Supplemental

Sometimes it really pays to complain. Swanson Vitamins, the website from which I order most of my supplements, was having issues with its checkout, so I hit "Chat" to speak to a representative, and she told me that while they worked on the problem, I should call the hotline, mention her name and tell them she gave me permission to have free shipping. So, I will soon have my restock of Yerba Mate capsules and Bamboo extract capsules delivered with free shipping. Yay.

I have been so profoundly happy with the blend of Rhodiola Rosea and Yerba Mate that I've marked the supplements as Take Forever alongside MSM, Cat's Claw, Ashwagandha, Gotu Kola, Passion Flower, and Neem. I will be adding Bamboo to that. I've been taking Horsetail, but Bamboo offers about 70 percent more silica than Horsetail. Silica is important.

Now that I've been using a Sigg water bottle and a Kleen Kanteen water bottle for a few months, the only plastic-bottle beverages I buy are tea and juice blends. I particularly hunt down my two favorites from Honest Tea: Pomegranate White Tea With Acai and Citrus Energy Green Tea. Now if they made the infamous Pomegranate Red Tea With Goji in a plastic bottle, I'd buy so much they'd have to give me a discount. I love glass bottles, but I'm paranoid about traveling with glass.

In the meantime, I'm making do with Purely Juice's Totally Tropical With Goji juice that I can buy at Giant. It's got mango, which is also very beneficial.

Stumbling In

*falls over*

Cerebral palsy kicked my ass today. The muscles in my legs tend to fall victim to the chronic hypertonia before any other muscle. This afternoon was a slice of hell. I could barely bend my legs, limped everywhere. Going down stairs was close to impossible. My quadriceps felt like they'd been through hours and hours of strength training, and sure they look and feel rock hard, but they hurt hurt hurt.
Hypertonia might be useful if it actually affected the muscles I wish would tone up -- the backs of my thighs, my glutes, my lower abs. Sometimes that happens. Not often enough. I still really should lose those twelve pounds. It's not about looks or social comparison. It would make me feel better. It would make me feel healthier. I've been wearing size six pants for the past two months and I want to get back to size four within the next, oh say, year. I am doing what I can to make that happen. I'm four foot eleven. I am at the highest end of my weight spectrum. It makes me feel uncomfortable. Being in so much pain and exhaustion is exacerbating the feeling.
I don't talk about that much, because people will tell me that it doesn't matter, I look fine. I really do like how I look. I don't like how I feel. I have been able to separate the two so I don't slide back too far into disordered eating, at least. I just want the muscle. The health.

The fibromyalgia flared just enough to aggravate me. Today warranted a Soma. The drug has kicked in. My muscles are slowly starting to loosen. Soon enough I can exercise.

Dinner was a big salad, same as the last one. Dessert was half a chocolate chip cookie, warmed in the toaster oven.

Later on, I'm going to play with my various eyeshadows just for a thrill: MAC's Tempting, Surreal, and Crystal; Physician's Formula's Baked Oatmeal and Baked Smokes; Dr. Haushcka's Sunglow. They bring out the gold in my eyes. I'm not very adventurous or wild; Surreal is the most intense color I've ever used.
Also, Dr. Hauschka's Volume Mascara and Revlon's Beyond Natural Mascara are amazing. Hauschka's mascara has neem oil and black tea, and Revlon's mascara has acai oil and avocado oil. I like to layer them for the Bambi look. And my eyelashes are growing in thicker.