Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Pound For Pound

Well, it became apparent to me this evening that I need to drop a few pounds. I can't really go into details of how it became apparent…that would ruin a huge surprise. But let's just say that when one is bound and corseted within an inch of their life, you figure out very quickly where things are a little too pudgy.

I have 3 weeks and I only need to drop about 5 pounds. Last night when I weighed the dog, which requires weighing myself first, I topped out at 218(Molly was very fat…coming in at 42lbs Bad Dog!). It's not my worst weight, but also not my best. I tend to rock back and forth in the 200-220 area. The Mutual of Omaha insurance brackets say I should weight 170lbs. Ain't that a kick in the head! I would look totally Manorexic at that weight. When I went to the beach 2 years ago I had made it down to 190 and I could deal with that, but my Mom felt I wasn't eating enough. She said I looked gaunt. I said, "But I fit into all my skinny clothes!!!". Gaunt would have to do!

So, to help me shave a few pounds off in a few weeks I plan to low carb it. My friend Kim, who has had gastric bypass surgery a few years ago is currently doing a 5 day low carb plan designed to help her "reconnect" with her smaller stomach pouch. I am planning to augment the plan she is following. Basically what it comes down to for me is that fat doesn't get stored as fat in your body. Most fats get sent packing right out your poop shoot. My doctor and much web research has confirmed this. It's the carbs, the breads and the pastas and the cakes and the crackers….those are the items that are very easy for your body to process and then any excess gets stored as fat for later use.

Since I haven't had GBS, I am going to start on her "Day 3" (Skipping the all liquid days) where you begin introducing soft proteins. Food items such as tuna and eggs. All the while I will be "snacking" on protein shakes and low sodium lunch meat. From there you move onto more and more solid proteins. First the ground meats…chicken, beef, pork and then the solid meats…chicken, beef, pork. Now don't panic, I also plan to include the lower glycemic vegetables as well. Things like broccoli, spinach and green beans. My doctor says that green beans are like a miracle, you can eat all of them you want and they just pass right through your system leaving little or nothing behind. I like the idea of that.

I have done the Low Carb thing before. First I tried The Atkins Diet many years ago. I got the results I wanted and was able to fit into my beachwear. But I found it hard to stick to that plan for the long haul. More recently I tried The South Beach Diet. It is another version of the low carb diet that I found a lot easier to stick with. Of course once winter came and I was wearing baggy sweaters again, I found it easy to divert from it.

My friend Laura has had great success with Weight Watchers, as has my Mother. I may look into that as a long term solution. I like the idea of it's "in person" social side, what with weekly meetings to attend. On the other hand I might also wind up feeling like I am attending Fat Persons Anonymous. Who knows?

Right now tho, I just need to shed a few pounds to get through this end of September gig. So very low carb it is! After that I will take stock and see where I want to go from there. So I'll be starting all of this next Tuesday. There is no way that I'll be able to low carb it with the German Host Mother around…she's quite the cook and I plan to take advantage of that while she is here!

Monday, August 29, 2011

The German Invasion

I know, I know…it's been a while since I posted. It's ok…I haven't become Kim…yet. I simply just haven't had much to talk about. Work hasn't been exciting. Irene turned out to be a dud. Face it, I'm boring. Well I'm not boring, but my life is at the moment.

That is all set to change this weekend. The Hubby and I are preparing for The German Invasion! I know, that sounds dramatic…in reality, his host mother from his exchange student days is making her first ever visit to America. That's pretty exciting…and a bit unsettling for me.

I have no desire to travel outside of this country for a number of reasons. First being the travel time. Heck, I don't even like traveling inside this country if it's going to take more than 4 hours. No place is worth getting to if it takes longer than that. Second, there is the money. I can barely keep track of American money what with every state having different taxes and prices. The big one is the language barrier. Call me self centered (and many do), but I have no desire to learn any language other than that used by the country of my birth. I also firmly believe that those traveling to America should not do so unless they have a decent grasp of the language. I feel like that is akin to showing up to a party at someones house for the first time without a Hostess Gift. In this case, the gift would be English. Someday, according to Star Trek,  English will be the universal language. When that is the case I will travel anywhere. Because by then travel will be at warp speed or via teleportation.

So, for a few days on either end of her trip (I have a business trip in the middle of it) there will be 2 people in our house speaking German fluently, and I ain't one of them. I am unsettled by this for a number of reasons, all of which I have already discussed with The Hubby. I am sure The Hubby will function as a wonderful translator for me. But I'm also sure it's difficult to converse and also at the same time translate. I mean, that's why the people at the United Nations have those little speakers in their ears telling them what everyone is saying! So I fear that I will be left out of a lot of the conversation and then, at the ultimate, kind of become a 3rd wheel. I've never really functioned well in that capacity. I've always been the "First Wheel" sort of guy.

The other thing is, that this being her first trip to America, I want it to be special for her. I want the house to be clean, I want there to be great little touches like fresh flowers, warm scones and personal toiletries. The Hubby keeps telling me, "Sweetie, she's not staying at a guest house!". But, since it is her vacation, I really want her to feel just that. I'm not turning the church into a 5 star resort, but I want her to have more than just the experience of a sleep-over at a friends house. Is that so wrong?

Perhaps I am putting too much pressure on myself. I suppose it wouldn't be the first time. I tend to for every party I throw. But this feels a little different, it's a party of one. One whom it is very important to me that she has a good trip, that she enjoys her stay in the states, and yes…I would be remiss if I left out the fact that I really want this woman to like me. The real question is…will all that is Jim translate into German?

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

And One More Beach Post

Here is a final item that I encountered while at the beach.


Yes, I am a smoker. So often those of us who puff are made to feel like lepers…sectioned off from the rest of the world rotting away. But here at one of the restaurants in Rehoboth Beach they've gotten it right. You can still have an out of the way smoking area and be made to feel special.

Ok, folks…that is it for anything beach related…all done. I am off to Las Vegas on Friday for work. Maybe I'll have some fun posts from there.

Monday, August 15, 2011

Back to the Beach

Hello! Well I have one post regarding the beach vacation left. I have been told that I can't call it a beach vacation, since we never actually made it down to the beach. (Well except for Tod, but I don't think he wants that story related here)

Here is the #2 Reason I love the beach…THE FOOD!  Mixx is one of our favorite restaurants in Rehoboth and we made it there our final evening. Mixx, used to be Dish, a restaurant I loved simply because it had Beef Stroganoff on it's menu. You don't see that enough anymore. Don't worry, some day I will post my magnificent Beef Stroganoff recipe here.


Mixx is famous for it's Martinu Menu. I have a picture of it, but I promised not to post it here. you'll have to  stop by my house to sample it for yourself. The other thing Mixx is famous for is that on Wednesday nights, their Martinis are half price and their burgers are $8.  Now, I've never been one to pass up a baragin…or a cocktail. So our final night in Rehoboth was spent having dinner at Mixx. Sorry…I don't have pictures of the burgers.


We each ordered a Martini. I got the Abigail which is a mixture of sweet tea vodka, lemonade and strawberry puree. I don't remember what Scott and Tod ordered. (I'm sure they'll remind me in the comments)

The Abigail Full
The Abigail Empty
Yeah, I think I had 3 of them…ok, maybe 2 and then 2 Expesso Martinis. Here is a picture of the delicious chocolate martini that Tod ordered.


Beatutiful! So much so that you wouldn't want to drink it. Certainly not a problem for any one of us. I loved the fact that the entire drink isn't brown. It uses whipped cream vodka which is clear and then the chocolate sauce. Fantastic presentation.

So that's it for the beach posts. I know…I should have been far more diligent in photographing and posting items from there. But it's vacation, and no one wants to work on vacation. I'll try to do better next year.

I've Said it Before...

…and I'll say it again. Women! Hold on to your men!!!

I run into posts like these all of the time online. (Parts have been blurred to protect the NOT SO innocent)


Here we have a "hetero" married man on a gay hook up site looking for sex. Supposedly because his wife has stopped "Putting Out". Seriously, hetero? He is showing off his bum on a gay sex site! How far would your heterosexuality have to slip before you started looking on gay sites for sex. I know my "Gay" would have to slip pretty darn far before you'd find me trolling Match.com for a lady friend to bed.

Straight women have no idea how often this happens. I tell my girlfriends about it and the resounding response is always, "Well not my husband!". Well, I hate to break it to you girls, but it is your husband more often than you ever realize. That, or it's your best friends husband, or your best friends best friends husband. It's like a frickin Herbal Essence commercial!!!

The typical response I get from most of these guys is "Hey, I'm not having sex with another woman…so I'm not cheating." I have a feeling that their wives might disagree. Hell, I disagree and I'm certainly not their wife!

So, quite simply ladies…don't ever stop having sex with your husband. It's that simple. Have sex with him till he can't take it anymore. Have sex with him until he doesn't have a drop of strength left to go and find it anywhere else. Cause if you don't, he's probably going to come looking for me or one of my friends!

Because, "That's not cheating."

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Where To Begin...

The vacation was so wonderful that I don't even feel like getting back to blogging. So, I 'm floundering…I just don't know what to start with. So let's start with a hottie


I don't know who he is. Quite frankly I don't care. I'm just glad I've learned to take pics with my phone in such a way that people don't know I'm taking their picture. But he is reason #3 that I go to the beach in the first place.

Here is reason #1. The Cabana Gardens Guest House


Opps, another Hottie, how'd he get in there. Again, who cares. This is the pool area of the guest house and is where me and boys spend most of our time. Remember, I'm not a sand and surf kind of guy. We even bring our own decor for our upper terrace level


Thank you Tod for picking up the Paper Lanterns. They really add a festive glow to the upper deck, or the Ledo Deck as I like to call it. Here is a shot of the area at night.


Just adorable. Not to mention relaxing and FABULOUS! Speaking of fabulous…here is a Mojito by the pool


I know, you thought you were gonna see me in a Speedo drinking it. Sorry to disappoint. Here is one other drink related picture. Ice attacked Tod's drink in the cooler


I think the ice cubes wanted a sip. So there is the first beach post. Oh, I almost forgot my #2 reason for going to the beach! That'll be in the next post.