[baffled111]

Morning, all.

Allison, I live in Walla Walla--it's a little wine town about 2 1/2 hours east of Ellensburg. I've been to Lake Chelan only once (we've only lived in Washington for 2 years) but it is really beautiful.

I had a bit of a disaster yesterday. My bf (who is losing at the moment) is out of town and I thought I'd make myself a treat for dinner: beer battered fish. I had the oil heating on the stove and while it was heating, I got stuck into another project in another room. When I went back into the kitchen, the oil was on fire and smoke was filling the room! I turned off the stove and came into my office to google 'oil fires', because I had no clue how to put it out, except that I knew I wasn't supposed to put water on it. When I went back into the kitchen, the flames were really, really high and there was tons of smoke, so I threw some dish towels over the fire (bad idea, in retrospect) and called 911. The whole house was filled with smoke and all the alarms were going off and I was in a total panic--I couldn't remember the list of things I always thought I'd grab if I had to evacuate, but I got outside with the dog, my laptop and my file that holds important pieces of paper like my green card and passport. The fire department made it over here in about 3 minutes (hooray for small towns) and they took care of it pretty quickly, thank goodness. It was completely terrifying, and of course, as soon as the fire department arrived, I began to think I had completely overreacted. They brought 3 fire engines and an ambulance with them and it seemed like overkill for a kitchen fire. I don't think I did though. I had no idea how to put that fire out, and besides, the firemen had this giant fan that they used to suck all the smoke out of the house. The house still smells pretty bad though, and I have a bit of a sore throat from staying in the house so long with all that smoke.

The kitchen is a total mess. There is smoke damage all over the walls, which won't be fun to clean, and the stove is quite charred. I spent about an hour scrubbing at it with Fantastic and Soft Scrub last night but I haven't yet gotten all the black stuff off. Eeeeeek!!!! I might have to try buying oven cleaner or something. I'm hoping the college (our landlord) won't be upset about the damage and will just quietly repaint the kitchen. Oy vey.

I feel as though there is some moral lesson here about eating beer battered fish. It's not exactly health food AND you can burn your house down!

[lilybelle]

Hi everyone,

Jessica , I'm glad to hear that you were able to get a little bit of relief. I hope you can get to feeling even better.

Pat, sorry you're having a stressful day.

Me and the girls finished our "back to school" shopping. Whew, what a day it was. They came home with lots of new clothes and I came home broke. LOL, so it was a successful trip. Of course, I couldn't just watch them shop so I bought me some Aeropostale jeans and 3 shirts. I love to shop at school time cause everything is on sale. I'm a bargain hunter for sure. I was proud that my new jeans are the same size as I've been wearing since reaching my goal and they fit perfect. I love this maintaining. I bought the "skinny" jeans with the tapered leg. They make my legs look very long and very "skinny". DH busted up laughing when he saw I'd bought new stuff for myself. He said "I knew you couldn't go shopping without buying stuff for yourself too". Dang right, LOL.

We still haven't decided on which new car to buy. It's between an Impala or a Malibu so far.

I had Chinese food yesterday for the first time in over 2 yrs. I was up most of the night sick at my stomach. I think I learned my lesson. It didn't even taste that good to me and I filled up really quick but was hungry again within 2 hrs. after eating it. Total waste of my calories.

baffled, we were posting at the same time. I'm glad to hear you are OK. Grease fires are very dangerous. You did the right thing in calling the fire dept. A friend of mine recently caught her whole kitchen on fire with a grease fire. I am sure that you were so scared. I know I would be.

[alinnell]

Good morning maintainers! I got up and got some exercise this morning despite waking up with a sore throat. I sure hope it doesn't turn into a cold. I had an off afternoon yesterday because of a stressful situation at work (see General Chatter with my rant about our payroll company). Also, they guy that comes in to wash our cars came in with an extra treat. His wife had made tamales and he gave me one to try. Well, of course I had just had lunch (fresh clam linguini) and I wasn't hungry at all, but I ate it anyway. It was so fabulous that I bought a dozen for him. We ate half of them for dinner. The kids will get the other half tonight when DH and I go to his golf tournament banquet. Anyway, that off afternoon put a pound or so back on (but I'm sure it is temporary--I should be back to ticker weight tomorrow or Monday at the latest).

[WaterRat]

Oh my baffled, that sounds really really scary! I'd be calling 911 too. Glad things are not too bad.

Lily - on the back to school shopping! And boo, hiss on the chinese food. I've had the same experience. Now when I go, I eat mostly veggies, and one chicken dish that they make as a specialty at our local place, quite hot (spicy) and not too greasy.

Raining here today. So much for mowing the lawn. DH is off working with Habitat for Humanity for the morning. When he gets home we'll have a light lunch and be off to Anchorage where we're going by an Irish street festival and then to a wedding at 4pm. Hope the rain is on its way out by then. The wedding is at a Turkish restaurant, and I have no idea what to expect for food. I'll just do the best I can. The groom is a a friend of DH's in his 40's, first marriage. The bride, who I've met only once, is Turkish, but a German professor at the Univ of AK (groom is a reference librarian there). Should be interesting, and likely a diverse set of guests!

[srmb60]

Good morning! Yes I'm up early these mornings. Some folks read the paper, some folks watch sports hilights ... I read 3FC.

[Meg]

Good Sunday morning, Miss Susan! My morning ritual is 3FC + coffee. Two necessary starts to my day!

Baffled, your fire sounds completely terrifying! And while I commend your instinct to research, call 911 FIRST next time!! It's not worth dying for fried fish (chocolate maybe, fried fish no).

How are you feeling today, Allison? I got hungry reading your post.

Speaking of food, tell us what was served at the wedding, Pat. I've eaten a lot of cuisines, but I'm not sure if I've ever had Turkish food. When DD gets married in November, we're having a New Mexican food buffet and a lot of my family will think that's a foreign cuisine.

Nothing exciting planned for the day -- got tons of laundry to do. We need groceries too and I want to get that done before the store goes nuts later on. I've been eating blueberries and yogurt for breakfast every day this summer and can't stand when I run out!!

[srmb60]

[Sleepy68]

Hi,
I know this forum is mostly women, but I am a male who has found tremendous recources here and am very appreciative. I lost 60lbs in about 14/15 weeks and am thrilled to be at my goal. I just wanted to check in to say thank you for all the great posts and info and now that I am in maintain mode, I am trying to figure out how to do it. I know how to lose, I am just not sure how much more I can eat to maintain. I guess it's just trail and error. I am giving myself a 5lbs range, knowing that when I hit the top of that range I must act to get back down.
Anyway thanks for all!

[Meg]

Welcome, Sleepy! We would love having a rooster here with the chicks, so please stick around.

Congratulations on your weight loss -- wow, that was fast! You're right about maintenance; it's trial and error. Just slowly add calories back and monitor the scales. Most people here have found that a five pound weight range is the way to go, just like you're doing.

We're looking forward to getting to know you better.

[Sleepy68]

Hi Meg,
Thanks for the welcome. Yeah, I guess, looking back I did it kind of fast, but while I was doing it I had some real frustrating moments where I just sort of stopped losing, then it kicked back in. It was a lot of hard work, excercise, portion control and totally changing what I eat. I found that the biggest thing was a mental switch. Once I flicked that switch, it all sort of fell into place.
Thanks again for the welcome!

[Meg]

Originally Posted by Sleepy68

Hi Meg,
It was a lot of hard work, excercise, portion control and totally changing what I eat. I found that the biggest thing was a mental switch. Once I flicked that switch, it all sort of fell into place.

Hey, that sounds just like what I did (and a lot of others here)! You're going to fit in just fine.

[sznn]

Good Morning,

I in the group of morning coffee and 3FC. I love starting my day with the motivation I gather from your posts.
I really should post more to keep me on track - but sometimes I run out of time after all that reading.
I'm still hovering in the 'too high for my comfort range', I find it really incredible how a few pounds either way can leave me feeling pudgy or svelte.
Today I am on the pudgy side.

Have a great day.

-S

[baffled111]

Morning, all. I'm with you on the 3FC while I wake up in the mornings. I do the NYT crossword and sudokus, read 3FC and then I'm ready to start my day

Originally Posted by Meg

Baffled, your fire sounds completely terrifying! And while I commend your instinct to research, call 911 FIRST next time!! It's not worth dying for fried fish (chocolate maybe, fried fish no).

You're probably right; it was a very strange instinct. I told some friends my story last night, and when I got to the part about rushing into my office to google 'oil fire' they all cracked up. One of them said it should be the subject of a google ad on tv. It's a bit funny.

My bf got back last night from his visit with his mom. Yay! I always feel a bit unanchored when he's not around. My eating and exercise slip, I don't get enough work done. It's a bit strange because he doesn't police me at all, but somehow having another person in the house to bounce reality off helps me to keep everything together.

Today is our regular weekly (drunken) croquet match. Always a drink fest, usually a food fest too. I don't tend to worry about it too much, but this week my eating hasn't been great, so I need to be a little bit careful what I eat.

Happy Sunday, everyone.

[hikerchick]

Welcome sleepy. Weight loss is not only for women. As a matter of fact I was inspired by my dear bro who lost 100lbs this year and then jumped out of a plane (his reward). I can't be outdone my my older brother so I got my butt in gear so to speak.

I am on a little trip. Next time plan better. Amazing how much junk is out there.

But considering the options I am doing fairly well. Found a super grilled salmon and veggie dinner last night.

Gotta go play with my kids

[alinnell]

Oh, sicker still this morning. Too sick for coffee and now I may be headed back to bed for my 2nd nap (and it's only 11 AM). I got up at 6 to feed the dogs and I could barely swallow. Took some meds and headed back to bed. Up again at 7:20 to read the paper and could only get two sections done before I went back to bed until 9. Now at least I'm up and showered. DD wants to go to the mall this afternoon so I really need to stay out of bed! The sore throat seems a little better but my tummy is bothering me (is it from meds on an empty stomach or a tad too much wine at the banquet last night? Who knows).