12 Week Challenge Awards Ceremony

Winners! We finally found out who won the 12 Week Challenge! Our team came in 2nd place, which was really cool considering the fact that we had team members who got sick, injured (remember when I threw out my back playing Wii Fit hula hoop?), went on vacation, went overseas for assignments. So that's $500 split 5 ways. Yey!

One of my team members won 1st place for the portion of the challenge that didn't require weight loss. I was kicking myself earlier for not joining that one, but wanted more of a challenge so that's okay.

2 of us got Honorable Mention fruit/veggie baskets for our efforts. I think they might have felt bad because only men won for the individual places - no women.

Awesome job to all...we're all winners!

Everyone eating and waiting for the announcement of the winners.


1st place winner - Full Fit Challenge

2nd place winner - Full Fit Challenge (he lost 37 lbs.)

Our HR announcing the 1st place winner for the Well Fit Challenge

2nd place winner - Well Fit Challenge

1st place winners - Team Challenge

Woo! We won 2nd place! I was so happy we placed!

Honorable Mention Fruit and Veggie Baskets

So now the new challenge begins...I'm having a hard time getting back on track, that's for sure. I have decided to not eat anymore "treats" and "goodies" (giving up chocolate for Halloween has been tough, let me tell you!) for another 12 weeks. I decided not to eat rice unless it's w/ my spicy ahi bowl or sushi.

I managed to get to the gym on Monday and actually stayed there for nearly an hour...a record! LOL!!! I ran into my old turbo kickboxing teacher, who was probably wondering why I haven't been to her class. Did some weights and elliptical. It was so humid and hot, but I survived. I'll try to go again today. :)

Headphones!

I've gone through 4 pairs (yes, four) of headphones/earbuds during the last 12 weeks. ARRRGH!!! I'm kind of a earbud freak; always searching for the bestest pair possible. :) I've paid anywhere from $5 to $160 for a pair. Just bought a $5 one because for some reason I lost the $40 pair in the middle of conducting the burial of our bird. 2 mins after I bought the earbuds, I broke them. ARRRGH!

I really NEED a good pair of sound isolating headphones. If I won the 12 week challenge, that would be the one splurge I'd go through with. Hehehehe...unless of course anyone would like to donate to my "buy some Dr. Dre headphones" fund!

Before and After - 12 Weeks Later

Tomorrow is the final day of the challenge. We were already weighed last week, but tomorrow we turn in the last fruit/veggie/activity journals for Week 12. Here's pics of me, 4 days before the first weigh in, and pics of me today (you can click on the photo for a larger (eeks!) view:

Do forgive the just-took-a-shower hair, the funky teal Crocs sandals and the wet tank top (had to wash dishes)! Oh, and I forgot to smile because I was telling my bro to hurry up and take the pic.

I still have a long way to go on my journey. These 12 weeks were just the beginning...and onward I go! I'll still keep posting blogs until I lose the 100 lbs. I'll try to stop shopping for clothes every time I lose weight, but instead I'll buy myself a Pandora charm to commemorate every 25 lbs. lost (I'll try to save money so I can go to Vegas for the weekend to shop!). I'll refrain from "treating" myself with desserts, except once every payday, I'll have a nice dessert or a dark chocolate bar (must be at least 70% cocoa). :) I will be a sexxxy bitch!!!

Petwalk 2009

Once a year we try to bring Maui to see all of his furry friends at the annual Hawaiian Humane Society Petwalk. Since he's a spoiled baby (indoor dog) who likes riding but freaks out when I tell him, "Hey let's go walking!", this occasion is a special treat.

It's basically a 2 mile walk around Magic Island/Ala Moana Beach Park. This is the ONLY time that dogs/critters (not counting the rats that normally live in the park LOL) are allowed in the park. Otherwise, dogs are only allowed at designated dog parks.

He started getting REALLY excited about a mile away from Ala Moana. I suppose he could smell all of the other doggies through the vent system. By the time we got there, he was whining and jumping around in the truck. When he got out, he PEED right on the road because he was so happy. We set Mom up in a beach chair under a tree and went to register him (a.k.a make a donation to the Humane Society). He gets a purple bandana since he is an "alumnus" (adoptee of the Humane Society).

Do I have to wear this stupid Gentle Leader?

Mom, take the Gentle Leader OFF!!

Waiting for the walk to start...


On the trail with my buddies

Ahh...the finish line...Oooh sexy cheerleaders! No wait...they're jail bait...high school. :p

Relaxing after a job well done. Where's my cookie?!?!?

Me and Maui

Bacon Bars, Brussel Sprouts, Bras and Bees

Bacon!!!! One of the strangest things I wanted to eat before the 12-week challenge started was a Bacon Chocolate Bar. I've heard from others that it tasted pretty good, and I remember one of my co-workers ate one and said it was yummy. The Tuesday before the challenge started, I went to the candy bar (go to one of my first posts for pics) upstairs from the dialysis center to buy one...and they RAN OUT. On Thursday (day after challenge start), they RESTOCKED. ARRRRGH!!!! So for the past 12 weeks, those little baco-choco bars were taunting me. When I would walk up that staircase, they would be calling my name from behind those class cabinets...eeeeeeeat me...i'm small...i promise i'm yummy...it won't hurt one bit. BUT I successfully resisted them, until the day after the challenge. Woooo! I handed over my $3 (damn that's expensive...less than 1/2 the size of my iPhone) to the candy dude and bought my bacon choco bar. Got home, cracked off a piece and put it in my mouth and let it melt. MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM it was weiiiiiiiiiiiiird!!!! But GOOOD!!!! Then my brother was like, hey what you eating, chocolate? So I broke off a small piece for him and he said "Uhh that's weird. Bacon." Then I broke off a small piece for my Dad and asked him to guess what was inside. He spit out the bacon bit and said, "What is that?" I said bacon, then he put it back in his mouth and agreed that yes, it was bacon. Duh!!! Then I ate the rest of the bar myself. I WANT MORRRRRRRRRRRE!!!! MWAHAHAHHHAHAHA!! Okay, maybe not now, but in another 12 weeks.

Brussels Sprouts!!! My co-worker let me try one brussel sprout a few weeks back. Actually she offered me two, but as she was handing me the plate, one rolled to the floor. Hahahaha! Pretty funny because we swear it happened in slow motion. Last week I bought a bag of BS and also bought a box of Glad Microwave Steamer bags to cook them in:

Now I find it funny how movies and television always portrays BS as the vegetable we love to hate. I LOOOOOOVE BS!!! I steam them then immediately toss them with a little pesto. It tastes reeeeeeeeally good!!!

Bras!!!! The one and only VICTORIA'S SECRET is finally in Hawaii!!! After eating dinner at Panya Ala Moana with an old friend (I had spinach salad, 3 pcs. gyoza, and a creme brulee...yummy!), I headed straight for VS to buy a much needed bra. Had to stand in line (!!!) to finally get in, but once I got in, I made a beeline to the BioFit bras. The "twins" refuse to wear anything but VS. I had an email coupon good for $25 off a $100 purchase, so I bought 2 bras and basically got my 5 thongs free. Woooo!!! It was actually funny to watch the guys in the store. ALL of them would be standing or sitting on the side, just watching all of the ladies picking out their undergarments. Most of them looked SOOOO bored and uncomfortable. Hehehe!

Bees!!! My co-worker noticed my Pandora bracelet and mentioned she has a bracelet as well. I asked where she buys the charms and she said that there was a shop called Jewel Flair that sells them. OMG! Finally someone carries them in Hawaii! So I decided that for every 25 lbs. I lose, I will buy a charm. I celebrated my first 25 lb. weight loss by purchasing a new charm for the Pandora bracelet I got for my birthday. I bought some charms off eBay, but I'm guessing they were cheap Chinese-made silver plate rather than solid sterling silver because they are now rusting. Ugh!!! I bought a Queen Bee charm, cause I am the Queen B!!! (yes, I'm can be "berrry nice" but "berrry bitchy" if you make me mad):

So I ate all the not-so-healthy food after the challenge, but today (Saturday) I am back on track! That's the thing people need to understand about eating well. Yes, you can eat things that you wouldn't normally eat, but in moderation. It's okay to eat a bacon chocolate bar. Okay, maybe not, but so long as you don't eat ANOTHER bacon bar tomorrow. :)

Happiness and Sadness :(

Happiness: Weigh-in is over...I officially lost 23 lbs. since July 15th (start of the challenge) for a total of 28 lbs. since July 11. I celebrated by buying 2 loaves of bread (asiago pesto and peanut butter chocolate chip) and sharing it with the office.

I had planned to go to Costco to buy BBQ ribs to share with my family for dinner. And to eat rice!

Sadness: I came home to share the news with Mom, and found Mick-Mick, our youngest lovebird (11 years old), dead on the floor of his cage. Mom and I started crying, and even Dad was tearing up and sniffling. I think he died of loneliness. He was more "human" than the other 2 lovebirds we have, and would always do strange little things to get our attention. He also liked crawling in my brothers shirts, that is, when my brother would still play with him. Ever since my brother started dating this 44 year old twice-divorced lady (he's only 27), he's been VERY neglectful with the household. I'm stuck helping out my parents with everything. F*ck him.
It's his fault that Mick died.

I'm so pissed off and sad.

The End of the Rainbow...Final Weigh In!

Yesterday was the last day to lose any weight, and today is the final weigh in for the 12-week challenge!

AAAAAAH!!!! Stress!!! I didn't get to exercise (other than my daily walks) at all since Saturday. Unless you count the range shooting as exercise, but I doubt it. I've been tooooooo busy with work to even think straight. For the past 2 days I've had to skip or cut my lunches short to do work too. :s This morning I was up at 3:45 a.m. to prep clothes, breakfast/snacks/lunches (for Dad and I), feed the lovebirds, check Mom's blood sugar and iron my hair to get to work early! I'm supposed to get weighed at 9 a.m., but am still working on some maps for a client so might need to get weighed later. Have to fast for 4 hours but I'm HUNGRY!!! ARRRRRRGH!!!

Yesterday I saw a rainbow...maybe this is my finish line for a job well done?

I know I could have done better though. Darn! I'll pat myself on the back anyway. LOL...

2nd To Last Day of the Challenge

Tomorrow is the 2nd to the last day of the challenge...trying to figure out how to lose 10 more lbs. in a day. Hahahah just kidding. I don't think I can lose anymore weight between now and tomorrow. :) Tonight we had to bring Maui to the Vet because he wasn't feeling well. I'm more concerned with him than I am with this challenge at this point.

For tomorrow, I'm planning to have the usual cereal and banana for breakfast, grapefruit for snack, salad and nectarine for lunch, a smoothie for snack, and fish and salad for dinner.

If I can get up early to exercise, that would be great. If not, I won't beat up myself over it. I've done my best, and that's all that I can do.

Big Guns...Not the Muscular Kind

Koko Head Shooting Complex, Pistol Range

This weekend I had to take an NRA Certified Firearms Instructor course. What I didn't know was that my Dad totally FORGOT that the class was Friday - Saturday, and not Saturday - Sunday. :P Luckily my Dad is longtime friends with the instructor and somehow managed to squeeze the 18 hours into 8.

I haven't gone to the range to do any actual shooting in years. I don't think I even came to the range with the last 2 boyfriends I've had (I'd make them go on their own so Dad would get to know them...mwahahahaha). So there I was, taking a course to TEACH others how to handle firearms when I haven't done so myself in a looooong time. There were two other students, one of which was a retired firearms trainer for the HPD (taking the course as a refresher) and the other a firearms trainer for DLNR. Grrrrrreat. So I was smart and told them to use me as a "student" so that the instructor could rate them. hehehe. "I'll run the powerpoint slides." I said.
Of course my Dad always is the nosy one and wants to "correct" how the guys are teaching, so I said, "Dad! Leave us alone, they are trying to learn how to teach!"

Suicidal crane bird? (see red arrow)

I'm still a little scared about handling guns, let alone having to teach someone else how to handle them, so I decided to go again the next day to practice shooting. Of course, my Dad wants to always make things harder on me, and made me shoot only on a target that had a solid black rectangle in the middle. I needed to get all my shots in the rectangle, or at least in the white part of the paper and not in the cardboard:

Not too bad, one shot dead center

45 cal, Springfield Armory

Gee I look mean...arrrgh my arms look so fat!

Me again, with a revolver

I plan to go to the range on Sundays to get more practice and to be more comfortable for when I finally get to teach someone (and make money hahahaha). I'm a bad azz bitch! :)

...and Then There Were Five

...There are now 5 top contestants who have fulfilled perfect scores on their fruit/veggie logs (5 fruits and/or veggies a day, 5x a week) and activity logs (exercise at least 30 mins. a day, 5x a week) and attendance to all workshops/extra credit. Of course, they won't tell us who those people are, but they keep encouraging everyone to keep pushing through.

One of my co-workers gave a pretty new dress she can't wear anymore (she's lost a lot of weight too and goes to the gym religiously), I'll try to wear it tomorrow if I don't feel too bloated.

This weekend is going to be soooo difficult! My Dad signed me up to get NRA Firearms Instructor training so I can make extra money teaching in the evenings and weekends (he charges $125 a student for a NRA Firearms Safety course, which enables you to be able to purchase a firearm), so there goes my entire Saturday and Sunday. PLUS I'm starting to feel bloated because it's almost "that time" of the month. ARRRRRRRGH!

Plus I'm still feeling munchy...want to eat rice cakes. Lots of them. Mwahahaha...I admit to eating a mini red velvet cupcake just now...which for some reason was missing the cream cheese frosting (either someone licked it off or it was stuck to the foil covering the plate of cupcakes). It was pretty good!

Now I'm at work (9:48 p.m.) doing some last minute map work before our Manila staff signs off for the weekend (they are a day ahead of us, so their weekend starts on our Friday). Also came to deliver some Chinese grapefruit (we have a tree) for my co-workers to enjoy. I loooooove "jabong!":

Stranger in the Mirror!

I was supposed to go to a special shopping event with my co-workers at Nordstrom Rack, but my brother came home too late from his old lady friend's (sorry, but he's only 27 and she's 44, therefore, she is an old lady compared to him...and me!) house, so I was really bummed we didn't go. Went to my Ob-Gyn who is nice enough to keep tabs on me every 3 months to see how my weight loss progress is doing. He doesn't even charge me. I've lost weight since I saw him last March, so he was glad to see me making progress and told me to keep up what I'm doing. He also cautioned on plateaus and told me to just adjust accordingly to keep the weight loss constant. I will see him again on December 19, so I MUST keep up the weight loss. :) No excuses!

Since I didn't get to spend the money on new clothes, I decided to cut my hair. Then, on a whim, I told the stylist to go ahead and highlight it:

Me (with naturally black hair) and a pastrami+corned beef sandwich, Carnegie Deli, NYC, June 2009

Me and my new hair, Sept. 2009

AHHHH!!! My black hair is gone. At first I wanted to cry when I saw it...I keep looking in the mirror and it's like a stranger is looking back at me. AHHHHH!!! I feel a little bit better because pretty much everyone ELSE seems to really like my hair and says it really looks good on me. It's a little short and funky to me. And high maintenance! For one thing, now I have to change my exercise routine and workout late at nite, because I need the morning to make my hair all nice and pretty. LOL...I'll get used to it though. AHHHH!!! Oh no wait...that's me in the mirror. :)

Sunday sucked like hell...seems like God really wants me to make Sunday a day of rest. I woke up intending to exercise, then had a sneezing fit that wouldn't go away. I took some generic Target allergy medicine, and it didn't work, so 2 hours later I took a Benedryl. Then I didn't wake up until 4:30 p.m. Blah!!!

And I've been HUNGRY even though I swear I'm munching munching munching all the time! Munching "good" stuff mostly...popcorn, edamame, corn puffs (okay maybe not the corn puffs, but it has sesame in it), fruits, celery. I did eat a Trader Joe's 100 calorie 70% Cacao Chocolate Bar. I think we bought it back in February...didn't see an expiration date on it, still looked and smelled good so I ATE IT. Hahahahaha!!!

Got home and was soooooooo tired. But I pushed myself to do about 1/2 hour of Gilad's 45 min. Interval Training. 45 mins. is cardio, the other 45 is weights. I was just too damned tired. But looks like I lost weight again. Strange considering I'm munching all the time. :o

Your Bed Is Made for Sleep and Sexing. ONLY.

But first!

My eBay win - autographed by the artist, Mr. Shane Jessup! :)

Target Dunny, complete with ammunition accessory!

After I wrote the lines above late last nite...I nearly barfed! I'm not sure why...my guess is that my blood sugar was low and because I had waited longer than 4 hours from my last snack to eat, my body was pissed off at me. Eeeks!

Yesterday we had a workshop on the benefits of sleep. 7-8 hours is the optimal amount of sleep you should get. Any more or less and you'd be shortening your life span. Ouch! I get maybe 5 hours of sleep a nite, of which maybe 2 is solid sleep. They said that you should turn off all sources of light, even face your alarm clock away from you. I dunno...ever since I was younger I ALWAYS had to have the TV on. Even if the TV was just playing "snow". Yeah...sounds like Poltergeist, right? Hehehe! But I've tried to sleep w/ the TV off and I just can't fall asleep. Even when I'm at a hotel, I leave the TV on. :o

Your bed is only for sleep and for sex. You shouldn't be working or texting or anything else in bed. The first thing that came to my mind when I heard this was, "Gee, ummm there are other places to sex besides bed." Then again, I have a naughty mind and haven't done much sleeping of any kind for a long while now, for that matter. Hahaha!

There is a supposed 6-way tie for first place in the individual competition. I believe this is based solely on attendance of the workshops, extra credits, and journal entries. That means 6 people have gotten perfect 10's each week in eating 5 fruits/veggies 5x/week and exercised at least 30 mins. 5x/week AND have gone to every workshop and extra credit. I know that I've had perfect scores on everything. Now it's all up to the weight, fat loss and blood lab results. I've cut down on cholesterol laden foods (maybe only that spam musubi from last week), watch my fat intake, eat whole grains at least 3x a day, eat more fiber, eat veggies, limit fruits to 2 servings when possible, eat protein at main meals.

My starting weight 4 days before the challenge start was 240. Now my scale reads 216-217ish. :) My next goal is to get to 199 by Christmas Day.

Many people keep saying, "I can't wait to eat_____ when the challenge is done." I don't really miss any foods, but I have allowed myself to eat exactly 5 BBQ ribs from Costco on September 30th (last day of the challenge, then on Oct. 16 they announce the winners), with a spinach salad. I REALLY want BBQ ribs. Then back to eating good again the next day. Hahahaha!

Tonight I ate a lemongrass chicken sandwich from Bale' Sandwich. It's vietnamese/french sandwich, on a French roll, with lots of picked crunchy veggies. The roll is enormous but yummy and crusty, with just enough lemongrass chicken, not too much:

They're hogging the TV again so I'll try to workout in the morning. :(

You Walk Too Fast!

"You walk way too fast." My teammate said to me as I left the office today. He said that he was right behind me while I was walking to work this morning but he couldn't catch up because I was walking too fast. Hehehe! That was nice to hear, considering that I had a difficult time merely walking only 2 months ago.

Today was a busy day; actually had to meet with a client sorta by myself, which was cool. Learned about wind farm energy and how in the long run it can help us save money on our electric bills.

Went to get my eyebrows (and lip!) plucked and waxed; the scruffiness was getting on my nerves. I still don't know why I get a little anxious walking that mere 0.3 of a mile from the bus stop to the eyebrow waxing place. Maybe it's still the memories of the panic attack of long ago. I totally forgot about it once I got there though LOL. It's all in my head.

Other than that, nothing much went on. Bought a spicy ahi donburi (spicy ahi and rice) for dinner BUT am PISSED OFF because it SUCKED. It was as if they took some rice, smooshed it in a bowl and SPREAD (? what the?? this isn't a sandwich!) a VERY THIN layer of ahi on top of the rice! ARRRGH! Maybe it's not a good idea to order sushi (or anything for that matter) when it's near closing time. :P I'm still hungry, but I will suffer for my stupidity and just drink water to get me by. Besides, I'm too lazy to make something else to eat. I did manage to whip up some spinach quiche cups to eat for breakfast tomorrow (spinach, 99% eggs, cheese). Just checked the oven and...errr...they look like muffins instead of quiches! :o I'll take one, give one to Dad, and freeze the rest.

I'll try to get more exercise in tomorrow morning, so I'm heading off to bed now. Yey...payday tomorrow! Need to pay my credit card bills though. Boo!!!

When You Feel Flabby...Feel Fabulous by Going Shopping!

I've been feeling crappy lately. Started on Friday during lunch - the duct work they're doing in the office emitted this funky, toxic, burnt smell. Gave me a bad headache and bad taste in my mouth, so I left work early.

Saturday we went to the usual garage sale exercising for Mom; this time we went allllll the way to Ewa Beach, where an entire neighborhood, Puuloa Homes (the former Iroquois Point) had a garage sale. The beachfront homes are small BUT the beach is beautiful. NOBODY was at the beach! (probably because they were too busy with their garage sales). I tried to take a picture of the beach and the lounge chairs but it was too sunny. Maybe next time. Only problem is with location...it is farrrrrrrrrrrrrrr from town and you have to drive farrrrrrrr inland to actually get to the place. If I had a car and didn't mind traffic, I think it would be a nice place to live. I think I bought a few DVD boxsets for $2, which I think I'll send off to my younger cousins who are studying Nursing in the Philippines (I think they'd be into The Gilmore Girls and OC...LOL).

I also bought...OMG...char siu spam musubi! It was theeeeeeee most delicious musubi EVERRRR (then again, could be because I was super hungry cause I only had a peach 4 hours earlier):

Then later on that afternoon, I ate MORE rice in a spicy ahi donburi:

Unfortunately, all this rice consumption, along with loads of air popped popcorn, AND being in the sun too long for the garage sales (I can't stand the sun; haven't been to the beach in ages) PLUS the crappiness of Friday's toxins made me feel FLABBY, nasty and sick as hell the next day. I didn't get out of bed at ALL yesterday. Well I did, but that was to eat MORE junks. I forget what I ate, but I think I ate a peach, some roast beef, a Weight Watchers ice cream bar, a packet of crackers, and milk and cereal. BLEAH!

Woke up today, didn't walk in from town to work but got off at the closest bus stop near work. Then I still felt crappy at work. Then one of my co-workers said "Don't give up!" or "Don't Quit!" (I forget what she said). I must've had a crappy look on my face to match my crappy mood. :P I thought to myself, well she's right, I better do something about it.

So after work, I walked into town. Then, when I got home...I got off the bus and...walked up...THE HILL!!! Holy moly!

I haven't walked the entire length of the hill in a very long time. Maybe a month or so. It was a lot easier (knock on wood) to walk it; and no heel pain at all. BUT it was still hot as hell, even without the sun, and you can really feel gravity pulling (pushing?) down on your thighs. I swear I always get lightheaded when I reach the top. I'm still curious about what the incline is...

Got home, took the truck and went to Costco. I was only supposed to buy chicken salad, but I scammed my Mom a few bucks and bought some lettuce and celery too. Hehehe!

Then I decided I needed to feel less flabby and more fabulous, so I went shopping at Ala Moana. I haven't been there in ages (I think?), so just wanted to check out what was new. Parked farrrrrrrrrr farrrrrrrrr away from the stores I wanted to visit (more walking to do). Found a new store that sold Dunnys (bought some, mostly extras which I'll sell on eBay). Victorias Secret is almost here; they took over the first floor of The Gap (which is now consolidated on one upper floor). I can't wait til VS opens...as I mentioned before, that's ALL "The Twins" will wear!

Went to The Gap and headed straight for their clearance section. Saw a pair of Size 16 pants for $5.97. OMG how cheap! BUT...I know I can't fit a 16...it's too small. But, I tried it on anyway. A little tight, but YEY! They fit! I bought that pair and another one priced at $8.97. I promptly chopped and hemmed them when I got home.

Then I went to Old Navy to try on some blouses. I picked up XL for a few blouses and went to the fitting room. Uh oh...they wouldn't fit. They were HUGE. The attendant asked if I needed a different size, I told her I'd go get them myself so I could get some exercise. :) Picked up Large and for sh*ts and giggles, a MEDIUM. Tried on the L...it was still a little baggy for my taste! So I tried on the M...JUST RIGHT! How nice to fit a medium in something. As for clothes with buttons, I still think I'll have trouble in that department due to The Twins.

Bought a turkey pastrami sandwich (I WUV pastrami!) on squaw bread and a small mandarin chicken salad which I'll eat for lunch tomorrow. Started feeling dehydrated, so I ran into ABC Store to buy some water. This one is called Hawaii Deep Blue, which is touted as "Premium Deep Ocean Water, Refreshingly smooth and silky taste". It is supposedly collected 2000 feet below the surface and is mineral rich and the cleanest freshest water on Earth:

My verdict - tastes like water! :) A slight hint of...I don't know what it is...I want to say it sorta tastes "sea-like". My favorite water is still Fiji water. I know, I know, water is water. But I swear, I can taste the difference between all these different bottled waters!

Hahahahaha!!! Shopping is the ultimate cure...I feel better now! Knock on wood!

OMG...f@#$% MOUSE!

I just couldn't get up to workout today. Just kept hitting snooze-snooze-snooze! When I finally DID get up, I was buck naked, about to change into my clothes when...AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!! Sh*t!!! Son of a B!!!! There was a mouse! So I started screaming which scared the sh*t out of the mouse, because it JUMPED (I'm not kidding) about 2 ft. high, and 2 ft. across. Maui came bursting in the room (too late, of course) wondering what the hell I was screaming about. We haven't had a mouse problem in years, but I suppose the warm weather is making these damned mice venture indoors. :P We put out glue traps but no such luck yet. Dad said he saw it again in the kitchen. UGH!!! I need to seriously clean out my room; leave nothing on the floor! Should've just gotten up to workout before hitting snooze the first time!

Haven't walked at lunch in awhile; just been too lazy to change into my walking clothes. :P Honestly, I'm getting slightly discouraged w/ the wellness challenge. For one thing, it's impossible at this point to even lose a lot more weight to beat the men in the lead. I just can't lose more than 2 lbs. a week. I could try a liquid diet or perhaps laxatives, but I think that would just dehydrate me. :P Maybe I'll try overkill cardio. Yeah, that'll do it! Hahaha...

I ate the usual today: cereal, soymilk, banana, 1/2 dragonfruit, chicken salad, orange, some dried plum things, lemongrass chicken sandwich, and one of those weight watchers ice cream bars. For some reason I didn't enjoy the bar...tasted...well...like a $0.16 ice cream bar. LOL!!! I don't think I'll eat anymore of those. :s

Yey, it's almost Friday. Probably not spicy ahi this week (since I already had sushi on Monday), but maybe a salmon burger for dinner tomorrow. TGIF!

Those Damned Dunnies.

Still feeling kinda funny today. Sorta sniffly and definitely very tired. :( Wore the new dress today and got some compliments, which was nice. Just feel super sleepy today; that's all.

Spent my lunch hour scanning my copy of Eat This, Not That to share with the other competitors in the office. I never realized that certain "reduced fat" food items were actually not so good at all (remove the fat but fill with refined sugars and empty carbs).

Today was the pre-release for the Kidrobot Dunny 2009 Series. BUT...my dumb@$$ got there too late! Grrrr...by the time I arrived at the store, they were already sold out of all the blindboxes and cases, WHICH actually was probably a good thing because 1) I reeeeally shouldn't be buying stuff like this; I need to save money for new clothes and 2) every time I buy blindboxed Dunnies, I end up with double or triples of the ones I DON'T want. I walked out after they told me they sold out and walked to the other side of the mall for some exercise. Then I walked back to the store and executed my strategy...wait til everyone else opens up their boxes, THEN buy the ones I want off of them for a discount. Mwahahahaha! I'm not a completist anymore (i.e. I don't try to complete the set of Dunnies), I just get the ones I really want (i.e., the cute/cool designs). I have a total of 55 different Dunny designs, all from different artists. One of these days I'll get a nice shelf to display all of these suckers, but for now I have them scattered on 3 different shelves:

Dunny, Series 5 and J. Ledbetter Finders Keepers

Kidrobot The Simpsons (Complete Set, worth $400), Kidrobot Cannibal Funfair (complete, worth $250)

Dunny Series 2009 (first 4 on shelf, purchased tonight), Ye Olde English Dunny Series, and Series 3 (bottom shelf)

ARRRRGH dammit! Stupid blogger didn't save ALL the crap I typed out just now. ARRRGH!!!
Oh well. I just mentioned that I've been hungrier than usual lately and feeling bloated. Bleah! Tomorrow I will force myself to stick to the menu I planned:

breakfast: cereal, soymilk. snack: 1/2 dragonfruit. lunch: chicken salad. snack: edamame. dinner: salmon, perhaps?

I will also get my @$$ up again to do EA Active; then Ripped when I come home. Glad I got up today to do EA Active. Too many lunges again though. :p

Bleah! I think I'm coming down with something...

I think I'm coming down with a head cold or something. I feel:

• tired
• sniffly, then I blow my nose, and my head feels slushy
• exhausted
• hungry! very hungry
• like crap

I ate salmon, 3 slices of pizza, and veggies for lunch. That's WAY too much for me to eat, and, I didn't feel bloated. :s Something must be wrong with me!

Today I actually feel bummed that I couldn't fit something because it was too big for me. When we were in NYC in July, I bought a hospital scrub top from the NBC Store. Size XL and has "Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital" imprinted on the pocket (from House M.D.). It was relatively tight back then, but I tried the top on over the top I was wearing so I figured the XL would fit better without the top underneath), I found it in my closet and tried it on...it was too big. I was literally swimming in it. :( Sucks because I paid $30 for it, and it's a cool top. Ah well!

I bought a dress today to make me feel better. Hopefully wearing something nice tomorrow will make this cold go the hell away! I'm seriously hungry. :S I just made a roast beef wrap, ate it, and I'm still hungry. Oh wait...I should drink some water. Duh...no wonder...I'm probably thirsty, not hungry.

What Threat? I Made You a Ricotta Pie!

I finally watched all 33 discs of The Sopranos! My brother bought me the boxed set for my birthday ($400 value, with coupon at Costco $139.99) and I've been watching episodes on and off for the past 2 months. To celebrate this achievement (LOL!), I decided to make one of the dishes featured in The Sopranos Family Cookbook - Ricotta Pie with Pineapple!

Apparently ricotta pie is a traditional family dessert for Italians, especially around Easter. The Sopranos episode that features this pie shows Carmela Soprano trying to bribe her neighbor's sister (some school official) to get a college recommendation letter for her daughter Meadow. The bribe? A delicious pie, of course!

Unfortunately the original recipe is VERY rich and calorie laden. I attempted to make the recipe a bit healthier - definitely lower in fat AND low in sugar! My substitutions are in parentheses: I used a pre-made pie crust instead...LOL...next time I'm not lazy I'll try the crust recipe.

Filling: 2 pounds ricotta cheese, drained (I used 1 1/4 tub of 16 oz. low fat ricotta)

2 cups heavy cream (I didn't have heavy cream, so I used 1 c. soymilk and melted 4 tbsp. Smart Balance spread, mixed together)

2 cups sugar (used about 1 1/2 cups of Splenda Sugar Blend)

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

6 large eggs (used 1 1/2 cups egg substitute; I used the 99% Real Egg Whites from Costco)

1 (20-ounce) can of crushed pineapple, drained (I also rinsed the pineapple)

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (dusted on top of pie, and slightly swirled)

Make sure ricotta and pineapple are as drained as can be! This will prevent the pie from getting soggy. Add the ricotta to a large mixing bowl, and beat it smooth with a rubber spatula. Beat in the heavy cream, sugar, cornstarch, and vanilla (or, beat in the substitutes I made :). Beat in the eggs (or egg substitute), making sure the texture is smooth. Finally, stir in the pineapple. When you are ready to bake, set a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 425 degrees. Pull the oven rack 1/2 way out, then put the pie crusts (the filling is enough for 2 pies, just halve the recipe if you only want one pie - but trust me, you'll kick yourself later for only making one) on the oven rack. Carefully pour the pie filling mixture to the brim of the pie crust, being careful not to spill it. Sprinkle and swirl cinnamon onto the top of the pies. Push oven rack and pies back into the oven, and bake for 15 minutes. Then turn down the temp to 350F and bake for another 25-35 mins. Pie is done when filling is "set" - meaning, the filling doesn't jiggle when you move the pie. Filling should be golden and slightly puffed.

Freshly baked ricotta pineapple pies!

Almost all gone!

This is an excellent dessert. I was quite proud of myself for making substitutions and still keeping it yummy! Since the egg substitute I used is 99% egg whites and I used the low fat ricotta, this turned out pretty well. I didn't use heavy cream either but made my own concoction using the Smart Balance spread and soymilk. I think I'll eat the last slice. MMMMMMM!!!!

I ate Pizza...a REAL Pizza!

My aunt always forces us to sell fundraising chickens for her church every year. Not sure why my parents don't say NO, but next year I think I'm going to tell her NO. I know its for a good cause, but it's just too much hassle on my parents (and this year on me, since I had to pick up and deliver them). Needless to say, we didn't do too much garage sale scouting with Mom since we had to pick up the 24 huli-huli chickens and deliver them to my Dad at the shooting range in Koko Head (a 40 min drive away). I managed to buy some TaeBo DVDs though, which I will send to my co-worker in Manila (she said she's been looking for Taebo DVDs in the Philippines but to no avail).

We picked up the chicken and headed off to Koko Head. We even brought Maui along for the drive and he seemed to enjoy it:

Other than that, the rest of Saturday was a ho-hum day. Tried on some clothes at the mall but as usual, the blessing and curse of having "the twins" struck again. Having big twins is both a blessing and a curse. Everything else fits on the dress or blouse BUT up there. Know what I mean? :P

On Sunday we went to the swap meet. Bought some veggies, dragonfruit (cheap! $3.00/lb.), and some peanuts (I'll make boiled peanuts tomorrow). Watched a guy chop up some coconuts with a super sharp cleaver:

Did you know that coconut water is a VERY good isotonic drink? Even better for you than Gatorade?

Afterwards we stopped at Costco to buy....a pizza! This one was a take-and-bake type, it had basil, tomatoes, goat cheese (I think); and I topped it off with spinach before I baked it.

It was a pretty good pizza; but for some dumb reason I expected the goat cheese to remain in solid form. Duh...of course it's going to melt...it's cheese! When the pizza was baked, there was no trace of solid goat cheese left. Hehehe!

And yes, the Weight Watchers ice cream WAS on sale for $2.97 a box. You darn right I bought some! :)

15 Lbs. on My Back :o

I had the following in my backpack this morning:

• lunch container (kalbi, veggies, quinoa)


• container of cereal


• 1 cup of milk


• 1 bottle of water


• 1 package edamame


• 1 peach


• 1 banana


• pair of jeans


• long sleeved blouse


• keys


• wallet


• hairbrush


• small bottle of body spray


• sunglasses


• umbrella

All that, including backpack, weighed 12 lbs. Then I bought 2.88 lbs. worth of Dragonfruit in Chinatown. So all in all, I was toting around 15 lbs. on my back. That's a little bit less than the weight I've lost so far...and boy was it killing me to be walking that mile to work with all that weight on my back. I seriously started feeling faint, my knees hurt and my lower back hurt. Ugh!!! I don't ever want to gain that weight back unless I'm pregnant or something! :P

Today was jeans day, and I just couldn't figure out what to wear for a top. I think I need to retire some of the tops in my closet...I find that I don't like wearing things that are too baggy anymore. Makes me feel fatter for some reason. So I picked out a stripey top that has been in my closet for over 2 years now. I bought it intending to wear it when I first started this job, but could never fit it. Now...it fits. It's sort of an abstract stripey print, which I think gives the illusion that your waist is a little smaller. This morning I got comments from 2 guys (yes, guys!) saying that they liked my blouse. Hahaha...thanks for the compliments, they made my day.

Other than that it was a long, busy day. I went to Costco to walk around and get some exercise (and try out samples, hahahaha)...only tried out some Bear Naked granola bars and a salmon burger (pretty good; I'll need to pick up a pack next time). Then I walked the frozen dessert aisle and saw this:

Weight Watchers Giant Cookies and Cream bars, 18 bars in a box. So at $2.97 a box, that's like SIXTEEN CENTS a bar. Sooooo cheap!!! Not sure if it was a misprint or what...I bought it before, and I'm pretty sure it was at least $9.99 a box or more. Check if it was expiring, and nope it was good until 2010. I wanted to buy a box but knew it wouldn't survive the bus ride home (and my mile walk back into town, for that matter).

This month was our groups turn to clean the kitchen, and 2 seconds before I said, "Don't throw my edamame away!" (I ate 1/2 as a snack this morning) someone used my edamame to make a basket...in the trash. :s I ended up eating another stupid peach for an afternoon snack. THIS time, I sprayed it with Fit spray (cleans fruits and veggies) then scrubbed the HELL out of it before eating. No allergic reaction. Hehehe!

I wanted to go to Ross again to check out more clothes, but fearing the Friday traffic I decided to just catch the next bus home instead. I wanted to go to Sports Authority and Costco, but my parents took the truck and didn't come home until now. ARRRGH. So I was forced to make 4 loaves of sugar free banana bread. :) It tastes...umm...okay I guess. I made it out of apple bananas so it's a bit on the light side. And of course I used Splenda, so its not as sweet as your standard banana bread.

Going to Target now cause I'm bored.

Breakfast: soymilk, cereal, banana

Snack: edamame

Lunch: kalbi (2 pcs, picked at because it was oily), broccoli, cauliflower

Snack: not so stupid peach, 4 riceworks chips, 14 almonds

Dinner: 2 pcs. teriyaki tenderloin, banana muffin