Living Maintenance - Maintainers Chat: Week Of August 31 - September 6

Last day of August, which always seems like the last day of summer to me. Where DID it go this year?

For all of our maintainers who don't have access to the forum over the weekend, Shannon announced her first anniversary of reaching goal and a year of successful maintenance, so we're all celebrating with her. :hat: Be sure to go back to last week's thread and check out her hot pix in her new dress!!

DH and I are frantically getting ready to leave for New Mexico on Thursday and since we both work through Wednesday, the cats and I packed yesterday. I tried to get everything into one big suitcase, which worked out fine until I weighed it and it was over 50 pounds. So now we have to pay for two suitcases. :p

One funny happening this weekend -- we had family in town this weekend and a group of us went out to dinner at a restaurant of my parents' choice. Several in the group ordered fried zucchini, fried calamari, and onion rings and got gigantic serving platters heaping full of fried goodness. I ordered a salad and got the world's tiniest salad. A minuscule plate of greens. No fair! It was pretty funny comparing the tiny salad to the mega-calorie fried platters. I would have loved to have eaten one of those huge heaping platters filled with greens since I usually eat my salads out of a popcorn bowl.

I'm off to the gym in a few minutes, groceries, then work.

How was your weekend? What's going on this week? Next weekend is Labor Day weekend here in the US -- anything going on? :)

I always wanted to go to Mew Mexico and see Georgia O'Keefe's ranch and the gallery dedicated to her work.

DH and I leave for our mini-vacation (visitng his folks up north) on Friday and we both have a million things to do before that. Most involved juggling the two cars so no exercise for me this week (except the dogwalking of course). I have to get DH up early three mornings this week and that will not be easy.

We'll be quite frazzled when we leave and first thing up on the vacation is a relaxing :p 6-hour highway drive.

The real vacation for me starts the day after Labour Day, when I do my staycation at home. I already have a bunch of things planned, as I don't get much of a chance to go out during the week in my own hometown!

One thing I will do is exercise every day as this has to go by the wayside this week.

Have a great week all!

Dagmar :tired:

No time for personals as i got to see mom yesterday and she is doing GREAT!!! Can't believe she has had only about a week of rehab and the progress she has made!!! I'm so proud of her.

Going to do some pilates here at her house and then off to the rehab center to pick her up and bring her home!!!!

Yeah Mom!!!!

Hope EVERYONE has a great day!!!

Good morning Meg and Dagmar!

Congratulations, Shannon! You were hot in that dress!

We are going on a little vacation this week, too. We're leaving Thursday and I have a lot to do! I am sure I will get my exercise in, but my eating usually suffers when I am out of my routine.

Have a great week.

eta - Good morning, Jacque! I am glad your Mom is doing well!

Meg, Dagmar and Wardhog, have a good time on your vacations! After school starts is the perfect time for people without kids to take vacations.

Jacque, glad that your Mom is doing great!

We've been putting new baseboards up in our house--it's been baseboardless since we moved in last year. I've also been working on areas of my front and backyard. Swinging the pickaxe is definitely cardio! Also picking the yummy stuff from my garden--still no tomatoes, though, but the plants look better now. It's a race against time to see if they'll produce fruit before it freezes.

My daughter comes to visit on Thursday, staying for about five days. The four things we have planned so far are lunch with her brother on Friday, kayaking on Saturday, church on Sunday and going to the movies to see Julia and Julie and 500 Days of Summer. Other than that, I think we'll just hang out, plus she can visit friends.

Happy Monday, everyone!

I just realized it's my parent's anniversary. I talked to them yesterday and forgot to wish them a happy anniversary. I'll have to call them today. I forget how many years it has been, but I'm thinking it's like 62 years now. Can you imagine?

Sheila~have a nice visit with your daughter! We saw 500 Days of Summer on Saturday and it was a cute show. It was really interesting to see a relationship from the eyes of a guy instead of a girl--I mean, you typically see things from the woman's point of view instead of the guy's. Did you see The Proposal? It really focused on her story, not his and how he felt about the whole thing. Anyway, it was an enjoyable show.

Everyone have fun on their vacations! I'll think of you while I work!

Good morning all. Thanks again for the compliments on the dress! :) My mom loved it, which was a nice bonus. I sometimes feel like I'm not 'girly' enough for my mom... a sparkly purse and painted nails make her happy. :)

Meg - Funny about the huge plate of fried items and little plate of salad... Shows what sells, I guess! :) When DH and I make salad we end up using huge pasta bowls and still fuss about not having enough room. I think next time I'll use a mixing bowl! Enjoy your trip this week!

Dagmar - you enjoy your trip as well! And the 'staycation' next week! I have to plan something like that myself...

Joci - glad you mom is coming home! Yay!

Ward - You enjoy your trip, too! I'm jealous of everyone going places...

Sheila - I need to put up crown molding in my house... been there two years and still haven't done it. I do have baseboards, though... Enjoy your daughter's visit!

Allison - 62 years. I can't even imagine that. Happy anniversary to them!

:wave: to all, have a good day everyone!

Hi everyone,

Thanks everyone for always being supportive every single time I've said "I'm going to really get this extra weight off" over the past 2 years, because I know I've said it a lot. Once again I'm really trying (going to try not to talk about it too much and just do it) but I appreciate the support.

I had a fun weekend even though BF was gone - I was only a little lonely, mostly I just tried to take advantage of being able to sit and read a bunch and get chores done. Sat. went to a friend's house and we hung out, played w/ her adorable toddler, and then watched a movie after he went to sleep. Sun. afternoon I went to my friend's big 40th birthday bash. I had a good time just hanging out with friends and for once I didn't overeat at a party (that picture from my reunion was still fresh in my head). It looks like BF will indeed be back from his boat delivery this afternoon, just about the exact time I'll be leaving my office for a 2-3 day work trip. Oh well, we'll see each other in a few days.

We're going to do some scientific diving for hopefully just 2 days. Since we'll be on the boat I brought tuna packets and cut up veggies to eat for lunch, Kashi go lean bars for breakfast, etc. so I'll just need to keep myself in check for 2 dinners out. I'm bringing sneakers but with the diving and hauling gear I know I'll get a lot of activity just doing that.

Shannon, I'm so annoyed that my computer is blocking the pictures. It's got to do with the firewall here at the office. I hope I get to check them out later from another computer. I'm sure you look great!

Allison, wow, 62 years! Good for your parents! I haven't seen "500 days" but want to once it comes out on video. I did rent "Sunshine Cleaning" with my GFs Sat. I expected it to be more of a comedy from what I'd heard of it, but it was really good in a quirky kind of way.

Sheila, sounds like you've been getting a lot of exercise in around the house. Enjoy your visit w/ your DD.

Joci, I'm glad your mom is doing so well!

Dagmar, I hope you get everything done before your trip. I hope you have a nice visit w/ your in-laws.

Meg, that's why I hate to order salads at restaurants. I can make such better, more satisfying salads at home! But sometimes we do need to go out... was the tiny salad listed on the menu as a "dinner salad"? I'd send it back and ask for a bigger one!

Hi Ward! Hi everyone! I hope everyone has a great week. :)

Hi to all of you wonderful maintainers!

I only have a few minutes so I'll try to make this brief.

Saw Julie and Julia this weekend-- loved it. Dh brought dd's stuff to college and he is driving back. He will be here for a few days before leaving for a few weeks to Europe. He hasn't been around much lately. Miss him....:(

Yesterday at my WW meeting, we found out that members at our meeting (husband and wife) just lost their son in Afghanistan. It really put my trivial gripes into perspective for me. I can't stop thinking about them. He had a wife with two very small children and a third that he never saw (was born while he was over there).

My weight is finally good (got off the cruise weight) so I'm hoping not to blow it now. No time to relax or it will creep back on!

My eyes are bothering me a great deal and I am such a worrier that I immediately jump to conclusions. I have Graves Disease and apparently Graves Eye Disease (according to my new endocrinologist). He recommended seeing an eye specialist so I've been looking for one. They need a recommendation faxed before they'll see you, etc... so it takes time. In the meantime, I am having trouble focusing, seeing double, headaches, etc. Then I realized I haven't seen the regular eye doctor in awhile so maybe I just need a new prescription on my glasses (hopefully). So I made an eye appointment for Thursday and I'll see what he recommends.

Megan-- I always love reading about your life/work. It sounds so interesting. I took marine science in high school and it was my favorite class. I considered going into marine science but I was dead certain I wanted to be a vet and started off pre-vet. Ended up not doing that anyway....sigh....

Allison-- 62 years?!?! Do you have older siblings? Wow! My inlaws are going to be celebrating their 50th next year and are debating a big trip with all of us.

Sheila-- enjoy your dd! I already miss mine that went back to college. She wasn't home all summer though and we only saw her for a week of family vacation. I'm going to see her in October for family weekend and we're already thinking pedicures, etc.;)

Jacque-- so glad your mom is doing well. Yea!!

Sounds like lots of people have fun vacations coming up. None for me.

Have a great week. Chat later!

Michelle~yes, I am the youngest of three kids. My sister is 58, my brother is 50. I came a bit late and am just 46. Glad to hear your cruise weight is off, but I hope you get your eye troubles fixed soon. I very much dislike not seeing clearly and can imagine the headaches you're having. Yuck. And so sorry to hear about the couple who lost their son. Very sad. My neighbor has been back from Afghanistan for a couple of weeks now but I have yet to see him. I think his wife and kids whisked him out of town for a much needed vacation before he heads back to work.

Fly-by today -- I didn't have time to check 3FC at work because I had to actually do work all day :p Now I don't have time because dinner will be cooked in five minutes.

I ate a lot of crap this weekend. I admit it! Of course the scale is up as a result.

Shannon, your pics looked great! Congrats on the anniversary!

Megan - :hug: I know you can kick this weight. We can both do it, right?

A fly-by from me as well. :)

I leave on vacation tomorrow night, and I'm stressed about getting stuff done. Then we had a 3 hour meeting this morning on the upcoming year's capital projects which certainly cut into the time I needed to get stuff done at work. I'm already committed to working on my department's budgets while I'm gone. I've been downloading stuff I know I need, but I'm sure I'll be emailing my admin asst for more info. Sigh. I knew this was a bad time of year to leave, but I really feel like I need the time with my sister and while it's nice weather in New England.

:wave: to everyone.

I always get re-energized in fall.

So today I signed up for women-only Judo classes. I've wanted to take that particular martial art since I was a kid.

The classes start in October so I have something new to look forward to next month. I jioned a Japanese Canadian Cultural centre that offers the classes. They also have cokking classes which I probably will check out. DH doesn't like Japanese food so I'm hoping to make some new "dining" friends.

My vampirology (study of vampires) course starts in 3 weeks. Was inspired to take a "just for fun" class by watching True Blood. Should be an interesting fall.

Dagmar

Dagmar - I love True Blood... I'm behind, only seen up to about halfway through episode 8 this season, but hope to get more in tonight... I read all the books, too.

Another fly-by chick here: today was BUSY! And I need to get some things together for one of my classes tomorrow.

I visited a Bally's gym I was hoping to join and have decided against it. I'd never, ever go into their weight area and I really want to be able to work w/ free weights. I know I have no reason to be intimidated by the muscular grunting guys, but I can talk myself up till I'm blue in the face and I know I won't go in there! But I did get some time on the treadmill which was nice. Onward!

Have a great week, everyone!

Dagmar - I love True Blood... I'm behind, only seen up to about halfway through episode 8 this season, but hope to get more in tonight... I read all the books, too.

Don't tell me anything about this season! I don't have HBO so I have to wait until it comes out on DVD and then do a "True Blood" marathon.

I read all the books this summer and they were fun! I'm curious to see which characters they incorporate into the show's second season and how they show them.

Dagmar

Another True Blood fan here! Although sometimes I think it's a little over the top. Never read the books.

It appears I miscalculated. I called my Mom yesterday to wish her and my Dad a happy anniversary. I thought it had been 62 years. It was actually their 63rd anniversary. Mom said it seems like such a short time, yet it also seems like forever!

My son had a good first day of school and it turns out his favorite teacher is the one that teaches his least favorite subject (English) so I'm hoping that means he'll give that class a little extra effort. I got his test scores in the mail over the weekend, amazing he scored 557 out of 600 in science! He is in the advanced area on all the tests, with English the lowest (still above 500).

I don't even know what True Blood is... I really never watch TV, but that's probably for the best. =) I did read the first two "Twilight" books... they sucked me in but weren't anything special in the end. I'm still a bigger fan of Harry Potter!

Allison, that's great about your son's test scores! It's also always helpful when a teacher you like teaches a subject you are less than enthusiastic about. If only I'd ever had a good physics professor....:p

Everyone's upcoming vacations have given me wanderlust. Even my coworker is going away to a nearby city for Labor Day weekend. Maybe I'll take a day or two and explore somewhere around here since I have off Monday.

Morning! :wave: Now that I've resigned myself to working on my budgets on my trip, I'm much less stressed about what needs to be done at work today. I can easily finish it and get my desk cleared off. :) I'm packed except for last minute stuff and I have my boarding pass..... My sister emailed to see if it is okay that she has the convertible top down when she picks me up! Silly girl, why have one if you don't put the top down?

I'm another who doesn't know what True BLood is either. We do have TV, but only basic cable (or we'd have nothing) which is network channels and a couple other things - none of the good stuff :lol: We usually just watch news and PBS, esp in the summer.

No time for personals because I want to get to the gym while I have a chance.

Thanks everyone on asking/commenting about my mother.

She is amazing. We had such a long day yesterday but she still managed to get home and settled. Had a great night's sleep and doing well today too.

Good afternoon!

Busy day here for me, too. Had an afternoon meeting, realized on the way out the door to it that I had neglected to eat my morning snacks because I was on the phone and I was crazy starving... It was one of those bring in your own lunch and eat during presentation meetings, so I ended up with a salad and an unplanned chunk of french bread from panera. Turned out really good, and as I had no snacks and have a light dinner planned the bread didn't hurt too much. They have taken away my favorite strawberry poppyseed salad again, so I ended up with BBQ Chicken Ranch minus the ranch. Pretty good.

Have a great day everyone!

Today's totally embarrassing gym story: I did Ride, then I went into the other room to do Power. I had set my stuff up before Ride, and put my gloves on top of my bench. I sat down and changed my shoes, but then I couldn't find one of my gloves. I checked my bag, under my bench, etc. I was completely perplexed. They were both there a minute ago. Yes, the glove, which has a velcro closure, was stuck to my butt. :carrot:

Ward - :rofl: that would totally happen to me...

haha, ward! At least you found it!

I'm having some problems at the moment with sleep - I sleep for a few hours and then wake up and can't fall back asleep for several more hours. Very frustrating, and I'm not sure why or what to do about it. But it sure makes it hard to get out of bed when the alarm goes off!

Shannon, I hate when standby foods get discontinued... the McDonald's by my work no longer has the asian salad (not sure if any do, I don't make a habit of McD's) and that was always a last-minute fix for me. Sounds like you handled the situation perfectly, though! Score!

Ward-- that would totally happen to me as well!
Everytime I've done spinning class, I've knocked my water bottle down multiple times during class! I am a huge klutz! It's a good things the bikes can't fall over but I still think I might fall off the back or something some time!

Iris - I don't think any of the McDs have the Asian salad anymore, though some still have it on the order confirmation screen slide show... :( I've tried to order it at multiple locations with no luck...

Good morning! The site was down when I tried to log in this morning and it was like withdrawal! What the heck am I supposed to do with myself when I drink my coffee?

DH and I are off to NM this morning and I'm not nearly ready, so need to finish packing and get ready for the cat sitter. Of course I woke up with a killer sore throat (hopefully not swine flu!!) So I'm going to wear my glasses instead of contacts and try to sleep on the plane.

The fun part of knee replacements is the special security screening I get every single time I fly. Boy do I wish there was a way to get pre-cleared once and be able to carry a card or something! But nope, they'd got to be sure I don't have weapons of mass destruction hidden in my knees. And even seeing the scars doesn't help -- they still have to pat me down. :rolleyes:

We have a two hour layover in Dallas and it's a great airport but there isn't much in the way of healthy food. So I'll pack supplies.

We'll spend the first few days visiting DD and her family, then DH and I are spending the last three days at a resort near Santa Fe, just the two of us. :)

I'm taking my laptop and hope to be checking in, but anyone can feel free to start the weekly thread on Monday. :)

Does anyone else have fun weekend plans?

Does driving 6 hours to see my inlaws :p count as fun?

DH's one sister and her hubby are a lot of fun and we're seeing them first and spending the night so that'll be nice.

The second sister is in very poor health, as is DH's dad, both due partly to their obesity. And the sister's husband and her 3 boys are also all obese.

I always feel so sad after I visit them. Nothng I can do though. I'm asked to bring along a fruit or veggie tray every time I visit and I do.

And they all smoke too so DH's allergies will be aggravated.

After that we get to go hiking and canoeing. Then my staycation back in Toronto starts. Now that will be really fun as I have a bunch of things planned for myself.

Have a great weekend all!

Dagmar

And we're off to Hilton Head this morning. I ran 6.7 miles early, so I've got that going for me. ;)

Hope everyone has a good long week-end.

Meg, Dagmar, Ward - hope you guys enjoy your trips this week! :)

I have no great plans for the weekend. DH is helping his ex cut down some bushes in the yard on Saturday so I'll get to the park early. Well, unless he has swine flu... :eek: Seriously, he has been out sick almost all this week, has a sore throat, achy, congested, tired, headache - could be a cold, could be regular flu. He has asthma, so we are keeping a close watch on him for any other symptoms. So far only a lowgrade fever yesterday, no other fever.

I'm tired and sore myself this morning... didn't sleep well...

Hi all,

We got back from our work trip around 7 last night. BF had caught grouper, snapper, and trigger fish, which we cooked for me for dinner. Tonight we're eating the flounder he also caught. Yum, yum. My trip was really great. I haven't done any scientific diving before, but I discovered I still love it, b/c I love all diving! I did 12 dives in 2 days and got to play with my bday present to me, my new dive computer. The diving, hauling all the dive gear, as well as lots of very heavy samples, wore me out completely. The condo where we stayed had this really great-looking fitness center, what I wish for every time I go out of town, and wouldn't you know I was just too exhausted to use it. I also stuck to my guns and made good food choices (both content and amount of food eaten!). We did have sushi so I ate lots of sushi one night, but that was my biggest meal by far. I didn't weigh before I left but I'm sure I lost weight - a good kickoff to my fall weight loss! The cooler weather will be good for that.

BF & I were happy to see each other after a week apart, and he had fish for me too. He knows what I like! I have Monday off for a long weekend but I've decided I'm not going to give in to the idea of "special food for the holiday being unhealthy". Instead I'm going to make a nice fruit salad, light dip for veggies, grilled fish and chicken in my favorite marinade, etc. if we're "celebrating". Having foods ready that I find delicious helps me say no to unhealthy things nearby.

Ward, great run and enjoy HH! I would also do something like get a velcro glove stick to my butt. A few months ago I put on a new pair of workout pants I'd just bought, was walking around the house getting ready to go to the gym. My hand happened to brush across my rear (I swear I wasn't doing anything weird, it just happened there) and I felt... a hole. A what? There as a ~1" hole along the seam that runs up and down the middle of the seat of the pants. I was wearing a thong, too. Glad I discovered that before I went to the gym! It sewed up just fine but it was close...

Dagmar, sometimes seeing people who are in poor health due to an unhealthy lifestyle helps remind me why I live the way I do. It makes me feel terribly guilty when it's my family, but there it is. My mom's side of the family is all overweight, many obese, though most of them have quit smoking at this point. Seeing all her siblings together for my grandmother's funeral last summer really drove my family's history home for me. You set a good example and bring veggies for everyone - I'm sure they know they can talk to you about health if they want. Enjoy the hiking, canoeing, and staycation too! And your classes sound great.

Meg, enjoy NM! I hope the pat-down isn't too traumatic. Enjoy the time w/ DD and the resort, sounds great! Eat some green chilies, prepped in a healthy manner, of course, for me!

Shannon, Iris, no more Asian salad at McD's?! Poo! I do like the Mandarin Chicken salad at Wendy's, minus crispy noodles, but it's not quite the same.

Joci, way to get to the gym!

Iris, whatever gym you end up with, here's a tip for getting into the free weights. I was also intimidated by the "big hulking grunting men" types. I waited until the gym wasn't busy, then tried the free weights myself. I did this a few times until I figured out how to do some things properly. I even gathered up the courage to ask the trainer to check my form a few times. Then when the gym was busier, feeling like I knew what I was doing helped me go into the free weights section when those guys were there. As it turns out, at my gym they're pretty nice guys after all.

I've got to go get some work done. :p Hi Pat, Jessica, Allison, Michele, and everyone else out there. Have a great day!

We have no plans for the long weekend except possibly golfing. If the weather permits, we'll try to do 18 holes every morning. While it supposed to be cooler this weekend (highs around 102 instead of 115) it will be humid from the approaching hurricane/tropical storm Jimena.

It's been 2 weeks since I returned from Italy and I haven't lost any more weight. I guess it's all good because I have not gained, either, but I have to kick it back in gear!

Everyone have a great weekend if I don't check in tomorrow!

We're watching the big football game tonight (Boise State vs. University of Oregon), which starts at 8:15 because of TV coverage. That means sleeping in late on Friday along with the rest of Boise, I guess. My DD, who arrives this evening, and I are going for a walk in the morning, having lunch with my DS, and possibly going to see 500 Days of Summer in the afternoon when it's preferable to be inside. Saturday we're going on a 3+ hour kayak trip (no whitewater). I'm hoping my friend who is organizing this knows where the potty stops will be--that's my only issue with kayaking. I have heard, however, that it's better to pee in the river than on the banks. Just a little side note there. . .:)

Sunday we're planning on church, then seeing Julie and Julia. My DH is a great guy--he actually enjoys what other men might consider a chick flick. He's been reading Julie's blog that started the whole movie. Anyway, Monday sounds like a great day for relaxing and some kind of family dinner thing.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

I'm off to the north from this morning until Monday evening.

I'm taking along plastic containers, can opener, and tea kettle in the hope that I can at least regulate my snacks while there.

We're staying in a motel with a fridge for part of the long weekend so I'm going to stock it with fruit and veggies. Also planning on having cup of soups if it's colder up there.

And I'm going to avoid the fries that come with everything.

Have a great weekend all!

Dagmar

Joci, way to get to the gym!

Thanks...hope it really pays off since I haven't been totally OP while at my mom's. Not terrible, but not completely like I would be if I was at home. I know that I will be up a bit not only from the food, but from TOM lurking. Next week will have to be a very good week for me or I will not be happy weighing in next Friday. Not sure if my mom has a scale, but today is my weigh day....so if I can't find a scale today, I will need to wait till next Friday to weigh....because I know there is no way I want to get on the scale AFTER the holiday weekend.

:lol: at Dagmar's fries with everything. I'm from Pittsburgh, where we have a famous sandwich shop that puts the fries IN your sandwich. To me, it's disgusting but people will fly to Pittsburgh, leave the airport and drive directly to Primanti's for a sandwich. :p

But I'm in New Mexico this morning, land of sopapillas and margaritas. And green chile for Megan! :T Our flight to Dallas left Pittsburgh almost two hours behind schedule, so we had ten minutes to get off our plane, change terminals, and make it to our connecting flight. We ran, knee replacements be damned, and made it to the new gate with four minutes to spare (all that cardio paid off). But they had already closed the doors and wouldn't let us on! So we had to wait 2 1/2 hours for the next flight. But get this -- our luggage made it on to the original connecting flight, so it arrived in Albuquerque on time! :lol:

Our flight from Pittsburgh to Dallas was on one of those little jets that are only four seats across. To get on the plane, they had us walk across a little gangplank from the usual walkway to the plane. I was standing on it while people were getting situated and measured from my hips to the sides of this little walkway/gangplank -- my hips are about 36 - 37" and there was probably only 3 - 4 inches clearance on each side. Which means I wouldn't have been able to walk on the plane back when I had 59" hips. Or even considerably less. And the seats were tiny, really tiny. I honestly don't know what a even moderately obese person would do in that situation. Or just a big guy. Ridiculous!

Megan, your fresh fish sounds just wonderful! It sounds like a really successful trip from a food point of view. I agree with your idea that holidays don't have to mean special, fattening food. Having a day off is a treat!

Who won, Sheila? I'd like to see Julie and Julia too, though everyone says not to rush out and buy Julia's cookbooks because the recipes just crazy complicated.

Today is mother/daughter shopping day!

Welcome to NM, Meg!! Green chile roasting, some balloons out and about in the mornings! Sopapillas, mmmmm. But we can do some weird things with fries, too. THere is a chain here called Twisters that has burritos in 1/8, 1/4, 1/2, or whole sizes. The whole size could feed a very hungry family of 4. They come smothered in cheese and red or green chile (the chile is probably the only healthy thing about them), and get this, they are topped with curly fries!

Meg-- I wouldn't have made it on that plane! Not because of the seats but because I am not thrilled with flying and small planes make me nervous!!!!!

Are you just visiting your daughter there? I would love to visit NM. Do you like it there? Have a fun day shopping!!!

Meg~sorry you missed your connecting flight. Your story reminds me of some of our connections on our Italy trip. In Frankfurt, on our way to Italy, we got off the plane, got on a bus, were driven to a terminal where we had to go through security (wait, why?) and then put back on the bus via a different door out of security. Then taken to another place, let off the bus to get our boarding pass, put on a new bus and taken miles and miles out on the tarmac to board the new plane. No such door to door service on our return where we had to navigate most of that by foot and elevator. But here's the funny one: in Italy, when we were to board the plane to go home, we sat in the terminal until the flight was called and we were boarded onto two different buses. The buses then drove us about 100 feet to the other side of the plane where we got off the buses and lined up to get on the plane. Everyone was wondering why we were not allowed to walk to the plane. So weird, but I guess since they have the buses they have to pay the drivers to do something!

They come smothered in cheese and red or green chile (the chile is probably the only healthy thing about them), and get this, they are topped with curly fries!

Midwife - does it make me a terrible maintainer to say that actually sounds like it might be good?

Though the idea of fries in a sandwich doesn't appeal to me at all.. :dizzy:

Meg - sorry about your flight! Enjoy your shopping day!

Allison - maybe there was some safety reason why you couldn't walk around the plane? Hm.

Michele - I hate small plans, too. They just don't feel safe to me.

Dagmar - good luck with your snacks this weekend! And on avoiding the fries!

Joci - TOM makes me retain water like crazy.... How is your mom doing?

Sheila - Good game last night, from what I saw of it! :)

Megan - I love grilled fish, don't get nearly enough of it as DH isn't a fish person. Enjoy!

So I got one of my trade magazines today with an article on menu updates at Olive Garden. Get this - they are adding fried lasagna to the menu... rolls of fried lasagna served over alfredo, topped with marinara. Unclear on if it is an appetizer or entree. Not a wonder we are such an overweight country... It is supposedly inspired by Italian street vendors, who I'm sure sell it in small individual portions instead of a monster plate of it on alfredo sauce... Jeez.

No big plans for the weekend here either... Rest, chores, more rest, trying to keep from catching DHs cold or flu...

So I got one of my trade magazines today with an article on menu updates at Olive Garden. Get this - they are adding fried lasagna to the menu... rolls of fried lasagna served over alfredo, topped with marinara. Unclear on if it is an appetizer or entree. Not a wonder we are such an overweight country... It is supposedly inspired by Italian street vendors, who I'm sure sell it in small individual portions instead of a monster plate of it on alfredo sauce... Jeez.

Speaking of fried awful things, I read this article (http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/fea/lifetravel/stories/090209dnmetfairfood.40824cb.html) this morning. Fried butter! Fried butter?! Gah!

Just got the word that I'm going scuba diving (this time pure fun, no work involved) on Sunday. Woohoo! I'm going w/ a friend as dive buddy from a diving co. we go w/ sometimes, they're going to sites that we haven't dove before. I've definitely got the scuba bug this week! Also, check, that takes care of my exercise for Sunday. ;) Monday I have off from work and so far BF doesn't have to work. We will hopefully go boating/to the beach with friends. I'm sure if we're on a boat we'll go fishing too, maybe some snorkeling. That leaves Saturday to be my laundry day. I'm also going to sit down w/ my grocery list, go to the store and make some yummy lowfat dips, cut up lots of good veggies, fruit, etc. and make it all boat-friendly so I will have tasty things to eat and share w/ everyone for the rest of the weekend. That will help me ignore the junk!

Shannon, I hope you don't get sick!

Meg, at least you were able to catch a flight only a few hours later, and your luggage made it. In the grand scheme of what can go wrong in an airport that's not too bad. Enjoy your trip!

Dagmar, sounds like you're as prepared as can be. Enjoy the trip!

Sheila, wear your suit and the river is your toilet. :D sorry if that sounds gross. I've been on a lot of kayak trips, boats, etc. and that's the reality! Just think, all that water can dilute... Just take a swim break...

Allison, I hope you get to have an enjoyable weekend golfing!

Hi everyone else out there, hope you're all enjoying your vacations, long weekends, and Friday afternoons! :)

Midwife - does it make me a terrible maintainer to say that actually sounds like it might be good?

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Not at all. It is good!

No time to really respond, just wanted to drop in and say hi. Work was super-stressful this week. In fact, I'm still AT work and it's almost 7pm! But I can go in a few minutes as soon as my test finishes running.

They fed us Panera at lunch today and I admit instead of my usual plate of salad and the low-cal smoked turkey sandwich, I got salad, the sierra turkey sandwich (much higher-cal), AND a cookie. But I didn't eat my apple and plum I had brought. I was so stressed out that I felt like I needed a cookie. Sigh. I literally thought "I'm so stressed out, I'm just going to eat whatever I want." :?: Will I never learn?

In any case I'm on vacation all next week! Woohoo! I may or may not be around the site so have a good week everyone!

Twisters sounds delicious to me, too!

I hope those of you with upcoming vacations and/or labor day celebrations have a great time! I'm not doing anything special, but I don't have work or class monday which is special enough for me! =)

I'm thinking about going shopping tomorrow - I need some new Arizona-appropriate shoes. My choices at present are sneakers, flip flops, or heels. I need some nice shoes that are flats so I can walk in them.

Howdy! I arrived here in New England on Wed evening. Been doing lots of visiting with my sister. Thurs night we went to her DD's and I had some grandchildren time (I've got no kids, so no grands of my own - I borrow hers). TOday we drove up to Maine where we're installd in a B&B. Tomorrow we'll be at my BIL's all day (DH's brother) for a picnic and bocce tournament, with 25-30 people. Actully we were over there tonight too adn I had some fresh corn - yum! Sunday we'll do some sightseeing and shopping and Mon we're back to my sister's in MA. Fun to see family in the nice weather. :)

Eating has been all over the place. My sister doesn't eat veggies, and very little fruit. Hopefully at the picnic there'll be a better selection. Next week I'm with my sister til Thurs, then with a GF from college and then back to my B IL's next weekend as well -just me though (well, their adult DD will likely be around, but we get along well).

:wave: to you all. TYping on this laptop is a pain so I'm quitting :lol:

Joci - TOM makes me retain water like crazy.... How is your mom doing?

She's chuggin' along...thanks for asking. Yesterday was a tough day as she had PT in the morning which wipes her out and then had to go to the doc for some blood work and flu shot. Then he wanted her to get an ultra sound on her legs....all is good...no blood clots!!!


Just got the word that I'm going scuba diving (this time pure fun, no work involved) on Sunday. Woohoo!
I have always wanted to learn. A few years ago my kids and I were going to but it never happened. But then again, even if I was certified, I have no place to do it in PA in the winter. Maybe I will learn and then next summer I could go somewhere nice to use my new skills :)

EVERYBODY....have a great, successful weekend!!!

I'm with you Jacque. I desperately want to scuba dive. I want to learn how to dive and go to Australia and dive off the Great Barrier Reef. Those are on my "bucket list". I also want to try a triathlon so I better get started soon!!

I had a friend in college who was a diver and the stories were always so exotic... I would love to try it, too, though I have had some fear of the ocean in the past.I'm pretty much over that I think, and I jumped out of a plane, surely I can handle being underwater...

DH helped his ex with some yardwork this morning, cut down some bushes, tried to pull up others, that kind of thing. Said he felt fine when they stopped, but once he and DSS got here he realized his back hurt pretty bad and is worn out... I hope he doesn't relapse into the cold or flu he has been fighting with... He is upstairs taking a nap - or as much of a nap as you can take with a four year old downstairs banging into everything... He and I just had a discussion about the fact that saying "I'm just going to do it one more time" and doing whatever I told him not to do is still considered not listening and results in getting in trouble. :dizzy:

Got in 8 miles at the park - ran 6.75 in 3.25 & 3.50 mile blocks with walking .5 to warm up, .25 break between & .5 cool down. Best run ever for me - I met a women's running club around mile 5.5 and they clapped and cheered for me every time we crossed paths. Something motivating about people cheering - I never played competitve sports so didn't realize that.

Good day everyone!