Welcome to Diet Diaries.com

 For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. John 3:16&17

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Meet Snowball.  He says hello to all of you.

Writing this rather late but want to give a special THANKS to BearCountryGG...for helping me upload Snowball's photo.  Been so long, I forgot how to do it!  Thank you very much!!! 

Day 17 - Better

DH got up for work and the next thing I new he was back in bed. He said he was on this way to work but couldn't see the road so took the first exit and came back home. He crawled right back into bed. I think I got up at 6:30 and made the day.

Had to wait until light to shovel and snowblow...the dogs couldn't wait for me to shovel the patio and of course I made them a path in the back yard...the snow was almost deeper than they are tall

I made it to the gym at 7:00 - had a nice little leg work out and road the recumbant bike. There were more people there than normal - I thought everyone would have stayed home due to the all the snow but I guess every one has an agenda.

B: Killer Dave's blueberry bagel, vanilla iced latte

L: left over meatloaf and mash potatoes

S: Cleo bar

D: shrimp shapey (scampi) but auto correct made it shrimp shapey, salad

S: elevation bar

Tomorrow will be a rough day, especially after the holiday and time cards are due - busy, busy

Have a great Sunday evening! IP

• NYPL new book - TBD!
• Courts - reading / studying the test format & sample questions.  tests prob in Late 2022 -  2023. This is in progress; to continue working on these during long weekends in 2022... REVIEW WHAT BOOKS I HAVE AND IF THEY MATCH THE CODES / LAWS TESTED FOR COURT CLERK/SENIOR COURT CLERK (WILL BE STUDYING IN ADVANCE TO FAMILIARIZE, INCLUDING MAKING FLASH CARDS IN 2022).  BUY NEW STUDY GUIDES IF NEEDED FOR LAWS / CODES I AM MISSING.
• Renew Passport - soon.
• Last TOM - 1/12/22.

Funny news: I pooped the other morning...a big one...and lost over a pound of weight after! (weighed myself before and after LOL).

1/17 Mon - Martin Luther King Holiday! :-D 

8am Breakfast: pump pie with coffee 250

10:30am Snacks: regular gummies sour patch 2 tiny bags 120, kombucha 40, gummy vitamins 40. 200.

12pm Lunch: leftover indian cabbage mix 200, salami 100, 2+ servings parmesean goldfish crackers 300. 600.

1:30? 3 clementines and small peach 150

3pm 2% greek yogurt with stevia; and my cooked cranberries with some of the liquid i made also (just monkfruit and water that turns color and sweet and tastes of the sweetened cranberries)  150 along with a small iced coffee, negl. 

5:15 -6pm snacks / light meal at start of workout...: 2 chocs 120, small peach 40 ish. total 150ish; cup of indian spinach 100 (not really any cream)? - like a spinach blended soup.pringles 150, salami 50.

1800...

• Laundry day - DONE!
• Clean GP cages well DONE!
• Early afternoon - Call Christine finally. maybe talk about to an hour tops? ; go on indoor stationary at same time :); did stationary slowly around an hour; DONE!
• Reading of my book - now to choose another, DONE!
• Make a soup or stir fry with some fresh veggies from supermarket - DONE!
• Freeze leftover cabbage soup / potatoes if i have any left after Sunday..yes, one bowl left ...DONE!

• Strength Exercises, upper and lower - Most important to keep on track :) - started around 5:15pm...

• Do some court studying - take a practice test for the lowest level entry exam (JG12 Clerical Assistant)....
• Also Look into what court materials i have regarding the Court Clerk (not an elementary entrance test, but something i want to study) and see what i can use now and/or need to buy to learn about the court rules (many, many topics, may need mulitple study guides/resources).

1/18 Tuesday - public trans.

6pm after work - online zoom meeting for religious affilated club to union.99 years this club has been around, one of the longest if not the longest in the union. interesting, anyways. 

1/19 Wednesday - 

Strength Exercises, upper and lower

1/20 Thursday - 

1/21 Friday - 

1/22 Saturday - 

dye roots?

2pm Matinee: Seeing Alladin on Broadway! I know a musician in the pit orchestra and he offered me two free tickets. I'm taking a friend who's never been to a Broadway show. I'm sure she'll enjoy it.

1/23 Sunday - 

Laundry today / guinea pigs cleaning: 

Strength today - upper / lower 

1/24 Monday - 

1/25 Tues - 

1/26 Wed - 

1/27 Thurs - 

1/28 Fri - 

1/29 Saturday - Hopefully i do not cancel this one ;) 

10am-12pm 

Paerdegat Park (Brooklyn)  -  NYC Parks Stewardship Volunteer event that i signed up for, but this one looks to be more of a walking tour! Never been to this park and hardly go into this area of Brooklyn so i'm looking forward to a change of pace. 

(We will be walking with people who identify 14 speciies of plants at  Albany Ave., E. 40 St. between Farragut Rd. and Foster Ave., Brooklyn / Meeting Location: Meeting at Ecology Park Gate - closest intersection is Bergen Avenue and Avenue T)

1/30 Sunday - Home. 

1/31 Monday - 

2/1 Tuesday - 

2/2 Wed - 

2/3 Thurs - 

2/4 Fri - 

2/5 Sat - 

2/6 Sun - 

2/7 Monday

 Slept like a log for 7 1/2 hours....and woke up feeling like my old self....headache is gone finally....the bug seems to be over with......it's about time and I'm happy about it......D says his was over yesterday.  

Sampson LOVES his hated bed as long as it's covered with his beloved throw........not sure why I didn't try that before.......but happy that he is so in love with it now.

I'm full of energy this morning........BP is back to where it needs to be......haven't checked glucose yet but may skip that today as long as I feel good.

Counting calories now with a new goal of 115...or at least less than 130........130 is my plateau place so it will be slow......my body gets stuck there and doesn't want to leave.....so will have to be patient and do different things again to get below that...once I start heading down it will be easier hopefully........but with the bug that is out there right now.......getting to a lower number will probably be the healthiest way to go........up for the challenge.

Plenty of things to do around here and I can't wait to get started......nothing like coming off some sick time for me to want to make up for lost time and tackle some things.

Coffee and some news and a chat with D...........

Then getting some things done..........skipping the notebook today and listing them here...gives me a minute to sit down here and there today....getting a lot of little things done today....and NOT keeping a list in my head.

Today I.....made the bed, emptied the kitchen trash, did some unboxing and putting away, some organizing in 1 room, Unloaded dish washer , reloaded and ran it, took garbage and a bunch of boxes to the garage, Cleaned out the cats food storage container, lots of paperwork, including the christmas card list for next year.   Picked up bedroom, neaten the area in garage by door, bag up some small things, Put some laundry and cleaning supplies in closet....Son T called...talked a long time.  

 Spent the night in his bed....and  followed me to the living room for awhile and then right back in that bed he hated..........His beloved throw on top of it made the difference.  Funny how changing things up can make such a huge difference in things........Life isn't really that complicated.......it's a puzzle, and when I find the  missing piece it all falls together........everything is do-able......just find the missing piece,,,,doing the same thing over and over and expecting a diferent result doesn't work.........I need to remind myself that switching things up constantly gives me the best result and when it's right , it's right and when it fails...switch it up until it's right......

Today I ate

coffee = 2

3/4 C Fage 0% greek yogurt = 90

2T Walden Farms Breakfast Syrup = 0

Small apple = 77

Homemade whole wheat bread (toasted)= 81

I can't believe it's not butter spray (15) = 12

Lasagna  = 788

3 Heavenly Hunks ( oatmeal and dark choc) = 330

cheese biscuits and spray butter = 490

Dinner feeding frenzy.   looks like a lotta food, but 20 fairly big fish in that tank. 

Went out to back deck & scraped snow off railing for birdseed. Bold font unintentional.   

Loving the LifeFitness bike, what a workout!   Easiest setting is a lot more strenuous than what I did  on the old bike.  Lowest setting burns ~240 cals per hour at a pace of ~55 RPM. Machine seems determined to maintain this calorie burn and if you slow down, it increases the resistance.  Putting some pressure on my right knee because of how it's angled out.   This is a big bike. Knee sore, so quit after 3 half hour sessions.  Will resume soon.   No idea what ligament, tendon or whatever is being stresssd, but experienced similar discomfort yesterday.   Whatever's going on, sure I'll adjust.  

Matt said he can't peddle at level 16.   Think it goes to 25.   Must be for injuried linebackers.   LOL.  accommodates up to 400 pds, so Matt, me & all the dogs and cats & more could climb aboard.

Mon 1/17/21 6:52am: 

Hard time falling asleep last night. 3 hours from putting my butt into bed (albeit I did skip wind down). Got up at 5 with alarm. Getting back on track inch by inch. Knew on wakeup I didn't get enough REM to be sharp. Bizarre because my CPAP says I did great. Respiration is a culprit here.

Searching the Internet and following up with pulmonologist.

Jan 16 - gym workout 1.5 hours; hike 2 hours

Big day of exercise yesterday #1 because I hadn't done anything since Thursday and #2 to test out my ankle. It is still swelling up but doesn't seem as bad as before. I have a phone appointment at some point today with my doctor to maybe get something to help with the swelling.

I was limping around a good bit yesterday after the long two hour hike, but this morning it feels fine so I don't know what's going on with it. Wait and see I guess.

I had a hard time getting to sleep last night; my right side ribs were achy for some reason and I just couldn't find a comfortable position to fall asleep. I ended up taking a couple of tylenol joint and muscle pain tabs around 11:00 p.m., then was up around 4:00 a.m. with a little discomfort again. I think I just slept on it wrong the night before. Hopefully this will pass.

A few things on the go at work, so that should keep me pretty busy. I was up early and coaching at the gym this morning, so am planning on relaxing tonight and maybe hitting the pillow early. Always tired on Mondays!

I wish I had today off.  Title companies are closed.  Banks are closed.  However, I suppose I'll have a few contracts to open.  Now that New Gal is busier working on New Guy's files, and I have not much to do, I've been opening up my own files.  Might as well.  Still, I'd much rather be at home.

Eating was OK yesterday.  Husband and I ate lunch and dinner while watching football.  I did struggle a little bit with my sweet tooth.  Had a spoon of peanut butter, a chocolate, and one of those Christmas cookies I put in the freezer.  These were not eaten all at once but steadily through the day starting after lunch, taking bits here and there.

It's the eating part that is my weakness, that's for sure.  I was reading on a Facebook thread for a fitness group different mottos and sentences that members had for themselves for 2022.  One guy posted "Dietary Discipline".  BOOM!  This is so not me, but that's what it takes in a nutshell.  Aw shucks...

Tomorrow (Tuesday) is my follow-up blood draw at 3:30p.  If I leave from work, I would leave at 2:30pm to ensure I arrive on time, with traffic and all.  However, I was thinking of maybe leaving at 1pm and stopping at the gym, before heading over to the doctor's office.  That's a thought.

Before I have to make up my mind about that, though, I have yoga tonight.  It's getting time for me to purchase another class ticket.  I think after tonight I have 1 more class left.  It always seems like such a pain in the butt to get everything done in time for class, but I do enjoy the class, and it's so helpful to have that time to really relax.

I was talking to Male Co-Worker last week about how different our lives have become since COVID, and how we've managed to cope or not cope.  For me, being an introvert and homebody, it hasn't affected me all that much.  However, he was telling me how he and his wife used to go out almost every single night to do something.  They were very involved in their church, so right there was at least 3 nights out.  Then they would have dinner & and movie night on Friday -- even if there were no good movies, they'd go see something. And then there would always be something else they'd want to do or check out.  So really, most nights they'd be out.

He has taken up painting, so he's adapted and is doing OK/well in the age of COVID, but his wife is terrilbly lonely and depressed/anxious.  She needs work to interact with people.  Well, now she's working from home and miserable.  She needs to be out and about, and now she doesn't have that.  So she sits in front of the TV if she has nothing to do and just sits.

How do people do this?  How do they come home from being at work all day only to rush off to do something else?  Doesn't anyone need down time after work?  Relaxing time? Sleep?  Here I am struggling to be able to Zoom one night a week FROM MY OWN HOME, and there they are (or were), going out every night.  How do they do that?  

I mean, I could do things at night too if I could:  go to the gym, take a class at the gym, go to yoga in an actual studio, shop a little, go to the shooting range... IDK, a whole bunch of things.  My life could definitely be more exciting if I could stand to step outside my home.

Day 16 - Boredom

I was up this morning and went to the gym...routine = boredom in two short weeks - recumbant bike, ellypical, upper body, legs...repeat. Going to the gym will take a lot of motivation - because it is just so easy to NOT go.

This morning a lady was on the ellypical in BEAST mode. She was running on that thing for well over 30 minutes, like not slowing down...I'm like you go lady!! But where the hell does she get that motivation and stamina? She was a heavier, older lady, she was not slim by any means...and then when she was finished with the ellypitcal she jumped on the treadmill and was climbing hills - she had my respect. I have not been a fan of the treadmill - everytime I use it- I am dizzy and discombobulated after, I prefer not to use it...I may check the rower out next time.

Sent DH shopping...he said lots of people were out and there was hardly any bread or pasta at the Walmart...

The girl is staying at her grandmother's until tomorrow sometime...fine by me! She said she was hanging out with her mom  - good thing I guess. She texts me and ask for me to help her fill out another job application...uh, can't your mom?  She has a wonky schedule at school this week due to mid terms - she goes for two classes each day and will be home before noon. weird.

Off tomorrow - may get to the gym...early or I was liking going in the evening will think about this.

Snow is here - may have 2 inches, not sure how much - work says possible 5-6 inches...we will see how accurate they are.

B: malt-o-meal, vanilla iced latte

L: hot dog with ketchup  & mustard

D: meatloaf, mashed potatoes and salad

S: clio bar before lunch and elevation bar after dinner

Have a great evening! IP

• NYPL new book - romance novel, light reading - takes place in like 1800's...is GREAT and fun! loving it! very easy read called "Mad About the Major," by Elizabeth Boyle
• Courts - reading / studying the test format & sample questions.  tests prob in Late 2022 -  2023. This is in progress; to continue working on these during long weekends in 2022... REVIEW WHAT BOOKS I HAVE AND IF THEY MATCH THE CODES / LAWS TESTED FOR COURT CLERK/SENIOR COURT CLERK (WILL BE STUDYING IN ADVANCE TO FAMILIARIZE, INCLUDING MAKING FLASH CARDS IN 2022).  BUY NEW STUDY GUIDES IF NEEDED FOR LAWS / CODES I AM MISSING.
• Renew Passport - soon.
• Last TOM - 1/12/22.

1/16 Sunday - Eats:

 2am woke up with slight cramps still in right leg - had a ripe, perfect banana 100 in lieu of tylenol

10am late breakfast: extra gummy vitamins was a new, very sugary brand so i had a few lol 50, coffee 50, pumpkin pie 1/8 slice 200. 300.

Lunch before leaving apt for city: half a pop tart package lol 200.

Snacking during / after show:chocolate, did i only have 1? 100

Dinner: do I get takeout (veggies only needed) from the area where the train before i drive home??? - and/or drive to another restaurant for something different???

dinner back at home verdict: picked up indian from a new place. had the option to order dishes with or without cheese and vegan instead of with cream. i ordered the vegan way but not entirely impressed with the flavor of the cabbage or spinach dishes. however, for the amount of food, including rice, it was a good price. prob will not go back unless i have my car and i'm near that train (which is not usually!). anyways, it's healthy and just not my style of taste, but still very decent.

6pm-6:30pm a lot of cooked cabbage 200 in some sauce, leftover piece of iranian restaurant bread, last piece 150 or so. 350...pringles 200, some of the indian spinach 50, ...600...dessert: greek yogurt with extra, extra jelly 250.

1550.

AM brief as i need to shower/get ready to leave soon - read some of the novel above; have a relaxing short morning before leaving for city :)

PM Tonight - do some court studying - take a practice test for the lowest level entry exam (JG12 Clerical Assistant)....

look into what court materials i have regarding the Court Clerk (not an elementary entrance test, but something i want to study) and see what i can use now and/or need to buy to learn about the court rules (many, many topics, may need mulitple study guides/resources).

noon-ish leave - for matinee 2pm Broadway show - "The Book of Mormon" (from the creators of South Park) taking just myself, got a ticket for $65. not the absolute best deal but not a high price at all either. :).  This day is projected as 40F & full sun. Perfect for commuting into the city in January! Will drive and find a far spot so i can walk a little to the train. Driving so i don't have to wait for the bus and realize i can find a spot and walk a bit for exercise. Driving for the convenience of not needing to wait for the bus which made me almost late last time a week ago to the circus.

1/17 Mon - Martin Luther King Holiday! :-D 

• Laundry day
• Call Christine
• Clean GP cages well 
• Freeze leftover cabbage soup / potatoes if i have any left after Sunday..
• ? Buy silkin tofu - didn't have it at supermarket. will try some other place - Maybe Skip for another week.

Strength Exercises, upper and lower - Most important to keep on track :)

1/18 Tuesday - public trans?

1/19 Wednesday - 

Strength Exercises, upper and lower

1/20 Thursday - 

1/21 Friday - 

1/22 Saturday - quiet weekend...

 Cook "Cream" of mushroom soup..."cream" bc it's silkin tofu, not cream. looking forward to trying this....also the protein?

Strength today?

1/23 Sunday - 

Strength today?

1/24 Monday - 

1/25 Tues - 

1/26 Wed - 

1/27 Thurs - 

1/28 Fri - 

1/29 Saturday-

10am-12pm Paerdegat Park (Brooklyn)  - Another NYC Parks Stewardship Volunteer event that i signed up for, but this one looks to be more of a walking tour! Never been to this park and hardly go into this area of Brooklyn so i'm looking forward to a change of pace. 

We will be walking with people who identify 14 speciies of plants at  Albany Ave., E. 40 St. between Farragut Rd. and Foster Ave., Brooklyn / Meeting Location: Meeting at Ecology Park Gate - closest intersection is Bergen Avenue and Avenue T

1/30 Sunday - Home. 

1/31 Monday - 

2/1 Tuesday - 

 It's 5 degrees here now and feels like 2 below at 10:30 A.M.

Cleaned out and organized a few drawers here this morning.  Taking a break right now and doing a little laundry......cat totally hates the bed I got him.....it actually makes him mad....he grabs it with his teeth and drags it as far away from him as he can...I have been putting a few of his treats in it to encourage him to like it better......so now he just thinks it a giant serving bowl....probably should wash that...but not sure why...D says to throw it out...but...I'm a virgo...I'm on a misson now!!!!   I am determined that he will like it...Virgos are like that....( probably not a great trait)  LOL

Eating leftovers today.........nothing special............Bp is coming down...day by day......forcing myself to do what it takes...and it's working.......

Boy those are the most "patient" animals ever....the dog is hooked up to a toy IV bag and the cat is letting her poke it in the face...(1 eye squinting)....

I guess it didn't take as long as I expected for him to learn to love the cat  bed he detested......I tossed a throw that he loves on top of it and he settled right in....should have done that sooner...glad I didn't throw it away........I was ready to go put that pet bed in the washer when Donkey thought he might not like the way it smelled.......figured I would toss the throw on it for a few minutes first........when I went to get it to wash...he was already sleeping in it........I think we have a winner...and now the throw belongs to him too....I can live with that.

Having fun getting to know "new" 8 yr old bike. Seller says battery replaced in 2018 & good for a few more years.   he gave me a link to a $40 one that beats my $45 one, both on Amazon.   Very very sophisticated machine, so happy I got used gym quality bike vs home model 

Resoved some issues with "new" 6 yr old Nikon DSLR. Thought it was also 8 yrs old, sellers says 6.  Had lots of trouble today with autofocus, something I won't be using on the fish, but would like for doggie snapshots etc.  Had to contact eBay seller.   Told me how to do factory resets to over ride his settings.He was using it for still shots on his YouTube channel & lucky for me not all that often, in excellent condition, a steal at $200.

Here's a test pic to  confirm autofocus issues fixed.   Many of the fish are nocturnal & hiding out in the ship now.

the photo is not uploading.   not sure if file is too big or what.   going to try uploading SS to test if file too big.

Good morning!  I will update this entry later today, because I need to get to the gym ASAP.  Yesterday, I waited until Daughter left for work at around noon, and the gym was PACKED.  I'm not doing that again.  I missed one of the machines I wanted to use, because this one guy monopolized the machine the entire time I was doing the other weight machines - like 20 minutes!  I almost had to wait for the machines that I did use, just because there were so many people.

Inner Peace - congratulations to your Bengels!  They played a good game, definitely a better game, and I'll be cheering them on at their next game.

Post-Gym Update:

I arrived at the gym around 8:30am, and realized that if I had gotten there maybe 15 minutes earlier, it would have been even emptier.  I will try to do this next weekend.

The gym was certainly less crowded than yesterday (Saturday) afternoon, BUT the ellipticals were busy.  There was another lady there who uses these 2 particular ellitpcals.  Well, some guy was using 1 of them, and I hopped onto the other one, because all of the other available ellipticals - and there weren't many - have issues with them.  I felt kind of bad, because I knew why she was there, but I "beat" her to the machine (unintentionally).

Today was lower body weight machines.  I noticed that many of the cable machines were not being used, but still not quite brave enough to walk through a sea of weight training men to get to those machines.  I may do some more weights here at home this afternoon or evening.

The only football game I'm really interested in is tonight, but I may tune into the others, especially If I exercise more at home.

Right now, I'm finishing up a load of cat laundry.  The dishwasher needs to get emptied.  The birdfeeders need refilling.  And hopefully I'll get to see a little of Daughter before she leaves for work.

 Sunday Jan 16, 2022 8am:

Phooey on staying up on friday to reset my sleep clock. I did get to bed on time last night. Too early by an hour but that's ok. I ended up sleeping almost 12 hours... and not getting up till 7. It must have been what my body needed though because my 7 day average is on point.

 

$5 says this is the day I start to sleep better. Today I had enough rem sleep and a good 7 day average at the same time.

Feels like a good day for a run.

   For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. John 3:16&17

........................................................

Have a cup of coffee with me?  We are currently having an ICE STORM here in SC and our state is under a state of emergency.  Please pray that our Daughter's electric stays on as she is upstate here in SC and lives with and takes care of her Dad.  They have no back up heat if their electric goes out.

This morning I am at 156, same as yesterday when I was down -4 in three days from 160, this year's high.  1700 calories yesterday and it was a bread day because I baked homemade biscuits.  Didn't want to resist them and ended up having 1700 calories for the day, which for me means holding steady...not gaining and not losing...

• NYPL new book - romance novel, light reading - takes place in like 1800's...is GREAT and fun! loving it! very easy read called "Mad About the Major," by Elizabeth Boyle
• Courts - reading / studying the test format & sample questions.  tests prob in Late 2022 -  2023. This is in progress; to continue working on these during long weekends in 2022... REVIEW WHAT BOOKS I HAVE AND IF THEY MATCH THE CODES / LAWS TESTED FOR COURT CLERK/SENIOR COURT CLERK (WILL BE STUDYING IN ADVANCE TO FAMILIARIZE, INCLUDING MAKING FLASH CARDS IN 2022).  BUY NEW STUDY GUIDES IF NEEDED FOR LAWS / CODES I AM MISSING.
• Renew Passport - soon.
• Last TOM - 1/12/22.

Freeze leftover cabbage soup / potatoes if i have any left after Sunday..

1/15/22 Saturday catching up with things!

(I will be catching up later on your entries, espec Bear - saw you may have covid?...reading it later)....

Slept in till around 9am.

Chat with neighbor on phone around 9:15, she was asking advice. talked 30 min...

10am late Breakfast: oats 150, coffee 50, yellow raisins 150...350...

2nd planned video phone chat with Paris friend! 2 hours from 10-Noon.

Early Afternoon Strength - Upper and Lower :) 12:30-2:30ish

Light lunch:1pm during workout: Snack : gummies vitamins, choc covered wafer bar from coworker 150.; 2 nice tbsp soft skippy peanut butter yum. been awhile since having regular pb. is good. 200.

5pm Dinner: pringles 150, cooked cabbage & potato 100, leftover thai eggplant 150, jackfruit dried 100, 1/4 of a pumpkin pie just bought 400...900.

8pm 2 chocs before bed 100

1700.

3pm-4pmish Oil Change - after exercises only - not sure i can get it done today, we'll see based on their hours...DONE!

Walked around 25 min while waiting for oil change...was cold! 20F today. Glad to get a little walk in!

1/16 Sun - 

AM - do some court studying - take a practice test

Call christine on way home from city? or just wait until tomorrow.

2pm - Broadway show - "The Book of Mormon" (from the creators of South Park) taking just myself, got a ticket for $65. not the absolute best deal but not a high price at all either. :).  This day is projected as 34F but full sun. Perfect for commuting in to the city in January, so i'm glad i'm going in this day and not yesterday/tomorrow!

1/17 Mon - Martin Luther King Holiday! :-D 

• Laundry day
• Buy silkin tofu - didn't have it at supermarket. will try some other place

IF RAIN STAYS IN FORECAST (NOW PROJECTED AT 90% RAIN FOR THIS DAY), I WILL SKIP THE VOLUNTEERING BELOW: - big chance of cancellation!

9:30-12:30 NYC Parks Stewardship - signed up to volunteer locally (within my borough of Queens) - closer than my usual drives when volunteering with the New York City parks!.  We will be removing invasive plant species at a large park called Forest Park, exact meeting location "Oak Ridge: Union Turnpike/Myrtle Ave/Park Lane S."

Strength Exercises, upper and lower  :-D - Most important to keep on as i had to skip a day last work week (just felt too tired/too much going on per my own standards).

Clean GP cages well. BIG CLEANING.

1/18 Tuesday

1/19 Wednesday

Strength Exercises, upper and lower

1/20 Thursday

1/21 Friday

1/22 Saturday - quiet weekend...

 Cook "Cream" of mushroom soup..."cream" bc it's silkin tofu, not cream. looking forward to trying this....also the protein?

Strength today?

1/23 Sunday

Strength today?

1/24 Monday

1/25 Tues

1/26 Wed

1/27 Thurs

1/28 Fri

1/29 Saturday-

10am-12pm Paerdegat Park (Brooklyn)  - Another NYC Parks Stewardship Volunteer event that i signed up for, but this one looks to be more of a walking tour! Never been to this park and hardly go into this area of Brooklyn so i'm looking forward to a change of pace. 

We will be walking with people who identify 14 speciies of plants at  Albany Ave., E. 40 St. between Farragut Rd. and Foster Ave., Brooklyn / Meeting Location: Meeting at Ecology Park Gate - closest intersection is Bergen Avenue and Avenue T

1/30 Sunday - Home. 

1/31 Monday

2/1 Tuesday

Day 15 - Believe

I believe I can keep this up. Not much going on today...laundry and hanging out. Thought about going to the gym later, but dinner is not sitting well (heavy). I will get up early tomorrow and go. No work Monday so will also be able to get to the gym during the day.

I believe it will just take a little more work - DH tried feeding me cheese and crackers after noon - I'm like I'm trying to do better here...going to the gym. I did eat a few slices of cheese with a cracker though. He means well, but just don't get it. I'm tired of being heavy and worrying about my weight, maybe one day he will be fully on board.

I believe I feel better in the mornings - CPAP? maybe, but I don't remember waking up so much during the night before I had to adjust this stupid mask. No morning headaches, so this is a big plus, I will just keep plugging along with the CPAP....no work on DH's machine yet.

B: malt o meal - iced vanill latte

L: half baked chicken breast, bacon cheddar cheese slice and cucumbers and tomatos

D: bean burrito with chili (last night's left over chili) with cheese and avocado

Have a great day! IP

Matt figured out the resistance problem.  since it's not powered by electricity he figured it had a big-assed battery & either a generator or alternator that is recharged by regular use.   he also saw the battery online for $44.   This is a 6 volt battery.  He has 2 battery rechargers, but  both are 12 V.   Haven't priced the charger yet.   He rode the bike hard for about 1/2 hour & it's much easy for me to use now. Probably the first owner never replaced the battery.   Appears they need replacement every 5 years or so & this, having been used minimally for a commercial machine,  doesn't need it yet.

BUT!  Matt just saw in the owner's manual there is an optional electrical add on that eliminates the need for recharging by peddling, appears to target older and disabled people unable to maintain a steady rate & use bike daily.

Really thrilled, this same model goes for 2K refurbished at Amazon and much more at places that sell used gym equipment.   So far, an incredible buy at $650. 

Got the bike!  OMG!   What a workout!  Display I have iPad on too far back for me to type, but I can read.   Will take some getting used to & learning how to work the ten thousand options.   So far, the easiest one I can find is quite strenuous.  Many flashing displays including very annoying beeps indicating you're slowing down.   when this happens, the peddles get even more difficult to turn, Matt thinks it thinks you're putting on brakes.   it's a high step to climb into the seat, like stepping over a barricade and one, at least someone as short as me, has to step down carefully. Something I'm actually used to from using step ladders so often.

all kinds of features like ways to connect to "cardiac entertainment videos and even personal trainers.   no video display but has USB connector, so looks like one could plug in a phone or tablet.  must have subscription services like Peloton.   That's a hard no! 
 

Looks like the "easiest" workout is burning 230 Cals per hour.   You can set it for however many calories you want to burn in an hour (within reason) and it will adjust the resistance accordingly.  

Saturday Jan 15, 2022 1pm -

Tried to stay up all night and go to bed at my regular time. Backfired. I couldn't make it past 3am, woke up at 7:30 am and now I am dead tired. So far today I have jumped my car battery, made an attempt to clean out the fridge, inflated my exercise ball. Mostly I am watching Netflix and taking breaks from the kitchen stuff... Everytime I go in there I end up crosswise with my dad.

Tired. I hope I go to bed on time tonight. 

Changes...Changes !!!!!

I'm pretty sure we have the Imicron...or how ever you spell it.........D must have picked it up at the tire store.  The town is flooded with it.   I will say it's like a mild cold.......he just mostly has the stuffy nose..that turns into a drippy nose that turns into a very dry nose...alternately over very short periods of time...he also has the itchy eyes.......I have the nose, eyes,sudden sweats that stop quickly( but no fever).....a little congestion...headache....neck ache and swollen neck gland...and probably unrelated low blood sugar and high blood pressure....... I will say that I have had colds in the past that were much worse....this is really quite mild to moderate........and life goes on......I've ordered some home tests but this will likely be over by the time they arrive....but will be good to have them on hand anyway.......They aren't 100% accurate .....so.....there is that.  We are staying away from everyone as we should.

I can see that there are some things I really need to do.........and I'm right now committed to doing those things......I have never been a scheduled person ( when it came to work/jobs...I was...but not at home.)  I had some habits and routines that seemed to happen naturally...but scheduled days were not my thing.......but I think I will start scheduling my days a little more so that I can forget some chores instead of carrying them around in my head.......nagging me to do them and then not actually doing them...that just causes me stress which in turn raises my blood pressure......so if I work from a schedule daily I will just do what is on the list...and possibly do things that I WANT to do that aren't.  No more carrying around the to do list in my head...work off the schedule......plus anything I want to do.

I have put my bottle of Tylenol away...THANK YOU MARIA!!!!!!    We are replacing our Blood pressure monitors...THANK YOU JACKY!!!!.....DONKEY for reminding me about sodium first thing yesterday morning!!!!...Thank you to everyone that gave me things to think about and change yesterday...I so appreciate all of you......I think I will get things in line now that will help......My aim is to remain med free and I believe that I can do that with the right behavior changes.

New personal goals

1.  Keep losing weight ( lowered my goal weight yesterday)

2.  Keep an eye on my glucose and BP levels daily now

3.  Remain calm, don't carry to do's around in my head...just walk the walk...follow the schedule.  It will all get done without the mental list.

4.  Stay calm/relax......just enjoy every day and live in the moment because the moment is really all any of us have.  If it causes stress then fix it or walk away from it.......but don't let it rent space in my head.

Started the day with BP at 155/80...which is a lot better than yesterday and glucose at 77 which is worse than yesterday ( need to get that into the 90's)

coffee 

3/4 Fage 0% greek yogurt 

Walden farms SF breakfast syrup less than a serving

2 cheese biscuits

navy bean soup (1 cup)

lasagna