Tuesday, September 22, 2009

BAIPA


It would be better to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone tied around the neck than to face the punishment in store for harming one of these little ones. - Luke 17:2

WWJ_NOT_D

Monday, September 21, 2009

Super Easy Homemade Split Pea Soup

Did you know that split peas don't have to be soaked b4 cooking? Fantastic item to keep on hand for those days that you don't know what to cook. I made this tonight and it was oh so good.

Here's my super easy recipe.

1/2 cup dry split peas
2-3 cups HOT water
1/4 cup diced ham (or other meat).
(I often use the Carl Buddig Quick Fix meats.. they're 2oz, 70 cal and ready to use, already diced. They come in Turkey & Ham. I've only used the ham, but I bet the turkey would work just as well)

OPTIONALS

2 T diced carrots
2 T diced Broccoli stems (peel them first)
2 T diced onion
2 T diced celery
2 T diced veggie of your choice (bell pepper, cauliflower, squash, etc. the only thing that I'm not sure would work would b mushrooms, but I could be wrong.. they might b wonderful)

Saute or stir-fry veggies for a few minutes in a wok or frying pan coated with spray veggie oil (such as canola or olive oil). If u don't have the spray kind, a scant teaspoon or 2 of oil would work. Use as little oil as possible.

Put everything together in a 2quart or larger saucepan. Bring to a simmer and cook with a lid slightly ajar for 30 to 40 minutes or until done to your liking.

Enjoy!

Serves 1 or 2 people.

Serving size: 1 generous cup (really 1& 1/4 cup or 303.5 grams or 10.69 ounces)
Amount Per Serving
Calories 138
Calories from Fat 13
Total Fat 1.4g
Saturated Fat 0.4g
Cholesterol 6mg
Sodium 166mg
Total Carbohydrates 21.8g
Dietary Fiber 9.0g
Sugars 3.5g
Protein 10.1g
Vitamin A 21%
Vitamin C 16%
Calcium 3%
Iron 9%

Nutrition information calculated at CalorieCount.about.com, based on the following ingredients:
1/2 cup dried split peas
3 cups HOT water
2 T carrots
2 T onion
2 T bell pepper
2 T celery
1/4 cup chopped ham

If you change it, of course your results will vary. go to the site above and put in your variation and see what you get.

If you want to make larger amounts.. for every Pound of dry peas (which is the usual size of the bag sold in regular grocery stores) you need 6 to 8 cups of HOT water. Since neither my ds or dh will eat split pea soup.. I use 1/2 cup peas & 2 cups hot water.. and end up adding another cup of water during cooking.

I think this would be great for the soft foods stage of wls.. and could run it through a blender or magic bullet if it wasn't smooth enough. Use chicken broth instead of water to up the protein. :)

Social Media

This was shared on twitter.. (do you twitter?).. and I found it VERY interesting.




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIFYPQjYhv8

enjoy.

Stress and the Lapband

I had a terrible time with being hungry this past Friday. I was getting hungry 1.5 to 2 hours after eating, and not just a little bit hungry.. ravenously so.

Then I found this article at cnn (well, I didn't find it, it was posted on a yahoo group called smarterbandsters) about why we eat to much.

Go ahead and read it, I'll wait.

Turns out there are 2 main stressors that cause us to overeat. 1) lack of sleep, and 2) stress. I suffered from both of those last week. Thursday night I only got 2 hours of sleep due to the stress. DUH.. no wonder I was extremely hungry.

Then.. one of the ways to combat the overeating.. is exercise. It's been raining almost everyday here.. and plus our new neighbor is ugly about one of our dogs. So the exercise I prefer, walking my dogs, has been practically non-existent.

Things have settled down some, my sleeping hours are still very odd, but I am getting at least 5 hours (I know I need more.. it will happen) and the cause of the stress is being addressed. Now if it will only stop raining.....

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Walk from Obesity

Unless something goes terribly wrong.. on Saturday, September 26th, I'll be participating in my first Walk-a-thon (am I dating myself? they don't call them walk-a-thons any longer).

If you'd care to support me, click here.

Monday, September 14, 2009

Loss Equivalents

Your weight loss =

1 pound = a Guinea Pig
1.5 pounds = a dozen Krispy Kreme glazed donuts
2 pounds = a rack of baby back ribs
3 pounds = an average human brain
4 pounds = an ostrich egg
5 pounds = a Chihuahua
6 pounds = a human’s skin
7.5 pounds = an average newborn
8 pounds = a human head
10 pounds= chemical additives an American consumes each year
11 pounds = an average housecat
12 pounds = a Bald Eagle
15 pounds = 10 dozen large eggs
16 pounds = a sperm whale’s brain
20 pounds = an automobile tire
23 pounds = amount of pizza an average American eats in a year
24 pounds = a 3-gallon tub of super premium ice cream
25 pounds = an average 2 year old
30 pounds = amount of cheese an average American eats in a year
33 pounds = a cinder block
36 pounds = a mid-size microwave
40 pounds = a 5-gallon bottle of water or an average human leg
44 pounds = an elephant’s heart
50 pounds = a small bale of hay
55 pounds = a 5000 BTU air conditioner
60 pounds = an elephant’s penis (yep, weights more than his heart!)
66 pounds = fats and oils an average American eats in a year
70 pounds = an Irish Setter
77 pounds = a gold brick
80 pounds = the World’s Largest Ball of Tape
90 pounds = a newborn calf
100 pounds = a 2 month old horse
111 pounds = red meat an average American eats in a year
117 pounds = an average fashion model (and she’s 5’11”)
118 pounds = the complete Encyclopedia Britannica
120 pounds = amount of trash you throw away in a month
130 pounds = a newborn giraffe
138 pounds = potatoes an average American eats in a year
140 pounds = refined sugar an average American eats in a year
144 pounds = an average adult woman (and she’s 5’4”)
150 pounds = the complete Oxford English Dictionary
187 pounds = an average adult man
200 pounds = 2 Bloodhounds
235 pounds = Arnold Schwarzenegger
300 pounds = an average football lineman
400 pounds = a Welsh pony

I'm somewhere between the worlds largest ball of tape and a newborn calf.

Ideally, I'd like to lose Arnold Schwarzenegger, but will settle for losing 2 bloodhounds.

ROFL!!

Sunday, September 13, 2009

New neighbors suck

I want my old neighbors back. The ones that were Texas Highway Patrol.. and understood dogs and country life.

I walk for exercise. I have two schnauzers that I walk on a lead and a big German Shepard mix that is very shy and is scared of almost everything.. except something that runs.

We were on our way home from a walk and the new neighbors had a skinny female hound outside and we stopped at the edge of the yard (we didn't go past the counties easement) to say hello. Lady of the house came to the door to call the hound in. I called out "We're just making friends, if that's ok" She replied "It's making the dog in the house bark" .. weird, dogs do that naturally. And I happen to know that the other dog they have is a Pomeranian.. those dogs typically bark alot. If she didn't want a barking dog, why have a Pom??

Anyhow, the hound decided to run to her and my German Shepard decided to chase. Oh lordie.. and he will not respond to voice commands. I know, we should've trained him better, but at 9 years old, I think it's a bit late to learn.

Anyhow, the chasing upset the neighbor lady.. she yelled at me "You need to keep your dog on a leash or keep him home." "Keep your dog on a leash".

I didn't say anything.. didn't know what to say. I felt bad that my dog was chasing hers, but I couldn't stop it.. I had a schnauzer on a leash and a schnauzer puppy in a front carrier. I didn't have permission to go on her property. I knew my Shepard wouldn't harm her dog.. but she didn't know that. I can understand her feeling threatened.

I just wish we had our old neighbors back.. they were such great folks. They had two really big dogs, one breed I don't know what it was, and a Great Pyranees (spelling?). The Pyranees was a big baby.. would lie down anytime you got close to him and roll over for a belly rub.

I don't know what I'm going to do from now on.. I guess I'll have to check and see if neighbor is home b4 I walk my dogs any longer. Like being a prisoner in my own house. Good grief.

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Hurray for Pat Boone!!

A message I sent to the President and my elected representatives. I urge all citizens to do the same.

Dear Senator:

I did not give you permission to sign my name to any of the bailouts or “stimulus package” or appropriations bills – and certainly not a ten trillion dollar indebtedness!

You’re my elected public servant, and the public servant of all the citizens who sent you to Washington on our behalf. There are other solutions to our economic crises, ones that will directly help taxpayers, homeowners and ordinary citizens, including those who lose jobs in corporate bankruptcy or restructuring.

We weren’t consulted about these huge deficits and paper promises and trillion dollar debts – AND WE REJECT THEM!

Taxation without representation is tyranny! Have you heard that before? Well, we citizens of a democratic republic reject these draconian measures, and direct you to undo them on our behalf. We’re not wasting perfectly good tea this time; but the “tea parties” have begun all over this country, and you’d best get the message. We reject the tyranny of governmental control, taxation without representation, and the usurpation of our constitutional freedom and independence.

You now have lots of tea – but little time, and we have very little patience left.

Pat Boone
Hollywood, CA


from http://www.nationalpolicyinstitute.org/2009/09/03/pat-boones-letter-to-elected-representatives/

or

http://www.patboone.com/tea_party.php

Acorn Field Office

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Friday, September 11, 2009

Quotes for Patriots Day

someone should send this to Obama.

found at http://ccm-cos.com/

On Respect.

* You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.

* You cannot help small men by tearing down big men.

* You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.

* You cannot lift the wage earner by pulling down the wage payer.

* You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than your income.

* You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatreds.

* You cannot establish security on borrowed money.

* You cannot build character and courage by taking away a man's initiative and independence.

* You cannot help men permanently by doing for them what they could and should do for themselves.


--William J.H. Boetcker, 1916


When an American says that he loves his country, he means not only that he loves the New England hills, the prairies glistening in the sun, the wide and rising plains, the great mountains, and the sea. He means that he loves an inner air, an inner light in which freedom lives and in which a man can draw the breath of self-respect.

Adlai Stevenson