Richard, Debra, Matt and I set off for Orlando very early on Thursday morning. We made it to Orlando by 1:00pm and went straight to the conference until 5:00pm. We walked around the exhibit hall and for the first time in my life my shoes were actually a good choice and my feet weren't killing me. I always have so much shoe anxiety when I travel because I struggle with the balance of looking cute and being functional. Some girls can just compartmentalize the pain when their feet hurt but I'm just not one of them...it's consumes me. Oh the devastation! After the exhibit hall we completely gorged ourselves at Fogo de Chao which was beyond gluttonous and incredible. Side note- the cheese rolls are gluten free! Score. Then we headed to a very lame audiology sponsored concert to see Smash Mouth...ear plugs and Smash Mouth. Somehow, I had to leave early...
Headed to the conference!
Richie, Deb and me after dinner. Wish I wasn't slouching but I was just really full...
Day two called for a huge breakfast and then a slight cab mishap for Debra and I. I was having a great time with the gluten free bar at the Ritz and then BAM my day took a detour. I was getting out of the cab at the convention center (in the drop off zone) when a van sped past us and hit my door. He proceeded to get out and scream at me and ask me "Why would you do that?! Why would you open your door?!" Seriously guy? Because I was in the drop off/pedestrian zone but I felt terrible although it wasn't technically my fault since I was in motion first. It still sucked for everyone involved, especially our really really nice cab driver. :(
We finally met up with Matt and Richard who got up early and went to the convention like we were on a work trip instead of gorging on breakfast and causing a cab wreck. After the conference we may have done a little shopping...maybe.
But first, let's give Matt a round of applause for losing 85lbs since this time last year!!
Love him!!
Then this happened....yikes! Chanel for moi?
Oh and this was the cute dress for day two! You should know that wedges are a great travel but still cute shoe choice. :)
Day two ended with another incredible dinner, room service dessert and a movie. Lushes.
Day three (also known as the day we didn't make it home) started promising with a little time spent at the spa. I'm pretty partial to ANY Ritz Carlton spa, never met one I didn't love. I went with a tried and true combo of massage and facial. Heavenly! After my facial we had to go straight to the airport. I wasn't looking my best due to the lack of makeup and ton of massage oil in my hair but figured I would be home in a few short hours...right? Wrong! This is when things started to get interesting/scary. We made it to the airport just in time to learn that our flight had been delayed by two hours. We soon found out why when tornado warning sirens to start going off in the airport and on everyone's phones! To help matters he entire airport was made of glass and they asked everyone to stay away from the glass...or as we called it--mission impossible. Debra has actual human children that she needs to survive for so we sought shelter in the ladies' bathroom along with mothers with small children. After a couple of hours and a very discombobulated airport we ended up delayed seven hours and missed our Lubbock connection in Dallas.
Staying alive.
We may be here a while...
Played a game called "Where will Matt put his Invisalign next?" to pass the time.
We finally made it to Dallas at 10:15pm and learned that we wouldn't be able to go home until 7:45am the next morning. We got a hotel for a very short night, grabbed some Taco C and some toiletries and went to sleep. The next morning was possibly my worst public appearance ever. My hair was even more atrocious (complete grease ball) than I could imagine and I didn't have any makeup (stuck in my checked bag at the airport) and I had been in my clothes for a full 24 hours. We made it back to Lubbock by 9:00am and it was good to be home and see my favorite guy and pups! :)
So that was that trip. Never a dull moment and always great company!
Part two of this post is a little more on the serious side. Back in February (I think?) I posted about some health problems I was having. Well the bad news is that I'm still having them and still don't have a true cause or solution. I've had multiple tests run and tried to do everything that I can with diet, exercise and supplements but still feel pretty bad abt 60-75% of the time. Oddly, I feel worse after each time that I eat. I get foggy headed/confused, chills, exhausted and am having trouble sleeping. Needless to say it's getting frustrating especially because work is soooo demanding right now and feeling bad/exhausted/foggy headed is not in the game plan. I do have great hope though! I won't get into a rant about traditional American medicine except to say that I'm disappointed in the system overall. Our medical system strives to spend as little time as possible with patients, bill insurance and prescribe medication to just treat symptoms as opposed to finding the root cause. I don't think that doctors are to blame necessarily...they are just the product of a bad system. Unless I have a limb missing or another acute issue you will not find me calling on a traditional doctor. Waste of my time and money. Ok, so I guess I ranted a little. Anyways, my hope comes from a new doctor that I found in Lubbock that practices functional medicine. Functional medicine combines the advanced technology of traditional medicine and the mindset and treatment of eastern medicine. It seeks to determine the root cause and treat the whole person and not just symptoms. The idea is that if you weren't born with it then it's curable. I have my first appointment on Thursday and I feel hopeful for the first time in months. It's completely private pay but I'm to the point where I'll do almost anything to feel normal/better. I believe that God has led me this direction and I am commited to whatever program/plan they recommend for me. Afterall, I've already given up gluten, all other grains, processed food, most dairy, refined sugar, soy and red meat. I'm determine to regain my health and be 'well'. I don't want to just be 'ok', I want to be vibrant and energetic. My goal is to be healthier than I've ever been as an "adult". Prayers and positive vibes are appreciated. I'll keep you updated!
ht
