NP-I bring a ziploc bag full of salad w/ a string cheese almost every day for lunch.....or something comparable. The fixings are expensive and I spend a lot of time making my lunches tasty and appealling. The salad that got thrown away today was fresh and had all kinds of veggies left from my house over the weekend. It was not bad, nor did it look old. I just work with some very stupid (or facetious) people. I am going to have to write my name and date on my food everyday from now on...I swear, it's like working with a bunch of freakin' kindergartners. NOT happy right now.

I don't know if I would like coconut on fish/chicken...I don't like sweet and savory together much.

Good luck with that stack of books. I know how hard it is to let me go....I donated a ton to the library when we moved last year.

That would have me so aggravated, too. We have a LOT of people in each of our building's kitchens, so have to use the name/initials on everything - from frozen meals to salad dressing in the fridge. Plus everything that's left on Friday at EOB is thrown away if in the fridge except for condiments.

What did you end up having to do for lunch?

As a side question, when you have a ziplock bag, do you put the dressing on and shake it and pour into a bowl? I like that idea of bringing it in a bag...

I ended up having my cottage cheese (which they didn't throw away ) with my banana. I am now eating a bag of Keebler Elfin Cookies....

I usually put the salad on a plate, then drizzle my dressing on top. But I guess the dressing-in-the-bag trick would work, too!

I'd have gone for the jalapeno kettle chips for some reason ... when i get aggravated i want crunch. Not carrot crunch, though. Hm. Wonder why

Hang in there and get a good fill of veggies tonight and the keebler cookies just replace the cake this evening, maybe.

Waiting to hear how my hubby did at the dentist - they fit him in for an emergency fix. Not a good month around this place for teeth, huh?

True, that!

I almost got the Baked Lays chips, but didn't think they would be very filling AND they are full of sodium. So I ate more calories, but with less fat (I think...) and not much sodium.

Losing80- that protein smoothie sounds good. I bought a smoothie recipe book years ago and never tried making one. I always wanted to, but never think of it.

Nice & sunny again today, but only 40 degrees for the high. We aren't going to see 50 til the end of next week, such a long time to wait. I rode the bike for 20min. then went for a walk for 22min. It was so cold & very windy, I just wanted to get home. Had 2726 calories today, I couldn't stay away from the peanut butter & light chocolate ice cream. I forced myself to eat lunch( was not hungry) had plain greek yogurt, a clementine & 20 grapes. I have like 114g. of protein in for the day from all the P.B I ate. I can't make up my mind if I want dinner or not. Not hungry, but I seem to do less damage to my weight if I eat all three meals, even if I eat crappy in between them. But why add extra calories to the day if i don't need to? Can't decide. My weight is still coming down from starting to eat lunch again, but I'll probably see a gain tomorrow!

FL-Is there anyway you can stop buying peanut butter and choc. ice cream for a while? At least until you can rein in your cravings for them??

Annie- My husband has to have it here, every night he comes home from work and has chocolate ice cream with peanut butter on top. He's like a kid!

someone threw my lunch in the trash last week too!! I admit it probably didn't look very appetizing as it was just salad stuff and i'd prepared it that morning and also put dressing on, then put it in a plastic bag, then put it in the fridge.

I found it in the trash at lunchtime and hauled it back out again and ate it!!
No probs! It's not happened before though.

Ok, i'm off to the airport again. Got a 4hr flight in which to write a presentation that i have to give tomorrow. Away for another couple of weeks this time. This trip is going to be a bit too sociable for my liking as it's meetings with 20 people from global corners of our company this week, then an industry conference next week. Will have to find a time to sneak some time on my own at some point and de-stress!

Hey Ange! Good to see you here! I would have gotten my food out of the trash, but it was covered in slop. The bag was still sealed, but....it didn't seem so appetizing with the goo on it.

Hope you can find some relaxing time on your trip away....be safe!

FL, FedEx the PB/Choc ice cream to me. I'll take the hit for the team. Grab a couple minutes and whip together a smoothie if you can. I'm amazed how quick it goes together, and you've got plenty of fruity and proteiny items. Do you have one of those stick blenders, the one you can immerse into an oversized cup?
AnnieD - seriously?? I'm bummed about your (slop covered) lunch. Is there some team chartered with cleaning out the fridge? Wait, it's MONDAY. Who'd clean out a work fridge today? Back to crunchy chicken, try going with just the buttermilk soak. Bet it'll give a drier and crispy-crunchier bite.
Ange82much, good luck and much stress-free "you" time on the road. Lie back and imagine FL's ice cream. For breakfast. On a Monday. sigh.
NationalParker, if ya'll get a chance, pop over to the Chicks up for a Challenge forum and check out my 100 pushup challenge. I know it sounds nuts, but it's really only a few pushups in a few sets, done only a few times a week. Over time it adds up without you doing much more than sticking with it, and suddenly - you're DOING PUSHUPS! (cue Rocky Theme) You can always do wall pushups like me, the silly wimpy pushup gal who's going to look hot eventually regardless.
Late night, ladies, time for bed. Talk with you tomorrow!

I'm behind again. Its getting busier and busier around here. I'll have to catch up on the posts later.

We took April to the park yesterday but she hurt her leg; tearing the ACL in her back right leg. We took her to the vet that repaired the ACL in her left leg and have the next surgery scheduled, but paying for it is going to be a problem as we need the bulk of the money upfront. They gave us some doggie Aleve which is helping, but she's having a hard time getting around or up/down, which is a mixed blessing. She's not fighting the restrictions we have to put on her but seeing her struggle is hard. Hubby built another ramp over the 3 back porch steps and we bought her a huge crate. Hubby built one last time but we didn't keep it, we've always preferred her having the run of the house so getting her adjusted to the crate is tricky, but we won't have to worry about her trying to jump up on the couch while we are gone.

Some good news, a woman at my church is starting a knitting/crochet group that not only will make prayer shawls, but hats, gloves etc for a homeless shelter, and other needs in the area.

PP - that's a shame - i remember when my brother's dog tore her ACL, he didn't know then that the chance of recurrence in the other leg was like 70% or something ... so that happened ... then the same with his OTHER dog about a year later - tore one, then a year later, the other. Chasing lizards across the back of the house. GOOD LUCK with that. I, too, hate to see an animal struggling. It gets to me more than to see a person limping or something.

Losing80 - do you have a stick blender? If so, what do you recommend and say to avoid? I'd like to get one this summer as I gave my main blender away, trying to get rid of things I don't use much ... then decided I wanted one again ha!

Ange - good to hear from you - WOW you are one travelin' lady! Good luck with all that and hope you can check in now and then. And that you don't have to eat chicken feet this time. Ugh.

Annie - hope your scanner is up and running again today - and that you put a bold note on your lunch that it's not garbage! Years ago at my last job, I'd put a glass bottle of Schwepps diet ginger ale (cute bottle) in the office fridge for after an event. Well, I go to get it and it's gone. WHO could think that was theirs? No one EVER put something like that in there. Well, I had the master key and checked everyone's garbage and found it in an asst. coach's trash and was all over him in the morning! WTH? He's like I'll buy you some more! i said dang straight you will. Sheesh. And seriously, it was one bottle out of a six-pack but it was the boldness that irritated me.

FL - hope you have good weather to get out in today! What're you up to?

Our dinner out was a DEFINITE splurge, but I tracked it all and went over points into my weekly allowance, but not to the point of using them all up We even split appetizer and dessert, which we very rarely do. I brought home about 80% of my entree, though.

Gloomy, gray, cold, windy day here.

NP, it's a Cuisinart Smart Stick. Love that baby. It fits into anything. Just keep the whirly bits submerged or you'll be cleaning more than the blender. So far I've only used it on soft foods, no nuts or coffee or spices.

Annie, it's lunch time. Got lunch?

PP, so sorry about your pooch. How soon is her surgery? The money will work itself out somehow. Hang in there! So you're a knitter? mmmm. makes me think of soft chunky winter socks. oh dear. now I want to have soup and take a nap.

Dinner was fantastic. I made sausage, kale, and chickpea soup. oooohhhhh man. Two tricks. Cook the sausage first, and while it drains cook thinly sliced onion and garlic in the sausage fat. Also cook the chickpeas first. Dump 'em in an empty hot stock pot and swirl it around a few times while the bean get brown. This is a really toothy soup. The chickpeas get even denser and meaty when roasted. I didn't feel so anxious to eat a lot of crusty bread. Even ate two full bowls. For fun I added one full can each of cannelini and kidney beans. Could have done w/out the cannelini - they mooshed up.

Got my daily walk in and tried the first video of Tony Horton's 10 Minute Trainer series, lower body. ok. OW! Seriously? And when did all the video babes start looking so young and, well, fit? I stumbled through maybe 1/3 of it. Try again on Thursday. Persistence, eh?

LOL, Losing....yes, I did have lunch today. I put it in a sack and rubber banded a note to it: Do Not Throw Away! Feel like I'm working with a bunch of second graders. Your soup sounds awesome! My younger son was asking me to make my potato soup. I better get it done soon, after a few weeks it is going to be too warm for soup.

I'm going to grill some skewered shrimp and warm up leftovers to go with it this evening. I have really been careful to try to use leftovers lately. I'm getting tired of throwing food away. I have green beans/new potatoes and some of the leftover fettuccine. That should make everyone happy!

PP-So sorry to hear about your dog. Vet bills can get real high real fast.

NP-Glad you enjoyed your dinner out. Sounds like you managed it well.