The Best Laid Plans

The Triple Whammy

Yesterday was the Trifecta of bad days.  Poor sleep, stressful situation (the Boards Exam) and a short time to eat between sections.  Add the overwhelming exhaustion after I got home and didn’t feel like cooking and it could have been a disaster of a day for sticking to my new lifestyle modifications. 

I was absolutely exhausted before the test because I just couldn’t sleep.  Robert Burns Poem “To A Mousie” kept running through my head, “The best laid plans of mice and men often go askew”. 

I chugged iced coffee between the first and second parts of the test.  I was assailed by a food court of wonderful choices, some not so good for you.  I didn’t want to eat heavily and get post-prandial sedation, so I chose sushi.  I chugged another iced coffee.  On the way home, I stopped at an artisanal cheese shop and ordered goodies for the family to try (Camembert, 2 types of brie, a sheep's milk cheese from Wisconsin, some Spanish ham, and a baguette) but didn’t eat any until after dinner with the kids.  We ate leftovers while I stared at the wall and recovered.  I went to bed early. 

My husband is studying for the sleep boards.  He informed me that it is true that poor sleep causes weight gain.  Also, staying up late causes weight gain.  Many people snack when they stay up late.  Many eat to STAY awake.  Then, there are sleep eaters, more common on psychotropic drugs like ambien.  They eat but don’t remember it and they gain weight.  Sleeplessness slows down your metabolism, according to him, but I need to look that one up myself. 

In MY experience, when I’m exhausted, I just stop caring.  I will eat the easiest thing to eat just to get it over with.  Often, that means things which are easily attained, like ice cream, or take out.   If I hadn’t had the left overs from the weekend, I could have ruined my attempts quickly.

Tonight is my late night at the office.  Usually, I bring 2 lean cuisines, one for lunch, one for dinner, and some fruit or baby carrots to much on as a snack.  Unfortunately, my kids ate all the Lean Cuisines and there’s nothing to bring except left overs.  Juan will make shrimp tacos for the kids for dinner tonight.  I’ll probably bring the leftover flank steak in chili sauce and a couple of corn tortillas. 

But remember, The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men....oft go askew.  Hopefully I won’t go askew. 


Here's a link to Robert Burns' poems:
http://www.robertburns.org/inenglish/extracts.shtml#toamouse