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September 29, 2005

gravy train

no... i'm not on a dog food diet, but what i'm talking about is all the crap I eat. crap, i tell ya.

yesterday, lunch at Cane's. 500g fat, I swear. All of it good.

I was thinking, this morning, while making my granola-and-corn-flakes breakfast, about something I said to my health-nut aunt a few years ago. (Ok, maybe not so much a nut, but certainly more health conscious than I.) I told her it was just as cheap to eat in a restaurant as it was to make good meals at home.

Well, it all depends on what you mean by good.

Good could be breaded chicken-patty sandwiches on white bread with lots of hot mustard and a side of greasy potato chips. Cost: about $1.50, maybe.

Good could be mixed green salad with gorganzola, pine nuts, and fresh berries, with a light fruity vinaigrette. Cost: $6. And I'd probably still be hungry.

Good can be a relative term. Like the stew I made this weekend. I got 2 dinners out of it (and Nala had some too), and it cost me next to nothing. 3 meals, about $9. It was simple and easy, but wasnt too thrilling or filling. And was totally healthy. Lentils, diced tomatoes, carrots, onion, mushrooms, and chicken broth (only 15cal per cup). To me, it was just ok. I didnt spice it up, because I like to taste all the flavors before I season, and then experiment later. It definitely needed salt and pepper. And for good measure, I crumbled some crackers into it. Hearty soup, and edible.

Sometimes good is grease. My friend Jo Ann's retirement party (work folks only) is today, and there's gonna be TOMMY'S PIZZA. And that, my friend, is sometimes the best food you can get.

On a secondary note, while I love shopping for good ingredients (thank GOD our chain store is carrying local vegs now -- decent sized zukes and summer-squash), the specialty stores like Whole Paycheck and Trader Joe's are in the suburbs, and a good $3-5 worth of gas to get there. So, now, the plan is to carpool for groceries. CARPOOL TO BUY GROCERIES. I never thought I'd see the day.

It's worse for my parents, now that there's only one grocer in town... they have to drive 25-35 miles in either direction for food. FOOD. Not clothes. Not the movies. Food.

Ok, I'm rambling, and now I smell pizza.

September 15, 2005

behind the times, here, too

damn.

i know things have been bad. when we started looking for a house in April 2003, I quit going to the gym. I weighed between 185 and 190, and had seen marked improvements over the two years I spent with a personal trainer (although, looking back, I coulda been HOT had I actually gone to the gym more than twice a week).

by August 2004, when I went to the doctor, I weighed between 210 and 215. I told people 205, but really, it was more. I had a new doctor, and he was concerned as to what might be happening. My response: "I've been sitting on my ass for a year and a half, what do you think happened?"

well, now, thanks to the diet of the man I share my life with, and the fact that I only eat meals outside the house maybe 3 times per week, over the past year, I've now lost weight again, and am down to 180 lbs. Granted, I have lost some muscle, but I can again fit in my own pants. Which is important. I swore I would not buy 36's (but I bought one pair), and now all of my pants fit again. Which is good, because all my khakis with the elastic sides were worn out.

Yes, elastic sides. I was that desperate.

So, I'm happier. And healthier. And Nala has issued me a challenge, too...

To have a body like Jamie Bamber in the infamous towel-dropping scene of BSG Season 2, Episode "Final Cut". In 2 years.

It's time to get started.