Monday, Jan. 13 No second guessing - Jump!

I spent a good part of today in Nashville at a Quilting Class. More on that project later. As a result, I needed a portable, easy lunch. No photos, but lunch was a banana, Lara Bar, and handful of nuts + water. Filling, clean (by that I mean no dirty hands around fabric), and tasted pretty darn good. Must remember for work days!

For your viewing enjoyment..... Breakfast:

Scrambled eggs, crispy bacon, small portion Pina Colada Green Smoothie, black coffee



How about a closer look at that smoothie? C'mon, admit it...you're curious. Green? If you haven't seen Wicked (the musical), get thyself to a theater pronto. It's time you learned that Green. Is. Good.

Supper:

Green Chicken Posole Soup with avocado

Tangy rich broth, with a spicy depth of the flavor of jalapeno, which simmered in the broth as the chicken cooked. Topped with fresh creamy, cool avocado seasoned with a zip of fresh lime to keep it from browning. The combination is a satisfying rhumba dance on your tastebuds.

 

C'mon say it again, all together now:  Green. Is. Good.

 



Sunday, Jan 12

Wowza, Sunday was a busy, busy day. Church, getting Christmas packed away, and closet cleaning. Today I am sore! So, the view from my seat may be "Icy Hot".

Without further ado I bring you meal photos (managed to shoot 2/3 of the day)

Breakfast:

Eggs and veggies in prosciutto basket (recipe adapted from deliciouslyorganic.net/baked-eggs-and-prosciutto-cups) , Monkey Salad (recipe from goodcheapeats.com/2013/02/monkey-salad, black coffee

 Despite my best effort, one of those delicious egg baskets was all I could eat. Underneath that baked egg and cherry tomato is a sautéed mélange of leftover mushrooms, onion, and spinach.

Absolutely delish!

 

Lunch:

 

Just look at that salad!

Mixed greens, onion, red pepper pieces, grape tomatoes, greek olives, a few jalapeno slices, shredded carrots, smoked salmon and some bacon-y bit goodness (because everything is better with bacon)

Yummy and satisfying

Lard

What's the view from my seat today? Lard

No. Not that kind of lard.
Well, kind of, but not really. Hmmm.. could that be confusing?
The kind of lard that I have thinking of is really this kind: good ol' fashioned lard butt. Made fashionable by Queen, but unfortunately, not fashionable by the standards of most of the world. And, for me...not healthy. 



What's a girl to do?
Especially a 50+ year-old "girl'".
Who is post-menopausal.

It is a little known fact that menopause is really an old greco-roman-hispanola-slovakian term from the foundation "meno" which means "burn calories like a man", and "pause" which means "never again, hahaha". Therefore, I like many post-menopausal women, have a new found problem gift talent: the highly efficient ability to save fat. For me, I have found that my posterior seems to be a great storage site. Some women choose their thighs, some become more boobalicious (spoiler alert: gravity), I believe in sitting on my assets.

So, handsome husband (HH) and I decided to launch ourselves into 2014 trying to elude the "Sugar Monster" - the Sugar Monster, of course, being one of the staunchest supporters of my lard issue. We decided to take on a month long challenge called the "Whole 30"

I mean...how can you resist this sales pitch?

And, I'm pretty sure that means that in 30 days, we are going to look a lot like this:

Dallas and Melissa Hartwig, Whole 9 Founders



OK...maybe not.

But, I am trying to persevere. While adopting an eating plan that is in opposition to my usual tastes. Contrary to what I'd previously heard, the Whole 30 and other paleo type eating plans are not about "eating like a cave man". I mean HH is mucho manly and all that, but if he needed to bring home a mastodon so that we didn't starve, well.... I might just have to be thankful for my lard butt savings plan. No, the Whole 30 is about getting back to real foods, that are unprocessed and nutritionally dense. Healthy fats, low sugar, and a vegetable heavy plate template.

So, what's the problem? Despite growing up in the great state of Nebraska, Mary K. isn't a meat girl (small shudder). Love me some veggies, yum yum to some taters, show me the beans, but hold the meat and milk (another Nebraska product). A natural taste profile which favors the post-menopausal fat hoarding syndrome...well, not the veggies - but what gets put on top of the veggies (my love affair with Mr. Butter is another topic altogether).

So, much  like heading to boot camp, I'm doing my best to toughen up and become military fit.

I hope that at the conclusion of 30 days, I'll have learned some new habits to carry on, given Mr. Sugar the big heave-ho, and still be able to bring back some of the Whole 30 "no-no's" back, in order to create a palatable, cleaner, leaner, lifetime way to eat. One that HH and I both can live with.

So, where do you come in?
After struggling mightily since Monday (Jan 6), I've decided that some accountability might help. I'm going to be accountable right here. I'll post some photos and commentary on what goes onto the plate through the Whole 30. And, with any luck, some typically twisted insights into the Whole 30 life. And, since this is Kentucky and that means that on January 11 spring is right around the corner, I'm hoping to be back on the bicycle before the Whole 30 is done. Ergo.... report on how the Whole 30 effects energy for cycling (frankly...I think popsicles are the ultimate bicycling food, so there may be a battle ahead :-))

Without further ado, here's a glimpse into today.
Late breakfast:
Black coffee, blood orange, organic sausage "Apple Bumpkin Bake"

And supper:
Regrettably a very-brown meal, but yummo-tasty!
Grilled organic steak, garlic mashed cauliflower (recipe from nomnompaleo.com), roasted brussels sprouts with bacon (recipe from nomnompaleo.com) and sautéed garlic shrooms.

 

See you tomorrow!

 

Random Observations

While looking at tartar control toothpaste recently, it occurred to me…what DO they make Tarter Sauce out of? Both substances are sort of white…. Some dentist out there has a really creepy secret, I think.

Pumpkin cutting is like the U.S. tax code. It’s gotten a lot more complex over the past 20 years, but not necessarily any prettier.


“They” are the reason for many of the daily things that cause unhappiness in daily life:

• “They” had the road all torn up.
• “They” make us do it this way.
• “They” say that this is the rule.
• “They” don’t like it if I do this.
• “They” are jacking up the price of gas.
• “They” don’t like me.
• “They” got me into trouble.
• “They” said it wouldn’t rain, and now my hair is ruined.

So, who are “they” and why don’t we sell them to the military as a secret weapon? Let ‘em make somebody else miserable.

Cats are not necessarily smarter than dogs. It’s all about their attitude. So, why do we think that snooty, bossy, standoffish individuals are smart?

When someone says the phrase “I’m not going to lie to you…” that usually means that the next words spoken are guaranteed to be at least 90% confabulation.

Ditto the phrase “Now, don’t get me wrong.” Oh yeah, they are about to say something really insulting.

Fat Free

Vivien Leigh: “Do I look fat in this?”
Clark Gable: “Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn.” Cue music….

Ahh, would life be different if our ill-fated lovers had this conversation? Could Tara have been saved through healthy self-esteem and body image? Well. Maybe not, but the chance to change the world is NOT gone with the wind.

Yes, I’m on a soap box..again. This is National Fat Free Talk Week. Yup, the opportunity for tasty, yet, fat free living.

Are you aware that Americans are virtually the ONLY society in which it is perfectly acceptable to converse, while dining, about the varied and misundry reasons why we should not be eating – let alone enjoying – what is before us on our plate? “OH my goodness, I am can’t believe I ordered this! I’m going to have to do penance for weeks.” “I am being sooo bad,” “Oh, I really shouldn’t,” “That will go straight to my hips!” (fact: despite any evidence to the contrary, unless you have an extreme physically defect, it will go straight to your stomach, travel throughout your entire alimentary canal, perhaps make a brief stop for conversion into a storage vehicle via the liver, and then decide where to vacation – “ahh, the thighs are lovely this time of year.”) More than 2/3 of American women in a magazine survey admitted to feeling guilty every day about eating. EVERY DAY?

Sheeze! What’s wrong with that picture…we have a world at war, Haitians living in tent cities a year after their devastating earthquake, entire countries with inadequate healthcare, Americans sleeping on sewer grates to stay warm, and millions of us feel guilty because we EAT??

We feel that it is our due to comment upon other’s size, shape, food choices, and then recommend improvements. Hmmm. Let me just say “Let he who is without sin, cast the first stone.” As for me? Well, my little, OK not-so-little, pile of stones is just gonna stay out of traffic.

Do you think this doesn’t really matter? Well, what if I told you that:

• Over 40% of 1st thru 3rd grade girls want to be thinner
  
• About 80% of 10 year old girls are afraid of being fat


• More than half of 9 and 10 year old girls feel better about themselves if they are on a diet


• More than 80% of families with daughters 9 to 11 year old are “sometimes” or “very often” on a diet


• More than 90% of women surveyed on college campuses had attempted to control weight through dieting, and nearly a quarter dieted “often” or “all the time”


• Nearly of third of “normal dieters” progress to pathological eating


• Long term research shows that over 90% of dieters will regain lost weight in 1 to 5 years


• Nearly one-half of all American women are “on a diet” on any given day
  
• Americans spend of $50 billion (read that again…$50 BILLION) dollars per year on diet-related products each year.

And folks…it ain’t working! (Pardon the vernacular). We aren’t getting smaller. So…in a wholly unscientific bout of deductive reasoning…guilt, talking about ourselves in a negative way, and punitive behavior towards food is NOT effective in moving towards better health.

What would happen if…for ONE week…you looked in the mirror and said “Well, hello gorgeous.” Put on your jeans and said “I make these look good!” Or better yet, when trying on something that doesn’t fit, said “This just isn’t made to fit me” instead of blaming your body?!

Try…for ONE week…to converse over meals about something besides the nutritional content of your food. Here are some suggestions:

• the weather,


• fall leaves,


• football,


• what you are reading,


• a movie you’ve recently seen or would like to see,


• a kind gesture that you made that day,


• something nice that someone else did for you,


• your very first memory,


• one thing you’d like to do before the end of the year,


• what made you proud today,


• your best friend in grade school (whatever happened to her/him)


• or, in honor of the season, your worst ever Halloween costume

And..for ONE week…THIS WEEK…if someone else insists upon talking about the “f” word (not THAT one! I mean f*a*t), please smile and kindly say “Can’t talk about that. I’m fat free this week.”

Let me know how it goes.

p.s. Maybe they say it better: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CuMJybvAh8

or

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKPaxD61lwo&feature=related

Are we having a good time?

And now, a word about fun.
Have some.
Go ahead, you deserve it.
No, no, I mean it. Have a big ol’ helping of a good time.
It’s calorie free, doesn’t require a reservation, and may result in a throaty chuckle, a deep guffaw or two, and perhaps even unabashed laughter.

What, you say you don’t have time for that? Well, join the crowd.

Have you noticed how gosh, darn serious we all have become? I offer my opinion that easily hurt feelings, road rage, petty gossip, and insignificant arguments could all be reduced through an injection of fun into daily life.

How and why did we Americans become such a serious bunch?

Watch on your commute tomorrow. The faces of those folk in the cars enroute to work, your coworkers as they cross the parking lot, and even your own face in the mirror. Do you see a person ready to grab a good time as it passes by? To see the humor in daily life? To laugh out loud? Is there a sparkle in the eyes of the person you observe? Laugh lines ready to crinkle?

I’ll bet not. Too few of us see every day as the opportunity for adventure. No, we save having a good time for vacations. Oh, maybe on the weekend between chores. But to see life as a joyful experience? Why not? Oh, I can hear you now…because life is full of hard times. Because there are burdens to bear. Well, in the immortal words of Truvy, “laughter through tears is one of my favorite emotions.”

I do believe that we were created by the Divine. And not created to be a drone, slaving away to accomplish, accomplish, accomplish and then measure those accomplishments. No I believe we were created to live – and laugh. How can you not believe in a creator with a sense of humor? Consider the artichoke, possums, and cellulite. The fact that as we age hair grows in abundance from ears and nostrils. If that isn’t some sort of creational practical joke, I’m not sure what is. God has a great sense of humor – thank goodness.

So, I challenge you to make the view from my seat (this week) one of seeing more people having a good time. Just living. Don’t wait…life, and the good time it is meant to be, might just pass you by.

Missing Lucy

It's not the anniversary of her death, or any other special occasion, but today I am really missing Lucy, our beloved Golden Retriever.

• She loved us just the way we all were - sometimes grumpy, sometimes goofy, and always busy!
• She was happy to see us - always.
• She thought she was pretty sneaky - getting up on the sofa when we went to work.
• She enjoyed a simple treat like a nap on the waterbed as though it was the most precious gift of all.
• She needed a "front end alignment", and always walked with her back end just a bit off kilter from her front.
• You could judge her happiness level by the height of her tail.
• She was the foresworn enemy of squirrels and rabbits, but didn't chase cats.
• She never actually caught a rabbit or a squirrel however, always misjudging how far to stealth approach before pouncing. Her "hunt" always ended with good natured barking at the base of a tree, or beside a hedge - where the prey had magically disappeared.
• She patiently napped waiting for me to go to bed when I worked on a project late at night. Of course, she would raise her head up and sigh periodically at the stupidity of humans.
• She was purely pitiful when we took her to the vet. 70+ lbs of quivering "I wanna go home!"
• ...and most of all, she loved Steve best of all.

We all miss you big girl. But today, I'm especially wishing you were here for a walk in the cool crisp fall air. You would have loved it...and so would I.

Take My Family...no, really... Take My Family (with apologies to Rodney Dangerfield)

The view from my seat is … family.

I’m pretty sure family may have been what (who?) Charles Dickens was referring to when he wrote in Tale of Two Cities: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…”

Family are the only people in the world who can say “Thank for the gift, but I would rather have had (fill in the blank here)” and know that you will still love them.

Family are the only people who can look you straight in the eye and say “You still look beautiful” and know that you will believe them even though it’s been at least a dozen years and 50# since the last time you saw each other.

Family know our best and our worst. They carry the knowledge of our past and want to share the present and our future.

They can get on one’s last nerve and be the balm that heals.

Family is the treasure that we take for granted.

Why am I waxing philosophically about family? Because I am winding down from a wonderful weekend with family celebrating the marriage of my niece Jessica and her new hubbie Nelson Flores. Nelson, welcome to the madness.

Where to begin? How about a Letterman style 10 item summary (in no specific order):

1. The phrase "White Man Dance" describing that specific pathetic swaying in one place on the dance floor WAS invented for the general Prusa dance style.


2. Prusa's can and will carry on a conversation regardless of any background volume - DJ, screaming children, barking dogs, B-52 bomber, you name it.


3. We do say "I love you" with food.


4. Speaking of food, no matter what your age, coming in the back door and smelling Mom's food makes one feel that they are coming home from school. I kept waiting for Mom or Dad to tell me to sweep the floor and get to my homework.


5. It is a mystery why the Prusa men keep losing hair and the women keep gaining it. Surely there is federal money available to study the issue.


6. We do love our dogs. If reincarnation is real, it's a good thing to come back as the dog of a Prusa family member.


7. We might survive without water. We can not survive without coffee.


8. Prusa's have overactive tearducts. It's not that we're sentimental, it's a physical condition.


9. In the Prusa dictionary, fruit = pastry filling.


10. A Prusa sibling may forget your birthday, but would donate a kidney at a moment's notice. And that's OK in my book.

Update 101 in 1001

Got to get moving - lots to do by May 28, 2011!

Personal
1. Post on my blog weekly, for at least 8 consecutive weeks.
2. Write a letter (not e-mail) once a week.
3. Call a sibling weekly.
4. Read 101 books (textbooks don’t count!). In progress
5. Lose 50 pounds. In progress
6. Work out 5 times a week for 3 consecutive months. In progress
7. Drink 80 ounces of water daily for 6 months.
8. Try a new cuisine (Thai?).
9. Be in bed before 10:30pm for a month.
10. Swim twice a week for a month.
11. Floss for 30 days straight.
12. Go to a concert. (DONE)
13. Take a dance class.
14. Wear sunblock every day from May 15 to September 15.
15. Shave my legs 3 times a week for 3 months ;-)
16. Watch the sunrise on a beach or mountain.
17. Finish my NP. (DONE)
18. Get a new job. (DONE)
19. Walk 1000 miles in a year. In progress
20. Bike 2000 miles in a year.
21. Don’t curse (aka cuss) for a week.
22. Complete a whole tooth whitening kit without missing a day.
23. Journal 5 times a week for 3 months.
24. Run a 5K.
25. Read 3 non-fiction books.
26. Enter a recipe in the Pillsbury Cook-Off.
27. Make homemade bread.
28. Bring my lunch to work every day for one month.
29. Select my clothes (for work) the night before for one month. In progress
30. Try a new dish at an old favorite restaurant.
31. Do not buy coffee (or any other beverage) at a coffee shop for one month.
32. Have 3 servings of dairy daily for one month.
33. Consume my 60 g. of protein every day for a week.
34. Go bowling.
35. Fly a kite.
36. Jump rope.
37. Walk to work 101 times.
38. Get a massage. (DONE)
39. Do not eat after 7 pm for one month.
40. Go to the dentist, as recommended, every 6 months.
41. Go to Nashville meetings 9 out of 12 months in 2009 and 2010.
42. Look in the mirror and say something positive to myself everyday.
43. Don’t make a joke about my size, or other physical feature, for one week.

Creativity
1. Make my Mom a quilt.
2. Make my Goddaughter a quilt.
3. Learn to knit.

4. Scrapbook our European adventure.
5. Take a quilting class. (DONE)
6. Finish a counted cross-stitch Christmas stocking.
7. Sort the boxes of photos and get them in albums.
8. Make Christmas gifts for my work buddies. (DONE)
(50 total)

Love
1. Go on a date with Steve once a month.
2. Hide a surprise love note for Steve twice a month.
3. Go to a movie that Steve wants to see that I don’t. (DONE)
4. Take Steve on a weekend get-away.
5. Have breakfast with Steve, outside in the backyard, on 12 Saturdays.
6. Make one of Steve’s favorite dishes once a month.
7. Get Steve something he would never get himself. (DONE)
8. Tell Steve thank-you when he says I’m beautiful instead of making a negative comment about myself, 20 times.
(58 total)

Friends and Family
1. Do not watch TV for a week.
2. Go camping…real camping in a tent!
3. Get family photos done.
4. Have a weekly game night.
5. Go a week without using the computer at home to do work or check e-mail.
6. Do not play computer games for one month.
7. Each month send a card or care package to each of the kids, for 12 months.
8. Have a dinner party once a month for 6 months.
9. Stay at the Wig Wam motel.
10. Go canoeing.
11. Visit one of Steve’s sibs.
12. Visit one of my sibs.
13. Go to an event of a niece or nephew (graduation, play, dance recital, soccer game).
14. Call a friend 5 days a week for one month.
15. Have a girl’s day with my daughter and daughter-in-law(s). (DONE)
16. Go with Steve to a marathon in another country.
(74 total)

Charity
1. Do something nice for a stranger anonymously. (DONE)
2. Do something nice for someone in my family anonymously. (DONE)
3. Purge and donate 101 items to St. Vincent DePaul, Goodwill, etc. (DONE)
4. Pay for someone’s coffee or tea anonymously at Starbuck’s or another coffee shop. (DONE)
5. Do a service ministry. (DONE)
(79 total)

Home
1. Cook at home 7 times a week for 1 month.
2. Try one new recipe a month for a year.
3. Make a will.
4. Clean a closet once a month for one year.
5. Make a sweet dessert only once a week for 6 months.
6. Paint the front hallway.
7. Work with Steve in the yard, every other week during one consecutive spring, summer, and fall.
8. Talk to a neighbor once a week for 6 months.
9. Sort and purge PhD stuff. (DONE)
10. Sort and purge magazines every 3 months. In progress
(89 total)

Spiritual
1. Try a new style of prayer.
2. Go on a retreat.
3. Add to my spiritual log once a month.
4. Say a rosary every day for 6 months.
5. Offer up an act of sacrifice one a week, for the intention of someone I love.
6. Say a prayer before the start of every meeting at work. In progress
7. Go to 2 FOP’s a semester while Emily is at Franciscan.
8. Go to a daily mass 101 times.
9. Coordinate a spiritual book group.
(98 total)

Finishing Up
1. Write a thank you e-mail to the person whose blog suggested this. (DONE)
2. Put $1 into a box for every item I cross off and then do something fun with it at the end of 1001 days. In progress
3. For every item on the list not completed at the end of the 1001, donate $1 to charity.

Have I mentioned...

...that I love my job?

Yes, I do. It's been along time since I've been able to say this, but I would do this job for free. Love, love, love working at a community health center.

Why? you ask (yes, I heard you). Because it is NOT work, it is really a ministry. Are my patients aggravating? Yup, sometimes...just like me. Are they needy? Yup, sometimes...just like me. Are they crabby and unreasonable? Yup, sometimes...just like Steve.

But, they are wonderful, varied, beautiful human beings. Sometimes smelly, often unintelligible (do to my lack of ability to speak Spanish, Russian, Bosnian, Croatian, Burmese, and southern) and many times with a bit of a chip on the shoulder. But, one look in most patient's eyes is enough. They want someone to care about them. To make them feel that their well being is important, that they have been listened to, and to recognize them as individuals, not just an invisible member of the lowest class. They are smart and funny. They are beautiful chubby babies and onery toddlers, tired parents and weary elders. They are men who have lost their hourly wage job and are ashamed of not being able to support the family. They are women who run the family and make it look easy. Parents who worry about their children, and children who are worried about their aging parents.

What do they have in common? For the most part: not much money and a health care system that doesn't have a place for them.

I love working to solve the puzzle of what is wrong with someone. To hear "you do that just like _______ (fill in the name of a doctor or practitoner that I respect) And best of all, those rare occasions when someone returns and says "You made me better."

How can you not love a job like this?

6 Months?

The view from my seat has been...a blur. I wonder how life can be so busy that 6 months has passed since I last posted here.

This is the time that I thought my life would be so much simpler...no little ones in diapers. No kids involved in soccer, baseball, gymnastics...no living in the car. No teens learning how to drive. No staying up until 2 hours past curfew waiting for someone to arrive home...unrepentant.

I think that answer maybe similar to the answer to that age old question - what is financially comfortable? For the financial question the answer has always been "someone who makes just a bit more than I currently do". Yes...what is considered a NEED grows in accord with income, leaving most folk looking ahead to whatever the next salary level is. Surely, that will be the income that will feel "comfortable". Comfortable defined as "able to have whatever I think I need without having to wrestle with delayed gratification.

In the case of my current question, "When will life not seem so busy?" I have arrived at the conclusion that my here-to-fore answer of "when my family gets past _______ stage" is inherently wrong. Just as with balancing the household budget, balancing my calendar/schedule is NOT wishing for the next seemingly better phase. It is a matter of choosing to step off the race track and consciously adopt a life that affords what I see as important.

For me, quiet time is important. Time alone, to read, sew or pray. But when I am on the day-to-day treadmill, not attending to consciousness, I do not make the choices that I need to in order to have that time. It's not my life that needs to change - it is my attention!

Perhaps that should have been my New Year's resolution. To be attentive. Not to late to make a new resolution, is it? Unfortunately - I think I may have more success with the original 2010 resolution: "Eat more chocolate".

A sentiment after my own heart...

There is no hope for a civilization which starts each day to the sound of an alarm clock. ~Author Unknown

Word

Never apologize for the condition of your house. Trust me, unless it is for sale, our homes look just the same. Word.

Making Ant Hills

The view from my seat is…ants. No, not “ants in the pants” (sheesh). It’s us…American people and how we resemble ants. Busy, busy, busy. Travelling to and fro. Carrying important “stuff”. No time to stop. Hurry, hurry. Must build the house, must decorate, must work, must do more, more, more! And then someone will step on the anthill, or it will rain and flood the hill out, and what do we have? A mess.

I think of the Frank Sinatra oldie “High Hopes” – anybody else remember it? Here’s the ant sample –

Just what makes that little old ant

Think he’ll move that rubber tree plant

Anyone knows an ant, can’t

Move a rubber tree plant

But he’s got high hopes, he’s got high hopes

He’s got high apple pie, in the sky hopes

So any time your getting’ low

Instead of lettin’ go

Just remember that ant…

Oops there goes another rubber tree plant

My questions: Did the rubber tree plant need to be moved, or did the ant just think that’s what needed to be done? What would have happened if the ant hadn’t moved the rubber tree? What if the ant had made a date for a cup of coffee with another ant instead? Or gone for a walk in the country? Or played hide-and-go-seek with a little ant? Nooooooo…we all take great pride in that lil’ ol’ any moving that rubber tree plant. And Frank encourages us to be like the ant…have high hopes and aspire to do what can’t be done.

How and when will we break out of this?! Are we really better off? I vote NO! Let’s let the rubber tree plants stay where they are and make time for each other! Time for conversation, reading, playing, enjoying life, time for JOY!

So, I am willing to start the revolution, if you’ll join me.

We can call it…hmmm…what’s a good name? How about:

• Let’s Try Enjoying Life (LTEL)? Not snappy enough?
• OK: TINTED (Time Is Not The Enemy Dummy)? Personally, I like that one, but some may think it offensive.
• INA (I’m No Ant)?
• BREAK (Be Real, Enjoy, be Attentive, Connect)? There – I think that’s it. Operation BREAK.

The first part of Operation BREAK is data collection:
Step one: Make a list of the top 5 things that are really, really important to you. Not what you think SHOULD be important to you… no one but you is going to see this.

Step two: Make a list of the top 5 things you would do if you won 55 million dollars in the lottery. Won it TONIGHT. What would you do first tomorrow? If you say “Quit my job” that’s fine, but what will you replace that job with? Does what you would do, if you could, reflect what you say is really, really important to you? If not maybe you need to re-evaluate what you say is important. It’s OK, we’ll wait. (tap, tap, tap, sigh)

Step three: Bank balance and calendar audit. Take a look at your bank statement (online or on paper, doesn’t matter) and your day planner. Does where you expend your money and time match what is really, really important to you?

Yes, it IS cheating if your job didn’t make the top 5 and you justify time over 40 hours per week (or whatever percentage of full time that you work) as “being for the good of one or more of the top 5”.

Step four: Consider this – what in your life is really a NEED? How much time and effort goes into acquiring, maintaining, and (possibly) upgrading WANTS? Just consider – think about it without judgement. This is just data collection.

Step five: Over the next week note your reaction when one of these things happens:

1. The phone rings as you are engaged in something.
2. A co-worker stops by your office (cubicle) to talk with you about a non-work related topic.
3. You run into a friend, or someone you haven’t seen in a long while, as you are shopping, pumping gas, or involved in some other essential activity.
4. Your offspring asks you to do something for them.

Think about this stuff, watch some ants, see if you’ve got rubber tree plants that you are rearranging, and let’s talk more about this view … later.

Breaking News!

Direct from my brother ... Professor at Rutgers and the smartest person I know ... so it MUST be true...

"In case you did not hear, the CDC has identified the source of the swine flu outbreak (or "patient zero" in their parlance). A picture of the patient has been released but name has been withheld to protect privacy. (see photo above)

I don't think their advice to "wash hands thoroughly" will suffice in this case."

"Neither do (wo)men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house." Matthew 5:15 with slight modification by Kovar

I know that you all have likely seen this many times, and heard all the fuss in the press.

https://mail.wku.edu/Redirect/www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY&feature=related

Well, I was led to think about this from a totally different perspective. What if Susan Boyle had looked in the mirror one day and said, "You are an unattractive cow. Stay home, stay out of the way, and don't embarrass yourself."

How many times do we (and I mean all women) judge ourselves critically. Especially if we choose the parameteres that American society has set for measuring the worth of a woman.

Speaking for myself, it goes something like this: "My chest is too small, my hips are too big, my butt..well lets just say I've seen drive-in movie screens with less breadth. My hair never behaves, my eyes are too close together, I have no clue how to apply make-up, and my nose made Jimmy Durante jealous (God rest his soul). I still get acne. My teeth are showing their age by yellowing, and I don't have enough discipline to use white strips. I laugh like a donkey and don't seem to be smart enough to fit in with these PhD folk. I need to be quiet and behave like a lady."

Bullshit. We need to hold on to our dream. No, not hold on to, we need to chase that puppy. And swing our hips because we believe we are as saucy as any other woman. We are not our eyebrows (and Susan Boyle does have some bodacious eyebrows), we are not our employment status, nor our hair that is (choose one) too thick, too thin, too curly, too straight, or between good lengths.

Talk about being more than the sum of our parts!

We need to be just who God created us to be. For Susan Boyle that is a singer, whose songs I will download with glee. Oh, to teach young women the joy of being REAL!

According to Christine Aguilera:

I am beautiful no matter what they say
Words can't bring me down
I am beautiful in every single way

Memories

Recently, a friend was bemoaning her loss of memory. Recent, as in first noticed soon after she had an affirmative + sign on the home pregnancy test. Recent, as in even more intense since she was asked, “Do twins run in your family?” Many women believe that they become more forgetful during pregnancy: a new study by Australian researchers suggests that they are right - and that their memory can be significantly impaired for at least a year after giving birth.

Until recently, much of the evidence for pregnancy-related memory deficits was either anecdotal or based on subjective reports. The new study, published recently in the Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, is the first to assemble and analyze data from a wide range of scientific studies into the phenomenon.

The results indicate that the impairment - dubbed "baby brain" - is still evident a year after childbirth. Since none of the studies has extended beyond that time, scientists claim not to know how long the deficit continues.

Nor do scientists understand why a woman's memory should be impaired at such an important time, although several theories have been put forward.

Luckily, readers of this blog are about to be on the front row of a scientific breakthrough: Baby brain is the fault of Albert Einstein.

It all has to do with the Law of the Conservation of Matter. Those with a scientific interest are well aware of this fundamental principle of physics: that matter cannot be created or destroyed in an isolated system (with apologies to Dr. Einstein for my abbreviated definition).

Is there any better example of an isolated system than a gestating woman?

It boils down to this. As the baby, or in this case babies, grow in the mother’s uterus we have a veritable explosion of new cells. We’re talking placenta, lots of amniotic fluid, extra breast tissue, some additional fat stores, and last-but-not-least the piece-de-resistance – BABY. If we follow the laws of physics, and really what other choice do we have, there must be a counterbalancing diminution of cells within the isolated system. Enter into the equation the mother’s brain. Yes, it is official, mothers lose brain cells with every pregnancy. And the really bad news? They don’t come back (brain cells that is).

This is why after a first pregnancy, new mothers note that they have more difficulty assembling all the items needed to leave the house; car keys are misplaced; and there is no recollection of a good night’s sleep. The second pregnancy results in more irretrievable brain cell loss. For instance, mothers feel an increasing need to write things down so that task won’t be forgotten (eg. “Wash face, brush teeth.” “Eat”) It is no coincidence that more post-it notes are sold to households with two or more children than to all the Fortune 500 companies combined. The problem is as with all home/office supplies, mothers can never find them once purchased. Somewhere in most family homes lies an enormous pile of post-it notes, tape, pencils, pens, and notepads. Meanwhile, we take phone messages by using a frozen chocolate chip to write on the side of the refrigerator.

By the third pregnancy the issue is noticeable even to strangers. When asked the expected date of arrival for the new baby, mothers awaiting the birth of number three have been known to say “2009.” Mothers cannot recall their own child’s name, resulting in the “litany of the sinners” frequently heard in homes everywhere, “Tommy, Michael, Jason, Fred, Chad, Alex…you know who you are! GET DOWN FROM THERE!” (Child’s name is actually “Joe, Jr.”) When leaving for vacation Moms no longer ask, “Did I unplug the coffee pot?” That’s a post first pregnancy level question. No, after #3 we hear, “It’s YOUR turn to count. They are all back there aren’t they?” I’m sure that third pregnancy syndrome was the cause of my niece Jessica being left at the picnic area after a long ago family gathering. Don’t panic, she was twelve at the time, but still…

For my friend, the news is nearly tragic. From a competent educator, recently enrolled in a prestigious PhD program, she will soon be reduced to attempting to deposit grocery coupons at the bank drive through and wandering mall parking structures hoping to locate her car by pushing the remote and hoping to hear a friendly chirp of the horn. With twins, she jumps directly into Level 2 brain cell loss.

To her husband, good-old “What’s His Name,” be proactive! Stock up on Post-It notes. Investigate whether infants can be microchiped at the vet’s office. And start wearing a name tag – who you are will soon be the least of her worries.

Animal House

I came home the other day to find Emily’s cat, Sugar, on the family room porch, balanced on the back of the beautiful porch swing, staring into the window of the family room, looking for someone to let her in. My question is: How do animals learn the concept of a window? Sugar is not the first family pet to demonstrate this understanding.

Matt’s first cat, Claire, had this concept down pat as well. When we lived in the Virgin Islands we had a very interesting experience with a stray dog, who became the family pet, Sammy. To make a long story short…Sammy wandered into our yard, bone thin and thirsty. We made the mistake of taking pity on the poor guy and fed him. Well, on Day 3 he had apparently received enough nutrition and hydration to realize, “Why that’s a CAT!” And even worse, “I LOVE to chase cats!” The next sound we heard was a loud bark, followed by an even louder cat yowl. A streak of calico cat flew by the dining room window followed by a blur of white and brown “coconut retriever”. On the heels of this sight was the sound of a panicked Matt, “Oh no! Claire’s scared of Sammy!” (He always was a master of understatement)

A three hour search ensued, but to no avail. Claire had disappeared into the thick green untamed island foliage surrounding the house. Matt was heartbroken, Sammy was in time out, and Steve and I were thoroughly embarrassed. We’d sequestered our dinner guest (our pastor) in the hurricane shelter with Sammy while we’d searched. We knew Claire would never come home if he was out and about (the dog that is, not the priest).

Fast forward to the middle of the night. Our bedroom windows are open to let the soft, cool tradewind flow in. The soothing melody of the tree frogs is suddenly broken by two syllables: “Me-ow”. I push up on one arm, look out the window, and there…balanced on the 1” width of the wrought iron handrail… is Claire. Despite the low light of only a quarter-moon, she has found our bedroom window and is summoning us to open the door.

How did she know how to do that? To understand where we were and to understand that the window was a means of communicating with us?

Golden Retriever, Lucy, spends her days sitting at one of the dining room windows watching the street in front of the house. She’s like Gladys from “Bewitched”, there isn’t a single neighborhood action that she isn’t aware of. Unlike Gladys, she doesn’t share the info with anyone (that we know of). She clearly understands that this is life, rather than a TV show, as she heads toward the door when she spies her favorite human, Steve, approach the house.

Hmmm. Since the pets use the windows, do you think they’ll help clean them?

Why wait for April 1st?

Get a head start...a 101 ways to be a fool:

1. Keep thinking that you can get a different result doing the same old thing.
2. Wait until someone invites you to join in on a planned activity (eg. lunch, seeing a movie, learning a hobby).
3. Expect your loved ones to read your mind. After all, they should know what you need, want, prefer, and dream about!
4. Lie to yourself.
5. Never, ever, try something new.
6. Envy. Anyone, anything, any circumstance.
7. Believe gossip.
8. Love anyone more than you love yourself.
9. Believe that loving yourself = always putting yourself first.
10. Expect someone else to make you complete or happy.
11. Wait to be thinner, more educated, better looking, older, married, divorced, a parent, in a new job, retired, wealthy, or in a new town so that you can relax and enjoy life.
12. Ignore a sincere compliment.
13. Act your age.
14. Dress younger than your age.
15. Ignore an opportunity to “Pay it forward”.
16. Say “I can’t do that” without ever trying to see if you can.
17. Go for a whole hour without smiling.
18. Think that you are better than another person.
19. Park in a handicapped spot if you are able bodied.
20. Think small.
21. Ever say to a small child “Be good, or else I’ll have that nurse give you a shot!"
22. Never do a kind gesture anonymously.
23. Keep count (eg. “I gave him a $5 gift and he only gave me a crummy $1 gift. He owes me. – or – I traded shifts with you when you needed help, now you owe me a trade whenever I need it.)
24. Don’t drink water.
25. Avoid asking for help when you need it.
26. Have gone for more than 5-years without seeing a children’s movie.
27. Discontinue an antibiotic before you’ve finished it because you “feel better."
28. Try to use current lingo without knowing what a word or phrase really means.
29. Use “stupid” or “loser” to describe yourself.
30. Go a whole summer without eating outside.
31. Fail to see sunrise at least once a year (mindfully SEE).
32. Take yourself too seriously.
33. Know that you are NEVER wrong.
34. Assume the worst about someone because of skin color, dress, or spiritual belief.
35. Make excuses.
36. Think that Reality TV is reality.
37. Think that all young people are spoiled, irresponsible, and/or greedy.
38. Believe you are irreplaceable to your workplace, so you can coast.
39. Steal from your workplace (Yes. I do mean paperclips, pens, paper, and time).
40. Miss a chance to say “I love you."
41. Wait for someone to say “I’m sorry” before you begin to forgive.
42. Keep the “good stuff” on a high shelf and never use it.
43. Tip small.
44. Believe that anyone who is uninsured is lazy and deserves to lack access to health care.
45. Talk rudely to a server, barista, or cashier.
46. Have to be right, in every instance, no matter how small the issue.
47. Never take a nap.
48. Not know the capital of the state you live in.
49. Fail to see sunset at least once a year (mindfully SEE).
50. Throw away an item that someone else could use.
51. Yell at the cashier about the price of an item.
52. Believe that advertising is for your education and to help you.
53. After seeking an exam and advice from a health provider, get a second opinion from a neighbor, stranger, co-worker, or family member.
54. Know the name of the “bachelor” or “bachelorette” but not the name of the Vice-president.
55. Think that all elderly are feeble, out-of-touch with the reality of today’s world, and/or incompetent.
56. Eat at chain restaurants when you travel.
57. Believe money buys happiness.
58. Stockpile back issues of “Real Simple” magazine.
59. As you eat something, talk about how you “shouldn’t be eating it".
60. Count fat grams at the dinner table.
61. Never, ever, do something just for the fun of it.
62. Break a promise to a child.
63. Pick your nose in the car.
64. Watch “Dancing with the Stars” but never dance yourself.
65. Avoid a friend because you are hurt or angry at something they did.
66. Always wait for the video to come out.
67. Think it’s a bother to romance your spouse.
68. Forget your mother’s birthday.
69. Decide to stop taking your blood pressure medicine.
70. Have a custom kitchen yet eat out all the time.
71. Kick a dog.
72. Use a racial slur.
73. Wear pajama bottoms in public, unless you are a toddler.
74. Tell someone that they are going to hell because of the church or religion to which they belong.
75. Say “I don’t remember” or “I can’t recall” when you really do.
76. Believe that the end really does justify the means.
77. Tolerate cruelty or torture.
78. Argue with a teacher about one point on a project when you already have an “A".
79. Adjust a private body part in public.
80. Wear droopy pants if you are over the age of 2 years.
81. Talk about a group of people as "them" or "those people."
82. Apologize to a friend for the messiness of your home.
83. Say no to a dinner invitation because you are dieting.
84. Spend less time with family so that you can buy more stuff or take a better vacation.
85. Have a room in the house that no one can comfortably sit in.
86. Unless absolutely unavoidable, wear shoes that hurt your feet.
87. Think that the woman your son loves isn’t good enough for him. Tell him that.
88. Defend or excuse bad behavior (especially your own or your offspring's).
89. Complain about the wait to be seen in the ER when you are on Day 1 of cold symptoms and have not tried any acetaminophen, ibuprofen, tea with lemon and honey, chicken soup, or simple rest.
90. Quote People Magazine in a conversation about world events.
91. Order anything on QVC or the Home Shopping Network if you can’t pay your credit card bill each month…in full.
92. Ask a question for which you could find the answer with a little effort.
93. Do something just because you should.
94. Diss your mother-in-law.
95. Drive in a way to make sure that car with the turn blinker can’t merge into your lane.
96. Never have been inside your local library, and never intend to.
97. Laugh at someone else’s expense.
98. Get drunk.
99. Two words: comb over.
100. When you are invited to spend time with people you love say “no”, so that you can stay home to clean or mow.
101. Really believe that it IS all about you.

Something to think about

In today's climate of unrest on many fronts, I find this especially worthy of contemplation:

The Roots of Violence:

Wealth without work,

Pleasure without conscience,

Knowledge without character,

Commerce without morality,

Science without humanity,

Worship without sacrifice,

Politics without principles.

~Mohandas K. Ghandi