Posts by shansen10

Hi everybody,

Lydia, so sorry to see you (temporarily!) go.  But best of luck on your studies, stay healthy, and hope you come back with a glowing report!!

Karey, I love the new dress, and agree it will be great for both events.  How is the weight lifting going?

I'm still in Lakeland babysitting - all is well, but I'm anxious to get home to see the progress.  The Onyx wall in the kitchen will go in next Thursday!

Foodwise, I 'm holding at 105 - trying to do lots of walking and playing with the kids.  Strawberries are delicious here too, and we made an awesome Mexican chili, with cocoa flavor, last night.  Hard not to eat too much!  There is an organic vegetarian restaurant here that I plan to get to before I leave - yumm!

Arrgh!!  Up to 108 (tonight) from a low of 101 before Christmas!  I'm getting upset.  At least I did a good 2-mile walk yesterday and today.  Been eating my homemade black beans with Zatarain rice mix, plus too much popcorn (2 servings of 120 cal. each).  I'm going to have to give it up.

Tomorrow morning breakfast is a grapefruit and an apple, then probably a 6-inch veggie Subway as we drive to Lakeland.  Don't know if it will be harder or easier to lose while at my daughter's house in Lakeland. 

Karey, it's true there's not a lot going on in Lakeland; my daughter would prefer to move, but her husband's work is there, and his parents.  It is growing, though.

Enjoy your dress(es)!

Hey all,

Lydia, good to hear from you.  Where is everybody else?  Hibernating?  I'm tired of cold weather!.  We got a few nice days where I didn't have to put on long johns in the morning to work in the garden.  And then today they are predicting snow, here in Tallahassee!  And I just set out baby tomatoes!

Hmmm, good recipes... seems I am enamored of black beans lately.  Had black beans and rice recently in a little cafe in Havana (that's Florida) and it was delicious.  They said they add lime juice, a little sugar, and cilantro, that's it.  And last night I went to a monthly neighborhood party where everyone brings a dish.  Had a delicious spiced black bean dip, didn't get the recipe.

Renovations are going along, not as fast as I would like, with waiting for inspections after every step, and the crews are working other jobs too (can't blame them).  It's like a spider web spinning larger and larger, the way the work is affecting every room in the house.  Have to have different bedside tables in the master bedroom to accomodate the new entrance to the master bath.  What to do with the old bedside tables, which are nice, but not too large?  Put them in another bedroom.  What to do with that furniture?  Etc., etc.

Turns out that one of the drywallers is also a passionate gardener and whole organic food lover.  Had to stop myself from talking with him so he could work.

As for jokes, haven't heard any memorable ones lately, but did one on myself.  Lost my cell phone, bought a new one.  Found my cell phone, returned my new one.  Doused my cell phone with a faulty garden hose sprayer, had to go back and rebuy the new one!

Lydia, I really appreciate that your nose is to the grindstone; just keep telling yourself  it will all be worth it in the end.  Sometimes a good brisk walk helps me break out of the doldrums.

Hi Karey,

Thanks for the recipe.  I'll give it a try when my lemons are ripe.

last night was a food adventure - we had our banquet in the Indian cooking class.  I made an eggplant dish which was hard (lots of spices, and it did smell up the house!).  The teacher liked it, though.  And there were some good dishes, especially the curried corn, and the noodle-coconut dessert.  I also liked the cool yogurt dish, which really balanced the heat and spiciness of the other dishes.

I'm not sure how much Indian cooking I'll be doing, though, at least like the dish I made.  You had to  put onion seed and mustard seeds into oil, and when the oil heats up the seeds pop out all over the place!

Hi all,

Lydia,

That dish did turn out to be awesome!  You're right; the combination of caulifower and curry is great, and the coconut milk, green beans, tofu and toasted cashews added so much.  We had the rest of the fresh green beans and butternut squash - a good dinner.

Speaking of dinners, your root vegetable stew with chickpea dumplings, and endive salad with pomegranates and citrus, sounds delicious.  I'm going to look for a recipe for the stew.  I've been wanting to do a root vegetable stew for a while.

I did get in some good yardwork.  First pruning roses bushes in the morning down at the Extension office where I took classes to be a Master Gardener, and then gathering bags of leaves from neighbors for mulch (they don't realize they are throwing away something of great value!) and getting new beds ready for roses.

Kaery ~ freezing is right!  We've had everything covered for 3 days.  I was volunteer gardening for 3 hours this morning at a homeless shelter - 3 good hours of work, just got home.

Now I get to go outside and inspect the damage; hopefully I can uncover, at least for a few days.  I wish the cold weather would be over!  I hope your palm survives.  It sounds pretty - I'll look it up.

Paella is a delicious Spanish dish made in a huge shallow pan, kind of like a giant wok, only flatter.  Rice based, with saffron, onions, garlic, peas, pimiento, tomatoes, and then chicken pieces, lobster, shrimp, scallops, clams, sausage - I love it!

Good for you working out.  I'm trying to get exercise outside, and some inside with housework (ugh!).

Hi group!  So good to see everybody chatting -

The cold, yes; we covered all our "babies" - 3 citrus trees, 2 baby tomatoes that are already suffering from the last freeze, an avocado I'm trying to grow.  Onions, broccoli kale and mustard greens will be OK. 

Karey -  what is a traveler's palm?

Tonight I made soup with kale, diced new potatoes, andouille sausage, sauteed onions and celery, garlic, and clam broth - it was good.  All of a sudden I am crazy about soups!

And tomorrow I'm making an Indian curry dish: chicken with peanuts (supposed to be cashews but they are very high, both in price and calories).  And at our farmer's market there is a Spaniard chef  demonstrating paella, one of my favorite dishes. 

Lydia, hope you continue to eat wisely and well.  I've had anemia off and on in the past - now I try to eat plenty of greens.  I can't give blood because I have low blood pressure, which is better than having high blood pressure, I guess! 

mdillman - good to see you back!

I was for Pittsburgh too.  Even tho I have relatives in Phoenix, I'm not crazy about deserts and the West; I'm an East Coast gal.

The writing sounds great - I admire that.  I think about writing memoirs, but don't want to step on anyone's toes.  I know one solution is to fictionalize it, but that seems daunting to me - guess the urge to write is not that strong yet, but it seems to be growing as the years pass.  Maybe one day...

Worked hard outside for 3 hours this morning!

Karey~

Here are a couple of protein bar websites :  liftforlife.com, and youbars.com.  This last one is way too expensive, but it lets you choose all your ingredients, then you can see the caloric and nutrient info.

Yay!  Down .5 pound this morning!

Hello all,

The slow food meeting, specifically  the chef who demonstrated soup making, and then we got to eat it - ohmygosh, I think I have died and gone to heaven!

Butternut squash soup, with garam masala (Indian spices), a little cream, blended, and chopped apple.  Then Cajun collard soup, with chorizo (sausage). Then creamy tomato soup with gorgonzola cheese.  Oh, I want to make them all.  He made chicken tortilla soup and miso soup too, but I was too full from the others to try them.  They had salad too, with locally grown lettuces in great variety - so good!  Do you all know "Annie's" brand salad dressings?  They are really good.

This is my first Slow Food meeting, so I don't know much yet.  But it's people who are interested in getting back to home cooking, using healthful, locally grown products.  I'm lucky in that we have farmers markets here on Wed. and Sat., and New Leaf, an organic food store, where I can get good produce. 

Pumpkin, I would suggest asking around, finding people who are into slow foods, to learn about it.  And start with foods, or meals, or dishes, that you really like.  I'll be glad to share recipes and ideas with you, based on that.

Hi Again, everybody!

Lydia, welcome back!  Boy, you sure are busy.  What area of law are you going to practice?  And thanks, you're right that it is hard to constantly have to keep on track, but so worth it.  I have a bikini figure but 64-year-old skin, so that's out.  But there are still plenty of pretty clothes and styles I can wear.  When our new master closet is finished (they started laying the foundation!) I'll have so much room I don't know how I will fill it.  And in addition my 30-something daughters tell me I need to get rid of most of my wardrobe.

I just came in from working 3 hours outside and feel so good.  We are building rosebeds, starting with transplanting bushes, digging out weedy, viney sod, raking and filling in with mulch.  Heavy work, but rewarding.

MDillan, it's so neat that you write.  I'm just reading Barak O'Bama's "Dreams From My Father" (for a book club, which is fun).  He is an excellent writer and has led a fascinating life.

Karey, I'll think of you eating out tonight.  I've been cooking kale and mustard greens from our garden, with soup bones and over rice - pretty good.  My friend Ines and I are planning to make paella sometime soon - I love it.

Don't have the 30 Day Shred DVD yet - I'll report when I try it out.

Ciao, everybody!

Hey mdillman, good to see you back.  As for the 30 day shred, I really don't know, as I haven't received it yet.  I'll let you know.  I learned about it from Lydia (pumpkin) in this group. 

As for cruises, Karey, that is exciting.  I have been on 2 cuirses.  the first was in '06 on the Queen Mary II, returning from Europe with my friend Ines (the really good cook).  It was fun; I love the ocean, but I would prefer to be in a tall ship.  One of my life goals is to sail the South Pacific in a tall ship and see the southern cross (remember the Eagle's song by that name?)

On the Queen Mary the food that we could afford (without paying $30-$50 reservation) was, to me, only good average restaurant fare.  And I did not lilke being around so many overweight people who simply gorged themselves.  The lifesaver for me was discovering Yoga - they had free classes.  The gym I would have enjoyed too, but there was an extra charge.

The second and last cruise was in Alaska with my husband.  Again fun, but with the same reservations:  not really great food and too many overweight people.  Don't mean to throw a damper on your trip, Karey - I'm sure it will be a blast.  I'd love to sail in the Caribbean too.  I've only been to St. Thomas and St. Croix for a weekend to attend a wedding.  I love the food and music there.

Well, I got to work outside  for about 2 hours, digging, raking and hauling - it felt great!  Hope to do more tomorrow - the weather is supposed to be warm enough.

Good weekend to all!

Karey ~Just a sweater on!  That's not bad.  Today is warmer, 60's, so I'm going to get out and help my husband prepare a rose bed.

Spaghetti sauce was great - my friend is a really good cook.  she made meatballs, which I never do, dressed them up with egg, oatmeal, cilantro, Tabasco - made plain old Ragu sauce (which is too sweet for me, I won't eat it) taste good.

I won the bid for the 30 Day Shred!.  Hope getting outside and using that video will help me shed these 4-5 pounds.

Hello everybody, hope all is well ~

I'm feeling bad this morning - 106 on the scale!  That's 5 pounds over what I want to be, even tho I fast-walked 1.5 - 2 miles yesterday and the day before.  I know it's partly because I'm not getting the exercise like I do when the weather is warm and I can get outside and work in the yard and garden.  I'm going to get back to logging on weight and food religiously.  This morning I ate leftover succotash because there was no milk for cereal and no bread for toast.  Probably ate too much - I'm going to go and try to figure out the exact weight and calories for the dishful I ate.  (Like I should have done that before eating it, I know.)

It's freezing here again this morning.  And today will start the laying of the foundation for our bathroom expansion, and probably soon they will start tearing out the kitchen; the cabinets were finally ordered yesterday.  Ugh!  I don't know how all this will affect my eating.  We will have the refrigerator and microwave standing in the hall....

How is everybody doing?

Hi everyone,

Karey - nice post.  It looks like you are doing the right things to accomplish your goals.  How nice that Hubby participates.  That DVD 30 Day Shred sounds like something I maybe could do - I'll look into it.

And Lydia, congrats from me too!

mdillman - I know what you mean about being too short to find good jeans.  It sounds like you have a nice location to walk.  I used to jog, but overdid it and had to have knee surgery, so now a fast walk and occasional spurt is all I dare do.

Went shopping today.  Potatoes for Hubby to go with his meat (someone gave him a certificate for Omaha steaks, and our freezer is loaded!)  For myself I got spinach, leeks, marrow bones to make bean soup, and the shrimp was fresh and on sale, so I got that for dinner.  Made the vinaigrette, and we had a nice dinner of shrimp and spinach salad, plus potatoes for hubby. 

Hubby is tearing out the tile floor in our kitchen, and we cleared out the master bathroom and closet.  They will start the bathroom expansion next week, and I'm really excited.  Our house was built in the 60's, and the master bath and closet are tiny and full of doors.  You enter a door from the bedroom and have 1 sink, and a door to the left for the 3' by 3' closet (for both of us).  Another door straight ahead leads to the tiny corner shower and toilet.  It's going to be really nice to have more room.