Wednesday morning, my latest waking time so far, and I'm at 159.7.
The beautiful enormous Victorian-era conservatory at the Botanical Gardens was a good place to be on such a cold day. I had a sense of what it must have been like to walk through the Crystal Palace in the 19th century. The train show is only partly about the trains. It's really a scale-model show, reproducing wonderful NY buildings, some demolished, some still standing, with natural materials such as bark and branches. These buildings are miniature cousins to the Rose Parade floats.
Then we went to Arthur Avenue, where I got some smoked mozzarella and imported prosciutto, and we had a mediocre lunch in a big half-empty tourist trap. I love the shops there and ought to go more often just for the atmosphere.
It's gotten even colder. Today is probably a movie and a little shopping to see what's left from post-Christmas plunder.
Thursday morning, and if anything, it's even colder. I'm at 160 exactly.
"Call Me By Your Name" was a love story set in Italy during a summer, a welcome escape from here & now. This was a heartbreaker and I'm glad we saw it. Afterward, we stopped quickly in two discount stores. TJ Maxx looked somewhat ransacked and the checkout line was very long. The shelves at the Christmas Tree Shop were partly empty, transitioning probably to Valentine's Day, and that was a quicker checkout.
Leaving for the gym even later this morning as vacation mode has taken me over completely. Also I'm wincing at the prospect of heading out into the cold.
Belated happy holidays to all!
We leave Houston today for 2 nights in Arizona with younger dd. No idea what I weigh but I’ve worked out each day.
Ready to be home and back to my routines!
Friday morning, at 162.2, as expected, after a big meal of ham and not much additional movement.
I stayed in yesterday, canceling my admittedly vague plans to take my mother into the city to see some just-released movies. The cold made the idea of walking around unappealing. I baked a loaf of anadama bread while my mother went to the casino.
Morning, all. It's still dark here and cold, though nothing like the cold in parts of N America at the moment. Good gracious, Dagmar, I've just looked at the forecast for Toronto for tomorrow. Please keep warm.
I had to look up anadama bread, saef. Thanks for bringing it in to my life! I remember you used to bake bread in the past. We were given pandoro for Christmas which none of us found particularly appealing. I made it into a bread and butter pudding which seems better. Eggs and milk = protein. Ignoring the hidden sugar and fat for now.
Working out every day is great, Michele. I am getting back into it. And I'm keen to get back into my routine as well, even though I'm resting (much needed) and getting some of those annoying things done. You know, the ones that hang about and you never have the time to get round to.
Alice, how is Pepper?
Andrea, you have been sounding so relaxed in your posts! Great to hear.
Good morning! The real deep freeze is happening tomorrow night here. I'm doing the last of my entertaining tonite - I hope! My cousin and his family are returning from Ottawa today and will be here tonite, weather permitting.
DH and I haven't really celebrated New Year's Eve by going out for years now. I don't drink and am generally in bed by 9 p.m. so I'm a bust for it. We'll have our traditional meal of steak, salad, and really good bread and DH can snack on whatever is left over from the sweets table for dessert. I'm so done with chocolate, cookies, etc. that I might have some grapes, if anything.
I'll be dining on leftovers from my mother's visit for days. Last night it was the last of the shrimp & scallop creole dish that I made on Tuesday.
The bitter cold continues. When my mother departed yesterday for Upstate, I drove out, too, and went to a late-morning movie matinee. "I, Tonya" wasn't as edgy as the directors wanted it to be, but was still quite good. The performances were strong. Then I had a quiet day at home. I think today might be about the same once the morning round of errands and the gym are over.
I'll be thinking of how to use those leftovers in things that need to go into the oven for extended periods or on the stovetop, which are both heat-generating. My goal is a fairly stuffy apartment.
This week started as a monster pileup of work, and ended with a monster virus. Our techs have been sick and I knew I was probably doomed. Started feeling horrible Thursday evening; went into work Friday morning and immediately canceled the rounds I was supposed to lead (and had spent hours arranging). Fortunately, one of the two people who can cover for me was in the area and available after late morning, so I was able to go home.
I can't help but feel a bit annoyed that I'm beat down with this rotten virus for a 3-day weekend. Although I'm on call the entire time so we didn't have big plans anyway, I don't dare even go to a movie when on call. But I'm signed up for a long race with friends in Feb. and badly need to be going on long runs when I'm not working. Instead this will set me back a few weeks. And yesterday I ate too much and some of it was garbage; something about the onset of a bad cold makes me do that every time. No more of that nonsense.
That virus is wicked, JZJ. We've had four or five of our employees come down with it. Thankfully, neither DH nor I have gotten it. My MIL got it on Christmas (probably from flying to and from her mother's funeral). She's still sick. One employee ended up with pneumonia. Feel better!
We have a traditional bread, too. It's a Norwegian Christmas bread called Julekaka which is similar to German Stollen, except more fruit. It's a slightly sweet bread made with cardamom. My mom always made it at Christmas and now I do as everyone begs for it. My mom made four loaves by hand whereas I do only one (at a time) in the bread maker. We don't usually eat a lot of bread so a loaf lasts for at least a week, and that's with sharing it on Christmas morning.
I've got to get through this weekend and then I'll be full on diet mode until our cruise mid February. If I can get 10 or so pounds gone, I'll be ecstatic.
I forgot to add: our weather will be in the high 70's or even 80 for the next week or so. The long range prediction is no significant rain all winter which means an awful fire season this summer and fall. Sad.
Ooh, sorry about the bad cold JayZeeJay. Hope you get over it soon. I woke up yesterday with a touch of something. It made me achy and stuffy. Today I got dizzy while standing at my computer. I'd like to hike on Monday, but will wait and see. I agree about tending to eat more garbage food when sick. Actually, today I don't have much appetite - a small blessing.
Pepper does not have lymphoma -- it is severe inflammatory bowel disease. Dr. Cooke gave him a larger dose of steroids and I have prednisolone drops to give him every other day. Good thing there was an alternative to pills! He also sent me home with 4 doses of injectable anti-nausea med. Right now Pepper seems much better and he is eating although it's hard to know how much. I weighed his food to see how much he actually eats.
Happy New Year, everyone, if I don't get on here tomorrow. May we each have a good year coming up!!
I also googled "anadama bread," including the supposed origin of the name, from "Anna, damn it." Sounds delicious; it's a darn good thing that I don't bake (much) anymore, or I'd be sorely tempted. Instead, I'm trying to make fermented foods, to counter my irritable bowel symptoms, which were really acting up the last few weeks. I've made sauerkraut (yum) and kombucha (blech) and just got some kefir "grains" (euphemism for disgusting, jiggly yeast-bacterial globules) to make kefir, which is pretty good. I have tried taking several kinds of probiotics, and have eaten Fage greek yogurt for years, but it doesn't seem to be doing the trick lately.
Alice, I'm very glad Pepper doesn't have cancer. I imagine this bowel problem is much more compatible with a long life. Hooray.
JayZeeJay, feel better soon.
Saef, if you like the oven on, you might try a space heater: you can bask in its toasty warmth for hours at a time.
I had all kinds of ambitions to see movies down in the Village today but the thermometer and the dusting of snow outside has curbed them. I'll see how I feel after my market trip, the gym and a stop at the library to pick up some books that have come in.
I didn't actually eat the Anadama bread. I sent it home with my mother, who'd been craving it.
to all. Think I'd better have breakfast.
