Menu Planning

The new routine in my house is to plan the dinners for the week. You see my dad has taken over the duties of Head Chef during the week since he is retired and I am working full time, plus go to the gym or aquafit most days after work. This takes a load off me, and ensures that the food is ready when I get home so that I don't eat everything in sight.

Our routine includes looking through my favourite health conscious recipe books and magazines for recipes that appeal to both of us and are simple enough for Dad to make. Since there's only two of us and we have no problem eating left overs, we choose 3 recipes that will make from 4-6 servings. Any more than that and we'll be eating the same thing for weeks! As we choose the recipes we discuss what ingredients we already have and what we need, and so the shopping list formed as well.

The next step is for me to go to the computer and write the plan into a spreadsheet. I first list all the recipes on the menu for the week, the book or magazine they are in, page number, servings and number of points per serving.

I then assign a recipe to the day of the week and decide what sides to have with it. Sometimes it's as simple as salad or baked potato and veggies, depending on the recipe. I have a formula that shows me the total points for the planned meal, and then I print. This list gets placed on the fridge.

Since the remainder of my meals are planned each night as I pack my "feed bag" for the next day, this process allows me to know exactly what I'm eating for dinner on any given day so that I can plan accordingly and not exceed my points allowance.

So you must be wondering what I'm having for dinner this week.... get your drool bibs!

Recipe	Recipe Book/magazine	Points Per Serving
Polynesian Stir Fry	Healthy Cooking (April/May 2009)	6
Simply Orange Chicken	Looney Spoons	5
Chicken and Shrimp Jambalaya	Anne Lindsay's Light Kitchen	9

Weigh In Week 2

For many reasons today has been an extremely frustrating day.  Work was frustrating but I was able to leave it behind when I hopped in my car at 5:30 and headed home for a bit before my weigh-in at Weight Watchers.  I was kind of excited about tonight because it has been a very good week.  I've planned and journalled all my food, made lunches every day, made healthy choices when eating out, worked out three times and weighed myself to see how I was doing.  By all accounts I had lost at least another pound this week but when I stepped on the scale I was absolutely deflated when I found out that I gained a pound.

There was nothing to beat myself up about because there was no rhyme or reason as to why and that's what is so frustrating for me.  I cannot explain why I gained a pound but I have to believe that it was an anomoly and all will be right with the universe next week.  But I don't know.  And that's what is so discouraging.  I will have to face many people and confess that my weight went up, not down as I predicted, and I have to find the strength to believe that if I continue I will succeed.  So although I got home late tonight and had pretty much decided I wasn't going to make my lunch, I found the strength to go back downstairs and plan my day.  I planned my food and packed my "feed bag".  I guess I'll give it another week.  What have I got to lose?

Weigh In Day

I am happy to report a 2.5 lb loss on my first week of Weight Watchers.  I am very happy with that!  Not only did I lose 2.5 lbs but my week was filled with healthy food choices, everything in moderation, and some opportunities to learn.

Lesson #1:  Always Read the Recipe Twice

After pouring over a few recipes last week to find one that didn't require a trip to the grocery store, I picked one out that my dad could make and I wrote down the substitutions (eg: spinach for artichokes ) for him so that he wouldn't have to try to figure it out himself.  I was looking forward to that Greek pasta dish all day!  

When I got home from the gym I was famished but dinner was ready and waiting for me.  I remembered that it said it made two servings so I happily scooped up half the pot into my bowl and was thrilled to see the big pile of food I was entitled to.  Uh... NOT!  

After I finished the big honking bowl I had a belly ache and thought that I had to have been wrong about the number of servings so I rechecked the recipe.  SIX SERVINGS!!!  Whoops!  I just ate three!!  I was honest and recorded all the extra points against my flex points for the week.  There went my "drinking money"!!

Lesson #2:  No Matter How Hungry I am, Two Cups of Pasta is Too Much

On Sunday I spent a good chunk of the day cooking food ahead for the week as I knew I'd be really busy, and my chief chef (aka DAD) was away for the week.  One of the things I made ahead was a pot of a very low cal tuna pasta sauce and was looking forward to having a favourite pasta dinner.  After planning my points for the day I toddled off to work with my lunch bag full of healthy, yummy food, knowing that I had planned well enough to save enough points to have two cups of cooked pasta with my sauce.

After I got home from the gym I cooked up the pasta and sat down with my big bowl of comfort food that was still in the day's plan.  I enjoyed every morsel but about an hour later the overfull bellyache kicked in again.  So now I know.... two cups of pasta is too much.

Lesson #3:  If I Think I'm Hungry, Wash the Kitchen Floor

This one is simple.  By the time you've washed and waited for it to dry, (you're "locked out"while it's wet) you may not be hungry anymore.  If you are, it's probably real hunger.

And the added benefit is that you now have a clean kitchen floor!

Where does the time go?

Oh boy I'm tired! I am nearing the end of my first week on Weight Watchers, combined with new, inspired buddy approach to regular exercise. In addition to working a 37.5 hour week I have gone to the gym 3 times, done an aquafit class, cleaned my house, fixed my stove, organized my freezer, packed lunch every day, cooked a pot of soup, a pot of pasta sauce, cut up veggies, made dip and hummus, and prepared a great "Sunday Dinner" barbeque. Additionally everything I have consumed has been recorded in my journal. I've either planned my day in advance or kept track as I've consumed, but each morsel has been recorded for posterity, and hopefully resulting in less "posteriority"!!

My friend Laura has been a great inspiration and motivator to keep me going but after getting home from aquafit tonight and having to feed myself, do the dishes, pack my lunch, put out the garbage, clean the litter boxes, prepare the coffee for the morning and wash my bathing suit, my night is shot! I'm exhausted!

I hope this gets easier! I don't know how she does it because I don't even have kids and I'm wiped. Laura has three kids and a wonderful husband! OY!! I'm pooped!

In the beginning...

Today I formed the first building block of my support network:  Gym buddies.  Oh I've been to the gym many times before.  Sometimes regularly, but most often sporadically, so what makes today different?  I had two gym "dates".  

On the advice of my dear friend Laura I am forming a support network to help keep me motivated.  I'm a pleaser so if I know people are counting on me, I'll be there.  My next "date" is for Saturday, after which I plan to have a regular date three nights a week with my friend Steve.  Mondays, Thursdays (3 out of 4 in a month) and Saturdays.  Wish me luck!  

My New Mantra

Anyone who knows me knows that I have fought a losing battle with my weight my whole life.  Recently I've begun the arduous task of facing my challenges with the objective of achieving some long sought-after goals.  At this point I am still in the process of choosing my vehicles for this journey but on the Sparkpeople website today I came across the following quote:

"God, grant me the serenity to accept the people I cannot change, the courage to change the one that I can, and the wisdom to know that it's me."

Truer words were never spoken.  Stay tuned.  The journey is beginning.

Online Dating Scammer

Originally posted on August 31:

Well folks it has happened!! I've heard about these dating scammers but have been fortunate enough to not encounter any of them in all my years of online dating. That is, until about 3 weeks ago!

This really nice guy, 9 years younger than I am contacted me. Now if I was not previously contacted by younger men I might have been suspicious but I do receive a lot of emails from younger guys. Shawn was a sweetheart and seemed totally smitten with me. He certainly didn't appear to be internet-savvy since his msn account showed his first and last name. He took his time charming me and had the right balance of sweet, syrupy, schmaltz and sassiness. He seemed to have a good sense of humour and we enjoyed a lot of playful banter, but never anything intimate. I told him that I reserve those conversations for someone I've met and am officially dating. He totally understood.

We exchanged photos and he had two professional looking photos and one casual photo in his kitchen. I asked about the professional shots and he said his ex was a photographer.

We talked about all kinds of things, including the fact that he owns his own businss and was working hard so he could retire early. I offered that while I made a good salary I tended to live in the moment more so than he. I don't recall the context of the conversation but there were no alarms when the discussion of credit cards came up. I mentioned how when I travelled for work that I had an Aeroplan Amex to maximize the miles, but downgraded to a no-fee card when I stopped travelling. I also mentioned that I had my mastercard account since I was 18. (In hindsight I told him a lot with that statement.) He wondered if it was a BMO account and I recall thinking that it was an odd thing to ask and I didn't answer.

Things progressed and he asked for my phone number. I gave him my cell and when he asked for my home number I said that I would give it to him later - when the time is right. I asked for his number and got a cell, but he claimed to have no land line.

We talked on the phone a few times and one time I phoned him he didn't answer. It rolled to voicemail and what I found odd was that there was no personalized message on it. For a guy who owns a business and has no land line I thought that to be strange.

Well around Wednesday of the second week of our contact he announced that he had to go to Shanghai to meet a supplier and ensure that they could meet the supply commitment as he had secured a contract with a major retailer. He left early Saturday morning and as expected I didn't hear from him until later Sunday evening, which was Monday, Shanghai time. 12hr time difference.

Conveniently he forgot his digital camera so was unable to send me pictures and was very vague about what he was doing every day. My spider senses were tingling now and I noticed that the times he was online didn't jive well with a 12 hr time difference and reasonable sleep/work hours. He'd come online at 5 am his time, and again at 12:30 am - 3:00 am, and that was it. Very rarely did I get a message in between but occasionally I'd get an email around 11:00 am his time. This was the pattern for about 4 days and then on Thursday he came online and started complaining about BMO.

Apparently he had decided to move all of his business funds (and made a point of telling me he had $60k in the account) to a bank in Shanghai so he wouldn't have to carry a lot of cash. He said that the bank screwed up and his money was on hold for 30 days and he might get stuck in Shanghai until it was resolved and the deal might fall through. Alarm bells rang immediately. I encouraged him to talk to the bank since it was their screw up and he said he'd figure something out. After we disconnected I hit Google in the fast lane. I searched out all the online dating scams and found a lot of similarity and common indicators, however his particular scenario was unique. There was enough commonality, however for me to be 99% certain that I had a scammer on my hands.

On Friday he came online, right on schedule. I asked what he was going to do about the money situation. He said to me, "Let me ask you this. Can I even trust you with my money?" I said, "No. You shouldn't trust strangers. I'm a stranger." and he let it drop. We chit chatted about other things and I steered the conversation back to the money. I asked why he would ask if he could trust me with his money and he decided that since I asked, he'd tell me his plan.

He said he had a client who wanted to pay him but since he was in Shanghai he couldn't take care of it so he was thinking I could do it on his behalf. He wanted me to deposit it into my credit card and when it cleared, take it out and send it to him. He hadn't figured out yet in what form and how I'd send it to him but said he'd figure it out when we get there.

After playing dumb for a while and getting him to reveal exactly what he wanted me to do, and him countering all my logical arguments against the plan, I finally told him that it sounded like money laundering, and that he was a scammer with no interest in dating me. He laughed it off and said to not worry about it, he understands my concern and he will prove to me when we meet that he's good for it. I'm not sure what he meant but I found it odd that he didn't get the least bit upset that I accused him of fraud and illegal activity. He immediately changed the subject and after a few short minutes said that he had to get some sleep.

That was Friday around 1pm and I have not had an email or attempted IM from him since, which goes against the established pattern. I really hope he goes away now. Thank God my Spider Senses served me well again, because despite finally allowing my walls to crumble, I always had one foot on the ground. He definitely fell into the "too good to be true" category and while I got into it, I took it with a grain of salt.

The one thing I've learned since I posted this experience is that this wasn't a case of money laundering but rather an attempt to get my credit card information under the guise of depositing money. Once he had my credit card info he would have been long gone! Bank on it!