Duck March Duck Walk

Today was a whirlwind exciting day of learning about loan repayment options and the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System! I can't complain though. I also had a wondrous splash of time with an old friend over lunch and the March of the Peabody Ducks.

Now, that's my kind of duck walk!

I have to admit, while I've been on this trip, I haven't worried too much about what I'm eating. When I get back to Boston though...

Seriously, when I get back to Boston, it's time to pay attention to what I'm eating. Time to stop with the sugar, stop with the extra carbs, stop with the sitting still and not exercising, stop with the excuses. Time to start the cardio, start the sit-ups, start the weight-lifting, and start the duck walks!

 11/27/12

yogurt, berries and granola

 banana

 crab pot!!!!

Queen crab legs with potatoes and corn

 salad with cheeses, pork, a little bit-o-beef, cauliflower au gratin, and pasta florentine

bread pudding and some white cake

Florida eats...Gator!

Yup, you read that right. Gator. As in alligator. Those adorable creatures that I was feeding and holding and petting yesterday at Gatorland I was eating tonight for dinner. It was wrong to eat them in the park, but not in the hotel! Admittedly, alligator is not something I'd like to eat every day. It was a bit tough. It was more of a I-have-to-try-it sort of thing.

Apparently, alligator is quite healthy, as meats go. Roughly 110 calories in 4 ounces, low in saturated fat, high in protein, and the tail tastes like chicken! They say that the dark meat tastes more like pork or frogs' legs. As if I know what freakin' frogs' legs taste like! That's just absurd!

On a non-food related topic...today is my mom's birthday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Mom!!!!! If you know my mom, wish her a happy birthday will you? She's celebrating with a new Arizona Cardinals jacket.

 11/26/12

some in-room yogurt, granola and fruit. Gotta love the mini-fridge!

 chicken salad on a salad with chips

 salmon sashimi...it's good, but I've had better

 OK....here's the alligator!!! You weren't expecting alligator sushi were you?? The roll with the spicy mayo is the alligator. The other one is tuna.

a litttle chocolate ice cream for dessert

Sunday morning haiku - on Monday

Sunday morning haiku:

Thanksgiving is past

I travel to Orlando

Another time-mark

That's right, folks! I'm a poet, don't I know it! Seriously, my trip to Orlando is one more mark in time to get me to the end of the term. One step closer to graduation! Which, I might add, is only 165 days away as of today.

The funny thing about Thanksgiving? It's one of the only times of the year that I think it's acceptable to eat leftovers. Yup. I don't like leftovers. I'll begrudgingly eat them, but for the record, I'm completely against it. Anyway, thanks to the leftovers, I managed to not be hungry for over two days! And by not hungry, I mean completely stuffed. As in uncomfortably full. Talk about a first world problem, right?

Now that the holiday is done though, it doesn't mean that I get a break. There's homework and papers still to be done. This is crunch time with my marketing project! About three more weeks though, then I get a break. Right now, it's survival mode. Right now, it's all about getting through and maintaining some semblance of sanity. Right now, it's about finding some coffee at the airport.

 11/23/12

Admit it, you had pie and ice cream for breakfast the day after Thanksgiving too. Didn't you?

This is as close as you'll get to seeing my Thanksgiving dinner. The dreaded leftovers!

more pie!

 11/24/12

the first remotely low calorie thing to pass my lips in days

ham leftovers from a friend's Thanksgiving, sweet potatoes and peas from another meal, and cranberry sauce from my Thanksgiving

pie and ice cream with whipped topping!

 11/25/12

burger and fries at Gatorland

If you've never been to Gatorland, I definitely recommend it!! And yes, you can eat alligator at Gatorland. I chose not to, it didn't seem right.

 Much needed coffee!!!! I got up arount 3:30am...I could barely keep my eyes open by 9:30pm!

 Unlimited salad and bread sticks at the Olive Garden. I had 2 of each.

Spaghetti and meat sauce with meat balls at the Olive Garden












PS---I really did write this on Sunday. I was simply too tired to post last night after getting up so early, and then spending the day in the Florida sun with the Gators!

My ever-expanding ass

The holiday season is about to begin and that means lots of food, friends, and parties. Better yet, it also means some time off of school! This week, I have a few days off for Thanksgiving. It will give me time to work on some projects and papers in between the dinners, brunches, and leftovers.

Remember my previous theme of marking time? Thanksgiving is a marking point! There's about 3 1/2 weeks of the term left. I've got 2 major delivereables still on my plate: a paper based mainly on an interview with the awesome Artistic Director of the Commonwealth Shakespeare Company and the Samuel Adams marketing project I've been working on all semester. Basically, I've got about 3 more weeks of sitting on my ass at the computer. Ah! My ever-expanding ass.

3 more weeks and I can get my life back, at least temporarily! I can go to the gym...back to abs class, back to boxing class, back to some kickboxing classes! I'll be able to stop the expansion of my ass, my hips, my belly...OK, I admit it, it's getting to me. Normally, I have a better perspective. Normally, I can sit back and realize that all this extra on my body is just temporary, that I will be able to do something about it soon, just not now. Today, I have a less positive perspective. I'm feeling caught up in the cycle of weight loss and gain. It's seeming less hopeful today. It's probably just a mood...a phase. A little bit of something that I have to just push through and remember my priorities and that the semester is almost over.

And when the semester is over, then the year is almost over. And when the year is over, I can really get back to the gym. It will take time, but I'll be able to get my body back into the shape that I like. I'll be able to climb stairs without huffing and puffing. My fat pants will once again be too big. And I'll stop my ass from expanding faster than the universe.

 11/13/12
salad with beef and barley soup

rich chocolate cake for a snack

yogurt for dinner

 11/14/12
hot breakfast

 salad and sushi

nachos!

 11/15/12

Cheese danish from Green T Coffeeshop

Tasty burger with a 50/50 basket

 11/16/12

You'll be happy to know that the apple didn't get eaten...and that the French vanilla muffin was delicious!

 office party salad and vegetable lasagna

 chocolate mousse cake at the office party

 raw fish!!

 pork and shrimp shumai

 lots-o-rolls...mine's the white tiger, but the jalapeno was good too!

spicy salmon

 11/17/12

buttermilk pancakes, fresh Vermont syrup, chicken sausage and fresh fruit

 nachos!

chicken, broccoli, and corn...on one of my Thanksgiving plates!!!

 11/18/12

a reappearance of the pancakes 

 marshmallow Santa...it's not even Thanksgiving yet!

 nachos!!

 11/19/12

Back to a normal breakfast?

 And a normal lunch?

 Nachos have been normalized...

Definitely NOT normal...lamb, mashed sweet potatoes and green beans. It was my first time making lamb chops. Not bad for a first try! Tasted like camel.

 11/20/12
granola, yogurt, and berries

 chocolate chip...1 of 2 really

 Firehouse Salad

Curry feast!!!
Chicken curry, eggplant curry, chick peas and coconut, beets and coconut, and rice with vegetables


Again, a meal too good for a small photo.

11/21/12

cinnamon bun while riding the T

Velveeta shells and cheese...don't judge me.

Sushi from Bon Chon...gotta say, it was good, but I don't recommend it. The salmon sashimi was previously (read: still) frozen and the service was insane slow!

HOWEVER, This roll in the front, the PINK FLOYD roll, was yummers!!!! And I would order it again, if only for the name.






Alas, I have no Thanksgiving photos to show you all. Suffice it to say that there was turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, mushy peas, candied sweet potatoes, brussel sprouts with candied pecans and too many desserts to keep track of! And, yes, I ate so much that I don't expect I'll want to eat again for a few days.