We interrupt the silence with the following thoughts.
So, yeah. Blogging isn't hard, it just takes a few things.
1) Time
2) Commitment
3) Desire
4) Interesting Topic/Topics
Let's take a look at that list in order, shall we?
1) Time. I usually have plenty of time. After dinner and the evening chores are over with, there is not a lot on my plate usually. The last week was no exception. I had plenty of time to write, so that's not what kept me from writing.
2) Commitment. Even though my blog gets under 30 hits a day on a good day, I have been committed since February to writing something almost everyday, so my commitment to the blog is not based on readership, it's based on...
3) Desire. I enjoy writing normally. As Malia pointed out to me, just because I don't have a ton of people reading my posts, the goal was to write something and put it out there to keep myself honest about my daily life and struggle to lose weight. Which leads to...
4) Interesting Topic/Topics. My personal struggle with food and weight loss may be interesting to some, but not all, of my readers. My personal entertainment preferences may be interesting to others, but again, not all of my readers. I've tried to balance things out, but honestly, I'm just not that deep of a person. I have my interests, but there aren't many layers to this onion.
So, when I put out a call for what I should write about, the subject of Star Trek came up. Now, I'm not a Star Trek fan. I like some aspects of Star Trek, but it's never really been my cup of tea. When it comes to the shows, my favorite was Deep Space Nine. Best captain? Sisko. I liked the first movie by J.J. "More Lens Flare!" Abrams, but haven't seen the second one yet since I rarely get to the theater.
So, as I planned out my Star Trek blog entries, I went in with high expectations and failed to meet them. Hopefully my legion of readers aren't too upset. Really don't have much else to say on that topic. (Sorry, Matt!)
Between last post and this one I have found a new Internet distraction; John Green. If you aren't familiar with John Green and his brother Hank, here are a few places you can find them.
Nerdfighters
Mental Floss
Vlogbrothers
Crash Course
Big fan of these guys. You should check them out, as they are both Nerdy and Cool.
Being stressed about the end of the school year does not lead to the best eating habits, so I have maintained my 223-224 lbs for the past week. I figure once vacation starts, I will be in better shape. We'll see.
Anyone, thanks for reading! Take care!
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Star Trek TOS
Okay, so I am behind in my blogging on Star Trek already, but that's okay, because honestly, I don't have a whole lot to say about The Original Series.
To be honest I'm not a big fan of the Original Series TV shows. There were a couple decent things about it.
1)Mirror Universe Spock
To be honest I'm not a big fan of the Original Series TV shows. There were a couple decent things about it.
1)Mirror Universe Spock
Seriously. How cool does Spock look here?
2) Khan
Ricardo Montalbán as Khan. Cool episode, and I like how the best Star Trek TOS movie picks up on this thread years later.
3) Tribbles
Who doesn't like Tribbles?
So, really, not a huge fan of the show. It was okay, but honestly, I preferred the Next Generation series over the Original.
Since that was so short, lets hit the movies.
Anyone who knows the Star Trek TOS movies knows the deal with them.
I like to refer to the first movie as Star Trek, The Motionless Picture. Gah. So bad. The scene with them flying in the shuttle up to the Enterprise? Terrible.
Wrath of Khan? Arguably the best Star Trek movie of all time.
The Search for Spock? Probably the best of the odd numbered movies.
The Voyage Home was a fun time travel movie. Favorite scene was when Mr. Scott was trying to use a computer. Funny stuff.
The Final Frontier? Worse than The Motionless Picture. Pains me to even write about it.
The Undiscovered Country was okay, and a fitting end to the Original Series movies. I was glad that it went out on a better not than Final Frontier.
Favorite Character from the Original Series? This guy:
Tomorrow, I'll talk about the Next Generation.
So, work is winding down. Most groups I will only see once more, and then it's a week of planning for next year. May be subbing for one of my colleagues on the last day of school, but not sure yet. It would be cool, but I'll see what the boss says.
The gardens are looking nice for the most part. Water was an issue. Too much at some schools; not enough at others. Space was also an issue. The kids were pretty excited by it all though, so that's cool. It didn't go exactly as I wanted it to, but it's almost over so I can't complain.
Weight loss has been at a stand still since I got back from Grizzly Creek Ranch. I've maintained about 222 lbs since returning home.
I decided, without talking to my doctor, to try a little experiment. I went off my cholesterol meds and tried to control it by diet and exercise alone. Well, that apparently failed, as she wants to see me about my blood work that I just had done. Sigh. Now I get to go explain myself. I was really hoping that would work, but apparently not so much. I'm frustrated because I thought for sure I would be successful. Guess not. Dang.
Hopefully, I get my results in the mail by Monday so I can start by new journal. Time to get things back under control and start another 90 day plan. Wish me luck!
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Chores
Hey all, hope you've had a great day. Mine was a bit busier than I thought it would be.
First off, I just want to say that I love my Tuesday school. They are truly a delightful group of teachers, administrators, support staff, parents, students, you name it. My one complaint is that they have too much food around on Tuesdays! Every Tuesday is their big meeting day and someone always brings snacks. Those snacks end up in my teaching space, the Teachers' Lounge.
Today's treats was Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread. Oh my. I tried. I really tried. I ignored it for about 30 minutes, but then half a slice became a whole slice, which then became two slices. Then there was the bowl of Hershey's Kisses and the Reese's Peanut Butter things.
Sigh...needless to say, today was not a great day for eating. Oh, and no sixth graders again today. That's four weeks in a row I haven't seen that group. Two were my fault, but the other two were for a field trip and then testing. Maybe I will get to say goodbye to them next week!
Oh well! We got a dozen more plants in the ground and another birdhouse in the tree. Overall, I am pretty happy with what we have been able to do at the 4 schools. I know it wasn't much at some of them, but I had several compliments about how nice things look. Apparently, I have created a monster that I will need to take care of every year!
Got home and decided after the dog had escaped from the backyard again, that it was time to fix the gates. Both the gate to the dog run and the yard were broken, so first I tore apart the gate to the fence and rebuilt it. Honestly, I should have gotten new wood and redone it, but for what it is, it looks okay. The gate to the dog run just needed to be adjusted and put together correctly. Both jobs together took about 3 hours to complete.
I have neglected the lawn as well, so I decided I better mow it before the HOA complains. So, at about 8:40, I started mowing. I was done by 9:00, but I have no idea how it looks since by the time I was done, it was too dark to see. Luckily, I didn't find any rocks in the yard!
After that, I got tomorrow nights dinner ready to put in the crockpot tomorrow morning and cleaned the kitchen. Not much time to sit down tonight. Didn't get any of oldest boy's schoolwork checked in, but he only has 7 more assignments to do before the end of the year, so I am not too concerned about it!
With that, I'll bring up the topic of my next few nights blog posts as suggested by my friend, Matt: Star Trek. First off, I have to say I am not a Trekkie. I enjoy many things about Star Trek, but it is not my go to Sci-Fi show. I thought Babylon 5 was a much better show than any Star Trek series, with maybe the exception for Deep Space 9.
Anyway, I will share my opinions of the shows and movies in the following manner:
Wednesday: Star Trek, The Original Series
Thursday: Star Trek, The Original Series Movies
Friday: Star Trek, The Next Generation Series
Saturday: Star Trek, The Next Generation Movies
Sunday: Star Trek, Deep Space Nine
Monday: Star Trek, Voyager
Tuesday: Star Trek, Enterprise
Wednesday: Star Trek, J.J. Abrams Universe
Food Diary for Tuesday the 21st of May
Breakfast: 2 eggs, over easy, fried in Kerrygold Butter
2 slices of Canadian Bacon
12.5 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener
AM Snack: 2 slices of Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread
5 Hershey's Kisses
2 Reese's Peanut Butter candies
Lunch: Nothing
PM Snack: 2 slices of Canadian Bacon
1 oz of Dubliner Cheese
Dinner: Pastrami Salmon (Salmon in a Pastrami like brine)
Big Ol' Salad w/Blood Orange and Black Currant Balsamic Vinaigrette
Water: About 60 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Exercise: Normal walking around
Light Gardening
Home repair
Lawn Mowing
First off, I just want to say that I love my Tuesday school. They are truly a delightful group of teachers, administrators, support staff, parents, students, you name it. My one complaint is that they have too much food around on Tuesdays! Every Tuesday is their big meeting day and someone always brings snacks. Those snacks end up in my teaching space, the Teachers' Lounge.
Today's treats was Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread. Oh my. I tried. I really tried. I ignored it for about 30 minutes, but then half a slice became a whole slice, which then became two slices. Then there was the bowl of Hershey's Kisses and the Reese's Peanut Butter things.
Sigh...needless to say, today was not a great day for eating. Oh, and no sixth graders again today. That's four weeks in a row I haven't seen that group. Two were my fault, but the other two were for a field trip and then testing. Maybe I will get to say goodbye to them next week!
Oh well! We got a dozen more plants in the ground and another birdhouse in the tree. Overall, I am pretty happy with what we have been able to do at the 4 schools. I know it wasn't much at some of them, but I had several compliments about how nice things look. Apparently, I have created a monster that I will need to take care of every year!
Got home and decided after the dog had escaped from the backyard again, that it was time to fix the gates. Both the gate to the dog run and the yard were broken, so first I tore apart the gate to the fence and rebuilt it. Honestly, I should have gotten new wood and redone it, but for what it is, it looks okay. The gate to the dog run just needed to be adjusted and put together correctly. Both jobs together took about 3 hours to complete.
I have neglected the lawn as well, so I decided I better mow it before the HOA complains. So, at about 8:40, I started mowing. I was done by 9:00, but I have no idea how it looks since by the time I was done, it was too dark to see. Luckily, I didn't find any rocks in the yard!
After that, I got tomorrow nights dinner ready to put in the crockpot tomorrow morning and cleaned the kitchen. Not much time to sit down tonight. Didn't get any of oldest boy's schoolwork checked in, but he only has 7 more assignments to do before the end of the year, so I am not too concerned about it!
With that, I'll bring up the topic of my next few nights blog posts as suggested by my friend, Matt: Star Trek. First off, I have to say I am not a Trekkie. I enjoy many things about Star Trek, but it is not my go to Sci-Fi show. I thought Babylon 5 was a much better show than any Star Trek series, with maybe the exception for Deep Space 9.
Anyway, I will share my opinions of the shows and movies in the following manner:
Wednesday: Star Trek, The Original Series
Thursday: Star Trek, The Original Series Movies
Friday: Star Trek, The Next Generation Series
Saturday: Star Trek, The Next Generation Movies
Sunday: Star Trek, Deep Space Nine
Monday: Star Trek, Voyager
Tuesday: Star Trek, Enterprise
Wednesday: Star Trek, J.J. Abrams Universe
Food Diary for Tuesday the 21st of May
Breakfast: 2 eggs, over easy, fried in Kerrygold Butter
2 slices of Canadian Bacon
12.5 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener
AM Snack: 2 slices of Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread
5 Hershey's Kisses
2 Reese's Peanut Butter candies
Lunch: Nothing
PM Snack: 2 slices of Canadian Bacon
1 oz of Dubliner Cheese
Dinner: Pastrami Salmon (Salmon in a Pastrami like brine)
Big Ol' Salad w/Blood Orange and Black Currant Balsamic Vinaigrette
Water: About 60 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Exercise: Normal walking around
Light Gardening
Home repair
Lawn Mowing
Ok, as Judge John Hodgman would say, "That is all!"
Monday, May 20, 2013
Monday, Monday
Another Monday in the books.
Started off we me and the oldest boy in the doctor's office. Me with a wonky elbow and him with a wonky knee. Tennis elbow for me, "tennis knee" for him. Ice and Naproxen for both of us. If his doesn't get better, it's physical therapy. If mine doesn't get better? Cortisone shot.
Personally, I am a big fan of Cortisone shots. Had one about 5 years ago that drastically changed my health and well being. (Thanks Dr. McClish!) Hopefully, it won't come to that, but if it does, so be it.
Then it was off to work where I boxed up my classroom. 5 boxes with of books and files. Not much really. Kind of sad and pathetic, really. Oh well. It didn't take long.
Planted two more butterfly bushes, hung 12 bird feeders, and helped bury 3 terra cotta pots for reptile homes. All in all a good day!
Meeting after school that didn't get much out of, except hints about what I am doing next year. Looks like probably the same thing as this year. I'm mostly cool with that. It's a lot of kids, but oh well. I've got a sweet job!
Picked up my new brace for my elbow and the prescriptions and rushed home to make dinner. Zucchini Pizza Boats. Turned out pretty good, actually! Got dinner for tomorrow night started. Pastrami Salmon (Salmon in a pastrami like brine). Should be interesting.
Schoolwork done with the boy. His school year is just about over. He has about 8 more assignments due by 5/29. I think he'll get them done! Then it's figuring out how to keep him busy until the rest of us are out of school on 6/6.
Food Diary for Monday the 20th of May
Breakfast: 2 eggs, over easy, fried in Kerrygold Butter
2 slices of Canadian Bacon
12.5 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener
AM Snack: Nothing
Lunch: Nothing
PM Snack: 10 Macadamias
2 squares of Lindt 88% Cacao Bar
Dinner: Zucchini Pizza Boats
Water: About 50 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Exercise: Normal walking around
Light Gardening
Started off we me and the oldest boy in the doctor's office. Me with a wonky elbow and him with a wonky knee. Tennis elbow for me, "tennis knee" for him. Ice and Naproxen for both of us. If his doesn't get better, it's physical therapy. If mine doesn't get better? Cortisone shot.
Personally, I am a big fan of Cortisone shots. Had one about 5 years ago that drastically changed my health and well being. (Thanks Dr. McClish!) Hopefully, it won't come to that, but if it does, so be it.
Then it was off to work where I boxed up my classroom. 5 boxes with of books and files. Not much really. Kind of sad and pathetic, really. Oh well. It didn't take long.
Planted two more butterfly bushes, hung 12 bird feeders, and helped bury 3 terra cotta pots for reptile homes. All in all a good day!
Meeting after school that didn't get much out of, except hints about what I am doing next year. Looks like probably the same thing as this year. I'm mostly cool with that. It's a lot of kids, but oh well. I've got a sweet job!
Picked up my new brace for my elbow and the prescriptions and rushed home to make dinner. Zucchini Pizza Boats. Turned out pretty good, actually! Got dinner for tomorrow night started. Pastrami Salmon (Salmon in a pastrami like brine). Should be interesting.
Schoolwork done with the boy. His school year is just about over. He has about 8 more assignments due by 5/29. I think he'll get them done! Then it's figuring out how to keep him busy until the rest of us are out of school on 6/6.
Food Diary for Monday the 20th of May
Breakfast: 2 eggs, over easy, fried in Kerrygold Butter
2 slices of Canadian Bacon
12.5 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener
AM Snack: Nothing
Lunch: Nothing
PM Snack: 10 Macadamias
2 squares of Lindt 88% Cacao Bar
Dinner: Zucchini Pizza Boats
Water: About 50 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Exercise: Normal walking around
Light Gardening
Hopefully you had a great day.
Sunday, May 19, 2013
Chicken Run
Short blog post tonight. I'm too tired to post much.
I spent the entire day today either shopping for parts or building the chicken run. As with all projects, it seems that giving a blood sacrifice is important to finishing it. So, this picture shows the largest contribution of blood to the project.
Yeah, it stings.
I had just cut the final link in the chain and realized a split second too late that it was going to spring back at me. Ouch. I have several smaller scratches on other parts of my body. I'm basically scratched from head to toe.
However, here is the completed chicken run.
Made entirely of PVC, hardware cloth, and zip ties.
Still need to figure out the best way to get the door working. I think we are going to paint it as well. Plus, I still need to cut off the sharp edges. Otherwise, it's good to go!
Noah and his friend helped snip off the excess on the zip ties, which was a big help, as I was really sore by this point.
We brought the chickens out to run around for a few minutes. They took a bit of time to get moving around, but once they got the hang of it, they were pecking and scratching away. That is when they weren't roosting on Noah's friend!
Weight still hovering in the 222 lb mark, which I am happy with, especially after yesterday.
Food Diary for Sunday, May 19th:
Breakfast: 2 Eggs, Scrambled w/Sausage and Sweet Potato Hash
12.5 oz of Coffee w/Kal Stevia Sweetener
Lunch: 4 slices of Canadian Bacon w/ 2 oz of Dubliner Cheese
Small Salad w/Balsamic Vinaigrette
PM Snack: 2 Squares 88% Cacao Bar
10 Macadamia Nuts
12.5 oz of Coffee w/Kal Stevia Sweetener
Dinner: 2 Hamburgers w/ Dubliner Cheese
Big Ol' Salad w/ Mustard
Water: About 60 oz
Sleep: About 8 hours
Exercise: Building the chicken run
That's it for tonight! Later!
Saturday, May 18, 2013
On the road blog
Yesterday was another fun filled day of working in the school garden. This public service project is crazy. The kids are enjoying it. The staff love that the garden is looking better. I feel like I had to dump so much of the academics to get the project done that I've lost a bit of academic integrity. Oh well. The kids are learning a few valuable skills and giving back to the world, so that's good.
Food choices were good for the most part this week. I did break down and eat one piece of pizza last night. I was tired and weak. Should have just gone to bed, but tried to get the house cleaned up and it was sitting there calling my name.
Next week starts a new phase in the lifestyle change. Taking a 90 day challenge via the Primal Blueprint Journal. Need to get blood work done to get a baseline. Talk to the doctor and see if they can order it.
Need to refocus the efforts over the summer, so this is a good time to mix it up.
Currently on a bus with a bunch of middle schoolers for a band field trip. Good times. At least I am not in charge. I'm pretty sure the teacher let me come along to just keep an eye on Noah since the only thing I have to do is keep an eye on Noah.
Going to try a fasting day today. I don't like my food options for today, so I'll just go without.
Food Diary for Friday 17th of May
Breakfast: Pork Sausage and Sweet Potato Hash w/ 2 eggs over easy
Lunch: Big ol' Salad w/yellow mustard
2 US Wellness Beef Hot Dogs
PM Snack: 2 squares of 88% Cacao Dark Chocolate
10 Macadamias
Dinner: 1 "Delmonico" Steak w/caramelized onions and mushrooms
1 slice Papa Murphy's cheese pizza with white sauce
Water: 70 oz or so
Exercise: walking dog
Heavy gardening
Ok, that's it for now. Hope it's a good day for you.
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Tired
Very tired today, so another short blog. Still need to ride the bike before bed.
Phew! Today was a crazy day. Cloudy, windy, and cold. I dug 7 big holes for plants in the garden at school. Helped plant a dozen flowers or more. Watched a group of 5th grade girls play with nightcrawlers. It was fascinating watching them. I'd post pictures, but I don't have permission. Needless to say, some the girls were grossed out and the others were having fun with them. I'm not squeamish, but worms are icky! May explain why I am not the fisherman of the house! (Nah, I don't really mind worms. I'm just kidding!)
Anyway, good day today, even if I did lose a bunch of my students to a schoolwide activity. We got a lot done, and the new plants really add to the garden, I think. Time will tell of course.
Another week, another new episode of Tabletop. This is probably my favorite thing about the Internet these days. It's a great show, and while I don't always get every game played on the show, I must admit I own a fair share of them.
Food Diary for Thursday the 16th of May
Breakfast: 2 fried eggs
2 100% Grass fed beef Polish Sausage Sliders
12.5 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener and Organic 1/2 and 1/2
AM Snack: Nothing
Lunch: 2 pieces (1 thigh and 1 leg) Sweet and Sour Split Roasted Chicken
Big Ol' Salad w/ Blood Orange and Pomegranate Vinaigrette
PM Snack: 15 Macadamia Nuts
2 squares of 88% Ghirardelli Cacao Bar
Venti, Triple, Heavy Cream, Sugar Free Mocha
Dinner: Fajita seasoned chicken, green peppers and onions served over
Passilo Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Water: About 70 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Exercise: Normal walking around
Walking the dog
Light Gardening
30 minutes of Bike riding
Phew! Today was a crazy day. Cloudy, windy, and cold. I dug 7 big holes for plants in the garden at school. Helped plant a dozen flowers or more. Watched a group of 5th grade girls play with nightcrawlers. It was fascinating watching them. I'd post pictures, but I don't have permission. Needless to say, some the girls were grossed out and the others were having fun with them. I'm not squeamish, but worms are icky! May explain why I am not the fisherman of the house! (Nah, I don't really mind worms. I'm just kidding!)
Anyway, good day today, even if I did lose a bunch of my students to a schoolwide activity. We got a lot done, and the new plants really add to the garden, I think. Time will tell of course.
Another week, another new episode of Tabletop. This is probably my favorite thing about the Internet these days. It's a great show, and while I don't always get every game played on the show, I must admit I own a fair share of them.
...and I bought this one. Looks awesome, and I know the boys will love it! Really have to get our game nights going again. I've gotten a lot of great games that we need to play, King of Tokyo, Formula D, Forbidden Island, just to name a few. Some I bought that they boys might be getting close to being ready to play include Pandemic and Munchkin. The recommended age is 10 and up for both, but some of the content, especially in Munchkin seems a bit mature of 10 year olds.
Anyway, as Wil would say, "Play more games!"
Breakfast: 2 fried eggs
2 100% Grass fed beef Polish Sausage Sliders
12.5 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener and Organic 1/2 and 1/2
AM Snack: Nothing
Lunch: 2 pieces (1 thigh and 1 leg) Sweet and Sour Split Roasted Chicken
Big Ol' Salad w/ Blood Orange and Pomegranate Vinaigrette
PM Snack: 15 Macadamia Nuts
2 squares of 88% Ghirardelli Cacao Bar
Venti, Triple, Heavy Cream, Sugar Free Mocha
Dinner: Fajita seasoned chicken, green peppers and onions served over
Passilo Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Water: About 70 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Exercise: Normal walking around
Walking the dog
Light Gardening
30 minutes of Bike riding
Good night, all!
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Back on Track
Okay, going to try to get things back under control, so a short blog post so I can go lift weights and get to bed by 10 PM.
Life has been chaotic lately. If you have been following my blog you can tell I haven't been my usual self. Time to take control back. That starts with working out again. In the past, I'd always say that exercising didn't really do much for me and that it was a waste of time. I've gotta say, though, now that I look at my body in the mirror, I am seeing muscles that weren't there before.
I'm not "buff" or "ripped" or "cut" by any definition of the words, but I am seeing some "definition", especially in my biceps. Yesterday in class, I stretched both arms behind my head and one of my students said, "Whoa! Check out Mr. Walter's muscles!" I laughed it off, but later looked in the mirror to see for myself!
So, time to get back at it. I know at this point, there is no way I will be 200 lbs by June 11th. It's unfortunate, but a reality nonetheless. Maybe 215 if I work at it. That's about 8 lbs in the next 4 weeks. Impossible? Maybe, but it's a goal!
Current weight as referenced above is 223. Blargh. But it is what it is. That's still 31 pounds lighter than I was in February and 37 from maximum density last year!
Food Diary for Wednesday the 15th of May
Breakfast: 2 Eggs, fried in bacon grease
2 slices of Canadian Bacon
12.5 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener and Organic 1/2 and 1/2
AM Snack: Nothing
Lunch: 2 US Wellness Garlic Beef Hot Dogs
Big Ol' Salad w/ Yellow Mustard
1 fun sized Snickers Bar (Grrr! Why do people keep giving me candy?!?! Luckily, I didn't eat the box of M & M's!)
PM Snack: 10 Macadamia Nuts
2 squares of 88% Ghirardelli Cacao Bar
Dinner: Paleo Fish "Sticks" (Chunks of Tilapia rolled in crushed macadamias and coconut and spices)
Big Ol' Salad w/ Blood Orange and Pomegranate Vinaigrette
12.5 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener and Trader Joe's Organic 1/2 and 1/2
Water: About 70 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Exercise: Normal walking around
Walking the dog
Light Gardening
Abs Diet Wednesday Original Circuit
Night all!
Life has been chaotic lately. If you have been following my blog you can tell I haven't been my usual self. Time to take control back. That starts with working out again. In the past, I'd always say that exercising didn't really do much for me and that it was a waste of time. I've gotta say, though, now that I look at my body in the mirror, I am seeing muscles that weren't there before.
I'm not "buff" or "ripped" or "cut" by any definition of the words, but I am seeing some "definition", especially in my biceps. Yesterday in class, I stretched both arms behind my head and one of my students said, "Whoa! Check out Mr. Walter's muscles!" I laughed it off, but later looked in the mirror to see for myself!
So, time to get back at it. I know at this point, there is no way I will be 200 lbs by June 11th. It's unfortunate, but a reality nonetheless. Maybe 215 if I work at it. That's about 8 lbs in the next 4 weeks. Impossible? Maybe, but it's a goal!
Current weight as referenced above is 223. Blargh. But it is what it is. That's still 31 pounds lighter than I was in February and 37 from maximum density last year!
Food Diary for Wednesday the 15th of May
Breakfast: 2 Eggs, fried in bacon grease
2 slices of Canadian Bacon
12.5 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener and Organic 1/2 and 1/2
AM Snack: Nothing
Lunch: 2 US Wellness Garlic Beef Hot Dogs
Big Ol' Salad w/ Yellow Mustard
1 fun sized Snickers Bar (Grrr! Why do people keep giving me candy?!?! Luckily, I didn't eat the box of M & M's!)
PM Snack: 10 Macadamia Nuts
2 squares of 88% Ghirardelli Cacao Bar
Dinner: Paleo Fish "Sticks" (Chunks of Tilapia rolled in crushed macadamias and coconut and spices)
Big Ol' Salad w/ Blood Orange and Pomegranate Vinaigrette
12.5 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener and Trader Joe's Organic 1/2 and 1/2
Water: About 70 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Exercise: Normal walking around
Walking the dog
Light Gardening
Abs Diet Wednesday Original Circuit
Night all!
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Some Days the Dragon Wins
A long time ago a lady I worked with named Kelly saw I was down in the dumps and gave me a picture that said "Some days, the Dragon Wins" and had a picture of a knight trudging off, looking burnt and dejected. That's pretty much how I've felt for awhile now, as I posted this morning.
This picture is a bit more modern version of the one Kelly gave me, but it still fits:
Food Diary for Tuesday the 14th of May
Breakfast: Sweet Potato, Canadian Bacon, and Egg Scramble w/Dubliner Cheese
12.5 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener
AM Snack: Nothing
Lunch: 2 US Wellness Garlic Beef Hot Dogs
Big Ol' Salad w/ Yellow Mustard
3 Mint Hershey's Kisses
PM Snack: 15 slices of Pepperoni
1.5 oz of Dubliner Cheese
Dinner: Sweet and Sour Roasted Chicken (Primal Cravings Cookbook)
Big Ol' Salad
12.5 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener and Trader Joe's Organic Heavy Cream
Water: About 60 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Exercise: Normal walking around
Light Gardening
That's all for today! Don't forget to be awesome!
This picture is a bit more modern version of the one Kelly gave me, but it still fits:
However, I modified that drawing and added the words, "...but not today!" It was my way of fighting the dragon back. The dragon became a metaphor for all the problems in my life, and I still use it from time to time almost 20 years later.
Why am I talking about this now? Eh...today the Dragon and I tied. We both walked away from the day a bit roughed up, but neither getting a distinct advantage. Still feeling all the same things I was feeling this morning, but work went fairly well and I feel I got a lot accomplished with my morning group. We hung up 2 bird houses and 15 pine cone bird feeders. The afternoon group? Well, lets just say of the 24 kids I have in that group, I started with 3 for the first hour and ended up with about 10 before recess time. We planted about half a dozen flowers for the school today.
The service project portion of this unit went well. The academic portion, less so. It was hard to squeeze it all in and still get the projects done, so I had to sacrifice some of the academics. Next year's curriculum should be better organized and I will get the best of both worlds.
Picked up some more olive oil and balsamic vinegar from my favorite Olive Oil place. Today was Blood Orange Fused Olive Oil and Pomegranate Balsamic Vinegar.
Today I got my first pair of Vibram Fivefingers shoes. Malia got them for me for my birthday, but I gave her the wrong size so we had to return them. The new ones came today.
Gotta say, they are kind of weird. The whole separating the toes thing feels strange. I really like being barefoot, but hate stepping on sharp, pointy things! We shall see how it goes. Should be good once I get used to them.
Breakfast: Sweet Potato, Canadian Bacon, and Egg Scramble w/Dubliner Cheese
12.5 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener
AM Snack: Nothing
Lunch: 2 US Wellness Garlic Beef Hot Dogs
Big Ol' Salad w/ Yellow Mustard
3 Mint Hershey's Kisses
PM Snack: 15 slices of Pepperoni
1.5 oz of Dubliner Cheese
Dinner: Sweet and Sour Roasted Chicken (Primal Cravings Cookbook)
Big Ol' Salad
12.5 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener and Trader Joe's Organic Heavy Cream
Water: About 60 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Exercise: Normal walking around
Light Gardening
Blah-g
So, been feeling a bit blah again. Seems like that happens way too often. I like to think of myself as someone who tries to maintain a middle of the road personality, but in reality, I go to extremes with my attitude. Never to high or low? Not so much.
I hate that this blog has turned into a whine fest at least once a week now. The weight has gone back up again as soon as I got home. 3 days away helped to shed some of that weight I had been stubbornly been holding on to. However, I get home and start cramming my face full of food. It started off with the oldest boy leaving cookie dough in the fridge. In an attempt to avoid eating that, I started eating anything else around the house that I could eat, until I finally broke down and ate some of the cookie dough.
Then, there was the Bundt Cake Mishap of 2013. I did avoid the Chocolate Chip Cookie of Doom and the Russell Stovers Candy Monster, but then was up late and ate 2 handfuls of macadamias and an entire 88% Cacao bar. Sunday rolled around and breakfast included country potatoes.
Last night I was feeling uninspired, so I made spaghetti with the Quinoa/Corn Pasta for dinner. Sadly, I tried a new sauce that had zero flavor to it, but was totally organic. I ate more than I should have before going out and working on the chicken run. I was achy by the time it got too dark to keep working so I came in and helped the oldest boy get schoolwork done. By then it was 10 and I hadn't had a chance to unwind from the day, so I stayed up late.
This triggered the boredom eating response, so I avoided the cookie dough for awhile and ate the rest of the blah-ghetti and washed it down with the last Diet Cream Soda that had been haunting the fridge for 3 months.
I tried playing some of the new game, Neverwinter Nights. Seems like it could be fun, but not really sure yet.
Finally hit the sofa to watch a couple episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars cartoon before passing out.
Nervous about what today is going to bring, because today's school is going to be missing a bunch of kids and I haven't seen them in two weeks, so who knows if they have remembered to bring their stuff for the project. Plus, I am not sure exactly where we will be planting, since the water is turned off to the area I had planned on using.
Lets see. Stress? Check. Lack of sleep? Check. Bad eating choices and times? Check. Needless to say the weight has crept back up to around 224.2 after being down to 220.8.
Blah.
Food Diary for Monday 13th of May
Breakfast: 2 eggs, fried in bacon grease
2 slices of Canadian Bacon
10 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener
AM Snack: Part of a Large Primal Pac
Lunch: The rest of the Large Primal Pac
PM Snack: 10 Macadamia Nuts
4 squares of Ghirardelli 88% Cacao Bar
1 US Wellness Beef Stick
2 oz Dubliner Cheese
Pinch of mint chocolate cookie dough
Dinner: Blah-ghetti (Quinoa/Corn Pasta, ground beef, awful spaghetti sauce)
After dinner boredom eating: Leftover Blah-ghetti
1 can of Shasta Diet Cream Soda
15 macadamias
2 squares of Ghirardelli 88% Cacao Bar
Water: About 70 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Today is a new day. So hopefully its a better one! Going to pick up some more olive oil and balsamic after work and enjoy (hopefully) a hockey game. Maybe even get the chicken run done tonight!
I hate that this blog has turned into a whine fest at least once a week now. The weight has gone back up again as soon as I got home. 3 days away helped to shed some of that weight I had been stubbornly been holding on to. However, I get home and start cramming my face full of food. It started off with the oldest boy leaving cookie dough in the fridge. In an attempt to avoid eating that, I started eating anything else around the house that I could eat, until I finally broke down and ate some of the cookie dough.
Then, there was the Bundt Cake Mishap of 2013. I did avoid the Chocolate Chip Cookie of Doom and the Russell Stovers Candy Monster, but then was up late and ate 2 handfuls of macadamias and an entire 88% Cacao bar. Sunday rolled around and breakfast included country potatoes.
Last night I was feeling uninspired, so I made spaghetti with the Quinoa/Corn Pasta for dinner. Sadly, I tried a new sauce that had zero flavor to it, but was totally organic. I ate more than I should have before going out and working on the chicken run. I was achy by the time it got too dark to keep working so I came in and helped the oldest boy get schoolwork done. By then it was 10 and I hadn't had a chance to unwind from the day, so I stayed up late.
This triggered the boredom eating response, so I avoided the cookie dough for awhile and ate the rest of the blah-ghetti and washed it down with the last Diet Cream Soda that had been haunting the fridge for 3 months.
I tried playing some of the new game, Neverwinter Nights. Seems like it could be fun, but not really sure yet.
Finally hit the sofa to watch a couple episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars cartoon before passing out.
Nervous about what today is going to bring, because today's school is going to be missing a bunch of kids and I haven't seen them in two weeks, so who knows if they have remembered to bring their stuff for the project. Plus, I am not sure exactly where we will be planting, since the water is turned off to the area I had planned on using.
Lets see. Stress? Check. Lack of sleep? Check. Bad eating choices and times? Check. Needless to say the weight has crept back up to around 224.2 after being down to 220.8.
Blah.
Food Diary for Monday 13th of May
Breakfast: 2 eggs, fried in bacon grease
2 slices of Canadian Bacon
10 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener
AM Snack: Part of a Large Primal Pac
Lunch: The rest of the Large Primal Pac
PM Snack: 10 Macadamia Nuts
4 squares of Ghirardelli 88% Cacao Bar
1 US Wellness Beef Stick
2 oz Dubliner Cheese
Pinch of mint chocolate cookie dough
Dinner: Blah-ghetti (Quinoa/Corn Pasta, ground beef, awful spaghetti sauce)
After dinner boredom eating: Leftover Blah-ghetti
1 can of Shasta Diet Cream Soda
15 macadamias
2 squares of Ghirardelli 88% Cacao Bar
Water: About 70 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Today is a new day. So hopefully its a better one! Going to pick up some more olive oil and balsamic after work and enjoy (hopefully) a hockey game. Maybe even get the chicken run done tonight!
Saturday, May 11, 2013
Where's the Beef?
Howdy, y'all! Welcome back!
Friday was a busy day. I spent the majority of the day working with my students on rehabilitating the garden. It's looking better, but not done. So far we have taken 18 large outdoor lawn and leaf bags of weeds, brush, branches, sticks, and trash out of there and you can hardly tell. At this point, we have 3 more classes together to finish the project. I can confidently say that it will not be done by the end of the year! I only see them 2 days a week for about 2 hours each session. So much more to do that there is just no way we can do it all. I bit off more than I could chew with this school.
The other schools are progressing nicely, although I haven't been to most of them in 2 weeks, so it should be interesting. Next week we start adding plants and birdhouses at all 4. Hopefully it goes smoothly!
After school I met up with our friend Heidi, who hooked us up with 150 pounds of grass fed, locally raised beef. I really had no idea what to expect so it was kind of like Christmas morning when I got it picked up and brought home! I laid it all out on the counter to inventory what was there.
Yesterday was the last day of Teacher Appreciation Week, so more goodies from the kids. I avoided eating any of it, although I appreciate the gesture. I just can't be around that kind of stuff. Way too tempting. I've already said the cravings don't go away, so I won't belabor the point. Needless to say, the other teachers appreciated the goodies as well!
Dinner last night was steak with onions and mushrooms. Malia and I both agree that onions and mushrooms caramelized in butter pretty much make the steak dinner even better. When we were younger, I don't think we would have liked it as much.
Caught up with some TV last night. Just a few episodes to watch, Big Bang, New Girl, and 1.5 episodes of Warehouse 13. Naturally I fell asleep through the last episode of Warehouse 13. Saw most of it, I think. Hopefully, since I deleted it. Nothing against the show, more about me.
One of the shows I enjoy watching is Community, which is still pretty funny and excitingly enough, has been renewed for a 5th season. Just one more and a movie to go!
So, the big question. How's the weight loss going? Well, this morning the scale reads 220.8 lbs. That's a total of 33.2 pounds since February 4th. Pretty cool. That's also a total of 39.2 pounds since maximum density last year. Feeling so much better about myself.
Breakfast: 2 eggs, fried in bacon grease
2 slices of Canadian Bacon
10 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener
AM Snack: Nada
Lunch: 2 sugar free, 100% grass fed Beef Organic Hot Dogs
Big Ol' Salad w/ Balsamic Vinaigrette
PM Snack: 10 Macadamia Nuts
4 squares of Ghirardelli 88% Cacao Bar
Dinner: Tri-Tip Steak w/Caramelized Onions and Mushrooms
Water: About 70 oz
Sleep: about 7 hours of sleep
Friday was a busy day. I spent the majority of the day working with my students on rehabilitating the garden. It's looking better, but not done. So far we have taken 18 large outdoor lawn and leaf bags of weeds, brush, branches, sticks, and trash out of there and you can hardly tell. At this point, we have 3 more classes together to finish the project. I can confidently say that it will not be done by the end of the year! I only see them 2 days a week for about 2 hours each session. So much more to do that there is just no way we can do it all. I bit off more than I could chew with this school.
The other schools are progressing nicely, although I haven't been to most of them in 2 weeks, so it should be interesting. Next week we start adding plants and birdhouses at all 4. Hopefully it goes smoothly!
After school I met up with our friend Heidi, who hooked us up with 150 pounds of grass fed, locally raised beef. I really had no idea what to expect so it was kind of like Christmas morning when I got it picked up and brought home! I laid it all out on the counter to inventory what was there.
Top Down view
Side view
It all fit in the freezer! Woot!
All in all I was pleased with the variety, though next time I might ask about certain cuts to see if requests are possible. Lots of ground beef, lots of steaks, a couple roasts, and some organ meat that I will most likely serve up to the dog. I know the Primal Blueprint has recipes for organ meat, but I am so not up for that. That just doesn't appeal to me at all. Plus, I know no one else in the family will even think about eating it! Soup bones are also there, so that's awesome! Good old beef broth!
On the egg front, we are still buying organic eggs at Costco since our little girls are still a few months out from laying. They are getting big and scruffy looking though. Below are pictures I took at the start of the week.
All six girls!
Mary and Goldy.
And here they are at the end of the week.
(Clockwise from upper left) Buffy, Midnight, Frittata, Mary, Mara, and Goldy
Goldy, front and center
Mara looking at the camera
Their favorite corner!
Walls are interesting!
Mary looking at the camera
Midnight
Mara
Huddle up, girls!
Yesterday was the last day of Teacher Appreciation Week, so more goodies from the kids. I avoided eating any of it, although I appreciate the gesture. I just can't be around that kind of stuff. Way too tempting. I've already said the cravings don't go away, so I won't belabor the point. Needless to say, the other teachers appreciated the goodies as well!
Dinner last night was steak with onions and mushrooms. Malia and I both agree that onions and mushrooms caramelized in butter pretty much make the steak dinner even better. When we were younger, I don't think we would have liked it as much.
Caught up with some TV last night. Just a few episodes to watch, Big Bang, New Girl, and 1.5 episodes of Warehouse 13. Naturally I fell asleep through the last episode of Warehouse 13. Saw most of it, I think. Hopefully, since I deleted it. Nothing against the show, more about me.
One of the shows I enjoy watching is Community, which is still pretty funny and excitingly enough, has been renewed for a 5th season. Just one more and a movie to go!
So, the big question. How's the weight loss going? Well, this morning the scale reads 220.8 lbs. That's a total of 33.2 pounds since February 4th. Pretty cool. That's also a total of 39.2 pounds since maximum density last year. Feeling so much better about myself.
Food Diary for Thursday the 2nd of May:
2 slices of Canadian Bacon
10 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener
AM Snack: Nada
Lunch: 2 sugar free, 100% grass fed Beef Organic Hot Dogs
Big Ol' Salad w/ Balsamic Vinaigrette
PM Snack: 10 Macadamia Nuts
4 squares of Ghirardelli 88% Cacao Bar
Dinner: Tri-Tip Steak w/Caramelized Onions and Mushrooms
Water: About 70 oz
Sleep: about 7 hours of sleep
Thursday, May 9, 2013
It's Been One Week...
since I last blogged.
Crazy week. Between Malia's back still hurting, me being gone for three days, and then having to jump back in to getting the house back in order, I've not had time to sit down and write. House is slowly getting there, as is Malia. Getting the boys on track is always an uphill struggle.
So, with new tunes playing in my ears, I'll fill in the blanks.
My colleagues and I put together our curriculum for next year. I'm pretty happy with what we put together. I'm looking forward to finishing it up and then moving on to wrapping up this year!
Speaking of wrapping up this year, the final projects should be done in the next 2 weeks. With kids being absent, me being absent, testing, more testing, and days off, some classes are going to have more time than others. I can't control that, but it is a bit frustrating.
The weekend came and went with me doing stuff around the house and taking care of Malia. I've given up on doing Intermittent Fasting for the past month. Sundays were a great time to do that, but now it's just impossible. Oldest boy is really getting into cooking and, of course, he makes desserts. Last weekend was banana bread. This recipe is so good! I tried to avoid it, but no dice. I think I ate at least half of one of the three loaves. Sigh...That was on top of Saturday's ditching the diet altogether. I started off with a Venti Cookie Crumble Frappucino (my Starbucks birthday present) after breakfast, a giant slice of pepperoni pizza for lunch, and a Milky Way Dark candy bar for afternoon snack. It wasn't pretty, but it had to be done. I was starting to crack, so better to open up the flood gate myself instead of waiting for the dam to burst. I knew I was going to get it under control come Monday.
Monday I was at this place with about 140 kids. Grizzly Creek Ranch. It's a great facility. I went there last year for one day, so going for 3 days was going to be great. And it was! I had a really good time. One of the best parts was getting to hang out with some of my colleagues in a really relaxing environment. There were a few bumps in the road, but I think we all handled things really well.
The facility itself is gorgeous. I could sit here all winter long:
Breakfast: 2 eggs, fried in bacon grease
2 slices of Canadian Bacon
10 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener
AM Snack: nothing
Lunch: Large Primal Pac
PM Snack: 1 mini white chocolate bundt cake
10 macadamias
Dinner: Roasted chicken seasoned with sea salt, black pepper, sage, and garlic
Roasted Garlic
Kale, Macadamia, and Pomegranate Salad
Water: About 70 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Exercise: Walking around
Crazy week. Between Malia's back still hurting, me being gone for three days, and then having to jump back in to getting the house back in order, I've not had time to sit down and write. House is slowly getting there, as is Malia. Getting the boys on track is always an uphill struggle.
So, with new tunes playing in my ears, I'll fill in the blanks.
My colleagues and I put together our curriculum for next year. I'm pretty happy with what we put together. I'm looking forward to finishing it up and then moving on to wrapping up this year!
Speaking of wrapping up this year, the final projects should be done in the next 2 weeks. With kids being absent, me being absent, testing, more testing, and days off, some classes are going to have more time than others. I can't control that, but it is a bit frustrating.
The weekend came and went with me doing stuff around the house and taking care of Malia. I've given up on doing Intermittent Fasting for the past month. Sundays were a great time to do that, but now it's just impossible. Oldest boy is really getting into cooking and, of course, he makes desserts. Last weekend was banana bread. This recipe is so good! I tried to avoid it, but no dice. I think I ate at least half of one of the three loaves. Sigh...That was on top of Saturday's ditching the diet altogether. I started off with a Venti Cookie Crumble Frappucino (my Starbucks birthday present) after breakfast, a giant slice of pepperoni pizza for lunch, and a Milky Way Dark candy bar for afternoon snack. It wasn't pretty, but it had to be done. I was starting to crack, so better to open up the flood gate myself instead of waiting for the dam to burst. I knew I was going to get it under control come Monday.
Monday I was at this place with about 140 kids. Grizzly Creek Ranch. It's a great facility. I went there last year for one day, so going for 3 days was going to be great. And it was! I had a really good time. One of the best parts was getting to hang out with some of my colleagues in a really relaxing environment. There were a few bumps in the road, but I think we all handled things really well.
The facility itself is gorgeous. I could sit here all winter long:
And here throughout the summer:
Because I was one of the rovers, I didn't have a cabin group or a trail group, so I just floated back and forth between the three cabins I was closest to and helped out where needed, and picked a trail group to follow, but wandered to others as more rovers came around. I had my own dorm room in the activity center, so no kids to worry about at night, which was pretty cool.
My dorm is the one on the far right. There is a room off to the right of the entrance with a bunk bed and a chest of drawers. Perfect accommodations for one person.
As part of my job, I had to monitor the showers and the field (where the picture above was taken), but the kids were pretty darn good, so it wasn't a big deal for someone with 20 years teaching experience.
I got to talk hockey with another Penguins fan while there, so that was pretty cool. Don't know many hockey fans, so it was fun to talk about the game with him. I had the game on my phone for awhile before it died, and then it was just following the score via ESPN. Too bad they lost that game, but they looked good tonight. But I digress.
The food was really good. I actually had some good choices so I wasn't eating Primal Pacs for every meal. We brought our own lunches for the first day, so it was a large Primal Pac for me. Dinner the first night was lasagna, garlic bread and salad. I skipped the lasagna and bread, and just had a big old salad and a small Primal Pac. It did the trick. Breakfast the next morning was bacon and eggs. Lunch was a small Primal Pac and two lettuce wrap sandwiches (one turkey, one ham). Dinner was roasted chicken and salad. Breakfast was bacon and eggs again. Lunch was sandwiches again, so I had a large Primal Pac on the road back to Reno.
The Primal Packs really did the trick. 100% organic and very Paleo. Each pack includes a good portion of beef jerky, a few large hunks of dried mango, a handful of cranberries, raw macadamias and raw almonds. They are pretty darn good, and I didn't feel hungry at all during those three days. I really think I could have those be the main part of my diet and it would be okay. It did get a bit boring, but I could live on those and salads if I had to. I actually took one for lunch today because there wasn't anything readily available. Could I live on them for a week? Well, Boy Scout camp is coming up in July, so I think I might buy a bunch more to take with me for that week.
The best thing about being away from home those days was I didn't have the cravings I get at home. Even the lasagna and bread and desserts each night didn't draw me in. I avoided them all. As soon as I got home though? Sigh...
Today one of my students gave me a teacher appreciation gift: a mini white chocolate bundt cake. I avoided eating it for about two minutes, and then I could tell she was disappointed that I didn't have any of it, so I took a bite. Well, that one bite turned in to two. Then to three. About 8 bites later, it was all gone. I thought it might make my stomach ache, and it did for about 3 minutes. After that, I was fine.
So, how is the weight loss going you might be asking? Well, I left on Monday morning weighing in at 224.8 lbs. When I weighed myself this morning, I was down to 221.6 lbs. So, a little more than 3 pounds.
One thing I am finding out by being back home is I fall into stress and boredom eating habits. Gotta find a way to stop that.
So, overall, a success. Tomorrow I'm sure to be back over 222 lbs, but that bundt cake was worth it!
Food Diary for Wednesday the 1st of May:
2 slices of Canadian Bacon
10 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener
AM Snack: nothing
Lunch: Large Primal Pac
PM Snack: 1 mini white chocolate bundt cake
10 macadamias
Dinner: Roasted chicken seasoned with sea salt, black pepper, sage, and garlic
Roasted Garlic
Kale, Macadamia, and Pomegranate Salad
Water: About 70 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Exercise: Walking around
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Not much going on
Quiet day today. Malia's starting to feel a bit better. She's going to try going to work tomorrow. Hopefully she will make it without doing something bad again.
At work, I was able to, with the help of my co-workers, plan 2 Project Based Learning Units. One on Aerospace Engineering (students will design a landing vehicle that must land safely, perform 2 tasks, and have an antenna attached that survives the landing) and a Bridge Building Unit (students will learn about the forces that affect bridges, study bridge design, research famous bridges, and then create a presentation to build new bridges based on those bridges to replace the bridges on the Truckee River). Thanks go out to Kelly and Lou who provided invaluable resources for the planning session today! WCSD science department rocks!
Went out to Panda Express for lunch again today. Mixed veggies and variety of chicken dishes. Not bad. The Panda Express at the University must make a killing! The line is crazy long there!
Tomorrow is the last day of Professional Development, so we need to finalize the Aerospace Unit and hopefully the Bridge Unit as well. That leaves the last unit (I am pushing for a Storytelling unit) for the others to plan. It's about a 7 week unit, so I am confident they can do it! This idea came about before I saw this,
but it reinforced that I think it would be cool! Storytelling could be fun, and the audience could be other classes in the school. I'm going to push for this one big time!
Breakfast: 2 eggs, fried in Kerrygold Butter
2 slices of Canadian Bacon
10 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener
AM Snack: 2 US Wellness Beef Sticks
25 Sugar Snap Peas
Lunch: Steamed Vegetables with Chicken
PM Snack: 10 Macadamia Nuts
Dinner: Spice Rubbed Slow Cooker Chicken Breast
5 Macadamia nuts
2 Squares of Lindt 90% Cacao Bar
10 oz of Coffee
1 serving of Fried Banana Pudding
Water: About 50 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Ok, off to learn more about the dangers of the Faerie Realm! Night all!
At work, I was able to, with the help of my co-workers, plan 2 Project Based Learning Units. One on Aerospace Engineering (students will design a landing vehicle that must land safely, perform 2 tasks, and have an antenna attached that survives the landing) and a Bridge Building Unit (students will learn about the forces that affect bridges, study bridge design, research famous bridges, and then create a presentation to build new bridges based on those bridges to replace the bridges on the Truckee River). Thanks go out to Kelly and Lou who provided invaluable resources for the planning session today! WCSD science department rocks!
Went out to Panda Express for lunch again today. Mixed veggies and variety of chicken dishes. Not bad. The Panda Express at the University must make a killing! The line is crazy long there!
Tomorrow is the last day of Professional Development, so we need to finalize the Aerospace Unit and hopefully the Bridge Unit as well. That leaves the last unit (I am pushing for a Storytelling unit) for the others to plan. It's about a 7 week unit, so I am confident they can do it! This idea came about before I saw this,
but it reinforced that I think it would be cool! Storytelling could be fun, and the audience could be other classes in the school. I'm going to push for this one big time!
Food Diary for Thursday the 2nd of May:
2 slices of Canadian Bacon
10 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener
AM Snack: 2 US Wellness Beef Sticks
25 Sugar Snap Peas
Lunch: Steamed Vegetables with Chicken
PM Snack: 10 Macadamia Nuts
Dinner: Spice Rubbed Slow Cooker Chicken Breast
5 Macadamia nuts
2 Squares of Lindt 90% Cacao Bar
10 oz of Coffee
1 serving of Fried Banana Pudding
Water: About 50 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Ok, off to learn more about the dangers of the Faerie Realm! Night all!
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
What books you ask?
Yesterday, I posted that there are about 15 books I would like to read between now and the beginning of August. "What are those books?" asked no one. But since I have not much else to write about, here goes!
That's a fairly tall order. I doubt I will get much past #7, but we shall see. I am currently about half way through Goblinproofing, Summer Knight and Game of Thrones, so that puts me down 1.5 books to 13.5. Maybe I will get to #8. Who knows? I am taking Game of Thrones and Feast for Crows with me when I take the boys up to Camp Fleischman for a week. If that doesn't help me get those two done, I think I will be putting them away for good!
Today was a bit stressful. Started off by taking Malia to the doctor because of her back problems. Got that taken care of and dropped off her prescriptions, and got to work about an hour and a half late. We are further behind with the planning than I had hoped, but farther than I was expecting to be. Tomorrow and Friday we really need to buckle down and get some solid work done on this first PBL unit.
Weight was the same as yesterday, so nothing new to report there. Tomorrow will probably be up a bit. Didn't eat the best today, but given my choices, I think I did pretty well.
Here is the weight loss chart for the past 90 days:
Food Diary for Wednesday the 1st of May:
2 slices of Canadian Bacon
10 oz of Coffee with Kal Stevia Sweetener
AM Snack: Venti Sugar Free Hazelnut Latte w/heavy cream (free birthday drink from Starbucks)
Lunch: Steamed Vegetables with Beef and Shrimp
PM Snack: Small Primal Pack (Really good! I will write more about these next week!)
Dinner: Coconut Beef Soup (Beef, celery, onion, bell pepper, beef stock, tomato sauce, coconut milk,
and spices)
10 Macadamia nuts
2 Squares of Lindt 90% Cacao Bar
Water: About 70 oz
Sleep: about 6 hours of sleep
Exercise: Walking about a 1/2 mile from my car to the Ed Building at UNR
12 flights of stairs (Several flights, various times of day)
Ok, going to read! Night all!
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