I Wish It Were A Virtual Friday

I liked last Thursday better because it was the last day of my work week then. Today I am not as fortunate, though next week I’ll be back to non-reality celebrating a virtual Friday.

Today’s Personal Project
Relax and attempt to enjoy what I have.

Today’s Daily Challenge
Name your “trigger food,” a food that you can’t stop eating once you start and may eat mindlessly.

A true trigger food is one that sets off a round of overeating and bingeing. The most common are sugar-fat and fat-salt combinations, such as ice cream or French fries. To manage any of these, you need to identify the food first before you can determine how to avoid or limit it.

French fries.

Celebrating Atlanta Beer Week At The Shed Midway Pub
On my drive home last night I realized that I wasn’t in the mood for The Shed because ITP-Reader Jenka wouldn’t be there I wanted to go somewhere that was having special beer for Atlanta Beer Week.

I had heard that there would be two casks of beer served at my local bar The Midway Pub so I headed that way instead. I got there in just in time to get the last two-thirds-of-a-glass from the cask which interested me, which I was graciously given for free*. I was going to eat a vegetarian meal, but couldn’t bring myself to ask to “hold the bacon” on the fried green tomato sandwich that I ordered. In addition to the short glass of Terrapin “Atlantic City” I consumed a delicious bottle of Lakefront Brewery’s Fixed Gear Red Ale.

* – of course a free beer means I tip much more than 20%, which means I’m really not getting the beer for free.

The “190” Project
As I attempt to get exercise every day I start thinking of my ultimate goal — 190 pounds. For a many my height 5’9″ (hey, I’m average) 190 pounds is still “too heavy” but it would be a weight at which my smaller-sized pants would be wearable (again) and comfortable.

At my advanced age I realize that I am going to have to make some concessions, such as limiting the amount of alcohol which enters my body (which will be difficult — see above) and attempting to improve my diet in addition to continuing to get exercise. Eating more vegetarian meals has helped some, but chasing a vegetarian meal with French fries is limiting the benefits.

Playing With Myself
GET YOUR MIND OUT OF THE GUTTER! And frankly I’m kind of surprised that I’ve never used that section title previously.

Tonight I will be heading down to the Hertz Stage at the Alliance Theatre to see a play (alone) called Apples And Oranges. Tonight’s ticket is a rescheduling from my original season-ticket date of two weeks ago when I chose to go to The EARL to hear The Hold Steady instead.

Tonight marks three fantastic Thursday nights in a row for me — the The Hold Steady concert, the Father John Misty concert, and now this.

Stats & Goals
Daily
Current Mood – better
Current Music – listening to a “Back To Work” podcast as I make a feeble effort to try and catch up on my backlog of podcasts.
Website Of The Day – Every time I drive up White Horse Road headed to Asheville, NC I see a store called Hamrick’s. Hamrick’s sits in a small strip shopping center which always harkens me back to the olden days…
Mode Of Transportation To Work – my car
Exercise (b)Log – walking, ~5.3 miles
Morning Weigh-In – checking again tomorrow

Monthly
Foot Mileage – ~60.3 miles
Wheel Mileage – 0.0 miles
Pushups – 0
Situps – 0
Stairs – 0 flights

Days Of Bed-Making – 19 (I suppose had I made my sleeping bag and blanket in Black Mountain I could have claimed credit)

Vegetarian Meals – 44
Carnivorous Meals – 16
Pancakes Eaten – 4

Marta Rides To Work – 0
Bike Rides To Work – 0

October Goals
– Wear “nice” clothes to work at least twice a week, if for no other reason than to have people wonder why I am dressing up. New!
– Eat no fewer than forty-five vegetarian meals
– Take at least one load of stuff from my house to Goodwill
– Take unused electronics to recycling center
– Post at least ten new photos during the month
– Lose at least two pounds (net weight loss)
– Finish two books (audio or otherwise, comic books do not qualify)
– Not to get sick for the entire month
– Exercise for thirty minutes no fewer than twenty days
– Ride no fewer than 100 miles
– Walk (or run) no fewer than 100 miles
– Do no fewer than 750 sit-ups
– Do no fewer than 300 push-ups
– Read a non-techincal book
– Find someone else to go out on a date with

2012 Goals [will be a little less fluid than last year]
– Get my weight under 200 pounds, or at least whittle myself back down to where wearing a 36″ pant size is comfortable
– Completely read ten books, audio books permissible
– Run Sharpened Stone as a real business
– Save $500 for the sole purpose of donating to charitable organizations of my choice
– Attend at least one professional photography workshop
– Ride in no fewer than five 50 mile or 50K bike rides
– Run in no fewer than one one 10K
– Submit at least one application under the name “Sharpened Stone” to Apple’s iOS store
– Restore the ITP Estate to a condition where it can be put up for sale at any time
– Buy a new iPhone (iPhone 5), a new iPad (iPad 3?), and MacBook Air [look, not all goals have to be altruistic]

The Unmeasurable
– Continue backing up all data, including the off-site storage
– Become a proficient and profitable programmer in Objective-C
– Do not create a solution for something which is not a problem
– Eat smaller portions
– Start, and continue, to make my own bread using my bread machine as well as using the technique outlined in Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking
– Read and discard magazines during the month in which they arrive (even digitally)
– See more live concerts than I did in 2011