Healthier Lifestyle Thread 25th Jan till 31st Jan

[Lorelei]

Happy new week all!

Yikes - almost in February.....

Spring isn''t far off now, although it sure feels as if it is.

Everyone is doing a great job - well done!!

One of the most important things you can learn when embarking on a healthier lifestyle is to be prepared and throw any thoughts of perfection out of the window! I well know it can be so frustrating when you are doing so well and a spanner gets thrown in the works foodwise! However don''t forget a small amount of a high calorie food can be fine in moderation and even essential if we aren''t going to feel deprived and stay the course. I had visitors over for dinner recently and they had requested one of my puddings which is a rich confection with layers of whipped cream.....It was so difficult making this pudding as it involves alcohol dipped chocolate chip cookies, SO tempting to eat one, one for the pudding, eat one....one for the pudding and so on! But I was strong and allowed myself just a couple of spoonfuls of the finished result and it was actually enough, I didn''t need a huge bowlful. And I was able to work it into my calories, I went a bit over but on the odd occasion it won''t matter.

It is what you do consistently over the next few weeks, months and years which makes the difference between gaining weight or being in the shape you want - look at the big picture.

Have a great week

 

[tlh]

Lorelei- that is terriffic advice, and sounds delicious! Yum!!!

Everyone happy monday! hope all is well. My weekend was good, eats were pretty tastey too. Last night my hubs made us steak and a twice baked potato. We ate that and had a couple beers while watching some football. I slept like a baby... probably because I only had a few beers- in moderation... my hubs had a couple more than me - and didn''t sleep too well last night. So I completely agree w/ ya-- it is all about balance... as it affects our life as a whole- not just what shape we take... but the quality of life we all experience. Have a great week all!

 

[marcy]

Great opener, Lorelei. It is hard to find the right balance between enjoying some treats and not overdoing it. Your pudding and cookies sound divine.

Tlh, steak, potatoes and beer sound like a marvelous end to a weekend. Glad you slept so well, sorry your DH did not.

I am off to finish getting ready for work. I have my cereal weighed out for the week so I just have to fix a few strawberries for BF today. I have a PB sandwich and baked lays for lunch and brought home 1/2 a baked potato and 1/2 of steak from supper last night so that will be my supper.

Have a great day my HLT friends.

Marcy

 

[Bella_mezzo]

Lorelei-thanks for the great start to the week, and MAJOR congrats on only eating a small portion of the pudding!!! That takes some serious commitment!

I am off to a good start this morning, Pomegranete Chobani, and then I think I''m going to have chinese noodle soup for lunch--as long as I only eat half of the noodles I think it''s a pretty light lunch. Dinner I''m making baked ziti but using all partskim dairy products and we''ll have it with a salad. I did yoga yesterday which was great, I''m easing back into it, and the 30 day shred is on the schedule for tonight.

thl-great job on keeping the beer in moderation.

Marcy-weighing out your cereal for the week is so smart! Way to go!!!

 

[somethingshiny]

Lorelei~ Once again, spot on! My BFF''s DH just lost a bunch of weight. However, his methods were very unhealthy--he took up smoking. So, now he''s 70 lbs down and trying to quit smoking. I already know this is going to be a terrible battle for him. The changes we make have to be HEALTHY first, then something we can live with in the long run.

I had steak and a salad last night. I fixed potatoes for my guys but only had a couple bites of them. I was very satisfied with my small caesar and large steak!! The baby started rolling around like crazy, s/he must like steak too!

My mom noticed that my arms look better! She''s not very giving with her compliments. My sis''s wedding is at the end of March and we''re wearing halter or spaghetti strap gowns. I''m trying really hard to get these flabby arms to look decent so the compliment meant a lot to me. I''m trying to use some of the Jillian moves in a pregnancy-safe manner. And of course, still on my ball! I heart my ball.


Have a good week all!!!!


If anyone talks to Skippy, please tell her I''m thinking of her!

 

[CrownJewel]

Hi everyone! Happy Monday. Lorelei, I love your optimism!! You're already talking about spring! Haha. But, yes. I feel it! It's 55 and rainy in NYC today. Just like April weather!!!

I am happy to report that I made it out of surgery VERY quickly this morning (in operating room at 7:30 back home by 9:30). I was sedated for the first half of the surgery, which I'm a little miffed about because I made it clear to the anesthesiologist that I wanted to watch as much of the surgery as possible. The surgeon totally ok'ed my request, but maybe this anesthesiologist is not used to seeing crazy people like me who want to watch their surgery. Most people want to be put out for the entire surgery. Ugh. I wanted to see the cyst, I wanted to see the tear in the meniscus, I wanted to see the whole procedure. But no. I woke up and the surgeon was already halfway through cutting out the torn portion of the meniscus. At least I got to see the last half. The good thing about having local anesthesia is that you can pretty much walk out of the OR, get dressed and go home! I really appreciated that part. And best of all, SOMEHOW I HAVE NO PAIN. I don't even need my crutches. Maybe the surgeon pumped my knee full of morphine and it hasn't worn off yet, but whatever...I am grateful to be so lucky. Also, the surgeon said I can probably start swimming again in a week! So awesome!!!

Rod, please do let Skippy know she is missed! She is our sunshine...our lovely sunshine. She makes us ha-ppyyyyyyyyy, when times are graaaaay. If you talk to her, please sing that to her!

Bella, I am in NYC too! You sound like you're doing great with the workouts! I'm very proud of you.

Shiny, new arm definition is fantastic! And when the light hits your arms a certain way, and you catch it in the mirror, it's like "hot damn. I've been working hard!" Haha, I noticed new muscles after i started swimming. It was arm definition that I never had before. My arms have always been kinda just, eh, with no shape or definition. So I am always excited to see progress on my arms.

Hm, I think someone posted a dessert-y fruity thing last week. And it reminded me of frozen bananas as THE SECRET to having heavenly ice cream while watching your diet. I'm sure I've prattled on about this before, but I'll do it again. When your bananas start to get too ripe, instead of throwing them out, PUT THEM IN THE FREEZER! I usually cut them into slices and then put them in a ziplock bag. When you get a craving for ice cream or a delicious smoothie, blend it up with some fruit and a bit of soy milk or skim milk. Everytime I do this my husband doesn't believe it's just bananas. It's incredible. You must all try it.

Oh and DEEJAY! DustdustdustDUSTDUSTdustDUSTDUSTDUSTDUSTDUSTDUSTdust*DUST*dustdustDUST***DUST*dustDUST!!!! I hope all of your wishes and wildest dreams come true How was your ski trip?

 

[somethingshiny]

CJ~ YAY for a quick and successful surgery! Yeah, you''re a little weird for wanting to watch the whole thing. It probably freaked out the anesthesiologist. lol. Wow to being able to swim so quickly!

 

[Bella_mezzo]

Crown Jewel-Yep, NYC was miserable today--I had not one but two umbrellas turned inside out and my socks and shoes are still wet form this morning.

The workouts arent'' great, but I''m trying. Hoepfully this week will be better than last, AF kicked my rear!

Frozen bananas are amazing!! (esp if you put some choc chips and walnuts in

)

Glad your surgery went well, can''t believe you wanted to watch

SS-LOL about the baby like steak How far along are you? That is so special and exciting!!! That''s awesome that you are still working on your arms!


Rod-or anyone who talkes to her, please do tell Skippy we miss her and hope everything is ok!

 

[Skippy123]

Happy New week Friends. I have something I am working on so I won''t be on PS; I sort of have a deadline but I wanted to say Hi! I am exercising and eating healthy and miss all of you!!! Catch you all later and take care and I am thinking of my friends here

 

[marcy]

Hi everyone.Marty is one his way to California for 1 day; he’ll be back tomorrow night.

I have about 8 papers to grade right now but I am enjoying the new episode of Top Gear so will post during commercials.

I had my leftover steak and baked potato for supper. I love those quick meals – microwave to table to dishwasher.

I heard from Skippy; she is fine and working on a project that she needs to finish by February.I will pass on your messages to her.

Bella, yay for yoga and the shred.You are getting in some great workouts.Sounds like your food was good today.Sorry to hear it is so wet there.

Somethingshiny, yay for your arms looking better.They are tough to shape up.Too cute the baby was “excited” about steak.

CrownJewel, sounds like you were a star patient and came out of surgery well.How wonderful you can maybe swim next week.Frozen bananas are great.

Laters,

Marcy

 

[marcy]

Oops, I see Skippy beat me! Hi Skippy! We miss you.

 

[Bella_mezzo]

So, I did the shred YAY, the food...um, well...yeah about that.

I made pasta, but it was so late after I was done with the shred and DH took forever coming home from work, that it was almost 10 when I ate dinner. Predictably, I ate more pasta then I should have, I''m guessing about 2 full cups, plus a few bites when I was cooking, and we had salad and a little left over fro-yo. Not horrible, but definitely not what I wanted.

Tomorrow I am back on the measuring plan, it''s necessary

Skippy, Glad everything''s ok and I hope you meet your deadline and you are enjoying your project.

 

[charbie]

PS has been giving me fits trying to post. Grrr!
Last week was crazy busy with the bathroom renovation, but it looks incredible and was a ton of work totally worthwhile.
I had to leave work early today bc my mom landed in the ER this morning. She lives 2 hrs away, and she ended uup with kidney stones. She tried to wait it out but was in so much pain that my sister took her. She is doing much better now, got some medications, and has some follow up appts to get rid of them. She''s had them before.
I found out they had my gym up here, so after making sure she was ok, I was able to catch a spinning class tonight. I hadn''t been spinning in probably 6 months, so I was happy it only ended up being 45 mins! Kicked my booty, but felt good!
I''ve been doing ok with eats. Now that the gym is getting back on track, I need to get eats going right. I''m learning what my body likes, craves, and when. And then how to curb it.
Ok, its been a crazy day. I need a good nights sleep so I can head back home tomorrow and back to work...ick.

 

[Rod]

GRRRRRRRRRR......Like you Charbie, PS has eaten my post 3 times tonight. Here is all I was able to recover and I simply don''t have the time to rewrite what followed. Shame on me for not copying it before hitting send........GRRRRRRRRRR.

Hey.......at least Monday''s just about over. It was not a good day at work. Tell me......why do people lie? I had a candidate who is on a work Visa from India. Before I presented him to my client, I verified the status of his visa as there is a specific type of visa that can be transferred from one employer to another. I asked him all the right questions and he assured me he qualified. So, he interviewed, the client loved him and they were in the process of putting his offer together. Today the client wanted to start the visa transfer process and when we asked the candidate for the visa documentation, he had lied to the point that there''s no way his visa can be transferred and not only will he not get the job offer, but he''ll likely be deported. I was so angry (but I never let it show) that he wasted a lot people''s time, for absolutely nothing. Aggghhhhhhhh..........At least sushi tonight was good. Our friend and her daughter surprised us by showing up. We''re so predictable............

What a wonderful weekly opener Lorelei. When I first embarked on "Rebuild Rod" I denied myself everything. I now realize it was a mistake. Don''t get me wrong, I was successful, but I was depressed and felt so deprived of anything fun. As you know, I now have things I enjoy, in moderation and I make sure to treat myself once in a while, just not go overboard.

For some reason, I can''t read who wrote what below? I guess there''s an issue with PS tonight. So, I hope I don''t miss anyone.........

I see Skippy checked in. And I know you checked in on her Marcy. I did as well. Like she said, she''s just been a bit tied up. Skippy, we do all miss you my dear!

 

[deegee]

Great opener, Lorelei! Now that I’m in the maintenance phase, I’ve got to learn that balance you speak of. I was at an out of town meeting last week where lunch was catered in. I ate a brownie, and my gosh, it was the best brownie I have ever eaten in my entire life! I was licking the crumbs off my napkin and I have felt so guilty ever since. I have to learn the balance and be able to allow myself to eat something like that on occasion without beating myself up for days afterwards.

tlh - woo-hoo for beer and football! I used to drink 2 or 3 beers every evening after work, but now I might drink one icy cold mug with dinner at a restaurant once a week. Glad your weekend was good and you had tasty eats!

Hi shiny! I’m sure you’ll have killer arms by your sis’s wedding!

cj - Glad your surgery went well. Ewwww for wanting to watch! I throw up at the sight of blood, so I wouldn’t want to see anything!!

Hi skippy! Glad you checked in!!

charbie - Your poor mom. I’ve heard kidney stones are incredibly painful. Get some rest!

bella - I still measure everything. I know I’ll overeat if I don’t! You’re doing awesome with those workouts!!!

rod - sorry your day was bad and your candidate didn’t work out. What snack did you say you keep around - almonds & what? I’m trying to add a healthy snack in the afternoon since I’m allowed to eat a little more now.

marcy - Glad Marty is only gone for a day. Matt has to travel on Wednesday but will be back on Friday. Unfortunately I think our weather is going to turn really ugly about then! When you said you had your cereal measured out for the week, it made me think of my fridge that full of little pre-measured containers of fruit and vanilla yogurt, cottage cheese, single serving sizes of leftovers, etc. If I don’t plan, I don’t do well.

It was a long day, and tomorrow is going to be another long one. I’m trying to cut back on the number of diet dews I drink a day, and now I have a lack-of-caffeine headache and I have dozed off twice since I’ve been home. How long does this last? I got the glamour shots of my earrings from Whiteflash today and they’ll be here tomorrow. I can’t take the wait any longer!!!!! I’m a bad ps’er, and I haven’t learned to resize photos with my macbook and I have never posted pictures of any of my things (what little I have). I’ll have to practice so I can post photos tomorrow. Yippee!!!!! Have a great day everyone!

 

[tlh]

marcy- hope marty has a safe trip. I also love quick meals! Yesterday we crock potted some stew - and it was sooo good.

bella- mmm baked ziti! sounds delish!

shiny- *shakes the head* replaces one nasty habbit with another. That is never a good thing! I wish your friend the best of luck on his journey to quit smoking. and there is nothing more awesome than shapely arms!

cj- I''m excited that your surgery went well.. I''d be one of those folks who WOULDN''T want to watch - but your morbid curiousity is pretty cool! *wink*

skippy- glad you popped in! I know you''ll get through all your work stress w/o fail!

charbie- kidney stones, your poor mother. Glad she is going better, but my lord those must be painful.

Rod- wow, I cannot believe that he lied through the process. That is so frustrating for all involved. and probably scary for the candidate too. what a pity.

dg- Yeah I enjoy the taste of a nice cold one every now and again. I always ask myself am I enjoying this taste... or am I enjoying the effects. That usually ends after a beer or two anyway... and helps keep my calories in check. As far as caffiene withdrawl, If you go cold turkey, a day or two... if you ween - a week. I find weening works w/ 1 alieve - or bayer, since they both have a pinch of caffiene in them. Then you are addressing the issue (headache) while not still feeding the monster.

Everyone happy tuesday. First morning run post race. FEELS GOOD.. and COLD. I forgot how cold it was in the mornings. I am still pink bellied 3 hours later! It was nice and slow - and I''m still a bit tight in places, but I feel fine, even though I know I''m still in recovery. Going for another swim w/ the hubs. Couldn''t last week due to the storms. (It is an outdoor pool.) Yesterday hubs and I crockpotted my no peak stew. Basically fat free cream of soup, lipton onion mix, pepper, and stewed beef.... crock potted for 4-8 hours... depending and then served w/ no yolks noodles. It is pretty tastey, and always smells super good when you come home from work! Tonight we''re having a shrimp cous cous dish. Hope everyone is doing well today!

 

[Bella_mezzo]

You all are great!!!!

Rod and charbie-Sorry PS keeps eating your posts! I noe copy any post longer than 2 lines before I press submit just in case...

I feel horribly bloated today which is less than ideal, but my food for the day is planned and measured and it''s looking good (including a slice of pizza for dinner)

Spark people has me at between 1280and 1550 cal/day for my targets. I have been staying towards the top of that, but starting today I am going to try and stay under 1400 most days I think that will help make up for the days when I go over.

DH is from Louisiana and is dilerious with joy that the Saints are going to the suepr bowl, so we''re throwing a super bowl party!

Can you give me some healthy snack ideas?

He wants queso with meat (which is great since I am a vegetarian I''ll just keep one small portion for me without meat and I''ll put the meat in the rest of it)
and we''ll probably order pizza

other than that our friends are bringing stuff, so I want to be sure that there are some healthy snacks I can enjoy eating and still feel like part of the party...also, it will be dinner time, so I have to eat something

 

[somethingshiny]

Hello, all. I couldn''t post all day yesterday too.


Went shopping with sis today (7hrs) and finally found a wedding dress for her! The wedding is at the end of March. She ordered a dress and just got it in a couple days ago and it was a mess. They allowed her to return it. Then she tried ordering a different dress and was told it wouldn''t be in on time. Today we went to the BIG CITY and went to several boutiques. We found a gorgeous dress on sale! They even had most of her necessaries too! Tomorrow, the tomato who ate Tokyo--it''s my turn to find a dress.

Almost 4 months preggers, I''ve gained a lb or 2. I''m right on track for where I wanted to be. I had to put on the maternity pants but mostly I just look extra chubby!


HEALTHY SNACK IDEAS:

bean dip
spinach dip
veggies and hummus
lettuce wraps
homemade sub, you control the ingredients and portion sizes


Sorry for not posting to everyone! When I saw I could post at all I jumped right on, but it''s suppertime!!


Have a great tomorrow!!



HI, SKIP!!! Glad you checked in!

 

[Rod]

Hey......It''s already 10:45 and I''m just now checking in. It was a long day, but a not bad one. And I made it to the gym at a reasonable hour and I worked out REALLY hard. We still had some spaghetti leftover from Sunday''s dinner, so that''s what I had for dinner (yummmm). Sorry for this being so short, but I still have to check my work email and then get ready to go to bed.

deegee, I always have natural raw almonds and raisins in a tub in my desk. I take a couple handfuls in the morning between breakfast and lucnh and a couple in the later afternoon.

Hello to you all and I hope you''re Wednesday is good. I''m not going to the gym tomorrow night, so I''ll have a bit more time to say hey.........

 

[deegee]

Good evening everyone!

tlh - your crockpot stew sounds yummy. I love coming home when there is that has been cooking all day in the crockpot. The house smells awesome, and dinner's already mostly done. Yay!

bella - sorry you're feeling bloaty. I hope you find lots of tasty snacks you can make for a super bowl party. I'm wondering if our WW leader will bring recipes for that kind of thing tomorrow. She usually brings recipes for events like that.

shiny - glad you're doing well and where you want to be. Hope you found a dress!

rod - I think if I kept a tub of almonds on my desk, they'd be gone in a day or two! I'd have to portion them out in little baggies, bring one a day and leave the rest at home...I'm a snacker. I do need to add some healthy fats to my diet, and I think almonds would fit the bill.

I've decided I'm going to have to wean myself off caffeine slowly. My headache got so bad last night that I threw up, and it was still there when I woke up this morning. I drank a diet dew as soon as I got to work and my headache got a little better, but it's back really bad now and I have been out cold on the couch for the past 2 hours. I think I'll just do my normal thing for the rest of the week, and try again beginning Saturday. I drink a lot of diet dew, but I also discovered that the medicine I take for swelling has 100 mg of caffeine per pill, and I take 8 a day. I think that's why I started having caffeine-related problems, not because of the dew! My dr is trying to kill me!!!!

My earrings came in today, and they are GORGEOUS!!! I love them, with and without the jackets. I got home late and didn't take pictures, but I'll try to get one or two tomorrow. Have a great day tomorrow everyone!

 

[marcy]

Good morning.Time got away from me last night and I didn’t even get to PS until about 10:30 so I decided I’d best just get ready for bed.

I am leaving a roast in the crock pot today for supper and have the oven set to bake some potatoes.

Bella, yay for doing the Shred.It is so easy to overeat when you eat late.By then you are so hungry it’s hard to watch your portions.

Charbie, tell your mom to get well soon.Poor lady.That sounds painful.Glad your bathroom turned out nice after all that hard work.

Rod, wow that is really poor the candidate would like about his Visa status.How frustrating.

Deegee, maintenance is rough but I know you’ll find the right balance.Marty got home last night.I hope Matt has a safe trip.Weather is moving in here again too.Those premeasured foods work great.I don’t trust myself to just eat out of a big bag.Good luck getting off caffeine.I can’t wait to see your earrings and jackets – they sound gorgeous.

Tlh, I am cooking in my crock pot today.All we will have to cook tonight is a package of gravy and some veggies.Yay for getting back out for a run and your crock pot stew sounds marvelous.

Somethingshiny, how fun to go wedding dress shopping with your sister.

Well, I best go start the crock pot and get my coat ready.

Have a great day.

Marcy

 

[tlh]

Hi everyone, quick flyby. Hope all is well.. I''m being worked to death.

 

[marcy]

Tlh, take is easy!

Hi everyone! I hope you had a great day.

 

[Rod]

Hey......It was a typically tough day. The big boss flew in this morning. He had meetings scheduled with us individually. I was of course anxious, but my meeting lasted about 2 mintues and he said they were happy with my work, and he just wnated to know if there was anything he could do for me. That was nice. Charlie baked chicken with steamed brocolli. I''ll have some leftover chicken for dinner after my workout tomorrow night.

deegee, it you''d be inclued to snack too often, it would be a great idea to take pre-measured packets with you. I''m pretty good about only taking a couple handfulls in the morning and in the afternoon. Maybe I missed it, but why are you taking yourself off caffeine? I did that once cold turkey after one doctor told me it was bad for my prostrate. I had the worst headache I ever had and was grumpy for days. Then another doctor told me it was rediculous and there was no benefit (at least to me) to avoid caffeine. So, I went back to coffee in a big way. I never have softdrinks. I haven''t had one since "Rebuild Rod" began almost 5 years ago......

I''m glad Marty''s trip was short and safe Marcy. Sorry about more bad weather coming in. Yumm to a nice crockpot roast.

Hi tlh, we could form a "Worked To Death" club!! Anyone else want to join??

Hello to anyone I''ve missed the last couple days. I hope everyone''s week is going well. Just two more days till the weekend...........

 

[marcy]

Rod, that is great your meeting with the boss went well. Those are always a bit scary.

I am very cold so I am going to get my blanket warming up and get to bed. Marty sacked out about an hour ago.

See you tomorrow.

 

[CrownJewel]

tlh and rod, I''m cheering for you and all your hard work!!

deegee, wow I''ve never heard of such an awful reaction to caffeine withdrawal! Why on earth is your doc prescribing 100mg of caffeine 8x/day?! Yikes. I hope your weaning works better. I used to drink lots of coffee throughout the day but then I cut back to 1 cup (usually the biggest cup I can find in the office) before 1PM. There''s a great website that lists the caffeine content of your favorite beverages. Perhaps in weaning, you can substitute your diet dew with something that has less caffeine? Caffeine Database

I spoke too soon about the pain after surgery. Day 2 was miserable. I was on painkillers all day. Day 3 was better. Today is Day 4 and I think I''m strong enough to find a way into the shower. Ugh, the worst part of post-surgery is trying to get a shower, because I''m not allowed to get my leg wet. I think I''m going to wrap saran wrap around my knee and tape it really well. I have a conference call for work later today and I feel like I need to feel fresh for that. Haha.

The other problem is that I''m too lazy to cook and ordered takeout for lunch and dinner yesterday. And my body actually aches from being inactive. It hurts more than my knee! I cannot wait to get my stitches out and the bandages off. I''m going nuts being immobile.

 

[marcy]

CrownJewel, you probably should be doing bird baths - nothing can keep you from getting water on your knee and stitches and it''s not worth getting an infection. It is rough to be patient but trust me I had post operative infection and it is miserable. Feel better.

Long, horrid day at work. Stress led to brownie bites and now I am all buzzy from caffeine (feeling your pain there Deegee). Tomorrow will be worse as we are going to be down one person. Rats!

I am off to pay bills and grade papers.

 

[deegee]

tlh - sorry they're trying to kill you at work. I'm right there with you.

rod - I want to join yours & tlh's "worked to death" club. I'm ready to throw in the towel and become a stay at home doggie mom! Glad your big boss is happy with your work!! I'm trying to cut back on caffeine because I feel like I'm on edge and jittery all the time, and my heart feels like it's going to jump out of my chest. I'm having problems sleeping too. I fall asleep pretty fast, but then I wake up an hour later and can't get back to sleep. I've been getting about 2-3 hours of sleep, and I can't function like that!

cj - sorry to hear your leg gave you so much trouble after surgery. Did you wrap it up and bathe today? Like Marcy said, you definitely don't want to get it infected. I have no idea why I'm on such a high dose of a diuretic. I have issues with swelling, but I'd rather be swollen than feel crappy like I do right now! Thanks for the website.

marcy - sorry you had a lousy day at work. My little department consists of me and 4 other positions, and of those 4 I have 2 vacancies. I'm running another ad in the Sunday paper and I'm hoping for at least a few qualified applicants this time. Why do people who have not one qualification for the job respond to the ad?

Yesterday was weigh-in, and I finally maintained for 2 weeks in a row! I lost 5 pounds past my goal (65 pounds total) before I finally leveled off. I need to stay within 2 pounds of where I am for the next 5 weeks, and then I'll become a lifetime WW member. Woo-hoo! Matt is in Louisville until tomorrow, and will be picking my 13-yr old nephew up and bringing him back to WV to stay with us for the weekend. He loves coming to hang out here for the weekend - no sister, no bedtime, we take him wherever he wants to eat, and he & Uncle Matt play video games half the night. Can't beat that! Have a great Friday everyone!!!

 

[Rod]

Hey.....it''s about 10 PM and I''ve been home from the gym just a few minutes. It was an incredibly ''uber'' long day. The big boss decided to do some training, and wanted us all in at 7:30 AM. Yikes, I had to get up an hour earlier, which does not make Rod a happy camper. I''ve never been a morning person to begin with. I think morning is a punishment, but for what, I''m not certain.......LOL One good thing happened while the big boss was in and that was I had placement (a good thing indeed) while he was standing by my desk. And he heard me close the deal and he seemed happy with what he heard. I still wound up working till after 5:30. And even though I was really tired, I made myself go to the gym and I had a much stronger workout than I would have expected, given I was already beat. It''s amazing how exercise can reinvigorate you!! Thank whatever deity you thank that tomorrow is Friday.........I''m so ready for this week to end.

Marcy, I''m sorry it''s so cold. It was sunny and about 72 today (yes you can hate me - but I know you won''t!). Charlie was off today, so since it was so beautiful, he rode over to the beach and sat under a palm tree and read his book. I was so jealous of him for being able to do that on a work day...........I''m sorry you had a horrid day at work. Seems you need to join "Worked To Death" club. I think deegee is joining in too!

Crown, I must have not seen that you had the knee surgery, so I''m sorry I didn''t wish you a fast and pain free recovery. And I''m sorry to see the pain has been worse than you thought. I hope the pain goes quickly, the stitches come out and you''re able to get back to being active soon. I wouldn''t feel bad about having takeout. When you''re on the lam, you''re entitled to have comfort (even fattening) foods! You take care and feel better soon.

I''m with you deegee. We keep trying to win the lottery, but that''s not working out too well......LOL My boss says I''m so driven that she believed that if we did win, I''d still work. Let her think that. I''d give about 2 nano seconds notice if I became instantly wealthy!! I''m not even sure there''s anything in my office that''s so important I''d need to get it......On the caffeine thing, I drink two cups (well truth be told, LARGE cups) of coffee with caffein during the day, up to about 3 PM. After that time, if I have any more coffee, it''s decaf. You might try that as opposed to trying to get off caffeine alltogether........And finally, I had to laugh outloud about your question about why do people who don''t qualify for a job apply. Welcome to my life 5 days a week. I rarely post open positions as it''s a waste of time and I feel every person who applies should get a response and it''s just a waste of my time when I''m looking for a highly skilled Software Engineer and the Golf Cart Caddie decides to apply. GRRRRRR. Your experience is why I have a job. Employers get tired of the wasted time and hire me to find the right person, saving them time and frustration........

OK.....It''s late and I''m waaaaay tired. Have a great Friday everyone........it''s sushi night for us!

 

[marcy]

Hi everyone.I got my papers graded by about 7 pm and decided to go logon to Turbo Tax and see what we owe this year.We owe about $550 so that isn’t bad.

Tomorrow will be AWFUL at work but at least it’s Friday.

Deegee, sorry caffeine affects you like that.I had that problem when I was very heavy and I thought my heart would explode sometimes.Not getting enough sleep makes it worse (or so it did for me).Hopefully the doctor can get those symptoms taken care of so you won’t be so jittery and on edge.It is so hard to find qualified people.We’ll get 30 applications and most of them are either not qualified or over qualified and the few we decide to interview turn out to be “lulus”.Good luck.I am luckily fully staffed right now but you never know when someone wants to move on.Congratulations on doing so well with your maintenance.I am sure your nephew will have a blast on his visit.

Rod, rats for having to get up early.How wonderful to place a client while the big boss was listening.I don’t hate you or Charlie for enjoying the beautiful weather in Tampa but I do wish it was warmer here.It was 21 when we left for work today.Yes, I wouldn’t feel bad joining you, Deegee and Tlh in the work to death club.We have 2 slows months a year and they are about 5 months away.

Have a great Friday.

Marcy