New Focus For A New Year (Am I Sensing A Theme Here?)

Howdy folks! This camper is feeling much, much better. Thank the lawdy! The flu has finally left and I hope it never, ever returns. It has left a wee bit of sinus congestion that should hopefully be on it's way out as well.

I needed to take a break from paint prep, packing and cleaning and thought the perfect distraction would be catching up on my blog reading and writing. So here I am. I was reading some old posts of mine trying to pinpoint where I lost my drive and focus and unfortunately there is no clear cut time. I think it was a little more subtle than that. I would be lying if I said this didn't cause me to feel a little sad, ashamed and angry.

That also seemed to be the theme on Biggest Loser last night. I don't think I am going to watch this season because I was so disgusted with the shock tactics and overly dramatic scenes that seem to be shaping up this seasons episodes. To be honest I was kinda done last season (except for Danny... I lurved him!) My roommate and I were sitting there open-mouthed and angry at the blatant humiliation these people were going through for the sake of television ratings and sensationalism. Yes, I understand that they signed up to lose weight and air their emotional issues on national television but seriously? The weigh-in in front of their friends, family and townspeople? The message was so abundantly clear; You should be deeply ashamed for being this fat and it is now time for you to apologize for making everyone around you feel embarrassed for having to look at your fat, slothy ass! I know, I know... they agreed to weigh themselves on television for the whole world to see, but the contestants weighing in at the ranch in front of the trainers and each other would be a bonding tool that would forage friendships and alliances. I just feel that the heart and true message of the show has gotten lost in the producers need for ratings and shock value. P.S, where has Bob's training through love and compassion gone and since when did Gillian become a Psychologist? What happened to not stepping out of your scope of practice? Okay, rant done.

So, the title of my post? Maybe I should actually get to that. :)

Even though it made me angry, I am glad that I watched last nights BL episode if only for the fact that it got me thinking about my own situation and how I truly feel about myself and my body. I am tired of hating my body, of being ashamed of how I look but mostly I am tired of not truly loving and accepting myself... problems and all. So this years focus will be on finding happiness through creativity.

I used to be so imaginative, creative and artistic and somewhere along the way I lost a majority of that in my need to conform and to be liked by everyone. Well Screw That! :) So needless to say my blog will probably be focusing more on the things I do to enrich my life and the posts on how many calories I eat and the new fad diets I want to try will be fewer and farther between. I understand that I may lose a few readers because of that and I am okay with it. I understand that people need to read what inspires them and that may not necessarily be my blog.

I am also dedicating this year to more movement. I have noticed a stiffness that has started to settle in my body, I want to let that go and encourage space to open up. Yes, in a cut and dry way this means more exercise but I am approaching it from a different angle, not through the desperation to burn as many calories as possible.

This brings me to my third goal, self acceptance. I am hoping that the above two goals will help me in my achievement of the third. So I am going to focus on doing things that make me happy and strong. With that said, I am going to sign off now to head to the gym, have a nice lunch, a relaxing shower and then back to packing and cleaning. It's less than two weeks till moving day. Eeeek!

Until next time I wish you all much love and happiness in the new year!

Grinch

Hey kids,

This chica has been through H.E. double hockey sticks this past week. Not only did my fair Hamlet get hit by the worst snowstorm this area has seen since 1979 but now, NOW I am sick as a dog. Just in time for the holidays, just in time for me to miss out on some mucho deniro just in time to make me a perfect grump!

So sorry, there wont be much blogging until after the holidays. :(

I hope you all have a safe and lovely Solstice, a Merry Christmas, a Happy Hanukkah, a Joyous Kwanzaa and a wonderful New Year! :)

Soooo, How Are You? :)

Wow.... I have been putting off blogging for ever and now there are so many subjects to cover that I feel this post will be a doozie. So bare with me please.

Gosh, where to start?

Okay, Food Matters by Mark Bittman is a revelation. I know that I am super late on hopping on this bandwagon but what can I say? I tend to come to things in my own time. To sum up; in order to shrink your global footprint, eat consciously, feel better and yes, even loose weight you should eat local, eat mostly plants, animal protein as more of a side dish and stay away from processed foods. You may be thinking, well duh Olivia, many books have said such things. But for some reason they way Mr. Bittman writes about it makes sense to this lay person.

So I have been putting his ideas to work. The thing to remember is that it's not about what you can't have it's about what you can. So I have been juggling several different approaches. The one that seems to be working for the moment is eating mostly fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains with meat being a side dish or a flavoring. In fact what I have been doing is saving animal protein for my evening meal ( one of many positives to this approach is since I mostly work out in the evening the protein helps to repair my muscles during sleep.) Plus the meat I am purchasing is from my local butcher from a local source so that makes me feel kinda good. :)

I must admit it has been a little challenging reminding myself not to order meat when I go out and to try to stick to the mostly vegetarian menu options but other than that it's been pretty awesome. I feel much more energetic, I am sleeping better and you know what the best thing about this change is? It's so much friendlier to my wallet. You will be amazed at the amount of savings you will enjoy when you mostly buy fruit, veggies, legumes and grains. So give Food Matters a read, I got mine from my local library.

Moving on to exercise (groan.) I gotta be honest... I can definitely improve my commitment to exercise. I was doing quite well for a few weeks in November but admit that I lost my way. I started back up again this week partly because I have been feeling so much more energy from the Food Matters menu but also because I have been thinking about goals. I have been reading what Krissie at Questions For Dessert has been up to for the past couple of months. That girl is a runnin' fool and I love it! In fact running has been on my mind a lot lately. I really admire the people I see out there every day running, taking that time out for themselves and getting stronger every day. Many of my clients are runners and I just love to hear them talk about the feeling they get when they run... the Runner's High I believe it's called. It just sounds so amazing.

I know that I am a quite a bit away from being able to run for exercise. Any sort of bouncing exercise tends to hurt (if you know what I mean) so I have to always find alternative ways of doing things. I hope to one day not have to worry about alternatives, to one day be able to just hop into any exercise without feeling so incredibly overwhelmed at first. Here's hoping or should I say hopping? ;)

Moving Day approaches. Well, not till the middle of January but it feels like it's next week. I am starting to freak a little because I feel as though the packing will never get done. Work has picked up in many ways and slowed in some but I seem to have little time to do home stuff except at night but by then I am tired and just want to lay in bed and read. Hence the not so frequent blogging. Even with all the stress I am still super excited. I love the house I will be moving too. I really enjoy the folks I will be sharing the house with and I really enjoy the fact that it is out in the country. Don't get me wrong, I love my little historic town but it seems like the University is taking over and the college kids are infesting every single apartment building downtown. I have nothing against college kids but let's call a spade a spade and admit that loud obnoxious partying until the wee hours of the morning almost every night starts to take it's toll. I used to be there, I was that young once so I don't throw a big stink about it. Instead I chose to move elsewhere.

I hope to have to pictures to show you soon of the new place. I have to paint at some point before I move into my room and hope that will only take a day or two. The kitchen is so lovely... so much room and counter space. I find myself becoming more creative with food when I am over there. There is a big porch with rocking chairs and a beautiful two story shed that the upstairs can be converted into an art studio. I can't wait!!!!

Enough about me, what have you been up to?

ThePioneer Woman's Sweet-Roasted Acorn Squash Wedges

It's no secret that I love me some Pioneer Woman. I must check her site at least three times a day.... more if I am off work. I covet her new cookbook and hope upon hope that Santa will bring it to me this year. ;) When I saw this recipe I knew it was for me. I actually made it quite a while ago but haven't had the time to sit down and blog about it. I changed the butter to Smart Balance and halved the recipe since I only had one squash. Here goes:

Ingredients

• 1 whole Acorn Squash, Cut Into 8 Wedges Each
• 2 dash(es) Olive Oil
• Salt To Taste
• 1/4 cup Smart Balance
• 1/4 cups Brown Sugar (lightly Packed)
• 1 Tablespoon Rosemary (minced)
• 
  

Cut squash in half

Scoop out seeds and guts

Cut into wedges, smear in olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt roast at 350 degrees for 20 minutes

While the squash is baking mince the rosemary

Mix Smart Balance, brown sugar and rosemary into a paste

Once the first baking is done, smear the paste onto the squash wedges, return to the oven for 30 minutes or until caramelized

Smells heavenly

Tastes even better :)

I decided to make chicken breasts to go with it. Take two tablespoons vinaigrette of your choice and 1 teaspoon herbs de Provence and mix it in a small baking dish

Add two skinless chicken breasts and cover with the mixture. Cover in tinfoil and bake with the squash for it's last 3o minutes

De-lish! Thank you Pioneer Woman!

Farewell Dear Friend

My beloved purple Guess bag has moved on to a better place. A place where purses are free. Free of clutter, gum wrappers, spilled lotion, scuff marks and broken handles. I will miss you my loveliest of accessories. Perhaps we will meet again someday... or maybe if you have a twin sister you could send her my way? *sobs quietly to herself*

Post In the Near Future

I promise. :) There has been a lot going on and business had JUMPED and with packing and Christmas coming, time has gotten away from me. But soon, my pretties, soon. :D

Happy Turkey or Tofurkey Day Everyone!

Thanksgiving dinners take eighteen hours to prepare. They are consumed in twelve minutes. Half-times take twelve minutes. This is not coincidence. ~Erma Bombeck