Archive for February 2012
Some Thoughts
How about some spontaneous Sunday morning thoughts? A post of very little forethought.
I find myself a bit hesitant to go on and on about the impact of living alone. I am aware of people who have lived alone for much longer than me, and whose likelihood of that status changing is nothing like mine, and it gives me an impression that my perspectives on the topic might come across as disrespectful to them. I fully expect to be reunited with Cyndie, so my living alone is a temporary situation. Nonetheless, I am increasingly feeling the impact, the ambiance and nuances, of living alone. This will definitely provide me a deeper appreciation for the experience of others who live by themselves, which I hope I remember long after Cyndie returns back home again.
This weekend, I am getting a remote dose of family energy over FaceTime visits with Cyndie because Elysa is there in Boston for a weekend visit. I do get a beneficial buzz of connection, even though they are there together and I am here alone. It may be aided by my knowledge that Cyndie will be home to visit as soon as the end of this coming week. Just thinking about her being here in a matter of days is energizing. It doesn’t hurt that it also means I will only work a 4-day week, because I have taken Friday off to maximize our time together during this brief, 3-day visit.
With winter weather taking it easy on us this year, I’ve got no snow-related activities underway. Today is predicted to be sunny and warm. I plan to do a little bicycling. It just so happens to be one activity that I do without Cyndie, whether she is home or not. What will be missing is the part where I get home and tell her stories from my adventure and grovel for some comfort in the way of a meal or a massage of aching muscles.
I guess living alone is what’s on my mind this morning, don’t you think?
It’s not all bad! I’m enjoying the heck out of the good parts. Off to seize the solo day!
Few Words
The photo for yesterday’s ‘Words on Images’ post led Ian to comment about the amusement my antics must provide to the wild life. He knows me well. I stayed up late last night watching NHL hockey (we lost by shootout, but put in a good effort), and this morning starts early with soccer at the club before I head off to work, so I’m making this post brief. I’ll augment it with another image depicting more amusement I provided the wild life during my walk the other day…
Barriers
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Keep in mind that you can always click on the images to see a full-size view. Some of the text will appear a bit easier to read in the “Words on Images” creations when viewed at 100%. I noticed that this one, in particular, seems to come across with less than optimal lettering at the size posted. -JWH
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Words on Images
Mission Accomplished!
After all that anxiety over sugar and salt yesterday, I simplified last night and ate a basic dinner of meat, potatoes, and a vegetable. Mike came over and we fired up the grill at a time of year when grilling outside isn’t usually the way we cook around here. I’m certainly not going hungry while Cyndie is in Boston. My friends are taking good care of me. Look what Mike whipped up within minutes of arriving:
Unfortunately, I didn’t pause to get a picture of the delectable meal that Pam cooked in my kitchen on the prior Friday. She served up Filo Pastries, couscous and a salad with lots of goodies in it, finished off with key lime pie. Over-the-top goodness!
Speaking of over-the-top, and Cyndie in Boston… the kids and I wanted to send a message of love yesterday and figured we should do it with flowers. In Boston, who better to help us with that, than family? Our very own angel brother-in-law, Carlos, took our request to do something that would demonstrate how big our love for Cyndie is and created a Valentine’s Day love bouquet extraordinaire!
I was just starting to get anxious to hear something when Carlos sent me a message with the subject: Mission Accomplished! How perfect. He provided photos so we could have an image of what Cyndie was raving about when she called to acknowledge our gesture. This is the most exotic and beautiful Valentine I have ever given Cyndie. Thank you, Carlos!! I owe you, big time.
The call from Cyndie, verifying the success of the project, followed shortly after his email. Ain’t love GRAND!
Photo courtesy of Carlos Colon
Food Fits
In my ongoing quest for optimal health, it is only logical that I need to choose a healthy diet. I have been lucky for most of my life to have had the freedom to make menu selections with reckless abandon. I’ve never reacted with any food allergies, and I’m not very persnickety about what goes into the food I eat. I have long practiced sparse usage of butter and salt at the table. I don’t like carbonated drinks, so I rarely drink soda pop. I don’t like coffee, so I don’t get much in the way of caffeine. That gives me a head start over plenty of Americans who have fallen into a pattern of poor choices in their daily diet.
My primary struggle, I thought, was with my penchant for sweet things.
Earlier this month, news reports revealed that scientists are suggesting sugar is toxic and should be taxed and regulated like tobacco and alcohol.
Americans consume on average more than 600 calories per day from added sugar, equivalent to a whopping 40 teaspoons.
Ouch.
But it got worse for me. That report was followed by another, this time from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, released about a week later, revealing the top 10 hidden sources of sodium in the American diet.
About 90% of Americans eat more sodium than is recommended for a healthy diet. …Americans eat on average about 3,300 mg of sodium a day. The U.S. Dietary Guidelines recommend limiting sodium to less than 2,300 mg a day, and about 6 out of 10 adults should further limit sodium to 1,500 mg a day.
Guilty. I was aware that I probably was ingesting more salt than I should, in addition to the sweets. What I didn’t realize was that the primary source of sodium wasn’t coming from the salty snacks on which I love to munch. Check out the link to the hidden sources. Bread and rolls are the number 1 source for salt in the American diet! Potato chips, pretzels, and popcorn are way down at the bottom of the 10-worst list.
I have explained before that when I cut down on sweets, I tend to switch to eating more breads. It seems I’ve been moving from one ill to another.
Last week, I finally buckled down and actually read some food labels in an effort to witness this excess of sodium I’m eating. Shocking, I tell you. Shocking! First of all, I discovered that a serving size for bread is one slice. So with every sandwich I make, I’m eating a double serving? I guess my sandwiches are supposed to be open faced. If bread is so loaded with sodium, why the heck doesn’t it taste salty!?
Then I peeked at some cookies a friend gave me. Serving size: 2 cookies, sodium: 120mg. That’s 5% of the recommended daily allowance, right there. But these cookies are really, really good. Irresistibly good. I ate 6. That’s 360mg of sodium. They sure didn’t taste salty. Too bad that I was eating these as a chaser for my main course of pizza… number 3 on the evil list.
Next I looked at the boxes of cereal in my cupboard. They are all lined up so I can easily compare and most appear to be in a range from the best of 60mg (Shredded Wheat) up to 200mg. Then comes my long-time favorite, 100% natural, whole grain wheat with barley, Post Grape-Nuts at a whopping 12% of my daily sodium, 290mg.
I looked closer. The majority of those cereals define their serving size at 1 Cup, but a few switch to 3/4 Cup just to make it interesting. Then comes good ol’ Grape-Nuts. That heaviest dose of sodium is coming from the smallest serving size of 1/2 Cup! I’m pretty sure I’ve been getting about 25% of my daily sodium every time I eat those crunchy nuggets of goodness.
If I’m going to get that much sodium, I would prefer that it taste salty to fulfill that craving. Pass me the Cheez-Its. This healthy diet thing is going to be a struggle.
Songs Sung
I’m in a bit of a fog, buzzing still from last night’s broadcast of the 54th GRAMMY awards show. It had me staying up a bit late for a night before my morning soccer. That, and from all the tributes being offered in memory of Whitney Houston over the weekend. The Grammy’s had so many live performances, there hardly seemed but a handful of awards presented during the broadcast this year. I think I approve.
What caught my attention? Opening song by Bruce Springsteen and his band. Paul McCartney performing, (how come it looked like he had no idea what the beat was when he clapped along to other people’s performances?). Foo Fighters. Chris Brown’s dance number and the creative graphics projected on the set. I didn’t know Bruno Mars before last night, what a cool performance that was. The Beach Boys together again! Adele’s return to singing after throat surgery. The tribute to Glen Campbell. It was a good year.
Let’s hear it for recorded music, old and new!
Instant Triggers
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the number of thoughts I can have
in the minuscule confines of a single second
baffle my sense of time and the universe
remembering things and forgetting them
in less time than it takes to finish a breath
accepting the places I have stood
as more than mere figments of my imagination
wondering about hands I have held
disasters I have witnessed
that were not really disasters
with the passing of time
providing enlightened perspective
photographs instantly trigger
recognition of more
than a moment in time
Relative Something 