@Li'l Sebastian: Do you know (or can you track down) anyone who has worked for them before? A reference seems helpful in this case. If they haven't given you details on pay, etc., then you are under no obligation to commit to them at their deadline; you could reply, "I'd like to accept this job, but obviously I can't make a concrete commitment until I have confirmation of the compensation, the start date, and the job description in writing. Thank you!" Congrats on the job, I'm sorry they are making the decision stressful.

@Harry Covert: And, also, congratulations on the 3 mile mark!!!!

@Harry Covert: What problems are you having with breathing? If you are trying to increase your basic endurance (just be able to go a longer distance/run for more minutes), you shouldn't be breathing super hard. One of the biggest mistakes people make starting running/starting back up is going too fast and getting quickly out of the aerobic zone. If you are getting to longer running intervals, that might be it...just back off the speed until you get to the point where you feel like you are not working any harder than walking at a moderate speed uphill. It will feel REALLY slow, but consider that your "base". Speed up a little from that for your intervals, but when you first start running longer chunks of time (5 minutes or more per interval) run that slow base speed. It WILL get faster over time, I promise. Once your legs and your lungs get used to running for 30 minutes or more, then you can worry about increasing your speed.

Another way to check your breathing is to make sure that you can always inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth while doing aerobic exercise. You shouldn't have to "gulp" air; if you do, slow down. The only problem with this rule is that it is impossible for a lot of people during allergy season :( It will be months before I can efficiently breathe through my nose again.

@le monde: Frosty the Macaron: I think it is totally okay to avoid situations like that for a while! I worry when my friends are so sad over a breakup that they don't do ANYTHING social, but picking and choosing social events based on minimizing stress is a healthy way to take care of yourself while you need to. I hope you were able to do some other fun things this weekend!

@1girl is Captain Buzzkill: I would be irritated as well. Also, this seems like an apology is not sufficient; if someone did this to me I would expect him to apologize and FIX THE SITUATION, i.e. grocery shop and cook for his friends himself. That is like apologizing for knocking a big pile of papers off someone's desk but just walking away rather than picking them up. Usually I am a big fan of 1guy, but not in this instance. I hope things get worked out soon!

@Cuddlefish: Go!: My friend in Oman wears tunic-type long cotton shirts and loose linen pants almost every day. Pants like this: [amazon.com] and [zappos.com]

Depending on the color/weight/embroidery on the tunic, it can look anywhere from really casual to really dressy. The tunic covers up the waistband of the pants, so you can't really tell how casual or dressy they are. I'm betting you will be able to find some things once you get to Egypt, too, assuming you are in at least a moderately-sized city. It sounds like an amazing opportunity!

@Steggy: whurrs mah dragons at!: Also, spam Environmental Health + the council's twitter and facebook feeds with pictures of the trash. (If only we could somehow post smells on the internet...)

@SevenSixOne: Well, a contractor just stopped by and I let him in...only to realize that all my bras were on the drying rack in the very middle of the living room. Just like there is "good naked" and "bad naked," there is "regular mess" and "mortifying mess."

@SevenSixOne: I always apologize for a messy house, even if it *looks* clean. Just in case someone accidentally opens the door to the guest room or the laundry room and sees where I hurriedly shoved all of my mess when I found out someone was coming over.

@what name: If you like light mysteries, Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series is fun. "One for the Money" is the first book in the series. They get repetitive after a while, but they are light/amusing. Mary Roach's books are good, often fun, non-fiction.