Introduction
Options
Replies
-
I live in Hunterdon County, NJ. Very rural area. When anyone talks about NJ, everyone pictures the area on the other side of the state by the airport and industries and tons of highways and lots of people...or the Jersey shore. Well.....NJ may be a somewhat expensive state to live in based on our insurance rates and property taxes and all...but NJ has so many beautiful places to live, and we are lucky to live in one of these places. So yeah...we are on a few acres and we did have a pot bellied pig for years. His name was Oscar. I miss him. He was one smart pig. He had free range on our property and never left it. We still have chickens though, and I have 3 cats and a very noisy Jenday conure. The last dog we had died last year too also from old age. Haven't gotten a new dog yet. Thinking that although I love dogs, not having to worry about being home to take one out is kind of nice...although every time there is a dog adoption day at a pet store within driving distance from my house, I have grandchildren who insist I come look at the dogs because I need one. lol
So AEPHubinC.......you live in Israel? Also......do we have a shorter name to call you then AEPHubinC?
0 -
Actually, I do harvest dandelions from my yard and eat them. I tried them a couple years ago when I was having some stomach issues. They are great for making a tonic. I've also dried the roots and blended it with other herbs for tea. There's also another green like dandelions called a cat's tongue. It has similar yellow flowers and a lot of people think they are dandelions, but they have fuzzy leaves. I don't harvest them all year because every spring my husband decides to spray them on the property. We have 2.5 acres and he's always on a mission to eradicate them. Once he sprays I don't eat them again until the next spring.
The description of the marigold leaves does sound like collard greens. My marigold leaves are small and lacy surrounding a spicy smelling yellow/orange/gold flowers. I actually think they are edible, but have never tried them.
Re: books - I've been on a reading hiatus for awhile. I used to be an avid reader when I was working. I would always read on my breaks and lunch, 2-3 books a month. I retired last September and since then have only read a couple of books. I did just download one on my kindle reader that's kind of a self-help book. It's called The Gift of Imperfection. I've only read the first chapter so far, but I think it will be good for me. Basically, how to let go of who you think you're supposed to be and embrace who you are. Might be exactly what I need! (If I would make the time to read it, that is!)0 -
@LinC - I totally understand what you're saying about NJ. I live in Oregon and we have very high income and property taxes here. We do not have a sales tax, so they tax everything else sky high! I doubt if we will ever have a sales tax. It has come up for a vote 20+ times since I have lived here and always gets voted down.
Another interesting thing about Oregon is that you cannot pump your own gas here, which I don't mind at all. I have only pumped my own gas a couple times when I've been traveling in other states. Smelly and messy. No thank you! LOL0 -
@RaeBee.....we don't pump our gas here in NJ either. So anytime I am traveling out of state w/o the husband, I have to pump my own. Definitely don't like doing that.
I love to read....but I'll go weeks without picking up a book or my kindle.....then I'll have a few weeks in which my nose is always in a book. I usually read historical romances, but I'll read most anything. @AEPHubin.......didn't I read somewhere that you wrote a book? Mystery, I think?0 -
Oh....and as far as my diet is going.....last night was not good. I had a great day all day yesterday, then last night I took 3 of the grandchildren out to get Halloween costumes, then dinner, then to see the movie Pan. Dinner was at Panera...so I had the pick 2 turkey sierra and chicken noodle soup. Not too bad as far as calories go but that put me near my calorie goal for the day. But then at the movies.....ugghh. Some candy, some pretzel, most of an Icee, then when I got home after midnight....some chocolate chip cookies. Oh well....today is another day.
BTW......I don't think the critics liked it, but I enjoyed the movie Pan.0 -
Man oh man. My message just got deleted. Sigh.
In briefer -
Yes, I live in Israel. About 20 minutes NE of Jerusalem in a semi-rural community of 800 families.
My name is Aliza. AEPHubinC is sort of a joke name my husband used before we were married. (40 years ago!!)
I have The Gift of Imperfection on my kindle. Read parts of it and actually liked it but haven't gone back to it.
I teach yoga and meditation in a studio in my home. The main character in the mystery I wrote is a yoga teacher. It's called Yoga for Detectives: Lesson One and you can find it on Amazon in paperback and Kindle.
I once had a business meeting in NJ about 3 hours outside of NY when I still had my public relations office in Manhattan. I was surprised at the beauty of NJ! How lucky you, LIn, and you, Rae, are to live surrounded by such natural beauty.
I often walk up the small mountain (or tall hill) near my home. There's a family of deer who live in the wild area between my house and the hilltop. They're pretty well camouflaged but if I stay still for awhile their movement catches my eye and I can watch them for awhile. Beautiful.
I had a high calorie lunch today including lamb and beef but wasn't hungry for dinner afterwards so my calorie intake was still lower than my goal. I'm being pretty fanatic about not going over because when I fall off the wagon I tend to binge and then it takes weeks or months to get back to reasonable eating.
Off to the stepper.0 -
i have no doubt that i was sooo off yesterday i had a calzone and it was huge it was lunch and dinner tho i did some talking but didnt log it0
-
Hi Embera,
Just a thought...
Research shows that people who write down everything they eat lose more weight than those who don't. I think that logging in the stuff we think we shouldn't have eaten is as important (maybe more important) than logging in the stuff that we think is perfect.
You might find that the calzone was high in calories but it balanced out with the rest of your day and you were still under or within your calorie intake goal. You still might want to make a healthier choice next time but you wouldn't be feeling any qualms about your decision to stay on program.
At least, that's how it works for me.
0 -
Aliza - what a beautiful name! I am fascinated by Israel. We really don't see much of what your country is really like. Most of the news about Israel here is very political and they never show where people really live. Your book sounds fascinating! I have dreams of writing a novel myself, but thus far have lacked the discipline.
Yes, I am very blessed to live in the beauty of Oregon. Of course, we have our cities, but much of the state is still unpopulated or farmland. I live outside of a small town in a rural farming community. The main crops here are Christmas trees, hazelnuts, grass seed, and wine grapes. Vineyards are cropping up everywhere (which I prefer to the grass seed)! I see deer in my back pasture nearly every day. They are currently cleaning up the windfall apples under my golden delicious apple trees. I used to rake up the apples every year, but I realized the deer would do the clean-up for me if I just leave them there. Last night I saw a doe with two fawns just outside my kitchen window. Of course, my doggies will chase them away if they catch wind they are there so I try to stay quiet and just watch and enjoy ++them.
Lin - how funny that you and I live in the only two states out of 50 that don't pump their own gas!! Kind of a coincidence, actually. I don't wish to ever pump my own gas. They have tried to get that passed many times here, but it always fails. I think it's because it's been proven that pumping your own gas doesn't lower the cost of the gas at all, and also puts station workers out of jobs. Speaking of gas, it is so cheap right now!! I passed a station today where it was $2.15 a gallon. I have not seen it that low in the past 10 years!
I had a pretty good day with exercise. Went for an hour walk along the riverfront with friends this morning. Did some stretching and about 10 minutes of lower bodyweight exercise. I have no idea how many calories I consumed today. I should log it and see. I ate pretty healthy.
Yogurt and banana for breakfast
Polenta, veggies & egg for lunch
2 ground beef tacos with fresh veggies for dinner
Snacks - granola bar, chips & salsa
Probably a bit too much wine this evening, but perhaps the exercise today will offset.
Thinking of having a bit of ice cream or square of dark chocolate for a sweet.
I hope everyone has a lovely week to come and I'll check back in tomorrow.0 -
Good morning, all,
I want to come walk on the riverfront with you today, Rae. Sounds lovely. In general, your surroundings sounds peaceful and wonderful!
But I'll be working on preparing the paper work for my foundation's accountant to prepare our tax return instead of walking in some beautiful place. Maybe I'll manage to salvage a few hours out of this day for a walk.
I made the startling discovery that maybe I'm NOT meant to eat up all those calories I burn exercising. So yesterday I took in 1200 calories without (happily) eating more and using up the exercise calories. Weighed myself this a.m. (it's not my regular weigh in day) and saw that I'd put on about 1/3 of a pound. Now, I KNOW that isn't necessarily really a weight gain in the scheme of things but I'd thought that the number would finally have moved under 163. Chagrin.
Off to a meeting with the lawyer who's handling a collections case for my foundation. I think it's bad karma to be involved in this kind of case but a woman we'd helped with a no-interest loan has been intransigent in not repaying for the past SEVEN YEARS and my board finally got fed up with my shilly-shallying. They're undoubtedly right but it's still not pleasant.
0 -
Actually, the walk along the riverfront was foggy and cold but I still enjoyed the exercise and the company. It was beautiful and sunny at my house when I left, but when I got to the riverwalk it was gloomy. Glad I wore a jacket! Our elevation is about 100 ft higher where I live (kind of at the foothills of a mountain range), so we're often above the fog that lingers in the valley below.
I also weighed this morning (not my regular weigh in day either). I was up .4 pounds. That'll teach me to stay off the scale until weigh day, which for me is Friday.
Funny that you are dealing with taxes, too. I am only on here right now because I am procrastinating starting on my tax return, which is due by Thursday. I hate, hate, hate taxes, but I am too miserly to pay an accountant to do it for me. I went for a walk with another friend this morning, but that will probably be my only exercise today. Better get busy. Ugh.0 -
thank you for the support i think my main goals right now are to try and eat more snacks instead of bingeing at the end of the night (by binge i mean a large dinner) tonight i think i waited too long and even though ate im still feeling hungry i know i need to focus on exercise too but with my depression its a struggle just to drag myself to shower let alone work out i know it will help but some days its a struggle just to crawl out of bed and im sure if i was in my own room thats what i would probably be doing0
-
Hey Embera - A binge for me is a bag of spicy doritos, a bar of chocolate, half a package of cookies, anything salty that's not nailed down...you get the picture. A large dinner? Maybe it's over your calorie intake for the day but it's probably not also doing a job on your cholesterol, heart and what else all that processed junk food batters.
I hope you can see the positive in that. I sure can. Five points for your healthier choices!
Maybe if you could find a friend to walk with or a game/tv series you only do/watch when you're exercising, that would help. My personal fav is an online spades partner game with betting (fake money).
My scale finally went down under 163 - not by much but I'm celebrating (with one madjool date - weeee).
162.4 today. I've now officially lost more than 5 pounds (5.3
)
Only 22.4 to go. At this rate, that'll take until spring. On the up side, I could still be gaining weight and make it to 200 pounds by spring. I'll take my victories where I can find them.
Have a good day, all!0 -
Good morning all! How's everyone? I was sick yesterday. A very short lived stomach bug. Most of the younger grandchildren had it the past 3 weeks, so not surprised I finally got it. Good thing...I woke up feeling fine today. Another good thing......I was at 181.1 this AM. lol.....that's what you get when you don't eat much the day before. I did have some toast for breakfast and tea already......so not expecting 181.1 tomorrow AM but I'm getting closer to 179.9. Oh to see those 170's again. Getting impatient. So....I'm watching 4 grandchildren today (my son's kids.....his 2 kids that are in school are off today for teachers in-service) and tonight I sleep at my daughter the nurse's house to watch her 4 kids. Her husband works night shift and Tracy is working a 12 hour night shift tonight too. My son had dropped off his 4 kids here this AM, so I am just trying to get some stuff done around here because once I leave to take his kids home to their house, I'll head to Tracy's house and then tomorrow I'm back at my son's house to watch 2 of his children again. I won't be back home until tomorrow evening. My life is crazier now than before I retired from teaching!
Have a good day!0 -
when i binge i eat because it tastes good not cuz im that hungry and i usally get indigestion from it if i over do it to much lately sadly enough ive eaten candy as lunch like we had pumpkin Swiss rolls and thats what i had for lunch one day i felt pretty bad about it but i didnt end up going over either0
-
thank you for the support i think my main goals right now are to try and eat more snacks instead of bingeing at the end of the night (by binge i mean a large dinner) tonight i think i waited too long and even though ate im still feeling hungry i know i need to focus on exercise too but with my depression its a struggle just to drag myself to shower let alone work out i know it will help but some days its a struggle just to crawl out of bed and im sure if i was in my own room thats what i would probably be doing
Embera- have you gotten any help for your depression? Or talked to anyone about it? I've seen you mention it a couple times and in relation to your eating. I hope that you can get a handle on things very soon or get some help if you need to.0 -
Hey Lin! Glad you're feeling better! Sounds like you've got a crazy busy life these days with watching all the grandkids. I only have one so far, but I am retired and I am super busy most days. I can't even imagine watching grandkids on top of all the running around I do. I wonder how I ever got anything done when I was working! Nice to see a weight loss even if it was from not feeling well for a day. You will see the 170's again in no time!
Aliza - Congrats on seeing the weight loss, too! 5.3 pounds is a big deal, especially when you get into your middle age. I used to drop 5 pounds in a week with no problem (in my 20's and 30's), but now it is a matter of weeks if not months to see a pound or two.
I have just now edged into the 150's (159.8 as of yesterday). I haven't seen that number "5" on the scale in probably 5 years so it's pretty exciting. That being said, it has taken me 9.5 months to lose about 19 pounds so it is a slow process. You just have to enjoy the journey (as everyone calls it), but it really is a journey, with a lot of detours. I'm having fun along the way and getting to know some amazing people, too!0 -
Good morning everyone,
NZ - been missing you! Hope to hear from you one of these days soon.
WHOO HOO!! Yay, Rae! Seeing that 5 on the scale must be a rush. I'm hoping to have it soon. (but know it'll probably take at least a month) Ah yes, I remember the days well when I could get rid of 5 pounds in a week. Long gone.
Now I have a feeling, Lin, like the one my friends have when I talk about my grandmother rounds. Whew! That's a LOT of grandmothering you do. Do you enjoy it?
Twice a week I pick up grandchildren from their various day cares/schools to be with them until a parent comes home from work and a third time a week I visit with another set of grandkids (we have 4 households of kids in the country and one out of the country). On the one hand, it's a choice I make because I want to build and maintain relationships with our grandchildren. On the other, it gets a bit much at times.
Embera, I second Rae's suggestion that you might consider getting professional help for your depression. It's so often not something that's doable on your own.
Today's my busiest teaching day of the week. I teach 3 classes and one of them is out of the studio. My classes are at full capacity this semester: nine students in each of three classes in the studio and over 20 in the class I teach at the local high school. I'm planning on getting half an hour in on the stepper, too, as yoga doesn't burn many calories. We'll see how I hold up. The last class of the day is my most advanced class. Hmm. Perhaps not the most skillful of scheduling decisions.
0 -
This afternoon I typed a whole bunch here...and my finger hit some key and "poof" all my writing went away.
I'll try again.
Aliza....so I usually watch grandchildren (some not all of them) 5 days a week......and yes, it does sometimes seem a bit much. However, I made the decision to watch them because I can't justify my own kids paying so much for daycare when I can watch their kids for free. The cost for daycare is through the roof. The daughter and the daughter in law that I am watching the kids for are both nurses. Yes, they make good money, but if they had to pay for full time daycare for 2 kids each, which they would have to......that's a huge chunk of their paycheck. Plus being nurses, they don't always have the best schedules so daycare wouldn't necessarily work for them anyway.
But....the thing that makes it a bit much at times is that they (my son and my youngest daughter) both live 45 minutes away from me. So I'm driving a lot. Plus having the 3 girl scout troops of my granddaughters that live right here in my town....I'm rushing home some days to make it to meetings. Plus, I was considering a zumba class.....but I couldn't fit it into my schedule with running back and forth watching kids AND the girl scout meetings. However.....it won't be like this forever. Next September my life will get a lot easier when 2 of the boys I watch will start kindergarten and I believe my son and his wife are considering putting their little girl in preschool 2 days a week then. So come next September, I may only be watching 2 little kids 3 days a week. Much easier.
Rae.....congrats on making it into the 150's. I am so jealous!!!!! But I am so close to the 170's right now. Should be there by next week sometime. My motivation is strong right now!
Amber......I also agree you should seek help for your depression. Everyone gets stressed out in life at one time or another. Talk to your doctor and see what they say. Stress can play havoc with your health. You need to take care of yourself.
So everyone, I am home now. Just finished dinner and going to troll around the internet and fb for awhile. I went to a sleep specialist today because the cardiologist I saw suggested that since they can't find anything wrong with me that could have caused the 2 AFIB episodes I had, then they are wondering if I don't have sleep apnea. I don't snore, but I do gasp for breath on occasion when I am falling asleep....and the 2 AFib episdoes both occurred when I had been asleep. In 2 weeks I will pick up the monitor I have to wear to see if I have sleep apnea. I will be able to sleep in my own bed....yay!....after I hook myself up to the monitor. Doctor said he needs 4 hours of sleep data to determine if I have it. So, we'll see.
I've been feeling pretty good, but I'm not overly happy with the meds the cardiologist has me on. Lowers the pulse and blood pressure which normally I have low blood pressure to begin with. Wish I didn't have to take anything. But he said that should I have another AFIB episode, the meds will keep my pulse down a bit. Hopefully once the sleep apnea results come back, the cardiologist will take me off the meds because they make me feel tired and just a bit weird.
Now I'm going to go troll fb and the internet for a bit. Have a nice evening everyone!
0 -
Hello all,
I have just finished reading your intro thread and would very much like to join your group. I'm 55 and have put on weight every year of my 24 year marrage and I'm ready for a change. And, I love the idea of little challenges to keep things interesting.
This group has a very rich and interesting vibe and I look forward to being a part of this support network.
A little more about me:
I live in Round Rock, Texas and really look forward to the fall weather rolling in. This past weekend got as high as 97 degrees. Whew!!! Loved reading about the cool weather in NJ and OR.
I have to 2 boys.
I don't have any grandchildren but hopefully soon as my oldest son got married on May 2. I just can not wait. Any advice on how often I can ask if there is a bun in the oven would be appreviated.
My youngest son is interested in animation. He has an uncanny gift of capturing movement and expression in very minimalistic sketches. As early as kindergarten you could see it in his stick figures. I'm really excited for him and look forward to hearing about that sort of work.
My husband and I both work in the software development industry. My last project got scaled back and I was one of five who lost their position so I'm taking this time to get some momentum going on the weight loss effort.
Stats:
Starting Weight: 183
Goal Weight: 110 as I am only 5 ft tall
Today's Weight: 181
Look forward to sharing the journey.
Ya'll have a good evening. And yes we really do say ya'll.
0
