“Good God, woman, where have you been?” he cried furiously.
A morbid lunacy overtook her. She smiled fiercely and held up the bag.
“Shopping. Want to see what I bought?”
– Lois McMaster Bujold
My wallet is now under permanent lock-down. Because of going to That Show, I bought this and this (the latter for my sister-in-law’s upcoming wedding), but unfortunately not this because it did not look at all good on a less-than-five-foot woman. I looked a frilly mess.
Then, the other day, Venice called me (from two doors down in her flat) and said I had to come over right now. I obligingly threw on some basketball shorts and scampered on over only to behold this.
“Where did you get that?!” I screeched in excitement.
“From that place we hate,” she triumphed.
“You’re kidding!”
“Nope. For $87.00!”
“I NEED THAT!”
The next step was to get J. to agree. I pitched it as the perfect solution to this problem, which has been exacerbated since getting married as the only time I really get to see my husband is the time I used to go to the gym. I pinky-promised my way through the usual litany of bargains (to use it everyday, not to be a little grump when he reminds me that I haven’t worked out that day, etc.) and expounded its virtues (it’s cheap, it’s nice and small – C. sized! – it’s light, and it’s portable for future moves).
If anything else, the sheer guilt that would come from having that sitting in my house (staring at me) will motivate me to use it. It’s easy to ignore the gym when it’s not sitting in your living room! So, with J.’s consent, I bought it.
I really think this could be a solution to my exercise problem. After coming home from work in the evening to feed this guy, coupled with the desire to enjoy this, and the lack of desire to drive back to campus to deal with this, the idea that I could work out in my own home sounds pretty darn good.
What do you think of this plan, darlings?
**And by the way, if I start talking about buying anything else in the near future, jump me, steal and hide my wallet, and under no circumstances return it to me.
Small Dog Syndrome 
Honey, you know that I approve. But I always do… 🙂
I have the same problem with anything with ruffles. It makes me sad. They look so good on Blair Waldorf!
It’s a good purchase if that’s the way you like to work out. If you already know you loathe riding a bicycle for hours on end, you have wasted your money.
To do exercise consistently (whether strenuously or not– because that will vary from day to day) one must find the exercise that is the most fun/least dreaded. It has to be something you WANT to do every day–something you will actually miss if you don’t get to it.
Find that one thing and do it every day till you sweat. After you’ve sweated at it a couple weeks then start pushing yourself. After a couple more weeks start straining at it. Then you’ll see results AND you’ll be enjoying yourself.
My problem is that I don’t like exercise. Period. But I’ve found that both bikes and eliptical machines are slightly less loathsome than other forms. As an eliptical is not an option, behold my bike!