEN POUNDS since August. People, I’m only 5’2”. I can’t afford to gain sixteen pounds over the course of my entire adult life, much less in ten months. I virtually inhaled sugar-free chocolate for most of those months. Actually, I gave it up for Lent and that broke its hold over my mind, but sadly, not over my butt. It’s not Lent’s fault, of course. Never confuse Lent with Dr. Atkins. Two entirely different deals. Anyway, the hardest thing about momentum, since it moves so forcefully and steadily, is change. Momentum, I’ve found, makes change nigh unto impossible. Nigh unto. But not completely and hopelessly impossible. No, indeed. The mo began to reverse when a dear buddy of mine told me she and her fam would be in KC for a few days starting July 5, and could they stay with us? Of course! That’s what I said, but then I panicked. Our poor house had seen better days, and all of those days occurred before Mom’s accident. The place was a freakin’ disaster. So Doug and I set to work. I bragged to my friend that the upstairs would be their bed-and-breakfast—two bedrooms and a full bath, with loft area for reading and coffee drinking. In reality, the upstairs was a burial ground for dead furniture and a gallery of atrocious art. It would take a miracle for my words to become truth, but we dug our heels in and started to make it happen. When we’d finished one bedroom and the bath, to the point that I swear the rooms could be featured in a Pottery Barn catalog, my friend emailed. They can’t come! Doug and I laughed our heads off and took the first break from working on the house that we’d had in a month. Since then, we’ve painted his office and started on our bedroom, thinning out all the superfluous possessions that have tied us down. The mo had changed directions, thanks to my bud. And when the mo changes, you can make that change apply to as many areas of your life as you wish. The next arena? The old caboose. Seven pounds down now, in just under two weeks. I feel great! The nice thing about this change is the clear-headedness that goes with eliminating junk foods. And with clarity comes….you guessed it, more change. The Starbucks thing? Gone. I’ve lost track of the days. Fifteen? Sixteen? It doesn’t matter. They’re not getting my money anymore, and they will no longer have the privilege of contributing to my other “bottom line,” either. Piling up money for Kevin’s final year of college? Oh, yeah. It starts with foregoing the Fourbucks, but it doesn’t stop there. Suddenly, we see all the frivilous ways we’ve wasted money, and it’s amazing how much we’re enjoying cutting back. Now, if we do decide (after really thinking about it…) we want to spend $13 at the Twilight Hour to see Mission Impossible, it’s so much more fun. These days, thankfully, they don’t even look at you funny when you bring in your own drinks and snacks. Yes, people, we are that cheap. The best part of all about the flow of the mo is that I’m actually working on my novel. It’s essentially done, you know. Except for some not-too-major revisions, it’s ready to send out. But when the mo’s not working with you, you just can’t see how to make it happen. All in all, the past six weeks or so have brought some much-needed change to our lives. Actually, it began when we went to the Old Country. That’s when I realized that my mother didn’t need me nearly as much as I’d imagined, evidenced by the fact that she got along so well without me. And a realization like that can really shake a girl to her core. If your mo’s going to heck in a handbasket, don’t give up. It’s not the end of the world. In my case, Jesus was right there with me, patiently waiting until I was ready to embrace His gift of a change in direction. I made up a motto once, one I’ve used off and on through my life. It first came out of my mouth when Doug would race down the road on auto-pilot, always late for wherever he was bound. Half the time, he’d turn to me and ask, “Where is it we’re going again?” And I’d say, “You’ll never make up for with speed what you lack in direction.” Pretty good motto, huh? Remember, you heard it here first. Posted by Katy on 06/27/06 at 09:29 AM Fallible Comments... Great post, Katy. Hmm. Just to keep you working on the old house, maybe I should plan a visit to your place in the fall. That bed and breakfast sounds pretty nice to me. Robin Posted by Robin Lee Hatcher on 06/27/06 at 10:32 AM P.S. Forgot to tell you. I gave up coffee, both at home and of the Starbucks variety, last fall. At home, I drank it with Coffeemate flavored creamer, made with all the awful bad stuff that hardens your arteries and adds bunches of calories. I figured it was surely going to kill me. Now, I treat myself on Sundays to a non-fat Chai Tea latte, small, at my church's coffee bar, Holy Grounds. Costs $1.50. And I feel better these days, too. Robin, who is down 7 lbs since January and should get serious about losing another 9. Posted by Robin Lee Hatcher on 06/27/06 at 10:39 AM Robin--My upstairs makes a cozy, wifi-enabled retreat (when it's in its glory). I have thought of opening it up (selectively) to writer friends. Seriously. (Hey, it was Lisa S. and her fam who planned to come!) There's a good chance that my daughter will be moving home July 31, at least for the short term. With her seven-years accumulation! But after she finds an apartment, THEN I might just be open for business. Congrats on giving up the stuff! And losing weight, too. If my church had a coffee bar called "Holy Grounds," I would HAVE to reward them by spending my money there. That's like something out of a Jan Karon novel! Posted by Katy on 06/27/06 at 10:58 AM Who needs long-term storage when you’ve got a rear end? Oh, MY! ROFLOL! This has become my new favorite quote! And put me on the waiting list for that B&B! Wonderful post, Katy! I'm still laughing! Posted by Deb Raney on 06/27/06 at 03:30 PM Deb--I am thrilled to have entertained your tiny little self! :) And when the Writers B&B opens, I'll make sure you're at the top of the list! Posted by Katy on 06/27/06 at 05:15 PM Sent here by Jennifer at Open Book, and glad for it! Maybe I should move. Here we call it "fivebucks". I've got mother-care issues, memories of Ireland and a daughter in college. I've found lots to relate to here. Oh, and a similar storage problem. Posted by AC on 06/29/06 at 10:43 AM You go girl cuz you are on a roll. I have felt depressed and know it has been brought on by the horribly hot weather. Your post was an inspiration and I plan to get up, moving, and finish putting up the new curtains. Posted by Maria on 06/29/06 at 03:00 PM AC--So glad you popped in! Five bucks is just TOO MUCH! So is four. I had an old lady friend of our family. She died at age 100, around ten years ago. She was a self-made millionnaire and the first female pharmacist in the state of Missouri. A fascinating woman. But the day coffee stopped costing a dime in a restaurant, she stopped ordering it. She said 15 cents was WAY more than a cuppa should cost. She felt the very same way about pie, too! I'm going to go read about your issues now! Maria--I don't get on productive rolls too often, I'm afraid. I definitely have to go with it when it happens and ride it to the end. Did you get your curtains hung? We got new curtains for the bedroom we finished redecorating, and the rest of the curtains are getting washed and rehung as the rooms get painted. It's starting to look spiffy around here! I hate the heat, too, Maria--cannot tolerate it. I work in fits and starts, and take breaks. Posted by Katy on 06/30/06 at 09:08 AM Oh my gosh. My issues are at their worst right now although these are MIL/SIL issues. It is not pretty. I hate that to be your intro to me...really, I am a fun girl. Really. Posted by AC on 06/30/06 at 04:02 PM Katy, I'm still laughing and SO encouraged by your post today. Talk about needing a little mo' "mo"...hehe...I DO! Love your way with words. Way to go on the novel, too. I'll be first in line. Oh! But I never did care for Starbucks, per se, but Caribou? That place had me addicted for years, or maybe it was those mega death-by-chocolate muffins that taste so good with coffee. No more. Trying to shrink my bottom, too. Only 6 pounds so far. Thanks for the motivation, girlfriend. hugs, Vicki Posted by Vicki on 07/01/06 at 01:54 PM AC--My experience (and I have a lot of it....) is that VERY fun girls can get derailed (at least temporarily) by oh, so icky circumstances. I let it all hang out here, too, and sometimes think I've stopped being (and having) fun in my life, but then things make a bit of a turn, and enjoyment returns. It will happen with you, too, Fun Girl! Vicki--Now I wish I knew what Caribou is! (No, please. Don't tempt me!) Hey, six pounds is a lot of bottom to drop! Be proud, my friend! Yes, the mo is still working for us over here. We've got another bedroom half painted (it'll be done by the time we have company on Tuesday). We're reading the Bible together every day. I'm sticking with my eating plan, we're on a spending diet, the whole ball of very messy wax. It feels really good to put our house (actual house, financial house, physical house, spiritual house) in order! Thanks, Vicki! Posted by Katy on 07/02/06 at 04:08 PM loved this . Glad the mo's changed ... Posted by Lorna on 07/05/06 at 01:54 PM Lorna--I actually am a bit mystified by all of this. I know that Ireland and Scotland did me a world of good. I had just enough time for reflection to come to some conclusions about the way I was doing my life, and to decide upon some changes. I just didn't know there would be so many! Posted by Katy on 07/06/06 at 01:41 PM Page 1 of 1 pages Commenting is not available in this weblog entry. 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Personal blog of christianwriter & fallible momKaty McKenna Raymondin Kansas City, Missouri

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It’s All About The Mo

Personal blog of christian
writer & fallible mom
Katy McKenna Raymond
in Kansas City, Missouri