Nice walk yesterday with two other widow ladies. They wore their masks most of the time at least. I had my healthy dinner, then got this painful bloating that I experienced a few weeks ago. It went on for a few hours and really hurt. I'm hoping its all hormonally related, like a new awful PMS thing, instead of something worse. This perimenopause is for the birds! Gardenerjoy: Good luck with your MIL too, and yay for helping with voter registration. Tokidoki- sounds like a good exercise plan that you can definitely succeed in. Karen- thanks for the recipe, that does look really good. Good for you for accepting the situation;its hard to stay quiet in stuff like this. Bill- Congrats on surviving a successful plant sale! How fun for DW to have something like that to do. Actually I don't know if you would like the Mandarin chicken since its to my taste overly breaded; I get it for my son who is less fussy but he likes the tangy sauce.
MiL continues to improve, thank goodness. She'll get to talk to her own doctor, or at least someone in his office, today. That will make everyone feel better about things, I think.
I'm excited about passing the half-way point of my exercise goal before the half-way point of the month.
Yesterday was on plan including no drinks and weight is down another 1/2 pound. I spent some time planning for the week including meal planning, so I'm hopeful that will help. I'm really struggling with my thoughts and feelings about dh's family. I'm not sure how I will sort it out, but I know time will help. I know I need to change my thoughts, but not sure how I'm going to do that. His brother has done some awful things to dh over the years and it all comes up again with this. I went out to hike this morning, but it was quite windy and the dust was hitting me in the face so I turned around and came home and walked Otis. Today's exercise will have to be housework, which needs to be done because dh doesn't vacuum or any of that kind of thing while I'm gone. He does keep the dishes and laundry done and the house is neat and in order so I sure won't complain.
Curlyjax Do you have a gall bladder? Could it be that? Probably better get it checked out. Bill The plant sale sounds like a very successful event and I bet you are both glad it is now over. Tokidoki Yes it sounds like you've selected a reasonable and balanced exercise program. I can imagine your dog really helps with the walking. GardenerJoy Good job delivering the voter registration packets. I hope things settle down with mil.
Well I guess I'll move on with the day. I need to give mil a call and I'm not really looking forward to it, but I suspect if I don't call she will think I'm upset that she's not moving here which really isn't the case. I hope you all have a good start to the week.
I keep meaning to come here at the end of the day and post but the days keep flying and I just end up lying down and poof! asleep.
So I set back the cause of feminism by about 50yrs with my latest ceramics commission. I was asked to do a naked lady on the bottom of a mug with the words Bottoms Up on it. and on the inside the words "Tastes like another", which I had to check, and then double check again cause the grammar is atrocious! Ugh!
I'll try to attach a picture.
I dropped it off this morning, after I had to re-do it because I had positioned it on the cup 180degrees from where it needed to go. When the right-handed owner is drinking, as he lifts the mug to his lips the viewer needs to be able to read the bottoms up when they look over. I had it upside down at first. To add confusion, the tastes like another has to be the right way up for the drinker to read it when his mug is empty. That's about as fancy as I can get these days without going loopy.
I had been hoping to remake the Japanese Bobtail Cat urn today but I ran out of steam. I have been fighting off what felt like a strep throat over the past few days. Since I didn't work and instead I rested this afternoon and had like 4 bowls of hot soup and two oranges and water etc. I feel fine. Stress/worry/anxiety go straight to my throat. Always has. That mug and the visit with DH's sister and the BIL were what was bothering my throat. We went over to have our last meal at MIL's house on Saturday evening. SInce MIL's death I haven't been there very much and they did not want us to help cleaning out her house for selling. So we stayed away. Today the new owners took possession. MIL's flowers looked amazing. And so many plants that wanted to see bloom but they didnt for her bloomed their heads off this summer. I was so happy to see that. I took lots of pictures and had planned to take her garlic but there was no garlic to be had. And her plants were fairly common so I left them. More important was the layout and the pictures are perfect for that.
Foodwise I was 273 for several days then jumped to 276 and have stayed there for two mornings. I was on a moderated plan due to the family visit and found it hard to get 100% back on plan yesterday. I did a bit better today. Hopefully tomorrow will be better yet. i see the Dr in a week and would like to be under 270. I came across an online exercise program that I spontaneously purchased access to. For $27 US dollars there are all kinds of exercise routines to be had on the bloomyoung.com site. I am not walking. I am not feeling adventurous with Youtube. I just want a do this and do this and get it done/get started already no nonsense thing and I think this is it. I'll start using it tomorrow. If it works for me it's worth 1000x what I paid.
oh boy. I just spent a long time attaching images and I can't get them to stay. I;ve had various errors and I've had it.
Have a good night!
Tuesday - Constitutionalist revolution in Lisbon, Portugal (1820)
Diet Coaches/Buddies - First session of my Solar System class of the Fall tried to convey the scale of the universe. I never cease to be in awe. Once again I'm amazed to be reminded that it was only in 1928 that Edwin Hubble showed that the Milky Way was only a part of the Universe. Until then, everyone believed that what we saw was all there was. Now the Hubble Telescope has taken pictures of galaxies some 12 billion light-years away. And the Webb Telescope scheduled for launch in 2021 will be 100x the power. All this on Zoom - the new normal.
Eating was on plan with no daytime snacks, CREDIT moi. Dinner was just omelets as DW is still recovering from her plant sale on Sunday, eaten inside as we attempt to get used to the chill. Breakfast was the leftover baguette. If baguettes regularly came into my house I'd be the size of a blimp.
In my walk, CREDIT moi, from a sidewalk library I picked up a copy of Still Alice by Lisa Genova that's on my maybe reading list. Now I have to decide. DW insists that we've seen the movie. That I don't remember frightens me that losing my memory isn't just a theoretical discussion. DW helpfully reminded me that I don't remember any movie since Walt Disney's Fantasia, LOL.
onebyone - LOL at setting feminism back with a Bottom's Up mug. Googled "Tastes like another" to find a collage of meanings - I'd never heard the phrase before. Kudos for just choosing an exercise plan that you'll start right away.
Joy (gardenerjoy) - Kudos for keeping up with your exercise schedule - as you have for a zillion months in a row.
maryann and Penny. - Waving. Continue to send supportive thoughts as I read the news from the West Coast.
Karen (karenrn) - Ouch for the reality of the family that we marry into. Wind and dust too strong for a hike sounds like a bunch.
curlyjax - Yay for a good walk with two masked friends. It's a challenge to keep socially connected these days.
Readers -
Quote:
chapter 3Get Ready to Lose
Before you start, however, I would like you to do the following 10 essential tasks:
task 3 Make Time for Dieting
To lose weight successfully, you will need time to: . . .
Read this book,
Practice skills, such as planning and monitoring your food intake,
Exercise regularly,
Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., The Complete Beck Diet for Life (Green book), Pg 34.
Back from the mountains. The air quality was only marginally better. Raced down home early yesterday morning to be ready for classes and then worked a long day.
I am having trouble focusing. The air makes everything seem so surreal. Oh Well! At least I have a reason to get up and engage. The internet man came to hopefully stop Google Meets from being dropped. Also DS called and he is having the time of his life.
Food remains stagnant and exercise non- existent. I did a bike in the mountains but my lungs began to really hurt. Todays commitment is stretching. That takes no extra lung commitment and will make me feel a lot better.
I jumped on the scale even though I am aiming for once a week weighing, and I lost two pounds of water weight, yay. I had a feeling that would be the case as my body feels better today than two days ago, thank goodness.
I signed up for an intro pilates class this sunday where manfriend goes. I didn't know it was the type of thing where you have to commit to 3 months and then give them 30 days notice before leaving which I'm not interested in doing, but its a free class and I'm interested in seeing what its all about.
Today I can go in a little later so I slept in a bit but need to get going now. Onebyone- I had to laugh about setting back feminism 50 years! You join the artisans over the years who have made things for others they find appalling Karen- i'm pretty sure its hormonally related but that is an interesting thought. Sending supportive thoughts over the family dynamics issue, its hard to be the inlaw sometimes.
Yesterday was a wasted day. I made a sweet that was off plan and also had an extra drink in the evening that was also not on the plan. More family stuff was in the picture, but I think I'm feeling more like I can put it behind me. I had many catch up phone calls with friends yesterday also, and that part was good. I decided I wasn't going to do the housework and I didn't, but I have started today and am taking a short break. The sheets are in the washer and one room is vacuumed so far. I will get it done today. I need to feel like I'm making forward movement. Even with the off plan eats yesterday the scale was down again today. I know I had better be extra careful today though. I'm thankful that even though it is warm here, the skies are clear today and have been pretty good.
Curlyjax Seeing the scale go down is encouraging. Keep up the good work. Maryann I'm glad to hear ds is having the time of his life. My sil says the poor air quality makes her feel so much more homebound than just the Covid. Bill I'm sure your class is very interesting. It's hard to imagine what tiny specks we are. Onebyone "Tastes like another" probably means the same as "tastes like more". That's what we say when we have a delicious sweet.
Okay back to my date with the vacuum before I decide I can just put it away.
I'm checking in late, but for reasonably good reasons. When I woke up, my brain was busily working on a project that I didn't intend to do today. But I don't usually argue with a brain that's giving material that I want, just not on the day that I want it. So, that project's done.
I had to work around a previously scheduled 8:30am Zoom meeting. It's a meeting with school administrators in our region that I've been running quarterly for a few years. They use it to compare notes on racial equity across school districts. I'm shocked, every time, that they let me do this. It was temerity in the beginning and, now, it seems, it's tradition.
We missed the last meeting due to COVID and this was our first time on Zoom. So, I had my anxieties. But, it went fine. I'm especially pleased with how my warm-up question worked. "What have you read, watched, or listened to about racial equity that you'd like to share?" We learned about books, a podcast, a TV drama, and summer professional development programs.
Had a bad food day today. Items were ok but I snacked and ate from morning to night. Haven't done that in months. I have been struggling with food since Friday when I was eating in anticipation of our visit with the SIL. I have yet to regain my balance.
Today I was thrown by having to put together a master plan for our potters guild's first online sale. I don't even want to be sales head anymore let alone.lead a sale which we have never attempted. Looks like we can make it happen sooner rather than later so I am going for it. Perhaps ina month it can be overwith.
I chose to use food to get throigh everything about this task today. To avoid it. To muddle through. I even ate tree nuts while we had the zoom meeting with the exec. I will be 276+ tomorrow. But... what I needed to do is done plus what I needed to do for next weeks regular guild meeting is also done. I have two emails to send though so I will do that after I post this here.
I did not begin my exercise program
I will start my day with it tomorrow. I'll try that.
Wednesday-Mexican Independence Day (1810, Father Miguel Hidalgo in Dolores, Mexico)
Diet Coaches/Buddies - Finally figured out how to use the Adobe Acrobat editor to remove a blank page. Since I've been using computers and editors for sixty years, I was super frustrated that I couldn't do such a simple basic operation using Adobe PDF editor. Turns out that there is a separate button for page shuffle. Then, voila, the pages are all presented small sized at once and one can delete or reorder at will - just like with PowerPoint. Got done a simple task to print, sign, and then email a form back to the bank. In the days of COVID, I get used to celebrating small things.
Walk, CREDIT moi, took me past another sidewalk library where I snagged two books for the DGD. She keeps saying that she wants new books but that's a challenge with all the libraries closed to everything but outside pickup of ordered books.
Eating was on plan with no daytime snacks, CREDIT moi. Big deal was to turn down Dark Chocolate Bark offered by DW from a bag given by a friend. I love that stuff, but feel that taking some now could begin a slippery slope. Dinner inside of grilled salmon.
onebyone - Sending supportive thoughts to regain your balance. I'm impressed that you'll have a potters guild sale at that time. Congrats for getting through the needed activities.
Joy (gardenerjoy) - Hats off to you for being recognized as a force for racial equality in your education community. Well earned.
maryann - So pleased to hear that DS "is having the time of his life" - just as it should be but isn't at all universities this particular fall. Hope you get some relief with clean air.
Karen (karenrn) - Understand, "I need to feel like I'm making forward movement." I need that and love to see visible progress.
curlyjax - Congrats on two pounds lost - whatever its composition. Good luck with your Pilates.
Penny. - Waving. Hope you are home and that you and family are safe.
Readers -
Quote:
chapter 3Get Ready to Lose
Before you start, however, I would like you to do the following 10 essential tasks:
task 3 Make Time for Dieting
To lose weight successfully, you will need time to: . . .
Shop for food and prepare meals,
Sit down for three meals and three snacks every day, eating all food slowly,
Get enough sleep. Lack of sleep can lower your motivation and lead to overeating.
Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., The Complete Beck Diet for Life (Green book), Pg 34.
Today is a restart. Last nite did not close the kitchen and prowled around for food that was not there. Oh Well!
The priority for today is to eat what is on my food plan. period. I will ignore the smoky weather and walk on the treadmill at the gym. I dont have to do it for a lifetime. Just for today.
I'm aiming for the next week or so to be a bit of retreat time to focus on Balance as we approach the equinox. I wasn't entirely successful at keeping things off my calendar, but today is clear for the activities that I choose. I logged off Facebook for the duration. I'm going to attempt to avoid the news, ignoring my daily email from the New York Times and forgoing my recently discovered fun of watching the headlines from BBC Breakfast (their answer to the Today Show) on YouTube. I'm going to give up the game that I play on my phone for the week to see if that clears brain space for creative thinking
Exercise +55, 835/1400 minutes for September
BillBlueEyes: A friend of mine at Brooklyn Public Library is working on book lists to help people find books for curbside pickup that don't have huge waiting lists already. I couldn't find that sort of resource at Boston Public Library (is that the system that you use?) but I did find this expanded service for getting a personalized recommendation list from the librarians: https://www.surveygizmo.com/s3/2671668/BPLRA
Well gosh. Back now after a Life Tsunami which is still a little ongoing. Had COVID, lost my job, husband quite ill, 14 yr old started online school for the first time after homeschooling until now. Hurdles and all that. Today accepted a job in a totally unrelated field which has me working for the premier athletic club in the area with...FREE membership! It pays nowhere near my lifelong profession but looks like it will help my mind and body so giving it a try.
Today doing all the Beck goals I'd set myself earlier so far, but am only halfway through the day. Added a deliberate workout since I'm now inspired by the new job; basically just the warmup routine from the "Younger Next Year" book series. Nothing snapped after 2 years of zero workouts. That's a CREDIT!
Seeing the Dr. for a routine checkup and want to compare his scale to the two in our house which differ by 4 pounds. My analytical side can't stand the variance! I'm reasonably sure I have NOT lost 5 pounds during this white water time we're going through.
Percy the Puppy has passed the 10 pound mark; growing so fast! I have to be really careful to walk him before the sidewalk/road gets too hot for his little feet since it's still in the mid to high nineties here.
Food was on plan yesterday and so far today is good too. I hiked this morning with a group of gals. Two of them had their birthday today, so I went even though it was later than I like to hike (7am). I seriously thought I was going to get heat stroke. The hike was only about 5 miles, but plenty of elevation gain and totally exposed. It was 93 degrees by the time we finished. I should have known better. I can hike in 90 degrees, but not with the sun beating down on me. I was very relieved to get back to my car and turn the air conditioner on. The bit of weight I've gained and not having hiked quite as frequently didn't help either. Then I got home in time to give Otis his xanax before he went to the groomers. They should be calling any time to have me come and get him. I had planned to do more housework today, but in light of how wiped out I felt it will wait until tomorrow. VertOlive I'm so sorry about what you've been going through. I do hope you enjoy the new job and I hope you're feeling good. Remind me where you live. GardenerJoy I hope more balance is in store for you. I know I spend far less time on FB and do hide folks if they tend to post things that annoy me. Maryann I also need to remember that I can do things for a day or a short time that I couldn't do forever. Bill You sound like a technology whiz to me. Pretty much anything sweet is a slippery slope to me. I just purchased another couple of mini watermelons and they are my treat for the next week or so. Onebyone You sound like one busy gal with all the pottery stuff. I know I get disappointed with myself too when I don't live up to my own expectations, but it seems like what works the best is just to learn from it, forget it and move forward as quickly as possible.
Waving to the rest of you and hope you are safe and well.
but he likes the tangy sauce.
That's about as fancy as I can get these days without going loopy.
Tuesday - Constitutionalist revolution in Lisbon, Portugal (1820)
