New Diet/Eating Disorder

I haven't given up hope that I'll be able to recover some of the data on my fried drive, but in the meantime I have Windows XP installed & running, as well as most of my programs. What I'm missing is my main day to day stuff - my email accounts, passwords, mail I haven't replied to yet, bookmarks & a ton of raw photos. I need a good back-up system that doesn't involve my external drive that takes 3 or 4 tries to connect properly every freakin' time I turn the thing on.

After a few months of eating lots of crap I decided to clean up my act & start a fresh diet yesterday. I had a protein shake for breakfast & dinner was yummy - fresh cod, veggies & rice. Unfortunately, about an hour later I hung onto the toilet as the worst case of food poisoning I've ever had rocked me violently. I was so sick & miserable I started crying in between heaves. I feel great today, if a little overtired after so many nights without a good sleep. I didn't plan to start my diet with a total cleanse, but I guess that'll work. Too bad I already made up for lost time by snacking on some Valentine's chocolates. hehe. I went out for supper tonight with my family & was delighted when my favorite aunt arrived carrying a bag with perfect pink tulips peeking out of the top. Flowers, chocolates, a little teddy bear & a sweet card - might be my best V-day yet!

I've never been the type of girlfriend who has huge expectations when it comes to Valentine's Day. I nice dinner at home followed by a good movie (one that *I* get to pick) is all I really need. But when you see the sappy stories about husbands or boyfriends who really go all out, I am a little wistful. I've never really had a big blowout V-day as an adult. I got diamond earrings one year, but it was at a time in his life, as well as my own, where the money should've gone to paying bills, not on silly trinkets. So while it was a nice gesture, though I am sooooo not a diamond earring kind of gal & think I've only worn them once or twice, there was certainly no "thought that counts" in that scenario. Real thought would've amounted to a homemade card with pictures of future celebrations & a credit card statement showing a big payment. Told ya, really not a sappy sort of girl.

Maybe the reason V-day doesn't rank high on my list is because I was spoiled at any early age by my first boyfriend. It was grade 5 or 6 & he was our paperboy, Kurt. He had white-blonde hair & freckles dusted across his nose that wrinkled when he broke out an adorable smile. Like me, he got excellent grades & was the perfect first kiss. My very first Valentine's Day memory is my dad bringing in the morning paper as I groggily came down for cereal. Inside our paper was a big card with a heartfelt message & chocolate heart. I think I still have that card somewhere. So sweet!

His memory might not be quite as fond though. I think I dumped him a couple of weeks later to go out with his best friend for a whopping 3 days. I just didn't know how good I had it until after I'd kissed Mr. Grass Greener at the bike racks. Mmmmmm...kissing at the bike racks after school until your lips are chapped. Now that's a good Valentine's Day! And a criminal offense at my age, of course.