Weird Foods

Weird Food

My kids are at a great age now.  They are interested in experimenting with new and unusual foods.  Until now, I thought it was just that they had open minds and were interested in expanding their palates.  Then the REAL truth came out.  It is the GROSS OUT factor. 
Now don’t get me wrong.  I completely appreciate the “gross out factor”.  One of my favorite songs to teach scouts and other kids is, “Great green gobs of Greasy grimy gophers guts...” and so on.  OR think of the song:

 “Did you ever think when a hearse went by, that you might be the next to die?  They wrap you up in a long white sheet, and lower you down for about 6 feet.  And all goes well for about a week, and then the coffin begins to leak.” 

After that, depending on what part of the country you’re from, the song varies tremendously in the gross things that happen to the body.   Let’s face it, kids love to gross each other out. 

What I’ve discovered is that the kids like to try new and interesting foods so they can one up their friends on the “gross out “ scale. 

Now, never one to miss an opportunity, I’ve discovered the usefulness of this.  When I want the kids to try new foods, I point out how they’ll be able to bring it up at school and disgust their friends.  It almost always works to get them to try what ever food it is. 

Gross foods vary from culture to culture though.  When I was growing up, octopus and squid were gross, brains were super gross, as were turtle soup and snails. 
NOW squid and octopus are normal fare for my kids.  I have to really up the ante to get them to be grossed out.  Fish eye balls, Jelly fish tentacles, beef heart,Crickets on a stick,   etc. 

Sometimes it’s the simple foods that families ate growing up that gross other people out. 
Consider banana and mayonnaise sandwiches on Wonder Bread.  That was one of my Mother’s “go-to” sandwiches when we were out of cold cuts growing up.  You would slather an amazing amount of mayo (not the other stuff) onto Wonder bread.  You then sliced bananas longitudinally, and piled them onto the sandwich.  YUM. 
We also ate bananas and milk for breakfast when we would run out of cereal. 

What odd foods did you have growing up? 

BTW, I passed my Boards Exam!!! whoohooo!

I

Momentum and Shame

Momentum:


mo·men·tum/mōˈmentəm/

Noun:
The quantity of motion of a moving body, measured as a product of its mass and velocity.
The impetus gained by a moving object.

shame/SHām/
Noun:
A painful feeling of humiliation or distress caused by the consciousness of wrong or foolish behavior.
Verb:
(of a person, action, or situation) Make (someone) feel ashamed: "I shamed him into giving some away".
Synonyms:
noun.  disgrace - dishonour - dishonor - ignominy - opprobrium
verb.  disgrace - abash - dishonour - dishonor



I am losing it.  No, I’m not losing my mind, although with Christmas coming up lightning fast and not one iota of shopping done, I should be.  No, I am losing momentum. 
I am having a hard time sticking to my resolve. 
I’ve established my routines of making a menu, shopping to it, and actually preparing the foods.

I am trying really hard to make sure I put all my food and drink into the Weight Watchers points calculator.  That is often a problem.  That is where I’m losing momentum. 

I’m also starting to have difficulty because this is the time of year where patients, specialists, lab representative, physical therapy companies, all drop by with goodies.  Yummy, over the top homemade cookies, shortbread, donuts, chocolates.  I do really well until someone TELLS me there are cookies in the back.  There were chocolate shortbread cookies today.  How in the world could I pass THAT up?  So, I didn’t.  I had one. 

In the past, I would have had 3 or 4. 

I don’t like Dunkin Donuts, thank God.  There were some in the kitchen today, too.  They have this weird artificial taste and some type of fat in it that coats your mouth leaving it feeling sticky/slimy. 

In order to combat this inertia, I’ve been telling more and more of my patients about the blog.  I am trying to ensure my resolve by increasing the number of people who can give me a hard time about failure.  I’m trying to shame myself into success.  Not sure if this is the best approach, but it seems to be working so far!

  Most of the conversations start with, “Hey Doc!  I like your new hair cut!”  Then I launch into the REASON for the haircut, my struggle, and the blog, and I invite them to follow along and cheer or jeer me on!  I tell them that I HAVE to succeed at this because then I’ll be giving them an excuse to fail, if I do.  BUT, if I succeed at this, then I’ve given them hope that they too can do it, and I can give THEM a hard time.  It’s kind of group therapy. 

So far, it’s been a success.  This lack of momentum thing is a temporary bump, I think.  Shame is a powerful motivator and I’m shaming myself into success every time I see my resolve weakening.  I think to myself, “THINK of this TEACHABLE MOMENT!  If YOU fail, you’ve failed your patients too!”  Then, I walk away from the temptation or  I  eat fewer of the tempting yummies. 

Keep me on the straight and narrow guys!  Help me keep up my momentum!
Help me avoid the SHAME!!!

Splurging. OR It's Not a Life Sentence

Splurging
I really thought I blew it. 
I was not the paradigm of virtue these last 7 days. 
There is something so tempting about going off the rails on Thanksgiving!  I had the most delicious time being alone for 3 days too!  I could eat anything I wanted and not worry about feeding any one else.  I actually had a milkshake for dinner one night!  (a small McDonalds chocolate shake is about a zillion points, BTW). 

I had TWO Thanksgivings.  One at my partners house on Thanksgiving Day (man is she a good cook!) and the second at my house on Sunday. 

I really tried to be good within reason.  I did splurge on a pumpkin pie and homemade whipped cream, but we decided to just make a turkey, dressing, and green beans on Sunday.  No other soft and squishy, high caloric foods like mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green bean casserole.  I made green beans almondine with fresh green beans, and I used lower fat sausage for my dressing this year.  We left the table full but not needing to unbutton.  I had 4 oz of white wine and stopped at that. 

Unfortunately, I also gave in to other temptations.  Chocolate.  I stopped at 2 small Ghiradelli squares though.  I was utterly convinced I was done in and avoided the scale for several days. 

I decided to get back on the straight and narrow two days ago.  I figured that this is a life style change, not a life sentence, so occasionally I could splurge, as long as I only did it occasionally.  So, here I am. 

I got on the scale today and held my breath.... 191.7.  WHEW!!!

SO, I got back into my routine and made a menu for next week, which I’ll shop to.  I’ll prepare most of the food over the weekend between kid activities and housework. 

To my patients who are following along...You don’t have to be a saint.  This isn’t a prison sentence.  Eating well actually tastes good most of the time.  I felt satisfied on both Thanksgivings without feeling overstuffed!  Christmas may be a challenge but I’ll try to be reasonable and stop when I’m full, taste the goodies and not gorge. 

Menu for next week: 
Spaghetti with broccoli sauce
roasted brussel sprouts with maple balsamic drizzle
Slow Roasted Pork in Mole Sauce
Chicken with Broccoli Rabe and White Beans
Maybe a chili or sloppy joe with bulgar wheat or ground turkey.  

Remember, it's not a form of suffering to eat well.  Unless you're this guy:

Thanksgiving Thanks....

What I’m Thankful For



I’m thankful that I have to actually worry because I get too much to eat.

I’m thankful that I have heat and electricity (especially in light of Connecticut’s recent outage)

I’m thankful that my friends are healthy.  (Yes, even YOU Steven.  He said that you’re doing BETTER than expected, not AS WELL as can be expected).
Read :
www.Journalfromtheplagueyear.blogspot.com and you’ll understand. 

I’m happy that I’ve lived long enough to say, “---BECAUSE I SAID SO!” to my children. 
By the way, I swore I never would say that. 

I’m thankful that I now understand the “Mother’s Curse” (I hope you have a child who is JUST LIKE YOU!). 
I’m happy that I lived long enough to learn it.  And to say to my Mother, “I’m sorry because I was a royal PIA as a kid”. 

I am thankful that my children are quirky and funny and smart. 
When Tom was five, he was sitting on the toilet and I was getting dressed.  I swear this is not edited.
“Mom, You know how I’m a ‘science kind of guy?’”(He was FIVE!!!)
Me, “yes”
“Well, I’m not sure if I can believe in God.”
“Why not?”
“Well, there’s no proof.  I believe in Santa because there’s PROOF,  but there’s no proof that God exists.”
(I had to run into my bedroom to keep him from seeing me crack up laughing). 

I’m thankful that my husband is the kindest, most thoughtful guy I’ve ever met.  He does housework, cooks, cleans, and is a fabulous father to our kids.  I cannot and never will complain about him to my friends.  I’m so lucky it’s ridiculous.  That said, He needs a haircut.

I’m thankful that my cat, Fuzzbutt, has lived to the ripe old age of 20.  When I say ripe, I mean it.  Old cats don’t groom themselves very well.

I’m thankful that I have a hobby.  Life would be so boring without some obsession to distract me.  Quilting is a great hobby because you leave behind a piece of you for others to keep themselves warm  after you’re dead and buried!  People will remember me and say stuff like, “Oh, there’s the quilt that Michele made for us.  Too bad she’s dead.” 

Mostly, I’m glad to have two days alone.  No one to cook for, no one to clean up after.  No one to put to bed.  No one else’s laundry to do.  I don’t have to say, “Hey, I’m in here!” while I’m showering.  (13 year old boys love to barge in and pee while you’re showering.  What is that anyway?)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Alfajores

Alfajores

Alfajores are a type of Peruvian cookie.  They are made of two shortbread like cookies made with ground walnuts, not too sweet, filled with a dulce de leche filling and gently dusted with confectioner’s sugar. 

One of my patients knows that I love them and made a whole tin of them for me yesterday. 

Alfajores are NOT easy to make.  They are delicate and dry and easily burned.  Getting the shortbread biscuit part just right is an art.  I have tried to make them myself.  Let’s just say they were not the most successful cookie I’ve ever made. 

Alfajores are also my husband’s favorite cookie, which was my saving grace.  Those cookies were in their tin in the car on the way home from the office.  I managed not to eat any at all until I got into the car.  There’s something about being in the car with forbidden foods that causes me to lose all hope of forbearance. 

As I bit into the cookie, my teeth sunk gently into the dry,soft cookie.  The powdered sugar fell onto my tongue with a tease.  The cookie was buttery, and walnut-y and coated my mouth.  Then, there was the sweet and creamy caramel  of the dulce de leche intertwined with the cookie.  I savored the sensations of the sweet, the creamy, the nutty and the buttery as they all combined in my mouth.  I let the cookie linger on my tongue so I could really enjoy it, knowing what a rare treat it was. 

I couldn’t stop at one. 

In the past, I wouldn’t have been able to stop at all, and would have eaten four or five of the rich cookies before I got home.  This time, I stopped at two. 

My husband and children were thrilled to have an entire tin of the delicate treats.  I haven’t had any more.  They just left to go to New York for Thanksgiving.  I haven’t looked to see how many are left because I’m trying to save my Weight Watcher’s Points for Cornish Game Hens tomorrow at my friend’s house. 

Happy Thanksgiving.  I hope you all have the opportunity to have GOOD alfajors at some point in your lives. 

11/17/11

It has been about six weeks since I started this experiment. 

I started out at 201 pounds.  This was a new high (or low) for me personally.  I don’t have time to go to meetings for Weight Watchers and I needed a way to stay accountable.  Certainly, my son telling me that he “loved my jiggly butt” was motivation in and of itself.  Or his saying that my “stomach is so soft, it’s better than a pillow.” 
It’s easy to block out what you really look like and ignore your children because they say obnoxious things all the time.  They have no filters. 

You know you’re in trouble when your patients start asking you if you’re pregnant.  That happened more than once.  I chalked it up to big shirts, or just plain obnoxious commentary. 

I figured that it is time to take stock of the experiment and to see how well this has been working.  I have invited many of my patients to view my blog.  They are surprised to find out that I too, struggle with some of the same problems they do.  Also, secretly, I think they hope I’ll fail because then they don’t have to succeed.  Put another way, I feel the pressure to succeed so I can show my patients that they can succeed at this too. 

Well, I have lost TEN POUNDS!!!! 

My new digital scale says I weight 190.4 lbs., so technically I’ve lost 10.6 pounds, but who’s counting?  (Kudos to Target, who took back the broken scale without a receipt or box and let me get a new one!  They are my new favorite store!)

I still have another 15 or so pounds to go.  I still have to incorporate exercise into this experiment.  I definitely understand my patient’s issues when it comes to weight loss and exercise and I hope they see this.

Here are a few tips. 
Don’t eat out.  Don’t eat out.  Don’t eat out. 
Eating out was my undoing.   I didn’t realize how often we were eating out or ordering in until we stopped. 

Try new foods. 
I am trying new foods and I’m trying old foods in new ways.  For example, I am making a type of chili with bulgar wheat instead of meat.  I love bulgar wheat but always had it in traditional middle eastern dishes, like tabouli, or a pilaf like dish.  I made eggplant rollatini  which is kind of like eggplant parmesan but with a lot less ricotta cheese, and with pre-roasted eggplant slices and with a homemade quick tomato basil sauce.  My daughter’s best friend told me she hates eggplant normally, but loved the eggplant rollatini  Get recipes from the “Cooking Light” magazine or it’s website.  They have great recipes.  Weight Watchers web site also has wonderful recipes.  If you are cooking for one or two, cut the recipes in half, or freeze half of the prepared food in single serving containers. 

Cut way back on salt. 
I didn’t realize how salty my food was until I stopped eating so much processed food.  My ankles don’t puff up at the end of the day like they did. 

Buy a leather punch.  (My belt is suddenly too big!  Hurrah!  I need to punch a new hole in it!)

Keep a sense of humor. 
Have a cookie now and then.
Realize that this is a lifestyle change and will take time to get used to. 
Develop a new habit of making a menu weekly and shopping to it.
Cook the foods you have on your menu instead of letting the ingredients turn into compost in your refrigerator. 
Keep plenty of healthy snacks handy.
Don’t let yourself get so hungry at the end of the day that you eat ravenously when you get home. 
Include the kids in preparing meals.  (They’re more likely to eat the food if they help to make it.)
Drink a lot of water. 

Most importantly, do something big to announce to everyone that THIS IS IT.  You’re making a BIG change.  For me, it was a drastic hair cut.  I went from a “below the shoulders” style (usually pulled back so my hair was not in my or my patient’s faces) to a short  bob.  People say they “like my hair cut” and I announce that I did it because Dr. Tong yelled at me to lose weight so this was my way to start the whole process...with a big change in my appearance. 

Let’s keep going!  Another 10 pounds is my next goal, as is incorporating exercise. 
Feel free to leave comments!

Shhh...The Secret To Hunger

I don’t know about you, but in my family, we are so busy during the week, that we have to do all the chores on the weekend, in between all the kid’s activities. 

Today, I did 4 loads of laundry in between cleaning the bathroom, straightening up the living room and yelling at the kids to clean the closet out.  I  vacuumed the living room and dining room, swept the kitchen, swept the basement stairs, changed the cat litter and cooked a roast chicken.  I made Pork Cacciatore, and Morrocan Slow Cooker Stew whilst harassing my kids to do their homework.  I stripped the bed and threw the garbage out.  Juan mowed the front lawn and covered the air conditioners and helped my son with physics homework. He helped me with the cooking and prep work and carved up and put away the chicken and did the dishes. 

Here’s a first.  I forgot to eat.  Therein lies the Secret!  You just have to have too much stuff to do and you’ll forget to eat. 

My house always looks like a tornado went through it.  For some reason, my children think the floor is a fine place to drop their coats, hats, gloves, candy wrappers, etc.  When asked to pick up, they don’t seem to see the mess. 

My family's inability to see clutter is my fault.  I am most definitely not a neat freak.  We have books and magazines and papers all over the house.  We are a house of readers.  I have been trying to convince my husband that if journals are over three months old, they must go out.  Most medical journals are on line now, too.  But with bifocals, it’s a bitch trying to read on the computer.  Also, he is sentimentally attached to paper.  It's the same with his New Yorker Magazines, and the Sunday NY Times Magazine and Book Review sections.  We also have at least 2 new history books a week from the History Book of the Month club that he was supposed to quit, oh, about 2 years ago.  We’ve run out of bookcases, and the books and journals are stacked up under our bed, alongside the bookcases, in the basement, and anywhere there is space. 

I have TRIED to maintain order.  I have instituted chores.  Theoretically, my children are supposed to do all the housework, but lately, with Science Fair, with incredibly huge amounts of difficult homework that takes hours to complete, with Boy Scouts and basketball, my Irish Work house has fallen by the wayside.  I have to do more of the chores myself now.

I am running out of time during the weekend to get everything done.  Hence, I forgot to eat.  Juan forgot to eat too.  We realized we'd forgotten to eat when Juan asked me, "I wonder why I'm so  crabby?"
I asked, “Have you eaten?”
“I’m not hungry,” was his reply.
I said, “Trust me on this, eat something!”  (When he's crabby, he's either tired or hungry, and usually doesn't realize either one!)

Juan ate and realized, he was hungry.  So I ate.  I was hungry too but just didn’t realize it.  How’s that for crazy?  Most of the time I eat even if I’m NOT hungry.  This is usually NOT a problem for me.

There it is.  The secret of appetite suppression is to have too much stuff to do in the amount of time you have to do it!

Uh Oh.  Maybe I shouldn’t tell my kids this, or they’ll make me thank them for being slobs.  They might even leave more for me to do on the weekends and plead homework as a way to get out of chores. 

Let’s keep this little secret between you and me.