New way of life = bueno!

I had my second weigh-in at Weight Watchers and did much better -- I lost 1.6 lbs!  My saving grace was Teriyaki Turkey Burritos.  They were only 6 weight watchers points (for one) and I happily ate them for lunch for most of the week.

I think the most frustrating thing is when you're standing on the scales and you see your weight increase because you shifted positions slightly. I kept trying to shift it back before the lady officially recorded my weight, but it didn't work out for me.

Still, I was happy and my cousin had a great first week too. It's really helpful to have someone there with me. I'm more motivated to go and I'm more motivated to stick to the program because I don't want to be embarrassed at the meeting.

Tonight my husband and I are going to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse as part of Restaurant Week Columbus. I am SO excited.  I've never been there before and it sounds amazing!  Although I don't know why the restaurant has two first names.  Maybe it's from West Virginia?

My Sheer & Utter Geekdom

Over the holidays, Mr. Eljabo and I tried watching the first season of HBO's Game of Thrones.  I made it through part of one episode, but found it to be muy confusing.

Still, I kept hearing good things about it, and I like to be in the know, so I decided to read the book, which is about a million pages long.  For the first few chapters, I had to keep looking up family trees and maps online. I couldn't keep anything straight.

Once I got everyone straightened out, I really enjoyed the book.  Minus the incest and rape scenes. (Even though I grew up in West Virginia, I am not pro brother-sister love.)  Most surprisingly, I liked the battle scenes.  When I read the Lord of the Rings trilogy, I skimmed most of the battles.  I found the battles in this book interesting.

I'm still not 100% sure who I should be rooting for.  I like Tyrion, Daenrys, Jon and Arya the best, but I'm pretty sure I should be hating a couple of them.

My husband and I have just started watching season 1 again.  I've made it through two episodes and love it because I can tell him exactly what's going on.  I feel really smart.  Although Jules' description of the show on Cougartown was pretty apt:  there IS a lot of butt sex.

Front Row Seats are Not My Thang

Last night, I experienced one of my worst nightmares. I had to sit in the front row of a comedy club.

It happened to me once in college. I was a shy 20-something fat girl and the comedian kept making fun of my umbrella.  He referred to it as an elephant's diaphragm.  I was mortified.

Since then I only go to comedy shows if I genuinely love the comedian and I absolutely adore comedian John Heffron. I think he's hilarious. I watched him on Last Comic Standing many years ago and I've seen him do stand-up twice.

When I found out he was going to be at the Columbus Funny Bone this past weekend, I was pumped.  We opted for the 9:45 p.m. show last night (the other option was 11:30 p.m. on Saturday.)

When the waitress sat us in our front-row seats, I was horrified.  And although I laughed plenty, I was so worried about drawing attention to myself, I was on guard for the whole show.

I also learned that my husband doubts my funniness gauge.  We ran into two of our friends leaving the 7:30 show.  I asked how the show was and they said it was hilarious.

A few minutes later, my husband says, "Well if Angela says it's hilarious, I know it's going to be good."  I stared at him and said, "I told you it's going to be good and I'm your wife.  Shouldn't you trust my opinion?"

He thinks about it for a second and says, "You thought the Chipmunks movie was funny."

I'm sorry, but I stand by that one.  The first Chipmunks movie was hilarious.  (The second one, not so much.)

I Think I'm Back

Yeah - I admit it.  I've been a crappy blogger.

I apologize for the long-time-no-posting.  I've been dealing with a personal medical issue that consumed the majority of my energy in 2012. Although I've been seeing a doctor, I had a ridiculous thought that if I just stayed silent about it, it would eventually resolve itself and I wouldn't have to tell anybody.  Unfortunately, that hasn't been the case yet, but I'm still hopeful that it eventually will be resolved.

I'm still not really ready to share the details here yet.  I've tried to write about it several times, but every time I try, I chicken out.  It's just such a personal issue and already takes so much of my energy, I hate to give it any more. And my absolute least favorite thing is when I mention it to one of my friends and they instantly start using a pitying tone of voice with me. I'd hate to think about people reading this blog and thinking "poor Eljabo."

The truth of the matter is, I'm fine.  I'm not dying.  I have a wonderful husband, terrific family and/friends and an enjoyable (on most days) job.  Plus, my two cats are way adorable.

So my new year's resolutions for 2013 are to:

• Focus my attention on the things that truly are important
• Spend more time with the people I care about
• Get in better shape so I don't look like a giant hog in a bridesmaid dress (I'm in my cousin's wedding this October and my brother's wedding in spring 2014)
• Take better care of this blog.  I've been writing here for a long time and would hate to give it up  after so many years.

So check back, I'm sure I will have some profound things to write about this year!

The Greatest Television Moment of All Time

If you haven't seen last week's Parks and Recreation, go away now.  I'll admit it -- I cried like a baby during this scene.  And I've since watched this clip about 500 million times.

My husband turned and looked at me in shock and he said, "You do know this is a comedy, right?" I nodded my head meekly as black streams of mascara ran down my face.

I just  think Parks and Recreation is pretty much the best show on earth. It's hilarious -- and it's streaming on Netflix.  Do yourself a favor and invest some time in it.  It's slow to start -- the first season isn't the best.  The second season is where the magic begins.

Personally, I like to think if I knew Amy Pohler in real life, we would be best friends.  (I feel the same way about Tina Fey).  And if I wasn't married to my husband and if Adam Scott wasn't married to his wife, I like to think that we would be married to each other.

Let me have my imaginings.

A Night of Culinary Firsts

I'm doing Weight Watchers for the umpteenth time now.  The only difference this time is that I've actually stuck with it for more than a few days.

The first week I lost 3.6.  Last week I maintained, but I don't think it was a real maintain.  I think I was just puffy.

The thing I'm doing differently this time is making sure I eat carbs and proteins together.  And, I'm trying to not be as carb-dependent as I normally am.  It's helping -- I'm not craving sweets and starches as much as I normally am.  In fact, last night we went to Thurman's Cafe for dinner, where they serve 3/4 lb hamburgers.  They forgot to give me the potato chips that came with my meal and I didn't say a peep.  And I just ate half of my burger -- it was plenty!

I bought two new Weight Watchers cookbooks to help me along the way.  The first was Fruits and Veggies: A to Z, because I need to expand my veggie repertoire.  I also got Tastier than Takeout, which features a bunch of foods from around the world.

Tonight was Italian -- Rosemary Chicken in Balsamic-Tomato Sauce.  It was sauteed chicken cutlet with a sauce made of cherry tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, onions, garlic, chicken broth and rosemary.  Very tasty and only 4 WWP.

I also tried steaming artichokes for the first time (from my veggie book.)  Simon took one look at his plate and exclaimed in horror, "What is this?"  Then he watched me eat it.  Eating artichokes is kind of difficult, so I had undoubtedly had a puzzled look on my face  (I already have a problem with faces.)  He then says, "I'm not eating that."

I didn't think it was so bad.  I dipped the leaves in a butter-lemon sauce.  I think I over-steamed though -- it was a little too tender.  And I couldn't figure out what the heck was going on in the middle of the thing.

Tomorrow I'm making Drumsticks with Sesame and Ginger. You can't buy skinless chicken legs around here, so I had to take the skin off.  It was totally gross, but luckily it didn't take too long.  I'm not sure I got all the skin, but I guess I won't die if I eat a couple of specks.

A Rookie Mistake

Apparently, I shouldn't have waited five months between BodyPump classes. I worked out on Sunday and am so incredibly sore right now.

In fact, I briefly contemplated falling down the stairs this morning because I thought it would be less painful than walking down.

Maybe I should bathe in a vat of Ben-Gay.

My Christmas: Fall Television Premieres

I'm obsessed with new television programs.  I've had my list made up for weeks -- all highlighted so I can easily program my DVR. Sadly, the first few available shows have been returning TV shows, but I've still enjoyed them.  America's Next Top Model is completely full of train wrecks, my favorite!  And I have a crush on Blake Shelton and Adam Levine, so The Voice is good too.

Unfortunately, the first brand-new show I tried, Go On, was not that great.  I've decided that I just don't enjoy watching Matthew Perry.  I was never super crazy about Friends.  And I haven't been keen on his other shows that lasted about five seconds. In fact, the only thing I have ever liked Matthew Perry in is Dance Til' Dawn -- a made for TV movie from the 80s.  (Image from that movie is to the right.)

This show is yet another one of those comedies that tries to be too clever for its own good.  It just fell flat and the cast didn't have a lot of chemistry.

Oh well, there are plenty more new shows where that came from.  I'm sure I'll find plenty to like!

My Night as a Pole Dancer

On Friday, my friend Vicki and I had Groupons for a two-hour Intro to Pole Dancing workshop at a local fitness club. The club also offers classes with names like "Video Vixens," "Ass Class," and "Basic Burlesque" so I was anticipating  this to be the beginning of a long and beautiful relationship.

I was wrong.

Pole dancing is HARD.  And honestly, I don't know that it's something I particularly want to be good at.  My arms felt like they were being pulled out of their sockets  I kept feeling like Bridget Jones in the scene where she slides down the firehouse pole very slowly.  And this morning when I woke up, I felt like I had been run over by a giant truck and my arms are black-and-blue.  Sexy!

There were four other women taking the workshop.  They were all very tall, thin and glamorous.  Some of them had long flowy hair and stilettos.  In the meantime, I felt like an old, pudgy Puffalump.

The floor exercises were the worst. We had to roll around the floor doing moves like "Splay," which involved spreading our legs, and some gross move where we were supposed to be moving our legs to create a "window" into our downstairs areas.  One of the other moves was a Sexy Squat.  I would like you to know there is no such thing.

The Most Embarrassing Part

All-in-all, I would have been fine with the whole thing if it had just been the class. I found the whole thing very entertaining and enjoyed laughing at how horrible I was.  However, at the end, the instructor announces that we're all going to do little performances in front of the class.  I am not an attention fiend by any stretch of the imagination.  I hate feeling stupid and I hate feeling stupid in front of people that I find glamorous and intimidating.  And I hate having to do any sort of performance that involves something I don't think I do well.

Vicki and I had to each take a pole with the instructor in the middle while she led us in a routine in front of the class.  It started with something called a "Booty Roll" and then we were supposed to spin around the pole backwards, sliding down until we were on the floor.  (I just flat out said "I'm not doing that" and just went to the floor directly.  The advantages of being old.)  Once we were on the floor, we were supposed to roll around on the floor in a sexy manner, demonstrating the Splay move.  All of this while the other girls in the room  watched.

A Moment of Stupidity

I would also like to say that our instructor was a bit dumb.  At one point, we were all busy doing sexy walks.  Someone knocks on the studio door -- the instructor opens it and starts talking to this teen boy and teen girl who were peering in the studio at us, asking what we were doing.  She closes the door and says, "I'm sorry about that.  It was just two kids who wanted to see what was in here.  I only opened the door because I thought it might be a stranger."

Obviously, it was a stranger because you didn't know the kids.  And if you thought it was a stranger, why would you open the door?  You're supposed to LOCK the door if you think a stranger is involved.

You will all be pleased to know that pole dancing is not for me.  I do not plan to add "stripper" to my resume in the near future.  (Although, let's be honest.  The ship sailed a long time ago!)

What I'm Reading Wednesday: Night World (Books 1 - 3)

I'm so embarrassed to admit what I'm reading right now.  On Sunday, Simon and I were browsing at Half Price Books.  I was rummaging through the $1 books, spied this one and began reading it.  Sadly, I couldn't put it down.

This Night World book was written by LJ Smith and it's three books in one:  Secret Vampire, Daughters of Darkness and Spellbinder.  (I can feel my brain cells dying just writing that.)

I;m not sure of the exact page number, but I just started the second book within the book.

The Plot

In the first book, a teenage girl is dying of cancer and has an opportunity to become a vampire. The second book revolves around three teenage vampire sisters related to a character from the first book.  I have no idea what the third book is about, but I'm sure it's connected in some way.

The Verdict

Obviously, this book uses no skill or brain cells.  It's just a guilty pleasure read.  I'm breezing through it pretty quickly and finding myself fairly entertained.  So that makes it a terrific $1 purchase!

I Don't Get It

I always find it difficult to understand how any woman can possibly be a Republican, given all the misogynistic, sexist, ignorant things that come out of Republican male mouths.

I am beyond furious at all the rape talk that has recently been going on. I know women who have been raped and words cannot describe the trauma these women went through.  They deserve more understanding and support than they are currently getting from Republican leadership.

These men have no idea what it means to be a woman and they have no idea how the female body works.  For starters, women don't have magical organisms in their vaginas that prevent rapist eggs from implanting.

Here are the three offensive things I have recently read:

• Todd Akin - Republican Representative:  "From what I understand from doctors, that's really rare [of pregnancy caused by rape]. If it's a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down. But let's assume maybe that didn't work or something. I think there should be some punishment, but the punishment ought to be on the rapist."  Later, he said if he had replaced the word "legitimate" with "forcible," it would have been OK.
  
• Paul Ryan - Republican Vice President Candidate:  "I’m very proud of my pro-life record, and I’ve always adopted the idea, the position that the method of conception doesn’t change the definition of life."  (Cause rape is just a "method of conception.")
  
• Tom Smith -- Pennsylvania Republican Senate Candidate:  [When asked how he would tell a daughter she had to bear the child of her rapist.]  "I lived something similar to [rape] with my own family...having a baby out of wedlock." [When pressed on whether that's actually similar to rape.] "No, no, no, but … put yourself in a father’s situation, yes. It is similar. "

Why is it always old white men saying these offensive things? You're pro-life?  Fine!  Don't have an abortion.  But don't force women to bear the children of rapists and incestuous relatives.  That's ridiculous and way too extreme.

 

What's Shakin' Bacon

I've had the week off, so I actually have done a fair amount of cooking this week.  It's been really fun breaking out my pots and pans!  I'm in the middle of organizing my recipe files, so I found all sorts of recipes to try.  

Here's what I've been making:

• Cream Cheese Potato Soup -- I found this during my recipe reorganization and it had me at cream cheese and potato.  This soup is absolutely delicious.  I've eaten it every day this week.
  
• Better Than Sex Cake -- I'm not sure how accurate the title is, but the cake is pretty tasty.  And, it's not all that bad for you.
  
• Deviled Cauliflower -- This was a really great way to cook cauliflower.  The mustard-parmesan mix had a lot of flavor, but the calorie count was pretty good too.
  
• Cheesy Tex-Mex Rice -- This was really good.  I added soy chorizo, which gave it some kick and made it more of a main dish. My husband had thirds.
  
• Homemade Calzone -- I found this on Pinterest.  I used pineapple, turkey pepperoni and jalapeno as the filling.  It was really difficult to put together, though.  I couldn't grasp the braiding technique at all.   It was one of those recipes that tasted good, but looked like a giant pile of crap on a pan. Crappy appearance aside, my husband practically ate the whole thing.
  
• French-Style Chicken with Apples -- I need to accept that I do not enjoy chicken breasts that look like chicken breasts.  I like my chicken shredded, diced, or breaded.  And I'm not really a fan of cooked apple slices.  It tasted OK, but it's not something I ever need to make again.

What I'm Reading Wednesday: The Story of Beautiful Girl

You'll be pleased to know that I've picked up an adult book to read.  I was captivated by the cover of Rachel Simon's 'The Story of Beautiful Girl'  so I grabbed it.   I'm on page 250 of 352

The Plot

The plot's a little convoluted  It's the 1960s.  A young developmentally challenged woman and a deaf African-American man escape from a state institution.  They show up at a widow's farm with a brand-new baby (not the man's.)  When the woman is captured by the institution authorities, she asks the woman to hide the baby.  

The story is told from four different viewpoints -- the woman, the man, the widow and an employee at the institution. 
The Verdict

So far so good -- I wasn't sure about this mix of characters, but the story sucks you in from the very first pages.  Lynnie (the young woman) has a refreshing voice.  It's fascinating to see the story unfold over the years.

At times, it's a little heavy-handed.  The author seems a bit preachy.  But all in all, I recommend.  (Unless the last bit of it massively sucks.)

You're Welcome

Felt inspired while watching True Blood.  :)

What's Cooking in my Kitchen

This was another light cooking week, but I made a couple of things.

I tried Dripping Roast Beef Sandwiches with Melted Provolone (Campbell's Kitchen).  I did the open-faced variation on Texas Toast.  I've been drooling over this recipe every time I stumbled across it in my recipe box.  In actuality, it wasn't that great.  It was way too salty.  If I made it again, I would make my own gravy. I wouldn't use the French Onion soup.

I checked out a new cookbook from the library: The Perfect Recipe for Losing Weight and Eating Great by Pam Anderson. (Not that Pam Anderson.)  I can't wait to try some of these recipes - they all look delicious.

The first one I made was Slaw-Topped Mexican Flatbread with Refried Beans and Pepper Jack. (I used a flatout wrap instead of flatbread.)  This took all of 15 minutes to make.  It was healthy and pretty tasty as well.  Definitely not gourmet, but I think we can all use a quick, easy, healthy recipe right at our fingertips.

What I'm Reading Wednesday: Serendipity

My stress levels have been sky-high lately.  Work has been a grind and I'm desperate for vacation. It's no wonder I find myself waking up at 4 a.m. every day wide awake and ready to start the day. My vacation is scheduled for the week of August 20 and I am counting down the minutes.  I have planned an exciting week of painting and redecorating.  And maybe I'll spend a day by a pool somewhere.

So while I'm waiting for my vacation, I've been in desperate need of some light, beachy reads.  I picked up Carly Phillips' Serendipity - I'm on page 275 of 304.


The Plot


Faith Harrington grew up in Serendipity.  She was a spoiled, rich girl who lived in the mansion on the hill.  Ethan Barron was a poor, bad boy from the wrong side of the tracks.  When they were in high school, they shared one passionate kiss and never spoke again.

Fast forward a lot of years.  Faith found out her dad ran some sort of Ponzi scheme, swindling hard-working people out of millions of dollars.  She decided to move back to Serendipity and re-start her life as an interior designer, living in a crappy apartment above a bar.  Ethan has also moved back - and he's a millionaire living in the mansion Faith grew up in.

Of course they're going to rekindle their romance.

The Verdict


Yeah, this book is a little predictable.  And everything falls together a little too nicely.  If I were going to rebuild my life, I probably wouldn't move back to the town where are the people swindled by my father lived.  I'd restart my life somewhere else.

Still, I'm enjoying this book.  It's a light, fluffy read with plenty of swoony scenes. Ethan is smokin' H-O-T.  And, I like Faith too.

Quote of the Night

"Just because we drank a bitch together doesn't make us Oprah and Gayle."



I love Pam on True Blood.

What Shaking in My Kitchen?

Pretty much nothing!  I was so busy this past week, I did very little cooking. Still, I made a few good things.   

Last Week's Hits and Misses:

Delish

• Hawaiian BBQ Cupcakes (Emily Bites blog)  These were absolutely delicious.  I used my favorite BBQ sauce, Famous Dave's Devil's Spit. Simon ate about 6 of them!
  
• Baked Tilapia (Taste of Home Comfort Food Cookbook)  I'm a little embarrassed this was actually a recipe.  It was so quick and easy.  

Good

• Bravo Broccoli (Healthy Cooking magazine)  This was a fast, easy way to make broccoli.  The sauce added a little bit of flavor.  

The new religious symbol: Chick-Fil-A

I've long had a beef with Chick-Fil-A. It wasn't based on any knowledge of their corporate beliefs, other than the fact that they were no good to me if I had a chicken craving on a Sunday.  My beef was simply caused by a food poisoning episode from eating one of their tasty chicken sandwiches.  Now, every time I think about eating Chick-Fil-A, my stomach curls up in horror and pleads for me to choose something else instead.

Honestly, when I read what the company CEO said, I thought it was pretty idiotic of him to disrespect a segment of his customers and his employees. As a public relations professional, I personally live in fear of the day an employee at a company I work for says something offensive like that.  Especially in today's 24-hour news cycle where stupid comments live forever. And when I heard what he said, I thought it was good my stomach already hated Chick-Fil-A because the CEO didn't have beliefs I wanted to support.

I see hatred of gay marriage as identical to hatred of interracial marriages.  It's basically people trying to dictate to other people who they can love. Not so long ago, companies and people would have been up in arms about my own interracial marriage.  (My husband is Hispanic; I am white.)  In fact, when my husband and I were dating, one of my "friends" even told me she disapproved of interracial relationships (this was in 2008).  When I looked at her oddly, she said mine didn't count as interracial because my husband didn't look Mexican. (This is one of many reasons we are no longer friends.)

I honestly don't think it's anyone's business who marries who.  If you don't believe in gay marriage, don't marry a person of the same sex.  But, you don't have the right to determine someone else's beliefs. You may say "God doesn't believe in gay marriage."  And, that's fine if you believe that. But gay people still exist and many Christian denominations and religions support gay marriage.  The beauty of this country is that you can practice any religion you want and no one will bat an eye.  Just don't impose your religious beliefs on someone else.  

I wasn't going to write about this topic because I've been trying to stick to lighter fare.  However, my Facebook feed has blown up with my friends proudly posting their Chick-Fil-A pictures.  I've never seen a group of  people more filled with hatred and disrespect. Pretty soon, evangelical Christians are going to stop wearing crosses around their necks and start wearing fried chicken sandwiches.

At the same time I see all this hatred, I see pictures my gay and lesbian friends have posted of their loving relationships with their partners/spouses and children.  They aren't spending their time telling my evangelical Christians friends who they should marry.  And, when I look at their pictures, I see nothing but love, not hatred. I don't see how love can ever be considered a bad thing.

What I'm Reading Wednesday: The Golden Lily

I was a huge fan of Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy series, so I was very excited to read her spin-off series, Bloodlines.  The first book was pretty good.  I'm now in the middle of the second one, The Golden Lily.  I'm on page 160 of 461.

The Plot

The main character, Sydney Sage, is an alchemist, which is basically a magical person who cleans up after vampires to keep humans from finding out about them.  She's undercover at a boarding school protecting a vampire.  And that's pretty much all I can say without giving away what happens in two series of books!

The Verdict


So far, so good.  I'm still pretty early in the book so I'm not really sure where the plot is going.  For the most part, I think Sydney is a smart, admirable role model for young women. However,  she's a little too obsessed with her weight. It's annoying me. She refuses to eat sugar or fried food or anything.

Supposedly, she's a size 4.  If I were a size 4, I'd be eating cream pies every day!  (Or at least once a month.)