salsa1877

OMG...I was trying to make roast chicken for dinner tonight and...it was ROTTEN. The smell almost made me puke. Now we have NOTHING for dinner...ugh! Off to the store we go...NO CHICKEN!

Thanks mommy. It is just so good to know that I have friends. I got called some HORRIBLE names today. When it came down that we were going to the 4 day week and found out that 57 teachers were getting laid off people did not react kindly. Because the charter school that I am working at is also pulling students out of the school and therefore costing them money, I am seen as the big bad guy. I will most likely end up keeping my job AND working at the charter school. For most it doesn't seem fair. But damnit...I am a damn good teacher and have spent countless hours working on developing an amazing curriculum and once in a while I deserve to be rewarded. I will stick out the 4 day week for 1 year. If I am not able to go to the charter school full time after that then I will move to somewhere else. Vegas...Dallas...Fort Worth...International Schools...here I come. We are being required to work 25% more for 7.5% less pay. My students will suffer... and the district seems to be okay with that. I have come to the conclusion that if the district is ready and willing to sacrifice good teachers, the education of their students, and the welfare of the community then I am not going to bust my ass for them. I will do what I need to in order to provide my students with an ADEQUATE education and pour my heart and soul into the proficiency charter school that I whole heartedly believe in. Next year will be survival mode and I am coming to accept that. Maybe I need to be intoxicated more often. Steph...you have your cookies and I have my 2 vodka crans and my 2 glasses of wine. I don't ever drink so I am pretty much 3 sheets to the wind right now. I have given myself permission to have one day of a pity party and then tomorrow I move on. I cannot make any changes to this situation. Life is what it is. I will not allow myself to be dragged down by this past today. Give me lemons and I am going to make the best damm SF/FF lemon meringue pie you have ever tasted! Yeah...it is probably the alcohol talking...but that is the mantra I am going to follow. Please help me stick to that. Remind me that it was not me who made the decisions. Remind me that I fought for what is best for kids and it was OTHERS that chose to ignore it. I will be and have been the best that I can be for these kids. I can't do more than I already have without losing myself and that will do nothing for students. Seriously...maybe I should take up drinking every once in a while. I think it does wonders for my psyche. Don't worry...I hate the taste of alcohol...I am not going to become an alcoholic. Night all. And forget my earlier message. I will be here this weekend. No point in punishing myself for the idiodic decisions of certain people in this district.

I agree with Karla...get squeaky!!!!!! Doesn't matter that they don't have a sped dept. If you are too upset about the school, I could become his advocate and you could give me the schools number and I will call on your behalf. ( you would just have to give them permission to speak to me!) I am in the mood to make change and I can be a politically correct bitch. BTW sp.ed or not...they are still breaking the law. So much so that when our superintendent was on the news tonight I emailed in a question (through DH's email...I'm NOT stupid:scared2:) about how working 10 hours without mare than a 30 minute break was in line with labor laws. She squirmed like a SNAKE. She couldn't answer it. Then the news anchor started drilling her because they were NOT told what the teacher work day was like. I sat there high and mighty with a smirk on my face and tears in my eyes.

You are not an idiot. Band size does not matter. I have a AP small 10CC band. However, I have NEVER had a fill about 2.2 (and at that could only get down popcorn and crystal light:ohmy:). As I have said before, most of my weight loss came with my band completely unfilled. Frankly the only reason that I know what size band I have is because the nurses keep commenting that they have never seen anyone lose as much weight as I have with such few fills in my size band. Funny...I never worried about getting enough restriction...my worry was always about TOO MUCH restriction. I am VERY sensitive to fills. It is VERY common to lose size without losing weight. Fat cells redistribute themselves, excess water weight is lost, and muscle does begin to form.

Well...its official...they are giong to the 4 day week. They made the announcement to the media tonight. I am numb right now. There is still a chance that I could lose my job though it is unlikely because our current administration gets to do staffing. I have been in tears for the last 2 hours. I know...at least I have a job...but digging ditches is a job too...just not one I want. 25% more work for 7.5% less pay. I am going from teaching 125 kids per day to 175 kids per day. Lots of soul searching (and grading) this weekend. I don't know how much I am going to be on this weekend because I don't want to sound like a whiner and I am NOT in a good frame of mind. Fortunately I am at home so that food will not be an issue.

Denise - could it be that your mom is uncomfortable or scared about being in the nursing home and therefore is having physical problems due to psychological issues. I am NOT saying it is in her head, but more of a psychosematic response to fear or an uncomfortable situation. I know that my grandma was very similar for the first part of the time when we had to put her in the nursing home. She didn't think that they could take care of here well enough so she would worry herself into sickness and then would end up back in the hospital where she felt safer. She would get VERY ill, with some of the same symptoms that you are describing. I realy hope that things slow down for you! As for my job...we might be there!!! Right now if I get laid off I am on the plane to the first place that hires me!

Hold the phone. Stop right there...they are in complete violation of the "Americans with Disabilities Act." He CANNOT be prevented from going on the field trip. Is there any way that you could chaperone so that he would have a familiar person there and perhaps not give them a reason to FIND something that they can use to prevent him to go. Since you are not working this year maybe that would be an option and one that would ease the minds of the teacher/administration as well. However you could politely remind them that unless accomodations and modifications are made to have him be successful that publicity and lawyers can get ugly. I HAVE NO TOLERANCE FOR EDUCATORS WITHOUT A BRAIN OR A HEART.:thumbup::cursing::crying: Unfortunately there are WAY too damn many of them in our profession. Your son is the EXACT reason that we are starting the charter school. Not everyone is meant to be in the 1940s model of education. People wonder why we are lagging so far behind the rest of the world...I can tell you. We haven't changed a damn thing since 1940. :confused: Could you imagine if we hadn't changed anything in the medical field, energy, or technology for 6 decades!!! But it is okay to keep on doing the same thing in education. Okay off my soap box, but seriously Steph remind them of the ADA...they often forget that despite their ingorant power that they can't just do whatever the hell they want. Idiot teachers (while they can rule over our children) can not overrule the law! I do have one last thing. Everyone keeps saying to me "How is that teaching them about life?" I'm sorry but when the hell did life become a state standard!!!!! Parents teach about life. I teach about science! Okay...Now I am off my soap box. I realized when I stepped down the first time that I just went to a new level. Now I am officially back on the ground!

Sigh...That is really all I have to say today. I did get my bodybugg, I didn't get any sleep, and life sucks. Why you ask? 1. Brother had surgery yesterday and I forgot to call because my life is in such turmoil. 2. Told that next year we are going to the 4 day work week or that we will be cutting 72 teachers which means I don't have a job. 3. I am so tired and therefore hungry. 4. All I want to do is cry but can't because I am at work. That pretty much sums it all up. Not a good day today.

Yep...been there. I ended up foaming/sliming for 2 hours because I couldn't get it up either. When that happens...spit it out before you answer the phone. Believe me you will forget about the food that you didn't get to eat but you will NEVER forget the experience of sliming!

Yes I highligted that !!! The bun really isn't the problem!!!! I would say that it has to be at least close to 1 hour of running at 5mph. :thumbup: Still not worth it to me!

Steph...I would love to do the raffle but I just haven't had time to respond. The thing is I just don't know many people where I live so we will have to discuss where we think it would it would make the best money. Speaking of the race...I just registered! I am officially a boobie bandit!!! I have a couple of ideas that I am boucing around in my head so we will see. Crap...kids just came it. TTYL Karri

Gotta agree with my mommy here!!! Not that I often deviate from her advice. She just seems to be right!!!! I picked a good mommy...Families are so much better when you can pick them yourself! Anyway I digress...Back to scolding you:angry: I thought the doctor's orders were to walk and then take a day off. After having had major surgery just a few months ago I think my doctor would have had a heart attack if I had walked 7 miles that quickly. You are just going to have to tell your friend that while 7 miles will be doable in a few weeks right now you need to work on building the strenght in your back. Don't give me any lip...I know you are working on your rebuttal right now.:tt1: How do I know this??????? Because I would be doing the SAME THING. :tongue: You have PLENTY of time to train for the 3day walk. However, if you push it to fast you are actually going to set yourself back. How do I know...been there done that!:rolleyes2: Sooooo....I know you are trying to lose weight and train and make up for lost time. Guess what....the time is lost, the weight WILL come off and the training takes TIME. If you don't follow the training to the letter you will still be fine. Hell I haven't even come close to following any sort of schedule for my marathon but I WILL finish and so will you if you don't do anything stupid:wub::tt1::wub:! Love ya!!! And be safe!

GREAT JOB!:tongue: I think you made very good food choices today. First bite pain is VERY normal. I still have it. However if you have 2nd bite pain then you should stop. Just don't push it. Things are still healing in there and you will thank yourself for taking things slowly. Your calories are in the perfect range. I was always between about 800-1000 and I felt pretty good about that. So proud of you!:rolleyes2:

Steph - Tired gets me EVERY time. Today was one of those days for me to. Fortunately mine was mitigated by the fact that I needed more food anyway because I ran 15 miles. So do you like my new signature??? That's right...it would take me running 2 hours (10 miles) to burn off a BigMac Value Meal. That is NUTS! Candice - I changed colors to get your attention for a minute!! I have a favor to ask. One of the teachers at our school is looking for epals from other countries for her students. It is for a 4 week period of time and I have no idea what the time committment is (though I expect it is minimal) I was wondering if you would be interested so that I could give her your email address. Don't feel bad if you say no because it doesn't effect me at all. I didn't tell her that I might have anyone so she isn't hoping for an answer either. Just PM me with your email addy if you are interested. Okay...back to normal colors. I need to get thee to the blender and make a protein/berry smoothie and then wait to eat dinner for a half hour. Don't actually know if I will eat dinner. I tend to not be hungry after I run...during the run I am starving!

If you give us a list of what you ate we have all gotten very good at coming up with low cal replacements for them. Post what you ate and we can try to help you.

Finally changed my ticker. While my Nike+ was keeping track I was NOT good at changing it! Not half bad if I say so myself!

It isn't necessarily true that you won't have restriction during the post op stage. I didn't have my fill until 5 weeks out and I had restriction the entire time. For some people, just the band itself is enough restriction. I lost most of my weight being completely unfilled. I am not trying to dismiss you concerns and frustrations, but a lot of people read these boards and I don't want them to think that EVERYONE goes through bandster hell. I have to admit that I have not read past the post that I am responding to so maybe some of these things have been said. This portion of the process really is for healing and learning to make good food choices. If you can practice now, when you get your fills THEN you can really see it work. However, if you just coast along until you get you fills it is going to take you even LONGER to lose weight.

I didn't get my 15 miles in today because we had a budget meeting at school and it didn't get over until almost 4:30. By the time I started running it would have been 5 and I wouldn't have gotten home until after 8. So instead I ran on the treadmill for 30 minutes and then biked for another 30 minutes. I will run my 15 miles tomorrow! Now if only my dinner would get done I would be a happy camper. I am STARVING. All of a sudden DH doesn't think he needs to cook anymore. If he works a minute over what he is supposed to, then you think that he has worked as hard as a ditch digger. The meat was already marinating...all he had to do was stick it in the oven. I am NOT in a good mood today...can you tell?

When I have to go to a party I try to take something with me that is VERY low in calories and that I like. Then I only eat that. Or I have even been known to take my plate of food with me.

So the back is feeling better. I strained it while participating in the Mr. RHS fundraiser pagent that our school does every year. I was in the talent portion of one of the students. He was pretending to be Richard Simmons while we were doing "Sweating to the Oldies" Before the actual performance begain we were supposed to be doing typical stretching from the 80's. Well there is a reason the stretching should be fluid and not jerky. I have video that I will try to post on facebook later that will show you my stretches!!! It was a hillarious skit but I kind of strained my back a little bit. However it is feeling MUCH better. So I am going to try and do 15 miles tomorrow before I ramp it down to 3 miles per day. Food has been going amazing. I went grocery shopping tonight to get food for tomorrow and the next couple of days. One of the problems at work is that I can't do meat at work. When I try to eat it my tummy just feels sick. I want something lighter. So I went and got it. Good healthy foods that are light and look very similar to what I used to eat. Well I am heading off to bed.

No ticket for me, but I have a great idea...but it requires NO cheating. If either one of us deserve a ticket for the day then we actually get to give each other a ticket on parking wars. That way we can literally give each other a ticket. So we can start tonight if you would like! I could use an extra 5560$ Fortunately I don't get a ticket today. Water is good, food is good, exercise...I get a pass today because of my back. Tomorrow I will go back slowly to make sure that I can still work it without doing too much to hurt my back. Dinner is going to be London Broil with a salad. Then...I have a new favorite treat. I take some frozen berries and blend it with the Atkins Vanilla Protein Shake. MMMMMMM good. Now tonight I am going to make it even healthier. I don't need the extra protein because I get enough during the day with my meals so since what I really want from the shake is the vanilla flavoring I am going to blend it with some water and vanilla extract and see if that works. If it does then it tastes WAY better than a milk shake with only 80 calories. Seriously a great after dinner snack. So Janet let me know if I should ticket away!

Ouchy...I strained my back during the Mr. RHS talent show and my marathon is in less than 2 weeks. NOT GOOD!

THIS does get easier. I just refused to let myself do it. however I have gotten lazier with this lately and would drink to soon. It really does make a difference. Thing is though...if you start practicing NOW before the fill, then you just get into the habit sooner. My trick for this is that if I get thirsty I pop in a piece of SF gum. This will usually do the trick. How long do you have to wait? I am supposed to wait an hour, but I usually am okay if I wait 45 minutes. As for the coffee, can you just do regular coffee and then add a SF flavoring to it? Then you can have all you want. If you want a little bit of creaminess you could add a small amount of FF milk. I am not good on the coffee front beacuse I don't drink it. However I love hot chocolate, but I now order it as a SF hot chocolate with SF caramel made with water instead of milk. I have had issues with milk since surgery. I am better now, but I can't stand the taste of hot chocolate made with milk. Too heavy. It is okay to be high maintanance. It is good for some of us to be reminded of the rules!

Okay I want to be honest. This is a yes and no answer. The physical hunger for me did go away with the band. I couldn't physically eat as much. Once I got into the swing of things the food choices became much easier. Exercise became a passion. Treating myself right became second nature. I had my A-HA moment as I was driving to the hospital for my surgery. I was lucky that it came so early. My mommy's came early too and we both never lost hope, kept steadfast through the entire journey, and were able to lose the weight. I however, have had some struggles since losing the weight. However, almost 2 years out and I still have head hunger. I still fight the food demons. That struggle and fight has been publicly documented here. This is where the NO answer comes in. I still fight food daily. I still fight going to the gym. I WANT to be able to sit down with ONE piece of cake like a normal person and be able to not have withdrawls from the cravings for more. Food will always be a struggle. I assume that it will get easier at some point, but right now it isn't. There are times when I have to take 2 steps back to get back on the right track. I am currently doing the 5 day pouch test which means 2 days liquids, and 3 days of increasingly denser Proteins. I didn't do this to lose weight as I have not stepped on the scales for at least 2 weeks. But rather I did it to get me back on track. Get back on the road to health. WLS is NOT ever easy. It is hard work. It is just a tool. Putting a roof on a house is not an easy task. You make it more doable if you give the carpenter a hammer, and you make it faster if you make that hammer automatic. But still the job is hard and frustrating. That is how I look at my band. It is a tool. How I choose to use it (or if I choose to use it) is completely up to me. When I screw around, it doesn't work but when I follow the rules and listen to my body, it does its job. The band will not work if you don't. I don't want to be a pessimist because this truly is the greatest thing that I have ever done. But I want you to know that there is no magic time when you wake up and this struggle becomes "easy". This is a lifetime committment.

Thanks for the kind words Steph, but I think the only thing that I have become an expert at is knowing my body. Turns out though...that is the key to weight loss. Listen, listen, listen. When you turn a deaf ear to your body...well...lets just say it figures that you can't hear it, so it gets bigger so it can yell louder. Not something that I wan't to have happen any more!