I was reviewing the post from the beginning of the year in which I listed my goals for 2006. I wanted to see how many of them I actually accomplished during the year. Here's an update:

1. Be in bed and asleep by 10 p.m. on work nights. Hah!

Even as I wrote that goal, I knew there was no way I'd ever be able to do it consistently. Over the summer I was doing really well, because I was getting up at 5:30 a.m. and going to the gym before work. But in the last couple months, I have been suffering from a serious lack of sleep. So this goal was not fully attained. Bummer.

2. Take a daily multi-vitamin. Even if it's Flintstones.

As if! I took a vitamin faithfully... for about two weeks! Then I forgot. I'm so bad at remembering to take pills, it's a miracle I remembered to take my birth control pills for ten years without any "accidents."

3. Get some form of exercise for at least 30 minutes, at least four days a week. Racquetball, weight-lifting, walking are some ideas.

Unless the weather is really bad, I walk close to three miles every day. Lately I've been slacking off due to holiday crazyness, but otherwise I've stuck to the walking pretty religiously. I do need to start lifting again, though.

4. Plan my meals better so that when I'm hungry, I can eat something nutritious and homemade, thereby reducing the frequency of eating out.

Hmmm...I've tried to do this. Lately I've lost interest in cooking, so I need to get my mojo back in this area.

5. Study for and pass the ASPPA DC-2 exam, so I can get the QKA designation for my job.

Done! In fact I just received my ASPPA QKA certificate and membership card two weeks ago. Yay, me! Now I'm thinking about getting the next designation, which is the Qualified Pension Administrator (QPA). That would entail two more torturous exams, one of which is dedicated solely to Defined Benefit plans...ugh.

6. Start thinking about having a baby. Perhaps.

Still thinking about it. I've been having a lot of baby lust, particularly when I interact with our friends' kids. When we visited Rochester for Thanksgiving, we saw Brian's friends' babies (a one-year old and a six-month old) and when I held them, I really thought my ovaries were going to explode! I just love babies. Frankly, we just need to start having more sex. A LOT more.

7. Travel somewhere fun. No more Caribbean islands, please...I'm talking Europe, Africa, or somewhere I've never visited within the borders of these great United States. I've always wanted to go to a dude ranch. Brian thinks I'm nuts but I'm totally serious. Hee-haw!

Unfortunately, the most exciting trip we took in 2006 was two days outside of Syracuse, NY for a wedding. Not exactly what I had in mind when I wrote "somewhere fun." This year, we MUST go somewhere awesome. Hint, hint...

8. Pay off all the new appliances that we bought when we moved into the new house.

Done! I think we had them all paid off by May.

9. Volunteer.

I was way too busy studying for those ASPPA exams to even think about volunteering. Oh well.

10. Continue on the home improvement spree. I slowed down due to studying for DC-1 and then the holiday onslaught began. Now I have all the time in the world to paint and strip wallpaper!

We definitely did a lot to the house this year. Let's see...we:

-painted the basement, the guest bathroom, the master bedroom, the two guest rooms, the upstairs hallway and stairwell
-removed, repainted, and rehung the vinyl shutters on all the windows, and repainted the front door and the trim around the garage and sidelight to match
-installed a new screen slider to the deck
-removed the old mailbox and installed a new wrought-iron Victorian style mailbox
-removed the handrail next to the front step that had rotted out
-had extensive landscaping done--still a work in progress--including pulling up two dead trees, planting a bunch of shrubs, and laying down 6 yards of mulch around the perimeter of the deck (thank you for doing that, honey!)
-installed a small water feature in the backyard all by ourselves
-installed new light fixtures in the hallway and the guest bathroom
-installed new ceiling fans in two bedrooms, the living room, the family room, and the kitchen
-had new carpeting installed throughout the second floor and the stairwell
-bought new furniture (sofa, chair, and tables) for the basement family room, along with a new TV and a home theatre system
-built a custom upholstered window cornice for the guest bathroom window all by ourselves!
-installed a remote control garage door keypad for outside access
-installed a doorbell chime extender so that we can hear the doorbell in the basement
-installed two self-timers for the outside lights (and almost blew up the house putting in the second one...oops!)
-had a new hot water heater installed
-had a new sump pump system installed
-hung various artwork, candle sconces, and curtain rods throughout the house

Jesus! We did more than I thought this year. Looking at this list, I'm amazed that we ever had any downtime on the weekends to just relax and hang out!

In 2007, I would like to get a shed for the backyard so we can move all the lawn and garden crap out of our garage. I would also like to get a new oven in the kitchen. And maybe a new bed.

Did you meet your goals in 2006? What are your goals for 2007?

Labels: accomplishments, food, health, home improvement, memories, travel, work

This



is what drove me into the bizarre frenzy I described in my previous post. Oh yes. It only looks innocent.

Labels: food, funny stuff, Philadelphia

This sounds terribly cliche, I know, but for a couple days just before my period starts each month, I morph into a chocolate-craving madwoman. I almost don't recognize myself when I have these urges--it's like I'm a completely different person. And I've noticed that the cravings have become more pronounced as I age. Seriously. Any other time of the month, I could walk by stacks of chocolate (and most sweets, actually) and not even blink an eye. But around day 26 of my cycle, I find myself digging through my cabinets, desperately searching for even just a morsel of chocolately goodness.

Last month at that time, I discovered a box of Duncan Hines Chocolate Supreme brownie mix at the bottom of my pantry from 2004. I'm a little ashamed to admit that I tore that sucker open, dumped in a few eggs, some oil and water, and stirred like a maniac until that black gold concoction came together in my mixing bowl. I ate about eight heaping tablespoons of uncooked brownie mix, and dumped the rest right into the trash!

Well guess what, folks? Today is THAT day. And I was doing so well until about a few minutes ago! I had my cottage cheese/yogurt concoction for breakfast, a handful of shrimp cocktail for my snack at 10 a.m. (got some strange looks from coworkers but noshed away at my shrimp anyway--to hell with them!), and then enjoyed a toasted multigrain English muffin with some peanut butter at noon. Around 2 p.m., I started feeling those cravings. Initially I could refocus my mind on my work, but around 2:30 I was completely overcome with a dire need for chocolate. I felt I was gonna die if I didn't have that chocolate NOW, dammit!

First I scoured my desk. No luck. Then I canvassed my office, soliciting coworkers for their goodies. Usually they come through for me, but everyone came up empty-handed today. Boo. So I grabbed my wallet and went down to the first floor vending machine. Not a single chocolate item in there, people! I don't want no stinking Doritos! Yet there are about twelve different variations of the snack chip in that godforsaken machine. What has this world come to???

I knew then that I'd have to make a bold move...desperate times and all that jazz. With a look of steely determination firmly etched on my face, I announced to my coworkers that I was heading out across the parking lot to the other building in our office park, to check out the vending selection there. They smirked in response.

I wandered around the strange building across the way for almost ten minutes until I found the vending area. And I was victorious in my quest, my friends. That vending machine was a beautiful sight to behold--a veritable jackpot of chocolate goodness! I managed to practice some restraint and came away with just a lovely little Tastykake Chocolate Junior snackcake.

NOTE: if you don't know about Tastykakes, you have my deepest condolences. Yes, it's "Tastykake" with a "k." I wanted to post a photo here for you so that you could fully appreciate it, but Blogger is not letting me post photos at the moment. Fucking Blogger! Another post for another time.

I barely made it back to my desk before my feeding frenzy commenced. And now all is right with the world again. Sigh.

Can I get an "amen?"

Labels: food, funny stuff, health, Philadelphia, work

So I went to a registered dietician last night. My hairdresser Trisha has been seeing her for about six months and has lost twenty-five pounds. Trisha has had nothing but praise for the R.D., so I decided to make an appointment.

Here's what I learned:

I'm not eating frequently enough. That surprised me. I'm not much of a snacker, so I tend to have three large meals a day and nothing in between. Apparently, this M.O. wreaks havoc with my blood sugar. The R.D., whose name is Adrianne, compared it to doing paperwork for my job. She said that if my boss came by my desk, dumped a three-foot high stack of paperwork on it, and told me to get as much of it done as possible, I would only be able to do so much of it before the end of the day, and would have to set the rest of it aside for later. That's what happens when you eat too much food at any given meal: your body uses only as much energy from it (calories) as it needs, then stores the rest of it as fat for later, in case you don't eat again.

Adrianne then told me to imagine my boss instead giving me smaller assignments every two or three hours...I'd get it all done before the next task. And so it is with your body. If you eat smaller meals more frequently, your body continuously uses the energy you're giving it every couple of hours. She told me that you can actually train (or retrain, as the case may be) your metabolism to be more effective by doing this.

Here are the rules for the next two weeks:

- My magic number is three. I must eat every three hours from the time I wake up until two or three hours before bedtime. Each meal must be about the size of my two fists, approximately. The deal is, if I'm eating this often, I won't be as hungry, so I won't feel the need to consume as much food. Even if I do not feel particularly hungry, I must eat every three hours. This will stabilize my blood sugar and correct my metabolic rate.

- I am currently not eating enough protein. So I need to make sure that every meal I eat contains a form of protein and a form of carbohydrate. The catch is that the carbohydrates I consume must have at least 3 grams of fiber. My goal is to consume 20 grams or more of fiber per day. No white breads or white-flour pasta or white rice or white crackers. This will be VERY hard for me, as I just adore simple carbs. Sigh.

- I hate water. Hate it. I've tried every trick in the book to make it more appealing (adding lemon, trying that fruit-flavored water) with no success. Instead, I drink about a half-gallon of diet iced tea per day. I was all proud of myself because it took a long time for me to kick my two-can a day Pepsi habit, and I somehow managed to do it. Granted, I still treat myself occasionally to Pepsi a few times a month, but overall I have drastically reduced my soda consumption. However, that is NOT enough, Adrianne told me. So now, for every two cups of diet iced tea I drink, I must drink one glass of water. This will also be hard, but doable, I think.

- I walk almost three miles daily, but my body has become accustomed to it. As Adrianne told me last night, if you keep doing what you've always done, you'll keep getting what you've always gotten. So I have to incorporate two high-intensity interval sessions per week, which will also rev up the old metabolism. Each session lasts only twenty minutes, so that's definitely doable. I need to buy a heart rate monitor to do the interval sessions. More about this later...

Our appointment wasn't all doom and gloom. Fortunately, I am a picky eater and don't like many "bad" foods (mayo, most fast food, most junk food, most sweets) so that works in my favor. She told me that my portion sizes have been sensible and praised me for my consistent walking habit. I just need to kick it up another notch and make a few changes.

I'm meeting her again in two weeks and have to track my daily food intake and exercise for that period. Wish me luck! I may have to hold some kind of formal white-flour purging ceremony tonight in my pantry...

Labels: food, health

I am so freaking psyched about the Foo Fighters concert tonight.

First of all, we're having dinner before the show at Pica's in Upper Darby (my hometown!). I worked at Pica's as a waitress for three years while I was in college, and I have extremely fond memories of the place. One of these days I'm going to write about my experiences there. I've been begging The Huz to take me there for months now, because I miss their famous square pizza! Mmmm-mmmm. Can't wait!

On to the concert: this is their first-ever acoustic tour, so it promises to be different and interesting. The reviews so far are excellent--supposedly it's intimate and subdued (in a GOOD way). They're performing at the Tower Theatre, also in Upper Darby, which is a wonderful little venue. It was built in the gothic style in the late 1920s. Originally used as a theatre for vaudeville acts, the Tower later became a movie theatre before being converted to a world-class concert venue. It seats only 3,100 people. I've never been to Radio City Music Hall, but I imagine that the Tower is a miniature replica of it. Its history and atmosphere are so rich.



I can't wait to hear the acoustic version of "Everlong"--which is easily my favorite Foo Fighters song, and possibly my favorite love song of all time. The reviews I've read stated that the Foos play "Everlong" as one of a two-song encore, and that it literally stops the show. I have goosebumps now just thinking about it.

This just may qualify as my idea of the perfect night.

Labels: concerts, Foo Fighters, food, FYI, memories, music, Upper Darby

Besides Angelina Jolie, my biggest girlcrush has to be this lady:



That is my favorite female chef from the Food Network, Giada de Laurentiis. She's hot, she seems fun, and she can seriously cook. What more could you want? Plus, she's not all coked-up like Rachael Ray.

(Aside: I used to adore Rachael Ray, but I can hardly stand to watch her anymore. First of all, she's EVERYWHERE, which is annoying. Major media overload. Second, she is most definitely riding the white horse, if you catch my drift. It'll be fun to watch her crash and burn, though. And that time will come eventually, trust me.)

Anyway, back to Giada. Every recipe I've tried from her first cookbook, Everyday Italian, has been a success. I cannot say that about any other cookbook that I own.

Her new book is coming out in April, and here's the great part: I'm going to meet her!

She'll be in the area for a book signing on April 6. I'm actually taking a half-day from work just to go see her speak and have her sign my cookbooks. I may also bring a camera and have a photo taken with her, but I'm a little scared...she's GORGEOUS and I'm not so sure I want to be photographed right next to her.

Yes, I am a loser.

Labels: books, celebrities, food, local news, pretty, TV

No, you dirty birds, not THAT "O" word...I'm talking about organic food!

One of my New Year's resolutions was to reduce the amount of processed foods that we eat. Since then, I've switched over to buying as much organic food as possible. Our local Genuardi's supermarket recently introduced their house brand, called "O Organics" that is very reasonably priced and widely available as substitutes for many types of food. For example, if you were to open my pantry today, you'd see the following organic foods:

tomato paste
tomato sauce
macaroni and cheese
pasta
ketchup
chicken, beef, and vegetable stock
canned veggies

And if you opened my refrigerator, you'd see organic eggs, milk, cheese, butter, yogurt, and fresh vegetables.

The only thing I haven't switched yet is fresh meat and poultry. I'm still searching for the best prices on this stuff, because it is REALLY expensive at the supermarkets I patronize. This morning on my loooong commute to work, it occurred to me that perhaps I should contact some of my local farms to see if their livestock is raised without hormones and antibiotics. It would be even better if the livestock was free-range or cage-free.

There are three major reasons why I've switched to organics. First of all, organic food is thought to be healthier than foods that have been treated with pesticides, hormones, antibiotics, or have in any way been genetically engineered or tampered with. There's been a lot of research indicating that organically-produced foods contain less toxic nitrates and higher concentrations of vitamins and minerals than conventionally produced foods.

Second, I personally believe that organic food tastes better. Of course, this could be simply the power of suggestion at work. Perhaps someday (when I'm truly bored) I will conduct some kind of double-blind taste tests to prove my theory.

Third, products from animals who were raised in an organically friendly environment makes me feel better. I swear I'm not some kind of covert PETA member, but if I have to eat animals, at least I know they enjoyed their lives before ending up on my dinner plate. That the hens who produced the eggs in my omelette are allowed to wander freely and weren't injected with growth hormones or antibiotics to increase the size or production rate of their eggs. That the cow who is now my medium-rare filet mignon could freely feed in a huge pasture, and wasn't miserably confined to a barn for its entire life.

I would love to hear from others about this. Brian thinks I'm a little crazy (that is, when he's not bitching to me about the higher grocery bill), but to hell with him! Do you think organic food is the wave of the future, or just the trendy thing at the moment?

Labels: food, money, shopping

Whew! It's good to be back. I fell hard last Wednesday due to an unexpected case of strep throat. I have no idea how I got it. Haven't had it since I was a kid. It came on so suddenly...Wednesday morning I felt fine, then by lunch started getting that weird taste in my mouth that always precedes a cold. By Wednesday afternoon, I felt like I was hit by a freight train. Fever, chills, sweating, couldn't swallow, hurt to talk.

I'll spare you the details, but just know that I'm extremely grateful for antibiotics. Still not feeling 100%, but much improved today.

Anyhoo...although I missed the New Year, I figured I'd post my goals for this coming year today. Better late than never!

2006 Goals (in random order)

1. Be in bed and asleep by 10 p.m. on work nights. Hah!
2. Take a daily multi-vitamin. Even if it's Flintstones.
3. Get some form of exercise for at least 30 minutes, at least four days a week. Racquetball, weight-lifting, walking are some ideas.
4. Plan my meals better so that when I'm hungry, I can eat something nutritious and homemade, thereby reducing the frequency of eating out.
5. Study for and pass the ASPPA DC-2 exam, so I can get the QKA designation for my job.
6. Start thinking about having a baby. Perhaps.
7. Travel somewhere fun. No more Caribbean islands, please...I'm talking Europe, Africa, or somewhere I've never visited within the borders of these great United States. I've always wanted to go to a dude ranch. Brian thinks I'm nuts but I'm totally serious. Hee-haw!
8. Pay off all the new appliances that we bought when we moved into the new house.
9. Volunteer.
10. Continue on the home improvement spree. I slowed down due to studying for DC-1 and then the holiday onslaught began. Now I have all the time in the world to paint and strip wallpaper!

I hope everyone has a happy, healthy, and fulfilling 2006!

Labels: food, goals, health, holidays, home improvement, marriage, work

OK, so I'm at work, and actually busy for once, so I don't have time or energy at the moment to think of 100 things about me. Here's the first 35 to whet your appetites:

1. I’m an only child.
2. My husband is an only child.
3. I am sometimes sad when I think that I will never be an aunt.
4. I don’t drink coffee.
5. I sometimes drink hot tea, but not often.
6. My favorite (non-alcoholic) beverage at the moment is Tropicana Light Fruit Punch.
7. I finally kicked my 2-can a day soda habit about six months ago. I’ve lost about four pounds without even trying since then, and I think avoiding soda has played a part in that.
8. My favorite clothing store is Kohl’s. I adore their Croft and Barrow and Apt. 9 brands.
9. I buy most of my shoes at Payless, because I have a very wide foot and they make cheap, cute shoes in wide widths.
10. I also love Homegoods. It’s like a TJ Maxx or Marshalls, except it only sells housewares.
11. I currently wear a size 12/14, but most people wouldn’t know it, because I have a very narrow waist and a J.Lo butt.
12. Actually I have a fairly traditional hourglass figure. And I like it that way. So does my husband!
13. My two favorite forms of exercise are weight lifting (I’m talking serious iron…not pastel-colored 2 lb. dumbbells) and walking.
14. As previously mentioned here, I have majorly slacked off from weight lifting because I’ve been studying for the DC-1 exam.
15. I plan to return to the gym this weekend.
16. My favorite subjects in school were Spanish and English.
17. My least favorite was math. I sucked at any kind of math.
18. How I wound up in the financial services field, considering my complete ineptitude at math, is still a mystery to me.
19. I love pizza. Especially margherita pizza from Bertucci’s.
20. Sadly, I’ve had to cut down on my pizza consumption, because otherwise I’d be 300 lbs. by now. I’ve gone from eating several slices of pizza a few times a week to eating it only a few times a month. Boo-hoo.
21. I love Panera. I always get the same thing when I eat there: French onion soup and a chicken Caesar salad.
22. I love to cook, and am an avid Food Network viewer.
23. My favorite shows on Food Network are Good Eats and Everyday Italian.
24. Alton Brown, the host of Good Eats, is one of my secret crushes.
25. Joaquin Phoenix is my huge, not-so-secret crush. Drool…
26. I was expelled from college because I hardly ever went to class. I was a commuter student and hated it.
27. My parents forced me to be a commuter student, rather than live on-campus, because they thought I’d party too much if I lived away from home, and that my grades would suffer. How ironic.
28. My final semester’s GPA was 0.0.
29. My parents still don’t know that I was expelled. They think that I just decided to leave because I wasn’t happy.
30. I began taking online college classes through the University of Phoenix a few years ago. I’m on hiatus now because I have to get some professional credentials for my job.
31. My current GPA is 3.94.
32. I’ve never watched a full episode of any reality TV program.
33. I think most TV is garbage.
34. When I do watch, I usually stick to Food Network, Discovery, HGTV, or PBS.
35. I think I’m the only person on earth who doesn’t own an MP3 player.

Labels: celebrities, college, family, food, FYI, health, marriage, meme, school, shopping, TV

This week, I find myself slowly descending into the cold panic that always comes with planning and preparing an Important Meal for more than just Brian and me.

All my recipes are neatly clipped together and hanging on the refrigerator. I made the brine for the turkey on Sunday evening. I also put together the cranberry-orange compote (with Grand Marnier, mmmm) and it's still sitting in the blender, also chilling in the fridge.

Tonight: I am going to assemble the ingredients for the green bean and sweet potato casseroles, and refrigerate them, uncooked. I am also going to bake one of the two desserts for the big day: Paula Deen's Gooey Pumpkin Butter Cake. I did a test run last week, since I'd never made it before, and it came out pretty good.

Tomorrow morning, I am going to the farm in Spring City where my fresh turkey is awaiting me. Tomorrow night, I will bake the apple pie.

Still, even though I know I am somewhat on top of the game, I get butterflies in my stomach just thinking about Thursday. That is because I have two less-than-perfect Thanksgivings under my belt.

I hosted Thanksgiving in the first year of our marriage. We'd only been married two months, and I'd never cooked a turkey before in my life. My mother told me not to buy a whole turkey, since there would only be five of us at dinner, but to instead get a turkey breast. Sounded good to me. So I wandered the aisles of my local Giant supermarket, peering in the freezer wells, in search of this elusive cut of bird. Finally, I came across a frozen Butterball, about the size and shape of a regulation football, whose label read: Boneless Breast of Turkey. This must be it, I thought. I can do this!

So on the big day, I stuck the thing in my roasting pan and baked it per the label instructions. My parents and grandmother arrived just as I was pulling it out of the oven. My mother came into the kitchen and asked if I needed any help.

"Oh, no," I assured her, "I've got it all under control."

Then I took the lid off the roasting pan. She glanced at my roast and said, ever so tactfully, "What the hell is that thing?"

I blinked. "I thought you told me to get a turkey breast instead of the whole bird," I reminded her.

She said, "Lori...that's not what I was talking about...that's a rolled turkey with white meat and dark meat. You got the wrong thing!"

Oh, the horror. And she was right! None of my family eats dark meat, and I was mortified when I saw that my little football roast yielded about five slices of white meat. I didn't even have a taste of any turkey that day, because I wanted to make sure that everyone else had some for themselves.

The following year, I decided to buy a whole, frozen bird. How can you mess that up, I thought.

I thought wrong, my friends. You see, there's a little bag of goodies inside that big cavity...that I completely bypassed and DID NOT REMOVE prior to roasting the turkey. Like some kind of wacked-out version of Groundhog Day, my mother swanned into the kitchen again just as I pulled the roaster from the oven. She asked, as customary, "Is there anything I can do to help you here?"

This time, I replied, "Yeah...let the turkey rest for a while, then carve it up."

Half an hour later, she picked up the carving knife and went for broke. She didn't get very far into it, though, when she suddenly cried out, "LORI! You didn't take the giblets out of the cavity!" I watched as her hand snaked into the innards of the bird, and my jaw dropped as she yanked out the bag, still frozen solid. Well, duh. Using an instant-read thermometer, we learned that the roast wasn't even cooked through. So back into the oven it went, for another HOUR. Sheesh. By the time I put it out on the table, everyone had already finished all of the side dishes.

So this year, I've decided that I am most definitely due for a good turkey. Third time's the charm, isn't that how the saying goes?

Feel free to share any or all of your Thanksgiving disasters here...if not just to make me feel better!

Labels: family, food, funny stuff, holidays, marriage, stress