My Septmeber, in brief....

* I started training for a half-marathon in October. My knees responded to the extra burden by screaming at me all night every night, eliminating sleep. When I removed my clever, at-home fix for pronators (enormous arch supports), the pain decreased by about 75%. Hopefully I caught this before I caused permanent joint damage. Moral: talk to your doctor about your gait problems, not the guy trying to sell you the orthotics.
* I have started a 2-meal-a-day diet, sponsored by Walgreens. Seriously, I never get a minute to scarf some lunch!
* My hubby surprised me with a 4-day visit to DC for my birthday! We had a great trip - museums, monuments, friends, even a White House tour - and didn't break the bank thanks to lastminute.com.
* Incidentally DC is the ultimate "cheap date" because almost everything is free, and transportation is cheap (walk or take the metro). I lived in West Virginia as a kiddie and I wondered why my parents brought us to DC so much...now I understand that it is a really low-cost way to entertain an enormous family for free!
* Hubby also got me perfume for my birthday that I hated. I posted a heart-wrenching plea for help on the blog (Should I tell him I need the receipt to return it? Should I sell it on Ebay? Should I just suck it up and wear it for the next 4 years?) but of course I received zero advice comments so I ended up politely asking for the receipt...then explaining that only teenie boppers wear this scent. He was cool about it and the JC Penney gal just laughed at him when he returned it.
* I have been doing rather well at the Buffalo Clothing Exchange over the past few weeks. Check out their store listing - you may have one near you! Unlike most used-clothes stores, they have an excellent selection of jewelry and accessories.
* I don't wear lots of make-up, but I found a powder you should try. It's the Wet 'n Wild version of bare minerals powder! But I really like it - it has a cute brush that sits in a little jar with the powder jar screwed on top, perfectly compact and great for travel, and the powder has a luminescent quality close to bare minerals. It doesn't look like you're wearing powder at all. Plus it's $5!
* Swine flu's upon us...my brother, dad, and hubby have all had it. Keep washing your hands! Don't touch your eyes, nose, or mouth in public!

That sounds sort of like my September in a nut-shell. I'll be back later!