Briefly: I was sugar free today. Credit.
Scale went up this morning. credit for weighing.
Getting ready to work but not working much yet. Just a little.
Food needs more planning more structure.
Edged forward yesterday. I'm focusing on things that annoy me most in the garden. Yesterday I cut back some iris leaves which were flopping over the path - great in the autumn because of their changing colour, good in winter to provide cover for overwintering insects but not nice after the wheelie bins have trundled over them quite a few times. So they're cut back enough to be out of the way. And the soggy foliage and flower spikes of the Acanthus mollis just the same. (We call that bear's breeches but I think it would be quite uncomfortable to wear, even if you had thick fur like a bear.) It was good to be outside for a bit. I also sawed up more holly, and chopped more kindling. I'm very pleased with this work as it means that raw materials are making their way through the system I have going here, and more space is opening up in the garden.
I ate quite a lot. More, I'd say, than usual. In fact, we're only talking about a large lunch and, of course, I did expend quite a lot of energy. This, though, makes the difference between losing weight (which I'd like to do) and maintaining. I made beigels and ate a very small one. I shan't eat any today.
Today's plans are a little bit of work, a quick whirl round the garden to pull out all dandelion and grass seedlings, and some more sawing and chopping. Plus the DB and I are going on manoeuvres to collect some new clothes for him, and to buy some more nice writing paper for his thank you letters. This is enough.
onebyone, much credit for a brief check in. Yes, these days between Christmas and New Year have a feeling all of their own. Yesterday, the DB and I discussed the boredom that seems to come along in this period. I've always told him that boredom is good for children (and everyone, of course) and he seems to accept that as fact. I know that bad things arise out of boredom but I also know that scheduling every minute of people's lives is a very bad idea.
nationalparker, looking up frou frou drink!
gardenerjoy, read something about catastrophising the other day. Will look. Here we are, fwiw. I thought the self-soothing bit was interesting. I may focus on that. Thanks for the tempeh link. Have never seen it here in the back of beyond but will look again.
curlyjax, good luck with making inroads into the domestic stuff. I'm finding the 'do the thing that's most annoying' very helpful in the garden. I also move into top gear when it seems someone is available to lend a hand. But you know all these tricks! Glad DH is tolerating the new drug.
Bill, 'Christmas droppings' sound really unhygienic. They should probably be got out of the house immediately! I don't think we've got very many/any left which is very good. I know I learnt a lot from my family about survival during the Second World War and it's certainly helped / helps a lot. I sometimes think I'm in preparation mode for the next very difficult thing that's going to hit. I also seem to think that handing on practical skills to the next generation is essential, however antiquated they appear.
to all. Things to do, places to go, people to see.
Sunday - New Year's Eve - Queen Victoria makes Ottawa capital of Canada (1857)
Diet Coaches/Buddies – Eating was on plan, CREDIT moi, with a frozen lasagna for dinner. DW has found a maker that tastes good. "Some days are not made for cooking."
Walked, CREDIT moi, to the subway and then for three hours at the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA) in Boston. We're not members; don't usually 'get it' about contemporary stuff. But we had passes from our DS who insisted that we see the exhibit by Mark Dion who displays archeological-like stuff in 'cabinets' as did the naturalists in the 1800's. The man's mind is definitely out of bounds. The stuff collected from the ocean really got to me. We're trashing all our oceans with plastic. Everything made just keeps adding to the tons already there. It hurts to see it. Spent time in a warm room at the back of the ICA overlooking Boston Harbor watching the gulls and geese flying about as if it weren't single digit cold. New buildings pop up each time we visit. The old Boston waterfront is changing big time.
onebyone – Always Kudos for a sugar-free day.
Joy (gardenerjoy) – Good luck with the fight against 'catastrophizing' -it's so difficult to make everything its right size. [Wow - just watched the trailers for those two films about Dunkirk. Just so hard to imagine.]
silverbirch – Kudos for being able to make beigels and only eat one small one. Love reading that you're doing gardening - even as we're frozen inside. When it gets this cold, our heating system fails to adequately reach the kitchen at the end of the house so we rely on an electric heater to stay warm enough to eat.
nationalparker – Happy Anniversary - it's neat to be pleased with your life choice. Congrats for taking the risk of leaving your computer at home. Hope you make some progress in breaking the ether-addiction - excluding 3FC, of course.
curlyjax - So good that your DH accepted the new drug - small steps matter. Yep, a three day weekend helps with the long to-do lists.
Readers -
Quote:
day 3Eat Sitting Down
Since you'll be eating less food, it's important for you to see all of it spread
in front of you at meal or snack time so you can be more visually satisfied.
Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., The Beck Diet Solution (Pink book), Pg 71.
I had a lovely surprise yesterday morning. I opened the door and found a bag there. Inside was chicken parm and a host of goodies from Wegmans. There was no note but I had a feeling I knew who it was from, a friend who said she would drop off something at some point. I texted and sure enough it was. (she had texted me earlier but sometimes i don’t get texts until later which is really annoying).
So dinner was all set, with some leftover salad from another person. It is so helpful to have dinner made, and it also makes you feel loved.
Of course on the eating front we still have way too much junk left and I am eating too much. Today I will go to the grocery store and get some healthy food again.
Bill- it was helpful to hear about your heating system. My bedroom is definitely colder than the rest of the house- you feel the temp difference as you step inside- but it is farther away from the furnace so it does make sense. The furnace is getting its annual check up next week so maybe that will help too.
DS just stepped into the shower so now i have a few more minutes to loll about.
Happy new year’s eve day all!
Yesterday didn't go as planned -- soup instead of salad at the restaurant seemed more appropriate in the cold. I only had a cup, so that was fine. But somehow that meant I could eat anything I wanted all afternoon. Not so fine.
Today's challenge is going to the grocery store in single-digit temperatures on New Year's Eve. I think I'll go early because it's not going to get that much warmer, the crowds will be smaller, and it taxes my resistance muscle less.
Our celebration tonight will consist of a meal from our winter repertoire that I've been saving for tonight -- tuna with fennel & red pepper & pasta from Jacques Pepin's cooking show. And, I got a bottle of hard cider. We won't last until midnight. I'm hoping, like nationalparker, that it's too cold for people to set off fireworks and wake us up.
I hope everyone has a lovely New Year's Eve!
Weigh-in: +0.6 kg, Exercise: +40, 1100/1200 minutes for December
curlyjax: We posted at the same time yesterday and close to the same time today. Glad to see you here and that you're able to get in some sleeping and clearing time in this weekend. I hope things continue to improve with DH's treatment.
nationalparker: Happy Anniversary! I hope it was a fun day for you and your DH.
onebyone: Yay for another sugar-free day! I've managed more structure in my work and it's helping, at least some days, to structure my food life, too. Unfortunately, I don't fully trust any of this to last, but I want to take advantage while it does.
silverbirch: Thanks for the catastrophizing article. I like the listing exercise, complete with ranking and scoring. I'm not sure I'd do it every day, but there are days that would make a difference. I like knowing that the British still have a store of WWII-era survival skills to tap into. That gives me hope that the world may weather current storms.
BillBlueEyes: Some days aren't made for cooking. We have a couple of dishes in our repertorie that reliably make good meals a few days later and a couple of places that work for take-out. I've yet to manage a frozen food meal that works for us. I thought I had one from Trader Joe's, but DH didn't feel good after we ate it. It doesn't say it has MSG, but he reacted that way.
The boys and I are off to a Sacramento King's basketball game. Thankfully it starts at 4:00. I have been going to bed pretty early these days.
Credit for continuing to daily weigh. Weight is two pounds up from ticker. The nutritional value of my food is dismally low and I intend the first change this new year to be a return to daily salads and smoothies. I won't call it a resolution. I'll just call it a renewal of what I have done for years now.
silverbirch: I think I missed yr link on a catastrophe article that sounds interesting. Could you give me the title? Loved that you looked up frou frou.
nationalpaker: I will try to take your suggestion to spend more dates nights with DH. We have abandoned them nearly entirely with my mood swings, our teenage son, the ranch, etc. . . There are so many things preventing us from focusing on the romance and yet it is very important.
gardenerjoy: This is a silly question but does the tuna for your dinner come from a can?
Grateful to be "walking the walk" with all of you in a new year.
Wrapping up the year watching a Stones concert video directed by Martin Scorsese... a good day spent at a five year old niece's birthday party in the afternoon/evening and now kicking back with healthy homemade quesadillas and gala apple slices. I did have a thin piece of birthday cane that was every color of the rainbow and a few others as she is enchanted with unicorns. Hard, but I left the top frosting. Credit. I can be a frosting fiend.
We fly home tomorrow night, landing after midnight. This trip seemed to zip by, and I still need to touch base with a friend to meet up hopefully tomorrow. I've forgotten each day but don't want to let it slip through.
I enjoy thinking and considering Points of Focus for the next year...as well as reviewing the "best of" past year.
I am awake past midnight. 2017 left without a sound as 2018 filled the vacated space without me even noticing.
Truthfully I feel no change, no shift, nothing but more of the same. I'm going to have to work for the changes I want to see.
And with this in mind I purchased quantities of food to create several meals in advance once more. I'm looking forward to cooking and packaging my meals for the coming week as I did pre-xmas. While it was boring it did work in terms of weight loss and being on plan. I cannot get my entertainment from food. That's silly. Food is for sustenance not for song and dance and distraction. Other things in other ways do that much better in a nurturing healthful way. These are things I also need to plan for so when I am bored they are at hand. That will be part of my food prep as well. I need weightloss success in 2018. I will do the work now as there is no better or easier time it seems. Just do it.
Billblueyes Your comment on the birds flying in the cold reminded me of an article I read about just that. Its really intersting and through the magic that is the internet available to us in 2018 here it is http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgar...nter-1.4465936
nationalparker Safe travel back home. May you find snuggly kitties happy to see you!
curlyjax Good news about DH. So kind of people to drop off food to your family. Kudos for good friends.
maryann I am with you on renewing my desire to eat better and to make better choices going forward. There is strength in numbers especially here among all of us.
gardenerjoy I have also granted myself permission to indulge in fast food and other things so long as I remain sugar free. This is how I get back on plan. I'm settled with that very important first step so now to add another. It takes a while lot of structure, resolve, and planning to get to the losing weight stage. You write of this often and I want to say thanks for that.
silverbirch Count me as someone else who enjoys reading about your garden clean up while we wear layers and just hope the car will start in the morning! Do you get snow at all? What would your worst weather be?
Happy 2018 everyone. I am glad to be here for another year.
Looking a bit misty out there this morning, or is it low cloud? I did hear a burst of heavy rain earlier. It's a perfect backdrop for the trees.
Yesterday was all right. I got the DB to leave 'Crimbo Limbo', as I heard this antechamber to the new year described yesterday, on a short trip out to buy things like milk and cooking apples. I also bought crumpets which I thought he might eat. Friends, I do not need to eat these myself, do I? Anyway, the world seemed to be populated with the walking wounded - bandages, viruses, sickness, awkward family groups. Time to get back to the usual routine. England, Wales and Northern Ireland go back to work tomorrow, Scotland on the 3rd (need more time to get over Hogmanay celebrations).
I missed the weather window for gardening yesterday morning, unfortunately. I'll have to get out there today for my own mental health. The others in the house are not full of the joys of the season so it's good for me to have space without them. I think I'm i/c food today which is not a prospect that fills me with pleasure. Will get up NOW and look in the freezer. OK, I have found some nice looking pork loin so we can have a casserole with potatoes and apple to last two days. I think I will throw in some elderly kirsch that's been in the back of the cupboard for a number of years. And we have greens (no main meal is complete without greens, in my book).
You may remember that I stocked up before the Christmas siege. That was an excellent move as we avoided all those What shall we have tonight? Have we got enough? conversations which I find quite draining at this point.
onebyone, yes, just do the food preparation and be pleased you have. Credit! Glad you like the gardening I'm doing. The weather patterns are all upside down here so I just take advantage when I can. We do have snow, usually after Christmas. This year we had some in November. Scrape the windscreen, cannot get into the car because the doors are frozen up etc. There have been bursts of hail and sleet, and some floods. I ran into a sleet shower last week and a car had just lost control on the dual carriageway, spinning and hitting the barrier and another car. That sums up the difficulties. The weather is constantly changing so you don't quite know what's coming next and can be lulled into a sense of security. When very bad weather hits people just aren't in practice. They are very bad at driving in snow. Thinking about it, I haven't worn my very cold weather clothes (thermals, thick socks) for about five years now.
nationalparker, safe travels!
maryann, here's the catastrophising link. 'Renewal' sounds good to me. I've never liked 'resolution'.
gardenerjoy, sorry that soup allowed you to eat anything you wanted all afternoon. I have those sorts of problems and I'm tracking it to not eating enough, even though soup seems to fill me up at the time. I've read that soup that isn't completely liquidised fills you up for longer than very smooth soup. I can understand that.
curlyjax, nice surprise! The bathroom is the most freezing room in this house (no heating bar an electric towel rail, not always on, and poor insulation) and I think that explains why I stop weighing myself in winter. Someone suggested that I could weigh myself with my nightie on but even that seems too risky on bitterly cold mornings.
Bill, credit for getting out and about. Yes, birds are amazing in the cold. And credit to your DW for finding a good frozen lasagne.
Must try to get going a bit. This Christmas holiday has been a tricky one and it's pulled me down. Only realising how far now that the end is in sight.
But you know all these tricks! Glad DH is tolerating the new drug. 
to all. Things to do, places to go, people to see.
Sunday - New Year's Eve - Queen Victoria makes Ottawa capital of Canada (1857)
