Monday, August 28, 2017

My Love Hate Relationship with Food

Food is not evil. Food is not the enemy. Food is Fuel. So how come I often find myself dreading the chore of meal planning and meal making?

Lately, it is because food has no joy for me anymore. No flavor. I find myself craving something super sweet or super salty and still not satisfied. I find myself eating without paying attention to flavor. Is that because I can't identify the flavor? Or is it because eating has become so mindless that I simply don't register the flavors?

I have fallen off the wagon. I have been eating Gluten and Dairy with abandon and this has been a tough allergy season. I have justified that many people are complaining about the allergens this season, but I know that I sneeze withing 20-30 minutes of eating gluten. My issue is that Gluten Free Bagels are awful. I love Bagels. And so does Sampson. There is no substitute. I need to get my life in order and get my body back on track. 

I am turning 40 in 109 days. I am not dreading 40. I am embracing the freedom that my life has and is continuing to become. As we women age society discounts us more, and expects less from us. We get marginalized and in that marginalization is the opportunity to live life. I won't set some lofty goal that I will be in the best shape of my life by my 40th birthday, because it simply isn't possible. However, I plan on spending the next 109 days working toward a healthy, sustainable life style. One where I have enough energy to get through my to do list (even if that means shrinking it to fit on a post it note), and I feel good in my clothes and my skin. 

I know that I haven't been getting my vitamins and minerals. So I am starting with some Smoothies. I love smoothies. I'll likely convert to porridge as the weather cools down, but for now I am going to enjoy my smoothies. Today is GreenaColada: Greens (Spinach), Pineapple (canned in juice), coconut milk (hey it is what I had on hand) and a dash of hemp seeds for some healthy fats.

I have no idea what tomorrow will bring, but I know I'll have plenty of opportunities to make healthy choices. I just wish we had an affordable salad place (Like Half Moon Salads) here. I despise paying $10-$12 for a mediocre and tasteless salad. I know I could make my own.... but that would mean dealing with the disaster that my kids keep leaving in the kitchen. 

Monday, August 14, 2017

Day 1 Goals - 60 Days to Go

Please note I started this post the day after my last post, but life just got in the way. Updates are in Purple.

Today I plan to purchase some if not all of the moving boxes. I know I could probably cobble together liquor store boxes but this time I just want simple. 10 Small boxes for books and 30 Medium Boxes for most everything else. Then I am going to start with the 3 partially unpacked boxes in the kitchen. If I can minimize them down to one box I think that is a good start. There is also a left over plastic tote (without a lid) in the front hall closet. I think I'll take a stab at that one as well. I did purchase boxes. 30 Medium boxes. It wasn't enough. I wasn't able to get rid of as much as I had hoped. I had to stop trash collection on the Wednesday before I moved out. Move out was Sunday night. I couldn't trust the landlord not to fill the trash bins with his crap and cost me extra money. 

Then I am going to start a list of things I want and things I need for the new place.

Want:
New Curtains - I struggle with this one. Not more than a year ago my mother bought me curtains for my old apartment. The problem is they are not what I want. The color scheme is wrong and they have grommets at the top. I am not a fan of the grommet look. This is something that I will pack and move, then deal with once I move into the new place. Once I have taken stock of the wall colors and added my furniture I'll get curtains that I want. I'll sell the old (new, never used) ones to offset the cost. Now that I am in, I know that I need to get the curtains I want. I never get new or what I want. If I could find them used, I would. I want Blue/Silver for my Bedroom. I ordered Sampson's (rainbow) and I want Silver/Grey for the living room.  I'll work on listing all my old curtains this week. 

Bedding - I don't have a comforter and neither does Sam. New bedding also means I can reduce some of the multitude of blankets we currently have. I ordered Sampson a new Quilt and a Rug. I have not quite found what I wanted. Truth is, I found what I wanted last year at Bed Bath and Beyond and I waited (waited too long). Now I am simply waiting till I find the one I want. 


New Pillows - The pillows we have are very old, or new but cheap and didn't hold up. I'd rather trash them and get better quality pillows at the new place. I am entertaining turning the old pillows into some sort of bedding for the pets, but I think likely trashing and starting new is the best option.  YES WE HAVE NEW PILLOWS. Not quite happy with mine so I may be trying another type. The Chiropillow is looking like a good option for me. Sampson loves his pillows.  I trashed his old foam pillow (it was worn out and gross). I kept the remainder to use in the pet bed (a piece of furniture I bought from a friend) and for camping. This way when the get ruined I won't feel guilty about throwing them out.  

Bedside table(s) - I have two lamps and simple bedside tables would be nice. I'll keep an eye out at Garage Sales and resale shops over the next few months. The dog bed/crate doubles as a bedside stand, but I do want something for the other side. 

Large piece of glass to top my dresser. I'd like to have a bunch of candles on it in front of the mirror. I miss candle light. I find it calming and soothing. Still need.

Need:
Dishes - we do not have enough dishes. Sam and I have selected different patterns and I thought it would be good to get 2 plates, 2 bowls for each of us. We have plenty of glasses and I just purchased flatware.  Sampson's dishware has held up. He needs another plate and bowl. I need two bowls and another plate (mine broke), but I bought flatware. Somehow already one large and small fork have been lost.

Vacuum. I am using a small and not good handheld (needs a new filter), but I think a larger more powerful unit would better serve me with my pets. So I'll look into the replacement filter for the handheld and then likely sell it as well. Bought a Shark Pet Lift-away and I am so glad I did.



Things to get rid of:
Extra pots and pans. I love my cast iron cookware so I don't use much else. I purchased Sam a Copper Fry Pan and he loves it so I am going to purchase the larger one as well. Then I can sell the miscellaneous fry pans we have rather than move them. Again anything that doesn't sell can go to the refugees. Accomplished!

Pink and Green Fabric Baskets. I once had a vision of dying them black and continuing to use them. However anything without a lid isn't safe from Rory and many have started to break down. I think my best bet is to trash the broken ones and sell the rest. Accomplished!

So we have been in our new place for 3.5 months. We still have boxes to unpack (and boxes still at my parents). We however are making progress. I figured out how to make the huge section work. Now I just need shelving. This apartment has zero storage (except in the kitchen). The kitchen has plenty of storage but needs counter space. I'd LOVE to find a completely refurbished retro fridge and stove.  Things will be what they will be. One day, one improvement, one box at a time.