I saw this on the Nanowrimo forums and I thought I would make one of my own here, so I have a place to keep it. My BIG, FUN, SCARY List of thing to do. Now, I know it's getting on towards 2014, but I don't want this to be a list of resolutions. I don't want this to be just one more list of things that I will "try" to do, but a list of things I plan on actually doing, things I can set in motion, make plans for, make a goal for and just.. you know.. be awesome at! Nanowrimo is sort of the end of the year for me and the beginning of being motivated. If I can write 50,000 words in one month on one story (and not even finish it, but it is there, in a file, waiting to be opened on Martin Luther King Jr. Day where my Writing Monster can cry out "Free at Last" since I have put her away for 6 weeks to let my writing ideas simmer and see what comes to fruition), I can do just about anything I really set my mind to, as long as I break it into smaller chunks.
See, that's the nice thing about Nanowrimo. I took it day by day. I didn't look at 50,000 words and have a panic attack. I looked at 1667 words a day for 30 days. So I can't look at the nearly 200 pounds I have to lose as 200 pounds (and believe me, that's a lot of butter!), I can just take it a pound at a time (probably by not eating pounds of butter).
However, this list, this BFS list, is the beginning of the lists, the start, the "Where do I go from here" of lists that may look BIG and SCARY, but will also, ultimately be FUN too! So, while this list may be a list of BIG things, (though maybe not quite yet a BIG list, I do plan on adding stuff to it), all of these can be broken into smaller, achievable, day by day every day I try this and it works for me goal list. A list of "I can do it" not.. "I want to do it!"
So, here's my list (in no particular order)
1. Finish my pink and brown quilt that I've been working on since before my divorce.
2. Track my calories and exercise daily.
3. Exercise daily.
4. Record weight, blood pressure, blood sugar and exercise in a chart so I can see my progress.
5. Write an outline for each of the three (so far) books that are in my San Francisco Friends novels.
6. Rewrite/Edit one novel into a publishable draft by August.
7. Work hard and be an awesome teacher!
8. Help my district and my school transition to Common Core Standards and be a great on-campus leader!
9. Help my adorable, loving, wonderful husband get through the next year of college!
10. Complete the next 12 weeks cycle of Julia Cameron's 'The Artist's Way'.
11. Meditate every day.
So, those are things I can do! Let's get crackin'!
Love and Lollipops,
ToryLynn
Showing posts with label food. Show all posts
Showing posts with label food. Show all posts
Saturday, December 7, 2013
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
Episode 78: The Return of Wegetarian Wednesdays!
MM.. Wegetarian Wednesdays. Where we wander through culinary bliss into the realm of the meatless. We eat bean soups and spinach salads and sometimes a Trader Joe's Roasted Veggie pizza, if we're being particularly lazy. The idea of Wegetarian Wednesdays came with the more frequent trips to the farmers markets, a reason to use up some of our market produce and it just felt right.
I like doing Wegetarian Wednesday on a Wednesday because it's the middle of the week. Some people prefer something like "Meatless Mondays" where they feel better about themselves after gorging all weekend by reasserting the diet mythos of "Oh, I will start over on Monday", which means that if you screw up on a Thursday afternoon, you have three free days of gorging yourself into oblivion which you can excuse by saying "Oh, it's ok. I'm starting a diet on Monday". The point of Wegetarian Wednesdays isn't to start over, but to rededicate yourself. If you slipped up a little on Tuesday, don't give up, but eat healthier. That way you have Thursday, Friday and Saturday and you can go "I survived until Wednesday, why give up now?" Wednesday is that hump in the road, that road block that we have to hurtle past into the unknown realms of diethood, where we can keep our heads held high and say "No, I ate Vegetarian last night. I don't need that piece of Thursday morning bagel, and I don't have to take part in that Friday morning box of doughnuts that my boss just brought in. I have more willpower than that!"
Tonight's Wegetarian Wednesday was bean soup, which will get posted tomorrow for recipe Thursday. It was a good thick hearty soup that was delicious. I've noticed lately that a lot of our vegetarian meals sort of revolve around the idea of beans. Beans for protein or beans just as a filling substitute to something that would normally be meat. I'm not saying that there is anything wrong with beans, and they certainly made a delicious meal tonight, but there has to be more out there.
AM and I switch off making meals every other night. He is training and reading up on being a chef since he is going to culinary school, but I like to cook too, so every other night (well... hopefully), I am cooking. That means in an average month, I am preparing about 2 vegetarian dishes a month. I need more variety with less starch.
So, I call out to you, gentle reader. Help me increase my repertoire of vegetarian meals into my beautiful pink Arc planner, so that I can create a wonderful cookbook and have a whole slew of meals to create that will satisfy our tastebuds and our budget and not be just another bean soup or salad.
Hoping to hear from you soon...
Love and Lollipops,
ToryLynn
P.S. I hope I never have to type Wednesday that many times ever again! :)
Sunday, May 5, 2013
Episode 75: To market, to market
The cool morning air buzzed with the voices of the patrons and from the center of the market stalls, a single violinist fiddled away, singing folksy country songs behind a metal can. Familiar voices ring out from the stall and the scent of barbecuing meat wafts over the open market stalls. There is no need for catcalls or showmanship by the sellers. It is market day and there is very little reason to call attention to any particular booth, as all are busy with customers, some empty handed, some laden with goods from other booths, pick over the selection, chose their week's produce and go away happy.
This is the paradise I stepped in to this morning. The sun wasn't hiding so much as clothed gently in the wispy clouds, making the temperatures bearable in the early May morning. I love going to the farmer's market. We try to go weekly, but we will sometimes skip a week, but we are never really disappointed either. WE go so often that we are beginning to know which stalls are our favorite. We are beginning to learn the names of the men and women who work behind the tables planted under canopies and tents. They recognize us and smile and ask how we liked the selection that we took last week. We mention soups and they smile, recommending cooking methods. One merchant even gave us a handout with a recipe for red bean chocolate cake.
I've written before about using locally grown produce, and about supporting our local economy and eating what is in season, what we find there at that market. It is wonderful to watch the colors change in the booths, from the verdant greens and yellows of the winter squashes to the bright beautiful redness of the ripest sweetest strawberries I have tasted in a long time. We walk up the rows before we buy anything, checking prices against prices, looking for the best produce, never buying everything from just one booth.
Market day used to be a tradition. It was a gathering place once a week for the town to get together and celebrate the harvest, celebrate the products that people brought out. It was a chance for money to exchange, for a local economy to grow strong and for an area to flourish. It kept the people together, and it kept the people's safe. You didn't steal from the guy who sold you your food and if you were the seller, you didn't steal from your customers. In fact, you would often give someone down on their luck who was a good customer a deal on food.
I think this is what we need to go back to. Create a community around these markets, create an idea that we are all in this together, and the world will be more peaceful! Yay for market days! :)
Off to bed!
Love and Lollipops,
ToryLynn
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Episode 72: Recipe Thursday!
As I get myself back into blogging and thinking and writing, I want to start looking for healthier foods to eat. To do this, and to keep my blog fresh and give me something to do with it, I plan on posting recipes here. It helps that AM, my awesome fiance, is going to be a chef, so when he designs or concocts something amazing, I can put it here and go "Look what my awesome future husband cooked for me!" Of course, in about a month and a half he won't be future husband, he'll just be husband.So, today's recipe is simple, mostly because I just started on this diet and I don't have a lot to say about what I've been cooking (though the chicken stew broth that AM has been simmering all night smells delicious). So today I give you...
Spring Smoothie Wonderful
Ingredients:
About 7 strawberries
2-3 rings of pineapple
One handful of rinsed kale
1/2 c. water
1 Tbsp sugar (optional)
Throw all ingredients into Nutribullet canister. Tighten blade contraption on. Blend until it turns sort of a sickly brownish red color. Open container, add rings or pour into awesome smoothie glasses (which used to be lowball glasses) and serve. It is totally yummy and tastes a bit like apples. Good servings of veggies and fruits. Yay!
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Episode 71: Challenge accepted
I post this picture for a few reasons. One, to motivate me to get my ass moving, and off the couch. I look awful and I look fat and I have bingo curtains. I mean really!! BINGO CURTAINS!! I cannot believe I let myself get this big. I post this picture because I am ashamed of the way that I look. I am ashamed of who and what I have become over the years through unhealthy eating, lack of movement and a great deal of depression that I haven't been willing or able to accept over the years.
Another reason I post this picture is because it is real. I am not hiding behind a gorgeous, thin avatar. I am not trying to be someone I am not and I am not trying to fool myself any longer. In my head, I am a much much thinner person, but I have to honest with myself about who I am and what I look like if I want to start to lose the weight. I can't fool myself and eat another doughnut or have another soda thinking "oh, I can work this off later." It's not going to happen. I have to put down the carbs and be realistic about how I got here in the first place and how I am going to get myself out of it. I packed on this weight, this fat, this body and it took me years to do it. It is going to take me a long time to get it off, but putting it on took a lot of work too.
The last reason I post this picture now is that it will be different in a month's time. When I weigh in again in 31 days, at the end of the challenge, my friend, TechnoDude (henceforth referred to as TD) will take another picture of me and I will post that one too and I will be able to see the awesomeness shining through under a much thinner layer of fat. I don't expect it all to go away in a month, but a month is a good start for starting new habits.
Look out world, here I come!
Love and Lollipops,
ToryLynn
Sunday, March 10, 2013
Episode 70: Whole
Wow.. new blog window. Kind of looks like Google Docs! Cool!
I went to the grocery store today to pick up some stuff that we needed around the house. Some of those essential things that seem to be on everybody's weekly shopping list. Today I bought: a half gallon of milk, a dozen eggs and a loaf of bread.
A couple of years ago, that would have been just those things. The half gallon of milk would have probably been 2%, the bread would have been cheap white bread and the eggs would be the store brand. Today, those purchases were very different. I bought whole milk, cage free eggs and multigrain whole wheat bread. Not to presume what you are thinking, dear reader, but I know that many people would say "Wait a minute! That milk is bad for you! It's got all sorts of fat in it and you should drink something with less fat. It's better for you!" This may be true, but.. let me justify myself a bit.
I believe in whole foods. If I could find and drink raw milk and cream, I would, but pasteurized is good enough, since it is just a process that heats and cools the milk, killing bacteria, so it doesn't kill you. Other than process, and skimming off the milk fats to make butter (which I also buy in whole fat variety), that's about all the processing I would really like to see my foods go through. If I could live on a farm where I could make sure that my chickens are well treated and well fed and their eggs are healthy, I would, but the eggs I buy are certified by the American Humane society, which is good enough for me. When I have time and the inclination, I make my own breads, so that I know that it is whole wheat flour that goes into it, and I know I'm not using artificial chemicals to make that bread last longer in my bread box. Sure, it's not sliced to perfect uniformity, but I feel better knowing what goes into my bread won't kill me or make me even sicker.
We live in an age where everything is highly processed. We drink and eat things with high fructose corn syrup, where the sugars have been pulled out of corn, melted down, made into syrup and added back into things that have sugar in them. Much of our food has chemicals that are nearly impossible to pronounce added to them. Much of our food comes from a plant where workers and machines process whole foods into something that doesn't even look like food anymore and then add dyes and chemicals so that it looks like food again and is something that we will bring to our table and share with our family.
If I have children, I want to be able to raise them to make healthy choices and eat real food, food like it used to taste in the time of my grandmother and my great grandmother. I want them to choose foods that are good for them. I buy whole milk. I buy fresh, cage free eggs. These are the choices that I make for myself and my family.
I've been making these choices for myself for over a year now. Though I haven't lost a lot of weight (mostly because of my sloth-like lifestyle and lack of willpower, which I will get to in a future post), there have been a lot of changes because of these choices. My skin is healthier and clear where I used to get tons of acne. My perpetual battle with cold sores has become nearly non-existent. My cheeks are rosier and I recently went into my hairdresser, who I visited a year ago, and she was amazed at how fast my hair grows and how much healthier, thicker and fuller it was. My energy levels are increasing, I can do a lot more for myself. I am empowered... I am healthier, I am happier and I feel like I am becoming whole again.
I went to the grocery store today to pick up some stuff that we needed around the house. Some of those essential things that seem to be on everybody's weekly shopping list. Today I bought: a half gallon of milk, a dozen eggs and a loaf of bread.
A couple of years ago, that would have been just those things. The half gallon of milk would have probably been 2%, the bread would have been cheap white bread and the eggs would be the store brand. Today, those purchases were very different. I bought whole milk, cage free eggs and multigrain whole wheat bread. Not to presume what you are thinking, dear reader, but I know that many people would say "Wait a minute! That milk is bad for you! It's got all sorts of fat in it and you should drink something with less fat. It's better for you!" This may be true, but.. let me justify myself a bit.
I believe in whole foods. If I could find and drink raw milk and cream, I would, but pasteurized is good enough, since it is just a process that heats and cools the milk, killing bacteria, so it doesn't kill you. Other than process, and skimming off the milk fats to make butter (which I also buy in whole fat variety), that's about all the processing I would really like to see my foods go through. If I could live on a farm where I could make sure that my chickens are well treated and well fed and their eggs are healthy, I would, but the eggs I buy are certified by the American Humane society, which is good enough for me. When I have time and the inclination, I make my own breads, so that I know that it is whole wheat flour that goes into it, and I know I'm not using artificial chemicals to make that bread last longer in my bread box. Sure, it's not sliced to perfect uniformity, but I feel better knowing what goes into my bread won't kill me or make me even sicker.
We live in an age where everything is highly processed. We drink and eat things with high fructose corn syrup, where the sugars have been pulled out of corn, melted down, made into syrup and added back into things that have sugar in them. Much of our food has chemicals that are nearly impossible to pronounce added to them. Much of our food comes from a plant where workers and machines process whole foods into something that doesn't even look like food anymore and then add dyes and chemicals so that it looks like food again and is something that we will bring to our table and share with our family.
If I have children, I want to be able to raise them to make healthy choices and eat real food, food like it used to taste in the time of my grandmother and my great grandmother. I want them to choose foods that are good for them. I buy whole milk. I buy fresh, cage free eggs. These are the choices that I make for myself and my family.
I've been making these choices for myself for over a year now. Though I haven't lost a lot of weight (mostly because of my sloth-like lifestyle and lack of willpower, which I will get to in a future post), there have been a lot of changes because of these choices. My skin is healthier and clear where I used to get tons of acne. My perpetual battle with cold sores has become nearly non-existent. My cheeks are rosier and I recently went into my hairdresser, who I visited a year ago, and she was amazed at how fast my hair grows and how much healthier, thicker and fuller it was. My energy levels are increasing, I can do a lot more for myself. I am empowered... I am healthier, I am happier and I feel like I am becoming whole again.
Saturday, December 1, 2012
Episode 67: The SNAP Challenge
In an article I read yesterday on Flipboard (which means I can't find the link now that I want to write about. I must remember to use my media more wisely), Cory Booker, the mayor of Newark, New Jersey, agreed to take on the challenge of a fellow Twitter user. This Twitter user, who goes by the handle TwitWit, challenged Booker to what is being called the SNAP challenge. SNAP stands for Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program, what we commonly refer to as Food Stamps. This challenge asks that people live on what the government mandates is the minimum allowance for food. In California, the maximum amount you can receive is $167 a month per person on average. If you do the math for a 31 day month, that is $5.38 a day or approximately $1.80 per meal.
I know... that was a lot of math for me too...
So, AM and I were sitting down, talking about what life would be like if we had to live on this, and we decided to take the challenge. What would it be like to live on an average of $1.80 per meal, and could you do it?
What this means is that there is no eating out, no little extras. If we want something that we don't make ourselves, we have to fit that into the budget, but it also means that a lot of what we eat should be or will be made from scratch. My bread machine is nice, and makes a good 1 pound loaf of bread for a bit under $2, but what does that mean? How long will that bread last? Can I live a full, nutritious successful life, making sure that I eat healthfully and still keep within that budget?
I think we're going to start with just a week and see how it goes from there. Many people who are doing the challenge (and quite a few are blogging about it), talk about how the lack of food is affecting their concentration, the constant hunger they feel is affecting how they interact with people and their job performance. I'm curious to see how it will affect me.
The point of this project for me is to gain perspective on what that type of lifestyle is like. I come from a middle class background. I have a decent job, but I work with many students who come from low income houses. Some are on the Free Lunch program. Sometimes, kids come to my class complaining of hunger and if I had a piece of fruit or something, I will offer it up to them and I know that many of them appreciate it. I know I will never understand what some of them go through. By doing this challenge, I hope to maybe gain some insight. I will never say that I want to walk a mile in their shoes. I will never know what their lives are like, what they experience or what they go through, but to gain some insight may be helpful.
AM and I were talking about this challenge. He pointed out that for the cost of the coffee that I get from Starbucks or the little coffee shop where we go to write, a person on Food Stamps is supposed to be eating two whole meals. One venti white chocolate mocha = 2 meals. I was floored when he pointed this out to me. This idea that I could spend $4-5 on a cup of coffee, full of milk and caffeine and sugars that I don't really need really struck me as a difficult one to swallow, and made me look at myself closer. Is it selfish of me to want to drink that $4 coffee (which I honestly don't really need) when someone else in the world goes hungry for one more day?
I'm not going to completely give up the coffee forever, but this is the month where we really begin to think about charity, helping and giving to those in need as well as showing our family our appreciation. If for at least a week, I can try to learn to understand this experience and it gives me a greater knowledge and compassion, I will be a better person for it. If I get a chance, I will blog about it here. I invite others to join me, or follow me or just learn more about it.
Love and low fat foods!
ToryLynn
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Episode 64: Satisficer or Maximizer?
AM and I were recently discussing the difference between being a satisficer and a maximizer. Let me step into teacher mode, for a few seconds, a give you a few definitions:
Sat-is-fice-r (n). One who, in the search for a product or a service, will look for specific criteria and purchase said products or service once a specific criteria has been met. Shirley, a satisficer, found a camera that she liked that had most of the features she wanted, so she bought it.
Max-im-ize-r (n.) One who, in search for a product or service, may find a product that will meet a specific criteria but continue to look until they find the "best" product for them. Jean, a maximizer, refuses to buy a new suit until he looks in every shop and reads the fashion magazines to look for the best cut color for his body shape.
I think that, in the grand scheme of things, I tend to be a satisficer. I see something that I want, something that maybe I have been thinking about buying for a long while, and if looks decent enough, I will buy it. I don't have to visit the consumer magazines, I don't have to look at the websites. I know that that article of whatever is exactly want to buy.
I'm also a sucker for good advertising. Show me a good trick or gimmick, something that may make me go "ooohhh" or think that that product is good for me in the long run, and I am more likely to buy that item. I love a good sales pitch, especially when it ends with "and for a limited time, we'll knock of x amount of money from the original cost". I love to buy things.
Now, AM and I had been considering replacing my old and ratty cookware. Old Teflon stuff from IKEA that I had bought ages ago. One pan had gotten so bad that it had a hill in the middle. If you wanted to fry something, you had to get used to using the sides of the pan because the grease or oil or whatever you were cooking in would just run down to the sides. Most of the pans had deep scratches on them and some of the Teflon was scratching off. (Some say that Teflon is bad for you, as it will flake off and has harmful chemicals, some say that it is harmless. I am erring on the side of safety and not going with Non-stick).
Now, we did do some research. We haunted the housewares departments of Sears and Dillards and J.C. Penney's, looking at the Calphalon, the All-Clad, even Paula Deen's and Emeril's sponsored brands. We coveted that shiny metal cookware. We went home; we looked at websites; we even checked out a few consumer reports.
And then we went to the State Fair. And there, for more money that we could probably afford, was our cookware. Now, like a new bride who is just getting to know her mate, I am incredibly protective of my new cookware. It was a lot of money, but was it worth it. The demonstration chef promised a world with no more cooking with oils, no more butters, no more frying. He cooked us up crisp delicious vegetables. We "oohed and ahhed" at the taste of the succulent chicken cooked without even water, deliciously seared in its own juices. We had to have this cookware!
So, with the idea of "well, we're investing in our health and in our future" we ordered it. Of course, we looked up reviews online as soon as we got home and read that it wasn't the greatest stuff, but at this point, I was committed. I was waiting for my stainless steel, seven layer bridegroom of cookware to come to my doorstep and sweep me off of my feet and into better health.
It arrived 10 days later, all shiny and new. I immediately went to the fridge, grabbed a few ears of corn and tried to recreate one of the dishes I had seen our masterchef/salesman create at the Fair. I succeeded in burning the pan. A good deal of elbow grease and some stainless steel cleaner, AM got the burn marks out. It was then that I decided to read the directions...
Now that we've had it for a few weeks, I am learning to cook again. I am learning to cook with less water, less oils. I am learning the true flavors of food. Chicken without any seasonings is amazing! Tonight I made pork roast (which I cut into slices) roasted on the stovetop with onions and garlic. I used the drippings to make a delicious gravy without any butter that would have been worthy of biscuits and gravy, had we had any biscuits.
Now, I want to learn to really cook! I want to take cooking classes, and learn how to make foods that make the mouth water. AM bought a few "low sugar" cookbooks, to help us on our way and I've marked the recipes for salmon, steak diane with cremini mushrooms, fluffy omelets with avocado. It all looks really great!
In the end, my satisficer instinct wasn't much off with this purchase. So far, even though I bought it on a whim, I seem to have had a bit of the maximizer instict with me too. This cookware is supposed to last me the rest of my life. With the quality of it, and learning how to cook right, I have no doubts that I will test that claim.
Here's to our health!
Love and Lollipops,
ToryLynn
P.S. If you don't burn the heck out of it, it cleans up incredibly easily too!
Sat-is-fice-r (n). One who, in the search for a product or a service, will look for specific criteria and purchase said products or service once a specific criteria has been met. Shirley, a satisficer, found a camera that she liked that had most of the features she wanted, so she bought it.
Max-im-ize-r (n.) One who, in search for a product or service, may find a product that will meet a specific criteria but continue to look until they find the "best" product for them. Jean, a maximizer, refuses to buy a new suit until he looks in every shop and reads the fashion magazines to look for the best cut color for his body shape.
I think that, in the grand scheme of things, I tend to be a satisficer. I see something that I want, something that maybe I have been thinking about buying for a long while, and if looks decent enough, I will buy it. I don't have to visit the consumer magazines, I don't have to look at the websites. I know that that article of whatever is exactly want to buy.
I'm also a sucker for good advertising. Show me a good trick or gimmick, something that may make me go "ooohhh" or think that that product is good for me in the long run, and I am more likely to buy that item. I love a good sales pitch, especially when it ends with "and for a limited time, we'll knock of x amount of money from the original cost". I love to buy things.
Now, AM and I had been considering replacing my old and ratty cookware. Old Teflon stuff from IKEA that I had bought ages ago. One pan had gotten so bad that it had a hill in the middle. If you wanted to fry something, you had to get used to using the sides of the pan because the grease or oil or whatever you were cooking in would just run down to the sides. Most of the pans had deep scratches on them and some of the Teflon was scratching off. (Some say that Teflon is bad for you, as it will flake off and has harmful chemicals, some say that it is harmless. I am erring on the side of safety and not going with Non-stick).
Now, we did do some research. We haunted the housewares departments of Sears and Dillards and J.C. Penney's, looking at the Calphalon, the All-Clad, even Paula Deen's and Emeril's sponsored brands. We coveted that shiny metal cookware. We went home; we looked at websites; we even checked out a few consumer reports.
And then we went to the State Fair. And there, for more money that we could probably afford, was our cookware. Now, like a new bride who is just getting to know her mate, I am incredibly protective of my new cookware. It was a lot of money, but was it worth it. The demonstration chef promised a world with no more cooking with oils, no more butters, no more frying. He cooked us up crisp delicious vegetables. We "oohed and ahhed" at the taste of the succulent chicken cooked without even water, deliciously seared in its own juices. We had to have this cookware!
So, with the idea of "well, we're investing in our health and in our future" we ordered it. Of course, we looked up reviews online as soon as we got home and read that it wasn't the greatest stuff, but at this point, I was committed. I was waiting for my stainless steel, seven layer bridegroom of cookware to come to my doorstep and sweep me off of my feet and into better health.
It arrived 10 days later, all shiny and new. I immediately went to the fridge, grabbed a few ears of corn and tried to recreate one of the dishes I had seen our masterchef/salesman create at the Fair. I succeeded in burning the pan. A good deal of elbow grease and some stainless steel cleaner, AM got the burn marks out. It was then that I decided to read the directions...
Now that we've had it for a few weeks, I am learning to cook again. I am learning to cook with less water, less oils. I am learning the true flavors of food. Chicken without any seasonings is amazing! Tonight I made pork roast (which I cut into slices) roasted on the stovetop with onions and garlic. I used the drippings to make a delicious gravy without any butter that would have been worthy of biscuits and gravy, had we had any biscuits.
Now, I want to learn to really cook! I want to take cooking classes, and learn how to make foods that make the mouth water. AM bought a few "low sugar" cookbooks, to help us on our way and I've marked the recipes for salmon, steak diane with cremini mushrooms, fluffy omelets with avocado. It all looks really great!
In the end, my satisficer instinct wasn't much off with this purchase. So far, even though I bought it on a whim, I seem to have had a bit of the maximizer instict with me too. This cookware is supposed to last me the rest of my life. With the quality of it, and learning how to cook right, I have no doubts that I will test that claim.
Here's to our health!
Love and Lollipops,
ToryLynn
P.S. If you don't burn the heck out of it, it cleans up incredibly easily too!
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Episode 62: Low Carb
AM has been talking to me a lot about this new book that he is reading called Why We Get Fat and What to Do About It by Gary Taubes. In this book it talks about good foods and bad foods, and apparently most of the foods that are "bad" for you are full of carbs, full of sugar. I haven't read the whole book, but I probably will, and it got me thinking about my favorite foods. I adore chocolate, and ice cream and caramel sauce. I adore bread and pasta, and cupcakes and little tiny apple pies. Apparently, I need to learn to give these up. Ugh.
My doctor, on the other hand, tells me that I should only eat meat once a month. "Once a month!" I bellow. "That will never happen!" I eat eggs for breakfast every morning. I eat bacon, and I love steak. The blood bank keeps telling me that I am slightly anemic and I often get turned down because of a low iron count.
So, if I take both Taubes's advice and my doctor's advice, all I can really eat is vegetables. Lots and lots of vegetables. Not to make fun of vegetables or anything, but.. um.. no. I am not going to eat nothing but vegetables. If I wanted to be thought of as really strange, I could one of those "take my energy from the sun" sort of people who refuse to do anything but drink water. But I'm not that strange.
I will continue to eat carbs, though I will limit them. I will continue to eat meat, though maybe I could buy some more white meat and perhaps some leaner cuts of beef. I will continue to eat my 2 eggs a day and my yogurt with honey in the morning. I will eat what I like, but I will not over indulge. If I am full, I will stop eating. I will eat what I like, but I will be moderate, temperate and happy. I don't like the idea of denying myself, but I can limit myself and I can learn to enjoy the foods that I eat.
I hope you all find the finer things in your life to enjoy.
Love and lollipops,
ToryLynn
My doctor, on the other hand, tells me that I should only eat meat once a month. "Once a month!" I bellow. "That will never happen!" I eat eggs for breakfast every morning. I eat bacon, and I love steak. The blood bank keeps telling me that I am slightly anemic and I often get turned down because of a low iron count.
So, if I take both Taubes's advice and my doctor's advice, all I can really eat is vegetables. Lots and lots of vegetables. Not to make fun of vegetables or anything, but.. um.. no. I am not going to eat nothing but vegetables. If I wanted to be thought of as really strange, I could one of those "take my energy from the sun" sort of people who refuse to do anything but drink water. But I'm not that strange.
I will continue to eat carbs, though I will limit them. I will continue to eat meat, though maybe I could buy some more white meat and perhaps some leaner cuts of beef. I will continue to eat my 2 eggs a day and my yogurt with honey in the morning. I will eat what I like, but I will not over indulge. If I am full, I will stop eating. I will eat what I like, but I will be moderate, temperate and happy. I don't like the idea of denying myself, but I can limit myself and I can learn to enjoy the foods that I eat.
I hope you all find the finer things in your life to enjoy.
Love and lollipops,
ToryLynn
Monday, May 28, 2012
Episode 61: Experimentation
A while ago, for Christmas, AM got me a great little book called Cutie Pies. My cousin, John, decided to make an apple pie this week, and it sounded so good (and I am too far away from Arizona to go and try his), I decided to make my own.
Rather than go with the traditional apple pie and crust, since I don't even think I am capable of latticing a crust as well as John, I chose to make a Sour Cream Apple Pie. The recipe can be found here Sour Cream Apple Pie Deluxe, with a few minor tweaks. Rather than use sour cream, which I don't actually have any of, I used plain full fat yogurt. This added a bit of a tang that was really taken care of by the sugar in the mix. A pretty good addition, I think. Instead of using white sugar in the topping, I used brown sugar, which is my favorite sugar.
The pie crust I got from the Cutie Pies book and used a 6 inch pie shape to cut the pie crusts, which I pushed into buttered muffin tins. Added the filling and the topping, and put in a 375 degree oven. I checked on the pies every 5 minutes or so, and it took about 25 minutes for the crust to get golden brown and the topping to set just right.
AM says they're wonderful, and went back for seconds (which he split with me), and we have 9 little pies left over in the fridge for a future dessert craving.
Yay for little pies!
May you find your own world to experiment with this week. Let me know what you've done to free some creativity!
Love and Lollipops,
ToryLynn
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Episode 60: Nature
I was up at 6am going to the grocery store to buy milk. As I walked back to my apartment in the cool morning air, my bag laden with milk, butter, brown sugar, bread and apples, I stopped for a moment and looked around me. The air was crisp and there was dew hanging from a spider's web on a nearby rose bush. The grass was lush and green and sparkling. The sky was blue, as it is often here in California, and everything seemed to be at peace. Even the birds seemed happier. And I've noticed... I've been having more and more of these moments. I will stop and think and wonder at the beauty of nature, the brilliance of everything around me, and I will be happy.
Lately, AM and I have been eating healthier. Less processed foods, less junk. We watch the sugars on foods that we buy like yogurt, and we don't buy diet foods (except Lo-Carb Monsters... because caffeine is essential). More often than not, we will make things at home, using natural and fresher ingredients, and I am finally finally learning to cook in a way that is healthy. I'm not losing weight, but I am not gaining weight either and my body feels a lot healthier and trimmer. We use whole milk, full fat yogurts, real butter, real eggs, lean cuts of meat and vegetables. Every meal must have some sort of vegetables or fruit... or at least we try to make that happen.
Yesterday's lunch was tortillas with tomato basil hummus and feta cheese. Very yummy. This morning we are going German with some German puffed pancakes and apple slices. I haven't made German pancakes in ages, and they used to be my sister and my favorite food when we were kids. I'm using the half recipe here German Pancakes, and slicing up some apples and mixing them with brown sugar and baking them down a little bit until they are tender. Should be great! I'll let you know how they turn out.
I hope you all have a wonderful Sunday morning and stay happy and healthy!
Love and lollipops,
ToryLynn
Lately, AM and I have been eating healthier. Less processed foods, less junk. We watch the sugars on foods that we buy like yogurt, and we don't buy diet foods (except Lo-Carb Monsters... because caffeine is essential). More often than not, we will make things at home, using natural and fresher ingredients, and I am finally finally learning to cook in a way that is healthy. I'm not losing weight, but I am not gaining weight either and my body feels a lot healthier and trimmer. We use whole milk, full fat yogurts, real butter, real eggs, lean cuts of meat and vegetables. Every meal must have some sort of vegetables or fruit... or at least we try to make that happen.
Yesterday's lunch was tortillas with tomato basil hummus and feta cheese. Very yummy. This morning we are going German with some German puffed pancakes and apple slices. I haven't made German pancakes in ages, and they used to be my sister and my favorite food when we were kids. I'm using the half recipe here German Pancakes, and slicing up some apples and mixing them with brown sugar and baking them down a little bit until they are tender. Should be great! I'll let you know how they turn out.
I hope you all have a wonderful Sunday morning and stay happy and healthy!
Love and lollipops,
ToryLynn
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Episode 53: Super Sunday
I am at a loss for words today. My life has been great lately, and I have nothing to complain about and I haven't been following the WW lifestyle (though I did do some point counting at the beginning of the week), but I didn't do nearly enough and I am sort of glad that I have gone to a biweekly weigh in. I have enough motivation to eat right at home, right now.
Today is the Superbowl, and honestly, I couldn't really care. The only team I care even vaguely about (since I'm not a huge football fan to begin with) got kicked out with the NFC Championship game. So, I think I will spend my time grading during the Superbowl.. aah.. an old standby. You will all let me know about the awesome commercials, right? So I can look them up on YouTube later on this week?
Actually, I love SuperBowl Sunday just for the ads. They give me a great lesson plan that my students really get into.. they let me show my students the way things are marketed and let them look at how media influences their lives. It's actually a pretty fun lesson plan, if I do it right.
I have been pretty exhausted lately, fighting off an ear infection which has evolved into a sinus infection of some sort. I could totally go back to bed for a few more hours, eat some sub sandwiches and just sit back and enjoy life. With the CAHSEE coming up, as well as two three day weekends, and the greatest holiday of all (also known as my birthday), February is going to be a busy month. I can't afford to be sick!
Ok, so, I'm kind of rambly today, so I will get to the point of the post, which is this picture! AM and I went to a great Dim Sum place called Fu Yuan (where Louis' Chinese food used to be for those who know Stockton) and we didn't have any Dim Sum! What the heck! What we did have was a great recommendation from the waitress! Just a tip, when you go someplace new, completely ignore the menu. Ask the wait staff what is the best food on the menu and order that. You get to try something new, and they usually have great recommendations, and will ask you about your own culinary tastes as well. So, what you see in the picture is the shrimp dumpling soup, which was the first thing that she recommended. We got ours with Yau Choy (what our waitress called Chinese tender greens), but there were a few vegetable options for the soup. The broth was tasty, and didn't need any extra salt, and the dumplings were perfectly soft and filled with delicious shrimp.
The next thing that she recommended was Pot Stickers. She proudly told us that these were handmade in the restaurant, not frozen like many of the area places make, and when we tasted them.. we could taste the love! These Pot Stickers were filled with tasty meat mixture, folded in a tender wrapper and offered with a very flavorful sauce. Altogether, they were wonderful!
I did not get my usual Sweet and Sour Pork, but instead tried for fried wontons. I originally was going to get the thin crispy fried wontons that come with the sweet and sour dipping sauce, but the waitress recommended cream cheese filled wontons. (I asked for half and half, but they couldn't do that, but they wer still yummy!) Bad for the diet.. so tasty on the tongue! (Those are the fried triangles you see in the picture.) The filling was hot and I burned the roof of my mouth a bit, but they were incredibly tasty. Where I had kind of expected a sort of savory, perhaps a bit garlicy taste, the filling was sweet and almost honey tasting. Once they cooled off a bit, the filling was complimented by the traditional sweet and sour sauce for a delicious dinner pastry. It was almost desert like! Very good food!
We finished our meal with something sweet. My companion had asked if they had any black bean cakes, which he described as sort of rice type patties with sweet black paste in the center. Our waitress brought us sesame balls, which he said were similar, but sticky and round. As I had had neither before, I didn't have anything to compare it to, but these little balls were delicious (and not shown in the photo). They were covered in sesame seeds, which made them not sticky to the touch, but the insides were soft, sweet and sticky in the mouth. The dollop of what I have to assume was black bean paste added an almost raisinlike flavor to it, but without that edge and tongue feel like you get with raisins. (I dislike raisins because they feel like the coat the tongue a bit and the fact that they are desiccated grapes always bothered me). Tasty little dumplings, these were, and AM and I split the last one. They were incredibly delicious.
It was late afternoon when we went for lunch, but the restaurant was deserted, which was unfortunate, since the meals were delicious. I wondered if there was more of a rush with the dinner hours later, or a lunch rush for the dim sum earlier. We went at an odd time. I would hate to think that this wonderful restaurant, with the very nice waitress, would eventually close because they don't get enough business. I didn't try the sweet and sour pork, but the food was excellent (we actually cleaned our plates at a Chinese food place!) and the service was wonderful (probably because we were the only ones there, but still!)
Ratings:
Food: Totally Five Stars. It was yummy, and well prepared. I loved it!
Service: Three stars. She didn't bring us the Dim Sum menu until halfway through our meal, but she didn't push food on us and actually recommended that we not order more, since we had ordered enough for a full meal.
Cleanliness: Four. They had lovely white tablecloths, but they also had plastic sheets on the table. Easier to clean, but not as classy. It was a nice place to eat though.
Ratings:
Food: Totally Five Stars. It was yummy, and well prepared. I loved it!
Service: Three stars. She didn't bring us the Dim Sum menu until halfway through our meal, but she didn't push food on us and actually recommended that we not order more, since we had ordered enough for a full meal.
Cleanliness: Four. They had lovely white tablecloths, but they also had plastic sheets on the table. Easier to clean, but not as classy. It was a nice place to eat though.
Final Rating: Four stars. Food for 2 was about $29, with a tip, and the food was good quality and very tasty. If we weren't on a culinary adventure, we would definitely be returning there again and again... if only just to try the Dim Sum!
I hope your culinary adventures are just as fun! If you have a blog that you think I should read, or that I can put in my blog roll, please leave me a message with the address! I'm always looking for interesting things to add to my reader!
Love and lollipops,
Tory (geez, I'm rambly today) Lynn
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Episode 52: Hiatus Over!
This blog was meant to record my weight loss journey, and quickly became just a place for me to talk about my life, my divorce, new love and getting myself back in order. The last three weeks or so have been crazy in the "not caring about what I eat or taking care of myself at all" end, but food has definitely taken center stage in the last few weeks. Such delicious, wonderful food.
So, on the 7th, I picked up AM from SFO and really, we have been eating up a storm ever since he landed! Bubba Gump's, Dante's Pizza, Ghirardelli (for breakfast on a Sunday morning.. mmm)... well... let's say they haven't been good for my waistline. In the last two weeks, I have gained almost 6 pounds. Ugh... time to get back to writing down everything I eat and start looking at the way that I eat. I guess you can't live like a teenager forever.
It's not that eating right when I'm with someone is difficult. I can make healthy meals and share them. I have kind of taken to ordering great meals, and sharing them with someone now. The problem is that I am not keeping track of what I am eating, and I am not really ordering the lowest point food on the menu. I have been eating a lot of high calorie foods that just aren't good for me.
On the other hand, I have also been discovering a new love for some foods I would have never thought to try before. One night we tried Vietnamese food, specifically a place called "Pho Lucky" which has wonderful noodle soup and some really great sweet and sour pork. I probably didn't need the sweet and sour pork, but every time I go to any place with Asian cuisine, I have to order sweet and sour pork. It is the touchstone I use to judge. They have really awesome sweet and sour pork. The batter is light and fluffy and the sauce isn't drowning the pork, but rather lightly poured on so that you can try the pork without any sauce as well. It's awesome!
Pho has been the only cuisine I have really discovered that I haven't tried yet, but we do plan on having different cuisines that are new to me, including Thai, Indian, and Japanese hibachi, and a few others that I can't really think of right now.
So, I am starting a new culinary exploration, but I am also going to try and stick to the diet plan, so if we go out, it will only be once a week. We will try new foods, old foods and foods we enjoy. I want to find healthy meals at new places, but also try some of the full fat stuff as well, so this is what I plan. I am planning on documenting our culinary journeys in this blog, as well as keeping it full of my thoughts on weight loss and life and everything. When we go out (and it should be limited to maybe once a week instead of once a day), I will take a picture of both of our meals and write a review of how they taste. (AM is ok with me stealing a few bites from his plate for a good cause) and write a blog of the best food places in California. We plan on going to San Francisco about once a month (definitely for my birthday this year, if anybody wants to hang out), and out to dinner once a week and to Noah's and Starbucks every Sunday morning where we hang out and have bagels, coffee and spend an hour or so writing (until my laptop battery dies). Altogether, I am having a pretty good existence. Now.. I need to have a good existence with some healthy food thrown in as well.
I will definitely update this blog at least once a week, if not more often. For now, know that I am happy, I am safe, I am well nagged, and I am loved. Life couldn't be better than this. Well, it could if I was about 150 pound lighter and without an ear infection, but those will all pass away into memory and I will be happy, sexy and so blissful they will see me glowing from the Empire State building.
Love and hugs and happy nibbles to all!
Tory
So, on the 7th, I picked up AM from SFO and really, we have been eating up a storm ever since he landed! Bubba Gump's, Dante's Pizza, Ghirardelli (for breakfast on a Sunday morning.. mmm)... well... let's say they haven't been good for my waistline. In the last two weeks, I have gained almost 6 pounds. Ugh... time to get back to writing down everything I eat and start looking at the way that I eat. I guess you can't live like a teenager forever.
It's not that eating right when I'm with someone is difficult. I can make healthy meals and share them. I have kind of taken to ordering great meals, and sharing them with someone now. The problem is that I am not keeping track of what I am eating, and I am not really ordering the lowest point food on the menu. I have been eating a lot of high calorie foods that just aren't good for me.
On the other hand, I have also been discovering a new love for some foods I would have never thought to try before. One night we tried Vietnamese food, specifically a place called "Pho Lucky" which has wonderful noodle soup and some really great sweet and sour pork. I probably didn't need the sweet and sour pork, but every time I go to any place with Asian cuisine, I have to order sweet and sour pork. It is the touchstone I use to judge. They have really awesome sweet and sour pork. The batter is light and fluffy and the sauce isn't drowning the pork, but rather lightly poured on so that you can try the pork without any sauce as well. It's awesome!
Pho has been the only cuisine I have really discovered that I haven't tried yet, but we do plan on having different cuisines that are new to me, including Thai, Indian, and Japanese hibachi, and a few others that I can't really think of right now.
So, I am starting a new culinary exploration, but I am also going to try and stick to the diet plan, so if we go out, it will only be once a week. We will try new foods, old foods and foods we enjoy. I want to find healthy meals at new places, but also try some of the full fat stuff as well, so this is what I plan. I am planning on documenting our culinary journeys in this blog, as well as keeping it full of my thoughts on weight loss and life and everything. When we go out (and it should be limited to maybe once a week instead of once a day), I will take a picture of both of our meals and write a review of how they taste. (AM is ok with me stealing a few bites from his plate for a good cause) and write a blog of the best food places in California. We plan on going to San Francisco about once a month (definitely for my birthday this year, if anybody wants to hang out), and out to dinner once a week and to Noah's and Starbucks every Sunday morning where we hang out and have bagels, coffee and spend an hour or so writing (until my laptop battery dies). Altogether, I am having a pretty good existence. Now.. I need to have a good existence with some healthy food thrown in as well.
I will definitely update this blog at least once a week, if not more often. For now, know that I am happy, I am safe, I am well nagged, and I am loved. Life couldn't be better than this. Well, it could if I was about 150 pound lighter and without an ear infection, but those will all pass away into memory and I will be happy, sexy and so blissful they will see me glowing from the Empire State building.
Love and hugs and happy nibbles to all!
Tory
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Episode 51: Ugh!
Holidays are over! Officially. I'm back at work, life is... going... and I have nearly finished unpacking what I'm going to unpack for now. It's nice to finally be in a place of my own, but it's also very hard to be alone in a place of my own. Fortunately... I have things keeping me from feeling TOO lonely. (Oh, and I started to watch "How I Met Your Mother". Cute show!
So.. yeah.. the Holidays are over, which means that it is time for me to stop eating like an idiot. I admit, during the move, I kind of became addicted to fast food, as I couldn't really find much of my dishware. Now, most of it unpacked (I have about 2 boxes of kitchen stuff left to unpack) and then I'm done with that. All of my cooking gear is out. Not living with a dishwasher is an interesting thing, but it means that I can do dishes and have them put away in 20 minutes instead of the 2 hour dishwashing cycle. So... yay!
Holidays being over means that I also need to start getting back into my routines. I need to start going for walks again, need to start doing yoga again (I got to day 12, and stalled for 2 weeks. I think I'm going to start over) and start just moving around more. My Wii is for more than just watching Netflix! :) I have Wii Sports (who doesn't?) and Wii Fit Plus.. and both of those are going in my "let's have fun and not just sit around and do nothing in your new apartment" regime.
Now, I'm not saying that any of these is a resolution. I don't do that.. I don't make resolutions, especially when it comes to life changing things because resolutions NEVER work! I have made many many resolutions in the past and I have resolved to make myself better looking, take better care of myself (and those around me) and be a better teacher. Each year, I will do pretty well, until the middle of January and then I fall back on old stupid habits. Well NOT THIS YEAR!!
I am not resolving to lose weight. I am not resolving to cook better. I am not resolving to work out more. I am just going to do it, and make myself a better lifestyle than the one I had, because the one I had had me dying at an early age of some sort of heart or lung condition.
Oh, while I'm talking about food.. and other great stuff.. Check out what I got for Christmas! http://www.amazon.com/Nostalgia-Electrics-PIE-400-Electric-Bakery/dp/B005QSI5JO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1325774741&sr=8-1 Now, when I want pie, it will take me 10 minutes, and I won't have the *entire* pie sitting there waiting for me to eat it... I can make tiny little mini pies of low point goodness. Yay for healthy little pies!
Anyway.. work beckons. I hope you all have a wonderful everything, and I promise to post here more often. I don't resolve to.. I just will!
Hugs and love...
ToryLynn
So.. yeah.. the Holidays are over, which means that it is time for me to stop eating like an idiot. I admit, during the move, I kind of became addicted to fast food, as I couldn't really find much of my dishware. Now, most of it unpacked (I have about 2 boxes of kitchen stuff left to unpack) and then I'm done with that. All of my cooking gear is out. Not living with a dishwasher is an interesting thing, but it means that I can do dishes and have them put away in 20 minutes instead of the 2 hour dishwashing cycle. So... yay!
Holidays being over means that I also need to start getting back into my routines. I need to start going for walks again, need to start doing yoga again (I got to day 12, and stalled for 2 weeks. I think I'm going to start over) and start just moving around more. My Wii is for more than just watching Netflix! :) I have Wii Sports (who doesn't?) and Wii Fit Plus.. and both of those are going in my "let's have fun and not just sit around and do nothing in your new apartment" regime.
Now, I'm not saying that any of these is a resolution. I don't do that.. I don't make resolutions, especially when it comes to life changing things because resolutions NEVER work! I have made many many resolutions in the past and I have resolved to make myself better looking, take better care of myself (and those around me) and be a better teacher. Each year, I will do pretty well, until the middle of January and then I fall back on old stupid habits. Well NOT THIS YEAR!!
I am not resolving to lose weight. I am not resolving to cook better. I am not resolving to work out more. I am just going to do it, and make myself a better lifestyle than the one I had, because the one I had had me dying at an early age of some sort of heart or lung condition.
Oh, while I'm talking about food.. and other great stuff.. Check out what I got for Christmas! http://www.amazon.com/Nostalgia-Electrics-PIE-400-Electric-Bakery/dp/B005QSI5JO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1325774741&sr=8-1 Now, when I want pie, it will take me 10 minutes, and I won't have the *entire* pie sitting there waiting for me to eat it... I can make tiny little mini pies of low point goodness. Yay for healthy little pies!
Anyway.. work beckons. I hope you all have a wonderful everything, and I promise to post here more often. I don't resolve to.. I just will!
Hugs and love...
ToryLynn
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Episode 48: Adulthood
He asked me today what was my proudest moment. I answered without hesitation that it was the day that I got my BA. I continued, volunteering that my second proudest moment was the day that I stood in front of my own classroom for the first time. He still tells me every day, in one way or another, that he is proud of me, but most importantly, I am becoming proud of myself.
So, you know how, when you're a kid you often have to have an adult tell you to "eat your vegetables"? I think I need an adult in my life now. I haven't really eaten a lot of vegetables in recent years. In fact, I pretty much hate vegetables. I realize that I'm an adult myself, I realize that I have a lot of really great things going for me right now, but I still hate eating vegetables. It may be that I haven't yet found a vegetable that I like particularly well. I'm willing to try some. I'm willing to try a few, actually. For instance, today I bought some brussel sprouts. Brussel sprouts have been my most maligned vegetable ever. The first time I tried to eat them, they had been boiled and they nearly made me gag. I have had many people tell me that brussel sprouts are actually pretty good, so I am willing to give them another try. Now I need to find some recipes that may make brussel sprouts palatable. I've heard a few.. fry them in butter and garlic, roast them with garlic, roast them with onions... If you have any suggestions, let me know. The bag I got from TraderJoe's says to microwave them within the bag and I'm kinda icked out by the idea.
I'm taking more pride in who I am. When asked about my proudest moments, I have quite a few. College graduation, becoming a teacher, and now, kind of.. getting out on my own and being my own person. I'm not looking to anybody to support me and I can take care of myself. I have worked hard for a lot of my victories. I studied, I read, I planned on ways to help myself become successful. My success is not only my own. Others have helped me along the way, and have supported me, and while I appreciate all of their help, I was the one who got the degree, I was the one who became a teacher. I know this sounds selfish and prideful, and perhaps it is. I worked hard to get where I am today. What I'm going through lately, with my divorce and my weight loss, is also going to take a lot of work and a lot of time to get through. I know that I am not alone. I know that I have friends and family who will be there to back me up and support me, but I also know that I have hard work that only I can do. I have to start planning out what I eat, making plans, sticking to them, in order to be successful in weight loss. I have to start planning out a budget and sticking to it in order to be successful in my finances.
I've never been much of a planner. In the words of Julia Roberts in "Pretty Woman", "I'm kind of a fly by the seat of my pants kind of girl". EH (changed now, for Ex-Husband) was always the planner. He made elaborate itineraries, booked hotels, figured out what we were doing for vacations, for work, for life. It was his job, and so I let him do it in our lives as well. Now, I'm on my own to do those sorts of things, and I'm finding it difficult. I have to plan out meals, make grocery lists, take care of the cats (which, I feel, are sadly neglected) and learn to finally be an adult.
It is strange to finally take care of myself. Much of my family has said to me in the past that EH was good for me because he "took good care of me". Not to impugn EH, but.. if he took such good care of me, how is it that I nearly had a nervous breakdown a few years ago? How is it that I came to weigh over 300 pounds? Why is it that I'm struggling to pay down the massive credit card debt that we have gotten into over our 9 year marriage, and I have no assets to show for it? Don't get me wrong. I am not angry at him. I am angry at myself for allowing myself to be treated like a child and not taking care of - or much interest in - things like my health and my finances before. Much of what I am going through right now could have been avoided if I had taken better care of myself in the past. Thirty-five is kind of late in the game to be finally growing up and becoming an adult, but here I am, throwing my hat in the ring of adulthood and hoping that I find myself in the process.
I guess part of that adulthood is that I learn to eat vegetables. Blech...
Got any good recipes?
With love and laughter...
ToryLynn
So, you know how, when you're a kid you often have to have an adult tell you to "eat your vegetables"? I think I need an adult in my life now. I haven't really eaten a lot of vegetables in recent years. In fact, I pretty much hate vegetables. I realize that I'm an adult myself, I realize that I have a lot of really great things going for me right now, but I still hate eating vegetables. It may be that I haven't yet found a vegetable that I like particularly well. I'm willing to try some. I'm willing to try a few, actually. For instance, today I bought some brussel sprouts. Brussel sprouts have been my most maligned vegetable ever. The first time I tried to eat them, they had been boiled and they nearly made me gag. I have had many people tell me that brussel sprouts are actually pretty good, so I am willing to give them another try. Now I need to find some recipes that may make brussel sprouts palatable. I've heard a few.. fry them in butter and garlic, roast them with garlic, roast them with onions... If you have any suggestions, let me know. The bag I got from TraderJoe's says to microwave them within the bag and I'm kinda icked out by the idea.
I'm taking more pride in who I am. When asked about my proudest moments, I have quite a few. College graduation, becoming a teacher, and now, kind of.. getting out on my own and being my own person. I'm not looking to anybody to support me and I can take care of myself. I have worked hard for a lot of my victories. I studied, I read, I planned on ways to help myself become successful. My success is not only my own. Others have helped me along the way, and have supported me, and while I appreciate all of their help, I was the one who got the degree, I was the one who became a teacher. I know this sounds selfish and prideful, and perhaps it is. I worked hard to get where I am today. What I'm going through lately, with my divorce and my weight loss, is also going to take a lot of work and a lot of time to get through. I know that I am not alone. I know that I have friends and family who will be there to back me up and support me, but I also know that I have hard work that only I can do. I have to start planning out what I eat, making plans, sticking to them, in order to be successful in weight loss. I have to start planning out a budget and sticking to it in order to be successful in my finances.
I've never been much of a planner. In the words of Julia Roberts in "Pretty Woman", "I'm kind of a fly by the seat of my pants kind of girl". EH (changed now, for Ex-Husband) was always the planner. He made elaborate itineraries, booked hotels, figured out what we were doing for vacations, for work, for life. It was his job, and so I let him do it in our lives as well. Now, I'm on my own to do those sorts of things, and I'm finding it difficult. I have to plan out meals, make grocery lists, take care of the cats (which, I feel, are sadly neglected) and learn to finally be an adult.
It is strange to finally take care of myself. Much of my family has said to me in the past that EH was good for me because he "took good care of me". Not to impugn EH, but.. if he took such good care of me, how is it that I nearly had a nervous breakdown a few years ago? How is it that I came to weigh over 300 pounds? Why is it that I'm struggling to pay down the massive credit card debt that we have gotten into over our 9 year marriage, and I have no assets to show for it? Don't get me wrong. I am not angry at him. I am angry at myself for allowing myself to be treated like a child and not taking care of - or much interest in - things like my health and my finances before. Much of what I am going through right now could have been avoided if I had taken better care of myself in the past. Thirty-five is kind of late in the game to be finally growing up and becoming an adult, but here I am, throwing my hat in the ring of adulthood and hoping that I find myself in the process.
I guess part of that adulthood is that I learn to eat vegetables. Blech...
Got any good recipes?
With love and laughter...
ToryLynn
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Episode 44: How to open a banana
Ok.. so.. my breakfast of late has been some sort of cereal with soy milk and a banana added. Quite the healthy eater I am, eh?
Bananas have always bothered me. They are difficult to open sometimes, and then you get that weird thing where the top of the banana will fall off or become mushy from all of the trying to open the banana at the stem. Well... I found this tip, I think in Google+ (and if you don't use G+, you should), for opening bananas easier. So.. here is a tip.
First, don't start at the stem side. Start at the bottom of the banana. This is the new top. It has a tip.. kinda of a squarish roundish bit at pinnacle. Then, pinch the tip until it pops. It will usually split into two, sometimes three sections. Grasp these sections and pull back and.. Viola!! Opened banana without having to struggle with the stem!
My work here is done. Enjoy your bananas with confidence and joy... as they are yummy and fruitful! (and 0 points, for those of you following along on the WW side!)
Have a great day!
ToryLynn
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Episode 38: Checks and Balances
Ok.. so, for the first time ever in my entire life, I am taking care of my own money. I only get paid once a month, and so I start off with a fairly decent balance.. and then watch it slowly drain away with time. That's a bit unsettling.
So, I was laying in bed this morning, checking my bank account and balancing my checkbook (yay for awesome apps for that. I use Legerist for my checkbook) realizing how awesome it is that I can lay in bed and balance my checkbook. I can see what has cleared, I can see where my money is going, and realize that I spend too much on fast food and not enough on clothes. My rent is too high, but that is easily fixable by finding a new place to live. Although I will miss my tower by the river, it is time to move on from it. That is something that I can possibly lower.
I can also stop eating so much damned fast food and start cooking at home, but I tend to have expensive tastes when I do eat at home. I love making chicken cordon bleu (not healthy, but totally yummy) or chicken marsala. I love experimenting with cooking and finding foods that I really like to eat. I just hate my kitchen. Hopefully, when looking at a new place, I can find a place with a kitchen that I really like. I am so tired of my teensy tiny little two counter kitchen which is very much a hole in the wall. I'm not expecting anything large, but something with maybe three counters, or even like.. a bar, would be awesome. I want to be able to enjoy cooking again.
How did this go from a money blog post to a foodie blog post? Hmmm... Back on track.
I am glad I have a good job. I am glad I have a good enough job that I don't have to worry about where my next paycheck is coming from, or what it will look like. So far, I have put most of my extra overage money into my savings account, and it will stay there unless it is really needed. It's my "rainy day" fund for when I just need to get the hell out of my life and maybe take a day in San Francisco or something. I've never been there on my own, and it sounds like it would be a fun adventure. I want to explore the City, and get to know its ins and outs and become part of the literary community there. I guess I would have to save up some money for that.. and get over my inherent shyness around people that I don't know. But.. a once a month trip doesn't sound too costly, as long as I can get my expenses in order.
This is the first month I have ever been on my own. I am bound to falter, to make some mistakes, to cross a line or trip and fall. I know that I can pick myself up, brush myself off and keep going. And if I can't.. I know that there is someone out there with a warm and friendly hand and an open heart.
Thanks to AM for reminding me that I have a blog that needed to be posted in.
Love and lollipops,
ToryLynn
So, I was laying in bed this morning, checking my bank account and balancing my checkbook (yay for awesome apps for that. I use Legerist for my checkbook) realizing how awesome it is that I can lay in bed and balance my checkbook. I can see what has cleared, I can see where my money is going, and realize that I spend too much on fast food and not enough on clothes. My rent is too high, but that is easily fixable by finding a new place to live. Although I will miss my tower by the river, it is time to move on from it. That is something that I can possibly lower.
I can also stop eating so much damned fast food and start cooking at home, but I tend to have expensive tastes when I do eat at home. I love making chicken cordon bleu (not healthy, but totally yummy) or chicken marsala. I love experimenting with cooking and finding foods that I really like to eat. I just hate my kitchen. Hopefully, when looking at a new place, I can find a place with a kitchen that I really like. I am so tired of my teensy tiny little two counter kitchen which is very much a hole in the wall. I'm not expecting anything large, but something with maybe three counters, or even like.. a bar, would be awesome. I want to be able to enjoy cooking again.
How did this go from a money blog post to a foodie blog post? Hmmm... Back on track.
I am glad I have a good job. I am glad I have a good enough job that I don't have to worry about where my next paycheck is coming from, or what it will look like. So far, I have put most of my extra overage money into my savings account, and it will stay there unless it is really needed. It's my "rainy day" fund for when I just need to get the hell out of my life and maybe take a day in San Francisco or something. I've never been there on my own, and it sounds like it would be a fun adventure. I want to explore the City, and get to know its ins and outs and become part of the literary community there. I guess I would have to save up some money for that.. and get over my inherent shyness around people that I don't know. But.. a once a month trip doesn't sound too costly, as long as I can get my expenses in order.
This is the first month I have ever been on my own. I am bound to falter, to make some mistakes, to cross a line or trip and fall. I know that I can pick myself up, brush myself off and keep going. And if I can't.. I know that there is someone out there with a warm and friendly hand and an open heart.
Thanks to AM for reminding me that I have a blog that needed to be posted in.
Love and lollipops,
ToryLynn
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Episode 31: Changes
A lot is changing in my life. My friends tell me that I am looking thinner. My body feels better. I feel more confident and more alive than I have in a long time. I am even noticing the change in a place that I never thought to look for change before... My Google Chrome splash page.
For those of you who don't use Google Chrome, it is my favorite browser and I highly recommend it. It opens up with the tab that has your home page, but if you click on the "new tab" button, it opens up a screen with your most visited pages. I find this incredibly helpful as I, like probably 90% of the population, have about 5 to 6 websites I visit nearly daily, just to check up on things. The standards are all there: school website, email, facebook. But things are changing...
Where I previously had websites of my favorite web comics, pages I would try to visit whenever they posted an update, now my Google Chrome tells me that I am on the Weight Watcher's site more often than xkcd. In addition to Giant in the Playground, Blogger shows up instantly to remind me that I have a blog post for the day. If you asked me which websites have been replaced, I probably couldn't tell you, which means they probably didn't matter much to begin with.
I need to start finding foods that I enjoy cooking, healthy meals that make me want to prepare them every night. I need to stop stopping at Burger King or McDonald's on the way home from work, but have a solid plan for dinner that I can cook and enjoy and have enough left overs that maybe I would have the same thing for lunch the next day. I would love to add some foodie pages to my Chrome splash page.. or an exercise website that has Yoga videos. All of these would be wonderful right now.
Anyway, work beckons. I hope you are all well and wonderful!
ToryLynn
For those of you who don't use Google Chrome, it is my favorite browser and I highly recommend it. It opens up with the tab that has your home page, but if you click on the "new tab" button, it opens up a screen with your most visited pages. I find this incredibly helpful as I, like probably 90% of the population, have about 5 to 6 websites I visit nearly daily, just to check up on things. The standards are all there: school website, email, facebook. But things are changing...
Where I previously had websites of my favorite web comics, pages I would try to visit whenever they posted an update, now my Google Chrome tells me that I am on the Weight Watcher's site more often than xkcd. In addition to Giant in the Playground, Blogger shows up instantly to remind me that I have a blog post for the day. If you asked me which websites have been replaced, I probably couldn't tell you, which means they probably didn't matter much to begin with.
I need to start finding foods that I enjoy cooking, healthy meals that make me want to prepare them every night. I need to stop stopping at Burger King or McDonald's on the way home from work, but have a solid plan for dinner that I can cook and enjoy and have enough left overs that maybe I would have the same thing for lunch the next day. I would love to add some foodie pages to my Chrome splash page.. or an exercise website that has Yoga videos. All of these would be wonderful right now.
Anyway, work beckons. I hope you are all well and wonderful!
ToryLynn
Friday, October 21, 2011
Episode 29: Proud of me
Every night, I sit up for a few minutes and I write down what I ate that day. I used to have a paper book that I recorded everything in, and I have my Droid app for recording stuff in as well, but those mostly get ignored. I have so many tools at my fingertips, but what seems to be the best thing for me lately is to sit up in the evening, watching movies and talking to AM while I record my food for the day and figure out if I need an evening snack. Peanut butter from a spoon has become one of my favorite snacks late in the night. High in protein, and only one tablespoon, since it is 5 points for one tablespoon, but once that sticky, sweet almost salty goodness hits my tongue, I am happy.
Every night, as I record my points, he asks me what I am doing and I tell him and then he says "I am so proud of you." I have heard that statement quite a bit lately, from family and friends. It is an amazing feeling for someone to take pride in me. It makes me feel amazing every time I hear it. I know that I shouldn't place my self worth in the opinions of others, but it feels really great to have a little bit of pride in myself. Yes! I've lost over 10 pounds in the last month. Yes! My clothes are beginning to fit better. Yes! I can move better now! I feel amazing and special and it is because so many people have told me that they are proud of me. I am loving this!
I don't feel depraved. In fact, just the opposite. I feel satisfied, like the cat that caught the canary and is hiding it under her paw, waiting to savor the experience that skill and life have given her. I eat enough, I am emotionally fulfilled, I am taking over my own life and it feels amazing. I feel like I can do anything! Now... what was that about Nanowrimo?
Love and snuggles,
Tory
Every night, as I record my points, he asks me what I am doing and I tell him and then he says "I am so proud of you." I have heard that statement quite a bit lately, from family and friends. It is an amazing feeling for someone to take pride in me. It makes me feel amazing every time I hear it. I know that I shouldn't place my self worth in the opinions of others, but it feels really great to have a little bit of pride in myself. Yes! I've lost over 10 pounds in the last month. Yes! My clothes are beginning to fit better. Yes! I can move better now! I feel amazing and special and it is because so many people have told me that they are proud of me. I am loving this!
I don't feel depraved. In fact, just the opposite. I feel satisfied, like the cat that caught the canary and is hiding it under her paw, waiting to savor the experience that skill and life have given her. I eat enough, I am emotionally fulfilled, I am taking over my own life and it feels amazing. I feel like I can do anything! Now... what was that about Nanowrimo?
Love and snuggles,
Tory
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Episode 23: Soup making
So today, after I finish cleaning my kitchen, I will sit and chop vegetables while listening to people talk about books on Second Life. I will combine celery and broccoli and spinach and carrots and cabbage to add to the pleasing scent of garlic and onions sauteed to perfection before I add my beef broth and tomato paste to create a really awesome soup that has no points to it, but tastes wonderful.
After that, I may make some salmon cakes, using more of the celery and adding light mayo and bread crumbs to create perfect patties of salmony goodness that I dip in a effusion of light mayo and balsamic vinegar (OMG! SO YUMMY!).
Then I will go party with the fam as we look at beautiful jewelry and talk about fall fashions (I am, after all.. SUCH a fashion diva. </sarcasm>
Love love to all. I'm going to have a wonderful day, because I am loved.
Tory
After that, I may make some salmon cakes, using more of the celery and adding light mayo and bread crumbs to create perfect patties of salmony goodness that I dip in a effusion of light mayo and balsamic vinegar (OMG! SO YUMMY!).
Then I will go party with the fam as we look at beautiful jewelry and talk about fall fashions (I am, after all.. SUCH a fashion diva. </sarcasm>
Love love to all. I'm going to have a wonderful day, because I am loved.
Tory
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