Monday Bloody Monday and What I Ate

Happy cloudy, oversleeping Monday!  How were our weekends?

Mine was mostly great.  Friday night (as you know) I walked home with Schmauren, then we hit up this amazing EuroMarket in Astoria to pick out our beer for the Craft Beer Food Pairing Party.  We settled on a Maine American Pale Ale from Geary's brewery, mostly because of the lobster on the label, but we also like to support New England.  Then we dropped it off at her place before settling down at an outdoor table at Bareburger for bison burgers (yum) and fried accessories.  Then it was 8 pm and we were wiped, so back to our respective homes for the night.  I prepped the pork that I was going to bring to the party and got it going in the Crock Pot and then caught up on some DVR before bed. 

Saturday I managed to sleep in until nearly 11, which is a breakthrough for me.  I've always been a good sleeper but with this stress lately I've not been able to shut down my brain enough, so it felt good.  It also meant no mani/pedi for me before the party, but that was fine.  I did laundry finally, added the BBQ to the pork, and talked to Mex about not talking anymore.  Then I met up with Schmauren to walk to Shmess' house.  We got there early and helped with a bit of prep, then when all parties had arrived, the tasting began!  Everyone managed to stay organized (which can be difficult) so each team (who'd brought a six of beer or a growler and a food pairing) went in order of lightest to darkest beer, and stood up to talk about what they'd brought. The first presenter actually homebrews, soshe brought a hefeweizen that was so good! And she had lots of interesting home brew stuff to say. My team did pulled pork sliders on Hawaiian rolls with that APA.  The whole thing went wonderfully, and after the official agenda, we all sat around on the deck and just hung out. At around 10:00, the party was disbanding, and I went to Kelly's with a few new friends because they like divey bars and Shmannon wanted to play pool with me.  And I can't resist that.

So the night devolved a bit futher, as we ran into the "not-drinking" Mex there and blah blah blah.  But the pool playing was fun!  I was up late dealing with some drama, however, then couldn't really sleep on Sunday morning so I got up with 4 hours of sleep under my belt and lots more heartache.  I decided to get my mani/pedi, which felt nice, then went back to bed to watch Coalminer's Daughter (though I ran out of time to finish it!) and have a final wrap-up convo with Mex before Lost, the 4.5 hour long extravaganza.  And I ordered Chicken Tikka Masala.  And then Lost for the evening, then a quick sleep, thankfully.  (Also, I was really confused at the end of the finale.  Thank goodness for the internets.)

Tonight I have another Harpie dinner at Shmate's house, and I can't wait to spend some low-key hang time with the ladies, as our one male is abandoning us for tonight.  (Typical.)  And work is very very boring, so I will maybe do some freelancing this afternoon.  But it's lunchtime now, la la la.

Food.
B - Special K berries, milk, coffee, granny bar - 6
L - sammy, yogurt with b-nan - 6
D - European-themed delights - ?
S - soup
Total - TBD
Activity - short walk to Kate's, high blood pressure

They Call Me Mellow Yellow and What I Ate

Happy Wednesday!  It's supposed to be a cool spring day outside today, and I hope we all get to enjoy it.  I plan on walking a bit at lunchtime, since I can't walk home until my feet recover from last week.  I plan on biking at the gym instead, like I failed to do on Monday.

Book club was great last night, and I really liked the Black Bear Lodge, though there was a disturbing kitty-litter type odor that became evident about halfway through our meeting.  If not for that, I wouldn't happily moved into the log-cabin interior--I felt like I was out of the city for a vacation!  It's also always a fraught time when it's your turn to pick the book, and I had some haters, but I also had some fans, so I think it was a good mix.

I had the MOST frustrating experience in the middle of the night last night.  Around 4:30 pm, someone started ringing our doorbell incessantly.  I laid in bed for awhile, trying to ignore it, which is hard for me as I'm a worrier so I of course immediately think that it's someone I know who needs help.  Which no, that doesn't make sense, but I'd been awoken from a sound sleep!  Then my roommate knocks on my door as it's keeping her up, too, and so being the man of the house, I go to her room where we can look out her windows over to our front door area.  We can't really see the guy but we see his baseball hat, and he's still going to town on the doorbell, so I finally open her window and say "What?!"  He looks at me hopefully and says "Delivery?"  I say "No," he says "No?" I say "No."  And I shut the window and that was it.  He was trying to call someone on his cell phone and holding his slip of paper, reading the address.  I mean, COME ON, DUDE.  I got back into bed and lay there, frustrated with all the things I wanted to have yelled but didn't.  Like, who do you work for?  I'm calling the police!  You don't ring doorbells on a dark house nonstop at 4:30 am!  But I didn't yell at him and the rage is all stuck inside me.  Maybe I should yell these things to no one when I'm home alone later to feel better.  At least I was able to fall back asleep relatively quickly -- the worst is when you're woken up like that and then lay there for three hours until it's time to really get up for the day.

Speaking of impotent rage, as of right now, I've gone about 17 hours without a cigarette.  I realize that's small potatoes, but I have to start somewhere!  I'm chewing my nicotine gum when I can, and thinking of lists and things I can use to keep up my motivation.  (Because some probably-far-away disease isn't enough, honestly.)  I'm also going to use my spa gift certificate to Spa Hydra for a facial when I've been clean for two or three weeks as a reward. 

Well, today I'm working on relaxing and not letting annoying co-worker situations get to me (ahem).  I've also got a pretty light project load, so I'm moving more slowly than usual at work and enjoying it.  There's no other news, really, though I'm starting to rethink my daily menus, as I get so hungry around 4-5 pm and so I think I need to beef up my afternoon snack.  Schmauren suggested eating soup then, which is a pretty good idea, it'll just take some more weekend cooking time, but I enjoy that when I have the time.

I will refrain from discussing Lost as I don't want to spoil anything, but I'm greedily reading lots of online recaps and analyses, as usual.  It was everything I'd hoped it would be -- almost.

Food plan:
B - Honey B's, coffee, milk - 4
L - Turkey & swiss sandwich, apple - 5
D - Chicken meatloaf, salad - 5.5
S - yogurt, granny bar, string cheese - 4
Total - 18.5 (plus something else TBD)
Activity - Biking at the gym, sadly

Daydream Believer and What I Ate

I really wanted to make that headline "Daydream Bereaver" because I like the pun, but it's too sad and I'm not actually grieving any daydreams today.  So I told it straight.

What a Big Day!  Today, while still quite gloomy outside, is personally eventful.  (I'm also relieved it's not actually raining -- I can deal with cool cloud cover.)  First of all, I ate lunch with the lawyers in the conference room and felt included (I know it wasn't the first time, but it's still nice.)  I also asked for Good Friday off from work, and was granted that (more on this below).  And then after work, I have book club, and I'm the leader tonight!  (We read The Moonflower Vine, remember?)  To top it off, I'm walking down there with Schmauren, so we can catch up on our lives' happenings.  I'm holding the meeting at the Big Bear Lodge, which sort of ties into the setting of the book, at least in the outdoorsy/farmy atmosphere.  I'm trying to reserve us the "fireplace room," too, which should help the ambiance.

Then after BC, it's a big Guyliner-centric episode of Lost.

Who doesn't want to know more about Richard Alpert?  Who doesn't love that his real name is Nestor Carbonell?  And can you believe he doesn't actually wear eyeliner?

So yes, lots of things to be happy about today.  Now if I could only figure out a career path that will allow me to nap every afternoon. 

I've been invited to spend Easter weekend in Boston with Mex, and to meet his family, etc.  I think he'll already be there for his spring break from school, and I'll come up to meet him on Thursday night.  This is huge and I am very, very hesitant to talk about it in case it doesn't happen.  He's had some difficulty with this particular relationship step in the past, partially due to some strained family dynamics, and so I'm really afraid to consider this a definite plan, but then I'm also afraid that I'll jinx it by doubting.  (I mean, only half-seriously.)  Honestly, I think it'll help that he'll be there and I'll just come to meet him -- at least we don't have to get both of us on a bus at the same time.  That said, right now that's the Easter plan, and I'm trying to let myself enjoy the excitement.  And let the nervousness come, too.  (WHAT am I going to wear?!)

Today's food:
B - Honey B's, coffee, milk - 4
L - Turkey & Swiss sammy, apple - 5
D - Sassy Soup, light sour cream, salad with feta - 7
S - granny bar, yogurt, beer? - 3-6
Total - 19-22

Guiness is a Fat-Free Food and What I Ate

Happy St. Patty's Day!  Yesterday got away from me due to actual work, but you didn't miss much, don't worry.  I ate pretty much on-plan, though I did use up some flex points by eating two Cadbury Creme Eggs while I watched Lost.  I ate them both in one sitting so that they wouldn't be hanging around, tempting me.  And I did walk home from work in the very lovely weather, so I had some activity points available.  It was a great walk, and I met up with Mex on the Manhattan side of the bridge, so we were able to journey most of the way together.  It does go faster when there's someone to talk to, even if that someone chattered away most of the time.  It was interesting chatter about some papers he's writing.

I'm very much enjoying all these lawyers in my office with their green ties today -- even Blackbeard.  It's like they're still all dressed up but LOOK, a bit of flair!  I myself am wearing a teal dress, which is close to green, but also not bright green and embarrassing.  I like my compromise.  And I'm wearing the dusty plum boots, which are mood-lifters.  My St. Patty's celebration plans are just to get lunch at the Irish pub around the corner from the office, if (please please) we can get in and get a seat.  I'm going with the paralegal, and I just want some corned beef, but she's also interested in some beer, so we'll see what happens.  (And despite my headline, I'm not a big fan of Guiness.  It's too dark for me, and bitter like black coffee.)  I am definitely not going to get silly, because I think that would make for a torturous afternoon at my desk.

Tonight I'm going to try to hit the gym, assuming I'm not in an Irish coma, and tomorrow I'll walk home again.  I LOVE being outside instead of in my crappy gym, but I did not wear walking shoes today, plus I gave myself a blister yesterday from too-thin socks.  Someone needs to do laundry.

I'm also in a worrying mood lately, and I'm annoying myself.  I feel like I'm being more oversensitive than usual and more fretful, and I'm sure the people I'm around can tell (and are probably also annoyed!)  I'm trying to establish some new guidelines for my relationship redux, but I think I'm extending into over-controlling as an attempt to not get hurt again, which, of course, is ridiculous.  I'm laying out plans for everything, and I need to step back and embrace some flexibility, especially because I'm dealing with a man, and in general, they are not fond of boxes.  It all may be partially blameable on hormones, too, but I still need it to go away.  I miss being laid-back.

Well, fooders:

B - Special K Berries, milk, coffee - 4

L - Corned Beef and accessories, whether separate or as a sandwich

D - Sassy Soup, salad - 7

S - Beer?  Four-leaf clovers?

Total - Unknown, but won't overstuff myself

Get Me Outta Heeeere and What I Ate

Ok, I've decided that today is time for the first walk home from work of the year over the 59th Street Bridge.  While the forecast predicted a high of 54 degrees, it's already 61 and warm enough to eat a lovely lunch outside in front of the main public library on Fifth Ave.  I also think if it gets dark around 6:30 (as it has been), I should be within range of my apartment so it's not too dangerous.  I'll wield one of my high heels as a weapon, if it comes to that.  I used to walk home from my publishing job (on 53rd and Madison) quite often, and I figured this was just another 11 blocks, so it should be a pleasant walk.  According to Google, it's 3.6 miles, and so if I walk at my usual clip, I should earn about 4 activity points for 75-90 minutes of walking.

Now it's 62 degrees!

Anyway, then I'll also be "done" with exercise earlier so I can settle in to eat, paint my nails, and gear up for LOST.  Whooooo.

Now if I could just make the afternoon go faster.

Fudd.
B - Honey Bunches, coffee, skim - 4
L - Spicy (suspect, possibly too old) chicken and muenster sandwich, apple - 5
D - Best-Ever Chicken Meatloaf (whether that's true is to be determined), salad with feta - 5 approx.*
S - yogurt, string cheese, granny bar, Jello sugar-free pudding - 5
Total - 19

*I am confused about the points for the meatloaf, because the recipe says it serves 6, but then the nutrition info says it's for 1/4 of the loaf.  So...my slice is 1/6 of the loaf, so I guess instead of 4 points, it's 2.666.

ALSO that is not enough points, so I may have a different snack this afternoon to boost me a little.  I also feel hungry already, which is a bad sign...but I can get a healthy-ish snack with my afternoon coffee from Pret, right?  What's the best option there, friends?

Shoes and What I Ate

Has everyone in the world seen this video by now?  Sometimes when I get excited about shoes, I sing this song in my head.  Anyway, I was browsing the boot sale on Piperlime.com and found a pair I couldn't resist:

They're risky, and I'll have to make my final determination when they arrive and I can try them on, but they may be fun and potentially comfortable, so I could wear them constantly.  Do we think the top wrinkles look like saggy elephant skin?  I hope not.  Also, the website says they're purple, but they look sort of red, so again, to be determined.  They could be fun and different, or they could be a bit too tacky.  Still, EXCITED.  SHOES.

I did end up working some OT last night, so I did not make it to the gym, choosing to scarf my dinner as soon as possible.  I was tired, and I really enjoyed cashing out on the couch to catch up on some DVR (teacup pig! Stan Lee!) and then Lost.  Which was amazing.  At least by now the roommate knows that if she walks in during Lost, I will ignore her questions, and I will be forgiven.  Then Mex called for a quick goodnight chat (which made me very happy, considering his history of spotty communication during our busy workweeks), and then reading and bed. 

Today it's gross and rainy/snowy, and my morning commute was just packed, which wore me out.  It's a relief to sit at my desk and relax...except I've been doing that for a few hours now.  Alas.  Tonight will be gym and then some TV, and another early bedtime, thank goodness.  It's getting harder and harder to drag myself out of bed in the morning.

Foood:

B: coffee, skim, Special K - 4

L: turkey sandwich, cheddar; apple - 5

D: Lean Cuisine; usual salad - 8

S: yogurt, light string cheese, low-fat ice cream sandwich - 4

Total: 21

Activity:  Bike, fighting the commuters on my way home

Begging for a Snow Day and What I Ate

It is miserable outside.  There is just too much rain mixed in with our snow, and therefore my snow-loving self doesn't know what to think.  I can't bring myself to open up my umbrella, since it's snow, and (being a good Midwesterner) I mock those who use umbrellas in the snow -- yet, I keep getting soaking wet.  That said, our office manager at work keeps talking about how he doesn't think we'll be here much longer, and perhaps tomorrow will have to be a snow day, etc.  While he has no authority over such things, he is GETTING MY HOPES UP, so all I can do is plan how much wine I want to drink with dinner and think about sleeping in.  Sigh.

Last night I went to the gym, and since the upright bikes were all taken, I used one of the bikes where you pedal out in front of your body.  I've read up on the comparisons between the two styles, and apparently they're pretty similar effectiveness-wise, though it seems easier to do the one where you're more relaxed with a backrest, so therefore I think it's less of a workout.  But I made do, and I have decided that my butt feels decidedly exercised, so perhaps there are butt benefits to that style.  I need to pump up my butt -- if you've seen it, you know I'm dealing with a sort of flat/heart-shaped box o' chocolates back there.  (EW, that just got grosser than I meant it.) 

Tonight Mex is coming over for dinner, and I bought a ton of meat on sale at the grocery store last night, so we'll be having $2.19/lb London Broil with baked sweet potatoes and salad.  And wine, maybe a lot.  I've been marinating the steak overnight in garlic, worcestershire, salt, pepper, rosemary, and dijon all mixed together, so I think it'll be delicious.  And not terribly bad for me with the health benefits of a sweet potato and salad greens, yes?  I will also have to talk to him about my ending tolerance for this stage of our situation, so I hope that goes OK.  I feel all mad, which you know, happens, but I can't exactly unleash a tirade, as that will be very unreasonable and unproductive.  And then we will watch ladies' hockey, or as he called it, "US Canada chick-fairy hockey."  It's a joke, so don't be offended.

Oh, so those of you who know me well know that I read Gawker obsessively.  It's my go-to blog, but I tried to give them a "tip" today and I think I'm getting into a fight* with another commentor (I keep wanting to say commentator, which is more fun.)  I will reproduce the exchange for your benefit, though it's not for those with delicate sensibilities:

ME: I am way behind the times on this, but thought it a bit curious: Pre-Precious release, I read the NY Mag review of it which said that the mother genitally fingered the daughter. Based on that mental image, I declined to see the movie, finding it too disturbing. However, a friend finally saw it last night and informed me that there wasn't any shown fingering -- there was only implied sexual abuse by the mother. Why report it if it's not true?

OTHER COMMENTOR: You are expecting a screenplay to be a documentary?

ME: When the review said "She’s also sexually molested by her jealous, welfare-cheating, gross, and sedentary mother, although the genital fingering might seem preferable to the verbal and physical abuse," I thought it would be shown. I'm not criticizing the movie; I'm saying I was perhaps dissuaded from seeing it because of the review. I take it you find my discomfort at seeing such imagery to be backwoods, so I can only wish you well on your quest for incestual pornographic imagery. To each his/her own.

I mean, COME ON, leave me alone, too-cool-for-school internet person.  Though I realize I asked for it by trying to participate.  I should remember my late-high-school mantra:  don't participate.

In other great news, I was chatting with Blackbeard a few minutes ago.  One of the bosses here is named Ian, and often callers will ask me if it's pronounced Eye-an or Eee-an.  So I asked Blackbeard if he's ever knew of an Eye-an, because really, that's silly, and he said "Well, other than that Ian guy from 90210..." and he melted my heart EVEN MORE.  I was visibly excited that he referenced Ian Ziering.  I mean, it's clear we're soulmates, yes?  Maybe every time we have an awkward conversation, he's as upset about it as I am.  It's so romantic.

Anyway, clearly I'm avoiding this Excel spreadsheet like the plague.  I've been wondering today what the maximum row limit of an Excel spreadsheet is -- does anyone know?  I like to believe that it goes on for infinity (which is something I should discuss with Mex, the master of infinity theory), but I doubt that's realistic.  The real question is, has anyone ever reached the end?!

Oh, another charming thing today was that I overheard a UPS delivery man trying to quickly explain Lost to an office building super.  It was clearly too difficult of a task, so he gave up, but the conversation went something like this:

UPS guy: Did you see Lost last night, man?
Super: No, I can't keep up with that sh*t.  Didn't they crash on an island?
UPS guy: Well, yeah, but it's much more than that.
Super: What do you mean?  Why doesn't someone come and rescue them at the end?
UPS guy: Let's put it this way:  The island is alive.
Super: With what?!  Monsters?  Animals?
UPS guy: Spirits, man.  That's all I can say.  Right?
[At this point he knew I was listening and smiling, so he tapped my arm, looking for affirmation.  I gave it.]

Ok, ok, food:
B - coffee, Special K cereal, skim milk (5)
L - low-salt turkey and muenster on sandwich thin, L&T, Miracle Whip light and mustard; apple (5)
D - steak; sweet potato; salad with tomatoes, cukes and feta (?)
S - Dannon Light & Fit yogurt (1); granny bar (2); wine (?)
Total - a little extra
Activity - crying and/or cuddling

*This "fight" may only be in my head.  What do you think?

Misc and What I Ate: Thursday, January 7

Almost the weekend...phew. I was spoiled with so many short working weeks over the holidays! This long, frigid, boring week is almost over, though, and I can't wait. At least I was very responsible with the odds & ends of life.

Speaking of, I did NOT make it to the gym last night. I actually worked some overtime and got home around 7 pm, starving and with low blood sugar. So I ate and relaxed and watched an episode of Lost (to refresh my memory before the season premiere!) I am going to go tonight, and I do think 3-4 times per week, with additional movement in the form of walking, stair climbing, etc., is reasonable.

Eat it.
B - coffee, Special K with Red Berries, Milk (4)
L - chicken and swiss on sandwich thin with L&T, Miracle Whip light and mustard; apple (4)
D - brown rice with vegetable tomato sauce and cubed chicken (7); romaine salad with tomatoes, cucumbers, feta, homemade vinaigrette (2)
S - light yogurt (2)
Total - 19, for now
Activity - 30-40 minutes of stationary bike riding (at varied resistances)
Flex points remaining - 35

I've almost read through my collection of books at home, or at least the ones that look appealing right now. (I've been out of corporate publishing for almost a year, and it's taken me this long to get through some of the stacks!) So...I'm planning on stopping by my branch of the Queens library this weekend to pick up some good ones. I know I want to read Julie & Julia, but I'll see what else looks good. Feel free to make recs. That said, I've never actually set foot into the Broadway branch of the Queens library -- I always had so many books to read at home, plus I was scared away by screaming-in-Spanish children, but I'm resolved to go now. It'll be an adventure.

So yes, that's part of what I'm looking forward to this weekend. Being newishly single, I need to find/plan activities to keep me busy, so that's one of them. I'm right now planning to do laundry and then watch a movie at home on Friday night, then brunch in Astoria on Saturday with T, then library and grocery shopping, then to Brooklyn at night for HennaParty2010 with L. And lots of wine. Sunday will be my day of rest and recovery, and probably lots of movies/Lost.

I would reaaallllllyyyy like to get some Indian takeout this weekend, too, but so far I haven't found a good reference for the actual number of WW points in the dishes. (Most just say "Way too many!") There's a place across the street from me that serves ghee-free homemade, delicious, fresh and authentic Indian food, but it still may be too full of fatty stuff. Hmm, though perhaps I can split my flexies between Indian and wine?

It's time to do some math. "Small" glass of wine is 2 points. Chicken tikka (4 oz.) is 4 points. Naan (7"x8") is 4. Chicken tikka masala, according to various sketchy internet sites, is in the 5-7 point range. (It has its own Facebook page!) Basmati rice is about 4 points for 1 cup.

Saturday night wine allotment is 8 points-ish. Food at L's is probably a few more flexies, but don't know what we're eating yet! Let's say I have about 20 leftover flex points, so technically if I behave otherwise, I could swing an Indian meal (2 actually, since I'll have leftovers), though I should probably skip the naan. Thanks for letting me think out loud, internets!