So Much Happening!

I feel like I've got much happening over the next few days! I need/want to finish my Christmas shopping. I'm going to game night at Greg's and planning on bringing this super extra yummy buffalo chicken dip that my old neighbor used to make....it'll be a big hit! Plus, I have a date. I'm pretty excited about it. I'm trying to contain my excitement...just in case something happens and the date falls through. I'm good at sticking my foot in my mouth and ruining things. So I'm trying to keep my mouth shut! He's pretty cute. And he's a firefighter. And appears to have a sexy firefighter body in the pictures I've seen...I'm excited. Eek. I just squeaked.
Aside from all that, my ma is coming to the city for the holidays. It'll be her first time here so I'm trying to come up with a list of fun things to do. Here's some ideas I'm tossing around so far:
1. Lunch at the big Macy's that used to be Marshall Fields.
2. Walking the Magnificent Mile/looking at store fronts/shopping/seeing Christmas lights.
3. A drink at the Signature Room (How long of a wait?!?!?)
4. Navy Pier? I haven't been and it's supposedly pretty touristy but they have a good Christmas display.
5. Christmas Kindlemarket...errr...something like that. It's a German Christmas market that's supposed to be neat.
6. The zoo.
7. Hot Doug's?
8. A wine tasting at the GINORMOUS Whole Foods? Or go to a wine bar?

That's all I got so far. We'll spend 3 or 4 days in Toledo so really we only need enough to fill Thursday, Friday night & the following Thursday...but we should have options!

Ina's

We trekked over to the West Loop for brunch this Sunday. There was a new crowd so plenty of dishes tried! Now I'll go ahead and spoil this review by stating that this has been my favorite brunch place so far. Let's see, can I even list all the things I loved about this place?
1. They took reservations. No 45 minute wait for this group!
2. They had parking! I didn't have to take public transit or pay an inevitable ticket!
3. We sat down at the table to some fresh bread & rolls. It was so good - and fresh butter. Yum.
4. They came to the table with juice fresh squeezed in glasses & offered it to us. It's hard to say no to fresh squeezed juice! (Somehow I managed.)
5. The menu was good. Not huge but it covered the basics. Plus the specials menu looked really tasty.
6. I ordered the baked french toast with sauteed apples. It was soaked overnight then coated with a brown sugar/cinnamon crust and baked. Coated with some powdered sugar plus the butter & maple syrup I added....mmmm....heavenly!
7. They had chicken & waffles on the menu! I heard it was pretty good but I didn't get a taste.

So I also had the potatoes (good, no dill, see Bongo Room) and the ham. The ham was a little odd - more of a thick sliced lunch meat ham than the bone in ham I was expecting. But the flavor was good. The server was good & knowledgable, steering those of us with questions in the right direction.

Now I am enamored with this place. But I will point out the bad things - there was coffee cups & urns on the table. But they charged for the coffee. I didn't like that. If it's on the table it should be included at no cost. It's like if they charged us for the bread on the table or the water. Ridic. But I don't drink coffee so that's not that huge of a deal to me. Actually that's all I have for the bad things.

Pricewise, I thought it was fair. Everyone else said the food was "ok to good" but Greg, well, he likes himself the Bongo Room and I don't think anything else will measure up for him. If someone said "Hey do you want to go to the Bongo Room or Ina's?" Well, my answer would definitely be Ina's. I give this place an 8 - right alongside the Bongo Room.

(Pictures to follow if I can get my phone to work right)

FAIL

So I failed NaBloPoMo. Sorry guys. I drank a little too much Saturday night and should've blogged before I went out because I surely was not in any shape to remember once I got home. So that was a fail. However, Saturday night was so much fun! I went to a yummy yummy yummy (yes it deserves 3 descriptive yummy's) Italian restaurant. It is exactly what I want every Saturday night to be like - good food, good friends, good wine. My jeans may not like every weekend to include that...but that's ok.
I'll try to remember to blog again before next November. Plus there should be some brunch reviews starting back up soon.

Ok nablopomo

Lets keep this one short. I'm tired, just drove back in from PA and am not even really sure what time it is since my phone didn't update itself....probably.
Had a coke tonight. Not because I was craving it but for the caffeine. It wasn't as good as I thought it would be. Could my body actually be adjusting?!?! Delicious dinner at Italian restaurant tomorrow night then back to paleo.

Things I am thankful for....

1. The always enjoyable Thanksgiving at my Aunt Barbara's house.
2. Getting to know my cousins who I never get to see.
3. Egg custard
4. The fact that I can run however slowly that run may be.
5. Getting to see my sweet sweet puppy dog and knowing she's happy.
6. My family & friends
7. Being off paleo for 5 days.

Lash this!

So I got this new mascara....(sorry if the pics are out of order). I love it!! Look at the before and after! It is amazing stuff! And it even has a handy dandy mirror on the side! Nifty!

Glitter!!

Aw shoot I almost forgot to blog! Got a bit of a headache starting up. Not sure if from the orange Julius cocktail (tasty!!) or the half a giant cupcake or cake. I should've heeded Bryce's warning about going back to regular food.
Made glitter ribbon and gift tags tonight. Both a success and pretty easy although the ribbon was a bit messy. I'll make more when I get home! Look at me being all crafty!

Just in time!!!

I stayed out entirely too late watching the Bears lose miserably. And drinking too much. Water. I'm at 250 oz....hope that was enough to flush all the bad stuff out! Anyways I leave for PA tomorrow and have so so much to get done:
1. Go pick up a surprise for heather & aunt Barbara.
2. Pack
3. Get measured at the gym
4. Pack food that is safe to eat on the road.
4. Th

Perusing

I'm perusing the internet, trying to find pictures of things I want for Christmas. I've learned this is a necessity because I'll ask my mom for a winter hat and I'll get something similiar to this:

 

 

 

when I want something like this: (hint...this is what I want Mother!!)

 

 

 

And in my perusing I am finding the cutest DIY gift tags. They seem so easy. I want to try to make them. So, if you are getting a present from me this year, I might actually make a gift tag instead of scribbling your name on the box in a Sharpie.

 

Other pictures of things I want for Christmas:

 

 

 

Meatzza meatzza

Meat + zza= meatzza

I suppose I should blog

I guess I should so this. I was going to complain. I am in a bad mood. But I'm not going to. Instead I will be excited about my new Sonic Steam Mop. There's steam. There's sonic. There's a mop. I used it today....ill admit its the first I've mopped since I moved in 3 months ago. I know that's gross but get over it. It's mopped now. My floors were pretty dirty! Especially obvious on the new white mop pad...that got tossed straight into the washer! Oh yeah the mop head is washable! That's pretty exciting. Plus you don't need any chemical solution just water which gets turned to steam by an easy pumping mechanism. I'm not sure what's sadder about this post, the fact that I'm excited about a mop or that I spent Friday night mopping.

So sleepy

I'm tired. Therefore I'm going to keep this short. I'm having friends over Saturday night to play Cards Against Humanity. Think apples to apples but really twisted. It's going to be fun but somehow between now and then I need to find the time to mop, prep veggies so I have something to snack on, go to the store for meatzza ingredients, and pick up....again. I just picked up Wednesday. How is my kitchen table covered in junk again???

Oh almost forgot!!

Whoa now. I'm sneaking in here with this blog 30 minutes before my daily deadline!!
Why is it that I can get so sucked into Bath & Body Works? Does anyone else have this problem? I went in there to buy the plugs for wallflowers and ended up buying shower gel and lotion and scrubs. It happens every time! I have to limit my times I can enter that store because I'd go broke. And have way too much soap. I barely ever even put lotion on!! I intend to. But I don't. One bottle should be enough for a year for me. Why do I need four? Oh right, different scents. I mean I need a coconut lime for the summer. I like Dark Kiss for the winter. Vanilla Noel around Christmas. Carried Away is a good spring smell but I don't know if I love it for spring. Maybe the cotton scent? I seriously need to stay out of that store!

Continuing Education

I headed out to N'ville for the night to get some continuing education in. Overall it was a fail/win of a night. Here's why it was a fail of a night: I got VERY lost on the way out there. I followed what my GPS said but I still got lost. It tried to take me a different way than what I would usually go because of traffic. Bad move. I went through the ghetto "west side", under some el tracks and ended up lost. I was 10 minutes late but I didn't seem to miss anything of any importance except some schmoozing with the cute young dentist at my table. Next time CYD, next time. I was all prepared to be strong and to eat things that my diet would allow me to eat...ummmm...do you have any idea how hard that is when it's a catered meal?!?! There are carbs in EVERYTHING. Soup? chicken and rice. I ate the broth and the chicken but I was getting all the rice juices that seeped out into the broth. Salad? Came with dried fruit. I had given up at this point and figured I'd just cheat, it wouldn't be that bad but I would avoid really bad carbs (i.e. bread, rice, pasta, potatoes). I also thought the dried fruit was cheese. I was wrong. I wish it had been cheese. The entree was a filet (cooked a nice medium rare, impressive. I was expecting a hockey puck.), carrots and dirty rice.  I ate the rice. I know, I know, I said I wasn't going to eat rice! But it was on my plate. and at least it wasn't white rice. As though I weren't feeling guilty enough already, dessert came. It was a chocolate mousse pie with a half cookie dipped in whipped cream. I didn't finish the dessert if that counts for anything. I feel really guilty about eating all that. If I come close to winning this gym challenge but miss it by just a hair, I will be SO upset with myself. The food tonight wasn't even that good. But it seemed rude to just leave it on the plate and not eat it. Plus...I was hungry. It was there. I do feel badly.
Ok, enough of all that. On to why it was a win of a night: It was a good continuing ed class. I don't know that I necessarily LEARNED anything new...but it was all stuff that I would like incorparted into a practice I work for. Cutting edge stuff, new technology, new techniques, new materials. I like that stuff. The dentist that was lecturing? Well...I want to look into him because I would like to work for him. He seems to really know his stuff and just from everything he was saying, I know I'd be a good fit in his practice. Unless he's a big jerk when he's working but he seemed to be a really nice, genuine guy. The bad news? He knows my current boss and so would probably not try to poach his hygienist. But...I'm going to start doing my research to see if it's worth looking into.

Face fat

I had my fat points measured today to keep me from getting discouraged and eating ice cream. I can't tell you how good a hot fudge Oreo mcflurry sounds right now. Seriously. I can't. Because if I talk about it too much I'll want it even more.
I'm down 7 pounds and my face fat went down 1 point, my back fat down 8. I don't know what that means but it's in the right direction and the coach guy said that its good. I had him look over my log book and he said I was doing everything right but maybe eat a little more for breakfast. Also not to eat grapes after my workout. I like grapes though. And if that's the worst food I eat....I'm ok with it.
8 more days....I can do this!

Enough said

Papa needs some new shoes!

So I'm heading to the casino tonight. I woke up feeling in my bones like this would be a good move. Last time I felt this way, I won $200. I'm hoping tonight will yield similar results. We'll see. I'll update you later. But, as I'm prepping my energy for the night, "Born Under A Bad Sign" came on. The lyrics: "If it wasn't for bad luck, I wouldn't have no luck at all" Eesh. That might be bad. But my bones still say it's a good day to go.

Bond. James Bond

I went to see the new James Bond movie tonight, Skyfall. I was not unexcited about the movie because I had just been thinking to myself that I hadn't been to see a movie in quite some time when the invite came. That being said, I wasn't necessarily excited that the movie was a James Bond movie. I mean, I think I've only seen one other JB movie in my life. But, it was a movie and something lowkey to do on a Friday night.
It was a really good movie! I mean, it was a little ridiculous when they rode a motorcycle up the stairs and on the roof tops of houses. But beside it being silly, it was a good movie. I wonder why I don't watch more JB movies. Maybe that'll be my wintertime project. When it's too cold to go outside and I just want to curl up on the couch, I can have a JB marathon. How many are there? 12? 13?

Halfway point!

Tomorrow marks the halfway point to my gym's lifestyle challenge. Here's my progress so far:
I've been getting between 7 - 9 hours of sleep each night. I've eaten what I'm supposed to. Here's a sample day of what I eat.  Breakfast - 1-2 eggs. Lunch - london broil & spinach. Snack - pumpkin seeds. Dinner - sauteed veggies with ground beef in an all purpose latin seasoning. I try to take in at least 100 oz of water each day which was annoying at first but now it's like a challenge if I can drink more water than the day before. It does leave me running to the bathroom way more frequently than ever before but it means my pee is clear. I also aim to workout. That's probably been the hardest part for me. I am good at making it in to do Crossfit but I can only do that 3 times each week. It's those other days that get to me. I'd like to do some sort of cardio at least 2 of the other days and I always intend to...but then I get home from work and it just doesn't happen for one reason or another. I have lost 5 pounds already which is a good motivator to keep me from straying from my healthy path. My skin has started to clear up, which I was beginning to think would never happen. I have more energy. I wake up pretty easily. I go to bed easily. Aside from getting up to pee 3-4 times a night, I sleep soundly through the night. I don't know why I haven't been eating this way for years. Nor do I know why I won't stick with it once this is over...

Literacy!!

Well I finally decided to bite the bullet. I'm going to be here for the next year so I went and got myself a library card today. Now I was a little hesitant. I grew up in Fayetteville, NC where there was this really good library system. I thought all library systems were amazing! But then I got down to Charleston and...well...the library was pretty bad. There were NO books. Well, ok there were books. But old ones. And not good old ones.
One of my patients told me about this library up near me called the Selzer Regional Library so I got together my identification and went over there. The building is older but really pretty. They have all these really cool photographs on the wall of old timey Chicago. I could have spent all day in there. And I really could have because their fiction selection was actually good! I got some books that came out within the past year, as well as "A is for Alibi" by Sue Grafton. I've been wanting to try that series for a while but couldn't find a copy to start. This library had it. Am I weird to be like a kid in a candy store in the library? There is just something so soothing about the smell of the books, the quietness, the look of all those books. Well, I'm done blogging for today because I want to go read!

Cat Lady

So I'm quickly becoming a cat lady. Well, not an actual cat lady because I'm mildly allergic to cats so I won't have a real cat. But I should probably pick up some kitty food and bottles of wine when I'm at the grocery store because I'm going to be single forever.
Why would I ever say such a thing? Because it's true. My mom even tried to set me up with someone. Now I may not have had the most heartwarming response to this. I think I even groaned. I mean, it's my mom. Setting me up. Gross. But, as I was informed, when you hit 30 and can't keep a boyfriend, your mom starts to worry and has to take things into her own hands. Well. I guess I'm there. But then she didn't even set me up! I don't know whether to be relieved that I didn't have to go through with that or humiliated that even my mom has decided I'm going to be alone forever and therefore there was no need to try and set me up. Eesh. Either way...sad.
Now since May, after the demise of my last relationship, I decided I wouldn't date again for the rest of the year. I've stuck to that but now that the year is coming to a close, I'll admit I'm getting a little curious as to what's out there and if I'm missing out on anything. I signed up for match.com. I've tried internet dating before and had...ok...results. I mean, I ended up dating a guy for 2 years that I met off there. That didn't end well since I'm not as cool as pot. I dated a couple other guys for a couple months here, a couple months there. All ending in break-ups but I didn't get murdered. Figure I might as well give it another try. I'll either find the love of my life or get murdered. 50/50 chance right?
So. Here I go on Match. I've been on there for about a month. I've sent about 25 emails. Responses? None. I've winked. Responses? None. I've gotten emails. From 60 year old black men who don't want "a hood rat." I mean, I'm not a hood rat. But I'm also not interested.
I don't know. Is dating even worth it? I'm so on the fence if dating would be a good thing or not. To me, it seems like it just ends in heartache. Why do I want to put myself through that? Maybe I'm not actually ready to date since just thinking about it makes me want to bury my face in mashed potatoes. (for comfort...not for any other reason)

Football pool

I'm participating in the annual Wascak Football Pool this year. It's my first year and I was hoping to blow everyone away with my innate ability to pick the winning team. That is not happening. This week? 14 games. I picked 8 correctly. True that's more than half....but since when do the Bears win multiple games in a row?!? And the Giants? Well they won't be Superbowl champs this year if they keep it up. I need the teams that I think have the talent to win to do just that. Because I know what I'm talking about. So quit gabbing about your hair & nails and go play some football!

IMPORTANT THINGS

I wish I had important things to say. But I don't. I did have a pretty productive day - 3 hours at the gym, washed my makeup brushes, got my underarms waxed (they were super gross!) and made a tasty dinner. What did I make for dinner you ask? I had seen a Rick Bayless recipe that I decided to modify to make it easier and paleo friendly. It called for full live lobsters but 1)they are hard to come by and 2) I don't want to cut a live lobster in half. So I opted for lobster tails which happened to be on sale anyways! I also got some scallops and shrimp. Those all got cooked in a mess-load of butter (yum!) and combined with tomatoes, onions and poblano peppers which were also cooked in a mess-load of butter (double yum!). It was so good but I wish I had some bread to sop up the leftover buttery goodness. I thought about just drinking it but that seemed excessive.

*Insert word here* dipped in Ranch

Today was a rough paleo day. It started out ok enough. I ate a hot sausage (bad, nitrates, better than hash browns!) and an egg for breakfast. Lunch was a leftover porkchop with Bojangles seasoning (yum!! Thanks Heather for the seasoning) with some broccoli. This is where things went downhill. I had a long neverending day at work. I was hungry and tired by the time I was on the way home. I managed to drive past the McDonalds and resist the hot fudge oreo McFlurry that I've become addicted to. I got home and was ready to fall into bed but was oh so hungry! I had another sausage. I was going to go out and watch a football game with some friends but I had this overwhelming urge to dip everything in ranch. Seriously. Everything. Wings. Pizza. French Fries. Fingers. They didn't even have to be my fingers. I wasn't sure if going out was going to be the best idea. Me & Willpower are not exactly best friends. So I took a nap. Then I slept for four hours.  I know...some people get that much sleep overnight. Just a slightly longer than normal nap for me. I feel better now that I've awakened. Ranch would still be good but if there were a bottle of ranch in front of me, I think I could control myself and not drink the entire thing.

In other news, I had a patient in today who I have a mini crush on. He's clearly not interested in me. It's nothing to do with me. I'm about 99% sure he likes boys. But he's this really friendly, well-dressed, cute, little guy with the brightest smile. The girl who works the front desk said he wears this amazing cologne that makes her want to jump him but he didn't have it on today. I was glad he was the last patient of the day because he brightened up the last bit for me !

Bongo Room

Ok, I'm finally getting around to this. It only took me 2 weeks. Let's see what I can remember. There was a long wait, although they told us at least an hour and it was only 45 minutes. They were cash only because the credit card machine was down. I can't really knock them for that. It was a slight inconvience that resulted in my eating a couple Butterfingers in an attempt to get cash. But I did get to eat Butterfingers. So maybe that should work in their favor.
It's a cute little place though much smaller than I expected. Everyone raved so much about this place that I was expecting this massive room full of people. There was a room. It was full of people. It wasn't massive. I think it sat MAYBE 75 people. That would explain the long wait.
Our server was good. Not great. But good. He may or may not have had a beard. That's the extent of the impact he had on me.
On to the food: The pancakes? Really good! I got the blueberries and cream single pancake. I really like that you can order just one of any of their pancakes. That's a nice touch BR. My pancake had blueberries in it, blueberry syrup on it and - get this - creme anglaise! Uh huh. It really was that good. I love creme anglaise. I would eat it by the jug if I could. Gene got a salted caramel/pretzel/white chocolate type pancake that was good...but not as good as mine. Greg got a red velvet that he loved but I wasn't a big fan of it. We each thought we got the best pancake but I think everyone knows that I did. That's the extent of my good comments on the food. They had some potatoes (I think?) that were good but flavored with dill which is not my favorite seasoning. I can see why other people liked them though. It was just a little too dilly for me. And my omelet? I got a beef tenderloin omelet - which was clearly made with the beef tenderloin that was borderline rotten so they cooked the crap out of it and stuck it in an omelet. I shouldn't be surprised. It's brunch. That's what you do - use up your leftovers and throw them in some eggs. But I guess I forgot. I could've lived without eating that omelet.
Pricewise, I thought it wasn't bad for being in the South Loop (right in the downtown area). A little more than I'd like to pay for brunch but considering the amount of food & location, I don't think $20 is unreasonable. They didn't serve alcohol, which was ok by me, but I think $20 on brunch food with no alcohol is just a teensy bit high.
I gave this place an 8. Gene and Greg gave it a 10. or a 9.5. I don't remember because I overruled them. I might stretch it out to an 8.5 because the pancakes really were that good. But I'm still holding out for better.

(Note: with the Paleo challenge there may or may not be a slight hold on the brunch outings. Stay tuned for further reviews.)

Hey hey hey

Nablopomo is finally here again! I had a lot planned to say today but since I refuse to pay for Internet right now and my neighbors aren't being very generous I'm having to type on my phone. So I'm going to keep this short.
Started my gyms nutrition challenge today. If I win I could win almost $1500!! The likelihood of my winning is pretty slim but that doesn't mean I can't try! If I won $1500 I'd get the Internet. Just sayin.
Tomorrow: I'll finally get around to reviewing the bongo room. Finally!

Cafe Selmarie

Gene, Greg and I gave Cafe Selmarie a try today. This didn't go over so well with Gene and Greg because they had to come ALL THE WAY up north. It's really not that far. They were just being whiners. However, the Chicago marathon was going on today and I had no desire to fight the mega-crowds cheering on all those runners. Plus, I heard trying to cross the street was frightening. So we stuck to up north.
We had a short wait for a table today which was fortunate because we were super hungry. Greg was running a few minutes behind so Gene and I decided to start out with some "appetizers" while waiting. Gene got a multi-grain pancake, which he said was "not bad for a multi-grain". He opted out of the $1.75 pure maple syrup and stuck to whatever was on the table.  Tasted like syrup. Good cheap syrup...yummm. I got a croissant which was ok. A little crustier than I prefer though. I also started with a spiked hot chocolate. It's starting to get chilly up here so I thought some hot chocolate was exactly what I needed to warm me up. Except it wasn't very hot. It was in a large wine goblet. So it couldn't have been too hot. I got it with Irish cream. I don't think I like spiked hot chocolate. The liquor takes away the sweetness of the chocolate. In the future, I'll keep it plain.
When Greg arrived, we went ahead and ordered - Italian Benedict for me, Huevo Rancheros Benedict for Gene and a pesto-chicken scramble for Greg. The food was pretty tasty. The Italian Benedict was really good. The salami and pepperoni added a nice spiciness to the meal. The sauteed potatoes were just ok. Nothing special there. Gene agreed that the food was about on par with Sola. Greg had a hard time measuring up to his fancy Wagyu beef but that was expected.
Overall, we gave Cafe Selmarie a 6. The atmosphere was nice - a sunny, well-lit room that never got overwhelmingly loud. The menu was small but covered the basics. But there really wasn't anything that special or amazing about the place. Average with good food.

Sola - Brunch #1

Well, the annual foodquest has officially begun. This year's subject is Brunch. After all, who doesn't love a good brunch - hanging out with friends, tired from a fun (possibly rowdy) night before, rehashing the week before and after. (will need to work on more exciting things to rehash) Plus good food. The list of brunch places to be tested is still being finalized but we have a couple definites to start.

SOLA:

Sola represents itself as one part comforting, Midwestern hospitality, mixed with one part "surfer-girl" sensibility. I don't really know what that means but I liked the place. Things started off with a very short wait!! I was a little worried about the wait time - I'd heard stories of up to an hour! My friends and I planned to meet at 1, so I got there a little early to start our wait time out...it turns out I was frantically texting said friends as I only had a 10 minute wait. A nice start to things Sola....
As I perused the menu, I was impressed with their drink menu. It wasn't huge but there were good "brunchy" drinks. I opted for the Maui-mosa - champagne with pineapple and passionfruit juices. Yum! Greg got the Red Dawn Mimosa - champage with blood orange juice. Gene - well, he got hardcore with things since he'd already been drinking that morning. He sipped on the Rising Sun Martini - sake, mango vodka, blood orange and pomegranate juices.
We started out with the Malasadas - a Portuguese donut covered in granulated sugar and sitting atop a raspberry coulis/hot fudge medley. They were nice and flaky and not overly sweet. We each decided to go with a savory entree since the donuts sweetened up our palates. The huevos benedictos were...ok. That's all I can really say about them. I'm a slight cornbread snob, being from the south and all, so that really threw the whole dish for me. I enjoyed the chorizo/salsa/hollandaise combination but would have liked a bit more salsa. Gene's Short Rib Benedict got a pretty good review and Greg's Big Kahuna blew everything out of the water. But it's wagyu beef. Of course that's going to be good. You could saute that in a homeless person's urine and it would still be good. Sorry, off subject there.
Pricewise, we were all pretty happy with an average bill of $26. The ambiance was great -loud and friendly without being overbearing.
We decided this place would get a 7 out of 10...In hindsight, I think that may be setting the bar a little high. It was a cool place with decent food but that's all I can really say. Decent. I want "blow your mind" food. Since I'm in charge of this blog, I'm downgrading Sola to a 6.

Let's Give This Another Go

Ok so I made it through the 30 day Paleo challenge. Well, mostly. I had a few hiccups but they were pretty minor. I was pretty frustrated with it because I didn't lose ANY weight, my clothes didnt' fit ANY differently - and let's face it, I'm vain. These are the reasons I was doing the challenge. I will admit (as much as I hate to) that when I returned to my poor eating habits that I felt really bad. Like, hungover bad. I couldn't sleep, I woke up unrested (obviously the case with no sleep), I was crabby (more so than my usual self), I had no energy. It sucked. I figured I could buckle down, eat more bad stuff and work my way through the sludge and then I realized....I don't want to feel like that!
I'm starting over again - this time for a shorter time period. I'll go 3 weeks on, 1 week off. I'm also watching portion sizes since if I eat more than my body needs, it'll turn to fat - maybe I don't need to eat a whole 15 oz steak??? We'll see how this goes. I would update you all with more pictures but there is nothing new to see...maybe after this next cycle.
Oh and I'm also only doing one cheat meal a week. Y'all will like this - it's going to be brunch. Which means my new foodquest for the year will be...brunch!

Don't judge me!!!

Don't worry, I'm bring judgmental enough for everyone. As much as I don't want to post these for people to see, I need to be held accountable for the food/exercise choices I've made over the past ten years. Now here's the conundrum.....am I going to stay like this? Or get myself back to where I know I can be?

Days 4-now

Well I've actually stuck with this whole Paleo thing....but I haven't blogged about it. I did have a cheat day on Thursday...and another one yesterday but Sunday starts a new week so I'm safe, right? I think so. I've taken my fish oil daily. I've worked out 3x last week and will do so again this week. Sleep? Well we know that's not a problem.
I did find out that we can do "whatever we want" for the next 30 days and so I don't really want to learn (or at least document what I learned) something new every day. I mean, I'm learning stuff. But sometimes it's dumb things - like if I have a glass of wine or two I'm a much better parallel parker than when I'm sober. I think I'm less nervous that way. But I think that's not what I'm supposed to be learning. Eh, whatever.

Day 3

Food: Breakfast - 3 egg omelet with tricolor bell peppers and mushrooms - got full about halfway through, or maybe just tired of eating eggs so I will eat the leftovers for breakfast tomorrow. Had a kiwi afterwards to give my palate something sweet.
          Lunch - salad with lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, mushrooms & a ribeye. No dressing. 2 Strawberries for dessert.
          Dinner - Steamed salmon, carrots and onions
Snack: cucumbers and strawberries (not together) tonight was trivia night....not nearly as fun when you can't drink!!
Water Intake: 60 oz
Sleep: 9 hours - delightful!
What I learned today: Going to learn how to do a squat clean & a split jerk. Those are crossfitting terms. I don't really know what they mean just yet....
Fish Oil: Taken
Stretched: groin/hamstrings/shoulders/wrists
Workout: See above, what I'm learning.

Almost done moving. Decided to blog instead of carry stuff down to my car. But it's at least packed up. Then comes unpacking. Yuck.

Day 2

Food: Breakfast - 3 hardboiled eggs
           snack- rasp & blueberries. Lunch - grilled chicken, spinach, accidently 1 green bean. I should think before I eat but I'm a shoveler. Strawberries.
Snack: strawberries
           Dinner - ribeye w thyme, salt & pepper, tri color bell peppers cooked in organic butter.
Water intake: 66 oz
Fish Oil: taken
Stretched: full body
Workout: 400m run, 12 banded pullups, 8 handstand pushups, 40 jumps onto 45 lb weight....x4.
What I learned today: I need to learn to parallel park. I do not appreciate when people give me "the look" my dad used to give me growing up. Now it just makes me angry instead of me bursting into tears.

I feel good. Had a couple chip cravings today but nothing I couldn't handle!!

Day 1

Ok I'll update this as the day goes on but here is how things started out:

Sleep: 8.5 hours
Food: Breakfast - 3 egg omelet with onion and garlic, 1 granny smith apple, 16 oz water
           Lunch - Italian sausage on bun with Dijon, grilled onions, tomatoes, giardianaire. Pork taco sausage on bun with queso asadero, elote relish. Fries. A coke. Clearly a cheat meal. Thanks Hot Doug!!
           Dinner - Canned sardines and a carrot. Hadn't unpacked kitchen and it was already 9 pm.
Water intake: approx 48 oz total
What I Learned: learned lots today. I don't need to eat two hot dogs, how to put together ikea dresser. Appropriate paleo foods. Not having an elevator super sucks.
Fish Oil: 1 capsule....thankfully it's odorless!!
Stretched: neck
Workout: no

Ready & Rearing to go!

I've been working on moving all day today. New place is nice! I was hoping to stay there tonight but after working on the bed frame for almost 4 hours and then I was almost done but couldn't find scissors - I gave up! I'll stay there tomorrow night.
The Paleo Challenge also begins tomorrow so it's going to be a big day! I'll keep you all updated. I'm sure you're dying to know how I'm going to fare! I will admit that I'm going to start out with a cheat meal - Brother will be in town and we're supposed to go out for hot dogs for lunch. But I'll have a good breakfast and dinner!! And drink lots of water. No Coke...except at lunch!

Paleo-no!

I've had to take a few days off from Crossfit. I somehow managed to contract pink eye and I look creepy/am contagious. Either way I'm hiding out until this goes away. I've been discussing nutrition and wow -I'm so far off base. I will say I've always had a pretty bad diet but things have gone from bad to worse recently. I think with getting ready to move I've just been delaying the grocery store and so my dinner's have been anywhere from chocolate milk (yes, that's it) to chocolate milk and oreos. Yeah. I need work.
Here is the challenge that is currently lurking about. It's being put out to all the members and I'm looking forward/dreading it.

Here are some of the things that I am thinking about but going to need a point system of some kind and every thing (even water) intake has to be documented:
3 meals a day (at least) (paleo zone = best, paleo or zone, gluten free)
2 Cheat meals a week (What ever this is for you… it can be a pizza, it can be a gluten free cheat, it can be a piece of fruit)
Sleep: minimum of 6 hours a day
Learn 1 thing new a day (in your life or career)
Take fish oil every day
Workout 3-5 times a week
Stretch or rehab something every day
As you see this is very scalable across the board and there is some “life happens” wiggle room.
You guys/gals throw out some ideas on points and other things that we should measure. I was thinking we can go with posting a picture of everyone who wants in. If you bail or miss more than 4 points in a day you get a “FAIL” written across your picture. Then at the end all the losers do 50 burpees for the top 5 as they sit and laugh. If you call someone out on their log and it is not up to date 30 burpees on the spot, no exception.

I think I can manage most of this.
The learning 1 new thing everyday? Well, I'm sure I could learn some strange stuff but it'll be something new so clearly it would count.
The cheat meals? Oh I"ll be great at those although limiting it to only 2? Yikes! I'm already thinking of all the good things I can eat!
The sleeping thing? I got that easy! You may or may not know it but I'm kind of an expert sleeper. Just woke up from a 2 hour nap!
Fish oil? Bleck, gross...but I can manage it.
Working out: Just bumped my membership up to 3x a week and I enjoy it so far so I feel like I can do that pretty easy. Some soreness but that's ok. It'll be worth it!
Stretch: Meh...I'm supposed to be doing that for my chiropractor and am not good at remembering it. Maybe if I'm supposed to do it for 2 groups of people it'll be easier? Probably not. Meh.
So the only thing I'm not so sure about? This paleo/paleo zone/gluten free. I can do this. I know I can. I made it 40 days with no carbs with no cheat days. But paleo is so hard! It's supposed to be organic/free range/expensive meat, eggs, seafood as your priority. Vegetables are next - again organic is ideal but organic meat is more important than organic produce. Fruits are next followed by healthy fats. Coke is not a healthy fat. Nor is fried anything. At least I'm not attempting this near a Bojangles.
I'm still reading up on Paleo but that's about all I know so far. Eh...I'm sure I'll keep this all updated on here. Look forward to my misery.

You Want Me To Wha?!?!?!

Today's new skill: A power snatch hang....er...something like that. Basically I had to throw a barbell with weights on it over my head and catch it. Yeah, it went about how it sounds like it would. I was supposed to learn to do double unders too but with no jump rope, double unders are pretty much impossible. A double under is when you jump rope but the jump rope passes under your feet twice with only one jump. Yeah - I don't expect them to go very well.
Today's PR: 40#

Cry Baby Cry...Make Your Mother Sigh

Wow - rough day at "the box" (that's what the crossfit gym is called. Not sure why.) yesterday. There was a test going on to see if you could qualify to get into a class for the big bad crossfitters. Was I trying to qualify? No. Did I think there was any possible way I could make it? Heck no! But I did want to see where I was at with things so I could have a good starting point.
Unfortunately everyone was running around like crazy. The coach assigned a girl to work with me but she was also trying to qualify for this class so didn't have time to lead me around and show me what to do. As I backed slowly towards the door with tears in my eyes due to being overwhelmed and frustrated, the coach saw me and came over to help. I know, I'm now 30 years old. I should not be crying over a workout. But there was so much happening and I wanted so badly to jump in like I belonged there and I just had no idea where to start! I tried hard not to cry but eh. It happened. He explained that he knew it was chaotic but if I ever got frustrated or confused or overwhelmed to just come find a coach right away. I like him much better than the girl coach that was there. I'm pretty sure she saw me....eh, maybe she didn't. He gave me some options for what to do and set me on my way. After that and after completing the workout I felt better. Still a little lost but much less overwhelmed.
The good things about yesterday is that I learned how to do a front squat - performed with no weights so just a 33# bar. I also completed a hard workout of the day.
First goal for myself: Learn to do a pullup. Even just 1 single pullup all by itself. I'm going to start staying after class and doing 5 pullups each class, slowly doing it with less and less assistance. I'll get there.

I'm Baaaaaacckk!

I'm back. I decided it was time to do something about my uncontrollably increasing weight. After some thought, discussion and self motivation, I decided to try crossfit. I tried out a few gyms but decided that CrossFit Chicago would be the best fit. Mostly it just looked the least ghetto. I was also looking at attractiveness level of the coaches because the best way to get me to work out is to give me some sexy men to look at. Sexy women are ok too - it gives me something to aspire towards!
I've been at it for 2 weeks now. I'm starting small - only working out 2x weekly. Partially because it leaves me incredibly sore and I wasn't sure I could manage a third workout. Partially because it's really expensive and I can't bring myself to pay that much. However, in comparison to the other gyms I tried - it was much less expensive!
Now for those of you who don't know what CrossFit is, it is a workout that is constantly varied, functional movements executed at high intensity and scalable to your fitness level. That means scaled WAAAAYYY down for me!! Some examples of things I've been doing: weightlifting, rowing, running, situps, pushups, handstand pushups, squats, etc.
To motivate myself, I'll be posting before pictures on here shortly, with followup pictures to, well, follow. I'll also post my personal records for weightlifting so I can try to keep track of them. Here's what I have so far:
Deadlift: 75 pounds
Strict press: 40 pounds
Bench press: 53 pounds
Back squat: 63 pounds

I'm expecting those numbers to go up fairly quickly but I'm also working on improving my form so I don't end up injuring myself.

Cracking Up

I started seeing a chiropractor today. I've seen one before but never on a regular basis. Since I no longer have access to my favorite, most talented chiropractor ever...I had to settle for a new one here in Chicago. I'm still not decided if this new doctor is going to be amazing and change my life. She's a little small and she comes so close to cracking certain spots but never quite gets me there...it's a sad feeling.
I do like the approach of the office though - they approach they use is supposed to a)get me out of pain/discomfort and b)stop it from happening again.
So today was Day 1 - there was some adjusting, some laying on pillows with the physical therapist. Well, she wasn't laying down with me. She gave me the pillows and supervised me laying there. I was pretty good at it. Then there were injections of something called Sarapin into my "trigger points" which are little balls of muscle fibers that didn't heal as they should.
Then I got home and had an email with a list of stretches. I made it through the stretches but some of them, I'm supposed to do 3x daily! When am I supposed to find this time!?!?! I mean I could do them while sitting on the bus riding to/from work but that would look weird. I don't want to be the weird person.
I go back on Wednesday for Day 2 of more of the same things...fingers crossed this fixes my posture/back/neck pain!

Pumped Up Kicks

I bought a new pair of work shoes today. We're required to wear black or grey shoes, although my current pair is black with sparkly purple toes and they've been ok. The only thing is they start to hurt my feet. I'm not sure if it's the floors (not much cushioning) or if it's the shoes but I've had my eye on a pair of shoes for a while and was waiting on them to go on sale. They're Pumas. Pumas NEVER go on sale. Well, hardly ever. And if it's a really good sale, my size always sells out before I can get to a computer. So when I got an email this morning saying 25% off for Mother's Day, I realized my mother would want me to have a new pair of shoes!
I have 2 other pairs of these shoes, but in different colors. I always get compliments on how cool/cute my shoes area. My other pairs are an electric blue & pink, or purple & a pinkish orange. They are pretty cool. I didn't realize it when I bought them but they are running shoes and are actually pretty comfortable to run in. There is not a ton of support but that's ok with me. They have a really thin sole and are basically just mesh covering the rest of your foot.
Aren't these just the coolest shoes you've ever seen? And they are all mine!

Hello, I'm Jaded!

I should wear a name tag that says My Name is Jaded. Because that's what I am. My friend Jess asked if I wanted to go to a match.com happy hour thing that she got invited to. She knows most of my dating history and as a fellow single girl, she's usually willing to help if she can. I replied with a cheery "sure, that sounds fun. I might be a little late since I have to work but I'll get there as close to 6 as I can." Things seemed settled - happy hour/potential love interests, here we come!
Then she asked how things were with B. I told her I hadn't heard from him in a few days and I thought he had lost interest. It sucked because I liked him but I pretty much expected it to happen. It always does. She was like "whoa, did you try to get in touch with him?" Of course the answer to that is no! I could have called or text him but he made it very clear at the beginning of the week that he was going to be busy. Clearly that meant too busy to call or text. And if he's too busy for me...well, I can pretend to be too busy for him! She paused as though she though I were being silly (which I am) and said "well, maybe he really is busy this week" to which I replied with a "yeah but he could have taken 2 seconds to send a hi text...if he was thinking about me and really that interested, he would have been in touch. And he wasn't. So he isn't." I explained to her that really, it was ok. B was a really nice guy and he was sweet and great but sweet/great guys don't stay around. Not for me at least. I was ok with it, it was a fact of life and I had gotten used to it. I was tired of putting myself out there and getting stomped on...so I just wasn't willing to invest myself by making a phone call or sending a text. Maybe if I knew he was interested...but at this point, it's early..not too late to duck & roll out of the way of the mack truck heading for my heart.
I think Jess is regretting asking me to this Happy Hour event now. Not that I can blame her. She made me promise not to be a Debbie Downer, to which I obliged. I explained I was ok with guys buying me drinks and chatting. It's the whole dating/relationship aspect I wasn't wanting, but the likelihood of that happening at a dating happy hour - none!

Feelin Like Booty

Yuck. I don't feel good. I've been feeling pukey and gross the past 2 days...there has been something going around here because I've had a few patients who have come in with a cold or something. I hope I didn't manage to catch it but it seems as though I did.
I usually have a pretty solid stomach at work but today was not good. There is a cuspidor (spit sink) in my operatory which I strongly discourage people from using but my first patient this morning would not listen. And what was even worse was he wasn't even rinsing with water and spitting diluted blood out. It was just straight up, super bloody spit. And when I say super bloody it was so gross. This guy couldn't have been flossing EVER and wasn't doing that good of a job with a toothbrush. If you don't want it to be such a bloody mess when you're in the dentist, it might be a good idea to do at least a mediocre job with homecare....Also, if you don't want me to puke, maybe you shouldn't be so gross.
Gosh, if I haven't turned away a few readers with this post, I don't know what will!! :)

Dinner Party

I hosted a small get together at the house tonight. I invited a few friends over and tried my hand at mexican food. My guacamole got pretty good reviews. I also made mexican potatoes & chile rellanos, as well as tacos. Oh and you can't forget the margaritas!! Everyone said it was very good, but you know me, I am clearly going to be a little more critical than the average person.
My guacamole was too chunky. I didn't have a masher and did the best I could with a fork. My potatoes were good...but would have liked a little more flavor. Therefore the chile rellanos they were stuffed in were lacking in flavor as well.
I tried though. It was almost a dinner party (see 30x30) and at least an attempt at chile rellanos (also 30x30). There will be another attempt when I'm ready to brave this again.
I did invite The Guy's friend over to my party...he was nice. He was very gracious for being invited over...I hope I made a good first impression. After all, if the friends like me, The Guy should like me even more!!

Deflation

Yikes! I just reread the other day's post and I sound really self-centered and stuck up. And really really full of myself. I didn't quite mean to come off that way...it's just a strange sensation and I was just sharing. It's just weird because I think I'm cute...but I'm definitely not "hot" and so to be called pretty (to me, same thing as hot) is just odd.
Anyways, in order to fix that, I've been eating tons and tons, thereby gaining back all the weight I lost over Lent. I'll fix that overinflated ego of mine!

Whew!

Phone is fixed! It meant restoring it to factory settings, which meant losing a few unsaved phone numbers and my Tiny Tower...but it meant a working phone. It didn't cost me $1 million dollars like I was expecting either. It was free, aside from the whole losing Tiny Tower thing. That cost dearly. I was at 56 floors and 100 bitizens! Not anymore. I'm at 3 floors, 5 bitizens. Big deduction.
I had a great day off though. I got my underarms waxed (so needed!), had a good lunch and got my haircut. However, I have one big problem. I know this is going to sound horrible and self centered but I really need people here to stop commenting on how pretty I am. I mean, it's nice to hear but awkward when I have my shirt off and getting my underarms waxed. Also, it's starting to go to my head. Now I don't want anyone to be like "dang, that girl is ugly. Did her daddy beat her with the ugly stick?"...but I'd also like to be able to go to the bathroom without someone stopping me. It's awkward and unneccessary.

What a Day

I don't think I'm going to like today. I woke up to a really good dream at 6am and realized I was wide awake. Nevermind that it's 6am and I'm off work today. I thought I'd go ahead and wake up. I rolled over to check my cell phone and had a text from a friend so I responded....and had no cell phone service. My phone repeatedly says it is searching for a signal and so I think (based on a 7am phone call that lost it's signal before I could answer) it is sending said text over and over. and over. and over. I'm pretty sure my friend hates me right now. I know I would. It's too early for phone malfunctions.
Fortunately I'm off work today so I can go over to Verizon. Hopefully it's an easy fix because I have no intention on buying a new phone today. If it's not...well....hmmm...can I really go 3 months without a cell phone? That's when I'm eligible for my next "free" phone. I say "free" because there are very few (*none) phones that I would want that you can get for the $150 allotment they give you.
Yikes...what a start to the day. So much for productivity.

This is a toothbrush.

I think I need to come up with a picture book for my patients. It would go like this:
This is a toothbrush. (insert picture of toothbrush)
This is a mouth. (insert picture of mouth)
This is where you stick the toothbrush. (insert picture of toothbrush in mouth)
No silly, you want to use the end with the bristles! (insert picture of toothbrush with handle end in mouth. Person looks confused. Insert picture of toothbrush with bristle end in mouth. Person smiles and looks confident.)
This is how you use the brush. (Insert a moving picture, like in the Cracker Jack box, where brush moves back and forth)
This is floss. (Picture of floss)
This is how you use it. You should use it more than every 3 months when you see me. It's beyond gross that you have had food sitting there since then. It's rotting & fermenting between your teeth. (Insert picture of rotting food that appears to smell very badly.)
You should be able to keep your own teeth clean for 3 months. There is no reason for you to need to see me on a monthly basis. (Insert picture of me, looking sad, mad and grossed out all at once)
(Insert picture of monkey brushing his teeth.) If he can do it, you can too.

Sunday, where are you???

I do not want to work tomorrow...I usually don't mind working Saturdays but I have absolutely no desire to go in tomorrow. It should be a pretty easy day. Saturdays usually are. Afterwards, I'm going to dinner with my friend Jane so we can catch up, it's been a couple weeks since we've been able to hang out so that should be fun. Then I'm going to see a cover band, 16 Candles with another friend at night. But what I'd really like to do? Sleep. Sleep in, take naps & go to bed early. I feel like I haven't been able to catch up on my sleep since getting back from NC.

Brrrr

Does it ever warm up here in Chicago? I'm beginning to think no...it doesn't help that I accidently forgot my jacket in NC over the weekend so am having to stick to a hoodie until it gets here.
Things have been going well with the dude - we hung out the other night and are going out for sushi tonight. We'll see if he still likes me when he sees me devour some raw fish.
So while I was NC I got this weird text from someone saying hi, amongst some other things...but I don't know who it was! I either deleted their number at some point or it got erased when my phone crashed. I asked who it was but they didn't answer me...now it's killing me! Who is the random person?
Also, I'm working on planning a trip down to SC to see my cheerleaders last competition. I promised them I'd try my hardest to make it and now it looks like I'll be able to...except someone is being an uber-witch about me going. She is pretty much refusing to ride in a car with me for 3 hours. I mean, I get that she doesn't like me anymore (not exactly sure why...would love to know) but aren't we adults? Can't we at least be civil to each other? I'm not asking her to be my best friend again...and so far as I know, all I did was move. I didn't do anything super horrible like hit on her husband or steal all her money! Yes, it messed things up but you'd think my best friend would recognize that I was unhappy and needed something different. Just knowing the tension and hatred that will be emanating from her makes me almost want to cancel my trip...

Yay!

So my date the other night was really good - I had high hopes for it anyways. We went to a play called The North Plan - it was pretty funny. Then we tried to go to a wine bar but the one we headed towards was closed...so we went to Hamburger Mary's (the food smelled soooo good!) and had a couple drinks, then it was home by midnight. And don't worry - my outfit looked adorable!
We're going out again tomorrow night, this time for fondue. Apparently the night I met him I mentioned that I wasn't eating carbs for Lent (that's come up a lot...it's on my mind a lot!) so he searched for an Atkin's restaurant where I could actually eat something. Since such a restaurant doesn't exist, at least not in Chicago, we're going to fondue. Soooo...I have to withstand the bread. Other than that I can eat everything else. Oh and no chocolate fondue. Unfortunately those are my 2 favorite things!!!
I'm a little suspicious though - he seems a little too, well, functional. He's really cute, dresses pretty well, is nice...and hasn't tried to get in my pants. I know it's only been 1 date...but compared to others...he's a winner! I'm waiting for whatever is wrong with him to show itself though...

Whoa Crazy!

I had a dream about C the other night. I dreamed he was pale. Like hadn't been going to the tanning bed. I almost didn't recognize him. Plus he was...well...not fat...but not lean. Like he actually had some meat to his face. Hmmm. Weird.
In other non-related news, I have a date on Saturday. We're going to see a play at the theater. That's right, I'm headed to a fancy date. Well, not fancy...but just something that I never could have done in Charleston. Well, I guess I could have..but I didn't really know many people (and certainly not guys) who went to the theater. I'm a little nervous but mostly because I'm not sure what to wear. I'm leaning towards skinny jeans, a pair of flats and a cute top. But he's a little taller, so should I put on heels? I wish I had some of my summer tops here - I could pair it with a sweater and be ok but they are still in NC until next week.
Speaking of which...I'm headed home next week! I leave on Wednesday. I'm so excited to see everyone. Also to eat Bojangles. I have done mostly great with the no carbs thing but I'm ready to make up for that with a dozen biscuits and some fried chicken.

Ready for Sunshine!

Well we had a few really great sunshiney days. It was so nice - mid 70's, so hot but not too hot. The sunshine was just enough to warm my cheeks! It was amazing! But now? It's back to 50-60 outside...and windy. I took my bike out for a ride today, thinking it wouldn't be too bad but man, it was really cold! With the usual wind plus the wind I created with my speedy bike (haha!), my fingers were numb.
Anyways, when it finally gets warm again, I want to get a pair of roller blades. That'll be my next exercise activity to do along the lake front. Oh and guess what? The water here? It's blue! I don't know what to think of that. I'm used to the murky brown Atlantic...it's so pretty to look out and see blue water!
Ok I have to get back to my latest exception: Tiny Tower. It's a game on my phone and it's so pointless but so fun. You create an apartment building and you keep building new floors, which are residential floors or you pick a business to operate from that floor. Then you try to employ your bitizens (not a typo, they're itty bitty!) in the type of business that they like to work at. Like I said, pointless...but addictive.

Oops!

Sorry I've been so bad about blogging lately...I've been working a lot and have been super lame. Here's a sample of my usual schedule: Wake up, go to work, come home, make dinner, get ready for bed, sleep. Repeat. I know...no fun! But, I've been working 5-6 days a week for the past month which has been nice. I got my credit card paid off (yippee!!!) and need to call to make a decent size payment on a student loan.
Let's see...what else is new? I'm not eating carbs so have managed to lose 8 pounds but have been stuck at that mark for about a week. It sucks...it was actually pretty easy at first but now it's starting to get hard to resist temptation. Just 2 more weeks....
I bought a bike! I rode it to work today and got there faster than what the bus could have gotten me there. However, it sprinkled on my way home so I got a little wet. I need to take into account that the weatherman isn't 100% accurate and if he says rain at 5, it could mean rain at 3:30.
Aside from those couple things, I've got nothing exciting going on. I'll try to find something exciting to get into so I can blog more frequently....

It's Gonna Be A Good Day

Here is the view that always makes me smile as I come around the curve. That morning smile always lets me know that it will be a good day. So much hope, so many big things in this view. (also so much traffic...)

Inspiration

Yesterday's post inspired me to get a move on some (by some I mean one) of my goals. I'm wearing my fashion scarf today. I watched the video my mom sent me with all the different ways to wear a scarf and I decided to go with the "infinity" look today. I like it! That makes 2x out of 5 with the fashion scarf and I plan on wearing it again on Sunday. It'll add some pizzazz to my outfit then!

Update on the 30x30 list

The deadline swiftly approaches! I only have 5 more months to complete all this....ugh! So much to do! So little time!

As of 2/5/2012:

1. Run a 10k in less than an hour. (can run 1 10min mile and follow it up with a 2nd slower mile...a ways to go!)
2. Skydive.
3. Go on a week's vacation. (Done in July, went to the Outer Banks)
4. Go skiing. (Didn't happen Thanksgiving, hasn't been much snow, hoping maybe sometime before mid March, I can go to Wisconsin for a weekend.)
5. Pay off credit card. (almost there! Will get this finished off when I get my next paycheck.)
6. Stay at a bed & breakfast.
7. Pay off a student loan. (hate student loans!)
8. Move to a new house or new city. (COMPLETED! 10/31/11)
9. Complete Rosetta Stone - Spanish. (have it...haven't worked on it.)
10. Get orthodontics, an implant (tooth, not boobs) or Lasik.
11. Start an herb garden. (COMPLETED!! SPRING/SUMMER/FALL 2011. ABANDONED UPON MOVE. GREW BASIL & ROSEMARY. THYME DIED.)
12. Buy a piece of grown up furniture. (Real wood, no assembly required.)
13. Learn the history of the city I'm living in. (I bought a book, Chicago: A Biography, still working on reading it. It's boring!)
14. Go to speed dating. (Completed. Did not enjoy it. It was like 10 bad dates all crammed into one evening. Very discouraging.)15. Go to Schlitterbahn. (coolest water park ever!)
16. Get a standing tuck by myself.
17. Pay for the car behind me at the drive-thru.
18. Host a dinner party. (for 6 or more, at least 3 courses.)
19. Learn to shoot a gun. (COMPLETED! 5/19/11. AWESOME!)
20. See a Broadway play. (COMPLETED! LES MIS 11/10/11. SO FUN!)
21. Get my underarms waxed. (Hurt so bad!!! The first time. Came home and put frozen veggie bags under my arms. Second time? Piece of cake and so smooth!)
22. Go camping. (real camping. in a tent. in the woods.)
23. Buy a cute guy a drink.
24. Buy a fashion scarf, wear it 5x. (Bought, worn once 4/16/11.)
25. See a dermatoligist.
26. Learn to make good chile rellanos.
27. Get bangs. (Holly Golightly-esque from Breakfast at Tiffanys?? too short??)
28. Take a flower arranging class.
29. Learn to shag. (know the basics, would like to learn more advanced...prob won't be too easy in Chicago!)
30. Get my nose pierced. (COMPLETED! 3/18/11)

Meat Sweats

Ugh. I am so gross. I was mad craving cheese fries today and didn't want to be disappointed so I headed over to Outback. Of course, I didn't just eat cheese fries. Because who can do that? Here's what I had:
Small order of cheese fries: 1292 cal (It serves 3...I ate all of it. alone.)
House salad with tangy tomato dressing: 216 cal
6 oz Sirloin steak: 254 cal
Side of seasonal mixed veggies: 96 cal

I can't find the nutrition info for the entire loaf of bread I ate, slathered with butter. So for dinner tonight, I ate 1858 calories. Oh wait, I almost forgot the coke! I had 1 full glass of Coke, which is approximately 220 calories, which brings my total up to 2078. The average woman should consume 1500-2000 calories a day. So if I didn't eat lunch, I would be ok...except I did eat lunch. You can just start calling me lard butt.

(In other good news, I did run a 10 minute mile the other day. There is no way I can pull a second mile out at this time but I'll start working on that in a few days)

A Little Nugget For You

Take My Love With You

I'm listening to Eli "Paperboy" Reed...good stuff. So guess what? I'm going home!! No, not for good! But for 2 weeks. I'm super excited, I feel like it's been so long since I've seen everyone. I'm going to get to see the Wilkie's, go try Uncle Alan's new restaurant, see J2's new baby, see the nephews....I know I usually only made it up to Fayetteville a few times a year when I lived in SC but I just feel so far away from them now! So I'm super excited to see them all!
I'm also going to go down to Charleston for a week. Now, I know part of the reason that I left was because I felt like I didn't really have any friends down there. But once I made the decision to leave, people wanted to hang out with me....you want what you can't have? They suddenly realized how awesome I was? I don't know, but I have enjoyed keeping in touch with the people who did come to my rescue! I can't wait to see them all again! I'm going to go to a competition for my cheerleaders - they are having a great season so far so I hope that streak continues! I'll have a movie night with Chrissy (One for the Money), dinner with Debbie & Malinda, hang out with K2 and Britney....I'll even get to work with Dr. B's office! Yes, I know, I'm going to work on my vacation, I'm lame but I miss them a bunch!
I'm not ready to move back yet, I'm still enjoying the big city life. Just want to clarify that...but Feb 1 can't get here soon enough!

A misunderstanding....

I think there was a slight misunderstanding with yesterday's blog post. When I said that my aunt and uncle should grow all the food/turkeys for Thanksgiving next year, people took that to mean that I would be the one growing the food. As much as I would like to be the provider of awesome - I live in the city. The only outdoor space I have is a 8x3 balcony, which faces east and therefore is not good for growing things. It's true. I've checked into it. I need a south facing growing space. I'll add that to my list of necessities when I'm getting my own place.
So, until then, it looks like we're back to Maryland for Thanksgiving!
There was also a misunderstanding with the new dude about Wal-mart. I think he misunderstands how much I hate Wal-Mart! From the depths of my soul. I don't get worked up about all that much and usually just shrug things off, thinking "eh...you're wrong but whatever." But I almost got in an all out screaming match with him because he goes out of his way to shop at Wal-Mart! He agreed to watch my favorite documentary "Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Prices" with me so maybe he'll change his mind....if you haven't seen it, you should watch it! If he doesn't change his mind...well...will Wal-Mart be the end of us?

Planning Ahead

Now before I start this blog entry, I know, I'm way ahead of time on this but I have to be! I got to thinking about next Thanksgiving. What will we eat? Will I be at my normal Thanksgiving spot? Well, here's what I propose: I propose that my aunt & uncle who love me dearly (it's true, they do) plant a garden. I think that this garden should grow delicious things. Things like parsnips and brussel sprouts and celery and onions and potatoes and herbs. Oh and pumpkins. We can't forget the pumpkins!
Why would they ever grow all this and where will they find the room? Well, they could install some grow lamps inside (no, not for marijuana!!) and between the basement and the backyard, surely we could create a feast. Because next year, we're going to grow our on Thanksgiving! Don't you love that idea? How good would it feel to know where all our food came from (not the grocery store!) and to eat all of our (er...their...)hard work? I can taste it now! It's gonna be great!
We can bake our own bread and use that for stuffing. We will chop up the celery and herbs and onions from the backyard and stuff it in their turkey they've been raising! Oh...no turkey? I can't talk them into that? Well, ok, we can buy an organic, free-range, hormone free, grass fed turkey. I'd also like that turkey to have eaten some apples. I want to taste what the turkey ate when I eat the turkey!
I'm excited about this already! I can only imagine how much the excitement will build up over the next 10 months!

Chicago Based Movies

Since I'm living in this big exciting city and plan on going outside as little as possible until this magical, sparkly white stuff goes away - turns out it's really cold! -, I figure I'll make a list of movies that are set in Chicago and make my way through them. Feel free to add to the list if you know of any others!
There are 187 listed here though so I'm fairly sure this list will keep me busy for the remainder of the winter. and next. and the one after.

A About Last Night... Above the Law (film) Adventures in Babysitting Airport (1970 film) Alligator (film) American Gun August Rush B The Babe Baby on Board (film) Baby's Day Out Backdraft (film) Bad Boys (1983 film) Barbershop (film) Barbershop 2: Back in Business Beginning of the End Betrayed (1988 film) The Big Brawl Blankman The Blues Brothers (film) Brannigan (film) The Break-Up The Breakfast Club Bridesmaids (2011 film) Bridge (1988 film) Butterfly on a Wheel C Call Northside 777 Candyman (film) Capone (film) Captain Ron Chain Reaction (film) Chicago (2002 film) Chicago (1927 film) Chicago Overcoat Child's Play (1988 film) Child's Play 2 Class (film) Club Paradise Code of Silence (film) The Company (film) Continental Divide (film) Cooley High Curly Sue D Damien: Omen II Death of a President (2006 film) The Deep End of the Ocean (film) Derailed (2005 film) The Dilemma Dillinger (1973 film) Diminished Capacity Doctor Detroit Dragonfly (2002 film) Dutch (film) E Eagle Eye Eight Men Out Endless Love (film) Everyone's Hero Evil Angel (film) The Exile (1931 film) F Ferris Bueller's Day Off Flags of Our Fathers (film) Formosa Betrayed Fred Claus

F cont. The Front Page (1974 film) The Fugitive (1993 film) G Girls Just Want to Have Fun (film) Glengarry Glen Ross (film) Grace Is Gone The Great Ziegfeld The Grudge 2 The Grudge 3 Guilty as Sin H Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer High Fidelity (film) Home Alone (series) Home Alone Home Alone 2: Lost in New York Home Alone 3 Home Alone 4 The Hunter (1980 film) I I Love Trouble (1994 film) I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With I, Robot (film) Immigrant Nation! The Battle for the Dream In Old Chicago J John Q The Journey of Natty Gann Judgment Night (film) Just Visiting (film) K The Kennedys (TV miniseries) Kissing a Fool L User:Eberman613/Enter your new article name here The Lake House (film) A League of Their Own Leatherheads Limit Up (film) Little Caesar (film) Little Fockers Little Man (film) Love and Action in Chicago (film) Love and Other Drugs Love That Brute M Mad Dog and Glory Marked for Death Medium Cool Meet the Parents Message in a Bottle (film) Michael (1996 film) The Monkey Hustle Music Box (film) My Best Friend's Wedding My Big Fat Greek Wedding My Bodyguard N The Naked Face (film) National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation National Lampoon's European Vacation National Lampoon's Vacation The Negotiator Never Been Kissed Next of Kin (1989 film) North by Northwest Nothing in Common O On the Right Track Only the Lonely (film) Opportunity Knocks (film) P Planes, Trains and Automobiles

P cont. Poltergeist III Powers of Ten Prelude to a Kiss (film) Pretty in Pink Primal Fear (film) The Promotion Proof (2005 film) Public Enemies (2009 film) R Radioland Murders A Raisin in the Sun (2008 film) Rapid Fire (1992 film) Red Heat The Relic (film) Resurrection (1999 film) Return to Me Risky Business Road to Perdition Robin and the 7 Hoods Roll Bounce Rookie of the Year (film) Roxie Hart (film) Running Scared (1986 film) S Save the Last Dance Scarface (1932 film) Shall We Dance? (2004 film) Some Like It Hot Somewhere in Time (film) Soul Food (film) A Sound of Thunder (film) The Sting Stir of Echoes Straight Talk Strawberry Fields (1997 film) Streets of Fire Stuart Saves His Family Swoon (film) T T.R. Baskin Thief (film) Things Change This Old Cub The Time Traveler's Wife (film) Transformers: Dark of the Moon Tucker: The Man and His Dream Twentieth Century (film) U U.S. Marshals (film) Uncle Buck Underworld (1927 film) The Unmentionables The Untouchables (film) V V.I. Warshawski (film) Vegas Vacation Vice Versa (1988 film) W Wanted (2008 film) The Watcher (film) The Weather Man What Women Want When Harry Met Sally... While You Were Sleeping The Whole Nine Yards (film) Wicker Park (film) Wildcats (film)