Saturday, July 27, 2013

July 27 - Cheat Day

Post 901, Day 208 of 2013
- and 939 days since I started this blog -

Daily Comment

Nothing today. I didn't do a thing, other than go to the Regional Farmers Market, where I bought my pastured eggs, and succumbed to a discount from my favorite baker there.



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 Food and Diet Section
2013 Daily Weight
Today's Weight:         211.6 lbs
Yesterday's Weight:     212.2 lbs
Day Net Loss/Gain:      - 0.6 lbs

Diet Comment
I thought I'd gain weight, due to the excess carbs after lunch. Can't say I'm disappointed to have lost the amount I'd previously gained on Thursday's pizza cheat. Nonetheless, Barbara, the cake baker I usually buy from at the Regional Farmer's Market, called out to me while I was trying to slide by without looking at her table, to sell me a cake that, as she put it, "had my name on it". I don't know if she really knows my name, but it was so nice, I did buy it, and then - I ate it. And then I took a 3-hour nap. 

Tomorrow's weight will be dreadful.

Food Log 
Breakfast
Apple Crisp. The whole 7x9" pan.

Lunch
Protein bar.

Dinner
Protein bar. Red cabbage slaw.

Snack
A Protein bar. Later, another protein bar.

Liquid Intake   
   Coffee:  32 oz.   Water: 68+ oz. 

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Friday, July 26, 2013

July 26

Post 900, Day 207 of 2013
- and 938 days since I started this blog -

Daily Comment

This is where (and why) planning works, when it does. The band had a "gig" - sort of. It was really just an invite to a party hosted by another band.

In order to do it, I had to take time off from work, which requires notice, thus, planning.

It turned out to be a magnificent day, and the setting was the Finger Lakes Wine Country in Central New York. Of course, it could have been a dud - and in that case, it still would have been a good time, because we were performing in a barn, whose open back door overlooked Lake Keuka (bluest of the Finger Lakes - although, not the deepest. I don't know how that works).

What a day it was, capped by a good performance, and all kinds of people heaping compliments on me and the band.

Some aspects I didn't plan: I didn't plan for a passenger, but did go down with my friend Al. I didn't plan on leaving so late, and I drove home tired (if I'd felt too tired, Al is a more-than-competent driver; and probably a better driver than me). I didn't plan on the wonderful spread of food, and the temptations I would succumb to, although I knew I wouldn't be in a mood to resist temptation. 

I didn't plan on there being no signal for the phone there, and forgetting to charge on the way down. That's why there are no pics, but here's one taken from the back of the barn by a stranger and put up in the band's Shindig at the Lake album:



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 Food and Diet Section
2013 Daily Weight
Today's Weight:         212.2 lbs
Yesterday's Weight:     211.6 lbs
Day Net Loss/Gain:      + 0.6 lbs

Diet Comment
I expected this gain. Today, with the random eating I'll be doing, may be worse.

Food Log 
Breakfast
Cocoa-kale-hemp-chia protein shake: Almond milk, kale, a large egg, cocoa, hemp seeds, chia gel, vanilla whey powder (24g protein), cinnamon, psyllium and stevia-inulin blend.

Lunch
Grass-fed beef on coconut Pale bread with guacamole. Side of red cabbage and black bean slaw.

Dinner
Pulled chicken, tomatoes caprice, barbecue beans, fruit salad, garlic toast. Times two. Brownies, cookies, miscellaneous desserts.

Snack
A Protein bar.

Liquid Intake   
   Coffee:  20 oz.   Water: 80+ oz. 

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Thursday, July 25, 2013

July 25

Post 899, Day 206 of 2013
- and 937 days since I started this blog -

Daily Comment

I had a good laugh at myself today - after writing how loose I am with imposed regulation (even, as you can see, when it is self-imposed), I totally abandoned the day's dietary regime.

And then, I reminded myself how often I like to shake things up. From appearance issues (long hair, short hair, head shaved, fat, thin, no jeans, jeans all the time); to job matters (although I was employed by IBM for sixteen years, I had four unique careers in that time); to location matters (I have lost count of how many times I've moved since 1966 - there was a time when I had more than one change of residence per year, and friends who had to start using the L-page of their address books to keep up with my current address).

The most historically constant thing I can think of was living in my house in North Carolina. It was my address for twenty-three years, the longest time I have spent at an address in my life. Probably much too long, but I was thinking in terms of my family, even when it consisted of just Alex and myself.

The funny thing was, I didn't really want to be there at all, ever. The move to North Carolina and to that particular house was Nell's choice. I didn't want to move, but she wanted to put some distance between her and her parents. 

I went along with the move because it was a career opportunity, and seemed like a better place to raise our son. From that point of view, it was a good decision.

I went along with the house because I was desperate after looking for houses for six weeks.  Nothing we were looking at was meeting both our requirements, and Nell was rejecting everything I liked. Once accepted on those terms, I felt stuck, and just wanted to make the best of it.

Leaving North Carolina has turned out to be one of the most liberating things I ever did, with unforeseen (and certainly, unplanned-for) positive consequences.

And speaking of planning, I do a lot of it, still and always. But I no longer plan with the assumption that the plan will actually be executed as planned. I know better (now). Instead, it is an outline, at best, and I know that if it doesn't succeed, there will be a good reason - and one that, stating the obvious, couldn't be planned for. Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. said, "Nothing succeeds as planned."

I have also learned that there are always unforeseen circumstances (because we don't see the future). So in my planning assumptions are the flexibility to be wrong at any, or every, stage when actually implementing a plan.

I don't worry much about how to do something. I just try to imagine the end result. That's the fun way to plan (something that may turn out to be unnecessary), and it is (seems) much more intuitive - otherwise, it just isn't as much fun

The A-Team, where every plan comes together in a lovely way, is a total fiction.



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 Food and Diet Section
2013 Daily Weight
Today's Weight:         211.6 lbs
Yesterday's Weight:     210.0 lbs
Day Net Loss/Gain:      + 1.6 lbs

Diet Comment
I expected this gain. Today, I will do better.

Food Log 
Breakfast
Coconut Paleo toast with guacamole.

Lunch
At Ling-Ling's Chinese Buffet and Grill:
Brussels sprouts, kimchee, and, from the "Mongolian Grill", my go-to dish, pork and chicken with cabbage, onions, mushrooms, green peppers and broccoli.

Snack
Major fail: Pizza, and lots of it.

Dinner
After the afternoon pizza binge, a salad (Spring Mix greens, red cabbage, a creamy balsamic vinaigrette). Then, a protein bar for dessert.

Snack
Late night, after-the-jam Protein bar.

Liquid Intake   
   Coffee:  26 oz.   Water: 128+ oz. Two shots of Jameson's.

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Wednesday, July 24, 2013

July 24

Post 898, Day 205 of 2013
- and 936 days since I started this blog -

Daily Comment

I guess the break in the weather - it is cool today! - has reduced my brain activity to a minimum.

I am struggling to find a topic to address. I try to write something that is at least a little interesting every day here, but, as is my wont (that is not a misspelling), I am loose with it.

I have always found regulation stifling and uncomfortable, at least in its absolute (you will do this at this time for this long in this way) form. When I was a young kid, I would try to comply, and always, without exception, end up in tears of frustration.

I would never survive any kind of military training.



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 Food and Diet Section
2013 Daily Weight
Today's Weight:         210.0 lbs
Yesterday's Weight:     211.0 lbs
Day Net Loss/Gain:      - 1.0 lbs

Diet Comment
Slowly but surely... Then again, at the end of the day, literally at 9:30 pm when I ate dinner, this turned into a cheat day. 

Food Log 
Breakfast
Skipped.

Lunch
Italian-style chicken sausage (with onions and peppers) and scrambled eggs. Not shown: Salad of Spring Mix greens, red cabbage, black beans and balsamic vinaigrette.

Snack
Snack 1: Soft-serve ice cream. Snack 2: A protein bar (later).

Dinner
At Eskapes Lounge: A big glass of good Pinot Noir. Lentil soup (with a little piece of garlic toast, eaten). Wasabi-blackened grilled tuna steak, rare, with sauteed vegetables (spinach, tomatoes, peppers, onions, mushrooms). And dessert: Cheesecake truffles in chocolate sauce. It was just there, so I ate it (dinner and drinks is how we're paid when we play here). This marks today as a cheat day.


Snack
A bag of chia chips - which contained organic brown rice, and were very salty and spicy.

Liquid Intake   
   Coffee:  22 oz.   Water: 128+ oz.

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Tuesday, July 23, 2013

July 23

Post 897, Day 204 of 2013
- and 935 days since I started this blog -

Daily Comment
Nothing much to say, and now I've said it.



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 Food and Diet Section
2013 Daily Weight
Today's Weight:         211.0 lbs
Yesterday's Weight:     212.8 lbs
Day Net Loss/Gain:      - 1.8 lbs

Diet Comment
Progress.

Food Log 
Breakfast
Cocoa-kale-hemp-chia protein shake: Almond milk, kale, a large egg, cocoa, hemp seeds, chia gel, vanilla whey powder (24g protein), cinnamon, vanilla, psyllium and stevia-inulin blend.

Lunch
Roasted turkey and black bean salad on Spring Mix greens.

Dinner
Pepperoni and red cabbage slaw.


Snack
A protein bar.


Liquid Intake   
   Coffee:  22 oz.   Water: 128+ oz.

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Monday, July 22, 2013

July 22

Post 896, Day 203 of 2013
- and 934 days since I started this blog -

Daily Comment
Sometimes, I say I'm going to do something, meaning it when I say it, and then, don't.

And then I feel bad. The problem is in predicting what I will do. My accuracy in predicting my own behavior has a very short half-life - maybe seconds after the prediction is made, we get to even odds I'll do it.

By the time we get to months, my predictions look like wild guesses. Beginning about a year later, I have a perfect zero rate of accuracy.

I owe a lot of people phone calls.



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 Food and Diet Section
2013 Daily Weight
Today's Weight:         212.8 lbs
Yesterday's Weight:     212.2 lbs
Day Net Loss/Gain:      + 1.0 lbs

Diet Comment
A little heat-beating cheat yesterday, and look where I am. Damn.

Food Log 
Breakfast
Cocoa-kale-hemp-chia protein shake: Almond milk, kale, a large egg, cocoa, hemp seeds, chia seeds, vanilla whey powder (24g protein), cinnamon, vanilla, psyllium and stevia-inulin blend.

Lunch
Roasted turkey, red bean and egg salad on Spring Mix greens with red cabbage.

Dinner
Grass-fed beef burger with fried onions and peppers on coconut Paleo bread with mashed "faux-tatoes" (cauliflower, butter, salt and pepper) and red cabbage slaw.

Snack
Two protein bars.


Liquid Intake   
   Coffee:  28 oz.   Water: 160+ oz.

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Sunday, July 21, 2013

July 21

Post 895, Day 202 of 2013
- and 933 days since I started this blog -

Daily Comment
Spent the day chillaxin' - the heat wave broke, it was comfortable, I was tired and feeling lazy. Made it my mission to do nothing more than hit a couple of jams.

Mission accomplished.



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 Food and Diet Section
2013 Daily Weight
Today's Weight:         212.2 lbs
Yesterday's Weight:     210.8 lbs
Day Net Loss/Gain:      + 1.4 lbs

Diet Comment
A fast. Just because.

Food Log 
Breakfast
Skipped.

Lunch
Skipped.

Dinner
Skipped.

Snack
1 AM:  Protein bar, Ezekiel Sprouted grain cereal with blueberries, almond-coconut milk and stevia-inulin blend.


Liquid Intake   
   Coffee:  0 oz.   Water: 67+ oz.

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Saturday, July 20, 2013

July 20

Post 894, Day 201 of 2013
- and 932 days since I started this blog -

Daily Comment
Great gig last night. Just so much fun, and a good crowd.

Post-gig 4am breakfast led  to today's virtual 'cheat day'.



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 Food and Diet Section
2013 Daily Weight
Today's Weight:         210.8 lbs
Yesterday's Weight:     209.0 lbs
Day Net Loss/Gain:      + 1.8 lbs

Diet Comment
A little heat-beating cheat yesterday, and look where I am. Damn.

Food Log 
Breakfast
At Denny's: Ultimate Omelet (just a bunch of protein and veggies in eggs) with hash browns and dry rye toast.

Lunch
Second Nature Wholesome Blend: peanuts, cashews, almonds, raisins, cranberries and dark chocolate.

Dinner
Same as lunch. Plus some popcorn.

Snack
Same as lunch.

Liquid Intake   
   Coffee:  16 oz.   Water: 67+ oz.

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Friday, July 19, 2013

July 19

Post 893, Day 200 of 2013
- and 931 days since I started this blog -

Daily Comment
Today I had the first twinge of, "maybe I'd rather keep playing here than move away and interrupt the music for a time."

I've always said that although expatriating was something I wanted to do, and could justify on a 'need' basis, I would remain flexible, and not so attached to the idea of it, because things change and could make other options, not forseeable, give me a rationale for delaying, if not cancelling, my overseas move.

It came up because while I was hanging out at an open mic last night, the club owner asked me to play bass for a combo to open for another group. This is exactly the sort of thing I'll miss, the odd, one-off, the spontaneity of making music. Something that won't happen, at least for a while, anywhere I move, if it's out of my current neighborhood.

In short, a real reason not to relocate.

Maybe just because I've been playing a lot and the 'unforeseen opportunity to play' has been happening to me a lot, I had that thought....



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 Food and Diet Section
2013 Daily Weight
Today's Weight:         209.0 lbs
Yesterday's Weight:     208.0 lbs
Day Net Loss/Gain:      + 1.0 lbs

Diet Comment
A little heat-beating cheat yesterday, and look where I am. Damn.

Food Log 
Breakfast
Cocoa-kale-hemp-chia protein shake: Almond milk, kale, a large egg, cocoa, hemp seeds, chia seeds, vanilla whey powder (24g protein), cinnamon, vanilla, psyllium and stevia-inulin blend.

Lunch
At Ling-Ling's Chinese Buffet and Grill:
Brussels sprouts, kimchee, and, from the "Mongolian Grill", my go-to dish, pork and chicken with cabbage, onions, mushrooms, green peppers and broccoli.

Snack
Chorizo sausage.


Dinner
At Bull & Bear Roadhouse: Cobb Salad (Fried chicken, bacon, hard-boiled egg, apple slices, blue cheese, lettuce, tomato, Thai sesame dressing.

Liquid Intake   
   Coffee:  22 oz.   Water: 116+ oz.

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