2010, thus far.

So here's a recap of my life so far.

I graduated from NEU in May 2009. Since then I have had an on-again-off-again relationship with a dying publishing house in which I interned for 2 years while at NEU. I have been on Unemployment for about 2 months. I have returned to community college to get a certificate in Early Childhood Education. I have turned 23, quit smoking. I have lost my publishing job. I have started working part-time retail at Bath & Body Works. I have been asked to return to said publishing company for a project which supposedly consists of 48 hours but I need the money. I have failed 3/4 classes at Community College because of my lack of commitment. However, it has not all been bad. I am now working 2 jobs, the publishing one which pays me much better and I still have my part-time at Bath & Body Works which is surprisingly fun. I have had one of the best Christmas and New Year's that I can remember which have inadvertently given me a pair of rain boots, a fun wristlet and a new sense of admiration for NYC. With that all out of the way I can tell you about what I have planned next. Since I am trying to retain my free flight benefits for as long as possible I will be making a triumphant return to Bunker Hill Community College in which I plan on taking 4 actual classes rather than waste my time and money on classes I don't need and end up failing. Hopefully, these classes will inspire me to pursue a masters in Education or get me a job doing something I really enjoy, like working with children. I plan on working both jobs until the project I am working on is over and hope that they will give me a raise soon at B&BW. And I plan on losing 30 pounds.

How, you ask?

That's elementary my dear. I kid. But seriously, here's my plan. I figure if I break my main goal into smaller attainable goals then it won't be as difficult. For example, my goal for this month is to lose 5lbs. You might say, well what's 5lbs going to do. But, here's the thing, if I can do it then next month I can try to lose 6lbs. This will eventually get me on a track that I can maintain as opposed to trying to lose 15lbs a month which will most likely cause me to yo-yo. So here's my thing. If you are out there reading this, then do me a favor and bug me to update. Together we can achieve more than we can try to do on our own. It may take me a little while to be able to diet properly again, especially since at the moment I have barely enough money to get even the most essential things (i.e. buss pass, grosseries) but I am hoping that in a few weeks that will all change. Like I said, I will be extremely busy working and going to school full-time and trying to travel as much as I can since it will be my last year to be able to do so freely but I will try and will come through if I am goaded enough. I have been experimenting a lot with South Beach recipes so once I can start again I am sure it will be a lot more diverse and interesting than last time.

New Year...New Me?

It seems that every year for New Year's I always make resolutions that I never follow through with. Whether it's to quit smoking (which for the most part I have), to be nicer to people, to start exercising or most importantly, to lose weight. This year, however, is the year. Not only is it 2010 which just a few years ago seemed like the far distant future but also because I am going to be 25 in 2011 and I don't want to have to worry about my physical appearance, and the real reason, I want to get a tattoo for my 25th birthday but won't until I deem my body appropriate for said tattoo. Either way, the kind of tattoo I want takes planning and saving and time. So, I need to get this party started. Also, I feel like this could be the year for a lot of people. I've told so many people about this blog and my thoughts to start it up again, if not to occupy my time then at least so that others who are trying to change their eating habits will have someone they can relate to, somewhere they can get tips and recipes that will make dieting feel less like a punishment and more of an exploration. With that being said, here's to 2010, let's make this year the year we change.

Eggs

I love eggs.

Eggs for in the morning, eggs in the evening, eggs at supper time. When eggs looks just like that I'd have Eggs anytime.

This guy here plays Benedict "Eggs" on True Blood. In case you have not jumped on this bandwagon I suggest you hurry. HBO based it on a series of novels by Charlaine Harris or something like that. She wrote them with every intention of making a trashy, sleazy vampire novel and I think the adaptation to the Home Box Office is pretty close. I mean, Anna Paquin, C'mon. The show provides oodles of entertainment and loads of luscious lips. Mm.

Speaking of eating, I had an omelette this morning, hence the inspiration for this post, and it was revolutionary. It was simple: grilled chicken, mushrooms and cheese, but the effect it had on my morning was quite substantial. It made me feel peppy and flirty (?). It could have been the large iced coffee followed by another iced coffee at work but either way, I feel great. Quick tip for coffee drinkers: we have some skinamon in the office so I add just a dash to my mug before I put the coffee in and let me tell you, it is delish!

Well my supervisor just came over and asked why I was looking at six-pack abs. Jajajajaja. This is great, not only will she think I'm slacking, she'll think I'm slacking off to a gorgeous black man, at work, in the AM. Ay, mi vida. Just to help get Eggs out of the post window here's a little treat:

So the cruise is this weekend and I feel pretty good about the amount of weight I've lost. I don't have a scale so I can't really tell exactly how much weight I have lost but judging by the way my clothes fit I can tell something's been happening. I have this next week off from work, a forced vacation, if you will. There just isn't anything for us to do so we're sort of on-call until further notice. I think this is good. I've been ever so sick of work and waking up early and the whole routine that I could just die. I won't, but I could. Either way this will give me some time to explore my recipe skills and share them with all of you (the 2 people who read this on occasion).

Meat Frottage

… for a peppy pork.

Here is my suggestion for a great way to rub your meat (assuming your tenderloin is about 1.25lbs worth):

1 TBS Garlic Powder

1 TBS Ground Cumin

1 TBS Adobo

1 TBS Italian Herb Blend

1/2 TBS Kosher Salt

I personally love a meat that is well rubbed so what I have done is doubled this amount and just sprinkle then rub away. There is usually plenty left over so you should be fine with just that.

Got a taste of champagne and endless fortune…

I should have mentioned this before but, I am terrible at updating things. Fortunately, this means that I have been busy at work therefore not losing my mind. The busier I am at work the closer I am to job security, even if this is just a temporary position. Anyhoot, I've been OK.

The diet business is harder than I thought, mostly on the weekends. Those of you who know me know that I like to consume alcoholic beverages from time to time. Of late I have cut it down to just the weekends, unfortunately, that has yet to change. In Phase I we're not supposed to drink anything but I hang out with people who are social drinkers and we tend to socialize on the weekends with other people. I don't think I've been too bad. Here's a list of the 'bad' things I've had this weekend:

Friday:

- 1 bottle of red wine

Saturday:

-1 cocktail with mango juice, light lime soda

- 2 gin and seltzers with a splash of diet coke

- 1 glass of sparkling red wine

- 1 can of PBR

Sunday:

- 3 glasses of pinot grigio

- 2 slices of baguette with butter

Also, on Monday I had a sandwich because a coworker was returning to Colombia and the place we ordered from in his honor ONLY had sandwiches. 

Sigh.

Besides that however, I've been pretty good. I did stop working out this past week because of a swollen lymph node under my arm that made it impossible for me to have full mobility of my right arm. It was extremely painful and the swelling has all but diminished. Now I am just left with burning questions in regards to my breast cancer status and a stick of deodorant sans the antiperspirant. 

In happier news, I finally made the crustless quiche I've been dying to try out. I have a slice of it for breakfast now with a can of V8 and it is delish. The recipe is in the works. I had to modify a recipe I found on-line to accommodate the ingredients I had at home but I took advantage of the pie pan being available. We've also gotten the w

hole pork tenderloin thing down, which I highly recommend. It is so delish and it goes great on salads! I've made a small jar of rub that I can use for all sorts of meats. I also had lobster for the first time this weekend and that went well. I also invested in metal skewers that we can now use on the grill all summer long. Mmm, grilled veggie kabobs. 

Things to look forward to this week: the usage of fresh artichokes, they have 5 grams of fiber per choke, one of the highest ranked fiberous vegetables; chicken salad made easy; and some Quelf…

A.C.V.: Not just for Grandma anymore

I have recently heard about the wonderful resource that is Apple Cider Viegar. 

Basically you want to have 1-2 TBS mixed with 8-16 oz of water (depending on your taste buds, it is vinegar after all). What it does is basically create an acidity in your stomach that helps breakdown the glycemic index of whatever food you eat. As the South Beach Diet already calls for things that have a low GI, this makes it so that they are even lower on the GI scale! It tastes kind of like adding lemon to water. A lot of people take it once in the morning and once at night and shed a few pounds. Not only that, A.C.V. is also said to help lower cholesterol, help arthritis pains and clear your skin while giving it a healthy glow. It is recommended that you sip on it throughout the day. My suggestion is if you want to have before meals sip on it at work and finish it before lunch and then make another batch and sip on that until dinner. I think I might try the twice a day, morning and night for a week and see how that works. 

 I say just give it a sip, it never hurts to try. 

About last night...

Richard forgot to pick up the cilantro, either way, sans cilantro it was still pretty delish. I got hungry so instead of waiting for Richard to get home I made myself a salad using these salmon burgers I bought at Shaw's, romaine lettuce and some cottage cheese. I did use a bit of Lite Balsamic Vinagrette but it was so full of protein that I felt great after eating it. Also, yesterday I started doing Power 90 again. I did it for like a month when I was in Cuba and I really noticed the difference then. Unfortunately, when I stopped being active my voracious hunger didn't hence the additional pounds I brought back from Cuba. 

I was thinking, now that I am dieting it would be the best time to start to REALLY exercse. I was thinking of doing a sort of boot camp. The Power 90 videos have a cardio and a free weight video, usually one just alternates between days but I was thinking of doing them both in the same day. Cardio in the mornings and weights when I get home. It may be too much but I think I am ready to make that leap into being physically fit. I like to move it, move it. 

Here's your host: Tony Horton 

He's surprisingly funny and entertaining.