Love to see really beautiful ball gowns, and these are some of the best. There are also some of the worst, too. I guess we all have a little bit of “catty” in us.
An Update on My Nutrition Lifestyle Change
As many of you know, I made a lifestyle change back in February. I needed to lose about eight pounds, and someone told me about a book called, “The Skinny Rules”. I embraced it and lost all eight pounds in less than two weeks. I have since been using the rules I learned to maintain my weight. I’ve blogged about some of the simple, but very successful rules like drinking water.
Well, I would like to share with you another great rule that has become a part of my life. I’m talking about the chapter, “Eat Your Vegetables–Just Do It.”
I love fruit and vegetables, and this is a good thing because we’re learning every day about the health benefits of a healthy diet. We also know now that variety is as important as the quantity we eat. USDA encourages us to eat plenty–at least five portions a day.
So, I love vegetables now, but this was not always the case. As a child I was known as the “picky” eater in my family. Mom used to say, “Ann’s afraid she might get a vitamin.” I was that little kid in the cartoon who stood by his first planted garden and upon seeing the cabbage, broccoli and carrots said, “I never thought my seeds would turn on me like this”.
The health benefits of vegetables and fruits are massive. A diet rich in fruits and vegetables can lower blood pressure, reduce risk of heart disease and stroke, prevent some types of cancer, lower risk of eye and digestive problems, and have a positive effect upon blood sugar which can help keep appetite in check. All of these attributes are important as we age.
Also, vegetables when prepared correctly are low in calories, which brings me to how I was raised to cook vegetables. Good southern vegetables are not necessarily low in calories. They are wonderfully laced with bacon drippings, ham hocks, and all kinds of fatty wonders.
“The Skinny Rules” showed me another way to cook my vegetables. It included recipes on how to roast several different kinds of veggies, and it had weeks of menus prepared which gave me an opportunity to eat up to nine portions of fruits and vegetables daily.
Roasting vegetables in a very hot oven gives them a caramelized exterior, and it adds a burst of flavor while keeping the inside moist and tender. This showy cooking method easily feeds a crowd or just a couple, and it lets you choose the vegetables. It is easy, but a little time consuming, so once a week I roasted three or four vegetable dishes, stored them in the refrigerator, and ate on them for the remainder the week. They keep well in the refrigerator; and Harold loved them, too.
Here’s are others related changes that I made. I keep some fruit and vegetables where I can see it. I’m more likely to eat it, plus many like tomatoes taste better if they are never refrigerated.
I tried new products. Variety is the key, and I like to try new things. I discovered Jerusalem Artichokes doing this. Just google to see if roasting is a possibility. Some vegetables roast better than others, but most vegetables will do.
Here is some basic information. Roast your vegetables at high heat, about 450 degrees. This way, they will caramelize on the outside. This adds to the taste. Just line the pan with foil. It helps with the cleanup. Toss the vegetables with olive oil and lemon juice. This will keep them from drying out, and it adds to the flavor. Add some herbs, such as thyme, rosemary, oregano, or sage. I google to see which herbs go best with which vegetables. Don’t crowd the vegetables in the pan.
Betty Crocker bhg.com has a good page for this, Roast about 30 minutes turning or stirring at least once. This is so simple to do, love it! And I love the flavor too.
Now back to “The Skinny Rules”. Here’s the best part of all!
I was literally unable to eat all the vegetables I was allowed to eat. Not enough room in my tummy.
The Difference Between BB Creams & CC Creams
I use a CC Cream from time to time and I have tried several BB Creams; but I have to admit that BB Creams and CC Creams are beginning to confuse me, especially when you compare them to those from eastern countries.
Here is a good link to the blog “Musings of a Muse”. She explains it well.
Voice Texting?
My kids and I do a lot of texting. We are constantly sending each other little thoughts and comments.
I hardly ever use the keyboard anymore. Siri does my typing for me, and it works really well.
It occurred to me yesterday that someone should give us the option of voice texting so we can simply listen to the recorded voice instead of having to read anything. It would be so much better and safer for texting and walking, texting and driving, texting and biking, texting and shopping, etc., etc., etc.
The Big Dirt Nap!
The other night as I was having trouble sleeping, I began to worry that my earlier problems with sleeplessness had maybe returned. I had had a little trouble sleeping several nights in a row.
It turns out that I was wrong, because I fell asleep and slept like a baby that night. And I’m sleeping good ever since.
But I have to share with you a thought that entered my mind that night. I remember thinking how ironic a mother’s life is. When our kids are babies, we lose so much sleep that we are walking zombies. Their teenage years are not much better. I remember losing sleep waiting up for them and worrying about them.
Now, they’re all gone and having babies of their own, and I’m having trouble sleeping again. Where is the justice in that?
Then just before I dozed off, I remember thinking, “Oh well!! There’s always the big dirt nap!”
How many of you have trouble sleeping?
Did You Know That Florida is an Agricultural State?
Most people don’t know that about Florida. Yet, we’re seventh in the nation in agricultural production.
I grew up in a small town in central Florida, where agriculture was our prime economy. My family was involved in agriculture. It was a wonderful place to be raised, and I wouldn’t trade my childhood with anyone else’s.
Last week was the Agriculture Council of America’s National Ag Day, which is a day geared to recognize the abundance provided by our nation’s farmers and ranchers. National Ag Day is all about celebrating and recognizing the contributions they make to our everyday lives. I’m just sorry that I forgot to post something, so here is my contribution.
Agriculture provides almost everything we eat, use and wear on a daily basis; but most of us in America do not truly understand this. Our students usually are not exposed to agriculture, except unless they are enrolled in a related vocational class. Also, most Americans are raised in cities, and they never venture out into the countryside where agriculture takes place.
So I decided to give you a fact or two about agriculture in America. Did you know that?
1. Today, every American farmer feeds 144 people — In 1960 one farmer fed 25 people.
Quite simply, American agriculture is doing more – and doing it better with less. Farm and ranch families make up only 2% of our nation’s population. Farmers today produce 262% more food with 2% fewer inputs (such as seeds, labor, fertilizers) than they did in 1950.
2. One in Three Areas is Planted for Export.
As our world population soars, there will be an even greater demand for the food and fiber produced in the United States.
For every $1 spent on food, farmers get less than 12 cents for the raw product.
In 1830, it took about 250 to 300 labor hours to produce 100 bushels (5 acres) of wheat. In 1975, it took just 3¾ hours.
3. Farming employs more than 24 million Americans (17% of the total workforce). The number of farms operated by women have doubled in the U.S. since 1978.
Across the country, nearly 300,000 women serve as principal operators on 62.7 million acres of farm and ranch land, accounting for $12.9 billion in farm products in 2012. In my state alone (Florida), when you look at the principal farm and ranch operators by gender–according to the last ag census, 46,009 were men and 25,705 were women.
Agricultural efficiency has increased over the past century from 27.5 acres per worker in 1890 to 740 acres per worker in 1990.
4. Americans spend about 10% of their income on food, which is the lowest of any country. This means all of us have the other 90% of our income to spend on homes, clothing, and vacations. This also means that the economic backbone of America rests on our cheap, abundant food.
Most developed countries spend around 15% or more of their income on food. India spends about half of their income.
5. Agriculture employs more the 22 million people in lots of different jobs.
Agribusiness Management, Agricultural and Natural Resources Communications, Building Construction Management, Agriscience, Resource Development and Management; Parks, Recreations, and Tourism Resources; Packaging, Horticulture, Forestry, Food Science, and Fisheries/Wildlife are all categories of agricultural careers.
One out of every five semi truck drivers is hauling raw agricultural products. This does not include the grocery store trucks you see.
6. Need a job? Several agriculture careers are in demand.
Shortfalls of qualified graduates are needed to work as plant geneticists and plant breeders, climate change analysts, and food safety and security specialists. Anticipated during 2010–15, according to a Purdue University study.
7. 10 percent of all Americans are involved in farming.
One in 10 Americans play a role in the nation’s food and fiber supply, showing the extreme importance of agricultural awareness and understanding.
Agriculture is too important to only be taught to a small percentage of students considering careers in agriculture and pursuing vocational agricultural studies.
Digging Around in my Mental Attic?
“I’m so glad I’m not famous. I would hate to have this guy digging around in my mental attic.”
I’m reading the biography of P. L. Travers, the woman who wrote “Mary Poppins”. I found this quote in the book, “Mary Poppins, She Wrote: The Life of P. L. Travers” by Valerie Lawson.
Another quote was from a biographer…
“…biographer Michael Holroyd, who has said,
I discriminate between the rights of the living and the dead…When we are living we need all our sentimentalities, our evasions, our half-truths and our white lies, to get through life. When we are dead different rules apply.”
I have this book and am reading it myself. I’ll review it when I’m done.
Flynn Rider – Ladies ‘n Gentlemen: Tom Disney! …I mean, Walt Hanks!
I’m planning to write a review of the book “Mary Poppins, She Wrote: The Life of P. L. Travers”; but I admit that without this movie, I would never have taken this road. Here is a good review of the movie, which accurately reflects my viewpoint. Why reinvent the wheel, especially if someone else has done it better.
Meaning Different Things to Different People
I believe that poems mean different things to different people. In fact I even believe they can mean different things to the same person at a different time in their life.
I’m reading “Mary Poppins, She Wrote: The Life of P. L. Travers”. T. S. Eliot is quoted with a few lines from his poem “Little Gidding,” from “Four Quartets”. It spoke to me as a writer, but you must draw your own conclusions. The poem is below.
“What we call the beginning is often the end
And to make an end is to make a beginning.
The end is where we start from.
And every phrase and sentence that is right
(where every word is at home,
Taking its place to support the others,
The word neither diffident nor ostentatious,
An easy commerce of the old and the new,
The common word exact without vulgarity,
The formal word precise but not pedantic,
The complete consort dancing together.)
Every phrase and every sentence is an end and a beginning.
Every poem an epitaph. And any action
Is a step to the block, to the fire, down the sea’s throat
Or to an illegible stone: and that is where we start.
We die with the dying:
See, they depart, and we go with them.
We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.”
T. S. Eliot,
“Little Gidding,”
Four Quartets
I found that this is just an excerpt from the end of a much longer poem. I also found the following on Wikipedia when I looked up the poem to find out what others thought it meant. Wikipedia says, “The end of the poem describes how Eliot has attempted to help the world as a poet. He parallels his work in language with working on the soul or working on society.”
Maleficent’s Wings
I’m no Angelina Jolie fan, but this looks like a movie I want to see.
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