Good morning Lifers!

Well it was quite a weekend--the meeting in Chicago went well the plane trip was quite a different story. I made it back but my bag didn't. I did get a call this morning that it found its way back home and the airline delivered it to my house this morning. Thank goodness! I was not very happy last night.

Hope everyone had a good weekend!

I'm going to buckle down beginning today and follow the Fast Track to get myself back on more even ground. I've been terrible lately with my eating and need to get back to basics.

Lala: I love Chicago, although I usually don't get to go downtown after my meetings.

I'll write a bit more later on...need to get moving on some things here.

My post was eaten. Grr.

Melissa -- I hate it when your bags don't make it. Glad to see you got home safely.

I am doing a fast track this week and next too. Higher protein, cutting out all simple carbs. I am soo craving some right now.

Domina -- I hope the play went okay.

Susan - are you back yet?

Pam -- Did you get snow? I heard that Maine did.

Nothing much doing here. Its really warm and I hope to get out at lunch and saunter.

lala

Hi Ladies,

I'm back in the office after a really nice mini vacation. Actually it's a good day to come back since its rainy and cold. The week won't be too bad though, since I'll be out on Wednesday and Friday attending business conferences but my work is really beginning to pile up!!

Melissa glad you enjoyed Chicago and your luggage finally showed up at home.

Lala we didn't get any snow, but it was very cold Saturday night and rainy cold yesterday and today. Ah New England....

Well, I should get back to work and attempt to whittle down this pile of paperwork. Hi to Domina and Susan. Talk to you later.

Hola amigas. Yes, I'm back and shivering in this wet and cold corner of the planet. We got snow Saturday night

Cuba was absolutely wonderful. Our hotel was great - not as fancy as some but it had everything we were looking for and was situated right on the edge of Veradero. Gave us lots of contact with the Cuban people who we found to be warm and generally happy . Lots of Europeans around and of course loads of sun-starved Canadians.

The water was crystal-clear and bathtub-like temperature. The food was OK once you learned the ropes. We visited Havana - a real adventure. We skipped the guided tour and took the bus in ourselves. Ended up hiring a horse and carriage for the day. Hermanos and his brother Alcides took us all over the city, stopping for photographs and mini-tours and making recommendations for lunch, souvenirs, etc. They gave us each a flower and a Che Guavera (sp??) coin as a souvenir - even took us to their sister's house for a visit!

Another day, we took a catamaran cruise to swim with dolphins - something I thought I would never do cause I don't think it's a natural thing for the dolphins. However, these guys are kept in huge pens in the ocean and seemed very content - not like the situation I saw a few years ago in the DR. The whole day was excellent - lobster on a small, uninhabited island, snorkelling (although the sea was rough) and an excellent crew who had everyone singing and dancing on the return leg.

I only ran twice in Cuba because of the heat, so I found Sunday's run a little tough in places. 18 kilometres! Can't believe I have run that distance. We do 20 in a few weeks, just in time for race day on the 23rd.

Said good-bye to DH this morning until June 5th. He leaves tomorrow for the Mediterranean, and I have an out-of-town business trip today/tomorrow.

I'm sad about the long separation, but I'm looking at this as my opportunity to get rid of the excess pounds I put on over the winter. I see that lala and Melissa are doing Fast Track. I'll pull out the booklet today and give it some thought.

Hi Domina and Pam.

Susan --

Benvenidos! Sounds like your trip was amazing. I could use a warm trip like that. I hope your sis enjoyed herself too.

I am sort of fastracking and sort of cutting out bread/pasta and other chewables for the next few weeks. I had a delightful breakfast of eggbeaters/mozz cheese/prawns and a lunch of romaine lettuce/sauteed turkey meat/lf sour cream and some cheese and salsa. I have no idea whats for dinner, but its going to fish. I need to try and get down a few before May 15.

I went to a meeting today with a friend who is trying to recommit. I was pleasantly surprised to see that I was down 4.7# from my last WW meeting. Maybe not going to meetings is the key, then again, I haven't traveled in a month.

So, now I'm 13 lbs from the top of my goal range.

Okay, nothing doing here. Jacques a bit gimpy and I am sore from running -- I admire you for being able to run that far. One day for me.

Melissa, Domina and Pam -- I hope things are okay with you.

lala

Hi everyone!

It's been a little crazy here--one of our office computers is on its last leg and we've had the ITS center here every day trying to get it back up and running. You don't realize how much you depend on computers until you don't have access!

Pam: Glad to hear you enjoyed your mini-vacation. Hope the conference went well today for you!

Susan: Sounds like you really enjoyed your trip and that the weather was gorgeous. It's cold here too! Yesterday we had snow flurries! Aaaahhh! I thought Spring was here! Today it's supposed to get up to 57 and then tomorrow 77 and then drop down again...crazy weather!

Lala: Out of curiosity, did you not like the leader or was it the group setting for WW that didn't work for you? Something is definitely working for you if you're down from your last weigh in...congratulations!!!

I'm not feeling all that confident about my WI at noon today--I feel kind of out of sorts, too much to do and not enough time. My sister is driving in tomorrow and will be here until Sunday morning. I'm looking forward to seeing her. I've got a lot to do at home this evening in terms of de-cluttering, washing, cleaning to get my house whipped into shape.

I figured out my bag went to Washington DC (Dulles) en route to home At least I got it back in one piece and it wasn't beat up. Not too much else happening around here. Work is driving me over the edge lately...I'll post after my meeting and let ya know how it went.

Hi to Domina!

Hi Melissa and everyone,
We had a unbelievable number of fronts come through yesterday. Brr and hail, rain, wind etc. It was great to watch, but we didn't chip at my golf lesson. Finally connected with the ball -- I feel major triumph.

Melissa -- Its a combination of my 7:30 am meeting being cancelled, my travel schedule, my apathy and boredom with the program. Its also and without getting flamed -- lack of good role models in the meetings -- lifetimers that are still at goal and people like me that don't have tons to lose. The meeting I went to yesterday had quite a few people who didn't need to lose too much, so it was a bit different.

Frankly, the biggest part is probably not travelling. I have a trip to NYC tomorrow, the next weekend San Diego, a weekend at home and then London and Iran (yikes), followed by two weeks at home and then a weekend in Germany. How is that for too much jumbling up of my life. Trying to stay on a lower carbohydrate plan will be a challenge, but heck I made it through Lent without any chocolate...

As for your bag -- I'm sure it has stories to tell.

Good luck with your weigh in.

Hi everyone else -- I hope your day is going well!

lala

Lala: I can totally understand your reasons as to the meetings--it's so easy to get in a rut and not feel "energized". I don't know what I'd do if my 12:15 meeting was canceled! You've got lots of challenges over the next few weeks but you can do it!

I was up .4 today at WI...next week will definitely be better! I'm setting a plan of action so that I have a better WI next week, which is also the first of the month for me.

Hi Ladies,

Welcome back Susan!! I'm glad you had a nice time in Cuba, sounds like the weather was very nice. I can't believe after that you came home to snow. Yuck. What was Havana like? Very interesting vacation destination. I hope the time goes by quickly for you while DH is away. Sometimes it's nice to have a few days to yourself but that is a long stretch for you. You'll have to plan something nice to do when he gets back.

Melissa sounds like you've got some stress going on at work. I can relate to that. In fact I think I've been letting it get to me too much lately. I've been having some stomach problems and I think stress is the reason. The good news is at least I don't feel like eating. Glad the luggage is home safely. Enjoy the time with your sister this weekend don't get too bogged down with the cleaning, decluttering, etc.

Lala you certainly do have a lot of travel coming up. Is that an excessive amount for you or do you generally travel a lot? That certainly would make calorie counting difficult for me. One of the reasons why I decided to do weight watchers at home was because I thought I would feel uncomfortable going to the meetings because I didn't really have a lot of weight to lose. I'm short (5' 3") and have a very small bone structure. So when my weight got up to 135 it was just too much for me. I managed to lose 20 lbs but I really got a lot of criticism from friends and family who knew I was on the weight watchers program. The truth is I really feel a lot better mentally and physically when my weight is somewhere between 110 and 115.

Well, I think its time to get some laundry done before I fall asleep. I went to a conference in Connecticut today down by the NY border so I think tonight will be an early night for me, driving makes me very tired. talk to you later.

Good morning everyone.

Pam: I was out of town on business too yesterday. We left at 5:30 am and got back into town at 6:30 pm - 3.75 hour drive each way with a 5-hour meeting in between. It was an early night for me too.

lala: Congrats on the excellent loss. How are you doing with the lower carb approach? I've been concentrating on smaller portions and no junk food. I need to incorporate more water with my running commitments.

Melissa: Hope things at the office are better. It's been steady for me - enough to keep me busy but not so much as to get stressed over it. It would be nice if this holds for the summer.

Where is Domina?

I'm off tomorrow. Temps are supposed to reach 20-25 inland, but here on the coast it will likely be cooler. No matter; it will be nice to poke around in the yard minus the snow.

Hi everyone,

A drive by today (or until I get to the airport lounge ). I'm off to NY and BOS this weekend....and I have a huge telecon. I need to get ready for.

Pam -- I am about 4 11" and need to be at 115. I think I would be happy there. I have been 105 in the past, but honestly, unless I started training for marathons, it ain't going to happen. As for travel, I travel for work, but the trips to Europe are the result of DINK and a lust for shoes.

Melissa -- I too hope things are well with technology.

Susan -- The lower carb thing is working. I am flying today and I have packed some string cheese, almonds and a bit of hummous. I think I may not eat my lunch until boarding. My upgrade did not clear and I will be huuungry by the time I get to my hotel in NJ. I hope room service is open.

Okay, I'll post later, everyone have a great weekend. I'll talk to you on monday.

lala
a

Hi everyone!

The computer is somewhat fixed although we've been told they should just wipe it clean and re-load the programs. At least we can use it!

Susan: I'm having a very productive day at work today--boss is off and so I've had no interruptions and I've cleared a couple of big piles of correspondence off of my desk.

Lala: Hope the telecon goes well. Sounds like you're prepared in terms of snacks/eating.

Pam: I did what I could at home last evening and figured "what gets done, gets done". I did get a couple of loads of laundry done, cleaned the kitchen and bathroom and managed to get some stuff put away in my room. I'm looking forward to the visit.

It's a gorgeous 76 here today and I did get out for a nice walk over the lunch hour. I have a long skirt on that's kind of narrow at the bottom so I couldn't go my regular stride but rather short steps...it all adds up though in the end and I just couldn't bear the thought of not going out at lunch time.