Some folks have been asking how I lost 9 pounds in 7 days. Here are the details.
I stopped eating. Not entirely. But I did follow these rules. 1. No more pop. 2. Reduce candy and sugar content by 90% 3. Consume food only when hungry. 4. Maximum of 1500 calories per day. 5. 32 ounces of water at least. 6. No burgers. 7. Iced tea, with artificial sweetener or water at lunch. 8. Increase green vegetables.
Exercise a couple of times each week. So far I have had 3 workouts 25-45 minutes of cardio and 15 minutes of weights.
That’s it. Oh yea..raising money for a great charity also helps.
I was reminded by a reader, who stumbled upon this blog, that I hadn’t updated since November. Sorry about that. Life sometimes does that.
In our house Melissa and I have a few very vague references to comedians we have enjoyed in the past. One such inside joke has to do with America landing on the moon. We love to laugh when people say “if we can put a man on the moon…then why can’t we blah blah blah.” Today is that day when I say…if we can put a man on the moon why can’t we have an indoor gas station?
It is zero degrees today in southwest Ohio. Yes, its winter, thankfully we have a mini van and Jeep, and are thankful for friends in SUV’s or the temps would be -15. Today I am thankful for global warming. Think about the what ifs if we weren’t slowly warming this planet.
Back to my point, indoor gas stations. Imagine it with me. You pull up, automatic garage door opens, you pull in, door closes. There are palm trees, Calypso music in the background, its a warm and balmy 67 degrees in side. You can check your oil and clean your windshield without fear of frostbite. You fuel up, pay the lovely and happy hostess, she is glad to be there and not at the other outdoor place, and you exit via the opposite garage door. Can’t someone do this? I’d pay an extra nickel and would drive an extra 5-10 minutes for this.
Ooh ooh..I have another one. What about gasoline delivery? When I was a kid my house was heated with home heating fuel #2. I have no idea why it was #2 and not number 1. But we had a huge tank at the back of the house, held like 250 gallons of the stuff. Every October my mom would call the fuel company, they would send out a truck. The truck parked in the street or in our drive and the driver pulled a house around the house. He filled our tank, wrote a ticket and mom gave him a check. Back then it was cheap to heat a home this way. Probably not green enough now. Doesnt matter. What if someone did this with 89 octane gasoline?
MY Starbucks card (I’m a gold member now) automatically recharges with cash when it gets low. What if…what if..a company was started that delivered gas to my car? I sign up, every Monday and Thursday he comes to my house before 7:00 a.m. or after 6:00 p.m. and fills my tank, charges a modest delivery fee and bills my faithful Mastercard or less than faithful checking debit card? Genius me thinks.
I am sure there is a regulation or law that prohibits this from happening. I’d pay a .10 premium for my gas to be delivered in the winter. Just top me off twice a week. No more freezing at the pumps. No more gas smell on my Isotoner gloves.
For the record I don’t wear gloves. I did receive a great pair of leather winter gloves once back in 1993. I used them to pump gas once. Ruined them forever. Can’t wash leather and remove that smell.
Was sitting in Starbucks last night with my two boys. One is spilling hot cocoa all over himself in an attempt to not burn his tongue. The other is flirting with women twice his age. My coffee and Sunday edition of the New York Times before me. Began to think about the road trip the three of us are about to take this week. A short drive to the places that helped shape who their dad is today. We are headed to Murray Kentucky where I lived while in College at the University named for the city. Lunch at the deli where I worked, which is owned by a Cuban guy, which led to my curiosity of the island I have visited 4 times.
From Murray we will drive through West Tennessee and head to Alabama, my father’s birth state to see my family there. Aunts, uncles, too many cousins, their kids and my paternal grandmother all reside just south of Muscle Shoals.
Here are some things about the south that I love. Red Dirt. Cotton Fields. Waking up knowing a homemade biscuit is near. Cornbread in a skillet. Sweat tea. Accents. Family. Everyone is nicer there and the pace is slower.
We will be in Alabama only 36 hours before headed to Atlanta to be tourists for a day. I am hoping for 2000 miles accident free and a lot of memories for me and my boys.
I haven’t really blogged in a while. But I remember in October 1996 I climbed out of a rig and was handed a fistful of $100 bills for riding along with a driver for 6 weeks. We had just been through 15 states in the Western US and I was ready to move. 4 days later I was pulling a uHaul trailer behind my truck headed for Baton Rouge. I had only been to Baton Rouge 3 times before, but I had a job and was pretty sure I could find an apartment upon arrival.
I found three things in Baton Rouge that October 14 years ago. Here they are. Good food. Its the best of the Caribbean and the best of my southern grandma’s kitchen all in one. Two. Great people. The friendliest people are in Baton Rouge and points south. Just good decent people who always have a good time. Three. Summer. In Baton Rouge there are two seasons. Summer runs from mid February until right after Thanksgiving. Then they have a season i call autowinspring. The temps cool. Some leaves fall. News leaves come. It rains a few times then all of a sudden its 89 degrees with 98 percent humidity again.
My second October in Baton rouge, 1997, I received a vhs tape sent by my dad. It was a great 7 minutes of him hanging out the passenger window of moms SUV while he videotaped the trees changing colors back home in Ohio. I could almost smell the cornfields and hear the leaves of Oaks, Maples, and Ash falling to the ground. Our apartment had a few palm trees and live oaks. A stately oak that doesn’t ever turn colors. Magnolias were everywhere, always green, white flowers in the summer. So here it is, the list of all things I love about autumn.
Sleeping with the windows open with an overnight low of 54 degrees. Camping bug free. Backyard campfires. Throwing away my $2.99 flip flops. Fleece. Leaves on the ground. Pumpkin pie. The last harvest of corn on the cob. Grilling and not sweating. Hastas turning golden. Finding my long sleeve Eddie Bauer t’s in the back of the dresser drawer. Hoodies and Jeans on saturday. Long walks at the flea market on a balmy and sunny Saturday afternoon. Sweater vests and sports coats. Hiking at John Bryan. The smell of fall. Riding bikes in the neighborhood. The death of mosquitos. Teva’s and wool socks. Cutting down the day lillies no more mowing the yard. Afternoon drives home with the windows down and the heater on. Hot coffee in the morning drive in. Shorts and sweatshirts are okay on Sunday afternoons Baked apples and baked squash. turkey is always better in October and November Halloween candy Candy apples and Caramel apples Indian corn on my front door Carving pumpkins
