Spring break - we're not in college anymore Toto - Feb 2018 TR

[Terra Nova guy]

.. I would be remiss if I didn't point out that the No Way Jose is amazingly good.

I have to vouch for that, although I didn’t have it personally DW did and it was fantastic. I was tempted by the Jose but for variety sake I tried the Milky Way which sadly does not appear to be on their menu anymore.

I might suggest:
A Sampling of Mom's Favorite Recipes - golden-fried chicken, fork tender pot roast, and traditional meatloaf with all the fixings.

Must also recommend the Sampler. The fried chicken is awesome but so is the pot roast and meatloaf. Really can’t go wrong with all three.

Well, I bombed that one...

You’re not the only one, misery loves company

That was one thing I didn't like about it (same story, different characters)
Others
1) That an un-trained stormtrooper could survive more than .000001 second against the dark side head (or 2nd) honcho
2) Kylo ren is a Darth wannabe, but is so not intimidating (I literally laughed at him several times)
3) The fighter battle had several physically impossible moves. I understand it's a different galaxy, but if you're going that fast, you can't just suddenly be going 90 degrees in a different direction like that <snaps fingers>
4) A planet sucking up the power of a sun??? I can see a death star with a reactor and weapon that can decimate a planet, but a planet containing all the energy of a sun? Nah! Also, that would kill EVERY planet in the system including the planet taking the energy. Just can't bring myself to accept that as even remotely feasible even in another galaxy.
5) BB8 - I know a lot of people fell in love with BB8, but a rolling steel ball across any terrain other than flat concrete or asphalt is not believable either. If anything smoother than concrete or asphalt, it would just spin for lack of traction. If anything with more unevenness than concrete or asphalt, not gonna be able to move.

I can’t disagree with any of your assessment, but I did enjoy The Force Awakens. I’m looking forward to The Last Jedi.

Not one single one, I think I guessed. I think I couldn't have sucked more at this contest.

You’re in good company. Pretty surely I missed every one too.

 

[docsoliday1]

I have to vouch for that, although I didn’t have it personally DW did and it was fantastic. I was tempted by the Jose but for variety sake I tried the Milky Way which sadly does not appear to be on their menu anymore.

There's going to be only one visit and sooooo many good options. Not fair! If this is a day the family joins us and there's enough of us, might give the kitchen sink a try. What I really need is my oldest sister there...she's skinny as a rail, but can eat her weight in ice cream. I call FOUL!

Must also recommend the Sampler. The fried chicken is awesome but so is the pot roast and meatloaf. Really can’t go wrong with all three.

As I told pkondz, I've kinda got to be in the mood for chicken. The meat loaf sounds like it could be good...will depend if they put peppers in it or not. DW and I are both allergic to peppers. Mine is limited to green I think where her's is all peppers. I make a really good meat loaf, but willing to try if it's pepper free.

You’re in good company. Pretty surely I missed every one too.

Nope, you're in the running...got two (Crystal Palace and Tusker House)

 

[docsoliday1]

I have to vouch for that, although I didn’t have it personally DW did and it was fantastic. I was tempted by the Jose but for variety sake I tried the Milky Way which sadly does not appear to be on their menu anymore.

Just looked this up and if I could get it with just vanilla ice cream base (I don't care for chocolate flavored stuff such as ice cream although I like real chocolate), it would be more to my liking. Actually, the Fudge mud slide looks more my speed although the snickers one looks good too.

 

[docsoliday1]

Real life update and mini contest...

We just got back from visiting family in central FL for thanksgiving. Had a great time, but as with most trips, too short.

So, on to the mini contest (all 5 point answers)

What day did we go to FL (Marietta, GA to Winter Haven, FL)? Sat, Sun, Mon or Tue?
How long did it take us (we drove)? 7hrs, 7.5 hrs, 8 hrs., 8.5 hrs
How many stops? 2, 3, 4, 5
I'm doing the keto diet...when we stopped for food, did they get my order right?
What happened in the parking lot?
How many relatives did we see? <5, 5-10, 10-15, 15-20, >20
What didn't I have on thanksgiving I normally would?
What did I try and was surprised I liked it?

When we left, we stopped to visit an old friend along the way. I hadn't seen him in 19 years.
Where do they live? Ocala, Micanopy, Valdosta, Gainseville. Lake City
Did we meet at their house or at a meeting place?
We went to dinner. Where? BBQ, Italian, diner, Chinese, Mexican
Did we stay with them or get a hotel?
Which of the above cities did we stay in?
What happened on the drive home that was different?

 

[Terra Nova guy]

See my answers below in red text!

What day did we go to FL (Marietta, GA to Winter Haven, FL)? Sat, Sun, Mon or Tue? Sat
How long did it take us (we drove)? 7hrs, 7.5 hrs, 8 hrs., 8.5 hrs - 8 hrs
How many stops? 2, 3, 4, 5 - 3
I'm doing the keto diet...when we stopped for food, did they get my order right? No
What happened in the parking lot? flat tire
How many relatives did we see? <5, 5-10, 10-15, 15-20, >20 - 10-15
What didn't I have on thanksgiving I normally would? - stuffing
What did I try and was surprised I liked it? - some kind of green vegetable (the stuff I don't eat), let's say brussels sprouts

When we left, we stopped to visit an old friend along the way. I hadn't seen him in 19 years.
Where do they live? Ocala, Micanopy, Valdosta, Gainseville. Lake City - Ocala
Did we meet at their house or at a meeting place? - meeting place
We went to dinner. Where? BBQ, Italian, diner, Chinese, Mexican - Italian
Did we stay with them or get a hotel? - hotel
Which of the above cities did we stay in? - Gainseville
What happened on the drive home that was different? - your wife drove?

 

[afwdwfan]

What day did we go to FL (Marietta, GA to Winter Haven, FL)? Sat, Sun, Mon or Tue?
How long did it take us (we drove)? 7hrs, 7.5 hrs, 8 hrs., 8.5 hrs - 8
How many stops? 2, 3, 4, 5 - 2
I'm doing the keto diet...when we stopped for food, did they get my order right? - Of course not
What happened in the parking lot? - you locked your keys in the car
How many relatives did we see? <5, 5-10, 10-15, 15-20, >20 - 10-15
What didn't I have on thanksgiving I normally would? - rolls/bread
What did I try and was surprised I liked it? - Gator

When we left, we stopped to visit an old friend along the way. I hadn't seen him in 19 years.
Where do they live? Ocala, Micanopy, Valdosta, Gainseville. Lake City - Lake City
Did we meet at their house or at a meeting place? - Meeting place
We went to dinner. Where? BBQ, Italian, diner, Chinese, Mexican - BBQ
Did we stay with them or get a hotel? - With them
Which of the above cities did we stay in? Lake City
What happened on the drive home that was different? - You didn't see anyone pulled over by Georgia Highway Patrol

 

[docsoliday1]

@afwdwfan
Didn't see an answer for which day we left...

 

[afwdwfan]

@afwdwfan
Didn't see an answer for which day we left...

That's because I didn't. Let's go with Mon.

 

[pkondz]

What day did we go to FL (Marietta, GA to Winter Haven, FL)? Sat, Sun, Mon or Tue?
How long did it take us (we drove)? 7hrs, 7.5 hrs, 8 hrs., 8.5 hrs
How many stops? 2, 3, 4, 5
I'm doing the keto diet...when we stopped for food, did they get my order right?
What happened in the parking lot?
How many relatives did we see? <5, 5-10, 10-15, 15-20, >20
What didn't I have on thanksgiving I normally would?
What did I try and was surprised I liked it?

Sat
8
2
nope
fed a squirrel... or ran over one... something squirrel related.
5-10
spuds
jello salad

When we left, we stopped to visit an old friend along the way. I hadn't seen him in 19 years.
Where do they live? Ocala, Micanopy, Valdosta, Gainseville. Lake City
Did we meet at their house or at a meeting place?
We went to dinner. Where? BBQ, Italian, diner, Chinese, Mexican
Did we stay with them or get a hotel?
Which of the above cities did we stay in?
What happened on the drive home that was different?

Lake City
meeting place
BBQ
hotel
Valdosta
Flat tire

 

[docsoliday1]

Okay, now a little bit about our thanksgiving and scoring of mini-contest. If you're going to submit guesses, do so before reading this, please.

My plan, which I thought was brilliant....err great....errr good....err above average...err mediocre was to avoid the thanksgiving traffic rush/jam. Since I'm a contractor now, I can take days off when I want, but the downside is I don't make money. The plan was to not leave Saturday or Sunday when everyone was leaving and sit in traffic for 11 hours for a normal 7 - 7.5 hour drive, but to work Monday and leave Tuesday and come back the following Monday. The problem with coming back the Monday after thanksgiving became quickly apparent...DW had a test that day, so that wasn't happening.

So, Monday rolls around and work went without issue. Got everything packed and we'd be ready to roll in the morning.

Tuesday morning, I woke up at 5:50 (same time I wake up for work). Woke everyone else up at 6am thinking an hour is more than enough time to get dressed, eat and be ready to go. The idea of leaving at 7am (in my mind) was try to get moving before rush hour (more like rush morning in Atlanta) got bad. The flaw in my mediocre plan was failing to add an additional 30 minutes to the time if I actually wanted to leave at 7am. Even without allowing the extra 30 minutes, DW and DD still did better than normal and we got off at 7:15. Yay for small victories!

To quote Gru, "No Yay" for rush hour being worse than I thought. Due to construction on I-75, the rush hour was worse than I expected for a holiday week and the kids being out of school. Thankfully, once we got past downtown Atlanta, it opened up and my mediocre plan turned at least to above average. Traffic was not too bad and we made pretty good time. One stop for potty break and one stop for Gas/Food/Potty (the normal way I do stops and typically only need 1 for the 7 - 7.5 hour drive). The potty break was uneventful and I went ahead and gassed up while waiting because gas is normally a bit cheaper in GA than in FL. The combined stop was not uneventful. When we pulled in the parking lot of the fast food joint, I pulled up to allow DW and DD to get out of car while I was going to go next door to get gas. No, I wasn't getting beans for myself, fuel for the car. While they were getting out, I looked up to see an extended cab pickup truck whip into a space barely missing my front bumper. A few curse words (no not really...but I was a little miffed), the same truck backs up and almost hits the car again. I'm thinking to myself what a total jerk/moron/etc. Although I had to resist the urge of getting out of the car and complementing him on his fine mastery of his vehicle, I just proceeded to go gas up the car.

I'm doing the keto diet (23 pounds so far) and so I asked DW to get a double whopper no bun. I figured the lettuce, tomato and pickle would be minimal carbs . The burgers have enough fat, I'd have about the right balance (maybe just a bit too much protein, but not too bad). They got the order perfectly right. In my dreams. Instead of a double whopper no bun, I got two patties, nothing else. I guess when I put that in the mini-contest, it was a bit too obvious of a question. They **** you in the drive through. Thanks for that memorable quote Leo. Problem was, DW and DD went in, it wasn't the drive through.

The rest of the trip was uneventful and we got to my mom's house exactly when I expected (even with bad rush hour and 2 stops). We pulled into her driveway at exactly 2:28pm. I had told her 2:30. So, the net time was 7 hours 13 minutes.

The week (almost) went well. The funny thing for me was my mom trying to make sure her little (hah, I wish) boy was fed. She went on and on about different things she had that she could make for me and could I have this and could I have that. I explained I had brought some things with me and could go to the store to get a few other things. She offered me salmon....ewww no, homey don't like fish. That's why the keto diet is good for me...most diets want fish and chicken. I don't like fish and I can only eat chicken so long before I get sick of it (1-2 meals maybe. No seriously, after about a week, I'm sick of chicken). If you're wanting to lose weight, do the research on keto...the science behind it is pretty cool and I'm here to tell you first hand...it REALLY works. Most diets you lose a lot of water weight initially. I may have lost some water weight, but I'm seeing quickly how much smaller my belly is getting and it's NOT water...it's fat.

Thanksgiving day. Do I stay on the diet (I'm really happy with the results) or do I take a cheat/treat (call it what you will) day? I was initially considering staying on the diet, but then when I saw what was on the table, there were only three things I could eat. I decided I was going to treat myself. I had made my cheesecake and I don't normally have it...most of the time I make it for church or other events and I want to let the other folks have it since they enjoy it so much. So, I had Turkey & gravy, stuffing (two types), jello salad, deviled eggs, broccoli w/cheese sauce and olives. For those who would care to know, the three things I could have if I had stuck to the diet were turkey, broccoli & cheese and olives. What I didn't have that I normally would on a typical thanksgiving dinner was mashed potatoes and rolls. Good thing about not having carbs is that the craving for them goes away. I also didn't have what I thought was sweet potatoes, but turns out it was summer squash. I don't like squash, but at the prompting of my mom and her telling me they tasted somewhat like sweet potatoes, I went ahead and tried them. Hey Mikey, he likes it!

The highlight of the week, if you can call being extremely annoyed a highlight, was when my mom said I should text my aunt and see if we could come visit. Call me unreasonable (it's okay, I've been called that before), but I kinda figure if I've come from this far away (almost 8 hours), she could trouble herself to come 15 minutes to see us. I say this to my mom and then I find out why we have to go there. "Well, honey, I was kinda hoping to get out of the house for a while." So, it wasn't about seeing my aunt, it was about her getting out of the house. Now the unreasonable side of me was triggered a bit...can't you just say that from the get go vs. trying to frame it in a different light? <sigh>

The real highlight goes back to thanksgiving night. My brother and I tease each other a lot and we actually had a friend of the family thinking we were actually upset with each other. We laughed so hard we were crying. We also had a chance to discuss when they might be likely to join us at Disney in February. My brother normally has Mondays off, so I figured he'd join us then, but it looks like he might be off Monday - Wednesday that week, so he may join us on Wednesday also. I don't think he's ever been to AK, so looking forward to that. I know he likes MK, so good there also. Whether he joins us on Tuesday (our non-park day) is debatable. My SIL still has no idea because her schedule is very fluid. My niece said she's likely to join us for 2-3 days. She's a Disney nut also and has an AP, so she goes fairly often, but having a resort to stay in makes it better for her and we get to see her more -- win win!

Fast forward to the trip home. Well, a little back story first. One of the guys who worked for me at the Pentagon 21+ years ago ended up getting his commission shortly after I left the Pentagon and I was one of the people who pinned his bars on. Two years later, he asked me to be a groomsman when he got married. Fast forward to a couple weeks before the trip. As some of you know, I don't do fb. DW does. He posts the picture of his pinning ceremony on his fb page and mentions it's the anniversary date. DW calls me as I'm heading to bed. I see the picture and the emotions (thankful I could be a part of it, pride in his accomplishment [when you see someone who works for you excel, it's wonderful], happiness for him, etc.) came back. I replied (via DW) to the post. Turns out my boss from the Pentagon also replied, so we all got back in touch. I asked them to send me their email addresses since I don't do fb. We all were able to catch up thanks to that post so I guess fb has at east one positive point. So, we exchanged emails and phone numbers.

Steve is in a doctoral program in UF, so we made plans to stop on the way home. The plan was meet Steve and his family and visit and go to dinner, then drive from Gainesville to Valdosta, GA, where I'd reserved a hotel and then wake up early Sunday and drive the rest of the way home. Originally, I planned to get a hotel in Gainesville, but I guess because of the holiday or because it was near UF, the hotels were more than double what they were in Valdosta. The drawback was less time to visit before we had to head to the hotel.

We leave my mom's and everything looked pretty good....right up until we got to within 5 miles of the turnpike. It was wall to wall gridlock. I didn't actually look at my watch, but we literally went 8-9 mph because it took us well over 30 minutes to go 5 miles. We were going to get on the turnpike because when we checked the traffic, there were only a couple of red spots and not that long, although google maps told us NOTHING of the gridlock BEFORE the turnpike. While happily enjoying our respite from making any semblance of good time, I had DW download waze to my phone. I had it installed before, but found that I hardly ever used it. Ironically, I think I found out why I didn't use it much. It DID NOT tell me to route around the turnpike, but was telling me to turn. I'm sorry, but I can SEE it's backed up something fierce (that's really bad for you northerners). So once we could, we kept going north and not getting on the turnpike. It kept trying to turn us around and I kept ignoring it. Finally, it figured out I wasn't listening or maybe it should actually come up with a better route. It ended up routing us W to 75, but above where most of the red we'd seen on the map earlier was. Steve texted us their address and we arrived at their home only 30 minutes past the original time it would have been with no delays. Given we'd been tied up for over 30 minutes and we took a route where we couldn't go subsonic, I thought that was pretty good. We hit one stretch of bad traffic a bit south of Gainesville, but I've never seen that not backed up. It's kinda predictable like the Dolphins not being any good since Marino and Shula left. I'm a lifelong Dolphins fan, so I'm hoping they can surprise me the way my Cubbies did last year. I'm not holding my breath.

We get to Steve's house and meet his 13 yo son for the first time. We've seen pictures, but actually got to meet him. We visited for about an hour or hour & half and then he proposed a couple options for dinner. I had told him I was doing the keto, so the first option was Sonny's BBQ. I knew I couldn't have baked beans or fries, but the meat and maybe a salad would work. The other option was Carraba's. Talk about opposite ends of the price spectrum! After talking about it and weighing the options, coupled with I knew DW would definitely prefer Italian over BBQ, we opted for Carraba's. We didn't take any pictures, so no food porn, but DW had mussels and pasta, DD had lasagne and I had a filet. Their son had to send his order back 3 times before they finally got it right and I had to send my steak back to actually have it cooked. I like medium well (I don't want my cow still mooing at me) and it was still blood red when it came out. Ummm, no! Although the sending back the food was not pleasant, other than that, it was very good and the company was even better. Although I didn't want to, we had to say our goodbyes and head on to Valdosta before it got too late.

The idea to stay in Valdosta and then drive home the rest of the way was probably the only part of my plan that I could honestly say was brilliant. After dinner on Saturday, the traffic had cleared and we made good time to Valdosta. Sunday morning, the traffic was FABULOUS. I don't think there was a time we went less than 60mph except when we got off the exit for church. That is unheard of on a trip to Atlanta or the hearing aids helped me to hear it. Oh wait, I don't have hearing aids and I'm not sure anyone has said it to be heard before now anyway. The only downside of the trip was this guy from CA that stayed in the middle lane and either didn't have a cruise control or didn't have the common sense to use it. He'd slowly pass me and then (I was on cruise the entire time) and then a minute or two later, I'd pass him, but would have to get either all the way left or all the way right (if I wasn't already there) to get around him, because I guess he figured the middle lane was all he could handle. Finally, when we got to the bypass in Macon, either he stopped or went the other way, because thankfully I stopped having to play middle lane obstacle course. I've already made plans to repeat this process on our trip back in February if we drive. Stopping to visit and then the better drive home the next day was so nice on so many levels.

So...on to the scoring:
Everyone got correct that my order was not right...obviously too easy the way I asked it, but had they gotten it right, we all would've been shocked.
1st - @pkondz - 30 points (2 stops, 5-10 relatives, no potatoes, hotel and in Valdosta)
2nd - Tie between @Terra Nova guy and @afwdwfan - 15 points (Italian and hotel) and (2 stops and no rolls) respectively

Just realized in scoring that, I forgot to mention the relatives we saw:
Mom (duh), Brother, Sister-in-law, niece, niece, cousin and aunt (7) There were some other folks there for thanksgiving who are family in our hearts, but actual relatives, 7.

Few other notes:
Jeff - Although I'm not a rabbit, I do eat SOME green veggies, especially if wrapped in bacon
Andy, I've eaten gator many times, so sorry that was definitely not the answer.
Pkondz - I love jello salad (the recipe I put on DDC)

 

[pkondz]

Since I'm a contractor now, I can take days off when I want

Yes!!!

but the downside is I don't make money

...oh

Woke everyone else up at 6am thinking an hour is more than enough time to get dressed, eat and be ready to go.

Are you new here?

Due to construction on I-75, the rush hour was worse than I expected for a holiday week and the kids being out of school.

Ugh. No. Time to dust off the helicopter.

One stop for potty break and one stop for Gas/Food/Potty (the normal way I do stops

What's the other way?

The potty break was uneventful

Thank you for not describing it.

While they were getting out, I looked up to see an extended cab pickup truck whip into a space barely missing my front bumper. A few curse words (no not really...but I was a little miffed), the same truck backs up and almost hits the car again. I'm thinking to myself what a total jerk/moron/etc.

And yet... he never touched you so maybe he's just really, really good.

They got the order perfectly right. In my dreams. Instead of a double whopper no bun, I got two patties, nothing else.

What the heck is that???

I may have lost some water weight, but I'm seeing quickly how much smaller my belly is getting and it's NOT water...it's fat.

Good for you!

Thanksgiving day. Do I stay on the diet (I'm really happy with the results) or do I take a cheat/treat (call it what you will) day? I was initially considering staying on the diet, but then when I saw what was on the table, there were only three things I could eat. I decided I was going to treat myself.

It's Thanksgiving. Holidays are exempt.

Good thing about not having carbs is that the craving for them goes away

Really? Huh!
I haven't had potato chips in 2 years and believe me... I want them!

The highlight of the week, if you can call being extremely annoyed a highlight,

"Well, honey, I was kinda hoping to get out of the house for a while."

Classic Mom move there.

My brother and I tease each other a lot and we actually had a friend of the family thinking we were actually upset with each other. We laughed so hard we were crying.

Fast forward to the trip home. Well, a little back story first. One of the guys who worked for me at the Pentagon 21+ years ago ended up getting his commission shortly after I left the Pentagon and I was one of the people who pinned his bars on. Two years later, he asked me to be a groomsman when he got married. Fast forward to a couple weeks before the trip. As some of you know, I don't do fb. DW does. He posts the picture of his pinning ceremony on his fb page and mentions it's the anniversary date. DW calls me as I'm heading to bed. I see the picture and the emotions (thankful I could be a part of it, pride in his accomplishment [when you see someone who works for you excel, it's wonderful], happiness for him, etc.) came back. I replied (via DW) to the post. Turns out my boss from the Pentagon also replied, so we all got back in touch. I asked them to send me their email addresses since I don't do fb. We all were able to catch up thanks to that post so I guess fb has at east one positive point. So, we exchanged emails and phone numbers.

Nice story. Thanks for sharing that.

We leave my mom's and everything looked pretty good....right up until we got to within 5 miles of the turnpike. It was wall to wall gridlock.

Yuck. Helicopter. I'm just sayin'.

I can SEE it's backed up something fierce (that's really bad for you northerners).

I'm possibly the farthest north of your northerners... and we use that term... well, not often, but we know it.

1st - @pkondz - 30 points

Yusss!

Pkondz - I love jello salad (the recipe I put on DDC)

D'oh! I remember seeing the recipe but forgot who posted it.

 

[docsoliday1]

Are you new here?

Nope, just another piece of the mediocre plan puzzle!

Ugh. No. Time to dust off the helicopter.

I've actually looked at the personal helicopters, but only room for one person, so no good.

What's the other way?

The way that drives me nuts...stop for gas. 5 minutes later someone has to go potty. 5 minutes later someone is hungry. I like to stop once and take care of all those things and get moving again. I'm not a fan of multiple stops, but staying in Valdosta for a night and driving home the next day was really nice compared to the normal pain in the....err typical drive.

Thank you for not describing it.

And here I was thinking you might ask for exquisite details. It wasn't a self cleaning potty like the one you found in France.

And yet... he never touched you so maybe he's just really, really good.

Yep and that's spelled I M P A T I E N T J E R K!

What the heck is that???

Umm...stupidity? Lazy? Not bothering to listen to the actual order? Fast food? (Fast does not = correct)

Good for you!

Thanks. Of course if I hadn't allowed myself to get this big in the first place, then it would be a non-issue.

It's Thanksgiving. Holidays are exempt.

Initially I was going to try to stay with it, but then decided I'll need a break every once in a while. Christmas will be another treat day...DW makes killer lasagne and I will not be on the diet that day.

Really? Huh!
I haven't had potato chips in 2 years and believe me... I want them!

You're probably having other carbs. I haven't wanted chips (well, I can still see them and think they look good, but not getting cravings for them like I did), bread, potatoes, pasta, etc. Our bodies love carbs because it's quick energy, but once it burns up that energy and you get the sugar crash, it craves more.

2 years? Wow! Congratulations! Is there a story behind that?

Classic Mom move there.

Yeah, definitely not the first time, but still annoying.

Nice story. Thanks for sharing that.

Thanks

Yuck. Helicopter. I'm just sayin'.

See above

I'm possibly the farthest north of your northerners... and we use that term... well, not often, but we know it.

Sorry...didn't figure you'd get it unless I said something fierce ay?

 

[pkondz]

Nope, just another piece of the mediocre plan puzzle!

I've actually looked at the personal helicopters, but only room for one person, so no good.

Personal helicopter = death trap

The way that drives me nuts...stop for gas. 5 minutes later someone has to go potty. 5 minutes later someone is hungry.

Ah. Ya. No.

And here I was thinking you might ask for exquisite details. It wasn't a self cleaning potty like the one you found in France.

Now that was cool. C’mon, admit it.

Yep and that's spelled I M P A T I E N T J E R K!

Thanks for clarifying.

Initially I was going to try to stay with it, but then decided I'll need a break every once in a while. Christmas will be another treat day...DW makes killer lasagne and I will not be on the diet that day.

Lasagne for Christmas? Or are you talking about different days?

You're probably having other carbs. I haven't wanted chips (well, I can still see them and think they look good, but not getting cravings for them like I did), bread, potatoes, pasta, etc. Our bodies love carbs because it's quick energy, but once it burns up that energy and you get the sugar crash, it craves more.

Interesting.

2 years? Wow! Congratulations! Is there a story behind that?

Was eating too much. Decided to stop. Just to see if I could.

Sorry...didn't figure you'd get it unless I said something fierce ay?

 

[docsoliday1]

Now that was cool. C’mon, admit it.

I think it would've been cool watching the 3 of you yelling to a toilet whilst Kay was trying to figure out all the buttons.
Actually, yes, I think the concept is quite cool especially since some public restrooms are so ridiculously disgusting, even as a guy, I'm leery.

Lasagne for Christmas? Or are you talking about different days?

Yep, for Christmas. DW is Italian and we've had lasagne for Christmas for at least the last 15-20 years.

Interesting.

Yeah, I did quite a bit of research on the keto diet before I started. When you cut out carbs (well mostly...still have small amounts in veggies or nuts), your body gets used to not having them and stops craving them.

Was eating too much. Decided to stop. Just to see if I could.

Good on ya, mate!

 

[docsoliday1]

20 days until FP+. Woo hoo!!!

 

[ariane37]

My quote feature isn't working right now for whatever reason, but I'm glad your potty break on the way down was "uneventful". Seems that's how you'd want a potty break to be And I would have most definitely sworn my head off at that truck driver; I think my kids would've been disappointed in me if I didn't lol.

I've heard of the keto diet but have never looked up the details; your post has me curious so I'm going to check it out. I'm glad it's working for you!

Facebook I find is a great way to get/stay in touch with people from the past. I was never a bid FB fan and until I started using it for business, only really used it to keep in touch with college friends. I used to get annoyed with the people who would tell you every single minute of their day "just did 8 loads of laundry!" "Running to the gym and then getting my coffee on before hitting the grocery store and bathing the dog!"

 

[docsoliday1]

My quote feature isn't working right now for whatever reason, but I'm glad your potty break on the way down was "uneventful". Seems that's how you'd want a potty break to be And I would have most definitely sworn my head off at that truck driver; I think my kids would've been disappointed in me if I didn't lol.

Yeah, in retrospect, I guess that was a bit comical...I was simply trying to say the first stop was quick and we were back on the road quickly, but the second stop, well...not so much.

I've heard of the keto diet but have never looked up the details; your post has me curious so I'm going to check it out. I'm glad it's working for you!

I had an issue with gout a couple months ago. My insurance in their infinite idiocy decided not to allow the medication the Dr prescribed without a pre-authorization. Don't get me started on how BCBS won't get any more of my money. Pay through the nose for insurance, but when you actually NEED something, no way. Sorry...small rant there. I did research on how to treat gout naturally and I came across an article about keto and gout. I didn't know what keto was, so started researching. I'm not an actual Dr, but I am a science nut. When I found out the science behind it, it made perfect sense, so I researched and researched some more. For me, most diets aren't sustainable because they want you to eat fish and chicken and nothing with flavor. I don't like fish and there's only so much chicken I can eat before if becomes disgusting. The difference with keto is it encourages good fats (turns out butter is good for you vs. the bane everyone tries to say...it's a natural fat). Olive oil, coconut oil, oils in nuts, all good. I love most kind of nuts (probably why I'm so nutty --- beat ya @pkondz), so that's good and I can have butter on veggies and olive oil/vinegar on salad. There are some good videos on youtube that can explain it way better than me, but the gist is, when you limit the carbs and give your body more protein and fats, the body will switch from burning carbs for quick energy and then craving more carbs to burning fat to give you energy. This keeps the blood sugar/insulin levels steady through the day and feels great compared to what I call the yay/nay cycle with carbs.

Initially, for gout, the keto diet is bad because it increase the body's acidity, but after about two weeks, it settles out. Since one of the primary causes of gout is obesity, I figured I'd take the short term pain to get the long term result.

Facebook I find is a great way to get/stay in touch with people from the past. I was never a bid FB fan and until I started using it for business, only really used it to keep in touch with college friends. I used to get annoyed with the people who would tell you every single minute of their day "just did 8 loads of laundry!" "Running to the gym and then getting my coffee on before hitting the grocery store and bathing the dog!"

That's one of the things I don't like about FB...I don't care if you just fed the dog and are watching soaps. The other is as an IT person, the fb "privacy" policy is laughable (more like non-existent). Once it's on fb, it's out there forever. Even if you "remove" it, it's still out there. I've also known people who were fired and/or not hired because of things on fb. Yeah, I admit, it's good for finding old friends, but the cons outweigh the pros for me.

 

[Steppesister]

2/18 - Cape May Cafe Dinner
2/19 - Tusker House Lunch / ROL 1st show
2/19 - Rainforest cafe dinner
2/20 - Beaches & Cream - Lunch (late lunch)
2/20 - Il Mulino Dinner (also late due to late B&C lunch)
2/21 - Liberty tree tavern - lunch
2/21 - Crystal Palace
2/22 - Fresh Mediterranean market lunch
2/22 - Trail's End Restaurant Dinner
2/23 - 50's Prime time cafe lunch
2/24 - Hollywood & Vine dinner

Only done 3 of these on the whole list. I'll be interested in reviews of the rest...

Woot!!!!


Wait.... <does the math>


Hey!!!!!!

You can DO that math?!!! Is that even REAL math...?

You’re in good company. Pretty surely I missed every one too.

I know of a pity party we can go to later.

What day did we go to FL (Marietta, GA to Winter Haven, FL)? Sat, Sun, Mon or Tue?

Sunday

How long did it take us (we drove)? 7hrs, 7.5 hrs, 8 hrs., 8.5 hrs

7.5

How many stops? 2, 3, 4, 5

3

I'm doing the keto diet...when we stopped for food, did they get my order right?

No way.

What happened in the parking lot?

You googled directions.

How many relatives did we see? <5, 5-10, 10-15, 15-20, >20

10-15

What didn't I have on thanksgiving I normally would?

Stuffing

What did I try and was surprised I liked it?

Green bean casserole.

When we left, we stopped to visit an old friend along the way. I hadn't seen him in 19 years.

Where do they live? Ocala, Micanopy, Valdosta, Gainseville. Lake City

Valdosta

Did we meet at their house or at a meeting place?

House
We went to dinner. Where? BBQ, Italian, diner, Chinese, Mexican

BBQ

Did we stay with them or get a hotel?

With them

Which of the above cities did we stay in?

Valdosta

What happened on the drive home that was different?

Someone got a ticket.

 

[Steppesister]

Got part way through reading, but will have to come back. Off to FIL's for dinner and tree decorating.

 

[docsoliday1]

Only done 3 of these on the whole list. I'll be interested in reviews of the rest...

71 days it will start. 11 days until FP+...I'm getting excited.

You can DO that math?!!! Is that even REAL math...?

I wanted to get some square roots and exponentiation in there, but couldn't figure out how to add that in. I tried giving him a bonus, but he seems to think it didn't help.

I know of a pity party we can go to later.

Looks like you're tied with @Terra Nova guy and @afwdwfan
As with all, you guessed correctly, they did not get my order right.
We met at their house
We stayed in Valdosta in hotel.

I'd say pretty good for someone who just got back from 3 weeks gone, got sick and has had hardly any sleep. Good to have you back Liesa!