Memorial Day?

More like “Madmenorial Day” at my house. I went down into the basement to escape some of the building heat and start to clean up the gigantic mess that my basement hath become. In doing so I “tested my A/V equipment” by watching over five hours of Mad Men. I believe that I am still three episodes behind however.

Today’s Daily Challenge
Eat one food that’s high in selenium, such as tuna, turkey, whole grain bread, egg, or oatmeal.

Selenium is a trace mineral that’s needed for good health: It works as an antioxidant, helps your thyroid function properly, and plays a part in keeping your immune system humming along. By selecting a selenium-rich food, you’ll ensure that you get enough of this nutrient.

Why I just might use some of that loaf of bread I baked while watching “Mad Men” and have a tuna fish sandwich for lunch!

Yard Work Is Hard Work
In yesterday’s blog post I mentioned doing yard work on Sunday. While I briefly considered doing more yesterday (and there is much more to do) my muscles were so sore from leaning over and pulling English ivy that there was no way that I could do it.

The plan is to do some sort of outdoor (partial) improvement each weekend that I spend at least one day at home and it’s not pissing down rain.

Reuben v. Reuben
I also mentioned in yesterday’s blog that I had a Reuben sandwich at Twain’s on Sunday night. While perusing Twitter yesterday morning I saw that Vickery’s in Glenwood Park was announcing that they would be open and their special was going to be a Reuben sandwich. This sounded like the right time for a good old fashion food showdown.

With the exception of the (fantastic) smoked golden beets I ate on Sunday the meals were similar — Reuben sandwich with fries — but very different. Here’s the tale of the tape:

• Bread: Twain’s was a heartier, better toasted version of rye bread. Winner? Twain’s.
• Corned Beef: Twain’s corned beef is made in-house and had much more flavor than Vickery’s. Vickery’s corned beef was slice very thin, which made me think it was store-bought, like a cold cut. Winner? Twain’s.
• Sauerkraut: The sauerkraut was definitely not the highlight for either restaurant, though it was more pronounced in Vickery’s Reuben. Winner? Vickery’s.
• Thousand Island Dressing: If Twain’s Reuben had any dressing other than mayonnaise I’d be surprised since I detected nothing. Vickery’s Reuben had a slathering of dressing (Thousand Island, or perhaps Russian) which added flavor. Winner? Vickery’s.
• French Fries: Each restaurant offered a mound of well-cooked french fries. Winner? Tie.

In the end a Reuben sandwich is a corned beef sandwich. Because Twain’s corned beef was far superior to Vickery’s I’m going to give them the overall win in the “Great Reuben Showdown of Memorial Day Weekend 2013.”

ITP Flickr Pic
“Some Day Soon I Will Be On The Inside Looking Out”

So far I have been stymied in my attempts to eat at Gunshow. Yesterday I had lunch at Vickery’s in Glenwood Park and since I knew that Gunshow was closed (as it is every Monday) I decided to take this photo. The broom in the foreground was a bit of a disappointment.

Cops Is Filmed Live In East Atlanta
I want to love my neighborhood because it offers so much of what I want. Unfortunately it offers too much of exactly what I don’t want as well — crime.

Last Saturday night a guy was killed in an armed robbery while walking back to his house from the bars with two buddies at 11pm. There has also been a rash of property crime (stolen vehicles, cars rummaged, etc) in the past couple of weeks as well.

One of the “buying points” of my house was that it was walking distance to the bar district — something that I deemed to be beneficial and would still feel that way if it were safe. When I moved to East Atlanta I used to walk to/from the bars alone; I figured that no one would fuck with me if I just acted crazier than they were. I gave up years ago after hearing too many stories about people getting mugged.

I was going to go out to a show last night at 529, but decided to stay at home in part because I was baking bread, in part because I was watching “Mad Men,” and in part because I am afraid of going to the village. I’m considering going out to a show tonight at The EARL, but am having second thoughts about staying out in the neighborhood right now, especially if I can’t find well-lit parking near my destination.

Walk The Walk
Though my left foot still hurts I plan to go out and get a walk in this afternoon. It’s been over a month since I landed funny while running on a treadmill, and since it obviously doesn’t seem to want to heal itself I am willing to see a doctor about this — once I get a recommendation for a podiatrist. Oh crap, what if I have to wear a cast or something? My Summer will be ruined again.

Today’s Personal Project
Get some exercise. I’m getting extremely flabby again.

Stats & Goals
Daily
Current Mood – meh
Current Music – silence at the moment
Website Of The Day – I hate to admit it, but I think East Atlanta needs The Guardian Angels.
Mode Of Transportation To Work – my car
Exercise (b)Log – nothing because of my GD foot
Morning Weigh-In – checking today

Monthly
Foot Mileage – ~3.0 miles
Wheel Mileage – 0.0 miles
Gym Visits – 0 (0 cardio)

Days Of Bed-Making – 0

Vegetarian Meals – 32
Carnivorous Meals – 40

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

May Goals
– return ITP-Reader Martha’s coffee percolator to her

- return ITP-Terri’s crutches to her

- not get sick

- lose three pounds

- exercise at least twenty-five of May’s thirty-one days

- finish at least two of the books I am reading

- take at least one box of things to Goodwill

- post at least ten photos in the blog

- drink a lot less alcohol

- prepare a house repair plan and budget

2013 Goals: Measurable
– Get my weight down to 190 pounds so that I can wear a 36″ waist pants comfortably
– Completely read ten books, audio books permissible
– Dissolve Sharpened Stone
– Save $500 for the sole purpose of donating to charitable organizations of my choice
– Completely run at least one 10k
– Fix all (or at least most) of the things which are wrong with the ITP Estate

2013 Goals: Unmeasurable
– Simplify, simplify, simplify
– Continue backing up all data, including the off-site storage
– 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)
– Take two real vacations, perhaps one abroad
– Take a more proactive approach to meeting women (read “stop being such a pussy”)

Books I’ve Read/Heard In 2013

1. Pages 1.7 for iPad (Timestompers Guide) — by Sean Wells
2. 60 Mountain Lion Tips — by David Sparks and Brett Terpstra
3. The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business — by Charles Duhigg

Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]