Maintainers Chat - October 8 - 14
 

Good morning and happy new week from Albuquerque! I still seem to be on East Coast time so am wide awake while the rest of the world is asleep.

The Hot Air Balloon Fiesta is just unbelievable ... hundreds and hundreds of hot air balloons all launching at the same time.

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b2...z/P1010886.jpg

We're getting some wedding planning and errands done too. Yesterday we bought New Mexico champagne for our out-of-town guests' welcome bags (we're sticking with a "local" theme). It's actually received excellent reviews, though I've never thought of NM as a wine-growing state before.

Today DH and I are driving to Santa Fe for a few days. We're taking the scenic route through the East Mountains, which is where I'd love to retire. :)

Food has been tough, as restaurant meals always are. I'm going to jump into my gym clothes and hit the hotel fitness center in a few minutes to burn off some excess calories.

So -- if you couldn't keep up with last week's thread, here's a brand new one! :D

Thinking of you today, Gary. :hug:

Yep, you can say it, here's a brand new one. Another opportunity to pose during my lunch break while there's not too much to catch up on yet. :)

And those balloons are awesome, especially cut as they are against the sky... You sure had nice weather during your week-end, that's quite some luck.

I managed to completely pass on the cake, chocolate and various things to nibble on at friends' this past week-end. It may seem like a trifle, but spending 4+ hours with a deliciously smelling chocolate cake under your nose without touching it is still no little feat for me, so there, it's silly, but it still makes me happy. ;) Maybe I'll be totally blasé later on about those things, though. But I can't kid myself for ages: I'm able to maintain right now, however, if I want to go on losing, even if oh so slowly, I can't afford to nibble on *many* things nor do it regularly.

Apart from this, well, it's same old-same old for me. Week-ends are now mostly devoted to homework, so unless someone wants to hear about Highlandism, nature in King Lear or dystopia as per seen by Margaert Atwood, I'm afraid I don't have many things to say. ^_^;

Except that for once, there's no cake in the kitchen at work. Wow, I say.

Actually, I'd love to hear about that stuff!! :lol: Margaret Atwood is probably my favorite living author. Well, either her or Haruki Murakami, but I've loved Atwood since high school so I'd have to go with her.

Meg, I LOVE that picture! I'm jealous! I really want to go up in one of those some day. It sounds like you're having a great time!

Gary, my thoughts and prayers are with you. You seem like such a wonderful person and I hope you know there are lots of people here who care about you and are thinking about you in this tough time.

I'm not quite sure I'm ready for another long week of grading, planning, coaching, running, dealing with kids and their parents, etc. But I guess I have to be, because here it is!! Now I need to go figure out what I'm going to wear today...

Have a great day, everyone! :)

Good morning maintainers.

I hope everyone had a great weekend as yet another Monday morning rolls around. Too darn quickly if you ask me.

I had a so-so week food wise. I had lots of guests over on Saturday afternoon and I baked like a lunatic. I made four different cakes. I planned on eating some of the stuff - and I did and I enjoyed it. And the scale didn't appreciate it. I'm up over a pound and a half. But that's okay, I was well aware of the consequences. So this week with no holidays looming, no social events coming up - I'm back to basics.

Meg, that picture is spectacular. Enjoy Sante Fe. And enjoy those restuarant meals - just not too much. ;)

Kery, good for you for staying strong this past weekend, I can't say the same, that's for sure.

Lisa, I'm sure figuring out to what to wear these days has got to be easier then it was in the past. Well, yes and no. I'm sure you have lots more to choose from, so I guess that CAN make it a little more difficult, but GOOD difficult, if you know what I mean - and I think you do.

Gary, my thoughts are with you as well today. You and your family. :hug:

I hope everyone has a truly great day. :)

Gary - I hope things proceed peacefully for your mother, you and your family.

Meg Great picture of the hot air balloons :)

Eating went well this weekend, with an a number of occasions of free, party foods kept in perspective. At one place, I attacked the home made pickles to avoid numerous choices in home made brownies, cakes, pies, and general delectables. (I'll make peace with my cardio system for the salt infusion later.) Another time I made my next meal from the food offered and substituted a snack at the time of that meal. Felt good to sorta work things out.

Thank you all for your prayers and wishes as always. My mom passed away last night so she is now with our Lord and breathing easy.

I am doing ok........

Great pictures MEG!

I will be back here maintaing real soon! It helps to have your support in all matters of life!

Gary

I hugged you in another thread, but I'm hugging you here, too. :hug: I'll hug you anywhere!

Jay

Oh Gary, I am so sorry. She is at peace now. My thoughts are with you and your family at this very difficult time. Robin :hug:

Good morning everyone, :coffee: :wave:

The weekend went really well and I'm feeling extremely positive. I started out on a good note Friday by not only ignoring but forgetting about the leftover birthday trifle in the fridge at work. I don't think I've ever forgotten chocolate was nearby in my entire life. Ignored, sometimes. Forgotten, NEVER. I ran my 5K Saturday morning even though my running partner backed out. My 5K times are actually getting slower! There is another 5K nearby in November and I'm going to run it with the specific goal of decreasing my time. My running partner says she "really" wants to do this one, but I will do it regardless of her participation, lol. I let myself have a little wine Saturday night but besides that stayed OP. I even ate food from home that night when BF ordered out (see we can eat together and accommodate both of our food tastes). Sunday I did a bunch of house chores and then went for a 4-mile walk. I ended up coming home with an armful of wildflowers. They were so beautiful I couldn't resist!

My lettuce, snowpeas, carrots, and onion seedlings are all coming up and I set up my drip hose on a timer over the weekend. So exciting! I finished "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" that I mentioned last week and I highly recommend it. I'm actually kind of sad that I'm done with it, I thought it was so good.

Baffled, I think Allison's suggestion to make a weekly menu and just buy what you need in 1 or 2 trips a week is a good one, since you say you & DH are both at the store so much. Also buy produce that's on sale/in season. I'm guessing that a lot of the produce from the farmer's market is organic - perhaps you could switch to non-organic this month while money is short, and then next month once you've gotten a paycheck switch back. I agree with other suggestions made re: buying meat in bulk and freezing in individual portions, stocking up when thinks you prefer are on sale, etc.

Lily, I agree totally with what Shane and others have said. The caffeine and chemicals in 6 energy drinks a day is too much for anyone, especially a 15-year-old who is still growing. I hope DH is able to get through to Shelbey.

Shane, ignore those jerks. Geez. Men can be such insensitive !@#$%. Really I can only conclude based on life experience that men just don't get it sometimes. (Err...sorry men out there...I know some of you are sensitive and great people and all. These are just my general findings on the whole.) You are a beautiful person now, inside and out. Ignore them.

Jay, I agree. I don't like chemicals either. However my roommates love them (2 against 1), so as a compromise we set off bug bombs inside the house every few months. If it were up to me we wouldn't.

Gary, I'm so sorry to hear about your mother. My thoughts are with you and your family. :hug:

Gary -- My condolences go to you and to your family... I'm never great in the art of finding the right words in such circumstances, but here's a hug for you.

Lisa -- Now Murakami is an author I've never read (shame on me, I know). But I'm thinking of it. What would be 'the' right book to start with in this case?

Megan -- Speaking of chocolate, I've noticed something in my case: since I've stopped drinking coffee altogether, I don't have any desire for that little bit of chocolate now and then. Maybe it's because of the "coffee after lunch + chocolate dipped in it" habit that lots of people have in my country... Remove the coffee and the chocolate goes away as well.

Megan, I forgot to add that fleas are another pest that I'll use some chemicals for--because I'm allergic to their bites. Most people aren't, but if you are, you know when they're around!

Jay

Gary, my thoughts and prayers are with you and your family in this time of sorrow. Hugs.

Meg, that looks so fun at the hot air balloon fiesta. Hope you are having a great time.

I'm feeling even better today. I took Nyquil last night and slept 11 hrs.

Yesterday I went shopping with DD and bought us some new make-up and undies. I'm so happy that I finally found undies that fit right. There wasn't many colors to choose from in the ones that fit perfect, but no one else sees them so I don't care if they all look the same as long as the fit is great. Lol, it sures feel good to be able to buy a small in something.

It is storming here. Plans for today is get house cleaned perfectly. I did a bunch of it last night. DH comes home from work again tomorrow.

I had been doing great again at staying on plan. Last night Shelbey baked a pumpkin pie and I ate a piece of it even though I shouldn't have. I have forgiven myself and today will be back 100% on plan.

Gary -- :hug:

I started with The Wild Sheep Chase, which is a good one if you want to see Murakami at his weirdest and really get a feel for the kind of bizarre world he sets up in his novels. If you do, you should follow it with Dance Dance Dance. Neither of those is my favorite, though. The one many people love is The Wind-up Bird Chronicle. I loved it too but found it seriously depressing (of course, I read it when I was stuck on the couch with a broken ankle). I loved Sputnik Sweetheart. He's just one of those authors who always get me back into reading. I mean, I love reading anyway, but sometimes you get that feeling like there's nothing really pulling you in, nothing you're just DYING to read. Every time I've felt like that in the past, I've turned to Murakami and he hasn't let me down.

Robin - I definitely have more options for clothes now, but I just can't afford to buy enough! And my size seems to be changing again, as my 10 pants are getting loose and my 8 stuff is fitting better. I don't have much 8 stuff!! I told my husband he has to pay me $5 a pound when I hit goal (which I've done now!) to buy new clothes, but I'll feel guilty if I take $550 from him! We're kind of broke! I told myself initially that I would pay myself $550 and use the whole amount from me and him to get all new clothes. Of course, now I want to wait until I hit 155...um, or maybe 145...

Gary~you and your family are in my prayers at this difficult time. :hug:

It's been one hectic day so far! Still having server problems and our IT guy still doesn't know what is going on. I'm really getting worried about it.

Tomorrow DH is starting his c25k program!!!

Meg~beautiful photos. There is a news story that someone was killed in a hot air balloon crash this morning--in New Mexico, I think. Very sad.

Keri & Lisa~I'm currently reading the Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood. It's quite interesting with the 'book within a book' thing.

Gotta run, everyone have a great day

Gary, I am very sorry for your loss:hug:

I'm baaaaack. I almost posted last week how much I was looking forward to the marathon being over so I could focus on this again. I made a mistake about 6 weeks ago to try and shift my diet to a more traditional training diet (60-70%) carbs and combined that with a bout of depression and gained quite a bit. I just spiraled out of control.

I reset my ticker this morning. I know some of today's weight is water from soreness, but I figure start high so I can see some success early! It will be a little harder this time as my son isnt nursing as much and my exercise will be down for a few weeks.

November 15th was when I started a focused effort to lose weight so I want to get back to my low weight by that date. But I am going to stay in maintainers because I cant handle thread hopping.

Back to fitday!

Lovely picture, Meg! The balloons are always fun. I heard about the death, Allinell. If I had chosen a different route home today, I would have come across the scene. Very sad.

New Mexico is a great wine growing state. There are wonderful vineyards, especially in Corrales.

Enjoy your time in Santa Fe, Meg....and remember that green chile is low in calories and high in vitamin C....it's all the stuff under it that can be problematic!

Hello, all.

I'm having a bad day. I just can't seem to stop munching. With the exception of some triscuits, everything has been nutritious and lo-cal: cottage cheese, fat-free turkey breast, carrots, grapes, cauliflower, a hard-boiled egg, water (OK, so that isn't really tasty). But, for some reason my portion control / satiety toggle switch just won't flip on like it usually does. I'm already at 1300 calories for the day and I'm still a couple hours from dinner! Argghh!

It's especially ridiculous because I'm sitting here looking at clothes on line. Talk about self-sabotage!

Sorry to whinge about a bad day, especially when some of you (hug to Gary!) are dealing with far bigger troubles.

Kim

:hug: to you Gary. It's a hard time.

Meg - love, love, love the balloons! I've always wanted to go to the festival, maybe when I retire? :)

LisaMarie, funny about tastes, eh? I'm just not crazy about Margaret Atwood at all. I read Animal, Vegetable Miracle this summer and loved it too! I've read all of Kingsolver's books, in fact. Animal Dreams is my favorite.

Okay, people it was 18F here this morning! I'm here to tell you that winter is fast approaching, never mind those of you who are still having 80F-50F weather! I had to seek out my winter coat, though by noon it was in the 40's again. A friend managed to go cross-country skiing on Sat, up in the nearest mountain pass (about 15 miles from here). Grrrr, this is just the first of many complaints I'm sure. I hate winter.

Pat, I like Kingsolver too, but I haven't read all of her books. I loved The Poisonwood Bible. Unfortunately I don't have as much time to read now that I'm a teacher. When I read something, it's usually something that I'm rereading in order to teach it. In the summer I read like CRAZY, though.

alinell, The Blind Assassin was one of my favorite books of the last ten years. It's probably my favorite Atwood novel. I'd really love to meet her one day -- too bad she's up in Canada somewhere...

I am really busy between phone calls trying to catch up and thank all of you for your sympathies. I cannot express how much it means to me.

I am eating correctly and exercising through all this, just as my mom would want. I actually weighed in at 174 this morning!

I may gain that back though! The knucklehead nephew and I made Grandma Judi's chili tonight. Not that it is unhealthy but we ate a ton of it on memory of her! I make her chili from time to time because the kids will crave it...me too. It's easy and has a little different flavor.

Well....gotta go...I will be back! Thank-you thank-you thank-you! It helps to ease my pain!

I have read all the post and have prayers on the way!

Good morning!

Glad to hear you're hangin' in, Gary.

I'll have to get The Blind Assassin. The only Atwood novel I've read is The Robber Bride, which I thought was a tremendously good story. I couldn't read The Handmaid's Tale.

I'm a Kingsolver fan also--although I haven't been crazy about her novels after Poisonwood Bible.

Hope you're all doing well!

Jay

Hey everyone! :wave: I had a great weekend, even though I was not 100% on plan. Yesterday, I ate at Backyard Burgers. I know, I know... thaaaat's HEALTHY ;) Then, I went shopping... and OH MY GOSH, can you BELIEVE THIS?! OUT OF NOWHERE, I can fit a size... 2!!! :eek: :eek: :eek: Ok, ok, so it's an Old Navy 2 and their sizes are notoriously big, but still... a 2! The rest of the clothes I bought from other places were mostly 4's, a few 6's, and 7's and 9's if they were juniors. The girlfriend is not thrilled that we wear around the same size now, nor is she thrilled that my goal weight is her current weight (my ultimate goal is 125 - but she is 5'10" and I am reaching for 5'7"). I noticed myself inwardly giving the sorority girls my usual, "You skinny b:censored:h" thoughts/looks until I realized that I am the same size now as most of the college girls here. Now when the **** did THIS happen?! What baffles me most is that I can fit these tiny sizes when I'm NOT at a low weight... still in the 140's.

Gary, I'm sending lots of hugs and good vibes your way, like I mentioned in your other thread :) I commend you for being able to stick to diet and exercise even while going through this... GOOD JOB!!

kaw, at least you're munching on healthy food! We all have our days :hug: But on the bright side, you're not loading up on chips and ice cream. :)

Meg, those balloons are awesome! Looks like you're having (or have had? are you back or not yet?) a great time.

Megan, you want to decrease your 5K time? any particular reason why? Out of curiousity. And aww thank you for the compliment :o you are right, men are just... dense. How the **** can they live all these years and STILL NOT KNOW that a woman would be OFFENDED and PISSED OFF by comments like that? I'm surprised that they have wives.

Oh, WTG on forgetting chocolate!

Good morning dears!
I'm back ... with travellers acne, about 8lbs of flub and back seat sleepers crick. We had a nice relaxing time.

Good morning everyone,

Actually it's a great morning! Tuesday is my weigh-in day and though I've suspected it for the last 3 days, this morning I "officially" confirmed a 3 POUND LOSS for the last week!!! :dance: For the last 1 1/2 months I've been sticking to plan and losing 1 lb, or nothing, each week, and this week *whoosh*! Also I've been doing much better with integrating healthy fats and eating a bit more earlier in the day since I decided I needed to switch things around a few weeks ago. I'm stocked with raw walnuts, almonds, and flax seed and haven't had any trouble portioning. My pants are loose and I'm feeling very positive.

Susan, welcome back! Glad you enjoyed your trip.

Hey Shane, congrats! You're probably fitting into sizes you don't "think" you should at your weight because you're so fit and muscular. It sounds like you work out quite hard, and since muscle weighs more than fat but is denser, that's probably why. I'm sure your GF will get used to it as you settle into your new weight/size. I guess a nicer way of saying what I said yesterday (I just couldn't think how to say it right yesterday) is that guys can be perfectly nice and great people, but still not "get" women's weight/image issues in particular (I realize men do have these issues too, I just see women having them much more often).

When I ran my first 5K 2 years ago, my time was 24:00 something. My time has progressively gotten slower, and last weekend was 29:00 something. I need to push myself to increase my exercise intensity. I'm a lazy exerciser at heart. So it's just a goal to work towards, to help me up my cardio intensity.

Pat, sorry about your winter. I'm complaining it's too hot down here. If we only lived somewhere in the middle...

Kim, is anything in particular setting off your munchies? Lack of sleep, PMS, etc? Sometimes I just need a slightly higher cal day. I hope things are better today.

Meg, I lived in New Mexico for a summer. I love the green chilies! Enjoy. :)

ennay, I'm also trying to lose from a gain that spiraled out of control (though year-long, in my case) and have set a November goal date. Good luck! We can do it! ;)

Lily, comfy undies are important for every woman! :D

Have a great day everyone!

Haha, Megan, I am such a DITZ - by decrease, I thought you meant increase, like, you wanted to be slower. This had me a bit confused (like, "now WHY would anyone want to be slower?!"), until I realized that isn't what you meant! :lol: I hadn't had my energy drink yet when I typed that!

WTG on the 3 pounds!! Congrats! :D

And oh, I thought you worded it perfectly about men YESTERDAY :devil: You're in NoFlo, so I'm sure you're surrounded with simple-minded rednecks just as much as I am here at my job.

Read Robin's Story
 

Rockinrobin has posted her story in Goals! Go on over!

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/showthread.php?t=124660

Jay

Ummm, muscle is denser than fat, it's true, but it weighs the same. A pound is a pound. What people mean is a combination of the two - a pound of muscle takes up less room than a pound of fat, or conversely, given the same volume of fat and muscle, the muscle will weigh more. :)

Hello people. :) Just popping in for a little bit before heading back to reading, reading and more reading.

Lisa -- Thanks for the suggestions. I may end up reading them in French (I don't read enough in my own language, what a shame!), but I'll get to at least one of them soon, I think. I'm in an "Asian authors" period anyway.

So, I finally tried it, and made my omelette tonight with some egg whites instead of using all eggs full. I couldn't tell any difference, which is just as well with me. It reminded me that psychological conditioning ("skim milk necessarily tastes like water", "it doesn't taste 100% the same therefore it's crappy", "I don't know that vegetable so I don't like it"...) can be a serious bother; maybe even more than deciding to lose weight, making myself drop that way of thinking was a llifesaver for me. I'm healthier, slimmer, more energetic, more resistant to illness... and I get todiscover plenty of delicious foods. If someone had told me three years ago that I would actually like fennel... :D

And of course, I was the alien at work again for stating that I wouldn't be shocked if I was asked to taste, say, kangaroo meat. (Someone please explain me why tasting an unknown food is supposed to be disgusting or shocking, because I never got the memo.)

And that was SO inspiring. Thanks for such a read, Robin. :)

I've had kangaroo meat. It's good. :)

Oops, I was typing fast and my fingers didn't properly explain what my head was thinking. Thanks for the correction, Pat. That's what I meant!

I knew you knew :) It's just a pet peeve of mine, and I have a hard time restraining myself.... :soap: Plus my phone rang, so I just pushed "post" and there I am in cyberspace.

Gary, I'm glad to see you are doing OK. Looks like your wt. is doing fantastic.

Megan, WTG on 3 lbs. lost. Yes, comfy undies are a necessity. I went back yesterday and bought 13 more pair, since I finally found ones that I love. LOL

Shane, I'm also 5'7 and in the 140's and am amazed that I can easily wear size 4's. (I do have one pair of size 2's from Aerospostale, but their sizes definitely run big). LOL, I kinda like this vanity shopping. Like you, I used to be envious of "skinny" people that I saw. Now, when I look at them I'm starting to realize they aren't much different from me. That attitude definitely took a while to change. I used to be really jealous that my DH was smaller than me. Now he says "I couldn't get one leg in your jeans". This makes me feel happy, LOL.

I just got a call from the Army telling me that Shane needs to bring all medical and dental records to drill this weekend. Another sad reminder that he will be deployed soon. He did drop by and have lunch with me today and it was nice to see him. I already find myself turning the TV channel anytime I see anything about the war. I'm really having a hard time facing this.

Kery, I have never found the courage to try an egg white omelet. It just doesn't sound appealing to me. I do use skim milk and it doesn't bother me at all.

DH will be home tonite for a week. I'll be glad to see him and let him handle some of the stress that is going on with the girls. (Lacy and her BF are about to break up and she is hurting and having wild mood swings). It's PMS city at our house.

Hi Maintainers!

I am doing well. Tonight in about an hour I am going to my great nephew, Jet's, first birthday party! He is the first and only great grandchild my mom had before she passed away. Guess it's one of those out with the old in with the new weeks ;)

All joking aside, my mom would not want us to she tears for her, miss her...sure...stay bummed out...no!

I mentioned somewhere that knucklehead nephew and I made Grandma Judi's chili in honor of her last night....so good...just kind of lingered....:faint: all day ;)

I was actually down ANOTHER pound to 173 :carrot: this morning! Be sure to know that I AM eating healthy and have only missed one meal....breakfast, the morning after my mom passed. I have been able to get my miles in and my alcohol consumption has been within "my limits'...maybe not Angie's...;) ...but mine!

I want to post to all but I type so slow that tonight I don't have the time. I have read all the posts and have you all in my prayers.

I do want to ask MEG if she knows anything about a balloon crashing there in New Mexico....I guess a lady from the city I live in was killed...:(

and to LILY...I don't know how moms/dads can cope when their boys/girls go off to "war"....:hug:

Gotta go....Birthday Party for JET!....he gets cranky :tantrum: if he is up late ;)

OK, I gotta say it...it must be my weird body shape (according to some ad in muscle & fitness I am "carrot" shaped). Everyone always says that Old Navy runs big. I wear a 2/4 everywhere EXCEPT old navy. At ON I wear a 6

:shrug:

Gary, that is such a sad story. It happened only a few blocks away from our hotel and we watched the live coverage on TV. Here are some links to the local newspaper stories:

Woman killed in a hot air balloon accident was a director of Iditarod, loved traveling

Fiesta balloonist dies in fall from gondola

I'm glad you're doing so well. :hug: I'm sure your mom would be so happy knowing you're celebrating her grandson's birthday. What a great way to honor her memory!

DH and I are here in Santa Fe for a few days and we're going back to Albuquerque on Thursday for the second weekend of the Hot Air Balloon Fiesta. Today we hiked all around Bandelier National Monument, where you can climb ladders up to Native American cave ruins. I couldn't have done that 122 pounds ago! We also went to Los Alamos, home of the WW2 atomic bomb labs. They had lots of fascinating historical info and videos.

Megan, I didn't know you lived in NM! We love it here and would like to retire here some day. About the green chiles -- my heavens, they put them on everything! :faint:

Geeze, we are at the bottom of the forum now. I don't think I feel really great about that, considering that I'm convinced this is the most important area on the topic and everybody who is serious about a true lifestyle change should be posting here from day one.

I'm still digging out and catching up from the trip. So this'll be quick. Trip went great. DD was thoroughly spoiled by her grandparents and just partied on down with her cousins. No major meltdowns on the plane, but nearly had one waiting to walk through the 'tunnel' to get on. I ate some special foods I get once a year, so am just fine with the calories, even though I came back up a couple pounds. My reunion was uneventful, and I got lots of comments on how great I look--I am smaller than I was then.

I'll catch up more later. Just one quick note: Gary I'm so sorry for your loss, and I'm glad you are able to celebrate your nephew's birthday in the manner your mother would have wanted.

Anne

I agree! We should be closer to the top, since, you know, we're so inspirational and all :D

I can see the logic in putting maintainers at the bottom.

Intros at top...Diets in the middle...Maintainers at the end. Everyone "works their way down" to us!!!

I wish I were having a better day. My weight was at ticker weight two weeks ago and it suddenly spiked (with no warning) and I'm having a heck of a time getting it back down. I can't think of anything that I've done differently that is causing it this time. Perhaps I should join Jay in a 2nd round or weight loss....On a better note, I did get DH to go running with me (did I mention that?). He's already calling the yellow dog "his" running Buddy!

DH and I are invited to a wine and cheese party at the Bighorn Country Club in conjunction with the Samsung golf tournament that is here this weekend. I wonder if I'll run into any celebrities? (I wonder if I'll recognize and if I do?!?!) I don't know what to wear!!!! Usually things that I go to are pretty casual, but I'm sure this one won't be. I'm leaning toward black slacks and high heels with a nice top. I very much dislike wearing skirts and I don't think capri pants would be appropriate. What do you all think?

Oh, any my in-laws return on Friday for the season!!! Very happy about that!

Almost a week's gone by since my last post. It took me a long time to read up on what everyone is doing.

Gary - you're attitude about your mother's passing is wonderful. I wish you years of joyful memories of her.

Shane - those guys at work are just J E R K S! I've got my fists up in the air pretending to pound them.

Lily - I hope your DH can talk sense into Shelby. Her Red Bull habit is in the danger zone.

Meg - those balloons look gorious. Makes me want to paint them.

Alison - good to hear you're still running.

Ennay - sorry to hear that your marathon diet caused you to gain weight. But you know how to lose it.

Kristy - hope you can trim your grocery bill.

Today is the first day I've been home for a stretch of more than two days since sometime back in May. It feels so luxarious to be in one place for the week. DH will drive down from the apartment on Friday night (that's if his doctor gives him the ok to drive after his appointment on Friday - he's still feeling the shards of bones move around on his collarbone even with the plate screwed in.)

On Saturday, we went to a Black Tie dinner at our friends' house. They live in horse country in Central Jersey. The evening was exquisite. Many of our friends from the yacht club were there plus we meet interesting people. It was so nice to see all the men dressed in tuxedos and the women in gowns and fancy evening wear.

They had arranged tables of four with long white table clothes on their expansive lawn between their pool, gazabo, stone bar, patio, and tent where they had set up appetiters and later desserts. After tusk, they lit tiki torches all around the perimeter.

The weather was perfect for me to wear my blue sequined dress with cap sleeves and an almost backless dress without having to put a light jacket on until we left at 10 pm.

Susan had made all the food herself, but had hired caterers to serve it. She's an amazing cook and I tried almost everything. I'm still swooning over the delicious plumb dates stuffed with cream cheese and wrapped in smoked bacon. Definitely not on the diet list - I'm back on my plain yogurt and salad routine for the week.

Went to my psychiatrist for a med check yesterday. I seem to be back in balance. She told me she prefers me at my current weight and she thought I was too skinny early this summer when I was down another five pounds. My clothes fit the same either way, so I'm happy.

After my struggles with insurance and having to pay a co-pay of 50% for my four medicine because they are for a mental illness instead of a non-mental illness health condition, I told her that if I ever win the lottery, I would hire a lawyer and get legislation passed to not discrimanate against the mentally ill.

This week, I'm working on the Winter issue of the art journal that I edit. I like the work and will continue to do it even if my disability insurance decides I can't be paid for it.

That's about all I have to report from here. Tonight, I plan to go West Coast Swing dancing. I'm going to see if I can do it in my cool new cowgirl boots. If not, I'll bring my dance shoes along just in case.