I've posed this question to my spouse and two of my friends, but I'll pose it to you, gentle reader: what is it about a woman doing a bench press that fascinates men to no end? I do a lot of weight-bearing exercises in the gym (as Jody, who tagged along during Friday's workout, can attest) but nothing gets a raised eyebrow quite like a girl making nice with a bench press.

To the humans reading this missive, We send casually-meowed greetings and salutations. We recognize that the visitors to Our domicile wish to receive only the best of care from Our humans for the duration of their stay, and We are pleased to announce the results of Our ongoing quality-check program.

Prior to all guest arrivals, We thoroughly investigate the sheet situation of all guest beds in order to assure our guests a 100% mouse-free experience. We simply will not tolerate even the merest whisper of a hint that We might inflict any but the best of mouse-free experiences on Our tolera….uhhhh, beloved guests.

(We'd stand behind the guarantee…but that'd mean We'd have to wake up.)

Click on the following photo to see a demonstration of Our quality-control procedures at work:

Some weeks are so bad you want to quit.

Some days you wake up and know that the fight is in you.

Over the past few days I've had a couple of people make offhanded glances or comments that make it clear to me that workout-related changes are starting to become apparent to other people.

Goal jeans #2? Check.

After a truly horrendous, soul-eating week, I am now in the size 18 jeans.

Fair warning, size 16 jeans that I've ordered: you're next, babe.

(No mercy, no quarter, no surrender? Right on.)

I write a lot about the successes I have in trying to get healthy and lose weight because I know it encourages my friends who are going through - or just thinking about going through - the same process. Judging by what I've seen happen amongst my friends since I started talking about this process back in January, sometimes all a friend needs to get started on the process of wellness is to hear someone else talk honestly about the process.

In the process of getting healthy there are plenty of days when you just know that you're doing what is right for yourself, and you need no additional encouragement. But there are other days, other weeks, that we don't always like to talk about. The weeks where the weight doesn't drop, the workouts are a struggle, and the only thought racing around in your head is "Why the hell do I bother?"

It just hasn't been a good week.

Hey, if you wanted more syndication options, all you had to do was ask, jeez! (Ok, so I actually remembered to check my 404 logs.) Those of you who are needing more cat.net goodness, but haven't bothered to check the dropdown box for linkage...well, there are a few options: