Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Blogging Chicks


So I've joined the Blogging Chicks; seemed like a sensible thing to do. After all I blog, and I'm a chick... well, closer to a stewing hen, but let's not quibble over details here. Besides, the chicks do need role models and road guides and isn't that the traditional role of we menopausal women? To be available as guides? Maybe someone will connect?

Today I worked in the gym for an hour (treadmill and arms/back weight machines), then killed 45 minutes walking around the mall before my appointment with my podiatrist. He took new x-rays for comparision with the ones from 2 years ago. We'll go over these next week, but it's look like this winter/spring sometime I will be going in for joint replacement surgery on my left foot.

And it looks like my right foot may be travelling the same path.

STEPS TUESDAY? 12,896
CALORIES TUESDAY? 1463 (about 100 low)
GOOD/BAD DECISION? stopped for a quick lunch at the mall foodcourt. Ordered a stir fry dish with lots of veggies, and brought home most of the fried rice for the dogs.

Monday, November 27, 2006

Tale of The Scale.

I survived Thanksgiving and 4 days with the spouser home. And with little damage to the scale.

Weight this morning: on the digital scale:156; on the balance scale: 154. Who know which is more accurate, so maybe for a while I'll use both. I don't care about the real number; I do care about the change. At the moment, it looks like about a .8 loss this week.

I've noticed that when the spouser is home all day, we tend to get busy doing things and I don't necessarily eat like I should. I'm going to have to work on this. The real test will come in the next week. The spouser will be travelling; and I'll be on my own. Let's see if this changes things.

I'm getting back to my planned workout schedule:

Monday: 30 minutes on the elliptical, floor exercises and stretching.
Tuesday: 45 minutes on the treadmill (low and slow) and weight machines.
Wednesday: not in the gym. Taking the dogs for longer walks and doing the stability work at home.
Thursday: See Monday.
Friday: See Tuesday.
Saturday/Sunday: See Wednesday.



STEPS YESTERDAY?7264
CALORIES YESTERDAY? 1404. but carbs too low and fat too high.
GOOD/BAD DECISION? Took the dogs for a walk early in the morning, before it poured.

Sunday, November 26, 2006

A Dirty Little Confession....

I confess... I LOVE watching Dirty Jobs!

STEPS SATURDAY: 10243
CALORIES YESTERDAY? 1478

Whatcha Doing Sunday? Walking the dogs, knitting my JayWalker socks, and reading blogs.

Thursday, November 23, 2006

Go See This Movie!!

Casino Royale! It's gotten good reviews with all the people I regularly trust; Thanksgiving we decided to see to ourselves how good it was. Daniel Craig is my favorite James Bond. This man can run!!

I understand that this team has chosen to create a Bond much more like the character in the Fleming's books: not a devilishly charming lady's man; neither a "wink-wink" cartoon not a product-placement shill. (though there is that).


This James Bond is a stone-cold killer with a sense of humor.


And Daniel Craig? I decided about half way through this movie that the actor got this part not only because he's in phenominal physical condition, but primarily because he runs better on film than any other man I've seen.

There were very few holes in this movie. Plenty of action.. and much more character development than any of the past films. Far and away, this is the best Bond ever. If you've liked any of the other versions... go see this one.

True to the original novel, Bond creates a drink (the Vesper). This drink was the favorite of author Ian Flemming. Alas, a little research online shows that the one rather obscure ingredient (Lillet) is nearly impossible to find; and I was guessing it would be the new "hot" cocktail.

STEPS THURSDAY? 7297
CALORIES YESTERDAY? 1326

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

Darn, I'm On My Own

Law, Reason and CYA are standing between me working any more with Guido the trainer for atleast a month. Ya see, all the paperwork has been processed for us to do paid personal training sessions.

And the big differences between these and the freebies?

Guido will work me harder so they want to know about my health, and they don't want to be set up for a lawsuit. So my doctor needs to sign off that I can work out with a trainer. Never needed that before, but I wasn't over 50 last time I tried this. I think that's the big hang up.

The doctor, not wanting to be vulnerable for a lawsuit, either, if I should drop dead in the middle of the gym, won't sign off on the training until I get a complete physical. Hopefully we can skip the stress test. I'll try to reason with him about this. My appointment with the doc ain't until 12/15.

So I'll be working on my own at the gym and at home until some point after that. Sigh.

STEPS YESTERDAY? Ya know what? I clipped my pedometer on a bra, then couldn't find it. But I walked for an hour.

CALORIES YESTERDAY? 1237 (too few), Fat and Protein were right on, but the carbs were too low. I should have a beer.

GOOD/BAD DECISION? I got my flu shot.

Sunday, November 19, 2006

Music (again), TV and PBS

The footballs games shown on local TV today were both stinkers (Raiders and 49ers), so I spun around the dial looking for something to catch my fancy.

I found something much better than that.

PBS (with assistance from the SF orchestra and KQED) has a fabulous series called Keeping Score. Aaron Copland's life and music are explored. It was immediately followed by a Keeping Score performance where:

Michael Tilson Thomas leads the San Francisco Symphony in Aaron Copland's “Appalachian Spring,” selections from Igor Stravinsky's “The Firebird” and a full performance of Stravinsky's “The Rite of Spring.”
I completely enjoyed listening to this while working around the house this afternoon. Don't miss watching it when it's broadcast on a PBS station near you.


Friday, November 17, 2006

Music, Anyone??

Time has listed some of the best albums of the 1970's (OK, so they listed albums going back to the '50s) :

  • London Calling The Clash Sony, 1979
  • One Nation Under a Groove Parliament / Funkadelic Warner Brothers,
    1978
  • Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols The Sex Pistols
    Warner Brothers/Wea, 1977
  • Rumours Fleetwood Mac Warner Brothers, 1977
  • Hotel California The Eagles Elektra/Wea, 1976
  • Ramones The Ramones Sire, 1976
  • Songs in the Key of Life Stevie Wonder Motown, 1976
  • Born to Run Bruce Springsteen Sony, 1975
  • Horses Patti Smith Arista, 1975
  • Red Headed Stranger Willie Nelson Sony, 1975
  • Call Me Al Green The Right Stuff, 1973
  • Goodbye Yellow Brick Road Elton John MCA, 1973
  • The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust David Bowie RCA, 1972
  • Exile on Main Street The Rolling Stones Virgin, 1972
  • Talking Book Stevie Wonder UMG Recordings, 1972
  • The Harder They Come Jimmy Cliff and Various Artists Island, 1972
  • Blue Joni Mitchell Warner Brothers/Wea, 1971
  • Coat of Many Colors Dolly Parton RCA, 1971
  • Hunky Dory David Bowie RCA, 1971
  • Led Zeppelin IV (a.k.a. Zoso) Led Zeppelin Wea International, 1971
  • Paranoid Black Sabbath Warner Brothers, 1971
  • Sticky Fingers The Rolling Stones Virgin, 1971
  • Tapestry Carole King Ode/A&M, 1971
  • What's Going On Marvin Gaye Motown, 1971
  • Who's Next The Who Mobile Fidelity, 1971
  • After the Gold Rush Neil Young Reprise, 1970
  • Bridge Over Troubled Water Simon and Garfunkel Columbia, 1970
  • John Lennon Plastic Ono Band Apple/EMI, 1970
  • Moondance Van Morrison Warner Brothers/Wea, 1970

My boomer-friend, Barb added these:
  • Talking Heads Fear of Music 1979
  • Saturday Night Fever Soundtrack 1978
  • Elvis Costello My Aim Is True 1977
  • Meat Loaf Bat Out Of Hell 1977
  • Brian Eno Another Green World 1975
  • Pink Floyd Wish You Were Here 1975
  • Genesis The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway 1974
  • Pink Floyd Dark Side Of The Moon 1973
  • Led Zeppelin Houses of the Holy 1973
  • Nick Drake Pink Moon 1972
  • The Allman Brothers Band Eat a Peach 1972
  • Yes Traffic 1971
  • Jethro Tull Aqualung 1971
  • George Harrison All Things Must Pass 1970
  • Traffic John Barleycorn Must Die 1970

I think combining this is an excellent list... Is there anything else you'd add? I wonder how many of these I can find on CD.. or even find to download as MP3s?? Ahh.. a weekend challenge scavenger hunt!!

Whatcha Doing Today? Are you kidding? It's the Ohio State/Michigan game today!! I'm planting my butt in front of the boob tube for atleast several hours this afternoon, knitting on my sock (I've restarted it for the third or fourth time), and cheering on the Buckeyes!!

Decisions, Deb... It's all about the Decisions we Make.

I was doing to well yesterday. Ate a healthy breakfast, was busy, took the dogs for a nice long walk. Got home and chose a Lean Cuisine for my next meal. It may have been the mashed potatoes in the dish, I don't know. But it all went downhill from there.

I didn't want to stop eating. And I wanted fat and simple carbs.

I also sat down and wanted to stay there.

So here's my plan.

#1. Don't blame, pity or give up. This was one day.

#2. Starting right now, make good decisions today. Next meal must have some veggie and fruit.

#3. Today was scheduled as a rest day for walking. It still is. I will do a half-hour to an hour of stabilization exercises and that's it.

Tags:

Thursday, November 16, 2006

I Am A Puddle of Goo


I finished my first 50 minutes workout with Guido; at the end, I was a puddle of goo. But in a good way! We worked on stabilization movements; a true challenge since the bone-spurs on my toe mean I cannot bend my feet. And? My balance is pretty crappy. I spend half the work-out flailing my arms about in a desperate attempt keep my balance. Guido has threatened to video me with his phone and upload it to YouTube.

Meanwhile, I am testing Guido's ability to adapt moves so I can do something. Imagine trying to do lunges without bending either foot! It can be done with one foot on a balance ball, but that requires: balance!! At home I use a chair... at the gym, I think I spotted the acceptable alternative. We'll see next week.

Today I took the dogs for a nice long walk. Like maybe an hour and a half walk. When we came home they, too, were puddles of goo. Seems to run in the family.


Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Like giving them an hour of time each week ain't enough!!

Oh!! Look all you Heroes fans! Greg Beeman, the producer/director for the show, has his own blog!! And at the moment, the comments are not all kissy-faced, whiney "I love you"/"why are tormenting me?" comments like the Gray's Anatomy blog. (while I love the blog itself, the comments? irritate the hell outta me. Check one out and see if you agree... )

In fact, it looks like very few folks have actually found this blog!! So you can be among the first.

Another really interesting producer's blog is Ron Moore's podcast for Battlestar Galactica. Brilliantly, he watched the show and comments in real time about it. A 48 minute show/a 48 minute podcast. I always TIVO the show, so now I can watch it once.. and later in the week go back go and watch it/listen to the podcast. Just like when you buy DVDs of shows that have the extra audio tracks!!

I was really excited when it appeared that NBC was actually going to move into the 21st Century and have a blog for Studio 60... but, alas, it was a less than perfect effort and almost immediately forgotten by those responsible for it.

Do you have a favorite TV show blog??

Monday, November 13, 2006

Tale of Scale, One Month

Progress so far: down to 154 (though there is some question as to where I began)... let's say 4.5 # lost.

Total loss in inches: 3.25" Waiting for some of this to show in my torso, though.

Observations: I seem less "jowly".. which really bothered me. I was looking like my father!! And I feel better. Many days I'm sore, it's a good sore. Although the measurements don't show much change through the mid-section it appears firmer.

This week begins the start of real one hour training sessions twice a week. Let's see what impact these have.

STEPS YESTERDAY? 8609
CALORIES YESTERDAY? 1679
Whatcha Doing Today? Phonecalls, Berkeley with Del, and a party!

Sunday, November 12, 2006

Try to imagine...

Have you ever spent time trying to imagine what it would be like if Microsoft made Firefox? I know you have.

Wonder no longer... the evidence is here.

Thursday, November 09, 2006

Three hours lost to fat

A couple weeks ago I had my annual mammogram; I have a really low risk of breast cancer, but I do this. Mammogram, pap smear, and lipid profile. Three things every woman should get done every year.

Anyway, I got one of those notes back that said they wanted more pictures. A small inconsistency on my left breast that needed evaluation. I was not concerned; the location description matched a spot they studied a few years ago. Then it was determined that some odd fat wrinkled occasionally under compression; and I figured it was the same thing this time. Still I made the appointment and went.

A three mammo shots of the suspect area and an ultrasound later I got the verdict: fat again making a spot that was hard to read. I lost two and half hours that I'll never get back again.

Last week, Guido did a body-composition analysis on my. We determined from pinch tests that my body is atleast 41% fat. Yeah, a woman should be about 20%. Doing the math, I need to lose 25-30#s of fat.. and probably atleast a pound in each breast.

Today will be another motivating factor in my working to lose weight and get back in shape. Maybe when I lose some of this excess weight, I can stop getting these rouge readings in my annual exams.

Friday, November 03, 2006

Goodbyes and Memories

It was a strange Thursday.

I returned home from working out and flipped on the TV (my standard background noise). It was FreeFall,the ER episode where Dr. Romano was killed by the helicopter. Those helicopters were really Romano's crocodile, weren't they?

Anyway, many folks remember that episode because of the shocking way they did away with a bully of a doctor. I remember for a different reason: it first ran the day we buried my mother (11/20/2003) She had advanced Alzheimer's Disease; we lost her, really, years before her heart stopped beating and her lungs stopped expanding. I never remember the day she actually died, but I remember sitting alone in a motel room watching that episode after it was all over.

Anyway, couple that show's reminder with the fact I was planning to attend the visitation for a friend's spouse who died on Monday. I was in a weird mood.

The email notice told me that visitation would be from 4 pm. until 7 pm. at which time there would be a vigil/service. Sounded odd... but OK. the 4 pm time sounded good; I could attend and support my friend and still get home before it got too dark. It's raining and I don't see well to drive in the rain.

I arrived about 4:30 pm. My friend and one of her 3 daughters were discussing plans for the internment Friday with the funeral director. Nobody else was in the building. My friend sent me into the chapel where the body was. About 15 minutes later, their discussion with the director over, they left.

Yep. I was alone in a building with a director locked in his office making phone calls and a corpse.
He wasn't all that great to visit with. Obviously I misunderstood something. What, I'm not sure. Checking the email I received, though, it did say that she wouldn't be there the whole time. Still no family member at all??

Anyway, I sat there and thought about the differences between this setup and what I'm used to back in the Midwest. Then, after signing my name (#1) in the book, I went home. It was a total waste of time.

The receiving room was a funeral chapel complete with pews and kneelers. The coffin near the front where you'd find an altar. I can only imagine that people sit there, like they do in church, facing forward and quiet.

I'm used to funeral homes.. large rooms with upholstered chairs around the perimeter(I almost said comfy.. but they seldom are) and folding chairs set up in the center of the room. The coffin is along the far wall and surrounded with flowers. Somewhere removed is a smallish room normally with coffee and cookies. Most people stand and walk around visiting quietly in small groups. In the course of an hour or so, you can catch up with everyone you know.

Visitations are normally held 1-4 pm. and 7-9 pm. When a visitation time is announced, the family of the deceased is there the whole time. They might stand by the casket or walk around the room. Frequently we would sit in those comfy chairs catching moments whenever we could. Dressed up, or atleast dressed neatly.

That's what confused me about today. If, indeed there was a visitation, the family should have been there. Some family should have been there. If there wasn't, why was the room open and waiting?

Strange.

STEPS YESTERDAY? 7258
CALORIES YESTERDAY? 1477
Whatcha Doing Today? The spouser is off work, so we're running some errands.

Thursday, November 02, 2006

Someone Is Taunting Me


It happens every year when the tomatoes and apples are ripening the gardens.

I wake up, look out my back windows and spy the evidence that something has been eating out of the garden. Can you imagine an animal brazen enough to not only take food (heck, I understand.. they don't recognize property lines and assume the fruits are theirs for the taking!) but to also leave it sitting half-eaten in full view of the world?

Nyah-nyah! I stole your food!!

I'm assuming it's a racoon that does this (are they omnivores?). I still marvel, however, at the skill to pick the fruit in one place, then carry it up to a safer spot to munch it. As I'm writing this, a scrub jay is enjoying the remaindered fruits of the taunter's labor.


STEPS YESTERDAY? 9123
CALORIES YESTERDAY? Didn't track them all. My bad.
GOOD/BAD DECISION? Ya know.. I do eat healthier when I write down everything I eat. There is evidence that I haven't eaten enough fruits or veggies. So not checking with FitDay was a bad move.

Whatcha Doing Today? Workout with Guido at 10 am. Run a couple errands and attend a wake this evening. Quiche and a salad for supper.