Laurie's journal - Atkins plan (comments welcome)

[Strings]

OMG! This guy sounds like a huge b(*&$@($. I bleeped myself because I don't like to swear. You have plenty to be upset about. I can tell by your posts that you are a polite person by nature, and would be extremely professional at all times. I hope all of your contacts come though and you get a great job, so you can walk out of that place. You deserve so much better than they have been treating you lately. I'm sorry about the loss of OT. I know that things are tight right now. I will be saying major prayers for you.

Please let me know if I can do anything.

Beth

 

[DoeWDW]

UNBELIEVABLE!!! That's what happens when you let incompetent people run the show!!! This guy WILL get his paybacks when he ends up with idiots all around him because none of the competent people will work with him. Then management will sit around and wonder what happened!

Laurie, I'll keep you and Jeff in my prayers, as always, but will specifically pray for your contacts to come through and help you find work in a place that will appreciate you and your talents.

On the positive side, I'm glad your observation went well. At least you're going into this new career with your eyes open.

Hang in there, Laurie!!

 

[LAinSEA]

Doe and Beth - you two are so wonderful. Thanks for letting me vent.

Since Wednesday (after I was told by my boss about being taken off the even) my tummy has been in a knot and I can keep much down. I've given up trying to eat. My neck also tightened up in such a knot that I had to leave work early yesterday. I couldn't feel my feet or hands after just a few minutes of sitting.

I went home and started on the heat packs and laid flat on my back. Jeff massaged my shoulders and neck gently and I was able to get a little sleep last night (no sleep the night before). But today I had to come in to work early to show the Seahawks producer the graphics package sent up from Los Angeles for preseason football and there is no one available to replace me today. The graphics package is a complete shamble. He has decided to use what his graphics guy built for them last season. It was embarrassing to show him what our network provided - incomplete and not as ordered.

Foodwise - I'm on plan with what I am eating. Exercise - didn't walk yesterday or today. I'm thinking that a good long gentle walk would do me good but haven't had the time.

DH went to two job calls yesterday at area restaurants. He was hoping for anything. He was told that he was overqualified to bus tables or wait tables. He can't work in the kitchen because he hasn't completed a culinary program. I would think that a restaurant would want someone who has experience with fine food and wine to be a part of their wait staff - instead they want good-looking college students. (Sorry, venting again - I'm very proud of my DH's efforts.)

I'm going to start on my homework while I'm waiting for the next project's graphics to be ordered. This place is wait, wait, wait - hurry (because now its an emergency), then back to wait, wait, wait.

 

[Strings]

Laurie,

I think that you qualify as one stressed out woman. You have had so much to contend with lately. The added worry about your job job has just topped off everything else. I can't believe that they gave DH the runaround about working as a waiter. Has he tried a steak house? I've noticed that the waitstaff at our steakhouses tend to be more mature. I am so sorry you two are going through this. I am praying for both of you. Hopefull you will be able to get your classwork done at work, so you and DH can have some time to relax together. I'll be thinking about you this weekend.
Beth

 

[Strings]

Just dropping by with another Beth

 

[Strings]

Hi Laurie,

I just thought I would drop by and say HI! I hope the class is going well. How are ou doing today?
Beth

 

[LAinSEA]

Beth, thank-you so much for checking up on me...I'm surviving barely and I really needed the

Over the weekend I was able to get my first small paper completed - an interview of a teacher on a critical issue in education. My mother cooperated and I did the topic on No Child Left Behind and Adequate Yearly Progress.

The problem with concentrating on school work is that my walk went by the wayside a couple of days this week. I also had a slip up in eating a real chocolat icecream cone on Monday night. Otherwise, I've been quite good and on plan. I'm having to remind myself to eat. Stress has got my tummy tied into knotts and popcorn is about the only thing that settles it down. So I've endulged in that as well but have been extremely careful about other carb intake.

I've gotten my walk in the last couple of mornings and will try to stay on track. It really helps my upper back and neck to walk. But the pinched nerve is still acting up, especially after driving. The extra computer time is not conducive to making it feel better either.

These next two weeks I have twice as much school work to accomplish. Big papers and group projects. My team is terrific and we are doing separation of church and state in education for one of our projects and No Child Left Behind for the other.

I will try and take some time for me and your journals today. I've been sending prayers and warm wishes to you all.

-Laurie

the staying off the scale thing is really refreshing...I'm getting a little curious because my clothes are fitting looser again.

 

[LAinSEA]

OK, I know that some of you out there endure 90+ degree temps and high humidity, but here where I live in Western Washingon - 78 degrees is a "HOT" day. The last two days have been in the upper 90's. We reached 100 at home today - thank goodness for our most inadequate AC at work...it can't keep up but at least it's not the 99 degrees in the house - only 80 something.

We also have bad air quality right now, so I haven't been able to walk the past two mornings. My asthma really kicked in after I walked on Thursday am. Using the inhaler gives me the awful shakes for about 30 minutes after using it. I just avoided exercise the last two days and I'm missing my walk.

Meals have been mostly on plan, I have had popcorn to settle a still upset tummy - stress? a bug? it seems to be ongoing right now.

DH has been trying to keep our kitties from getting heatstroke. They've been subjected to standing in our shower with cold water running (towards the wall - not right on them). The fuss! But afterwards they seem to be more active and not panting. The heatwave is suppose to moderate tomorrow...only mid 80's.

I'm caught up with classwork but do have 2 more papers due Tuesday and Wednesday so I will be spending the "weekend" concentrating on that.

 

[wilderness01]

Hope your weather cools off a bit. We are very cool here. High of 75 today with no humidity. Weird for the midwest at the end of July. Hope school is going well for you.

 

[Strings]

Hi Laurie,

How are you holding up? I'm sending that your papers go smoothly. Are they getting any easier now that you have a few under your belt? I hope the weather is cooperating. Our high today was 69 degrees. Really weird. Thursday is supposed to be 88*
Have a good one,
Beth

 

[LAinSEA]

I promise to post more later...I'm burried in a research paper and my work...somehow got the dates swiched up in my head for when projects were suppose to be done and I'm way behind for school.

Working towards taking a big break this evening (while at work) to check on everyone's journals.

-Laurie

 

[DoeWDW]

Laurie, I hope today finds you feeling better and caught up with your schoolwork. If you ever have a problem finishing a project on time, please email your instructor. They realize that we have busy lives and they usually will be very understanding as long as you don't make a habit of it.

I think you are wise to skip the walk when the air quality is poor. I get the shakes after using my albuterol inhaler too! Makes it tough to type on the computer - the typos run rampant!

I'm sending you extra and am keeping you & Jeff in my prayers.

Hope you have a wonderful day with some extra smiles and good news!

 

[Strings]

Laurie,

I hope you got more caught up with work. You are an amazing woman with a ton of things on your plate. You can get through it all, but I think that Doe's idea of talking to your instruction is a good idea if it is too much. We're here to listen of you need to rant or if you need support.

Beth

 

[LAinSEA]

WOW, what a week!

I'm done with class number 2 in my Masters' series tomorrow (Wednesday) evening. I have one more summary asssignment to write and class participation posting to do for tomorrow. Our second team project is due tonight and my part is completed. I was so lucky that one of our team members is a PowerPoint wizard. She is able to put together some amazing stuff - I've got to get a bit more practice in on this product.

With contrating on this last couple of weeks of class, I definitely notice that I've had to sacrifice some of the things I do for myself. I've come to expect 7/7 days a week walking and have only managed 5/7 the last two weeks. Foodwise, I've been craving popcorn to settle my sour tummy...stress!!!??? and I've decided that I need to add some fresh fruit to my diet (blueberries, melon and a few cherries) - I need the vitamin C boost and it takes care of the cravings for sweets. Otherwise (coffee aside) I'm staying on track. DH got a charcoal smoker unit on sale at Home Depot and has been using it to do ribs (OH SO GOOD!). He is brining in a little salt/citrus water, rubbing with a non-sugar hot sauce then rubbing with Emeril's recipe essence and a few other herbs that he won't share with me. We've decided that we don't like the low carb BBQ sauces on the market - way too sweet - so we go without. I like my ribs w/out sauce anyway - he can add a little longhorns after the fact.

The other wonderful delicacy he's been making is grilled eggplant with basil, goat cheese and tomato on top. This is from a Sara's secret show on Food Network but he uses goat cheese instead of feta. They are so awesome!

I have a week off between courses - will use it to get my reading done for the next class in between shows at work and start on my first posted assignment. I will also make sure I get my walks in. Doe, my asthma has never been quite so bad as the days it was near 100 degrees and the air quality was so poor. I think the inhaler is worse than not being able to breathe sometimes. Things have cooled off significantly - but we've been without rain - in the rainy NW for months now.

Beth, anything worth doing is not without effort (my late Grandfather talking to me again.) I'm going to get through it...it sure helps my attitude at work - knowing I'm going to walk away from it when I'm ready.

My parents and the girls are now in Orlando. They did the redeye last night (we had dinner with them before dropping them off). They did SeaWorld today (Allysa fell asleep in her chicken nugget at lunch) and are now nearly all asleep at the condo (offsite - a timeshare closer to SeaWorld and Universal). They will do MK tomorrow and have all their PS's for the week. I have to admit I'm very jealous!

DH suggested that we drive through Glacier Nat. park on our way to the cabin near Yellowstone. I'm going to take 2 full weeks of vacation (if I can get it) Sept 26 - Oct. 12. My next class will finish on Sept. 22 and the one after begins on Oct. 14. I will need a big long break after this next class - it goes for 6 weeks.

 

[Strings]

Hi Laurie,

I think your DH should write a lc cookbook. I tink the 2 week break is a great idea. You can relax and hike. It will also be something to look forward to. I hope you can relax a little this week. Have a good one.
Beth

 

[LAinSEA]

Oh I'm so happy this one is over! It was a really good class though and I'm learning so much. But I'm also ready not to focus just on school for a weekend.

I was contacted about putting together a high school football graphics package for Comcast (I did their training on their new graphics system last week). I'm hoping I can work it into my schedule...creating graphics is one of my specialties and I don't get to do much of it anymore.

I didn't post after we had the ribs last night - OMG delish! DH was concerned that they were too smokie...but I though they were great. They reheated for my dinner again tonight - super good. I shared two with coworkers just to get feedback and they thought they were some of the best they've ever eaten.

The other memorable meal was lunch yesterday - my "creation". They had these really good, just ripe, large avacados at the store yesterday. I bought two and filled them with a low-carb shrimp salad from the deli counter (I added another 2 cups of baby shrimp to them as well). The LC salad was shrimp, red and yellow peppers, celery, parsley, cilantro, a little garlic in a bit of olive oil vinegaret (red wine vinegar, orange & lemon juice). We are going to try to recreate the salad ourselves next time. Super good. Even DH was impressed (until I shared where the salad base came from). Well, maybe he was still a little impressed.

I got on the scale this morning after the month off challenge and was hoping to see a drop...not to be. My clothes have been fitting loser again too! So I'm still at 163 - big plateau, very big plateau. Well at least I didn't gain.

I put in my vacation request today...I'm hoping my boss doesn't make some lame excuse. We are really short graphics operators right now (paying $12 an hour to the best graphics artist I've ever worked with - who was also fully trained to do Chyron as well - doesn't help with recruitment).

Beth and Doreen - a big thanks for keeping me sane.

 

[DoeWDW]

Laurie, you've got lots to celebrate today!! You've stayed off the scale for a whole month - quite an accomplishment!! I actually GAINED so please don't feel bad about staying the same. Also you've finished another class!!! WOO-HOO!!

I love the idea of a two week vacation - I think it's just the ticket for you and Jeff! Your next class will be over in a flash and you'll have some wonderful relax-time!

I'm throwing a WISH party on the healthy living road today! We've got the music cranked up and our boogie shoes on. We're smiling and having fun! Can you feel the party atmosphere??

"Celebrate good times, come on!!"

 

[Strings]

Way to go laurie,

You have finished 2 classes. You are doing an amazing job juggling all the things you have going. Your shrimp salad sounds awesome. Enjoy your weekend without classwork.
Beth

 

[LAinSEA]

I'm really enjoying my "weekend" off without studying and writing papers. I missed out on walking both Friday and Saturday but got in about an hour today. Came back to mow the lawn and did a little weeding. Sun was really getting to me - showered, then DH and I picked some of the peaches just starting to get ripe. Now I've really got the too much sun headache with naseau.

Eating has been mostly on plan with the exception of a few slices of smoked salmon thin crust pizza at lunch on Saturday (we had lunch with our friends John and Todd (who is a top level Boeing manager wanting to get Jeff back in the door to work).

I need to get back into walking everyday for a while, even if its just 30 minutes. I feel horrible when I don't get it in. My weightloss has completely stalled out. No gain, but no loss either.

This next week will be busy, I meet with Comcast to build them a graphics package for high school football on Tuesday. I start class again on Thursday for 6 weeks. (I got 2 weeks of reading finished for it currently.)

DH made us some steamed mussels for lunch today - so good! His brother dropped off some fresh dungeoness crab from their boat trip. We will probably pick some of it for dinner tonight.

We pick up my parents and the girls tomorrow night after their week in Orlando. I heard from them Thursday evening again - they were sitting and waiting for Fantasmic! I wish I was there with them. Allysa was tall enough to ride TOT but not RR. Charly got to ride twice, once each with her grandparents.

 

[wilderness01]

Congrats on being done with your 2nd class!

I hear you about the walking/working out. I need to be very good about it this week. I have slacked off the last week but this is another week to start anew. Have a great one. Glad you enjoyed your weekend without having to worry about school.