Living Maintenance - Maintainers Weekly Chat January 10 - 16, 2011

This Monday business just keeps happening. There must be a way to just eliminate Monday from an otherwise useful week.

For some reason, I over-indulged at the dessert table at a pot luck dinner last night. Two different thin, athletic, healthy, folks make large batches of hermits and chocolate-chocolate-chip cookies respectively, then pushed them on folks since they didn't want to take them home - "That stuff is deadly" - well ... yeah ... duh! Ate them on top of the healthy fruit salad that we'd brought. It's hard to give myself credit for the healthy eating when I followed it by the sugar-lard stuff.

The good news is that I carted another station wagon of de-cluttering to Good Will. This batch included some stuff worthy of a second life. Now that's a good feeling.

I'm very happy to be back. Weighed myself this morning :faint: and it's time to start eating properly and cutting back the caffeine again. Much easier to do from home.

Last week was very stressful :crazy: re work. The first 3 days of this week will also be that way but then it lets up a bit.

I'm hoping I can really start to clean up my diet cola habit this week. I've been waking up at around 2:30 - 3 a.m. and having withdrawal/dehydration symptoms. And :o I've been drinking a can of pop :o so that I can go back to sleep for a bit longer. I need to :kickbutt: to stop that.

Bill It's so hard to refuse home made treats. Maybe not so much because they look/smell sooo good :drool: but because people are offended when something they worked at to make is refused.

Good job with the decluttering. For some strange reason our branch of Goodwill no longer accepts anything but clothes in the donation boxes. In our neighbourhood we wait until nice spring weather and then put stuff out on the lawn. Most of it disappears quite quickly.

Great Monday everyone!

Dagmar :sumo:

Good morning, everyone!

Our problem with decluttering is that we declutter our closets and take stuff up to the attic "just until we take it to the Salvation Army." Which, of course, we never get around to doing. So, it's really more of an exercise in clutter relocation. Good workout, though, if it's heavy stuff. :)

Down another half pound this morning. I'm sure it's just water weight -- I had kale chips yesterday, and they were super salty, so I drank a boatload full of water, and had to get up 3 times in the middle of the night. OK, too much information. (And, I suppose a boat full of water isn't the best analogy, is it?)

Today The Boy has a downhill ski trip after school, so that will be my exercise for the day. It's really more "active recovery," but I can't afford to take the afternoon off work and go to the gym in the morning. Maybe I'll do some ab work at home this evening, or even play on the pullup / dip bar station I bought for DH for x-mas. (He works out at home.)

Have a great Monday, everyone. The days are getting noticeably longer around here (northern US), which makes me happy happy happy!

//b. strong,
Kim

Well I don't have to face the scale at today's TOPS meeting, because last nights' snow has cancelled our meeting. Yah!! I wasn't too sure I would still be within my KOPS status. This past week I've been "practicing" my company's coming dinner. I'm not a natural cook and entertainer, so I am somewhat stressed out, and want my dinner to be good. I was hoping eggplant parmesan could be frozen and reheated. The eggplant was like wet socks. Just as flappy and tough as could be. The meatballs were tasty, though. The dinner is in three weeks, so now I know I will have to prepare dinner no later than the day before. 152 pounds this morning at home. Just within my limit.

DD's diet has been working for us all. DD is down 5 and DH and I are both down 4 pounds. I won't ask DS as he's 5'11" and 130 pounds--in other words, a bean pole. We had an excellent weekend and I didn't over do anything except going over my cocktail allotment by one on Saturday night, for which I awoke at 3 AM with a headache. Back to zero for the next four days and now I know that one or two on the weekends is much more manageable (although I didn't lose over the weekend--something to think about there).

Yeah, Bill, it's Monday. How do we eliminate these from our week?

Today I take DS to the DMV for his behind the wheel driver's test. I hope he passes as we bought him a 2011 Hyundai Elantra on Saturday. Everyone wish him well!

Good morning everyone!

Bill, I have mixed feelings about the pushing sweets issue. On the one hand, it bugs me that people always bring junk in to work. This morning in the break room is an apple pie with one small piece taken out of it. On the other hand, I am also guilty of doing it, because sometimes I also want one tiny piece of pie but I can't cook just one piece of pie. Then to avoid eating the rest I bring it in to work. :shrug:

Dagmar, good luck kicking the diet soda habit!

Kim, I am laughing about the boat. A leaky boat full of water due to being inundated with waves in a storm maybe? :lol:

Charm, how many people are you having for dinner? (that sounds like you are eating people...)

Allison, great job losing 4lbs! :high: And great job limiting the alcohol. It's amazing how many calories are in just a couple glasses of wine.

I'm still on track here, for the most part. I restricted last week to kick the holiday weight and am proud to report this morning my weigh in was 134.8, which is even lower than I was before the holidays. Back to a little lest strict eating this week. On the other hand, exercise is still kind of shot due to my multiple sports injuries. Not sure if I posted about that on this thread or not -- I have tailbone pain that's lingering from riding my bike with a poorly positioned seat last spring, and plantar fasciitis from running. I have two days left of the steroids my doctor gave me before switching to prescription NSAIDs. Bonus of the steroids is that my chronic wrist pain is way down too. In any case I'm avoiding running and biking to let this stuff heal, which limits my exercise to swimming and upper body strength. To the bench press, Batman!

In other news DH is still on a health kick and wants to improve his nutrition. He said his plan is to figure out what are his "required" foods, meaning the food I cook for him, and then figure out how to better allocate his "free" foods, meaning all the other stuff he eats during the day because my portions are too small for him. I think I've convinced him that the best first step is to log what he's already eating for a week just to get an idea of his current status. Then we'll figure out how many calories to cut and how to modify it so he gets enough protein and enough veggies without getting too much salt.

Carter's training is going well so far. We've been getting in 4-5 short sessions per day. Hopefully by our next appointment with the trainer we will be able to show some progress. The trainer recommended a book from the library about canine body language and it's been pretty enlightening. I always thought it was funny that Carter would do this series of behaviors to "ask for permission" before coming up onto the couch. Turns out that is standard "negotiation of personal space" behavior for dogs -- since we're already on the couch, it is our territory, and he has to see if we will allow him to share it. Who knew?

Bill-- I hear you on the Mondays. Fridays take forever to get here and Mondays come way too soon. Sigh....
What the heck are hermits?! Alas, I have no control with desserts so I most often "just say no".

Dagmar-- you drink soda during the night and then go back to sleep. wow. Does sound like you need to cut back. How many do you drink a day if I may ask?

Kim-- kale chips sound interesting. Are they like potato chips?

Charm--how does TOPS work? Just curious. I am a WW member myself.

Allison-- good luck to your ds! We'll be doing that next month with my dd. I know how stressful it is for mom too!

Jessica-- good job on your weight. Wish I could report the same. That is funny about Carter and the couch. Our great Dane, Jozi, is the same way about the couch. We rarely let her up on the couch but she knows when we *might* and follows a routine to see if we'll give her permission.

Saturday was nice, Sunday not so much. My younger dd (almost 16) had a breakdown because she is overwhelmed with all of her commitments. She has a tendency to over commit herself and then realize it too late. We spent a good part of the day trying to rationalize with her to help her decide what needs to go. Now we have to follow through. Poor thing was just wiped out and it wiped dh and me out too. We had fun plans for the day but didn't end up doing any of them. The joys of parenting.

This week is going to be crazy hectic. Dh and I are renewing our vows on Saturday and have a ton to do to get ready. On top of that, dd has two choir concerts, and other commitments. I have a very pretty dress to wear on Saturday and it would look much better if I was a few pounds lighter so I'm hopefully going to find exercise time and eat perfectly OP to help that situation! I am currently 127 and my tummy has a noticeable pooch that gets better around 123. We'll see if I can make any progress there.

Bill, it's kind of a twofold good feeling--getting rid of the clutter plus helping an organization that helps others. Give yourself that credit for eating the healthy salad--you could have had something else instead of the salad and then eaten the sugar stuff.

Dagmar, it's amazing that you can drink the soda and then sleep. I have to cut myself off caffeine at 3:00 pm. How about an aspirin and some water instead?

Kaw, I was going to make kale chips with my fresh kale last year, but noticed that the aphids got it. Didn't need that much protein with my veggies. Maybe next year because I've heard they're good.

4xcharm, there is a use for snow! :lol:

Allison, WTG on the weight loss! Kudos to your DD.

Jessica, even though I don't have a dog, you've made me want to read about dog behavior. I know a bit from volunteering, but mostly about dogs interaction with other dogs. The way they hold their tail, their head, etc. Pretty fascinating, I think.

Michele, poor DD--and poor parents. So is the vow renewal a big ceremony with lots of people or just a private thing? Remember, there's always shapewear. . .

Woke up to a skiff of snow on the ground and low temps. Got my fear of falling activated for sure. When I was in the ER last week, the nurse gave me a shot in the thigh and said, "oh, you're got great muscle tone so this shouldn't hurt that much." Not true about hurting that much, but I was thrilled about the muscle tone comment. It's nice when hard work pays off, although I wish the comment were made under other circumstances.

Happy Monday, everyone!

Michele, poor DD--and poor parents. So is the vow renewal a big ceremony with lots of people or just a private thing?



I am really excited about the vow renewal actually. When dh and I got married 23 years ago we were married by a Catholic priest because our Rabbi wouldn't marry us (I am Jewish, dh is Catholic). For our 15th anniversary, we went to Vegas and renewed our vows at the Little White Wedding Chapel (dh jokes that Elvis married us but not so). Our temple had vow renewal classes that we signed up for not really realizing what we were starting. I thought the classes were more about keeping your marriage strong, etc. Basically there are three couples including us that will be participating in a full Jewish ceremony. It will be small with only very special friends or family. Our only guest will be our younger dd as older dd can't come back from college. I feel like we are coming full circle.

Sheila, the book I am reading is called "Canine Body Language" by Brenda Aloff. Your local library might have it. It's 90% photos and then the rest is explanatory text. Like you said, there is a lot of body language in how dogs communicate with other dogs, but it is interesting to see that the dog is using that same body language to communicate with humans -- we just don't realize it.

Michele, I'm surprised that a Catholic priest agreed to marry you in the first place! :lol: DH and I had similar issues. We wanted a Jewish wedding (maybe I should say Jew-ish), but my mom is not Jewish and I wasn't raised exclusively Jewish, plus we wanted to get married on a Saturday afternoon. Amazingly, we were actually able to find a rabbi to marry us.

Jessica,
We had to go through all of the Catholic pre-marital counseling in order to have the priest marry us. This included classes and an "engaged encounter weekend". We also had to have special permission from the bishop because we were having the wedding outside of a church (my mom refused to come if it was in a church-- gotta love the relatives).

The problem with not picking out recipes for the week as I usually do is that now I have no idea what to make for dinner. The perishables in my house are: boneless skinless chicken breast, boneless skinless chicken thighs, ground turkey, tofu, kale, chard, mushrooms, lettuce, yukon gold potato, sweet potato, and a mo qua (chinese fuzzy melon, kind of like a zucchini). Time to peruse the recipes sticky!

Anyone wanting to learn more about dogs' body language can watch Cesar Millan "The Dog Whisperer". He is so in tune with what dogs are saying with their bodies and faces that it's scary! I have learned so much from that show - it's totally changed the way I relate to the dogs I walk.

And Cesar is an inspiration as far as fitness goes too. He once carried a 60 lb. wild feral dog over 1 Kilometer tucked on to his hip! I read about his 4-6 hour workouts with his pack in the California hills - amazing!

Have a good evening all!

Dagmar :tired:

Jessica, I'd make ground turkey chili with mushrooms, kale and potatoes, but then I make chili out of anything. ;) I bet you could throw that Chinese zucchini thing in there, too.

Kim-- kale chips sound interesting. Are they like potato chips?



Yes and no. Mostly no. They're crispy and salty and a bit greasy like chips, but taste a lot like, well, kale. They're really just baked/roasted kale, but they turn crispy ... about 30 seconds before they turn into cruciferous conflagrations. :)

Lots of recipes on teh internets, but I just sprayed a bit of "FF" oil on a pan, laid out the washed, trimmed, and dried kale leaves, gave it another shot of spray on top, salted them, and put them in a hot oven. Check after 10 minutes, then watch like a hawk -- you want 'em crispy like chips, but if they start to brown they turn bitter. You can play around with spices: try garlic, chile, curry mixes, whatever floats your (leaky?) boat.

I should say that I'm not a kale fan (friends gave us two bunches from their CSA because they were going out of town), but I like these.

//b. strong,
Kim

I'm going to experiment with home-made veggie/other chips in the future. I looked at the cal content of commercial ones and it's not much less than regular chips!

Off to sling the weights. DH has set up his weight bench and moved the "gym" around. I'm hoping this particular exercise equipment gets lots of use from him.

And for no other reason but that I'm totally excited by them I'm mentioning that I love my new hiking boots. They're gortex Salomon boots and they're waterproof, warm and incredibly lightweight! Yeehaw!

Dagmar :coolsnow:

I ended up sauteeing onion, garlic, chicken thighs, mushrooms, and chard, and served it over pasta. Pretty tasty, if I say so myself. Tonight will probably be a stir fry with the tofu and mo qua.

It's funny how there are so many schools of thought on dog training. You'd think there would be one "right" answer. I like The Dog Whisperer, but the lady we are working with now isn't a fan of it. :shrug: She prefers Victoria Stillwell's show ("It's me or the dog"). I figure whatever works works.

Speaking of the dog, Carter was absolutely nuts last night. I don't know what got into him. We went to bed like usual around 9:30. At 11:45 he woke me up making noises at me. Usually if he does that he's right next to me and I pat him on the head and he goes back to sleep, but when I reached out and mumbled something to him he jumped onto the bed! Carter isn't allowed on our bed and he knows it, so it was pretty surprising. We made him get down and go back to his bed. Then at 4:00 he was grumbling at me again, but I had to go to the bathroom so I didn't really pay attention. Then after DH got up and let him out around 6:30, he came back upstairs and started grumbling at me again while I was trying to sleep. I decided to try the "ignore him and he'll go away" technique, but the grumbling escalated until he eventually barked at me (the yippy/"I'm upset" kind of bark). I told him, "Get in your doggie bed!" and amazingly he did. :?: I do not understand this dog. It seems like his behavior has in general been a little weird since we had our house guests over a week ago. Maybe he's still recovering?

Tonight, when a Nor'easter hits us, sometime between 9-11 PM, we're supposed to get 12 inches of snow or more. This morning, though, it's sunny & clear, which always makes the forecast feel unreal.

Still, my good neighbors (nearly all retired) are lugging in the groceries & of course, bottles of wine in preparation for riding it out.

I feel oppressed & victimized -- AGAIN? it's still a mostly unmelted mess from the Christmas weekend blizzard -- but also, I must admit, more than a little excited. All those years of growing up in snowy Upstate NY & looking forward to school closing due to the weather -- the radio announcer's alphabetized chant of the various districts in the county -- has given me an almost Pavlovian response that it's time to follow the weather reports, rejoice & not work very hard for a while. (Snow's coming! PARTY!!!)

Of course, that is outmoded thinking, now that I'm a grownup with a laptop & a broadband connection, and can work from home endlessly, if need be. So my excitement over the impending storm is NOT helping me focus on the rewrite jobs I've got to finish in the next few hours. I'm fighting the urge to put on the TV & really dwell on the local forecaster's dire warnings all day long. (Forecast porn?)

I have to suppress this thrill & work hard. Focus, Saef, focus, or this time next January, someone in India will be doing what you do, and for half the wages & nearly no healthcare costs.

I also want to make soup or something. But I have a whole pot of uneaten turkey pumpkin black bean chili in the fridge, so I'm well provisioned with shoveling fuel.

Saef: I know the feeling. I have to say, though, that living in upstate NY has cured me of the excitement. All too often, a weather report that promises 8" delivers 1" around here: we're too far south for lake effect, too far west for the nor'easters that hit NYC. Our report is saying 2-4", which probably means a dusting. Bah, humbug.

Stay safe saef. (Just had to do that!)

//b. strong,
Kim

DS got 100% on his behind the wheel driving test yesterday, so we now have another driver in the family which is very helpful when one realizes one forgot an essential item in a recipe. That happened last night when we ran out of chicken broth. I suggested we send DS to get it and DD stated that it would take him half an hour to find the soup section in the store. Not quite true as he often accompanies me to the grocery store after work to pick up miscellaneous items. We made up for it with some concentrated chicken stock I have on hand for just such emergencies.

I had plans on exercising after work yesterday, but the DMV took close to 2 hours and I got home just in time to help DD get dinner ready. It was a time consuming menu, but very, very good. I made the soup (posted in favorite recipes) which was an asparagus puree. I don't normally like asparagus much, but this was really tasty and although her recipes do not contain calorie/fat/car/protein counts, I'm sure this is extremely low in all of that. I'll have to plug the recipe in somewhere and determine the amounts. She made a really good "gravy" for chicken which we sauteed in a little Pam. It was a very light dinner and I liked that aspect a lot. My weight, after the weekend hiatus, is dropping again.

After work today, DD and I are getting pedicures and then heading home to make roasted red pepper soup to go with some chicken. It's been fun having her home and making these nice recipes. Most of them take a lot of time and lots of dishes (pots, measuring spoons and cups, utensils, etc.). I have gotten away from the "gourmet" cooking for the past MANY years and this is a nice diversion. I may have to get back to it!

Thinking of all of you and your snow as I sit here with the sun shining on snow capped mountains and watching the golfers come and go.

I was watching tonite's coming storm gathering over the lake for most of the day today. Very dramatic, particularly with my yellow lenses on the sunglasses. They increase contrast and make the clouds look much more ominous.

There was a feeling in the air too - a dampness and an expectancy - which caused the birds to start sitting on the beach in the late afternoon, facing into the coming storm.

The wind created huge rolling whitecaps at the bathing beach where I do my last walk of the day. There was a primeval pounding and roaring of the combined wind and water.

I'm so glad I was watching the buildup and not out working in the actual storm!

Have a great evening all!

Dagmar :tired:

There are a few inches of snow on the ground. Wind is blowing. But don't yet know if it's a stay-at-home-and-shovel day or not.

There are a few inches of snow on the ground. Wind is blowing. But don't yet know if it's a stay-at-home-and-shovel day or not.

We now own a snow blower :o. We had a winter 3 years back where there was a ridiculous amount of snow. I have a photo (not digital unfortunately) of DH standing in front of our bungalow with the snow piled on the front lawn waaay above his head.

Since there is a long driveway that I park on we are responsible for clearing the snow. I can't shovel due to elbow/wrist injuries and felt that DH would be better off using a machine (since he's not in the best of physical shape).

I have only stayed at home due to the snow once. There was so much of it packed into the side streets that my trusty Corolla just couldn't get out :stress: to the main roads.

I kinda wish it would happen again. I really enjoyed two days of "loafing". :dizzy:

Dagmar :coolsnow:

It's stopped now, the light everywhere is gold & blue, and I'm going to estimate there's about 12-13 inches outside.

It's beautiful before it starts getting hacked up & churned, like white cashmere that hasn't started pilling & getting the fuzzies yet.

It's a beautiful nuisance, though.

My office in Stamford is actually closed -- but of course, as long as I've got my laptop, and am collaborating on my day's work with analysts in California & England, the snow isn't supposed to affect my workday at all. Physically, no. Psychologically, yes. (My inner eight-year-old is still thinking: "PAR-TAY!!! Sledding!!! Snow fort!!! Cocoa!!!")

And also, we'll see if the spin instructor & the Pilates instructor can make their way through it to the gym this evening for classes.

My office in Stamford is actually closed -- but of course, as long as I've got my laptop, and am collaborating on my day's work with analysts in California & England, the snow isn't supposed to affect my workday at all. Physically, no. Psychologically, yes. (My inner eight-year-old is still thinking: "PAR-TAY!!! Sledding!!! Snow fort!!! Cocoa!!!")

Speaking as an analyst in the UK, I'm with you. Snowball fight!!! Get out the skiis!!! Crumpets!!!

Depending on where your analyst is, they might have enough snow to join you. Is snow-skype a possibility?

Cool and clear here in So Cal. I think it will be a nice day. Sometimes I think back to snow days and although I enjoyed them when I was a kid, it always made me anxious or uneasy as an adult (second guessing myself as in "should I have attempted to go to work?"). Because I lived in SLC, snow was a very normal thing and even if schools were closed, businesses rarely were as they opened a bit later after there was plenty of time to get the snowplows deployed. Of course, if I had lived up the canyon, there would be no excuse--the canyons were routinely closed due to snowfall or avalanches. One could be "stuck" up there (and enjoy the less crowded skiing) for days. Alas, I did not have the good fortune to live up there.

I'm plugging away at DD's diet and the last two nights have been really, really low in fat/calories. A chicken breast with a nice sauce (no fat in the sauce) with a vegetable soup. Last night it was red pepper soup. I liked it, but I actually think the asparagus soup was better. Tonight is turkey burgers (with a lot of herbs in the meat). I shall eat it without a bun to show a good example to DD (she went home last weekend and her roommate made her go out for burgers. I had suggested she order one bunless, but she said she didn't think she'd like it.).

We are also snow-free here in N. California (where I am anyway). Supposed to be sunny and in the 50s so I can't complain. And congrats to your son Allison on passing his driving test with flying colors!

A question for you all. I am looking to go somewhere for a few days with dh to celebrate our vow renewal and our 25 years together. I was looking at Phoenix but I've never been there. Those of you that have, is that a good place to spend a few days? Anywhere else you would recommend in Arizona or New Mexico at the beginning of April? I'm looking for a fairly low-key relaxing place-- could be a spa or somewhere with some activities but nothing too pricey (or too cheap for that matter). Ideas?

I ran last night at the gym longer than I've ever run-- a little over 5 miles in 54 minutes. I HATE running but it seems to burn the most calories and I feel like I need to change things up to get off these few pesky pounds hanging on.

I was supposed to have jury duty today but they have you call in the night before to see if you need to report. When I called in I was told to call again today at 11:30 for a possible 1:00 court appearance. I had canceled all of my library classes so now I'm trying to reschedule them again. What a weird way to do jury duty. It is my second time and the same thing happened last time-- I didn't have to go in last time at all and it still counted for my once a year duty so I'm hoping for the same again.

Still snowing here, but not much. Maybe, maybe, maybe 3". Certainly not enough to close the schools, much to The Boy's chagrin.

Alinell -- my son has yet to see me eat a hamburger with a bun. We never do fast food, but when I have a burger at home, I put it between two hearty leaves of lettuce (romaine, or something similar). The Boy calls it a "burger boat", because the lettuce looks a bit like a boat. Then he laughs uproariously when it falls apart on me, which it inevitably does. What would we do, if we weren't providing entertainment value for our kids? :)

Down another half pound today -- my scale only measures in half pounds -- so that's 5 total since Dec 25. This close to my goal BF%, I'll take what I can get!

have a lovely day, or evening, or morning, or whatever it is wherever you are, all!

//b. strong,
Kim

We got a few inches of snow here. Enough for the schools to have delays but not enough for the rest of us to be off work. :p They are forecasting more snow the rest of the week.

I think the plantar fasciitis is improving, although I can't say the same about the tailbone. We'll see. I almost feel like sitting on this pillow makes it hurt more, not less. I feel like a big slug since I've barely been doing any exercise lately, but I really don't want to mess up my tailbone on the bike or mess up my feet running. Hopefully one or the other of them will be better soon. In the meantime, I'll be in the weight room or the pool.

No snow for me. Wait, I'd better look out the window because things can change in an instant.

Allison, congrats on your son passing the test with such a high grade. Kids driving themselves is useful, yet scary. But he sounds like he's got his head on straight. I guess our state now has a rule that kids can't drive with other kids until they are a certain age or something like that. Don't pay attention since all my kids are older.

Jessica, glad the foot's feeling better. That stuff hurts!

Michele, no idea about where to go. I love Santa Fe, but it's pricey and probably not warm. Kudos on the running!

Silverbirch, I haven't had a crumpet in ages. Now you got me thinking about crumpets with butter melting in the little holes. :rollpin: Okay, I'm back now.

Speaking of the dog stuff, I'm a Stillwell person myself. But I haven't seen the Dog Whisperer guy much.

My cat is really ticked off. I took her to the vet yesterday to get her teeth cleaned. They pulled three teeth and also bruised her up trying to get the IVs in. She's older and has teeny-tiny veins. When I went back in the clinic (it's at the shelter where I volunteer), the vet tech said, "Sheila, I'm sorry. . " and of course I immediately thought, oh, no, the cat didn't make it. But the tech was just apologizing for the bruising. I should tell her never to start off a sentence with, "I'm sorry. . ." like that. Anyway, the cat wouldn't look at me, and she's being a brat about taking the pills. I should be happy she didn't poop in the carrier, though, to make her feelings known.

Michele~in Scottsdale, AZ there is a casino with a hotel by Raddison. It's kind of in the middle of nowhere--obviously on a reservation because it's a casino. The setting is beautiful and you can do a lot of hiking. I believe there is an exercise room and spa. They have a restaurant, so you don't have to leave. I stayed there for a convention and it was really nice and you don't have to visit the casino if you don't want to. Here's a link: http://www.radissonfortmcdowellresort.com/. Also, if you want to go somewhere else to eat, it would take about 30 minutes or so to get to civilization (if I remember correctly).

Edited~they have a lot of package deals, so be sure to look at those. Some include spa packages. And the menus for the restaurants are there.

Third day snowed in here in Atlanta... DH went to work today, I'm worried that he won't get home as things that are melting a little in the sunshine are about to start refreezing soon...

CRAP
I was hoping to get out of jury duty but I have to report now. It is probably 45 minutes minimum drive and then I'm going to face horrible rush hour traffic afterward.
I sure hope I don't get chosen for a jury. Dh was having a panic attack when I told him he needs to get dd from school (can you believe we don't have school buses here?! I couldn't either when we moved to California).

Shannon-- hope your dh gets home safely. At least it isn't snowing here.

I think I'll run by the grocery store to grab some fruit for snacking. I sure don't want to be tempted by vending machines.

For those who haven't heard of TOPS, it's a weight-loss support organization. I suppose it's similar to Weight-Watchers, but on a more modest scale. Non-profit, for one thing. But there is no designed food counting program. It's every man (or woman) for themselves. Our little group gathers on Monday. We get our weights recorded,then chat and take turns giving a little talk about how we're doing, or what we've heard or learned. $32.00 a year, and a dime or quarter for this kitty or that. One of them is a Jackpot kitty...Biggest Loser Kitty. Anyway, I go for the accountability of having my weight recorded on paper. I also feel obligated to help the group keep it's members. We are so small, and it is so easy to give up on weight loss and maintenance. We have more missing members that present members. Sometimes I feel like calling it quits myself. I think I can maintain on my own. But for now, I will keep going.

Shannon - Sending sympathies to Atlanta for snow for which they're unprepared. I spend hours digging out yesterday, but feel that I signed up for that by living in Massachusetts. My dream is to retire to some warm place like Atlanta when I decide that I never want to shovel again. Gotta rethink that now, LOL.

. . . to me (sound of me slapping myself on the side of the head). :p Sometimes thigns seem so obvious after we discover them that it's :o.

Those of us in the northern climates tend to eat differently during the summer/winter months, yes? Particularly if we work outside in the snow, driving wind, etc.

So why the heck am I still eating the same number of calories at lunch and for my afternoon snack as I do in the summer? :dizzy:

That would explain why, when I get home after a particularly ardurous winter day outside, I am so :hungry: that I start eating anything that's not moving or nailed down.

This all occured to me yesterday when I was looking in the fridge at the start of my 15 minute lunch break at home. There was a container of left-over beef goulash (beef, onions, mushrooms, in sauce). It was in the red zone for disposal so I thought "oh heck I may as well heat that up and have it for lunch".

Well I powered through the afternoon after that. Wearing 3 layers of clothes plus parka, through blowing snow and high winds, driving up and down slippery tiny streets lined with HUGE vehicles (the wealthy do like their SUV's, Hummers, Dodge Ram 1500's, etc. in this neighbourhood), I usually am totally beat by about 2 p.m.

Not yesterday. I had energy to spare when I got home. I had my lunch sandwich for a late afternoon snack, had a much small portion of dinner, and was satisfied after that.

I will now try to get home and eat a hot, protein-packed lunch (probably the day before's dinner leftovers). If yesterday was not a one-off then I should be able to control my raging hunger in the late afternoon and evening with this simple step.

Now all I have to do is figure out how to hide said dinner leftovers from DH.

Dagmar :dizzy: :dizzy:

Shannon, do you even **have** snow shovels & snow brushes for your car down there? (I've usually got an assortment of three thrown on the floor of the back seat.) What about salt & sand?

This recurring winter excavation chore happens to be one of my reasons for buying an apartment, rather a house.

I don't want to mow grass or shovel a driveway. Here, I pay monthly maintenance fees for a crew of unionized immigrants from Albania to do this, and when it really snows, they drive their pickup down to a well-known corner & hire a lot of diminutive but big-shouldered guys from Guatemala to help with the digging.

So all I had to do yesterday was shovel out my car, which took about 25 minutes, maybe a half hour. That, actually, was an NSV: Shoveling is much easier since I lost weight, improved my cardio fitness & started lifting 3X a week.

Everyone was prepared for this one, unlike the Christmas weekend blizzard, so this is why I nearly got shut out of my usual Wednesday night spin class. Complacently, I assumed I didn't have to reserve a bike because I could just walk in & get one, as everyone would be home avoiding messy roads. (I walk to my gym so it's not a problem: If my snow boots don't leak, I'm there.) Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. The gym was packed. It's a refuge, if you've got cabin fever after a snowstorm. If there hadn't been a last-minute cancellation, I wouldn't have gotten a bike.

ETA: Yes, this is the irony of educated middle-class life: I avoid calorie-burning manual labor the form of lawn & driveway maintenance & instead "exercise" in the artificial confines of a gym, for which I pay good $$ monthly. I do see the absurdity here. I really do.

ETA: Yes, this is the irony of educated middle-class life: I avoid calorie-burning manual labor the form of lawn & driveway maintenance & instead "exercise" in the artificial confines of a gym, for which I pay good $$ monthly. I do see the absurdity here. I really do.

At least you walk rather than drive a Nissan Leaf to the gym. ;)

//b. strong,
Kim

PS. I can't fathom having to sign up for a bike in advance or risk getting shut out of a class because it's too full. Small town life has big advantages, sometimes.

ETA: Yes, this is the irony of educated middle-class life: I avoid calorie-burning manual labor the form of lawn & driveway maintenance & instead "exercise" in the artificial confines of a gym, for which I pay good $$ monthly. I do see the absurdity here. I really do.

:)

How about you pay me to come and build another wood shelter?

Shannon - how are you doing? I know you don't like the cold much.

Dagmar, I am with you. I absolutely cannot eat a cold lunch during winter (or a cold breakfast or dinner for that matter). Could you package your leftovers for lunch separately from the ones for DH? Write your name on it or something so he knows it's reserved?

I did some shoveling last night too. It didn't snow any more, but it blew around since the morning. When I got home I was going to pull the trash and recycling bins out to the curb, but the snow had blown over the driveway too much to do it. Feeling motivated, I grabbed the shovel and cleared off our driveway and the sidewalk, then pulled out the bins. A few extra calories burned there! Note to self: next time wear two pairs of mittens, my fingers were completely numb afterward.

My legs are totally sore from doing leg lifts yesterday. I guess that just goes to show that I am pretty weak in the small muscles of my legs, because I didn't use any weight or resistance or anything.

I learned something surprising last night: swiss chard has a lot of sodium. Who knew? DH is watching his sodium and we were calculating out some recipes, and I was shocked to see the sodium number for some braised chard I had made. The only ingredients were chard, olive oil, garlic, onions, and red wine vinegar. Apparently one bunch of chard has 33% of your daily sodium allotment.

PS. I can't fathom having to sign up for a bike in advance or risk getting shut out of a class because it's too full. Small town life has big advantages, sometimes.

City life can mean yoga classes so full that the mats are practically touching.

As for seeing how deeply fanatical people can be about spin, Google "Soul Cycle" & see what you get.

From a NY Times article (a publication not given to hyperbole or sensationalistic reporting), describing Soul Cycle's reservation system:

The race begins each Monday at noon, when online reservations open for the coming week’s quad-burning workouts. The bikes in the most dynamic instructors’ classes are often all booked within an hour.

“It is impossible to get into some of the hot classes taught by the best teachers,” said Richard Wagman, a real estate developer in his 40s who joked that his strategy “involves three super computers registering at noon on Mondays.”

Others pay a premium to get ahead of the masses. The price of each session normally is $32. It drops a little when 10, 20 or 30 sessions are bought at once. But a 50-class series does not come with a discount. In fact, the cost, $3,000, works out to $60 a class. The package comes with the privilege to sign up weeks early for spots and even to request a bike in the front row — a chance to lead the pack of racers.

I so love living in a small town! I HATE crowds and love that I can show up for a movie 5 minutes before and still find a very decent seat! I don't ever want to live anywhere crowded again. That said, I'm very fortunate that this small town has all the amenities of a larger city. We have wonderful restaurants, museums, galleries and theaters. I think being only 100 miles from Los Angeles has its advantages. We do have an upturn in population each winter when the "snowbirds" arrive, so traffic more than doubles and there are more crowds, but it's still within reason.

I had a setback yesterday. Not that my eating was off, but the whoosh of weight loss that I experienced yesterday morning went in the opposite direction this morning. I can't see that I did anything different, so I'm hoping it was just a glitch and things will return to the norm tomorrow. I guess that's the trials and tribulations of daily weighing, but if I don't weigh daily, my mind thinks things are going in the right direction (when perhaps they aren't) and I get caught in a trap. I just have to realize that there are always going to be ups and downs despite wanting everything to be down.

$60 for a spin class? Whoa....

Day 4 of snow-a-palooza for me. I let DH take my CRV to work instead of the Mustang, thought it was safer today. We are supposed to get up to 40 tomorrow, so I'm hoping this is the last day of this... My restaurants all opened today and payroll has been delivered to all but two locations. Nope, I don't own a snow shovel or brushes or anything. No salt or gravel. Heck, I don't even have a can of icemelt for my windshield. Our driveway is on the shaded side of the house, so it is still a sheet of ice, as is our front yard. Atlanta has been beaten down by the last few days... I am freezing - Birchie is right, I don't like cold!

Saef - those classes sound crazy! At least I've had my garage gym while I've been snowed in!

Allison- I have whooshes up and down with daily weighing fairly often, even when nothing is different from day to day.

Jessica - I had no idea that swiss chard had a lot of sodium. Wouldn't have figured it.

Kim - dig the new avatar pic, well newish - I think it has been up for a week, I've just been distracted and haven't posted. :)

Dagmar - hot, protein filled lunch sounds like a must for you in the winter. Outside, as active as you are, I imagine you were starving at night after a quick lunch.

Bill - looking at Atlanta the last few weeks I don't know if I would count it as a nice warm place to retire at this point! :)

Birch - I'm hanging in there, but am really tired of being in the house. I think tomorrow I'm going to work and will let DH fend for himself out in the 'Stang. We went to the neighbor's across the street last night for a hot dog & chili party, that was a nice break.

At least I've gotten my exercise this week. :)

Good day everyone! Stay warm!

We're well into it already, but happy new year! I just returned to Tucson yesterday and it's a zoo. The building I work in is next door to the hospital where Gabrielle Giffords is being treated and there are media trucks everywhere. I think I will be brown-bagging it for awhile because apparently if I want to go to the hospital cafeteria for lunch I have to go through security checkpoints to get in!

I need to unpack and do some laundry but I really just want to curl up in my cozy bed...

Sorry about all that snow! Snow shoveling doesn't burn as many calories as one would think, sadly--at least according to the President's Challenge. I, too, prefer my exercise inside during the winter. My contribution to getting rid of snow is to have a nice cup of tea ready for my DH when he comes back inside after shoveling the driveway and sidewalk.

Went back to Weight Watchers for the first time in two years. You certainly get a lot of food for the points--free fruit! I'm still okay as far as maintaining my goal weight, but I've been trending upward from my lowest weight, and I really want to reverse that process. My doctor has me eating 105-115 grams of protein a day, which, to me, is a heck of a lot of protein. I've been trying to cram that into 1500 calories, which you'd think would help me lose weight, but it's the opposite. It will be interesting to see what happens when I weigh in next week. If I lose weight, then I'll know that my issue (except for the holiday weight) has been not eating enough for all the exercise I do.

Re packaging up my portion of the leftovers and marking it as mine - :rofl:.

I have, in the past, put large threatening notes on stuff for another night's dinner (like leftover chicken). It's gone in the morning and DH never remembers eating it. I once found him, in pj's in the living room, eating a peanut butter sandwich.

He was asleep. Standing up and eating. Totally weird!

it does present a great excuse for overeating though :lol3:

Dagmar :coolsnow:

Apparently, Albatrosses can sleep while flying. There's an interesting story of a sailing ship making a sudden turn and the Albatross following it ran into the mast and crashed to the deck - not a good thing for a large bird when ships at sea had little fresh meat, LOL.

I always wondered whether the larger sea mammals like whales and dolphins slept. And how? If they don't continuously swim they sink, right? Never seen that addressed in the many shows I've watched about them. Hmmm.

And DH as an albatross? I'm really, really mad at him right now so that image :p will stay with me today. Better to laugh at him than :rollpin:

Dagmar :?:

Dolphins, at least, don't have to swim continuously to stay afloat, and I don't think whales do, either. In the wild, dolphins have only one brain hemisphere "asleep" at a time. In captivity, they are observed to close their eyes and sleep completely. They have a tail kick reflex that keeps their blowhole above water to breath while asleep.

Mudpie, Does your husband take Ambien? That's been reported to cause "sleep eating." See this:

http://health.howstuffworks.com/mental-health/sleep/disorders/ambien-eat1.htm

Jay

No, bourbon is DH's sleep aid. :p His system reacts really badly to any sedating drug. I once gave him half an Ativan (at his request) and he literally could not wake up the next morning. His dad is the same.

Dagmar

Tomorrow is my vow renewal ceremony. Super excited! I hope my dress fits well. I've been running this week to help. Sure is keeping me motivated not to miss a day at the gym or get tempted by any junk.

I went to jury duty again yesterday for jury selection (started Wed.). I was there all day and got to the very end. They had chosen the jury and were looking for two alternates from the very dwindled pool. When I was called I told the judge I would not be able to be unbiased and I was excused. It was a child abuse case and I was a victim of child abuse. It was emotional and exhausting just sitting there thinking about it for two days. It was interesting to see the process though. I haven't gotten that far in jury duty before and I wouldn't mind serving on another jury if it isn't a case that I feel so personally about.

Michele - just wanted to give you a :hug: That must have been pretty draining. :hug:

Have a great time tomorrow.

Michele - I hope the ceremony goes well tomorrow! And I'm glad that the jury duty is behind you - I know that the process had to stir up a lot of old issues. :hug:

Dagmar - I used to be married to an alcoholic - he often was found 'sleep eating', but it was never clear if it was sleep or inebriation.

I can't be the only one here who wants to hear Michele tell us about her dress.

Okay, and the ceremony. Because you need a ceremony as a reason to buy a really great-looking dress. And oh, yeah, years of commitment & love being commemorated. That, too. (Now, what color is that dress, again?)

You are, of course, going to come back here & tell us about it? What you did, what you said, etc?

(Pictures would be nice, but I understand any shyness & the whole anonymity of the Internet thing. But **seeing** you in the dress would be nice.)

Have you written anything particular to say to each other?

Juror by day, dedicated runner, blushing bride-for-a-second-time. That's quite a life you're managing right now, Michele.

You are too cute Saef!
The dress is black with white bling. It is strapless and fairly short (very form fitting). Because I have a tattoo which is frowned on in my religion I will be wearing a wrap over the dress (bought two, not sure which one I'll wear).

Yes, we've written things to say to each other. We haven't seen what the other has written so I'm dying to know what dh wrote.

If you're on facebook I'm happy to "friend" you and I'll post pics after the service. Just PM me.

And I'm a blushing bride for the third time as we renewed our vows in Vegas on our 15th anniversary. This is our first Jewish ceremony though.

Enjoy your day Michele. Rock the dress! And :hug: for the jury duty - that must have been really hard for you.

Dagmar :coolsnow:

Dagmar, I want a post from you saying what you love about your DH & what attracts you to him, 'cause I swear -- really, seriously, no offense meant here -- a lot of the time, after reading your posts, I find myself liking the dogs you describe much better than your DH, and wishing you'd tell us more about them, like how many, and what breed, and what their personalities are.

OK saef re my DH.

When he and I got together he was a reasonably fit, intelligent, charming, and genuinely funny guy. His outlook on life was tinged with cynicism but it was a minimal amount.

He was curious about things and liked to try new stuff. He had a unique way of viewing many things and had a wide general knowledge of all sorts of fields of endeavour.

He liked to laugh, cook, go out, make love, all the things we do in life with our partners.

One new thing he did after we met was to find out all about kayaking. Then he built himself a kayak and learned to paddle it. He inspired me to learn as well.

I miss that guy and hope, under the current layers of misery and blubber, he is still in there somewhere.

I need to find a way to motivate an updated version of that guy to re-emerge.

As for the dogs I don't want to bore all of you to tears (we dog/pet people can go on and on and on about all the cute stuff our furry buddies do). Not everyone is as fascinated by Fido and Fluffy as I am.

And I think most of you would find the things the dogs do that I find remarkable to be quite mundane. I see them in the scope of that dog's life but would have to provide looong explanations for them.

Dagmar

Michele, I just wanted to chime in that I hope (I'm sure you did) have a lovely ceremony today! And I'm sure you rocked the dress, too. ;)

OK saef re my DH.

When he and I got together he was a reasonably fit, intelligent, charming, and genuinely funny guy. His outlook on life was tinged with cynicism but it was a minimal amount.

He was curious about things and liked to try new stuff. He had a unique way of viewing many things and had a wide general knowledge of all sorts of fields of endeavour.

He liked to laugh, cook, go out, make love, all the things we do in life with our partners.

One new thing he did after we met was to find out all about kayaking. Then he built himself a kayak and learned to paddle it. He inspired me to learn as well.

I miss that guy and hope, under the current layers of misery and blubber, he is still in there somewhere.

I need to find a way to motivate an updated version of that guy to re-emerge.



Perhaps reminding him of how he used to be would spur him to bettering himself. Something gentle, like "remember how you used to..." and let him reminisce without being accusatory.

Dagmar we all want the best for you with your DH....

please continue to share stories of both him and your puppies/life!!

Mazel tov, Michele!

Just back from the ceremony and dinner. It was amazing. A true blessing. Thank you all for your well wishes.

Just back from the ceremony and dinner. It was amazing. A true blessing. Thank you all for your well wishes.

Photos! :cheer2: We want photos! :cheer:

Don't we have a facebook group somewhere for 3FC? Maybe you could post a few there?

I'm glad you enjoyed the ceremony.

Dagmar :coolsnow:

Michele, how I wish I could be "friended" & see pictures of the ceremony, you in the dress, your DH, and the canopy. But one of my resolutions for the New Year is to cut down time spent online, and from all I hear, joining Facebook may be counterproductive to that particular resolution. (I avoided it somehow till now & am trying to keep avoiding it as long as possible.)

Dagmar, I am afraid that my post about your DH & the dogs sounded flippant & uncaring, for which I am sorry. I am too much of a smart@$$ sometimes. But I do care about your happiness, and wanted to revive it in some way by deliberately making you remember & write about good & happy things. Probably because I am a great big journaler (no surprise, right?) at difficult times or even to cope with small annoyances.

Also, Dagmar, you'd be surprised at my tolerance for hearing animal stories.

(Just don't let me hear "In the Arms of an Angel" or "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" in the background while I'm reading you, if you talk about how some particular dog needs love ... or I'll get choked up & will have to go to another post. There is this series of not-for-profit commercials for some kind of animal rescue group that makes me put it on mute & leave the room or change the channel whenever it comes on, not because I'm annoyed by it, but because I'm protecting myself from feeling AWFUL because of the combination of a deeply emotional song & a big-eyed soulful-looking trustingly out at me, needing my $$$.)

I belong to another chat board dedicated to Labrador owners/lovers. Wow, some of the stories I hear there...I always end up in tears. The most recent was about a woman who owns a lumber yard with her husband. It was the end of the day, she was ready to go home, when a customer came in. She put on her best "can I help you" face despite really wanting to go home. The gentleman said he needed to think about the measurements a bit. Then said that he was buying lumber to build a casket for his 13 year old black lab who he didn't think would make it through the weekend. As he told his story, her black Lab came out from her place in the back room and came up and nuzzled the man. See what I mean about crying?

And yeah, Facebook can be time consuming. Or not, depending on how much you put into it (no more than 3FC if you don't want it to be).

Yesterday we went to see the Fabulous Palm Springs Follies. They are celebrating their 20th season and since we've lived here for over 20 years, it was high time we went to see it. Amazing. Men and women all over the age of 55 (the oldest was 81) kicking it up in song and dance. One old guy did a high kick and ended up in splits on the floor. Wow. And the costumes--huge headdresses and whatnot. All vaudeville type stuff but entertaining.

Saef-- I understand. I spend too much time on facebook and online as well. I haven't uploaded the pictures yet-- we only have a few as you can't take pics during the ceremony. I am happy to email you one or two once I've got them up if you want....