in honor of "dumb jen" fame (Mare knows of what I speak)

You know, here I sit, Dr. Jen, Ph.D.; senior level scientist. I can occasionally be very bright in my job. I can also occasionally be quite bright in my life as a mom and PTA president. However, there are times where my lack of common sense is so lacking - no... so ABSENT - that I marvel that I get from day to day without serious injury to myself or my children.

As an example, take the period just after I moved out here to work as a contractor doing chemical modeling, fresh with my Master's degree. I'd been on my own in undergrad and grad school, but this was my first time on my own with a job and fully responsible for my entire wellbeing. In a fit of overzealous wishing to be a happy, healthy single, vital young woman, I embarked on a totally impulsive and completely unthought-out health kick and decided to start taking vitamins. Lots of vitamins. I went to the store and stocked up on what sounded important and good and faithfully began popping pills each morning. No research on what vitamins I might actually NEED. No research on quantities and what was optimal and what was bordering on dangerous. I assumed that vitamins were "good" so more vitamins were better.

Dork.

After a week of not knowing whether I was horribly ill or pregnant, I finally figured out my throwing up every morning was my body's way of purging the toxic quantities of vitamins I was stupidly taking.

Well look. I was really young then. We all get a bye or two for doing stupid things, right? Again, I was really young.

Which I can't use as an excuse anymore for my latest fitness-crazed debacle.

I previously mentioned that I decided a month ago that I was going to become fit and strong and healthy. I've been eating well and exercising well. I've been doing 30 minutes of cardio a day, plus 30 minutes of weights and calesthenics. I have dreams of wearing a tank top with my biceps showing and the curve of my upper arms a cross between sexy and scary. I'm ready to be awesome. So I've been faithfully working out with my little bitty 3 pound weights. And they weren't doing it any more. I was never even sore after weight training. So I went to the store and upgraded. To ten pound weights. Weights are good, so more weights are even better.

Dork.

I've been walking around today with my arm bent at a 45 degree angle because to straighten it all the way out requires a combination of biting my tongue, hyperventilating, and cursing. Even with all that, there are those last few degrees before truly "straight" that I doubt I will ever achieve again. 3 sets of 12 reps of bicep curls. 3 sets of 12 reps of hammer curls. 3 sets of 12 reps of tricep kickbacks. Dumb, dumb, dumb.

But slightly amusing, all in all. For all my degrees and pompous wannabe airs, I'm still awfully naive. But I mean well. Doesn't that count for anything?

On the good side of things, I lowered my cholesterol from 230 (two years ago) and 213 (last year) to 173 this year. Woooooo!!!!

Bring on the 25 pounders!!!