WHY WOULD ANYONE SIGN UP

We went out to eat Monday night. Our small town has one restaurant within the city limits. It was Valentine's Day (oops I mentioned it again) and the place was packed.

We were seated near a pastor and his wife. He was a former pastor in our town at one of the large churches (if any of them are large) and almost everyone in the cafe knew the couple. They passed the table and offered friendly greetings and each group that passed by would leave a straggler who just had to make lengthy conversation...regardless of the fact that the man had his wife were out for what I would suppose was to be a romantic evening.

Being the daughter of a minister and the sister of a recently retired minister, I know the drill quite well. Everyone fawns over the pastor and ignores the wife. They might utter a friendly hello to her but their goal is to monopolize the great and powerful OZ. There is not one place that is safe to go out in public because a minister will run into someone they know regardless. Plus, if they try to stay home, someone will have a valid reason to invade even their personal space no matter what the preacher's family might be doing. The preacher expects all that when he makes a decision to enter the ministry but do the wives really know what they are getting into? Do ministers realize how devoted their spouses have to be to put up with living in the shadows?

This woman in the restaurant smiled and nodded and as the crowd grew around her husband I watched her slowly turn and prop her legs across the booth seat, preventing anyone from seating themselves next to her. She managed this slowly and gracefully while smiling and appearing interested. I wished my mom had been a preacher's wife in a time when slacks were proper attire for women. She probably could have used this trick and I can't help but wonder if my Sil knows about it.

Just out of curiosity if you happen to have a church affiliation, do you believe that entitles you to an amount of ownership in your minister over and above his (or her) family?

MORE THAN A PILL

This is the beginning of the 7th week of being on the Alli program for weight loss. As of this morning I have lost a total of 19 pounds. So far I am averaging 3 lbs per week but my actual current loss is 1-2 pounds per week.

Still have not experienced what they call TEs (Treatment Effects). It is simply a matter of following the meal planning, carefully watching the fat grams consumed and exercising. My son observed this weekend that the reason the program is so successful is because by the time I've planned my meals, I'm too tired to eat. LOL

This plan seems to actually work. While the effort has to be my own, the pill increases the amount of weight I lose by 50%.

I am not advertising for Alli and I have no idea if this would work for everyone. I simply know it works for me. My advice for anyone considering this would be that they sign up for the free Alli website and calculate their BMI to determine their recommended calorie and fat gram intake. Then follow the meal plan for at least three days before starting the pills and work it so you begin the pills on the weekend so you can be at home, just in case you experience TEs.

Yes, I'll probably keep talking about this for quite a while. Forgive me, but I'm just so excited. Look at it this way, at least I'm not talking about Valentine's Day anymore:)

New recipes that I like:

Swamp Chicken Chili

4 cans of Northern white beans (not drained!)
Shredded chicken (I used a can of white meat chicken)
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
2 cups Salsa
1 tsp Thyme.

Mix all in crockpot and cook on low for about 3-4 hours. If cooked on top of stove, bring ingredients to boil, then reduce heat and simmer about 45 minutes. This has 300 calories and 10.5 fat grams per 1 cup serving. Quick and easy to prepare.

Chicken Skillet with spinach

1 tablespoon olive oil
6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
2 onions chopped
1 lb red potatoes cut in 1/2 inch cubes
1 cup chicken broth
1/3 cup white wine
1 teaspoon thyme
salt and pepper to taste
3 cups baby spinach

In a skillet, heat oil over medium heat, add chicken and cook till browned on both sides. Add onions, potatoes chicken broth, wine, thyme and salt and pepper. Lower heat; cover and simmer for 20-30 minutes or until chicken is cooked. Serve on 1/2 cup raw spinach together a much as you can so it wilts correctly. 372 calories 6 fat grams per serving. (serves 6)


ABC Sandwich (Apple, Bacon and Cheese)

One thin sliced apple, two strips of crisp, low sodium bacon, 1/3 cup shredded low fat 4 cheese blend on two slices of wheat or multi-grain bread with Dijon mustard. This has 286 calories and 10.5 fat grams. (I adapted this from a Rachel Ray recipe that is well over 500 calories and almost 30 fat grams and her's contains 5 strips of bacon. Yikes!)

my all time favorite
Breakfast Burrito:

1 wheat tortilla (microwave dampened tortilla on paper towel in microwave for 20 seconds)
1 scrambled egg (I microwave one of my farm fresh, free range, low cholesterol, high omega 3, chicken eggs for about 30 seconds)
1 link of Jimmy Dean turkey sausage chopped into small bites (microwave 15 seconds)
1 sprinkle of low fat 4 cheese blend
1 Tbs. salsa.

251 calories and 15 fat grams.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY ...finally

Grandchildren were here this weekend. Beth baked chocolate chip cookies and made me this Toll House Cookie Heart!!

Famous Valentine's Day quotes:

We are all a little weird and life's a little weird, and when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall in mutual weirdness and call it love.
Author Unknown

If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day, so I never have to live without you.
Winnie the Pooh

Without love, what are we worth? Eighty-nine cents! Eighty-nine cents worth of chemicals walking around lonely.
Hawkeye in M*A*S*H

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of Being and ideal Grace.
Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Grow old along with me, the best is yet to be.
Robert Browning

All I really need is love, but a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt!
Lucy Van Pelt
In Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz.

Love has no other desire but to fulfill itself. To melt and be like a running brook that sings its melody to the night. To wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving.
Kahlil Gibran

When I get older losing my hair many years from now,
Will you still be sending me a Valentine, birthday greetings, bottle of wine?
If I'd been out till quarter to three would you lock the door?
Will you still need me, will you still feed me,
When I'm sixty-four?
John Lennon & Paul McCartney

Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired.
Robert Frost

One word frees us of all the weight and pain in life. That word is love.
Sophocles

Gravitation is not responsible for people falling in love.
Albert Einstein

True love stories never have endings.
Richard Bach

I love you not only for what you are, but for what I am when I am with you. I love you not only for what you have made of yourself, but for what you are making of me. I love you for the part of me that you bring out.
Roy Croft

LIKE A GOOD NEIGHBOR...

The story told of asking children what they needed to live. "Food," came one response. "Water" and "a house" were volunteered. Then a young girl said firmly, "A neighbor."

This caused me to reflect on the many neighbors I have had in 27 different homes. In only three locations did I have neighbors from hell. Most of the locations yielded persons who pretty much kept to themselves but I knew I could call on them if I needed to. Four of the locations actually blessed me with neighbors who basically saved my sanity by their existence in my life. There is a very long story involved with each of the bad neighbors and the four heavenly neighbors. Perhaps I'll do a follow-up on them one at a time in later blogs.

Right now I am experiencing a new kind of neighbor. My blog neighbors. It would be such a pleasure to live next door to most of my followers and those I follow. We have shared some of our most precious memories and secrets and daily experiences. We're a lot like best friends. Like a good neighbor......bloggers are there!

Hope you all have a HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

MILLENNIUM BABY

My new beau had never met my coworkers. For some reason it was important to me for them to like him. On one of his visits to Tulsa I got him to stop by the bank and get acquainted. He dropped by at a busy time for me and I could not take him around to meet everyone. He left only to return in less than an hour with a armload of long stem red roses. He proceeded to give one to every female employee of the bank and introduce himself to them. (Once a sailor, always a sailor.) There was no question after that whether they would like him or not At least the women would. LOL

It seems the occasion was to prepare for the millennium. He had heard on the radio that day was the last day in 1999 for a baby to be conceived for birth on January 1, 2000. As Ron was walking out the door of the bank, he bumped into our bank president, introduced himself and then told the president that he should send all the women home early so they could work on conceiving a millennium baby.

Was the feminist in me horrified? Oh yes. Were my professional sensitivities to the workplace offended? OMG! I had been trapped with customers and could not escape to escort this new man in my life back out the door. I had never known such a spontaneous person. But the look on our bank president's face was absolutely priceless.

WE'RE ON APPROACH

Do children still exchange Valentine's Day cards at school and do they count their cards to determine who is the most popular in the class? That was what happened in my day and it really should have been a criminal offense. (Needless to say, I didn't receive the most cards.)

Valentine's Day is next week. It is a mixed bag of tricks. Most people, and quite possibly more women than men, have expectations for that day. Isn't that strange? And will it ever be all that we want it to be?

Is it really about sharing the love or is it about bragging rights? Will you receive candy and flowers or will you give someone a gift? Do you send and receive Valentine's Day cards? Or, do you pull the covers over you head and just hope the day will pass without anyone asking your "plans for Valentine's Day"?

Or do you quietly celebrate love that day with your partner or your family members or your close friends and consider that a bountiful day?

HOW DOES COURTSHIP LAST

I waited at the airport terminal for him to exit the plane. We embraced and together collected his luggage. He opened his suitcase and pulled out a crinkled brown bag that was somewhat damp. "This is for you" he said and I reluctantly took this strange gift, opening it to discover a small bouquet of roses, carefully packed and looking as fresh as the moment he cut them for me.

Our courtship included lots of presents. He showered me with poetry books by Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett Browning and other favorites. He bought me several pieces of lovely jewelry. The first Valentines Day after we met, he sent a huge bouquet of roses to me at work. It was a thrill to display them on my desk for people to admire and inquire...and envy:) He showered me with gifts just the way women always hope a man will do.

While he was giving me those gifts and entertaining me with laughter and excitement, he was preparing a lifetime of gifts by listening. After our marriage the glittery gifts faded away to be replaced with a new type of gift. Ron hears and remembers my wishes and makes my dreams come true.

(Okay, some of you might remember the Case backhoe he gave me one Valentine's Day, but it was used for making my dreams come true so it was a good present and it was accompanied by flowers and candy. LOL)

AS-RIPPED OFF--ON-TV

Actually this is a great product!

People who are snow bound have time to think many strange thoughts. The "As-Seen-On-TV" ads grab your attention a lot more than they would otherwise. (Stay with me, there is a quiz at the end.)

We usually buy those type of products at the store. Walgreens carries many of those products and now I understand there is a store called AS-SEEN-ON-TV. Believe me, those are the places you want to buy these products. Otherwise you are in for a rude awakening over the total cost of the purchase.

Our Perfect Fit buttons that were on sale for $10 for two sets ended up costing us almost $25. It seems that once you opt for the free gift of under the bed shoe storage the shipping and handling on that "free gift" is almost twice the total purchase price. From the point of that disclosure there is no turning back and you are stuck.

Actually the perfect fit buttons are GREAT and will especially come in handy for me now that I have LOST 17 POUNDS! I will need to be tightening my pants:) But buy this neat product at a store and don't order by mail. My poor sister purchased a fishing rod that was $19.99 and by the time they got through with her she had paid close to $70.

Have you made an As-Seen-On-TV purchase from the television 1-800 number? Did you like the product or did it absolutely suck? Did you like the final price or did you feel ripped off? What products do you own as shown on these ads and what products would you like to own?

SLIM's ACTIONS SPEAK FOR ALL OKLAHOMANS

14 INCHES AND ITS STILL COMING DOWN.

DILEMMA OF THE WEEK

I read about a dilemma this morning and thought I would give you the question to ponder. Let's say that you are waiting in a bus shelter. A homeless person wanders in and stands next to you. This person is carrying a small basket of fresh strawberries. The homeless person sees you staring and extends the basket of fruit toward you, asking if you would like a strawberry. Would you take one? If you would not, why not?

CHOCOLATE CAKE, CASSEROLE, BACON, SAUSAGE, EGGS

What's for breakfast? Plus there is a Texas Hash casserole in the crock pot for lunch.

Well don't worry, I'm not breaking my personal menu choices in my fitness plan. So, why would someone involved with meal moderation and fitness get up early to cook up such food?

Three grandchildren came creeping into our home in the middle of the night with their papa. Granny Annie is filling the house to awaken them with delicious odors. I try to cook their favorites. Dillon's breakfast request, Ryan's lunch request, and Beth will get her pancakes tomorrow morning:)

These are precious morning sights to me!

MY EXPERIENCE WITH ALLI aka ORLISTAT

Okay, I don't want to jinx myself but I just have to share my latest health and fitness project with my fellow bloggers.

It was with great fear and trepidation that I purchased a starter kit of Alli weight loss pills and began to read all of the directions for using this product. I started several days early planning my daily menus and getting set up on their website. I receive email pointers and tips and have a weekly check-in that gives me some accountability.

First I started eating as suggested and followed the meal plans closely for five days before daring to take the first Alli capsule. My personal plan allowed me 1800 calories daily and 19 grams of fat per meal (approx. 60 g. daily). If you know about this pill, you know that there are dreadful tales out there about very traumatic and embarrassing effects that will hit you if you consume too much fat over your meal allowance. Now in the plan since December 28, 2010, I have not experienced those intestinal side effects but I do monitor my food intake very, very carefully. I have to believe that persons who have bad experiences are trying to just take the pill without reading the guidelines carefully.

As of today, I have lost 13 pounds with this plan of eating and exercise. My plate is actually not like the one shown above because my plate is very full of good food simply by planning and monitoring carefully. We can even go out to eat and I manage to find acceptable meals within my allowance. It is, however, consuming a big part of my time and concentration.

Simply following the suggested meal and exercise activities would probably cause me to lose a good amount of weight but they say the Alli pill increases your weight loss by about 50%. It is easy to stay within the boundaries out of fear over what excess could do to me.

I have a large amount of weight to lose. This plan divides it in smaller increments and therefore I have already met and exceeded my first goal which was 12 pounds. Alli is not for a person who only needs to lose a few pounds. It is for those falling in the obese category and much to my shame, I fell hard into that category right after Christmas.

First I gained energy with the help from the sleep disorder study which gave me the bipap machine to sleep under nightly which gave me long needed restful sleep which gave me energy and ambition to tackle this health and fitness program. I am exercising 5 -7 days a week as well as simply increasing my daily activity of household chores and care of all the animals.

I am moving forward full of hope that this will finally be the plan that will work for me. So far, so good. Thanks for listening.

PONDER YOUR SHADOW

"I have a little shadow that goes in and out with me, And what can be the use of him is more than I can see. He is very, very like me from the heels up to the head; And I see him jump before me, when I jump into my bed."
From My Shadow by Robert Louis Stevenson

This is an excerpt from my favorite childhood poem. This lovely verse caused me to pay a lot of attention to my shadow. It has been years since I have taken the time to acknowledge my shadow and wonder if you pay any attention to yours. It is always with us in some form. Should such a close associate have it's own name? Do you enjoy the company of your shadow or do you fear your own shadow? Or do you give a flying fig about your shadow?

If you have time, read about this strange shadow person. Is this a case of "paranoia, persecution or alien control"?

This is called blog posting desperation:)

FREAKY WIFI

(Thanks Suzy Q for sending this. It is the funniest ever!)

And if you are snowed in today like we are, you will enjoy a boogie with THE REAL BOOGIE MAN


(Thanks Suzy Q for sending this too. It got me moving)

THE WHEELS ON THE BUS

Did you ever (or do you ever) ride the bus? Many of my bus riding memories are vivid. Not only did I travel home from college on a Greyhound, but I also rode city bus transportation in Muskogee, OK, Oklahoma City, OK and Tulsa, OK.

My first experience on a city bus was while visiting a friend from church camp who lived in Muskogee. Her parents let us leave the house in the morning, catch a bus downtown and spend the day shopping, only to return to her home by our curfew. I am quite sure we were both about 11 or 12. It was the first day of my life to taste freedom and feel all grown up. Do any children still do this today? I am doubtful.

My fondest memory was a trip home from my grandparents in Ponca City, OK in 1958. My grandfather took me to the bus station and warned me not to talk to strangers. I was 12. Imagine the horror on my grandfather's face as the bus pulled away just as a young sailor sat down beside me. This handsome young sailor kept my attention all the way to Tulsa and even gave me his photo. When Ron and I found each other 13 years ago I liked to believe he was that same sailor I had been looking for since age 12:)

As a college student in Oklahoma City I had to return home once each month to have my dental braces adjusted. (Yes I wore braces my senior year in high school and my freshman year in college-...friends called me Grin-tin-tin). The bus seemed to stop every 30 miles between OKC and Altus, OK. The road was very treacherous and I was too young to actually be frightened by the trip. Several times I rode with the great-granddaughter of Quanah Parker and this frail, elderly woman would tell us stories of his life. Of course she could have made the whole thing up but for some reason I believed it all.

I worked for an insurance company downtown in Tulsa in the late 60s and had to ride the city bus daily to and from work. It was actually an enjoyable experience traveling with the same commuters every day and exchanging stories of our workday joys and woes. If a regular did not show up on the bus, we all worried about the individual.

Our most recent bus rides have been on tours when we go to Ron's various ship reunions. That travel is done on luxury charter buses.

I wonder what it would be like today to go the the bus station, buy a ticket to somewhere, and go for a ride. I hear it is not a very pleasant experience. I don't even know where a bus station is around here. Don't ask me why this all popped into my head. Do you have a bus story?

Suddenly I know why this popped into my head. Today is Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday and there was never a movement more involved with bus rides than the Civil Rights movement. I never traveled to a rally by bus but my siblings did.

READ THE CIRCLED ITEM

Everyone has complained about my handwriting all my life. Now I have reached the point where I cannot read it either.

Leaving for the store yesterday I suddenly remembered something left off the list. I quickly jotted it down and having old-timers disease, as quickly forgot what it was. Looking at the list did not help because I could not read what I wrote.

Can you read the circled item above? Help me out here. I guess it wasn't too vital since whatever it was hasn't been missed....yet.

BREAKING NEWS 1-17-11: I remembered. It says "thin white crew socks". Suddenly it is so clear isn't it? Thanks for all you comments and guesses:)

A CHANGE OF SCENERY

Above is my view from my laptop. Usually I work at the kitchen table facing the refrigerator. The view from the previous year changes after Christmas when the refrigerator pictures are taken down and new ones are put up as all these neat picture greetings begin to arrive. I love all these new photos and looking at the beautiful grandchildren and grand nieces and nephews and seeing how much they have grown. It is going to be interesting to see how what highlights will be added before the end of 2011. But when I first look up at the new pictures there is still a little shock when the first photos I focus on are no longer George Clooney and my daughter and God-daughter on the red carpet at the 2010 Oscars.

WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED IN 2,066 YEARS?

WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED IN 2,066 YEARS?

"The budget should be balanced, the Treasury should be refilled, public debt should be reduced, the arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled, and the assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed lest Rome become bankrupt. People must again learn to work, instead of living on public assistance." - Cicero - 55 BC

Evidently nothing.

received this in an email.

WE HAVE SEPARATED

Yes, Ron and I separated on New Years Day. Not in our marriage but in our daily lives. The Dish Television people actually came to our home on January 1st to install our new DVR and put an extension on the living room television. I now have my own 120 channels and my own REMOTE. I may never go in the den again. Of course if Ron needs some food or drink he can call me on his cell and I can pause my show to wait on him. Will wonders never cease?

It is fun watching my own show choices because we have extremely different taste but....I sure miss Ron:(

Guess time will tell if the separation will work. If we decide to reconcile, will he go for blood and guts murder mysteries or will I compromise for the History, Discovery and News channels?

By the way, I got custody of Slim. Ron gets den visitation when he is eating something she expects to share::)

1-1-11

GREETINGS FROM:
Granny Annie, Ron,
Slim (aka The Best Dog In The World),
7 Guinea Fowl (all known as TJ for Tarzan/Jane since we can't determine gender),
12 chickens (Rooster Jack Bauer that thinks he is a goat, Rooster Daryl, Rooster Chicklet, Chicken Little, Mr. Gibson the hen, June, June, June, Mame, Black Hawk, Chicken Annie, Little Blackie),
Five Goats (Elizabeth, Polly, Tina, Dixie and Tandy Kid),
Six cats (Furbie, Boomer, Lil Bear, Goliath, David and Stripe)
and
my new bi-pap breathing side kick Tonto,

All wish you a Happy New Year's Day with wishes for a perfect 2011.