Wednesday, May 31, 2006

Lucky Number Seven

Weigh-ins are now on Wednesdays... so it has been 6 days since the last meeting. Today I hit lucky number 7, as I have lost a total of 7 pounds even. Whew! Not easy! I only clocked a .5 lb loss this week, granted it was a long holiday weekend and only 6 days since my last time on the scale.

Here is where I am going wrong (well, not wrong exactly, since I have clocked losses for 3 straight weeks):

1) Exercise. Sorry folks, I just don't like it. Never have and I doubt I never will. It's just that way. I am not lazy, I just don't enjoy sweating. Or the gym. Or sports bras. Or sneakers. I don't even like the word sneakers.

2) Water. I know I am supposed to drink like 8 glasses of water a day, but I am lucky to get in 2 or 3. I just don't drink that much of anything. Except the obligatory coffee in the morning. Can't get by without that. Even if I have a full glass of water on my desk, I still don't remember to drink it. I need to make myself signs or something.

3). Eating. Duh! Though I have done very well here at the start, I can do better. I WILL do better! I want to start cooking more and finding new healthy snacks. I get so tempted by the fatty foods the people around me are eating. I get trapped into thinking, just a bite won't hurt. Then, before I know it, I've had 4 french fries.

The nice boy has been so sweet and supportive through this, which has been totally encouraging and endearing. He even cheered my .5 lb loss today.

Don't get me wrong, I don't want to turn this into a diet blog, but I feel writing about it makes me more accountable. So please, be patient with me on this.

Tuesday, May 30, 2006

Of Mice and Men and Bears and BBQs

So, I found a mouse dropping this weekend. I am sure that is exactly what you were hoping to see on interravision today, "mice droppings". Yuck. Eww. And you know... where there are droppings... Luckily (or not, depending) I saw the dropping near the poison bait thingy that my landlord put out. Hopefully that takes care of that and I won't find any more unwanted house guests anytime soon.

Damir was back in Boston this weekend and thankfully the sun came out in time for us to do some fun day trips. I picked him up on Saturday and we drove up the coast on Rte 1A through Cape Ann to Rockport. It was great driving through all the pretty little coastal towns, and the weather was perfect and sunny.

We met up for dinner with Amanda and David and had a great time talking about how crazy Switzerland is, cross country drives, and Amanda and David's upcoming move out West. We ended the evening at one of my favorites, Bar 10.

Sunday was a bit of a lazy day watching baseball and strolling around the neighboorhood. We Hung out for a long time in the North End, and had dinner at a great little place called Euno. I splurged on some pasta, but only ate about 1/4 of my plate so hopefully I won't regret it at tomorrow's weigh-in. Mmmmm. Pasta. Food-wise I was pretty good the rest of the weekend.

OK, have you heard about Build a Bear? Am I the only one who has never heard of this before? Fantastic idea! Go to this shop, pick out a bear "skin", watch it get filled with fluff (as much or little as you like), insert a heart (which you make a wish on before the heart goes in), sew it up, and pick out an outfit and a name. OK, I love this. I may be a total goofball, but I love it!

Damir took me on Monday to make my own bear, and you know what? It was silly and yet so very sweet. Yes, I am gushing. I am the proud owner of Medo (that's montenegrin for bear):


and have him smartly dressed in these overalls:


Thankfully Damir didn't make me get the Yankees uniform for Medo.

Later on Monday we headed over to casa de Superette for some BBQ delish. This is where my diet was really put to the test! All that gorgeous meat, hotdogs, snacks, and treats. So hard to resist! I had a big salad, some grilled asperagus and grilled zucchini. OK, yes, I snuck in a few potatoe chips and a bit of hotdog-- but no bun or relish. And no dessert. I rock. This morning I fit into a pair of pants that I haven't worn in nearly a year. That's good news. Worth a few missed cookies for sure.

While at Superette I picked up my order for a hot little cell-phone cleaner and all purpose pouch designed with the cutest little russian nesting dolls. The lovely ladies who bring you the wonderfully Superette have started their own design company: MOGO (Modern Goods from Scratch). The best part is, you can have your own fun items and not have to pick it up in person... They ship!

SHAMELESS PLUG: Please visit and buy something from MOGO! Trust me, you won't be sorry. And you will be the envy of all of your friends for having cool unique hand-made accessories.

Damir left back to NYC this morning, and I am sad. It's hard to have all these starts and stops... he's here and we're together 24-7 and then he is suddenly gone. I don't know when we'll see each other next. Hopefully very soon.

Sunday, May 28, 2006

Fabulous Find

I am in love with this stationary! I just ordered myself a set of personal notecards that look like this from http://www.fabulousstationery.com:

To be more specific, I ordered the red/orange one that will say my name instead of Bernadette's. Aren't they fabulous? They have a ton of awesome choices, I almost couldn't pick just one. I can't wait to get them! Yay for me!

Friday, May 26, 2006

Flickr

This is a test post from flickr, a fancy photo sharing thing.

Thursday, May 25, 2006

Weekly Weigh-in

So, the diet was a bit rough this week. I had a conference for 2 days this week for work, and though I tried, it was tough to be as regimented as I have been at home. This week's total loss is:

1.8 Pounds!

Still not too bad, I guess. Weight Watchers is designed so that you lose typically between .5 and 2 lbs per week, so I am still within the target for sure. The good news is that I got my bike fixed and picked it up last night, so I have started biking to the office again. Yay! That makes me so happy and is a great way for me to fit exercise into my day.

The nice boy is coming back this weekend from Saturday until Tuesday morning! Looks like we'll be heading over to Superette's house on Monday for a BBQ. I will have to bring some WW friendly food with me so I don't pig out on chips and beer. mmmm...chips. I am excited to introduce him to my friends for the first time!

Thursday, May 18, 2006

Drum Roll Please...

4.8!!!!!

That is how much less of me is writing this week than last week. Four-point-eight pounds! I lost 4.8 pounds in a week! Woo-hoo!!!! It's so good to know that my food sacrifices this week paid off. I am on my way to my goal!

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

Red Balloons and Rain Hats

When We lived in Amsterdam, we got used to the rain and clouds. There was no other choice. I remember during the first winter in Amsterdam we kept track on our calendars the number of rainy days in a row...and it turned out to be over three-week's worth.

Then the sun would suddenly appear and the entire city would come out of hiding to bask in the fresh light. Offices shut down, canal side cafe`s filled up. It was like a perfect magic trick.

Yesterday evening as I stepped off the T at Copley Square I was reminded of that feeling as I stepped into sunlight for the first time in over a week. I stopped dead in my tracks and turned my face to the sun and took my rain hat off. Others around me did the same.

----------------------------------------

Do you remember movies or film strips you watched in elementary school? Who remembers the 1956 film The Red Balloon (Le Ballon Rouge)?


I think I saw that in the third grade and remember weeping afterwards. When the bullies pop the balloon... it's so sad! OK, I am a sap. Always have been apparently.

There was another film I remember, but not quite as distinctly. The story took place on another planet, one where it rained all the time. Only one day of the year was sunny and all the people rejoiced and celebrated this day. The story focused on a group of schoolchildren who were cutting out flowers and suns in preparation for the big day; they were all so excited and happy since the sun was soon to come out. Then a group of bullies thought it would be funny to lock away one of the other children while they were just playing around. They forgot about her as the sun came out and ran out to play in the flowers and light.

When they returned and realized they caused her to miss the one big happy day of the year, they all felt terrible and one by one the students gave their freshly cut flowers to the little girl, who just stood there with tears streaking down her face.

God. It was SO sad. It still breaks my heart, the few images I can remember from this film. Funny that when we don't see the sun for a while, I always think about that movie I saw probably 25 years ago.

Monday, May 15, 2006

Top Five

Top Five Reasons I can't wait to see dragi moj again...

5. Because he remembers things. Not just facts and figures, but things like how I take my coffee and what kind of flowers I like.
4. Because not only does he remember such things, but he actually does something with the knowledge, like surprising me with my favorite flowers and making a coffee run for me.
3. Because he can fix anything. He fixed my toilet AND my bicycle. Without the benefit of tools.
2. Because he likes to hold hands, open doors, hold the umbrella, carry my parcels, and tuck my hair behind my ear.
1. Because I love spoiling him as much as he has been spoiling me.

Wait... am I gushing? Oy. Ah well. I will try to keep it to a minimum. I won't see him again for at least 2 weeks so there's plenty of time to talk about other things. By the way, it is still raining. I am going to sprout gills soon if this keeps up.

In other news, I started weight watchers last Thursday. I have been very good so far and not cheated once! Even when Damir was here, I ate salad while he had a hot dog AND a philly cheesesteak. Of course I was coveting his greasy goodness all the while. My first week's weigh-in is Thursday. Let's see how I do! I'd kill for a big plate of nachos (sans cheese) right now. Instead, I just had an apple. I hate apples. Well, I don't hate them, but I swear this one was mocking me. Wish me strength and luck!

Enough is Enough


Come on. Really?

Thursday, May 11, 2006

Blonde Rebellion

I did it. I let go of my blonde tresses in favor of... well, not sure what to call it. Judge for yourself!



Monday, May 08, 2006

Boston's Zakim Bridge

I have to say, I love Boston's newest bridge, the Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge (try to say that one 10 times fast). Did you know it's the widest cable-stayed bridge in the world, spanning 10 lanes of traffic? It looks pretty cool at night. Learn more here.





(I took these walking to my sister's in Charlestown over the canals behind the Garden).

Chokeback Yankees

I love a good parody! Especially one that makes fun of the Yankees.

Thursday, May 04, 2006

Tuesday, May 02, 2006

Random Beauty...Or the beauty of Randomness

I took four rolls of actual film to be developed yesterday. Yes! You heard me, actual film! Can you believe people still use film?! Yes! It's true!

What's funny is that some of the rolls were many years old. So, I found lots of fun and unexpected images. I'll post a few over the next couple of days...but here are some from last summer...ahhhh, summer....