Ran 3 miles today at lunch. Total so far: 227/ Miles to go 773.
Well the results are in. After on week on the Cabbage Soup diet I lost 10 lbs. Put on a pair of khaki pants this morning that I could not button last week. There is an entire closet of clothes both here and in New York that I want to ware and can't. My goal is to lose another 17 pounds and see how they fit! I know that with any crash diet you can gain it back fast, but I am on a mission and this Cabbage Soup works for me. May incorporate it into my routine one week a month for a while.
Today I enjoyed eggs and bacon for breakfast (but no toast) and had soup with rice for lunch and for supper some pork tenderloin and steamed squash for dinner. In between I ate an apple, drank some non-sugar added fruit juice and had an Atkins Bar. Going to continue with moderation and my running and add some weight training...."Belly beware....I got my eye on you!"
Also spent some time this morning writing some stories that my dad used to tell me. They are part of a book I have been working on called An Extraordinary Ordinary Life, a biography of my dad. Mostly I want to preserve them for myself and for my family. I have told many of them to my kids. They have become part of the family folk lore, the oral tradition. Dad was the consummate story teller. In his later years, especially as he declined physically, we would talk by phone twice a day. He would regale me with stories and I never ceased enjoying hearing them. I miss him. This book is a tribute to the man. And for your enjoyment, here is one of his stories!
Machine Gun Tommy
My father was an extraordinary ordinary man. Born in Little Rock Arkansas on November 1, 1925, he was the first child of Cameron Jenson Camp and Salome Bridget Camp. His birth was followed by two more sons: Edward, who was "never quite right" and Johnny, the brash youngest later to be body builder and communist college professor who moved with family and 5 step sons to Canada in the 1960s so they could all avoid the draft. I remember the FBI coming by our house one time asking about him. But this is not their story, although their lives weave part of the tapestry that was the life of Cameron Jenson Camp, Jr. or "CJ" as he was known in his early years.
Dad did not talk a lot about his childhood, but when he did it was by way of stories. He was a born story teller and in these brief vignettes, we were transported to his world. Little Rock in the Great Depression. Machine Gun Tommy has always been one my my children's favorites. Tommy was a large kid and the butt of frequent jokes by his peers. His nick name came from his habit of farting in multiple spurts when excited or agitated.
Dad has a crush on a girl named Beatrice Fargo. Beatrice was both rich and smart. Dad was smart, the class clown, but poor an certainly not in her league. Trying to get her attention one day in class, Dad, who was sitting right behind Tommy, put a nail in his shoe and was kicking his foot closer and closer to Tommy's large behind. Tyring to ignore him, Beatrice could not help but watch in fascination as the nail came closer and closer to Tommy. In fact, most of the class was watching by this time as the oblivious teacher continued to write problems on the chalk board.
Once of Dan's friends, Edgar, as I recall, had been following the cadence of Dad's foot swings and just as Dad's food reached its zenith, a few inches from Tommy, Edgar gave Dad's food a swift kick, propelling the foot and nail into Tommy's plump posterior. Tommy yelled and proceeded to let out a series of his signature farts, machine gun style.
The class broke out in pandemonium. The furious teacher, upon surmising what had happened, send Dad to the Principal's office. Beatrice, her face red, could not help laughing and that was reward enough for Dad. Upon entering the Principal's office, Dad was still feeling triumphant.
"Why do you do these things, CJ? I sometimes think you must like getting punished" the tired Principal asked before administering another paddling.
The Principal never could understand Dad. Most kids who showed up in his office were poor students. Dad was smart and popular. He was elected student council president in Junior High. Being poor, he only had overalls to ware to a city wide meeting of all student council officers to represent the school. Dad told me he vividly remembered this same Principal asking him if he did not have something "more appropriate to ware?" Dad did not. But until then, he had never really thought about that much. Country people learn to get by.
Life is Good!
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Friday, July 23, 2010
July 26 Monday Back To Basics and Cabbage Soup!
Ran 3 miles today (Monday the 26th of July). Have run an addition 23 miles on top of that since I last posted. Total so far: 224/ Miles to go: 776. Way behind the 1000 miles a year goal, but have decided to keep running and see both how many miles I can run in a year and how long it takes me to run 1000 miles in my 56 year old body.
Gambling investment so far $84 with winnings of $45 so losses so far equal $39. Gym Rat tells me I should buy two lotto tickets each time....one with my number and one quick pic....thinks only the quick pics actually win based on the winning numbers he sees ("I mean, who would pick on their own 4 or 5 numbers in the same sequence?" or so his argument goes). Debating that theory. Implementation would mean an increase of $2 a week. I will decide Wednesday when I make my purchase of lotto ticket and Weekly Grand.
I hit a slump, big one, with the running and writing. After my last post about a month ago. I have been traveling a lot and also teaching at night (7:50 to 9:30 which means I get home after 10 many nights a week). Finished last class of summer school Friday with the exam. These are excuses which reminds me of what a coach once told me in high school "Excuses are like ass holes. Everyone has one but they all stink!" In any event, since I last wrote I have been to New York twice, Ashtown Oregon and Chicago. I don't plan to travel for a while. Hopefully this will help me get back into the running/writing routine.
But speaking of traveling, had an "airplane" experience. As the small Delta commuter jet from Medford Oregon (closest airport to Ashtown) was about to land in Salt Lake City, it pulled up and did not land. The pilot came over the intercome and explained "I guess you realize we did not land. The landing gear did not go down. But don't worry, we have a lot of gas so we will circle the Salt Lake until we figure out what to do."
Holy $@%$," I thought,' "What do you mean when you say don't worry?" "What am I supposed to do?" Everyone was looking at everyone. I did what all good Catholic boys do....started praying all the prayers I had memorized as a child...the Our Father, the Act of Contrition, some Hail Marys, etc. I also thought, "Why tell us this? I really did not need at this moment to know that the landing gear were not going down....Ok....if they can't get them to go down and we need some special training right before we crash...tell me. But now, just let me fly in blissful ignorance of my potential demise." Fortunately, the pilot later came back on the intercom and said they had fixed the problem. Everyone breathed a collective sign of relief and the flight attendant (only one on the mini plane) told us that their pilots were the best! Later a former pilot friend of mine told me that the pilot had to tell us why when we did not land, but I did not believe him...or at least felt like he could have been less precise.
Lots of fun things happened on these trips and I may write more about them later. For tonight, tired and wanting to post, I will just let you know that today is day 7 and the last day of my 7 day Cabbage Soup Diet (also sometimes called the Dolly Parton diet....oh my). I have done this once before. It is a good way to jump start a diet/exercise routine. You are supposed to lose 10 lbs in on week. All my traveling and over indulging combined with less running the past month had left me feeling bloated in my tight pants. I want to lose 20 lbs by Labor Day, hence this jump start.
The diet is fairly simple. You make this soup and eat as much as you want every day. The soup consists of green onions sauted, two bell peppers, a bag of sliced mushrooms, some carrots, celery, a large can of tomatoes and you add a large bottle of V-8 juice and water. You can also add beef or chicken broth and lipton onion soup mix if you want and other spices. I like to use the spicy version of V-8 juice and/or spicy tomatoes. The soup tastes good (if you like V-8 juice) but you do get tired of it after a few days.
On day one of the diet you can eat as much fruit (other than bananas) and drink no sugar added fruit juice and have as much of the soup as you want. On day two you eat as much vegetables (other than corn or beans) and the soup and reward yourself with a big baked potato with butter for dinner. On day three you eat as much soup, fruit and veggies as you want but no potato. Day four is my favorite. You eat the soup and 8 bananas and a quart of skim milk. By then, you are so tired of soup and veggies the bananas taste great as does the milk. Day 5 you can have steak, tomatoes and the soup and Day 6 you can have steak (or skinless chicken or broiled fish) and soup and veggies. The final day (today) lots of brown rice and soup and veggies and you can drink sugar free fruit juice. I end up having to make a second pot of soup about day 5 or 6. You can also drink tea (I cheat and drink my coffee black) and should drink lots of water.
So tomorrow morning I will stand on the scale and report back to you how much I have lost. I feel thinner, and better. One thing about the diet is that you don't drink alcohol, so I have missed my wine and scotch for a week now. Starting tomorrow I am going to try to do the "push away" diet for a few days....i.e. just push the food away before I am stuffed and also the "avoid the whites" diet (no bread, potatoes, sugar) which means higher protein and less carbohydrates. We will see how I am doing on Friday again. Saturday will be a through away day. Going to visit Mrs. Savage in Tyler and whatever she cooks I will be certain to eat....and I will have the obligatory cocktail with her at the appointed hour.....Life is Good!
Gambling investment so far $84 with winnings of $45 so losses so far equal $39. Gym Rat tells me I should buy two lotto tickets each time....one with my number and one quick pic....thinks only the quick pics actually win based on the winning numbers he sees ("I mean, who would pick on their own 4 or 5 numbers in the same sequence?" or so his argument goes). Debating that theory. Implementation would mean an increase of $2 a week. I will decide Wednesday when I make my purchase of lotto ticket and Weekly Grand.
I hit a slump, big one, with the running and writing. After my last post about a month ago. I have been traveling a lot and also teaching at night (7:50 to 9:30 which means I get home after 10 many nights a week). Finished last class of summer school Friday with the exam. These are excuses which reminds me of what a coach once told me in high school "Excuses are like ass holes. Everyone has one but they all stink!" In any event, since I last wrote I have been to New York twice, Ashtown Oregon and Chicago. I don't plan to travel for a while. Hopefully this will help me get back into the running/writing routine.
But speaking of traveling, had an "airplane" experience. As the small Delta commuter jet from Medford Oregon (closest airport to Ashtown) was about to land in Salt Lake City, it pulled up and did not land. The pilot came over the intercome and explained "I guess you realize we did not land. The landing gear did not go down. But don't worry, we have a lot of gas so we will circle the Salt Lake until we figure out what to do."
Holy $@%$," I thought,' "What do you mean when you say don't worry?" "What am I supposed to do?" Everyone was looking at everyone. I did what all good Catholic boys do....started praying all the prayers I had memorized as a child...the Our Father, the Act of Contrition, some Hail Marys, etc. I also thought, "Why tell us this? I really did not need at this moment to know that the landing gear were not going down....Ok....if they can't get them to go down and we need some special training right before we crash...tell me. But now, just let me fly in blissful ignorance of my potential demise." Fortunately, the pilot later came back on the intercom and said they had fixed the problem. Everyone breathed a collective sign of relief and the flight attendant (only one on the mini plane) told us that their pilots were the best! Later a former pilot friend of mine told me that the pilot had to tell us why when we did not land, but I did not believe him...or at least felt like he could have been less precise.
Lots of fun things happened on these trips and I may write more about them later. For tonight, tired and wanting to post, I will just let you know that today is day 7 and the last day of my 7 day Cabbage Soup Diet (also sometimes called the Dolly Parton diet....oh my). I have done this once before. It is a good way to jump start a diet/exercise routine. You are supposed to lose 10 lbs in on week. All my traveling and over indulging combined with less running the past month had left me feeling bloated in my tight pants. I want to lose 20 lbs by Labor Day, hence this jump start.
The diet is fairly simple. You make this soup and eat as much as you want every day. The soup consists of green onions sauted, two bell peppers, a bag of sliced mushrooms, some carrots, celery, a large can of tomatoes and you add a large bottle of V-8 juice and water. You can also add beef or chicken broth and lipton onion soup mix if you want and other spices. I like to use the spicy version of V-8 juice and/or spicy tomatoes. The soup tastes good (if you like V-8 juice) but you do get tired of it after a few days.
On day one of the diet you can eat as much fruit (other than bananas) and drink no sugar added fruit juice and have as much of the soup as you want. On day two you eat as much vegetables (other than corn or beans) and the soup and reward yourself with a big baked potato with butter for dinner. On day three you eat as much soup, fruit and veggies as you want but no potato. Day four is my favorite. You eat the soup and 8 bananas and a quart of skim milk. By then, you are so tired of soup and veggies the bananas taste great as does the milk. Day 5 you can have steak, tomatoes and the soup and Day 6 you can have steak (or skinless chicken or broiled fish) and soup and veggies. The final day (today) lots of brown rice and soup and veggies and you can drink sugar free fruit juice. I end up having to make a second pot of soup about day 5 or 6. You can also drink tea (I cheat and drink my coffee black) and should drink lots of water.
So tomorrow morning I will stand on the scale and report back to you how much I have lost. I feel thinner, and better. One thing about the diet is that you don't drink alcohol, so I have missed my wine and scotch for a week now. Starting tomorrow I am going to try to do the "push away" diet for a few days....i.e. just push the food away before I am stuffed and also the "avoid the whites" diet (no bread, potatoes, sugar) which means higher protein and less carbohydrates. We will see how I am doing on Friday again. Saturday will be a through away day. Going to visit Mrs. Savage in Tyler and whatever she cooks I will be certain to eat....and I will have the obligatory cocktail with her at the appointed hour.....Life is Good!
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