I'm here to help...

[NYSparklegirl 1]

hello again!

Thought I had more time to post before....so here is my continuation!

Lord its been a hell of a last two weeks.

Why??? simply because im a sucker. Yes....thats it really.

It all started on Thursday when I was asked to foster a dog..who btw will be featured as pet of the week on the "Today Show" on Thursday.

Since we moved to the five towns area a year and half ago we gave up fostering dogs, from the ASPCA. Kill shelter in NYC. We fostered about 8 dogs so far...but after moving to an apt....it just wasnt condusive...however....

heres the sucker part.....this dog who happens to have been a stray and found is such a mush and a very polite guest!! As a matter of fact hes the perfect pet.

NO, NO, NO, cannot will not keep him! I want to but cant.

Why??? My life is so up in the air...each day is well a suprise even for me...there is nothing consistant about me or my life! How can I adopt another dog?? In an apt??? no backyard??

He is a gorgeous black lab. Well behaved and great nature..sweet, calm and did I say perfect??

He has attached himself to my daughter and wherest she goes that dog goes with. Hes 2 yrs old.

The question is what possessed me to say yes to fostering un the first place.

This weekend was so busy....We were out all day Sunday so needed a dog walker and the dog was okay....but I worried about him...yesturday I needed to drive him to the city for a groom so that he can be all cleaned up for the shoot. SO, I drove him before work then picked him up after work....Then had to run to the gym for a traning, didnt get home till 9.

So had to pay the babysitter an extra two hours.

Tomorrow....I have to come home from Bklyn to come home and pick dog up and bring him to city by 8 at night..so he can be ready to go on set Thursday early..and then pick him up again on Thursday.

Why oh Why did I volenteer....I dont have the time for this!

Its hard enough to find time during the day for everything as is.

Okay...well he is the sweetest and would hate to think if him staying at that shelter for a week or so until adoption....and with the kill shelter...they get 3 days...if not adopted they are euthenized. No dog should have that happen...but couldnt it have been another foster parent??

well....enough venting about the dog, Whos name is Boomer.

So.....Dassi had an audition with a director Sunday and got an honorable mention however did not get a contract. Owell.....have another one next one and then another two to go...perhaps one of these big ones will like her enough for even a little role. As I cannot deal with taking her to a thousand auditions to get "one yes" Id rather shlep the foster dog around all day!

My brother had a baby boy sunday!! This sunday is the Bris. Monday my friends mother passed away so went to the funeral and tonight went to pay a shiva call...I also needed to take my dog to the vet. Didnt arrive home till 9.

Tommorow will not prove to be any less busy....

hence....it will be just as stressful. I have a Pulminary doctor apt at 8 and then work afterwhich taking the dog to the city and then I have a meeting at Dassis school to discuss the next years bat mitzvah girls program. Dassi has Karate at 7. The meeting is at 7:45. So.....how the heck??? Its a wonder how I ever have time to work in between the rest of my life.

Calgon take me away!

SO, Im a little peeved that I do not have enough time to get the gym each day. If I didnt have the two set times per week with the trainer...I know I would never ever get to that gym. Unfortunately the 8 sessions are over and now need to make a decission about continuing.

I know I must have this...for at least 6 months. so what to do?? I could think of the old fashioned way to make the money for this...$2,500. but, unless I loose another 40 llbs overnight and regress in age 20 yrs.....I dont think thats an option. (besides it isnt something that I can do) so ill have to think of how to do this!

I must. So I will somehow! I have nothing left to sell am behind on basicallly everything....so ill have to think real hard!! I hate that...as it always included crunching numbers over and over!

so, its been a busy day, week and it isnt stopping....perhaps this is a good thing, not concentrating on food all day.

Speaking of food....Ive been keeping up with the 900 cal a day...this seems to be okay..for now. Im not hungry for more at the moment. Been keeping up with 40 gr, pt. a day. Lost another 3 llbs since last week. Liqiud is my problem. I cannot get enough water....I fill several bottles of water..but each time I take a sip...I put it down and then I move and I its gone....

Ive lost so many Water bottles throughout the day that I cant keep up with loosing all these bottles and the loss of the water that im not drinking.

well...im dizzy just writing about my week...so im sure everyone else is as well!! SO will stop now.

Have a great night all.

Jodi

[ocotillo 0]

Evening ladies,

Sorry I've been MIA again. Some days it's just too much effort to read and respond...even when I haven't done anything. Weird.

Apples, you asked if guys ever notice a new haircut...well my guy does, every time. It's weird because sometimes I forget and he always mentions it. He always has. There are other things he misses however....LOL. And you know we like it when you "junk" up the thread.

Phyl, you are one of the lucky ones...getting paid to do the ironing.

Julie, aren't you having fun helping with the wedding planning? The right dress will come to you...just wait and see. Glad you are getting into the doc sooner than later.

LauraK...have a safe trip and hope you have lots of fun. I can tell you are very excited...it make me smile. Congrats on your daughter's employment...that is great!!

Lori...at least you now know what the market is like in SLC. I'm not sure house prices are going to fall that much any more....so you might be at the best time to find what you want. I like the condo idea too...especially if you are going to downsize...however, since you won't be spending time with your GM you will have more time on your hands...you don't garden though do you? I think you said your DH does the yard work....so maybe you can find a patio home....tiny yard for him and smaller and nicer.

Joyce, nice to have clean windows and support the economy. Good for you and the gym, hope you had a productive workout.

Charlene, glad to hear your Mom is doing better. How does she feel about going to nursing care? Good for you and staying on plan...that is so hard, but you are doing great.

Linda...you are going to look great at that wedding. All those stairs must have been really hard on you with your hip. Aren't you glad that is better?

Melissa, hi...hope the fill goes well. The liquids before/after fills really helps too.

Debra...let me assure you...you may wake up one day and want to eat everything in sight and you may go over board and eat too much, but trust me when I say this....the band does keep that at bay. You can only stuff so much in there before it comes out and that isn't fun. So you learn to channel that urge in a different direction. I've only lost 45 lbs and am not anywhere near goal and haven't lost any in a couple of months, but I still have cut down what I eat by magnitudes and am very grateful for it. Just learn not to push the band because it can hurt you. It's a great tool. I haven't told everyone about the band....don't want to be "watched". But besides that I don't care.

Deb, I'm still catching up on past posts...so if you can't figure out where this comes from, it's from a few days ago. I wish you were closer to the desert too, you could come hang out with us. The weather has been wonderful lately (besides the allergies).

Laura...right now my eating is going pretty well. I've really cut out the carbs except fruit and the Protein Bars. When I stick to that, I seem to do very well. Haven't been on the scale. The goal is mine...148lbs, not 117 (I need to lose 117 pounds to get to goal)..I think I'll be ecstatic at 160 or 170, but I had to put a goal in there that I should strive for.

Jodi, they say I'm busy, but I think you have me beat. Take care of yourself. What a dilemma with the dog....glad I'm not there because that dog sounds wonderful. That's a lot of money for a gym...or is that for the trainer? I guess the $20 exercise video isn't really motivating enough is it? And as for that older profession.....well I bet someone would buy, but yuck, you probably wouldn't want them.

Janet, I really get it about work being awful. At least you'll be getting some help sometime in the future. It's just all the stuff you are having to do before that happens. I hope your gym workouts help burn off some of your frustration. Last night I walked 3.2 miles after work and I was tired, but it felt good when I was done.

We got another wonderful email about how our "compensation" read as paycheck will be substantially similar after the merger and that our time off paid (vacation) will be the same through 2011 but all bets are off after that. There was also some verbiage about retirement pay, etc that was unclear along with our benefits. So, I'm really thinking that I'll be looking for another job sometime this year, especially by the end of the year. I think the icing on the cake was we had a little training session to start doing AQCB's. So this year we will be doing our normal wirecenter jobs plus AQCB (fiber), road projects, cell sites, and FTTN (fiber to the cross box). I realize you guys don't know what all this means, but it means a lot of work and following stupid processes and meeting arbitrary deadlines. Yuck...although I can handle most of this, it's being micromanaged while doing so that I'm having a hard time dealing with. Ug...so this is my whine for the day.

I have to say I really like my boss however. He's cool and is only doing what he has to.

food is going pretty well. Not eating flour all day is doing me good. I threw out chips and cake and stuff after the party and I'll be throwing more stuff out tomorrow (trash day). The cravings are fading and I'm grateful.

Okay, I'm going to go relax and maybe look for another job. Hope you all have a great night.

Eva

[Apples2 19]

Good Morning to All...

Eva...wishing you luck with the job situation. I went through hell in my last job. I always say it was the best job in the world that turned into the worst job in the world. Long story short...I went from being hired to do a 60 hour a week job and two years later working 90 hours a week and doing the job of 2.5ppl. Time and a half for over time and double for working weekends. Pay was good but I was working every weekend and some holidays in an office job (lead grain accountant). They could not have paid me enough to compensate for the added stress in our lives. Tried negotiating, got many promises for change but ended up walking in one morning with my resignation letter, cleaned my desk out and walked away. 11 yrs later, here I am wishing to be back in the working world. Would one of you just reach out and give me a cyber slap?

After hearing what you and Janet have been going through the last few months, I think I need to take time to count my blessings that I am so fortunate to do what I do. Yes, I have stress some days (yesterday was one of those) but then I just have my little Breakfast meeting with the "boss" the next morning and discuss the fact that being a little better organized would do it for me, give him a kiss at the door, a promise for later and tell him to shape up. LOL. You stated you really like your boss but I bet you could not get away with a "business" meeting like I had this morning.

As far as the job search...good luck. Change is good.

Good morning, Janet....miss you...no guilt though. I know you are super busy. Wish I could be your assistant for a couple of months till your load eases.

Julie...so happy you got an earlier date for your appt. Good luck with your remodel project. Makes me look around the house and be thankful that I will never have to do another one.

Linda...I have had the same feelings about my house and have said the very exact thing to DH as you did to yours about not liking the house. We had house plans and right on the verge of building a cute 4 bedroom log cabin on our farm site. This site was so nice. It had 75 huge evergreen trees just in the front yard alone. That log cabin would have been my dream. But, the place we live on now went up for sale. It was Keith's grandfather's place. Been in the family since the mid-1800's and there was not way that I could dig my feet in and not give him his dream. The house was a split level (3 sets of steps) boring, boring 6yr old house. Well, we have remodeled every inch of it and I can still say it is not the dream house but it is home and lots of good memories here. It all worked out for the better. I am one that never wanted to be married to a house and have extreme payments, etc. We have a modes 5 bedroom and it is all ready to go when DS is ready to settle down and move in. At that time we will be heading out to find something smaller and less maintenance.

Great....Home yet? Did you have to sit and wait for a flight this time? Hope it was not too long a time for you. DH and I have often talked about once we move off this farm, we just want a townhouse or condo. There are some lovely ones in our town about 15 miles from here. Lawn maintenence is included along with plowing snow. We have a huge yard and I have spent many years maintaining it along with flower beds, trimming shrubs, etc. We want to do a motorhome (I will be Phyll, Jr.) and just have a condo for the summer or live at our lake place for the months we are back in MN. Carefree living.

Jodi...awww...can you ship Boomer out here? No dog as loyal and loving as a black lab.

Sounds like you are crazy busy. How about taking what you have learned from your trainer and setting up a time on you calander and doing it all on your own at a gym that does not break the bank? Or, get some good workout tapes and you and Dassi have some fun right at home.

I live 15 miles from any gym and had to learn to set time aside for exercise at home. I did a variety and learned to love it. I get some in every day and notice it I don't, I don't have an outlet for my excess energy. When ppl would say that exercise relieves stress, I would think Blah, blah, blah...but now I now that it does.

Joyce...lucky girl to get you windows done and not have to do it yourself. Have fun at the gym and if you read my above message to Jodi, it really does turn into something that makes a person feel better.

Good Morning, LauraK. Speaking of Lauras....?????

Arlene...good to hear that your mom is doing better. Also, good going on managing the plan and being so busy.

Melissa...good luck with your fill. Hope it is what you needed.

Froggie (Debra)...as Eva said....it's kind of a trial and error thing with the food. We got through tough stages in the beginning with "mourning" food. (At least I did). It all does ease as you go through the first few months and if you find a good food plan that works, it will become routine and it will all fit. There are just times that it feels like the band is not there but most times it reminds you not to over stuff.

Good Morning Cheri...hope you have a stress free day at school.

I know I am missing ppl, but, I'm doing this by memory and you all know I have a bad case of CRS and this is just what you get. Off and running today. I spend most of these days with the phone in my hand ready to run for whatever...giving rides to different fields, running for equipment repair parts, running Water tanks, etc. Don't mind my job but never time to start anything around here....so I don't.

Will check in later today. You all have a great day!

[IndioGirl55 32]

Good Morning Gang

3 pages since I last posted - can't read - sorry don't have time gotta get in the shower in a few...

Eva - Micro manage you hit the nail on the head - that's what my new producer is killing me with - I don't need to be micro managed I'm 55 I know my job if you give me something to do it will get done- I don't need to tell you everytime I complete something- cc you on every item then have to have another email telling me thanks - - the problem is for the last 2 days I have done nothing but email and phone calls - the mail is piling up.. I wish pple would just let me work and quit talking to me about the work..

[1day at a time 2]

Hey all fill is doing well I have had a pure Protein Shake 160 cals and 35 proteinfor Breakfast, and I am have some Soup from Bariatric Choice website only 70 cal and 12 Protein.< /p>

Feeling good today

[LittleOleMeinFL 1]

Good day girlies~

Sorry I have been MIA a bit too. Life sometimes gets in the way doesn't it?! I had another fill the other day- only 0.6 cc this time. I am still 1cc less then my highest. I think this will do me. I have good restriction. I don't want to be as tight as I was- but I don't want to be able to eat bread. That's just me. The few days of shakes really helped kick start my healthy habits back in. I have been exercising every day for the last week. Been busy busy being a taxi mom for Nelson. school, parties, taekwondo, tutor, etc. I wouldn't change the chance to do this for a million bucks!

Apples~thanks for the nice note. : ) You are the best. Always say just the right things.

Julie~ We are all rooting for you for the neuro appt. GetRDone.

Janet~ Hugs. You sound so busy. I hope everything else is ok. We miss your frequency of posts.

Eva~ sounds like you are doing good. I am back on the bandwagon. This time when we go to NC I am bringing my own "stuff". If there is an unhealthy meal, I will just have a shake. I can't be tempted with my mom's cooking again. It just killed me. Nothing feels as bad as gaining back weight you worked so hard to get off. Sorry to hear about work. It sucks when companies are bought out- they don't realize how the changes trickle down and effect all workers.

Jodi~You are a sucker for taking in the dog. Gotta learn to say NO. : ) I say that with kindness. You cannot save them all- as much as you want to. You can't let a foster dog throw a wrench into everything, especially when you are as busy as you are. The training is expensive. Maybe what you can do is work with the trainer once a week and have them put a "plan" down on paper that you do the other two days. That way they can weigh you and check on progress. If you aren't doing what you are supposed to- you will lose strength. Worth a try.

Melissa~WTG, sounds like you are doing great! Keep up the good work!!!

Arlene~ glad your mom is feeling a little better. Hugs.

Linda~so proud of all your hard work. WTG on the loss!

Froggie~ Welcome to our thread. : )

Anyone else I missed.. sorry. Apples' CRS syndrome is contagious! Time to get some work done!

peasout.. Laura

PICS:a pic of Nelson with his friend Sarah- swimming in our pool.

Nelson getting ready to climb the rock wall at the school picnic. (they face painted his face with the blue avatar nose) LOL

[ladykcusa 1]

Debra - In response to disclosing lap band to friends and family, I elected NOT to share with others.

So much educating is involved in explaining how the tool works, and I decided to keep my decision to myself.

Family knows, but others - not.

[Apples2 19]

SNACK ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!!

Found a new snack. Some of you might turn your nose up at this but this is something I've been eating lately and maybe some of you might take a liking to it. Pickled eggs. 75cals per egg. You can eat them plain or slice and eat with mayo or FF mayo.

Melissa.....I'm going to put a challenge out there to you. Try to eat like you are eating today for one entire week. See how you feel about things at the end of the week. I will bet that you have more energy and a better attitude toward getting everything back on track.

Just reading Laura's last post on how she did her shakes for a week and it got her to thinking straight again about her food plan made me think of you and the struggles you have been posting about lately.

Do you think you can do it? I bet you can...Good luck!

[LittleOleMeinFL 1]

SNACK ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!!

Found a new snack. Some of you might turn your nose up at this but this is something I've been eating lately and maybe some of you might take a liking to it. Pickled eggs. 75cals per egg. You can eat them plain or slice and eat with mayo or FF mayo.

!

LOL Karen! Do you eat the white or red ones? My DH worked in a convenience store in Miami before he got into the residency program he wanted. They sold pickled eggs, chicken feet and pickled pickles on the counter. To this day he can't even smell them without getting a gag reflex! He had to make cajun boiled peanuts in the crockpot every day too. He worked in one of the most dangerous neighborhoods in Miami and the drug dealers used to "protect" him in exchange for a few free beers here and there. I have never tried the eggs. Might have to one day. : )

My first job was as a nursing assistant in the nursing home near college. I fed/bathed/wiped butts. I adopted all 60 of the residents as my grandparents. (All 4 of my GP had passed when I was young). Loved that job! OK... what other first jobs did people have? Tells a lot about a person I think. ; )

[Apples2 19]

Laura...my first job was also a butt wiper and dietary aide (not at the same time, LOL). I started working at our local hospital/nursing home attached at the tender age of 13. I will have you know that I was proud to earn that 83 cents an hour!

School would let out at 3:20. I would ride my bike the mile home, whip a meal up for a family of 10 and into the oven, (way b/4 crockpots came into existence), change into my white uniform, ride my bike 1.5 miles and be to work by 4pm. Would help with meals for the 30 bed hospital and 40 bed nursing home. Prepared the patient trays in the food line, filled the tray carts and then delivered the carts to the floor. We would go to the patient floor with a list of patients that were unable to feed themselves and spoon feed them.

2 weeks after I started this job, I was sent to feed Mr. Pikert. He was propped up, eyes open, and the Soup just ran out the corners of his mouth. Decided that Jello might work better for him. That wouldn't go any farther than his tongue. About that time the head RN walked in the room with a mortified look on her face and said "Poor Mr. Pikert passed away about 15 minutes ago...so sorry" and promptly closed his eyes and covered him. Now, remember I was 13. Oops!

After getting done with running the dishes through the dishwasher for hospital and nursing home, I worked as an aide on the patient floor. That's where the butt wiping came in.

At 8pm I was done and on my bike (or hoofing it) another mile or so to help my brother clean the local bank 5 nights a week. No pay with that job. Boy was I stupid. He got the paycheck and laid on the floor and watched TV in the bank president's office and I cleaned and scrubbed. He's an A-hole to this day. Terrible thing to say about a sibling, but, will say it again. He's an A-hole to this day.

I also mowed with my brother during the summer months. We mowed the bank, the cemetary, the church yard, and many yards in town.

My mother had a dept. store so I was the housekeeper. Good ole Johnson paste wax was applied every Sat. by me to EVERY floor in an 8 bedroom home.

All of the above pretty much took up 24/7 and no time for socialization. Pssst...I've made up for it!

[Apples2 19]

Laura...white eggs. We grew up with pickled pigs feet, pickled gizzards, pickled herring in the frig at all times. I didn't get close to any of them and had to put blinders on when opening the frig. Know exactly where you DH comes from with the gagging thing.

Also, what a fun "topic of the day" you started. We haven't done this for awhile and very interested in hearing all the responses and how you all started down the road to success.

[Apples2 19]

Hey, Laura, are you there??????????? I have 15 minutes to kill b/4 I need to deliver some seed. Let's have some fun with this and do some guessing ahead of time on the first jobs that our friends here had. Let's see how close we come.

LauraK...I think I might be cheating here cuz she stated last week she built bins....I'm sticking with that one.

Great...I'm going to say she most likely worked as a clerk to a store similar to Hallmark.

Cheri....tutor

Janet...waitress

Eva...cleaned hostels to pay for her keep...and her travels

Arlene....worked on the ranch

Phyll....nurses aide

Linda....did filing for the school secretary

Joyce...smiled for the camera and worked as an aide to a documentary film maker

Jessica...worked in an assisted living home

Debra....worked at the Tasty Freeze

Julie...worked on the farm and also waitressed

Who am I forgetting??????

Deb...teller at the local bank

Jodi...koshered kitchens

[Apples2 19]

Oops...forgot Melissa...she was a telemarketer for a company that sold time shares in FL:biggrin:

[Charlene K 1]

Arlene....worked on the ranch-Wrong!.....worked at a pharmacy for 75cents and hour. My best memory was the soda fountain.....chrome and red swivel seats.......loved cherry cokes with cherries. My worst memory.....selling codiene cough Syrup to the bums hooked on that stuff. They had to sign for it every day. My sister worked at the pharmacy across town and the same people would come by every day to buy their bottle.

[Great2BThin 5]

Darn it all, I hate it when my email alerts to new posts don't work. When I am as busy as I've been I rely too much on those. Things slowed this afternoon and got to thinking, gosh I know the board hasn't been this quiet and there were 3 pages to read.

First things first, our realtor 'facebooked' me in response to something I sent him and said he was in the process of receiving an offer on our house. Pray it's a good one, that was a few hours ago so haven't heard more. We've had so many showings. About 12 since Thursday at least it seems like a lot when I am cleaning and getting out of the house for them. I am becoming a regular at McD's, I get a diet Coke (more on that later) and bring my lap top or Itouch and veg for an hour or two.

Next, about the house hunting in SLC. Condo, no way would DH ever consider a condo. He LOVES yard work the man is crazy! At least I don't have to do it. He puts in ponds and waterfalls, etc. Plus my dogs, probably wasn't wise to get 2 new lab mix puppies about 2 yrs ago at this stage in our life but we expected to be here near the kids aka dog sitters. It will be a challenge going forward to travel and what to do with them. There used to be a great kennel there that we used, might look into it, or pray we have a great neighbor kid that loves them and pay them to watch the dogs.

First job, I worked in an insurance office doing filing and stuff and through the business dept at my HS and had my first experience with sexual harrassment as well. It was bad, we had an office party and unbeknowst to me he spiked my drink and tried to get me drunk and take advantage of me. Luckily I wasn't drunk and had my wits about me. I was 16.

Jodi, no worries about offense. Thanks for the concern though. Regarding the dog and exercise, here's an idea. How about you quit the gym, keep the dog and make him your partner and walk him lots???? :thumbup: Of course I am partial to black labs since I have 2.

Eva, do you work for Qwest? my sisters both work in their hdqtrs in Denver and are concerned about their jobs as well. One is in HR and the other is an admin. asst to one of the VP's.

Apples, wow you worked hard as a young 'un and yes your brother does sound like you have described him well. Do you just have one sibling? I have 2 that I could easily do without. We basically tolerate one another right now as we co-ordinate things for Grandma.

Froggi, welcome!! as others have said fills are very individual. I had about 8 or 9 of them as I was losing over my first year. At first I told no one about my band but started telling folks as they were noticing my weight loss. And have come now to the age where I don't care so much what they think. Or I am getting more confidence as I lost weight or something.

Laura or Phyl, I got my lab results back and am low in the white blood count, is that bad??? I am awaiting to get the results from the dr. though I have my copy of them and of course don't know how to interpret. Laura, Nels looks like he is having fun in the pool, is this his little girlfriend??

Melissa, good luck with that fill, sounds like it is working for ya.

Arlene, glad your mother is doing better. Hopefully you can get back on your shake diet. Can you bring the shakes with you in a thermos or something.

Apples, yep am turning my nose up at the pickled eggs or pickled anything!