Everyday Systems

Here begins my attempts at check-ins. I really wanted to try to get through a week of this practice, before I started documenting. And what a week it was. Very hectic and irregular work schedule, plus I pulled a muscle in my neck, and had to do my very physical job anyway.

I'm going to say upfront that I make no apology for eating a mid-morning snack. I've never been a big breakfast eater. I just can't find appetite. The way my life is structured, I eat a small breakfast at 6:30 -- 6:45, start a very active job at 8am, and don't have lunch until 1pm. The entire studio takes a break at 11am, and by that time I'm ready to gnaw my own arm off. I get the shakes if I skip eating at this time. Eating a banana or a couple of oranges is just fine with me.


Monday
Breakfast -- sourdough bread and butter, home made latte
Lunch -- avocado and cheese sandwich, more latte
Dinner -- couscous with spinach, a couple of oranges

We worked from 1pm until 10pm, with a dinner break in the middle. I was up in the Genie Lift, and on ladders for much of the day. Tired legs from "gripping" with my toes.


Tuesday
Breakfast -- wheat bread with butter and jam, home made latte
Elevenses -- orange, banana
Lunch -- two boiled eggs, some carrots and an orange
Dinner -- I totally forget what I ate

After work, I pulled a muscle, petting my cat. Only I could do something so stupid. I should tell people that I was rescuing a child from a burning building, or something heroic. I took a *shard* of a muscle relaxant, and collapsed into bed. Agony. Also, I don't understand how people take muscle relaxants as a recreational drug. Ugh.


Wednesday
Breakfast -- wheat bread with dry jack cheese, home made latte
Elevenses -- banana
Lunch -- I forget what I had
Dinner -- leftover couscous with spinach and peas, bean and cheese burrito

Working on ladders with a pulled neck muscle isn't fun. Headache from that. But no "Poor me, I need a treat" eating, which was good.


Thursday
Breakfast -- french bread with butter and marmalade, home made latte
Elevenses -- banana
Lunch -- veggie tempura rolls from Trader Joes, two brioche rolls, orange
No time to stop working for dinner -- two oranges
Dinner at midnight -- french bread with dry jack cheese

This has been a week from hell, work-wise. Thursday was the final dress rehearsal of the current show we're working on, before we start previews. I over-scheduled myself, and didn't get dinner. Can't eat during rehearsals. The show runs really long, and then there's a meeting, so I didn't eat until midnight. But hey, I also didn't eat any of the mountains of snacks that are always laying about.


Friday
Breakfast -- french bread with butter and marmalade, home made latte
Elevenses -- orange, banana
Lunch -- french bread, cheese omelet, a few (nasty) rice chips
Dinner -- ????

Overall, this was easier than I thought it would be. I'm pleased that I said "no thank you" to offered snacks at work, and walked past all of the bowls of rehearsal candy.

Admittedly, I've eaten a poorly varied diet all week. My partner is really sick with a head cold, and everything goes to hell anyway right before we open a show. The fact that I stayed away from treats during this time is more important than the slightly stupid meals I've eaten.

So far, so good!

Well done on the great week!!

As far as I remember NoS doesn't actually specify how many meals you have to eat within a day as long as you don't snack OUTSIDE of your set meals. So if one of your planned meals is a small one for elevenses, then so be it! Better to plan for a piece of fruit than be so hungry you wolf down something large and unhealthy

For me, it's just about making sure that I don't have extra food in between planned meals and try and make it ok by telling myself 'well hey, this can just count as a 4th meal not a snack!'

Great job! Staying away from the treats can be a challenge but you did it! Enjoy your S days!!

Thanks for the encouragement y'all!

I plan to make lemon marmalade with backyard fruit today!

Breakfast -- two boiled eggs, toast and butter, a few organic strawberries, and half a mandarin orange.

Lunch -- a bit of leftover pasta and chard, and a black bean burrito


**************************************


I'm halfway through my first Saturday with no-s, and I haven't eaten any sweets or snacks. What the heck is wrong with me? (Kidding!)

I have literally spent three hours chopping lemons, to make a batch of marmalade. And would you believe it? We're out of sugar. I'm going to have to run out to the store, if I want to finish this.

Saturday was low-key. I spent most of the day making a gigantic batch of marmalade with fruit from a neighbor's tree. I'm worried that this is going to jell. It's sloppy at the moment, but I've read that marmalade sometimes takes two weeks to set up. I think that we just stuck our previous batch (last year) in storage, because it was all for xmas gifts. So I didn't pay much attention to how it set up.

Anyway, a long long day in the kitchen, and no snacking.

Small dinner of tempeh and broccoli, and then four digestive biscuits and some dark chocolate at bed time.

Good gracious! I sure made a lot of marmalade yesterday.

Not sure why, but I've got horrible gas pains today. I can't figure out what might be causing this. I didn't eat anything unusual yesterday, other than a few licks of in-progress marmalade. (I'm sure all of you wanted to know about this...)

Sunday

Breakfast = shredded wheat cereal with lowfat milk and half a banana. Home made latte.

Lunch = fresh garbanzo beans (first time ever, holy cats these are amazing) over rice, with a spicy salad made of greens and herbs from my garden.

Snack = two slices of sourdough bread

Dinner = nopales (cactus paddles) over rice with pinto beans and corn and cheese. delicious.

It turns out that I'm violently allergic to nopales. This sucks. I mean, it REALLY ****ING SUCKS!!!!!!! Since last summer, I've had so many problems with food allergies, and I can't believe that I have to deal with one more.

I'm just hoping that the benadryl I took is enough, and that I don't end up at the hospital tonight.

Insert the sound of harsh, clipped, short swear words, said with great vigor and very clear enunciation.

hi who me
really sorry to hear about your food allergies.. i just read your thread on the general discussion board and the comment about your saliva burning, i looked over what you eat and it seems like you are vegetarian.
is it possible that you have a candida overgrowth? that could cause lots of pain and gas, and could also be the reason for your food allergies.. you might have developed "leaky gut" which often leads to food allergies. i am mostly vegetarian but i eat fish, but if i don't have enough protein in my diet, it sets off problems for me as i'm recovering from candida which was building up for years, due to having too much refined carbs on a daily basis, and then last year my son and i got pinworms which wreaked havoc on my already challenged digestive system. you might want to try doing a few months of elimination of most carbs and try to get your body ph more alkaline. maybe, this could be the reason for your burning saliva.. maybe your diet somehow is causing your body to be too much on the acidic side.
also, try apple cider vinegar.. drink a teaspoon of it in a glass of water, with some stevia, and see if that helps.. maybe you have a bit of acid reflux. it neutralises acid.
hope i didn't write too much or come across as presumptous.. i've had a very very difficult year and can commiserate with how you are feeling.
assuming you might have candida, which feeds on any sugar, make sure that if you do have sweet things, try to make sure that you eat them after you've had a full meal with some kind of protein and lots of veggies etc... it helps to keep the blood sugar from spiking up and down.
love the pics of your honey bees and the lemons
debs

hmmmmm....I'll talk to my doctor about this. She and I are due for a chit-chat.

Who Me? wrote:hmmmmm....I'll talk to my doctor about this. She and I are due for a chit-chat.

good idea.. but don't be surprised if they don't know much about it. it seems that most typical doctors aren't very aware of this, and it's only alternative practitioners who even recognize candida as the cause for a lot of digestive probs.. they all seen as one syndrome after another, like irritable bowel, but the underlying cause isn't tended to.
i didn't mention it before, but you might also consider taking a good acidophilus (sp?) supplement to help reduce gas and bring balance to your digestive system.
good luck

Thanks so much.

Honestly, I think my problem this weekend was that I ate some funky broccoli.

Well, that, and I'm newly allergic to prickly pear cactus, which is odd but not a terrible hardship.

Deb,

Is it possible for apple cider vinegar, which is acetic acid, to neutralize stomach acid? I know it has a good reputation, but I can't see how it could decrease acidity, being an acid itself.

gratefuldeb67 wrote:hi who me :)
really sorry to hear about your food allergies.. i just read your thread on the general discussion board and the comment about your saliva burning, i looked over what you eat and it seems like you are vegetarian.
is it possible that you have a candida overgrowth? that could cause lots of pain and gas, and could also be the reason for your food allergies.. you might have developed "leaky gut" which often leads to food allergies. i am mostly vegetarian but i eat fish, but if i don't have enough protein in my diet, it sets off problems for me as i'm recovering from candida which was building up for years, due to having too much refined carbs on a daily basis, and then last year my son and i got pinworms which wreaked havoc on my already challenged digestive system. you might want to try doing a few months of elimination of most carbs and try to get your body ph more alkaline. maybe, this could be the reason for your burning saliva.. maybe your diet somehow is causing your body to be too much on the acidic side.
also, try apple cider vinegar.. drink a teaspoon of it in a glass of water, with some stevia, and see if that helps.. maybe you have a bit of acid reflux. it neutralises acid.
hope i didn't write too much or come across as presumptous.. i've had a very very difficult year and can commiserate with how you are feeling.
assuming you might have candida, which feeds on any sugar, make sure that if you do have sweet things, try to make sure that you eat them after you've had a full meal with some kind of protein and lots of veggies etc... it helps to keep the blood sugar from spiking up and down.
love the pics of your honey bees and the lemons :)
debs

you know what kevin, all i have is anecdotal evidence about this, so i honestly shouldn't have said it neutralizes it, because that may not be true.
i myself and friends who have had stomach problems, have used apple cider vinegar and it definitely helped. keep in mind i dilute it quite a lot. i only put in about 1 tsp for 8 to 10 ounces of water.

Monday

Breakfast = sourdough bread with dry jack cheese, two home made lattes
Lunch = leftover beans and corn, doctored up as a salad, banana
Diner = yellow lentil soup, sauted beet greens from the garden (oh my goodness was this a delicious meal!)

Another totally insane day. Weird schedule, everyone very stressed out. My intern made muffins because she knew that it was going to be a crazy day, and I politely declined. I also stayed away from the mountains of chocolate at work.

Last night, I had a very vivid dream in which I was at a particularly strange party. At one point, I sat down on the floor and ate an entire box of Entenmann's cookies. In the dream, I was watching myself, and thinking "I would never do that."

Interesting to experience the sense of taste in a dream.

Tuesday

sourdough toast, banana, latte
second latte
leftover lentil soup and beet greens
pasta and asparagus, tangerine

It really is sort of insane how much candy is available at work. Crappy cheap stuff, too.

Wednesday

Breakfast = latte, sourdough bread with butter, banana
Elevenses = tangerine
Lunch = trader joes hummus and cabbage wrap, brioche roll, banana, 1/2 apple
Dinner = trader joes veggie gyozas, green beans, latte

More pre-made food than I would like. But oh well... Things gave been hectic.

I find it odd/interesting that I go to bed hungry, but wake up not hungry. How does *that* work?

Thursday

Breakfast = sourdough bread w/ butter and a bit if dry jack cheese, latte
Lunch = leftover gyozas, greenbeans and some rice, banana
Dinner = veggie frittata, bread, latte

Another weird hectic day.

I scheduled a doctor's appointment, to revisit some of the unpleasant stuff that I've been dealing with.

Also, I got curious, and started a bit of food tracking over at sparkpeople. Apparently I'm eating more than I should be, which seems pretty strange. I wonder if this is because I haven't also been tracking physical activity?

Friday

Something sort of like rice pudding for breakfast (leftover rice with milk and raisins, heated in the microwave), latte.

Sesame tofu and mixed vegetables from a local Chinese carry out.

We intended to cook dinner, but ended up eating Chinese leftovers, because we were so hungry after catching a swarm of feral honeybees. The bees were next to a great bar, so we had a few beers, as we waited for the bees to settle down enough for transport.

http://howsrobb.blogspot.com/2011/04/be ... apart.html

What a swarm of honeybees looks like.

Hurrah for urban beekeeping.

Saturday was a nice day. One of the local bee clubs hosted a gigantic event, with fascinating workshops, and great home made food.

Breakfast = coffee, sourdough bread, butter and dry jack cheese, latte

Snack at the bee event = home made honey root beer (I normally don't drink sodas, and I really hate root beer, but this was fantastic because it wasn't cloying and gloopy-sweet), two small baked "bars" and a couple of slices of apple.

Lunch = bean and rice tortilla

Dinner = beans and corn with a side of kale from the garden, small bowl of vanilla ice cream, with maple syrup (my sweetie's idea, too cloying for me)




Sunday

Was a meeting of my hand-spinning guild. There were snacks. In the afternoon, we inspected our beehives, and harvested a bit of honey. So, you had better believe that there was some finger-licking going on. This particular batch of honey is exceptionally delicious!

Breakfast = fritatta, with leeks from the garden, pear, half a banana, latte

Snack at the spinning event = two thin mint cookies, and one other equally small chocolate chip cookie

Lunch = leftover kale and beans and corn

Diner = pasta with sharp italian cheese, and beet greens from the garden, 3/4 of an ounce of dark chocolate

Monday

Breakfast = oatmeal with butter and sugar, latte
Lunch = avocado, spinach and tofu sushi rolls, and a cherimoya
Dinner = leftover pasta and beet greens, another cherimoya, latte

Have you people tried these fruits? They're DELICIOUS! I want to see if I can grow them.

Tuesday

A crap day. Work is thankless and stressful, just one bad thing after another. And we're not even doing what we're meant to be doing, just reacting to insanity. Hard to keep a good attitude.

Breakfast -- way too small, because I was running late. 1/3 of a bagel, a few ounces of cheese, and a latte.

Lunch -- home made soup, asian noodles, tofu, chard from the garden, broccoli, carrots, latte.

Dinner -- leftover soup, home made guacamole and chips.




Does anyone read these updates? Should I start saying that I dined on human finger bones, just to keep things lively?

I'm reading! Thanks for stopping by my check-ins! Looks like you're sticking right in there. How are you feeling? Do you like it?

One day at a time.

That's A LOT of bees!!!!

I'm having trouble with late night hunger. Real hunger gnawing stomach discomfort. It is taking all my self control to not eat a piece of fruit or some bread in the hours after dinner.

I'm also feeling very isolated in this practice. Food is very social, and saying "no thanks" to the various treats brought around at work isn't going over well with my coworkers.

So, I'd say it isn't going particularly well. I write all these check ins....but why? Why bother? Who cares what I eat?

I love the bees! I have a tiny urban yard, and two thriving hives. I'm very happy about this.

We harvested some honey this past weekend.

Wednesday

Oatmeal and latte
Half a hummus wrap, banana, half an apple, keffir
Green beans on shalloty couscous, half an orange, half a banana, glass of milk

Almost through my third week.

And no human fingers, lol!

Who Me? wrote:I'm having trouble with late night hunger. Real hunger gnawing stomach discomfort. It is taking all my self control to not eat a piece of fruit or some bread in the hours after dinner.

I'm also feeling very isolated in this practice. Food is very social, and saying "no thanks" to the various treats brought around at work isn't going over well with my coworkers.

So, I'd say it isn't going particularly well. I write all these check ins....but why? Why bother? Who cares what I eat?

Sorry to hear you are struggling with this But you seem to be doing very well!! Are you eating particularly early in the evening, leaving a long time until bed?

As for your co-workers - they'll get over it! Food is social, but just because you aren't partaking doesn't mean you can't stop for a chat or a quick word while people pass round the biscuits. If their opinion of you is so founded on what you eat then bugger em...

The only person who NEEDS to care about your check-ins is you really but if it's worth anything I enjoy reading them And hearing about your bees!

I guess I'd have to find a fake meat version of human fingers to snack on, which would be a bit of a challenge if I didn't live in California.

Thursday

What an exhausting day. I didn't work in my own area, but rather helped move a warehouse full of antique chairs.

Breakfast = sourdough bread, butter, home made marmalade, latte
Elevenses = artisan bread and cheese
Lunch = leftover couscous and green beans, banana, japanese grapefruit soda, iced coffee
Dinner = more bread and cheese (I was *starving* after moving furniture for an entire work day), yellow lentils, rice, and chard (from the CSA box, not the garden) And a beer. A beer that we accidentally froze, so it turned into a beer slushie.

I'm quite a foodie, aren't I???

The scissor man could snip you some thumbs.

Would they be humanely raised, free range thumbs?

I'm thinking of Hansel and Gretel. where the witch had Hansel in the cage, and was trying to fatten him up, so that she could eat him. Gretel gave him a chicken bone, to hold out, when the witch asked to see his fingers to see if he was fat enough.

That wouldn't have been cage-free, free range fingers bones....

There's a super-cool opera of Hansel and Gretel that I saw few years back, that among other things had the witch played by a man, dressed as a terrifying Julia Child.

To be serious for about one half of one second.....



I've got a doctor's appointment tomorrow, so I'll probably be weighed. I don't own a scale, so I'm wondering what expectations I might have for weight change on two weeks of no-s.

I'm trying to not be disappointed. I know what I weighed last time I went to the doctor, but I really don't track my own weight.

I'm only hoping to lose a small amount of weight, really. I just want to get back to my college weight, and much more importantly to re-install my good eating habits.

How should I manage my expectations?

that's tough....this is a slow process and one of the benefits of this is freedom from diet head remember the on scalebenifits!

So, should I expect to see no changes at all?

That's a bit demoralizing.

Well, remember that you might have GAINED between your last weigh-in and now. So even if you lost weight on No-S, it might not show on this weigh-in.

I would consider THIS ONE to be your baseline.

But I'm big into managing expectations. Progress, not perfection.

Hang in there!

Hey Who Me? Just popping in to say Hi! and also how much I am enjoying reading your interesting posts (complete with the great photos!) Also wanted to say, like the others have said here, that I am sorry to hear that you are struggling right now - with your emotions, that is, as opposed to your actual eating patterns which have been/are absolutely great! It's difficult when you are surrounded by temptation in form of your co-workers and wanting to fit in etc., etc. I can empathize with that myself - being a people pleaser type of person. I am also trying - now i am older and not necessarily wiser - to stop worrying so much about what others are thinking (particularly of me). Most of the time, my negative thoughts were in my imagination, now I look back on it and even if people were thinking/talking about me behind my back, well ultimately that is their problem! I've also come to realize that I get on well with most people I come in contact with these days, telling myself that I am being as honest and open as I can and if that doesn't gel with some people, then so be it! Perhaps THEY are the ones who should be worrying !
BTW: I bet those co-workers are actually pretty envious of you for having willpower to turn down those office treats. I can recall many moons ago of being envious of a very slim (NON bi*tchy) female boss who happened to be very slim and petite. When offered a plate of cookies at an office party, she very politely but firmly declined, stating "No thank you - I don't eat sweets" and that was the end of it. I always envied that woman's apparent willpower not to mention grace and determination in the face of adversity i.e. plate of cookies and eager co-worker!

Well, phooey. My weight at the doctor's office is the highest I'd ever weighed. Bummer.

I'm still trying to get a handle on all my weird food allergies and Heath nonsense.

My doctor actually said that my weight is in normal range, but that it was commendable of me to be trying to lose a bit of weight.

I'm convinced that keeping good habits is the way to go.

I swear those dr's scales must have a jinx on them.... really! I always tend to weigh 7 or 8 lbs heavier on the dr's scales than the ones at home. Could be a combination of being weighed with your clothes on, having eaten, sometimes even wearing shoes can add on quite a bit too. But as i said, I think they've set it up somehow to deliberately weigh you heavier!

I wish I could blame the shoes....

Even if I had been wearing shoes, I'd have to observe two thing:

1. I've worn the same style of shoe at work for the last eight years. Closed back clogs. So, even if I had been wearing shoes, I couldn't blame them for weight fluctuations.

2. My shoes were not the ones who had gotten into the habit of reading a book and eating cookies and dark chocolate before bed every night. My shoes sat on the floor, and behaved politely, never getting crumbs in the bed.

Friday

Breakfast = banana, latte, half a bagel, cheese
Elevenses = a mango
Lunch = assorted veggie sushi
Dinner = leftover rice, yellow lentils and chard. Half a cherimoya, half a feijoa.

I had something like six vials of blood drawn, had an immunization, and allergy shots today. And I have a *horror* of needles. Another day of rearranging our warehouse of antique furniture. Dusty allergic and exhausted. Came home and took a nap before dinner.

Feijoas (pineapple gyavas) are interesting to me, because I just realized that the new workspace has *dozens* of these bushes growing on our "campus.". The ones I bought are from New Zealand, because they're only just now flowering, here.

Oh, and the petals are edible, which is fun. Not really super tasty, but I hear they're a nice garnish to champagne...

Saturday

Late Breakfast = home grown mandarin orange, feijoa (pineapple guava), home made biscuits, with home made lemon marmalade, pinto beans, fried eggs, latte

Lunch = home made vegetable noodle soup, biscuits and cheese, latte

Dinner = beet greens from the garden over rice, wanted to have cherimoya for dessert, but sadly (and expensively) the fruit had gone bad,

Snack = had a few licorices, maybe I'll have some mango sorbet tonight...



Huge reaction from an allergy shot yesterday -- swelling the size of an apple, freaky! Took a benadyl, which turned me into a zombie.

Pruned my lilacs and lemon tree, scraped paint for hours.

TWENTY ONE DAYS ON HABIT!!!!!

Brilliant job Who Me!!! Well done for staying on habit

Thanks for the support, everyone!

Sunday

Breakfast = consumed on the run, because I got a call about another swarm of bees. Two biscuits with marmalade, latte.

Lunch = a backyard picnic with friends. Crusty bread, fancy cheeses, two kinds of olives, avocados, lemonaid made from our own lemons, a beer.

Snack = another latte.

Dinner = braised fennel from the garden, over pasta, crusty bread with delicious stinky cheese, a few squares of dark chocolate.

And I caught another swarm of feral honeybees on Sunday!





http://howsrobb.blogspot.com/2011/04/buzzing-about.html

Monday

Breakfast = crusty bread and stinky french cheese, latte
Lunch = leftover braised garden fennel over pasta, latte
Dinner = green beans over couscous

Tuesday

Breakfast = crusty bread, home made lemon marmalde, a boiled egg, latte
Lunch = avocado, cheese and arugula sandwich, lemonade from our tree, latte
Dinner = huge salad: lettuce, raw garden peas, black beans, avocado, cheddar, tortilla chips, lemonade

I took two vacation days, and ended up getting sick. This doesn't seem fair!

Sigh. Still not feeling well.

Sorry to hear you're not feeling well. I just got over a bug that stuck around a week - not fun! I do try to look at the silver lining though.....at least I wasn't hungry all the time and having my usual battle with snacking!

Have you seen that movie "The Devil Wears Prada"? Remember that quote?....."I'm only one stomach flu away from my perfect weight."

Hope you feel better soon!!! Try to enjoy your time off.....maybe dive into a good book? Watch a movie you've been wanting to see? Or something I never seem to get enough of.....SLEEP!!

Take care!

Alas, I had to drag myself into work for a five hour meeting. Bleh.

Wednesday

I'm not sure if today was a failure or not. I was sick, and had to go into work. We had a huge meeting, with tons of snacks (which I didn't touch), but then they only gave us a very short lunch break, and I didn't have time to go grab real food. I microwaved some "end times food" Asian noodle soup. (I was too sick to pack a real lunch, and was anticipating a full length lunch break.) When I left work, I was really sick and hungry. I had some bread and cheese and went to bed.

Breakfast = banana, bagel with cream cheese, latte
Lunch = a bowl of instant noodle soup
Snack? Failure? A bit more Lunch? = French bread with a little cheese
Dinner = pasta and broccoli

Is this a failure? Or just a very drawn out and poorly planned lunch?
I feel dreadful.

No, not a failure - just a plain old S(ick) day.

Hope you feel better soon!

Sounds like your lunch would have fit on 1 plate. I wouldn't think that's a failure, esp if you're sick. Hope you feel better soon!

It would have all fit on one plate. Clearly, I'm not thinking clearly.

Hope you feel better!!!

Sounds as if you did well, especially for being sick. I always find sitting at meetings with tons of snacks particularly difficult!

Get better soon.

Thursday

Still sick. Spent most of the day asleep.

Breakfast = shredded wheat cereal with some raisins and sunflower seeds, banana
Lunch = leftover pasta and broccoli, peanut butter and rye crisp crackers, 1/2 a mango, latte
Dinner = sauted zucchini and shallots over rice

I never mention it, but I drink a fair amount of water and watered down juice throughout the day.

Who Me? wrote:I never mention it, but I drink a fair amount of water and watered down juice throughout the day.

That's a very good habit - I need to do more of that!

Friday

Feeling somewhat better, but now my sweet little cat Smog is in the hospital. Back in September, I found that cat staggering down the street, on the brink of death. He'd obviously been badly injured at some point, and his pelvis was shattered and healed all wrong. That, and possibly some neurological damage makes digestion very difficult. He's having a very hard time of it. I really hope he pulls through....

Meals were fine. Hardly worth reporting on.

http://howsrobb.blogspot.com/search?q=Smog

Good luck with Smog.

Thank you.

glad you're feeling better.. sorry smog is not well. hope he pulls through!

Thanks for the kind thoughts regarding my sick kitty, Smog. He's home from the hospital, and feeling much better. His diet is more closely watched than my own.



He's just yawning, but I think he looks ferocious and hilarious.

Anyway...

Saturday
Breakfast = I totally forget what I had, but it wasn't anything notable. I didn't eat a dozen jelly donuts, or a coconut cake, or anything like that
Lunch = home made white pizza, with pear and SUUUUUUUUPER stinky cheese, salad of greens from the garden
Dinner = eaten in a rush, cheese omelet on a brioche bun, salad of greens from the garden



Sunday
Breakfast = cereal with almonds and raisins, latte, juice
Lunch = leftover pizza
Dinner = pinto beans and corn with avocado, chips and a fried egg

I failed to catch another swarm of honeybees this weekend. When I shook then into the box, they somehow obeyed some alternative laws of physics, and fell into a blackberry bramble. Then, the next day, they took up residence in the hive box I provided. Until they all flew off.



blogged

Love the pics!! Glad to hear Smog is doing better. What a cutie!!

Sunday, still.
Had some chocolate "ice cream" made with coconut milk. Kind of strange, but pretty tasty.

Smog is adorable, glad he's feeling better!

Your S days are enviably moderate compared to mine

I'm lucky to already have good food habits, for the most part. I'm here to do some fine-tuning.

Monday

Breakfast = I forget. Nothing drastic.
Lunch = a very delicious Thai noodle salad.
Dinner = a mixed vegetable stir fry thing.

Tuesday

Breakfast = Latte, slice of toast. I just wasn't hungry.
Elevenses = Coffee, french bread roll.
Lunch = cucumber sushi rolls, kefir yogurt drink.
Dinner = a couple of slices of bread, couscous with green beans, navel orange.

Dear WHO..How are you?? I wanted you to know that the pic. of the slug you posted to me has been a great inspiration..I don.t want to be that guy!! Just got around to reading about YOU am glad I did. Love your pics and your posts. Glad to see the bees are alive and well in CA. Sorry to hear your allergies are getting worse. My little granddaughter explained her testing to be by telling me the doc put a nail in her arm and tried to drain all her blood. I'm sure you felt the same way..but you probably didn't need three people holding you down for the procedure!
I'm sure I have grandchildren your age and this is what I would say to them: if you are in the normal weight range..even when the doc's scales say you weigh more than you think... maybe that is your "natural" weight and you should continue the healthy life style and relax about losing more weight. I think many young adults hit college at weights that are next to impossible to maintain in the real world.
To change the subject a bit..I was reading about your injury due to cat-petting.. sounds so like me! I too cannot bring myself to take many meds and can't imagine living in the fog I am in from taking anything stronger than an aspirin!
Good luck on your journey!

I'm really not terribly worried about losing weight. Between my lartner's spinal cord injury, and my own bout with hepatitis a few years back, I've gone through periods of inaction and strange eating. Life has been rough, and I picked up some foolish habits.

I'm trying to refine my eating.

Overall, I'm reasonably healthy, but I'd like things to be better than that!

I understand..and applaud your efforts to make healthy eating a habit! Wish I would have done that at your age ... !!!

Wednesday

Breakfast = bread and butter, latte
Elevenses = a few slices of cheese, banana
Lunch = leftover couscous and green beans, a boca patty with cheese (no bun), iced coffee
Dinner = cheese and raw spinach on a tortilla, some crackers with peanut butter, veggies with noodles, iced coffee


Not brilliant eating.

But I did pass up the donuts at morning break, and the mountais of crap food at the lunchtime BBQ.

I'm drinking a lot of coffee because this is allergy season, and because my crazy puffy eyes tell my body "time to sleep now." I'm also drinking a lot of water and diluted fruit juice.

Ooh well done on passing up donuts, they are one of my major weaknesses!

Thursday


Breakfast = latte, bread and butter
Elevenses = a mango
Lunch = a Thai noodle salad, a banana, an orange
Dinner = bread and butter, rice and Swiss chard, half a beer

Friday

I just noticed that I've been coloring my days as if they are weekends. Silly me.

Breakfast = latte, bread and butter
Lunch = bean and cheese on a flour tortilla, salad of greens, mostly from the garden, latte
Dinner = garden salad, home made mac and cheese

I spent hours working on the garden today. Very pleased with the work I got done, even if none of it is apparent to a casual observer.

Who Me? wrote: I spent hours working on the garden today. Very pleased with the work I got done, even if none of it is apparent to a casual observer.

I hope the fact that you're gardening means that you're feeling better now?

Sowed some veggie seeds today - can't wait to eat homegrown stuff again.

I am feeling better, thank you. However, this has been a brutal year for allergies.

Saturday

Crud. I've caught another cold.

Breakfast = latte, strawberries and most of a mango
Lunch = latte, juice, a beautiful sandwich with cheeses and raw veggies
Snack = some broth for my sore throat, crackers
Dinner = vegetable soup, an orange, and a hot toddy. The honey and lemon were from our garden

Oh, and I had a half of a small dark chocolate bar while reading later that night.

Sunday

Still sick with that stupid cold. I think my seasonal allergies are also in full-swing, which doesn't help. It has been crazy windy, here.







I went to a huge orchid sale, at a private nursery. They're only open to the public one week out of the year. It was amazing. They're been raising orchids for a quarter of a century.

Breakfast = latte, home baked biscuits
Lunch = cheese sandwich, latte,
Snack, the other half of that dark chocolate candy bar, a carrot
Dinner = home made vegetable rice soup

Monday

The cat is still desperately ill. I still have a rotten cold. Phooey.

Breakfast = latte, bread and butter, half a mango
Lunch = two boiled eggs, bread and a little cheese, a small avocado and a large carrot
Dinner = yellow lentils and rice, fresh asparagus

I've been taking cold medicine, which really dries me out. So I'm drinking lots of water with lemon, steamed milk, and hot water with lemon and honey.

So sorry that you are feeling poorly again (I've been reading your earlier posts). Seasonal allergies are horrible for us here, too. Hope it passes quickly for you.

I also hope that Smog perks up soon. I just hate it when one of my kitties gets sick. It's as bad as when the kids are sick!

It's admirable how you have stayed on program over the last few weeks. I am just starting out, but I would like to build a strong foundation of habit like so many others have.

Thanks for your nice comment.

I think my "secret weapon" is my father, who never, ever, ever ate snacks. It just wasnt part of his European upbringing. He had a huge sweet tooth, and would have a little dessert every night at dinner. And he stayed slim his entire life. He was very proud of this, almost to the point of vanity. When I pass up a snack, I think of him, and smile.

Wow! I am amazed at your posts. We try to eat organic and we also try to eat vegetarian a couple of times a week. I can never think what vegetarian things to make and when I read recipes on line, it always sounds like I would be starving if that was all I ate. I got lots of ideas from reading your posts on what you eat. Thanks for posting them.
We are foodies and one of the problems I have when I diet is that friends are insulted when I don't eat all the delicacies they prepare. Because we are all in our sixties, I try to talk them into healthier entertaining but some of them think that would be boring. It eventually comes down to eating a little of what they make or politely declining. They're friends and they understand.
I am fascinated by your bee stories but bees freak me out so I don't think I could raise my own. How do you hear about the swarms for harvesting? My husband is a master gardener and knows lots of people who are concerned about the eventual fate of the the honeybee (and consequently) all foods that need propagating.
By the way, early on in your posts there was a discussion of apple cider vinegar and acid reflux. I attended a seminar on gut problems and found that some reflux is caused by too much acid and some is caused by too little. If antacid tablets don't help, try the vinegar thing. I worked for me. Haven't had a problem with it in a long time.
You never posted what the allergy tests revealed. What caused the major reaction you had?
Hope you cat is better and keep those posts coming.

Thanks for your nice note, Pangelsue.

I had forgotten the conversation about reflux, because that isn't a problem for me. I think the talk just sort of drifted that-a-way...

As for the allergies, that's the Big Mystery. A current theory is that allergies are a result of an over-active immune system, which feels the need to "fight" everything, including proteins like tree pollen and whatnot. I've always had allergies, but they've gotten significantly worse over the last few years. After years of apartment dwelling, I bought a house and planted my own garden. And what happens? I develop a huge, horrible allergy to everything in the nightshade family. I had poison-ivy like welts on my arms all last summer, from brushing up against the tomato plants.

Imagine not being able to eat tomatoes, potatoes, eggplants, peppers, or tomatillos without ending up in the emergency room. Combine the allergies with being a vegetarian, and that pretty much rules out *ever* eating in a restaurant. Thank goodness my partner is a great guy and imaginative cook.

I've been going for allergy shots for the past six months or so, and I do think it is helping with certain allergies. We're not treating for the food allergies, and I have to follow up on why that is. Perhaps they don't have shots for foods???

The bees are fun. We have two hives in our *tiny* back garden, and the bees hardly get in our way at all. We belong to two different beekeeping groups, and I'm in the "swarm call list" for both. So, I get slightly panicked calls from total strangers who have gigantic clumps of bees in their back yards, and want help.

In addition to keeping European honeybees, we also garden with native bees in mind. We're trying to create a tiny wildlife habitat in our wee urban garden.

And finally, regarding food. I think we somewhere along the line decided to eat like Mediterranean peasants. We cook most things from scratch, and use very simple ingredients. The more garden food we can use, the happier I am!

Tuesday

Still sick. I had taken this week off as a vacation week, and am happy to learn that I can alter the designation of days into "sick days" and not lose my vacation. That was a depressing thought.

Breakfast = bread and butter, latte, half a mango, a few strawberries
Lunch = pasta with parsley pesto from the garden, and beet greens from the garden ~~ Nom nom nom nom.
Dinner = leftovers, mostly...lentils and rice, beet greens, and a lovely cucumber salad

Ouch still sick Poor you! Hopefully you'll have a nice restful few days to recover.

Who me? I really appreciate you stopping by my post and sending me the encouragement. What a difference it makes in my attitude. I hope you feel better soon.

Loved the picture of SMOG. Hope the kitty gets better soon.

I kinda had to post this photo. I keep reading people writing "YAY....GREEN DAY!!!" and all I can think about is the band.

Wednesday

Gaaaargh! I'm so over this cold. I'm really tired of feeling like crap.

I made a big batch of marmalade today, with lemons from our backyard tree.

It turns out that I've been doing it wrong on the last two batches. I'm cooking too slowly and killing the lemon's natural pectin, which is why the jam won't "set up." Well, I'm totally out of energy, and am going to cook a separate batch of powdered pectin, and add it to the marmalade. Wish me luck.


Breakfast = latte, bread and butter
Lunch = a lovely salad of black beans, corn, lettuce, carrots, avocado and cheese, latte, and a tiny delicious mandarin orange from the garden
Dinner = leftover salad, a coconut soup made with zucchini, broccoli, carrots and tofu

That cold really has been hanging on a long time. Something like that can take all the zip out of you. Maybe you should be drinking some of that lemon with honey.
I love marmalades and everytime I read one of your posts, I want some. I will have to try it sometime but here in the cold northwest, lemons are kind of expensive so making marmalade isn't an option.
Showed my daughter your cat's picture and she thought he looked cute and ferocious. How is he doing?

I've been doing little else than drinking lemony water, and eating sudafeds. Thanks goodness for our lemon tree!

The kitty is doing better. He's had a rough life. Probably hit by a car as a kitten, and as a result has a very distorted pelvis, which causes (uh, to be polite....) digestive issues.

Hope you get to feeling better really soon!

I love to hear how you are taking care of your kitty. He is very lucky to have you.

Hope you get over your cold soon!

Homemade marmalade is just the best Hope you feel better soon!

Hang in there with the cold and kitty. Hopefully, by Monday you will feel back to your old self. Looks like you are right on track with your eating to. Way to go. Thanks for your encouragement earlier!

You all are so sweet! Thanks for the kind thoughts.

I think I can honestly say that I'm finally feeling some improvement from my rotten cold. But just as I'm star-r-r-r-r-r-rting to feel better, my partner gets sick. I really hope he isn't sick as long as I was.

Thursday

Breakfast = two boiled eggs, half a mango, latte
Lunch = salad of greens from the garden (kale, chard, beets), with rice and leftover lentils mixed in, home baked bread, latte
Dinner= a jazzed up reheating of last night's coconut milk and veggie soup, bread (nobody had the energy to come up with any ideas for cooking)

Way to make me really hungry for bread. It looks so delicious. Glad you are feeling better.

I won't lie.

Going to bed, feeling a bit hungry, and knowing that we had that gorgeous bread in the kitchen was CHALLENGING.

I spent way too much mental energy, thinking about the taste and texture if that bread.