Losing a part of me

Category: Sports

  • Day 24 Worries

    Firstly, I want to say that the hockey game last night was the absolute worst loss I have ever witnessed in any sport. I was pissed off.

    My weight is down nearly 1.5 lbs. from yesterday which made me feel great. I had another 800 calorie day yesterday which is exactly what I needed. The fact that I did not either eat or drink after watching the disgusting final minutes of the game is a testament to my willpower.

    Today will be different. It is our second date, and she picked a seafood restaurant that does not look very diet (not to mention kosher) friendly. I reviewed their menu online and have decided that I will order the Green Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette with salmon. I know that the smartest way to avoid diet landmines when eating out is to plan ahead, and to know before you go. Had I looked at the menu and decided there was nothing that I would be able to eat, then I would have asked my date to pick another restaurant. When you fail to plan, you plan to fail. I plan to succeed!

    It is a lovely day out, although it was also the first time since we arrived in Texas that the temperatures when I stepped outside in the morning were in the fifties. People around here are freezing their patooties off. My Canadian patootie is just fine, but since I am teaching (and then going on a date) I am still wearing a suit.

    Okay, my class is just about done with their lab. Have a great day folks!

  • Day 18 Yays!

    I have several emotional successes this morning. Let’s see if I can get them on paper:

    1. My weight dropped significantly from yesterday morning – over two pounds!
    2. As of right now, I am officially a couple of ounces under the weight I was the day I first weighed myself as a resident of the United States – in other words, I have shed over five months of weight gain.
    3. I have lost twenty-five pounds since I started my journey. That puts me halfway to my original goal of losing fifty pounds by New Years, and one third of the way to my new goal of losing seventy-five pounds in that time.
    4. I have resolved a number of minor financial issues that were not devastating, but they were certainly costing me money.
    5. I had a very lovely evening last night. I will not go into any details, but there is possible potential.

    Yeah, that’s about the size of it. I got home very late last night, and had a decision to make. I had only consumed four meal replacements throughout the day. I am supposed to have five. In real numbers I was working on 640 calories! Should I have a quick MR before getting into bed, or should I go to bed hungry? I decided on the latter option. It was not because I thought that it would help me to lose more weight… it was simply an issue of I do not like ingesting calories after 10pm, let alone after midnight!

    My son has confirmed that he will be heading up to Canada to see his mother and brother and friends, and that he is leaving tomorrow. That means that for the first time since we’ve been settled into the apartment in Dallas (and frankly, since I moved to the USA from Canada) my Princess Sophie and I will be completely alone in our apartment for a few weeks! I love my son, and I would not trade the time that we have had to get closer for anything. However, there is no question that his dog is a presence (all 70 pounds of German shepherd), and yes… I have to comport myself a bit differently when I am not alone here. Two adults with very strong personalities living in close quarters with two dogs (who also have big personalities) is an experience. In fact…

    …Just yesterday I was sitting at the bar and overheard a conversation between the manager and one of the bartenders. She is probably 21- or 22-years-old. I do not delve into the private lives of the staff there, but I remember hearing two bits of information over time: 1) She was roommates with another one of the bartenders; and 2) (heard over the weekend) She was moving out of the other bartender’s apartment. As this conversation went, the manager said something to the effect that not all friends make good roommates, and not all roommates make good friends. While this is true, my son is NOT a roommate, he is my son. That, however, does not change the fact that people living under the same roof have to go out of their way to respect each other. I believe we both do a good job of that… and I am still looking forward to having the apartment to myself for a few weeks!

    Tomorrow evening there is a very good chance that I will be going off my program for the evening. I may be having dinner with a young lady that will be at an Italian restaurant. I have weighed the pros and cons of this, as well as the potential dangers to my progress. The owner of the restaurant has already told me that he will gladly accommodate my diet by preparing foods not on the menu. I am going to order a salad and a piece of chicken (I’ll discuss the style with him tomorrow). I will not touch the bread, and I will not have pasta. I think that is a good course of action.

    This evening my beloved Montreal Canadiens are playing in Dallas! I wish I could go to the game, but the cheapest seats I can find in the sections I prefer to sit in are far too expensive for my current budget. If it was a playoff game I might consider it, or if my finances were a bit more in order. As such, I have spoken with the staff at the cigar lounge, and they will be showing the game for me. A couple of members have said they want to join, and are likely going to try to bet me on the game. I might be willing to take them up on that!

    As for my plans for today and tomorrow during the day, I have to study this afternoon and tomorrow. It is already 1pm, and I have my meal replacement stew in the microwave. Once I have enjoyed it, I will take my study materials and head to the cigar lounge, where I will likely be until the hockey game is over. Yes, I have always been a Montreal Canadiens fan… but I think I have gotten more adamant about making sure I can watch every game this year than I ever way. Maybe that is a touchstone of missing Canada… I don’t know.

    Okay, it is time for lunch. Have a great day folks!

  • Day 318

    My psychological and emotional pains continue to haunt me. I have to find a way to peacefully get past my hurdles. I said months ago that there would be a point where I need help, and I think I have reached that place. I have reached out to a therapist I used to work with, and hope that she can help me to continue to get better and to grow. I do not think these issues are what are stopping me from doing better on my weight loss program, although I am sure they are a contributing factor. I do know that five years ago, when I first lost all of my weight, she was able to help me.

    Yesterday did not go terrible, but I could have done better. For example, I could have eaten part of a challah roll… instead of two of them with peanut butter. I think that was my only transgression. I finally relented and let Eduardo give me a bowl of Thai chicken curry soup. While the nutritional values were not listed (which I thought very strange), the ingredients did not seem overly dangerous. There was a lot of chicken in it, which is not a bad thing.

    My plans for today are waiting confirmation from a friend of Eduardo’s. Either we three are going to spend the afternoon at Sam’s cousin’s house, or Eduardo and I will watch the afternoon match at his apartment. Before that, I plan to go to the walk-in clinic. My knee has gotten bad again, and I need to have it looked at. Assuming it is the same issue I had before (gout), the temporary solution will be another round of anti-inflammatory meds. With that said, I am hoping the lab is open today, so I can also get my blood work done. If it is not, then that will be my plan for Monday morning. While I will have to miss one of the football matches, my health is more important. I also suspect that I will not be watching tomorrow’s matches, as I am visiting with Ryan and his crew… and while they consider themselves sports fans, that really only means they watch American football.

    Unless things go bad at the walk-in clinic (which is to say, if I have a five hour wait) then I will also go to Sleep Country to arrange for my new mattress to be delivered. My warranty claim was finally approved last night (I received it at nearly 8:00pm), and while I have been sleeping comfortably on this defective mattress for over a year, I do not know how long it will take for them to deliver my new mattress… I want the new mattress to be here in time for Leslie’s next visit (25 days from today).

    Okay, I just spoke with Eduardo, and I am going to hit the road. First stop: Walk-in clinic. After that? That will depend on a lot of things, including timing and the next call I get from Eduardo.

    Have a great day folks!